D D (dē) 1. The fourth letter of the English alphabet, and a vocal consonant. The English letter is from Latin, which is from Greek, which took it from Phœnician, the probable ultimate origin being Egyptian. It is related most nearly to t and th ; as, Eng. d eep, German t ief; Eng. d aughter, German t ochter, Greek qyga`thr , Sanskrit d uhitr. See Guide to Pronunciation , √178, 179, 229. 2. (Mus.) The nominal of the second tone in the model major scale (that in C), or of the fourth tone in the relative minor scale of C (that in A minor), or of the key tone in the relative minor of F. 3. As a numeral D stands for 500. in this use it is not the initial of any word, or even strictly a letter, but one half of the sign ... (or ... ) the original Tuscan numeral for 1000.

D valve D" valve` (Mech.) A kind of slide valve. See Slide valve , under Slide .

Dœglic Dœg"lic adjective Pertaining to, or obtained from, the dœgling; as, dœglic acid ( Chem .), an oily substance resembling oleic acid.

Dœgling Dœg"ling noun [ Native name in Faroe Islands.] (Zoology) The beaked whale ( Balænoptera rostrata ), from which dœgling oil is obtained.

Dab Dab (dăb) noun [ Perh. corrupted from adept .] A skillful hand; a dabster; an expert. [ Colloq.]

One excels at a plan or the titlepage, another works away at the body of the book, and the third is a dab at an index.

Goldsmith.

Dab Dab noun [ Perh. so named from its quickness in diving beneath the sand. Confer Dabchick .] (Zoology) A name given to several species of flounders, esp. to the European species, Pleuronectes limanda . The American rough dab is Hippoglossoides platessoides .

Dab Dab (dăb) intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Dabbed (dăbd); present participle & verbal noun Dabbing .] [ Middle English dabben to strice; akin to OD. dabben to pinch, knead, fumble, dabble, and perhaps to German tappen to grope.] 1. To strike or touch gently, as with a soft or moist substance; to tap; hence, to besmear with a dabber.

A sore should . . . be wiped . . . only by dabbing it over with fine lint.

S. Sharp. 2. To strike by a thrust; to hit with a sudden blow or thrust. "To dab him in the neck." Sir T. More.

Dab Dab noun 1. A gentle blow with the hand or some soft substance; a sudden blow or hit; a peck.

A scratch of her claw, a dab of her beak.

Hawthorne. 2. A small mass of anything soft or moist.

Dabb Dabb (dȧb) noun (Zoology) A large, spine-tailed lizard ( Uromastix spinipes ), found in Egypt, Arabia, and Palestine; -- called also dhobb , and dhubb .

Dabber Dab"ber (dăb"bẽr) noun That with which one dabs; hence, a pad or other device used by printers, engravers, etc., as for dabbing type or engraved plates with ink.

Dabble Dab"ble (dăb"b'l) transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Dabbled (-b'ld); present participle & verbal noun Dabbling (-b'lĭng).] [ Freq. of dab : confer OD. dabbelen .] To wet by little dips or strokes; to spatter; to sprinkle; to moisten; to wet. "Bright hair dabbled in blood." Shak.

Dabble Dab"ble intransitive verb 1. To play in water, as with the hands; to paddle or splash in mud or water.

Where the duck dabbles 'mid the rustling sedge.

Wordsworth. 2. To work in slight or superficial manner; to do in a small way; to tamper; to meddle. " Dabbling here and there with the text." Atterbury.

During the first year at Dumfries, Burns for the first time began to dabble in politics.

J. C. Shairp.

Dabbler Dab"bler (dăb"blẽr) noun 1. One who dabbles. 2. One who dips slightly into anything; a superficial meddler. "our dabblers in politics." Swift.

Dabblingly Dab"bling·ly adverb In a dabbling manner.

Dabchick Dab"chick` (dăb"chĭk`) noun [ For dabchick . See Dap , Dip , confer Dipchick .] (Zoology) A small water bird ( Podilymbus podiceps ), allied to the grebes, remarkable for its quickness in diving; -- called also dapchick , dobchick , dipchick , didapper , dobber , devil-diver , hell-diver , and pied- billed grebe .

Daboia Da·boi"a noun (Zoology) A large and highly venomous Asiatic viper ( Daboia xanthica ).

Dabster Dab"ster noun [ Confer Dab an expert.] One who is skilled; a master of his business; a proficient; an adept. [ Colloq.] » Sometimes improperly used for dabbler ; as, "I am but a dabster with gentle art."

Dacapo Da`ca"po [ Italian , from [ the] head or beginning.] (Mus.) From the beginning; a direction to return to, and end with, the first strain; -- indicated by the letters D. C. Also, the strain so repeated.

Dace Dace noun [ Written also dare , dart , from French dard dase, dart, of German origin. Dace is for an older darce , from an Old French nom. darz . See Dart a javelin.] (Zoology) A small European cyprinoid fish ( Squalius leuciscus or Leuciscus vulgaris ); -- called also dare . » In America the name is given to several related fishes of the genera Squalius , Minnilus , etc. The black-nosed dace is Rhinichthys atronasus the horned dace is Semotilus corporalis . For red dace, see Redfin .

Dachshund Dachs"hund` noun [ G., from dachs badger + hund dog.] (Zoology) One of a breed of small dogs with short crooked legs, and long body; -- called also badger dog . There are two kinds, the rough-haired and the smooth-haired.

Dacian Da"cian adjective Of or pertaining to Dacia or the Dacians. -- noun A native of ancient Dacia.

Dacoit Da·coit" (dȧ*koit") noun [ Hind. dakait , dākāyat .] One of a class of robbers, in India, who act in gangs.

Dacoity Da·coit"y noun The practice of gang robbery in India; robbery committed by dacoits.

Dacotahs Da·co"tahs noun plural ; sing. Dacotan (Ethnol.) Same as Dacotas . Longfellow.

Dactyl Dac"tyl noun [ Latin dactylus , Greek da`ktylos a finger, a dactyl. Confer Digit .] 1. (Pros.) A poetical foot of three sylables (— ⌣ ⌣), one long followed by two short, or one accented followed by two unaccented; as, Latin tëgmĭnĕ , English mer\b6ciful ; -- so called from the similarity of its arrangement to that of the joints of a finger. [ Written also dactyle .] 2. (Zoology) (a) A finger or toe; a digit. (b) The claw or terminal joint of a leg of an insect or crustacean.

Dactylar Dac"tyl·ar adjective 1. Pertaining to dactyl; dactylic. 2. (Zoology) Of or pertaining to a finger or toe, or to the claw of an insect crustacean.

Dactylet Dac"tyl·et noun [ Dactyl + ...et .] A dactyl. [ Obsolete]

Dactylic Dac·tyl"ic adjective [ Latin dactylicus , Greek ... , from ... .] Pertaining to, consisting chiefly or wholly of, dactyls; as, dactylic verses.

Dactylic Dac·tyl"ic noun 1. A line consisting chiefly or wholly of dactyls; as, these lines are dactylics . 2. plural Dactylic meters.

Dactylioglyph Dac·tyl"i·o·glyph (dăk*tĭl"ĭ*o*glĭf) noun [ Greek daktyliogly`fos an engraver of gems; dakty`lios finger ring (fr. da`ktylos finger) + gly`fein to engrave.] (Fine Arts) (a) An engraver of gems for rings and other ornaments. (b) The inscription of the engraver's name on a finger ring or gem.

Dactylioglyphy Dac·tyl`i·og"ly·phy noun The art or process of gem engraving.

Dactyliography Dac·tyl`i·og"ra·phy noun [ Greek dakty`lios finger ring + -graphy .] (Fine Arts) (a) The art of writing or engraving upon gems. (b) In general, the literature or history of the art.

Dactyliology Dac·tyl`i·ol"o·gy noun [ Greek dakty`lios finger ring + -logy .] (Fine Arts) (a) That branch of archæology which has to do with gem engraving. (b) That branch of archæology which has to do with finger rings.

Dactyliomancy Dac·tyl"i·o·man`cy noun [ Greek dakty`lios + -mancy .] Divination by means of finger rings.

Dactylist Dac"tyl·ist noun A writer of dactylic verse.

Dactylitis Dac`tyl·i"tis noun [ New Latin , from Greek da`ktylos finger + -itis .] (Medicine) An inflammatory affection of the fingers. Gross.

Dactylology Dac`tyl·ol"o·gy noun [ Greek da`ktylos finger + -logy .] The art of communicating ideas by certain movements and positions of the fingers; -- a method of conversing practiced by the deaf and dumb. » There are two different manual alphabets, the one- hand alphabet (which was perfected by Abbé de l'Epée, who died in 1789), and the two-hand alphabet. The latter was probably based on the manual alphabet published by George Dalgarus of Aberdeen, in 1680. See Illustration in Appendix.

Dactylomancy Dac·tyl"o·man`cy noun Dactyliomancy. [ R.] Am. Cyc.

Dactylonomy Dac`tyl·on"o·my noun [ Greek da`ktylos finger + no`mos law, distribution.] The art of numbering or counting by the fingers.

Dactylopterous Dac`tyl·op"ter·ous adjective [ Greek da`ktylos finger + ... wing, fin.] (Zoology) Having the inferior rays of the pectoral fins partially or entirely free, as in the gurnards.

Dactylotheca Dac`ty·lo·the"ca (dăk`tĭ*lo*thē"kȧ) noun [ New Latin , from Greek da`ktylos finger, toe + qh`kh case, box.] (Zoology) The scaly covering of the toes, as in birds.

Dactylozooid Dac`tyl·o·zo"oid (dăk`tĭ*lo*zō"oid) noun [ Greek da`ktylos finger + English zooid .] (Zoology) A kind of zooid of Siphonophora which has an elongated or even vermiform body, with one tentacle, but no mouth. See Siphonophora .

Dad Dad (dăd) noun [ Prob. of Celtic origin; confer Ir. daid , Gael. daidein , W. tad , OL. tata , Greek ta`ta , te`tta , Sanskrit tāta .] Father; -- a word sometimes used by children.

I was never so bethumped with words,
Since I first called my brother's father dad .

Shak.

Daddle Dad"dle (dăd"d'l) intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Daddled , present participle & verbal noun Daddling .] [ Prob. freq. of dade .] To toddle; to walk unsteadily, like a child or an old man; hence, to do anything slowly or feebly.

Daddock Dad"dock noun [ Confer Prov. English dad a large piece.] The rotten body of a tree. [ Prov. Eng.] Wright.

Daddy Dad"dy noun Diminutive of Dad . Dryden.

Daddy longlegs Dad"dy long"legs` 1. (Zoology) An arachnidan of the genus Phalangium , and allied genera, having a small body and four pairs of long legs; -- called also harvestman , carter , and grandfather longlegs . 2. (Zoology) A name applied to many species of dipterous insects of the genus Tipula , and allied genera, with slender bodies, and very long, slender legs; the crane fly; -- called also father longlegs .

Dade Dade transitive verb [ Of. uncertain origin. Confer Dandle , Daddle .] To hold up by leading strings or by the hand, as a child while he toddles. [ Obsolete]

Little children when they learn to go
By painful mothers daded to and fro.

Drayton.

Dade Dade intransitive verb To walk unsteadily, as a child in leading strings, or just learning to walk; to move slowly. [ Obsolete]

No sooner taught to dade , but from their mother trip.

Drayton.

Dado Da"do noun ; plural Dadoes . [ Italian dado die, cube, pedestal; of the same origin as English die , noun See Die , noun ] (Architecture) (a) That part of a pedestal included between the base and the cornice (or surbase); the die. See Illust. of Column . Hence: (b) In any wall, that part of the basement included between the base and the base course. See Base course , under Base . (c) In interior decoration, the lower part of the wall of an apartment when adorned with moldings, or otherwise specially decorated.