Lie - Lift

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Lie (lī), n. The position or way in which anything lies; the lay, as of land or country. J. H. Newman.
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He surveyed with his own eyes . . . the lie of the country on the side towards Thrace. Jowett (Thucyd.).
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Lieberkühn (lēbẽrkụn), n. [Named after a German physician and instrument maker, J. N. Lieberkühn.] (Optics) A concave metallic mirror attached to the object-glass end of a microscope, to throw down light on opaque objects; a reflector.
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Lieberkühn's glands (lēbẽrkụnz glăndz) n. [See .] (Anat.) The simple tubular glands of the small intestines; -- called also crypts of Lieberkühn.
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liebfraumilch n. [From the liebfrauenstift, a convent in Worms where the wine was first made. RHUD] A white Rhenish-type wine produced especially in Hesse in western Germany.
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Liechtenstein prop. n. a small principality in central Europe.
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Liechtensteiner prop. a. 1. of or pertaining to Liechtenstein; as, Liechtensteiner castles.
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2. of or pertaining to the inhabitants of Liechtenstein; as, Liechtensteiner writers.
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Liechtensteiner prop. n. A native or inhabitant of Leichtenstein.
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Lied (lēt), n.; pl. Lieder (lēdẽr). [G.] (Mus.) A lay; a German song. It differs from the French chanson, and the Italian canzone, all three being national.
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The German Lied is perhaps the most faithful reflection of the national sentiment. Grove.
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Liederkranz, n. [G. See Lied, and Grants.] (Mus.) Lit., wreath of songs; -- used as the title of a group of songs, and esp. as the common name for German vocal clubs of men.
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Liedertafel (lēdẽrtäf'l), n. [G., lit., a song table.] (Mus.) A popular name for any society or club which meets for the practice of male part songs.
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Lief (lēf), n. Same as .
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Lief (lēf), a. [Written also lieve.] [OE. leef, lef, leof, AS. leóf; akin to OS. liof, OFries. liaf, D. lief, G. lieb, OHG. liob, Icel. lj�fr, Sw. ljuf, Goth. liubs, and E. love. √124. See , and cf. , , n., , .] 1. Dear; beloved. [Obs., except in poetry.] “My liefe mother.” Chaucer. “My liefest liege.” Shak.
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As thou art lief and dear. Tennyson.
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2. (Used with a form of the verb to be, and the dative of the personal pronoun.) Pleasing; agreeable; acceptable; preferable. [Obs.] See , adv., and Had as lief, under .
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Full lief me were this counsel for to hide. Chaucer.
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Death me liefer were than such despite. Spenser.
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3. Willing; disposed. [Obs.]
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I am not lief to gab. Chaucer.
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He up arose, however lief or loth. Spenser.
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Lief, n. A dear one; a sweetheart. [Obs.] Chaucer.
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Lief, adv. Gladly; willingly; freely; -- now used only in the phrases, had as lief, and would as lief; as, I had, or would, as lief go as not.
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All women liefest would
Be sovereign of man's love. Gower.
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I had as lief the town crier spoke my lines. Shak.
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Far liefer by his dear hand had I die. Tennyson.
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☞ The comparative liefer with had or would, and followed by the infinitive, either with or without the sign to, signifies prefer, choose as preferable, would or had rather. In the 16th century rather was substituted for liefer in such constructions in literary English, and has continued to be generally so used. See Had as lief, Had rather, etc. , under .
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Liefsome (lēfsŭm), a. Pleasing; delightful. [Obs.]
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Liegance (lēj�ns), n. Same as .
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Liege (lēj), a. [OE. lige, lege, F. lige, LL. ligius, legius, liege, unlimited, complete, prob. of German origin; cf. G. ledig free from bonds and obstacles, MHG. ledec, ledic, lidic, freed, loosed, and Charta Ottonis de Benthem, ann. 1253, “ligius homo quod Teutonicè dicitur ledigman,” i. e., uni soli homagio obligatus, free from all obligations to others; influenced by L. ligare to bind. G. ledig perh. orig. meant, free to go where one pleases, and is perh. akin to E. lead to conduct. Cf. to guide.] 1. Sovereign; independent; having authority or right to allegiance; as, a liege lord. Chaucer.
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She looked as grand as doomsday and as grave;
And he, he reverenced his liege lady there. Tennyson.
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2. serving an independent sovereign or master; bound by a feudal tenure; obliged to be faithful and loyal to a superior, as a vassal to his lord; faithful; loyal; as, a liege man; a liege subject.
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3. (Old Law) Full; perfect; complete; pure. Burrill.
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Coloq. Liege homage (Feudal Custom), that homage of one sovereign or prince to another which acknowledged an obligation of fealty and services. -- Coloq. Liege poustie [L. legitima potestas] (Scots Law), perfect, i. e., legal, power; specif., having health requisite to do legal acts. -- Coloq. Liege widowhood , perfect, i. e., pure, widowhood. [Obs.]
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Liege (lēj), n. 1. A free and independent person; specif., a lord paramount; a sovereign. Mrs. Browning.
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The anointed sovereign of sighs and groans,
Liege of all loiterers and malcontents. Shak.
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2. The subject of a sovereign or lord; a liegeman.
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A liege lord seems to have been a lord of a free band; and his lieges, though serving under him, were privileged men, free from all other obligations, their name being due to their freedom, not to their service. Skeat.
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Liegeman (lējm�n), n.; pl. Liegemen (lējm�n). Same as , n., 2. Chaucer. Spenser.
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Lieger (lējẽr), n. [See , .] A resident ambassador. [Obs.] See . Denham.
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Liegiancy (lēj�ns�), n. See .
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Lien (līĕn), obs. p. p. of . See . Ps. lxviii. 13.
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Lien (lēn or līĕn; 277), n. [F. lien band, bond, tie, fr. L. ligamen, fr. ligare to bind. Cf. a union, a string, , .] (Law) A legal claim; a charge upon real or personal property for the satisfaction of some debt or duty; a right in one to control or hold and retain the property of another until some claim of the former is paid or satisfied.
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Lienal (l�ēn�l), a. [L. lien the spleen.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the spleen; splenic.
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Lienculus (l�ĕṉk�lŭs), n.; pl. Lienculi (l�ĕṉk�lī). [NL., dim. of L. lien the spleen.] (Anat.) One of the small nodules sometimes found in the neighborhood of the spleen; an accessory or supplementary spleen.
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Lieno-intestinal (l�ēn�-ĭntĕstĭn�l), a. [l. lien the spleen + E. intestinal.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the spleen and intestine; as, the lieno-intestinal vein of the frog.
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Lienteric (līĕntĕrĭk), a. [L. lientericus, Gr. leienterikos: cf. F. lientérique. See .] (Med.) Of or pertaining to, or of the nature of, a lientery. -- n. (Med.) A lientery. Grew.
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Lientery (līĕntĕr�), n. [Gr. leienteria; lei^os smooth, soft + 'enteron an intestine: cf. F. lientérie.] (Med.) A diarrhea, in which the food is discharged imperfectly digested, or with but little change. Dunglison.
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Lier (līẽr), n. [From . ] One who lies down; one who rests or remains, as in concealment.
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There were liers in a ambush against him. Josh. viii. 14.
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Lierne rib (lyârn rĭb) n. [F. lierne.] (Arch.) In Gothic vaulting, any rib which does not spring from the impost and is not a ridge rib, but passes from one boss or intersection of the principal ribs to another.
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Lieu (lū), n. [F., OF. also liu, leu, lou, fr. L. locus place. See , .] Place; room; stead; -- used only in the phrase in lieu of, that is, instead of.
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The plan of extortion had been adopted in lieu of the scheme of confiscation. Burke.
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Lieutenancy (l�tĕn�ns�; 277), n. 1. The office, rank, or commission, of a lieutenant.
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2. The body of lieutenants or subordinates. [Obs.]
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The list of the lieutenancy of our metropolis. Felton.
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Lieutenant (l�tĕn�nt), n. [F., fr. lieu place + tenant holding, p. pr. of tenir to hold, L. tenere. See , and , and cf. .] 1. An officer who supplies the place of a superior in his absence; a representative of, or substitute for, another in the performance of any duty.
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The lawful magistrate, who is the vicegerent or lieutenant of God. Abp. Bramhall.
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2. (a) A commissioned officer in the army, next below a captain. (b) A commissioned officer in the British navy, in rank next below a commander. (c) A commissioned officer in the United States navy, in rank next below a lieutenant commander.
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☞ Lieutenant is often used, either adjectively or in hyphened compounds, to denote an officer, in rank next below another, especially when the duties of the higher officer may devolve upon the lower one; as, lieutenant general, or lieutenant-general; lieutenant colonel, or lieutenant-colonel; lieutenant governor, etc.
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Coloq. Deputy lieutenant , the title of any one of the deputies or assistants of the lord lieutenant of a county. [Eng.] -- Coloq. Lieutenant colonel , an army officer next in rank above major, and below colonel. -- Coloq. Lieutenant commander , an officer in the United States navy, in rank next below a commander and next above a lieutenant. -- Coloq. Lieutenant general . See in Vocabulary. -- Coloq. Lieutenant governor . (a) An officer of a State, being next in rank to the governor, and in case of the death or resignation of the latter, himself acting as governor. [U. S.] (b) A deputy governor acting as the chief civil officer of one of several colonies under a governor general. [Eng.]
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Lieutenant general (l�tĕn�nt jĕnẽr�l) n. An army officer in rank next below a general and next above a major general.
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☞ In the United States, before the civil war, this rank had been conferred only on George Washington and (in brevet) on Winfield Scott. In 1864 it was revived by Congress and conferred on Ulysses S. Grant, and subsequently, by promotion, on William T. Sherman and Philip H. Sheridan, each of whom was advanced to the rank of general of the army. When Sheridan was made general (in 1888) the rank of lieutenant general was suffered to lapse. See .
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Lieutenantry (l�tĕn�ntr�), n. See . [Obs.]
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Lieutenantship (l�tĕn�ntshĭp), n. Same as , 1.
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Lieve (lēv), a. Same as .
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Lif (lĭf), n. [Written also lief.] The fiber by which the petioles of the date palm are bound together, from which various kinds of cordage are made.
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Life (līf), n.; pl. Lives (līvz). [AS. līf; akin to D. lijf body, G. leib body, MHG. līp life, body, OHG. līb life, Icel. līf, life, body, Sw. lif, Dan. liv, and E. live, v. √119. See , and cf. .] 1. The state of being which begins with generation, birth, or germination, and ends with death; also, the time during which this state continues; that state of an animal or plant in which all or any of its organs are capable of performing all or any of their functions; -- used of all animal and vegetable organisms.
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2. Of human beings: The union of the soul and body; also, the duration of their union; sometimes, the deathless quality or existence of the soul; as, man is a creature having an immortal life.
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She shows a body rather than a life. Shak.
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3. (Philos) The potential principle, or force, by which the organs of animals and plants are started and continued in the performance of their several and coöperative functions; the vital force, whether regarded as physical or spiritual.
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4. Figuratively: The potential or animating principle, also, the period of duration, of anything that is conceived of as resembling a natural organism in structure or functions; as, the life of a state, a machine, or a book; authority is the life of government.
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5. A certain way or manner of living with respect to conditions, circumstances, character, conduct, occupation, etc.; hence, human affairs; also, lives, considered collectively, as a distinct class or type; as, low life; a good or evil life; the life of Indians, or of miners.
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That which before us lies in daily life. Milton.
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By experience of life abroad in the world. Ascham.
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Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime. Longfellow.
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'T is from high life high characters are drawn. Pope
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6. Animation; spirit; vivacity; vigor; energy.
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No notion of life and fire in fancy and in words. Felton.
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That gives thy gestures grace and life. Wordsworth.
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7. That which imparts or excites spirit or vigor; that upon which enjoyment or success depends; as, he was the life of the company, or of the enterprise.
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8. The living or actual form, person, thing, or state; as, a picture or a description from, the life.
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9. A person; a living being, usually a human being; as, many lives were sacrificed.
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10. The system of animal nature; animals in general, or considered collectively.
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Full nature swarms with life. Thomson.
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11. An essential constituent of life, esp: the blood.
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The words that I speak unto you . . . they are life. John vi. 63.
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The warm life came issuing through the wound. Pope
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12. A history of the acts and events of a life; a biography; as, Johnson wrote the life of Milton.
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13. Enjoyment in the right use of the powers; especially, a spiritual existence; happiness in the favor of God; heavenly felicity.
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14. Something dear to one as one's existence; a darling; -- used as a term of endearment.
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☞ Life forms the first part of many compounds, for the most part of obvious meaning; as, life-giving, life-sustaining, etc.
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Coloq. Life annuity , an annuity payable during one's life. -- Coloq. Life arrow , Coloq. Life rocket , Coloq. Life shot , an arrow, rocket, or shot, for carrying an attached line to a vessel in distress in order to save life. -- Coloq. Life assurance . See Life insurance, below. -- Coloq. Life buoy . See . -- Coloq. Life car , a water-tight boat or box, traveling on a line from a wrecked vessel to the shore. In it person are hauled through the waves and surf. -- Coloq. Life drop , a drop of vital blood. Byron. -- Coloq. Life estate (Law), an estate which is held during the term of some certain person's life, but does not pass by inheritance. -- Coloq. Life everlasting (Bot.), a plant with white or yellow persistent scales about the heads of the flowers, as Antennaria, and Gnaphalium; cudweed. -- Coloq. Life of an execution (Law), the period when an execution is in force, or before it expires. -- Coloq. Life guard . (Mil.) See under . -- Coloq. Life insurance , the act or system of insuring against death; a contract by which the insurer undertakes, in consideration of the payment of a premium (usually at stated periods), to pay a stipulated sum in the event of the death of the insured or of a third person in whose life the insured has an interest. -- Coloq. Life interest , an estate or interest which lasts during one's life, or the life of another person, but does not pass by inheritance. -- Coloq. Life land (Law), land held by lease for the term of a life or lives. -- Coloq. Life line . (a) (Naut.) A line along any part of a vessel for the security of sailors. (b) A line attached to a life boat, or to any life saving apparatus, to be grasped by a person in the water. -- Coloq. Life rate , rate of premium for insuring a life. -- Coloq. Life rent , the rent of a life estate; rent or property to which one is entitled during one's life. -- Coloq. Life school , a school for artists in which they model, paint, or draw from living models. -- Coloq. Lifetable , a table showing the probability of life at different ages. -- Coloq. To lose one's life , to die. -- Coloq. To seek the life of , to seek to kill. -- Coloq. To the life , so as closely to resemble the living person or the subject; as, the portrait was drawn to the life.
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Lifeblood (līfblŭd), n. 1. The blood necessary to life; vital blood. Dryden.
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2. Fig.: That which gives strength and energy.
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Money [is] the lifeblood of the nation. Swift.
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Lifeboat (līfbōt), n. A strong, buoyant boat especially designed for saving the lives of shipwrecked people.
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Lifeful (līffụl), a. Full of vitality. Spenser.
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life-giving (līfgĭvĭng), a. Giving life or spirit; having power to give life; inspiriting; invigorating; as, life-giving love and praise.
Syn. -- vital, vitalizing.
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returning the life-giving humus to the land. Louis Bromfield.
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Lifehold (līfhōld), n. Land held by a life estate.
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Lifeless, a. Destitute of life, or deprived of life; not containing, or inhabited by, living beings or vegetation; dead, or apparently dead; spiritless; powerless; dull; as, a lifeless carcass; lifeless matter; a lifeless desert; a lifeless wine; a lifeless story. -- Lifelessly, adv. -- Lifelessness, n.

Syn. -- Dead; soulless; inanimate; torpid; inert; inactive; dull; heavy; unanimated; spiritless; frigid; pointless; vapid; flat; tasteless. -- , , , . In a moral sense, lifeless denotes a lack of vital energy; inanimate, a lack of expression as to any feeling that may be possessed; dull implies a torpor of soul which checks all mental activity; dead supposes a destitution of feeling. A person is said to be lifeless who has lost the spirits which he once had; he is said to be inanimate when he is naturally wanting in spirits; one is dull from an original deficiency of mental power; he who is dead to moral sentiment is wholly bereft of the highest attribute of his nature.
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lifelessness n. not having life.
Syn. -- inanimateness.
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Lifelike (līflīk), a. [Cf. .] Like a living being; resembling life; giving an accurate representation; as, a lifelike portrait. -- Lifelikeness, n. Poe.
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lifeline n. 1. The anem given to one of the creases on the palm; its length is said by palmists to indicate how long one will live.
Syn. -- line of life, life line.
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2. A line or rope which raises or lowers a deep-sea diver.
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3. A line from a vessel that people in a body of water can cling to to save themselves from drowning.
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Lifelong (līflŏng), a. [Life + long. Cf. .] Lasting or continuing through life. Tennyson.
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Lifely, adv. [Cf. , a.] In a lifelike manner. [Obs.] Chaucer.
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Lifemate (līfmāt), n. Companion for life. Hawthorne.
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Lifen (līf'n), v. t. To enliven. [Obs.] Marston.
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life-of-man n. An unarmed woody rhizomatous perennial plant (Aralia racemosa) distinguished from wild sarsaparilla by more aromatic roots and panicled umbels; it grows from Southeastern North America to Mexico.
Syn. -- American spikenard, petty morel, Aralia racemosa.
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Life-preserver (līfpr�zẽrvẽr), n. An apparatus, made in very various forms, and of various materials, for saving one from drowning by buoying up the body while in the water. -- Life-preserving, a.
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Life-saving (līfsāvĭng), a. That saves life, or is suited to save life, esp. from drowning; as, the life-saving service; a life-saving station.
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life-size, life-sized (līfsīz), a. Of full size; of the natural size; of the same size as an original; as, a life-size sculpture; a life-size portrait of the general.
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life-sustaining adj. being the seat or source of life; performing a necessary function in the living body; as, the need for life-sustaining air and water.
Syn. -- vital.
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Lifesome (līfsŭm), a. Animated; sprightly. [Poetic] Coleridge. -- Lifesomeness, n.
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Lifespring (līfsprĭng), n. Spring or source of life.
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Lifestring (līfstrĭng), n. A nerve, or string, that is imagined to be essential to life. Daniel.
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Lifetime (līftīm), n. The time that life continues.
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Life-weary (līfwēr�), a. Weary of living. Shak.
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Liflode (līflōd), n. Livelihood. [Obs.] Chaucer.
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Lift (lĭft), n. [AS. lyft air. See .] The sky; the atmosphere; the firmament. [Obs. or Scot.]
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Lift (lĭft), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lifted; p. pr. & vb. n. Lifting.] [Icel. lypta, fr. lopt air; akin to Sw. lyfta to lift, Dan. löfte, G. lüften; -- prop., to raise into the air. See , and cf. 1st .] 1. To move in a direction opposite to that of gravitation; to raise; to elevate; to bring up from a lower place to a higher; to upheave; sometimes implying a continued support or holding in the higher place; -- said of material things; as, to lift the foot or the hand; to lift a chair or a burden.
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