Phytophagous Phy·toph"a·gous adjective [ Phyto- + Greek ... to eat.] (Zoology) Feeding on plants; herbivorous; as, a phytophagous animal.

Phytophagy Phy·toph"a·gy noun The eating of plants.

Phytophysiology Phy`to·phys`i·ol"o·gy noun [ Phyto- + physiology .] Vegetable physiology.

Phytotomist Phy·tot"o·mist noun One versed in phytotomy.

Phytotomy Phy·tot"o·my noun [ Phyto- + Greek ... to cut.] The dissection of plants; vegetable anatomy.

Phytozoaria Phy`to·zo·a"ri·a noun plural [ New Latin See Phytozoön .] (Zoology) Same as Infusoria .

Phytozoön Phy`to·zo"ön noun ; plural Phytozoa . [ New Latin , from Greek ... + ... an animal.] (Zoology) A plantlike animal. The term is sometimes applied to zoöphytes.

Phyz Phyz noun See Phiz .

Phæacian Phæ·a"cian adjective Of or pertaining to the Phæacians, a fabulous seafaring people fond of the feast, the lyre, and the dance, mentioned by Homer.

Phænogam Phæ"no·gam noun (Botany) Any plant of the class Phænogamia.

Phænogamia Phæ`no·ga"mi·a noun plural [ New Latin , from ... to show + ... marriage.] (Botany) The class of flowering plants including all which have true flowers with distinct floral organs; phanerogamia.

Phænogamian, Phænogamic Phæ`no·ga"mi·an, Phæ`no·gam"ic adjective Same as Phænogamous .

Phænogamous Phæ·nog"a·mous adjective (Botany) Having true flowers with with distinct floral organs; flowering.

Phænomenon Phæ·nom"e·non noun [ Latin ] See Phenomenon .

Phæospore Phæ"o·spore noun [ Greek ... dusky + English spore .] (Botany) A brownish zoöspore, characteristic of an order ( Phæosporeæ ) of dark green or olive-colored algæ. -- Phæ`o*spor"ic adjective

Pi Pi noun [ See Pica , Pie magpie, service-book.] (Print.) A mass of type confusedly mixed or unsorted. [ Written also pie .]

Pi Pi transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Pied ; present participle & verbal noun Pieing .] (Print.) To put into a mixed and disordered condition, as type; to mix and disarrange the type of; as, to pi a form. [ Written also pie .]

Pi Pi (pī) noun [ Greek pi^ .] 1. A Greek letter (Π, π) corresponding to the Roman letter P .

2. Specif.: (Math.) The letter Π, π, as used to denote the number or quotient approximately expressing the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter; also, the quotient or the ratio itself. The value of the quotient pi , to eight decimal places, is 3.14159265. The quotient pi cannot be expressed as a root of an algebraic equation; and from this fact follows the impossibility of the quadrature of the circle by purely algebraic processes, or by the aid of a ruler and compass.

Piña Pi`ña noun [ Spanish , orig., pineapple, pine cone.] 1. (a) The pineapple. (b) Piña cloth or the fiber of which it is made.

2. Also Pi"na ( pron. also ...). (Metal.) A cone of silver amalgam prepared for retorting; also, the residuary cone of spongy silver left after the retorting.

Piña cloth Pi"ña cloth` A fine material for ladies' shawls, scarfs, handkerchiefs, etc., made from the fiber of the pineapple leaf, and perhaps from other fibrous tropical leaves. It is delicate, soft, and transparent, with a slight tinge of pale yellow.

Piña cloth Pi`ña cloth [ See Piña .] A fine fabric for scarfs, handkerchiefs, embroidery, etc., woven from the fiber obtained from the leaf of the sterile pineapple plant. It is delicate, soft, and transparent, with a tinge of pale yellow.

Piñon Piñ"on noun [ Spanish piñon .] (Botany) (a) The edible seed of several species of pine; also, the tree producing such seeds, as Pinus Pinea of Southern Europe, and P. Parryana, cembroides, edulis, and monophylla , the nut pines of Western North America. (b) See Monkey's puzzle . [ Written also pignon .]

Pia mater Pi"a ma"ter [ New Latin , from Latin pia (fem. of pius tender, kind) + mater mother.] (Anat.) The delicate and highly vascular membrane immediately investing the brain and spinal cord.

Piaçaba Pi·aç"a·ba noun See Piassava .

Piacle Pi"a·cle noun [ Latin piaculum a propitiatory sacrifice, that which requires expiation, a wicked action, from piare to appease, to expiate, pius pious.] A heinous offense which requires expiation. [ R.] Howell.

Piacular Pi·ac"u·lar adjective [ Latin piacularis : confer French piaculaire .] 1. Expiatory; atoning. Sir G. C. Lewis.

2. Requiring expiation; criminal; atrociously bad. " Piacular pollution." De Quincey.

Piacularity Pi·ac`u·lar"i·ty noun The quality or state of being piacular; criminality; wickedness. De Quincey.

Piaculous Pi·ac"u·lous adjective Same as Piacular .

Pial Pi"al adjective (Anat.) Pertaining to the pia mater.

Pian Pian noun [ Portuguese pian , epian , or. Spanish pian ; from the native name in South America: confer French pian .] (Medicine) The yaws. See Yaws .

Pianet Pi"a·net` noun [ Confer Pie magpie.] (Zoology) (a) The magpie. [ Written also pianate , and pyenate .] (b) The lesser woodpecker. [ Obsolete] Bailey.

Pianette Pi·a·nette" noun [ Dim. of piano .] (Mus.) A small piano; a pianino.

Pianino Pi`a·ni"no noun [ Italian , dim. of piano , adj. See Piano .] (Mus.) A pianette, or small piano.

Pianissimo Pi`a·nis"si·mo adjective [ Italian , superl. of piano .] (Mus.) Very soft; -- a direction to execute a passage as softly as possible. (Abbrev. pp .)

Pianist Pi·an"ist noun [ Confer French pianiste , Italian pianista .] A performer, esp. a skilled performer, on the piano.

Piano Pi·a"no adjective & adverb [ Italian , even, smooth, soft, from Latin planus even, level.] (Mus.) Soft; -- a direction to the performer to execute a certain passage softly, and with diminished volume of tone. (Abbrev. p.)

Piano, Pianoforte Pi·an"o, Pi·an"o·for`te noun [ Italian piano soft (fr. Latin planus even, smooth; see Plain , adjective ) + Italian forte strong, from Latin fortis (see Fort ).] (Mus.) A well-known musical instrument somewhat resembling the harpsichord, and consisting of a series of wires of graduated length, thickness, and tension, struck by hammers moved by keys.

Dumb piano . See Digitorium . -- Grand piano . See under Grand . -- Square piano , one with a horizontal frame and an oblong case. -- Upright piano , one with an upright frame and vertical wires.

Pianograph Pi·an"o·graph noun [ Piano + -graph .] (Mus.) A form of melodiograph applied to a piano.

Piapec Pi"a·pec noun [ Confer Pie a magpie.] (Zoology) A West African pie ( Ptilostomus Senegalensis ).

Piarist Pi"a·rist noun [ Latin pius pious.] (R. C. Ch.) One of a religious order who are the regular clerks of the Scuole Pie (religious schools), an institute of secondary education, founded at Rome in the last years of the 16th century. Addis & Arnold.

Piassava Pi·as"sa·va noun [ Portuguese piasaba .] A fibrous product of two Brazilian palm trees ( Attalea funifera and Leopoldinia Piassaba ), -- used in making brooms, and for other purposes. Called also piaçaba and piasaba .

Piaster Pi·as"ter noun [ French piastre , Italian piastra a thin plate of metal, a dollar, Late Latin piastra , from Latin emplastrum . See Plaster .] A silver coin of Spain and various other countries. See Peso . The Spanish piaster (commonly called peso , or peso duro ) is of about the value of the American dollar. The Italian piaster, or scudo, was worth from 80 to 100 cents. The Turkish and Egyptian piasters are now worth about four and a half cents.

Piastre Pi·as"tre noun See Piaster .

Piation Pi·a"tion noun [ Latin piatio . See Piacle .] The act of making atonement; expiation. [ Obsolete]

Piatti Pi·at"ti noun plural [ Italian , prop., plates.] (Mus.) Cymbals. [ Written also pyatti .]

Piazza Pi·az"za noun ; plural Piazzas . [ Italian , place, square, market place, Latin platea street, courtyard. See Place .] An open square in a European town, especially an Italian town; hence (Architecture) , an arcaded and roofed gallery; a portico. In the United States the word is popularly applied to a veranda.

We walk by the obelisk, and meditate in piazzas .

Jer. Taylor.

Pibcorn Pib"corn` noun [ W. pib pipe + corn horn.] (Mus.) A wind instrument or pipe, with a horn at each end, -- used in Wales.

Pibroch Pi"broch noun [ Gael. piobaireachd pipe music, from piobair a piper, from pioba pipe, bagpipe, from English. See Pipe , noun ] A Highland air, suited to the particular passion which the musician would either excite or assuage; generally applied to those airs that are played on the bagpipe before the Highlanders when they go out to battle. Jamieson.

Pic Pic noun [ Confer French pic .] A Turkish cloth measure, varying from 18 to 28 inches.

Pica Pi"ca noun [ Latin pica a pie, magpie; in sense 3 probably named from some resemblance to the colors of the magpie. Confer Pie magpie.] 1. (Zoology) The genus that includes the magpies.

2. (Medicine) A vitiated appetite that craves what is unfit for food, as chalk, ashes, coal, etc.; chthonophagia.

3. (R. C. Ch.) A service-book. See Pie . [ Obsolete]

4. (Print.) A size of type next larger than small pica, and smaller than English.

» This line is printed in pica

» Pica is twice the size of nonpareil, and is used as a standard of measurement in casting leads, cutting rules, etc., and also as a standard by which to designate several larger kinds of type, as double pica , two-line pica , four-line pica , and the like.

Small pica (Print.) , a size of type next larger than long primer, and smaller than pica.

» This line is printed in small pica

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