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a. [ L. altivolans. See Volant. ] Flying high. [ Obs. ] Blount. [ 1913 Webster ]

prop. n. (Geography) The capital city of Madagascar. Population (2000) = 1, 000, 000. [ PJC ]

[ Aphis + L. vorare to devour. ] (Zool.) Devouring aphides; aphidophagous. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. feeding on bees; bee-eating. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ F. archivolte, fr. It. archivolto; pref. archi- + volto vault, arch. See Vault. ] (Arch.) (a) The architectural member surrounding the curved opening of an arch, corresponding to the architrave in the case of a square opening. (b) More commonly, the molding or other ornaments with which the wall face of the voussoirs of an arch is charged. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. aurum gold + vorare to devour. ] Gold-devouring. [ R. ] H. Walpole. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. bacca berry + vorare to devour. ] (Zool.) Eating, or subsisting on, berries; as, baccivorous birds. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. bivouac, bivac, prab. fr. G. beiwache, or beiwacht; bei by, near + wachen to watch, wache watch, guard. See By, and Watch. ] (Mil.) (a) The watch of a whole army by night, when in danger of surprise or attack. (b) An encampment for the night without tents or covering. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Bivouacked (&unr_;); p. pr. & vb. n. Bivouacking. ] (Mil.) (a) To watch at night or be on guard, as a whole army. (b) To encamp for the night without tents or covering. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. calx lime + vorare to devour. ] Eroding, or eating into, limestone. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. pl. [ NL., neut. pl. from L. carnivorus. See Carnivorous. ] (Zoöl.) An order of Mammallia including the lion, tiger, wolf bear, seal, etc. They are adapted by their structure to feed upon flesh, though some of them, as the bears, also eat vegetable food. The teeth are large and sharp, suitable for cutting flesh, and the jaws powerful. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Greediness of appetite for flesh. [ Sportive. ] Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. carnivore. ] (Zoöl.) One of the Carnivora. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. carnivorus; caro, carnis, flesh + varare to devour. ] Eating or feeding on flesh. The term is applied: (a) to animals which naturally seek flesh for food, as the tiger, dog, etc.; (b) to plants which are supposed to absorb animal food; (c) to substances which destroy animal tissue, as caustics. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. culter, cultri, knife + vorare to devour. ] Devouring knives; swallowing, or pretending to swallow, knives; -- applied to persons who have swallowed, or have seemed to swallow, knives with impunity. Dunglison. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. Descending gradually; moderately steep; sloping; downhill. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. demi- volte. ] (Man.) A half vault; one of the seven artificial motions of a horse, in which he raises his fore legs in a particular manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. diversus diverse + volens, -entis, p. pr. of velle to wish. ] Desiring different things. [ Obs. ] Webster (White Devil). [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. divorce, L. divortium, fr. divortere, divertere, to turn different ways, to separate. See Divert. ] 1. (Law) (a) A legal dissolution of the marriage contract by a court or other body having competent authority. This is properly a divorce, and called, technically, divorce a vinculo matrimonii. “from the bond of matrimony.” (b) The separation of a married woman from the bed and board of her husband -- divorce a mensa et toro (or a mensa et thoro), “from bed and board”. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The decree or writing by which marriage is dissolved. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Separation; disunion of things closely united. [ 1913 Webster ]

To make divorce of their incorporate league. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. That which separates. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Bill of divorce. See under Bill. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Divorced p. pr. & vb. n. Divorcing. ] [ Cf. F. divorcer. See Divorce, n. ] 1. To dissolve the marriage contract of, either wholly or partially; to separate by divorce. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To separate or disunite; to sunder. [ 1913 Webster ]

It [ a word ] was divorced from its old sense. Earle. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To make away; to put away. [ 1913 Webster ]

Nothing but death
Shall e'er divorce my dignities. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being divorced. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. having a marriage legally terminated and having not remarried. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. A person divorced. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Incapable of being divorced or separated; free from divorce. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Dissolution of the marriage tie; divorce; separation. [ 1913 Webster ]

Let him write her a divorcement. Deut. xxiv. 1. [ 1913 Webster ]

The divorcement of our written from our spoken language. R. Morris. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The person or cause that produces or effects a divorce. Drummond. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Divorceable. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Having power to divorce; tending to divorce. “This divorcive law.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. A thin, oblong turf used for covering cottages, and also for fuel. [ Scot. ] Simmonds. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Golf) a small piece of turf gouged out of the ground by the head of a golf club when making a stroke; as, all divots should be replaced. [ PJC ]

n. Equivocalness. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. aequivocus: aequus equal + vox, vocis, word. See Equal, and Voice, and cf. Equivoque. ] 1. (Literally, called equally one thing or the other; hence:) Having two significations equally applicable; capable of double interpretation; of doubtful meaning; ambiguous; uncertain; as, equivocal words; an equivocal sentence. [ 1913 Webster ]

For the beauties of Shakespeare are not of so dim or equivocal a nature as to be visible only to learned eyes. Jeffrey. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Capable of being ascribed to different motives, or of signifying opposite feelings, purposes, or characters; deserving to be suspected; as, his actions are equivocal. “Equivocal repentances.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Uncertain, as an indication or sign; doubtful. “How equivocal a test.” Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]

Equivocal chord (Mus.), a chord which can be resolved into several distinct keys; one whose intervals, being all minor thirds, do not clearly indicate its fundamental tone or root; the chord of the diminished triad, and the diminished seventh.

Syn. -- Ambiguous; doubtful; uncertain; indeterminate. -- Equivocal, Ambiguous. We call an expression ambiguous when it has one general meaning, and yet contains certain words which may be taken in two different senses; or certain clauses which can be so connected with other clauses as to divide the mind between different views of part of the meaning intended. We call an expression equivocal when, taken as a whole, it conveys a given thought with perfect clearness and propriety, and also another thought with equal propriety and clearness. Such were the responses often given by the Delphic oracle; as that to Crœsus when consulting about a war with Persia: “If you cross the Halys, you will destroy a great empire.” This he applied to the Persian empire, which lay beyond that river, and, having crossed, destroyed his own empire in the conflict. What is ambiguous is a mere blunder of language; what is equivocal is usually intended to deceive, though it may occur at times from mere inadvertence. Equivocation is applied only to cases where there is a design to deceive. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A word or expression capable of different meanings; an ambiguous term; an equivoque. [ 1913 Webster ]

In languages of great ductility, equivocals like that just referred to are rarely found. Fitzed. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In an equivocal manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The state of being equivocal. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Equivocated p. pr. & vb. n. Equivocating. ] [ L. aequivocatus, p. p. of aequivocari to be called by the same name, fr. L. aequivocus: cf. F. équivoquer. See Equivocal, a. ] To use words of equivocal or doubtful signification; to express one's opinions in terms which admit of different senses, with intent to deceive; to use ambiguous expressions with a view to mislead; as, to equivocate is the work of duplicity. [ 1913 Webster ]

All that Garnet had to say for him was that he supposed he meant to equivocate. Bp. Stillingfleet.

Syn. -- To prevaricate; evade; shuffle; quibble. See Prevaricate. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To render equivocal or ambiguous. [ 1913 Webster ]

He equivocated his vow by a mental reservation. Sir G. Buck. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The use of expressions susceptible of a double signification, with a purpose to mislead. [ 1913 Webster ]

There being no room for equivocations, there is no need of distinctions. Locke.

Syn. -- Prevarication; ambiguity; shuffling; evasion; guibbling. See Equivocal, a., and Prevaricate, v. i. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who equivocates. [ 1913 Webster ]

Here's an equivocator that could swear in both the scales against either scale, yet could not equivocate to heaven. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Indicating, or characterized by, equivocation.

{ } n. [ F. équivoque. See Equivocal. ] 1. An ambiguous term; a word susceptible of different significations. Coleridge. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. An equivocation; a guibble. B. Jonson. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. equus horse + vorare to eat greedily. ] Feeding on horseflesh; as, equivorous Tartars. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖a. [ It. ] (Mus.) With expression. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ See Festive. ] Pertaining to a feast; festive. [ R. ] Sir W. Scott. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. flammivomus; flamma flame + vomere to vomit. ] Vomiting flames, as a volcano. W. Thompson. (1745). [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To act frivolously; to trifle. Kipling. -- Friv"ol*er Friv"ol*ler, n. [ All Colloq. ] [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. Frivolity. [ R. ] Pristley. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Frivolities [ Cg. F. frivolité. See Frivolous. ] The condition or quality of being frivolous; also, acts or habits of trifling; unbecoming levity of disposition. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. frivolus; prob. akin to friare to rub, crumble, E. friable: cf. F. frivole. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Of little weight or importance; not worth notice; slight; as, a frivolous argument. Swift. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Given to trifling; marked with unbecoming levity; silly; interested especially in trifling matters. [ 1913 Webster ]

His personal tastes were low and frivolous. Macaulay.

Syn. -- Trifling; trivial; slight; petty; worthless.

-- Friv"o*lous*ly, adv. -- Friv"o*lous*ness, n. [ 1913 Webster ]