Reciprocity Rec`i·proc"i·ty (rĕs`ĭ*prŏs"ĭ*tȳ) noun [ Confer French réciprocité . See Reciprocal .] 1. Mutual action and reaction.

2. Reciprocal advantages, obligations, or rights; reciprocation.

Reciprocity treaty , or Treaty of reciprocity , a treaty concluded between two countries, conferring equal privileges as regards customs or charges on imports, or in other respects.

Syn. -- Reciprocation; interchange; mutuality.

Reciprocornous Re·cip`ro·cor"nous (re*sĭp`ro*kôr"nŭs) adjective [ Latin reciprocus returning, reciprocal + cornu horn.] (Zoology) Having horns turning backward and then forward, like those of a ram. [ R.] Ash.

Reciprocous Re·cip"ro·cous (re*sĭp"ro*kŭs) adjective Reciprocal. [ Obsolete]

Reciprok Rec"i·prok (rĕs"ĭ*prŏk) adjective [ French réciproque , Latin reciprocus .] Reciprocal. [ Obsolete] B. Jonson.

Reciproque Rec"i·proque (rĕs"ĭ*prōk) adjective & noun [ French réciproque .] Reciprocal. Bacon.

Recision Re·ci"sion (re*sĭzh"ŭn) noun [ Latin recisio , from recidere , recisum , to cut off; prefix re- re- + caedere to cut.] The act of cutting off. Sherwood.

Recital Re·cit"al (re*sīt" a l) noun [ From Recite .] 1. The act of reciting; the repetition of the words of another, or of a document; rehearsal; as, the recital of testimony.

2. A telling in detail and due order of the particulars of anything, as of a law, an adventure, or a series of events; narration. Addison.

3. That which is recited; a story; a narration.

4. (Mus.) A vocal or instrumental performance by one person; -- distinguished from concert ; as, a song recital ; an organ, piano, or violin recital .

5. (Law) The formal statement, or setting forth, of some matter of fact in any deed or writing in order to explain the reasons on which the transaction is founded; the statement of matter in pleading introductory to some positive allegation. Burn.

Syn. -- Account; rehearsal; recitation; narration; description; explanation; enumeration; detail; narrative. See Account .

Recitation Rec`i·ta"tion (rĕs`ĭ*tā"shŭn) noun [ Latin recitatio : confer French récitation . See Recite .] 1. The act of reciting; rehearsal; repetition of words or sentences. Hammond.

2. The delivery before an audience of something committed to memory, especially as an elocutionary exhibition; also, that which is so delivered.

3. (Colleges and Schools) The rehearsal of a lesson by pupils before their instructor.

Recitative Rec`i·ta·tive" (rĕs`ĭ*tȧ*tēv") noun [ Italian recitativo , or French récitatif . See Recite .] (Mus.) A species of musical recitation in which the words are delivered in a manner resembling that of ordinary declamation; also, a piece of music intended for such recitation; -- opposed to melisma .

Recitative Rec`i·ta·tive" adjective Of or pertaining to recitation; intended for musical recitation or declamation; in the style or manner of recitative. -- Rec`i*ta*tive"ly , adverb

Recitativo Rec`i·ta·ti"vo (-tē"vo) noun [ Italian ] (Mus.) Recitative.

Recite Re·cite" (re*sīt") transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Recited ; present participle & verbal noun Reciting .] [ French réciter , from Latin recitare , recitatum ; prefix re- re- + citare to call or name, to cite. See Cite .] 1. To repeat, as something already prepared, written down, committed to memory, or the like; to deliver from a written or printed document, or from recollection; to rehearse; as, to recite the words of an author, or of a deed or covenant.

2. To tell over; to go over in particulars; to relate; to narrate; as, to recite past events; to recite the particulars of a voyage.

3. To rehearse, as a lesson to an instructor.

4. (Law) To state in or as a recital. See Recital , 5.

Syn. -- To rehearse; narrate; relate; recount; describe; recapitulate; detail; number; count.

Recite Re·cite" intransitive verb To repeat, pronounce, or rehearse, as before an audience, something prepared or committed to memory; to rehearse a lesson learned.

Recite Re·cite" noun A recital. [ Obsolete] Sir W. Temple.

Reciter Re·cit"er (-sīt"ẽr) noun One who recites; also, a book of extracts for recitation.

Reck Reck (rĕk) transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Recked (rĕkt) ( obsolete imperfect Roughte ); present participle & verbal noun Recking .] [ Anglo-Saxon reccan , rēcan , to care for; akin to Old Saxon rōkian , Old High German ruochan , German geruhen , Icelandic rækja , also to English reckon , rake an implement. See Rake , and confer Reckon .] 1. To make account of; to care for; to heed; to regard. [ Archaic]

This son of mine not recking danger.

Sir P. Sidney.

And may you better reck the rede
Than ever did the adviser.

Burns.

2. To concern; -- used impersonally. [ Poetic]

What recks it them?

Milton.

Reck Reck (rĕk) intransitive verb To make account; to take heed; to care; to mind; -- often followed by of . [ Archaic]

Then reck I not, when I have lost my life.

Chaucer.

I reck not though I end my life to- day.

Shak.

Of me she recks not, nor my vain desire.

M. Arnold.

Reckless Reck"less adjective [ Anglo-Saxon recceleás , rēceleás .] 1. Inattentive to duty; careless; neglectful; indifferent. Chaucer.

2. Rashly negligent; utterly careless or heedless.

It made the king as reckless as them diligent.

Sir P. Sidney.

Syn. -- Heedless; careless; mindless; thoughtless; negligent; indifferent; regardless; unconcerned; inattentive; remiss; rash.

-- Reck"less*ly , adverb -- Reck"less*ness , noun

Reckling Reck"ling (-lĭng) adjective Needing care; weak; feeble; as, a reckling child. H. Taylor. -- noun A weak child or animal. Tennyson.

Reckon Reck"on (rĕk"'n) transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Reckoned (-'nd); present participle & verbal noun Reckoning .] [ Middle English rekenen , Anglo-Saxon gerecenian to explain; akin to Dutch rekenen to reckon, German rechnen , Old High German rehhanōn (cf. Goth. rahnjan ), and to English reck , rake an implement; the original sense probably being, to bring together, count together. See Reck , transitive verb ]

1. To count; to enumerate; to number; also, to compute; to calculate.

The priest shall reckon to him the money according to the years that remain.

Lev. xxvii. 18.

I reckoned above two hundred and fifty on the outside of the church.

Addison.

2. To count as in a number, rank, or series; to estimate by rank or quality; to place by estimation; to account; to esteem; to repute.

He was reckoned among the transgressors.

Luke xxii. 37.

For him I reckon not in high estate.

Milton.

3. To charge, attribute, or adjudge to one, as having a certain quality or value.

Faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.

Rom. iv. 9.

Without her eccentricities being reckoned to her for a crime.

Hawthorne.

4. To conclude, as by an enumeration and balancing of chances; hence, to think; to suppose; -- followed by an objective clause; as, I reckon he won't try that again. [ Prov. Eng. & Colloq. U. S.]

Syn. -- To number; enumerate; compute; calculate; estimate; value; esteem; account; repute. See Calculate , Guess .

Reckon Reck"on intransitive verb 1. To make an enumeration or computation; to engage in numbering or computing. Shak.

2. To come to an accounting; to make up accounts; to settle; to examine and strike the balance of debt and credit; to adjust relations of desert or penalty.

"Parfay," sayst thou, "sometime he reckon shall."

Chaucer.

To reckon for , to answer for; to pay the account for. "If they fail in their bounden duty, they shall reckon for it one day." Bp. Sanderson. -- To reckon on or upon , to count or depend on. -- To reckon with , to settle accounts or claims with; -- used literally or figuratively.

After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.

Matt. xxv. 19.

-- To reckon without one's host , to ignore in a calculation or arrangement the person whose assent is essential; hence, to reckon erroneously.

Reckoner Reck"on·er (-ẽr) noun One who reckons or computes; also, a book of calculations, tables, etc., to assist in reckoning.

Reckoners without their host must reckon twice.

Camden.

Reckoning Reck"on·ing noun 1. The act of one who reckons, counts, or computes; the result of reckoning or counting; calculation. Specifically: (a) An account of time . Sandys. (b) Adjustment of claims and accounts; settlement of obligations, liabilities, etc.

Even reckoning makes lasting friends, and the way to make reckonings even is to make them often.

South.

He quitted London, never to return till the day of a terrible and memorable reckoning had arrived.

Macaulay.

2. The charge or account made by a host at an inn.

A coin would have a nobler use than to pay a reckoning .

Addison.

3. Esteem; account; estimation.

You make no further reckoning of it [ beauty] than of an outward fading benefit nature bestowed.

Sir P. Sidney.

4. (Navigation) (a) The calculation of a ship's position, either from astronomical observations, or from the record of the courses steered and distances sailed as shown by compass and log, -- in the latter case called dead reckoning (see under Dead ); -- also used for dead reckoning in contradistinction to observation . (b) The position of a ship as determined by calculation.

To be out of her reckoning , to be at a distance from the place indicated by the reckoning; -- said of a ship.

Reclaim Re·claim" (rē*klām") transitive verb To claim back; to demand the return of as a right; to attempt to recover possession of.

A tract of land [ Holland] snatched from an element perpetually reclaiming its prior occupancy.

W. Coxe.

Reclaim Re·claim" (re*klām") transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Reclaimed (-klāmd"); present participle & verbal noun Reclaiming .] [ French réclamer , Latin reclamare , reclamatum , to cry out against; prefix re- re- + clamare to call or cry aloud. See Claim .] 1. To call back, as a hawk to the wrist in falconry, by a certain customary call. Chaucer.

2. To call back from flight or disorderly action; to call to, for the purpose of subduing or quieting.

The headstrong horses hurried Octavius . . . along, and were deaf to his reclaiming them.

Dryden.

3. To reduce from a wild to a tamed state; to bring under discipline; -- said especially of birds trained for the chase, but also of other animals. "An eagle well reclaimed ." Dryden.

4. Hence: To reduce to a desired state by discipline, labor, cultivation, or the like; to rescue from being wild, desert, waste, submerged, or the like; as, to reclaim wild land, overflowed land, etc.

5. To call back to rectitude from moral wandering or transgression; to draw back to correct deportment or course of life; to reform.

It is the intention of Providence, in all the various expressions of his goodness, to reclaim mankind.

Rogers.

6. To correct; to reform; -- said of things. [ Obsolete]

Your error, in time reclaimed , will be venial.

Sir E. Hoby.

7. To exclaim against; to gainsay. [ Obsolete] Fuller.

Syn. -- To reform; recover; restore; amend; correct.

Reclaim Re·claim" (re*klām") intransitive verb 1. To cry out in opposition or contradiction; to exclaim against anything; to contradict; to take exceptions.

Scripture reclaims , and the whole Catholic church reclaims , and Christian ears would not hear it.

Waterland.

At a later period Grote reclaimed strongly against Mill's setting Whately above Hamilton.

Bain.

2. To bring anyone back from evil courses; to reform.

They, hardened more by what might most reclaim ,
Grieving to see his glory, . . . took envy.

Milton.

3. To draw back; to give way. [ R. & Obsolete] Spenser.

Reclaim Re·claim" noun The act of reclaiming, or the state of being reclaimed; reclamation; recovery. [ Obsolete]

Reclaimable Re·claim"a·ble (-ȧ*b'l) adjective That may be reclaimed.

Reclaimant Re·claim"ant (- a nt) noun [ Confer French réclamant , present participle] One who reclaims; one who cries out against or contradicts. Waterland.

Reclaimer Re·claim"er (-ẽr) noun One who reclaims.

Reclaimless Re·claim"less adjective That can not be reclaimed.

Reclamation Rec`la·ma"tion (rĕk`lȧ*mā"shŭn) noun [ French réclamation , Latin reclamatio . See Reclaim .] 1. The act or process of reclaiming.

2. Representation made in opposition; remonstrance.

I would now, on the reclamation both of generosity and of justice, try clemency.

Landor.

Reclasp Re·clasp" (rē*klȧsp") intransitive verb To clasp or unite again.

Reclinant Re·clin"ant (re*klīn" a nt) adjective [ Latin reclinans , present participle See Recline .] Bending or leaning backward.

Reclinate Rec"li·nate (rĕk"lĭ*nat) adjective [ Latin reclinatus , past participle ] (Botany) Reclined, as a leaf; bent downward, so that the point, as of a stem or leaf, is lower than the base.

Reclination Rec`li·na"tion (rĕk`lĭ*nā"shŭn) noun [ Confer French réclinaison .] 1. The act of leaning or reclining, or the state of being reclined.

2. (Dialing) The angle which the plane of the dial makes with a vertical plane which it intersects in a horizontal line. Brande & C.

3. (Surg.) The act or process of removing a cataract, by applying the needle to its anterior surface, and depressing it into the vitreous humor in such a way that the front surface of the cataract becomes the upper one and its back surface the lower one. Dunglison.

Recline Re·cline" (re*klīn") transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Reclined (-klīnd"); present participle & verbal noun Reclining .] [ Latin reclinare ; prefix re- re- + clinare to lean, incline. See Incline , Lean to incline.] To cause or permit to lean, incline, rest, etc.; to place in a recumbent position; as, to recline the head on the hand.

The mother
Reclined her dying head upon his breast.

Dryden.

Recline Re·cline" intransitive verb 1. To lean or incline; as, to recline against a wall.

2. To assume, or to be in, a recumbent position; as, to recline on a couch.

Recline Re·cline" adjective [ Latin reclinis . See Recline , transitive verb ] Having a reclining posture; leaning; reclining. [ R.]

They sat, recline
On the soft downy bank, damasked with flowers.

Milton.

Reclined Re·clined" (re*klīnd") adjective (Botany) Falling or turned downward; reclinate.

Recliner Re·clin"er (re*klīn"ẽr) noun One who, or that which, reclines.

Reclining Re·clin"ing adjective (Botany) (a) Bending or curving gradually back from the perpendicular. (b) Recumbent.

Reclining dial , a dial whose plane is inclined to the vertical line through its center. Davies & Peck (Math. Dict.) .

Reclose Re·close" (rē*klōz") transitive verb To close again. Pope.

Reclothe Re·clothe" (rē*klōth") transitive verb To clothe again.

Reclude Re·clude" (re*klūd") transitive verb [ Latin recludere to unclose, open; prefix re- again, back, un- + claudere to shut.] To open; to unclose. [ R.] Harvey.

Recluse Re·cluse" (re*klūs") adjective [ French reclus , Latin reclusus , from recludere , reclusum , to unclose, open, in Late Latin , to shut up. See Close .] Shut up; sequestered; retired from the world or from public notice; solitary; living apart; as, a recluse monk or hermit; a recluse life.

In meditation deep, recluse
From human converse.

J. Philips.

Recluse Re·cluse" noun [ French reclus , Late Latin reclusus . See Recluse , adjective ] 1. A person who lives in seclusion from intercourse with the world, as a hermit or monk; specifically, one of a class of secluded devotees who live in single cells, usually attached to monasteries.

2. The place where a recluse dwells. [ Obsolete] Foxe.

Recluse Re·cluse" transitive verb To shut up; to seclude. [ Obsolete]

Reclusely Re·cluse"ly adverb In a recluse or solitary manner.

Recluseness Re·cluse"ness noun Quality or state of being recluse.

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 R > Page 24 of 108.
« Previous ¦16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 ¦ Next »