*lax*

n. sn>1. [ Gr. 'ana` back, way from + fy`laxis security, protection. ] 1. (Med.) Hypersensitivity (to a foreign antigen) resulting from prior contact with the same or a related substance. [ WordNet 1.5 + AS ]

2. (Med.) An immediate but transient systemic reaction to an antigenic substance to which a person has become hypersensitized; it is characterized by the contraction of smooth muscle and capillary dilation. [ Stedman ] [ PJC + AS ]

The cascade of events is triggered by binding of the foreign antigen to immunoglobulin E and release of mediators such as histamine, bradykinin, serotonin, and slow-reacting substance from mast cells. It involves more than one organ system. The most commonly involved organs are skin, cardiovascular, respiratory and gastrointestinal systems. Anaphylaxis is manifested by a range of signs and symptoms including pruritus, urticaria, itching, dyspnea, abdominal pain and cardiovascular collapse (shock). A severe form of the reaction is called anaphylactic shock. [ Stedman ] [ PJC + AS ]

3. (Med) Anaphylactic shock. [ AS ]

n. a kind of loud horn formerly used on motor vehicles.
Syn. -- klaxon. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

v. to sound loudly; -- of car horns.
Syn. -- honk, blare, beep, toot, klaxon. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. to use the horn of a car.
Syn. -- honk. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

(Min.) A variety of asbestus. See Amianthus. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. fallax deceptive. See Fallacy. ] Cavillation; a caviling. [ Obs. ] Cranmer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ AS. fleax; akin to D. vlas, OHG. flahs, G. flachs, and prob. to flechten to braid, plait, m twist, L. plectere to weave, plicare to fold, Gr. &unr_; to weave, plait. See Ply. ] 1. (Bot.) A plant of the genus Linum, esp. the L. usitatissimum, which has a single, slender stalk, about a foot and a half high, with blue flowers. The fiber of the bark is used for making thread and cloth, called linen, cambric, lawn, lace, etc. Linseed oil is expressed from the seed. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The skin or fibrous part of the flax plant, when broken and cleaned by hatcheling or combing. [ 1913 Webster ]

Earth flax (Min.), amianthus. --
Flax brake, a machine for removing the woody portion of flax from the fibrous. --
Flax comb, a hatchel, hackle, or heckle. --
Flax cotton, the fiber of flax, reduced by steeping in bicarbonate of soda and acidulated liquids, and prepared for bleaching and spinning like cotton. Knight. --
Flax dresser, one who breaks and swingles flax, or prepares it for the spinner. --
Flax mill, a mill or factory where flax is spun or linen manufactured. --
Flax puller, a machine for pulling flax plants in the field. --
Flax wench. (a) A woman who spins flax. [ Obs. ] (b) A prostitute. [ Obs. ] Shak. --
Mountain flax (Min.), amianthus. --
New Zealand flax (Bot.) See Flax-plant. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Made of flax; resembling flax or its fibers; of the color of flax; of a light soft straw color; fair and flowing, like flax or tow; as, flaxen thread; flaxen hair. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) A plant in new Zealand (Phormium tenax), allied to the lilies and aloes. The leaves are two inches wide and several feet long, and furnish a fiber which is used for making ropes, mats, and coarse cloth. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The seed of the flax; linseed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) See Toadflax. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Like flax; flaxen. Sir M. Sandys. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Galaxies [ F. galaxie, L. galaxias, fr. Gr. &unr_; (sc. &unr_; circle), fr. &unr_;, &unr_;, milk; akin to L. lac. Cf. Lacteal. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. (Astron.) 1. The Milky Way, that luminous tract, or belt, which is seen at night stretching across the heavens, and which is composed of innumerable stars, so distant and blended as to be distinguishable only with the telescope. Nichol. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A very large collection of stars comparable in size to the Milky Way system, held together by gravitational force and separated from other such star systems by large distances of mostly empty space. Galaxies vary widely in shape and size, the most common nearby galaxies being over 70, 000 light years in diameter and separated from each other by even larger distances. The number of stars in one galaxy varies, and may extend into the hundreds of billions. [ PJC ]

3. A splendid or impressive assemblage of persons or things; as, a galaxy of movie stars. [ 1913 Webster + PJC ]

n. A kind of loud horn formerly used on motor vehicles.
Syn. -- claxon. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. A looseness; diarrhea. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Compar. Laxer superl. Laxest. ] [ L. laxus Cf. Laches, Languish, Lease, v. t., Leash. ] 1. Not tense, firm, or rigid; loose; slack; as, a lax bandage; lax fiber. [ 1913 Webster ]

The flesh of that sort of fish being lax and spongy. Ray. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Not strict or stringent; not exact; loose; weak; vague; equivocal. [ 1913 Webster ]

The discipline was lax. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

Society at that epoch was lenient, if not lax, in matters of the passions. J. A. Symonds. [ 1913 Webster ]

The word “æternus” itself is sometimes of a lax signification. Jortin. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Having a looseness of the bowels; diarrheal. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Loose; slack; vague; unconfined; unrestrained; dissolute; licentious. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. laxatio, fr. laxare to loosen, fr. laxus loose, slack. ] The act of loosening or slackening, or the state of being loosened or slackened. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. laxativus mitigating, assuaging: cf. F. laxatif. See Lax, a. ] 1. Having a tendency to loosen or relax. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Med.) Having the effect of loosening or opening the intestines, and relieving from constipation; -- opposed to astringent. -- n. (Med.) A laxative medicine. See the Note under Cathartic. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality of being laxative. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ NL., fr. L. laxare, laxatum, to loosen. ] (Anat.) That which loosens; -- esp., a muscle which by its contraction loosens some part. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. laxitas, fr. laxus loose, slack: cf. F. laxité, See Lax, a. ] The state or quality of being lax; lack of tenseness, strictness, or exactness. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In a lax manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The state of being lax; laxity. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } v. t. [ L. malaxare, malaxatum, cf. Gr. &unr_;, fr. malako`s soft: cf. F. malaxer. ] To soften by kneading or stirring with some thinner substance. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. malaxatio: cf. F. malaxation. ] The act of softening by mixing with a thinner substance; the formation of ingredients into a mass for pills or plasters. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who, or that which, malaxates; esp., a machine for grinding, kneading, or stirring into a pasty or doughy mass. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

prop. n. A large genus of largely terrestrial orchids with one or a few plicate leaves and slender spikes or tiny mostly green flowers; it is cosmopolitan.
Syn. -- genus Malaxis. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. A North American orchid having a solitary leaf and flowers with threadlike petals.
Syn. -- green adder's mouth, Malaxis ophioglossoides. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

‖n.; pl. E. Myeloplaxes L. Myeloplaces [ NL., fr. Gr. myelo`s marrow + &unr_; anything flat and broad. ] (Anat.) One of the huge multinucleated cells found in the marrow of bone and occasionally in other parts; a giant cell. See Osteoclast. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_; alternation, the mutual inclination of two lines forming an angle, fr. &unr_; to change a little, go aside, deviate; para` beside, beyond + &unr_; to change: cf. F. parallaxe. Cf. Parallel. ] 1. The apparent displacement, or difference of position, of an object, as seen from two different stations, or points of view. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Astron.) The apparent difference in position of a body (as the sun, or a star) as seen from some point on the earth's surface, and as seen from some other conventional point, as the earth's center or the sun. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Astron.) The annual parallax. See annual parallax, below. [ PJC ]

Annual parallax, the greatest value of the heliocentric parallax, or the greatest annual apparent change of place of a body as seen from the earth and sun; it is equivalent to the parallax of an astronomical object which would be observed by taking observations of the object at two different points one astronomical unit (the distance of the Earth from the sun) apart, if the line joining the two observing points is perpendicular to the direction to the observed object; as, the annual parallax of a fixed star. The distance of an astronomical object from the Earth is inversely proportional to the annual parallax. A star which has an annual parallax of one second of an arc is considered to be one parsec (3.26 light years) distant from the earth; a star with an annual parallax of one-hundredth second of an arc is 326 light years distant. See parsec in the vocabulary, and stellar parallax, below. --
Binocular parallax, the apparent difference in position of an object as seen separately by one eye, and then by the other, the head remaining unmoved. --
Diurnal parallax or
Geocentric parallax, the parallax of a body with reference to the earth's center. This is the kind of parallax that is generally understood when the term is used without qualification. --
Heliocentric parallax, the parallax of a body with reference to the sun, or the angle subtended at the body by lines drawn from it to the earth and sun; as, the heliocentric parallax of a planet. --
Horizontal parallax, the geocentric parallx of a heavenly body when in the horizon, or the angle subtended at the body by the earth's radius. --
Optical parallax, the apparent displacement in position undergone by an object when viewed by either eye singly. Brande & C. --
Parallax of the cross wires (of an optical instrument), their apparent displacement when the eye changes its position, caused by their not being exactly in the focus of the object glass. --
Stellar parallax, the annual parallax of a fixed star. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An annual parallax of one second of an arc; -- applied to celestial objects outside the solar system. It is used to measure the distance of an astronomical object from the Earth. A star which has an annual parallax of one second of an arc is considered to be one parsec (3.26 light years) distant from the earth. See parsec in the vocabulary. [ PJC ]

n. A poleax. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ NL. See Prophylactic. ] (Med.) The art of preserving from, or of preventing, disease; the observance of the rules necessary for the preservation of health; preservative or preventive treatment. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Relaxed p. pr. & vb. n. Relaxing. ] [ L. relaxare; pref. re- re- + laxare to loose, to slacken, from laxus loose. See Lax, and cf. Relay, n., Release. ] 1. To make lax or loose; to make less close, firm, rigid, tense, or the like; to slacken; to loosen; to open; as, to relax a rope or cord; to relax the muscles or sinews. [ 1913 Webster ]

Horror . . . all his joints relaxed. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Nor served it to relax their serried files. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To make less severe or rigorous; to abate the stringency of; to remit in respect to strenuousness, earnestness, or effort; as, to relax discipline; to relax one's attention or endeavors. [ 1913 Webster ]

The statute of mortmain was at several times relaxed by the legislature. Swift. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Hence, to relieve from attention or effort; to ease; to recreate; to divert; as, amusement relaxes the mind. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To relieve from constipation; to loosen; to open; as, an aperient relaxes the bowels. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- To slacken; loosen; loose; remit; abate; mitigate; ease; unbend; divert. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. 1. To become lax, weak, or loose; as, to let one's grasp relax. [ 1913 Webster ]

His knees relax with toil. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To abate in severity; to become less rigorous. [ 1913 Webster ]

In others she relaxed again,
And governed with a looser rein. Prior. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To remit attention or effort; to become less diligent; to unbend; as, to relax in study. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Relaxation. [ Obs. ] Feltham. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Relaxed; lax; hence, remiss; careless. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being relaxed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. relaxans, p. pr. of relaxare. ] (Med.) A medicine that relaxes; a laxative. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. relaxatio; cf. F. relaxation. ] 1. The act or process of relaxing, or the state of being relaxed; as, relaxation of the muscles; relaxation of a law. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Remission from attention and effort; indulgence in recreation, diversion, or amusement. “Hours of careless relaxation.” Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Having the quality of relaxing; laxative. -- n. A relaxant. B. Jonson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L., bindweed, Gr. &unr_;&unr_;&unr_;. ] (Bot.) (a) A genus of perennial climbing plants, usually with a prickly woody stem; green brier, or cat brier. The rootstocks of certain species are the source of the medicine called sarsaparilla. (b) A delicate trailing plant (Myrsiphyllum asparagoides) much used for decoration. It is a native of the Cape of Good Hope. [ 1913 Webster ]

. The parallax of the sun, that is, the angle subtended at the sun by the semidiameter of the earth. It is 8.80′′, and is the fundamental datum. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

a. [ From Gr. &unr_; to associate with. ] (Zool.) Having the outer and middle toes partially united; -- said of certain birds related to the creepers. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) An herb (Linaria vulgaris) of the Figwort family, having narrow leaves and showy orange and yellow flowers; -- called also butter and eggs, flaxweed, and ramsted. [ 1913 Webster ]