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A vessel, commonly or earthenware, for earth in which plants are grown.

o bring to a focus; to focus; to concentrate. Light is focalized in the eye, sound in the ear. De Quincey.

Full of food; supplying food; fruitful; fertile. "The foodful earth." Dryden. Bent by its foodful burden [the corn]. Glover.

rder warfare; hence, any irregular incursion for war or spoils; a raid. Spenser. The huge Earl Doorm, . . . Bound on a foray, rolling eyes of prey. Tennyson.

The caudal forceps-shaped appendage of earwigs and some other insects. See Earwig. Dressing forceps. See under Dressing.

The art of raising plants, flowers, and fruits at an earlier season than the natural one, as in a hitbed or by the use of artificial heat. Forcing bed or pit, a plant bed having an under layer of fermenting manure, the fermentation yielding bottom heat for forcing plants; a hotbed. -- Forcing engine, a fire engine. -…

g or coming first, in time, place, order, or importance; preceding; anterior; antecedent; earlier; forward; -- opposed to Ant: back or Ant: behind; as, the fore part of a garment; the fore part of the day; the fore and of a wagon. The free will of the subject is preserved, while it is directed by the fore purpose of th…

Doom or sentence decreed in advance. "A dread foredoom ringing in the ears of the guilty adult." Southey.

Early; timely; seasonable. "Forehanded care." Jer. Taylor.

The early part of the day, from morning to meridian, or noon.

To come before as an earnest of something to follow; to introduce as a harbinger; to announce. These signs forerun the death or fall of kings. Shak.

A genus of insects including the earwigs. See Earwig, 1.

ter, giving it individuality or distinctive character; configuration; figure; external appearance. The form of his visage was changed. Dan. iii. 19. And woven close close, both matter, form, and style. Milton.

Preceding in order of time; antecedent; previous; prior; earlier; hence, ancient; long past. For inquire, I pray thee, of the former age. Job. viii. 8. The latter and former rain. Hosea vi. 3.

To reject or renounce upon oath; hence, to renounce earnestly, determinedly, or with protestations. I . . . do forswear her. Shak.

Near, or at the fore part; in advance of something else; as, the forward gun in a ship, or the forward ship in a fleet.

To search for gold by picking at stone or earth or among roots in isolated spots, picking over abandoned workings, etc.; hence, to steal gold or auriferous matter from another's claim. [Australia]

Dug out of the eart; as, fossil coal; fossil salt.

quated; firmly fixed in views or opinions. A fossilized sample of confused provincialism. Earle.

A group of hymenopterous insects including the sand wasps. They excavate cells in earth, where they deposit their eggs, with the bodies of other insects for the food of the young when hatched. [Written also Fossoria.]