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r purpose or condition; to make ready; to put into a state for use or application; as, to prepare ground for seed; to prepare a lesson. Our souls, not yet prepared for upper light. Dryden.

Made fit or suitable; adapted; ready; as, prepared food; prepared questions. -- Pre*par"ed*ly, adv. Shak. -- Pre*par"ed*ness, n.

One who, or that which, prepares, fits, or makes ready. Wood.

To render unprepared. [Obs.] Hobbes.

To wait for; to be prepared for; to await; to watch for; as, I abide my time. "I will abide the coming of my lord." Tennyson.

o take place. See under Come. -- To go about, To set about, to undertake; to arrange; to prepare. "Shall we set about some revels Shak. -- Round about, in every direction around.

Without notice to prepare the mind for the event; sudden; hasty; unceremonious. "The cause of your abrupt departure." Shak.

Absorbing; swallowing; absorptive. Absorbent ground (Paint.), a ground prepared for a picture, chiefly with distemper, or water colors, by which the oil is absorbed, and a brilliancy is imparted to the colors.

To prepare or make ready. [Obs.] His foe was soon addressed. Spenser. Turnus addressed his men to single fight. Dryden. The five foolish virgins addressed themselves at the noise of the bridegroom's coming. Jer. Taylor.

Prepared; previously provided; -- opposed to behindhand. [Archaic or Dial.] Aforehand in all matters of power. Bacon.

Charcoal prepared for making powder.

An alcoholic tincture prepared with fresh plants. New Eng. Dict.

er having the habit and appearance of evergreen herbaceous plants; from some of which are prepared articles for medicine and the arts. They are natives of warm countries.

phonso X., the Wise, King of Castile (1252- 1284). Alphonsine tables, astronomical tables prepared under the patronage of Alphonso the Wise. Whewell.

A spongy, combustible substance, prepared from fungus (Boletus and Polyporus) which grows on old trees; German tinder; punk. It has been employed as a styptic by surgeons, but its common use is as tinder, for which purpose it is prepared by soaking it in a strong solution of niter. Ure.

A kind of cold cream prepared from almonds, for chapped hands, etc.

A picture taken on a place of prepared glass, in which the lights are represented in silver, and the shades are produced by a dark background visible through the unsilvered portions of the glass.

A colorless liquid prepared from herring brine and containing amines, used as a local antiseptic.

The seed of the anise; also, a cordial prepared from it. "Oil of aniseed." Brande & C.

A red or yellowish-red dyeing material, prepared from the pulp surrounding the seeds of a tree (Bixa orellana) belonging to the tropical regions of America. It is used for coloring cheese, butter, etc. [Written also Anatto, Anatta, Annatto, Annotta, etc.]