I 'll not wag an ace further.
Dryden.
To bate an ace, to make the least abatement. [Obs.] -- Within an ace of, very near; on the point of. W. Irving.
A*cel"da*ma (&?;), n. [Gr. &?;, fr. Syr. kl dam the field of blood.] The potter's field, said to have lain south of Jerusalem, purchased with the bribe which Judas took for betraying his Master, and therefore called the field of blood. Fig.: A field of bloodshed.
The system of warfare . . . which had already converted immense tracts into one universal aceldama.
De Quincey.
A*cen"tric (&?;), a. [Gr. 'a priv. + &?; a point, a center.] Not centered; without a center.
Ac"e*phal (&?;), n. [Gr. &?;; 'a priv. + &?; head: cf. F. acéphale, LL. acephalus.] (Zoöl.) One of the Acephala.
||A*ceph"a*la (&?;), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, adj. neut. pl., headless. See Acephal.] (Zoöl.) That division of the Mollusca which includes the bivalve shells, like the clams and oysters; -- so called because they have no evident head. Formerly the group included the Tunicata, Brachiopoda, and sometimes the Bryozoa. See Mollusca.
A*ceph"a*lan (&?;), n. Same as Acephal.
A*ceph"a*lan, a. (Zoöl.) Belonging to the Acephala.
||A*ceph"a*li (&?;), n. pl. [LL., pl. of acephalus. See Acephal.] 1. A fabulous people reported by ancient writers to have heads.
2. (Eccl. Hist.) (a) A Christian sect without a leader. (b) Bishops and certain clergymen not under regular diocesan control.