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shell money, or wampum, of the Atlantic coast of the United States; -- originally applied only to polished white cylindrical beads.

A special fund for private and personal uses. A slight peculium only subtracted to supply his snuff box and tobacco pouch. Sir W. Scott.

tc.; an equal; a match; a mate. In song he never had his peer. Dryden. Shall they consort only with their peers I. Taylor.

Capable of being penetrated, entered, or pierced. Used also figuratively. And pierce his only penetrable part. Dryden. I am not made of stones, But penetrable to your kind entreats. Shak. -- Pen"e*tra*ble*ness, n. -- Pen"e*tra*bly, adv.

post carrying a letter for a penny; also, a mail carrier. -- Penny wise, wise or prudent only in small matters; saving small sums while losing larger; -- used chiefly in the phrase, penny wise and pound foolish.

e of which it is prefixed in the respective compounds exercised its highest valence; now, only that the element has a higher valence than in other similar compounds; thus, barium peroxide is the highest oxide of barium; while nitrogen and manganese peroxides, so-called, are not the highest oxides of those elements.…

ctions are also periodic, having an imaginary period, and the elliptic functions have not only a real but an imaginary period, and are hence called doubly periodic. -- Periodic law (Chem.), the generalization that the properties of the chemical elements are periodic functions of their atomic wieghts. "In other words,…

The interval between the diastole and systole of the heart. It is perceptible only in the dying.

ding throughout, the pores or interstices of any substance. Here is not a mere involution only, but a spiritual permeation and inexistence. Bp. Hall.

de range of years. That of Capt. Herschel covers, as given below, dates from 1750 to 1961 only, but is capable of indefinite extension.

hence, specifically, turned away from the right; willfully erring; wicked; perverted. The only righteous in a word perverse. Milton.

That which has only an apparent existence; an apparition; a specter; a phantasm; a sprite; an airy spirit; an ideal image. Strange phantoms rising as the mists arise. Pope. She was a phantom of delight. Wordsworth. Phantom ship. See Flying Dutchman, under Flying. -- Phantom tumor (Med.), a swelling, especially of the…

ases salt, ice, saturated solution, and vapor, the system is invariant, that is, there is only one set of conditions under which these four phases can exist in equilibrium. If only three phases be considered, the system is univariant, that is, the fixing of one condition, as temperature, determines the others.…

That theory which limits positive or scientific knowledge to phenomena only, whether material or spiritual.

notation. Phonetic spelling, spelling in phonetic characters, each representing one sound only; -- contrasted with Romanic spelling, or that by the use of the Roman alphabet.

ordinary phosphorus in closed vessels. It is not poisonous, is not phosphorescent, and is only moderately active chemically. It is valuable as a chemical reagent, and is used in the composition of the friction surface on which safety matches are ignited. -- Solar phosphori (Chem.), phosphorescent substances which shin…

exposed to the action of light. It was formerly called assimilation, but this is now commonly used as in animal physiology. The details of the process are not yet clearly known. Baeyer's theory is that the carbon dioxide is reduced to carbon monoxide, which, uniting with the hydrogen of the water in the cell, produces…

erican edentate (Chlamyphorus truncatus), allied to the armadillos. The shell is attached only along the back. [Written also pichyciego.]

r; loving obedience to the will of God, and earnest devotion to his service. Piety is the only proper and adequate relief of decaying man. Rambler.

ss of victuals; hence, a small charity gift; a dole. "A good pitaunce." Chaucer. One half only of this pittance was ever given him in money. Macaulay.