Melic [ Greek ..., from ... song.] Of or pertaining to song; lyric; tuneful.

Melic grass (Botany) A genus of grasses ( Melica ) of little agricultural importance.

Melicerous adjective [ Latin meliceris a kind of tumor, from Greek ...; me`li honey + ... wax.] (Medicine) Consisting of or containing matter like honey; -- said of certain encysted tumors.

Melicotoon noun (Botany) See Melocoton .

Melicratory noun [ Greek meli`kraton .] A meadlike drink. [ Obsolete]

Melilite (mĕl"ĭ*līt) noun [ Greek me`li honey + -lite ; confer French mélilithe .] (Min.) A mineral occurring in small yellow crystals, found in the lavas ( melilite basalt ) of Vesuvius, and elsewhere. [ Written also mellilite .]

Melilot (-lŏt) noun [ French mélilot , Latin melilotus , from Greek ..., ..., a kind of clover containing honey; me`li honey + ... lotus.] (Botany) Any species of Melilotus , a genus of leguminous herbs having a vanillalike odor; sweet clover; hart's clover. The blue melilot ( Melilotus cærulea ) is used in Switzerland to give color and flavor to sapsago cheese.

Melilotic adjective (Chemistry) Of, pertaining to, or obtained from, sweet clover or melilot; specifically, designating an acid of the aromatic series, obtained from melilot as a white crystalline substance.

Mélinite noun [ French] (Chemistry) A high explosive similar to lyddite, consisting principally of picric acid, used in the French military service.

Meliorate (mēl"yo*rāt) transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Meliorated (- rā`tĕd); present participle & verbal noun Meliorating .] [ Latin melioratus , past participle of meliorare to meliorate, from melior better; akin to Greek ma^llon rather, ma`la very. Confer Ameliorate .] To make better; to improve; to ameliorate; to soften; to make more tolerable.

Nature by art we nobly meliorate .

Denham.

The pure and benign light of revelation has had a meliorating influence on mankind.

Washington.

Meliorate intransitive verb To grow better.

Meliorater noun Same as Meliorator .

Melioration noun [ Latin melioratio .] The act or operation of meliorating, or the state of being meliorated; improvement. Bacon.

Meliorator noun One who meliorates.

Meliorism noun [ From Latin melior better.] The doctrine that there is a tendency throughout nature toward improvement. J. Sully.

Meliority noun [ Late Latin melioritas , from Latin melior . See Meliorate .] The state or quality of being better; melioration. [ Obsolete] Bacon.

Meliphagan adjective [ Greek me`li honey + ... to eat.] (Zoology) Belonging to the genus Meliphaga .

Meliphagan noun (Zoology) Any bird of the genus Meliphaga and allied genera; a honey eater; -- called also meliphagidan .

Meliphagous adjective [ See Meliphagan .] (Zool.) Eating, or feeding upon, honey.

Melisma noun ; plural Melismata . [ New Latin , from Greek me`lisma a song.] (Mus.) (a) A piece of melody; a song or tune, -- as opposed to recitative or musical declamation. (b) A grace or embellishment.

Melissa noun [ New Latin , from Greek me`lissa a bee, honey.] (Botany) A genus of labiate herbs, including the balm, or bee balm ( Melissa officinalis ).

Melissic adjective [ Greek me`lissa a bee, honey.] (Chemistry) Pertaining to, or derived from, beeswax; specif., denoting an acid obtained by oxidation of myricin.

Melissyl noun [ Meliss ic + yl .] (Chemistry) See Myricyl .

Melissylene noun [ Meliss ic + -yl + -ene .] (Chemistry) See Melene .

Melitose noun [ Greek me`li honey.] (Chemistry) A variety of sugar isomeric with sucrose, extracted from cotton seeds and from the so- called Australian manna (a secretion of certain species of Eucalyptus).

Mell intransitive verb & t. [ French mêler , Old French meller , mester . See Meddle .] To mix; to meddle. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Mell noun [ See Mellifluous .] Honey. [ Obsolete] Warner.

Mell noun A mill. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Mellate noun [ Latin mel , mellis , honey. Confer Mellitate .] (Chemistry) A mellitate. [ R.]

Mellay noun A mêlée; a conflict. Tennyson.

Mellic adjective (Chemistry) See Mellitic . [ R.]

Melliferous adjective [ Latin mellifer ; mel , mellis , honey + ferre to bear.] Producing honey.

Mellific adjective [ Latin mel , mellis , honey + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See - fy .] Producing honey.

Mellification noun [ Latin mellificare to make honey: confer French mellification . See Mellific .] The making or production of honey.

Mellifluence noun A flow of sweetness, or a sweet, smooth flow.

Mellifluent adjective [ Latin mellifluens . See Mellifluous .] Flowing as with honey; smooth; mellifluous.

Mellifluently adverb In a mellifluent manner.

Mellifluous adjective [ Latin mellifluus ; mel , mellis , honey (akin to Greek ..., Goth. milip ) + fluere to flow. See Mildew , Fluent , and confer Marmalade .] Flowing as with honey; smooth; flowing sweetly or smoothly; as, a mellifluous voice. -- Mel*lif"lu*ous*ly , adverb

Melligenous adjective [ Latin mel , mellis + -genous .] Having the qualities of honey. [ R.]

Melligo noun [ Latin ] Honeydew.

Melliloquent adjective [ Latin mel , mellis honey + loquens speaking, present participle of loqui to speak.] Speaking sweetly or harmoniously.

Melliphagan noun See Meliphagan .

Melliphagous adjective See Meliphagous .

Mellitate noun [ Confer French mellitate . See Mellitic .] (Chemistry) A salt of mellitic acid.

Mellite noun [ Latin mel , mellis , honey: confer French mellite .] (Min.) A mineral of a honey color, found in brown coal, and partly the result of vegetable decomposition; honeystone. It is a mellitate of alumina.

Mellitic adjective [ Confer French mellitique . See Mellite .] (Chemistry) (a) Containing saccharine matter; marked by saccharine secretions; as, mellitic diabetes. (b) Pertaining to, or derived from, the mineral mellite.

Mellitic acid (Chemistry) , a white, crystalline, organic substance, C ₆ (CO ₂ H) ₆ , occurring naturally in combination with aluminium in the mineral mellite, and produced artificially by the oxidation of coal, graphite, etc., and hence called also graphitic acid .

Mellone noun (Chemistry) A yellow powder, C ₆ H ₃ N ₉ , obtained from certain sulphocyanates. It has acid properties and forms compounds called mellonides .

Mellonide noun See Mellone .