%am

adv. [ Pref. a- + beam. ] (Naut.) On the beam, that is, on a line which forms a right angle with the ship's keel; opposite to the center of the ship's side. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_;, &unr_;, ray + -gram. ] A record made by the actinograph.
[ Obsolescent ] [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. 1. The name given in the Bible to the first man, the progenitor of the human race. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (As a symbol) “Original sin;” human frailty. [ 1913 Webster ]

And whipped the offending Adam out of him. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Adam's ale, water. [ Coll. ] --
Adam's apple. 1. (Bot.) (a) A species of banana (Musa paradisiaca). It attains a height of twenty feet or more. Paxton. (b) A species of lime (Citris limetta). 2. The projection formed by the thyroid cartilage in the neck. It is particularly prominent in males, and is so called from a notion that it was caused by the forbidden fruit (an apple) sticking in the throat of our first parent. --
Adam's flannel (Bot.), the mullein (Verbascum thapsus). --
Adam's needle (Bot.), the popular name of a genus (Yucca) of liliaceous plants. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. & a. [ Pref. a- + foam. ] In a foaming state; as, the sea is all afoam. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. & a. [ Pref. a- + gleam. ] Gleaming; as, faces agleam. Lowell. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. a relatively well-defined prevailing wind. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. the flow of air that is driven backwards by an aircraft propeller.
Syn. -- slipstream, race, backwash, wash [ WordNet 1.5 ]

[ AS. am, eom, akin to Gothic im, Icel. em, Olr. am, Lith. esmi, L. sum., Gr. &unr_;, Zend ahmi, Skr. asmi, fr. a root as to be. &unr_;. See Are, and cf. Be, Was. ] The first person singular of the verb be, in the indicative mode, present tense. See Be. [ 1913 Webster ]

God said unto Moses, I am that am. Exod. iii. 14. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. & i. [ Cf. F. amalgamer ] To amalgamate. Boyle. B. Jonson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. amalgame, prob. fr. L. malagma, Gr. ma`lagma, emollient, plaster, poultice, fr. mala`ssein to make soft, fr. malako`s soft. ] 1. An alloy of mercury with another metal or metals; as, an amalgam of tin, bismuth, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Medalists apply the term to soft alloys generally. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A mixture or compound of different things. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Min.) A native compound of mercury and silver. [ 1913 Webster ]

prop. n. (Geography) A large city which is an industrial center and the official capital of The Netherlands. Population (2000) = 724, 096.
Syn. -- Dutch capital, capital of The Netherlands [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

n. [ F. anagramme, LL. anagramma, fr. Gr. 'ana` back, again + gra`fein to write. See Graphic. ] Literally, the letters of a word read backwards, but in its usual wider sense, the change of one word or phrase into another by the transposition of its letters. Thus Galenus becomes angelus; William Noy (attorney-general to Charles I., and a laborious man) may be turned into I moyl in law. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To anagrammatize. [ 1913 Webster ]

Some of these anagramed his name, Benlowes, into Benevolus. Warburton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_; wind + -gram. ] A record made by an anemograph. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Med.) [ angio- + Gr. gra`mma a writing. ] An X-ray photograph produced by angiography. AS [ PJC ]

n. [ From Roger Ascham, who was a great lover of archery. ] A sort of cupboard, or case, to contain bows and other implements of archery. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Auto- + radiogram. ] (Biochemistry) an image produced upon photographic film by exposure of the film to a radioactive substance in close proximity to (usually in contact with) the film. Recording the distribution of radioactive materials on an autoradiogram is a technique much used in biochemical research as part of analytical procedures, in which radioactively labeled substances are subjected to a separation process (such as electrophoresis) which can help to characterize the substance, and the resulting distribution of the labeled substance is recorded on an autoradiogram. In microbiology and cell biology, autoradiograms may be made on the same film as a photomicrograph, permitting observation of the distribution of labeled compounds within a cell. [ PJC ]

n. an evergreen Indian shrub (Senna auriculata or Cassia auriculata) with vivid yellow flowers whose bark is used in tanning; it is sometimes placed in the genus Cassia.
Syn. -- tanner's cassia [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ Turk. baïrām. ] Either of two Muslim festivals, of which one (the Lesser Bairam) is held at the close of the fast called Ramadan, and the other (the Greater Bairam) seventy days after the fast. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. A paragraph describing something wonderful, used to fill out a newspaper column; -- an allusion to the miracle of Balaam's ass speaking. Numb. xxii. 30. [ Cant ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Balaam basket or box (Print.), the receptacle for rejected articles. Blackw. Mag. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. balsamum the balsam tree or its resin, Gr. ba`lsamon. See Balm, n. ] 1. A resin containing more or less of an essential or volatile oil. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The balsams are aromatic resinous substances, flowing spontaneously or by incision from certain plants. A great variety of substances pass under this name, but the term is now usually restricted to resins which, in addition to a volatile oil, contain benzoic and cinnamic acid. Among the true balsams are the balm of Gilead, and the balsams of copaiba, Peru, and Tolu. There are also many pharmaceutical preparations and resinous substances, possessed of a balsamic smell, to which the name balsam has been given. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Bot.) (a) A species of tree (Abies balsamea). (b) An annual garden plant (Impatiens balsamina) with beautiful flowers; balsamine. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Anything that heals, soothes, or restores. [ 1913 Webster ]

Was not the people's blessing a balsam to thy blood? Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

Balsam apple (Bot.), an East Indian plant (Momordica balsamina), of the gourd family, with red or orange-yellow cucumber-shaped fruit of the size of a walnut, used as a vulnerary, and in liniments and poultices. --
Balsam fir (Bot.), the American coniferous tree, Abies balsamea, from which the useful Canada balsam is derived. --
Balsam of copaiba. See Copaiba. --
Balsam of Mecca, balm of Gilead. --
Balsam of Peru, a reddish brown, syrupy balsam, obtained from a Central American tree (Myroxylon Pereiræ and used as a stomachic and expectorant, and in the treatment of ulcers, etc. It was long supposed to be a product of Peru. --
Balsam of Tolu, a reddish or yellowish brown semisolid or solid balsam, obtained from a South American tree (Myroxylon toluiferum). It is highly fragrant, and is used as a stomachic and expectorant. --
Balsam tree, any tree from which balsam is obtained, esp. the Abies balsamea. --
Canada balsam,
Balsam of fir, Canada turpentine, a yellowish, viscid liquid, which, by time and exposure, becomes a transparent solid mass. It is obtained from the balm of Gilead (or balsam) fir (Abies balsamea) by breaking the vesicles upon the trunk and branches. See Balm. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To treat or anoint with balsam; to relieve, as with balsam; to render balsamic. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To cheat; to wheedle. [ Slang ] Foote. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Prob. a contr. of bamboozle. ] An imposition; a cheat; a hoax. Garrick. [ 1913 Webster ]

To relieve the tedium, he kept plying them with all manner of bams. Prof. Wilson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A variety of small barnyard fowl, with feathered legs, probably brought from Bantam, a district of Java. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. ba`ros weight + -gram. ] (Meteor.) A tracing, usually made by the barograph, showing graphically the variations of atmospheric pressure for a given time. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. (Bot.) See Bertram. Johnson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. (Mil.) An engine used in ancient times to beat down the walls of besieged places. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ It was a large beam, with a head of iron, which was sometimes made to resemble the head of a ram. It was suspended by ropes to a beam supported by posts, and so balanced as to swing backward and forward, and was impelled by men against the wall. Grose. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A blacksmith's hammer, suspended, and worked horizontally. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ AS. beám beam, post, tree, ray of light; akin to OFries. bām tree, OS. bōm, D. boom, OHG. boum, poum, G. baum, Icel. baðmr, Goth. bagms and Gr. fy^ma a growth, fy^nai to become, to be. Cf. L. radius staff, rod, spoke of a wheel, beam or ray, and G. strahl arrow, spoke of a wheel, ray or beam, flash of lightning. √97. See Be; cf. Boom a spar. ] 1. Any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. One of the principal horizontal timbers of a building or ship. [ 1913 Webster ]

The beams of a vessel are strong pieces of timber stretching across from side to side to support the decks. Totten. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The width of a vessel; as, one vessel is said to have more beam than another. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. The bar of a balance, from the ends of which the scales are suspended. [ 1913 Webster ]

The doubtful beam long nods from side to side. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. The principal stem or horn of a stag or other deer, which bears the antlers, or branches. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. The pole of a carriage. [ Poetic ] Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. A cylinder of wood, making part of a loom, on which weavers wind the warp before weaving; also, the cylinder on which the cloth is rolled, as it is woven; one being called the fore beam, the other the back beam. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. The straight part or shank of an anchor. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. The main part of a plow, to which the handles and colter are secured, and to the end of which are attached the oxen or horses that draw it. [ 1913 Webster ]

10. (Steam Engine) A heavy iron lever having an oscillating motion on a central axis, one end of which is connected with the piston rod from which it receives motion, and the other with the crank of the wheel shaft; -- called also working beam or walking beam. [ 1913 Webster ]

11. A ray or collection of parallel rays emitted from the sun or other luminous body; as, a beam of light, or of heat. [ 1913 Webster ]

How far that little candle throws his beams! Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

12. (Fig.): A ray; a gleam; as, a beam of comfort. [ 1913 Webster ]

Mercy with her genial beam. Keble. [ 1913 Webster ]

13. One of the long feathers in the wing of a hawk; -- called also beam feather. [ 1913 Webster ]

Abaft the beam (Naut.), in an arc of the horizon between a line that crosses the ship at right angles, or in the direction of her beams, and that point of the compass toward which her stern is directed. --
Beam center (Mach.), the fulcrum or pin on which the working beam of an engine vibrates. --
Beam compass, an instrument consisting of a rod or beam, having sliding sockets that carry steel or pencil points; -- used for drawing or describing large circles. --
Beam engine, a steam engine having a working beam to transmit power, in distinction from one which has its piston rod attached directly to the crank of the wheel shaft. --
Before the beam (Naut.), in an arc of the horizon included between a line that crosses the ship at right angles and that point of the compass toward which the ship steers. --
On the beam, in a line with the beams, or at right angles with the keel. --
On the weather beam, on the side of a ship which faces the wind. --
To be on her beam ends, to incline, as a vessel, so much on one side that her beams approach a vertical position. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Beamed p. pr. & vb. n. Beaming. ] To send forth; to emit; -- followed ordinarily by forth; as, to beam forth light. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To emit beams of light. [ 1913 Webster ]

He beamed, the daystar of the rising age. Trumbull. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A traffic jam caused by tourists stopping to look at bears near the road; -- a phenomenon once common in Yellowstone Park, Wyoming. [ Colloq. ] [ PJC ]

. (Engin.) A kind of movable dam, in one form consisting of two leaves resting against each other at the top when raised and folding down one over the other when lowered, for deepening shallow parts in a river. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ See Bethlehem. ] 1. A place appropriated to the confinement and care of the insane; a madhouse. Abp. Tillotson. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. An insane person; a lunatic; a madman. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Let's get the bedlam to lead him. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Any place where uproar and confusion prevail. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Belonging to, or fit for, a madhouse. “The bedlam, brainsick duchess.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ See Lam. ] To beat or bang. [ Prov. & Low, Eng. ] Todd. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ Pref. bel-, denoting relationship + dame mother: cf. F. belledame fair lady, It. belladonna. See Belle, and Dame. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Grandmother; -- corresponding to belsire. [ 1913 Webster ]

To show the beldam daughters of her daughter. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. An old woman in general; especially, an ugly old woman; a hag.
Syn. -- hag, beldam, witch, crone. [ 1913 Webster ]

Around the beldam all erect they hang. Akenside. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Corrupted fr. L. pyrethrum, Gr. &unr_; a hot spicy plant, fr. &unr_; fire. ] (Bot.) Pellitory of Spain (Anacyclus pyrethrum). [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. bigamus twice married: cf. F. bigame. See Bigamy. ] A bigamist. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. a word that is written with two letters in an alphabetic writing system. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. 1. a city in Alabama. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. a city in England. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. (Zool.) See Cerberus. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. breme, brem, F. brême, OF. bresme, of German origin; cf. OHG. brahsema, brahsina, OLG. bressemo, G. brassen. Cf. Brasse. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. (Zool.) A European fresh-water cyprinoid fish of the genus Abramis, little valued as food. Several species are known. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Zool.) An American fresh-water fish, of various species of Pomotis and allied genera, which are also called sunfishes and pondfishes. See Pondfish. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Zool.) A marine sparoid fish of the genus Pagellus, and allied genera. See Sea Bream. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Breamed p. pr. & vb. n. Breaming. ] [ Cf. Broom, and G. ein schiff brennen. ] (Naut.) To clean, as a ship's bottom of adherent shells, seaweed, etc., by the application of fire and scraping. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Mach.) The front transverse beam of a locomotive. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A light, enclosed carriage, with seats inside for two or four, and the fore wheels so arranged as to turn short. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. bokeram, bougeren, OF. boqueran, F. bougran, MHG. buckeram, LL. buchiranus, boquerannus, fr. MHG. boc, G. bock, goat (as being made of goat's hair), or fr. F. bouracan, by transposing the letter r. See Buck, Barracan. ] 1. A coarse cloth of linen or hemp, stiffened with size or glue, used in garments to keep them in the form intended, and for wrappers to cover merchandise. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Buckram was formerly a very different material from that now known by the name. It was used for wearing apparel, etc. Beck (Draper's Dict. ). [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Bot.) A plant. See Ramson. Dr. Prior. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Made of buckram; as, a buckram suit. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Stiff; precise. “Buckram dames.” Brooke. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To strengthen with buckram; to make stiff. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]