adj. held back from some action, especially by force. Opposite of unrestrained.
Syn. -- checked, restrained. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ OE. courfew, curfu, fr. OF. cuevrefu, covrefeu, F. couvre-feu; covrir to cover + feu fire, fr. L. focus fireplace, hearth. See Cover, and Focus. ] 1. The ringing of an evening bell, originally a signal to the inhabitants to cover fires, extinguish lights, and retire to rest, -- instituted by William the Conqueror; also, the bell itself. [ 1913 Webster ]

He begins at curfew, and walks till the first cock. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

The village curfew, as it tolled profound. Campbell. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A utensil for covering the fire. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

For pans, pots, curfews, counters and the like. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A cuirass. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Having curls; curly; sinuous; wavy; as, curled maple (maple having fibers which take a sinuous course). [ 1913 Webster ]

Curled hair (Com.), the hair of the manes and tails of horses, prepared for upholstery purposes. McElrath. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. State of being curled; curliness. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who, or that which, curls. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A player at the game called curling. Burns. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A small cylindrical object sometimes having a clamping attachment, around which hair is wound so as to produce curls; as, she slept all night with a head full of curlers. [ PJC ]

4. an electrical appliance with a handle and a metal rod-shaped tip which is heated and around which hair is wound, to produce curls in the hair; -- called also curling iron. [ PJC ]

n. [ F. courlieu, corlieu, courlis; perh. of imitative origin, but cf. OF. corlieus courier; L. currere to run + levis light. ] (Zool.) A wading bird of the genus Numenius, remarkable for its long, slender, curved bill. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The common European curlew is Numenius arquatus. The long-billed (Numenius longirostris), the Hudsonian (Numenius Hudsonicus), and the Eskimo curlew (Numenius borealis, are American species. The name is said to imitate the note of the European species. [ 1913 Webster ]

Curlew Jack (Zool.) the whimbrel or lesser curlew. --
Curlew sandpiper (Zool.), a sandpiper (Tringa ferruginea or Tringa subarquata), common in Europe, rare in America, resembling a curlew in having a long, curved bill. See Illustation in Appendix. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Currencies [ Cf. LL. currentia a current, fr. L. currens, p. pr. of currere to run. See Current. ] 1. A continued or uninterrupted course or flow like that of a stream; as, the currency of time. [ Obs. ] Ayliffe. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The state or quality of being current; general acceptance or reception; a passing from person to person, or from hand to hand; circulation; as, a report has had a long or general currency; the currency of bank notes. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. That which is in circulation, or is given and taken as having or representing value; as, the currency of a country; a specie currency; esp., government or bank notes circulating as a substitute for metallic money. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Fluency; readiness of utterance. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Current value; general estimation; the rate at which anything is generally valued. [ 1913 Webster ]

He . . . takes greatness of kingdoms according to their bulk and currency, and not after intrinsic value. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

The bare name of Englishman . . . too often gave a transient currency to the worthless and ungrateful. W. Irving. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ OE. currant, OF. curant, corant, p. pr. of curre, corre, F. courre, courir, to run, from L. currere; perh. akin to E. horse. Cf. Course, Concur, Courant, Coranto. ] 1. Running or moving rapidly. [ Archaic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Like the current fire, that renneth
Upon a cord. Gower. [ 1913 Webster ]

To chase a creature that was current then
In these wild woods, the hart with golden horns. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Now passing, as time; as, the current month. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Passing from person to person, or from hand to hand; circulating through the community; generally received; common; as, a current coin; a current report; current history. [ 1913 Webster ]

That there was current money in Abraham's time is past doubt. Arbuthnot. [ 1913 Webster ]

Your fire-new stamp of honor is scarce current. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

His current value, which is less or more as men have occasion for him. Grew. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Commonly estimated or acknowledged. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Fitted for general acceptance or circulation; authentic; passable. [ 1913 Webster ]

O Buckingham, now do I play the touch
To try if thou be current gold indeed. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Account current. See under Account. --
Current money, lawful money. Abbott. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. courant. See Current, a. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. A flowing or passing; onward motion. Hence: A body of fluid moving continuously in a certain direction; a stream; esp., the swiftest part of it; as, a current of water or of air; that which resembles a stream in motion; as, a current of electricity. [ 1913 Webster ]

Two such silver currents, when they join,
Do glorify the banks that bound them in. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

The surface of the ocean is furrowed by currents, whose direction . . . the navigator should know. Nichol. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. General course; ordinary procedure; progressive and connected movement; as, the current of time, of events, of opinion, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

Current meter, an instrument for measuring the velocity, force, etc., of currents. --
Current mill, a mill driven by a current wheel. --
Current wheel, a wheel dipping into the water and driven by the current of a stream or by the ebb and flow of the tide.

Syn. -- Stream; course. See Stream. [ 1913 Webster ]