v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Discovered p. pr. & vb. n. Discovering. ] [ OE. discoveren, discuren, descuren, OF. descovrir, descouvrir, F. découvrir; des- (L. dis-) + couvrir to cover. See Cover. ] 1. To uncover. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Whether any man hath pulled down or discovered any church. Abp. Grindal. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To disclose; to lay open to view; to make visible; to reveal; to make known; to show (what has been secret, unseen, or unknown). [ Archaic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Go, draw aside the curtains, and discover
The several caskets to this noble prince. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Prosperity doth best discover vice; but adversity doth best discover virtue. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

We will discover ourselves unto them. 1 Sam. xiv. 8. [ 1913 Webster ]

Discover not a secret to another. Prov. xxv. 9. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To obtain for the first time sight or knowledge of, as of a thing existing already, but not perceived or known; to find; to ascertain; to espy; to detect. [ wns=1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Some to discover islands far away. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To manifest without design; to show. [ 1913 Webster ]

The youth discovered a taste for sculpture. C. J. Smith. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To explore; to examine. [ Obs. ]

Syn. -- To disclose; bring out; exhibit; show; manifest; reveal; communicate; impart; tell; espy; find; out; detect. -- To Discover, Invent. We discover what existed before, but remained unknown; we invent by forming combinations which are either entirely new, or which attain their end by means unknown before. Columbus discovered America; Newton discovered the law of gravitation; Whitney invented the cotton gin; Galileo invented the telescope. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To discover or show one's self. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

This done, they discover. Decker. [ 1913 Webster ]

Nor was this the first time that they discovered to be followers of this world. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality of being discoverable. [ R. ] Carlyle. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being discovered, found out, or perceived; as, many minute animals are discoverable only by the help of the microscope; truths discoverable by human industry. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who discovers; one who first comes to the knowledge of something; one who discovers an unknown country, or a new principle, truth, or fact. [ 1913 Webster ]

The discoverers and searchers of the land. Sir W. Raleigh. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A scout; an explorer. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Discovery. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. découvert uncovered, OF. descovert. See Discover, Covert. ] (Law) Not covert; not within the bonds of matrimony; unmarried; -- applied either to a woman who has never married or to a widow. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An uncovered place or part. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

At discovert, uncovered. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. dis- + coverture: cf. OF. descoverture. ] 1. Discovery. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) A state of being released from coverture; freedom of a woman from the coverture of a husband. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Discoveries 1. The action of discovering; exposure to view; laying open; showing; as, the discovery of a plot. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A making known; revelation; disclosure; as, a bankrupt is bound to make a full discovery of his assets. [ 1913 Webster ]

In the clear discoveries of the next [ world ]. South. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Finding out or ascertaining something previously unknown or unrecognized; as, Harvey's discovery of the circulation of the blood. [ 1913 Webster ]

A brilliant career of discovery and conquest. Prescott. [ 1913 Webster ]

We speak of the “invention” of printing, the discovery of America. Trench. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. That which is discovered; a thing found out, or for the first time ascertained or recognized; as, the properties of the magnet were an important discovery. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Exploration; examination. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]