Devitrify De·vit"ri·fy transitive verb To deprive of glasslike character; to take away vitreous luster and transparency from.
Devocalize De·vo"cal·ize transitive verb To make toneless; to deprive of vowel quality. --
De*vo`cal*i*za"tion ,
noun If we take a high vowel, such as (i) [ = nearly i of bit], and devocalize it, we obtain a hiss which is quite distinct enough to stand for a weak (jh).
H. Sweet.
Devocation Dev`o·ca"tion noun [ Latin
devocare to call off or away;
de +
vocare to call.]
A calling off or away. [ R.]
Hallywell.
Devoid De·void" transitive verb [ Middle English
devoiden to leave, Old French
desvuidier ,
desvoidier , to empty out. See
Void .]
To empty out; to remove.
Devoid De·void" adjective [ See
Devoid ,
transitive verb ]
1. Void; empty; vacant. [ Obsolete]
Spenser. 2. Destitute; not in possession; -- with of ; as, devoid of sense; devoid of pity or of pride.
Devoir De·voir" noun [ French, from Latin
debere to owe. See
Due .]
Duty; service owed; hence, due act of civility or respect; -- now usually in the plural; as, they paid their devoirs to the ladies. "Do now your
devoid , young knights!"
Chaucer.
Devolute Dev"o·lute transitive verb [ Latin
devolutus , past participle of
devolvere . See
Devolve .]
To devolve. [ Obsolete]
Foxe.
Devolution Dev`o·lu"tion noun [ Late Latin
devolutio : confer French
dévolution .]
1. The act of rolling down. [ R.]
The devolution of earth down upon the valleys.
Woodward. 2. Transference from one person to another; a passing or devolving upon a successor. The devolution of the crown through a . . . channel known and conformable to old constitutional requisitions.
De Quincey.
Devolve De·volve" transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Devolved ;
present participle & verbal noun Devolving .] [ Latin
devolvere ,
devolutum , to roll down;
de +
volvere to roll down;
de +
volvere to roll. See
Voluble .]
1. To roll onward or downward; to pass on. Every headlong stream
Devolves its winding waters to the main.
Akenside. Devolved his rounded periods.
Tennyson. 2. To transfer from one person to another; to deliver over; to hand down; -- generally with upon , sometimes with to or into . They devolved a considerable share of their power upon their favorite.
Burke. They devolved their whole authority into the hands of the council of sixty.
Addison.
Devolve De·volve" intransitive verb To pass by transmission or succession; to be handed over or down; -- generally with on or upon , sometimes with to or into ; as, after the general fell, the command devolved upon (or on) the next officer in rank. His estate . . . devolved to Lord Somerville.
Johnson.
Devolvement De·volve"ment noun The act or process of devolving;; devolution.
Devon De"von noun One of a breed of hardy cattle originating in the country of Devon, England. Those of pure blood have a deep red color. The small, longhorned variety, called North Devons , is distinguished by the superiority of its working oxen.
Devonian De·vo"ni·an adjective (Geol.) Of or pertaining to Devon or Devonshire in England; as, the Devonian rocks, period, or system. Devonian age (Geol.) ,
the age next older than the Carboniferous and later than the Silurian; -- called also the Age of fishes . The various strata of this age compose the Devonian formation or system , and include the old red sandstone of Great Britain. They contain, besides plants and numerous invertebrates, the bony portions of many large and remarkable fishes of extinct groups. See the Diagram under Geology .
Devonian De·vo"ni·an noun The Devonian age or formation.
Devoration Dev`o·ra"tion noun [ Latin
devoratio . See
Devour .]
The act of devouring. [ Obsolete]
Holinshed.
Devotary De·vo"ta·ry noun [ See
Devote ,
Votary .]
A votary. [ Obsolete]
J. Gregory.
Devote De·vote" transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Devoted ;
present participle & verbal noun Devoting .] [ Latin
devotus , past participle of
devovere ;
de +
vovere to vow. See
Vow , and confer
Devout ,
Devow .]
1. To appropriate by vow; to set apart or dedicate by a solemn act; to consecrate; also, to consign over; to doom; to evil; to devote one to destruction; the city was devoted to the flames. No devoted thing that a man shall devote unto the Lord . . . shall be sold or redeemed.
Lev. xxvii. 28. 2. To execrate; to curse. [ Obsolete]
3. To give up wholly; to addict; to direct the attention of wholly or compound; to attach; -- often with a reflexive pronoun; as, to devote one's self to science, to one's friends, to piety, etc. Thy servant who is devoted to thy fear.
Ps. cxix. 38. They devoted themselves unto all wickedness.
Grew. A leafless and simple branch . . . devoted to the purpose of climbing.
Gray. Syn. -- To addict; apply; dedicate; consecrate; resign; destine; doom; consign. See
Addict .
Devote De·vote" adjective [ Latin
devotus , past participle ]
Devoted; addicted; devout. [ Obsolete]
Milton.
Devote De·vote" noun A devotee. [ Obsolete]
Sir E. Sandys.
Devoted De·vot"ed adjective Consecrated to a purpose; strongly attached; zealous; devout; as, a devoted admirer. --
De*vot"ed*ly ,
adverb --
De*vot"ed*ness ,
noun
Devotee Dev`o·tee" noun One who is wholly devoted; esp., one given wholly to religion; one who is superstitiously given to religious duties and ceremonies; a bigot. While Father Le Blanc was very devout he was not a devotee .
A. S. Hardy.
Devotement De·vote"ment noun The state of being devoted, or set apart by a vow. [ R.]
Bp. Hurd.
Devoter De·vot"er noun One who devotes; a worshiper.
Devotion De·vo"tion noun [ French
dévotion , Latin
devotio .]
1. The act of devoting; consecration. 2. The state of being devoted; addiction; eager inclination; strong attachment love or affection; zeal; especially, feelings toward God appropriately expressed by acts of worship; devoutness. Genius animated by a fervent spirit of devotion .
Macaulay. 3. Act of devotedness or devoutness; manifestation of strong attachment; act of worship; prayer. "The love of public
devotion ."
Hooker. 4. Disposal; power of disposal. [ Obsolete]
They are entirely at our devotion , and may be turned backward and forward, as we please.
Godwin. 5. A thing consecrated; an object of devotion. [ R.]
Churches and altars, priests and all devotions ,
Tumbled together into rude chaos.
Beau. & Fl. Days of devotion .
See under Day . Syn. -- Consecration; devoutness; religiousness; piety; attachment; devotedness; ardor; earnestness.
Devotional De·vo"tion·al adjective [ Latin
devotionalis .]
Pertaining to, suited to, or used in, devotion; as, a devotional posture; devotional exercises; a devotional frame of mind.
Devotionalist, Devotionist De·vo"tion·al·ist, De·vo"tion·ist noun One given to devotion, esp. to excessive formal devotion.
Devotionality De·vo`tion·al"i·ty noun The practice of a devotionalist. A. H. Clough.
Devotionally De·vo"tion·al·ly adverb In a devotional manner; toward devotion.
Devoto De·vo"to noun [ Italian ]
A devotee. Dr. J. Scott.
Devotor De·vo"tor noun [ Latin ]
A worshiper; one given to devotion. [ Obsolete]
Beau. & Fl.
Devour De·vour" transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Devoured ;
present participle & verbal noun Devouring .] [ French
dévorer , from Latin
devorare ;
de +
vorare to eat greedily, swallow up. See
Voracious .]
1. To eat up with greediness; to consume ravenously; to feast upon like a wild beast or a glutton; to prey upon. Some evil beast hath devoured him.
Gen. xxxvii. 20. 2. To seize upon and destroy or appropriate greedily, selfishly, or wantonly; to consume; to swallow up; to use up; to waste; to annihilate. Famine and pestilence shall devour him.
Ezek. vii. 15. I waste my life and do my days devour .
Spenser. 3. To enjoy with avidity; to appropriate or take in eagerly by the senses. Longing they look, and gaping at the sight,
Devour her o'er with vast delight.
Dryden. Syn. -- To consume; waste; destroy; annihilate.
Devourable De·vour"a·ble adjective That may be devoured.
Devourer De·vour"er noun One who, or that which, devours.
Devouringly De·vour"ing·ly adverb In a devouring manner.
Devout De·vout" adjective [ Middle English
devot ,
devout , French
dévot , from Latin
devotus devoted, past participle of
devovere . See
Devote ,
transitive verb ]
1. Devoted to religion or to religious feelings and duties; absorbed in religious exercises; given to devotion; pious; reverent; religious. A devout man, and one that feared God.
Acts x. 2. We must be constant and devout in the worship of God.
Rogers. 2. Expressing devotion or piety; as, eyes devout ; sighs devout ; a devout posture. Milton. 3. Warmly devoted; hearty; sincere; earnest; as, devout wishes for one's welfare. The devout ,
devoutly religious persons, those who are sincerely pious. Syn. -- Holy; pure; religious; prayerful; pious; earnest; reverent; solemn; sincere.
Devout De·vout" noun 1. A devotee. [ Obsolete]
Sheldon. 2. A devotional composition, or part of a composition; devotion. [ Obsolete]
Milton.
Devoutful De·vout"ful adjective 1. Full of devotion. [ R.]
2. Sacred. [ R.]
To take her from austerer check of parents,
To make her his by most devoutful rights.
Marston.
Devoutless De·vout"less adjective Destitute of devotion. --
De*vout"less*ly ,
adverb - -
De*vout"less*ness ,
noun
Devoutly De·vout"ly adverb 1. In a devout and reverent manner; with devout emotions; piously. Cast her fair eyes to heaven and prayed devoutly .
Shak. 2. Sincerely; solemnly; earnestly. 'T is a consummation
Devoutly to be wished.
Shak.
Devoutness De·vout"ness noun Quality or state of being devout.
Devove De·vove" transitive verb [ See
Devote ,
transitive verb ]
To devote. [ Obsolete]
Cowley.
Devow De·vow" transitive verb [ French
dévouer , Latin
devovere . See
Devote ,
transitive verb ]
1. To give up; to devote. [ Obsolete]
2. [ Confer Old French
desvoer . Confer
Disavow .]
To disavow; to disclaim. [ Obsolete]
G. Fletcher.
Devulgarize De·vul"gar·ize transitive verb To free from what is vulgar, common, or narrow. Shakespeare and Plutarch's "Lives" are very devulgarizing books.
E. A. Abbott.
Dew Dew (dū)
noun [ Anglo-Saxon
deáw ; akin to Dutch
dauw , German
thau ,
tau , Icelandic
dögg , Swedish
dagg , Danish
dug ; confer Sanskrit
dhav ,
dhāv , to flow. √72. Confer
Dag dew.]
1. Moisture from the atmosphere condensed by cool bodies upon their surfaces, particularly at night. Her tears fell with the dews at even.
Tennyson. 2. Figuratively, anything which falls lightly and in a refreshing manner. "The golden
dew of sleep."
Shak. 3. An emblem of morning, or fresh vigor. "The
dew of his youth."
Longfellow. »
Dew is used in combination; as,
dew - bespangled,
dew -drenched,
dew drop, etc.
Dew Dew transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Dewed ;
present participle & verbal noun Dewing .]
To wet with dew or as with dew; to bedew; to moisten; as with dew. The grasses grew
A little ranker since they dewed them so.
A. B. Saxton.
Dew Dew adjective & noun Same as Due , or Duty . [ Obsolete]
Spenser.
Dew-point Dew"-point` noun (Meteor.) The temperature at which dew begins to form. It varies with the humidity and temperature of the atmosphere.
Dewar vessel Dew"ar ves`sel (dū"ẽr). [ After Sir James Dewar , British physicist.] A double-walled glass vessel for holding liquid air, etc., having the space between the walls exhausted so as to prevent conduction of heat, and sometimes having the glass silvered to prevent absorption of radiant heat; -- called also, according to the particular shape, Dewar bulb , Dewar tube , etc.
Dewberry Dew"ber`ry noun (Botany) (a) The fruit of certain species of bramble ( Rubus ); in England, the fruit of R. cæsius , which has a glaucous bloom; in America, that of R. canadensis and R. hispidus , species of low blackberries. (b) The plant which bears the fruit. Feed him with apricots and dewberries .
Shak.
Dewclaw Dew"claw` noun In any animal, esp. of the Herbivora, a rudimentary claw or small hoof not reaching the ground. Some cut off the dewclaws [ of greyhounds].
J. H. Walsh.
Use the search box below if you want to search in Websters only, use the search box at the right to search all of Enyclo.
