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Not visible or apparent; hidden; springs of action. The evils latent in the most promising contrivances are provided for as they arise. Burke. Latent buds (bot.), buds which remain undeveloped or dormant for a long time, but may at length grow. Latent heat (Physics), that quantity of heat which disappears or becomes co…

; freedom from confinement or restraint; hence, looseness; laxity; independence. In human actions there are no degrees and precise natural limits described, but a latitude is indulged. Jer. Taylor.

Worthy of being lauded; praiseworthy; commendable; as, laudable motives; laudable actions; laudable ambition.

rd him and toward each other; a rule of living, conformable to righteousness; the rule of action as obligatory on the conscience or moral nature.

ul owner of lands. Lawful age, the age when the law recognizes one's right of independent action; majority; -- generally the age of twenty-one years.

An action at law; a suit in equity or admiralty; any legal proceeding before a court for the enforcement of a claim.

Disinclined to action or exertion; averse to labor; idle; shirking work. Bacon.

To remove the soluble constituents from by subjecting to the action of percolating water or other liquid; as, to leach ashes or coffee.

en by the necessities of the times, more than led by his own disposition, to any rigor of actions. Eikon Basilike. Silly women, laden with sins,led away by divers lusts. 2 Tim. iii. 6 (Rev. Ver.).

ies, or persons, for the accomplishment of a purpose which requires a continued course of action, as for mutual defense, or for furtherance of commercial, religious, or political interests, etc. And let there be 'Twixt us and them no league, nor amity. Denham.

To make light by the action of leaven; to cause to ferment. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 1 Cor. v. 6.

Of or pertaining to that side of the body in man on which the muscular action of the limbs is usually weaker than on the other side; -- opposed to right, when used in reference to a part of the body; as, the left ear. Also said of the corresponding side of the lower animals. Left bank of a river, that which is on the l…

r quality of being left-handed; awkwardness. An awkward address, ungraceful attitudes and actions, and a certain left-handiness (if I may use the expression) proclaim low education. Chesterfield.

A medicine or application that has the quality of easing pain or protecting from the action of irritants.

ubstance formed in the decomposition of albuminous matter by pancreatic digestion, by the action of boiling dilute sulphuric acid, and by putrefaction. It is also found as a constituent of various tissues and organs, as the spleen, pancreas, etc., and likewise in the vegetable kingdom. Chemically it is to be considered…

The act of raising; elevation; upward motion, as that produced by the action of a levator muscle.

us on a level. Addison. Somebody there of his own level. Swift. Be the fair level of thy actions laid As temperance wills and prudence may persuade. Prior.

r jack. See Jack, n., 5. -- Lever watch, a watch having a vibrating lever to connect the action of the escape wheel with that of the balance. Universal lever, a machine formed by a combination of a lever with the wheel and axle, in such a manner as to convert the reciprocating motion of the lever into a continued rect…

The action of a lever; mechanical advantage gained by the lever. Leverage of a couple (Mech.), the perpendicular distance between the lines of action of two forces which act in parallel and opposite directions. -- Leverage of a force, the perpendicular distance from the line in which a force acts upon a body to a poin…

To make smooth in action. " When use hath levigated the organs." Barrow.