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To press heavily upon; to bear down upon with violence; hence, to constrain or compel; to bind; to distress, torment, or afflict. [Obs.] "Distrained with chains." Chaucer.

poetry in honor of Bacchus, usually sung by a band of revelers to a flute accompaniment; hence, in general, a poem written in a wild irregular strain. Bentley.

Diurnal arc, the arc described by the sun during the daytime or while above the horizon; hence, the arc described by the moon or a star from rising to setting. -- Diurnal circle, the apparent circle described by a celestial body in consequence of the earth's rotation. -- Diurnal motion of the earth, the motion of th…

en to the rich man in our Lord's parable of the "Rich Man and Lazarus" (Luke xvi. 19-31). Hence, a name for a rich worldling.

Having in the head a sensation of whirling, with a tendency to fall; vertiginous; giddy; hence, confused; indistinct. Alas! his brain was dizzy. Drayton.

d not do these things. Ld. Lytton. You can not do wrong without suffering wrong. Emerson. Hence: To do homage, honor, favor, justice, etc., to render homage, honor, etc.

originally meaning a men so well versed in his department as to be qualified to teach it. Hence: One who has taken the highest degree conferred by a university or college, or has received a diploma of the highest degree; as, a doctor of divinity, of law, of medicine, of music, or of philosophy. Such diplomas may confer…

The act of evading by some skillful movement; a sudden starting aside; hence, an artful device to evade, deceive, or cheat; a cunning trick; an artifice. [Colloq.] Some, who have a taste for good living, have many harmless arts, by which they improve their banquet, and innocent dodges, if we may be permitted to use an…

-law action of ejectment, the fictitious defendant being usually denominated Richard Roe. Hence, a fictitious name for a party, real or fictitious, to any action or proceeding.

To put off, as dress; to divest one's self of; hence, figuratively, to put or thrust away; to rid one's self of. And made us doff our easy robes of peace. Shak. At night, or in the rain, He dons a surcoat which he doffs at morn. Emerson.

Asserting a thing positively and authoritatively; positive; magisterial; hence, arrogantly authoritative; overbearing. Critics write in a positive, dogmatic way. Spectator. [They] are as assertive and dogmatical as if they were omniscient. Glanvill. Dogmatic theology. Same as Dogmatics.

Anything done; a deed; an action good or bad; hence, in the plural, conduct; behavior. See Do. To render an account of his doings. Barrow.

utch coin, worth about half a farthing; also, a similar small coin once used in Scotland; hence, any small piece of money. Shak.

Lit., given; hence, in a literary work, as a drama or tale, that which is assumed as to characters, situation, etc., as a basis for the plot or story. W. E. Henley.

To ordain as penalty; hence, to mulct or fine. Have I tongue to doom my brother's death Shak.

The nail or knob on which in ancient doors the knocker struck; -- hence the old saying, "As dead as a doornail."

Sleeping; as, a dormant animal; hence, not in action or exercise; quiescent; at rest; in abeyance; not disclosed, asserted, or insisted on; as, dormant passions; dormant claims or titles. It is by lying dormant a long time, or being . . . very rarely exercised, that arbitrary power steals upon a people. Burke.…

A place to sleep in; a bed; hence, sleep. [Slang]

[Perh. a different word; cf. Totty.] Unsteady in gait; hence, feeble; half-witted. [Eng.]

A turn or circuit in running to escape pursues; hence, a trick; a shift; an artifice. These men are too well acquainted with the chase to be flung off by any false steps or doubles. Addison.