Arachnoid A·rach"noid adjective [ Greek ... like a cobweb; ... spider, spider's web + ... form.]
1. Resembling a spider's web; cobweblike. 2. (Anat.) Pertaining to a thin membrane of the brain and spinal cord, between the dura mater and pia mater. 3. (Botany) Covered with, or composed of, soft, loose hairs or fibers, so as to resemble a cobweb; cobwebby.
Arachnoid A·rach"noid noun 1. (Anat.) The arachnoid membrane. 2. (Zoology) One of the Arachnoidea.
Arachnoidal Ar`ach·noid"al adjective (Anat.) Pertaining to the arachnoid membrane; arachnoid.
Arachnoidea Ar`ach·noid"e·a noun plural [ New Latin ]
(Zoology) Same as Arachnida .
Arachnological A·rach`no·log"ic·al adjective Of or pertaining to arachnology.
Arachnologist Ar`ach·nol"o·gist noun One who is versed in, or studies, arachnology.
Arachnology Ar`ach·nol"o·gy noun [ Greek ... spider +
-logy .]
The department of zoölogy which treats of spiders and other Arachnida.
Aragonese Ar`a·go·nese adjective Of or pertaining to Aragon, in Spain, or to its inhabitants. --
noun sing. & plural A native or natives of Aragon, in Spain.
Aragonite A·rag"o·nite noun [ From
Aragon , in Spain.]
(Min.) A mineral identical in composition with calcite or carbonate of lime, but differing from it in its crystalline form and some of its physical characters.
Araguato A`ra·gua"to noun [ Native name.]
(Zoology) A South American monkey, the ursine howler ( Mycetes ursinus ). See Howler , noun , 2.
Araise A·raise"" transitive verb To raise. [ Obsolete]
Shak.
Arak Ar"ak noun Same as Arrack .
Aramaic Ar`a·ma"ic adjective [ See
Aramĉan , adjective ]
Pertaining to Aram, or to the territory, inhabitants, language, or literature of Syria and Mesopotamia; Aramĉan; -- specifically applied to the northern branch of the Semitic family of languages, including Syriac and Chaldee. --
noun The Aramaic language.
Aramaism Ar`a·ma"ism noun An idiom of the Aramaic.
Aramĉan, Aramean Ar`a·mĉan, Ar`a·me"an adjective [ Latin
Aramaeus , Greek ..., from Hebrew
Arām ,
i. e. Highland, a name given to Syria and Mesopotamia.]
Of or pertaining to the Syrians and Chaldeans, or to their language; Aramaic. --
noun A native of Aram.
Araneida Ar`a·ne"i·da Ar`a*ne*oid"e*a noun plural [ New Latin ] (Zoology) See Araneina .
Araneidan Ar`a·ne"i·dan adjective (Zoology) Of or pertaining to the Araneina or spiders. --
noun One of the Araneina; a spider.
Araneiform Ar`a·ne"i·form adjective [ Latin
aranea spider + -
form .]
(Zoology) Having the form of a spider. Kirby.
Araneina A·ra`ne·i"na (ȧ*rā`ne*ī"nȧ)
noun plural [ New Latin , from Latin
aranea spider.]
(Zoology) The order of Arachnida that includes the spiders. » They have mandibles, modified as poison fangs, leglike palpi, simple eyes, abdomen without segments, and spinnerets for spinning a web. They breathe by pulmonary sacs and tracheĉ in the abdomen. See
Illustration in Appendix.
Araneose A·ra"ne·ose` (ȧ*rā"ne*ōs`)
adjective [ Latin
araneosus .]
Of the aspect of a spider's web; arachnoid.
Araneous A·ra"ne·ous (-ŭs)
adjective [ Latin
araneosus , from
aranea spider, spider's web.]
Cobweblike; extremely thin and delicate, like a cobweb; as, the araneous membrane of the eye. See Arachnoid . Derham.
Arango A·ran"go (ȧ*răn"go)
noun ;
plural Arangoes (-gōz). [ The native name.]
A bead of rough carnelian. Arangoes were formerly imported from Bombay for use in the African slave trade. McCulloch.
Arapaima A`ra·pai"ma noun [ Prob. native name.]
(Zoology) A large fresh-water food fish of South America.
Arara A·ra"ra noun [ Native name.]
(Zoology) The palm (or great black) cockatoo, of Australia ( Microglossus aterrimus ).
Araroba Ar`a·ro"ba noun [ Tupi.]
1. Goa powder. 2. A fabaceous tree of Brazil ( Centrolobium robustum ) having handsomely striped wood; -- called also zebrawood .
Aration A·ra"tion noun [ Latin
aratio , from
arare to plow.]
Plowing; tillage. [ R.]
Lands are said to be in a state of aration when they are under tillage.
Brande.
Aratory Ar"a·to·ry adjective [ Late Latin
aratorius : confer French
aratoire .]
Contributing to tillage.
Araucaria Ar`au·ca"ri·a noun [
Araucania , a territory south of Chili.]
(Botany) A genus of tall conifers of the pine family. The species are confined mostly to South America and Australia. The wood cells differ from those of other in having the dots in their lateral surfaces in two or three rows, and the dots of contiguous rows alternating. The seeds are edible.
Araucarian Ar`au·ca"ri·an adjective Relating to, or of the nature of, the Araucaria. The earliest conifers in geological history were mostly Araucarian. Dana.
Arbalest, Arbalist Ar"ba·lest, Ar"ba·list noun [ Old French
arbaleste , Late Latin
arbalista , for Latin
arcuballista ;
arcus bow +
ballista a military engine. See
Ballista .]
(Antiq.) A crossbow, consisting of a steel bow set in a shaft of wood, furnished with a string and a trigger, and a mechanical device for bending the bow. It served to throw arrows, darts, bullets, etc. [ Written also
arbalet and
arblast .]
Fosbroke.
Arbalester, Arbalister Ar"ba·lest`er, Ar"ba·list`er noun [ Old French
arblastere , Old French
arbalestier . See
Arbalest .]
A crossbowman. [ Obsolete]
Speed.
Arbiter Ar"bi·ter noun [ Latin
arbiter ;
ar- (for
ad ) + the root of
betere to go; hence properly, one who comes up to look on.]
1. A person appointed, or chosen, by parties to determine a controversy between them. » In modern usage,
arbitrator is the technical word.
2. Any person who has the power of judging and determining, or ordaining, without control; one whose power of deciding and governing is not limited. For Jove is arbiter of both to man.
Cowper.
Syn. -- Arbitrator; umpire; director; referee; controller; ruler; governor.
Arbiter Ar"bi·ter transitive verb To act as arbiter between. [ Obsolete]
Arbitrable Ar"bi·tra·ble adjective [ Confer French
arbitrable , from Latin
arbitrari . See
Arbitrate ,
transitive verb ]
Capable of being decided by arbitration; determinable. [ Archaic]
Bp. Hall.
Arbitrage Ar"bi·trage noun [ French, from
arbiter to give judgment, Latin
arbitrari .]
1. Judgment by an arbiter; authoritative determination. [ Archaic]
2. (Com) A traffic in bills of exchange (see Arbitration of Exchange ); also, a traffic in stocks which bear differing values at the same time in different markets.
Arbitral Ar"bi·tral adjective [ Latin
arbitralis .]
Of or relating to an arbiter or an arbitration. [ R.]
Arbitrament Ar·bit"ra·ment noun [ Late Latin
arbitramentum .]
1. Determination; decision; arbitration. The arbitrament of time.
Everett.
Gladly at this moment would MacIvor have put their quarrel to personal arbitrament .
Sir W. Scott.
2. The award of arbitrators. Cowell.
Arbitrarily Ar"bi·tra·ri·ly adverb In an arbitrary manner; by will only; despotically; absolutely.
Arbitrariness Ar"bi·tra·ri·ness noun The quality of being arbitrary; despoticalness; tyranny. Bp. Hall.
Arbitrarious Ar`bi·tra"ri·ous adjective [ Latin
arbitrarius . See
Arbitrary .]
Arbitrary; despotic. [ Obsolete] --
Ar`bi*tra"ri*ous*ly ,
adverb [ Obsolete]
Arbitrary Ar"bi·tra·ry adjective [ Latin
arbitrarius , from
arbiter : confer French
arbitraire . See
Arbiter .]
1. Depending on will or discretion; not governed by any fixed rules; as, an arbitrary decision; an arbitrary punishment. It was wholly arbitrary in them to do so.
Jer. Taylor.
Rank pretends to fix the value of every one, and is the most arbitrary of all things.
Landor.
2. Exercised according to one's own will or caprice, and therefore conveying a notion of a tendency to abuse the possession of power. Arbitrary power is most easily established on the ruins of liberty abused licentiousness.
Washington.
3. Despotic; absolute in power; bound by no law; harsh and unforbearing; tyrannical; as, an arbitrary prince or government. Dryden. Arbitrary constant ,
Arbitrary function (Math.) ,
a quantity of function that is introduced into the solution of a problem, and to which any value or form may at will be given, so that the solution may be made to meet special requirements. --
Arbitrary quantity (Math.) ,
one to which any value can be assigned at pleasure.
Arbitrate Ar"bi·trate transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Arbitrated ;
present participle & verbal noun Arbitrating ] [ Latin
arbitratus , past participle of
arbitrari to be a hearer or beholder of something, to make a decision, to give judgment, from
arbiter . See
Arbiter .]
1. To hear and decide, as arbitrators; as, to choose to arbitrate a disputed case. 2. To decide, or determine generally. South. There shall your swords and lances arbitrate
The swelling difference of your settled hate.
Shak.
Arbitrate Ar"bi·trate intransitive verb 1. To decide; to determine. Shak. 2. To act as arbitrator or judge; as, to arbitrate upon several reports; to arbitrate in disputes among neighbors; to arbitrate between parties to a suit.
Arbitration Ar`bi·tra"tion noun [ French
arbitration , Latin
arbitratio , from
arbitrari .]
The hearing and determination of a cause between parties in controversy, by a person or persons chosen by the parties. » This may be done by one person; but it is usual to choose two or three called
arbitrators ; or for each party to choose one, and these to name a third, who is called the
umpire . Their determination is called the
award .
Bouvier Arbitration bond ,
a bond which obliges one to abide by the award of an arbitration. --
Arbitration of Exchange ,
the operation of converting the currency of one country into that of another, or determining the rate of exchange between such countries or currencies. An arbitrated rate is one determined by such arbitration through the medium of one or more intervening currencies.
Arbitrator Ar"bi·tra`tor noun [ Latin , from
arbitrari : confer French
arbitrateur .]
1. A person, or one of two or more persons, chosen by parties who have a controversy, to determine their differences. See Arbitration . 2. One who has the power of deciding or prescribing without control; a ruler; a governor. Though Heaven be shut,
And Heaven's high Arbitrators sit secure.
Milton.
Masters of their own terms and arbitrators of a peace.
Addison.
Syn. -- Judge; umpire; referee; arbiter. See
Judge .
Arbitratrix Ar"bi·tra`trix noun [ Latin , fem. of
arbitrator .]
A female who arbitrates or judges.
Arbitress Ar"bi·tress noun [ From
Arbiter .]
A female arbiter; an arbitratrix. Milton.
Arblast Ar"blast noun A crossbow. See Arbalest .
Arbor Ar"bor noun [ Middle English
herber ,
herbere , properly a garden of herbs, French
herbier , from Latin
herbarium . See
Herb , and confer
Herbarium .]
A kind of latticework formed of, or covered with, vines, branches of trees, or other plants, for shade; a bower. Sir P. Sidney.
Arbor Ar"bor noun [ Written also
arbour .] [ Latin , a tree, a beam.]
1. (Botany) A tree, as distinguished from a shrub. 2. [ Confer French
arbre .]
(Mech.) (a) An axle or spindle of a wheel or opinion. (b) A mandrel in lathe turning. Knight. Arbor Day ,
a day appointed for planting trees and shrubs. [ U.S.]