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ped to fit the sole of a shoe, -- made to be fastened under the foot, and used for moving rapidly on ice. Batavia rushes forth; and as they sweep, On sounding skates, a thousand different ways, In circling poise, swift as the winds, along, The then gay land is maddended all to joy. Thomson. Roller skate. See under Roll…

onging to Gerris, Pyrrhocoris, Prostemma, and allied genera. They have long legs, and run rapidly over the surface of the water, as if skating.

Fig.: To read or examine superficially and rapidly, in order to cull the principal facts or thoughts; as, to skim a book or a newspaper.

having the lower mandible compressed and much longer than the upper one. These birds fly rapidly along the surface of the water, with the lower mandible immersed, thus skimming out small fishes. The American species (R. nigra) is common on the southern coasts of the United States. Called also scissorbill, and shearbil…

Not violent, rapid, or pressing; slow; moderate; easy; as, business is slack. "With slack pace." Chaucer. Cslack southwest, at midnight was becalmed. Milton. Slack in stays (Naut.), slow in going about, as a ship. -- Slack water, the time when the tide runs slowly, or the water is at rest; or the interval between the…

To lose rapidity; to become more slow; as, a current of water slackens.

ett. Adhesive slate (Min.), a kind of slate of a greenish gray color, which absorbs water rapidly, and adheres to the tongue; whence the name. -- Aluminous slate, or Alum slate (Min.), a kind of slate containing sulphate of alumina, -- used in the manufacture of alum. -- Bituminous slate (Min.), a soft species of sec…

a hole in the strap, the ends of the string are taken in the hand, and the whole whirled rapidly round until, by loosing one end, the missile is let fly with centrifugal force.

quality opposite to adhesiveness; allowing or causing anything to slip or move smoothly, rapidly, and easily upon the surface; smooth; glib; as, oily substances render things slippery.

depends for stability upon breadth of beam rather than depth of keel. The two types have rapidly approximated since 1880. One radical distinction is that a slop may carry a centerboard. See Cutter, and Illustration in Appendix. Sloop of war, formerly, a vessel of war rigged either as a ship, brig, or schooner, and mou…

Moving a short space in a relatively long time; not swift; not quick in motion; not rapid; moderate; deliberate; as, a slow stream; a slow motion.

In a slow manner; moderately; not rapidly; not early; not rashly; not readly; tardly.

To raise a dust or smoke by rapid motion. Proud of his steeds, he smokes along the field. Dryden.

A rapid inspiratory act, in which the mouth is kept shut and the air drawn in through the nose.

The act or state of moving swiftly; swiftness; velocity; rapidly; rate of motion; dispatch; as, the speed a horse or a vessel. Speed, to describe whose swiftness number fails. Milton.

Not dilatory or slow; quick; swift; nimble; hasty; rapid in motion or performance; as, a speedy flight; on speedy foot. I will wish her speedy strength. Shak. Darts, which not the good could shun, The speedy ould outfly. Dryden.

To cause to turn round rapidly; to whirl; to twirl; as, to spin a top.

To convey rapidly and secretly, or mysteriously, as if by the agency of a spirit; to kidnap; -- often with away, or off. The ministry had him spirited away, and carried abroad as a dangerous person. Arbuthnot & Pope. I felt as if I had been spirited into some castle of antiquity. Willis. Spiriting away (Law), causing t…

To run very rapidly; to run at full speed. A runner [in a quarter-mile race] should be able to sprint the whole way. Encyc. Brit.

To spit, or to emit saliva from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking.