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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)


A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
You are here: Webster > Letter Q > Page 7 of 14.
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Quayage Quay"age noun [ French] Wharfage. [ Also keyage .]

Quayd Quayd past participle of Quail . [ Obsolete] Spenser.

Que Que noun [ Confer 3d Cue .] A half farthing. [ Obsolete]

Queach Queach noun [ Confer Quick .] A thick, bushy plot; a thicket. [ Obsolete] Chapman.

Queach Queach intransitive verb [ Confer English quich , intransitive verb , quick , intransitive verb ; or Anglo-Saxon cweccan to shake.] To stir; to move. See Quick , intransitive verb [ Obsolete]

Queachy Queach"y adjective 1. Yielding or trembling under the feet, as moist or boggy ground; shaking; moving. "The queachy fens." "Godwin's queachy sands." Drayton.

2. Like a queach; thick; bushy. [ Obsolete] Cockeram.

Quean Quean noun [ Originally, a woman, Anglo-Saxon cwene ; akin to Old Saxon quena , Old High German quena , Icelandic kona , Goth qin... , and Anglo-Saxon cwén , also to Greek ... woman, wife, Sanskrit gnā goddess. Confer Queen .] 1. A woman; a young or unmarried woman; a girl. [ Obsolete or Scot.] Chaucer.

2. A low woman; a wench; a slut. "The dread of every scolding quean ." Gay.

Queasily Quea"si·ly adverb In a queasy manner.

Queasiness Quea"si·ness noun The state of being queasy; nausea; qualmishness; squeamishness. Shak.

Queasy Quea"sy adjective [ Icelandic kweisa pain; confer Norw. kveis sickness after a debauch.] 1. Sick at the stomach; affected with nausea; inclined to vomit; qualmish.

2. Fastidious; squeamish; delicate; easily disturbed; unsettled; ticklish. " A queasy question." Shak.

Some seek, when queasy conscience has its qualms.
Cowper.

Quebec group Que·bec" group` (Geol.) The middle of the three groups into which the rocks of the Canadian period have been divided in the American Lower Silurian system. See the Chart of Geology .

Quebracho Que·bra"cho noun [ Spanish ] (Botany) A Chilian apocynaceous tree ( Aspidosperma Quebracho ); also, its bark, which is used as a febrifuge, and for dyspnœa of the lung, or bronchial diseases; -- called also white quebracho , to distinguish it from the red quebracho , a Mexican anacardiaceous tree ( Loxopterygium Lorentzii ) whose bark is said to have similar properties. J. Smith (Dict. Econ. Plants).

Quebrith Queb"rith noun [ Middle English quebrit , quibrith , Arabic kibrīt .] (Alchemy) Sulphur. [ Obsolete]

Quech, Queck Quech, Queck intransitive verb [ Confer Quick , Queach .] A word occurring in a corrupt passage of Bacon's Essays, and probably meaning, to stir, to move.

Queen Queen noun [ Middle English quen , quene , queen, quean, Anglo-Saxon cwēn wife, queen, woman; akin to Old Saxon quān wife, woman, Icelandic kvān wife, queen, Goth. qēns . √221. See Quean .] 1. The wife of a king.

2. A woman who is the sovereign of a kingdom; a female monarch; as, Elizabeth, queen of England; Mary, queen of Scots.

In faith, and by the heaven's quene .
Chaucer.

3. A woman eminent in power or attractions; the highest of her kind; as, a queen in society; -- also used figuratively of cities, countries, etc. " This queen of cities." " Albion, queen of isles." Cowper.

4. The fertile, or fully developed, female of social bees, ants, and termites.

5. (Chess) The most powerful, and except the king the most important, piece in a set of chessmen.

6. A playing card bearing the picture of a queen; as, the queen of spades.

Queen apple . [ Confer Middle English quyne aple quince apple.] A kind of apple; a queening. " Queen apples and red cherries." Spenser. -- Queen bee (Zoology) , a female bee, especially the female of the honeybee. See Honeybee . -- Queen conch (Zoology) , a very large West Indian cameo conch ( Cassis cameo ). It is much used for making cameos. -- Queen consort , the wife of a reigning king. Blackstone. -- Queen dowager , the widow of a king. -- Queen gold , formerly a revenue of the queen consort of England, arising from gifts, fines, etc. -- Queen mother , a queen dowager who is also mother of the reigning king or queen. -- Queen of May . See May queen , under May . -- Queen of the meadow (Botany) , a European herbaceous plant ( Spirĉa Ulmaria ). See Meadowsweet . -- Queen of the prairie (Botany) , an American herb ( Spirĉa lobata ) with ample clusters of pale pink flowers. -- Queen pigeon (Zoology) , any one of several species of very large and handsome crested ground pigeons of the genus Goura , native of New Guinea and the adjacent islands. They are mostly pale blue, or ash-blue, marked with white, and have a large occipital crest of spatulate feathers. Called also crowned pigeon , goura , and Victoria pigeon . -- Queen regent , or Queen regnant , a queen reigning in her own right. -- Queen's Bench . See King's Bench . -- Queen's counsel , Queen's evidence . See King's counsel , King's evidence , under King . -- Queen's delight (Botany) , an American plant ( Stillinqia sylvatica ) of the Spurge family, having an herbaceous stem and a perennial woody root. -- Queen's metal (Metal.) , an alloy somewhat resembling pewter or britannia, and consisting essentially of tin with a slight admixture of antimony, bismuth, and lead or copper. -- Queen's pigeon . (Zoology) Same as Queen pigeon , above. -- Queen's ware , glazed English earthenware of a cream color. -- Queen's yellow (Old Chem.) , a heavy yellow powder consisting of a basic mercuric sulphate; -- formerly called turpetum minerale , or Turbith's mineral .

Queen Queen intransitive verb To act the part of a queen. Shak.

Queen Queen intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Queened ; present participle & verbal noun Queening .] (Chess.) To make a queen (or other piece, at the player's discretion) of by moving it to the eighth row; as, to queen a pawn.

Queen olive Queen olive [ Confer Spanish aceituna de la Reina olive of the Queen.] (Olive Trade) Properly, a kind of superior olive grown in the region of Seville, Spain. It is large size and oblong shape with a small but long pit; it is cured when green, keeps well, and has a delicate flavor. Loosely, any olive of similar character.

Queen truss Queen" truss (Architecture) A truss framed with queen-posts; a queen-post truss.

Queen-post Queen"-post` noun [ Arch.] One of two suspending posts in a roof truss, or other framed truss of similar form. See King-post .

Queencraft Queen"craft` noun Craft or skill in policy on the part of a queen.

Elizabeth showed much queencraft in procuring the votes of the nobility.
Fuller.

Queendom Queen"dom noun The dominion, condition, or character of a queen. Mrs. Browning.

Queenfish Queen"fish` noun (Zoology) A California sciĉnoid food fish ( Seriphys politus ). The back is bluish, and the sides and belly bright silvery. Called also kingfish .

Queenhood Queen"hood noun The state, personality, or character of a queen; queenliness. Tennyson.

Queening Queen"ing noun [ See Queen apple .] (Botany) Any one of several kinds of apples, as summer queening , scarlet queening , and early queening . An apple called the queening was cultivated in England two hundred years ago.

Queenliness Queen"li·ness noun The quality of being queenly; the; characteristic of a queen; stateliness; eminence among women in attractions or power.

Queenly Queen"ly adjective [ Anglo-Saxon cwēnlic feminine.] Like, becoming, or suitable to, a queen.

Queenship Queen"ship noun The state, rank, or dignity of a queen.

Queensland nut Queens"land nut` (Botany) The nut of an Australian tree ( Macadamia ternifolia ). It is about an inch in diameter, and contains a single round edible seed, or sometimes two hemispherical seeds. So called from Queensland in Australia.

Queer Queer adjective [ Compar. Queerer ; superl. Queerest .] [ German quer cross, oblique, athwart (cf. querkopf a queer fellow), OHG . twer , twerh , dwerah ; akin to Dutch dvars , AS, þweorh thwart, bent, twisted, Icelandic þverr thwart, transverse, Goth. þwaìrhs angry, and perhaps to Latin torqyere to twist, and English through . Confer Torture , Through , Thwart , adjective ] 1. At variance with what is usual or normal; differing in some odd way from what is ordinary; odd; singular; strange; whimsical; as, a queer story or act. " A queer look." W. Irving.

2. Mysterious; suspicious; questionable; as, a queer transaction. [ Colloq.]

Queer Queer noun Counterfeit money. [ Slang]

To shove the queer , to put counterfeit money in circulation. [ Slang]

Queer Queer transitive verb [ From Queer , adjective ] 1. To puzzle. [ Prov. Eng. or Slang]

2. To ridicule; to banter; to rally. [ Slang]

3. To spoil the effect or success of, as by ridicule; to throw a wet blanket on; to spoil. [ Slang]

Queerish Queer"ish adjective Rather queer; somewhat singular.

Queerly Queer"ly adverb In a queer or odd manner.

Queerness Queer"ness noun The quality or state of being queer.

Queest Queest noun [ Confer Icelandic kvisa a kind of bird, kvistr a branch of a tree, and English cushat .] (Zoology) The European ringdove ( Columba palumbus ); the cushat. [ Written also quist , queeze , quice , queece .] See Ringdove .

Quegh Quegh noun A drinking vessel. See Quaich .

Queint Queint adjective See Quaint . [ Obsolete]

Queint Queint obsolete imperfect & past participle of Quench . Chaucer.

Queintise Queint"ise noun See Quaintise . [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Quell Quell intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Quelled ; present participle & verbal noun Quelling .] [ See Quail to cower.]

1. To die. [ Obsolete]

Yet he did quake and quaver, like to quell .
Spenser.

2. To be subdued or abated; to yield; to abate. [ R.]

Winter's wrath begins to quell .
Spenser.

Quell Quell transitive verb [ Middle English quellen to kill, Anglo-Saxon cwellan , causative of cwelan to die; akin to Old High German quellen to torment, Icelandic kvelja . See Quail to cower.] 1. To take the life of; to kill. [ Obsolete] Spenser.

The ducks cried as [ if] men would them quelle .
Chaucer.

2. To overpower; to subdue; to put down.

The nation obeyed the call, rallied round the sovereign, and enabled him to quell the disaffected minority.
Macaulay.

Northward marching to quell the sudden revolt.
Longfellow.

3. To quiet; to allay; to pacify; to cause to yield or cease; as, to quell grief; to quell the tumult of the soul.

Much did his words the gentle lady quell .
Spenser.

Syn. -- to subdue; crush; overpower; reduce; put down; repress; suppress; quiet; allay; calm; pacify.

Quell Quell noun Murder. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Queller Quell"er noun 1. A killer; as, Jack the Giant Queller . [ Obsolete] Wyclif (Mark vi. 27).

2. One who quells; one who overpowers or subdues.

Quellio Quel"li·o noun [ Spanish cuello , Latin collum neck.] A ruff for the neck. [ Obsolete] B. Jonson.

Quelquechose Quelque"chose` noun [ French quelque chose something.] A trifle; a kickshaw. Donne.

Queme Queme transitive verb & i. [ Anglo-Saxon cwēman , akin to cuman to come. √23.] To please. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Quemeful Queme"ful adjective Kindly; merciful. [ Obsolete] Wyclif.

Quench Quench transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Quenched ; present participle & verbal noun Quenching .] [ Middle English quenchen , Anglo-Saxon cwencan in ācwencan , to extinguish utterly, causative of cwincan , ācwincan , to decrease, disappear; confer Anglo-Saxon cwīnan , ācwīnan , to waste or dwindle away.] 1. To extinguish; to overwhelm; to make an end of; -- said of flame and fire, of things burning, and figuratively of sensations and emotions; as, to quench flame; to quench a candle; to quench thirst, love, hate, etc.

Ere our blood shall quench that fire.
Shak.

The supposition of the lady's death
Will quench the wonder of her infamy.
Shak.

2. To cool suddenly, as heated steel, in tempering.

Syn. -- To extinguish; still; stifle; allay; cool; check.

Quench Quench intransitive verb To become extinguished; to go out; to become calm or cool. [ R.]

Dost thou think in time
She will not quench !
Shak.

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Webster's 1913

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