Webster's Unabridged Dictionary - Letter L - Page 26
Leucitoid (n.) (Crystallog.) The trapezohedron or tetragonal trisoctahedron; -- so called as being the form of the mineral leucite. Leuco
Leuco- () Alt. of Leuc-.
Leuc- () A combining form signifying white, colorless; specif. (Chem.), denoting an extensive series of colorless organic compounds, obtained by reduction from certain other colored compounds; as, leucaniline, leucaurin, etc.
Leucocyte (n.) (Physiol.) A colorless corpuscle, as one of the white blood corpuscles, or those found in lymph, marrow of bone, connective tissue, etc.
Note: They all consist of more or less spherical masses of protoplasm, without any surrounding membrane or wall, and are capable of motion. Leucocythaemia
Leucocyte (n.) Blood cells that engulf and digest bacteria and fungi; an important part of the body's defense system [syn: leukocyte, leucocyte, white blood cell, white cell, white blood corpuscle, white corpuscle, WBC].
Leucocythaemia (n.) Alt. of Leucocythemia.
Leucocythaemia (n.) (Med.) Same as leukemia.
Leukaemia (n.) A disease in which the white corpuscles of the blood are largely increased in number, and there is enlargement of the spleen, or the lymphatic glands; formerly called leucocythaemia. It is due to a cancer of the bone marrow, and results in anemia and increased susceptibility to infectious disease. [Also spelled leucemia and leuchaemia.] Leuke
Leucocytogenesis (n.) (Physiol.) The formation of leucocytes.
Leucoethiopic (a.) White and black; -- said of a white animal of a black species, or the albino of the negro race.
Leucoethiops (n.) An albino. [Also written leuc[oe]thiops.]
Leucoline (n.) (Chem.) A nitrogenous organic base from coal tar, and identical with quinoline. Cf. Quinoline.
Leucoma (n.) (Med.) A white opacity in the cornea of the eye; -- called also albugo.
Leucoma (n.) Eye disease consisting of an opaque white spot on the cornea [syn: leukoma, leucoma].
Leucomaine (n.) (Physiol. Chem.) An animal base or alkaloid, appearing in the tissue during life; hence, a vital alkaloid, as distinguished from a ptomaine or cadaveric poison.
Leuconic (a.) (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a complex organic acid, obtained as a yellowish white gum by the oxidation of croconic acid.
Leucopathy (n.) The state of an albino, or of a white child of black parents.
Leucophane (n.) (Min.) A mineral of a greenish yellow color; it is a silicate of glucina, lime, and soda with fluorine. Called also leucophanite.
Leucophlegmacy (n.) (Med.) A dropsical habit of body, or the commencement of anasarca; paleness, with viscid juices and cold sweats.
Leucophlegmatic (a.) Having a dropsical habit of body, with a white bloated skin.
Leucophyll (n.) (Chem.) A colorless substance isomeric with chlorophyll, contained in parts of plants capable of becoming green. -- Watts.
Leucophyllous (a.) (Bot.) Having white or silvery foliage. Leucoplast
Leucoplast (n.) Alt. of Leucoplastid.
Leucoplastid (n.) (Bot.) One of certain very minute whitish or colorless granules occurring in the protoplasm of plants and supposed to be the nuclei around which starch granules will form.
Leucopyrite (n.) (Min.) A mineral of a color between white and steel-gray, with a metallic luster, and consisting chiefly of arsenic and iron.
Leucorrhoea (n.) (Med.) A discharge of a white, yellowish, or greenish, viscid mucus, resulting from inflammation or irritation of the membrane lining the genital organs of the female; the whites. -- Dunglison.
Leucoryx (n.) (Zool.) A large antelope of North Africa ({Oryx leucoryx), allied to the gemsbok.
Leucoscope (n.) (Physics) An instrument, devised by Professor Helmholtz, for testing the color perception of the eye, or for comparing different lights, as to their constituent colors or their relative whiteness.
Leucosoid (a.) (Zool.) Like or pertaining to the Leucosoidea, a tribe of marine crabs including the box crab or Calappa.
Leucosphere (n.) (Astron.) The inner corona. [R.]
Leucoturic (a.) (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a nitrogenous organic substance of the uric acid group, called leucoturic acid or oxalantin. See Oxalantin.
Leucous (a.) White; -- applied to albinos, from the whiteness of their skin and hair.
Leucoxene (n.) (Min.) A nearly opaque white mineral, in part identical with titanite, observed in some igneous rocks as the result of the alteration of titanic iron. Leukemia
Leuchaemia (n.) (Med.) See Leukemia. [Written also leukemia, leukaemia,a nd leucemia.] -- Leu*ch[ae]m"ic, a. [Written also leukemic and leukaemic.] Leucic
Leukaemia (n.) A disease in which the white corpuscles of the blood are largely increased in number, and there is enlargement of the spleen, or the lymphatic glands; formerly called leucocythaemia. It is due to a cancer of the bone marrow, and results in anemia and increased susceptibility to infectious disease. [Also spelled leucemia and leuchaemia.] Leuke
Leukaemia (n.) Malignant neoplasm of blood-forming tissues; characterized by abnormal proliferation of leukocytes; one of the four major types of cancer [syn: leukemia, leukaemia, leucaemia, cancer of the blood].
Leucocythaemia, Leucocythemia (n.) (Med.) Same as leukemia.
Leukaemia (n.) Leucocythaemia.
Leukaemia (n.) A disease in which the white corpuscles of the blood are largely increased in number, and there is enlargement of the spleen, or the lymphatic glands; formerly called leucocythaemia. It is due to a cancer of the bone marrow, and results in anemia and increased susceptibility to infectious disease. [Also spelled leucemia and leuchaemia.] Leuke
Leuke (n.) Alt. of Leukeness.
Leukeness (n.) See Luke, etc.
Leukoplast (n.) (Bot.) See Leucoplast.
Levana (n.) (Rom. Myth.) A goddess who protected newborn infants.
Levant (v. i.) <主英> 躲債，逃賭債 To run away from one's debts; to decamp. [Colloq. Eng.] -- Thackeray.
Levant (a.) Rising or having risen from rest; -- said of cattle. See Couchant and levant, under Couchant.
Levant (n.) 黎凡特，地中海東部地區 The countries washed by the eastern part of the Mediterranean and its contiguous waters.
Levant (n.) A levanter (the wind so called).
Levant (a.) Eastern. [Obs.]
Forth rush the levant and the ponent winds. -- Milton.
Levant (n.) A heavy morocco often used in bookbinding [syn: Levant, Levant morocco].
Levant (n.) The former name for the geographical area of the eastern Mediterranean that is now occupied by Lebanon, Syria, and Israel.
Levant (v.) Run off without paying a debt.
Levant (n.) 黎凡特，是歷史上一個模糊的地理名稱，廣義上它指的是中東托魯斯山脈以南、地中海東岸、阿拉伯沙漠以北和上美索不達米亞以西的一大片地區。 The Levant is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean. In its narrowest sense it is equivalent to the historical region of Syria. In its widest historical sense, the Levant included all of the eastern Mediterranean with its islands, [4] that is, it included all of the countries along the Eastern Mediterranean shores, extending from Greece to Cyrenaica. [2] [5]
The term Levant entered English in the late 15th century from French. [4] It derives from the Italian Levante, meaning "rising", implying the rising of the sun in the east. [2] [5] As such, it is broadly equivalent to the Arabic term Mashriq, meaning "the land where the sun rises". [6] In the 13th and 14th centuries, the term levante was used for Italian maritime commerce in the Eastern Mediterranean, including Greece, Anatolia, Syria-Palestine, and Egypt, that is, the lands east of Venice. [2] Eventually the term was restricted to the Muslim countries of Syria-Palestine and Egypt. [2] In 1581, England set up the Levant Company to monopolize commerce with the Ottoman Empire. [2] The name Levant States was used to refer to the French mandate over Syria and Lebanon after World War I. [2] [5] This is probably the reason why the term Levant has come to be used synonymously with Syria-Palestine. [2] Some scholars misunderstood the term thinking that it derives from the name of Lebanon. [2] Today the term is typically used in conjunction with prehistoric or ancient historical references. It has the same meaning as Syria-Palestine or the region of Syria (Arabic: الشام /ʔaʃ-ʃaːm/), that is, it means an area bounded by the Taurus Mountains of Turkey in the North, the Mediterranean Sea in the west, and the north Arabian Desert and Mesopotamia in the east. [7] It does not include Anatolia (the former Asia Minor, now Asian Turkey; although at times Cilicia may be included), the Caucasus Mountains, or any part of the Arabian Peninsula proper. The Sinai Peninsula (Asian Egypt) is sometimes included.
The Levant has been described as the "crossroads of western Asia, the eastern Mediterranean, and northeast Africa", [8] and the "northwest of the Arabian plate". [9] The populations of the Levant [10] [11] share not only the geographic position, but cuisine, some customs, and a very long history. They are often referred to as Levantines. [12]
Levanter (v.) One who levants, or decamps. [Colloq. Eng.]
Levanter (n.) A strong easterly wind peculiar to the Mediterranean. -- W. H. Russell.
Levanter (n.) An easterly wind in the western Mediterranean area.
Levantine (n.) Of or pertaining to the Levant. -- J. Spencer.
Levantine (n.) A native or inhabitant of the Levant.
Levantine (n.) A stout twilled silk fabric, formerly made in the Levant.
Levantine (a.) Of or relating to the Levant or its inhabitants; "the Levantine coast."
Levantine (n.) (formerly) A native or inhabitant of the Levant.
Levari facias () A writ of execution at common law.
Levari facias () Eng. law. A writ of execution against the goods and chattels of a clerk. Also the writ of execution on a judgment at the suit of the crown. When issued against an ecclesiastic, this writ is in effect the writ of fieri facias directed to the bishop of the diocese, commanding him to cause execution to be made of the goods and chattels of the defendant in his diocese. The writ also recites, that the sheriff had returned that the defendant had no lay fee, or goods or chattels whereof he could make a levy, and that the defendant was a beneficed clerk; &c. See 1, Chit. R. 428; Id. 589, for cases when it issues at the suit of the crown. This writ is also used to recover the plaintiff's debt; the sheriff is commanded to levy, such debt on the lands and goods of the defendant, in virtue of which he may seize his goods, and receive the rents and profits of his lands, till satisfaction be made to the plaintiff. 8 Bl. Com. 417; Vin. Ab. 14; Dane's Ab. Index, h.t.
Levari facias () In Pennsylvania, this writ is used to sell lands mortgaged after a judgment has been obtained by the mortgagee, or his assignee, against the mortgagor, under peculiar. proceeding authorized by statute. 3 Bouv. Inst. n. 3396.
Levation (n.) The act of raising; elevation; upward motion, as that produced by the action of a levator muscle.
Levator (n.) (Anat.) A muscle that serves to raise some part, as the lip or the eyelid.
Levator (n.) (Surg.) A surgical instrument used to raise a depressed part of the skull.
Levator (n.) A muscle that serves to lift some body part (as the eyelid or lip).
Leve (a.) Dear. See Lief. [Obs.] -- Chaucer.
Leve (n. & v.) Same as 3d & 4th Leave. [Obs.]
Leve (v. i.) To live. [Obs.] -- Chaucer.
Leve (v. t.) To believe. [Obs.] -- Chaucer.
Leve (v. t.) To grant; -- used esp. in exclamations or prayers followed by a dependent clause. [Obs.]
God leve all be well. -- Chaucer.
Levee (n.) The act of rising. " The sun's levee." -- Gray
Levee (n.) A morning assembly or reception of visitors, -- in distinction from a soiree, or evening assembly; a matinee; hence, also, any general or somewhat miscellaneous gathering of guests, whether in the daytime or evening; as, the president's levee.
Note: In England a ceremonious day reception, when attended by both ladies and gentlemen, is called a drawing-room.
Levee (v. t.) To attend the levee or levees of.
He levees all the great. -- Young.
Levee (n.) An embankment to prevent inundation; as, the levees along the Mississippi; sometimes, the steep bank of a river. [U. S.]
Levee (v. t.) To keep within a channel by means of levees; as, to levee a river. [U. S.]
Levee (n.) A formal reception of visitors or guests (as at a royal court).
Levee (n.) A pier that provides a landing place on a river.
Levee (n.) An embankment that is built in order to prevent a river from overflowing.
Levee en masse () See Levy in mass, under Levy, n.
Leveful (n.) Allowable; permissible; lawful. [Obs.] -- Chaucer.
Level (n.) A line or surface to which, at every point, a vertical or plumb line is perpendicular; a line or surface which is everywhere parallel to the surface of still water; -- this is the true level, and is a curve or surface in which all points are equally distant from the center of the earth, or rather would be so if the earth were an exact sphere.
Level (n.) A horizontal line or plane; that is, a straight line or a plane which is tangent to a true level at a given point and hence parallel to the horizon at that point; -- this is the apparent level at the given point.
Level (n.) An approximately horizontal line or surface at a certain degree of altitude, or distance from the center of the earth; as, to climb from the level of the coast to the level of the plateau and then descend to the level of the valley or of the sea.
After draining of the level in Northamptonshire. -- Sir M. Hale.
Shot from the deadly level of a gun. -- Shak.
Level (n.) Hence, figuratively, a certain position, rank, standard, degree, quality, character, etc., conceived of as in one of several planes of different elevation.
Providence, for the most part, sets us on a level. -- Addison.
Somebody
there of his own level. -- Swift.
Be the fair level of thy actions laid As temperance wills and prudence
may persuade. -- Prior.
Level (n.) A uniform or average height; a normal plane or altitude; a condition conformable to natural law or which will secure a level surface; as, moving fluids seek a level.
When merit shall find its level. -- F. W. Robertson.
Level (n.) (Mech. & Surv.) An instrument by which to find a horizontal line, or adjust something with reference to a horizontal line.
Level (n.) (Mech. & Surv.) A measurement of the difference of altitude of two points, by means of a level; as, to take a level.
Level (n.) A horizontal passage, drift, or adit, in a mine.
Air level, A spirit level. See Spirit level (below).
Box level, A spirit level in which a glass-covered box is used instead of a tube.
Carpenter's level, Mason's level, either the plumb level or a straight bar of wood, in which is imbedded a small spirit level.
Level of the sea, The imaginary level from which heights and depths are calculated, taken at a mean distance between high and low water.
Line of levels, A connected series of measurements, by means of a level, along a given line, as of a railroad, to ascertain the profile of the ground.
Plumb level, One in which a horizontal bar is placed in true position by means of a plumb line, to which it is at right angles.
Spirit level, One in which the adjustment to the horizon is shown by the position of a bubble in alcohol or ether contained in a nearly horizontal glass tube, or a circular box with a glass cover.
Surveyor's level, A telescope, with a spirit level attached, and with suitable screws, etc., for accurate adjustment, the whole mounted on a tripod, for use in eveling; -- called also leveling instrument.
Water level, An instrument to show the level by means of the surface of water in a trough, or in upright tubes connected by a pipe.
Level (a.) Even; flat; having no part higher than another; having, or conforming to, the curvature which belongs to the undisturbed liquid parts of the earth's surface; as, a level field; level ground; the level surface of a pond or lake.
Ample spaces o'er the smooth And level pavement. -- Milton.
Level (a.) Coinciding or parallel with the plane of the horizon; horizontal; as, the telescope is now level.
Level (a.) Even with anything else; of the same height; on the same line or plane; on the same footing; of equal importance; -- followed by with, sometimes by to.
Young boys and girls Are level now with men; the odds is gone. -- Shak.
Everything lies level to our wish. -- Shak.
Level (a.) Straightforward; direct; clear; open.
A very plain and level account. -- M. Arnold.
Level (a.) Well balanced; even; just; steady; impartial; as, a level head; a level understanding. [Colloq.] " A level consideration." -- Shak.
Level (a.) (Phonetics) Of even tone; without rising or falling inflection. -- H. Sweet.
Level line (Shipbuilding), The outline of a section which is horizontal crosswise, and parallel with the rabbet of the keel lengthwise.
Level surface (Physics), An equipotential surface at right angles at every point to the lines of force.
Leveled (imp. & p. p.) of Level.
Levelled () of Level.
Leveling (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Level.
Levelling () of Level.
Level (v. t.) To make level; to make horizontal; to bring to the condition of a level line or surface; hence, to make flat or even; as, to level a road, a walk, or a garden.
Level (v. t.) To bring to a lower level; to overthrow; to topple down; to reduce to a flat surface; to lower.
And their proud structures level with the ground. -- Sandys.
He levels mountains and he raises plains. -- Dryden.
Level (v. t.) To bring to a horizontal position, as a gun; hence, to point in taking aim; to aim; to direct.
Bertram de Gordon, standing on the castle wall, leveled a quarrel out of a crossbow. -- Stow.
Level (v. t.) Figuratively, to bring to a common level or plane, in respect of rank, condition, character, privilege, etc.; as, to level all the ranks and conditions of men.
Level (v. t.) To adjust or adapt to a certain level; as, to level remarks to the capacity of children.
For all his mind on honor fixed is, To which he levels all his purposes. -- Spenser.
Level (v. i.) To be level; to be on a level with, or on an equality with, something; hence, to accord; to agree; to suit. [Obs.]
With such accommodation and besort As levels with her breeding. -- Shak.
Level (v. i.) To aim a gun, spear, etc., horizontally; hence, to aim or point a weapon in direct line with the mark; fig., to direct the eye, mind, or effort, directly to an object ; as, he leveled a gun at the bandit and fired.
The foeman may with as great aim level at the edge of a penknife. -- Shak.
The glory of God and the good of his church . . . ought to be the mark whereat we also level. -- Hooker.
She leveled at our purposes. -- Shak.
Level (a.) Having a surface without slope, tilt in which no part is higher or lower than another; "a flat desk"; "acres of level farmland"; "a plane surface"; "skirts sewn with fine flat seams" [syn: flat, level, plane].
Level (a.) Not showing abrupt variations; "spoke in a level voice"; "she gave him a level look"- Louis Auchincloss [syn: level, unwavering].
Level (a.) Being on a precise horizontal plane; "a billiard table must be level."
Level (a.) Oriented at right angles to the plumb; "the picture is level."
Level (a.) Of the score in a contest; "the score is tied" [syn: tied(p), even, level(p)].
Level (n.) A position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality; "a moderate grade of intelligence"; "a high level of care is required"; "it is all a matter of degree" [syn: degree, grade, level].
Level (n.) A relative position or degree of value in a graded group; "lumber of the highest grade" [syn: grade, level, tier].
Level (n.) A specific identifiable position in a continuum or series or especially in a process; "a remarkable degree of frankness"; "at what stage are the social sciences?" [syn: degree, level, stage, point].
Level (n.) Height above ground; "the water reached ankle level"; "the pictures were at the same level."
Level (n.) Indicator that establishes the horizontal when a bubble is centered in a tube of liquid [syn: level, spirit level]
Level (n.) A flat surface at right angles to a plumb line; "park the car on the level" [syn: horizontal surface, level].
Level (n.) An abstract place usually conceived as having depth; "a good actor communicates on several levels"; "a simile has at least two layers of meaning"; "the mind functions on many strata simultaneously" [syn: level, layer, stratum].
Level (n.) A structure consisting of a room or set of rooms at a single position along a vertical scale; "what level is the office on?" [syn: floor, level, storey, story].
Level (v.) Aim at; "level criticism or charges at somebody."
Level (v.) Tear down so as to make flat with the ground; "The building was levelled" [syn: level, raze, rase, dismantle, tear down, take down, pull down] [ant: erect, put up, raise, rear, set up].
Level (v.) Make level or straight; "level the ground" [syn: flush, level, even out, even].
Level (v.) Direct into a position for use; "point a gun"; "He charged his weapon at me" [syn: charge, level, point].
Level (v.) Talk frankly with; lay it on the line; "I have to level with you."
Level (v.) Become level or even; "The ground levelled off" [syn: level, level off].
Leveler (n.) One who, or that which, levels.
Leveler (n.) One who would remove social inequalities or distinctions; a socialist.
Leveler (n.) A radical who advocates the abolition of social distinctions [syn: leveler, leveller].
Leveling (n.) The act or operation of making level.
Leveling (n.) (Surveying) The art or operation of using a leveling instrument for finding a horizontal line, for ascertaining the differences of level between different points of the earth's surface included in a survey, for establishing grades, etc., as in finding the descent of a river, or locating a line of railroad.
Leveling instrument. See Surveyor's level, under Level, n.
Leveling staff, A graduated rod or staff used in connection with a leveling instrument for measuring differences of level between points.
Leveling (n.) Changing the ground level to a smooth horizontal or gently sloping surface [syn: grading, leveling].
Leveling (n.) Complete destruction of a building [syn: razing, leveling, tearing down, demolishing].
Leveling (n.) The act of making equal or uniform [syn: equalization, equalisation, leveling].
Levelism (n.) The disposition or endeavor to level all distinctions of rank in society.
Levelly (adv.) In an even or level manner.
Levelness (n.) The state or quality of being level.
Leven (n.) Lightning. [Obs.]
Wild thunder dint and fiery leven. -- Chaucer.
Lever (a.) More agreeable; more pleasing. [Obs.] -- Chaucer.
To be lever than. See Had as lief, under Had.
Lever (adv.) Rather. [Obs.] -- Chaucer.
For lever had I die than see his deadly face. -- Spenser.
Lever (n.) (Mech.) A rigid piece which is capable of turning about one point, or axis (the fulcrum), and in which are two or more other points where forces are applied; -- used for transmitting and modifying force and motion. Specif., a bar of metal, wood, or other rigid substance, used to exert a pressure, or sustain a weight, at one point of its length, by receiving a force or power at a second, and turning at a third on a fixed point called a fulcrum. It is usually named as the first of the six mechanical powers, and is of three kinds, according as either the fulcrum F, the weight W, or the power P, respectively, is situated between the other two, as in the figures.
Lever (n.) (Mach.) A bar, as a capstan bar, applied to a rotatory piece to turn it.
Lever (n.) (Mach.) An arm on a rock shaft, to give motion to the shaft or to obtain motion from it.
Compound lever, A machine consisting of two or more levers acting upon each other.
Lever escapement. See Escapement.
Lever jack. See Jack, n., 5.
Lever watch, A watch having a vibrating lever to connect the action of the escape wheel with that of the balance.
Universal lever, A machine formed by a combination of a lever with the wheel and axle, in such a manner as to convert the reciprocating motion of the lever into a continued rectilinear motion of some body to which the power is applied.
Lever (n.) A rigid bar pivoted about a fulcrum.
Lever (n.) A simple machine that gives a mechanical advantage when given a fulcrum.
Lever (n.) A flat metal tumbler in a lever lock [syn: lever, lever tumbler].
Lever (v.) To move or force, especially in an effort to get something open; "The burglar jimmied the lock": "Raccoons managed to pry the lid off the garbage pail" [syn: pry, prise, prize, lever, jimmy].
Leverage (n.) The action of a lever; mechanical advantage gained by the lever.
Leverage of a couple (Mech.), The perpendicular distance between the lines of action of two forces which act in parallel and opposite directions.
Leverage of a force, The perpendicular distance from the line in which a force acts upon a body to a point about which the body may be supposed to turn.
Leverage (n.) The mechanical advantage gained by being in a position to use a lever [syn: leverage, purchase].
Leverage (n.) Strategic advantage; power to act effectively; "relatively small groups can sometimes exert immense political leverage."
Leverage (n.) Investing with borrowed money as a way to amplify potential gains (at the risk of greater losses) [syn: leverage, leveraging].
Leverage (v.) Supplement with leverage; "leverage the money that is already available."
Leverage (v.) Provide with leverage; "We need to leverage this company."