n. See Oriflamme. [ 1913 Webster ]

. A sporting rifle for use at short ranges, employing a large charge of powder and a light (short) bullet, giving a high initial velocity and consequently a flat trajectory. It is usually of moderately large caliber. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

A rifle adapted to minie balls. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ F. oriflamme, OF. oriflambe, LL. auriflamma; L. aurum gold + flamma flame; cf. L. flammula a little banner. So called because it was a flag of red silk, split into many points, and borne on a gilded lance. ] 1. The ancient royal standard of France. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A standard or ensign, in battle. “A handkerchief like an oriflamb.” Longfellow. [ 1913 Webster ]

And be your oriflamme to-day the helmet of Navarre. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Rifled p. pr. & vb. n. Rifling ] [ F. rifler to rifle, sweep away; of uncertain origin. CF. Raff. ] 1. To seize and bear away by force; to snatch away; to carry off. [ 1913 Webster ]

Till time shall rifle every youthful grace. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To strip; to rob; to pillage. Piers Plowman. [ 1913 Webster ]

Stand, sir, and throw us that you have about ye:
If not, we'll make you sit and rifle you. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To raffle. [ Obs. ] J. Webster. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. 1. To raffle. [ Obs. ] Chapman. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To commit robbery. [ R. ] Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Akin to Dan. rifle, or riffel, the rifle of a gun, a chamfer (cf. riffel, riffelbösse, a rifle gun, rifle to rifle a gun, G. riefeln, riefen, to chamfer, groove), and E. rive. See Rive, and cf. Riffle, Rivel. ] 1. A gun, the inside of whose barrel is grooved with spiral channels, thus giving the ball a rotary motion and insuring greater accuracy of fire. As a military firearm it has superseded the musket. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. pl. (Mil.) A body of soldiers armed with rifles. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A strip of wood covered with emery or a similar material, used for sharpening scythes. [ 1913 Webster ]

Rifle pit (Mil.), a trench for sheltering sharpshooters. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. 1. To grove; to channel; especially, to groove internally with spiral channels; as, to rifle a gun barrel or a cannon. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To whet with a rifle. See Rifle, n., 3. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) Any one of several species of beautiful birds of Australia and New Guinea, of the genera Ptiloris and Craspidophora, allied to the paradise birds. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The largest and best known species is Ptiloris paradisea of Australia. Its general color is rich velvety brown, glossed with lilac; the under parts are varied with rich olive green, and the head, throat, and two middle tail feathers are brilliant metallic green. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Rifleman (Mil.) A soldier armed with a rifle. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who rifles; a robber. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (a) The act or process of making the grooves in a rifled cannon or gun barrel. (b) The system of grooves in a rifled gun barrel or cannon. [ 1913 Webster ]

Shunt rifling, rifling for cannon, in which one side of the groove is made deeper than the other, to facilitate loading with shot having projections which enter by the deeper part of the grooves. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. ros, roris, dew + fluens, p. pr. of fluere to flow. ] Flowing with dew. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

{ or } n. (Mil.) A breech-loading rifle formerly used in the British service; -- so called from the inventor. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ OE. trifle, trufle, OF. trufle mockery, raillery, trifle, probably the same word as F. truffe truffle, the word being applied to any small or worthless object. See Truffle. ] 1. A thing of very little value or importance; a paltry, or trivial, affair. [ 1913 Webster ]

With such poor trifles playing. Drayton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Trifles light as air
Are to the jealous confirmation strong
As proofs of holy writ. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Small sands the mountain, moments make year,
And frifles life. Young. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A dish composed of sweetmeats, fruits, cake, wine, etc., with syllabub poured over it. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Trifled p. pr. & vb. n. Trifling ] [ OE. trifelen, truflen. See Trifle, n. ] To act or talk without seriousness, gravity, weight, or dignity; to act or talk with levity; to indulge in light or trivial amusements. [ 1913 Webster ]

They trifle, and they beat the air about nothing which toucheth us. Hooker. [ 1913 Webster ]

To trifle with, to play the fool with; to treat without respect or seriousness; to mock; as, to trifle with one's feelings, or with sacred things. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. 1. To make of no importance; to treat as a trifle. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To spend in vanity; to fritter away; to waste; as, to trifle away money. “We trifle time.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who trifles. Waterland. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Being of small value or importance; trivial; paltry; as, a trifling debt; a trifling affair. -- Tri"fling*ly, adv. -- Tri"fling*ness, n. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. [ Pref. tri- + L. flos, floris, flower. ] (Bot.) Three-flowered; having or bearing three flowers; as, a triflorous peduncle. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. tri- + fluctuation. ] A concurrence of three waves. [ Obs. ] “A trifluctuation of evils.” Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

See accommodating.
See aching.
See ailing.
See aiming.
See alarming.
See altering.
See appreciating.
See approving.
See aspiring.
See assisting.
See attempting.
See attending.
See bearing.
See befitting.
See beginning.
See believing.
See bleaching.
See bleeding.
See blemishing.
See blenching.
See blossoming.
See blushing.
See boding.
See branching.
See breathing.
See burning.
See calculating.
See ceasing.
See changing.
See charming.
See communicating.
See complaining.
See complying.
See conceiving.
See conducing.
See confessing.
See conniving.
See consenting.
See considering.
See conspiring.
See consulting.
See consuming.
See contending.
See contriving.
See conversing.
See convincing.
See dawning.
See decaying.
See delaying.
See depending.
See derogating.
See deserving.
See desiring.
See despairing.
See detesting.
See deviating.
See differencing.
See discerning.
See discording.
See discriminating.
See disobliging.
See dispensing.
See dissembling.
See dissolving.
See distinguishing.
See distracting.
See disturbing.
See doubting.
See dreading.
See drooping.
See ebbing.
See echoing.
See edifying.
See ending.
See enduring.
See engaging.
See enjoying.
See entering.
See enterprising.
See entertaining.
See envying.
See existing.
See fadging.
See fading.
See fainting.
See faltering.
See fearing.
See feigning.
See fighting.
See fitting.
See flagging.
See flattering.
See flinching.
See folding.
See forbearing.
See foreboding.
See foreseeing.
See forgiving.
See giving.
See grudging.
See harming.
See heeding.
See hesitating.
See hoping.
See hurting.
See importing.
See imposing.
See improving.
See interesting.
See intermitting.
See intoxicating.
See inviting.
See jarring.
See laboring.
See lingering.
See listening.
See loving.
See meddling.
See meriting.
See mistrusting.
See moving.
See murmuring.
See obliging.
See observing.
See offending.
See opening.
See pardoning.
See paying.
See perceiving.
See performing.
See perishing.
See pitying.
See pleasing.
See possessing.
See preaching.
See prepossessing.
See presuming.
See pretending.
See prevailing.
See prevaricating.
See profiting.
See promising.
See proving.
See quailing.
See questioning.
See reasoning.
See recalling.
See reclining.
See recurring.
See referring.
See reflecting.
See refunding.
See refusing.
See rejoicing.
See relaxing.
See relishing.
See remembering.
See repenting.
See repining.
See reproving.
See repulsing.
See resisting.
See resolving.
See resting.
See returning.
See rewarding.
See sanctifying.
See satisfying.
See searching.
See seeing.
See setting.
See shrinking.
See sinking.
See sleeping.
See slipping.
See slumbering.
See speaking.
See stinting.
See stirring.
See stooping.
See submitting.
See sufficing.
See suiting.
See surging.
See suspecting.
See sweating.
See swerving.
See sympathizing.
See tasting.
See thriving.
See tiring.
See toiling.
See trading.
See trembling.
See trespassing.
See trifling.
See vacillating.
See varying.
See walking.
See wandering.
See waning.
See wasting.
See wavering.
See weeping.
See winking.
See winning.
See withdrawing.
See withering.
See wondering.
See working.
See writing.
See yielding.
----- and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

The above classes of words are unlimited in extent, and such compounds may be formed by any writer or speaker at will from almost all the adjectives or participles in the language, excepting those which have a recognized and usual negative correspondent with the prefix -in. No attempt will be made, therefore, to define them all in this Dictionary; many will be omitted from its Vocabulary which are negations of the simple word, and are readily explained by prefixing a not to the latter. Derivatives of these words in -ly and -ness will also, for the most part, be omitted for the same or similar reasons. [ 1913 Webster ]

There will be inserted as separate articles with definitions, the following: -- [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Those which have acquired an opposed or contrary, instead of a merely negative, meaning; as, unfriendly, ungraceful, unpalatable, unquiet, and the like; or else an intensive sense more than a prefixed not would express; as, unending, unparalleled, undisciplined, undoubted, unsafe, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Those which have the value of independent words, inasmuch as the simple words are either not used at all, or are rarely, or at least much less frequently, used; as, unavoidable, unconscionable, undeniable, unspeakable, unprecedented, unruly, and the like; or inasmuch as they are used in a different sense from the usual meaning of the primitive, or especially in one of the significations of the latter; as, unaccountable, unalloyed, unbelieving, unpretending, unreserved, and the like; or inasmuch as they are so frequently and familiarly used that they are hardly felt to be of negative origin; as, uncertain, uneven, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Those which are anomalous, provincial, or, for some other reason, not desirable to be used, and are so indicated; as, unpure for impure, unsatisfaction for dissatisfaction, unexpressible for inexpressible, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

II. Un- is prefixed to nouns to express the absence of, or the contrary of, that which the noun signifies; as, unbelief, unfaith, unhealth, unrest, untruth, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Compounds of this last class are given in full in their proper order in the Vocabulary. [ 1913 Webster ]