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ed States east of the Alleghany Mountains, esp. the Eastern, or New England, States; now, commonly, the whole region east of the Mississippi River, esp. that which is north of Maryland and the Ohio River; -- usually with the definite article; as, the commerce of the East is not independent of the agriculture of the Wes…

or representation of a person, whether a full figure, or a part; an imitative figure; -- commonly applied to sculptured likenesses, as those on monuments, or to those of the heads of princes on coins and medals, sometimes applied to portraits. To burn, or To hang, in effigy, to burn or to hang an image or picture of a…

mical change between some of the ingredients of the matter covered and an acid proceeding commonly from an external source; as, the walls of limestone caverns sometimes effloresce with nitrate of calcium in consequence of the action in consequence of nitric acid formed in the atmosphere.

To increase; to add to; to augment; -- now commonly used with out, the notion conveyed being to add to, or piece out by a laborious, inferior, or scanty addition; as, to eke out a scanty supply of one kind with some other. "To eke my pain." Spenser. He eked out by his wits an income of barely fifty pounds. Macaulay.…

arlier; older; as, his elder brother died in infancy; -- opposed to Ant: younger, and now commonly applied to a son, daughter, child, brother, etc. The elder shall serve the younger. Gen. xxv. 23. But ask of elder days, earth's vernal hour. Keble. Elder hand (Card Playing), the hand playing, or having the right to play…

The art or process of depositing a coating (commonly) of silver, gold, or nickel on an inferior metal, by means of electricity.

One of the simplest essential parts, more commonly called cells, of which animal and vegetable organisms, or their tissues and organs, are composed.

Pertaining to the elephant, or resembling an elephant (commonly, in size); hence, huge; immense; heavy; as, of elephantine proportions; an elephantine step or tread. Elephantine epoch (Geol.), the epoch distinguished by the existence of large pachyderms. Mantell. -- Elephantine tortoise (Zoöl.), a huge land tortoise;…

An imaginary supernatural being, commonly a little sprite, much like a fairy; a mythological diminutive spirit, supposed to haunt hills and wild places, and generally represented as delighting in mischievous tricks. Every elf, and fairy sprite, Hop as light as bird from brier. Shak.

To represent by, or as by, an emblem; to symbolize. Anciently the sun was commonly emblematized by a starry or radiate figure. Bp. Hurd.

To give authority to; to delegate power to; to commission; to authorize (having commonly a legal force); as, the Supreme Court is empowered to try and decide cases, civil or criminal; the attorney is empowered to sign an acquittance, and discharge the debtor.

English words are written indifferently with en- or in-. For ease of pronunciation it is commonly changed to em- before p, b, and m, as in employ, embody, emmew. It is sometimes used to give a causal force, as in enable, enfeeble, to cause to be, or to make, able, or feeble; and sometimes merely gives an intensive for…

stealth into the possessions or rights of another; to trespass; to intrude; to trench; -- commonly with on or upon; as, to encroach on a neighbor; to encroach on the highway. No sense, faculty, or member must encroach upon or interfere with the duty and office of another. South. Superstition, . . . a creeping and encro…

A noun suffix having much the same meaning as -ence, but more commonly signifying the quality or state; as, emergency, efficiency. See -ancy.

it is construed with the verb and pronoun either in the singular or the plural, but more commonly in the singular; as, we have met the enemy and he is ours or they are ours. It was difficult in such a country to track the enemy. It was impossible to drive him to bay. Macaulay.

A body of English or people of English descent; -- commonly applied to English people in Ireland. A general massacre of the Englishry. Macaulay.

A hawk gradually changing the color of its feathers, commonly in the second year.

A mineral, commonly of a yellowish green (pistachio) color, occurring granular, massive, columnar, and in monoclinic crystals. It is a silicate of alumina, lime, and oxide of iron, or manganese.

A division of time characterized by the prevalence of similar conditions of the earth; commonly a minor division or part of a period. The long geological epoch which stored up the vast coal measures. J. C. Shairp.

A piece of furniture used as a writing table, commonly with drawers, pigeonholes, and the like; a secretary or writing desk.