Chancellorship - Chantress

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Chancellorship (chȧnsĕllẽrshĭp), n. The office of a chancellor; the time during which one is chancellor.
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Chance-medley (?), n. [Chance + medley.] 1. (Law) The killing of another in self-defense upon a sudden and unpremeditated encounter. See .
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☞ The term has been sometimes applied to any kind of homicide by misadventure, or to any accidental killing of a person without premeditation or evil intent, but, in strictness, is applicable to such killing as happens in defending one's self against assault. Bouvier.
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2. Luck; chance; accident. Milton. Cowper.
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Chancery (?), n. [F. chancellerie, LL. cancellaria, from L. cancellarius. See , and cf. .] 1. In England, formerly, the highest court of judicature next to the Parliament, exercising jurisdiction at law, but chiefly in equity; but under the jurisdiction act of 1873 it became the chancery division of the High Court of Justice, and now exercises jurisdiction only in equity.
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2. In the Unites States, a court of equity; equity; proceeding in equity.
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☞ A court of chancery, so far as it is a court of equity, in the English and American sense, may be generally, if not precisely, described as one having jurisdiction in cases of rights, recognized and protected by the municipal jurisprudence, where a plain, adequate, and complete remedy can not be had in the courts of common law. In some of the American States, jurisdiction at law and in equity centers in the same tribunal. The courts of the United States also have jurisdiction both at law and in equity, and in all such cases they exercise their jurisdiction, as courts of law, or as courts of equity, as the subject of adjudication may require. In others of the American States, the courts that administer equity are distinct tribunals, having their appropriate judicial officers, and it is to the latter that the appellation courts of chancery is usually applied; but, in American law, the terms equity and court of equity are more frequently employed than the corresponding terms chancery and court of chancery. Burrill.
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Coloq. Inns of chancery . See under . -- Coloq. To get (or to hold) In chancery (Boxing), to get the head of an antagonist under one's arm, so that one can pommel it with the other fist at will; hence, to have wholly in One's power. The allusion is to the condition of a person involved in the chancery court, where he was helpless, while the lawyers lived upon his estate.
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Chancre (?), n. [F. chancere. See .] (Med.) A venereal sore or ulcer; specifically, the initial lesion of true syphilis, whether forming a distinct ulcer or not; -- called also hard chancre, indurated chancre, and Hunterian chancre.
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Coloq. Soft chancre . A chancroid. See .
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Chancroid (?), n. [Chancre + -oil.] (Med.) A venereal sore, resembling a chancre in its seat and some external characters, but differing from it in being the starting point of a purely local process and never of a systemic disease; -- called also soft chancre.
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chancroidal adj. of or pertaining to a chancroid.
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Chancrous (?), a. [Cf. F. chancreux.] (Med.) Of the nature of a chancre; having chancre.
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chancy adj. 1. depending on chance.
Syn. -- chanceful, dicey, dodgy, hazardous, risky.
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2. subject to accident or chance or change.
Syn. -- fluky, flukey, iffy.
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Chandelier (?), n. [F. See .] 1. A candlestick, lamp, stand, gas fixture, or the like, having several branches; esp., one hanging from the ceiling.
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2. (Fort.) A movable parapet, serving to support fascines to cover pioneers. [Obs.]
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chandelle n. (Aeronautics) an abrupt climbing turn made by an airplane, in which the plane's momentum is used to achieve a higher than normal rate of climb, without stalling the aircraft.
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chandelle v. i. to perform a chandelle, as of an airplane.
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Chandi n. (Hinduism) the malevolent aspect of Devi: the fierce.
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Chandler (?), n. [F. chandelier a candlestick, a maker or seller of candles, LL. candelarius chandler, fr. L. candela candle. See , and cf. Chandelier.] 1. A maker or seller of candles.
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The chandler's basket, on his shoulder borne,
With tallow spots thy coat. Gay.
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2. A dealer in other commodities, which are indicated by a word prefixed; as, ship chandler, corn chandler.
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Chandlerly (?), a. Like a chandler; in a petty way. [Obs.] Milton.
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Chandlery (?), n. Commodities sold by a chandler.
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Chandoo (?), n. An extract or preparation of opium, used in China and India for smoking. Balfour.
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Chandry (?), n. Chandlery. [Obs.] “Torches from the chandry.” B. Jonson.
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Chanfrin (?), n. [F. chanfrein. Cf. .] The fore part of a horse's head.
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Changan n. the capital of the ancient Chinese empire.
Syn. -- Sian, Singan, Xian.
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Change (chānj), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Changed (chānjd); p. pr. & vb. n. Changing.] [F. changer, fr. LL. cambiare, to exchange, barter, L. cambire. Cf. .] 1. To alter; to make different; to cause to pass from one state to another; as, to change the position, character, or appearance of a thing; to change the countenance.
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Therefore will I change their glory into shame. Hosea. iv. 7.
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2. To alter by substituting something else for, or by giving up for something else; as, to change the clothes; to change one's occupation; to change one's intention.
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They that do change old love for new,
Pray gods, they change for worse! Peele.
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3. To give and take reciprocally; to exchange; -- followed by with; as, to change place, or hats, or money, with another.
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Look upon those thousands with whom thou wouldst not, for any interest, change thy fortune and condition. Jer. Taylor.
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4. Specifically: To give, or receive, smaller denominations of money (technically called change) for; as, to change a gold coin or a bank bill.
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He pulled out a thirty-pound note and bid me change it. Goldsmith.
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Coloq. To change a horse, or To change hand (Man.), to turn or bear the horse's head from one hand to the other, from the left to right, or from the right to the left. -- Coloq. To change hands , to change owners. -- Coloq. To change one's tune , to become less confident or boastful. [Colloq.] -- Coloq. To change step , to take a break in the regular succession of steps, in marching or walking, as by bringing the hollow of one foot against the heel of the other, and then stepping off with the foot which is in advance.

Syn. -- To alter; vary; deviate; substitute; innovate; diversify; shift; veer; turn. See .
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Change, v. i. 1. To be altered; to undergo variation; as, men sometimes change for the better.
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For I am Lord, I change not. Mal. iii. 6.
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2. To pass from one phase to another; as, the moon changes to-morrow night.
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Change, n. [F. change, fr. changer. See . v. t.] 1. Any variation or alteration; a passing from one state or form to another; as, a change of countenance; a change of habits or principles.
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Apprehensions of a change of dynasty. Hallam.
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All the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. Job xiv. 14.
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2. A succesion or substitution of one thing in the place of another; a difference; novelty; variety; as, a change of seasons.
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Our fathers did for change to France repair. Dryden.
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The ringing grooves of change. Tennyson.
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3. A passing from one phase to another; as, a change of the moon.
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4. Alteration in the order of a series; permutation.
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5. That which makes a variety, or may be substituted for another.
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Thirty change (R.V. changes) of garments. Judg. xiv. 12.
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6. Small money; the money by means of which the larger coins and bank bills are made available in small dealings; hence, the balance returned when payment is tendered by a coin or note exceeding the sum due.
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7. [See .] A place where merchants and others meet to transact business; a building appropriated for mercantile transactions. [Colloq. for Exchange.]
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8. A public house; an alehouse. [Scot.]
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They call an alehouse a change. Burt.
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9. (Mus.) Any order in which a number of bells are struck, other than that of the diatonic scale.
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Four bells admit twenty-four changes in ringing. Holder.
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Coloq. Change of life , the period in the life of a woman when menstruation and the capacity for conception cease, usually occurring between forty-five and fifty years of age. -- Coloq. Change ringing , the continual production, without repetition, of changes on bells, See def. 9. above. -- Coloq. Change wheel (Mech.), one of a set of wheels of different sizes and number of teeth, that may be changed or substituted one for another in machinery, to produce a different but definite rate of angular velocity in an axis, as in cutting screws, gear, etc. -- Coloq. To ring the changes on , to present the same facts or arguments in variety of ways.

Syn. -- Variety; variation; alteration; mutation; transition; vicissitude; innovation; novelty; transmutation; revolution; reverse.
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Changeability (?), n. Changeableness.
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Changeable (?), a. [Cf. F. changeable.] 1. Capable of change; subject to alteration; mutable; variable; fickle; inconstant; as, a changeable humor.
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2. Appearing different, as in color, in different lights, or under different circumstances; as, changeable silk.

Syn. -- Mutable; alterable; variable; inconstant; fitful; vacillating; capricious; fickle; unstable; unsteady; unsettled; wavering; erratic; giddy; volatile.
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Changeableness, n. The quality of being changeable; fickleness; inconstancy; mutability.
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Changeably, adv. In a changeable manner.
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Changeful (?), a. Full of change; mutable; inconstant; fickle; uncertain. Pope.
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His course had been changeful. Motley.

-- Changefully, adv. -- Changefulness, n.
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Change gear. (Mach.) A gear by means of which the speed of machinery or of a vehicle may be changed while that of the propelling engine or motor remains constant; -- called also Coloq. change-speed gear .
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Change key. A key adapted to open only one of a set of locks; -- distinguished from a master key.
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Changeless, a. That can not be changed; constant; as, a changeless purpose.

-- Changelessness, n.
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Changeling, n. [Change + -ling.] 1. One who, or that which, is left or taken in the place of another, as a child exchanged by fairies.
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Such, men do changelings call, so changed by fairies' theft. Spenser.
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The changeling [a substituted writing] never known. Shak.
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2. A simpleton; an idiot. Macaulay.
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Changelings and fools of heaven, and thence shut out.
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Wildly we roam in discontent about. Dryden.
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3. One apt to change; a waverer. “Fickle changelings.” Shak.
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Changeling, a. 1. Taken or left in place of another; changed. “A little changeling boy.” Shak.
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2. Given to change; inconstant. [Obs.]
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Some are so studiously changeling. Boyle.
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change-of-pace n. (Baseball) a baseball pitch thrown with little velocity when the batter is expecting a fastball; -- called also change-up.
Syn. -- change-up, change-of-pace ball, off-speed pitch.
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changeover n. an event that results in a transformation.
Syn. -- conversion, transition.
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Changer (?), n. 1. One who changes or alters the form of anything.
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2. One who deals in or changes money. John ii. 14.
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3. One apt to change; an inconstant person.
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4. an electronic device which changes one replaceable medium for another, such as a record changer, which can store several records and move each one automatically to the playing table; or a CD changer, whch can store multiple compact disks and move each one to the reading slot, in a sequence determined by the user.
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change-ringing n. ringing tuned bells in a fixed order that is continually changing. See , n.
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change-up n. (Baseball) same as .
Syn. -- change-of-pace, change-of-pace ball, off-speed pitch.
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Chank (chăṉk), n. [Skr. çaṅkha. See .] (Zoöl.) The East Indian name for the large spiral shell of several species of sea conch much used in making bangles, esp. Turbinella pyrum. Called also chank shell.
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Channel (chănnĕl), n. [OE. chanel, canel, OF. chanel, F. chenel, fr. L. canalis. See .] 1. The hollow bed where a stream of water runs or may run.
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2. The deeper part of a river, harbor, strait, etc., where the main current flows, or which affords the best and safest passage for vessels.
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3. (Geog.) A strait, or narrow sea, between two portions of lands; as, the British Channel.
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4. That through which anything passes; a means of passing, conveying, or transmitting; as, the news was conveyed to us by different channels.
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The veins are converging channels. Dalton.
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At best, he is but a channel to convey to the National assembly such matter as may import that body to know. Burke.
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5. A gutter; a groove, as in a fluted column.
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6. pl. [Cf. .] (Naut.) Flat ledges of heavy plank bolted edgewise to the outside of a vessel, to increase the spread of the shrouds and carry them clear of the bulwarks.
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7. pl. official routes of communication, especially the official means by which information should be transmitted in a bureaucracy; as, to submit a request through channels; you have to go through channels.
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8. a band of electromagnetic wave frequencies that is used for one-way or two-way radio communication; especially, the frequency bands assigned by the FTC for use in television broadcasting, and designated by a specific number; as, channel 2 in New York is owned by CBS.
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9. one of the signals in an electronic device which receives or sends more than one signal simultaneously, as in stereophonic radios, records, or CD players, or in measuring equipment which gathers multiple measurements simultaneously.
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10. (Cell biology) an opening in a cell membrane which serves to actively transport or allow passive transport of substances across the membrane; as, an ion channel in a nerve cell.
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11. (Computers) a path for transmission of signals between devices within a computer or between a computer and an external device; as, a DMA channel.
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Coloq. Channel bar , Coloq. Channel iron (Arch.), an iron bar or beam having a section resembling a flat gutter or channel. -- Coloq. Channel bill (Zoöl.), a very large Australian cuckoo (Scythrops Novæhollandiæ. -- Coloq. Channel goose . (Zoöl.) See .
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Channel, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Channeled (?), or Channelled; p. pr. & vb. n. Channeling, or Channelling.] 1. To form a channel in; to cut or wear a channel or channels in; to groove.
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No more shall trenching war channel her fields. Shak.
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2. To course through or over, as in a channel. Cowper.
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Channeling, n. 1. The act or process of forming a channel or channels.
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2. A channel or a system of channels; a groove.
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Chanson, n. [F., fr. L. cantion song. See , .] A song. Shak.
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Chanson de geste (?). [F., prop., song of history.] Any Old French epic poem having for its subject events or exploits of early French history, real or legendary, and written originally in assonant verse of ten or twelve syllables. The most famous one is the Chanson de Roland.

Langtoft had written in the ordinary measure of the later chansons de geste. Saintsbury.
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Chansonnette (?), n.; pl. Chansonnettes (#). [F., dim. of chanson.] A little song.
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These pretty little chansonnettes that he sung. Black.
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Chant (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Chanted; p. pr. & vb. n. Chanting.] [F. chanter, fr. L. cantare, intens. of canere to sing. Cf. affected speaking, and see .] 1. To utter with a melodious voice; to sing.
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The cheerful birds . . . do chant sweet music. Spenser.
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2. To celebrate in song.
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The poets chant in the theaters. Bramhall.
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3. (Mus.) To sing or recite after the manner of a chant, or to a tune called a chant.
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Chant, v. i. 1. To make melody with the voice; to sing. “Chant to the sound of the viol.” Amos vi. 5.
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2. (Mus.) To sing, as in reciting a chant.
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Coloq. To chant horses or Coloq. To chaunt horses , to sing their praise; to overpraise; to cheat in selling. See . Thackeray.
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Chant, n. [F. chant, fr. L. cantus singing, song, fr. canere to sing. See , v. t.] 1. Song; melody.
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2. (Mus.) A short and simple melody, divided into two parts by double bars, to which unmetrical psalms, etc., are sung or recited. It is the most ancient form of choral music.
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3. A psalm, etc., arranged for chanting.
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4. Twang; manner of speaking; a canting tone. [R.]
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His strange face, his strange chant. Macaulay.
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Coloq. Ambrosian chant , See under . Coloq. Chant royal [F.], in old French poetry, a poem containing five strophes of eleven lines each, and a concluding stanza. -- each of these six parts ending with a common refrain. -- Coloq. Gregorian chant . See under .
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Chantant (?), a. [F. singing.] (Mus.) Composed in a melodious and singing style.
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Chanter (chȧntẽr), n. [Cf. F. chanteur.] 1. One who chants; a singer or songster. Pope.
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2. The chief singer of the chantry. J. Gregory.
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3. The flute or finger pipe in a bagpipe. See .
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4. (Zoöl.) The hedge sparrow.
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Chanterelle (?), n. [F.] (Bot.) A name for several species of mushroom, of which one (Cantharellus cibrius) is edible, the others reputed poisonous.
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Chantey (?), n. [Cf. F. chanter to sing, and . n.] A sailor's song.
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May we lift a deep-sea chantey such as seamen use at sea? Kipling.
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Chanticleer (chăntĭklēr), n. [F. Chanteclair, name of the cock in the Roman du Renart (Reynard the Fox); chanter to chant + clair clear. See , and .] A cock, so called from the clearness or loudness of his voice in crowing.
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Chanting (chȧntĭng), n. Singing, esp. as a chant is sung.
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Coloq. Chanting falcon (Zoöl.), an African falcon (Melierax canorus or musicus). The male has the habit, remarkable in a bird of prey, of singing to his mate, while she is incubating.
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Chantor (?), n. A chanter.
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Chantress (?), n. [Cf. OF. chanteresse.] A female chanter or singer. Milton.
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