SIPHON-CUP

Siphon-cup (si'fon-kup), n. In mach. a form of lubricating apparatus in which the oil is led over the edge of the vessel by capillary action, ascending and descending in a cotton wick, and dropping on the journal.

Siphoneæ (si-fō'nē-ē), n. pl. A nat. order of green-spored algae, of which there are two sub-orders, Caulerpeæ and Codier, the former all inhabitants of warmer regions, the latter often found in colder. Some of the Codies resemble corallines from the amount of carbonate of lime which enters into their composition.

Siphon-gauge (si'fon-gāj), n. An instrument consisting of a glass siphon, partially filled with mercury, for indicating the degree of rarefaction which has been produced in the receiver of an air-pump. A gauge of this kind is also used to ascertain the degree of vacuum in the condenser of a steamengine, and to indicate the pressure of a fluid contained in a vessel, when greater than the pressure of the external atmosphere, and also the pressure of liquids, as water in pipes, &c.

Siphonia (si-fo'ni-a), n. [Gr. siphon, a hollow tube, a pipe, from the use made of the exudation.] A genus of plants belonging to the nat. order Euphorbiacea, consisting of about half-a-dozen species. They are tall trees, with leaves composed of three leaflets, growing in clusters at the ends of the branches, and small dicecious flowers in lax panicles. The fruit is a large three-celled capsule, and the trees abound in a milky juice. S. elastica, which yields the true caoutchouc, is a tree from 50 to 60 feet in height, common in the forests of Guiana and Brazil, and which has been introduced into the West Indies. Caoutchouc is the milky juice of the tree which exudes on incisions being made, and solidifies on exposure to the air.

Siphonic (si-fon'ik), a. Pertaining to a siphon.

Siphonida (si-fon'i-da), n. pl. In zool. one of the two sections into which the lamellibranchiate molluscs are divided, the other section being the Asiphonida. The Siphonida are furnished with respiratory siphons, and their mantle-lobes are more or less united. Two subdivisions are comprised in this section. In the one (Integropallialia) the siphons are short, and the pallial line simple; the other (Sinupallialia) is characterized by long respiratory siphons and a sinuated pallial line.

Siphonifer (si-fon'i-fèr), n. A member of the Siphonifera.

Siphonifera (si-fo-nif'èr-a), n. pl. M. D'Orbigny's name for an order of molluscs, including the nautilus and all those species which have a siphon contained within a many-chambered shell.

Siphoniferous (si-fo-nif'èr-us), a. Siphonbearing, as the chambered shells of the nautilus.

Siphonobranchiata (si'fon-ō-brang-ki-ā”ta), n. pl. (Gr. siphon, a siphon, and branchia, gills.] Same as Siphonostomata. Siphonobranchiate (si'fon-ō-brang ki-āt),

Pertaining or related to the division of gasteropodous molluscs Siphonobranchiata or Siphonostomata; siphonostomatous. Siphonophora (si-fo-nof'ō-ra), n. pl. [Gr. siphon, a tube, and phero, to carry.] A subclass of the Hydrozoa, constituting the socalled oceanic or pelagic Hydrozoa, and characterized by a free hydrosoma, consisting of several polypites united by a flexible, contractile, unbranched cœnosarc. They are singularly delicate organisms, found at the surface of the tropical seas, the Portuguese man-of-war being the best-known member of the group. It is divided into two orders, Calycophoridae and Physophorida. Siphonostomata (si'fon-o-stom"a-ta), n. pl.

91

which the aperture of the shell is not entire, but possesses a notch or tube for the emission of the respiratory siphon. The members are all marine and carnivorous. The common whelk may be taken as an example. Siphonostomatous (sï'fon-ō-stom'a-tus),a. Of or pertaining to the Siphonostomata; as, a siphonostomatous shell. Nicholson. Siphonostome (si'fō-nos-tōm), n. A gasteropodous mollusc of the division Siphonostomata.

Siphon-recorder (si'fon-rē-kord-ér), n. An instrument invented by Sir W. Thomson for recording messages sent through long telegraphic lines, as the Atlantic cables and the like. See TELEGRAPH. Siphorhinian (si-fō-rin'i-an), n. [Gr. siphōn, a tube, and rhis, rhinos, a nose.] A name applied to a tribe of swimming birds, including those which have the nostrils prominent and tubular. Brande & Cox. Siphuncle (si'fung-kl), n. [L. siphunculus, dim. from siphon.] See SIPHON, 2. Siphuncular (si-fung’kü-lêr), a. Pertaining to a siphuncle.

Siphunculated, Siphuncled (si-fung'kulat-ed, si'fung-kld), a. Having a siphuncle; having a little siphon or spout, as a valve. Sipper (sip'èr), n. One that sips. Sippett (sip'et), n. A small sop; a small piece of bread steeped in milk or broth.

Your sweet sippets in widows' houses.' Milton.

Sipple (sip'l), v.i. (A freq. from sip, formed on type of tipple.] To sip frequently; to tipple. A trick of sippling and tippling.' Sir W. Scott.

Sipunculoidea (sī-pung'kū-loi”dē-a), n. pl. [From Sipunculus.] One of the classes into which the sub-kingdom Annulosa is divided; the spoon-worms. It includes certain worm-like animals in which the body is sometimes obviously annulated, sometimes not; but there are no ambulacral tubes nor foot-tubercles, though there are sometimes bristles concerned in locomotion. The nervous system consists of an esophageal nerve-collar, and a cord placed along the ventral surface of the body. The Sipunculus and its allies make up this class, and from their affinity to the worm-like holothurians they have often been placed amongst the Echinodermata.

Sipunculus (si-pung'kü-lus), n. [L. sipunculus, siphunculus, a little tube, dim. of sipho, a siphon.] A genus of Annulosa, often placed among the echinoderms; the spoonworm. The species are found in the sands of the sea-shore, and much sought after by fishermen, who use them as bait for their hooks. See SIPUNCULOIDEA.

Si quis (si kwis). [L., if any one.] Eccles. a notification by a candidate for orders of his intention to inquire whether any impediment may be alleged against him." Sir (sér), n. [Fr. sire, from L. senior, an elder or elderly person (see SENIOR), through the forms sen'r, sendre, sindre, sidre, sire. Brachet.] 1. A common complimentary mode of address now used without consideration of rank or status; a general title by which a speaker addresses the person he is speaking to: used in the singular and plural. 'Speak on, sir.' Shak. But, sirs, be sudden in the execution.' Shak. While generally used as a title of respect, as by servants to their masters, sons to their fathers, scholars to their teachers, and the like, it is frequently employed in phrases expressing great displeasure, astonishment, doubt, &c., or conveying a threat, reproach, or the like. Thus in The Rivals, by Sheridan, Sir Ant. Absolute addresses his son, What's that to you, sir?' 'Odds life, sir! if you have the estate you must take it with the live stock on it; and so on.-2. A title of honour of knights and baronets; in this case always prefixed to the Christian name. 'Noble captain, your servant-Sir Arthur, your slave.' Swift.

Sir Horace Vere, his brother, was the principal in the active part. Bacon.

3. A title formerly given to clergymen; as the Shaksperian Sir Hugh Evans, a Welsh parson; Sir Oliver Martext, a vicar.'

A title formerly applied to priests and curates in general; for this reason: dominus, the academical title of a bachelor of arts, was usually rendered by sir in English at the universities. So that a bachelor, who in the books stood Dominus Brown, was in conversation called Sir Brown.. Therefore, as most clerical persons had taken that first degree, it became usual to style them Sir. Nares.

So usual indeed did the practice alluded to

SIREN

by Nares become that a 'Sir John' came to be a common sobriquet for a priest.

Instead of a faithful and painful teacher, they hire a Sir John, which hath better skill in playing at Latimer. tables... than in God's word.

4. Used also as a common noun to signify (a) lord, master. 'Sole sir o' the world.' Shak. (b) Gentleman. 'A nobler sir ne'er lived.' Shak.

Siraskier (si-ras'kér), n. Same as Seraskier. Sircar (sér kär), n. 1. A Hindu clerk or

accountant.-2. A circar. Sirdar (ser'där), n. [Hind.] A chieftain, captain, head-man. - Sirdar bearer (frequently contracted sirdar), the chief of the palankeen bearers, and generally his master's valet.

Sire (sir), n. [See SIR.] 1. A respectful title formerly given to seniors or elders and others; sir. It is now used only in addressing a king or other sovereign prince.-2. A father; a progenitor. 'Land of my sires.' Sir W. Scott. [Poetical.]

He, but a duke, would have his son a king,
And raise his issue like a loving sire. Shak.

3. The male parent of a beast: particularly used of horses; as, the horse had a good sire, but a bad dam.-4. Used in composition; as in grandsire for grandfather; great-grandsire, great-grandfather. - 5. A maker; an author; an originator. [Rare.]

He died, who was the sire of an immortal strain, Poor, old, and blind. Shelley. Sire (sir), v.t. pret. & pp. sired; ppr. siring. To beget; to procreate: used now chiefly of beasts, and especially of stallions.

Cowards father cowards, and base things sire base. Shak. Siredon (si-rë'don), n. (Gr. seiredon, a siren.] A generic name applied to the Mexican axolotl, now supposed by eminent zo

Siredon pisciforme.

ologists to be merely a larval salamander. The cut represents the form with persistent branchiæ or gills, as ordinarily known in its native country. See AXOLOTL. Siren (si'ren), n. [Gr. seiren, a siren, supposed to mean lit. an entangler, from seira, a cord.] 1. In Greek myth. one of several (according to some writers, three) seanymphs, who by their singing fascinated those that sailed by their island, and then destroyed them. In works of art they are

Siren.

often represented as having partly the form of birds, sometimes only the feet of a bird. Next where the sirens dwell ye plough the seas! Their song is death, and makes destruction please. Pope.

2. A mermaid. A mermaid or siren there buried.' Holland.-3. A charming, alluring, or enticing woman; a woman dangerous from her enticing arts. "This nymph, this siren that will charm Rome's Saturnine.' Shak.-4. Something insidious or deceptive. 'Consumption is a siren.' W. Irving.—5. A genus of perennibranchiate amphibians which have only one pair of feet, and are

SIREN

supplied both with lungs and external gills. They are peculiar to the southern provinces of the United States. Called also Mud-eels. 6. An instrument for producing continuous or musical sounds, and for measuring the number of sound waves or vibrations per second, which produce a note of given pitch. In its original form it consists of a disc with a circular row of oblique holes, revolving close to the top-plate of a wind-chest perforated with corresponding holes of a contrary obliquity, so that the jets of air from the latter passing through the former keep the disc in motion, and produce a note corresponding to the rapidity of the coincidences of the holes in the two plates, the number of coincidences or vibrations to a given time being shown by indices which connect by toothed wheels with a screw on the axis of the disc. From the deep piercing nature of the sound which the siren emits, a modified form of the instrument having two discs rotating with great velocity in opposite directions is employed as a fogsignal or alarm. The discs are driven by a steam-engine, which also forces a blast of steam through their apertures when those of the two discs come in opposition. The device is placed at the smaller extremity of a large trumpet, which greatly intensifies the sound. Called also Sirene. Siren (si'ren), a. Pertaining to a siren or to the dangerous enticements of music; bewitching; fascinating; as, a siren song.

By the help of the winning address, the siren mode or mien, he can inspire poison, whisper in destruction Hammond. to the soul, [Fr. sirène, a siren.]

Sirene (si'ren), n.
Same as SIREN, 6.
Sirenia (si-re'ni-a), n. pl. [From their fan-
cied resemblance to mermaids or sirens.]
An order of marine herbivorous mammals

allied to the whales, having the posterior extremities wanting, and the anterior converted into paddles. This order comprises the manatee and dugong. They differ from the Cetacea in having the nostrils placed at the anterior part of the head, and in having molar teeth with flat crowns adapted for a vegetable diet. They feed chiefly on seaweeds, and frequent the mouths of rivers and estuaries. Besides these living members the Sirenia were represented by a gigantic species 25 feet long and 20 in circumference. It was a native of Behring's Straits, but is now extinct, no specimen having been seen for 200 years. The Sirenia have existed since the miocene period.

Sirenian (si-re'ni-an), a. and n. Of or belonging to the order Sirenia; as a noun, one of the Sirenia.

The known existing representatives of the sirenian order are the dugongs and the manatees; the latest extinct form is the edentulous sirenian called 'Steller's sea-cow,' last observed in the arctic seas

Owen.

off the shores of Behring's Island; the miocene extinct genus has left its remains in Southern Europe. Sirenical (si-ren'ik-al), a. Like or appropriate to a siren.

Here's a couple of sirenical rascals shall enchant

you.

Marston.

Sirenidæ (si-ren'i-dē), n. pl. A family of true or perennibranchiate amphibians, comprising the sirens and axolotl. Sirenize (si'ren-iz), v. i. To use the enticements of a siren; to charm. [Rare.] Sirex (si'reks), n. A genus of hymenopterous insects, called in English Tailed Wasps. See SIRICIDE. Siriasis (si-ri'a-sis), n. [Gr. siriasis. See SIRIUS.] A disease occasioned by the excessive heat of the sun; sun-stroke; coup-desoleil.

Siricidæ (si-ris'i-de), n. pl. A family of hymenopterous insects of which the genus Sirex is the type. The members of this family have a strong ovipositor, with which they pierce not merely the soft substance of leaves and young shoots, but hard timber as well. The larvæ produced from the eggs thus deposited usually reside in the interior of trees, which they perforate in various directions, often causing great destruction in the pine forests, of which the largest species are inhabitants. When full grown they form a silken cocoon, in which they undergo transformation.

Sirius (siri-us), n. [L., from Gr. Seirios, from seirios, seiros, hot, scorching.] The large and bright star called the Dog-star, in the mouth of the constellation Canis Major. Sirloin (sér loin), n. [Formerly surloin, surloyne, from Fr. surlonge, surlogne, a sirloin -sur, over, and longe, logne, a loin. See

92

LOIN.] The loin or upper part of the loin of beef, or part covering either kidney. Popularly, but erroneously, supposed to have received this name from having been knighted by an English king in a fit of good humour.

Emer

But, pray, why is it called sirloin Why, you must know that our King James I., who loved good eating, being invited to dinner by one of his nobles, and seeing a large loin of beef at his table, he drew out his sword, and in a frolic, knighted it. Swift. Sirmark (ser'märk), n. See SURMARK. Sirname (sérnām), n. A surname. Siroc (si'rok), n. Same as Sirocco. son. [Rare and poetical.] Sirocco (si-rok'ko), n. [It.; from Ar. shoruk, from shark, the east.] An oppressive relaxing wind coming from northern Africa, over the Mediterranean, to Italy, Sicily, &c. Written also Scirocco. See SIMOOM. Sirrah (sir'a), n. [Often taken from sir and ha, but this is very improbable; comp. Ir. sirreach, poor, lean, sorry.] A word of address, generally equivalent to fellow, or to sir, with an angry or contemptuous force added. It is applied sometimes to children in a kind of playfulness, or to servants in hastiness, and formerly it was sometimes used also to females. Sirrah Iris, go.' Shak.

Shak.

Go, sirrah, to my cell. Sir-reverencet (sér-rev'er-ens), n. [A corruption of save-reverence (L. salva reverentia), the expression being first contracted into sa reverence, and then corrupted into sir or sur reverence.] A kind of apologetical apostrophe for introducing an indelicate word or expression, sometimes standing for the expression itself. Massinger. Sirt+ (sért), n. [L. syrtis.] A quicksand; a syrt (which see).

Sirup (sir'up), n. Same as Syrup. 'Lucent sirups tinct with cinnamon. Keats. Siruped (sir'upt), a. Same as Syruped. Same as Syrupy. Sirupy (sir'up-i), a. Sirvente (ser-vant), n. [Fr.; Pr. sirventes; lit. a poem of service, being originally a poem in praise of some one, from L. servio, to serve.] In the literature of the middle ages, a species of poem in common use among the Troubadours and Trouveres, usually satirical, though sometimes devoted to love or praises, and divided into strophes of a peculiar construction.

Sis, n. [Fr. six, pron. sis.1 The cast of six; the highest cast upon a die. Chaucer. Sisal-grass, Sisal-hemp (si-sal'gras, si-sal'hemp), n. The prepared fibre of the Agave americana, or American aloe, used for cordage: so called from Sisal, a port in Yucatan. Siset (siz), n. An assize. Where God his sises holds.' Sylvester.

Siset (sis), n. Six: a term in games.

In the new casting of a die, when ace is on the top, sise must needs be at the bottom. Fuller.

Siserara, Siserary (sis'e-ra-rä, sis'e-ra-ri), n. A hard blow. [Provincial.]

He attacked it with such a siserary of Latin, as might have scared the Devil himself. Sir W. Scott. Siskin (sis'kin), n. [Dan. sisken, Sw. siska, G. zeisig.] A well-known song-bird; the aberdevine (Fringilla spinus). See ABERDEVINE. Siskiwit (sis ki-wit), n. [Indian name.] A species of salmon (Salmo siskiwit) found in Lake Superior. It is broad and very fat, and has a high flavour. Sismometer (sis-mom'et-ér), n. Same as Seismometer.

Sison (si'son), n. [Gr. sison, one of the species of this genus.] A genus of plants, nat. order Umbelliferæ. They are perennial herbs, with the uppermost leaves narrower and more divided than the lower, and umbels of small white flowers; they are natives of Europe and Asia. S. Amomum is common in Britain in chalk soils in rather moist ground, under hedges, &c. The green plant, when bruised, has a peculiarly nauseous smell. The seeds are pungent and aromatic, and were formerly celebrated as a diuretic. Siss (sis), v. i. [D. sissen, to hiss. From the sound.] To hiss. [Local in England, but common in the United States to express certain inanimate hissing sounds.] Sissoo, Sissum (sis-sö', sis-sum), n. [Hind.] A valuable timber tree of India, the wood of which somewhat resembles in structure the finer species of teak, but is tougher and more elastic. See DALBERGIA. Sist (sist), v.t. [L. sistere, to stop.] In Scots law, (a) to stop; to stay.-To sist proceedings or process, to delay judicial proceeding in a cause: used both in civil and eccle

SISYMBRIUM

siastical courts. (b) To cite or summon; to bring forward.

Some, however, have preposterously sisted nature as the first or generative principle, and regarded mind as merely the derivative of corporeal organism. Sir W. Hamilton.

-To sist parties, to join other parties in a suit or action, and serve them with process. -To sist one's self, to take a place at the bar of a court where one's cause is to be judicially tried and determined.

Sist (sist), n. In Scots law, the act of legally staying diligence or execution on decrees for civil debts-Sist on a suspension, in the Court of Session, the order or injunction of the lord-ordinary prohibiting diligence to proceed, where relevant grounds of suspension have been stated in the bill of suspension. See SUSPENSION.

Sister (sis'ter), n. [O.E. suster, sostre, A. Sax. sweoster, swyster, suster, Icel systir, D. zuster, Goth. swistar, G. schwester, sister. The word is widely spread, being cog. with Pol. siostra, Rus. sestra, L. soror, Skr. swasri, the last two having lost a t. The word means a woman connected with a person, and consists of the elements sva-su-tar-sva (L suus) his, one's, su, root meaning to produce (also in son), and tar, denoting an agent (=ther of father).] 1. A female born of the same parents as another person: correlative to brother.-2. A woman of the same faith; a female fellow-Christian.

If a brother or sister be naked and destitute of daily food, &c. Jam. ii. 15.

3. A female closely allied to or associated
with another; one of the same condition
or belonging to the same society, commu-
nity, or the like, as the nuns in a convent.
He chid the sisters
When first they put the name of King upon me.
Shak.
4. One of the same kind, or of the same con-
dition; as, sister-fruits: generally used ad-
jectively.

Hark! they whisper; angels say,
Sister spirit, come away!

Pope.

-Sisters of Charity, Sisters of Mercy. See under CHARITY, MERCY. Sister (sis'ter), v.t. To be sister to; to resemble closely. [Rare.]

She... with her neeld composes

Nature's own shape, of bud, bird, branch or berry, That even her art sisters the natural roses. Shak.

Sister-block (sis'ter-blok), n. Naut. a
turned cylindrical block having two sheave-
holes, one above the other. In the mer-
chant service they are used mostly for the
buntlines and leach-lines of the courses in
large ships; in ships of war they are seized
between the two foremost shrouds of the
top-mast rigging, for the reef-tackles and
topsail lifts to lead through.
Sisterhood (sis'tér-hud), n. 1. The state of
being a sister; the office or duty of a sister.
[Rare.]

She abhorr'd
Her proper blood, and left to do the part
Daniel.
Of sisterhood, to do that of a wife.

2. Sisters collectively, or a society of sisters; or a society of females united in one faith or order.

O peaceful sisterhood, Receive and yield me sanctuary. Tennyson. Sistering (sis'tèr-ing), p. and a. Allied; contiguous; neighbouring. [Rare.] A hill whose concave womb reworded Shak A plaintful story from a sistering vale. Sister-in-law (sis'ter-in-la), n. A husband's or wife's sister; also, a brother's wife. Sisterless (sis'tér-les), a. Having no sister. Sisterly (sis'tér-li), a. Like a sister; becoming a sister; affectionate; as, sisterly kind

ness.

Sistine (sis'tin), a. Of or pertaining to Pope

Sistrum.

Sixtus V.-Sistine chapel, a chapel in the Vatican at Rome. Sistrum (sis'trum), n. [L. from Gr. seistron, from seid, to shake.] A kind of rattle or jingling instrument used by the ancient Egyptians in their religious ceremonies, especially in the worship of Isis. It consisted of a thin sometimes lyre-shaped metal frame, through which passed a number of metal rods, to which rings were sometimes attached. A short handle was attached, by which it was shaken.

Sisymbrium (si-sim'bri-um), n. [L. sisymbrium, Gr. sisymbrion, supposed to be wild thyme or mint.] A genus of plants, nat.

SISYPHEAN

order Cruciferæ. The species, which are numerous, are mostly perennial or annual herbs, with yellow or white flowers, and leaves very variable on the same plant. A few are well known on account of their uses. S officinale is our common hedgemustard. (See HEDGE-MUSTARD.) S. Irio, or London rocket, is a native of waste places throughout Europe, and sprung up in great abundance about London after the Great Fire. The whole plant possesses the hot biting character of the mustard. S. Sophia (fine-leaved hedge-mustard, or flixweed) is frequent in Great Britain. It was formerly supposed to have the power of controlling diarrhoea, dysentery, &c. Sisyphean (sis-i-fè'an), a Relating or pertaining to Sisyphus, in Greek myth. a king of Corinth, whose punishment in Tartarus for his crimes committed on earth consisted in rolling a huge stone to the top of a hill, which constantly rolled down again, and rendered his labour incessant. Hence, recurring unceasingly; as, to engage in a Sisyphean task.

Sit (sit), & pret & pp. sat; old pp. sitten; ppr. sitting. [A. Sax. sittan, for older sitian, pret sæt, pp. geseten; Icel. sitja, D. zitten, G sitzen, Goth sitan, to sit; from widely spread root sad, seen also in L. sedeo, to sit, sedes, a seat (comp. sedentary, siege, &c.); Gr. hezomai, Skr. sad, to sit. Set is the causative of this verb; comp, drink, drench; lie, lay; seat is also of this stem.] 1. To rest upon the haunches or lower extremity of the body; to repose on a seat: said of human beings and sometimes of other animals; as, to sit on a sofa or on the ground.

2. To perch; to rest on the feet, as birds.— 3. To be or stay or remain in a place.

'Twas in the Bunch of Grapes, where indeed you have a delight to sit, have you not? Shak.

4. To rest or remain in any position, situation, or condition; to remain in a state of repose; to rest; to abide.

Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here? Num. xxxii. 6. Would the tenants sit easier in their rents than now? Swift

5. To rest, lie, or bear on; to be felt, as a weight or burden; as, grief sits heavy on his heart.

Woe doth the heavier sit When it perceives it is but faintly borne. Shak. 6. To have a seat; to be placed; to dwell; to settle; to rest; to abide.

Lest our old robes sit easier than our new! Shak. 9. To assume a position in order to have one's portrait taken, a bust modelled, or the like; as, to sit for one's picture; to sit to a painter. Garth-10. To occupy a seat or place in an official capacity; to be in any assembly or council, as a member; to have a seat, as in Parliament; as, the member aits for a large constituency.

The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. Mat. xxiii. 2. One council sits upon life and death, the other is for taxes. Addison.

11. To be convened, as an assembly; to hold a session; to be officially engaged in public business, as judges, legislators, or officers of any kind; as, the House of Commons sometimes ita till far on in the night; the judges or the courts sit in Westminster Hall; the commissioners sit every day. - 12. To have position or direction: said of the wind.

13.

To be proper or fitting; to beseem. Chaucer -To sit at meat, to be at table for eating-To sit down, (a) to place one's self on a chair or other seat; as, to sit down at a meal (b) To begin a siege; as, the enemy sat down before the town. (c) To settle; to x a permanent abode. Spenser. (d) To rest content; to cease, as being satisfied.

Here we cannot sit down, but still proceed in our search. Dr. J. Rogers. -To sit out, (a) to sit till all is done. (b) To

They are glad rather than sit out to play very small game. Bp. Sanderson. -To sit up, (a) to rise or be raised from a recumbent posture.

He that was dead sat up, and began to speak. Lu. vii. 15. (b) To refrain from lying down; not to go to bed; as, to sit up till late at night; also, to watch; as, to sit up with a sick person.

Let the nurse this night sit up with you. Shak. (c) To assume or maintain the posture of one who is seated; as, he is too ill to sit up.-To sit for a fellowship, in the universities, to be examined with a view to gain a fellowship. Sit (sit), v.t. 1. To keep the seat upon; as, he sits a horse well.

3. To become; to be becoming to; to suit. Thiennette is this night, she mentions, for the first time, to put on her morning promenade-dress of white muslin, as also a satin girdle and steel buckle; but, adds she, it will not sit her. Carlyle.

Site (sit), n. [L. situs, site, position, situation.] 1. Situation, especially as regards relation to surroundings; local position; as, the site of a city or of a house; a beautiful site for a mansion.-2. A plot of ground set apart for building.-3. A posture. [Rare.] The semblance of a lover fix'd In melancholy site. Sited (sit'ed), a. situated. Spenser. Sitfast (sit'fast), a. fixed.

Thomson.

Having a site; placed;

Stationary; immovable;

'Tis good, when you have crossed the sea and back, To find the sitfast acres where you left them. Emerson. Sitfast (sit'fast), n. In farriery, an ulcerated, horny sore or tumour growing on a horse's back under the saddle.

Sith (sith), conj. [A. Sax. sith. See SINCE.]
Since; seeing that; because. Shak.
Sith (sith), adv. Since that time. Shak.
Sith (sith), prep. Since; after. Things
sith then befallen.' Shak.

Sith, Sithet (sith, sith), n. [A. Sax. sith, for sinth, path, way, time; Goth. sinth, sinths, a way, occasion.] Time; occasion.

A thousand sithes I curse that careful home. Spenser. Sithet (sith), n. Same as Scythe. Chaucer. Sithe (sith), v.i. To sigh. [Provincial.] Sithed (sithd), a. Armed with scythes; scythed.

Sithemant (sith'man), n. A mower; a scytheman.

Sithen, Sithence t (sith'en, sith'ens), adv. [A. Sax. siththan. See SINCE] Since; in later times. Chaucer; Shak. Sithence (sith'ens), conj. Since; seeing that. Shak.

Sitiology, Sitology (si-ti-ol'o-ji, si-tol'o-ji), n. [Gr.sition, sitos, food, and logos, discourse.] That department of medicine which relates to the regulation of diet; the doctrine or consideration of aliments; dietetics. Sitophobia, Sitomania (si-to-fō'bi-a, si-tōma'ni-a), n. [Gr. sitos, food, and phobos, fear, mania, madness.] Morbid repugnance to or refusal of food. Sitophobia may consist in repugnance to all food, or merely to particular viands. It is a frequent accompaniment of insanity.

Sitta (sit'ta), n. [L.] A genus of birds known by the name of nut-hatches. See NUT

HATCH.

Sittand, ppr. Sitting; becoming; suiting

with. Romaunt of the Rose.

Sitte, tri or t. To sit; to become; to fit; to suit with. Chaucer.

Sitter (sit'èr), n. 1. One who sits.-2. A bird that sits or incubates.

The oldest hens are reckoned the best sitters.
Mortimer.

3. One who sits for his portrait; one who is placed so that an artist may make a likeness, bust, &c., of him.

The difficulty of making my sitters keep their heads still while I paint them. W. Collins.

-A sitter up, one who refrains from lying down; one who watches or goes not to bed. They were men of boisterous spirits, sitters up a nights. Lamb. Sittinæ (sit-ti'nė), n. pl. The nut-hatches, a sub-family of insessorial birds, named from the genus Sitta. Sittine (sit in), a. Pertaining to the Sittine or nut-hatches.

Sitting (sit'ing), n. 1. The act of one who sits, or the posture of being on a seat.2. The time during which, or occasion on which, one sits for an artist to take a portrait or model a bust, &c.

Few good pictures have been finished at one sitting.
Dryden.
I was instructed to attend on a certain day
with all my materials ready for taking a first sitting.
I'. Collins.

3. A session; a business meeting; the actual presence or meeting of any body of men in their seats for transacting business.

The sitting closed in great agitation. Macaulay. 4. The time during which one sits, as at books, at cards or dice, at work, or the like. I shall never see my gold again; fourscore ducats Shak at a sitting! fourscore ducats!

For the understanding of any one of Paul's epistles I read it through at one sitting, Locke

5. Incubation; a resting on eggs for hatching, as fowls.

The male bird amuses the female with his songs during the whole time of her sitting. Addison. 6. The space occupied by one person in a church or other place of regular meeting. Sitting-room (sitʼing-röm), n. 1. Sufficient space for sitting in; as, sitting-room could not be got in the hall-2. An apartment or room for sitting in. The old lady's ordinary sitting-room.' Dickens. Their little streetward sitting-room.' Tennyson. Situate (sit'ū-āt), a. [Fr. situé, situated, from situer, to place, from L. situs, a site.] 1. Placed, with respect to any other object; permanently fixed; situated; as, a town situate on a hill or on the sea-shore.

Shak.

I know where it is situate. We found the following state of the law to prevail with regard to county franchises derived from property situate within the lunits of cities and boroughs. Gladstone.

2. Placed; consisting. 'Pleasure situate in hill and dale.' Milton. Situated (sit'ū-āt-ed),a. [A later form of situate, but now more common. See SITUATE] 1. Having a situation; seated, placed, or permanently fixed with respect to any other object; as, a city situated on a declivity or in front of a lake; a town well situated for trade or manufactures; an observatory well situated for observation of the stars. — 2. Placed, or being in any state or condition with regard to men or things; as, observe how the executor is situated with respect to the heirs.

Thus situated we began to clear spaces in the woods in order to set up the astronomer's observatory. Cook. Situation (sit-ú-a'shon), n. [Fr. situation, from situer. See SITUATE.] 1. Position; seat; location in respect to something else; as, the situation of London is more favourable for foreign commerce than that of Paris. 2. State; condition; position with respect to society or circumstances; as, the situation of a stranger among people of habits differing from his own cannot be pleasant. 3. Circumstances; temporary state or position; as, the situation is one of extreme difficulty to the government. Hence, point or conjuncture in a play; as, the situation at the end of the third act is most powerful.-4. Place; office; permanent employment; as, he has a situation in the war department or under government. SYN. Position, seat, site, station, post, place, office, state, condition, case, plight, predicament.

Situs (si'tus), n. [L, situation.] In bot. the method in which the parts of a plant are arranged, including the position of the parts. Henslow.

Sitz-bath (sits'bath), n. [G. sitz-bad-sitz, a chair, a seat, and bad, a bath.] A form of bath in which one can take a bath in a sitting posture; a bath taken in a sitting posture.

Sium (si'um), n. [Gr. sion, a marsh plant.] A genus of plants, nat. order Umbelliferæ. The best known species is 8. Sisarum, or skirret (which see).

Siva (si'va), n. In Hindu myth, the name of the third god of the Hindu triad, in which he represents the principle of destruction. His emblem is the lingam or phallus, symbolical of creation which follows destruc

SIVAN

tion; and he is represented with every horrible sign of human bloodshed, and frequently accompanied by a white bull. The worshippers of Siva assign to him the first place in the triad, and to them he is not only the chief deity, but the deity which comprises in itself all other deities. Sivan (si'van), n. The third month of the Jewish ecclesiastical year, answering to part of our May and part of June. Sivatherium (si-va-the'ri-um), n. [Siva, an Indian deity, and Gr. therion, a wild animal.] An extinct genus of Ruminantia, found fossil in the tertiary strata of the Si

Sivatherium (restored).

valik Sub-Himalayan range. It surpassed all known ruminants in size. It had four horns and a protruding upper lip, and must have resembled an immense antelope or

gnu.

Siver (si'ver), n. Same as Syver. [Scotch.] Sivert (siv'èr), v.i. To simmer. Holland. Sivvens, n. See SIBBENS.

Six (siks), a. [A. Sax. six, a widely spread word; Icel. 0. Fris. Dan. and Sw. sex, D. zes, G. sechs, Goth. saihs, L. sex, Gr. hex, Per. shesh, Skr. shash, six.] Twice three; one more than five.

Six (siks), n. 1. The number of six or twice three.-2. A symbol representing this number, as 6.-At six and seven, or as more generally used, at sixes and sevens, in disorder and confusion.

Shak.

All is uneven, And everything is left at six and seven. Sixain (sik'san), n. A stanza of six verses. Sixfold (siks'föld), a. Six times repeated; six times as much or many. Sixpence (siks'pens), n. 1. An English silver coin of the value of six pennies; half a shilling.-2. The value of six pennies or half a shilling.

Sixpenny (siks'pen-ni), a. Worth sixpence; costing sixpence; as, a sixpenny loaf.-Sixpenny strikers, petty footpads; robbers for sixpence. Shak.

Six-shooter (siks'shöt-ér), n. A six-chambered revolver-pistol; a pistol capable of firing six shots in quick succession. Sixteen (siks'ten), a. [A. Sax. sixtêne, sixtyne.] Six and ten; consisting of six and ten.

Sixteen (siks'ten), n. 1. The sum of six and ten.-2. A symbol representing this sum, as 16.

Sixteenmo (siks'ten-mo), n. See SEXTO-DECIMO.

Sixteenth (siks'tenth),a. [A. Sax. sixteôtha.] 1. Next in order after the fifteenth; the sixth after the tenth: the ordinal of sixteen. 2. Being one of sixteen equal parts into which a whole is divided.

Sixteenth (siks'tenth), n. 1. One of sixteen equal parts.-2. In music, the replicate of the ninth, an interval consisting of two octaves and a second.

Sixth (siksth), a. 1. The first after the fifth: the ordinal of six.-2. Being one of six equal parts into which a whole is divided. Sixth (siksth), n. 1. A sixth part. -2. In music, a hexachord, an interval of two kinds; the minor sixth, consisting of three tones and two semitones major, and the major sixth, composed of four tones and a major semitone.

Sixthly (siksth'li), adv. In the sixth place. Sixtieth (siks'ti-eth), a. 1. The ordinal of sixty; next in order after the fifty-ninth.2. Being one of sixty equal parts into which anything is divided.

Sixtieth (siks'ti-eth), n. One of sixty equal parts.

Sixty (siks'ti), a. [A. Sax. sixtig.] Ten times six.

The whole was drawn out and digested into a sizable volume. Bp. Hurd.

2. Being of reasonable or suitable size; as, sizable timber.

He should be purged, sweated, vomited, and starved, till he come to a sizable bulk. Arbuthnot.

Sizar (si'zär), n. [From size.] One of a class of students in the University of Cambridge and at Trinity College, Dublin, who are pecuniarily assisted through the benefactions of founders or other charitable persons. Duties of a somewhat menial kind were originally required to be performed by the sizars, but these have long since gone into disuse. At Oxford the same class are called servitors.

Sizarship (si'zär-ship), n. The rank or station of a sizar.

Size (siz), n. [Contr. for assize. E. assize, and corruptly size, was the settlement or arrangement of the plan on which anything

was to be done. The assize of bread or of fuel was the ordinance for the sale of bread or of fuel, laying down price, weight, length, thickness, &c. The term was then applied to the specific dimensions laid down in the regulation, and finally to dimensions of magnitude in general.' Wedgwood.] 1. Extent of volume or surface; dimensions great or small; comparative magnitude; bulk; as, a man, a tree, a mountain, of a large or of a small size. 'Shot of every size.' Dryden.

His double chin, his portly size. Tennyson. 2. Condition as to position, rank, character, or the like; standing.

They do not consider the difference between ela

borate discourses, delivered to princes or parlia ments, and a plain sermon, for a middling or lower size of people. Swift.

3. Measure, in a figurative sense; amount. 'Our size of sorrow, proportioned to our cause.' Shak. Clamours of all size, both high and low.' Shak.

But if there be, or ever were, one such,
It's past the size of dreaming.

Shak.

4. A small quantity of anything; a settled quantity or allowance; specifically, in Cambridge University, an allowance of victuals or drink from the buttery, distinct from the regular dinner at commons.-5. A conventional relative measure of dimension, applied to a great variety of articles, as shoes, gloves, and the like.

I am sorry that these shoes are a full size too large.
Dickens.

6. pl. Assize or assizes. 'A long charge as sizes.' Beau. & Fl. [Old English and vulgar modern English.1-7. An instrument consisting of thin leaves fastened together at one end by a rivet, used to measure pearls.-SYN. Dimensions, bigness, largeness, greatness, magnitude, bulk.

Size (siz), n. [It. sisa, assisa, a kind of glue, size; same origin as assize.] 1. A gelatinous solution used by painters, papermanufacturers, and in many other trades. It is made of the shreds and parings of leather, parchment, or vellum, boiled in water and purified. It is also made from common glue and from potatoes.-2. Anything resembling size in being glutinous and viscid; specifically, a thick tenacious kind of varnish used by gilders. Called also Goldsize.-3. In physiol. the buffy coat which appears on the surface of coagulated blood drawn in inflammation.

Size (siz), v. t. pret. & pp. sized; ppr. sizing. 1. To adjust or arrange according to size or bulk; specifically, milit. to take the size of soldiers with the view of placing them in the ranks according to their sizes; to arrange according to sizes or statures. Stocqueler.

Two troops so match'd were never to be found,
Such bodies built for strength, of equal age,
In stature siz'd.
Dryden.

2. To fix the standard of; as, to size weights and measures. Bacon.-3. To swell; to increase the bulk of.

You're fain

To size your belly out with shoulder fees. Bean. & FL [Nares thinks size in the above quotation means to feed with sizes or small scraps. ] 4. In mining, to sift or separate, as pieces of ore, or the finer from the coarser parts of a metal, by sifting them through a wire sieve.

Size (siz), v.i. In Cambridge University, to order food or drink from the buttery, in ad

SKATE

dition to the regular commons: a word corresponding to battel at Oxford. See the

noun.

Size (siz), v.t. pret. & pp. sized; ppr. sizing. To cover with size; to prepare with size. Size (siz), n. Number six on the dice. Sizeable (siz'a-bl), a. Same as Sizable. Sized (sizd), p. and a. Having a particular magnitude.

Shak

And as my love is sized my fear is so. Commonly used in compounds; as, largeSizel (si'zel), n. sized, common-sized, middle-sized, &c. The same as Scissel. Sizer (si'zér), n. 1. Same as Sizar.-2 An instrument or contrivance of perforated plates, wire-work, &c., to sort articles of varying sizes; a kind of gauge; as, a coffee-sizer; a bullet-sizer, which has holes to determine the size of bullets.

Size-roll (siz'rōl), n. A small piece of parchment added to some part of a roll or record. Size-stick (siz'stik), n. A measuring stick, used by shoemakers to ascertain the length Siziness (siz'i-nes), a. The state or quality of the foot, &c. of being sizy; glutinousness; viscousness; the quality of size; as, the siziness of blood Arbuthnot.

Sizing (siz'ing), n.

1. The act of covering with size.-2. The glutinous or viscid material used in the operation; size. Sizing (siz'ing), n. 1. The act of arranging according to size.-2. In Cambridge University, food or meat ordered by a student from the buttery; a size.

Sizy (siz'i), a. Containing, consisting of, or resembling size; glutinous; thick and viscous; ropy; having the adhesiveness of size; as, sizy blood. Arbuthnot.

Sizzle (siz'l), v.i. [Imitative.] To dry and shrivel up with hissing by the action of fire. Forby. [Provincial English.]

Sizzle (siz'l), n. A hissing sound. Halli

well.

Skail, Skale (skal), v.t. To disperse; to scatter; to spill. See SCALE, v. t. 4. [Scotch.] Skail, Skale (skal), v.i. To separate one from another, as an assembly or congregation. [Scotch.]

Skain (skän), n. A quantity of yarn. See SKEIN.

Skain (skan), n. A kind of dagger. ton. See SKEAN.

Dray

Skainsmatet (skānz'mat), n. [Probably skean, skain,a dagger, and mate. See SKEAN.] A brother in arms; a messmate; a roaring or swaggering companion.

Scurvy knave! I am none of his flirt-gills; I am none of his skainsmates. Shat.

Skaith (skath), n. Hurt; damage; injury; scathe. Written also Scaith. [Scotch.] Skald (skald), n. An ancient Scandinavian poet or bard. See SCALD. Skaldic (skal'dik), a. Same as Scaldic. Skallt (skal), v.t. To scale; to mount. Chap

Skart (skärt), v.t. To scratch. Written also Scart. [Scotch.] Skart (skärt), n. A scratch. Written also Scart. [Scotch.] Skat (skat), n. (which see). Skate (skat), n. [From D. schaats, a skate, schaatsen, skates; Dan. skaite, a skate.] A contrivance consisting of a steel runner or ridge fixed either to a wooden sole privided with straps and buckles, or to a light iron framework having adjustable clamps or other means of attachment to the boots, and used to enable a person to glide rapidly over ice. See also ROLLER-SKATE. Skate (skat), v. i. pret. & pp. skated; ppr. skating. To slide or move on skates 'Taught me how to skate and row." Ten

A tax. Same as Scat, Scatt

nyson.

Skate (skat), n. [Icel skata, a skate; comp. L. squatina, the angel-fish.] A name popularly applied to several species of the genns Raia, with cartilaginous skeletons, having

SKATER

the body much depressed, and more or less approaching to a rhomboidal form. The peculiar form of the skate arises chiefly from the great size and expansion of the

Gray Skate (Raia batis)

pectoral fins, which are united with the integument. Several species of skate or rays are found on the British coast, among which are the true skate, called in Scotland blue skate or gray skate (Raia batis, of which the flesh is so commonly used as food), the long-nosed skate, the sharp-nosed skate, the thornback, &c.

Skater (skat'ér), n. One who skates.
Careful of my motion,

Like the skater on ice that hardly bears him. Tennyson. Skate-sucker (skat'suk-ér), n. The common name of the Albione muricata, an abranchiate annelid closely allied to the leeches, and so called because it is found adhering to several fishes, and especially the common skate. The eyes are six in number. Called also Sea-leech.

See

Skating rink (skat'ing-ringk), n. RINK, 2 Skaylet (skäle), n. [From kayle, with a prefixed.] A skittle or ninepin. North. Skean (sken), n. [Gael sgian, Ir. scian, W. ysgien, a large knife.] A short sword or a knife used by the Irish and Highlanders of Scotland. Spenser; Chapman. Spelled also Skeen, Skein, Skain, &c.

Skean-dhu (skën'dů), n. [Gael. sgiandubh, a black knife.] A knife of some size used by the Highlanders; the knife which, when the Highland costume is worn, is stuck in the stocking.

Skeat (ske'at), n. [The Arabic name.] In astron, the name of the bright star 3 Pegasi. Skedaddle (ske-dad'l), v.t. [Said to be of Scandinavian origin. Perhaps allied to scud.] To betake one's self to flight; to retire from the presence of an enemy in disorder; to run away through fear or as if in a panic; to withdraw hastily or secretly; to scud off, especially in alarm. [Originally United States colloq.) Skeed (sked), n. Same as Skid. Skeel (skel), n. shallow wooden

cream.

[Allied to scale, shell.] A vessel for holding milk or

Skeel (skel), n. Skill; acquaintance with; knowledge of. [Scotch.]

Skeely (skeri), a. Skilful; intelligent; skilfal in curing diseases in man or beast. [Scotch.]

Skeen (sken), n. A knife or dirk. See SKEAN. Skeet (skēt), n. Naut. a sort of long scoop used to wet the decks and sides of a ship in order to keep them cool, and to prevent them from splitting by the heat of the sun. It is also employed in small vessels to wet the sails, in order to render them more efficacious in light breezes.

Skeg (skeg), n [Icel. skegg, a beard, the cut-water or beak of a ship.] 1. The afterpart of a ship's keel-Skeg shore, in shipbuilding, one of several pieces of plank put up endways under the skeg of a heavy ship, to steady her after-part a little at the moment of launching-2 pl. A kind of oats.3 A sort of wild plum.

Skegger (skeger), n A little salmon.
Skeg-shore (skeg'shōr), n. See under SKEG.
Little salmons, called skeggers, are bred of such
sick salmon that might not go to the sea.
Iz. Walton.

Skeigh (skéch), a. [See SHY.] Apt to startle; skittish; coy; somewhat disdainful. Burns. [Scotch ]

As a

Skein, Skean (skan), n. [Fr. escaigne.] A quantity of thread, yarn, or silk put up together after it is taken off the reel. measure of quantity the skein contains 80 threads, each 54 inches long. Written also Skain.

95

Skein (skan), n. A kind of knife. See SKEAN.

Skeldert (skel'dér), n. [Probably akin to skellum.] A vagrant. B. Jonson. Skelder (skel'dér), v.t. To swindle; to cheat; to trick.

A man may skelder you now and then of half a dozen shillings or so. B. Jonson. Skelett (skel'et), n. A mummy. Holland. Skeletal (skel'é-tal), a. Pertaining to a skeleton. Owen.

Skeletology (skel-e-tol'o-ji), n. The branch of anatomical science treating of the solid parts of the body, comprehending osteology and syndesmology.

Skeleton (skel'e-ton), n. [Gr. skeletos, dried up, skeleton, a dried body, a mummy, from skello, to dry up.] 1. The hard firm pieces constituting the framework which sustains the softer parts of any organism, and in most animals transfers motion. In vertebrates the skeleton consists of bony matter, and is internal. In the crustacea, some fishes and reptiles, there is a skeleton produced by the hardening of the external integument, and consisting of shells, scales, plates, or the like. The skeleton of leaves consists of woody tissue. An internal skeleton is called an endoskeleton, and an external skeleton, like that of a tortoise, an exoskeleton. A prepared skeleton consists of the bones of an animal body, separated from the flesh and retained in their natural position or connections. When the bones are connected by the natural ligaments it is called a natural skeleton; when by wires or any foreign substance, an artificial skeleton. Professor Owen uses the following terms to express the different modifications of bony matter in various parts of animals: (1) Neuro-skeleton [Gr. neuron, a nerve], the deep-seated bones in relation to the nervous axis and locomotion. This is the skeleton proper. (2) Dermo-skeleton [Gr. derma, the skin], the superficial or skin-bones, such as the armour of the armadillo, the pichiciago, the crocodile, and the sturgeon. (3) Splanchno-skeleton(Gr.splangchnon, a viscus or inward part], the bones connected with the sense-organs

n

Skeleton-Chlamyphorus truncatus (Pichiciago).

1, a, Portion of the bony or neuro-skeleton. ¿, Portion of the dermo-skeleton.-2, a, One of the vertebræ of the neuro-skeleton. b, Section of the dermo-skeleton.

and viscera, as in the heart of some large quadrupeds. (4) Sclero-skeleton [Gr. skleros, hard], the bones developed in tendons, muscles, &c., as the marsupial bones in the kangaroo.-2. The supporting framework of anything; the principal parts that support the rest, but without the appendages. The great skeleton of the world. Sir M. Hale.3. An outline or rough draft of any kind; specifically, the heads and outline of a literary performance; as, the skeleton of a sermon.-4. A very thin or lean person.-There is a skeleton in every house, there is something to annoy and to be concealed in every Skeleton (skel'e-ton), a. Containing mere family. outlines or heads; as, a skeleton sermon or other discourse. - -Skeleton bill, a signed blank paper stamped with a bill stamp. The subscriber is held the drawer or acceptor, as it may be, of any bill afterwards written above his name for any sum which the stamp will cover.-Skeleton proof, in engr. a proof of a print or engraving with the inscription outlined in hair-strokes only, such proofs being earlier than others.-Skeleton suit, a suit of clothes consisting of a tight-fitting jacket and pair of trousers, the trousers being buttoned to the jacket.

A patched and much-soiled skeleton suit; one of those straight blue cloth cases in which small boys

used to be confined, before belts and tunics had come in. Dickens.

-A skeleton regiment is one the officers, &c.,

SKETCHINESS

of which are kept up after the men are disbanded, with a view to future service. Skeletonize (skel'e-ton-iz), v.t. To form into a skeleton; to make a skeleton of. Skeleton-key (skel'e-ton-kė), n. A thin light key with nearly the whole substance of the bits filed away, so that it may be less obstructed by the wards of a lock. Skeleton-screw (skel'e-ton-skrö), n. A popular name for the mantis shrimp (Caprella linearis), from its skeleton-like appearance.

Skelloch (skel'och), n. [Scotch.] 1. A shrill cry.-2. Wild mustard or wild radish; charlock (which see).

Skellum (skel'lum), n. [Dan. skielm, a rogue, a knave; D. and G. schelm.] A scoundrel; a worthless fellow. [Old English and Scotch.]

He ripped up Hugh Peters (calling him the execrable skellum), his preaching stirred up the maids of the city to bring their bodkins and thimbles. Pepys.

She tauld thee weel thou wast a skellum, A blethering, blustering, drunken blellum. Burns. Skelly (skel'i), v.i. [Dan. skele, Sw. skela, to squint.] To squint. Sir W. Scott. [Local.] Skelly (skel'i), n. A squint. Brockett. [Local.]

Skelly (skel'i), a. Squinting. [Scotch.] Skelp (skelp), v.t. [Probably imitative. Comp. Gael. sgealb, a slap with the palm of the hand.] To thrash; to strike, especially with the open hand. [Scotch.] Skelp (skelp), n. 1. A stroke; a blow.-2. A squall; a heavy fall of rain. [Scotch.] Skelp (skelp), v.i. To run quickly; to exert one's self to the utmost. Skelping as fast as his horse could trot.' Sir W. Scott. [Scotch.]

Skelp (skelp), n. A strip of iron which is bent and welded into a tube to form a gunbarrel or pipe.

Sken (sken), v.i. To squint. Halliwell. [Local.]

Skene (sken), n. Same as Skean. 'Mangled by the skenes of the Irish clan MacDonough." Sir W. Scott.

Skeo, Skio (skyō), n. A fisherman's shed or hut. [Orkney Islands.]

He would substitute better houses for the skeces, or sheds, built of dry stones, in which the inhabitants cured or manufactured their fish. Sir W. Scott.

Skep (skep), n. [A. Sax. scep, sceop, a basket, chest, box; L.G. schapp, a cupboard, a chest; Icel. skeppa, skjappa, a bushel, a measure.] 1. A sort of basket, narrow at the bottom and wide at the top.-2. In Scotland, a bee-hive.

Skeptic, Skeptical, &c. See SCEPTIC, SCEPTICAL, &c.

Skerry (sker'i), n. [Icel. sker, Dan. skar, skiar, a rock; E. scar, scaur.] A rocky isle; an insulated rock; a reef.

Sketch (skech), n. [O. Fr. esquiche, Mod. Fr. esquisse, from It. schizzo, a sketch, from L. schedius, Gr. schedios, offhand, sudden. The word also passed into Dutch and German: D. schets, G. skizze; and some old forms of the word in English, such as schetse, schytz, appear to be directly borrowed from the Dutch.] 1. An outline or general delineation of anything; a first rough or incomplete draught of a plan or any design; as, the sketch of a building; the sketch of an essay.-2. In art, (a) the first embodiment of an artist's idea in modelling clay, on canvas, or on paper, from which he intends to work to perfection his more finished performance. (b) A copy from nature only sufficiently finished for the artist to secure materials for a picture; an outline of a building or street view; a transcript of the human figure in pencil or chalk, with simple shades only; or a rough draft of the same in colours. Fairholt.

Sketch (skech), v. t. 1. To draw the outline or general figure of; to make a rough draft of.

Sketching with her slender pointed foot
Some figure like a wizard's pentagram
On garden gravel.
Tennyson.

2. To plan by giving the principal points or ideas of; to delineate; to depict.

The reader I'll leave to contemplate those ideas which I have only sketched, and which every man must finish for himself. Dryden.

SYN. To delineate, design, draught, depict, portray, paint. Sketch (skech), v.i. To practise sketching. Sketcher (skech'èr), n. One who sketches. 'I was a sketcher then.' Tennyson. Sketchily (skech'i-li), adv. In a sketchy manner. 'Sketchily descriptive.' Bartlett. Sketchiness (skech'i-nes), n. State of being sketchy.