a. Distinguished by opposite qualities. J. Goodwin. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Distinction by contrast. [ 1913 Webster ]

That there are such things as sins of infirmity in contradistinction to those of presumption is not to be questioned. South. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. having the quality of contradistinction; distinguishing by contrast. -- Con`tra*dis*tinc"tive, n. [1913 Webster]

a. [ L. distinctus, p. p. of distinguere: cf. F. distinct. See Distinguish. ] 1. Distinguished; having the difference marked; separated by a visible sign; marked out; specified. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Wherever thus created -- for no place
Is yet distinct by name. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Marked; variegated. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

The which [ place ] was dight
With divers flowers distinct with rare delight. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Separate in place; not conjunct; not united by growth or otherwise; -- with from. [ 1913 Webster ]

The intention was that the two armies which marched out together should afterward be distinct. Clarendon. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Not identical; different; individual. [ 1913 Webster ]

To offend, and judge, are distinct offices. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. So separated as not to be confounded with any other thing; not liable to be misunderstood; not confused; well-defined; clear; as, we have a distinct or indistinct view of a prospect. [ 1913 Webster ]

Relation more particular and distinct. Milton.

Syn. -- Separate; unconnected; disjoined; different; clear; plain; conspicuous; obvious. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To distinguish. [ Obs. ] Rom. of R. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. distinctio: cf. F. distinction. ] 1. A marking off by visible signs; separation into parts; division. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

The distinction of tragedy into acts was not known. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The act of distinguishing or denoting the differences between objects, or the qualities by which one is known from others; exercise of discernment; discrimination. [ 1913 Webster ]

To take away therefore that error, which confusion breedeth, distinction is requisite. Hooker. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. That which distinguishes one thing from another; distinguishing quality; sharply defined difference; as, the distinction between real and apparent good. [ 1913 Webster ]

The distinction betwixt the animal kingdom and the inferior parts of matter. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Estimation of difference; regard to differences or distinguishing circumstance. [ 1913 Webster ]

Maids, women, wives, without distinction, fall. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Conspicuous station; eminence; superiority; honorable estimation; as, a man of distinction. [ 1913 Webster ]

Your country's own means of distinction and defense. D. Webster.

Syn. -- Difference; variation, variety; contrast; diversity; contrariety; disagreement; discrimination; preference; superiority; rank; note; eminence. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. distinctif. ] 1. Marking or expressing distinction or difference; distinguishing; characteristic; peculiar. [ 1913 Webster ]

The distinctive character and institutions of New England. Bancroft. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Having the power to distinguish and discern; discriminating. [ Obs. ] Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. With distinction; plainly. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. State of being distinctive. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. 1. With distinctness; not confusedly; without the blending of one part or thing another; clearly; plainly; as, to see distinctly. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. With meaning; significantly. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Thou dost snore distinctly;
There's meaning in thy snores. Shak.

Syn. -- Separately; clearly; plainly; obviously. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The quality or state of being distinct; a separation or difference that prevents confusion of parts or things. [ 1913 Webster ]

The soul's . . . distinctness from the body. Cudworth. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Nice discrimination; hence, clearness; precision; as, he stated his arguments with great distinctness.

Syn. -- Plainness; clearness; precision; perspicuity. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Distinctness. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. extinctus, exstinctus, p. p. of extinguere, exstinguere. See Extinguish. ] 1. Extinguished; put out; quenched; as, a fire, a light, or a lamp, is extinct; an extinct volcano. [ 1913 Webster ]

Light, the prime work of God, to me is extinct. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Without a survivor; without force; dead; as, a family becomes extinct; an extinct feud or law. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Specifically: Once existing as a species but now having no living members; -- used of species of living organisms, especially of animals and plants; as, dinosaurs are now extinct; the dodo bird is extinct. [ PJC ]

v. t. To cause to be extinct. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. extinctio, exstinction: cf. F. extinction. ] 1. The act of extinguishing or making extinct; a putting an end to; the act of putting out or destroying light, fire, life, activity, influence, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. State of being extinguished or of ceasing to be; destruction; suppression; as, the extinction of life, of a family, of a quarrel, of claim. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Specifically: The ceasing to exist of a species of living organism, such as a plant or animal, whose numbers declined to the point where the last member of the species died and therefore no new members of the species could ever again be born. [ PJC ]

☞ Extinctions have occurred many times throughout the history of life on Earth, and abundant evidence of the prior existence of animals and plants are found as fossils in rock formations many millions of years old. It is believed by some that due to the influence of man on the environment and destruction of habitat, the rate of extinction of species is now higher than at any previous time on this planet. Extinctions of some animals in recent years have actually been reliably recorded, such as that of the dodo bird. A remarkable example of extinction is that of the passenger pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) in North America, which once numbered in the billions, and the last living member of which species was recorded as dying in captivity in 1914. [ PJC ]

a. [ L. indistinctus: cf. F. indistinct. See In- not, and Distinct. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Not distinct or distinguishable; not separate in such a manner as to be perceptible by itself; as, the indistinct parts of a substance. “Indistinct as water is in water.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Obscure to the mind or senses; not clear; not definite; confused; imperfect; faint; as, indistinct vision; an indistinct sound; an indistinct idea or recollection. [ 1913 Webster ]

When we come to parts too small four our senses, our ideas of these little bodies become obscure and indistinct. I. Watts. [ 1913 Webster ]

Their views, indeed, are indistinct and dim. Cowper.

Syn. -- Undefined; indistinguishable; obscure; indefinite; vague; ambiguous; uncertain; confused. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Indistinguishable. [ Obs. ] T. Warton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. indistinction. ] Lack of distinction or distinguishableness; confusion; uncertainty; indiscrimination. [ 1913 Webster ]

The indistinction of many of the same name . . . hath made some doubt. Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

An indistinction of all persons, or equality of all orders, is far from being agreeable to the will of God. Sprat. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Having nothing distinctive; common. -- In`dis*tinc"tive*ness, n. [1913 Webster]

adv. In an indistinct manner; not clearly; confusedly; dimly; as, certain ideas are indistinctly comprehended. [ 1913 Webster ]

In its sides it was bounded distinctly, but on its ends confusedly and indistinctly. Sir I. Newton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality or condition of being indistinct; lack of definiteness; dimness; confusion; as, the indistinctness of a picture, or of comprehension; indistinctness of vision. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. inextinctus, inexstinctus. See Extinct. ] Not quenched; not extinct. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. instinctus, p. p. of instinguere to instigate, incite; cf. instigare to instigate. Cf. Instigate, Distinguish. ] Urged or stimulated from within; naturally moved or impelled; imbued; animated; alive; quick; as, birds instinct with life. [ 1913 Webster ]

The chariot of paternal deity . . .
Itself instinct with spirit, but convoyed
By four cherubic shapes. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

A noble performance, instinct with sound principle. Brougham. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. instinctus instigation, impulse, fr. instinguere to instigate: cf. F. instinct. See Instinct, a. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Natural inward impulse; unconscious, involuntary, or unreasoning prompting to any mode of action, whether bodily, or mental, without a distinct apprehension of the end or object to be accomplished. [ 1913 Webster ]

An instinct is a propensity prior to experience, and independent of instructions. Paley. [ 1913 Webster ]

An instinct is a blind tendency to some mode of action, independent of any consideration, on the part of the agent, of the end to which the action leads. Whately. [ 1913 Webster ]

An instinct is an agent which performs blindly and ignorantly a work of intelligence and knowledge. Sir W. Hamilton. [ 1913 Webster ]

By a divine instinct, men's minds mistrust
Ensuing dangers. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Zool.) Specif., the natural, unreasoning, impulse by which an animal is guided to the performance of any action, without thought of improvement in the method. [ 1913 Webster ]

The resemblance between what originally was a habit, and an instinct becomes so close as not to be distinguished. Darwin. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A natural aptitude or knack; a predilection; as, an instinct for order; to be modest by instinct. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To impress, as an animating power, or instinct. [ Obs. ] Bentley. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Instinct; incitement; inspiration. [ Obs. ] Sir T. Elyot. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. instinctif. ] Of or pertaining to instinct; derived from, or prompted by, instinct; of the nature of instinct; determined by natural impulse or propensity; acting or produced without reasoning, deliberation, instruction, or experience; spontaneous. “Instinctive motion.” Milton. “Instinctive dread.” Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

With taste instinctive give
Each grace appropriate. Mason. [ 1913 Webster ]

Have we had instinctive intimations of the death of some absent friends? Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The terms instinctive belief, instinctive judgment, instinctive cognition, are expressions not ill adapted to characterize a belief, judgment, or cognition, which, as the result of no anterior consciousness, is, like the products of animal instinct, the intelligent effect of (as far as we are concerned) an unknown cause. Sir H. Hamilton.

Syn. -- Natural; voluntary; spontaneous; original; innate; inherent; automatic. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In an instinctive manner; by force of instinct; by natural impulse. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality of being instinctive, or prompted by instinct. [ R. ] Coleridge. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. interstinctus, p. p. of interstinguere to separate; inter + stinguere to extinguish. ] Distinguishing. [ Obs. ] Wallis. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. intinctio, fr. intingere to dip in; pref. in- in + tingere to tinge. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. The act of tingeing or dyeing. Blount. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Eccl.) A method or practice of the administration of the sacrament by dipping the bread or wafer in the wine and administering both together. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. in- not + L. tinctus, p. p. of tingere to tinge ] The lack of the quality of coloring or tingeing other bodies. Kirwan. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.[ L. restinctio. See Restinguish. ] Act of quenching or extingishing. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ See Tinge. ] To color or stain; to imblue; to tint. [ Archaic ] Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. tinctus, p. p. of tingere to tinge. See Tinge. ] Tined; tinged. [ Archaic ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ See Tint. ] Color; tinge; tincture; tint. [ Archaic ] “Blue of heaven's own tinct.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

All the devices blazoned on the shield,
In their own tinct. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. tinctorius, from tinctor a dyer, tingere, tinctum, to dye: cf. F. tinctorial. See Tinge. ] Of or relating to color or colors; imparting a color; as, tinctorial matter. Ure. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. tinctura a dyeing, from tingere, tinctum, to tinge, dye: cf. OE. tainture, teinture, F. teinture, L. tinctura. See Tinge. ] 1. A tinge or shade of color; a tint; as, a tincture of red. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Her.) One of the metals, colors, or furs used in armory. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ There are two metals: gold, called or, and represented in engraving by a white surface covered with small dots; and silver, called argent, and represented by a plain white surface. The colors and their representations are as follows: red, called gules, or a shading of vertical lines; blue, called azure, or horizontal lines; black, called sable, or horizontal and vertical lines crossing; green, called vert, or diagonal lines from dexter chief corner; purple, called purpure, or diagonal lines from sinister chief corner. The furs are ermine, ermines, erminois, pean, vair, counter vair, potent, and counter potent. See Illustration in Appendix. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The finer and more volatile parts of a substance, separated by a solvent; an extract of a part of the substance of a body communicated to the solvent. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Med.) A solution (commonly colored) of medicinal substance in alcohol, usually more or less diluted; spirit containing medicinal substances in solution. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ According to the United States Pharmacopoeia, the term tincture (also called alcoholic tincture, and spirituous tincture) is reserved for the alcoholic solutions of nonvolatile substances, alcoholic solutions of volatile substances being called spirits. [ 1913 Webster ]

Ethereal tincture, a solution of medicinal substance in ether. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. A slight taste superadded to any substance; as, a tincture of orange peel. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. A slight quality added to anything; a tinge; as, a tincture of French manners. [ 1913 Webster ]

All manners take a tincture from our own. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

Every man had a slight tincture of soldiership, and scarcely any man more than a slight tincture. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Tinctured p. pr. & vb. n. Tincturing. ] 1. To communicate a slight foreign color to; to tinge; to impregnate with some extraneous matter. [ 1913 Webster ]

A little black paint will tincture and spoil twenty gay colors. I. Watts. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To imbue the mind of; to communicate a portion of anything foreign to; to tinge. [ 1913 Webster ]

The stain of habitual sin may thoroughly tincture all our soul. Barrow. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Making no distinctions; not discriminating; impartial. [ 1913 Webster ]

As undistinctive Death will come here one day. Dickens. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. Indistinctly. [ 1913 Webster ]

See drainable.
See dramatic.
See drinkable.
See durable.
See duteous.
See dutiful.
See earnest.
See eatable.
See ecclesiastical.
See edible.
See elaborate.
See elective.
See elusive.
See emotional.
See emphatic. See employable.
See employable.
See endurable.
See -English.
See entire.
See enviable.
See envious.
See episcopal.
See equable.
See errable.
See escapable.
See evangelical.
See eventful.
See evident.
See exact.
See examinable.
See exceptionable.
See exclusive.
See exemplary.
See exempt.
See exhaustible.
See existent.
See expectable.
See expectant.
See explainable.
See express.
See expressible.
See expugnable.
See extinct.
See factious.
See fadable.
See fain.
See familiar.
See famous.
See fashionable.
See fast.
See fatherly.
See fathomable.
See faulty.
See fearful.
See feasible.
See felicitous.
See felt.
See feminine.
See fermentable.
See festival.
See fine.
See fleshy.
See fluent.
See forcible.
See fordable.
See foreknowable.
See foreseeable.
See forgetful.
See forgivable.
See formal.
See framable.
See fraternal.
See friable.
See frightful.
See frustrable.
See full.
See gainable.
See gainful.
See gallant.
See genial.
See genteel.
See gentle.
See gentlemanlike.
See gentlemanly.
See geometrical.
See ghostly.
See glad.
See godlike.
See good.
See goodly.
See gorgeous.
See grammatical.
See grave.
See guidable.
See guilty.
See habile.
See habitable.
See hale.
See handy.
See hardy.
See harmful.
See hasty.
See hazardous.
See healable.
See healthful.
See healthy.
See heavenly.
See heedful.
See helpful.
See heritable.
[ 1913 Webster ]

[ 1913 Webster ]

(Pharm.) A preparation containing quinine and many other ingredients, often used in the treatment of malarial affections. It was invented by Dr. Warburg of London. [ 1913 Webster ]