2. (Anat.) One of the granular masses which constitute a racemose or compound gland, as the pancreas; also, one of the saccular recesses in the lobules of a racemose gland.
Quain.
Ø Ac·iÏpen¶ser (#), n. [L., the name of a fish.] (Zo”l.) A genus of ganoid fishes, including the sturgeons, having the body armed with bony scales, and the mouth on the under side of the head. See Sturgeon.
Ac¶iÏur·gy (#), n. [Gr. ? a point + ? work.] Operative surgery.
AcÏknow¶ (#), v. t. [Pref. aÏ + know; AS. oncn¾wan.] 1. To recognize. [Obs.] ½You will not be acknown, sir.¸
B. Jonson.
2. To acknowledge; to confess. [Obs.]
Chaucer.
To be acknown (often with of or on), to acknowledge; to confess. [Obs.]
We say of a stubborn body that standeth still in the denying of his fault. This man will now acknowledge his fault, or, He will not be acknown of his fault.
Sir T. More.
AcÏknowl¶edge (#), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Acknowledged (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Acknowledging (#).] [Prob. fr. pref. aÏ + the verb knowledge. See Knowledge, and ci. Acknow.] 1. To of or admit the knowledge of; to recognize as a fact or truth; to declare one's belief in; as, to acknowledge the being of a God.
I acknowledge my transgressions.
Ps. li. 3.
For ends generally acknowledged to be good.
Macaulay.
2. To own or recognize in a particular character or relationship; to admit the claims or authority of; to give recognition to.
In all thy ways acknowledge Him.
Prov. iii. 6.
By my soul, I'll ne'er acknowledge thee.
Shak.
3. To own with gratitude or as a benefit or an obligation; as, to acknowledge a favor, the receipt of a letter.
They his gifts acknowledged none.
Milton.
4. To own as genuine; to assent to, as a legal instrument, to give it validity; to avow or admit in legal form; as, to acknowledgea deed.
Syn. Ð To avow; proclaim; recognize; own; admit; allow; concede; confess. Ð Acknowledge, Recognize. Acknowledge is opposed to keep back, or conceal, and supposes that something had been previously known to us (though perhaps not to others) which we now feel bound to lay open or make public. Thus, a man acknowledges a secret marriage; one who has done wrong acknowledges his fault; and author acknowledge his obligation to those who have aided him; we acknowledge our ignorance. Recognize supposes that we have either forgotten or not had the evidence of a thing distinctly before our minds, but that now we know it (as it were) anew, or receive and admit in on the ground of the evidence it brings. Thus, we recognize a friend after a long absence. We recognize facts, principles, truths, etc., when their evidence is brought up fresh to the mind; as, bad men usually recognize the providence of God in seasons of danger. A foreign minister, consul, or agent, of any kind, is recognized on the ground of his producing satisfactory credentials. See also Confess.
AcÏknowl¶edgedÏly (#), adv. Confessedly.
AcÏknowl¶edgÏer (#), n. One who acknowledges.
AcÏknowl¶edgÏment (#), n. 1. The act of acknowledging; admission; avowal; owning; confession. ½An acknowledgment of fault.¸
Froude.
2. The act of owning or recognized in a particular character or relationship; recognition as regards the existence, authority, truth, or genuineness.
Immediately upon the acknowledgment of the Christian faith, the eunuch was baptized by Philip.
Hooker.
3. The owning of a benefit received; courteous recognition; expression of thanks.
Shak.
4. Something given or done in return for a favor, message, etc.
Smollett.
5. A declaration or avowal of one's own act, to give it legal validity; as, the acknowledgment of a deed before a proper officer. Also, the certificate of the officer attesting such declaration.
Acknowledgment money, in some parts of England, a sum paid by copyhold tenants, on the death of their landlords, as an acknowledgment of their new lords.
Cowell.
Syn. Ð Confession; concession; recognition; admission; avowal; recognizance.
AÏclin¶ic (#), a. [Gr. ? priv. + ? to incline.] (Physics.) Without inclination or dipping; Ð said the magnetic needle balances itself horizontally, having no dip. The aclinic line is also termed the magnetic equator.
Prof. August.
Ac¶me (#), n. [Gr. ? point, top.] 1. The top or highest point; the culmination.
The very acme and pitch of life for epic poetry.
Pope.
The moment when a certain power reaches the acme of its supremacy.
I. Taylor.
2. (Med.) The crisis or height of a disease.
3. Mature age; full bloom of life.
B. Jonson.
Ac¶ne (#), n. [NL., prob. a corruption of Gr. ?] (Med.) A pustular affection of the skin, due to changes in the sebaceous glands.
AcÏno¶dal (#), a. Pertaining to acnodes.
Ac¶node (#), n. [L. acus needle + E. node.] (Geom.) An isolated point not upon a curve, but whose co”rdinates satisfy the equation of the curve so that it is considered as belonging to the curve.
AÏcock¶ (#), adv. [Pref. aÏ + cock.] In a cocked or turned up fashion.
AÏcock¶bill· (#), adv. [Prefix aÏ + cock + bill: with bills cocked up.] (Naut.) (a) Hanging at the cathead, ready to let go, as an anchor. (b) Topped up; having one yardarm higher than the other.
AÏcold¶ (#), a. [Prob. p. p. of OE. acolen to grow cold or cool, AS. ¾c?lian to grow cold; pref. aÏ (cf. Goth. erÏ, orig. meaning out) + c?lian to cool. See Cool.] Cold. [Obs.] ½Poor Tom's acold.¸
Shak.
Ac·oÏlog¶ic (#), a. Pertaining to acology.
AÏcol¶oÏgy (#), n. [Gr. ? remedy + Ïlogy.] Materia medica; the science of remedies.
AÏcol¶oÏthist (#), n. See Acolythist.
Ac·oÏlyc¶tine (#), n. [From the name of the plant.] (Chem.) An organic base, in the form of a white powder, obtained from Aconitum lycoctonum.
Eng. Cyc.
Ac·oÏlyte (#), n. [LL. acolythus, acoluthus, Gr. ? following, attending: cf. F. acolyte.]
1. (Eccl.) One who has received the highest of the four minor orders in the Catholic church, being ordained to carry the wine and water and the lights at the Mass.
2. One who attends; an assistant. ½With such chiefs, and with James and John as acolytes.¸
Motley.
Ac¶oÏlyth (#), n. Same as Acolyte.
AÏcol¶yÏthist (#), n. An acolyte. [Obs.]
AÏcond¶dyÏlose· (#), AÏcon¶dyÏlous (#), } a. [Gr. ? priv. + ? joint.] (Nat. Hist.) Being without joints; jointless.
Ac·oÏni¶tal (#), a. Of the nature of aconite.
Ac¶oÏnite (#), n. [L. aconitum, Gr. ?: cf. F. aconit.] 1. (Bot.) The herb wolfsbane, or monkshood; Ð applied to any plant of the genus Aconitum (tribe Hellebore), all the species of which are poisonous.
2. An extract or tincture obtained from Aconitum napellus, used as a poison and medicinally.
Winter aconite, a plant (Eranthis hyemalis) allied to the aconites.
Ø Ac·oÏni¶tiÏa (#), n. (Chem.) Same as Aconitine.
Ac·oÏnit¶ic (#), a. Of or pertaining to aconite.
AÏcon¶iÏtine (#), n. (Chem.) An intensely poisonous alkaloid, extracted from aconite.
Ø Ac·oÏni¶tum (#), n. [L. See Aconite.] The poisonous herb aconite; also, an extract from it.
Strong
As aconitum or rash gunpowder.
Shak.
Ø AÏcon¶tiÏa (#), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. ? a little dart.] (Zo”l.) Threadlike defensive organs, composed largely of nettling cells (cnid‘), thrown out of the mouth or special pores of certain Actini‘ when irritated.
Ø AÏcon¶tiÏas (#), n. [NL., from Gr. ?, fr. ?, dim. ? dart.] (Zo”l.) Anciently, a snake, called dart snake; now, one of a genus of reptiles closely allied to the lizards.
AÏcop¶ic (#), a. [Gr. ? priv. + ? striking. weariness, ? to strike.] (Med.) Relieving weariness; restorative.
Buchanan.
A¶corn (#), n. [AS. ‘cern, fr. ‘cer field, acre; akin to D. aker acorn, Ger. ecker, Icel. akarn, Dan. agern, Goth. akran fruit, akrs field; Ð orig. fruit of the field. See Acre.] 1. The fruit of the oak, being an oval nut growing in a woody cup or cupule.
2. (Naut.) A coneÐshaped piece of wood on the point of the spindle above the vane, on the mastÐhead.
3. (Zo”l.) See AcornÐshell.
A¶corn cup (#). The involucre or cup in which the acorn is fixed.
A¶corned (#), a. 1. Furnished or loaded with acorns.
2. Fed or filled with acorns. [R.]
Shak.
A¶cornÐshell· (#), n. (Zo”l.) One of the sessile cirripeds; a barnacle of the genus Balanus. See Barnacle.
AÏcos¶mism (#), n. [Gr. ? priv. + ? world.] A denial of the existence of the universe as distinct from God.
AÏcos¶mist (#), n. [See Acosmism.] One who denies the existence of the universe, or of a universe as distinct from God.
G. H. Lewes.
AÏcot·yÏle¶don (#; 277), n. [Gr. ? priv. + ? anything cupÐshaped. See Cotyledon.] (Bot.) A plant which has no cotyledons, as the dodder and all flowerless plants.
AÏcot·yÏled¶onÏous (#; 277), a. Having no seed lobes, as the dodder; also applied to plants which have no true seeds, as ferns, mosses, etc.
AÏcou¶chy (#), n. [F. acouchi, from the native name Guiana.] (Zo”l.) A small species of agouti (Dasyprocta acouchy).
AÏcou¶meÏter (#), n. [Gr. ? to hear + Ïmeter.] (Physics.) An instrument for measuring the acuteness of the sense of hearing.
Itard.
AÏcou¶meÏtry (#), n. [Gr. ? to hear + Ïmetry.] The measuring of the power or extent of hearing.
AÏcous¶tic (#; 277), a. [F. acoustique, Gr. ? relating to hearing, fr. ? to hear.] Pertaining to the sense of hearing, the organs of hearing, or the science of sounds; auditory.
Acoustic duct, the auditory duct, or external passage of the ear. Ð Acoustic telegraph, a telegraph making audible signals; a telephone. Ð Acoustic vessels, brazen tubes or vessels, shaped like a bell, used in ancient theaters to propel the voices of the actors, so as to render them audible to a great distance.
AÏcous¶tic, n. A medicine or agent to assist hearing.
AÏcous¶ticÏal (#), a. Of or pertaining to acoustics.
AÏcous¶ticÏalÏly (#), adv. In relation to sound or to hearing.
Tyndall.
Ac·ousÏti¶cian (#), n. One versed in acoustics.
Tyndall.
AÏcous¶tics (#; 277), n. [Names of sciences in Ïics, as, acoustics, mathematics, etc., are usually treated as singular. See Ïics.] (Physics.) The science of sounds, teaching their nature, phenomena, and laws.
Acoustics, then, or the science of sound, is a very considerable branch of physics.
Sir J. Herschel.
µ The science is, by some writers, divided, into diacoustics, which explains the properties of sounds coming directly from the ear; and catacoustica, which treats of reflected sounds or echoes.
AcÏquaint¶ (#), a. [OF. acoint. See Acquaint, v. t.] Acquainted. [Obs. or Archaic]
AcÏquaint¶, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Acquainted; p. pr. & vb. n. Acquainting.] [OE. aqueinten, acointen, OF. acointier, LL. adcognitare, fr. L. ad + cognitus, p. p. of cognoscere to know; conÏ + noscere to know. See Quaint, Know.] 1. To furnish or give experimental knowledge of; to make (one) to know; to make familiar; Ð followed by with.
Before a man can speak on any subject, it is necessary to be acquainted with it.
Locke.
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
Isa. liii. 3.
2. To communicate notice to; to inform; to make cognizant; Ð followed by with (formerly, also, by of), or by that, introducing the intelligence; as, to acquaint a friend with the particulars of an act.
Acquaint her here of my son Paris' love.
Shak.
I must acquaint you that I have received
New dated letters from Northumberland.
Shak.
3. To familiarize; to accustom. [Obs.]
Evelyn.
To be acquainted with, to be possessed of personal knowledge of; to be cognizant of; to be more or less familiar with; to be on terms of social intercourse with.
Syn. Ð To inform; apprise; communicate; advise.
AcÏquaint¶aÏble (#), a. [Cf. OF. acointable. Easy to be acquainted with; affable. [Obs.]
Rom. of R.
AcÏquaint¶ance (#), n. [OE. aqueintance, OF. acointance, fr. acointier. See Acquaint.] 1. A state of being acquainted, or of having intimate, or more than slight or superficial, knowledge; personal knowledge gained by intercourse short of that of friendship or intimacy; as, I know the man; but have no acquaintance with him.
Contract no friendship, or even acquaintance, with a guileful man.
Sir W. Jones.
2. A person or persons with whom one is acquainted.
Montgomery was an old acquaintance of Ferguson.
Macaulay.
µ In this sense the collective term acquaintance was formerly both singular and plural, but it is now commonly singular, and has the regular plural acquaintances.
To be of acquaintance, to be intimate. Ð To take acquaintance of or with, to make the acquaintance of. [Obs.]
Syn. Ð Familiarity; intimacy; fellowship; knowledge. Ð Acquaintance, Familiarity, Intimacy. These words mark different degrees of closeness in social intercourse. Acquaintance arises from occasional intercourse; as, our acquaintance has been a brief one. We can speak of a slight or an intimate acquaintance. Familiarity is the result of continued acquaintance. It springs from persons being frequently together, so as to wear off all restraint and reserve; as, the familiarity of old companions. Intimacy is the result of close connection, and the freest interchange of thought; as, the intimacy of established friendship.
Our admiration of a famous man lessens upon our nearer acquaintance with him.
Addison.
We contract at last such a familiarity with them as makes it difficult and irksome for us to call off our minds.
Atterbury.
It is in our power to confine our friendships and intimacies to men of virtue.
Rogers.
AcÏquaint¶anceÏship, n. A state of being acquainted; acquaintance.
Southey.
AcÏquaint¶ant (#), n. [Cf. F. acointant, p. pr.] An acquaintance. [R.]
Swift.
AcÏquaint¶ed, a. Personally known; familiar. See To be acquainted with, under Acquaint, v. t.
AcÏquaint¶edÏness, n. State of being acquainted; degree of acquaintance. [R.]
Boyle.
AcÏquest¶ (#), n. [OF. aquest, F. acquˆt, fr. LL. acquestum, acquisÆtum, for L. acquisÆtum, p. p. (used substantively) of acquirere to acquire. See Acquire.]
1. Acquisition; the thing gained. [R.]
Bacon.
2. (Law) Property acquired by purchase, gift, or otherwise than by inheritance.
Bouvier.
Ac·quiÏesce¶ (#), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Acquiesced (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Acquiescing (#)] [ L. acquiescere; ad + quiescere to be quiet, fr. quies rest: cf. F. acquiescer. See Quiet.] 1. To rest satisfied, or apparently satisfied, or to rest without opposition and discontent (usually implying previous opposition or discontent); to accept or consent by silence or by omitting to object; Ð followed by in, formerly also by with and to.
They were compelled to acquiesce in a government which they did not regard as just.
De Quincey.
2. To concur upon conviction; as, to acquiesce in an opinion; to assent to; usually, to concur, not heartily but so far as to forbear opposition.
Syn. Ð To submit; comply; yield; assent; agree; consent; accede; concur; conform; accept tacitly.
Ac·quiÏes¶cence (#), n. [Cf. F. acquiescence.]
1. A silent or passive assent or submission, or a submission with apparent content; Ð distinguished from avowed consent on the one hand, and on the other, from opposition or open discontent; quiet satisfaction.
2. (Crim. Law) (a) Submission to an injury by the party injured. (b) Tacit concurrence in the action of another.
Wharton.
p. 17
Ac·quiÏes¶cenÏcy (#), n. The quality of being acquiescent; acquiescence.
Ac· quiÏes¶cent (#), a. [L. acquiescens, Ï?entis; p. pr.] Resting satisfied or submissive; disposed tacitly to submit; assentive; as, an acquiescent policy.
Ac·quiÏes¶centÏly, adv. In an acquiescent manner.
AcÏqui¶et (#), v. t. [LL. acquietare; L. ad + quies rest. See Quiet and cf. Acquit.] To quiet. [Obs.]
Acquiet his mind from stirring you against your own peace.
Sir A. Sherley.
AcÏquir¶aÏbil¶iÏty (#), n. The quality of being acquirable; attainableness. [R.]
Paley.
AcÏquir¶aÏble (#), a. Capable of being acquired.
AcÏquire¶ (#), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Acquired (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Acquiring (#).] [L. acquirere, acquisitum; ad + quarere to seek for. In OE. was a verb aqueren, fr. the same, through OF. aquerre. See Quest..] To gain, usually by one's own exertions; to get as one's own; as, to acquire a title, riches, knowledge, skill, good or bad habits.
No virtue is acquired in an instant, but step by step.
Barrow.
Descent is the title whereby a man, on the death of his ancestor, acquires his estate, by right of representation, as his heir at law.
Blackstone.
Syn. Ð To obtain; gain; attain; procure; win; earn; secure. See Obtain.
AcÏquire¶ment (#), n. The act of acquiring, or that which is acquired; attainment. ½Rules for the acquirement of a taste.¸
Addison.
His acquirements by industry were... enriched and enlarged by many excellent endowments of nature.
Hayward.
Syn. Ð Acquisition, Acquirement. Acquirement is used in opposition to a natural gift or talent; as, eloquence, and skill in music and painting, are acquirements; genius is the gift or endowment of nature. It denotes especially personal attainments, in opposition to material or external things gained, which are more usually called acquisitions; but this distinction is not always observed.
AcÏquir¶er (#), n. A person who acquires.
AcÏquir¶y (#), n. Acquirement. [Obs.]
Barrow.
Ac¶quiÏsite (#), a. [L. acquisitus, p. p. of acquirere. See Acquire.] Acquired. [Obs.]
Burton.
Ac·quiÏsi¶tion (#), n. [L. acquisitio, fr. acquirere: cf. F. acquisition. See Acquire.] 1. The act or process of acquiring.
The acquisition or loss of a province.
Macaulay.
2. The thing acquired or gained; an acquirement; a gain; as, learning is an acquisition.
Syn. Ð See Acquirement.
AcÏquis¶iÏtive (#), a. 1. Acquired. [Obs.]
He died not in his acquisitive, but in his native soil.
Wotton.
2. Able or disposed to make acquisitions; acquiring; as, an acquisitive person or disposition.
AcÏquis¶iÏtiveÏly, adv. In the way of acquisition.
AcÏquis¶iÏtiveÏness, n. 1. The quality of being acquisitive; propensity to acquire property; desire of possession.
2. (Phren.) The faculty to which the phrenologists attribute the desire of acquiring and possessing.
Combe.
AcÏquis¶iÏtor (#), n. One who acquires.
AcÏquist¶ (#), n. [Cf. Acquest.] Acquisition; gain.
Milton.
AcÏquit¶ (#), p. p. Acquitted; set free; rid of. [Archaic]
Shak.
AcÏquit¶, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Acquitted; p. pr. & vb. n. Acquitting.] [OE. aquiten, OF. aquiter, F. acquitter; ? (L. ad) + OF. quiter, F. quitter, to quit. See Quit, and cf. Acquiet.] 1. To discharge, as a claim or debt; to clear off; to pay off; to requite.
A responsibility that can never be absolutely acquitted.
I. Taylor.
2. To pay for; to atone for. [Obs.]
Shak.
3. To set free, release or discharge from an obligation, duty, liability, burden, or from an accusation or charge; Ð now followed by of before the charge, formerly by from; as, the jury acquitted the prisoner; we acquit a man of evil intentions.
4. Reflexively: (a) To clear one's self.k. (b) To bear or conduct one's self; to perform one's part; as, the soldier acquitted himself well in battle; the orator acquitted himself very poorly.
Syn. Ð To absolve; clear; exonerate; exonerate; exculpate; release; discharge. See Absolve.
AcÏquit¶ment (#), n. [Cf. OF. aquitement.] Acquittal. [Obs.]
Milton.
AcÏquit¶tal (#), n. 1. The act of acquitting; discharge from debt or obligation; acquittance.
2. (Law) A setting free, or deliverance from the charge of an offense, by verdict of a jury or sentence of a court.
Bouvier.
AcÏquit¶tance (#), n. [OF. aquitance, fr. aquiter. See Acquit.] 1. The clearing off of debt or obligation; a release or discharge from debt or other liability.
2. A writing which is evidence of a discharge; a receipt in full, which bars a further demand.
You can produce acquittances
For such a sum, from special officers.
Shak.
AcÏquit¶tance, v. t. To acquit. [Obs.]
Shak.
AcÏquit¶ter (#), n. One who acquits or releases.
Ø AÏcra¶niÏa (#), n. [NL., from Gr. ? priv. + ? skull.] 1. (Physiol.) Partial or total absence of the skull.
2. pl. (Zo”l.) The lowest group of Vertebrata, including the amphioxus, in which no skull exists.
AÏcra¶niÏal (#), a. Wanting a skull.
AÏcrase¶, AÏcraze¶ } (#), v. t. [Pref. aÏ + crase; or cf. F. ‚craser to crush. See Crase, Craze.]
1. To craze. [Obs.]
Grafton.
2. To impair; to destroy. [Obs.]
Hacket.
Ø AÏcra¶siÏa (#), Ac¶raÏsy (#) } n. [Gr. ?.] Excess; intemperance. [Obs. except in Med.]
Farindon.
Ø AÏcras¶peÏda (#), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. ? priv. + ? border.] (Zo”l.) A group of acalephs, including most of the larger jellyfishes; the Discophora.
A¶cre (#), n. [OE. aker, AS. ‘cer; akin to OS. accar, OHG. achar, Ger. acker, Icel. akr, Sw. †ker, Dan. ager, Goth. akrs, L. ager, Gr. ?, Skr. ajra. ?.] 1. Any field of arable or pasture land. [Obs.]
2. A piece of land, containing 160 square rods, or 4,840 square yards, or 43,560 square feet. This is the English statute acre. That of the United States is the same. The Scotch acre was about 1.26 of the English, and the Irish 1.62 of the English.
µ The acre was limited to its present definite quantity by statutes of Edward I., Edward III., and Henry VIII.
Broad acres, many acres, much landed estate. [Rhetorical] Ð God's acre, God's field; the churchyard.
I like that ancient Saxon phrase, which calls
The burial ground, God's acre.
Longfellow.
A¶creÏaÏble (#), a. Of an acre; per acre; as, the acreable produce.
A¶creÏage (#), n. Acres collectively; as, the acreage of a farm or a country.
A¶cred (#), a. Possessing acres or landed property; Ð used in composition; as, largeÐacred men.
Ac¶rid (#), a. [L. acer sharp; prob. assimilated in form to acid. See Eager.] 1. Sharp and harsh, or bitter and not, to the taste; pungent; as, acrid salts.
2. Causing heat and irritation; corrosive; as, acrid secretions.
3. Caustic; bitter; bitterly irritating; as, acrid temper, mind, writing.
Acrid poison, a poison which irritates, corrodes, or burns the parts to which it is applied.
AÏcrid¶iÏty (#), Ac¶ridÏness (#) } n. The quality of being acrid or pungent; irritant bitterness; acrimony; as, the acridity of a plant, of a speech.
Ac¶ridÏly (#), adv. In an acid manner.
Ac¶riÏmo¶niÏous (#), a. [Cf. LL. acrimonious, F. acrimonieux.] 1. Acrid; corrosive; as, acrimonious gall. [Archaic]
Harvey.
2. Caustic; bitterÐtempered' sarcastic; as, acrimonious dispute, language, temper.
Ac·riÏmo¶niÏousÏly, adv. In an acrimonious manner.
Ac·riÏmo¶niÏousÏness, n. The quality of being acrimonious; asperity; acrimony.
Ac¶riÏmoÏny (#), n.; pl. Acrimonies (#). [L. acrimonia, fr. acer, sharp: cf. F. acrimonie.] 1. A quality of bodies which corrodes or destroys others; also, a harsh or biting sharpness; as, the acrimony of the juices of certain plants. [Archaic]
Bacon.
2. Sharpness or severity, as of language or temper; irritating bitterness of disposition or manners.
John the Baptist set himself with much acrimony and indignation to baffle this senseless arrogant conceit of theirs.
South.
Syn. Ð Acrimony, Asperity, Harshness, Tartness. These words express different degrees of angry feeling or language. Asperity and harshness arise from angry feelings, connected with a disregard for the feelings of others. Harshness usually denotes needless severity or an undue measure of severity. Acrimony is a biting sharpness produced by an imbittered spirit. Tartness denotes slight asperity and implies some degree of intellectual readiness. Tartness of reply; harshness of accusation; acrimony of invective.
In his official letters he expressed, with great acrimony, his contempt for the king's character.
Macaulay.
It is no very cynical asperity not to confess obligations where no benefit has been received.
Johnson.
A just reverence of mankind prevents the growth of harshness and brutality.
Shaftesbury.
Ø AÏcris¶iÏa (#), Ac¶riÏsy (#), } n. [LL. acrisia, Gr. ?; ? priv. + ? to separate, to decide.] 1. Inability to judge.
2. (Med.) Undecided character of a disease. [Obs.]
Ø Ac¶riÏta (#), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. ? indiscernible; ? priv. + ? to distinguish.] (Zo”l.) The lowest groups of animals, in which no nervous system has been observed.
Ac¶riÏtan (#), a. (Zo”l.) Of or pertaining to the Acrita. Ð n. An individual of the Acrita.
Ac¶rite (#), a. (Zo”l.) Acritan.
Owen.
AÏcrit¶icÏal (#), a. [Gr. ? priv. + ? critical.] (Med.) Having no crisis; giving no indications of a crisis; as, acritical symptoms, an acritical abscess.
Ac·riÏtoÏchro¶maÏcy (#), n. [Gr. ? undistinguishable; ? priv. + ? to separate, distinguish + ? color.] Color blindness; achromatopsy.
Ac¶riÏtude (#), n. [L. acritudo, from acer sharp.] Acridity; pungency joined with heat. [Obs.]
Ac¶riÏty (#), n. [L. acritas, fr. acer sharp: cf. F. ƒcret‚.] Sharpness; keenness. [Obs.]
Ac·roÏaÏmat¶ic (#), Ac·roÏaÏmat¶icÏal (#), } a. [Gr. ?, fr. ? to hear.] Communicated orally; oral; Ð applied to the esoteric teachings of Aristotle, those intended for his genuine disciples, in distinction from his exoteric doctrines, which were adapted to outsiders or the public generally. Hence: Abstruse; profound.
Ac·roÏat¶ic (#), a. [Gr. ?, fr. ? to hear.] Same as Acroamatic.
Ac¶roÏbat (#), n. [F. acrobate, fr. Gr. ? walking on tiptoe, climbing aloft; ? high + ? to go.] One who practices rope dancing, high vaulting, or other daring gymnastic feats.
Ac·roÏbat¶ic (#), a. [Cf. F. acrobatique.] Pertaining to an acrobat. Ð Ac·roÏbat¶icÏalÏly, adv.
Ac¶roÏbatÏism (#), n. Feats of the acrobat; daring gymnastic feats; high vaulting.
Ac·roÏcar¶pous (#), a. [Gr. ? extreme, highest + ? fruit.] (Bot.) (a) Having a terminal fructification; having the fruit at the end of the stalk. (b) Having the fruit stalks at the end of a leafy stem, as in certain mosses.
Ac·roÏceÏphal¶ic (#), a. [Gr. ? highest + ?. See Cephalic.] Characterized by a high skull.
Ac·roÏcerph¶aÏly (#), n. Loftiness of skull.
Ac·roÏceÏrau¶niÏan (#), a. [L. acroceraunius, fr. Gr. ? high, n. pl. ? heights + ? thunderbolt.] Of or pertaining to the high mountain range of ½thunderÐsmitten¸ peaks (now Kimara), between Epirus and Macedonia.
Shelley.
Ø Ac·roÏdac¶tylÏum (#), n. [NL., from Gr. ? topmost + ? finger.] (Zo”l.) The upper surface of the toes, individually.
Ac¶roÏdont (#), n. [Gr. ? summit + ?, ?, a tooth.] (Zo”l.) One of a group of lizards having the teeth immovably united to the top of the alveolar ridge. Ð a. Of or pertaining to the acrodonts.
Ac¶roÏgen (#), n. [Gr. ? extreme, high + Ïgen.]
Ac¶roÏgen (#), n. [Gr. ? extreme, high + Ïgen.] (Bot.) A plant of the highest class of cryptograms, including the ferns, etc. See Cryptogamia.
The Age of Acrogens (Geol.), the age of coal plants, or the carboniferous era.
AcÏrog¶eÏnous (#), a. (Bot.) Increasing by growth from the extremity; as, an acrogenous plant.
AÏcro¶leÏin (#), n. [L. acer sharp + ol?re to smell.] (Chem.) A limpid, colorless, highly volatile liquid, obtained by the dehydration of glycerin, or the destructive distillation of neutral fats containing glycerin. Its vapors are intensely irritating.
Watts.
Ac¶roÏlith (#), n. [L. acrolthus, Gr. ? with the ends made of stone; ? extreme + ? stone.] (Arch. & Sculp.) A statue whose extremities are of stone, the trunk being generally of wood.
Elmes.
AÏcrol¶iÏthan (#), Ac·roÏlith¶ic (#), } a. Pertaining to, or like, an acrolith.
Ac·roÏmeg¶aÏly (#), n. [NL. acromegalia, fr. Gr. ? point, peak + ?, ?, big.] (Med.) Chronic enlargement of the extreinities and face.
AÏcro¶miÏal (#), a. [Cf. F. acromial.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the acromion.
Dunglison.
Ø AÏcro¶miÏon (#), n. [Gr. ?; ? extreme + ? shoulder: cf. F. acromion.] (Anat.) The outer extremity of the shoulder blade.
Ac·roÏmon·oÏgramÏmat¶ic (#), a. [Gr. ? extreme + ? alone + ? a letter.] Having each verse begin with the same letter as that with which the preceding verse ends.
AÏcron¶yc (#), AÏcron¶ychÏal (#), } a. [Gr. ? at nightfall; ? + ? night.] (Astron.) Rising at sunset and setting at sunrise, as a star; Ð opposed to cosmical.
µ The word is sometimes incorrectly written acronical, achronychal, acronichal, and acronical.
AÏcron¶ycÏalÏly, adv. In an acronycal manner as rising at the setting of the sun, and vise versƒ.
Ac¶roÏnyc¶tous (#), a. [Gr. ?; ? + ?, ?, night.] (Astron.) Acronycal.
AÏcrook¶ (#), adv. Crookedly. [R.]
Udall.
AÏcrope¶eÏtal (#), a. [Gr. ? summit + L. petere to seek.] (Bot.) Developing from below towards the apex, or from the circumference towards the center; centripetal; Ð said of certain inflorescence.
AÏchroph¶oÏny (#), n. [Gr. ? extreme + ? sound.] The use of a picture symbol of an object to represent phonetically the initial sound of the name of the object.
Ø Ac·roÏpo¶diÏum (#), n. [Gr. ? topmost + ?, ?, foot.] (Zo”l.) The entire upper surface of the foot.
AÏcrop¶oÏlis (#), n. [Gr. ?; ? extreme + ? city.] The upper part, or the citadel, of a Grecian city; especially, the citadel of Athens.
Ac¶roÏpol¶iÏtan (#), a. Pertaining to an acropolis.
Ac¶roÏspire (#), n. [Gr. ? + ? anything twisted.] (Bot.) The sprout at the end of a seed when it begins to germinate; the plumule in germination; Ð so called from its spiral form.
Ac¶roÏspire, v. i. To put forth the first sprout.
Ac¶roÏspore (#), n. [Gr. ? + ? fruit.] (Bot.) A spore borne at the extremity of the cells of fructification in fungi.
Ac¶roÏspor¶ous (#), a. Having acrospores.
AÏcross¶ (#; 115), prep. [Pref. aÏ + cross: cf. F. en croix. See Cross, n.] From side to side; athwart; crosswise, or in a direction opposed to the length; quite over; as, a bridge laid across a river.
Dryden.
To come across, to come upon or meet incidentally. Freeman. Ð To go across the country, to go by a direct course across a region without following the roads.
AÏcross¶, adv. 1. From side to side; crosswise; as, with arms folded across.
Shak.
2. Obliquely; athwart; amiss; awry. [Obs.]
The squintÐeyed Pharisees look across at all the actions of Christ.
Bp. Hall.
AÏcros¶tic (#)(#), n. [Gr. ?; ? extreme + ? order, line, verse.] 1. A composition, usually in verse, in which the first or the last letters of the lines, or certain other letters, taken in order, form a name, word, phrase, or motto.
2. A Hebrew poem in which the lines or stanzas begin with the letters of the alphabet in regular order (as Psalm cxix.). See Abecedarian.
Double acrostic, a species of enigma<-- crossword puzzle -->, in which words are to be guessed whose initial and final letters form other words.
AÏcros¶tic (#), AÏcros¶tiÏal (#), } n. Pertaining to, or characterized by, acrostics.
AÏcros¶ticÏalÏly, adv. After the manner of an acrostic.
Ø Ac·roÏtar¶siÏum (#), n. [NL., from Gr. ? topmost + ? tarsus.] (Zo”l.) The instep or front of the tarsus.
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