Commutator Com"mu·ta`tor noun (Electricity) A piece of apparatus used for reversing the direction of an electrical current; an attachment to certain electrical machines, by means of which alternating currents are made to be continuous or to have the same direction.

Commute Com·mute" (kŏm*mūt") transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Commuted ; present participle & verbal noun Commuting .] [ Latin commutare , -mutatum ; com- + mutare to change. See Mutation .] To exchange; to put or substitute something else in place of, as a smaller penalty, obligation, or payment, for a greater, or a single thing for an aggregate; hence, to lessen; to diminish; as, to commute a sentence of death to one of imprisonment for life; to commute tithes; to commute charges for fares.

The sounds water and fire, being once annexed to those two elements, it was certainly more natural to call beings participating of the first "watery", and the last "fiery", than to commute the terms, and call them by the reverse.
J. Harris

The utmost that could be obtained was that her sentence should be commuted from burning to beheading.
Macaulay.

Commute Com·mute" intransitive verb 1. To obtain or bargain for exemption or substitution; to effect a commutation.

He . . . thinks it unlawful to commute , and that he is bound to pay his vow in kind.
Jer. Taylor.

2. To pay, or arrange to pay, in gross instead of part by part; as, to commute for a year's travel over a route.

Commuter Com·mut"er (kŏm*mū"tẽr) noun One who commutes; especially, one who commutes in traveling.

Commutual Com·mu"tu·al adjective [ Prefix com- + mutual .] Mutual; reciprocal; united. [ R.]

There, with commutual zeal, we both had strove.
Pope.

Comose Co"mose (kō"mōs or ko*mōs") adjective [ Latin comosus hairy, from coma hair.] (Botany) Bearing a tuft of soft hairs or down, as the seeds of milkweed. Gray.

Compact Com·pact" (kŏm*păkt") past participle & a [ Latin compactus , past participle of compingere to join or unite; com- + pangere to fasten, fix: confer French compacte . See Pact .] 1. Joined or held together; leagued; confederated. [ Obsolete] " Compact with her that's gone." Shak.

A pipe of seven reeds, compact with wax together.
Peacham.

2. Composed or made; -- with of . [ Poetic]

A wandering fire,
Compact of unctuous vapor.
Milton.

3. Closely or firmly united, as the particles of solid bodies; firm; close; solid; dense.

Glass, crystal, gems, and other compact bodies.
Sir I. Newton.

4. Brief; close; pithy; not diffuse; not verbose; as, a compact discourse.

Syn. -- Firm; close; solid; dense; pithy; sententious.

Compact Com·pact" transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Compacted ; present participle & verbal noun Compacting .] 1. To thrust, drive, or press closely together; to join firmly; to consolidate; to make close; -- as the parts which compose a body.

Now the bright sun compacts the precious stone.
Blackstone.

2. To unite or connect firmly, as in a system.

The whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth.
Eph. iv. 16.

Compact Com"pact (kŏm"păkt) noun [ Latin compactum , from compacisci , past participle compactus , to make an agreement with; com- + pacisci to make an agreement. See Pact .] An agreement between parties; a covenant or contract.

The law of nations depends on mutual compacts , treaties, leagues, etc.
Blackstone.

Wedlock is described as the indissoluble compact .
Macaulay.

The federal constitution has been styled a compact between the States by which it was ratified.
Wharton.

Syn. -- See Covenant .

Compacted Com·pact"ed (kŏm*păkt"ĕd) adjective Compact; pressed close; concentrated; firmly united.

Compactedly Com·pact"ed·ly adverb In a compact manner.

Compactedness Com·pact"ed·ness noun A state of being compact.

Compacter Com·pact"er noun One who makes a compact.

Compactible Com·pact"i·ble adjective That may be compacted.

Compaction Com·pac"tion noun [ Latin compactio .] The act of making compact, or the state of being compact. [ Obsolete] Bacon.

Compactly Com·pact"ly adverb In a compact manner; with close union of parts; densely; tersely.

Compactness Com·pact"ness noun The state or quality of being compact; close union of parts; density.

Compacture Com·pac"ture noun [ Latin compactura .] Close union or connection of parts; manner of joining; construction. [ Obsolete] "With comely compass and compacture strong." Spenser.

Compages Com·pa"ges noun sing & plural [ Latin , from compingere . See Compact , transitive verb ] A system or structure of many parts united.

A regular compages of pipes and vessels.
Ray.

Compaginate Com·pag"i·nate transitive verb [ Latin compaginare , compaginatum .] To unite or hold together; as, the side pieces compaginate the frame. [ Obsolete] W. Montagu.

Compagination Com·pag`i·na"tion noun [ Latin compaginatio .] Union of parts; structure. [ Obsolete] Jer. Taylor.

Companable Com"pa·na·ble adjective [ Old French compaignable .] Companionable; sociable. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Companator Com"pa·na`tor noun [ Late Latin companatores , plural] (Eccl.) Same as Impanator .

Companiable Com·pan"i·a·ble adjective Companionable; sociable. [ Obsolete] Bacon.

Companion Com·pan"ion noun [ French compagnon , Old French compaing , from an assumed Late Latin companio (cf. companium fellowship, a mess), from Latin com- + panis bread. See Pantry .] 1. One who accompanies or is in company with another for a longer or shorter period, either from choice or casually; one who is much in the company of, or is associated with, another or others; an associate; a comrade; a consort; a partner.

The companions of his fall.
Milton.

The companion of fools shall smart for it.
Prov. xiii. 20 (Rev. Ver.).

Here are your sons again; and I must lose
Two of the sweetest companions in the world.
Shak.

A companion is one with whom we share our bread; a messmate.
Trench.

2. A knight of the lowest rank in certain orders; as, a companion of the Bath.

3. A fellow; -- in contempt. [ Obsolete] Shak.

4. [ Confer OSp. compaña an outhouse, office.] (Nautical) (a) A skylight on an upper deck with frames and sashes of various shapes, to admit light to a cabin or lower deck. (b) A wooden hood or penthouse covering the companion way; a companion hatch.

Companion hatch (Nautical) , a wooden porch over the entrance or staircase of the cabin. -- Companion ladder (Nautical) , the ladder by which officers ascend to, or descend from, the quarter- deck. Totten. -- Companion way (Nautical) , a staircase leading to the cabin. -- Knights companions , in certain honorary orders, the members of the lowest grades as distinguished from knights commanders, knights grand cross, and the like.

Syn. -- Associate; comrade; mate; compeer; partner; ally; confederate; coadjutor; accomplice.

Companion Com·pan"ion transitive verb 1. To be a companion to; to attend on; to accompany. [ R.] Ruskin.

2. To qualify as a companion; to make equal. [ Obsolete]

Companion me with my mistress.
Shak.

Companionable Com·pan"ion·a·ble adjective Fitted to be a companion; fit for good fellowship; agreeable; sociable. "Each companionable guest." Mallett. " Companionable wit." Clarendon.

-- Com*pan"ion*a*ble*ness , noun -- Com*pan"ion*a*bly , adverb

Companionless Com·pan"ion·less adjective Without a companion.

Companionship Com·pan"ion·ship noun Fellowship; association; the act or fact of keeping company with any one. Shak.

He never seemed to avail himself of my sympathy other than by mere companionship .
W. Irving

Company Com"pa·ny (kŭm"pȧ*nȳ) noun ; plural Companies (- nĭz). [ French compagnie , from Old French compaing . See Companion .] 1. The state of being a companion or companions; the act of accompanying; fellowship; companionship; society; friendly intercourse. Shak.

Evil company doth corrupt good manners.
1 Cor. xv. 33. (Rev. Ver.).

Brethren, farewell: your company along
I will not wish.
Milton.

2. A companion or companions.

To thee and thy company I bid
A hearty welcome.
Shak.

3. An assemblage or association of persons, either permanent or transient.

Thou shalt meet a company of prophets.
1 Sam. x. 5.

4. Guests or visitors, in distinction from the members of a family; as, to invite company to dine.

5. Society, in general; people assembled for social intercourse.

Nature has left every man a capacity of being agreeable, though not of shining in company .
Swift.

6. An association of persons for the purpose of carrying on some enterprise or business; a corporation; a firm; as, the East India Company ; an insurance company ; a joint-stock company .

7. Partners in a firm whose names are not mentioned in its style or title; -- often abbreviated in writing; as, Hottinguer & Co .

8. (Mil.) A subdivision of a regiment of troops under the command of a captain, numbering in the United States (full strength) 100 men.

9. (Nautical) The crew of a ship, including the officers; as, a whole ship's company .

10. The body of actors employed in a theater or in the production of a play.

To keep company with . See under Keep , transitive verb

Syn. -- Assemblage; assembly; society; group; circle; crowd; troop; crew; gang; corporation; association; fraternity; guild; partnership; copartnery; union; club; party; gathering.

Company Com"pa·ny transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Companied ; present participle & verbal noun Companying .] To accompany or go with; to be companion to. [ Obsolete]

Company Com"pa·ny intransitive verb 1. To associate.

Men which have companied with us all the time.
Acts i. 21.

2. To be a gay companion. [ Obsolete] Spenser.

3. To have sexual commerce. [ Obsolete] Bp. Hall.

Comparable Com"pa·ra·ble adjective [ Latin comparabilis : confer French comparable .] Capable of being compared; worthy of comparison.

There is no blessing of life comparable to the enjoyment of a discreet and virtuous friend.
Addison.

-- Com"pa*ra*ble*ness , noun -- Com"pa*ra*bly , adverb

Comparate Com"pa·rate noun [ Latin comparatum , from comparatus , past participle of comparare . See 1st Compare .] (Logic) One of two things compared together.

Comparation Com`pa·ra"tion noun [ Latin comparatio . See Compare to get.] A making ready; provision. [ Obsolete]

Comparative Com·par"a·tive adjective [ Latin comparativus : confer French comparatif .] 1. Of or pertaining to comparison. "The comparative faculty." Glanvill.

2. Proceeding from, or by the method of, comparison; as, the comparative sciences; the comparative anatomy.

3. Estimated by comparison; relative; not positive or absolute, as compared with another thing or state.

The recurrence of comparative warmth and cold.
Whewell.

The bubble, by reason of its comparative levity to the fluid that incloses it, would necessarily ascend to the top.
Bentley.

4. (Gram.) Expressing a degree greater or less than the positive degree of the quality denoted by an adjective or adverb. The comparative degree is formed from the positive by the use of -er , more , or less ; as, brighter, more bright, or less bright.

Comparative sciences , those which are based on a comprehensive comparison of the range of objects or facts in any branch or department, and which aim to study out and treat of the fundamental laws or systems of relation pervading them; as, comparative anatomy , comparative physiology , comparative philology .

Comparative Com·par"a·tive noun (Gram.) The comparative degree of adjectives and adverbs; also, the form by which the comparative degree is expressed; as, stronger , wiser , weaker , more stormy , less windy , are all comparatives .

In comparatives is expressed a relation of two; as in superlatives there is a relation of many.
Angus.

2. An equal; a rival; a compeer. [ Obsolete]

Gerard ever was
His full comparative .
Beau. & Fl.

3. One who makes comparisons; one who affects wit. [ Obsolete] "Every beardless vain comparative ." Shak.

Comparatively Com·par"a·tive·ly adverb According to estimate made by comparison; relatively; not positively or absolutely.

With but comparatively few exceptions.
Prescott.

Comparator Com"pa·ra`tor noun [ Latin , a comparer.] (Physics) An instrument or machine for comparing anything to be measured with a standard measure; -- applied especially to a machine for comparing standards of length.

Compare Com·pare" transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Compared ; present participle & verbal noun Comparing .] [ Latin comparare , from compar like or equal to another; com- + par equal: confer French comparer . See Pair , Peer an equal, and confer Compeer .] 1. To examine the character or qualities of, as of two or more persons or things, for the purpose of discovering their resemblances or differences; to bring into comparison; to regard with discriminating attention.

Compare dead happiness with living woe.
Shak.

The place he found beyond expression bright,
Compared with aught on earth.
Milton.

Compare our faces and be judge yourself.
Shak.

To compare great things with small.
Milton.

2. To represent as similar, for the purpose of illustration; to liken.

Solon compared the people unto the sea, and orators and counselors to the winds; for that the sea would be calm and quiet if the winds did not trouble it.
Bacon.

3. (Gram.) To inflect according to the degrees of comparison; to state positive, comparative, and superlative forms of; as, most adjectives of one syllable are compared by affixing "- er" and "-est" to the positive form; as, black , blacker , blackest ; those of more than one syllable are usually compared by prefixing "more" and "most", or "less" and "least", to the positive; as, beautiful , more beautiful , most beautiful .

Syn. -- To Compare , Compare with , Compare to . Things are compared with each other in order to learn their relative value or excellence. Thus we compare Cicero with Demosthenes, for the sake of deciding which was the greater orator. One thing is compared to another because of a real or fanciful likeness or similarity which exists between them. Thus it has been common to compare the eloquence of Demosthenes to a thunderbolt, on account of its force, and the eloquence of Cicero to a conflagration, on account of its splendor. Burke compares the parks of London to the lungs of the human body.

Compare Com·pare" intransitive verb 1. To be like or equal; to admit, or be worthy of, comparison; as, his later work does not compare with his earlier.

I should compare with him in excellence.
Shak.

2. To vie; to assume a likeness or equality.

Shall pack horses . . . compare with Cæsars?
Shak.

Compare Com·pare" noun 1. Comparison. [ Archaic]

His mighty champion, strong beyond compare .
Milton.

Their small galleys may not hold compare
With our tall ships.
Waller.

2. Illustration by comparison; simile. [ Obsolete]

Rhymes full of protest, of oath, and big compare .
Shak.

Beyond compare . See Beyond comparison , under Comparison .

Compare Com·pare" transitive verb [ Latin comparare to prepare, procure; com- + parare . See Prepare , Parade .] To get; to procure; to obtain; to acquire [ Obsolete]

To fill his bags, and richesse to compare .
Spenser.

Comparer Com·par"er noun One who compares.

Comparison Com·par"i·son noun [ French comparaison , Latin comparatio . See 1st Compare .] 1. The act of comparing; an examination of two or more objects with the view of discovering the resemblances or differences; relative estimate.

As sharp legal practitioners, no class of human beings can bear comparison with them.
Macaulay.

The miracles of our Lord and those of the Old Testament afford many interesting points of comparison .
Trench.

2. The state of being compared; a relative estimate; also, a state, quality, or relation, admitting of being compared; as, to bring a thing into comparison with another; there is no comparison between them.

3. That to which, or with which, a thing is compared, as being equal or like; illustration; similitude.

Whereto shall we liken the kingdom of God? Or with what comparison shall we compare it?
Mark iv. 30.

4. (Gram.) The modification, by inflection or otherwise, which the adjective and adverb undergo to denote degrees of quality or quantity; as, little , less , least , are examples of comparison .

5. (Rhet.) A figure by which one person or thing is compared to another, or the two are considered with regard to some property or quality, which is common to them both; e.g. , the lake sparkled like a jewel.

6. (Phren.) The faculty of the reflective group which is supposed to perceive resemblances and contrasts.

Beyond comparison , so far superior as to have no likeness, or so as to make comparison needless. -- In comparison of , In comparison with , as compared with; in proportion to. [ Archaic] "So miserably unpeopled in comparison of what it once was." Addison. -- Comparison of hands (Law) , a mode of proving or disproving the genuineness of a signature or writing by comparing it with another proved or admitted to be genuine, in order to ascertain whether both were written by the same person. Bouvier. Burrill.

Comparison Com·par"i·son transitive verb To compare. [ Obsolete] Wyclif.

Compart Com·part" transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Comparted ; present participle & verbal noun Comparting .] [ Latin compartiri ; com- + partiri , partire to share, pars , partis , part, share: confer Old French compartir . See Part , transitive verb ] To divide; to mark out into parts or subdivisions. [ R.]

The crystal surface is comparted all
In niches verged with rubies.
Glover.

Compartition Com`par·ti"tion noun [ Late Latin compartitio .] The act of dividing into parts or compartments; division; also, a division or compartment. [ Obsolete]

Their temples . . . needed no compartitions .
Sir H. Wotton.

Compartment Com·part"ment noun [ French compartiment , Old French compartir to divide. See Compart .] 1. One of the parts into which an inclosed portion of space is divided, as by partitions, or lines; as, the compartments of a cabinet, a house, or a garden.

In the midst was placed a large compartment composed of grotesque work.
Carew.

2. (Shipbuilding) One of the sections into which the hold of a ship is divided by water-tight bulkheads.

Compartner Com·part"ner noun See Copartner . [ Obsolete]

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