n. [ L. labyrinthus, Gr. laby`rinthos: cf. F. labyrinthe. ] 1. An edifice or place full of intricate passageways which render it difficult to find the way from the interior to the entrance; as, the Egyptian and Cretan labyrinths. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The Labyrinth of Classical Mythology was a vast maze constructed by Daedalus on the island of Crete, in order to confine the Minotaur; the task was done at the command of King Minos. One theory suggests that the myth had some basis in the structure of the palace of King Minos at Knossos, in Crete, it being a multistoried royal palace with labyrinthine passages between rooms. [ PJC ]

2. Hence: Any intricate or involved inclosure; especially, an ornamental maze or inclosure in a park or garden, having high hedges separating confusingly convoluted passages. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Any object or arrangement of an intricate or involved form, or having a very complicated nature. [ 1913 Webster ]

The serpent . . . fast sleeping soon he found,
In labyrinth of many a round self-rolled. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

The labyrinth of the mind. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. An inextricable or bewildering difficulty. [ 1913 Webster ]

I' the maze and winding labyrinths o' the world. Denham. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Anat.) The internal ear. See Note under Ear. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Metal.) A series of canals through which a stream of water is directed for suspending, carrying off, and depositing at different distances, the ground ore of a metal. Ure. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. (Arch.) A pattern or design representing a maze, -- often inlaid in the tiled floor of a church, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Maze; confusion; intricacy; windings. -- Labyrinth, Maze. Labyrinth, originally; the name of an edifice or excavation, carries the idea of design, and construction in a permanent form, while maze is used of anything confused or confusing, whether fixed or shifting. Maze is less restricted in its figurative uses than labyrinth. We speak of the labyrinth of the ear, or of the mind, and of a labyrinth of difficulties; but of the mazes of the dance, the mazes of political intrigue, or of the mind being in a maze. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to, or resembling, a labyrinth; intricate; labyrinthian. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Intricately winding; like a labyrinth; perplexed; labyrinthal. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ See Labyrinth, and Branchia. ] (Zool.) Of or pertaining to the Labyrinthici. -- n. One of the Labyrinthici.

{ } a. [ L. labyrinthicus: cf. F. labyrinthique. ] Like or pertaining to a labyrinth. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. pl. [ NL. See Labyrinth. ] (Zool.) An order of teleostean fishes, including the Anabas, or climbing perch, and other allied fishes. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ They have, connected with the gill chamber, a special cavity in which a labyrinthiform membrane is arranged so as to retain water to supply the gills while the fish leaves the water and travels about on land, or even climbs trees. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Labyrinth + -form: cf. F. labyrinthiforme. ] Having the form of a labyrinth; intricate. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to, or like, a labyrinth; labyrinthal; labyrinthian. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. laby`rinthos labyrinth + 'odoy`s, 'odo`ntos, tooth. ] (Paleon.) A genus of very large fossil amphibians, of the Triassic period, having bony plates on the under side of the body. It is the type of the order Labyrinthodonta. Called also Mastodonsaurus. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Paleon.) Of or pertaining to the Labyrinthodonta. -- n. One of the Labyrinthodonta. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖prop. n. pl. [ NL. See Labyrinthodon. ] (Paleon.) An extinct order of Amphibia, including the typical genus Labyrinthodon, and many other allied forms, from the Carboniferous, Permian, and Triassic formations. By recent writers they are divided into two or more orders. See Stegocephala. [ 1913 Webster ]