Mild Mild adjective [
Compar. Milder ;
superl. Mildest .] [ Anglo-Saxon
milde ; akin to Old Saxon
mildi , D. & German
mild , Old High German
milti , Icelandic
mildr , Swedish & Danish
mild , Goth.
milds ; confer Lithuanian
melas dear, Greek ... gladdening gifts.]
Gentle; pleasant; kind; soft; bland; clement; hence, moderate in degree or quality; -- the opposite of harsh , severe , irritating , violent , disagreeable , etc.; -- applied to persons and things; as, a mild disposition; a mild eye; a mild air; a mild medicine; a mild insanity. The rosy morn resigns her light
And milder glory to the noon.
Waller. Adore him as a mild and merciful Being.
Rogers. Mild , or
Low ,
steel ,
steel that has but little carbon in it and is not readily hardened. Syn. -- Soft; gentle; bland; calm; tranquil; soothing; pleasant; placid; meek; kind; tender; indulgent; clement; mollifying; lenitive; assuasive. See
Gentle .
Mildew Mil"dew noun [ Anglo-Saxon
meledeáw ; akin to Old High German
militou , German
mehlthau ,
mehltau ; probably orig. meaning, honeydew; confer Goth.
milip honey. See
Mellifluous , and
Dew .]
(Botany) A growth of minute powdery or webby fungi, whitish or of different colors, found on various diseased or decaying substances.
Mile Mile noun [ Anglo-Saxon
mīl , from Latin
millia ,
milia ; plural of
mille a thousand, i. e.,
milia passuum a thousand paces. Confer
Mill the tenth of a cent,
Million .]
A certain measure of distance, being equivalent in England and the United States to 320 poles or rods, or 5,280 feet. » The distance called a
mile varies greatly in different countries. Its length in yards is, in Norway, 12,182; in Brunswick, 11,816; in Sweden, 11,660; in Hungary, 9,139; in Switzerland, 8,548; in Austria, 8,297; in Prussia, 8,238; in Poland, 8,100; in Italy, 2,025; in England and the United States, 1,760; in Spain, 1,552; in the Netherlands, 1,094.
Geographical , or
Nautical mile ,
one sixtieth of a degree of a great circle of the earth, or 6080.27 feet. --
Mile run .
Same as Train mile . See under Train . --
Roman mile ,
a thousand paces, equal to 1,614 yards English measure. --
Statute mile ,
a mile conforming to statute, that is, in England and the United States, a mile of 5,280 feet, as distinguished from any other mile.
Miliola Mil"i·o`la noun [ New Latin , dim. of Latin
milium millet. So named from its resemblance to millet seed.]
(Zoology) A genus of Foraminifera, having a porcelanous shell with several longitudinal chambers.
Militia Mi·li"tia noun [ Latin , military service, soldiery, from
miles ,
militis , soldier: confer French
milice .]
1. In the widest sense, the whole military force of a nation, including both those engaged in military service as a business, and those competent and available for such service; specifically, the body of citizens enrolled for military instruction and discipline, but not subject to be called into actual service except in emergencies. The king's captains and soldiers fight his battles, and yet . . . the power of the militia is he.
Jer. Taylor. 2. Military service; warfare. [ Obsolete]
Baxter.