n. [ from AA, meaning antiaircraft pronounced ack-ack by British signalmen. ] (Mil.) Artillery designed to shoot upward at airplanes; antiaircraft artillery.
Syn. -- antiaircraft, antiaircraft gun, flak, pompom, pom-pom, ack-ack gun [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

‖/mhw>, a. (Med.) Of or pertaining to akinesia. [ 1913 Webster + AS ]

{ } n. A tendency to become alkaline; or the state of a substance in which alkaline properties begin to be developed, or to predominant. Ure. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. alcalescent. ] Tending to the properties of an alkali; slightly alkaline. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. having the properties of an alkali. Opposite of acidic. when used of aqueous solutions, it signifies that the solution has a pH greater than 7.
Syn. -- alkaline (vs. acidic), basic [ WordNet 1.5 ]

{ } a. Of or pertaining to alkalimetry. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. of or pertaining to alkalosis. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. Same as Alcoranic. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. of or pertaining to aniseikonia. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

v. t. To turn aside. [ Poet. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

O, how are they wrapped in with infamies
That from their own misdeeds askance their eyes! Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } adv. [ Cf. D. schuin, schuins, sideways, schuiven to shove, schuinte slope. Cf. Asquint. ] Sideways; obliquely; with a side glance; with disdain, envy, or suspicion. [ 1913 Webster ]

They dart away; they wheel askance. Beattie. [ 1913 Webster ]

My palfrey eyed them askance. Landor. [ 1913 Webster ]

Both . . . were viewed askance by authority. Gladstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. not relying on imports; -- of countries. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. [ Auto- + kinetic. ] Self-moving; moving automatically. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

. In fire-alarm telegraphy, a system so arranged that when one alarm is being transmitted, no other alarm, sent in from another point, will be transmitted until after the first alarm has been disposed of. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. an ache localized in the back. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. See Bacharach. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. A kind of wine made at Bacharach on the Rhine. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. any of the seats occupied by backbenchers in the House of Commons of Great Britain. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. a member of the House of Commons of Great Britain who is not a party leader. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ Back, adv. + cast. ] Anything which brings misfortune upon one, or causes failure in an effort or enterprise; a reverse. [ Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. a bag carried on the back, supported by straps looped over the shoulders.
Syn. -- knapsack; rucksack; haversack. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

v. i. to hike while carrying a backpack; -- often used in the form go backpacking; as, to backpack through the forest. [ PJC ]

n. one who backpacks; as, two backpackers were mauled by bears in Yellowstone this week. [ PJC ]

{ } n. [ Back, n. or a. + piece, plate. ] 1. A piece, or plate which forms the back of anything, or which covers the back. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Specifically: A piece of plate armor protecting the back; -- it is worn as part of a cuirass. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

{ } n. See Bacharach. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. In typing text, to press the backspace key so as to reposition the carriage or cursor on the previous space. [ PJC ]

n. 1. The key on a typewriter or other keyboard used for back spacing.
Syn. -- backspace key. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ Back, adv. + stitch. ] A stitch made by setting the needle back of the end of the last stitch, and bringing it out in front of the end. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To sew with backstitches; as, to backstitch a seam. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. occurring immediately one after the other; consecutive. back-to-back home runs
Syn. -- consecutive. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. oriented with the backs toward each other, and sometimes touching. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

. A sum equal to the interest at a given rate on the principal (face) of a bill or note from the time of discounting until it becomes due. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n.; pl. Bankruptcies 1. The state of being actually or legally bankrupt. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The act or process of becoming a bankrupt. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Complete loss; -- followed by of. [ 1913 Webster ]

A hydrometer scale on which the zero point corresponds to sp. gr. 1.00, and the 30°-point to sp. gr. 0.85. From these points the scale is extended both ways, all the degrees being of equal length. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

{ or or . A fuse used in blasting, consisting of a long cylinder of explosive material inclosed in a varnished wrapping of rope or hose. It burns from 2 to 4 feet a minute. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. 1. (Zool.) (a) A small European song bird (Sylvia atricapilla), with a black crown; the mock nightingale. (b) An American titmouse (Parus atricapillus); the chickadee. Also called the black-cap chickadee. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Cookery) An apple roasted till black, to be served in a dish of boiled custard. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The black raspberry. [ 1913 Webster ]

Same as black cap{ 1b }. [ PJC ]

n. A clergyman; -- familiarly so called, as a soldier is sometimes called a redcoat or a bluecoat. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) The male of the European black grouse (Tetrao tetrix, Linn.); -- so called by sportsmen. The female is called gray hen. See Heath grouse. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Drama) a comedy that treats of morbid, tragic, gloomy, or grotesque situations as a major element of the plot. [ PJC ]

a. Having a black, dark, or gloomy face or aspect. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. (Min.) A name given by English miners to sphalerite, or zinc blende; -- called also false galena. See Blende. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Caramel or burnt sugar, used to color wines, spirits, ground coffee, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A large leather vessel for beer, etc. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Bot.) The Quercus nigra, or barren oak. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. The ensign of a pirate. [ 1913 Webster ]

. (Law) A clause, as in a blanket mortgage or policy, that includes a group or class of things, rather than a number mentioned individually and having the burden, loss, or the like, apportioned among them. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

{ or }. One that covers a group or class of things or properties instead of one or more things mentioned individually, as where a mortgage secures various debts as a group, or subjects a group or class of different pieces of property to one general lien. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

. A buttonhole stitch worked wide apart on the edge of material, as blankets, too thick to hem. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

. (Mach.) A chain in which the alternate links are broad blocks connected by thin side links pivoted to the ends of the blocks, used with sprocket wheels to transmit power, as in a bicycle. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

(Arch.) The finishing course of a wall showing above a cornice. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A case with shelves for holding books, esp. one with glazed doors. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Authorship; literary skill. [ 1913 Webster ]

A clerk who registers passengers, baggage, etc., for conveyance, as by railway or steamship, or who sells passage tickets at a booking office. [ 1913 Webster ]

1. An office where passengers, baggage, etc., are registered for conveyance, as by railway or steamship. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. An office where passage tickets are sold. [ Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]