Diligent Dil"i·gent adjective [ French diligent , Latin diligens , -entis , present participle of diligere , dilectum , to esteem highly, prefer; di- = dis- + legere to choose. See Legend .] 1. Prosecuted with careful attention and effort; careful; painstaking; not careless or negligent.

The judges shall make diligent inquisition.

Deut. xix. 18.

2. Interestedly and perseveringly attentive; steady and earnest in application to a subject or pursuit; assiduous; industrious.

Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings.

Prov. xxii. 29.

Diligent cultivation of elegant literature.

Prescott.

Syn. -- Active; assiduous; sedulous; laborious; persevering; attentive; industrious.

Diligently Dil"i·gent·ly adverb In a diligent manner; not carelessly; not negligently; with industry or assiduity.

Ye diligently keep commandments of the Lord your God.

Deut. vi. 17.

Dill Dill (dĭl) noun [ AS dile ; akin to Dutch dille , Old High German tilli , German dill , dille , Swedish dill , Danish dild .] (Botany) An herb ( Peucedanum graveolens ), the seeds of which are moderately warming, pungent, and aromatic, and were formerly used as a soothing medicine for children; -- called also dillseed . Dr. Prior.

Dill Dill transitive verb [ Middle English dillen , from dul dull, adjective ] To still; to calm; to soothe, as one in pain. [ Obsolete]

Dilling Dil"ling (dĭl"lĭng) noun A darling; a favorite. [ Obsolete]

Whilst the birds billing,
Each one with his dilling .

Drayton.

Dilluing Dil·lu"ing (dĭl*lū"ĭng) noun (Min.) A process of sorting ore by washing in a hand sieve. [ Written also deluing .]

Dilly Dil"ly (dĭl"lȳ) noun [ Contr. from diligence .] A kind of stagecoach. "The Derby dilly ." J. H. Frere.

Dilly-dally Dil"ly-dal`ly intransitive verb [ See Dally .] To loiter or trifle; to waste time.

Dilogical Di·log"ic·al adjective Ambiguous; of double meaning. [ Obsolete] T. Adams.

Dilogy Dil"o·gy noun ; plural Dilogies . [ Latin dilogia , Greek ..., from ... doubtful; di- = di`s- twice + ... to speak.] (Rhet.) An ambiguous speech; a figure in which a word is used an equivocal sense. [ R.]

Dilucid Di·lu"cid adjective [ Latin dilucidus , from dilucere to be light enough to distinguish objects apart. See Lucid .] Clear; lucid. [ Obsolete] Bacon. -- Di*lu"cid*ly , adverb [ Obsolete] -- Di`lu*cid"i*ty noun [ Obsolete]

Dilucidate Di·lu"ci·date transitive verb [ Latin dilucidatus , past participle of dilucidare .] To elucidate. [ Obsolete] Boyle.

Dilucidation Di·lu`ci·da"tion noun [ Latin dilucidatio .] The act of making clear. [ Obsolete] Boyle.

Diluent Dil"u·ent adjective [ Latin diluens , present participle diluere . See Dilute .] Diluting; making thinner or weaker by admixture, esp. of water. Arbuthnot.

Diluent Dil"u·ent noun 1. That which dilutes.

2. (Medicine) An agent used for effecting dilution of the blood; a weak drink.

There is no real diluent but water.

Arbuthnot.

Dilute Di·lute" transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Diluted ; present participle & verbal noun Diluting .] [ Latin dilutus , past participle of diluere to wash away, dilute; di- = dis- + luere , equiv. to lavare to wash, lave. See Lave , and confer Deluge .] 1. To make thinner or more liquid by admixture with something; to thin and dissolve by mixing.

Mix their watery store.
With the chyle's current, and dilute it more.

Blackmore.

2. To diminish the strength, flavor, color, etc., of, by mixing; to reduce, especially by the addition of water; to temper; to attenuate; to weaken.

Lest these colors should be diluted and weakened by the mixture of any adventitious light.

Sir I. Newton.

Dilute Di·lute" intransitive verb To become attenuated, thin, or weak; as, it dilutes easily.

Dilute Di·lute" adjective [ Latin dilutus , past participle ] Diluted; thin; weak.

A dilute and waterish exposition.

Hopkins.

Diluted Di·lut"ed adjective Reduced in strength; thin; weak. -- Di*lut"ed*ly , adverb

Diluteness Di·lute"ness noun The quality or state of being dilute. Bp. Wilkins.

Diluter Di·lut"er noun One who, or that which, dilutes or makes thin, more liquid, or weaker.

Dilution Di·lu"tion noun [ Confer French dilution .] The act of diluting, or the state of being diluted. Arbuthnot.

Diluvial Di·lu"vi·al adjective [ Latin diluvialis . from diluvium .] 1. Of or pertaining to a flood or deluge, esp. to the great deluge in the days of Noah; diluvian.

2. (Geol.) Effected or produced by a flood or deluge of water; -- said of coarse and imperfectly stratified deposits along ancient or existing water courses. Similar unstratified deposits were formed by the agency of ice. The time of deposition has been called the Diluvian epoch .

Diluvialist Di·lu"vi·al·ist noun One who explains geological phenomena by the Noachian deluge. Lyell.

Diluvian Di·lu"vi·an adjective [ Confer French diluvien .] Of or pertaining to a deluge, esp. to the Noachian deluge; diluvial; as, of diluvian origin. Buckland.

Diluviate Di·lu"vi·ate intransitive verb [ Latin diluviare .] To run as a flood. [ Obsolete] Sir E. Sandys.

Diluvium Di·lu"vi·um noun ; plural English Diluviums , Latin Diluvia . [ Latin diluvium . See Dilute , Deluge .] (Geol.) A deposit of superficial loam, sand, gravel, stones, etc., caused by former action of flowing waters, or the melting of glacial ice.

» The accumulation of matter by the ordinary operation of water is termed alluvium .

Dim Dim adjective [ Compar. Dimmer ; superl. Dimmest .] [ Anglo-Saxon dim ; akin to OFries. dim , Icelandic dimmr : confer Middle High German timmer , timber ; of uncertain origin.] 1. Not bright or distinct; wanting luminousness or clearness; obscure in luster or sound; dusky; darkish; obscure; indistinct; overcast; tarnished.

The dim magnificence of poetry.

Whewell.

How is the gold become dim !

Lam. iv. 1.

I never saw
The heavens so dim by day.

Shak.

Three sleepless nights I passed in sounding on,
Through words and things, a dim and perilous way.

Wordsworth.

2. Of obscure vision; not seeing clearly; hence, dull of apprehension; of weak perception; obtuse.

Mine eye also is dim by reason of sorrow.

Job xvii. 7.

The understanding is dim .

Rogers.

» Obvious compounds: dim -eyed; dim -sighted, etc.

Syn. -- Obscure; dusky; dark; mysterious; imperfect; dull; sullied; tarnished.

Dim Dim transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Dimmed ; present participle & verbal noun Dimming .] 1. To render dim, obscure, or dark; to make less bright or distinct; to take away the luster of; to darken; to dull; to obscure; to eclipse.

A king among his courtiers, who dims all his attendants.

Dryden.

Now set the sun, and twilight dimmed the ways.

Cowper.

2. To deprive of distinct vision; to hinder from seeing clearly, either by dazzling or clouding the eyes; to darken the senses or understanding of.

Her starry eyes were dimmed with streaming tears.

C. Pitt.

Dim Dim intransitive verb To grow dim. J. C. Shairp.

Dim-sighted Dim"-sight`ed adjective Having dim sight; lacking perception. -- Dim"-sight`ed*ness , noun

Dimble Dim"ble noun [ Prob. orig., a cavity, and the same word as dimple . See Dimple .] A bower; a dingle. [ Obsolete] Drayton.

Dime Dime noun [ French dîme tithe, Old French disme , from Latin decimus the tenth, from decem ten. See Decimal .] A silver coin of the United States, of the value of ten cents; the tenth of a dollar.

Dime novel , a novel, commonly sensational and trashy, which is sold for a dime, or ten cents.

Dimension Di·men"sion noun [ Latin dimensio , from dimensus , past participle of dimetiri to measure out; di- = dis- + metiri to measure: confer French dimension . See Measure .] 1. Measure in a single line, as length, breadth, height, thickness, or circumference; extension; measurement; -- usually, in the plural, measure in length and breadth, or in length, breadth, and thickness; extent; size; as, the dimensions of a room, or of a ship; the dimensions of a farm, of a kingdom.

Gentlemen of more than ordinary dimensions .

W. Irving.

Space of dimension , extension that has length but no breadth or thickness; a straight or curved line. - - Space of two dimensions , extension which has length and breadth, but no thickness; a plane or curved surface. -- Space of three dimensions , extension which has length, breadth, and thickness; a solid. -- Space of four dimensions , as imaginary kind of extension, which is assumed to have length, breadth, thickness, and also a fourth imaginary dimension. Space of five or six, or more dimensions is also sometimes assumed in mathematics.

2. Extent; reach; scope; importance; as, a project of large dimensions .

3. (Math.) The degree of manifoldness of a quantity; as, time is quantity having one dimension ; volume has three dimensions , relative to extension.

4. (Alg.) A literal factor, as numbered in characterizing a term. The term dimensions forms with the cardinal numbers a phrase equivalent to degree with the ordinal; thus, a ² b ² c is a term of five dimensions , or of the fifth degree.

5. plural (Physics ) The manifoldness with which the fundamental units of time, length, and mass are involved in determining the units of other physical quantities. Thus, since the unit of velocity varies directly as the unit of length and inversely as the unit of time, the dimensions of velocity are said to be length ÷ time ; the dimensions of work are mass × (length) ² ÷ (time) ² ; the dimensions of density are mass ÷ (length) ³ .

Dimension lumber , Dimension scantling , or Dimension stock (Carp.) , lumber for building, etc., cut to the sizes usually in demand, or to special sizes as ordered. -- Dimension stone , stone delivered from the quarry rough, but brought to such sizes as are requisite for cutting to dimensions given.

Dimensional Di·men"sion·al adjective Pertaining to dimension.

Dimensioned Di·men"sioned adjective Having dimensions. [ R.]

Dimensionless Di·men"sion·less adjective Without dimensions; having no appreciable or noteworthy extent. Milton.

Dimensity Di·men"si·ty noun Dimension. [ R.] Howell.

Dimensive Di·men"sive adjective Without dimensions; marking dimensions or the limits.

Who can draw the soul's dimensive lines?

Sir J. Davies.

Dimera Dim"e·ra noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek di- = di`s- twice + ... part.] (Zoology) (a) A division of Coleoptera, having two joints to the tarsi. (b) A division of the Hemiptera, including the aphids.

Dimeran Dim"er·an noun (Zoology) One of the Dimera.

Dimerous Dim"er·ous adjective [ Greek di- = di`s- twice + ... part.] Composed of, or having, two parts of each kind.

» A dimerous flower has two sepals, two petals, two stamens, and two pistils.

Dimeter Dim"e·ter adjective [ Latin dimeter , Greek ...; di- = di`s- twice + ... measure.] Having two poetical measures or meters. -- noun A verse of two meters.

Dimethyl Di·meth"yl noun [ Prefix di- + methyl .] (Chemistry) Ethane; -- sometimes so called because regarded as consisting of two methyl radicals. See Ethane .

Dimetric Di·met"ric adjective [ See Dimeter , adjective ] (Crystallog.) Same as Tetragonal . Dana.

Dimication Dim`i·ca"tion noun [ Latin dimicatio , from dimicare to fight.] A fight; contest. [ Obsolete] Bp. Hall.

Dimidiate Di·mid"i·ate adjective [ Latin dimidiatus , past participle of dimidiare to halve, from dimidius half. See Demi- .] 1. Divided into two equal parts; reduced to half in shape or form.

2. (Biol.) (a) Consisting of only one half of what the normal condition requires; having the appearance of lacking one half; as, a dimidiate leaf, which has only one side developed. (b) Having the organs of one side, or half, different in function from the corresponding organs on the other side; as, dimidiate hermaphroditism.

Dimidiate Di·mid"i·ate transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Dimidiated ; present participle & verbal noun Dimidiating .] 1. To divide into two equal parts. [ Obsolete] Cockeram.

2. (Her.) To represent the half of; to halve.

Dimidiation Di·mid`i·a"tion noun [ Latin dimidiatio .] The act of dimidiating or halving; the state of being dimidiate.

Diminish Di·min"ish transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Diminished ; present participle & verbal noun Diminishing .] [ Prefix di- (= Latin dis- ) + minish : confer Latin diminuere , French diminuer , Middle English diminuen . See Dis- , and Minish .] 1. To make smaller in any manner; to reduce in bulk or amount; to lessen; -- opposed to augment or increase .

Not diminish , but rather increase, the debt.

Barrow.

2. To lessen the authority or dignity of; to put down; to degrade; to abase; to weaken.

This doth nothing diminish their opinion.

Robynson (More's Utopia).

I will diminish them, that they shall no more rule over the nations.

Ezek. xxix. 15.

O thou . . . at whose sight all the stars
Hide their diminished heads.

Milton.

3. (Mus.) To make smaller by a half step; to make (an interval) less than minor; as, a diminished seventh.

4. To take away; to subtract.

Neither shall ye diminish aught from it.

Deut. iv. 2.

Diminished column , one whose upper diameter is less than the lower. -- Diminished , or Diminishing , scale , a scale of gradation used in finding the different points for drawing the spiral curve of the volute. Gwilt. -- Diminishing rule (Architecture) , a board cut with a concave edge, for fixing the entasis and curvature of a shaft. -- Diminishing stile (Architecture) , a stile which is narrower in one part than in another, as in many glazed doors.

Syn. -- To decrease; lessen; abate; reduce; contract; curtail; impair; degrade. See Decrease .

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