%affin%

v. t. [ F. affiner to refine; &unr_; (L. ad) + fin fine. See Fine. ] To refine. [ Obs. ] Holland. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ OF. afiné related, p. p., fr. LL. affinare to join, fr. L. affinis neighboring, related to; ad + finis boundary, limit. ] Joined in affinity or by any tie. [ Obs. ] “All affined and kin.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of the nature of affinity. -- Af*fin"i*ta*tive*ly, adv. [1913 Webster]

a. Closely connected, as by affinity. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Affinities [ OF. afinité, F. affinité, L. affinites, fr. affinis. See Affined. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Relationship by marriage (as between a husband and his wife's blood relations, or between a wife and her husband's blood relations); -- in contradistinction to consanguinity, or relationship by blood; -- followed by with, to, or between. [ 1913 Webster ]

Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh. 1 Kings iii. 1. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Kinship generally; close agreement; relation; conformity; resemblance; connection; as, the affinity of sounds, of colors, or of languages. [ 1913 Webster ]

There is a close affinity between imposture and credulity. Sir G. C. Lewis. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Companionship; acquaintance. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

About forty years past, I began a happy affinity with William Cranmer. Burton. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Chem.) That attraction which takes place, at an insensible distance, between the heterogeneous particles of bodies, and unites them to form chemical compounds; chemism; chemical or elective affinity or attraction. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Nat. Hist.) A relation between species or higher groups dependent on resemblance in the whole plan of structure, and indicating community of origin. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Spiritualism) A superior spiritual relationship or attraction held to exist sometimes between persons, esp. persons of the opposite sex; also, the man or woman who exerts such psychical or spiritual attraction. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. Chiff-chaff. ] (Zool.) A bird of Europe (Fringilla cœlebs), having a variety of very sweet songs, and highly valued as a cage bird; -- called also copper finch. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The use of light, frivolous language by way of fun or ridicule; raillery; banter. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ , n. [ F. paraffine, fr. L. parum too little + affinis akin. So named in allusion to its chemical inactivity. ] (Chem.) A white waxy substance, resembling spermaceti, tasteless and odorless, and obtained from coal tar, wood tar, petroleum, etc., by distillation. It is used in candles, as a sealing agent (such as in canning of preserves), as a waterproofing agent, as an illuminant and as a lubricant. It is very inert, not being acted upon by most of the strong chemical reagents. It was formerly regarded as a definite compound, but is now known to be a complex mixture of several higher hydrocarbons of the methane or marsh-gas series; hence, by extension, any substance, whether solid, liquid, or gaseous, of the same chemical series; thus gasoline, coal gas and kerosene consist largely of paraffins. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

☞ In the present chemical usage this word is spelled paraffin, but in commerce it is commonly spelled paraffine. [ 1913 Webster ]

Native paraffin. See Ozocerite. --
Paraffin series. See Methane series, under Methane. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. raffiner to refine. ] (Chem.) A colorless crystalline slightly sweet substance obtained from the molasses of the sugar beet. [ 1913 Webster ]