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pos>v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Delved p. pr. & vb. n. Delving. ] [ AS. delfan to dig; akin to OS. bidelban to bury, D. delven to dig, MHG. telben, and possibly to E. dale. Cf. Delf a mine. ] 1. To dig; to open (the ground) as with a spade. [ 1913 Webster ]

Delve of convenient depth your thrashing floor. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To dig into; to penetrate; to trace out; to fathom. [ 1913 Webster ]

I can not delve him to the root. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To dig or labor with a spade, or as with a spade; to labor as a drudge. [ 1913 Webster ]

Delve may I not: I shame to beg. Wyclif (Luke xvi. 3). [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ See Delve, v. t., and cf. Delf a mine. ] A place dug; a pit; a ditch; a den; a cave. [ 1913 Webster ]

Which to that shady delve him brought at last. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

The very tigers from their delves
Look out. Moore. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who digs, as with a spade. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An old form of Elf. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zoöl.) A young eel; a young conger or sea eel; -- called also elvene. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. of Elf. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. helve, helfe, AS. hielf, helf, hylf, cf. OHG. halb; and also E. halter, helm of a rudder. ] 1. The handle of an ax, hatchet, or adze. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Iron Working) (a) The lever at the end of which is the hammer head, in a forge hammer. (b) A forge hammer which is lifted by a cam acting on the helve between the fulcrum and the head. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Helved p. pr. & vb. n. Helving. ] To furnish with a helve, as an ax. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Same as Helvetic. -- n. A Swiss; a Switzer. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. Helveticus, fr. Helvetii the Helvetii. ] Of or pertaining to the Helvetii, the ancient inhabitant of the Alps, now Switzerland, or to the modern states and inhabitant of the Alpine regions; as, the Helvetic confederacy; Helvetic states.

/mhw>, pron. pl. [ See Hem, pron. ] Themselves; -- used reflexively. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

pron. See 1st Himself. [ Obs. ]

/mhw>, (&unr_;), pron. pl. Themselves. See Hemself. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

pron. Myself. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

pron.; sing. Ourself (&unr_;). An emphasized form of the pronoun of the first person plural; -- used as a subject, usually with we; also, alone in the predicate, in the nominative or the objective case. [ 1913 Webster ]

We ourselves might distinctly number in words a great deal further then we usually do. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

Safe in ourselves, while on ourselves we stand. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The form ourself is used only in the regal or formal style after we or us, denoting a single person. [ 1913 Webster ]

Unless we would denude ourself of all force. Clarendon. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Self; same. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ Self + edge, i. e., its own proper edge; cf. OD. selfegge. ] 1. The edge of cloth which is woven in such a manner as to prevent raveling. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The edge plate of a lock, through which the bolt passes. Knight. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Mining.) A layer of clay or decomposed rock along the wall of a vein. See Gouge, n., 4. Raymond. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. Having a selvage. [ 1913 Webster ]

n., pl. of Self. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. 1. To furnish with shelves; as, to shelve a closet or a library. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To place on a shelf. Hence: To lay on the shelf; to put aside; to dismiss from service; to put off indefinitely; as, to shelve an officer; to shelve a claim. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Shelved p. pr. & vb. n. Shelving. ] [ Perhapss originally from the same source as shallow, but influenced by shelf a ledge, a platform. ] To incline gradually; to be slopping; as, the bottom shelves from the shore. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To swallow. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

pron. The plural of himself, herself, and itself. See Himself, Herself, Itself. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ OE. twelve, twelf, AS. twelf; akin to OFries. twelf, twelef, twilif, OS. twelif, D. twaalf, G. zwölf, OHG. zwelif, Icel. tōlf, Sw. tolf, Dan. tolv, Goth. twalif, from the root of E. two + the same element as in the second part of E. eleven. See Two, and Eleven. ] One more that eleven; two and ten; twice six; a dozen. [ 1913 Webster ]

Twelve-men's morris. See the Note under Morris. --
Twelve Tables. (Rom. Antiq.) See under Table. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The number next following eleven; the sum of ten and two, or of twice six; twelve units or objects; a dozen. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A symbol representing twelve units, as 12, or xii. [ 1913 Webster ]

The Twelve (Script.), the twelve apostles. Matt. xxvi. 20. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. & n. See Duodecimo. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A year which consists of twelve calendar months. [ 1913 Webster ]

I shall laugh at this a twelvemonth hence. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A shilling sterling, being about twenty-four cents. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Sold for a shilling; worth or costing a shilling. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. & a. Twelve times twenty; two hundred and forty. [ 1913 Webster ]

. A fabric woven like velvet, but with the loops of the warp threads uncut. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To delve under. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ 1st pref. un- + shelve. ] To remove from, or as from, a shelf. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The veltfare. [ Prov. Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A kind of velvet having cotton back. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. velouette, veluet, velwet; cf. OF. velluau, LL. velluetum, vellutum, It. velluto, Sp. velludo; all fr. (assumed) LL. villutus shaggy, fr L. villus shaggy hair; akin to vellus a fleece, and E. wool. See Wool, and cf. Villous. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. A silk fabric, having a short, close nap of erect threads. Inferior qualities are made with a silk pile on a cotton or linen back, or with other soft fibers such as nylon, acetate, or rayon. [ 1913 Webster + PJC ]

2. The soft and highly vascular deciduous skin which envelops and nourishes the antlers of deer during their rapid growth. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Something likened to velvet{ 1 } in being soft or luxurious; as, a lawn of velvet. [ PJC ]

Cotton velvet, an imitation of velvet, made of cotton. --
Velvet cork, the best kind of cork bark, supple, elastic, and not woody or porous. --
Velvet crab (Zool.), a European crab (Portunus puber). When adult the black carapace is covered with a velvety pile. Called also lady crab, and velvet fiddler. --
Velvet dock (Bot.), the common mullein. --
Velvet duck. (Zool.) (a) A large European sea duck, or scoter (Oidemia fusca). The adult male is glossy, velvety black, with a white speculum on each wing, and a white patch behind each eye. (b) The American whitewinged scoter. See Scoter. --
Velvet flower (Bot.), love-lies-bleeding. See under Love. --
Velvet grass (Bot.), a tall grass (Holcus lanatus) with velvety stem and leaves; -- called also soft grass. --
Velvet runner (Zool.), the water rail; -- so called from its quiet, stealthy manner of running. [ Prov. Eng. ] --
Velvet scoter. (Zool.) Same as Velvet duck, above. --
Velvet sponge. (Zool.) See under Sponge. --
in velvet having a coating of velvet{ 2 } over the antlers; in the annual stage where the antlers are still growing; -- of deer. [ 1913 Webster + PJC ]

a. Made of velvet; soft and delicate, like velvet; velvety. “ The cowslip's velvet head.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To pain velvet. [ R. ] Peacham. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To make like, or cover with, velvet. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) The goosander. [ Local, U. S. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. velvantine. See Velvet. ] A kind of cloth, usually cotton, made in imitation of velvet; cotton velvet. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The fine shag or nap of velvet; a piece of velvet; velvet goods. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) A name given to several plants which have soft, velvety leaves, as the Abutilon Avicennae, the Cissampelos Pareira, and the Lavatera arborea, and even the common mullein. [ 1913 Webster ]