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The shank of a type, or the depth of the shank (by which the size is indicated); as, a nonpareil face on an agate body.

rly used for throwing stones and other ponderous missiles. It was the earliest kind of cannon. They planted in divers places twelve great bombards, wherewith they threw huge stones into the air, which, falling down into the city, might break down the houses. Knolles.

A noncommissioned officer in the British artillery. Bombardier beetle (Zoöl.), a kind of beetle (Brachinus crepitans), so called because, when disturbed, it makes an explosive discharge of a pungent and acrid vapor from its anal glands. The name is applied to other related species, as the B. displosor, which can produc…

To make a hollow sound, as of waves or cannon. Alarm guns booming through the night air. W. Irving.

The internal cylindrical cavity of a gun, cannon, pistol, or other firearm, or of a pipe or tube. The bores of wind instruments. Bacon. Love's counselor should fill the bores of hearing. Shak.

The act or process of one who, or that which, bores; as, the boring of cannon; the boring of piles and ship timbers by certain marine mollusks. One of the most important applications of boring is in the formation of artesian wells. Tomlinson.

A nonmetallic element occurring abundantly in borax. It is reduced with difficulty to the free state, when it can be obtained in several different forms; viz., as a substance of a deep olive color, in a semimetallic form, and in colorless quadratic crystals similar to the diamond in hardness and other properties. It oc…

Empty talk; contemptible nonsense; trash; humbug. [Colloq.]

ll of thread. [Obs.] As you unwind her love from him, Lest it should ravel and be good to none, You must provide to bottom it on me. Shak.

-- formerly used in a good sense, but now usually in a contemptuous sense. "This brat is none of mine." Shak. "A beggar's brat." Swift. O Israel! O household of the Lord! O Abraham's brats! O brood of blessed seed! Gascoigne.

Specifically: A breaking or infraction of a law, or of any obligation or tie; violation; non-fulfillment; as, a breach of contract; a breach of promise.

To utter without vocality, as the nonvocal consonants. The same sound may be pronounces either breathed, voiced, or whispered. H. Sweet. Breathed elements, being already voiceless, remain unchanged

The hinder part of anything; esp., the part of a cannon, or other firearm, behind the chamber.

A strong rope rove through the cascabel of a cannon and secured to ringbolts in the ship's side, to limit the recoil of the gun when it is discharged.

A book containing the daily public or canonical prayers of the Roman Catholic or of the Greek Church for the seven canonical hours, namely, matins and lauds, the first, third, sixth, and ninth hours, vespers, and compline; -- distinguished from the missal.

ly zinc, are sometimes added. It is hard and sonorous, and is used for statues, bells, cannon, etc., the proportions of the ingredients being varied to suit the particular purposes. The varieties containing the higher proportions of tin are brittle, as in bell metal and speculum metal.

heir blocks; -- called also knee holly. See Cladophyll. -- Dyer's broom, a species of mignonette (Reseda luteola), used for dyeing yellow; dyer's weed; dyer's rocket. -- Spanish broom. See under Spanish.

The doctrines of the Brunonian system of medicine. See Brunonian.

One who advocates the Brunonian system of medicine.

The force of a blow; shock; collision. "And heavy brunt of cannon ball." Hudibras. It is instantly and irrecoverably scattered by our first brunt with some real affair of common life. I. Taylor.