| Cabal | n. [ F. cabale cabal, cabala, LL. cabala cabala, fr. Heb. qabbālēh reception, tradition, mysterious doctrine, fr. qābal to take or receive, in Piël qibbel to adopt (a doctrine). ] 1. Tradition; occult doctrine. See Cabala. [ Obs. ] Hakewill. [ 1913 Webster ] 2. A secret. [ Obs. ] “The measuring of the temple, a cabal found out but lately.” B. Jonson. [ 1913 Webster ] 3. A number of persons united in some close design, usually to promote their private views and interests in church or state by intrigue; a secret association composed of a few designing persons; a junto. [ 1913 Webster ] It so happend, by a whimsical coincidence, that in 1671 the cabinet consisted of five persons, the initial letters of whose names made up the word cabal; Clifford, Arlington, Buckingham, Ashley, and Lauderdale. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ] 4. The secret artifices or machinations of a few persons united in a close design; intrigue. [ 1913 Webster ] By cursed cabals of women. Dryden. Syn. -- Junto; intrigue; plot; combination; conspiracy. -- Cabal, Combination, Faction. An association for some purpose considered to be bad is the idea common to these terms. A combination is an organized union of individuals for mutual support, in urging their demands or resisting the claims of others, and may be good or bad according to circumstances; as, a combiniation of workmen or of employers to effect or to prevent a change in prices. A cabal is a secret association of a few individuals who seek by cunning practices to obtain office and power. A faction is a larger body than a cabal, employed for selfish purposes in agitating the community and working up an excitement with a view to change the existing order of things. “Selfishness, insubordination, and laxity of morals give rise to combinations, which belong particularly to the lower orders of society. Restless, jealous, ambitious, and little minds are ever forming cabals. Factions belong especially to free governments, and are raised by busy and turbulent spirits for selfish purposes”. Crabb. [ 1913 Webster ] |
| Cabala | n. [ LL. See Cabal, n. ] 1. A kind of occult theosophy or traditional interpretation of the Scriptures among Jewish rabbis and certain mediæval Christians, which treats of the nature of god and the mystery of human existence. It assumes that every letter, word, number, and accent of Scripture contains a hidden sense; and it teaches the methods of interpretation for ascertaining these occult meanings. The cabalists pretend even to foretell events by this means. [ 1913 Webster ] 2. Secret science in general; mystic art; mystery. [ 1913 Webster ] |
| Caballeria | ‖n. [ Sp. See Caballero. ] An ancient Spanish land tenure similar to the English knight's fee; hence, in Spain and countries settled by the Spanish, a land measure of varying size. In Cuba it is about 33 acres; in Puerto Rico, about 194 acres; in the Southwestern United States, about 108 acres. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ] |
