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One who dips slightly into anything; a superficial meddler. "our dabblers in politics." Swift.

A platform slightly raised above the floor of a hall or large room, giving distinction to the table and seats placed upon it for the chief guests.

or harm; to be injured or impaired in soudness or value; as. some colors in damage in sunlight.

air currents and prevent accumulation of gas. -- Fire damp, a damp consisting chiefly of light carbureted hydrogen; -- so called from its tendence to explode when mixed with atmospheric air and brought into contact with flame.

To make damp or moist; to make slightly wet.

One who dances or who practices dancing. The merry dancers, beams of the northern lights when they rise and fall alternately without any considerable change of length. See Aurora borealis, under Aurora.

or with a swinging or jerking motion. he'd rather on a gibbet dangle Than miss his dear delight, to wrangle. Hudibras. From her lifted hand Dangled a length of ribbon. Tennyson. To dangle about or after, to hang upon importunately; to court the favor of; to beset. The Presbyterians, and other fanatics that dangle after…

Destitute, or partially destitute, of light; not receiving, reflecting, or radiating light; wholly or partially black, or of some deep shade of color; not light-colored; as, a dark room; a dark day; dark cloth; dark paint; a dark complexion. O dark, dark, dark, amid the blaze of noon, Irrecoverable dark, total eclipse…

To make dark or black; to deprite of light; to obscure; as, a darkened room. They [locusts] covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened. Ex. x. 15. So spake the Sovran Voice; and clouds began To darken all the hill. Milton.

Twilight; gloaming. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Wright.

With imperfect light, clearness, or knowledge; obscurely; dimly; blindly; uncertainly. What fame to future times conveys but darkly down. Dryden. so softly dark and darkly pure. Byron.

The absence of light; blackness; obscurity; gloom. And darkness was upon the face of the deep. Gen. i. 2.

A slight admixture, infusion, or adulteration; a partial overspreading; as, wine with a dash of water; red with a dash of purple. Innocence when it has in it a dash of folly. Addison.

nks from danger; an arrant coward; a poltroon. You are all recreants and dashtards, and delight to live in slavery to the nobility. Shak.

To begin to grow light in the morning; to grow light; to break, or begin to appear; as, the day dawns; the morning dawns. In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene . . . to see the sepulcher. Matt. xxviii. 1.

The time of light, or interval between one night and the next; the time between sunrise and sunset, or from dawn to darkness; hence, the light; sunshine.

The upper stratum of coal, as nearest the light or surface.

The time of the first appearance of light in the morning.

The beginning of the day, or first appearance of light; the dawn; hence, the beginning. Milton. The tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us. Luke i. 78.

The time during which there is daylight, as distinguished from the night.