n. (Bot.) Benne (Sesamum orientale); also, its seeds; -- so called in the West Indies. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Sp., cowherd, fr. vaca a cow, L. vacca. Cf. Vacher. ] One who has charge of cattle, horses, etc.; a herdsman; a cowboy. [ Southwestern U. S. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Said to be fr. Vargas, name of a village in Spain. ] (Art) A decorative cabinet, of a form originating in Spain, the body being rectangular and supported on legs or an ornamental framework and the front opening downwards on hinges to serve as a writing desk. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ Russ., pail. ] A Russian liquid measure, equal to 3.249 gallons of U. S. standard measure, or 2.706 imperial gallons. McElrath. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ Cf. Virgouleuse. ] (Bot.) See Virgalieu. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. versus, p. p. of vertere to turn: cf. F. verso. ] (Print.) The reverse, or left-hand, page of a book or a folded sheet of paper; -- opposed to recto. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. E. Vertigoes L. Vertigines [ L., fr. vertere to turn. See Verse. ] 1. (Med.) Dizziness or swimming of the head; an affection of the head in which objects, though stationary, appear to move in various directions, and the person affected finds it difficult to maintain an erect posture; giddiness. Quain. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Zool.) Any one of numerous species of small land snails belonging to the genus Vertigo, having an elongated or conical spiral shell and usually teeth in the aperture. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., a bat. ] (Zool.) A genus of bats including some of the common small insectivorous species of North America and Europe. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Vespilloes [ L. ] (Rom. Antiq.) One who carried out the dead bodies of the poor at night for burial. [ 1913 Webster ]

Like vespilloes or grave makers. Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Vetoes [ L. veto I forbid. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. An authoritative prohibition or negative; a forbidding; an interdiction. [ 1913 Webster ]

This contemptuous veto of her husband's on any intimacy with her family. G. Eliot. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Specifically: -- [ 1913 Webster ]

(a) A power or right possessed by one department of government to forbid or prohibit the carrying out of projects attempted by another department; especially, in a constitutional government, a power vested in the chief executive to prevent the enactment of measures passed by the legislature. Such a power may be absolute, as in the case of the Tribunes of the People in ancient Rome, or limited, as in the case of the President of the United States. Called also the veto power. [ 1913 Webster ]

(b) The exercise of such authority; an act of prohibition or prevention; as, a veto is probable if the bill passes. [ 1913 Webster ]

(c) A document or message communicating the reasons of the executive for not officially approving a proposed law; -- called also veto message. [ U. S. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Veto is not a term employed in the Federal Constitution, but seems to be of popular use only. Abbott. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Vetoed p. pr. & vb. n. Vetoing. ] To prohibit; to negative; also, to refuse assent to, as a legislative bill, and thus prevent its enactment; as, to veto an appropriation bill. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n.; pl. Vetturini [ It. ] 1. One who lets or drives a vettura. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A vettura. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖prop. n.; pl. E. Vibrios L. Vibriones [ NL., fr. L. vibrare to vibrate, to move by undulations. ] (Biol.) A genus of motile bacteria characterized by short, slightly sinuous filaments and an undulatory motion; also, an individual of this genus. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. vigesimus quartus twenty-fourth. Cf. Duodecimo. ] Having twenty-four leaves to a sheet; as, a vigesimo-quarto form, book, leaf, size, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. -tos A book composed of sheets each of which is folded into twenty-four leaves; hence, indicating more or less definitely a size of book so made; -- usually written 24mo, or 24°. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖a. & adv. [ It. ] (Mus.) Vigorous; energetic; with energy; -- a direction to perform a passage with energy and force. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pg. vinhatico. ] Madeira mahogany; the coarse, dark-colored wood of the Persea Indica. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ It. violoncello, dim. of violone a bass viol. See Violone. ] (Mus.) A stringed instrument of music; a bass viol of four strings, or a bass violin with long, large strings, giving sounds an octave lower than the viola, or tenor or alto violin. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Viragoes [ L. virago, -intis, from vir a man. See Virile. ] 1. A woman of extraordinary stature, strength, and courage; a woman who has the robust body and masculine mind of a man; a female warrior. [ 1913 Webster ]

To arms! to arms! the fierce virago cries. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Hence, a mannish woman; a bold, turbulent woman; a termagant; a vixen. [ 1913 Webster ]

Virago . . . serpent under femininity. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L., a species of bird. ] (Zool.) Any one of numerous species of American singing birds belonging to Vireo and allied genera of the family Vireonidae. In many of the species the back is greenish, or olive-colored. Called also greenlet. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In the Eastern United States the most common species are the white-eyed vireo (Vireo Noveboracensis), the red-eyed vireo (Vireo olivaceus), the blue-headed, or solitary, vireo (Vireo solitarius), the warbling vireo (Vireo gilvus), and the yellow-throated vireo (Vireo flavifrons). All these are noted for the sweetness of their songs. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. virgo a virgin, the constellation Virgo in the zodiac. See Virgin. ] (Astron.) (a) A sign of the zodiac which the sun enters about the 21st of August, marked thus [ &virgo_; ] in almanacs. (b) A constellation of the zodiac, now occupying chiefly the sign Libra, and containing the bright star Spica. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Virtuosos It. Virtuosi [ It. See Virtuous. ] 1. One devoted to virtu; one skilled in the fine arts, in antiquities, and the like; a collector or ardent admirer of curiosities, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

Virtuoso the Italians call a man who loves the noble arts, and is a critic in them. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Mus.) A performer on some instrument, as the violin or the piano, who excels in the technical part of his art; a brilliant concert player. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A vista; a prospect. [ R. ] Gay. [ 1913 Webster ]

Through the long visto of a thousand years. Young. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., a kind of tetter, fr. vitium blemish, vice. ] (Med.) A rare skin disease consisting in the development of smooth, milk-white spots upon various parts of the body. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Volcanoes [ It. volcano, vulcano, fr. L. Vulcanus Vulkan, the god of fire. See Vulkan. ] (Geol.) A mountain or hill, usually more or less conical in form, from which lava, cinders, steam, sulphur gases, and the like, are ejected; -- often popularly called a burning mountain. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Volcanoes include many of the most conspicuous and lofty mountains of the earth, as Mt. Vesuvius in Italy (4, 000 ft. high), Mt. Loa in Hawaii (14, 000 ft.), Cotopaxi in South America (nearly 20, 000 ft.), which are examples of active volcanoes. The crater of a volcano is usually a pit-shaped cavity, often of great size. The summit crater of Mt. Loa has a maximum length of 13, 000 ft., and a depth of nearly 800 feet. Beside the chief crater, a volcano may have a number of subordinate craters. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Sp. vómito, fr. L. vomitus. See Vomit, n. ] (Med.) The yellow fever in its worst form, when it is usually attended with black vomit. See Black vomit. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. See Voodooism. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. One who practices voodooism; a negro sorcerer. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of or pertaining to voodooism, or a voodoo; as, voodoo incantations. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A volcano. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]