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N, the fourteenth letter of English alphabet, is a vocal consonent, and, in allusion to its mode of formation, is called the dentinasal or linguanasal consonent. Its commoner sound is that heard in ran, done; but when immediately followed in the same word by the sound of g hard or k (as in single, sink, conquer), it us…

Hematite or specular iron ore; -- prob. so called in allusion to its feeble magnetism, as compared with magnetite.

Exactly suitable; fit; convenient; timely. "Pat allusion." Barrow.

Esculin; -- so called in allusion to its fluorescent solutions. [R.]

n ignorance, indifference or inattention, with the intent to deceive; to dissemble; -- in allusion to the habit of the opossum, which feigns death when attacked or alarmed.

d by red letters. Red- letter day, a day that is fortunate or auspicious; -- so called in allusion to the custom of marking holy days, or saints' days, in the old calendars with red letters.

A district or neighborhood in which disorderly resorts are frequent; -- so called in allusion to the red light kept in front of many such resorts at night. [Colloq. or Cant]

legged person; -- a contemptuous appellation formerly given to the Scotch Highlanders, in allusion to their bare legs. Spenser.

A wife; -- in allusion to Eve, as made out of Adam's rib. [Familiar & Sportive] How many have we known whose heads have been broken with their own rib. Bp. Hall. Chuck rib, a cut of beef immediately in front of the middle rib. See Chuck. -- Fore ribs, a cut of beef immediately in front of the sirloin. -- Middle rib,…

eenth letter of the English alphabet, is a consonanat, and is often called a sibilant, in allusion to its hissing sound. It has two principal sounds; one a more hissing, as in sack, this; the other a vocal hissing (the same as that of z), as in is, wise. Besides these it sometimes has the sounds of sh and zh, as in sur…

The secretary bird. Secretary Bird. Etym: [So called in allusion to the tufts of feathers at the back of its head, which were fancifully thought to resemble pens stuck behind the ear.] (Zoöl.) A large long-legged raptorial bird (Gypogeranus serpentarius), native of South Africa, but now naturalized in the West Indies a…

f several sympathetic ganglia with connecting and radiating nerve fibers; -- so called in allusion to the radiating nerve fibers. -- Solar spots. See Sun spots, under Sun. -- Solar system (Astron.), the sun, with the group of celestial bodies which, held by its attraction, revolve round it. The system comprises the m…

The thickened posterior border of the corpus callosum; -- so called in allusion to its shape.

terspout. To put, shove, or pop, up the spout, to pawn or pledge at a pawnbroker's; -- in allusion to the spout up which the pawnbroker sent the ticketed articles. [Cant]

sday (Eccl.), the Wednesday immediately preceding the festival of Easter; -- so called in allusion to the betrayal of Christ by Judas Iscariot.

See Jabiru. -- Stork's bill (Bot.), any plant of the genus Pelargonium; -- so called in allusion to the beaklike prolongation of the axis of the receptacle of its flower. See Pelargonium.

A kind of musical instrument. a species of lyre; -- so called in allusion to the lyre of Mercury, fabled to have been made of the shell of a tortoise.

s offensively suggestive. Similar dances are the bunny hug and grizzly bear, so called in allusion to the movements and the positions assumed by the partners in dancing.

cally by heating together urea and glycocoll. It was formerly called also lithic acid, in allusion to its occurrence in stone, or calculus.

lcan; made by Vulcan; hence, of or pertaining to works in iron or other metals. Ingenious allusions to the Vulcanian panoply which Achilles lent to his feebler friend. Macaulay.