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Dividing or separating the parts of an animal or vegetable body; as, a dissecting aneurism, one which makes its way between or within the coats of an artery.

The act of dissecting an animal or plant; as, dissection of the human body was held sacrilege till the time of Francis I.

A morbid state of the animal system; indisposition; malady; disorder; -- at present chiefly applied to diseases of brutes; as, a distemper in dogs; the horse distemper; the horn distemper in cattle. They heighten distempers to diseases. Suckling.

ference; as, the distinction between real and apparent good. The distinction betwixt the animal kingdom and the inferior parts of matter. Locke.

team prior to the next admission. Geographical distribution, the natural arrangements of animals and plants in particular regions or districts.

of lyric 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.

ely diverging; as the branches of a tree, or as lines of sculpture, or color markings on animals, etc.

To impart; to communicate. Which would not be To them [animals] made common and divulged. Milton.

The solid part of an animal's tail, as distinguished from the hair; the stump of a tail; the part of a tail left after clipping or cutting. Grew.

the fallow deer, of which the male is called a buck. Also applied to the female of other animals, as the rabbit. See the Note under Buck.

near the habitations of man; domesticated; tame as distinguished from wild; as, domestic animals.

To tame or reclaim from a wild state; as, to domesticate wild animals; to domesticate a plant.

The act of domesticating, or accustoming to home; the action of taming wild animals.

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.…

Pertaining to, or situated near, the back, or dorsum, of an animal or of one of its parts; notal; tergal; neural; as, the dorsal fin of a fish; the dorsal artery of the tongue; -- opposed to ventral.

From the dorsal to the ventral side of an animal; as, the dorsoventral axis.

The back or dorsal region of an animal; the upper side of an appendage or part; as, the dorsum of the tongue.

ength equal to one half of its simple value; thus, a dotted semibreve is equal to three minims, and a dotted quarter to three eighth notes. -- Dotted rest, a rest lengthened by a dot in the same manner as a dotted note.

Fine, soft, hairy outgrowth from the skin or surface of animals or plants, not matted and fleecy like wool; esp.:

A fabulous animal, generally represented as a monstrous winged serpent or lizard, with a crested head and enormous claws, and regarded as very powerful and ferocious. The dragons which appear in early paintings and sculptures are invariably representations of a winged crocodile. Fairholt.