Stagnate - Stalk

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Stagnate (stăgnāt), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stagnated (-n�tĕd); p. pr. & vb. n. Stagnating.] [L. stagnatus, p. p. of stagnare to stagnate, make stagnant, from stagnum a piece of standing water. See a pool, and cf. , v. t.] 1. To cease to flow; to be motionless; as, blood stagnates in the veins of an animal; hence, to become impure or foul by want of motion; as, air stagnates in a close room.
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2. To cease to be brisk or active; to become dull or inactive; as, commerce stagnates; business stagnates.
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Ready-witted tenderness . . . never stagnates in vain lamentations while there is any room for hope. Sir W. Scott.
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Stagnate (-n�t), a. Stagnant. [Obs.] “A stagnate mass of vapors.” Young.
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Stagnation (-nāshŭn), n. [Cf. F. stagnation.] 1. The condition of being stagnant; cessation of flowing or circulation, as of a fluid; the state of being motionless; as, the stagnation of the blood; the stagnation of water or air; the stagnation of vapors.
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2. The cessation of action, or of brisk action; the state of being dull; as, the stagnation of business.
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Stagworm (stăgwûrm), n. (Zoöl.) The larva of any species of botfly which is parasitic upon the stag, such as Œstrus actæon, or Hypoderma actæon, which burrows beneath the skin, and Cephalomyia auribarbis, which lives in the nostrils.
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Stagy (stāj�), a. [Written also stagey.] Having an air or manner characteristic of the stage; theatrical; artificial; as, a stagy tone or bearing; -- chiefly used depreciatively.
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Stahlian (stäly�n), a. Pertaining to, or taught by, Stahl, a German physician and chemist of the 17th century; as, the Stahlian theory of phlogiston.
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Stahlian, n. A believer in, or advocate of, Stahlism.
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{ Stahlism (stälĭz'm), Stahlianism (-y�nĭz'm), } n. The Stahlian theory, that every vital action is a function or operation of the soul.
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Staid (stād), imp. & p. p. of .
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Staid, a. [From to stop.] Sober; grave; steady; sedate; composed; regular; not wild, volatile, flighty, or fanciful. “Sober and staid persons.” Addison.
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O'erlaid with black, staid Wisdom's hue. Milton.
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Syn. -- Sober; grave; steady; steadfast; composed; regular; sedate.
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Staidly, adv. In a staid manner, sedately.
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Staidness, n. The quality or state of being staid; seriousness; steadiness; sedateness; regularity; -- the opposite of wildness, or levity.
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If sometimes he appears too gay, yet a secret gracefulness of youth accompanies his writings, though the staidness and sobriety of age be wanting. Dryden.
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Syn. -- Sobriety; gravity; steadiness; regularity; constancy; firmness; stability; sedateness.
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Stail (stāl), n. A handle, as of a mop; a stale. [Eng.]
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Stain (stān), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stained (stānd); p. pr. & vb. n. Staining.] [Abbrev. fr. distain.] 1. To discolor by the application of foreign matter; to make foul; to spot; as, to stain the hand with dye; armor stained with blood.
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2. To color, as wood, glass, paper, cloth, or the like, by processes affecting, chemically or otherwise, the material itself; to tinge with a color or colors combining with, or penetrating, the substance; to dye; as, to stain wood with acids, colored washes, paint rubbed in, etc.; to stain glass.
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3. To spot with guilt or infamy; to bring reproach on; to blot; to soil; to tarnish.
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Of honor void,
Of innocence, of faith, of purity,
Our wonted ornaments now soiled and stained. Milton.
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4. To cause to seem inferior or soiled by comparison.
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She stains the ripest virgins of her age. Beau. & Fl.
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That did all other beasts in beauty stain. Spenser.
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Coloq. Stained glass , glass colored or stained by certain metallic pigments fused into its substance, -- often used for making ornamental windows.
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Syn. -- To paint; dye; blot; soil; sully; discolor; disgrace; taint. -- , , . These denote three different processes; the first mechanical, the other two, chiefly chemical. To paint a thing is to spread a coat of coloring matter over it; to stain or dye a thing is to impart color to its substance. To stain is said chiefly of solids, as wood, glass, paper; to dye, of fibrous substances, textile fabrics, etc.; the one, commonly, a simple process, as applying a wash; the other more complex, as fixing colors by mordants.
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Stain, v. i. To give or receive a stain; to grow dim.
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Stain, n. 1. A discoloration by foreign matter; a spot; as, a stain on a garment or cloth. Shak.
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2. A natural spot of a color different from the gound.
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Swift trouts, diversified with crimson stains. Pope.
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3. Taint of guilt; tarnish; disgrace; reproach.
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Nor death itself can wholly wash their stains. Dryden.
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Our opinion . . . is, I trust, without any blemish or stain of heresy. Hooker.
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4. Cause of reproach; shame. Sir P. Sidney.
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5. A tincture; a tinge. [R.]
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You have some stain of soldier in you. Shak.
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Syn. -- Blot; spot; taint; pollution; blemish; tarnish; color; disgrace; infamy; shame.
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Stainer (-ẽr), n. 1. One who stains or tarnishes.
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2. A workman who stains; as, a stainer of wood.
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Stainless, a. Free from stain; immaculate. Shak.
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The very care he took to keep his name
Stainless, with some was evidence of shame. Crabbe.
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Syn. -- Blameless; spotless; faultless. See .
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Stainlessly, adv. In a stainless manner.
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Stair (stâr), n. [OE. steir, steyer, AS. stǣger, from stīgan to ascend, rise. √164. See to ascend.] 1. One step of a series for ascending or descending to a different level; -- commonly applied to those within a building.
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2. A series of steps, as for passing from one story of a house to another; -- commonly used in the plural; but originally used in the singular only. “I a winding stair found.” Chaucer's Dream.
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Coloq. Below stairs , in the basement or lower part of a house, where the servants are. -- Coloq. Flight of stairs , the stairs which make the whole ascent of a story. -- Coloq. Pair of stairs , a set or flight of stairs. -- pair, in this phrase, having its old meaning of a set. See , n., 1. -- Coloq. Run of stairs (Arch.), a single set of stairs, or section of a stairway, from one platform to the next. -- Coloq. Stair rod , a rod, usually of metal, for holding a stair carpet to its place. -- Coloq. Up stairs . See in the Vocabulary.
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Staircase (stârkās), n. A flight of stairs with their supporting framework, casing, balusters, etc.
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To make a complete staircase is a curious piece of architecture. Sir H. Wotton.
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Coloq. Staircase shell . (Zoöl.) (a) Any scalaria, or wentletrap. (b) Any species of Solarium, or perspective shell.
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Stairhead (-hĕd), n. The head or top of a staircase.
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Stairway (-wā), n. A flight of stairs or steps; a staircase. “A rude and narrow stairway.” Moore.
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Staith (stāth), n. [AS. stæð a bank, shore, from the root of E. stead.] A landing place; an elevated staging upon a wharf for discharging coal, etc., as from railway cars, into vessels. [Eng.]
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Staithman (-m�n), n. A man employed in weighing and shipping at a staith. [Eng.]
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Stake (stāk), n. [AS. staca, from the root of E. stick; akin to OFries. & LG. stake, D. staak, Sw. stake, Dan. stage. See , v. t., and cf. , .] 1. A piece of wood, usually long and slender, pointed at one end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a support or stay; as, a stake to support vines, fences, hedges, etc.
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A sharpened stake strong Dryas found. Dryden.
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2. A stick inserted upright in a loop, eye, or mortise, at the side or end of a cart, a flat car, or the like, to prevent goods from falling off.
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3. The piece of timber to which a martyr was affixed to be burned; hence, martyrdom by fire.
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4. A small anvil usually furnished with a tang to enter a hole in a bench top, -- used by tinsmiths, blacksmiths, etc., for light work, punching upon, etc.
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5. That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded; a pledge.
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6. (Mormon Ch.) A territorial division; -- called also stake of Zion.

Every city, or “stake,” including a chief town and surrounding towns, has its president, with two counselors; and this president has a high council of chosen men. Schaff-Herzog Encyc.
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Coloq. At stake , in danger; hazarded; pledged. “I see my reputation is at stake.” Shak.
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Stake, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Staked (stākd); p. pr. & vb. n. Staking.] 1. To fasten, support, or defend with stakes; as, to stake vines or plants.
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2. To mark the limits of by stakes; -- with out; as, to stake out land; to stake out a new road.
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3. To put at hazard upon the issue of competition, or upon a future contingency; to wager; to pledge.
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I'll stake yon lamb, that near the fountain plays. Pope.
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4. To pierce or wound with a stake. Spectator.
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Stake-driver (-drīvẽr), n. (Zoöl.) The common American bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus); -- so called because one of its notes resembles the sound made in driving a stake into the mud. Called also meadow hen, and Indian hen.
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Stakehead (stākhĕd), n. (Rope Making) A horizontal bar on a stake, used for supporting the yarns which are kept apart by pins in the bar.
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Stakeholder (-hōldẽr), n. The holder of a stake; one with whom the bets are deposited when a wager is laid.
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Staktometer (stăktŏm�tẽr), n. [Gr. staktos falling by drops + -meter.] A drop measurer; a glass tube tapering to a small orifice at the point, and having a bulb in the middle, used for finding the number of drops in equal quantities of different liquids. See . Sir D. Brewster.
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Stal (stäl), obs. imp. of . Stole. Chaucer.
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{ Stalactic (stȧlăktĭk), Stalactical (-tĭk�l), } a. (Geol.) Stalactitic.
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Stalactiform (-tĭfôrm), a. Like a stalactite; resembling a stalactite.
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Stalactite (-tīt), n.; pl. Stalactites (-tīts). [Gr. stalaktos oozing out in drops, dropping, fr. stalazein to drop: cf. F. stalactite.] (Geol.) (a) A pendent cone or cylinder of calcium carbonate resembling an icicle in form and mode of attachment. Stalactites are found depending from the roof or sides of caverns, and are produced by deposition from waters which have percolated through, and partially dissolved, the overlying limestone rocks. (b) In an extended sense, any mineral or rock of similar form and origin; as, a stalactite of lava.
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Stalactites (stălăktītēz), n. [NL.] A stalactite. [Obs.] Woodward.
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{ Stalactitic (-tĭtĭk), Stalactitical (-ĭk�l), } a. [Cf. F. stalactitique.] (Geol.) Of or pertaining to a stalactite; having the form or characters of a stalactite; stalactic.
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Stalactitiform (stălăktĭtĭfôrm), a. Having the form of a stalactite; stalactiform.
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Stalagmite (stȧlăgmīt), n. [Gr. stalagma that which drops, a drop, fr. stalazein to drop: cf. F. stalagmite.] (Geol.) A deposit more or less resembling an inverted stalactite, formed by calcareous water dropping on the floors of caverns; hence, a similar deposit of other material.
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{ Stalagmitic (stălăgmĭtĭk), Stalagmitical (-mĭtĭk�l), } a. Having the form or structure of stalagmites. -- Stalagmitically, adv.
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Stalder (st�ldẽr), n. [From the root of stall.] A wooden frame to set casks on. [Prov. Eng.]
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Stale (stāl), n. [OE. stale, stele, AS. stæl, stel; akin to LG. & D. steel, G. stiel; cf. L. stilus stake, stalk, stem, Gr. steleon a handle, and E. stall, stalk, n.] The stock or handle of anything; as, the stale of a rake. [Written also steal, stele, etc.]
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But seeing the arrow's stale without, and that the head did go
No further than it might be seen. Chapman.
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Stale, a. [Akin to stale urine, and to stall, n.; probably from Low German or Scandinavian. Cf. , v. i.] 1. Vapid or tasteless from age; having lost its life, spirit, and flavor, from being long kept; as, stale beer.
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2. Not new; not freshly made; as, stale bread.
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3. Having lost the life or graces of youth; worn out; decayed. “A stale virgin.” Spectator.
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4. Worn out by use or familiarity; having lost its novelty and power of pleasing; trite; common. Swift.
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Wit itself, if stale is less pleasing. Grew.
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How weary, stale flat, and unprofitable
Seem to me all the uses of this world! Shak.
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Coloq. Stale affidavit (Law), an affidavit held above a year. Craig. -- Coloq. Stale demand (Law), a claim or demand which has not been pressed or demanded for a long time.
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Stale, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Staled (stāld); p. pr. & vb. n. Staling.] To make vapid or tasteless; to destroy the life, beauty, or use of; to wear out.
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Age can not wither her, nor custom stale
Her infinite variety. Shak.
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Stale, v. i. [Akin to D. & G. stallen, Dan. stalle, Sw. stalla, and E. stall a stable. √ 163. See , n., and cf. , a.] To make water; to discharge urine; -- said especially of horses and cattle. Hudibras.
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Stale, n. [See , a. & v. i.] 1. That which is stale or worn out by long keeping, or by use. [Obs.]
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2. A prostitute. [Obs.] Shak.
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3. Urine, esp. that of beasts. “Stale of horses.” Shak.
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Stale, n. [Cf. OF. estal place, position, abode, market, F. étal a butcher's stall, OHG. stal station, place, stable, G. stall (see , n.); or from OE. stale theft, AS. stalu (see , v. t.).] 1. Something set, or offered to view, as an allurement to draw others to any place or purpose; a decoy; a stool pigeon. [Obs.]
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Still, as he went, he crafty stales did lay. Spenser.
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2. A stalking-horse. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
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3. (Chess) A stalemate. [Obs.] Bacon.
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4. A laughingstock; a dupe. [Obs.] Shak.
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Stalely, adv. 1. In a stale manner.
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2. Of old; long since. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
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Stalemate (-māt), n. (Chess) The position of the king when he can not move without being placed in check and there is no other piece which can be moved.
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Stalemate, v. t. (Chess) To subject to a stalemate; hence, to bring to a stand.
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Staleness, n. The quality or state of being stale.
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Stalk (st�k), n. [OE. stalke, fr. AS. stæl, stel, a stalk. See a handle, .] 1. (Bot.) (a) The stem or main axis of a plant; as, a stalk of wheat, rye, or oats; the stalks of maize or hemp. (b) The petiole, pedicel, or peduncle, of a plant.
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2. That which resembles the stalk of a plant, as the stem of a quill. Grew.
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3. (Arch.) An ornament in the Corinthian capital resembling the stalk of a plant, from which the volutes and helices spring.
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4. One of the two upright pieces of a ladder. [Obs.]
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To climb by the rungs and the stalks. Chaucer.
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5. (Zoöl.) (a) A stem or peduncle, as of certain barnacles and crinoids. (b) The narrow basal portion of the abdomen of a hymenopterous insect. (c) The peduncle of the eyes of decapod crustaceans.
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6. (Founding) An iron bar with projections inserted in a core to strengthen it; a core arbor.
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Coloq. Stalk borer (Zoöl.), the larva of a noctuid moth (Gortyna nitela), which bores in the stalks of the raspberry, strawberry, tomato, asters, and many other garden plants, often doing much injury.
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