n. [ From Bickern. ] A bickern; a bench anvil with a long beak, adapted to reach the interior surfaces of sheet metal ware; the horn of an anvil. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ See Dicker. ] (O. Eng. & Scots Law) A measure of certain commodities by number, usually ten or twelve, but sometimes twenty; as, a daker of hides consisted of ten skins; a daker of gloves of ten pairs. Burrill. [ 1913 Webster ]

prop. n. the name of a town and a battle fought there, in World War II (1940) when 330, 000 Allied troops had to be evacuated from the beaches at Dunkirk in a desperate retreat under enemy fire. Most of the forces were safely evacuated to England.
Syn. -- Dunkerque. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ Ar. faqīr poor. ] an Oriental Muslim or Hindu religious ascetic or begging monk who is regarded as a holy man or a wonder worker. [ Written also faquir anf fakeer. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Prob. confused with Fakir an oriental ascetic. ] See Faker. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

a. Dressed with garlands of flowers. [ Poetic & Rare ] Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The front skirt of a garment, in distinction from the train. [ 1913 Webster ]

Honor's train
Is longer than his foreskirt. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Jap., stomach cutting. ] A ritual form of suicide, by slashing the abdomen, formerly practiced in Japan, and commanded by the government in the cases of disgraced officials; disembowelment; -- also written, but incorrectly, hari-kari. W. E. Griffis. [ 1913 Webster ]

. A woman's skirt so scant at the bottom as to restrain freedom of movement after the fashion of a hobble. -- Hob"ble-skirt`ed, a. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

n. a skirt stiffened with hoops.
Syn. -- crinoline. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. A country in Central Asia, formerly an Asian Soviet. It borders on Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, China, and Tajikistan.
Syn. -- Kirghiz, Kyrgyzstan, Kirghizstan. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ Scot.; cf. Icel. kirkja, of Greek origin. See Church. ] A church or the church, in the various senses of the word; esp., the Church of Scotland as distinguished from other reformed churches, or from the Roman Catholic Church. [ Scot. ] Jamieson. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Etymol. uncertain. ] Turned upward; bent. [ Obs. ] Rom. of R. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Kirkmen [ 1913 Webster ]

1. A clergyman or officer in a kirk. [ Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A member of the Church of Scotland, as distinguished from a member of another communion. [ Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A churchyard. [ Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ D. kermis; cf. G. kirmes; prop., church mass. See Church, and Mass a religious service. ] In Europe, particularly in Belgium and Holland, and outdoor festival and fair; in the United States, generally an indoor entertainment and fair combined. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ G., fr. kirsche cherry + wasser water. ] An alcoholic liquor, obtained by distilling the fermented juice of the small black cherry. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Corrupted from chrisom. ] Christian; christened. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

I am a true kirsome woman. Beau. & Fl. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. kirtel, curtel, AS. cyrtel; skin to Icel. kyrtill, Sw. kjortel, Dan. kiortel, kiole. ] A garment varying in form and use at different times, and worn both by men and women. [ 1913 Webster ]

Wearing her Norman car, and her kirtle of blue. Longfellow. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The term is still retained in the provinces, in the sense of “an outer petticoat.” Halliwell. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Wearing a kirtle. Byron. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) A bird of Madagascar (Leptosomus discolor), the only living type of a family allied to the rollers. It has a pair of loral plumes. The male is glossy green above, with metallic reflections; the female is spotted with brown and black. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A part remote from the center, and near the outer edge; border; -- usually in the plural; as, the outskirts of a town. Wordsworth. [ 1913 Webster ]

The outskirts of his march of mystery. Keble. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An upper skirt, shorter than the dress, and usually draped. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. & i. [ Of Scand. origin, and originally the same word as E. shrill. ] To utter in a shrill tone; to scream. [ Prov. Eng. & Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A shrill cry or sound. [ Prov. Eng. & Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) The missel thrush; -- so called from its harsh alarm note. [ Prev. Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The turnstone. [ Prev. Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A shrill cry or sound; a crying shrilly; a skirl. [ Prov. Eng. & Scot. ] Sir W. Scott. [ 1913 Webster ]

When the skirling of the pipes cleft the air his cold eyes softened. Mrs. J. H. Ewing. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) A small trout or salmon; -- a name used loosely. [ Prov. Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Skirmished p. pr. & vb. n. Skirmishing. ] [ OE. skirmishen, scarmishen, OF. escremir, eskermir, to fence, fight, F. escrimer, of German origin; cf. OHG. scirmen to protect, defend, G. schirmen, OHG. scirm, scerm, protection, shield, G. schirm; perhaps akin to Gr. &unr_;&unr_;&unr_;&unr_; a sunshade. Cf. Scaramouch, Scrimmage. ] To fight slightly or in small parties; to engage in a skirmish or skirmishes; to act as skirmishers. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.[ OE. scarmishe, scrymishe. See Skirmish, v. i. ] 1. A slight fight in war; a light or desultory combat between detachments from armies, or between detached and small bodies of troops. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A slight contest. [ 1913 Webster ]

They never meet but there's a skirmish of wit. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who skirmishes. Specifically: pl. (Mil.) Soldiers deployed in loose order, to cover the front or flanks of an advancing army or a marching column. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Cf. Scur, Scurry. ] To ramble over in order to clear; to scour. [ Archaic ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To scour; to scud; to run. [ Archaic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) A tern. [ Prov. Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ A corrupted form equivalent to sugarwort. ] (Bot.) An umbelliferous plant (Sium Sisarum syn. Pimpinella Sisarum). It is a native of Asia, but has been long cultivated in Europe for its edible clustered tuberous roots, which are very sweet. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Med.) See Scirrhus. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. skyrt, of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. skyrta a shirt, Sw. skört a skirt, skjorta a shirt. See Shirt. ] 1. The lower and loose part of a coat, dress, or other like garment; the part below the waist; as, the skirt of a coat, a dress, or a mantle. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A loose edging to any part of a dress. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

A narrow lace, or a small skirt of ruffled linen, which runs along the upper part of the stays before, and crosses the breast, being a part of the tucker, is called the modesty piece. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Border; edge; margin; extreme part of anything “Here in the skirts of the forest.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A petticoat. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. The diaphragm, or midriff, in animals. Dunglison. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Skirted; p. pr. & vb. n. Skirting. ] 1. To cover with a skirt; to surround. [ 1913 Webster ]

Skirted his loins and thighs with downy gold. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To border; to form the border or edge of; to run along the edge of; as, the plain was skirted by rows of trees. “When sundown skirts the moor.” Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To be on the border; to live near the border, or extremity. [ 1913 Webster ]

Savages . . . who skirt along our western frontiers. S. S. Smith. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. (Arch.) A skirting board. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Skirts, taken collectivelly; material for skirts. [ 1913 Webster ]

Skirting board, the board running around a room on the wall next the floor; baseboard. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ So called from the battle of Steinkirk, in 1692, on which occasion the French nobles had no time to arrange their lace neckcloths. ] A kind of neckcloth worn in a loose and disorderly fashion. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Same as Steenkirk. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A petticoat; the foundation skirt of a draped dress. [ 1913 Webster ]