n. 1. an examination taken by 11 and 12 year old students to select suitable candidates for grammar school. [ formerly in England ]
Syn. -- eleven-plus [ WordNet 1.5 ]

adj. 1. preceding all other objects or events in order, time, or importance; occurring before all other members of a series.
Syn. -- first [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

n. 1. a class mail comprising letters, postcards, and other mail sealed against inspection, having a higher priority than second, third, or fourth-class mail; -- it is the highest class of mail not handled in a special manner, as is registered or priority mail.
Syn. -- first-class, first-class mail, 1st-class mail [ WordNet 1.5 ]

adj. 1. coming next after the twentieth in a series
Syn. -- twenty-first [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

n. 1. the American Association for the Advancement of Science, an organization with headquarters in Washington, D.C. Its goal is to advance the physical and social sciences, and it publishes a weekly journal Science, with original research articles as well as reviews and commentary. [ Acronym. ]
Syn. -- American Association for the Advancement of Science. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

[ See Exodus vii. 9 and Numbers xvii. 8 ] 1. (Arch.) A rod with one serpent twined around it, thus differing from the caduceus of Mercury, which has two. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Bot.) A plant with a tall flowering stem; esp. the great mullein, or hag-taper, and the golden-rod. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. an associate degree conferred for successful studies in applied science. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. 1. a loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth; worn by Arabs. overgarment, outer garment [ WordNet 1.5 ]

‖n. [ Gr. 'abaki`skos, dim of 'a`bax. See Abacus. ] (Arch.) One of the tiles or squares of a tessellated pavement; an abaculus. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ LL abacista, fr. abacus. ] One who uses an abacus in casting accounts; a calculator. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n.; pl. Abaculi [ L., dim. of abacus. ] (Arch.) A small tile of glass, marble, or other substance, of various colors, used in making ornamental patterns in mosaic pavements. Fairholt. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; E. pl. Abacuses ; L. pl. Abaci [ L. abacus, abax, Gr. 'a`bax ] 1. A table or tray strewn with sand, anciently used for drawing, calculating, etc. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A calculating table or frame; an instrument for performing arithmetical calculations by balls sliding on wires, or counters in grooves, the lowest line representing units, the second line, tens, etc. It is still employed in China. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Arch.) (a) The uppermost member or division of the capital of a column, immediately under the architrave. See Column. (b) A tablet, panel, or compartment in ornamented or mosaic work. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A board, tray, or table, divided into perforated compartments, for holding cups, bottles, or the like; a kind of cupboard, buffet, or sideboard. [ 1913 Webster ]

Abacus harmonicus (Mus.), an ancient diagram showing the structure and disposition of the keys of an instrument. Crabb. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ For obeisance; confused with F. abaisser, E. abase. ] Obeisance. [ Obs. ] Jonson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Ivory black or animal charcoal. Weale. [ 1913 Webster ]

p. p. Abashed; confounded; discomfited. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Abased p. pr. & vb. n. Abasing. ] [ F. abaisser, LL. abassare, abbassare ; ad + bassare, fr. bassus low. See Base, a. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. To lower or depress; to throw or cast down; as, to abase the eye. [ Archaic ] Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

Saying so, he abased his lance. Shelton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To cast down or reduce low or lower, as in rank, office, condition in life, or estimation of worthiness; to depress; to humble; to degrade. [ 1913 Webster ]

Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased. Luke xiv. ll. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- To Abase, Debase, Degrade. These words agree in the idea of bringing down from a higher to a lower state. Abase has reference to a bringing down in condition or feelings; as, to abase the proud, to abase one's self before God. Debase has reference to the bringing down of a thing in purity, or making it base. It is, therefore, always used in a bad sense, as, to debase the coin of the kingdom, to debase the mind by vicious indulgence, to debase one's style by coarse or vulgar expressions. Degrade has reference to a bringing down from some higher grade or from some standard. Thus, a priest is degraded from the clerical office. When used in a moral sense, it denotes a bringing down in character and just estimation; as, degraded by intemperance, a degrading employment, etc. “Art is degraded when it is regarded only as a trade.” [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Lowered; humbled. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Her.) [ F. abaissé. ] Borne lower than usual, as a fess; also, having the ends of the wings turned downward towards the point of the shield. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. Abjectly; downcastly. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. abaissement. ] The act of abasing, humbling, or bringing low; the state of being abased or humbled; humiliation. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. He who, or that which, abases. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Abashed p. pr. & vb. n. Abashing. ] [ OE. abaissen, abaisshen, abashen, OF. esbahir, F. ébahir, to astonish, fr. L. ex + the interjection bah, expressing astonishment. In OE. somewhat confused with abase. Cf. Finish. ] To destroy the self-possession of; to confuse or confound, as by exciting suddenly a consciousness of guilt, mistake, or inferiority; to put to shame; to disconcert; to discomfit. [ 1913 Webster ]

Abashed, the devil stood,
And felt how awful goodness is. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

He was a man whom no check could abash. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- To confuse; confound; disconcert; shame. -- To Abash, Confuse, Confound. Abash is a stronger word than confuse, but not so strong as confound. We are abashed when struck either with sudden shame or with a humbling sense of inferiority; as, Peter was abashed by the look of his Master. So a modest youth is abashed in the presence of those who are greatly his superiors. We are confused when, from some unexpected or startling occurrence, we lose clearness of thought and self-possession. Thus, a witness is often confused by a severe cross-examination; a timid person is apt to be confused in entering a room full of strangers. We are confounded when our minds are overwhelmed, as it were, by something wholly unexpected, amazing, dreadful, etc., so that we have nothing to say. Thus, a criminal is usually confounded at the discovery of his guilt. [ 1913 Webster ]

Satan stood
Awhile as mute, confounded what to say. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In an abashed manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. ébahissement. ] The state of being abashed; confusion from shame. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ NL.; Gr. 'a- not + ba`sis a step. ] (Med.) Inability to coordinate muscular actions properly in walking. AS [ archaic ] -- A*ba"sic a. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

{ ‖‖ } n. [ Ar. & Per. abāsī, belonging to Abas (a king of Persia). ] A silver coin of Persia, worth about twenty cents. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Provided with an abatis. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } pos>n. [ F. abatis, abattis, mass of things beaten or cut down, fr. abattre. See Abate. ] (Fort.) A means of defense formed by felled trees, the ends of whose branches are sharpened and directed outwards, or against the enemy. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OF. abaesse, abeesse, F. abbesse, L. abbatissa, fem. of abbas, abbatis, abbot. See Abbot. ] A female superior or governess of a nunnery, or convent of nuns, having the same authority over the nuns which the abbots have over the monks. See Abbey. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Abbot + -ship. ] The state or office of an abbot. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Per. ābdast; ab water + dast hand. ] Purification by washing the hands before prayer; -- a Muslim rite. Heyse. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. pl. [ NL., masc. pl. ] (Zool.) A group including the greater part of fresh-water fishes, and many marine ones, having the ventral fins under the abdomen behind the pectorals. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. abdomen + Gr. skopei^n to examine. ] (Med.) Examination of the abdomen by means of a laparoscope to detect abdominal diseases. [ 1913 Webster + AS ]

a. Having a protuberant belly; pot-bellied. [ 1913 Webster ]

Gorgonius sits, abdominous and wan,
Like a fat squab upon a Chinese fan. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. 1 distension of the stomach area due to overweight.
Syn. -- paunchiness [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. 1. a small motor nerve supplying the lateral rectus muscle of the eye.
Syn. -- abducent, abducent nerve, nervus abducens, sixth cranial nerve [ WordNet 1.5 ]

prop. n. 1. 1 A genus of tropical coarse herbs having large lobed leaves and often yellow flowers.
Syn. -- genus Abelmoschus [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ NL. abelmoschus, fr. Ar. abu-l-misk father of musk, i. e., producing musk. See Musk. (or Ar. &hsdot_;abb-al-mosk, musk seed RHUD 1.3 ] (Bot.) An evergreen shrub (Abelmoschus moschatus -- formerly Hibiscus moschatus), of the East and West Indies and Northern Africa, whose musky seeds are used in perfumery and to flavor coffee; -- sometimes called musk mallow. The seeds produce ambrette-seed oil. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

‖n. [ G. ] See Legislature, Austria, Prussia. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

‖n. [ L., fir tree. ] (Bot.) A genus of coniferous trees, properly called Fir, as the balsam fir and the silver fir. The spruces are sometimes also referred to this genus. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. 'a priv. + bi`os life + ge`nesis, origin, birth. ] (Biol.) The supposed origination of living organisms from lifeless matter; such genesis as does not involve the action of living parents; spontaneous generation; -- called also abiogeny, and opposed to biogenesis. [ 1913 Webster ]

I shall call the . . . doctrine that living matter may be produced by not living matter, the hypothesis of abiogenesis. Huxley, 1870. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Biol.) One who believes that life can be produced independently of antecedent. Huxley. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Biol.) Produced by spontaneous generation. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A very abject or low condition; abjectness. [ R. ] Boyle. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The state of being abject; abasement; meanness; servility. Grew. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Gr. 'a priv. + &unr_; growth. ] (Biol.) Non-germinal. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Diminishing; as, an ablatitious force. Sir J. Herschel. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Ability of body or mind; force; vigor. [ Obs. or R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_;; 'a priv. + &unr_; to see. ] Blindness. [ R. ] Urquhart. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. [ See Able. ] Perhaps. [ Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

‖ /mhw>, adv. [ See Able. ] Perhaps; possibly. [ Scotch ] Burns. [ 1913 Webster ]