Diminish Di·min"ish intransitive verb To become or appear less or smaller; to lessen; as, the apparent size of an object diminishes as we recede from it.
Diminishable Di·min"ish·a·ble adjective Capable of being diminished or lessened.
Diminisher Di·min"ish·er noun One who, or that which, diminishes anything. Clerke (1637).
Diminishingly Di·min"ish·ing·ly adverb In a manner to diminish.
Diminishment Di·min"ish·ment noun Diminution. [ R.]
Cheke.
Diminuendo Di·min`u·en"do adverb [ Italian , present participle of
diminuere to diminish.]
(Mus.) In a gradually diminishing manner; with abatement of tone; decrescendo; -- expressed on the staff by Dim ., or Dimin ., or the sign.
Diminuent Di·min"u·ent adjective [ Latin
diminuens , present participle of
diminuere . See
Diminish .]
Lessening. Bp. Sanderson.
Diminutal Dim`i·nu"tal adjective Indicating or causing diminution. Earle.
Diminute Dim"i·nute adjective Small; diminished; diminutive. [ Obsolete]
Jer. Taylor.
Diminutely Dim"i·nute·ly adverb Diminutively. [ Obsolete]
Diminution Dim`i·nu"tion noun [ Latin
diminutio , or perhaps rather
deminutio : confer French
diminution . See
Diminish .]
1. The act of diminishing, or of making or becoming less; state of being diminished; reduction in size, quantity, or degree; -- opposed to augmentation or increase . 2. The act of lessening dignity or consideration, or the state of being deprived of dignity; a lowering in estimation; degradation; abasement. The world's opinion or diminution of me.
Eikon Basilike. Nor thinks it diminution to be ranked
In military honor next.
Philips. 3. (Law) Omission, inaccuracy, or defect in a record. 4. (Mus.) In counterpoint, the imitation of, or reply to, a subject, in notes of half the length or value of those the subject itself. Syn. -- Decrease; decay; abatement; reduction; deduction; decrement.
Diminutival Di·min`u·ti"val adjective Indicating diminution; diminutive. "
Diminutival forms" [ of words].
Earle. --
noun A diminutive. Earle.
Diminutive Di·min"u·tive adjective [ Confer Latin
deminutivus , French
diminutif .]
1. Below the average size; very small; little. 2. Expressing diminution; as, a diminutive word. 3. Tending to diminish. [ R.]
Diminutive of liberty.
Shaftesbury.
Diminutive Di·min"u·tive noun 1. Something of very small size or value; an insignificant thing. Such water flies, diminutives of nature.
Shak. 2. (Gram.) A derivative from a noun, denoting a small or a young object of the same kind with that denoted by the primitive; as, gosling , eaglet , lambkin . Babyisms and dear diminutives .
Tennyson. » The word sometimes denotes a derivative verb which expresses a diminutive or petty form of the action, as
scribble .
Diminutively Di·min"u·tive·ly adverb In a diminutive manner.
Diminutiveness Di·min"u·tive·ness noun The quality of being diminutive; smallness; littleness; minuteness.
Dimish Dim"ish adjective See Dimmish .
Dimission Di·mis"sion noun [ Latin
dimissio . See
Dimit , and confer
Dismission .]
Leave to depart; a dismissing. [ Obsolete]
Barrow.
Dimissory Dim"is·so·ry adjective [ Latin
dimissorius : confer French
dimissoire . See
Dimit .]
Sending away; dismissing to another jurisdiction; granting leave to depart. Letters dimissory (Eccl.) ,
letters given by a bishop dismissing a person who is removing into another diocese, and recommending him for reception there. Hook.
Dimit Di·mit" transitive verb [ Latin
dimittere to send away, le... go;
di- = dis- +
mittere to send. See
Dismiss .]
To dismiss, let go, or release. [ Obsolete]
Dimity Dim"i·ty noun [ Prob. from Greek ... of double thread, dimity;
di- =
di`s- twice + ... a thread of the warp; probably through Dutch
diemet , of French
dimite ,
démitte . Confer
Samite .]
A cotton fabric employed for hangings and furniture coverings, and formerly used for women's under-garments. It is of many patterns, both plain and twilled, and occasionally is printed in colors.
Dimly Dim"ly adverb In a dim or obscure manner; not brightly or clearly; with imperfect sight.
Dimmish, Dimmy Dim"mish, Dim"my adjective Somewhat dim; as, dimmish eyes. "
Dimmy clouds."
Sir P. Sidney.
Dimness Dim"ness noun [ Anglo-Saxon
dimness .]
1. The state or quality ... being dim; lack of brightness, clearness, or distinctness; dullness; obscurity. 2. Dullness, or want of clearness, of vision or of intellectual perception. Dr. H. More. Syn. -- Darkness; obscurity; gloom. See
Darkness .
Dimorph Di"morph` noun [ Greek ... two-formed;
di`s- twice (see
Di- ) + ... form.]
(Crystallog.) Either one of the two forms of a dimorphous substance; as, calcite and aragonite are dimorphs .
Dimorphic Di·mor"phic adjective Having the property of dimorphism; dimorphous.
Dimorphism Di·mor"phism noun [ Confer French
dimorphisme .]
1. (Biol.) Difference of form between members of the same species, as when a plant has two kinds of flowers, both hermaphrodite (as in the partridge berry), or when there are two forms of one or both sexes of the same species of butterfly. Dimorphism is the condition of the appearance of the same species under two dissimilar forms.
Darwin. 2. (Crystallog.) Crystallization in two independent forms of the same chemical compound, as of calcium carbonate as calcite and aragonite.
Dimorphous Di·mor"phous adjective [ Confer French
dimorphe .]
1. (Biol.) Characterized by dimorphism; occurring under two distinct forms, not dependent on sex; dimorphic. 2. (Crystallog.) Crystallizing under two forms fundamentally different, while having the same chemical composition.
Dimple Dim"ple noun [ Prob. a nasalized dim. of
dip . See
Dip , and confer
Dimble .]
1. A slight natural depression or indentation on the surface of some part of the body, esp. on the cheek or chin. Milton. The dimple of her chin.
Prior. 2. A slight indentation on any surface. The garden pool's dark surface . . .
Breaks into dimples small and bright.
Wordsworth.
Dimple Dim"ple intransitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Dimpled ;
present participle & verbal noun Dimpling .]
To form dimples; to sink into depressions or little inequalities. And smiling eddies dimpled on the main.
Dryden.
Dimple Dim"ple transitive verb To mark with dimples or dimplelike depressions. Shak.
Dimplement Dim"ple·ment noun The state of being dimpled, or marked with gentle depressions. [ R.]
The ground's most gentle dimplement .
Mrs. Browning.
Dimply Dim"ply adjective Full of dimples, or small depressions; dimpled; as, the dimply pool. Thomson.
Dimya, Dimyaria Dim"y·a, Dim`y·a"ri·a noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek ... = ... + ... to close.]
(Zoology) An order of lamellibranchiate mollusks having an anterior and posterior adductor muscle, as the common clam. See Bivalve .
Dimyarian Dim`y·a"ri·an adjective (Zoology) Like or pertaining to the Dimya. --
noun One of the Dimya.
Dimyary Dim"y·a·ry adjective & noun (Zoology) Same as Dimyarian .
Din Din noun [ Anglo-Saxon
dyne ,
dyn ; akin to Icelandic
dynr , and to Anglo-Saxon
dynian to resound, Icelandic
dynja to pour down like hail or rain; confer Sanskrit
dhuni roaring, a torrent,
dhvan to sound. Confer
Dun to ask payment.]
Loud, confused, harsh noise; a loud, continuous, rattling or clanging sound; clamor; roar. Think you a little din can daunt mine ears?
Shak. He knew the battle's din afar.
Sir W. Scott. The dust and din and steam of town.
Tennyson.
Din Din transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Dinned ;
present participle & verbal noun Dinning .] [ Anglo-Saxon
dynian . See
Din ,
noun ]
1. To strike with confused or clanging sound; to stun with loud and continued noise; to harass with clamor; as, to din the ears with cries. 2. To utter with a din; to repeat noisily; to ding. This hath been often dinned in my ears.
Swift. To din into ,
to fix in the mind of another by frequent and noisy repetitions. Sir W. Scott.
Din Din intransitive verb To sound with a din; a ding. The gay viol dinning in the dale.
A. Seward.
dinaphthyl di·naph"thyl noun [ Prefix
di- +
naphthyl ene.]
(Chemistry) A colorless, crystalline hydrocarbon, C 20 H 14 , obtained from naphthylene, and consisting of a doubled naphthylene radical.
Dinar Di"nar (dī"nẽr
or de*när")
noun [ Arabic
dīnār , from Greek
dhna`rion , from Latin
denarius . See
Denier .]
1. A petty money of accounts of Persia. 2. An ancient gold coin of the East.
dinarchy di"nar·chy noun See Diarchy .
Dine Dine (dīn)
intransitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Dined (dīnd);
present participle & verbal noun Dining .] [ French
dîner , Old French
disner , Late Latin
disnare , contr. from an assumed
disjunare ;
dis- + an assumed
junare (OF.
juner ) to fast, for Latin
jejunare , from
jejunus fasting. See
Jejune , and confer
Dinner ,
D...jeuner .]
To eat the principal regular meal of the day; to take dinner. Now can I break my fast, dine , sup, and sleep.
Shak. To dine with Duke Humphrey ,
to go without dinner; -- a phrase common in Elizabethan literature, said to be from the practice of the poor gentry, who beguiled the dinner hour by a promenade near the tomb of Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, in Old Saint Paul's.
Dine Dine transitive verb 1. To give a dinner to; to furnish with the chief meal; to feed; as, to dine a hundred men. A table massive enough to have dined Johnnie Armstrong and his merry men.
Sir W. Scott. 2. To dine upon; to have to eat. [ Obsolete] "What will ye
dine ."
Chaucer.
Diner Din"er noun One who dines.
Diner-out Din"er-out` noun One who often takes his dinner away from home, or in company. A brilliant diner-out , though but a curate.
Byron.
Dinetical Di·net"ic·al adjective [ Greek ... to whirl round.]
Revolving on an axis. [ Obsolete]
Sir T. Browne.
Ding Ding transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Dinged ,
Dang (Obsolete), or
Dung (Obsolete);
present participle & verbal noun Dinging .] [ Middle English
dingen ,
dengen ; akin to Anglo-Saxon
dencgan to knock, Icelandic
dengja to beat, hammer, Swedish
dänga , German
dengeln .]
1. To dash; to throw violently. [ Obsolete]
To ding the book a coit's distance from him.
Milton. 2. To cause to sound or ring. To ding (anything) in one's ears ,
to impress one by noisy repetition, as if by hammering.
Ding Ding intransitive verb 1. To strike; to thump; to pound. [ Obsolete]
Diken, or delven, or dingen upon sheaves.
Piers Plowman. 2. To sound, as a bell; to ring; to clang. The fretful tinkling of the convent bell evermore dinging among the mountain echoes.
W. Irving. 3. To talk with vehemence, importunity, or reiteration; to bluster. [ Low]
Ding Ding noun A thump or stroke, especially of a bell.
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.
