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en as introductory to a book or essay; a proem; an introduction, or series of preliminary remarks. This superficial tale Is but a preface of her worthy praise. Shak. Heaven's high behest no preface needs. Milton.

r of the nature of, a preface; introductory to a book, essay, or discourse; as, prefatory remarks. That prefatory addition to the Creed. Dryden.

A preliminary remark or observation; an introductory discourse prefixed to a book or treatise. D. Stokes (1659). Sir W. Scott.

A bronze-colored mineral, of metallic luster. It is a sulphide of iron, and is remarkable for being attracted by the magnet. Called also magnetic pyrites.

as. Most of these Indians are short, but heavy and strong. They are brachycephalic and of remarkably low cranial capacity. Nevertheless, they represent one of the highest of native American civilizations, characterized by agricultural, military, and administrative skill rather than by science or literature, although th…

Noiselessly; silently; without remark or violent movement; in a manner to attract little or no observation; as, he quietly left the room.

competition; specifically, a horse bred or kept for running races. (b) A breed of horses remarkable for swiftness in running. (c) (Zoöl.) The steamer duck.

d give a characteristic spectrum. It resembles barium chemically. Radium preparations are remarkable for maintaining themselves at a higher temperature than their surroundings, and for their radiations, which are of three kinds: alpha rays, beta rays, and gamma rays (see these terms). By reason of these rays they ioniz…

To look closely at; to observe attentively; to pay attention to; to notice or remark particularly. If much you note him, You offened him; . . . feed, and regard him not. Shak.

drawing back, instead of going forward, as some horses do. E. Philips (1658). The people remarked with awe and wonder that the beasts which were to drag him [Abraham Holmes] to the gallows became restive, and went back. Macaulay.

A critical examination of a publication, with remarks; a criticism; a critique.

A genus of shrubs or small trees, often having handsome evergreen leaves, and remarkable for the beauty of their flowers; rosebay.

Remarks concerning a subject or a person designed to excite laughter with a degree of contempt; wit of that species which provokes contemptuous laughter; disparagement by making a person an object of laughter; banter; -- a term lighter than derision. We have in great measure restricted the meaning of ridicule, which wo…

A kind of glass drop with a long tail, made by dropping melted glass into water. It is remarkable for bursting into fragments when the surface is scratched or the tail broken; -- so called from Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I., by whom they were first brought to England. Called also Rupert's ball, and glass tear.…

and judicious; knowing; far-sighted; shrewd; sage; wise; as, a sagacious man; a sagacious remark. Instinct . . . makes them, many times, sagacious above our apprehension. Dr. H. More. Only sagacious heads light on these observations, and reduce them into general propositions. Locke.

A keen, reproachful expression; a satirical remark uttered with some degree of scorn or contempt; a taunt; a gibe; a cutting jest. The sarcasms of those critics who imagine our art to be a matter of inspiration. Sir J. Reynolds.

Keeness and severity of remark; caustic exposure to reprobation; trenchant wit; sarcasm.

ical revolution round the sun, nearly twenty-nine years and a half. It is surrounded by a remarkable system of rings, and has eight satellites.

A South American ant (Ecodoma cephalotes) remarkable for having two large kinds of workers besides the ordinary ones, and for the immense size of its formicaries. The sauba ant cuts off leaves of plants and carries them into its subterranean nests, and thus often does great damage by defoliating trees and cultivated pl…

Marginal anotation; an explanatory remark or comment; specifically, an explanatory comment on the text of a classic author by an early grammarian.