Inventious - invigilator

Prev Next

As the search of it [truth] is the duty, so the invention will be the happiness of man. Tatham.
[ Webster]

2. That which is invented; an original contrivance or construction; a device; as, this fable was the invention of Esop; that falsehood was her own invention; she patented five inventions.
[ Webster +PJC]

We entered by the drawbridge, which has an invention to let one fall if not premonished. Evelyn.
[ Webster]

3. Thought; idea. Shak.
[ Webster]

4. A fabrication to deceive; a fiction; a forgery; a falsehood.
[ Webster]

Filling their hearers
With strange invention. Shak.
[ Webster]

5. The faculty of inventing; imaginative faculty; skill or ingenuity in contriving anything new; as, a man of invention.
[ Webster]

They lay no less than a want of invention to his charge; a capital crime, . . . for a poet is a maker. Dryden.
[ Webster]

6. (Fine Arts, Rhet., etc.) The exercise of the imagination in selecting and treating a theme, or more commonly in contriving the arrangement of a piece, or the method of presenting its parts.
[ Webster]

Coloq. Invention of the cross (Eccl.), a festival celebrated May 3d, in honor of the finding of our Savior's cross by St. Helena.
[ Webster]

Inventious (?), a. Inventive. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

Inventive (?), a. [Cf. F. inventif.] Able and apt to invent; quick at contrivance; ready at expedients; as, an inventive head or genius. Dryden. -- Inventively, adv. -- Inventiveness, n.
[ Webster]

Inventor (?), n. [L.: cf. F. inventeur.] One who invents or finds out something new; a contriver; especially, one who invents mechanical devices, new drugs, new processes, or other useful objects or procedures.
[ Webster +PJC]

Inventorial (?), a. Of or pertaining to an inventory. -- Inventorially, adv. Shak.
[ Webster]

Inventory (?), n.; pl. Inventories (#). [L. inventarium: cf. LL. inventorium, F. inventaire, OF. also inventoire. See .] 1. An account, catalogue, or schedule, made by an executor or administrator, of all the goods and chattels, and sometimes of the real estate, of a deceased person; a list of the property of which a person or estate is found to be possessed; hence, an itemized list of goods or valuables, with their estimated worth. Hence: Any listing, as in a catalogue, of objects or resources on hand and available for use or for sale. Specifically, the annual account listing the stock on hand, taken in any business.
[ Webster]

There take an inventory of all I have. Shak.

2. The objects contained on an inventory{1}; especially: the stock of items on hand in any business, either for sale and not yet sold, or kept as raw materials to be converted into finished products.
[PJC]

3. The total value of all goods in an inventory{2}.
[PJC]

4. The act of making an inventory{1}.
[PJC]

Syn. -- List; register; schedule; catalogue. See .
[ Webster]

Inventory, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Inventoried (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Inventorying.] [Cf. F. inventorier.] To make an inventory of; to make a list, catalogue, or schedule of; to insert or register in an account of goods; as, a merchant inventories his stock.
[ Webster]

I will give out divers schedules of my beauty; it shall be inventoried, and every particle and utensil labeled. Shak.
[ Webster]

inventorying n. the act or process of making an inventory; making an itemized list of merchandise or supplies on hand.
Syn. -- inventory, stocktaking.
[WordNet 1.5]

Inventress (?), n. [Cf. L. inventrix, F. inventrice.] A woman who invents. Dryden.
[ Webster]

Inveracity (?), n. Lack of veracity.
[ Webster]

Inverisimilitude (?), n. Lack of verisimilitude or likelihood; improbability.
[ Webster]

Inverness (?), n., or Inverness cape. A kind of full sleeveless cape, fitting closely about the neck.

Robert's wind-blown head and tall form wrapped in an Inverness cape. Mrs. Humphry Ward.
[Webster Suppl.]

Inverse (?), a. [L. inversus, p. p. of invertere: cf. F. inverse. See .]
[ Webster]

1. Opposite in order, relation, or effect; reversed; inverted; reciprocal; -- opposed to direct.
[ Webster]

2. (Bot.) Inverted; having a position or mode of attachment the reverse of that which is usual.
[ Webster]

3. (Math.) Opposite in nature and effect; -- said with reference to any two operations, which, when both are performed in succession upon any quantity, reproduce that quantity; as, multiplication is the inverse operation to division. The symbol of an inverse operation is the symbol of the direct operation with -1 as an index. Thus sin-1 x means the arc or angle whose sine is x.
[ Webster]

Coloq. Inverse figures (Geom.), two figures, such that each point of either figure is inverse to a corresponding point in the order figure. -- Coloq. Inverse points (Geom.), two points lying on a line drawn from the center of a fixed circle or sphere, and so related that the product of their distances from the center of the circle or sphere is equal to the square of the radius. -- Coloq. Inverse ratio , or Coloq. Reciprocal ratio (Math.), the ratio of the reciprocals of two quantities. -- Coloq. Inverse proportion , or Coloq. Reciprocal proportion , an equality between a direct ratio and a reciprocal ratio; thus, 4 : 2 : : 1/3 : 1/6, or 4 : 2 : : 3 : 6, inversely.
[ Webster]

Inverse, n. That which is inverse.
[ Webster]

Thus the course of human study is the inverse of the course of things in nature. Tatham.
[ Webster]

Inversely (?), adv. In an inverse order or manner; by inversion; -- opposed to directly.
[ Webster]

Coloq. Inversely proportional . See Directly proportional, under , and , 4.
[ Webster]

Inversion (?), n. [L. inversio: cf. F. inversion. See .]
[ Webster]

1. The act of inverting, or turning over or backward, or the state of being inverted.
[ Webster]

2. A change by inverted order; a reversed position or arrangement of things; transposition.
[ Webster]

It is just the inversion of an act of Parliament; your lordship first signed it, and then it was passed among the Lords and Commons. Dryden.
[ Webster]

3. (Mil.) A movement in tactics by which the order of companies in line is inverted, the right being on the left, the left on the right, and so on.
[ Webster]

4. (Math.) A change in the order of the terms of a proportion, so that the second takes the place of the first, and the fourth of the third.
[ Webster]

5. (Geom.) A peculiar method of transformation, in which a figure is replaced by its inverse figure. Propositions that are true for the original figure thus furnish new propositions that are true in the inverse figure. See Inverse figures, under .
[ Webster]

6. (Gram.) A change of the usual order of words or phrases; as, “of all vices, impurity is one of the most detestable,” instead of, “impurity is one of the most detestable of all vices.”
[ Webster]

7. (Rhet.) A method of reasoning in which the orator shows that arguments advanced by his adversary in opposition to him are really favorable to his cause.
[ Webster]

8. (Mus.) (a) Said of intervals, when the lower tone is placed an octave higher, so that fifths become fourths, thirds sixths, etc. (b) Said of a chord, when one of its notes, other than its root, is made the bass. (c) Said of a subject, or phrase, when the intervals of which it consists are repeated in the contrary direction, rising instead of falling, or vice versa. (d) Said of double counterpoint, when an upper and a lower part change places.
[ Webster]

9. (Geol.) The folding back of strata upon themselves, as by upheaval, in such a manner that the order of succession appears to be reversed.
[ Webster]

10. (Chem.) The act or process by which cane sugar (sucrose), under the action of heat and acids or enzymes (as diastase), is broken or split up into grape sugar (dextrose), and fruit sugar (levulose); also, less properly, the process by which starch is converted into grape sugar (dextrose).
[ Webster]

☞ The terms invert and inversion, in this sense, owe their meaning to the fact that the plane of polarization of light, which is rotated to the right by cane sugar, is turned toward the left by levulose.
[ Webster]

11. (Meteorology) A reversal of the usual temperature gradient of the atmosphere, in which the temperature increases with increased altitude, rather than falling. Called also temperature inversion. This condition in the vicinity of cities can give rise to a severe episode of atmospheric pollution, as it inhibits normal circulation of the air.
[PJC]

12. (Electricity) The conversion of direct current into alternating current; the inverse of rectification. See .
[PJC]

13. (Genetics) A portion of the genome in which the DNA has been turned around, and runs in a direction opposite to its normal direction, and consequently the genes are present in the reverse of their usual order.
[PJC]

Invert (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Inverted; p. pr. & vb. n. Inverting.] [L. invertere, inversum; pref. in- in + vertere to turn. See .]
[ Webster]

1. To turn over; to put upside down; to upset; to place in a contrary order or direction; to reverse; as, to invert a cup, the order of words, rules of justice, etc.
[ Webster]

That doth invert the attest of eyes and ears,
As if these organs had deceptious functions. Shak.
[ Webster]

Such reasoning falls like an inverted cone,
Wanting its proper base to stand upon. Cowper.
[ Webster]

2. (Mus.) To change the position of; -- said of tones which form a chord, or parts which compose harmony.
[ Webster]

3. To divert; to convert to a wrong use. [Obs.] Knolles.
[ Webster]

4. (Chem.) To convert; to reverse; to decompose by, or subject to, inversion. See , n., 10.
[ Webster]

Invert, v. i. (Chem.) To undergo inversion, as sugar.
[ Webster]

Invert (?), a. (Chem.) Subjected to the process of inversion; inverted; converted; as, invert sugar.
[ Webster]

Coloq. Invert sugar (Chem.), a variety of sugar, consisting of a mixture of dextrose and levulose, found naturally in fruits, and produced artificially by the inversion of cane sugar (sucrose); also, less properly, the grape sugar or dextrose obtained from starch. See , , , and .
[ Webster]

Invert, n. (Masonry) An inverted arch.
[ Webster]

Invertase (?), n. (Chem.) (a) An enzyme capable of effecting the inversion of cane suger, producing invert sugar. It is found in many plants and in the intestines of animals. (b) By extension, any enzyme which splits cane sugar, milk sugar, lactose, etc., into monosaccharides.
[Webster Suppl.]

Invertebral (?), a. (Zoöl.) Same as .
[ Webster]

Invertebrata (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. in- not + vertebratus vertebrate.] (Zoöl.) A comprehensive division of the animal kingdom, including all except the Vertebrata.
[ Webster]

Invertebrate (?), a. (Zoöl.) Destitute of a backbone; having no vertebræ; of or pertaining to the Invertebrata. -- n. One of the Invertebrata.
[ Webster]

Coloq. Age of invertebrates . See , and .
[ Webster]

Invertebrated (?), a. Having no backbone; invertebrate.
[ Webster]

Inverted (?), a.
[ Webster]

1. Changed to a contrary or counterchanged order; reversed; characterized by inversion.
[ Webster]

2. (Geol.) Situated apparently in reverse order, as strata when folded back upon themselves by upheaval.
[ Webster]

Coloq. Inverted arch (Arch.), an arch placed with crown downward; -- much used in foundations.
[ Webster]

Invertedly, adv. In an inverted order. Derham.
[ Webster]

inverted rectifier (?), n. (Electricity) A device which converts direct current to alternating current.
[PJC]

Invertible (?), a. [From .] 1. Capable of being inverted or turned inside out.
[ Webster]

2. (Chem.) Capable of being changed or converted; as, invertible sugar.
[ Webster]

Invertible, a. [Pref. in- not + L. vertere to turn + -ible.] Incapable of being turned or changed.
[ Webster]

An indurate and invertible conscience. Cranmer.
[ Webster]

Invertin (?), n. (Physiol. Chem.) An enzyme which causes cane sugar to take up a molecule of water and be converted into invert sugar.
[ Webster]

Invest (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Invested; p. pr. & vb. n. Investing.] [L. investire, investitum; pref. in- in + vestire to clothe, fr. vestis clothing: cf. F. investir. See .]
[ Webster]

1. To put garments on; to clothe; to dress; to array; -- opposed to divest. Usually followed by with, sometimes by in; as, to invest one with a robe.
[ Webster]

2. To put on. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

Can not find one this girdle to invest. Spenser.
[ Webster]

3. To clothe, as with office or authority; to place in possession of rank, dignity, or estate; to endow; to adorn; to grace; to bedeck; as, to invest with honor or glory; to invest with an estate.
[ Webster]

I do invest you jointly with my power. Shak.
[ Webster]

4. To surround, accompany, or attend.
[ Webster]

Awe such as must always invest the spectacle of the guilt. Hawthorne.
[ Webster]

5. To confer; to give. [R.]
[ Webster]

It investeth a right of government. Bacon.
[ Webster]

6. (Mil.) To inclose; to surround or hem in with troops, so as to intercept reinforcements of men and provisions and prevent escape; to lay siege to; as, to invest a town.
[ Webster]

7. To lay out (money or capital) in business with the view of obtaining an income or profit; as, to invest money in bank stock.
[ Webster]

8. Hence: To expend (time, money, or other resources) with a view to obtaining some benefit of value in excess of that expended, or to achieve a useful pupose; as, to invest a lot of time in teaching one's children.
[PJC]

Invest (?), v. i. To make an investment; as, to invest in stocks; -- usually followed by in.
[ Webster]

Investient (?), a. [L. investiens, p. pr. of investire.] Covering; clothing. [R.] Woodward.
[ Webster]

Investigable (?), a. [L. investigabilis. See .] Capable or susceptible of being investigated; admitting research. Hooker.
[ Webster]

Investigable, a. [L. investigabilis. See not, and .] Unsearchable; inscrutable. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

So unsearchable the judgment and so investigable the ways thereof. Bale.
[ Webster]

Investigate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Investigated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Investigating.] [L. investigatus, p. p. of investigare to investigate; pref. in- in + vestigare to track, trace. See .] To follow up step by step by patient inquiry or observation; to trace or track mentally; to search into; to inquire and examine into with care and accuracy; to find out by careful inquisition; as, to investigate the causes of natural phenomena.
[ Webster]

Investigate, v. i. To pursue a course of investigation and study; to make investigation.
[ Webster]

investigating n. the work of inquiring into something thoroughly and systematically.
Syn. -- investigation.
[WordNet 1.5]

Investigation (?), n. [L. investigatio: cf. F. investigation.] The act of investigating; the process of inquiring into or following up; research; study; inquiry, esp. patient or thorough inquiry or examination; as, the investigations of the philosopher and the mathematician; the investigations of the judge, the moralist.
[ Webster]

Investigative (?), a. Given to investigation; inquisitive; curious; searching.
[ Webster]

Investigator (?), n. [L.: cf. F. investigateur.] One who searches diligently into a subject.
[ Webster]

investigatory adj. Of or pertaining to an investigation; accomplished by investigation; designed to find information or ascertain facts; as, investigatory committee; the investigatory excesses of the prosecutor.
Syn. -- fact-finding, investigative.
[WordNet 1.5]

investing n. the act or process of expending resources, especially money, to achieve rewards.
Syn. -- investment.
[WordNet 1.5]

Investiture (?; 135), n. [LL. investitura: cf. F. investiture.]
[ Webster]

1. The act or ceremony of investing, or the state of being invested, as with an office; a giving possession; also, the right of so investing.
[ Webster]

He had refused to yield up to the pope the investiture of bishops. Sir W. Raleigh.
[ Webster]

2. (Feudal Law) Livery of seizin.
[ Webster]

The grant of land or a feud was perfected by the ceremony of corporal investiture, or open delivery of possession. Blackstone.
[ Webster]

3. That with which anyone is invested or clothed; investment; clothing; covering.
[ Webster]

While we yet have on
Our gross investiture of mortal weeds. Trench.
[ Webster]

Investive (?), a. Investing. [R.] Mir. for Mag.
[ Webster]

Investment (?), n. 1. The act of investing, or the state of being invested.
[ Webster]

2. That with which anyone is invested; a vestment.
[ Webster]

Whose white investments figure innocence. Shak.
[ Webster]

3. (Mil.) The act of surrounding, blocking up, or besieging by an armed force, or the state of being so surrounded.
[ Webster]

The capitulation was signed by the commander of the fort within six days after its investments. Marshall.
[ Webster]

4. The laying out of money in the purchase of some species of property; also, the amount of money invested, or that in which money is invested.
[ Webster]

Before the investment could be made, a change of the market might render it ineligible. A. Hamilton.
[ Webster]

An investment in ink, paper, and steel pens. Hawthorne.
[ Webster]

Investor (?), n. One who invests.
[ Webster]

Investure (?; 135), n. Investiture; investment. [Obs.] Bp. Burnet.
[ Webster]

Investure, v. t. To clothe; to invest; to install. [Obs.] “Monks . . . investured in their copes.” Fuller.
[ Webster]

Inveteracy (?), n. [From .]
[ Webster]

1. Firm establishment by long continuance; firmness or deep-rooted obstinacy of any quality or state acquired by time; as, the inveteracy of custom, habit, or disease; -- usually in a bad sense; as, the inveteracy of prejudice or of error.
[ Webster]

An inveteracy of evil habits that will prompt him to contract more. A. Tucker.
[ Webster]

2. Malignity; spitefulness; virulency.
[ Webster]

The rancor of pamphlets, the inveteracy of epigrams, and the mortification of lampoons. Guardian.
[ Webster]

Inveterate (?), a. [L. inveteratus, p. p. of inveterare to render old; pref. in- in + vetus, veteris, old. See .]
[ Webster]

1. Old; long-established. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

It is an inveterate and received opinion. Bacon.
[ Webster]

2. Firmly established by long continuance; obstinate; deep-rooted; of long standing; as, an inveterate disease; an inveterate abuse.
[ Webster]

Heal the inveterate canker of one wound. Shak.
[ Webster]

3. Having habits fixed by long continuance; confirmed; habitual; as, an inveterate idler or smoker.
[ Webster]

4. Malignant; virulent; spiteful. H. Brooke.
[ Webster]

Inveterate (?), v. t. To fix and settle by long continuance. [Obs.] Bacon.
[ Webster]

Inveterately (?), adv. In an inveterate manner or degree. “Inveterately tough.” Hawthorne.
[ Webster]

Inveterateness, n. Inveteracy. Sir T. Browne.
[ Webster]

Inveteration (?), n. [L. inveteratio.] The act of making inveterate. [R.] Bailey.
[ Webster]

Invict (?), a. [L. invictus. See not, and .] Invincible. [Obs.] Joye.
[ Webster]

Invidious (?), a. [L. invidiosus, fr. invidia envy. See , and cf. .]
[ Webster]

1. Envious; malignant. [Obs.] Evelyn.
[ Webster]

2. Worthy of envy; desirable; enviable. [Obs.]
[ Webster]

Such a person appeareth in a far more honorable and invidious state than any prosperous man. Barrow.
[ Webster]

3. Likely to or intended to incur or produce ill will, or to provoke envy or resentment; hateful; offensive; as, invidious distinctions.
[ Webster]

Agamemnon found it an invidious affair to give the preference to any one of the Grecian heroes. Broome.

-- Invidiously, adv. -- Invidiousness, n.

{ Invigilance (?), Invigilancy (?), } n. [in- not + vigilance: cf. OF. invigilance.] Lack of vigilance; neglect of watching; carelessness.
[ Webster]

invigilate n. (ĭnvĭjĭlāt) [imp. & p. p. Invigilated (ĭnvĭjĭlātĕd); p. pr. & vb. n. Invigilating.] [L. invigilare to stay awake, to be vigilant.] To keep watch.
[PJC]

2. To keep watch over examination candidates to prevent cheating. [British]
[WordNet 1.5]

invigilation n. keeping watch over examination candidates to prevent cheating. [British]
[WordNet 1.5]

invigilator n. someone who watches examination candidates to prevent cheating. [British]
[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