Webster's Dictionary, 1913
Rhombus noun [ Latin ]
Same as Rhomb , 1.
Rhonchal adjective (Medicine) Rhonchial.
Rhonchial adjective (Medicine) Of or pertaining to a rhonchus; produced by rhonchi.
Rhonchial fremitus . [ Latin fremitus a dull roaring or murmuring.] (Medicine) A vibration of the chest wall that may be felt by the hand laid upon its surface. It is caused in the production of rhonchi in the bronchial tubes.
Rhonchisonant adjective [ Latin rhonchus a snoring + sonans , present participle of sonare to sound.] Making a snorting noise; snorting. [ R.]
Rhonchus noun ;
plural Rhonchi . [ Latin , a snoring, a croaking.]
(Medicine) An adventitious whistling or snoring sound heard on auscultation of the chest when the air channels are partially obstructed. By some writers the term rhonchus is used as equivalent to râle in its widest sense. See Râle .
Rhopalic adjective [ Greek ............ club-shaped; from ......... a club: confer French rhopalique .] (Pros.) Applied to a line or verse in which each successive word has one more syllable than the preceding.
Rhopalium noun ;
plural Rhopalia . [ New Latin ]
(Zoology) One of the marginal sensory bodies of medusæ belonging to the Discophora.
Rhopalocera noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek ......... a club + ......... ahorn.] (Zoology) A division of Lepidoptera including all the butterflies. They differ from other Lepidoptera in having club-shaped antennæ.
Rhotacism noun [ Greek "rwtaki`zein to use the letter r (ρ) overmuch: confer French rhotacisme .] An oversounding, or a misuse, of the letter r ; specifically (Phylol.) , the tendency, exhibited in the Indo-European languages, to change s to r , as wese to were .
Rhubarb noun [ French
rhubarbe , Old French
rubarbe ,
rheubarbe ,
reubarbare ,
reobarbe , Late Latin
rheubarbarum for
rheum barbarum , Greek ......... (and ......) rhubarb, from the river
Rha (the Volga) on whose banks it grew. Originally, therefore, it was the barbarian plant from the Rha. Confer
Barbarous ,
Rhaponticine .]
1. (Botany) The name of several large perennial herbs of the genus Rheum and order Polygonaceæ . 2. The large and fleshy leafstalks of Rheum Rhaponticum and other species of the same genus. They are pleasantly acid, and are used in cookery. Called also pieplant . 3. (Medicine) The root of several species of Rheum , used much as a cathartic medicine. Monk's rhubarb .
(Botany) See under Monk . --
Turkey rhubarb (Medicine) ,
the roots of Rheum Emodi .
Rhubarby adjective Like rhubarb.
Rhumb noun [ French
rumb , Spanish
rumbo , or Portuguese
rumbo ,
rumo , probably from Greek ......... a magic wheel, a whirling motion, hence applied to a point of the compass. See
Rhomb .]
(Navigation) A line which crosses successive meridians at a constant angle; -- called also rhumb line , and loxodromic curve . See Loxodromic . To sail on a rhumb ,
to sail continuously on one course, following a rhumb line.
Rhus noun [ Latin , sumac, from Greek ..........]
(Botany) A genus of shrubs and small treets. See Sumac .
Rhusma noun [ See
Rusma .]
A mixtire of caustic lime and orpiment, or tersulphide of arsenic, -- used in the depilation of hides. Knight.
Rhyme noun [ Middle English
ryme ,
rime , Anglo-Saxon
rīm number; akin to Old High German
rīm number, succession, series, German
reim rhyme. The modern sense is due to the influence of French
rime , which is of German origin, and originally the same word.] [ The Old English spelling
rime is becoming again common. See Note under
Prime .]
1. An expression of thought in numbers, measure, or verse; a composition in verse; a rhymed tale; poetry; harmony of language. "Railing
rhymes ."
Daniel. A ryme I learned long ago.
Chaucer. He knew
Himself to sing, and build the lofty rime .
Milton. 2. (Pros.) Correspondence of sound in the terminating words or syllables of two or more verses, one succeeding another immediately or at no great distance. The words or syllables so used must not begin with the same consonant, or if one begins with a vowel the other must begin with a consonant. The vowel sounds and accents must be the same, as also the sounds of the final consonants if there be any. For rhyme with reason may dispense,
And sound has right to govern sense.
Prior. 3. Verses, usually two, having this correspondence with each other; a couplet; a poem containing rhymes. 4. A word answering in sound to another word. Female rhyme .
See under Female . - -
Male rhyme .
See under Male . --
Rhyme or reason ,
sound or sense. --
Rhyme royal (Pros.) ,
a stanza of seven decasyllabic verses, of which the first and third, the second, fourth, and fifth, and the sixth and seventh rhyme.
Rhyme intransitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Rhymed ;
present participle & verbal noun Rhyming .] [ Middle English
rimen ,
rymen , Anglo-Saxon
rīman to count: confer French
rimer to rhyme. See
Rhyme ,
noun ]
1. To make rhymes, or verses. "Thou shalt no longer
ryme ."
Chaucer. There marched the bard and blockhead, side by side,
Who rhymed for hire, and patronized for pride.
Pope. 2. To accord in rhyme or sound. And, if they rhymed and rattled, all was well.
Dryden.
Rhyme transitive verb 1. To put into rhyme. Sir T. Wilson. 2. To influence by rhyme. Hearken to a verser, who may chance
Rhyme thee to good.
Herbert.
Rhymeless adjective Destitute of rhyme. Bp. Hall.
Rhymer noun One who makes rhymes; a versifier; -- generally in contempt; a poor poet; a poetaster. This would make them soon perceive what despicaple creatures our common rhymers and playwriters be.
Milton.
Rhymery noun The art or habit of making rhymes; rhyming; -- in contempt.
Rhymester noun A rhymer; a maker of poor poetry. Bp. Hall. Byron.
Rhymic adjective Pertaining to rhyme.
Rhymist noun A rhymer; a rhymester. Johnston.
Rhynchobdellea noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek "ry`gchos snout + ......... a leech.] (Zoology) A suborder of leeches including those that have a protractile proboscis, without jaws. Clepsine is the type.
Rhynchocœla noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek
"ry`gchos snout +
koi`los hollow.]
(Zoology) Same as Nemertina . --
Rhyn`cho*cœ"lous adjective
Rhynchocephala noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek
"ry`gchos snout +
kefalh` head.]
(Zoology) An order of reptiles having biconcave vertebræ, immovable quadrate bones, and many other peculiar osteological characters. Hatteria is the only living genus, but numerous fossil genera are known, some of which are among the earliest of reptiles. See Hatteria . Called also Rhynchocephalia .
Rhyncholite noun [ Greek "ry`gchos snout, beak + -lie : confer French rhyncholithe .] (Paleon.) A fossil cephalopod beak.
Rhynchonella noun [ New Latin , from Greek "ry`gchos snout.] (Zoology) A genus of brachiopods of which some species are still living, while many are found fossil.
Rhynchophora noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek "ry`gchos snout + fe`rein to carry.] (Zoology) A group of Coleoptera having a snoutlike head; the snout beetles, curculios, or weevils.
Rhynchophore noun (Zoology) One of the Rhynchophora.
Rhynchota noun plural [ New Latin , from Greek
"ry`gchos snout.]
(Zoology) Same as Hemiptera . [ Written also
Rhyncota .]
Rhyolite noun [ Greek "rei^n to flow + -lite .] (Min.) A quartzose trachyte, an igneous rock often showing a fluidal structure. -- Rhy`o*lit"ic , adjective
Rhyparography noun [ Greek ............ painting foul or mean objects; "ryparo`s filthy, dirty + gra`fein to write, paint.] In ancient art, the painting of genre or still-life pictures.
Rhysimeter noun [ Greek ......... flow + -meter .] An instrument, acting on the principle of Pitot's tube, for measuring the velocity of a fluid current, the speed of a ship, etc.
Rhythm noun [ French
rhythme ,
rythme , Latin
rhythmus , from Greek ......... measured motion, measure, proportion, from
"rei^n to flow. See
Stream .]
1. In the widest sense, a dividing into short portions by a regular succession of motions, impulses, sounds, accents, etc., producing an agreeable effect, as in music poetry, the dance, or the like. 2. (Mus.) Movement in musical time, with periodical recurrence of accent; the measured beat or pulse which marks the character and expression of the music; symmetry of movement and accent. Moore (Encyc.) 3. A division of lines into short portions by a regular succession of arses and theses , or percussions and remissions of voice on words or syllables. 4. The harmonious flow of vocal sounds.
Rhythmer (rĭth"mẽr
or rĭ&thlig;"-)
noun One who writes in rhythm, esp. in poetic rhythm or meter. [ R.]
One now scarce counted a rhythmer , formerly admitted for a poet.
Fuller.
Rhythmic (-mĭk),
Rhyth"mic*al (- mĭ*k
a l)
adjective [ Greek ............: confer Latin
rhythmicus , French
rhythmique .]
Pertaining to, or of the nature of, rhythm Day and night
I worked my rhythmic thought.
Mrs. Browning. Rhythmical accent .
(Mus.) See Accent , noun , 6 (c) .
Rhythmically adverb In a rhythmical manner.
Rhythmics noun The department of musical science which treats of the length of sounds.
Rhythming adjective Writing rhythm; verse making. "The rhythming monk." Fuller.
Rhythmless adjective Being without rhythm. Coleridge.
Rhythmometer noun [
Rhythm +
-meter .]
An instrument for marking time in musical movements. See Metronome .
Rhythmus noun [ Latin ] Rhythm.
Rhytina noun (Zoology) See Rytina .
Rial noun A Spanish coin. See Real . [ Obsolete]
Rial adjective Royal. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.
Rial noun [ From
Royal .]
A gold coin formerly current in England, of the value of ten shillings sterling in the reign of Henry VI., and of fifteen shillings in the reign of Elizabeth. [ Spelt also
ryal .]
Brande & C.
Riant adjective [ French
riant , present participle of
rire to laugh, Latin
ridere .]
Laughing; laughable; exciting gayety; gay; merry; delightful to the view, as a landscape. In such cases the sublimity must be drawn from the other sources, with a strict caution, howewer, against anything light and riant .
Burke.
Rib noun [ Anglo-Saxon
rib ,
ribb ; akin to Dutch
rib , German
rippe , Old High German
rippa ,
rippi , Danish
ribbe , Icelandic
rif , Russian
rebro .]
1. (Anat.) One of the curved bones attached to the vertebral column and supporting the lateral walls of the thorax. » In man there are twelve ribs on each side, of which the upper seven are directly connected with the sternum by cartilages, and are called
sternal , or
true ,
ribs . The remaining five pairs are called
asternal , or
false ,
ribs , and of these each of the three upper pairs is attached to the cartilage of the rib above, while the two lower pairs are free at the ventral ends, and are called
floating ribs . See
Thorax .
2. That which resembles a rib in form or use. Specifically:
(a) (Shipbuilding) One of the timbers, or bars of iron or steel, that branch outward and upward from the keel, to support the skin or planking, and give shape and strength to the vessel. (b) (Mach. & Structures) A ridge, fin, or wing, as on a plate, cylinder, beam, etc., to strengthen or stiffen it. (c) One of the rods on which the cover of an umbrella is extended. (d) A prominent line or ridge, as in cloth. (e) A longitudinal strip of metal uniting the barrels of a double-barreled gun. 3. (Botany) The chief nerve, or one of the chief nerves, of a leaf. (b) Any longitudinal ridge in a plant. 4. (Architecture) (a) In Gothic vaulting, one of the primary members of the vault. These are strong arches, meeting and crossing one another, dividing the whole space into triangles, which are then filled by vaulted construction of lighter material. Hence, an imitation of one of these in wood, plaster, or the like. (b) A projecting mold, or group of moldings, forming with others a pattern, as on a ceiling, ornamental door, or the like. 5. (Mining) (a) Solid coal on the side of a gallery; solid ore in a vein. (b) An elongated pillar of ore or coal left as a support. Raymond. 6. A wife; -- in allusion to Eve, as made out of Adam's rib. [ Familiar & Sportive]
How many have we known whose heads have been broken with their own rib .
Bp. Hall. Chuck rib ,
a cut of beef immediately in front of the middle rib. See Chuck . --
Fore ribs ,
a cut of beef immediately in front of the sirloin. --
Middle rib ,
a cut of beef between the chuck rib and the fore ribs. --
Rib grass .
(Botany) Same as Ribwort .
Rib transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Ribbed ;
present participle & verbal noun Ribbing .]
1. To furnish with ribs; to form with rising lines and channels; as, to rib cloth. 2. To inclose, as with ribs, and protect; to shut in. It [ lead] were too gross
To rib her cerecloth in the obscure grave.
Shak. To rib land ,
to leave strips of undisturbed ground between the furrows in plowing.