a. Resembling little heaps. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Med.) Good against convulsions. J. Floyer. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ L. avulsus, p. p. of avellere to tear off; a (ab) + vellere to pluck. ] To pluck or pull off. Shenstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. avulsio. ] 1. A tearing asunder; a forcible separation. [ 1913 Webster ]

The avulsion of two polished superficies. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A fragment torn off. J. Barlow. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Law) The sudden removal of lands or soil from the estate of one man to that of another by an inundation or a current, or by a sudden change in the course of a river by which a part of the estate of one man is cut off and joined to the estate of another. The property in the part thus separated, or cut off, continues in the original owner. Wharton. Burrill. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. avunculus uncle. ] Of or pertaining to an uncle. [ 1913 Webster ]

In these rare instances, the law of pedigree, whether direct or avuncular, gives way. I. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. derived from two separate ferilized ova; -- of twins; as, fraternal twins are biovular. Antonym of identical.
Syn. -- fraternal. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. Having two valves. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ It., (properly) bravery, spirit, from bravo. See Brave. ] (Mus.) A florid, brilliant style of music, written for effect, to show the range and flexibility of a singer's voice, or the technical force and skill of a performer; virtuoso music. [ 1913 Webster ]

Aria di bravura ety>[ It. ], a florid air demanding brilliant execution. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., a deer. ] (Zool.) A genus of ruminants, including the red deer and other allied species. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Formerly all species of deer were included in the genus Cervus. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., a nail. ] A callous growth, esp. one the foot; a corn. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ From Convolvus. ] (Bot.) Of, pertaining to, or resembling, the family of plants of which the bindweed and the morning-glory are common examples. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) A glucoside occurring in jalap (the root of a convolvulaceous plant), and extracted as a colorless, tasteless, gummy mass of powerful purgative properties. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. L.Convolvuli E. Convoluluses [ L., bindweed, fr. convolvere to roll around. So named from its twining stems. ] (Bot.) A large genus of plants having monopetalous flowers, including the common bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis), and formerly the morning-glory, but this is now transferred to the genus Ipomæa. [ 1913 Webster ]

The luster of the long convolvuluses
That coiled around the stately stems. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Convulsed p. pr. & vb. n. Convulsing. ] [ L. convulsus, p. p. of convellere to tear up, to shake; con- + vellere to pluck, pull. ] 1. To contract violently and irregulary, as the muscular parts of an animal body; to shake with irregular spasms, as in excessive laughter, or in agony from grief or pain. [ 1913 Webster ]

With emotions which checked his voice and convulsed his powerful frame. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To agitate greatly; to shake violently. [ 1913 Webster ]

The world is convulsed by the agonies of great nations. Macaulay.

Syn. -- To agitate; disturb; shake; tear; rend. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. convulsio: cf. F. convulsion. ] 1. (Med.) An unnatural, violent, and unvoluntary contraction of the muscular parts of an animal body. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Any violent and irregular motion or agitation; a violent shaking; a tumult; a commotion. [ 1913 Webster ]

Those two massy pillars,
With horrible convulsion, to and fro
He tugged, he shook, till down they came. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Times of violence and convulsion. Ames.

Syn. -- Agitation; commotion; tumult; disturbance. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to, or having, convulsions; convulsionary. [ R. ] Lamb. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. convulsionnaire. ] Pertaining to convulsion; convulsive. “Convulsionary struggles.” Sir W. Scott. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A convulsionist. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who has convulsions; esp., one of a body of fanatics in France, early in the eighteenth century, who went into convulsions under the influence of religious emotion; as, the Convulsionists of St. Médard. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. convulsif. ] Producing, or attended with, convulsions or spasms; characterized by convulsions; convulsionary. [ 1913 Webster ]

An irregular, convulsive movement may be necessary to throw off an irregular, convulsive disease. Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. in a convulsive manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To free from what is vulgar, common, or narrow. [ 1913 Webster ]

Shakespeare and Plutarch's “Lives” are very devulgarizing books. E. A. Abbott. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. divulgatus, p. p. of divulgare. See Divulge. ] Published. [ Obs. ] Bale. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To divulge. [ Obs. ] Foxe. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A divulger. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. divulgatio: cf. F. divulgation. ] The act of divulging or publishing. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Secrecy hath no use than divulgation. Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Divulged p. pr. & vb. n. Divulging. ] [ F. divulguer, L. divulgare; di- = dis- + vulgare to spread among the people, from vulgus the common people. See Vulgar. ] 1. To make public; to several or communicate to the public; to tell (a secret) so that it may become generally known; to disclose; -- said of that which had been confided as a secret, or had been before unknown; as, to divulge a secret. [ 1913 Webster ]

Divulge not such a love as mine. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To indicate publicly; to proclaim. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

God . . . marks
The just man, and divulges him through heaven. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To impart; to communicate. [ 1913 Webster ]

Which would not be [ 1913 Webster ]

To them [ animals ] made common and divulged. Milton.

Syn. -- To publish; disclose; discover; uncover; reveal; communicate; impart; tell. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To become publicly known. [ R. ] “To keep it from divulging.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Tending to pull asunder, tear, or rend; distracting. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Zoöl.) Same as Equivalve or Equivalved. [ 1913 Webster ]

pos>v. t. [ L. evulgatus, p. p. of evulgare to publish. ] To publish abroad. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

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

n. [ L. evulsio, fr. evellere, evulsum, to pluck out; e out + vellere to pluck; cf. F. évulsion. ] The act of plucking out; a rooting out. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., honeycomb. ] 1. (Med.) A disease of the scalp, produced by a vegetable parasite. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A tile or flagstone cut into an hexagonal shape to produce a honeycomb pattern, as in a pavement; -- called also favas and sectila. Mollett. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. héliogravure. ] 1. The process of photographic engraving. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A plate or picture made by the process of heliogravure. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

{ } a. (Zool.) Having unequal valves, as the shell of an oyster. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Between valves. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Pref. in- in + vulgar. ] To cause to become or appear vulgar. [ Obs. ] Daniel. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Pref. in- not + vulgar. ] Not vulgar; refined; elegant. [ Obs. ] Drayton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. invulnérabilité. ] Quality or state of being invulnerable. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. invulnerabilis: cf. F. invulnérable. See In- not, and Vulnerable. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Incapable of being wounded, or of receiving injury. [ 1913 Webster ]

Neither vainly hope
To be invulnerable in those bright arms. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Unanswerable; irrefutable; that can not be refuted or convinced; as, an invulnerable argument. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Invulnerability. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. invulneratus unwounded. ] Invulnerable. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) See Levulose. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) A substance resembling dextrin, obtained from the bulbs of the dahlia, the artichoke, and other sources, as a colorless, spongy, amorphous material. It is so called because by decomposition it yields levulose. [ Written also lævulin. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or denoting, an acid (called also acetyl-propionic acid), C5H8O3, obtained by the action of dilute acids on various sugars (as levulose). [ Written also laevulinic. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) An unfermentable carbohydrate obtained by gently heating levulose. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ See Levo-. ] (Chem.) A sirupy variety of sugar, rarely obtained crystallized, occurring widely in honey, ripe fruits, etc., and hence called also fruit sugar; also called fructose. Chemical formula: C6H12O6. It is called levulose, because it rotates the plane of polarization of light to the left, in contrast to dextrose, the other product of the hydrolysis of sucrose. [ Written also laevulose. ] [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

☞ It is obtained, together with an equal quantity of dextrose, by the inversion of ordinary cane or beet sugar, and hence, as being an ingredient of invert sugar, is often so called. It is fermentable, nearly as sweet as cane sugar, and is metameric with dextrose. Cf. Dextrose. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., a kite. ] (Zool.) A genus of raptorial birds, including the European kite. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. (Biol.) derived from a single egg or ovum; -- of twins; as, identical twins are monovular. Contrasted with fraternal.
Syn. -- identical. [ WordNet 1.5 ]