Essay noun ; plural Essays . [ French essai , from Latin exagium a weighing, weight, balance; ex out + agere to drive, do; confer examen , exagmen , a means of weighing, a weighing, the tongue of a balance, exigere to drive out, examine, weigh, Greek 'exa`gion a weight, 'exagia`zein to examine, 'exa`gein to drive out, export. See Agent , and confer Exact , Examine , Assay .]
1. An effort made, or exertion of body or mind, for the performance of anything; a trial; attempt; as, to make an essay to benefit a friend. "The essay at organization." M. Arnold.

2. (Lit.) A composition treating of any particular subject; -- usually shorter and less methodical than a formal, finished treatise; as, an essay on the life and writings of Homer; an essay on fossils, or on commerce.

3. An assay. See Assay , noun [ Obsolete]

Syn. -- Attempt; trial; endeavor; effort; tract; treatise; dissertation; disquisition.

Essay transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Essayed ; present participle & verbal noun Essaying .] [ French essayer . See Essay , noun ]
1. To exert one's power or faculties upon; to make an effort to perform; to attempt; to endeavor; to make experiment or trial of; to try.

What marvel if I thus essay to sing?

Byron.

Essaying nothing she can not perform.

Emerson.

A danger lest the young enthusiast . . . should essay the impossible.

J. C. Shairp.

2. To test the value and purity of (metals); to assay. See Assay . [ Obsolete] Locke.

Essayer noun One who essays. Addison.

Essayist noun A writer of an essay, or of essays. B. Jonson.

Essence noun [ French essence , Latin essentia , formed as if from a present participle of esse to be. See Is , and confer Entity .]
1. The constituent elementary notions which constitute a complex notion, and must be enumerated to define it; sometimes called the nominal essence .

2. The constituent quality or qualities which belong to any object, or class of objects, or on which they depend for being what they are (distinguished as real essence ); the real being, divested of all logical accidents; that quality which constitutes or marks the true nature of anything; distinctive character; hence, virtue or quality of a thing, separated from its grosser parts.

The laws are at present, both in form and essence , the greatest curse that society labors under.

Landor.

Gifts and alms are the expressions, not the essence of this virtue [ charity].

Addison.

The essence of Addison's humor is irony.

Courthope.

3. Constituent substance.

And uncompounded is their essence pure.

Milton.

4. A being; esp., a purely spiritual being.

As far as gods and heavenly essences
Can perish.

Milton.

He had been indulging in fanciful speculations on spiritual essences , until . . . he had and ideal world of his own around him.

W. Irving.

5. The predominant qualities or virtues of a plant or drug, extracted and refined from grosser matter; or, more strictly, the solution in spirits of wine of a volatile or essential oil; as, the essence of mint, and the like.

The . . . word essence . . . scarcely underwent a more complete transformation when from being the abstract of the verb "to be," it came to denote something sufficiently concrete to be inclosed in a glass bottle.

J. S. Mill.

6. Perfume; odor; scent; or the volatile matter constituting perfume.

Nor let the essences exhale.

Pope.

Essence transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Essenced ; present participle & verbal noun Essencing .] To perfume; to scent. " Essenced fops." Addison.

Essene noun ; plural Essenes . [ Greek ..., lit., physicians, because they practiced medicine, from Chald āsayā to heal, confer Hebrew asā .] One of a sect among the Jews in the time of our Savior, remarkable for their strictness and abstinence.

Essenism noun The doctrine or the practices of the Essenes. De Quincey.

Essential (ĕs*sĕn"sj a l) adjective [ Confer French essentiel . See Essence .]
1. Belonging to the essence, or that which makes an object, or class of objects, what it is.

Majestic as the voice sometimes became, there was forever in it an essential character of plaintiveness.

Hawthorne.

2. Hence, really existing; existent.

Is it true, that thou art but a name,
And no essential thing?

Webster (1623).

3. Important in the highest degree; indispensable to the attainment of an object; indispensably necessary.

Judgment's more essential to a general
Than courage.

Denham.

How to live? -- that is the essential question for us.

H. Spencer.

4. Containing the essence or characteristic portion of a substance, as of a plant; highly rectified; pure; hence, unmixed; as, an essential oil. "Mine own essential horror." Ford.

5. (Mus.) Necessary; indispensable; -- said of those tones which constitute a chord, in distinction from ornamental or passing tones.

6. (Medicine) Idiopathic; independent of other diseases.

Essential character (Biol.) , the prominent characteristics which serve to distinguish one genus, species, etc., from another. -- Essential disease , Essential fever (Medicine) , one that is not dependent on another. -- Essential oils (Chemistry) , a class of volatile oils, extracted from plants, fruits, or flowers, having each its characteristic odor, and hot burning taste. They are used in essences, perfumery, etc., and include many varieties of compounds; as lemon oil is a terpene, oil of bitter almonds an aldehyde, oil of wintergreen an ethereal salt, etc.; -- called also volatile oils in distinction from the fixed or nonvolatile .

Essentiality noun The quality of being essential; the essential part. Jer. Taylor.

Essentially adverb In an essential manner or degree; in an indispensable degree; really; as, essentially different.

Essentialness noun Essentiality. Ld. Digby.

Essentiate transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Essentiated ; present participle & verbal noun Essentiating .] To form or constitute the essence or being of. [ Obsolete] Boyle.

Essentiate intransitive verb To become assimilated; to be changed into the essence. [ Obsolete] B. Jonson.

Essoin transitive verb [ Old French essoinier , essoignier , essonier , Late Latin essoniare , exoniare . See Essoin , noun ] (Eng. Law) To excuse for nonappearance in court. "I 'll not essoin thee." Quarles.

Essoin, Essoign noun [ Old French essoine , essoigne , French exoine , Latin essonia , exonia ; prefix ex- (L. ex from) + sunnis , sunnia , sonia , hindrance, excuse. Confer Icelandic syn refusal, synja to deny, refuse, Goth. sunja truth, sunjōn to justify, Old Saxon sunnea impediment, Old High German sunna .]
1. (Eng. Law) An excuse for not appearing in court at the return of process; the allegation of an excuse to the court.

2. Excuse; exemption. [ Obsolete]

From every work he challenged essoin .

Spenser.

Essoin day (Eng. Law) , the first general return day of the term, on which the court sits to receive essoins. Blackstone.

Essoiner noun (Eng. Law) An attorney who sufficiently excuses the absence of another.

Essonite noun [ Named from Greek ... inferior, because not so hard as some minerals it resembles, e. g. , hyacinth.] (Min.) Cinnamon stone, a variety of garnet. See Garnet .

Essorant adjective [ French] (Her.) Standing, but with the wings spread, as if about to fly; -- said of a bird borne as a charge on an escutcheon.

Est noun & adverb East. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Establish transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Established ; present participle & verbal noun Establishing .] [ Middle English establissen , Old French establir , French établir , from Latin stabilire , from stabilis firm, steady, stable. See Stable , adjective , -ish , and confer Stablish .]
1. To make stable or firm; to fix immovably or firmly; to set (a thing) in a place and make it stable there; to settle; to confirm.

So were the churches established in the faith.

Acts xvi. 5.

The best established tempers can scarcely forbear being borne down.

Burke.

Confidence which must precede union could be established only by consummate prudence and self- control.

Bancroft.

2. To appoint or constitute for permanence, as officers, laws, regulations, etc.; to enact; to ordain.

By the consent of all, we were established
The people's magistrates.

Shak.

Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed.

Dan. vi. 8.

3. To originate and secure the permanent existence of; to found; to institute; to create and regulate; -- said of a colony, a state, or other institutions.

He hath established it [ the earth], he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited.

Is. xlv. 18.

Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and establisheth a city by iniquity!

Hab. ii. 12.

4. To secure public recognition in favor of; to prove and cause to be accepted as true; as, to establish a fact, usage, principle, opinion, doctrine, etc.

At the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established .

Deut. xix. 15.

5. To set up in business; to place advantageously in a fixed condition; -- used reflexively; as, he established himself in a place; the enemy established themselves in the citadel.

Established suit (Whist) A plain suit in which a player (or side) could, except for trumping, take tricks with all his remaining cards.

Establisher noun One who establishes.

Establishment noun [ Confer Old French establissement , French établissement .]
1. The act of establishing; a ratifying or ordaining; settlement; confirmation.

2. The state of being established, founded, and the like; fixed state.

3. That which is established; as: (a) A form of government, civil or ecclesiastical; especially, a system of religion maintained by the civil power; as, the Episcopal establishment of England. (b) A permanent civil, military, or commercial, force or organization. (c) The place in which one is permanently fixed for residence or business; residence, including grounds, furniture, equipage, etc.; with which one is fitted out; also, any office or place of business, with its fixtures; that which serves for the carrying on of a business; as, to keep up a large establishment ; a manufacturing establishment .

Exposing the shabby parts of the establishment .

W. Irving.

Establishment of the port (Hydrography) , a datum on which the tides are computed at the given port, obtained by observation, viz., the interval between the moon's passage over the meridian and the time of high water at the port, on the days of new and full moon.

Establishmentarian noun One who regards the Church primarily as an establishment formed by the State, and overlooks its intrinsic spiritual character. Shipley.

Estacade noun [ F.; confer Italian steccata , Spanish estacada . Confer Stake .] (Mil.) A dike of piles in the sea, a river, etc., to check the approach of an enemy.

Estafet Es`ta*fette" noun [ French estafette , confer Spanish estafeta ; from Italian stafetta , from staffa stirrup, from Old High German stapho footstep, footprint, German stapfe ; akin to English step .] A courier who conveys messages to another courier; a military courier sent from one part of an army to another.

Estaminet noun [ French] A café, or room in a café, in which smoking is allowed.

Estancia (as*tȧn"the*ȧ) noun [ Spanish See Stanza .] A grazing farm; a country house. [ Spanish America]

Estate (ĕs*tāt") noun [ Old French estat , French état , Latin status , from stare to stand. See Stand , and confer State .]
1. Settled condition or form of existence; state; condition or circumstances of life or of any person; situation. "When I came to man's estate ." Shak.

Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate .

Romans xii. 16.

2. Social standing or rank; quality; dignity.

God hath imprinted his authority in several parts, upon several estates of men.

Jer. Taylor.

3. A person of high rank. [ Obsolete]

She's a duchess, a great estate .

Latimer.

Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee.

Mark vi. 21.

4. A property which a person possesses; a fortune; possessions, esp. property in land; also, property of all kinds which a person leaves to be divided at his death.

See what a vast estate he left his son.

Dryden.

5. The state; the general body politic; the common-wealth; the general interest; state affairs. [ Obsolete]

I call matters of estate not only the parts of sovereignty, but whatsoever . . . concerneth manifestly any great portion of people.

Bacon.

6. plural The great classes or orders of a community or state (as the clergy, the nobility, and the commonalty of England) or their representatives who administer the government; as, the estates of the realm (England), which are (1) the lords spiritual, (2) the lords temporal, (3) the commons.

7. (Law) The degree, quality, nature, and extent of one's interest in, or ownership of, lands, tenements, etc.; as, an estate for life, for years, at will, etc. Abbott.

The fourth estate , a name often given to the public press.

Estate transitive verb
1. To establish. [ Obsolete] Beau. & Fl.

2. Tom settle as a fortune. [ Archaic] Shak.

3. To endow with an estate. [ Archaic]

Then would I . . .
Estate them with large land and territory.

Tennyson.

Estatlich, Estatly adjective [ Middle English ] Stately; dignified. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Esteem transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Esteemed ; present participle & verbal noun Esteeming .] [ French estimer , Latin aestimare , aestumare , to value, estimate; perhaps akin to Sanskrit ish to seek, strive, and English ask . Confer Aim , Estimate .]
1. To set a value on; to appreciate the worth of; to estimate; to value; to reckon.

Then he forsook God, which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.

Deut. xxxii. 15.

Thou shouldst (gentle reader) esteem his censure and authority to be of the more weighty credence.

Bp. Gardiner.

Famous men, -- whose scientific attainments were esteemed hardly less than supernatural.

Hawthorne.

2. To set a high value on; to prize; to regard with reverence, respect, or friendship.

Will he esteem thy riches?

Job xxxvi. 19.

You talk kindlier: we esteem you for it.

Tennyson.

Syn. -- To estimate; appreciate; regard; prize; value; respect; revere. See Appreciate , Estimate .

Esteem intransitive verb To form an estimate; to have regard to the value; to consider. [ Obsolete]

We ourselves esteem not of that obedience, or love, or gift, which is of force.

Milton.

Esteem noun [ Confer French estime . See Esteem , transitive verb ]
1. Estimation; opinion of merit or value; hence, valuation; reckoning; price.

Most dear in the esteem
And poor in worth!

Shak.

I will deliver you, in ready coin,
The full and dear'st esteem of what you crave.

J. Webster.

2. High estimation or value; great regard; favorable opinion, founded on supposed worth.

Nor should thy prowess want praise and esteem .

Shak.

Syn. -- See Estimate , noun

Esteemable adjective Worthy of esteem; estimable. [ R.] " Esteemable qualities." Pope.

Esteemer noun One who esteems; one who sets a high value on any thing.

The proudest esteemer of his own parts.

Locke.

Ester noun [ A word invented by Latin Gmelin, a German chemist.] (Chemistry) An ethereal salt, or compound ether, consisting of an organic radical united with the residue of any oxygen acid, organic or inorganic; thus the natural fats are esters of glycerin and the fatty acids, oleic, etc.

Esthesiometer noun Same as Æsthesiometer .

Esthete noun ; Es*thet"ic adjective , Es*thet"ic*al adjective , Es*thet"ics

Estiferous adjective [ Latin aestifer ; aestus fire + ferre to bear.] Producing heat. [ R.] Smart.

Estimable adjective [ French estimable , or Latin aestimabilis . See Esteem .]
1. Capable of being estimated or valued; as, estimable damage. Paley. .

2. Valuable; worth a great price. [ R.]

A pound of man's flesh, taken from a man,
Is not so estimable , profitable neither,
As flesh of muttons, beefs, or goats.

Shak.

3. Worth of esteem or respect; deserving our good opinion or regard.

A lady said of her two companions, that one was more amiable, the other more estimable .

Sir W. Temple.

Estimable noun A thing worthy of regard. [ R.]

One of the peculiar estimables of her country.

Sir T. Browne.

Estimableness noun The quality of deserving esteem or regard.

Estimably adverb In an estimable manner.

Estimate transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Estimated ; present participle & verbal noun Estimating .] [ Latin aestimatus , past participle of aestimare . See Esteem , transitive verb ]
1. To judge and form an opinion of the value of, from imperfect data, -- either the extrinsic (money), or intrinsic (moral), value; to fix the worth of roughly or in a general way; as, to estimate the value of goods or land; to estimate the worth or talents of a person.

It is by the weight of silver, and not the name of the piece, that men estimate commodities and exchange them.

Locke.

It is always very difficult to estimate the age in which you are living.

J. C. Shairp.

2. To from an opinion of, as to amount,, number, etc., from imperfect data, comparison, or experience; to make an estimate of; to calculate roughly; to rate; as, to estimate the cost of a trip, the number of feet in a piece of land.

Syn. -- To appreciate; value; appraise; prize; rate; esteem; count; calculate; number. -- To Estimate , Esteem . Both these words imply an exercise of the judgment. Estimate has reference especially to the external relations of things, such as amount, magnitude, importance, etc. It usually involves computation or calculation; as, to estimate the loss or gain of an enterprise. Esteem has reference to the intrinsic or moral worth of a person or thing. Thus, we esteem a man for his kindness, or his uniform integrity. In this sense it implies a mingled sentiment of respect and attachment. We esteem it an honor to live in a free country. See Appreciate .

Estimate noun A valuing or rating by the mind, without actually measuring, weighing, or the like; rough or approximate calculation; as, an estimate of the cost of a building, or of the quantity of water in a pond.

Weigh success in a moral balance, and our whole estimate is changed.

J. C. Shairp.

Syn. -- Estimate , Estimation , Esteem . The noun estimate , like its verb, supposes chiefly an exercise of judgment in determining the amount, importance, or magnitude of things, with their other exterior relations; as, an estimate of expenses incurred; a true estimate of life, etc. Esteem is a moral sentiment made up of respect and attachment, -- the valuation of a person as possessing useful qualities or real worth. Thus we speak of the esteem of the wise and good as a thing greatly to be desired. Estimation seems to waver between the two. In our version of the Scriptures it is used simply for estimate ; as, "If he be poorer than thy estimation ." Lev. xxvii. 8. In other cases, it verges toward esteem ; as, "I know him to be of worth and worthy estimation ." Shak. It will probably settle down at last on this latter sense. " Esteem is the value we place upon some degree of worth. It is higher than simple approbation, which is a decision of judgment. It is the commencement of affection." Gogan.

No; dear as freedom is, and in my heart's
Just estimation prized above all price.

Cowper.

Estimation noun [ Latin aestimatio , from aestimare : confer French estimation . See Esteem , transitive verb ]
1. The act of estimating. Shak.

2. An opinion or judgment of the worth, extent, or quantity of anything, formed without using precise data; valuation; as, estimations of distance, magnitude, amount, or moral qualities.

If he be poorer that thy estimation , then he shall present himself before the priest, and the priest, and the priest shall value him.

Lev. xxvii. 8.

3. Favorable opinion; esteem; regard; honor.

I shall have estimation among multitude, and honor with the elders.

Wisdom viii. 10.

4. Supposition; conjecture.

I speak not this in estimation ,
As what I think might be, but what I know.

Shak.

Syn. -- Estimate; calculation; computation; appraisement; esteem; honor; regard. See Estimate , noun

Estimative adjective [ Confer French estimatif .]
1. Inclined, or able, to estimate; serving for, or capable of being used in, estimating.

We find in animals an estimative or judicial faculty.

Sir M. Hale.

2. Pertaining to an estimate. [ R.]