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ody politic consisting of a certain number of men, united, by compact or tacit agreement, under one form of government and system of laws. The trappings of a monarchy would set up an ordinary commonwealth. Milton.

To receive the communion; to partake of the eucharist or Lord's supper. To commune under both kinds. Bp. Burnet. To commune with one's self or one's heart, to think; to reflect; to meditate.

the sacrament; as, to go to communion; to partake of the communion. Close communion. See under Close, a. -- Communion elements, the bread and wine used in the celebration of the Lord's supper. -- Communion service, the celebration of the Lord's supper, or the office or service therefor. -- Communion table, the tabl…

ody of people having common rights, privileges, or interests, or living in the same place under the same laws and regulations; as, a community of monks. Hence a number of animals living in a common home or with some apparent association of interests. Creatures that in communities exist. Wordsworth.

A subdivision of a regiment of troops under the command of a captain, numbering in the United States (full strength) 100 men.

s full of protest, of oath, and big compare. Shak. Beyond compare. See Beyond comparison, under Comparison.

The modification, by inflection or otherwise, which the adjective and adverb undergo to denote degrees of quality or quantity; as, little, less, least, are examples of comparison.

threefold world containing earth, sea, and heaven. Skeat.] Chaucer. Azimuth compass. See under Azimuth. -- Beam compass. See under Beam. -- Compass card, the eircular card attached to the needles of a mariner's compass, on which are marked the thirty-two points or rhumbs. -- Compass dial, a small pocket compass fit…

of balance wheel for a timepiece. The rim is usually made of two different expansibility under changes of temperature, so arranged as to counteract each other and preserve uniformity of movement. -- Compensation pendulum. See Pendulum.

court or officer, as for a wrong done or a crime committed (in the latter case, generally under oath); an information; accusation; the initial bill in proceedings in equity.

A compliment. [Obs.] Shak. Arithmetical compliment of a logarithm. See under Logarithm. -- Arithmetical complement of a number (Math.), the difference between that number and the next higher power of 10; as, 4 is the complement of 6, and 16 of 84. -- Complement of an arc or angle (Geom.), the difference between that…

Serving to fill out or to complete; as, complementary numbers. Complementary colors. See under Color. -- Complementary angles (Math.), two angles whose sum is 90°.

t or process of making complete; the getting through to the end; as, the completion of an undertaking, an education, a service. The completion of some repairs. Prescott.

der, sometimes in several larger cylinders, successively. -- Compound ether. (Chem.) See under Ether. -- Compound flower (Bot.), a flower head resembling a single flower, but really composed of several florets inclosed in a common calyxlike involucre, as the sunflower or dandelion. -- Compound fraction. (Math.) See…

To take into the mind; to grasp with the understanding; to apprehend the meaning of; to understand. At a loss to comprehend the question. W. Irwing. Great things doeth he, which we can not comprehend. Job. xxxvii. 5.

The quality or state of being comprehensible; capability of being understood.

Capable of being understood; intelligible; conceivable by the mind. The horizon sets the bounds . . . between what is and what is not comprehensible by us. Locke.

Intelligibly; in a manner to be comprehended or understood.

The capacity of the mind to perceive and understand; the power, act, or process of grasping with the intellect; perception; understanding; as, a comprehension of abstract principles.

Having the power to comprehend or understand many things. "His comprehensive head." Pope.