Maroon Ma·roon" (mȧ*rōn") adjective [ French marron chestnut-colored, from marron a large French chestnut, Italian marrone ; confer LGr. ma`raon . Confer Marron .] Having the color called maroon. See 4th Maroon . Maroon lake , lake prepared from madder, and distinguished for its transparency and the depth and durability of its color.

Maroon Ma·roon" noun 1. A brownish or dull red of any description, esp. of a scarlet cast rather than approaching crimson or purple. 2. An explosive shell. See Marron , 3.

Marplot Mar"plot` noun One who, by his officious interference, mars or frustrates a design or plot.

Marque Marque noun [ French marque , in lettre de marque letter of marque, a commission with which the commandant of every armed vessel was obliged to be provided, under penalty of being considered a pirate or corsair; marque here probably meaning, border, boundary (the letter of marque being a permission to go beyond the border), and of German origin. See March border.] (Law) A license to pass the limits of a jurisdiction, or boundary of a country, for the purpose of making reprisals. Letters of marque , Letters of marque and reprisal , a license or extraordinary commission granted by a government to a private person to fit out a privateer or armed ship to cruise at sea and make prize of the enemy's ships and merchandise. The ship so commissioned is sometimes called a letter of marque .

Marquee Mar·quee" noun [ French marquise , misunderstood as a plural; probably orig., tent of the marchioness. See Marquis .] A large field tent; esp., one adapted to the use of an officer of high rank. [ Written also markee .]

Marquess Mar"quess noun [ Confer Spanish marques . See Marquis .] A marquis. Lady marquess , a marchioness. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Marquetry Mar"quet·ry noun [ French marqueterie , from marqueter to checker, inlay, from marque mark, sign; of German origin. See Mark a sign.] Inlaid work; work inlaid with pieces of wood, shells, ivory, and the like, of several colors.

Marquis Mar"quis noun [ French marquis , Old French markis , marchis , Late Latin marchensis ; of German origin; confer German mark bound, border, march, Old High German marcha . See March border, and confer Marchioness , Marquee , Marquess .] A nobleman in England, France, and Germany, of a rank next below that of duke. Originally, the marquis was an officer whose duty was to guard the marches or frontiers of the kingdom. The office has ceased, and the name is now a mere title conferred by patent.

Marquisate Mar"quis·ate noun [ Confer French marquisat .] The seigniory, dignity, or lordship of a marquis; the territory governed by a marquis.

Marquisdom Mar"quis·dom noun A marquisate. [ Obsolete] "Nobles of the marquisdom of Saluce." Holinshed.

Marquise Mar`quise" noun [ French See Marquis , and confer Marquee .] The wife of a marquis; a marchioness.

Marquisship Mar"quis·ship noun A marquisate.

Marram Mar"ram noun (Botany) A coarse grass found on sandy beaches ( Ammophila arundinacea ). See Beach grass , under Beach .

Marrer Mar"rer noun One who mars or injures.

Marriable Mar"ri·a·ble adjective [ Confer French mariable .] Marriageable. [ R.] Coleridge.

Marriage Mar"riage noun [ Middle English mariage , French mariage . See Marry , transitive verb ] 1. The act of marrying, or the state of being married; legal union of a man and a woman for life, as husband and wife; wedlock; matrimony.

Marriage is honorable in all.

Hebrew xiii. 4. 2. The marriage vow or contract. [ Obsolete] Chaucer. 3. A feast made on the occasion of a marriage.

The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king which made a marriage for his son.

Matt. xxii. 2. 4. Any intimate or close union. Marriage brokage . (a) The business of bringing about marriages . (b) The payment made or demanded for the procurement of a marriage. -- Marriage favors , knots of white ribbons, or bunches of white flowers, worn at weddings. -- Marriage settlement (Law) , a settlement of property in view, and in consideration, of marriage. Syn. -- Matrimony; wedlock; wedding; nuptials. -- Marriage , Matrimony , Wedlock . Marriage is properly the act which unites the two parties, and matrimony the state into which they enter. Marriage is, however, often used for the state as well as the act. Wedlock is the old Anglo-Saxon term for matrimony .

Marriage Mar"riage noun In bézique, penuchle, and similar games at cards, the combination of a king and queen of the same suit. If of the trump suit, it is called a royal marriage .

Marriageability Mar`riage·a·bil"i·ty noun The quality or state of being marriageable.

Marriageable Mar"riage·a·ble adjective Fit for, or capable of, marriage; of an age at which marriage is allowable. -- Mar"riage*a*ble*ness , noun

Married Mar"ried adjective 1. Being in the state of matrimony; wedded; as, a married man or woman. 2. Of or pertaining to marriage; connubial; as, the married state.

Marrier Mar"ri·er noun One who marries.

Marron Mar·ron" noun [ See Maroon , adjective ] 1. A large chestnut. [ Obsolete] Holland. 2. A chestnut color; maroon. 3. (Pyrotechny & Mil.) A paper or pasteboard box or shell, wound about with strong twine, filled with an explosive, and ignited with a fuse, -- used to make a noise like a cannon. [ Written also maroon .]

Marroon Mar·roon" noun & adjective Same as 1st Maroon .

Marrot Mar"rot noun (Zoology) (a) The razor-billed auk. See Auk . (b) The common guillemot. (c) The puffin. [ Prov. Eng.] [ Written also marrott , and morrot .]

Marrow Mar"row noun [ Middle English marou , mary , maruh , Anglo-Saxon mearg , mearh ; akin to Old Saxon marg , Dutch merg , German Mark , Old High German marg , marag , Icelandic mergr , Swedish merg , Danish marv , Sanskrit majjan ; confer Sanskrit majj to sink, Latin mergere . √274 Confer Merge .] 1. (Anat.) The tissue which fills the cavities of most bones; the medulla. In the larger cavities it is commonly very fatty, but in the smaller cavities it is much less fatty, and red or reddish in color. 2. The essence; the best part.

It takes from our achievements . . .
The pith and marrow of our attribute.

Shak. 3. [ Middle English maru , maro ; -- perhaps a different word; confer Gael. maraon together.] One of a pair; a match; a companion; an intimate associate. [ Scot.]

Chopping and changing I can not commend,
With thief or his marrow , for fear of ill end.

Tusser. Marrow squash (Botany) , a name given to several varieties of squash, esp. to the Boston marrow , an ovoid fruit, pointed at both ends, and with reddish yellow flesh, and to the vegetable marrow , a variety of an ovoid form, and having a soft texture and fine grain resembling marrow. -- Spinal marrow . (Anat.) See Spinal cord , under Spinal .

Marrow Mar"row transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Marrowed ; present participle & verbal noun Marrowing .] To fill with, or as with, marrow or fat; to glut.

Marrowbone Mar"row·bone` noun A bone containing marrow; plural ludicrously, knee bones or knees; as, to get down on one's marrowbones , i. e. , to kneel.

Marrowfat Mar"row·fat noun A rich but late variety of pea.

Marrowish Mar"row·ish adjective Of the nature of, or like, marrow.

Marrowless Mar"row·less adjective Destitute of marrow.

Marrowy Mar"row·y adjective Full of marrow; pithy.

Marrubium Mar·ru"bi·um noun [ Latin ] (Botany) A genus of bitter aromatic plants, sometimes used in medicine; hoarhound.

Marry Mar"ry transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Married ; present participle & verbal noun Marrying .] [ Middle English marien , French marier , Latin maritare , from maritus husband, from mas , maris , a male. See Male , and confer Maritral .] 1. To unite in wedlock or matrimony; to perform the ceremony of joining, as a man and a woman, for life; to constitute (a man and a woman) husband and wife according to the laws or customs of the place.

Tell him that he shall marry the couple himself.

Gay. 2. To join according to law, (a man) to a woman as his wife, or (a woman) to a man as her husband. See the Note to def. 4.

A woman who had been married to her twenty- fifth husband, and being now a widow, was prohibited to marry.

Evelyn. 3. To dispose of in wedlock; to give away as wife.

Mæcenas took the liberty to tell him [ Augustus] that he must either marry his daughter [ Julia] to Agrippa, or take away his life.

Bacon. 4. To take for husband or wife. See the Note below. » We say, a man is married to or marries a woman; or, a woman is married to or marries a man. Both of these uses are equally well authorized; but given in marriage is said only of the woman.

They got him [ the Duke of Monmouth] . . . to declare in writing, that the last king [ Charles II.] told him he was never married to his mother.

Bp. Lloyd. 5. Figuratively, to unite in the closest and most endearing relation.

Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you.

Jer. iii. 14. To marry ropes . (Nautical) (a) To place two ropes along side of each other so that they may be grasped and hauled on at the same time . (b) To join two ropes end to end so that both will pass through a block. Ham. Nav. Encyc.

Marry Mar"ry intransitive verb To enter into the conjugal or connubial state; to take a husband or a wife.

I will, therefore, that the younger women marry .

1 Tim. v. 14. Marrying man , a man disposed to marry. [ Colloq.]

Marry Mar"ry interj. Indeed ! in truth ! -- a term of asseveration said to have been derived from the practice of swearing by the Virgin Mary. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Mars Mars noun [ Latin Mars , gen. Martis , archaic Mavors , gen. Mavortis .] 1. (Rom. Myth.) The god of war and husbandry. 2. (Astron.) One of the planets of the solar system, the fourth in order from the sun, or the next beyond the earth, having a diameter of about 4,200 miles, a period of 687 days, and a mean distance of 141,000,000 miles. It is conspicuous for the redness of its light. 3. (Alchemy) The metallic element iron, the symbol of which ♂ was the same as that of the planet Mars. [ Archaic] Chaucer. Mars brown , a bright, somewhat yellowish, brown.

Marsala Mar·sa"la noun [ Italian , from Marsala , in Sicyly.] A kind of wine exported from Marsala in Sicily.

Marsdenia Mars·de"ni·a noun [ New Latin From W. Marsden , an English author.] (Botany) A genus of plants of the Milkweed family, mostly woody climbers with fragrant flowers, several species of which furnish valuable fiber, and one species ( Marsdenia tinctoria ) affords indigo.

Marseillais Mar`sei`llais" adjective m. Mar`sei`llaise" adjective f. }[ French] Of or pertaining to Marseilles, in France, or to its inhabitants. Marseillaise hymn , or The Marseillaise , the national anthem of France, popularly so called. It was composed in 1792, by Rouget de l'Isle, an officer then stationed at Strasburg. In Paris it was sung for the first time by the band of men who came from Marseilles to aid in the revolution of August 10, 1792; whence the name.

Marseillais Mar`sei`llais" noun m. Mar`sei`llaise" noun f. }[ French] A native or inhabitant of Marseilles.

Marseilles Mar·seilles" noun A general term for certain kinds of fabrics, which are formed of two series of threads interlacing each other, thus forming double cloth, quilted in the loom; -- so named because first made in Marseilles , France.

Marsh Marsh noun [ Middle English mersch , Anglo-Saxon mersc , from mere lake. See Mere pool, and confer Marish , Morass .] A tract of soft wet land, commonly covered partially or wholly with water; a fen; a swamp; a morass. [ Written also marish .] Marsh asphodel (Botany) , a plant ( Nartheeium ossifragum ) with linear equitant leaves, and a raceme of small white flowers; -- called also bog asphodel . -- Marsh cinquefoil (Botany) , a plant ( Potentilla palustris ) having purple flowers, and found growing in marshy places; marsh five- finger. -- Marsh elder . (Botany) (a) The guelder-rose or cranberry tree ( Viburnum Opulus ) . (b) In the United States, a composite shrub growing in salt marshes ( Iva frutescens ). -- Marsh five-finger . (Botany) See Marsh cinquefoil (above). -- Marsh gas . (Chemistry) See under Gas . -- Marsh grass (Botany) , a genus ( Spartina ) of coarse grasses growing in marshes; - - called also cord grass . The tall S. cynosuroides is not good for hay unless cut very young. The low S. juncea is a common component of salt hay. -- Marsh harrier (Zoology) , a European hawk or harrier ( Circus æruginosus ); -- called also marsh hawk , moor hawk , moor buzzard , puttock . -- Marsh hawk . (Zoology) (a) A hawk or harrier ( Circus cyaneus ), native of both America and Europe. The adults are bluish slate above, with a white rump. Called also hen harrier , and mouse hawk . (b) The marsh harrier. -- Marsh hen (Zoology) , a rail; esp., Rallus elegans of fresh-water marshes, and R. longirostris of salt-water marshes. -- Marsh mallow (Botany) , a plant of the genus Althæa ( A. officinalis ) common in marshes near the seashore, and whose root is much used in medicine as a demulcent. -- Marsh marigold . (Botany) See in the Vocabulary. -- Marsh pennywort (Botany) , any plant of the umbelliferous genus Hydrocotyle ; low herbs with roundish leaves, growing in wet places; -- called also water pennywort . -- Marsh quail (Zoology) , the meadow lark. -- Marsh rosemary (Botany) , a plant of the genus Statice ( S. Limonium ), common in salt marshes. Its root is powerfully astringent, and is sometimes used in medicine. Called also sea lavender . -- Marsh samphire (Botany) , a plant ( Salicornia herbacea ) found along seacoasts. See Glasswort . -- Marsh St. John's-wort (Botany) , an American herb ( Elodes Virginica ) with small opposite leaves and flesh-colored flowers. -- Marsh tea . (Botany) . Same as Labrador tea . -- Marsh trefoil . (Botany) Same as Buckbean . -- Marsh wren (Zoology) , any species of small American wrens of the genus Cistothorus , and allied genera. They chiefly inhabit salt marshes.

Marsh marigold Marsh mar"i·gold (măr"ĭ*gold). (Botany) A perennial plant of the genus Caltha ( C. palustris ), growing in wet places and bearing bright yellow flowers. In the United States it is used as a pot herb under the name of cowslip . See Cowslip .

Marshal Mar"shal noun [ Middle English mareschal , Old French mareschal , French maréchal , Late Latin mariscalcus , from Old High German marah-scalc (G. marschall ); marah horse + scalc servant (akin to Anglo-Saxon scealc , Goth. skalks ). French maréchal signifies, a marshal, and a farrier. See Mare horse, and confer Seneschal .] 1. Originally, an officer who had the care of horses; a groom. [ Obsolete] 2. An officer of high rank, charged with the arrangement of ceremonies, the conduct of operations, or the like ; as, specifically: (a) One who goes before a prince to declare his coming and provide entertainment; a harbinger; a pursuivant. (b) One who regulates rank and order at a feast or any other assembly, directs the order of procession, and the like. (c) The chief officer of arms, whose duty it was, in ancient times, to regulate combats in the lists. Johnson. (d) (France) The highest military officer. In other countries of Europe a marshal is a military officer of high rank, and called field marshal . (e) (Am. Law) A ministerial officer, appointed for each judicial district of the United States, to execute the process of the courts of the United States, and perform various duties, similar to those of a sheriff. The name is also sometimes applied to certain police officers of a city. Earl marshal of England , the eighth officer of state; an honorary title, and personal, until made hereditary in the family of the Duke of Norfolk. During a vacancy in the office of high constable, the earl marshal has jurisdiction in the court of chivalry. Brande & C. -- Earl marshal of Scotland , an officer who had command of the cavalry under the constable. This office was held by the family of Keith, but forfeited by rebellion in 1715. -- Knight marshal , or Marshal of the King's house , formerly, in England, the marshal of the king's house, who was authorized to hear and determine all pleas of the Crown, to punish faults committed within the verge, etc. His court was called the Court of Marshalsea. -- Marshal of the Queen's Bench , formerly the title of the officer who had the custody of the Queen's bench prison in Southwark. Mozley & W.

Marshal Mar"shal transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Marshaled or Marshalled ; present participle & verbal noun Marshaling or Marshalling .] 1. To dispose in order; to arrange in a suitable manner; as, to marshal troops or an army.

And marshaling the heroes of his name
As, in their order, next to light they came.

Dryden. 2. To direct, guide, or lead.

Thou marshalest me the way that I was going.

Shak. 3. (Her.) To dispose in due order, as the different quarterings on an escutcheon, or the different crests when several belong to an achievement.

Marshaler Mar"shal·er noun [ Written also marshaller .] One who marshals.

Marshaling Mar"shal·ing noun [ Written also marshalling .] 1. The act of arranging in due order. 2. (Her.) The arrangement of an escutcheon to exhibit the alliances of the owner. Marshaling of assets (Law) , the arranging or ranking of assets in due order of administration.

Marshalsea Mar"shal·sea noun [ Marshal + Middle English se a seat. See See a seat.] The court or seat of a marshal; hence, the prison in Southwark, belonging to the marshal of the king's household. [ Eng.] Court of Marshalsea , a court formerly held before the steward and marshal of the king's house to administer justice between the king's domestic servants. Blackstone.

Marshalship Mar"shal·ship noun The office of a marshal.

Marshbanker, Marsebanker Marsh"bank`er, Marse"bank`er noun (Zoology) The menhaden.