||Wa*was"keesh (?), n. [From an Indian name.] (Zoöl.) The wapiti, or
||wapiti, or American elk.
||
Wawe (w), n. [See Woe.] Woe. [Obs.]
Wawe (w), n. [OE. wawe, waghe; cf. Icel. vgr; akin to E. wag; not the
same word as wave.] A wave. [Obs.] Chaucer. Spenser.
Wawl (?), v. i. See Waul. Shak.
Wax (?), v. i. [imp. Waxed (?); p. p. Waxed, and Obs. or Poetic Waxen
(&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Waxing.] [AS. weaxan; akin to OFries. waxa, D.
wassen, OS. & OHG. wahsan, G. wachsen, Icel. vaxa, Sw. växa, Dan. voxe,
Goth. wahsjan, Gr. &?; to increase, Skr. waksh, uksh, to grow.
&?;&?;&?;. Cf. Waist.]
1. To increase in size; to grow bigger; to become larger or fuller; —
opposed to wane.
The waxing and the waning of the moon.
Hakewill.
Truth's treasures . . . never shall wax ne wane.
P. Plowman.
2. To pass from one state to another; to become; to grow; as, to wax
strong; to wax warmer or colder; to wax feeble; to wax old; to wax
worse and worse.
Your clothes are not waxen old upon you.
Deut. xxix. 5.
Where young Adonis oft reposes, Waxing well of his deep wound.
Milton.
Waxing kernels (Med.), small tumors formed by the enlargement of the
lymphatic glands, especially in the groins of children; — popularly so
called, because supposed to be caused by growth of the body. Dunglison.
Wax, n. [AS. weax; akin to OFries. wax, D. was, G. wachs, OHG. wahs,
Icel. & Sw. vax, Dan. vox, Lith. vaszkas, Russ. vosk'.]
1. A fatty, solid substance, produced by bees, and employed by them in
the construction of their comb; — usually called beeswax. It is first
excreted, from a row of pouches along their sides, in the form of
scales, which, being masticated and mixed with saliva, become whitened
and tenacious. Its natural color is pale or dull yellow.
Beeswax consists essentially of cerotic acid (constituting the more
soluble part) and of myricyl palmitate (constituting the less soluble
part).
2. Hence, any substance resembling beeswax in consistency or
appearance. Specifically: —
(a) (Physiol.) Cerumen, or earwax. See Cerumen.
(b) A waxlike composition used for uniting surfaces, for excluding air,
and for other purposes; as, sealing wax, grafting wax, etching wax,
etc.
(c) A waxlike composition used by shoemakers for rubbing their thread.
(d) (Zoöl.) A substance similar to beeswax, secreted by several species
of scale insects, as the Chinese wax. See Wax insect, below.
(e) (Bot.) A waxlike product secreted by certain plants. See Vegetable
wax, under Vegetable.
(f) (Min.) A substance, somewhat resembling wax, found in connection
with certain deposits of rock salt and coal; — called also mineral wax,
and ozocerite.
(g) Thick sirup made by boiling down the sap of the sugar maple, and
then cooling. [Local U. S.]
Japanese wax, a waxlike substance made in Japan from the berries of
certain species of Rhus, esp. R. succedanea. — Mineral wax. (Min.) See
Wax, 2 (f), above. — Wax cloth. See Waxed cloth, under Waxed. — Wax
end. See Waxed end, under Waxed. — Wax flower, a flower made of, or
resembling, wax. — Wax insect (Zoöl.), any one of several species of
scale insects belonging to the family Coccidæ, which secrete from their
bodies a waxlike substance, especially the Chinese wax insect (Coccus
Sinensis) from which a large amount of the commercial Chinese wax is
obtained. Called also pela. — Wax light, a candle or taper of wax. —
Wax moth (Zoöl.), a pyralid moth (Galleria cereana) whose larvæ feed
upon honeycomb, and construct silken galleries among the fragments. The
moth has dusky gray wings streaked with brown near the outer edge. The
larva is yellowish white with brownish dots. Called also bee moth. —
Wax myrtle. (Bot.) See Bayberry. — Wax painting, a kind of painting
practiced by the ancients, under the name of encaustic. The pigments
were ground with wax, and diluted. After being applied, the wax was
melted with hot irons and the color thus fixed. — Wax palm. (Bot.) (a)
A species of palm (Ceroxylon Andicola) native of the Andes, the stem of
which is covered with a secretion, consisting of two thirds resin and
one third wax, which, when melted with a third of fat, makes excellent
candles. (b) A Brazilian tree (Copernicia cerifera) the young leaves of
which are covered with a useful waxy secretion. — Wax paper, paper
prepared with a coating of white wax and other ingredients. — Wax plant
(Bot.), a name given to several plants, as: (a) The Indian pipe (see
under Indian). (b) The Hoya carnosa, a climbing plant with polished,
fleshy leaves. (c) Certain species of Begonia with similar foliage. —
Wax tree (Bot.) (a) A tree or shrub (Ligustrum lucidum) of China, on
which certain insects make a thick deposit of a substance resembling
white wax. (b) A kind of sumac (Rhus succedanea) of Japan, the berries
of which yield a sort of wax. (c) A rubiaceous tree (Elæagia utilis) of
New Grenada, called by the inhabitants "arbol del cera." — Wax yellow,
a dull yellow, resembling the natural color of beeswax.
<! p. 1635 !>
Wax (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Waxed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Waxing.] To
smear or rub with wax; to treat with wax; as, to wax a thread or a
table.
Waxed cloth, cloth covered with a coating of wax, used as a cover, of
tables and for other purposes; — called also wax cloth. — Waxed end, a
thread pointed with a bristle and covered with shoemaker's wax, used in
sewing leather, as for boots, shoes, and the like; — called also wax
end. Brockett.
Wax"ber`ry (?), n. (Bot.) The wax-covered fruit of the wax myrtle, or
bayberry. See Bayberry, and Candleberry tree.
Wax"bill` (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of finchlike
birds belonging to Estrelda and allied genera, native of Asia, Africa,
and Australia. The bill is large, conical, and usually red in color,
resembling sealing wax. Several of the species are often kept as cage
birds.
Wax"bird` (?), (Zoöl.) The waxwing.
Wax"en (?), a. 1. Made of wax. "The female bee, that . . . builds her
waxen cells." Milton.