Dictionary
An American Dictionary of the English Language
Revised and enlarged (Goodrich & Porter)
Springfield, Mass. · G. & C. Merriam · 1865
- Entries
- 95,912
- Pages
- 1,538
- Illustrations
- 2,133
Look up a word as the writers of the time used it.
K p. 734the eleventh letter, and the eighth consonant, in the order of the English alphabet, is borrowed from the Greeks, being the same character as the Greek kappa, answering to the Oriental koph. It is…Kăb, n. p. 734A Hebrew measure; a cab. See CAB.Kăb'a-la, n. p. 734The same as CABALA, q. v.Ka-băs'sgu, n. p. 734A species of armadillo. Goldsmith.Ka-bōb', v. t. p. 734See CABOB.Ka-bōok′, n. p. 734A clay ironstone found in Ceylon. Simmonds.Kă'di or Kă'di-äs'ter, n. p. 734A Turkish judge. See CADI.Ka-făs'son, n. p. 734(Zoöl.) A species of armadillo, characterized by having very large claws.Kăf'fer or Kăf'fre or Kă'fir, n. p. 734An unbeliever; more definitely, one of a woolly-haired race inhabiting the eastern part of South Africa. They are generally tall, and have negro features, but are often of a reddish or yellowish…Käf'fle, n. p. 734A slave-caravan in Africa; a coffle. See COFFLE.Kâf'i-lah, n. p. 734A caravan or company of travelers or merchants. Simmonds.Cāge, n. p. 734A chantry chapel inclosed with lattice or screen work.Ka-hā'nī, n. p. 734A person who, in Oriental states, supplies the place of a notary-public; a kind of attorney in the Levant. Simmonds. Wharton.Kă'hau, n. p. 734(Zoöl.) An animal of the monkey tribe (Nasalis larvatus), of a reddish-brown color, about three feet in height when erect, and remarkable for the great length of its nose. It is a native of Borneo…Kă'hin, n. p. 734A species of marriage in use among the Mohammedans, which is not considered as binding for life, but solemnized on condition that the husband allows the wife a certain sum of money in case of…Kāil, n. p. 734See KALE.Kāil'-yārd, n. p. 734See KALE-YARD.Kâin, n. p. 734(Scotch Law.) Poultry, &c., payable by a tenant to his landlord. Burrill. Wharton.Kāï'ser, n. p. 734An emperor. Motley.Kāk-a-rā'l'ī, n. p. 734A kind of wood common in Demerara, and which is very durable in salt water, possessing the quality of resisting the depredations of the sea-worm and barnacle. Simmonds.Kāk'o-dyle, n. p. 734See CACODYLE.Käk'ox-ine, n. p. 734(Min.) A mineral occurring in radiated tufts, of a yellowish or brownish color, and consisting chiefly of alumina, peroxide of iron, phosphoric acid, silica, and water;—so called because the presence…Kă'land, n. p. 734A lay fraternity established in Germany in the thirteenth century, the object of the society being to pay honor to deceased persons. It was abolished on account of its excesses.Kāle, n. p. 734A kind of cabbage, having the leaves generally curled or wrinkled, but not formed into a close, round head. [Written also kail.] 2. A pottage of cabbage or other greens. W. Scott.Ka-leï'do-phōne, n. p. 734A contrivance invented by Professor Wheatstone, consisting of a reflecting knob at the end of a vibrating rod or thin plate, for making visible, in the motion of a point of light reflected from the…Ka-leï'do-scōpe, n. p. 734An instrument invented by Sir David Brewster, which, by an arrangement of reflecting surfaces, exhibits its contents in an endless variety of beautiful colors and symmetrical forms. It has been much…Ka-leī/do-scōp'ic or Ka-leī/do-scōp'ic-al, a. p. 734Pertaining to, or formed by, a kaleidoscope; variegated in appearance.Kāl'en-dar, n. p. 734See CALENDAR.Kāl'en-dā'ri-al, a. p. 734Of, or pertaining to, a kalendar.Kā'l'en-der, n. p. 734A sort of dervis. See CALENDAR.Kāl'ends, n. p. 734See CALENDS.Kāle'-yārd, n. p. 734A kitchen garden. [Scot.]Kā'lī, n. p. 734(Bot.) A species of Salsola, or glasswort, the ashes of which are used in making glass. See ALKALI. London.Kā'lif, n. p. 734The same as CALIF, or CALIPH, q. v.Kā'li-fōrm, a. p. 734Formed like kali, or glasswort.Kā'li-ŏm, n. p. 734(Chem.) Potassium; — so called by the German chemists.Kāl'/lif-thôr'/gan, n. p. 734(Mus.) An instrument played as a piano, and producing an effect equivalent to that of a violin, tenor, violoncello, and double bass in concert. Buchanan.Kāl'mī-ā, n. p. 734An evergreen shrub, native to North America, having coriaceous leaves, and corymbs of showy flowers; — sometimes called laurel, ivy-bush, and also calico-bush, &c.Ka-loy'er, n. p. 734See CALOYER.Kāl′so-mīne, n. p. 734See CALCIMINE.Kām, a. p. 734Crooked; awry. [Obs.] “The wrong way, clean contrary, quite kam.” Cotgrave.Kām'a-chī, n. p. 734(Ornith.) A rasorial or gallinaceous bird of the genus Palamedea (P. cornuta), having a long, slender, sharp-pointed horn projecting from its forehead.Kām'sin, n. p. 734A hot southerly wind in Egypt; the simoom.Kăn, v. t. p. 734To know; to ken. [Obs.] See KEN.Kān or Kǎn, n. p. 734See KHAN.Ka-näek'ä or Ka-näk'ä, n. p. 734A native of the Sandwich Islands.Kăn'-ga-rōo', n. p. 734(Zoöl.) A ruminating, marsupial animal of the genus Macropus, found in Australia and the neighboring islands. M. giganteus, or the great kangaroo, is nearly as tall as a man, and moves by leaps. The…Kănt′i-an, a. p. 734Relating to the doctrines or philosophy of Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher, in whose system time and space are not outward things, but laws of the mind; and the understanding, which forms in time…Kănt'i-an, n. p. 734A follower of Kant; a Kantist.Kănt'ĭsm, n. p. 734The doctrines or theory of Kant, the German metaphysician.Kânt'ist, n. p. 734A disciple or follower of Kant.Kān′try, n. p. 734The division of a county in Wales; a hundred. Wharton. Blount.Kā'o-lĭn or Kā'o-līne, n. p. 734(Min.) A variety of clay used for making porcelain, proceeding from the decomposition of the mineral feldspar. This, in making porcelain, is mingled with a fusible earthy matter called petunse. Dana.Kāp'no-mār, n. p. 734See CAPNOMOR.Kār'a-gane, n. p. 734(Zoöl.) A species of gray fox found in the Russian empire.Kā'ra-īte, n. p. 734(Eccl. Hist.) A sect of Jews who, rejecting the oral law, and allowing the Talmud no binding authority, hold by the written law, and endeavor to find its meaning, not from traditional sources, but…Ka-rās'ki-er, n. p. 734A chief officer of justice residing at Constantinople, and forming part of the Ulema. [Turkey.]Ka-rā'tas, n. p. 734(Bot.) A West Indian plant, of the genus Bromelia (B. karatas); a species of pineapple.Kar-mā'thi-an, n. p. 734One of a Mohammedan sect founded by Karmatia, who maintained bloody wars with the Caliphs in the ninth century.