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Something resembling in any respect a fringe; a line of objects along a border or edge; a border; an edging; a margin; a confine. The confines of grace and the fringes of repentance. Jer. Taylor.

A small oleaceous tree (Chionanthus virginica), of the southern United States, having clusters of white flowers with slender petals. It is often cultivated.

Furnished with a fringe. Fringed lear (Bot.), a leaf edged with soft parallel hairs.

Having no fringe.

Encircling like a fringe; bordering. [R.] "The fringent air." Emerson.

To furnish with a fringe; to form a fringe upon; to adorn as with fringe. Fuller.

To break; to violate; to transgress; to neglect to fulfill or obey; as, to infringe a law or contract. If the first that did the edict infringe, Had answered for his deed. Shak. The peace . . . was infringed by Appius Claudius. Golding.

The act of infringing; breach; violation; nonfulfillment; as, the infringement of a treaty, compact, law, or constitution. The punishing of this infringement is proper to that jurisdiction against which the contempt is. Clarendon.

One who infringes or violates; a violator. Strype.

ower possessed by a substance to refract a ray; as, different substances have different refringencies. Nichol.

Pertaining to, or possessing, refringency; refractive; refracting; as, a refringent prism of spar. Nichol.

A lower fringe; a fringe underneath something. Broad-faced, with underfringe of russet beard. Tennyson.

The region immediately surrounding a disk moving flatwise through air; -- so called because the air has a cyclic motion as in vortex ring.

A point or tag at the end of a fringe or lace; an aglet.

A genus of fleshy Alcyonaria, its polyps somewhat resembling flowers with eight fringed rays. The term was also formerly used for certain species of sponges.

ention; having an indefinite, relatively passive, conscious being; characteristic of the "fringe" or "margin" of consciousness.

division of the Cetacea, including the right whale and all other whales having the mouth fringed with baleen. See Baleen.

in certain whales (Balænoidea) are attached side by side along the upper jaw, and form a fringelike sieve by which the food is retained in the mouth.

Doubly fringed.

To infringe or violate, as an obligation, law, or promise. Out, out, hyena! these are thy wonted arts . . . To break all faith, all vows, deceive, betray. Milton