Buzzard - Byzantium

Prev Next

I found the whole room in a buzz of politics. Addison.
[ Webster]

There is a buzz all around regarding the sermon. Thackeray.
[ Webster]

2. A whisper; a report spread secretly or cautiously.
[ Webster]

There's a certain buzz
Of a stolen marriage. Massinger.
[ Webster]

3. (Phonetics) The audible friction of voice consonants. H. Sweet.
[ Webster]

Buzzard (bŭzzẽrd), n.[O.E. busard, bosard, F. busard, fr. buse, L. buteo, a kind of falcon or hawk.]
[ Webster]

1. (Zoöl.) A bird of prey of the Hawk family, belonging to the genus Buteo and related genera.
[ Webster]

2. (Zoöl.) In the United States, a term used for the (Cathartes aura), and sometimes indiscriminately to any vulture.
[PJC]

☞ The Buteo vulgaris is the common buzzard of Europe. The American species (of which the most common are Buteo borealis, Buteo Pennsylvanicus, and Buteo lineatus) are usually called hen hawks. -- The rough-legged buzzard, or bee hawk, of Europe (Pernis apivorus) feeds on bees and their larvæ, with other insects, and reptiles. -- The moor buzzard of Europe is Circus æruginosus. See , and .
[ Webster]

Coloq. Bald buzzard , the fishhawk or osprey. See .
[ Webster]

2. A blockhead; a dunce.
[ Webster]

It is common, to a proverb, to call one who can not be taught, or who continues obstinately ignorant, a buzzard. Goldsmith.
[ Webster]

Buzzard, a. Senseless; stupid. [R. & Obs.] Milton.
[ Webster]

Buzzardet (-ĕt), n. (Zoöl.) A hawk resembling the buzzard, but with legs relatively longer.
[ Webster]

Buzzer (bŭzẽr), n. One who, or that which, buzzes; a whisperer; a talebearer.
[ Webster]

And wants not buzzers to infect his ear
With pestilent speeches of his father's death. Shak.
[ Webster]

Buzzingly (�), adv. In a buzzing manner; with a buzzing sound.
[ Webster]

Buzzsaw (�) A circular saw; -- so called from the buzzing it makes when running at full speed.
[ Webster]

BVD's n. [a Trademark.] men's underwear.
[WordNet 1.5]

BW n. biological warfare; the use of bacteria or viruses or toxins to destroy men and animals or food.
Syn. -- biological warfare.
[WordNet 1.5]

BWR n. a boiling water reactor; a type of nuclear reactor that uses water as a coolant and moderator; -- the steam produced can drive a steam turbine and produce electrical power.
Syn. -- boiling water reactor.
[WordNet 1.5]

By (bī), prep. [OE. bi, AS. bī, big, near to, by, of, from, after, according to; akin to OS. & OFries. bi, be, D. bij, OHG. bī, G. bei, Goth. bi, and perh. Gr. 'amfi. E. prefix be- is orig. the same word. √203. See pref. .] 1. In the neighborhood of; near or next to; not far from; close to; along with; as, come and sit by me.
[ Webster]

By foundation or by shady rivulet
He sought them both. Milton.
[ Webster]

2. On; along; in traversing. Compare 5.
[ Webster]

Long labors both by sea and land he bore. Dryden.
[ Webster]

By land, by water, they renew the charge. Pope.
[ Webster]

3. Near to, while passing; hence, from one to the other side of; past; as, to go by a church.
[ Webster]

4. Used in specifying adjacent dimensions; as, a cabin twenty feet by forty.
[ Webster]

5. Against. [Obs.] Tyndale [1. Cor. iv. 4].
[ Webster]

6. With, as means, way, process, etc.; through means of; with aid of; through; through the act or agency of; as, a city is destroyed by fire; profit is made by commerce; to take by force.
[ Webster]

To the meaning of by, as denoting means or agency, belong, more or less closely, most of the following uses of the word: (a) It points out the author and producer; as, “Waverley”, a novel by Sir W.Scott; a statue by Canova; a sonata by Beethoven. (b) In an oath or adjuration, it indicates the being or thing appealed to as sanction; as, I affirm to you by all that is sacred; he swears by his faith as a Christian; no, by Heaven. (c) According to; by direction, authority, or example of; after; -- in such phrases as, it appears by his account; ten o'clock by my watch; to live by rule; a model to build by. (d) At the rate of; according to the ratio or proportion of; in the measure or quantity of; as, to sell cloth by the yard, milk by the quart, eggs by the dozen, meat by the pound; to board by the year. (e) In comparison, it denotes the measure of excess or deficiency; when anything is increased or diminished, it indicates the measure of increase or diminution; as, larger by a half; older by five years; to lessen by a third. (f) It expresses continuance or duration; during the course of; within the period of; as, by day, by night. (g) As soon as; not later than; near or at; -- used in expressions of time; as, by this time the sun had risen; he will be here by two o'clock.
[ Webster]

In boxing the compass, by indicates a pint nearer to, or towards, the next cardinal point; as, north by east, i.e., a point towards the east from the north; northeast by east, i.e., on point nearer the east than northeast is.
[ Webster]

☞ With is used instead of by before the instrument with which anything is done; as, to beat one with a stick; the board was fastened by the carpenter with nails. But there are many words which may be regarded as means or processes, or, figuratively, as instruments; and whether with or by shall be used with them is a matter of arbitrary, and often, of unsettled usage; as, to a reduce a town by famine; to consume stubble with fire; he gained his purpose by flattery; he entertained them with a story; he distressed us with or by a recital of his sufferings. see .
[ Webster]

Coloq. By all means , most assuredly; without fail; certainly. -- Coloq. By and by . (a) Close together (of place). [Obs.] “Two yonge knightes liggyng [lying] by and by.” Chaucer. (b) Immediately; at once. [Obs.] “When . . . persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.” Matt. xiii. 21. (c) Presently; pretty soon; before long. In this phrase, by seems to be used in the sense of nearness in time, and to be repeated for the sake of emphasis, and thus to be equivalent to “soon, and soon,” that is instantly; hence, -- less emphatically, -- pretty soon, presently. -- Coloq. By one's self , with only one's self near; alone; solitary.- Coloq. By the bye . See under . -- Coloq. By the head (Naut.), having the bows lower than the stern; -- said of a vessel when her head is lower in the water than her stern. If her stern is lower, she is by the stern. -- Coloq. By the lee , the situation of a vessel, going free, when she has fallen off so much as to bring the wind round her stern, and to take her sails aback on the other side. -- Coloq. By the run , to let go by the run, to let go altogether, instead of slacking off. -- Coloq. By the way , by the bye; -- used to introduce an incidental or secondary remark or subject. - Coloq. Day by day , Coloq. One by one , Coloq. Piece by piece , etc., each day, each one, each piece, etc., by itself singly or separately; each severally. -- Coloq. To come by , to get possession of; to obtain. -- Coloq. To do by , to treat, to behave toward. -- Coloq. To set by , to value, to esteem. -- Coloq. To stand by , to aid, to support.
[ Webster]

☞ The common phrase good-by is equivalent to farewell, and would be better written good-bye, as it is a corruption of God be with you (b'w'ye).
[ Webster]

By (bī), adv. 1. Near; in the neighborhood; present; as, there was no person by at the time.
[ Webster]

2. Passing near; going past; past; beyond; as, the procession has gone by; a bird flew by.
[ Webster]

3. Aside; as, to lay by; to put by.
[ Webster]

By (bī), a. Out of the common path; aside; -- used in composition, giving the meaning of something aside, secondary, or incidental, or collateral matter, a thing private or avoiding notice; as, by-line, by-place, by-play, by-street. It was formerly more freely used in composition than it is now; as, by-business, by-concernment, by-design, by-interest, etc.
[ Webster]

Byard (�), n. A piece of leather crossing the breast, used by the men who drag sledges in coal mines.
[ Webster]

By-bidder (�), n. One who bids at an auction in behalf of the auctioneer or owner, for the purpose of running up the price of articles. [U.S.]
[ Webster]

By-blow (�), n. 1. A side or incidental blow; an accidental blow.
[ Webster]

With their by-blows they did split the very stones in pieces. Bunyan.
[ Webster]

2. An illegitimate child; a bastard.
[ Webster]

The Aga speedily . . . brought her [his disgraced slave] to court, together with her pretty by-blow, the present Padre Ottomano. Evelyn.
[ Webster]

By-corner (�), n. A private corner.
[ Webster]

Britain being a by-corner, out of the road of the world. Fuller.
[ Webster]

By-dependence (�), n. An appendage; that which depends on something else, or is distinct from the main dependence; an accessory. Shak.
[ Webster]

By-drinking, n. A drinking between meals. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

Bye (bī), n. 1. A thing not directly aimed at; something which is a secondary object of regard; an object by the way, etc.; as in on or upon the bye, i. e., in passing; indirectly; by implication. [Obs. except in the phrase by the bye.]
[ Webster]

The Synod of Dort condemneth upon the bye even the discipline of the Church of England. Fuller.
[ Webster]

2. (Cricket) A run made upon a missed ball; as, to steal a bye. T. Hughes.
[ Webster]

3. In various sports in which the contestants are drawn in pairs, the position or turn of one left with no opponent in consequence of an odd number being engaged; as, to draw a bye in a round of a tennis tournament.
[Webster Suppl.]

4. (Golf) The hole or holes of a stipulated course remaining unplayed at the end of a match.
[ Webster]

Coloq. By the bye , in passing; by way of digression; apropos to the matter in hand. [Written also by the by.]
[ Webster]

Bye (bī) n. [AS. bȳ; cf. Icel. bygð dwelling, byggja, būa, to dwell √97.] 1. A dwelling. Gibson.
[ Webster]

2. In certain games, a station or place of an individual player. Emerson.
[ Webster]

By-election (�), n. An election held by itself, not at the time of a general election.
[ Webster]

Byelorussia n. a European country east of Poland, formerly a part of the Soviet Union. After the breakup of the Soviet Union the name was changed to Belarus.
Syn. -- Belarus, Belorussia, White Russia.
[WordNet 1.5]

Byelorussian n. 1. a native or inhabitant of Byelorussia.
Syn. -- Belorussian, White Russian.
[WordNet 1.5]

2. the language spoken in Belarus.
Syn. -- Belarusian.
[WordNet 1.5]

By-end (�), n. Private end or interest; secret purpose; selfish advantage. [Written also bye-end.]
[ Webster]

“Profit or some other by-end.” L'Estrange.
[ Webster]

Bygone (bīgŏn; 115), a. Past; gone by. “Bygone fooleries.” Shak.
[ Webster]

Bygone (�), n. Something gone by or past; a past event. “Let old bygones be” Tennyson.
[ Webster]

Coloq. Let bygones be bygones , let the past be forgotten.
[ Webster]

By-interest (�), n. Self-interest; private advantage. Atterbury.
[ Webster]

Byland (�), n. A peninsula. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

Bylander (�), n. See . [Obs.]
[ Webster]

By-lane (bī-lān), n. A private lane, or one opening out of the usual road.
[ Webster]

By-law (bī-l�), n. [Cf. Sw. bylag, D. bylov, Icel. bȳarlög, fr. Sw. & Dan. by town, Icel. bær, byr (fr. bûa to dwell) + the word for law; hence, a law for one town, a special law. Cf. and see .] 1. A local or subordinate law; a private law or regulation made by a corporation for its own government.
[ Webster]

There was likewise a law to restrain the by-laws, or ordinances of corporations. Bacon.
[ Webster]

The law or institution; to which are added two by-laws, as a comment upon the general law. Addison.
[ Webster]

2. A law that is less important than a general law or constitutional provision, and subsidiary to it; a rule relating to a matter of detail; as, civic societies often adopt a constitution and by-laws for the government of their members. In this sense the word has probably been influenced by by, meaning secondary or aside.
[ Webster]

By-name (�), n. A nickname. Camden.
[ Webster]

Byname, v. t. To give a nickname to. Camden.
[ Webster]

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

By-passage (�), n. A passage different from the usual one; a byway.
[ Webster]

By-past (�), a. Past; gone by. “By-past perils.” Shak.
[ Webster]

Bypath (�), n.; pl. Bypaths (�). A private path; an obscure way; indirect means.
[ Webster]

God known, my son,
By what bypaths, and indirect crooked ways,
I met this crown. Shak.
[ Webster]

By-place (�), n. A retired or private place.
[ Webster]

Byplay (�), n. Action carried on aside, and commonly in dumb show, while the main action proceeds.
[ Webster]

By-product (�), n. A secondary or additional product; something produced, as in the course of a manufacture, in addition to the principal product.
[ Webster]

Byre (�), n. [Cf, Icel. bür pantry, Sw. bur cage, Dan. buur, E. bower.] A cow house. [N. of Eng. & Scot.]
[ Webster]

By-respect (bīr�spĕkt), n. Private end or view; by-interest. [Obs.] Dryden.
[ Webster]

Byroad (�), n. A private or obscure road. “Through slippery byroads” Swift.
[ Webster]

Byronic (�), a. Pertaining to, or in the style of, Lord Byron.
[ Webster]

With despair and Byronic misanthropy. Thackeray
[ Webster]

By-room (�), n. A private room or apartment. “Stand in some by-room” Shak.
[ Webster]

Bysmottered (b�smŏttẽrĕd), p.a. [See .] Bespotted with mud or dirt. [Obs.] Chaucer.
[ Webster]

By-speech(�), n. An incidental or casual speech, not directly relating to the point. “To quote by-speeches.” Hooker.
[ Webster]

By-spell(�), n. [AS. bigspell.] A proverb. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

Byss (�), n. See , n., 1.
[ Webster]

Byssaceous (�), a. [From .] (Bot.) Byssuslike; consisting of fine fibers or threads, as some very delicate filamentous algæ.
[ Webster]

Byssiferous (�), a. [Byssus + -ferous.] Bearing a byssus or tuft.
[ Webster]

Byssin (�), n. See , n., 1.
[ Webster]

Byssine (�), a. [L. byssinus made of byssus, Gr. byssinos See .] Made of silk; having a silky or flaxlike appearance. Coles.
[ Webster]

Byssoid (�), a. [Byssus + -oid.] Byssaceous.
[ Webster]

Byssolite (�), n. [Gr.� See flax + -lite.] (Min.) An olive-green fibrous variety of hornblende.
[ Webster]

Byssus (�), n.; pl. E. Byssuses (�); L. Byssi. (�) [L. byssus fine flax, fine linen or cotton, Gr. byssos .]
[ Webster]

1. A cloth of exceedingly fine texture, used by the ancients. It is disputed whether it was of cotton, linen, or silk. [Written also byss and byssin.]
[ Webster]

2. (Zoöl.) A tuft of long, tough filaments which are formed in a groove of the foot, and issue from between the valves of certain bivalve mollusks, as the Pinna and Mytilus, by which they attach themselves to rocks, etc.
[ Webster]

3. (Bot.) An obsolete name for certain fungi composed of slender threads.
[ Webster]

4. Asbestus.
[ Webster]

Bystander (�), n. [By + stander, equiv. to stander-by; cf. AS. big-standan to stand by or near.] One who stands near; a spectator; one who has no concern with the business transacting.
[ Webster]

He addressed the bystanders and scattered pamphlets among them. Palfrey.
[ Webster]

Syn. -- Looker on; spectator; beholder; observer.
[ Webster]

By-street (�), n. A separate, private, or obscure street; an out of the way or cross street.
[ Webster]

He seeks by-streets, and saves the expensive coach. Gay.
[ Webster]

By-stroke (�), n. An accidental or a slyly given stroke.
[ Webster]

By-turning (�), n. An obscure road; a way turning from the main road. Sir P. Sidney.
[ Webster]

By-view(�), n. A private or selfish view; self-interested aim or purpose.
[ Webster]

No by-views of his own shall mislead him. Atterbury.
[ Webster]

By-walk(�), n. A secluded or private walk.
[ Webster]

He moves afterward in by-walks. Dryden.
[ Webster]

By-wash (�), n. The outlet from a dam or reservoir; also, a cut to divert the flow of water.
[ Webster]

Byway (�), n. A secluded, private, or obscure way; a path or road aside from the main one. “ Take no byways.” Herbert.
[ Webster]

By-wipe (�), n. A secret or side stroke, as of raillery or sarcasm. Milton.
[ Webster]

Byword (�), n. [AS. bïword; bï, E. by + word.] 1. A common saying; a proverb; a saying that has a general currency.
[ Webster]

I knew a wise man that had it for a byword. Bacon.
[ Webster]

2. The object of a contemptuous saying.
[ Webster]

Thou makest us a byword among the heathen. Ps. xliv. 14
[ Webster]

Bywork (�), n. Work aside from regular work; subordinate or secondary business.
[ Webster]

{ Byzant (�), Byzantine (-ăntīn) n. }[OE. besant, besaunt, F. besant, fr. LL. Byzantius, Byzantinus, fr. Byzantium.] (Numis.) A gold coin, so called from being coined at Byzantium. See .
[ Webster]

Byzantian (bĭzănsh�n), a. & n. See .
[ Webster]

Byzantine (bĭzăntĭn), a. Of or pertaining to Byzantium. -- n. A native or inhabitant of Byzantium, now Constantinople; sometimes, applied to an inhabitant of the modern city of Constantinople. [Written also .]
[ Webster]

Coloq. Byzantine church , the Eastern or Greek church, as distinguished from the Western or Roman or Latin church. See under . -- Coloq. Byzantine empire , the Eastern Roman or Greek empire from a. d. 364 or a. d. 395 to the capture of Constantinople by the Turks, a. d. 1453. -- Coloq. Byzantine historians , historians and writers (Zonaras, Procopius, etc.) who lived in the Byzantine empire. P. Cyc. -- Coloq. Byzantine style (Arch.), a style of architecture developed in the Byzantine empire. Its leading forms are the round arch, the dome, the pillar, the circle, and the cross. The capitals of the pillars are of endless variety, and full of invention. The mosque of St. Sophia, Constantinople, and the church of St. Mark, Venice, are prominent examples of Byzantine architecture.
[ Webster]

Byzantinism n. The doctrine that the state is supreme over the church in ecclesiastical matters.
Syn. -- Erastianism, Caesaropapism.
[WordNet 1.5]

Byzantium prop. n. An ancient city on the Bosporus founded by the Greeks. It was later renamed Constaninople in honor of the emperor Constantine, and renamed Istanbul by the Turks, which name it still retains.
[WordNet 1.5]

Prev Next

Concept Explore Home

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z