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To strike repeated blows, literally or figuratively. Blood and revenge are hammering in my head. Shak.

The quality or state of being hard, literally or figuratively. The habit of authority also had given his manners some peremptory hardness. Sir W. Scott.

ample. (d) To rein in; to check; to halt; as, hold up your horses. -- To hold water. (a) Literally, to retain water without leaking; hence (Fig.), to be whole, sound, consistent, without gaps or holes; -- commonly used in a negative sense; as, his statements will not hold water. [Collog.] (b) (Naut.) To hold the oars…

To make light; to throw light on; to supply with light, literally or figuratively; to brighten.

Literally, those who are enlightened; -- variously applied as follows: -

, or light sarcasm, which adopts a mode of speech the meaning of which is contrary to the literal sense of the words.

To bring together, literally or figuratively; to place in contact; to connect; to couple; to unite; to combine; to associate; to add; to append. Woe unto them that join house to house. Is. v. 8. Held up his left hand, which did flame and burn Like twenty torches joined. Shak. Thy tuneful voice with numbers join. Dryden…

Literally, that kills; having power to kill; fatal; in a colloquial sense, conquering; captivating; irresistible. -- Kill"ing*ly, adv. Those eyes are made so killing. Pope. Nothing could be more killingly spoken. Milton.

The use of literal or simple expressions, as distinguished from the use of figurative or obscure ones. Krauth-Fleming.

uctiveness; deficient in quality or contents; slender; scant; barren; bare; mean; -- used literally and figuratively; as, the lean harvest; a lean purse; a lean discourse; lean wages. "No lean wardrobe." Shak. Their lean and fiashy songs. Milton. What the land is, whether it be fat or lean. Num. xiii. 20. Out of my lea…

parting; a leaving; farewell; adieu; -- used chiefly in the phrase, to take leave, i. e., literally, to take permission to go. A double blessing is a'double grace; Occasion smiles upon a second leave. Shak. And Paul after this tarried there yet a good while, and then took his leave of the brethren. Acts xviii. 18. Fren…

Verbal expression; literal statement or meaning; exact signification or requirement. We must observe the letter of the law, without doing violence to the reason of the law and the intention of the lawgiver. Jer. Taylor. I broke the letter of it to keep the sense. Tennyson.

Not strict or rigorous; not confined or restricted to the literal sense; free; as, a liberal translation of a classic, or a liberal construction of law or of language.

Had like to have been my utter overthrow. Sir W. Raleigh Ramona had like to have said the literal truth, . . . but recollected herself in time. Mrs. H. H. Jackson. Like figures (Geom.), similar figures.

To be a mark upon; to designate; to indicate; -- used literally and figuratively; as, this monument marks the spot where Wolfe died; his courage and energy marked him for a leader.

to ansver; as, to meet one's expectations; the supply meets the demand. To meet half way, literally, to go half the distance between in order to meet (one); hence, figuratively, to yield or concede half of the difference in order to effect a compromise or reconciliation with.

Causing to melt; becoming melted; -- used literally or figuratively; as, a melting heat; a melting appeal; a melting mood. -- Melt"ing*ly, adv.

Of or pertaining to metaphor; comprising a metaphor; not literal; figurative; tropical; as, a metaphorical expression; a metaphorical sense. -- Met`a*phor"ic*al*ly, adv. -- Met`a*phor"ic*al*ness, n.

Translated literally.

A literal translator.