E*rad"i*ca*tive (?), a. [Cf. éradicatif.] Tending or serving to eradicate; curing or destroying thoroughly, as a disease or any evil.
E*rad"i*ca*tive, n. (Med.) A medicine that effects a radical cure. Whitlock.
E*ras"a*ble (?), a. Capable of being erased.
E*rase" (*rs"), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Erased (-rst"); p. pr. & vb. n.. Erasing.] [L. erasus, p. p. of eradere to erase; e out + radere to scrape, scratch, shave. See Rase.] 1. To rub or scrape out, as letters or characters written, engraved, or painted; to efface; to expunge; to cross out; as, to erase a word or a name.
2. Fig.: To obliterate; to expunge; to blot out; -- used of ideas in the mind or memory. Burke.
E*rased" (*rst"), p. p. & a. 1. Rubbed or scraped out; effaced; obliterated.
2. (Her.) Represented with jagged and uneven edges, as is torn off; -- used esp. of the head or limb of a beast. Cf. Couped.
E*rase"ment (rs"ment), n. The act of erasing; a rubbing out; expunction; obliteration. Johnson.
E*ras"er (?), n. One who, or that which, erases; esp., a sharp instrument or a piece of rubber used to erase writings, drawings, etc.
E*ra"sion (?), n. The act of erasing; a rubbing out; obliteration.
E*ras"tian (?; 106), n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of the followers of Thomas Erastus, a German physician and theologian of the 16th century. He held that the punishment of all offenses should be referred to the civil power, and that holy communion was open to all. In the present day, an Erastian is one who would see the church placed entirely under the control of the State. Shipley.
E*ras"tian*ism (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) The principles of the Erastains.
E*ra"sure (?; 135), n. [From Erase.] The act of erasing; a scratching out; obliteration.
Er"a*tive (?), a. Pertaining to the Muse Erato who presided over amatory poetry. Stormonth.
Er"a*to (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to love.] (Class. Myth.) The Muse who presided over lyric and amatory poetry.
Er"bi*um (?), n. [NL. from Ytterby, in Sweden, where gadolinite is found. Cf. Terbium, Yttrium, Ytterbium.] (Chem.) A rare metallic element associated with several other rare elements in the mineral gadolinite from Ytterby in Sweden. Symbol Er. Atomic weight 165.9. Its salts are rose-colored and give characteristic spectra. Its sesquioxide is called erbia.
Er`ce*de"ken (?), n. [OE., fr. pref. erce- = archi- + deken a deacon.] An archdeacon. [Obs.]
Erd (?), n. [OE. erd, eard, earth, land, country, AS. eard; akin to OS. ard dwelling place, OHG. art plowing, tillage, Icel. örð crop, and to L. arare to plow, E. ear to plow.] The earth. [Prov. Eng.] Wright.
Erd shrew (Zoöl.), the common European shrew (Sorex vulgaris); the shrewmouse.
Ere (r or âr; 277), prep. & adv. [AS. r, prep., adv., & conj.; akin to OS., OFries., & OHG. r, G. eher, D. eer, Icel. r, Goth. air. √204. Cf. Early, Erst, Or, adv.] 1. Before; sooner than. [Archaic or Poetic]
Myself was stirring ere the break of day.
Shak.
Ere sails were spread new oceans to explore.
Dryden.
Sir, come down ere my child die.
John iv. 49.