Thomas Davidson

“ Epidote, ep′i-dōt, n. a silicate of aluminium, iron, and calcium.
Epigastrium, ep-i-gas′tri-um, n. the part of the abdomen which chiefly corresponds to the situation of the stomach, extending from the sternum towards the navel.—adj. Epigas′tric. [Gr. epi, upon, gastēr, the stomach.]
Epigene, ep′i-jēn, adj. applied to the geological agents of change which affect chiefly the superficial position of the earth's crust, as the atmosphere, water, &c.—adjs. Epig′enous, growing on the surface of a part; Epigē′ous, growing on the earth—also Epigē′al. [Gr. epi, upon, gennaein, to produce.] ”

“ Epigenesis, ep-i-jen′e-sis, n. the development of the organism by the growth and differentiation of a single germ—i.e. by the division or segmentation of a fertilised egg-cell.—n. Epigen′esist.—adj. Epigenet′ic. [Gr. epi, upon, genesis, genesis.]
Epiglottis, ep-i-glot′is, n. the cartilage at the root of the tongue that partly closes the aperture of the larynx.—adj. Epiglott′ic. [Gr. epi, upon, glōtta (glōssa) , the tongue.]
Epigram, ep′i-gram, n. any concise and pointed or sarcastic saying: a short poem on one subject ending with an ingenious thought.—adjs. ”

“ Etch′er, one who etches; Etch′ing, the act or art of etching or engraving: the impression from an etched plate; Etch′ing-ground, the coating of wax or varnish on a plate prepared for etching; Etch′ing-need′le, a fine-pointed steel instrument used in etching. [From Ger. ätzen, to corrode by acid; from same root as Ger. essen. See Eat.]
Eternal, ē-tėr′nal, adj. without beginning or end of existence: everlasting: ceaseless: unchangeable— (arch.) Eterne′.—v.t. Eter′nalise, Eter′nise, to make eternal: to immortalise.—n. Eter′nalist, one who thinks that matter has existed from eternity.—adv. ”

“ Epoch, ep′ok, or ē′-, n. a point of time fixed or made remarkable by some great event from which dates are reckoned: a period remarkable for important events: (astron.) the mean heliocentric longitude of a planet in its orbit at any given time.—adjs. Ep′ochal; Ep′och-mā′king.—Make, Mark, an epoch, to begin an important era. [Gr. epochē—epechein, to stop—epi, upon, echein, to hold.]
Epode, ep′ōd, n. a kind of lyric poem invented by Archilochus, in which a longer verse is followed by a shorter one: the last part of a lyric ode, sung after the strophe and antistrophe.—adj. ”

“ Euphuism, ū′fū-izm, n. an affected and bombastic style of language: a high-flown expression.—v.i. Eu′phuise.—n. Eu′phuist.—adj. Euphuist′ic. [From Euphues, a popular book by John Lyly (1579-80) .—Gr. euphyēs, graceful—eu, well, phyē, growth—phyesthai, to grow.]
Eurasian, ū-rā′zi-an, adj. descended from a European on the one side and an Asiatic on the other: of or pertaining to Europe and Asia taken as one continent. ”

“ Erg, erg, n. the unit of work in the centimetre-gramme-second system—that is, the quantity of work done by a force which, acting for one second upon a mass of one gramme, produces a velocity of one centimetre per second. [Gr. erg-on, work.]
Ergo, ėr′go, adv. (logic) therefore, used to mark the conclusion of a syllogism.—v.i. Er′gotise, to wrangle. [L. ergo, therefore.]
Ergot, ėr′got, n. a disease, consisting of a parasitical fungus, found on the seed of certain plants, esp. rye and some other grasses.—ns. Er′gotine, the active principle of ergot of rye ”

“ Ē′thos, habitual character and disposition: the quality of a work of art which produces a high moral impression. [Gr. ēthos, custom, logia, a discourse.]
Ethyl, ē′thil, n. a colourless, inflammable gas, insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol—supposed base of ether. [Gr. aithēr, ether, hylē, base.]
Etiolate, ē-ti-o-lāt′, v.t. (med., bot.) to cause to grow pale from want of light and fresh air.—v.i. to become pale from disease or absence of light.—n. Etiolā′tion. [Fr. étioler, to become pale, to grow into stubble, éteule, stubble—L. stipula, a stalk.] ”

“ Eryngo, e-ring′go, n. a genus of evergreen plants resembling thistles, the young leaves of E. maritimum (sea-holly) being sometimes eaten as a salad. [L. eryngion—Gr. ēryngos.]
Erysimum, er-is′i-mum, n. a genus of Cruciferæ, allied to Hedge-mustard and Dame's Violet. ”

“ Euclase, ū′klās, n. a silicate of aluminium and glucinum occurring in pale-green transparent crystals. [Fr.,—Gr. eu, well, klasis, breaking.]
Euclidean, ū-klid′e-an, or ū-kli-dē′an, adj. pertaining to Euclid, a mathematician of Alexandria about 300 B.C.
Eudemonism, Eudæmonism, ū-dē′mon-izm, n. the system of ethics that makes happiness the test of rectitude—whether Egoistic, as Hobbes, or Altruistic, as Mill.—ns. Eudē′monist, Eudæ′monist. [Gr. eudaimonia, happiness—eu, well, daimōn, a god.] ”

“ Estate, es-tāt′, n. condition or rank: position: property, esp. landed property: fortune: an order or class of men in the body-politic: (pl.) dominions: possessions.—v.t. to give an estate to: (arch.) to bestow upon.—n. Estates′man, statesman.—Man's estate, the state of manhood; The estates of the realm are three—Lords Spiritual, Lords Temporal, and Commons ”

“ Estovers, es-tō′vėrz, n.pl. (law) necessaries allowed by law, as wood to a tenant for necessary repairs, &c.—Common of estovers, the right of taking necessary wood from another's estate for household use and the making of implements of industry. [O. Fr. estovoir, necessaries.]
Estrade, es-träd′, n. a low platform. [Fr.,—Sp. estrado.]
Estrange, es-trānj′, v.t. to treat as an alien: to alienate: to divert from its original use or possessor.—p.adj. ”

“ Eu′logist, one who praises or extols another.—adj. Eulogist′ic, full of praise.—adv. Eulogist′ically. [Late L. eulogium—Gr. eulogion (classical eulogia) —eu, well, logia, a speaking.]
Eumenides, ū-men′i-dēz, n.pl. the Erinyes or Furies—the euphemistic name for these. [Gr. eu, well, menos, mind.]
Eunomy, ū′nō-mi, n. equal, righteous law. [Gr.]
Eunuch, ū′nuk, n. a castrated man—often employed as chamberlain in the East.—v.t. Eu′nuchate.—n. Eu′nuchism, the state of being a eunuch. [Gr. eunouchos—eunē, a couch, echein, to have charge of.] ”

“ Epistilbite, ep-i-stil′bīt, n. a whitish hydrous silicate of aluminium, calcium, and sodium.
Epistle, e-pis′l, n. a writing sent to one, a letter: esp. a letter to an individual or church from an apostle, as the Epistles of Paul: the extract from one of the apostolical epistles read as part of the communion service.—v.i. (Milt.) to preface.—ns. Epis′tler, Epis′toler, a letter-writer; Epis′tler, one who reads the liturgical epistle in the communion service.—adjs. ”

“ Evection, e-vek′shun, n. (astron.) a lunar inequality resulting from the combined effect of the irregularity of the motion of the perigee, and alternate increase and decrease of the eccentricity of the moon's orbit. [L. evection-em—e, out, vehĕre, vectum, to carry.]
Even, ēv′n, adj. flat: level: uniform: (Shak.) straightforward: parallel: equal on both sides: not odd, able to be divided by 2 without a remainder.—v.t. to make even or smooth: to put on an equality: (Shak.) to act up to.—adv. ”

“ Epicy′cloid, a curve described by every point in the plane of a circle moving on the convex circumference of another circle.—adj. Epicycloi′dal. [Gr. epi, upon, kyklos, a circle.]
Epideictic, -al, ep-i-dīk′tik, -al, adj. done for show or display. [Gr. epi, upon, deiknynai, to show.]
Epidemic, -al, ep-i-dem′ik, -al, adj. affecting a community at a certain time: general.—n. Epidem′ic, a disease falling on great numbers in one place, simultaneously or in succession.—adv. Epidem′ically.—n. Epidemiol′ogy, the science of epidemics. [Gr. epidēmos, general—epi, among, dēmos, the people.] ”

“ Epaulement, e-pawl′ment, n. a side-work of a battery or earthwork to protect it from a flanking fire.—n. Epaule′, the shoulder of a bastion. [Fr.,—épauler, to protect—épaule, shoulder.]
Epaulet, Epaulette, ep′ol-et, n. a shoulder-piece: a badge of a military or naval officer (now disused in the British army) : an ornament on the shoulder of a lady's dress. [Fr. épaulette—épaule, the shoulder.]
Epeira, ep-īr′a, n. a genus of spiders, the type of the Epeiridæ, including the common garden spider. [Gr. epi, on, eiros, wool.] ”

“ Eozoön, ē-ō-zō′on, n. an assumed organism whose remains constitute reefs of rocks in the Archæan system in Canada.—adj. Eozō′ic. [Gr. ēōs, dawn, zōon, an animal.]
Epacrid, ep′a-krid, n. a plant of order Epacridaceæ, a small order of heath-like shrubs or small trees. [Gr. epi, upon, akris, a summit.] ”

“ Episode, ep′i-sōd, n. a story introduced into a narrative or poem to give variety: an interesting incident.—adjs. Ep′isōdal, Episō′dial, Episōd′ic, Episōd′ical, pertaining to or contained in an episode: brought in as a digression.—adv. Episōd′ically, by way of episode: incidentally. [Gr. epeisodion—epi, upon, eisodos, a coming in—eis, into, hodos, a way.]
Epispastic, ep-i-spas′tik, adj. producing a blister on the skin.—n. a blister.
Episperm, ep′i-spėrm, n. the outer integument of a seed. [Gr. epi, upon, and sperma, seed.] ”

“ Epig′raphy. [Gr. epi-graphē—epi, upon, graphein, to write.]
Epigynous, e-pij′i-nus, adj. (bot.) growing upon the top of the ovary.
Epilepsy, ep′i-lep-si, n. a chronic functional disease of the nervous system, manifested by recurring attacks of sudden insensibility or impairment of consciousness, commonly accompanied by peculiar convulsive seizures.—n. Epilep′tic, an epileptic patient.—adjs. Epilep′tic, -al; Epilep′toid. [Gr. epilepsia—epi, upon, lambanein, lēpsesthai, to seize.]
Epilogue, ep′i-log, n. the conclusion of a book: a speech or short poem at the end of a play.—adjs. ”

“ Equinoc′tial, pertaining to the equinoxes, the time of the equinoxes, or to the regions about the equator.—n. a great circle in the heavens corresponding to the equator of the earth.—adv. Equinoc′tially, in the direction of the equinox.—Equinoctial gales, high gales popularly supposed to prevail about the times of the equinoxes—the belief is unsupported by observation. [L. æquus, equal, nox, noctis, night.]
Equip, e-kwip′, v.t. to fit out: to furnish with everything needed for any service or work:—pr.p. equip′ping ”

“ Erotic, er-ot′ik, adj. pertaining to love: amatory.—n. an amatory poem.—ns. Erotomā′nia, morbid sexual passion; Erotomā′niac, one affected with this. [Gr. erōtikos—erōs, erōtos, love.]
Err, er, v.i. to wander from the right way: to go astray: to mistake: to sin.—adj. ”

“ Epinasty, ep′i-nas-ti, n. (bot.) curvature of an organ, caused by a more active growth on its upper side.—adj. Epinas′tic.—adv. Epinas′tically.
Epiperipheral, ep-i-pe-rif′e-ral, adj. situated on the periphery or outer surface of the body.
Epipetalous, ep-i-pet′a-lus, adj. (bot.) inserted or growing on a petal.
Epiphany, e-pif′an-i, n. a church festival celebrated on Jan. 6, in commemoration of the manifestation of Christ to the wise men of the East: the manifestation of a god. [Gr. epiphaneia, appearance—epi, to, phainein, to show.] ”

“ Epithalamium, ep-i-tha-lā′mi-um, n. a song or poem in celebration of a marriage.—adj. Epithalam′ic. [Gr. epithalamion—epi, upon, thalamos, a bedchamber, marriage.]
Epithelium, ep-i-thē′li-um, n. the cell-tissue which invests the outer surface of the body and the mucous membranes connected with it, and also the closed cavities of the body.—adj. Epithē′lial.—n. Epitheliō′ma, carcinoma of the skin.—adj. Epitheliom′atous. [Gr.,—epi, upon, thēlē, nipple.]
Epithem, ep′i-them, n. (med.) a soft external application. [Gr. epithema—epi, upon, tithenai, to place.] ”

“ Ephem′eral, existing only for a day: daily: short-lived.—n. anything lasting a short time.—ns. Ephemeral′ity; Ephem′erid, an insect belonging to the group Ephemeridæ.—adj. Ephemerid′ian.—ns. Ephem′eris, an account of daily transactions: a journal: an astronomical almanac:—pl. Ephemerides (ef-e-mer′i-dēz) ; Ephem′erist, one who studies the daily motions of the planets; Ephem′eron, an insect that lives but a day.—adj. Ephem′erous. [Through L.,—Gr. ephēmeros, living a day—epi, for, hēmera, a day.] ”

“ Erbium, er′bi-um, n. a rare metal, the compounds of which are present in the mineral gadolinite, found at Ytterby in Sweden. [From Ytterby.]
Ere, ār, adv. before, sooner.—prep. before.—conj. sooner than.—advs. Erelong′, before long: soon; Erenow′, before this time; Erewhile′, formerly: some time before. [A.S. ǽr; cf. Dut. eer.]
Erebus, er′e-bus, n. (myth.) the dark and gloomy cavern between earth and Hades: the lower world, hell. [L.,—Gr. Erebos.]
Erect, e-rekt′, v.t. to set upright: to raise: to build: to exalt: to establish.—adj. upright: directed upward.—adj. ”

“ Equipollent, e-kwi-pol′ent, adj. having equal power or force: equivalent.—n. an equivalent.—ns. Equipoll′ence, Equipoll′ency. [L. æquus, equal, pollens, pollentis, pr.p. of pollēre, to be able.]
Equiponderate, ē-kwi-pon′dėr-āt, v.i. to be equal in weight: to balance.—adj. equal in weight.—n. Equipon′derance.—adj. Equipon′derant. [L. æquus, equal, pondus, ponderis, weight.]
Equisetum, ek-wi-sē′tum, n. a genus of herbaceous plants having leafless articulated and whorled stems and branches—also Horse-tail.—adjs. Equisetā′ceous ”

“ Epexeget′ically. [Gr. epi, in addition, exēgeisthai, to explain.]
Epha, Ephah, ē′fa, n. a Hebrew measure for dry goods. [Heb.; prob. of Egyptian origin.]
Ephebe, ef-ēb′, n. (Greek antiquities) a young citizen from 18 to 20 years of age. [L. ephēbus—Gr. ephēbos—epi, upon, hēbē, early manhood.]
Ephemera, ef-em′er-a, n. the Mayfly, a genus of short-lived insects: that which lasts a short time.—adj. ”

“ Equilibrā′tion; Equilib′rity, Equilib′rium, equal balancing: equality of weight or force: level position; Equimul′tiple, a number multiplied by the same number as another.—adj. Equipē′dal, equal-footed.—ns. ”