*ave*

n. 1. 1 a fragrant lotion for a man's face after shaving.
Syn. -- after-shave [ WordNet 1.5 ]

prop. n. [ L. Agave, prop. name, fr. Gr. 'agayh`, fem. of 'agayo`s illustrious, noble. ] (Bot.) A genus of plants (order Amaryllidaceae) of which the chief species is the maguey or century plant (Agave Americana), wrongly called Aloe. It takes from ten to seventy years, according to climate, to attain maturity, when it produces a gigantic flower stem, sometimes forty feet in height, and perishes. The juice has purgative and diuretic properties. The fermented juice is the pulque of the Mexicans; distilled, it yields mescal. A strong thread and a tough paper are made from the leaves, and the wood has many uses. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. pl. the medium of transmission of signals by radio or television stations; by radio transmission; -- used non-technically; as, over the airwaves, i. e. by radio or television. [ PJC ]

n. [ L. angustus narrow + clavus a nail, a stripe. ] (Rom. Antiq.) A narrow stripe of purple worn by the equites on each side of the tunic as a sign of rank. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

a. Opposed to slavery. -- n. Opposition to slavery. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. architrave, fr. It. architrave; pref. archi- + trave beam, L. trabs. ] (Arch.) (a) The lower division of an entablature, or that part which rests immediately on the column, esp. in classical architecture. See Column. (b) The group of moldings, or other architectural member, above and on both sides of a door or other opening, especially if square in form. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Furnished with an architrave. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. auris ear + lavare to wash. ] An instrument for cleansing the ear, consisting of a small piece of sponge on an ivory or bone handle. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ F., fr. Gr. a'yto`s self + L. clavis key. ] 1. A kind of French stewpan with a steam-tight lid. Knight. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. a device used for sterilizing objects by exposing them to steam at above atmospheric pressure (and thus at a temperature above the normal boiling point of water). It consists of a closed chamber able to withstand internal pressure, and a means of passing superheated steam into the chamber. Autoclaves are made in various sizes, and are much used in hospitals and research laboratories to render instruments and equipment sterile. [ PJC ]

‖n. [ L., hail. ] 1. An ave Maria. [ 1913 Webster ]

He repeated Aves and Credos. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A reverential salutation. [ 1913 Webster ]

Their loud applause and aves vehement. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ L. avellere. ] To pull away. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Yet are not these parts avelled. Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. It. avellana a filbert, fr. L. Avella or Abella a city of Campania. ] (Her.) In the form of four unhusked filberts; as, an avellane cross. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ ‖ } [ From the first words of the Roman Catholic prayer to the Virgin Mary; L. ave hail, Maria Mary. ] 1. A salutation and prayer to the Virgin Mary, as mother of God; -- used in the Roman Catholic church. [ 1913 Webster ]

To number Ave Maries on his beads. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A particular time (as in Italy, at the ringing of the bells about half an hour after sunset, and also at early dawn), when the people repeat the Ave Maria. [ 1913 Webster ]

Ave Maria ! blessed be the hour ! Byron. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L. ] (Bot.) A genus of grasses, including the common oat (Avena sativa); the oat grasses. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. avenaceus, fr. avena oats. ] Belonging to, or resembling, oats or the oat grasses. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. avenage, fr. L. avena oats. ] (Old Law) A quantity of oats paid by a tenant to a landlord in lieu of rent. Jacob. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. avena eats. ] (Chem.) A crystalline globulin, contained in oat kernels, very similar in composition to excelsin, but different in reactions and crystalline form. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ OF. avenier, fr. aveine, avaine, avoine, oats, F. avoine, L. avena. ] (Feud. Law) An officer of the king's stables whose duty it was to provide oats for the horses. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Avenged (&unr_;); p. pr. & vb. n. Avenging (&unr_;). ] [ OF. avengier; L. ad + vindicare to lay claim to, to avenge, revenge. See Vengeance. ] 1. To take vengeance for; to exact satisfaction for by punishing the injuring party; to vindicate by inflicting pain or evil on a wrongdoer. [ 1913 Webster ]

He will avenge the blood of his servants. Deut. xxxii. 43. [ 1913 Webster ]

Avenge, O Lord, thy slaughtered saints, whose bones
Lie scattered on the Alpine mountains cold. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

He had avenged himself on them by havoc such as England had never before seen. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To treat revengefully; to wreak vengeance on. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Thy judgment in avenging thine enemies. Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- To Avenge, Revenge. To avenge is to inflict punishment upon evil doers in behalf of ourselves, or others for whom we act; as, to avenge one's wrongs; to avenge the injuries of the suffering and innocent. It is to inflict pain for the sake of vindication, or retributive justice. To revenge is to inflict pain or injury for the indulgence of resentful and malicious feelings. The former may at times be a duty; the latter is one of the worst exhibitions of human character. [ 1913 Webster ]

I avenge myself upon another, or I avenge another, or I avenge a wrong. I revenge only myself, and that upon another. C. J. Smith. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To take vengeance. Levit. xix. 18. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Vengeance; revenge. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Vengeance. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Vengeful. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The inflicting of retributive punishment; satisfaction taken. [ R. ] Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who avenges or vindicates; as, an avenger of blood. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. One who takes vengeance. [ Obs. ] Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A female avenger. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Pref. a- + L. vena a vein. ] (Bot.) Being without veins or nerves, as the leaves of certain plants. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. See Avener. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. avens. [ OF. avence. ] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Geum, of the rose family, esp. Geum urbanum, or herb bennet. They may bear red, yellow, or white flowers. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

n. [ OF. esventail. Cf. Ventail. ] The movable front to a helmet; the ventail. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to Mons Aventinus, one of the seven hills on which Rome stood. Bryant. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A post of security or defense. [ Poetic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Into the castle's tower,
The only Aventine that now is left him. Beau. & Fl. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To thrust forward (at a venture), as a spear. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ See Adventure, n. ] 1. Accident; chance; adventure. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Old Law) A mischance causing a person's death without felony, as by drowning, or falling into the fire. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. aventurine: cf. It. avventurino. ] 1. A kind of glass, containing gold-colored spangles. It was produced in the first place by the accidental (par aventure) dropping of some brass filings into a pot of melted glass. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Min.) A variety of translucent quartz, spangled throughout with scales of yellow mica. [ 1913 Webster ]

Aventurine feldspar, a variety of oligoclase with internal firelike reflections due to the presence of minute crystals, probably of hematite; sunstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. avenue, fr. avenir to come to, L. advenire. See Advene. ] 1. A way or opening for entrance into a place; a passage by which a place may by reached; a way of approach or of exit. “The avenues leading to the city by land.” Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

On every side were expanding new avenues of inquiry. Milman. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The principal walk or approach to a house which is withdrawn from the road, especially, such approach bordered on each side by trees; any broad passageway thus bordered. [ 1913 Webster ]

An avenue of tall elms and branching chestnuts. W. Black. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A broad street; as, the Fifth Avenue in New York. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OF. aver domestic animal, whence LL. averia, pl. cattle. See Habit, and cf. Average. ] A work horse, or working ox. [ Obs. or Dial. Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Averred (&adot_;*v&etilde_;rd"); p. pr. & vb. n. Averring.] [F. avérer, LL. adverare, averare; L. ad + versus true. See Verity.] 1. To assert, or prove, the truth of. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]

2. (Law) To avouch or verify; to offer to verify; to prove or justify. See Averment. [1913 Webster]

3. To affirm with confidence; to declare in a positive manner, as in confidence of asserting the truth. [1913 Webster]

It is sufficient that the very fact hath its foundation in truth, as I do seriously aver is the case. Fielding. [1913 Webster]

Then all averred I had killed the bird. Coleridge. [1913 Webster]

Syn. -- To assert; affirm; asseverate. See Affirm. [1913 Webster]

n. [ OF. average, LL. averagium, prob. fr. OF. aver, F. avoir, property, horses, cattle, etc.; prop. infin., to have, from L. habere to have. Cf. F. avérage small cattle, and avarie (perh. of different origin) damage to ship or cargo, port dues. The first meaning was perhaps the service of carting a feudal lord's wheat, then charge for carriage, the contribution towards loss of things carried, in proportion to the amount of each person's property. Cf. Aver, n., Avercorn, Averpenny. ] 1. (OLd Eng. Law) That service which a tenant owed his lord, to be done by the work beasts of the tenant, as the carriage of wheat, turf, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. [ Cf. F. avarie damage to ship or cargo. ] (Com.) (a) A tariff or duty on goods, etc. [ Obs. ] (b) Any charge in addition to the regular charge for freight of goods shipped. (c) A contribution to a loss or charge which has been imposed upon one of several for the general benefit; damage done by sea perils. (d) The equitable and proportionate distribution of loss or expense among all interested. [ 1913 Webster ]

General average, a contribution made, by all parties concerned in a sea adventure, toward a loss occasioned by the voluntary sacrifice of the property of some of the parties in interest for the benefit of all. It is called general average, because it falls upon the gross amount of ship, cargo, and freight at risk and saved by the sacrifice. Kent. --
Particular average signifies the damage or partial loss happening to the ship, or cargo, or freight, in consequence of some fortuitous or unavoidable accident; and it is borne by the individual owners of the articles damaged, or by their insurers. --
Petty averages are sundry small charges, which occur regularly, and are necessarily defrayed by the master in the usual course of a voyage; such as port charges, common pilotage, and the like, which formerly were, and in some cases still are, borne partly by the ship and partly by the cargo. In the clause commonly found in bills of lading, “primage and average accustomed, ” average means a kind of composition established by usage for such charges, which were formerly assessed by way of average. Arnould. Abbott. Phillips. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A mean proportion, medial sum or quantity, made out of unequal sums or quantities; an arithmetical mean. Thus, if A loses 5 dollars, B 9, and C 16, the sum is 30, and the average 10. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Any medial estimate or general statement derived from a comparison of diverse specific cases; a medium or usual size, quantity, quality, rate, etc. “The average of sensations.” Paley. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. pl. In the English corn trade, the medial price of the several kinds of grain in the principal corn markets. [ 1913 Webster ]

On an average, taking the mean of unequal numbers or quantities. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Pertaining to an average or mean; medial; containing a mean proportion; of a mean size, quality, ability, etc.; ordinary; usual; as, an average rate of profit; an average amount of rain; the average Englishman; beings of the average stamp. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. According to the laws of averages; as, the loss must be made good by average contribution. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Averaged (&unr_;); p. pr. & vb. n. Averaging. ] 1. To find the mean of, when sums or quantities are unequal; to reduce to a mean. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To divide among a number, according to a given proportion; as, to average a loss. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To do, accomplish, get, etc., on an average. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To form, or exist in, a mean or medial sum or quantity; to amount to, or to be, on an average; as, the losses of the owners will average twenty five dollars each; these spars average ten feet in length. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Aver, n. + corn. ] (Old Eng. Law) A reserved rent in corn, formerly paid to religious houses by their tenants or farmers. Kennet. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. OF. averement, LL. averamentum. See Aver, v. t. ] 1. The act of averring, or that which is averred; affirmation; positive assertion. [ 1913 Webster ]

Signally has this averment received illustration in the course of recent events. I. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Verification; establishment by evidence. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Law) A positive statement of facts; an allegation; an offer to justify or prove what is alleged. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In any stage of pleadings, when either party advances new matter, he avers it to be true, by using this form of words: “and this he is ready to verify.” This was formerly called an averment. It modern pleading, it is termed a verification. Blackstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. Of or pertaining to Avernus, a lake of Campania, in Italy, famous for its poisonous vapors, which ancient writers fancied were so malignant as to kill birds flying over it. It was represented by the poets to be connected with the infernal regions. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Aver, n. + penny. ] (Old Eng. Law) Money paid by a tenant in lieu of the service of average. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The tenets of the Averroists. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One of a sect of peripatetic philosophers, who appeared in Italy before the restoration of learning; so denominated from Averroes, or Averrhoes, a celebrated Arabian philosopher. He held the doctrine of monopsychism. [ 1913 Webster ]