interj. [ Corrupted from D. houd vast hold fast. See Hold, v. t., and Fast, a. ] (Naut.) Cease; stop; stay. “Avast heaving.” Totten. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Made of, pertaining to, or resembling, canvas or coarse cloth; as, a canvas tent. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. canvas, canevas, F. canevas, LL. canabacius hempen cloth, canvas, L. cannabis hemp, fr. G. &unr_;. See Hemp. ] 1. A strong cloth made of hemp, flax, or cotton; -- used for tents, sails, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

By glimmering lanes and walls of canvas led. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (a) A coarse cloth so woven as to form regular meshes for working with the needle, as in tapestry, or worsted work. (b) A piece of strong cloth of which the surface has been prepared to receive painting, commonly painting in oil. [ 1913 Webster ]

History . . . does not bring out clearly upon the canvas the details which were familiar. J. H. Newman. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Something for which canvas is used: (a) A sail, or a collection of sails. (b) A tent, or a collection of tents. (c) A painting, or a picture on canvas. [ 1913 Webster ]

To suit his canvas to the roughness of the see. Goldsmith. [ 1913 Webster ]

Light, rich as that which glows on the canvas of Claude. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A rough draft or model of a song, air, or other literary or musical composition; esp. one to show a poet the measure of the verses he is to make. Grabb. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) A Species of duck (Aythya vallisneria), esteemed for the delicacy of its flesh. It visits the United States in autumn; particularly Chesapeake Bay and adjoining waters; -- so named from the markings of the plumage on its back. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. canvassed p. pr. & vb. n. Canvassing. ] [ OF. Canabasser to examine curiously, to search or sift out; properly, to sift through canvas. See Canvas, n. ] 1. To sift; to strain; to examine thoroughly; to scrutinize; as, to canvass the votes cast at an election; to canvass a district with reference to its probable vote. [ 1913 Webster ]

I have made careful search on all hands, and canvassed the matter with all possible diligence. Woodward. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To examine by discussion; to debate. [ 1913 Webster ]

An opinion that we are likely soon to canvass. Sir W. Hamilton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To go through, with personal solicitation or public addresses; as, to canvass a district for votes; to canvass a city for subscriptions. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To search thoroughly; to engage in solicitation by traversing a district; as, to canvass for subscriptions or for votes; to canvass for a book, a publisher, or in behalf of a charity; -- commonly followed by for. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. Close inspection; careful review for verification; as, a canvass of votes. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Examination in the way of discussion or debate. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Search; exploration; solicitation; systematic effort to obtain votes, subscribers, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

No previous canvass was made for me. Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who canvasses. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. Of or pertaining to or involving the heart and blood vessels; as, cardiovascular conditioning. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

‖n. [ F. See Crevice. ] 1. A deep crevice or fissure, as in embankment; one of the clefts or fissure by which the mass of a glacier is divided. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A breach in the levee or embankment of a river, caused by the pressure of the water, as on the lower Mississippi. [ U.S. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Cf. F. dévaster. See Devastate. ] To devastate. [ Obs. ] Bolingbroke. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Devastated; p. pr. & vb. n. Devastating. ] [ L. devastatus, p. p. of devastare to devastate; de + vastare to lay waste, vastus waste. See Vast. ] To lay waste; to ravage; to desolate. [ 1913 Webster ]

Whole countries . . . were devastated. Macaulay.

Syn. -- To waste; ravage; desolate; destroy; demolish; plunder; pillage. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. same as desolated.
Syn. -- blasted, desolate, desolated, ravaged, ruined, wasted. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]

adj. 1. highly critical; making light of; as, a devastating portrait of human folly.
Syn. -- annihilating, withering. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. causing or capable of causing complete destruction; as, a devastating hurricane.
Syn. -- annihilative. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ Cf. F. dévastation. ] 1. The act of devastating, or the state of being devastated; a laying waste. [ 1913 Webster ]

Even now the devastation is begun,
And half the business of destruction done. Goldsmith. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) Waste of the goods of the deceased by an executor or administrator. Blackstone.

Syn. -- Desolation; ravage; waste; havoc; destruction; ruin; overthrow. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. ] One who, or that which, devastates. Emerson. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., he has wasted. ] (Law) Waste or misapplication of the assets of a deceased person by an executor or an administrator. Bouvier. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Devastated; laid waste. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To make a vassal of. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. That may be evaded. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. evasio: cf. F. évasion. See Evade. ] The act of eluding or avoiding, particularly the pressure of an argument, accusation, charge, or interrogation; artful means of eluding. [ 1913 Webster ]

Thou . . . by evasions thy crime uncoverest more. Milton.

Syn. -- Shift; subterfuge; shuffling; prevarication; equivocation. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. évasif. See Evade. ] Tending to evade, or marked by evasion; elusive; shuffling; avoiding by artifice. [ 1913 Webster ]

Thus he, though conscious of the ethereal guest,
Answered evasive of the sly request. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

Stammered out a few evasive phrases. Macaulay.

-- E*va"sive*ly , adv. -- E*va"sive*ness, n. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Deliberate vagueness or ambiguity; failing to answer a question while trying to seem as though one is answering.
Syn. -- equivocation. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

v. i. [ See Extravasate, v. t. ] (Physiol.) To pass by infiltration or effusion from the normal channel, such as a blood vessel or a lymphatic, into the surrounding tissue; -- said of blood, lymph, etc. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Extravasated p. pr. & vb. n. Extravasating ] [ Pref. extra- + L. vas vessel: cf. F. extravaser. See Vase. ] To force or let out of the proper vessels or arteries, as blood. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. extravasation. ] 1. The act of forcing or letting out of its proper vessels or ducts, as a fluid; effusion; as, an extravasation of blood after a rupture of the vessels. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Geol.) The issue of lava and other volcanic products from the earth. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

a. (Anat.) (a) Outside the vessels; -- said of the substance of all the tissues. (b) Destitute of vessels; non-vascular. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. See Favus, n., 2. Fairholt. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. fibra a fiber + E. vascular. ] (Bot.) Containing woody fiber and ducts, as the stems of all flowering plants and ferns; -- opposed to cellular. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Gastro- + -vascular. ] (Zool.) Having the structure, or performing the functions, both of digestive and circulatory organs; as, the gastrovascular cavity of cœlenterates. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Incapable of being evaded; inevitable; unavoidable. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. invasio: cf. F. invasion. See Invade. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. The act of invading; the act of encroaching upon the rights or possessions of another; encroachment; trespass. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A warlike or hostile entrance into the possessions or domains of another; the incursion of an army for conquest or plunder. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The incoming or first attack of anything hurtful or pernicious; as, the invasion of a disease.

Syn. -- Invasion, Irruption, Inroad. Invasion is the generic term, denoting a forcible entrance into a foreign country. Incursion signifies a hasty and sudden invasion. Irruption denotes particularly violent invasion. Inroad is entry by some unusual way involving trespass and injury. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ LL. invasivus: cf. F. invasif. See Invade. ] 1. Tending to invade; characterized by invasion; aggressive. “Invasive war.” Hoole. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Med.) tending to spread, especially tending to intrude into healthy tissue; -- used mostly of tumors. [ Narrower terms: malignant ] PJC ]

n.; pl. Kavasses ety>[ Turk. kāvvās ] An armed constable; also, a government servant or courier. [ Turkey ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Russ. kvas'. ] A thin, sour beer, made by pouring warm water on rye or barley meal and letting it ferment, -- much used by the Russians. [ written also quas and quass. ] [ 1913 Webster + PJC ]

n. A sweet grape used to make malmsey wine. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. A genus of mallows characterized by red and yellow flowers often placed in other genera.
Syn. -- genus Malvastrum. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. (Anat.) Destitute of vessels; extravascular. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. oliva olive: cf. F. olivâtre. ] Of the color of the olive; tawny. Sir T. Herbert. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Around the blood vessels; as, perivascular lymphatics. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. pervasio. See Pervade. ] The act of pervading, passing, or spreading through the whole extent of a thing. Boyle. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Tending to pervade, or having power to spread throughout; of a pervading quality. “Civilization pervasive and general.” M. Arnold. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality of filling or spreading throughout; as, the pervasiveness of the odor of cabbage in tenement hallways. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

A celebrated cinerary urn or vase found in the tomb of the Emperor Alexander Severus. It is owned by the Duke of Portland, and kept in the British Museum. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ i>or } n. pl. [ L. silva a forest, Sp. selva. ] Vast woodland plains of South America. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. a chemical substance (C25H38O5) having inhibitory activity on the enzyme HMG-CoA reductase, and used in medicine to reduce cholesterol levels in blood.
Syn. -- synvinolin; MK-733; Zocor. [ PJC ]

v. t. [ See Transvasation. ] To pour out of one vessel into another. [ Obs. ] Cudworth. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. trans- + L. vas, vasis, vessel. ] The act or process of pouring out of one vessel into another. [ Obs. ] Holland. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Feud. Law) See Vavasor. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n.; pl. Vasa [ L., a vessel. See Vase. ] (Anat.) A vessel; a duct. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖
Vas deferens; pl. Vasa deferentia. [ L. vas vessel + deferens carrying down. ] (Anat.) The excretory duct of a testicle; a spermatic duct. [ 1913 Webster ]