n. a genus of nearly globular cacti of Mexico and Southwestern U. S., including some of the barrel cacti.
a. [ L. ferox, -ocis, fierce: cf. F. féroce. See Ferocity. ] Fierce; savage; wild; indicating cruelty; ravenous; rapacious;
The humbled power of a ferocious enemy. Lowth.
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n. the trait of extreme cruelty.
It [ Christianity ] has adapted the ferociousness of war. Blair. [ 1913 Webster ]
n. [ L. ferocitas, fr. ferox, -ocis, fierce, kin to ferus wild: cf. F. ferocité. See Fierce. ] Savage wildness or fierceness; fury; cruelty;
The pride and ferocity of a Highland chief. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]
‖n. (Archæol.) A symbol of the solar deity, found on monuments exhumed in Babylon, Nineveh, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]
a. [ L. ferus. See Fierce. ] Wild; savage. [ R. ] Arthur Wilson. [ 1913 Webster ]