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An animal which has some resemblance to a bear in form or habits, but no real affinity; as, the woolly bear; ant bear; water bear; sea bear.

Arkansas; -- a nickname, from the many bears once inhabiting its forests.

That part of any member of a building which rests upon its supports; as, a lintel or beam may have four inches of bearing upon the wall.

Pertaining to, or having the form, nature, or habits of, a beast. Beastly divinities and droves of gods. Prior.

nting), to run first one way and then another; -- said of a stag. -- To beat up for recruits, to go diligently about in order to get helpers or participators in an enterprise.

nce or regard as happy, or supremely blessed, or as conferring happiness. The common conceits and phrases that beatify wealth. Barrow.

mall bird. (Silvia hortensis), which is highly prized by the Italians for the delicacy of its flesh in the autumn, when it has fed on figs, grapes, etc.

tions first observed by the French physicist Henri Becquerel, in working with uranium and its compounds. They consist of a mixture of alpha, beta, and gamma rays.

A bed and its furniture; the materials of a bed, whether for man or beast; bedclothes; litter.

To throw into utter disorder and confusion, as if by the agency of evil spirits; to bring under diabolical influence; to torment. Bedeviled and used worse than St. Bartholomew. Sterne.

The shortest line from one place to another, like that of a bee to its hive when loaded with honey; an air line. "A bee line for the brig." Kane.

he genus Merops, that feeds on bees. The European species (M. apiaster) is remarkable for its brilliant colors.

An Australian tree (Casuarina), and its red wood, used for cabinetwork; also, the trees Stenocarpus salignus of New South Wales, and Banksia compar of Queensland.

The title of a heathen deity to whom the Jews ascribed the sovereignty of the evil spirits; hence, the Devil or a devil. See Baal.

To be suitable to; to suit; to become. That name best befits thee. Milton.

forward of the foremast. -- Before the wind (Naut.), in the direction of the wind and by its impulse; having the wind aft.

The bur marigold (Bidens) and its achenes, which are armed with barbed awns, and adhere to clothing and fleeces with unpleasant tenacity.

cubical block of some tough stone, esp. granite, used as a material for street pavements. Its usual diameter is 5 to 7 inches.

ion; conviction; confidence; as, belief of a witness; the belief of our senses. Belief admits of all degrees, from the slightest suspicion to the fullest assurance. Reid.

af hopper (Bocydium tintinnabuliferum), remarkable for the four bell-shaped appendages of its thorax.