Desideratum – Devastation

Desideratum

DESIDERATUM, noun plural Desiderata. [Latin To desire.] That which is desired; that which is not possessed, but which is desirable; any perfection or improvement which is wanted. The longitude is a desideratum in navigation. A tribunal to settle national disputes without war is a great desideratum

Design

DESIGN, verb transitive [Latin To seal or stamp, that is, to set or throw.]

1. To delineate a form or figure by drawing the outline; to sketch; as in painting and other works of art.

2. To plan; to form an outline or representation of any thing. Hence,

3. To project; to form in idea, as a scheme. Hence,

4. To purpose or intend; as, a man designs to write an essay, or to study law.

5. To mark out by tokens.

6. To intend to apply or appropriate; with for; as, we design this ground for a garden, and that for a park. The word design may include an adapting or planning a thing for a purpose, or mere intention or scheme of the mind, which implies a plan. The father designs his son for the profession of the law, or for the ministry. It was formerly followed by to, but this use is now uncommon.

DESIGN, noun

1. A plan or representation of a thing by an outline; sketch; general view; first idea represented by visible lines; as in painting or architecture.

2. A scheme or plan in the mind. A wise man is distinguished by the judiciousness of his designs.

3. Purpose; intention; aim; implying a scheme or plan in the mind. It is my design to educate my son for the bar.

4. The idea or scheme intended to be expressed by an artist; as the designs of medals.

5. In manufactories, the figures with which workmen enrich their stuffs, copied from painting or draughts.

6. In music, the invention and conduct of the subject; the disposition of every part, and the general order of the whole.

Designable

DESIGNABLE, adjective

1. Capable of being designed or marked out.

2. Distinguishable.

Designate

DESIGNATE, verb transitive

1. To mark out or show, so as to make known; to indicate by bisible lines, marks, description or something known and determinate; as, to designate the limits of a country; the limits are designated on the map; designate the spot where a star appears in the heavens; designate the place where our ancestors first landed.

2. To point out; to distinguish from others by indication; as, to be able to designate every individual who was concerned in a riot.

3. To appoint; to select or distinguish for a particular purpose; to assign; with for, as to designate an officer for the command of a station; or with to, as this captain was designated to that station.

DESIGNATE, adjective Appointed; marked out.

Designated

DESIGNATED, participle passive Marked out; indicated; shown; pointed out appointed.

Designating

DESIGNATING, participle present tense Marking out; indicating; pointing out; appointing.

Designation

DESIGNATION, noun

1. The act of pointing or marking out by signs or objects; as the designation of an estate by boundaries.

2. Indication; a showing or pointing; a distinguishing from others.

3. Appointment; direction; as, a claim to a throne grounded on the designation of a predecessor.

4. Appointment; a selecting and appointing; assignment; as the designation of an officer to a particular command.

5. Import; distinct application.

Finite and infinite are primarily attributed in their first designation to things which have parts.

Designative

DESIGNATIVE, adjective Serving to designate or indicate.

Designator

DESIGNATOR, noun A Roman officer who assigned to each person his rank and place in public shows and ceremonies.

Designed

DESIGNED, participle passive Marked out; delineated; planned; intended.

Designedly

DESIGNEDLY, adverb By design; purposely; intentionally; opposed to accidentally, ignorantly, or inadvertently.

Designer

DESIGNER, noun

1. One who designs, marks out or plans; one who frames a scheme or project; a contriver.

2. One who plots; one who lays a scheme; in an ill sense.

Designfulness

DESIGNFULNESS, noun Abundance of design.

Designing

DESIGNING, participle present tense

1. Forming a design; plnning; delineating the outline; drawing figures on a plane.

2. adjective In an ill sense, artful; insidious; intriguing; contriving schemes of mischief; hence, deceitful. designing men are always liable to suspicion.

DESIGNING, noun The art of delineating objects.

Designless

DESIGNLESS, adjective Without design or intention; inadvertent.

Designlessly

DESIGNLESSLY, adverb Without design; inadvertently; ignorantly.

Designment

DESIGNMENT, noun

1. Design; sketch; delineation.

2. Design; purpose; aim; intent; scheme.

Desinence

DESINENCE, noun End; close.

Desinent

DESINENT, adjective Ending; extreme; lower-most.

Desipient

DESIPIENT, adjective [Latin To dote; to be wise.] trifling; foolish; playful.

Desirable

DESIRABLE, adjective

1. Worthy of desire; that is to be wished for with sincerity or earnestness. An easy address is a desirable accomplishment; real virtue is still more desirable

2. Pleasing; agreeable.

All of them desirable young men. Ezekiel 23:6.

Desirableness

DESIRABLENESS, noun The quality of being desirable.

Desire

DESIRE, noun

1. An emotion or excitement of the mind, directed to the attainment or possession of an object from which pleasure, sensual, intellectual or spiritual, is expected; a passion excited by the love of an object, or uneasiness at the want of it, and directed to its attainment or possession. desire is a wish to possess some gratification or source of happiness which is supposed to be obtainable. A wish may exist for something that is or is not abtainable. desire when directed solely to sensual enjoyment, differs little from appetite. In other languages, desire is expressed by longing or reaching toward, and when it is ardent or intense, it approaches to longing, but the word in English usually expresses less than longing.

We endeavored-to see your face with great desire 1 Thessalonians 2:17.

Thou satisfiest the desires of every living thing. Psalms 145:16.

DESIRE is that internal act, which, by influencing the will, makes us proceed to action.

2. A prayer or request to obtain:

He will fulfill the desire of them that fear him. Psalms 145:16.

3. The object of desire; that which is desired.

The desire of all nations shall come. Haggai 2:7.

4. Love; affection.

His desire is toward me. Song of Solomon 7:10.

5. Appetite; lust.

Fulfilling the desires of the flesh. Ephesians 2:3.

DESIRE, verb transitive

1. To wish for the possession or enjoyment of, with a greater or less degree of earnestness; to covet. It expresses less strength of affection than longing.

Neither shall any man desire thy land. Exodus 34:24.

Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians 14:1.

2. To express a wish to obtain; to ask; to request; to petition.

Then she said, did I desire a son of my Lord? 2 Kings 4:28.

3. To require.

Desired

DESIRED, participle passive Wished for; coveted; requested; entreated.

Desireless

DESIRELESS, adjective Free from desire.

Desirer

DESIRER, noun One who desires or asks; one who wishes.

Desiring

DESIRING, participle present tense Wishing for; coveting; asking; expressing a wish; soliciting.

Desirous

DESIROUS, adjective Wishing for; wishing to obtain; coveting; solicitous to possess and enjoy.

Be not desirous of his dainties. Proverbs 23:3.

Jesus knew they were desirous to ask him. John 16:19.

Desirously

DESIROUSLY, adverb With desire; with earnest wishes.

Desirousness

DESIROUSNESS, noun The state or affection of being desirous.

Desist

DESIST, verb intransitive [Latin To stand.] To stop; to cease to act or proceed; to forbear; with from; as, he desisted from his purpose; let us desist

Desistance

DESISTANCE, noun A ceasing to act or proceed; a stopping.

Desisting

DESISTING, participle present tense Ceasing to act or proceed.

Desitive

DESITIVE, adjective Final; conclusive.

Desk

DESK, noun

1. An inclining table for the use of writers and readers; usually made with a box or drawer underneath, and sometimes with a book-case above.

2. The pulpit in a church, and figuratively the clerical profession. The man appears well in the desk He intends one son for the bar, and another for the desk

DESK, verb transitive To shut up in a desk; to treasure.

Desmine

DESMINE, noun A mineral that crystalizes in little silken tufts, which accompany spinellane in the lava of extinct volcanoes on the banks of the Rhine.

Desolate

DESOLATE, adjective

1. Destitute or deprived of inhabitants; desert; uninhabited; denoting either stripped of inhabitants, or never having been inhabitated; as a desolate isle; a desolate wilderness.

I will make the cities of Judah desolate without an inhabitant. Jeremiah 9:11.

2. Laid waste; in a ruinous condition; neglected; destroyed; as desolate altars; desolate towers. Ezek. Zeph.

3. Solitary; without a companion; afflicted.

Tamar remained desolate in Absaloms house. 2 Samuel 13:20.

4. Deserted of God; deprived of comfort.

My heart within me is desolate Psalms 143:4.

Desolated

DESOLATED, participle passive Deprived of inhabitants; wasted; ruined.

Desolately

DESOLATELY, adverb In a desolate manner.

Desolater

DESOLATER, noun One who lays waste or desolates; that which desolates.

Desolating

DESOLATING, participle present tense Depriving of inhabitants; wasting; ravaging.

Desolation

DESOLATION, noun

1. The act of desolating destruction or expulsion of inhabitants; destruction; ruin; waste.

Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation Matthew 12:25.

2. A place deprived of inhabitants, or otherwise wasted, ravaged and ruined.

How is Babylon become a desolation among the nations. Jeremiah 50:23.

3. A desolate state; gloominess; sadness; destitution.

The abomination of desolation Roman armies which ravaged and destroyed Jerusalem. Matthew 24:15.

Desolatory

DESOLATORY, adjective Causing desolation.

Despair

DESPAIR, noun

1. Hopelessness; a hopeless state; a destitution of hope or expectation.

We are perplexed, but not in despair 2 Corinthians 4:8.

All safety in despair of safety placed.

2. That which causes despair; that of which there is no hope.

The mere despair of surgery, he cures.

3. Loss of hope in the mercy of God.

DESPAIR, verb intransitive [Latin To hope.] To be without hope; to hive up all hope or expectation; followed by of.

We despaired even of life. 2 Corinthians 1:8.

Never despair of Gods blessings here, or of his reward hereafter.

Despairer

DESPAIRER, noun One without hope.

Despairful

DESPAIRFUL, adjective Hopeless.

Despairing

DESPAIRING, participle present tense Giving up all hope or expectation.

Despairingly

DESPAIRINGLY, adverb In a despairing manner; in a manner indicating hopelessness; as, he speaks despairingly of the sick mans recovery.

Despatch

DESPATCH, [See Dispatch.]

Despection

DESPECTION, noun A looking down; a despising.

Desperado

DESPERADO, noun A desperate fellow; a furious man; a madman; a person urged by furious passions; one fearless, or regardless of safety.

Desperate

DESPERATE, adjective [Latin To despair.]

1. Without hope.

I am desperate of obtaining her.

2. Without care of safety; rash; fearless of danger; as a desperate man. Hence,

3. Furious, as a man in despair.

4. Hopeless; despaired of; lost beyond hope of recovery; irretrievable; irrecoverable; forlorn. We speak of a desperate case of disease, desperate fortunes, a desperate situation or condition.

5. In a popular sense, great in the extreme; as a desperate sot or fool.

Desperately

DESPERATELY, adverb

1. In a desperate manner; as in despair; hence, furiously; with rage; madly; without regard to danger or safety; as, the troops fought desperately

2. In a popular sense, greatly; extremely; violently.

She fell desperately in love with him.

Desperateness

DESPERATENESS, noun Madness; fury; rash precipitance.

Desperation

DESPERATION, noun

1. A despairing; a giving up of hope; as desperation of success.

2. Hopelessness; despair; as, the men were in a state of desperation Hence,

3. Fury; rage; disregard of safety or danger; as, the men fought with desperation; they were urged to desperation

Despicable

DESPICABLE, adjective [Low Latin To look down, to despise; to look.] That may be or deserves to be despised; contemptible; mean; vile; worthless; applicable equally to persons and things; as a despicable man; despicable company; a despicable gift.

Despicableness

DESPICABLENESS, noun The quality or state of being despicable; meanness; vileness; worthlessness.

Despicably

DESPICABLY, adverb Meanly; vilely; contemptibly; as despicably poor.

DESPICIENCY, noun A looking down; a despising.

Despisable

DESPISABLE, adjective Despicable; contemptible.

Despisal

DESPISAL, noun Contempt.

Despise

DESPISE, .verb intransitive

1. To contemn; to scorn; to disdain; to have the lowest opinion of.

Fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7.

Else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Matthew 6:24.

2. To abhor.

Despised

DESPISED, participle passive Contemned; disdained; abhorred.

Despisedness

DESPISEDNESS, noun The state of being despised.

Despiser

DESPISER, noun A contemner; a scorner.

Despising

DESPISING, participle present tense Contemning; scorning; disdaining.

DESPISING, noun Contempt.

Despisingly

DESPISINGLY, adverb With contempt.

Despite

DESPITE, noun

1. Extreme malice; violent hatred; malignity; malice irritated or enraged; active malignity; angry hatred.

With all thy despite against the land of israel. Ezekiel 25:6.

2. Defiance with contempt, or contempt of opposition.

He will rise to fame in despite of his enemies.

3. An act of malice or contempt; as a despite to the Most High.

DESPITE, verb transitive To vex; to offend; to tease.

Despiteful

DESPITEFUL, adjective Full of spite; malicious; malignant; as a despiteful enemy.

Hater of God, despiteful proud, boasters. Romans 1:30.

Despitefully

DESPITEFULLY, adverb With despite; maliciously; contemptuously.

Pray for them that despitefully use you. Matthew 5:44.

Despitefulness

DESPITEFULNESS, noun Malice; extreme hatred; malignity.

Despiteous

DESPITEOUS, adjective Malicious.

Despiteously

DESPITEOUSLY, adverb . Furiously.

Despoil

DESPOIL, verb intransitive [Latin To spoil.]

1. To strip; to take from by force; to rob; to deprive; followed by of; as, to despoil one of arms; to despoil of honors; to despoil of innocence.

2. To strip or divest by any means.

Despoiled

DESPOILED, participle passive Stripped; robbed; bereaved; deprived.

Despoiler

DESPOILER, noun One who strips by force; a plunderer.

Despoiling

DESPOILING, participle present tense Depriving; stripping; robbing.

Despoliation

DESPOLIATION, noun The act of despoiling; a stripping.

Despond

DESPOND, verb intransitive [Latin To promise; literally, to throw to or forward.]

1. To be cast down; to be depressed or dejected in mind; to fail in spirits.

I should despair, or at least despond

2. To lose all courage, spirit or resolution; to sink by loss of hope.

Others depress their own mind, and despond at the first difficulty.

Note. The distinction between despair and despond is well marked in the foregoing passage from Scott. But although despair implies a total loss of hope, which despond does not, at least in every case, yet despondency is followed by the abandonment of effort, or cessation of action, and despair sometimes impelss to violent action, even to rage.

Despondency

DESPONDENCY, noun A sinking or dejection of spirits at the loss of hope; loss of courage at the failure of hope, or in deep affliction, or at the prospect of insurmountable difficulties.

Despondent

DESPONDENT, adjective Losing courage at the loss of hope; sinking into dejection; depressed and inactive in despair.

Desponder

DESPONDER, noun One destitute of hope.

Desponding

DESPONDING, participle present tense Losing courage to act, in consequence of loss of hope, or of deep calamity, or of difficulties deemed insurmountable; sinking into dejection; despairing, with depression of spirits; despairingly.

Despondingly

DESPONDINGLY, adverb In a desponding manner; with dejection of spirits; despairingly.

Desponsate

DESPONSATE, verb transitive To betroth.

Desponsation

DESPONSATION, noun A betrothing.

Despot

DESPOT, noun An emperor, king or price invested with absolute power, or ruling without any control from men, constitution or laws. Hence in a general sense, a tyrant.

Despotic

DESPOTIC,

DESPOTICAL, adjective

1. Absolute in power; independent of control from men, constitution or laws; arbitrary in the exercise of power; as a despotic prince.

2. Unlimited or unrestrained by constitution, laws or men; absolute; arbitrary; as despotic authority or power.

3. Tyrannical.

Despotical

DESPOTICAL, a. 1. Absolute in power; independent of control from men, constitution or laws; arbitrary in the exercise of power; as a despotic prince.2. Unlimited or unrestrained by constitution, laws or men; absolute; arbitrary; as despotic authority or power. 3. Tyrannical.

Despotically

DESPOTICALLY, adverb With unlimited power; arbitrarily; in a despotic manner.

Despoticalness

DESPOTICALNESS, noun Absolute or arbitrary authority.

Despotism

DESPOTISM, noun

1. Absolute power; authority unlimited and uncontrolled by men, constitution or laws, and depending alone on the will of the prince; as the despotism of a Turkish sultan.

2. An arbitrary government, as that of Turkey and Persia.

Despumate

DESPUMATE, verb intransitive [Latin Froth or scum.] To foam; to froth; to form froth or scum.

Despumation

DESPUMATION, noun The act of throwing off excrementitious matter and forming a froth or scum on the surface of liquor; clarification; scumming.

Desquamation

DESQUAMATION, noun [Latin A scale.] A scaling or exfoliation of bone; the separation of the cuticle in small scales.

Dess

DESS, for desk.

Dessert

DESSERT, noun A service of fruits and sweetmeats, at the close of an entertainment; the last course at the table, after the meat is removed.

Destinate

DESTINATE, verb transitive To design or appoint.

DESTINATE, adjective Appointed; destined; determined.

Destination

DESTINATION, noun

1. The act of destining, or appointing.

2. The purpose for which any thing is intended or appointed; end or ultimate design. Every animal is fitted for its destination

3. The place to which a thing is appointed, as the ship left her destination; but it is more usual to say, the place of her destination

Destine

DESTINE, verb transitive [Latin]

1. To set, ordain or appoint to a use, purpose, state or place. We destine a son to the ministerial office; a house for a place of worship; a ship for the London trade or to Lisbon; and we are all destined to a future state of happiness or misery.

2. To fix unalterable, as by a divine decree; as the destined hour of death.

3. To doom; to devote; to appoint unalterably.

Destined

DESTINED, participle passive Ordained; appointed by previous determination; devoted; fixed unalterably.

Destining

DESTINING, participle present tense Ordaining; appointing.

Destiny

DESTINY, noun

1. State or condition appointed or predetermined; ultimate fate; as, men are solicitous to know their future destiny which is however happily concealed from them.

2. Invincible necessity; fate; a necessity or fixed order of things established by a divine decree, or by an indissoluble connection of causes and effects.

But who can turn the stream of destiny?

Destinies, the fates, or supposed powers which preside over himan life, spin it out, and determine it; called by the Latins, parcae.

Destitute

DESTITUTE, adjective [Latin To set. Literally, set from or away.]

1. Not having or possessing; wanting; as destitute of virtue, or of peity; destitute of food and clothing. It differs from deprived, as it does not necessarily imply previous possession.

2. Needy; abject; comfortless; friendless.

He will regard the prayer of the destitute Psalms 102:17.

DESTITUTE, noun One who is without friends or comfort.

DESTITUTE, verb transitive

1. To forsake.

2. To deprive.

Destitution

DESTITUTION, noun Want; absence of a thing; a state in which something is wanted or not possessed; poverty.

Destroy

DESTROY, verb transitive [Latin To pile, to build.]

1. To demolish; to pull down; to separate the parts of an edifice, the union of which is necessary to constitute the thing; as, to destroy a house or temple; to destroy a fortification.

2. To ruin; to annihilate a thing by demolishing or by burning; as, to destroy a city.

3. To ruin; to bring to naught; to annihilate; as, to destroy a theory or scheme; to destroy a government; to destroy influence.

4. To lay waste; to make desolate.

Go up against this land, and destroy it. Isaiah 36:10.

5. To kill; to slay; to extirpate; applied to men or other animals.

Ye shall destroy all this people. Numbers 32:15.

All the wicked will he destroy Psalms 145:20.

6. To take away; to cause to cease; to put an end to; as, pain destroys happiness.

That the body of sin might be destroyed. Romans 6:6.

7. To kill; to eat; to devour; to consume. Birds destroy insects. Hawks destroy chickens.

8. In general, to put an end to; to annihilate a thing or the form in which it exists. An army is destroyed by slaughter, capture or dispersion; a forest, by the ax, or by fire; towns, by fire or inundation, etc.

9. In chimistry, to resolve a body into its parts or elements.

Destroyable

DESTROYABLE, adjective That may be destroyed.

Plants scarcely destroyable by the weather.

Destroyed

DESTROYED, participle passive Demolished; pulled down; ruined; annihilated; devoured; swept away; etc.

Destroyer

DESTROYER, noun One who destroys, or lays waste; one who kills a man, or an animal, or who ruins a country, cities, etc.

Destroying

DESTROYING, participle present tense Demolishing; laying waste; killing; annihilating; putting an end to.

DESTROYING, noun Destruction.

Destruct

DESTRUCT, fro destroy, is not used.

Destructibility

DESTRUCTIBILITY, noun The quality of being capable of destruction.

Destructible

DESTRUCTIBLE, adjective [Latin] Liable to destruction; capable of being destroyed.

Destruction

DESTRUCTION, noun

1. The act of destroying; demolition; a pulling down; subversion; ruin, by whatever means; as the destruction of buildings, or of towns. destruction consists in the annihilation of the form of any theing; that form of parts which constitues it what it is; as the destruction of grass or herbage by eating; of a forest, by cutting down the trees; or it denotes a total annihilation; as the destruction of a particular government; the destruction of happiness.

2. Death; murder; slaughter; massacre.

There was a deadly destruction throughout all the city. 1 Samuel 5:9.

3. Ruin.

DESTRUCTION and misery are in their ways. Romans 3:16.

4. Eternal death.

Broad is the way that leadeth to destruction Matthew 7:13.

5. Cause of destruction; a consuming plague; a destroyer.

The destruction that wasteth at noon-day. Psalms 91:6.

Destructive

DESTRUCTIVE, adjective Causing destruction; having the quality of destroying; ruinous; mischievous; pernicious; with of or to; as a destructive fire or famine. Intemperance is destructive of health; evil examples are destructive to the morals of youth.

Destructively

DESTRUCTIVELY, adverb With destruction; ruinously; mischievously; with power to destroy; as destructively lewd or intemperate.

Destructiveness

DESTRUCTIVENESS, noun The quality of destroying or ruining.

Destructor

DESTRUCTOR, noun A destroyer; a consumer. [Not used.]

Desudation

DESUDATION, noun [Latin , to sweat.] A sweating; a profuse or morbid sweating, succeeded by an eruption of pustles, called heat-pimples.

Desuetude

DESUETUDE, noun [Latin] The cessation of use; disuse; discontinuance of practice, custom or fashion. Habit is contracted by practice, and lost by desuetude Words in every language are lost by desuetude

Desulphurate

DESULPHURATE, verb transitive To deprive of sulphur.

Desulphurated

DESULPHURATED, participle passive Deprived of sulphur.

Desulphurating

DESULPHURATING, participle present tense Depriving of sulphur.

Desulphuration

DESULPHURATION, noun The act or operation of depriving of sulphur.

Desultorily

DESULTORILY, adverb [See Desultory.] In a desultory manner; without method; loosely.

Desultoriness

DESULTORINESS, noun A desultory manner; unconnectedness; a passing from one thing to another without order or method.

Desultory

DESULTORY, adjective [Latin , to leap.]

1. Leaping; passing from one thing or subject to another, without order or natural connection; unconnected; immethodical; as a desultory conversation.

2. Coming suddenly; started at the moment; not proceeding from natural order or connection with what precedes; as a desultory thought.

Desume

DESUME, verb transitive [Latin] To take from; to borrow. [Not in use.]

Detach

DETACH, verb transitive [See Attach.]

1. To separate or disunite; to disengage; to part from; as, to detach the coats of a bulbous root from each other; to detach a man from the interest of the minister, or from a party.

2. To separate men from their companies or regiments; to draw from companies or regiments, as a party of men, and send them on a particular service.

3. To select ships from a fleet and send them on a separate service.

Detached

DETACHED, participle passive

1. Separated; parted from ; disunited; drawn and sent on a separate service.

2. adjective Separate; as detached parcels or portions.

Detaching

DETACHING, participle present tense Separating; parting from; drawing and sending on a separate employment.

Detachment

DETACHMENT, noun

1. The act of detaching.

2. A body of troops, selected or taken from the main army, and employed on some special service or expedition.

3. A number of ships, taken from a fleet, and sent on a separate service.

Detail

DETAIL, verb transitive

1. To relate, report or narrate in particulars; to recite the particulars of; to particularize; to relate minutely and distinctly; as, he detailed all the facts in due order.

2. To select, as an officer or soldier from a division, brigade, regiment or battalion.

DETAIL, noun

1. A narration or report of particulars; a minute and particular account. He related the story in detail He gave a detail of all the transactions.

2. A selecting of officer or soldiers from the rosters.

Detailed

DETAILED, participle passive Related in particulars; minutely recited; selected.

Detailer

DETAILER, noun One who details.

Detailing

DETAILING, participle present tense

1. Relating minutely; telling the particulars.

2. Selecting from the rosters.

Detainder

DETAINDER, noun A writ. [See Detinue.]

Detained

DETAINED, participle passive Withheld; kept back; prevented from going or coming; held; restrained.

Detainer

DETAINER, noun

1. One who withholds what belongs to another; one who detains, stops or prevents from going.

2. In law, a holding or keeping possession of what belongs to another; detention of what is anothers, though the original taking may be lawful.

Detaing

DETAING, v.t. [L., to hold. See Tenant.] 1. To keep back or from; to withhold; to keep what belongs to another. Detain not the wages of the hireling.2. To keep or restrain from proceeding, either going or coming; to stay or stop. We were detained by the rain.Let us detain thee, till we have made ready a kid. Judges 13.3. To hold in custody.

Detaining

DETAINING, participle present tense Withholding what belongs to another; holding back; restraining from going or coming; holding in custody.

Detainment

DETAINMENT, noun The act of detaining; detention.

Detect

DETECT, verb transitive [Latin , to cover.] Literally, to uncover; hence, to discover; to find out; to bring to light; as, to detect the ramifications and inosculations of the fine vessels. But this word is especially applied to the discovery of secret crimes and artifices. We detect a thief, or the crime of stealing. We detect the artifices of the man, or the man himself. We detect what is concealed, especially what is concealed by design.

Detected

DETECTED, participle passive Discovered; found out; laid open; brought to light.

Detecter

DETECTER, noun A discoverer; one who finds out what another attempts to conceal.

Detecting

DETECTING, participle present tense Discovering; finding out.

Detection

DETECTION, noun The act of detecting; discovery of a person or thing attempted to be concealed; as the detection of a thief or burglarian; the detection of fraud or forgery; the detection of artifice, device or a plot.

2. Discovery of any thing before hidden, or unknown.

The sea and rivers are instrumental to the detection of amber and other fossils, by washing away the earth that concealed them.

Detenebrate

DETENEBRATE, verb transitive [Latin] To remove darkness. [Not in use.]

Detent

DETENT, noun [Latin] A stop in a clock, which by being lifted up or let down, locks and unlocks the clock in striking.

Detention

DETENTION, noun [See Detain.]

1. The act of detaining; a withholding from another his right; a keeping what belongs to another, and ought to be restored.

2. Confinement; restraint; as detention in custody.

3. Delay from necessity; a detaining; as the detention of the mail by bad roads.

Deter

DETER, verb transitive [Latin , to frighten.]

1. To discourage and stop by fear; to stop or prevent from acting or proceeding, by danger, difficulty or other consideration which disheartens, or countervails the motive for an act. We are often deterred from out duty by trivial difficulties. The state of the road or a cloudy sky may deter a man from undertaking a journey.

A million of frustrated hopes will not deter us from new experiments.

2. To prevent by prohibition or danger.

Deterge

DETERGE, verb transitive deterj. [Latin , to wipe or scour.] To cleanse; to purge away foul or offending matter, from the body, or from an ulcer.

Deterged

DETERGED, participle passive Cleansed; purged.

Detergent

DETERGENT, adjective Cleansing; purging.

DETERGENT, noun A medicine that has the power of cleansing the vessels or skin from offending matter.

Deterging

DETERGING, participle present tense Cleansing; carrying off obstructions or foul matter.

Deteriorate

DETERIORATE, verb intransitive [Latin] To grow worse; to be impaired in quality to degenerate; opposed to meliorate.

DETERIORATE, verb transitive To make worse; to reduce in quality; as, to deteriorate a race of men of their condition.

Deteriorated

DETERIORATED, participle passive Made worse; impaired in quality.

Deteriorating

DETERIORATING, participle present tense Becoming worse or inferior in quality.

Deterioration

DETERIORATION, noun A growing or making worse; the state of growing worse.

Deteriority

DETERIORITY, noun Worse sate or quality; as deteriority of diet.

Determent

DETERMENT, noun [See Deter.] The act of deterring; the cause of deterring; that which deters.

Determinable

DETERMINABLE, adjective [See Determine.]

1. That may be decided with certainty.

2. That may end or be determined.

Determinate

DETERMINATE, adjective [Latin]

1. Limited; fixed; definite; as a determinate quantity of matter.

2. Established; settled; positive; as a determinate rule or order.

The determinate counsel of God. Acts 2:23.

3. Decisive; conclusive; as a determinate resolution or judgment.

4. Resolved on.

5. Fixed; resolute.

DETERMINATE, verb transitive To limit. [Not used. See Determine.]

Determinately

DETERMINATELY, adverb

1. With certainty.

The principles of religion are determinately true or false.

2. Resolutely; with fixed resolve. [Unusual.]

Determinateness

DETERMINATENESS, noun The state of being determinate, certain, or precise.

Determination

DETERMINATION, noun

1. The act of determining or deciding.

2. Decision of a question in the mind; firm resolution; settled purpose; as, they have acquainted me with their determination

3. Judicial decision; the ending of a controversy or suit by the judgment of a court. Justice is promoted by a speedy determination of causes, civil and criminal.

4. Absolute direction to a certain end.

Remissness can by no means consist with a constant determination of the will to the greatest apparent good.

5. An ending; a putting an end to; as the determination of a will.

Determinative

DETERMINATIVE, adjective

1. That uncontrollably directs to a certain end.

The determinative power of a just cause.

2. Limiting; that limits or bounds; as, a word may be determinative and limit the subject.

Determinator

DETERMINATOR, noun One who determines.

Determine

DETERMINE, verb transitive [Latin , to bound; a boundary or limit. Gr. See Term.]

1. To end; particularly, to end by the decision or conclusion of a cause, or of a doubtful or controverted point; applicable to the decisions of the mind, or to judicial decisions. We say, I had determined this question in my own mind; the court has determined the cause.

2. To end and fix; to settle ultimately; as, this event determined his fate.

3. To fix on; to settle or establish; as, to determine the proper season for planting seeds.

God--hath determined the times before appointed. Acts 17:26.

4. To end; to limit; to bound; to confine. Yonder hill determines our view. Knowledge is determined by the sight.

5. To give a direction to; to influence the choice; that is, to limit to a particular purpose or direction; as, this circumstance determined him to the study of law. Also, to give a direction to material bodies in their course; as, impulse may determine a moving body to this or that point.

6. To resolve, that is, to end or settle a point in the mind, as in Definition first.

I determined this with myself. 2 Corinthians 2:1.

Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus. Acts 20:16.

7. To destroy. [Not used.]

8. To put an end to; as, to determine a will.

9. To settle or ascertain, as something uncertain.

The character of the soul is determined by the character of its God.

DETERMINE, verb intransitive

1. To resolve; to conclude; to come to a decision.

He shall pay as the judges determine Exodus 21:22.

It is indifferent how the learned shall determine concerning this matter.

2. To end; to terminate. The danger determined by the death of the conspirators. Revolutions often determine in setting up tyranny at home, or in conquest from abroad.

Some estates may determine on future contingencies.

Determined

DETERMINED, participle passive

1. Ended; concluded; decided; limited; fixed; settled; resolved; directed.

2. adjective Having a firm or fixed purpose, as a determined man; or manifesting a firm resolution, as a determined countenance.

Determining

DETERMINING, participle present tense Ending; deciding; fixing; settling; resolving; limiting; directing.

Deterration

DETERRATION, noun [Latin , de and terra, earth.] The uncovering of any thing which is buried or covered with earth; a taking from out of the earth.

Deterred

DETERRED, participle passive [See Deter.] Discouraged or prevented from proceeding or acting, by fear, difficulty or danger.

Deterring

DETERRING, participle passive

1. Discouraging or influencing not to proceed or act, by fear, difficulty, danger, or prospect of evil.

2. adjective Discouraging; frightening.

Detersion

DETERSION, noun [Latin See Deterge.] The act of cleansing, as a sore.

Detersive

DETERSIVE, adjective [See Deterge.] Cleansing; having power to cleanse from offending matter.

DETERSIVE, noun A medicine which has the power of cleansing ulcers, or carrying off foul matter.

Detest

DETEST, verb transitive [Latin , to affirm or bear witness. The primary sense of testor is to set, throw or thrust. To detest is to thrust away.] To abhor; to abominate; to hate extremely; as, to detest crimes or meanness.

Detestable

DETESTABLE, adjective Extremely hateful; abominable; very odious; deserving abhorrence.

Thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things. Ezekiel 5:11.

Detestableness

DETESTABLENESS, noun Extreme hatefulness.

Detestably

DETESTABLY, adverb Very hatefully; abominably.

Detestation

DETESTATION, noun Extreme hatred; abhorrence; with of. The good man entertains uniformly a detestation of sin.

Detested

DETESTED, participle passive Hated extremely; abhorred.

Detester

DETESTER, noun One who abhors.

Detesting

DETESTING, participle present tense Hating extremely; abhorring; abominating.

Dethrone

DETHRONE, verb transitive [Latin]

1. To remove or drive from a throne; to depose; to divest of royal authority and dignity.

2. To divest of rule or power, or of supreme power.

The protector was dethroned.

Dethroned

DETHRONED, participle passive Removed from a throne; deposed.

Dethronement

DETHRONEMENT, noun Removal from a throne; deposition of a king, emperor or prince.

Dethroner

DETHRONER, noun One who dethrones.

Dethroning

DETHRONING, participle present tense Driving from a throne; depriving of regal power.

Detinue

DETINUE, noun In law, a writ of detinue is one that lies against him who wrongfully detains goods or chattels delivered to him, or in his possession. This writ lies for a thing certain and valuable, as for a horse, cow, sheep, plate, cloth, etc., to recover the thing itself or damages for the detainer.

Detonate

DETONATE, verb transitive [Latin , to thunder.] In chemistry, to cause to explode; to burn or inflame with a sudden report.

DETONATE, verb intransitive To explode; to burn with a sudden report. Niter detonates with sulphur.

Detonated

DETONATED, participle passive Exploded; burnt with explosion.

Detonating

DETONATING, participle present tense Exploding; inflaming with a sudden report.

Detonation

DETONATION, noun An explosion or sudden report made by the inflammation of certain combustible bodies, as fulminating gold. detonation is not decrepitation.

Detonization

DETONIZATION, noun The acct of exploding, as certain combustible bodies.

Detonize

DETONIZE, verb intransitive [See Detonate.] To cause to explode; to burn with an explosion; to calcine with detonation.

DETONIZE, verb intransitive To explode; to burn with a sudden report.

This precipitate-detonizes with a considerable noise.

Detonized

DETONIZED, participle passive Exploded, as a combustible body.

Detonizing

DETONIZING, participle present tense Exploding with a sudden report.

Detorsion

DETORSION, noun A turning or wresting; perversion.

Detort

DETORT, verb transitive [Latin , to twist.] To twist; to wrest; to pervert; to turn from the original or plain meaning.

Detorted

DETORTED, participle passive Twisted; wrested; perverted.

Detorting

DETORTING, participle present tense Wresting; perverting.

Detour

DETOUR, noun A turning; a circuitous way.

Detract

DETRACT, verb transitive [Latin , to draw. See Draw and Drag.]

1. Literally, to draw from. Hence, to take away from reputation or merit, through envy, malice or other motive; hence, to detract from, is to lessen or depreciate reputation or worth; to derogate from.

Never circulate reports that detract from the reputation or honor of your neighbor, without obvious necessity to justify the act.

2. To take away; to withdraw, in a literal sense.

Detraction

DETRACTION, noun [Latin] The act of taking something from the reputation or worth of another, with the view to lessen him in estimation; censure; a lessening of worth; the act of depreciating another, from envy or malice. detraction may consist in representing merit, as less than it really is; or in the imputation of faults, vices or crimes, which impair reputation; and if such imputation is false, it is slander or defamation.

Detractious

DETRACTIOUS, adjective Containing detraction; lessening reputation. [Not in use.]

Detractive

DETRACTIVE, adjective Having the quality or tendency to lessen the worth or estimation.

Detractor

DETRACTOR, noun One who takes away or impairs the reputation of another injuriously; one who attempts to lessen the worth or honor of another.

Detractory

DETRACTORY, adjective Derogatory; defamatory by denial of desert; with from.

Detractress

DETRACTRESS, noun A female detractor; a censorious woman.

Detrect

DETRECT, verb transitive [Latin] To refuse. [Not in use.]

Detriment

DETRIMENT, noun [Latin , worn off.] Loss; damage; injury; mischief; harm; diminution. We speak of detriment to interest, property, religion, morals, reputation, and to land or buildings. It is a word of very general application.

Detrimental

DETRIMENTAL, adjective Injurious; hurtful; causing loss or damage.

A spirit of speculation may be detrimental to regular commerce.

Detrition

DETRITION, noun [Latin] A wearing off.

Detritus

DETRITUS, noun [Latin , worn; to wear.] In geology, a mass of substances worn off or detached from solid bodies by attrition; as diluvial detritus

Detrude

DETRUDE, verb transitive [Latin , to thrust.] To thrust down; to push down with force.

Detruded

DETRUDED, participle passive Thrust or forced down.

Detruding

DETRUDING, participle present tense Thrusting or forcing down.

Detruncate

DETRUNCATE, verb transitive [Latin , to cut shorter; cut short. See Trench.] To cut off; to lop; to shorten by cutting.

Detruncation

DETRUNCATION, noun The act of cutting off.

Detrusion

DETRUSION, noun s as z. [See Detrude.] The act of thrusting or driving down.

Deturpate

DETURPATE, verb transitive [Latin] To defile. [Little used.]

Deuce

DEUCE, noun Two; a card with two spots; a die with two spots; a term used in gaming.

DEUCE, noun A demon. [See Duse.]

Deuterogamist

DEUTEROGAMIST, noun [infra.] One who marries the second time.

Deuterogamy

DEUTEROGAMY, noun [Gr., second; marriage.] A second marriage after the death of the first husband or wife.

Deuteronomy

DEUTERONOMY, noun [Gr., second; law.] The second law, or second giving of the law by Moses; the name given to the fifth book of the Pentateuch.

Deutoxyd

DEUTOXYD, noun [Gr., second; strictly.] In chemistry, a substance oxydized in the second degree.

Devaporation

DEVAPORATION, noun [Latin] The change of vapor into water, as in the generation of rain.

Devast

DEVAST, verb transitive [Latin] To lay waste; to plunder. [Not in use.]

Devastate

DEVASTATE, verb transitive [Latin , to waste. See Waste.] To lay waste; to waste; to ravage; to desolate; to destroy improvements.

Devastated

DEVASTATED, participle passive Laid waste; ravaged.

Devastating

DEVASTATING, participle present tense Laying waste; desolating.

Devastation

DEVASTATION, noun [Latin]

1. Waste; ravage; desolation; destruction of works of art and natural productions which are necessary or useful to man; havock; as by armies, fire, flood, etc.

2. IN law, waste of the goods of the deceased by an executor, or administrator.