n. [ Gr. me`ros a part + karpo`s fruit. ] (Bot.) One carpel of an umbelliferous fruit. See Cremocarp. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_; a part. ] (Biol.) A permanent colony of cells or plastids which may remain isolated, like Rotifer, or may multiply by gemmation to form higher aggregates, termed zoides. Perrier. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ F. méridien, L. meridianus pertaining to noon, fr. meridies noon, midday, for older medidies; medius mid, middle + dies day. See Mid, and Diurnal. ] 1. Being at, or pertaining to, midday; belonging to, or passing through, the highest point attained by the sun in his diurnal course. “Meridian hour.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Tables . . . to find the altitude meridian. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Pertaining to the highest point or culmination; as, meridian splendor. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. méridien. See Meridian, a. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Midday; noon. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Hence: The highest point, as of success, prosperity, or the like; culmination. [ 1913 Webster ]

I have touched the highest point of all my greatness,
And from that full meridian of my glory
I haste now to my setting. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Astron.) A great circle of the sphere passing through the poles of the heavens and the zenith of a given place. It is crossed by the sun at midday. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Geog.) A great circle on the surface of the earth, passing through the poles and any given place; also, the half of such a circle included between the poles. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The planes of the geographical and astronomical meridians coincide. Meridians, on a map or globe, are lines drawn at certain intervals due north and south, or in the direction of the poles. [ 1913 Webster ]

Calculated for the meridian of, or
fitted to the meridian of, or
adapted to the meridian of, suited to the local circumstances, capabilities, or special requirements of. [ 1913 Webster ]

All other knowledge merely serves the concerns of this life, and is fitted to the meridian thereof. Sir M. Hale. [ 1913 Webster ]

--
First meridian or
prime meridian, the meridian from which longitudes are reckoned. The meridian of Greenwich is the one commonly employed in calculations of longitude by geographers, and in actual practice, although in various countries other and different meridians, chiefly those which pass through the capitals of the countries, are occasionally used; as, in France, the meridian of Paris; in the United States, the meridian of Washington, etc. --
Guide meridian (Public Land Survey), a line, marked by monuments, running North and South through a section of country between other more carefully established meridians called principal meridians, used for reference in surveying. [ U.S. ] --
Magnetic meridian, a great circle, passing through the zenith and coinciding in direction with the magnetic needle, or a line on the earth's surface having the same direction. --
Meridian circle (Astron.), an instrument consisting of a telescope attached to a large graduated circle and so mounted that the telescope revolves like the transit instrument in a meridian plane. By it the right ascension and the declination of a star may be measured in a single observation. --
Meridian instrument (Astron.), any astronomical instrument having a telescope that rotates in a meridian plane. --
Meridian of a globe, or
Brass meridian, a graduated circular ring of brass, in which the artificial globe is suspended and revolves. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ F. méridional, L. meridionalis, fr. meridies midday. See Meridian. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Of or pertaining to the meridian. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Having a southern aspect; southern; southerly. [ 1913 Webster ]

Offices that require heat . . . should be meridional. Sir H. Wotton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Meridional distance, the distance or departure from the meridian; the easting or westing. --
Meridional parts, parts of the meridian in Mercator's projection, corresponding to each minute of latitude from the equator up to 70 or 80 degrees; tabulated numbers representing these parts used in projecting charts, and in solving cases in Mercator's sailing. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The state of being in the meridian. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Position in the south; aspect toward the south. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In the direction of the meridian. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. mérelle, marelle, marelles, LL. marella, marrella. Cf. Morris the game. ] A boy's play, called also fivepenny morris. See Morris. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ F. ] A delicate pastry made of powdered sugar and the whites of eggs whipped up, -- with jam or cream added. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Sp. merino moving from pasture to pasture, fr. merino a royal judge and superintendent or inspector of sheep walks, LL. merinus, fr. majorinus, i. e., major vill&unr_;, fr. L. major greater. See Major. Merino sheep are driven at certain seasons from one part of Spain to another, in large flocks, for pasturage. ] 1. Of or pertaining to a variety of sheep with very fine wool, originally bred in Spain. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Made of the wool of the merino sheep. [ 1913 Webster ]