n. The act of abacinating. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. ab + E. actinal. ] (Zool.) Pertaining to the surface or end opposite to the mouth in a radiate animal; -- opposed to actinal. “The aboral or abactinal area.” L. Agassiz. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Stealing cattle on a large scale. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abalienatio: cf. F. abaliénation. ] The act of abalienating; alienation; estrangement. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ LL. abannatio; ad + LL. bannire to banish. ] (Old Law) Banishment. [ Obs. ] Bailey. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. ab + E. articulation : cf. F. abarticulation. See Article. ] (Anat.) Articulation, usually that kind of articulation which admits of free motion in the joint; diarthrosis. Coxe. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Provided with an abatis. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } pos>n. [ F. abatis, abattis, mass of things beaten or cut down, fr. abattre. See Abate. ] (Fort.) A means of defense formed by felled trees, the ends of whose branches are sharpened and directed outwards, or against the enemy. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ LL. abbatialis : cf. F. abbatial. ] Belonging to an abbey; as, abbatial rights. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Abbatial. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ LL. abbreviatio: cf. F. abbréviation. ] 1. The act of shortening, or reducing. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The result of abbreviating; an abridgment. Tylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The form to which a word or phrase is reduced by contraction and omission; a letter or letters, standing for a word or phrase of which they are a part; as, Gen. for Genesis; U.S.A. for United States of America. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Mus.) One dash, or more, through the stem of a note, dividing it respectively into quavers, semiquavers, or demi-semiquavers. Moore. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abdicatio: cf. F. abdication. ] The act of abdicating; the renunciation of a high office, dignity, or trust, by its holder; commonly the voluntary renunciation of sovereign power; as, abdication of the throne, government, power, authority. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. abdicativus. ] Causing, or implying, abdication. [ R. ] Bailey. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. abditivus, fr. abdere to hide. ] Having the quality of hiding. [ R. ] Bailey. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. (Physiol.) drawing away from the midline of the body or from an adjacent part; -- used especially of muscles adducent
Syn. -- abducent [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ L. abductio: cf. F. abduction. ] 1. The act of abducing or abducting; a drawing apart; a carrying away. Roget. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Physiol.) The movement which separates a limb or other part from the axis, or middle line, of the body. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Law) The wrongful, and usually the forcible, carrying off of a human being; as, the abduction of a child, the abduction of an heiress. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Logic) A syllogism or form of argument in which the major is evident, but the minor is only probable. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. aberratio: cf. F. aberration. See Aberrate. ] 1. The act of wandering; deviation, especially from truth or moral rectitude, from the natural state, or from a type. “The aberration of youth.” Hall. “Aberrations from theory.” Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A partial alienation of reason. “Occasional aberrations of intellect.” Lingard. [ 1913 Webster ]

Whims, which at first are the aberrations of a single brain, pass with heat into epidemic form. I. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Astron.) A small periodical change of position in the stars and other heavenly bodies, due to the combined effect of the motion of light and the motion of the observer; called annual aberration, when the observer's motion is that of the earth in its orbit, and daily or diurnal aberration, when of the earth on its axis; amounting when greatest, in the former case, to 20.4'', and in the latter, to 0.3''. Planetary aberration is that due to the motion of light and the motion of the planet relative to the earth. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Opt.) The convergence to different foci, by a lens or mirror, of rays of light emanating from one and the same point, or the deviation of such rays from a single focus; called spherical aberration, when due to the spherical form of the lens or mirror, such form giving different foci for central and marginal rays; and chromatic aberration, when due to different refrangibilities of the colored rays of the spectrum, those of each color having a distinct focus. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Physiol.) The passage of blood or other fluid into parts not appropriate for it. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Law) The producing of an unintended effect by the glancing of an instrument, as when a shot intended for A glances and strikes B. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Insanity; lunacy; madness; derangement; alienation; mania; dementia; hallucination; illusion; delusion. See Insanity. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Characterized by aberration. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. ab- + evacuation. ] (Med.) A partial evacuation. Mayne. AS [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of or pertaining to the fir tree or its products; as, abietic acid, called also sylvic acid. Watts. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ See Abietene. ] (Chem.) A resinous obtained from Strasburg turpentine or Canada balsam. It is without taste or smell, is insoluble in water, but soluble in alcohol (especially at the boiling point), in strong acetic acid, and in ether. Watts. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of or pertaining to abietin; as, abietinic acid. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) A substance resembling mannite, found in the needles of the common silver fir of Europe (Abies pectinata). Eng. Cyc. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to abiogenesis. Ab`i*o*ge*net"ic*al*ly, adv. [1913 Webster]

n. (Med.) A pathological condition opposite to that of irritation; debility; lack of strength; asthenia. AS [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Med.) Characterized by abirritation or debility. AS [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. abjection, L. abjectio. ] 1. The act of bringing down or humbling. “The abjection of the king and his realm.” Joye. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The state of being rejected or cast out. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

An abjection from the beatific regions where God, and his angels and saints, dwell forever. Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A low or downcast state; meanness of spirit; abasement; degradation. [ 1913 Webster ]

That this should be termed baseness, abjection of mind, or servility, is it credible? Hooker. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Rejection by judicial sentence. [ R. ] Knowles. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. abjunctus, p. p. of abjungere; ab + jungere to join. ] Exceptional. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

It is this power which leads on from the accidental and abjunctive to the universal. I. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abjuratio: cf. F. abjuration. ] 1. The act of abjuring or forswearing; a renunciation upon oath; as, abjuration of the realm, a sworn banishment, an oath taken to leave the country and never to return. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A solemn recantation or renunciation; as, an abjuration of heresy. [ 1913 Webster ]

Oath of abjuration, an oath asserting the right of the present royal family to the crown of England, and expressly abjuring allegiance to the descendants of the Pretender. Brande & C. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The weaning of a child from the breast, or of young beasts from their dam. Blount. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Hort.) The process of grafting now called inarching, or grafting by approach. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. ablaqueatio. ] The act or process of laying bare the roots of trees to expose them to the air and water. [ Obs. ] Evelyn. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. ablatio, fr. ablatus p. p. of auferre to carry away; ab + latus, p. p. of ferre carry: cf. F. ablation. See Tolerate. ] 1. A carrying or taking away; removal. Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Med.) Extirpation. Dunglison. AS [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Med.) Removing or destroying of a body tissue, especially by a surgical procedure. Dorland. [ AS ]

4. (Geol.) Wearing away; superficial waste, as of glacial ice or snow. Tyndall. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Aerospace) Wearing away of the outer layers of a protective shield or surface by the heat and aerodynamic forces caused by flying through the atmosphere at hypersonic speed, as during reentry from space; as, ablation of the heat shield during reentry. [ PJC ]

a. Diminishing; as, an ablatitious force. Sir J. Herschel. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ F. ablatif, ablative, L. ablativus fr. ablatus. See Ablation. ] 1. Taking away or removing. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Where the heart is forestalled with misopinion, ablative directions are found needful to unteach error, ere we can learn truth. Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Gram.) Applied to one of the cases of the noun in Latin and some other languages, -- the fundamental meaning of the case being removal, separation, or taking away. [ 1913 Webster ]

(Gram.) The ablative case. [ 1913 Webster ]

ablative absolute, a construction in Latin, in which a noun in the ablative case has a participle (either expressed or implied), agreeing with it in gender, number, and case, both words forming a clause by themselves and being unconnected, grammatically, with the rest of the sentence; as, Tarquinio regnante, Pythagoras venit, i. e., Tarquinius reigning, Pythagoras came. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. ablegatio. ] The act of sending abroad. [ Obs. ] Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abligurito, fr. abligurire to spend in luxurious indulgence; ab + ligurire to be lickerish, dainty, fr. lingere to lick. ] Prodigal expense for food. [ Obs. ] Bailey. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. ablutio, fr. abluere: cf. F. ablution. See Abluent. ] 1. The act of washing or cleansing; specifically, the washing of the body, or some part of it, as a religious rite. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The water used in cleansing. “Cast the ablutions in the main.” Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (R. C. Ch.) A small quantity of wine and water, which is used to wash the priest's thumb and index finger after the communion, and which then, as perhaps containing portions of the consecrated elements, is drunk by the priest. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to ablution. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abnegatio: cf. F. abnégation. ] a denial; a renunciation. [ 1913 Webster ]

With abnegation of God, of his honor, and of religion, they may retain the friendship of the court. Knox. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. abnegativus. ] Denying; renouncing; negative. [ R. ] Clarke. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The act of cutting away the knots of trees. [ R. ] Crabb. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abolitio, fr. abolere: cf. F. abolition. See Abolish. ] The act of abolishing, or the state of being abolished; an annulling; abrogation; utter destruction; as, the abolition of slavery or the slave trade; the abolition of laws, decrees, ordinances, customs, taxes, debts, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The application of this word to persons is now unusual or obsolete [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. relating to or favoring abolition, especially the abolition of slavery. WordNet 1.5 ]

2. of or pertaining to abolition [ PJC ]

n. The principles or measures of abolitionists. Wilberforce. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A person who favors the abolition of any institution, especially negro slavery. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To imbue with the principles of abolitionism. [ R. ] Bartlett. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. abominacioun, -cion, F. abominatio. See Abominate. ] 1. The feeling of extreme disgust and hatred; abhorrence; detestation; loathing; as, he holds tobacco in abomination. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. That which is abominable; anything hateful, wicked, or shamefully vile; an object or state that excites disgust and hatred; a hateful or shameful vice; pollution. [ 1913 Webster ]

Antony, most large in his abominations. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A cause of pollution or wickedness. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Detestation; loathing; abhorrence; disgust; aversion; loathsomeness; odiousness. Sir W. Scott. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abortus + caedere to kill. See Abort. ] (Med.) The act of destroying a fetus in the womb; feticide. [ archaic ] AS [ 1913 Webster ]