Bittern Bit"tern noun [ From Bitter , adjective ] 1. The brine which remains in salt works after the salt is concreted, having a bitter taste from the chloride of magnesium which it contains.

2. A very bitter compound of quassia, cocculus Indicus, etc., used by fraudulent brewers in adulterating beer. Cooley.

Bitterness Bit"ter·ness noun [ Anglo-Saxon biternys ; biter better + -nys = -ness .] 1. The quality or state of being bitter, sharp, or acrid, in either a literal or figurative sense; implacableness; resentfulness; severity; keenness of reproach or sarcasm; deep distress, grief, or vexation of mind.

The lip that curls with bitterness .
Percival.

I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Job vii. 11.

2. A state of extreme impiety or enmity to God.

Thou art in the gall of bitterness , and in the bond of iniquity.
Acts viii. 23.

3. Dangerous error, or schism, tending to draw persons to apostasy.

Looking diligently, . . . lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you.
Hebrew xii. 15.

Bitternut Bit"ter·nut" noun (Botany) The swamp hickory ( Carya amara ). Its thin-shelled nuts are bitter.

Bitterroot Bit"ter·root` noun (Botany) A plant ( Lewisia rediviva ) allied to the purslane, but with fleshy, farinaceous roots, growing in the mountains of Idaho, Montana, etc. It gives the name to the Bitter Root mountains and river. The Indians call both the plant and the river Spæt'lum .

Bitters Bit"ters noun plural A liquor, generally spirituous in which a bitter herb, leaf, or root is steeped.

Bittersweet Bit"ter·sweet` adjective Sweet and then bitter or bitter and then sweet; esp. sweet with a bitter after taste; hence (Fig.), pleasant but painful.

Bittersweet Bit"ter·sweet` noun 1. Anything which is bittersweet.

2. A kind of apple so called. Gower.

3. (Botany) (a) A climbing shrub, with oval coral-red berries ( Solanum dulcamara ); woody nightshade. The whole plant is poisonous, and has a taste at first sweetish and then bitter. The branches are the officinal dulcamara . (b) An American woody climber ( Celastrus scandens ), whose yellow capsules open late in autumn, and disclose the red aril which covers the seeds; -- also called Roxbury waxwork .

Bitterweed Bit"ter·weed` noun (Botany) A species of Ambrosia ( A. artemisiæfolia ); Roman worm wood. Gray.

Bitterwood Bit"ter·wood` noun A West Indian tree ( Picræna excelsa ) from the wood of which the bitter drug Jamaica quassia is obtained.

Bitterwort Bit"ter·wort` noun (Botany) The yellow gentian ( Gentiana lutea ), which has a very bitter taste.

Bittock Bit"tock noun [ See Bit a morsel.] A small bit of anything, of indefinite size or quantity; a short distance. [ Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

Bittor Bittour Bit"tor Bit"tour noun [ See Bittern ] (Zoology) The bittern. Dryden.

Bitts Bitts noun plural [ Confer French bitte , Icelandic biti , a beam. ...87.] (Nautical) A frame of two strong timbers fixed perpendicularly in the fore part of a ship, on which to fasten the cables as the ship rides at anchor, or in warping. Other bitts are used for belaying ( belaying bitts ), for sustaining the windlass ( carrick bitts , winch bitts , or windlass bitts ), to hold the pawls of the windlass ( pawl bitts ) etc.

Bitume Bi·tume" noun [ French See Bitumen .] Bitumen. [ Poetic] May.

Bitumed Bi·tumed" adjective Smeared with bitumen. [ R.] "The hatches caulked and bitumed ." Shak.

Bitumen Bi·tu"men noun [ Latin bitumen : confer French bitume . Confer Béton .] 1. Mineral pitch; a black, tarry substance, burning with a bright flame; Jew's pitch. It occurs as an abundant natural product in many places, as on the shores of the Dead and Caspian Seas. It is used in cements, in the construction of pavements, etc. See Asphalt .

2. By extension, any one of the natural hydrocarbons, including the hard, solid, brittle varieties called asphalt, the semisolid maltha and mineral tars, the oily petroleums, and even the light, volatile naphthas.

Bitumen process Bi·tu"men proc"ess (Photog.) Any process in which advantage is taken of the fact that prepared bitumen is rendered insoluble by exposure to light, as in photolithography.

Bituminate Bi·tu"mi·nate (bĭ*tū"mĭ*nāt) transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Bituminated ; present participle & verbal noun Bituminating .] [ Latin bituminatus , past participle of bituminare to bituminate. See Bitumen .] To treat or impregnate with bitumen; to cement with bitumen. " Bituminated walls of Babylon." Feltham.

Bituminiferous Bi·tu`mi·nif"er·ous adjective [ Bitumen + -ferous .] Producing bitumen. Kirwan.

Bituminization Bi·tu`mi·ni·za"tion noun [ Confer French bituminisation .] The process of bituminizing. Mantell.

Bituminize Bi·tu"mi·nize transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Bituminized ; present participle & verbal noun Bituminizing .] [ Confer French bituminiser .] To prepare, treat, impregnate, or coat with bitumen.

Bituminous Bi·tu"mi·nous adjective [ Latin bituminosus : confer French bitumineux .] Having the qualities of bitumen; compounded with bitumen; containing bitumen.

Near that bituminous lake where Sodom flamed.
Milton.

Bituminous coal , a kind of coal which yields, when heated, a considerable amount of volatile bituminous matter. It burns with a yellow smoky flame. -- Bituminous limestone , a mineral of a brown or black color, emitting an unpleasant smell when rubbed. That of Dalmatia is so charged with bitumen that it may be cut like soap. -- Bituminous shale , an argillaceous shale impregnated with bitumen, often accompanying coal.

Biuret Bi"u·ret noun [ Prefix bi- + urea .] (Chemistry) A white, crystalline, nitrogenous substance, C ₂ O ₂ N ₃ H ₅ , formed by heating urea. It is intermediate between urea and cyanuric acid.

Bivalency Biv"a·len·cy noun (Chemistry) The quality of being bivalent.

Bivalent Biv"a·lent adjective [ Latin bis twice + valens , present participle See Valence .] (Chemistry) Equivalent in combining or displacing power to two atoms of hydrogen; dyad.

Bivalve Bi"valve noun [ French bivalve ; bi- (L. bis ) + valve valve.] 1. (Zoology) A mollusk having a shell consisting of two lateral plates or valves joined together by an elastic ligament at the hinge, which is usually strengthened by prominences called teeth . The shell is closed by the contraction of two transverse muscles attached to the inner surface, as in the clam, -- or by one, as in the oyster. See Mollusca.

2. (Botany) A pericarp in which the seed case opens or splits into two parts or valves.

Bivalve Bi"valve adjective [ Prefix bi- + valve .] (Zoology & Bot.) Having two shells or valves which open and shut, as the oyster and certain seed vessels.

Bivalved Bi"valved adjective Having two valves, as the oyster and some seed pods; bivalve.

Bivalvous Bi·val"vous adjective Bivalvular.

Bivalvular Bi·val"vu·lar adjective Having two valves.

Bivaulted Bi·vault"ed adjective [ Prefix bi- + vault .] Having two vaults or arches.

Bivector Bi·vec"tor noun [ Prefix bi- + vector .] (Math.) A term made up of the two parts ... + ...1 ...-1, where ... and ...1 are vectors.

Biventral Bi·ven"tral adjective [ Prefix bi- + ventral .] (Anat.) Having two bellies or protuberances; as, a biventral , or digastric, muscle, or the biventral lobe of the cerebellum.

Bivial Biv"i·al adjective Of or relating to the bivium.

Bivious Biv"i·ous adjective [ Latin bivius ; bis twice + via way.] Having, or leading, two ways.

Bivious theorems and Janus-faced doctrines.
Sir T. Browne.

Bivium Biv"i·um noun [ Latin , a place with two ways. See Bivious .] (Zoology) One side of an echinoderm, including a pair of ambulacra, in distinction from the opposite side ( trivium ), which includes three ambulacra.

Bivouac Biv"ouac noun [ French bivouac , bivac , prab. from German beiwache , or beiwacht ; bei by, near + wachen to watch, wache watch, guard. See By , and Watch .] (Mil.) (a) The watch of a whole army by night, when in danger of surprise or attack. (b) An encampment for the night without tents or covering.

Bivouac Biv"ouac intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Bivouacked ; present participle & verbal noun Bivouacking .] (Mil.) (a) To watch at night or be on guard, as a whole army. (b) To encamp for the night without tents or covering.

Biweekly Bi"week`ly adjective [ Prefix bi- + weekly .] Occurring or appearing once every two weeks; fortnightly. -- noun A publication issued every two weeks. -- Bi"week"ly , adverb

Biwreye Bi·wreye" transitive verb To bewray; to reveal. [ Obsolete]

Bizantine Biz"an·tine See Byzantine .

Bizarre Bi·zarre" adjective [ French bizarre odd, from Spanish bizarro gallant, brave, liberal, probably of Basque origin; confer Basque bizarra beard, whence the meaning manly , brave .] Odd in manner or appearance; fantastic; whimsical; extravagant; grotesque. C. Kingsley.

Bizet Bi·zet" noun [ Confer Bezel .] The upper faceted portion of a brilliant-cut diamond, which projects from the setting and occupies the zone between the girdle and the table. See Brilliant , noun

Blab Blab transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Blabbed ; present participle & verbal noun Blabbing .] [ Confer Middle English blaberen , or Danish blabbre , German plappern , Gael. blabaran a stammerer; probably of imitative origin. Confer also Blubber , v. ] To utter or tell unnecessarily, or in a thoughtless manner; to publish (secrets or trifles) without reserve or discretion. Udall.

And yonder a vile physician blabbing
The case of his patient.
Tennyson.

Blab Blab intransitive verb To talk thoughtlessly or without discretion; to tattle; to tell tales.

She must burst or blab .
Dryden.

Blab Blab noun [ Middle English blabbe .] One who blabs; a babbler; a telltale. "Avoided as a blab ." Milton.

For who will open himself to a blab or a babbler.
Bacon.

Blabber Blab"ber noun A tattler; a telltale.

Black Black adjective [ Middle English blak , Anglo-Saxon blæc ; akin to Icelandic blakkr dark, swarthy, Swedish bläck ink, Danish blæk , Old High German blach , LG. & Dutch blaken to burn with a black smoke. Not akin to Anglo-Saxon blāc , English bleak pallid. ...98.] 1. Destitute of light, or incapable of reflecting it; of the color of soot or coal; of the darkest or a very dark color, the opposite of white ; characterized by such a color; as, black cloth; black hair or eyes.

O night, with hue so black !
Shak.

2. In a less literal sense: Enveloped or shrouded in darkness; very dark or gloomy; as, a black night; the heavens black with clouds.

I spy a black , suspicious, threatening cloud.
Shak.

3. Fig.: Dismal, gloomy, or forbidding, like darkness; destitute of moral light or goodness; atrociously wicked; cruel; mournful; calamitous; horrible. "This day's black fate." " Black villainy." "Arise, black vengeance." "Black day." " Black despair." Shak.

4. Expressing menace, or discontent; threatening; sullen; foreboding; as, to regard one with black looks.

» Black is often used in self-explaining compound words; as, black- eyed, black- faced, black- haired, black- visaged.

Black act , the English statute 9 George I, which makes it a felony to appear armed in any park or warren, etc., or to hunt or steal deer, etc., with the face blackened or disguised. Subsequent acts inflicting heavy penalties for malicious injuries to cattle and machinery have been called black acts . -- Black angel (Zoology) , a fish of the West Indies and Florida ( Holacanthus tricolor ), with the head and tail yellow, and the middle of the body black. -- Black antimony (Chemistry) , the black sulphide of antimony, Sb ₂ S ₃ , used in pyrotechnics, etc. -- Black bear (Zoology) , the common American bear ( Ursus Americanus ). -- Black beast . See Bête noire . -- Black beetle (Zoology) , the common large cockroach ( Blatta orientalis ). -- Black and blue , the dark color of a bruise in the flesh, which is accompanied with a mixture of blue. "To pinch the slatterns black and blue ." Hudibras. -- Black bonnet (Zoology) , the black-headed bunting ( Embriza Schœniclus ) of Europe. -- Black canker , a disease in turnips and other crops, produced by a species of caterpillar. -- Black cat (Zoology) , the fisher, a quadruped of North America allied to the sable, but larger. See Fisher . -- Black cattle , any bovine cattle reared for slaughter, in distinction from dairy cattle. [ Eng.] -- Black cherry . See under Cherry . -- Black cockatoo (Zoology) , the palm cockatoo. See Cockatoo . -- Black copper . Same as Melaconite . -- Black currant . (Botany) See Currant . -- Black diamond . (Min.) See Carbonado . -- Black draught (Medicine) , a cathartic medicine, composed of senna and magnesia. -- Black drop (Medicine) , vinegar of opium; a narcotic preparation consisting essentially of a solution of opium in vinegar. -- Black earth , mold; earth of a dark color. Woodward. -- Black flag , the flag of a pirate, often bearing in white a skull and crossbones; a signal of defiance. -- Black flea (Zoology) , a flea beetle ( Haltica nemorum ) injurious to turnips. -- Black flux , a mixture of carbonate of potash and charcoal, obtained by deflagrating tartar with half its weight of niter. Brande & C. -- Black fly . (Zoology) (a) In the United States, a small, venomous, two-winged fly of the genus Simulium of several species, exceedingly abundant and troublesome in the northern forests. The larvæ are aquatic. (b) A black plant louse, as the bean aphis ( A. fabæ ). -- Black Forest [ a translation of German Schwarzwald ], a forest in Baden and Würtemburg, in Germany; a part of the ancient Hercynian forest. -- Black game , or Black grouse . (Zoology) See Blackcock , Grouse , and Heath grouse . -- Black grass (Botany) , a grasslike rush of the species Juncus Gerardi , growing on salt marshes, and making good hay. -- Black gum (Botany) , an American tree, the tupelo or pepperidge. See Tupelo . -- Black Hamburg (grape) (Botany) , a sweet and juicy variety of dark purple or "black" grape. -- Black horse (Zoology) , a fish of the Mississippi valley ( Cycleptus elongatus ), of the sucker family; the Missouri sucker. -- Black lemur (Zoology) , the Lemurniger of Madagascar; the acoumbo of the natives. -- Black list , a list of persons who are for some reason thought deserving of censure or punishment; -- esp. a list of persons stigmatized as insolvent or untrustworthy, made for the protection of tradesmen or employers. See Blacklist , transitive verb -- Black manganese (Chemistry) , the black oxide of manganese, MnO ₂ . -- Black Maria , the close wagon in which prisoners are carried to or from jail. -- Black martin (Zoology) , the chimney swift. See Swift . -- Black moss (Botany) , the common so-called long moss of the southern United States. See Tillandsia . -- Black oak . See under Oak . -- Black ocher . See Wad . -- Black pigment , a very fine, light carbonaceous substance, or lampblack, prepared chiefly for the manufacture of printers' ink. It is obtained by burning common coal tar. -- Black plate , sheet iron before it is tinned. Knight. -- Black quarter , malignant anthrax with engorgement of a shoulder or quarter, etc., as of an ox. -- Black rat (Zoology) , one of the species of rats ( Mus rattus ), commonly infesting houses. -- Black rent . See Blackmail , noun , 3. -- Black rust , a disease of wheat, in which a black, moist matter is deposited in the fissures of the grain. -- Black sheep , one in a family or company who is unlike the rest, and makes trouble. -- Black silver . (Min.) See under Silver . -- Black and tan , black mixed or spotted with tan color or reddish brown; -- used in describing certain breeds of dogs. -- Black tea . See under Tea . -- Black tin (Mining) , tin ore (cassiterite), when dressed, stamped and washed, ready for smelting. It is in the form of a black powder, like fine sand. Knight. -- Black walnut . See under Walnut . -- Black warrior (Zoology) , an American hawk ( Buteo Harlani ).

Syn. -- Dark; murky; pitchy; inky; somber; dusky; gloomy; swart; Cimmerian; ebon; atrocious.

Black Black adverb Sullenly; threateningly; maliciously; so as to produce blackness.

Black Black noun 1. That which is destitute of light or whiteness; the darkest color, or rather a destitution of all color; as, a cloth has a good black .

Black is the badge of hell,
The hue of dungeons, and the suit of night.
Shak.

2. A black pigment or dye.

3. A negro; a person whose skin is of a black color, or shaded with black; esp. a member or descendant of certain African races.

4. A black garment or dress; as, she wears black ; plural (Obsolete) Mourning garments of a black color; funereal drapery.

Friends weeping, and blacks , and obsequies, and the like show death terrible.
Bacon.

That was the full time they used to wear blacks for the death of their fathers.
Sir T. North.

5. The part of a thing which is distinguished from the rest by being black.

The black or sight of the eye.
Sir K. Digby.

6. A stain; a spot; a smooch.

Defiling her white lawn of chastity with ugly blacks of lust.
Rowley.

Black and white , writing or print; as, I must have that statement in black and white . -- Blue black , a pigment of a blue black color. -- Ivory black , a fine kind of animal charcoal prepared by calcining ivory or bones. When ground it is the chief ingredient of the ink used in copperplate printing. -- Berlin black . See under Berlin .

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