Tuesday, December 28, 2010

moss |môs|

noun
1 a small flowerless green plant that lacks true roots, growing in lowcarpets or rounded cushions in damp habitats and reproducing by means of spores released from stalked capsules : the trees are overgrown with vines and moss | the bog is home to rare mosses. • Class Musci, divisionBryophyta.
• used in names of algae, lichens, and higher plants resembling moss, e.g., reindeer moss, Ceylon moss, Spanish moss.
2 Scottish & N. English a bog, esp. a peat bog.
verb [usu. as adj. ] ( mossed)
cover with moss.







Tuesday, December 7, 2010

aqualung |ˈäkwəˌlə ng; ˈak-| noun

a portable breathing apparatus for divers, consisting of cylinders ofcompressed air strapped on the diver's back, feeding air automatically through a mask or mouthpiece. verb [ intrans. ] dated swim underwater using such an apparatus. ORIGIN 1950s (originally a proprietary name in the U.S.): from Latinaqua ‘water’ + lung .






Friday, December 3, 2010

benevolent |bəˈnevələnt| adjective

well meaning and kindly : a benevolent smile.• (of an organization) serving a charitable rather than a profit-making purpose : a benevolent fund. DERIVATIVES benevolence noun benevolently adverb. ORIGIN late Middle English : from Old French benivolent, from Latinbene volent- ‘well wishing,’ from bene ‘well’ + velle ‘to wish.’





Thursday, December 2, 2010

thrice |θrīs| adverb

adverb chiefly formal poetic/literary. Three times : a dose of 25 mg thrice daily. • [as submodifier ] extremely; very : I was thrice blessed. ORIGIN Middle English thries, from earlier thrie (from Old English thrīga, related to three ) + -s 3 (later respelled -ce to denote the unvoiced sound); compare with once .





                  

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

solace |ˈsälis| noun

verb [ trans. ]give solace to. ORIGIN Middle English : from Old French solas (noun),solacier (verb),based on Latin solari ‘to console.’ they found solace in each other: comfort, consolation, cheer, support, relief.