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An imaginary circle surrounding the earth, in whose periphery either the heavenly body or the center of the heavenly body's epicycle was supposed to be carried round.

The act of defining; definition; description. [Obs.] Shak.

Act of ascertaining and explaining the signification; a description of a thing by its properties; an explanation of the meaning of a word or term; as, the definition of "circle;" the definition of "wit;" an exact definition; a loose definition. Definition being nothing but making another understand by words what the te…

The separation of ripened leaves from a branch or stem; the falling or shedding of the leaves.

ished the course of life; dead; deceased. "Defunct organs." Shak. The boar, defunct, lay tripped up, near. Byron.

To strip or deprive of entirely, as of furniture, ornaments, etc.; to disgarnish; as, to degarnish a house, etc. [R.]

higher to a lower rank or degree; to lower in rank' to deprive of office or dignity; to strip of honors; as, to degrade a nobleman, or a general officer. Prynne was sentenced by the Star Chamber Court to be degraded from the bar. Palfrey.

That which destroys. [Obs.] They [the Scriptures] are the only deletery of heresies. Jer. Taylor.

To strip off the bark; to peel. [Obs.] Ash.

The act of stripping off the bark. [Obs.] Ash.

To clear or strip of wood (by cutting down trees). [R.] Fuller.

A delineated picture; representation; sketch; description in words. Their softest delineations of female beauty. W. Irving.

That delineates; descriptive; drawing the outline; delineating.

deprive of material or physical qualities or characteristics. Dematerializing matter by stripping if of everything which . . . has distinguished matter. Milman.

The act of stripping off covering, or removing the surface; a making bare.

To divest of all covering; to make bare or naked; to strip; to divest; as, to denude one of clothing, or lands.

To strip of hair; to husk. Venner.

The stripping or falling off of plumes or feathers. Bp. Stillingfleet

To strip or pluck off the feather of; to deprive of of plumage. On the depluming of the pope every bird had his own feather. Fuller.

An anatomical description of, or treatise on, the skin.