n. [ OE. venim, OF. venim, venin, F. venin, L. venenum. Cf. Venenate. ] 1. Matter fatal or injurious to life; poison; particularly, the poisonous matter which certain animals, such as serpents, scorpions, bees, etc., secrete in a state of health, and communicate by biting or stinging. [ 1913 Webster ]

Or hurtful worm with cankered venom bites. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Spite; malice; malignity; evil quality. Chaucer. “The venom of such looks.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Venom; virus; bane. See Poison. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ OE. venimen, OF. venimer, L. venenare. See Venom, n. ] To infect with venom; to envenom; to poison. [ R. ] “Venomed vengeance.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ OE. venemous, venimous, F. venimeux, L. venenosus, fr. venenum poison. See Venom, and cf. Venenose. ] 1. Full of venom; noxious to animal life; poisonous; as, the bite of a serpent may be venomous. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Zool.) Having a poison gland or glands for the secretion of venom, as certain serpents and insects. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Noxious; mischievous; malignant; spiteful; as, a venomous progeny; a venomous writer. [ 1913 Webster ]

Venomous snake (Zool.), any serpent which has poison glands and fangs, whether dangerous to man or not. These serpents constitute two tribes, the viperine serpents, or Solenoglypha, and the cobralike serpents, or Proteroglypha. The former have perforated, erectile fangs situated in the front part of the upper jaw, and are without ordinary teeth behind the fangs; the latter have permanently erect and grooved fangs, with ordinary maxillary teeth behind them. [ 1913 Webster ]

-- Ven"om*ous*ly, adv. -- Ven"om*ous*ness, n. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ See Venous. ] Having numerous or conspicuous veins; veiny; as, a venose frond. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The quality or state of being venous. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Med.) A condition in which the circulation is retarded, and the entire mass of blood is less oxygenated than it normally is. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. venosus, from vena a vein. See Vein. ] 1. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to a vein or veins; as, the venous circulation of the blood. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Contained in the veins, or having the same qualities as if contained in the veins, that is, having a dark bluish color and containing an insufficient amount of oxygen so as no longer to be fit for oxygenating the tissues; -- said of the blood, and opposed to arterial. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Marked with veins; veined; as, a venous leaf. [ 1913 Webster ]

Venous leaf (Bot.), a leaf having vessels branching, or variously divided, over its surface. --
Venous hum (Med.), a humming sound, or bruit, heard during auscultation of the veins of the neck in anaemia. --
Venous pulse (Physiol.), the pulse, or rhythmic contraction, sometimes seen in a vein, as in the neck, when there is an obstruction to the passage of blood from the auricles to the ventricles, or when there is an abnormal rigidity in the walls of the greater vessels. There is normally no pulse in a vein. [ 1913 Webster ]