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A piece of mechanism; mechanical device or contrivance; a gimcrack. [Obs.] Bp. Hall. Shak.

n which the wires or strings are generally triplicated, increasing the power, and all the mechanism is introduced in the most effective manner, regardless of the size of the instrument. -- Grand relief (Sculp.), alto relievo. -- Grand Seignior. See under Seignior. -- Grand stand, the principal stand, or erection for…

that wheel of a harvester, mowing machine, etc., which, rolling on the ground, drives the mechanism. -- Ground wren (Zoöl.), a small California bird (Chamæa fasciata) allied to the wrens and titmice. It inhibits the arid plains. Called also gronnd tit, and wren lit. -- To bite the ground, To break ground. See under B…

tion, adaptation, or effect on the mind; to agree in sense or purport; as, the parts of a mechanism harmonize.

a (Ninox scutellatus). -- Hawk's bill (Horology), the pawl for the rack, in the striking mechanism of a clock.

which a heated substance, as a heated fluid, is made to perform work by giving motion to mechanism, as a hot-air engine, or a steam engine. -- Heat producers. (Physiol.) See under Food. -- Heat rays, a term formerly applied to the rays near the red end of the spectrum, whether within or beyond the visible spectrum.…

rtinacity; steadfastness; resoluteness; unchangeableness; obstinacy. The inflexibility of mechanism. A. Baxter. That grave inflexibility of soul. Churchill. The purity and inflexibility of their faith. T. Warton.

pertaining to, or characterized by, genius or ingenuity; of curious design, structure, or mechanism; as, an ingenious model, or machine; an ingenious scheme, contrivance, etc. Thus men go wrong with an ingenious skill. Cowper.

Curiousness, or cleverness in design or contrivance; as, the ingenuity of a plan, or of mechanism. He gives . . . To artist ingenuity and skill. Cowper.

aratus or arrangement, a device applied to looms for weaving figured goods, consisting of mechanism controlled by a chain of variously perforated cards, which cause the warp threads to be lifted in the proper succession for producing the required figure. -- Jacquard card, one of the perforated cards of a Jacquard appa…

the bolt of a lock is shot or drawn; usually, a removable metal instrument fitted to the mechanism of a particular lock and operated by turning in its place.

A device or mechanism for producing light by electricity. See Incandescent lamp, under Incandescent. Æolipile lamp, a hollow ball of copper containing alcohol which is converted into vapor by a lamp beneath, so as to make a powerful blowpipe flame when the vapor is ignited. Weale. -- Arc lamp (Elec.), a form of lamp i…

An elementary piece of the mechanism of a lock. Limb of the law, a lawyer or an officer of the law. [Colloq.] Landor.

Any one of the several elementary pieces of a mechanism, as the fixed frame, or a rod, wheel, mass of confined liquid, etc., by which relative motion of other parts is produced and constrained.

Mechanism in which links, or intermediate connecting pieces, are employed to transmit motion from one part to another.

anal lock. -- Lock nut. See Check nut, under Check. -- Lock plate, a plate to which the mechanism of a gunlock is attached. -- Lock rail (Arch.), in ordinary paneled doors, the rail nearest the lock. Lock rand (Masonry), a range of bond stone. Knight. -- Mortise lock, a door lock inserted in a mortise. -- Rim lock…

The principal or most important spring in a piece of mechanism, especially the moving spring of a watch or clock or the spring in a gunlock which impels the hammer. Hence: The chief or most powerful motive; the efficient cause of action.

echanical methods of placing them. Masting house (Naut.), a large building, with suitable mechanism overhanging the water, used for stepping and unstepping the masts of vessels.

A system of mechanism for transmitting motion of a definite character, or for transforming motion; as, the wheelwork of a watch. Febrille movement (Med.), an elevation of the body temperature; a fever. -- Movement cure. (Med.) See Kinesiatrics. -- Movement of the bowels, an evacuation or stool; a passage or discharge…

A system of treatment based on the theory that diseases are chiefly due to deranged mechanism of the bones, nerves, blood vessels, and other tissues, and can be remedied by manipulations of these parts.