Mendicancy Men"di·can·cy noun The condition of being mendicant; beggary; begging. Burke.
Mendicant Men"di·cant adjective [ Latin
mendicans ,
-antis , present participle of
mendicare to beg, from
mendicus beggar, indigent.]
Practicing beggary; begging; living on alms; as, mendicant friars. Mendicant orders (R. C. Ch.) ,
certain monastic orders which are forbidden to acquire landed property and are required to be supported by alms, esp. the Franciscans, the Dominicans, the Carmelites, and the Augustinians.
Mendicant Men"di·cant noun A beggar; esp., one who makes a business of begging; specifically, a begging friar.
Mendicate Men"di·cate transitive verb & i. [ Latin
mendicatus , past participle of
mendicare to beg.]
To beg. [ R.]
Johnson.
Mendication Men`di·ca"tion noun The act or practice of begging; beggary; mendicancy. Sir T. Browne.
Mendicity Men·dic"i·ty noun [ Latin
mendicitas : confer French
mendicité . See
Mendicant .]
The practice of begging; the life of a beggar; mendicancy. Rom. of R.
Mendinant Men"di·nant noun A mendicant or begging friar. [ Obsolete]
Chaucer.
Mendment Mend"ment noun Amendment. [ Obsolete]
Mendole Men"dole (mĕn"dōl)
noun [ Confer French
mendol ,
mendole .]
(Zoology) The cackerel.
Mendregal Men"dre·gal noun (Zoology) Medregal.
Mends Mends (mĕndz)
noun See Amends . [ Obsolete]
Shak.
Menge Menge (mĕnj)
intransitive verb [
imperfect Mente ,
Meinte ;
past participle Ment ,
Meint .] [ See
Mingle .]
To mix. [ Obsolete]
Spenser.
Menhaden Men·ha"den noun (Zoology) An American marine fish of the Herring family ( Brevoortia tyrannus ), chiefly valuable for its oil and as a component of fertilizers; -- called also mossbunker , bony fish , chebog , pogy , hardhead , whitefish , etc.
Menhir Men"hir noun [ French Armor.
men stone +
hir high.]
A large stone set upright in olden times as a memorial or monument. Many, of unknown date, are found in Brittany and throughout Northern Europe.
Menial Men"ial adjective [ Middle English
meneal , from
meine ,
maine , household, Old French
maisniée ,
maisnie , Late Latin
mansionaticum . See
Mansion , and confer
Meine ,
noun ,
Meiny .]
1. Belonging to a retinue or train of servants; performing servile office; serving. Two menial dogs before their master pressed.
Dryden. 2. Pertaining to servants, esp. domestic servants; servile; low; mean. "
Menial offices."
Swift.
Menial Men"ial noun 1. A domestic servant or retainer, esp. one of humble rank; one employed in low or servile offices. 2. A person of a servile character or disposition.
Ménière's disease Mé`nière's" dis·ease" (Medicine) A disease characterized by deafness and vertigo, resulting in incoördination of movement. It is supposed to depend upon a morbid condition of the semicircular canals of the internal ear. Named after Ménière , a French physician.
Menilite Men"i·lite noun [ French
ménilite ; -- so called because it is found at
Ménil montant, near Paris.]
(Min.) See Opal .
Meningeal Me·nin"ge·al (me*nĭn"je*
a l)
adjective (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the meninges.
Meninges Me·nin"ges (-jēz)
noun plural ; sing.
Meninx [ New Latin , from Greek
mh^nigx ,
-iggos , a membrane.]
(Anat.) The three membranes that envelop the brain and spinal cord; the pia mater, dura mater, and arachnoid membrane.
Meningitis Men`in·gi"tis noun [ New Latin See
Meninges , and
-itis .]
(Medicine) Inflammation of the membranes of the brain or spinal cord. Cerebro-spinal meningitis .
See under Cerebro-spinal .
Meniscal Me·nis"cal adjective Pertaining to, or having the form of, a meniscus.
Meniscoid Me·nis"coid adjective [
Meniscus +
-oid .]
Concavo-convex, like a meniscus.
meniscus me·nis"cus noun ;
plural Latin
menisci (-sī), English
Meniscuses . [ New Latin , from Greek
mhni`skos , dim. of
mh`nh the moon.]
1. A crescent. 2. (Opt.) A lens convex on one side and concave on the other. 3. (Anat.) An interarticular synovial cartilage or membrane; esp., one of the intervertebral synovial disks in some parts of the vertebral column of birds. Converging meniscus ,
Diverging meniscus .
See Lens .
Menispermaceous Men`i·sper·ma"ceous adjective [ Greek
mh`nh the moon +
spe`rma seed.]
(Botany) Pertaining to a natural order ( Menispermaceæ ) of climbing plants of which moonseed ( Menispermum ) is the type.
Menispermic Men`i·sper"mic adjective Pertaining to, or obtained from, moonseed ( Menispermum ), or other plants of the same family, as the Anamirta Cocculus .
Menispermine Men`i·sper"mine noun [ Confer French
ménispermine .]
(Chemistry) An alkaloid distinct from picrotoxin and obtained from the cocculus indicus (the fruit of Anamirta Cocculus , formerly Menispermum Cocculus ) as a white, crystalline, tasteless powder; -- called also menispermina .
Meniver Men"i·ver noun [ Old French
menuver ,
menuveir ,
menuvair , a grayish fur;
menu small +
vair a kind of fur. See
Minute ,
adjective , and
Vair .]
Same as Miniver .
Mennonist, Mennonite Men"non·ist, Men"non·ite noun (Eccl. Hist.) One of a small denomination of Christians, so called from Menno Simons of Friesland, their founder. They believe that the New Testament is the only rule of faith, that there is no original sin, that infants should not be baptized, and that Christians ought not to take oath, hold office, or render military service.
Menobranch Men"o·branch Men`o*bran"chus noun [ New Latin menobranchus , from Greek ... to remain + ... a gill.] (Zoology) A large aquatic American salamander of the genus Necturus , having permanent external gills.
Menologium, Menology Men`o·lo"gi·um, Me·nol"o·gy noun ;
plural Latin
Menologia , English
Menologies . [ New Latin
menologium , from Greek
mh`n month +
lo`gos discourse : confer French
ménologe .]
1. A register of months. Bp. Stillingfleet. 2. (Gr. Church) A brief calendar of the lives of the saints for each day in the year, or a simple remembrance of those whose lives are not written.
Menopause Men"o·pause noun [ Greek
mh`n month + ... to cause to cease. See
Menses .]
(Medicine) The period of natural cessation of menstruation. See Change of life , under Change .
Menopoma, Menopome Men`o·po"ma, Men"o·pome noun [ New Latin
menopoma , from Greek ... to remain + ... lid.]
(Zoology) The hellbender.
Menorrhagia Men`or·rha"gi·a noun [ New Latin , from Greek
mh`n month + ... to break.]
(Medicine) (a) Profuse menstruation. (b) Any profuse bleeding from the uterus; Metrorrhagia.
Menostasis Me·nos"ta·sis noun [ New Latin , from Greek
mh`n month +
'istan`nai to stop.]
(Medicine) Stoppage of the menses.
Menostation Men`os·ta"tion noun (Medicine) Same as Menostasis .
Menow Men"ow noun (Zoology) A minnow.
Mensal Men"sal adjective [ Latin
mensalis , from
mensa table.]
Belonging to the table; transacted at table; as, mensal conversation.
Mensal Men"sal adjective [ Latin
mensis month.]
Occurring once in a month; monthly.
Mense Mense noun [ Middle English
menske , Anglo-Saxon
mennisc human, man. See
Man .]
Manliness; dignity; comeliness; civility. [ Prov. Eng. & Scot.] --
Mense"ful adjective --
Mense"less ,
adjective
Mense Mense transitive verb To grace. [ Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Menses Men"ses noun plural [ Latin
mensis month, plural
menses months, and the monthly courses of women. Confer
Month .]
(Medicine) The catamenial or menstrual discharge, a periodic flow of blood or bloody fluid from the uterus or female generative organs.
Menstrual Men"stru·al adjective [ Latin
menstrualis : confer French
menstruel . See
Menstruous .]
1. Recurring once a month; monthly; gone through in a month; as, the menstrual revolution of the moon; pertaining to monthly changes; as, the menstrual equation of the sun's place. 2. Of or pertaining to the menses; as, menstrual discharges; the menstrual period. 3. Of or pertaining to a menstruum. Bacon.
Menstruant Men"stru·ant adjective [ Latin
menstruans , present participle of
menstruare to have a monthly term, from
menstruus . See
Menstruous .]
Subject to monthly flowing or menses.
Menstruate Men"stru·ate adjective Menstruous. [ Obsolete]
Menstruate Men"stru·ate intransitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Menstruated ;
present participle & verbal noun Menstruating .]
To discharge the menses; to have the catamenial flow.
Menstruation Men`stru·a"tion noun The discharge of the menses; also, the state or the period of menstruating.
Menstrue Men"strue noun [ Confer French
menstrues . See
Menstruous .]
The menstrual flux; menses. [ Obsolete]
Menstruous Men"stru·ous adjective [ Latin
menstruus , from
mensis month. Confer
Menstruum .]
1. Having the monthly flow or discharge; menstruating. 2. Of or pertaining to the monthly flow; catamenial.
Menstruum Men"stru·um noun ;
plural English
Menstruums , Latin
Menstrua . [ Latin
menstruus . See
Menstruous .]
Any substance which dissolves a solid body; a solvent. The proper menstruum to dissolve metal.
Bacon. All liquors are called menstruums which are used as dissolvents, or to extract the virtues of ingredients by infusion or decoction.
Quincy. » The use is supposed to have originated in some notion of the old chemists about the influence of the moon in the preparation of dissolvents.
Johnson.
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