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The chief or senior of a company on occasion of ceremony; as, the dean of the diplomatic corps; -- so called by courtesy. Cardinal dean, the senior cardinal bishop of the college of cardinals at Rome. Shipley. -- Dean and chapter, the legal corporation and governing body of a cathedral. It consists of the dean, who is…

acterized by, deceit; serving to mislead or insnare; trickish; fraudulent; cheating; insincere. Harboring foul deceitful thoughts. Shak.

ty of form in social intercourse, in actions, or in discourse; proper formality; becoming ceremony; seemliness; hence, freedom from obscenity or indecorum; modesty. Observances of time, place, and of decency in general. Burke. Immodest words admit of no defense, For want of decency is want of sense. Roscommon.…

Suitable in words, behavior, dress, or ceremony; becoming; fit; decorous; proper; seemly; as, decent conduct; decent language. Shak. Before his decent steps. Milton.

To make ceremonially unclean; to pollute. That which dieth of itself, or is torn with beasts, he shall not eat to defile therewith. Lev. xxii. 8.

An officer who assigned to each his rank and place in public shows and ceremonies.

., one given wholly to religion; one who is superstitiously given to religious duties and ceremonies; a bigot. While Father Le Blanc was very devout he was not a devotee. A. S. Hardy.

Warmly devoted; hearty; sincere; earnest; as, devout wishes for one's welfare. The devout, devoutly religious persons, those who are sincerely pious.

Sincerely; solemnly; earnestly. 'T is a consummation Devoutly to be wished. Shak.

A columnar cactaceous plant of the West Indies (Cereus Swartzii).

Straightforward; not of crooked ways, or swerving from truth and openness; sincere; outspoken. Be even and direct with me. Shak.

undervalue. Those forbidding appearances which sometimes disparage the actions of men sincerely pious. Bp. Atterbury. Thou durst not thus disparage glorious arms. Milton.

d (Cath. Dict. ) To dispense with. (a) To permit the neglect or omission of, as a form, a ceremony, an oath; to suspend the operation of, as a law; to give up, release, or do without, as services, attention, etc.; to forego; to part with. (b) To allow by dispensation; to excuse; to exempt; to grant dispensation to or f…

f being scattered or separated; as, the Jews in their dispersion retained their rites and ceremonies; a great dispersion of the human family took place at the building of Babel. The days of your slaughter and of your dispersions are accomplished. Jer. xxv. 34.

The remoteness or reserve which respect requires; hence, respect; ceremoniousness. I hope your modesty Will know what distance to the crown is due. Dryden. 'T is by respect and distance that authority is upheld. Atterbury.

into two; acting two parts, one openly and the other secretly; equivocal; deceitful; insincere. With a double heart do they speak. Ps. xii. 2.

In plain terms; without ceremony. We shall chide downright, id I longer stay. Shak.

Having the character of a drab or low wench. "The drabbish sorceress." Drant.

ct from the frock coat, of which the skirts surround the body. It is worn on occasions of ceremony. The dress coat of officers of the United States army is a full-skirted frock coat.

f religion, philosophy, and instruction, received and taught by the Druids; the rites and ceremonies of the Druids.