a. Pertaining to the time before the Passover, or before Easter. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. ante- + L. pastus pasture, food. Cf. Repast. ] A foretaste. [ 1913 Webster ]

Antepasts of joy and comforts. Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. anti- + pasch. ] (Eccl.) The Sunday after Easter; Low Sunday. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

a. (Med.) Good against spasms. -- n. A medicine which prevents or allays spasms or convulsions. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. antispastus, Gr. &unr_;, fr. &unr_; to draw the contrary way; 'anti` against + &unr_; to draw. ] (Pros.) A foot of four syllables, the first and fourth short, and the second and third long (#). [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Gr. &unr_;. See Antispast. ] (Med.) (a) Believed to cause a revulsion of fluids or of humors from one part to another. [ Obs. ] (b) Counteracting spasms; antispasmodic. -- n. An antispastic agent. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Gr. &unr_; from + &unr_; star. ] (Astron.) That point in the orbit of a double star where the smaller star is farthest from its primary. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖ See Upas. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Bow-compasses 1. An arcograph. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A small pair of compasses, one leg of which carries a pencil, or a pen, for drawing circles. Its legs are often connected by a bow-shaped spring, instead of by a joint. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A pair of compasses, with a bow or arched plate riveted to one of the legs, and passing through the other. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Mech.) A by-passage, for a pipe, or other channel, to divert circulation from the usual course. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A passage different from the usual one; a byway. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Past; gone by. “By-past perils.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. carapace, Sp. carapacho. Cf Calarash, Carapace. ] A part of a turtle which is next to the upper shell. It contains a fatty and gelatinous substance of a dull greenish tinge, much esteemed as a delicacy in preparations of turtle. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. See Calipash. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ or . [ See capitan. ] The chief admiral of the Turkish fleet. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_;, fr. &unr_; to besprinkle; kata` down, wholly + &unr_; to strew, or sprinkle. ] (Med.) A compound medicinal powder, used by the ancients to sprinkle on ulcers, to absorb perspiration, etc. Dunglison. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. compas, fr. LL. compassus circle, prop., a stepping together; com- + passus pace, step. See Pace, Pass. ] 1. A passing round; circuit; circuitous course. [ 1913 Webster ]

They fetched a compass of seven day's journey. 2 Kings iii. 9. [ 1913 Webster ]

This day I breathed first; time is come round,
And where I did begin, there shall I end;
My life is run his compass. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. An inclosing limit; boundary; circumference; as, within the compass of an encircling wall. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. An inclosed space; an area; extent. [ 1913 Webster ]

Their wisdom . . . lies in a very narrow compass. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Extent; reach; sweep; capacity; sphere; as, the compass of his eye; the compass of imagination. [ 1913 Webster ]

The compass of his argument. Wordsworth. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Moderate bounds, limits of truth; moderation; due limits; -- used with within. [ 1913 Webster ]

In two hundred years before (I speak within compass), no such commission had been executed. Sir J. Davies. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Mus.) The range of notes, or tones, within the capacity of a voice or instrument. [ 1913 Webster ]

You would sound me from my lowest note to the top of my compass. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. An instrument for determining directions upon the earth's surface by means of a magnetized bar or needle turning freely upon a pivot and pointing in a northerly and southerly direction. [ 1913 Webster ]

He that first discovered the use of the compass did more for the supplying and increase of useful commodities than those who built workhouses. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. A pair of compasses. [ R. ] See Compasses.

To fix one foot of their compass wherever they please. Swift. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. A circle; a continent. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

The tryne compas [ the threefold world containing earth, sea, and heaven. Skeat. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

Azimuth compass. See under Azimuth. --
Beam compass. See under Beam. --
Compass card, the circular card attached to the needles of a mariner's compass, on which are marked the thirty-two points or rhumbs. --
Compass dial, a small pocket compass fitted with a sundial to tell the hour of the day. --
Compass plane (Carp.), a plane, convex in the direction of its length on the under side, for smoothing the concave faces of curved woodwork. --
Compass plant,
Compass flower (Bot.), a plant of the American prairies (Silphium laciniatum), not unlike a small sunflower; rosinweed. Its lower and root leaves are vertical, and on the prairies are disposed to present their edges north and south. [ 1913 Webster ]

Its leaves are turned to the north as true as the magnet:
This is the compass flower. Longefellow.

--
Compass saw, a saw with a narrow blade, which will cut in a curve; -- called also fret saw and keyhole saw. --
Compass timber (Shipbuilding), curved or crooked timber. --
Compass window (Arch.), a circular bay window or oriel window. --
Mariner's compass, a kind of compass used in navigation. It has two or more magnetic needles permanently attached to a card, which moves freely upon a pivot, and is read with reference to a mark on the box representing the ship's head. The card is divided into thirty-two points, called also rhumbs, and the glass-covered box or bowl containing it is suspended in gimbals within the binnacle, in order to preserve its horizontal position. --
Surveyor's compass, an instrument used in surveying for measuring horizontal angles. See Circumferentor. --
Variation compass, a compass of delicate construction, used in observations on the variations of the needle. --
To fetch a compass, to make a circuit. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Compassed p. pr. & vb. n. Compassing. ] [ F. compasser, LL. compassare. ] 1. To go about or entirely round; to make the circuit of. [ 1913 Webster ]

Ye shall compass the city seven times. Josh. vi. 4. [ 1913 Webster ]

We the globe can compass soon. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To inclose on all sides; to surround; to encircle; to environ; to invest; to besiege; -- used with about, round, around, and round about. [ 1913 Webster ]

With terrors and with clamors compassed round. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Now all the blessings
Of a glad father compass thee about. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round. Luke xix. 43. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To reach round; to circumvent; to get within one's power; to obtain; to accomplish. [ 1913 Webster ]

If I can check my erring love, I will:
If not, to compass her I'll use my skill. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

How can you hope to compass your designs? Denham. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To curve; to bend into a circular form. [ Obs. except in carpentry and shipbuilding. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Law) To purpose; to intend; to imagine; to plot. [ 1913 Webster ]

Compassing and imagining the death of the king are synonymous terms; compassing signifying the purpose or design of the mind or will, and not, as in common speech, the carrying such design to effect. Blackstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being compassed or accomplished. Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Rounded; arched. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

She came . . . into the compassed window. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n., pl. An instrument for describing circles, measuring figures, etc., consisting of two, or (rarely) more, pointed branches, or legs, usually joined at the top by a rivet on which they move. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The compasses for drawing circles have adjustable pen points, pencil points, etc.; those used for measuring without adjustable points are generally called dividers. See Dividers. [ 1913 Webster ]

Bow compasses. See Bow-compass. --
Caliber compasses,
Caliper compasses. See Calipers. --
Proportional,
Triangular, etc.,
compasses. See under Proportional, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Shipbuilding) Curved; bent; as, compassing timbers. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F., fr. L. compassio, fr. compati to have compassion; com- + pati to bear, suffer. See Patient. ] Literally, suffering with another; a sensation of sorrow excited by the distress or misfortunes of another; pity; commiseration. [ 1913 Webster ]

Womanly ingenuity set to work by womanly compassion. Macaulay.

Syn. -- Pity; sympathy; commiseration; fellow-feeling; mercy; condolence. See Pity. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To pity. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Deserving compassion or pity; pitiable. [ R. ] Barrow. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Having a temper or disposition to pity; sympathetic; merciful. [ 1913 Webster ]

There never was any heart truly great and generous, that was not also tender and compassionate. South. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Complaining; inviting pity; pitiable. [ R. ] Shak.

Syn. -- Sympathizing; tender; merciful; pitiful. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Compassionated p. pr. & vb. n. Compassionating ] To have compassion for; to pity; to commiserate; to sympathize with. [ 1913 Webster ]

Compassionates my pains, and pities me. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In a compassionate manner; mercifully. Clarendon. [ 1913 Webster ]

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

a. Having no compass. Knowles. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. completely satisfactory.
Syn. -- copesetic, copesettic. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

You had to be a good judge of what a man was like, and the English was copacetic. John O'Hara

a. [ Counter- + passant: cf. F. contrepassant. ] (Her.) Passant in opposite directions; -- said of two animals. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. depascens, p. pr. of depascere; de- + pascere to feed. ] Feeding. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. & i. To pasture; to feed; to graze; also, to use for pasture. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Cattle, to graze and departure in his grounds. Blackstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

A right to cut wood upon or departure land. Washburn. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Same as Diapason. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

A tuneful diapase of pleasures. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. diapasma, Gr. &unr_;, fr. &unr_;; dia` through + &unr_; to sprinkle: cf. F. diapasme. ] Powdered aromatic herbs, sometimes made into little balls and strung together. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L., fr. Gr. diapasw^n (i. e., "h dia` pasw^n chordw^n symfoni`a the concord of the first and last notes, the octave); dia` through + pasw^n, gen. pl. of pa^s all: cf. F. diapason. Cf. Panacea.] 1. (Gr. Mus.) The octave, or interval which includes all the tones of the diatonic scale. Compare disdiapason. [1913 Webster]

2. Concord, as of notes an octave apart; harmony. [1913 Webster]

The fair music that all creatures made . . .
In perfect diapason. Milton. [1913 Webster]

3. The entire compass of tones; the entire compass of tones of a voice or an instrument. [1913 Webster]

Through all the compass of the notes it ran,
The diapason closing full in man. Dryden. [1913 Webster]

4. A standard of pitch; a tuning fork; as, the French normal diapason. [1913 Webster]

5. One of certain stops in the organ, so called because they extend through the scale of the instrument. They are of several kinds, as open diapason, stopped diapason, double diapason, and the like. [1913 Webster]

a. [ Pref. di- + paschal. ] Including two passovers. Carpenter. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Pref. dis- (Gr. &unr_;) + diapason. ] (Anc. Mus.) An interval of two octaves, or a fifteenth; -- called also bisdiapason. Compare diapason{ 1 }. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Free from warmth of passion or feeling. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Freedom from passion; an undisturbed state; apathy. Sir W. Temple. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Free from passion; not warped, prejudiced, swerved, or carried away by passion or feeling; judicial; calm; composed. [ 1913 Webster ]

Wise and dispassionate men. Clarendon. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Not dictated by passion; not proceeding from temper or bias; impartial; as, dispassionate proceedings; a dispassionate view.

Syn. -- Calm; cool; composed serene; unimpassioned; temperate; moderate; impartial; unruffled.

-- Dis*pas"sion*ate*ly, adv. -- Dis*pas"sion*ate*ness, n. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Free from passion; dispassionate. [ R. ] “Dispassioned men.” Donne. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. empasme, fr. Gr. &unr_; to sprinkle in or on; &unr_; in + &unr_; to sprinkle. ] A perfumed powder sprinkled upon the body to mask the odor of sweat. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To move with passion; to affect strongly. See Impassion. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Those sights empassion me full near. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Strongly affected. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

The Briton Prince was sore empassionate. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Encompassed p. pr. & vb. n. Encompassing. ] To circumscribe or go round so as to surround closely; to encircle; to inclose; to environ; as, a ring encompasses the finger; an army encompasses a city; a voyage encompassing the world. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

A question may be encompassed with difficulty. C. J. Smith. [ 1913 Webster ]

The love of all thy sons encompass thee. Tennyson.

Syn. -- To encircle; inclose; surround; include; environ; invest; hem in; shut up. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. closely enveloping or surrounding on all sides.
Syn. -- ambient, enveloping, surrounding(prenominal). [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. The act of surrounding, or the state of being surrounded; circumvention. [ 1913 Webster ]

By this encompassment and drift of question. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖ [ F. ] In passing; in the course of any procedure; -- said specif. (Chess), of the taking of an adverse pawn which makes a first move of two squares by a pawn already so advanced as to threaten the first of these squares. The pawn which takes en passant is advanced to the threatened square. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]