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ention and effort; careful; painstaking; not careless or negligent. The judges shall make diligent inquisition. Deut. xix. 18.

In a diligent manner; not carelessly; not negligently; with industry or assiduity. Ye diligently keep commandments of the Lord your God. Deut. vi. 17.

Not diligent; idle; slothful. [Obs.] Feltham. -- In*dil"i*gent*ly, adv. [Obs.]

Given to action; constantly engaged in action; energetic; diligent; busy; -- opposed to dull, sluggish, indolent, or inert; as, an active man of business; active mind; active zeal.

To fix closely; to engage and employ diligently, or with attention; to attach; to incline. Apply thine heart unto instruction. Prov. xxiii. 12.

To direct the attention to; to fix the mind upon; to give heed to; to regard. [Obs.] The diligent pilot in a dangerous tempest doth not attend the unskillful words of the passenger. Sir P. Sidney.

run first one way and then another; -- said of a stag. -- To beat up for recruits, to go diligently about in order to get helpers or participators in an enterprise.

To ply diligently; to work carefully upon. "If the earth is belabored with culture, it yieldeth corn." Barrow.

th, as of a bait; as, to give anything a hard bite. I have known a very good fisher angle diligently four or six hours for a river carp, and not have a bite. Walton.

Dangerous error, or schism, tending to draw persons to apostasy. Looking diligently, . . . lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you. Heb. xii. 15.

Constantly at work; diligent; active. Busy hammers closing rivets up. Shak. Religious motives . . . are so busy in the heart. Addison.

ality of the utterer or by the manifest likelihood of truth in themselves. Hooker. A very diligent and observing person, and likewise very sober and credible. Dampier.

to crush together; to rumple; as, to crumple paper. They crumpled it into all shapes, and diligently scanned every wrinkle that could be made. Addison.

A diligent seeking or search; manifested want; desire to posses; request; as, a demand for certain goods; a person's company is in great demand. In 1678 came forth a second edition [Pilgrim's Progress] with additions; and the demand became immense. Macaulay.

The quality of being diligent; carefulness; careful attention; -- the opposite of negligence.

's diligence (and the like), to exert one's self; to put forth one's best or most or most diligent efforts. "We will . . . do our best to gain their assent." Jowett (Thucyd.). -- To do one's business, to ruin one. [Colloq.] Wycherley. -- To do one shame, to cause one shame. [Obs.] -- To do over. (a) To make over; to…

To train in the military art; to exercise diligently, as soldiers, in military evolutions and exercises; hence, to instruct thoroughly in the rudiments of any art or branch of knowledge; to discipline. He [Frederic the Great] drilled his people, as he drilled his grenadiers. Macaulay.

t manners; elegant style of composition; an elegant speaker; an elegant structure. A more diligent cultivation of elegant literature. Prescott.

e who contrives, makes, or arranges for, anything, as a book, a machine, etc. [Colloq.] A diligent getter-up of miscellaneous works. W. Irving.

With pressure; with urgency; hence, diligently; earnestly. And prayed so hard for mercy from the prince. Dryden. My father Is hard at study; pray now, rest yourself. Shak.