*tach*

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Attached p. pr. & vb. n. Attaching. ] [ OF. atachier, F. attacher, to tie or fasten: cf. Celt. tac, tach, nail, E. tack a small nail, tack to fasten. Cf. Attack, and see Tack. ] 1. To bind, fasten, tie, or connect; to make fast or join; as, to attach one thing to another by a string, by glue, or the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

The shoulder blade is . . . attached only to the muscles. Paley. [ 1913 Webster ]

A huge stone to which the cable was attached. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To connect; to place so as to belong; to assign by authority; to appoint; as, an officer is attached to a certain regiment, company, or ship. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To win the heart of; to connect by ties of love or self-interest; to attract; to fasten or bind by moral influence; -- with to; as, attached to a friend; attaching others to us by wealth or flattery. [ 1913 Webster ]

Incapable of attaching a sensible man. Miss Austen. [ 1913 Webster ]

God . . . by various ties attaches man to man. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To connect, in a figurative sense; to ascribe or attribute; to affix; -- with to; as, to attach great importance to a particular circumstance. [ 1913 Webster ]

Top this treasure a curse is attached. Bayard Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To take, seize, or lay hold of. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. To take by legal authority: (a) To arrest by writ, and bring before a court, as to answer for a debt, or a contempt; -- applied to a taking of the person by a civil process; being now rarely used for the arrest of a criminal. (b) To seize or take (goods or real estate) by virtue of a writ or precept to hold the same to satisfy a judgment which may be rendered in the suit. See Attachment, 4. [ 1913 Webster ]

The earl marshal attached Gloucester for high treason. Miss Yonge. [ 1913 Webster ]

Attached column (Arch.), a column engaged in a wall, so that only a part of its circumference projects from it. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- To affix; bind; tie; fasten; connect; conjoin; subjoin; annex; append; win; gain over; conciliate. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. 1. To adhere; to be attached. [ 1913 Webster ]

The great interest which attaches to the mere knowledge of these facts cannot be doubted. Brougham. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To come into legal operation in connection with anything; to vest; as, dower will attach. Cooley. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An attachment. [ Obs. ] Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being attached; esp., liable to be taken by writ or precept. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ F., p. p. of attacher. See Attach, v. t. ] One attached to another person or thing, as a part of a suite or staff. Specifically: One attached to an embassy. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A flat, rectangular, usually rigid briefcase commonly used to carry documents for business purposes. [ PJC ]

adj. 1. fastened together. a picnic table with attached benches [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. being joined in close association; -- of people or organizations.
Syn. -- affiliated, connected [ WordNet 1.5 ]

3. fastened onto another object; -- of objects smaller than the main object. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

4. (Architecture) connected by a common wall or passageway; -- used of buildings. detached [ WordNet 1.5 ]

5. (Biology) permanently attached to a substrate; not free to move about. an attached oyster vagile
Syn. -- sessile [ WordNet 1.5 ]

6. associated in an exclusive sexual relationship; -- opposite of unattached. Narrower terms include: affianced, bespoken, betrothed, engaged, pledged, promised(predicate); married. Also See: loving.
Syn. -- committed. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ F. attachment. ] 1. The act attaching, or state of being attached; close adherence or affection; fidelity; regard; an&unr_; passion of affection that binds a person; as, an attachment to a friend, or to a party. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. That by which one thing is attached to another; connection; as, to cut the attachments of a muscle. [ 1913 Webster ]

The human mind . . . has exhausted its forces in the endeavor to rend the supernatural from its attachment to this history. I. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Something attached; some adjunct attached to an instrument, machine, or other object; as, a sewing machine attachment (i. e., a device attached to a sewing machine to enable it to do special work, as tucking, etc.). [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Giv. Law) (a) A seizure or taking into custody by virtue of a legal process. (b) The writ or percept commanding such seizure or taking. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The term is applied to a seizure or taking either of persons or property. In the serving of process in a civil suit, it is most generally applied to the taking of property, whether at common law, as a species of distress, to compel defendant's appearance, or under local statutes, to satisfy the judgment the plaintiff may recover in the action. The terms attachment and arrest are both applied to the taking or apprehension of a defendant to compel an appearance in a civil action. Attachments are issued at common law and in chancery, against persons for contempt of court. In England, attachment is employed in some cases where capias is with us, as against a witness who fails to appear on summons. In some of the New England States a writ of attachment is a species of mesne process upon which the property of a defendant may be seized at the commencement of a suit and before summons to him, and may be held to satisfy the judgment the plaintiff may recover. In other States this writ can issue only against absconding debtors and those who conceal themselves. See Foreign, Garnishment, Trustee process. Bouvier. Burrill. Blackstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Attachment, Affection. The leading idea of affection is that of warmth and tenderness; the leading idea of attachment is that of being bound to some object by strong and lasting ties. There is more of sentiment (and sometimes of romance) in affection, and more of principle in preserving attachment. We speak of the ardor of the one, and the fidelity of the other. There is another distinction in the use and application of these words. The term attachment is applied to a wider range of objects than affection. A man may have a strong attachment to his country, to his profession, to his principles, and even to favorite places; in respect to none of these could we use the word affection. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. fr. Gr. &unr_; misuse, fr. &unr_; to misuse; kata` against + &unr_; to use. ] (Rhet.) A figure by which one word is wrongly put for another, or by which a word is wrested from its true signification; as, “To take arms against a sea of troubles”. Shak. “Her voice was but the shadow of a sound.” Young. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. Belonging to, or in the manner of, a catachresis; constituting, characterized by or given to catachresis; wrested from its natural sense or form; forced; far-fetched. [ 1913 Webster ]

-- Cat`a*chres"tic*al*ly, adv. [1913 Webster]

[A] catachrestical and improper way of speaking. Jer. Taylor. [1913 Webster]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Detached p. pr. & vb. n. Detaching. ] [ F. détacher (cf. It. distaccare, staccare); pref. dé (L. dis) + the root found also in E. attach. See Attach, and cf. Staccato. ] 1. To part; to separate or disunite; to disengage; -- the opposite of attach; as, to detach the coats of a bulbous root from each other; to detach a man from a leader or from a party. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To separate for a special object or use; -- used especially in military language; as, to detach a ship from a fleet, or a company from a regiment.

Syn. -- To separate; disunite; disengage; sever; disjoin; withdraw; draw off. See Detail. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To push asunder; to come off or separate from anything; to disengage. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ A vapor ] detaching, fold by fold,
From those still heights. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. That can be detached. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Separate; unconnected, or imperfectly connected; as, detached parcels. “Extensive and detached empire.” Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]

Detached escapement. See Escapement. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. détachement. ] 1. The act of detaching or separating, or the state of being detached. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. That which is detached; especially, a body of troops or part of a fleet sent from the main body on special service. [ 1913 Webster ]

Troops . . . widely scattered in little detachments. Bancroft. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Abstraction from worldly objects; renunciation. [ 1913 Webster ]

A trial which would have demanded of him a most heroic faith and the detachment of a saint. J. H. Newman. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ From Eustachi, a learned Italian physician who died in Rome, 1574. ] (Anat.) (a) Discovered by Eustachius. (b) Pertaining to the Eustachian tube; as, Eustachian catheter. [ 1913 Webster ]

Eustachian catheter, a tubular instrument to be introduced into the Eustachian tube so as to allow of inflation of the middle ear through the nose or mouth. --
Eustrachian tube (Anat.), a passage from the tympanum of the ear to the pharynx. See Ear. --
Eustachian valve (Anat.), a crescent-shaped fold of the lining membrane of the heart at the entrance of the vena cava inferior. It directs the blood towards the left auricle in the fetus, but is rudimentary and functionless in the adult. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Haema- + Gr. tachy`s swift + -meter. ] (Physiol.) A form of apparatus (somewhat different from the hemadrometer) for measuring the velocity of the blood. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Physiol.) The measurement of the velocity of the blood. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Same as Haematachometer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Same as Haematachometry. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. AS. heortece. ] Sorrow; anguish of mind; mental pang. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Same as Haematachometer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. "epta`chordos seven-stringed; "epta` seven + chordh` chord: cf. F. heptacorde. See Seven, and Chord. ] 1. (Anc. Mus.) (a) A system of seven sounds. (b) A lyre with seven chords. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Anc. Poet.) A composition sung to the sound of seven chords or tones. Moore (Encyc. of Music). [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Sp. ] An old dance with swords and bucklers; a sword dance. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. meta- + chloral. ] (Chem.) A white, amorphous, insoluble substance regarded as a polymeric variety of chloral. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_;, &unr_;, after the time, happening afterward; &unr_; beyond + &unr_; time: cf. F. métachronisme. ] An error committed in chronology by placing an event after its real time. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ NL., from Gr. &unr_; beyond + &unr_; a coloring. ] (Biol.) The power of changing color at will by the expansion of special pigment cells, under nerve influence, as seen in many reptiles, fishes, etc. Cope. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. ] Mustache. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A large bushy moustache.
Syn. -- mustachio, handle-bars. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n.; pl. Mustaches [ Written also moustache. ] [ F. moustache, It. mostaccio visage, mostacchio mustache, fr. Gr. my`stax upper lip and the beard upon it; cf. ma`stax mouth: cf. Sp. mostacho. ] 1. That part of the beard which grows on the upper lip; hair left growing above the mouth. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Zool.) A West African monkey (Cercopithecus cephus). It has yellow whiskers, and a triangular blue mark on the nose. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Zool.) Any conspicuous stripe of color on the side of the head, beneath the eye of a bird. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A stain or discoloration on the upper lip of a person; as, wearing a milk mustache. [ informal ] [ PJC ]

n.; pl. Mustachios A mustache. Longfellow. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Having a mustache or mustachios.
Syn. -- mustached. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. no`hma the understanding + ta`chos swiftness + -graph. ] An instrument for determining and registering the duration of more or less complex operations of the mind. Dunglison. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_; with eight strings; 'okta- (for 'oktw` eight) + &unr_; string, chord: cf. F. octacorde. ] (Mus.) An instrument of eight strings; a system of eight tones. [ Also written octochord. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ F. & Sp. patache, P. patacho. ] (Naut.) A tender to a fleet, formerly used for conveying men, orders, or treasure. [ Spain & Portugal ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ NL. See Penta-, and Achenium. ] (Bot.) A dry fruit composed of five carpels, which are covered by an epigynous calyx and separate at maturity. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Penta- + chloride. ] (Chem.) A chloride having five atoms of chlorine in each molecule; as, phosphorus pentachloride. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. pentachordus five-stringed, Gr. penta`chordos; penta- five + chordh` string. ] 1. An ancient instrument of music with five strings. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. An order or system of five sounds. Busby. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. pistace, fr. F. pistache. See Pistachio. ] (Bot.) The anacardiaceous tree Pistacia vera, which yields the pistachio nut; also, the nut itself and the flavoring extract prepared from it. Called also pistachio. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ It. pistacchio (cf. Sp. pistacho, F. pistache), fr. L. pistacium, Gr. &unr_;, &unr_;, fr. Per. pistah. Cf. Fistinut. ] (Bot.) The nut of the Pistacia vera, a tree of the order Anacardiaceæ, containing a kernel of a pale greenish color, which has a pleasant taste, resembling that of the almond, and yields an oil of agreeable taste and odor; -- called also pistachio nut. It is wholesome and nutritive. The tree grows in Arabia, Persia, Syria, and Sicily. [ Written also pistachia. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The small anacardiaceous tree (Pistacia vera), of southern Europe and Asia Minor, which bears the pistachio nut. Called also pistache. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

3. (Cookery) The flavor of the pistachio nut, or an ice or confection flavored with it. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

4. Pistachio green. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

. A light yellowish green color resembling that of the pistachio nut. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

v. t. To attach again. The object reattached may have been an integral part which had never been "attached" (trans), e.g., to reattach a severed finger. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

n. The act of reattaching; a second attachment. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Half detached; partly distinct or separate. [ 1913 Webster ]

Semidetached house, one of two tenements under a single roof, but separated by a party wall. [ Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ F. ] A kind of narrow braid, usually of silk; -- also known as Russian braid. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. tache spot. See Techy. ] A spot, stain, or blemish. [ Obs. ] Warner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ See Tack a kind of nail. ] Something used for taking hold or holding; a catch; a loop; a button. [ Obs. ] Ex. xxvi. 6. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. tachy`s quick + "y`dwr water. So named from its ready deliquescence.] (Min.) A hydrous chloride of calcium and magnesium occurring in yellowish masses which rapidly deliquesce upon exposure. It is found in the salt mines at Stassfurt. [1913 Webster]