n. a petty officer on a merchant ship who controls the work of other seamen.
Syn. -- boatswain, bos'n, bosun, bo'sun. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. 1. a whip used as an instrument of punishment consisting of nine pieces of knotted line or cord fastened to a handle; -- formerly used to flog offenders on the bare back; -- called also the cat. It was used in the British Navy to maintain discipline on board sailing ships.
Syn. -- cat. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

See Corposant; also Saint Elmo's Fire, under Saint. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The forecastle, a superstructure in the bow of a merchant ship where the crew is housed; -- the spelling is intended to reflect the common pronunciation among seamen.
Syn. -- forecastle. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

n. 1. (Bot.) A plant of the genus Mirabilis. There are about half a dozen species, natives of the warmer parts of America. The common four-o'clock is M. Jalapa. Its flowers are white, yellow, and red, and open toward sunset, or earlier in cloudy weather; hence the name. It is also called marvel of Peru, and afternoon lady. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Zool.) The friar bird; -- so called from its cry, which resembles these words. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ }, n. A very diminutive person. [ Colloq. ] liwell. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. (Biol.) A large orange-colored luminescent mushroom, Clitocybe illudens, also classified as Omphalotus olearius. It is poisonous and is sometimes found on hardwood tree stumps. [ wns=1 ]
Syn. -- jack-a-lantern, Clitocybe illudens. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

2. a pale light sometimes seen at night over marshy ground; an ignis fatuus; a will-o'-the-wisp. [ wns=2 ]“[ Newspaper speculations ] supplying so many more jack-o'-lanterns to the future historian.” Lowell.
Syn. -- friar's lantern, ignis fatuus, will-o'-the-wisp. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

3. A lantern carved from a hollowed-out pumpkin, with holes cut in the rind and so shaped that when it is illuminated by a candle inside, the features of a human face, cat's face, etc. appear in a glowing yellow color. It is used mostly as a decoration at Halloween. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

n. A sedgelike spring-flowering herb (Anigozanthus manglesii) of Australia, having clustered flowers covered with woolly hairs.
Syn. -- kangaroo paw, kangaroo-foot plant, Australian sword lily, Anigozanthus manglesii. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

adj. [ from KO, v. t. ] rendered unconscious, usually by a blow.
Syn. -- knocked out(predicate), kayoed, out(predicate), stunned. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. 1. An old tune of a dance, the name of which made it a proverbial expression of levity, especially in love matters. Nares. “Best sing it to the tune of light-o'-love.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Hence: A light or wanton woman; a woman inconstant in love. Called also light-of-love. Beau. & Fl. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An Asiatic wild sheep (Ovis poli) with exceptionally large horns; sometimes considered a variety of the argali: Ovis ammon poli. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

. [ Ir. o a descendant. ] A prefix to Irish family names, which signifies grandson or descendant of, and is a character of dignity; as, O'Neil, O'Carrol. [ 1913 Webster ]

prep. A shortened form of of or on. “At the turning o' the tide.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

prep. & adv. A contr. of Over. [ Poetic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ So named after Tam o'Shanter, a character in Burns's poem of the same name. ] A kind of Scotch cap of wool, worsted, or the like, having a round, flattish top much wider than the band which fits the head, and usually having a tassel in the center. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. (Bot.) A plant, the star-of-Bethlehem. See under Star. [ 1913 Webster ]

A contraction of Through. [ 1913 Webster ]

Formerly, a wandering mendicant discharged as incurable from Bethlehem Hospital, England; hence, a wandering mendicant, either mad or feigning to be so; a madman; a bedlamite. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. See Ignis fatuus and phosphine. [ 1913 Webster + PJC ]