*firm*

v. i. 1. To declare or assert positively. [ 1913 Webster ]

Not that I so affirm, though so it seem
To thee, who hast thy dwelling here on earth. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) To make a solemn declaration, before an authorized magistrate or tribunal, under the penalties of perjury; to testify by affirmation. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being affirmed, asserted, or declared; -- followed by of; as, an attribute affirmable of every just man. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. OF. afermance. ] 1. Confirmation; ratification; confirmation of a voidable act. [ 1913 Webster ]

This statute . . . in affirmance of the common law. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A strong declaration; affirmation. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. affirmans, -antis, p. pr. See Affirm. ] 1. One who affirms or asserts. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) One who affirms, instead of taking an oath. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. affirmatio: cf. F. affirmation. ] 1. Confirmation of anything established; ratification; as, the affirmation of a law. Hooker. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The act of affirming or asserting as true; assertion; -- opposed to negation or denial. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. That which is asserted; an assertion; a positive statement; an averment; as, an affirmation, by the vender, of title to property sold, or of its quality. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Law) A solemn declaration made under the penalties of perjury, by persons who conscientiously decline taking an oath, which declaration is in law equivalent to an oath. Bouvier. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. affirmativus: cf. F. affirmatif. ] 1. Confirmative; ratifying; as, an act affirmative of common law. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. That affirms; asserting that the fact is so; declaratory of what exists; answering “yes” to a question; -- opposed to negative; as, an affirmative answer; an affirmative vote. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Positive; dogmatic. [ Obs. ] J. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

Lysicles was a little by the affirmative air of Crito. Berkeley. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (logic) Expressing the agreement of the two terms of a proposition. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Alg.) Positive; -- a term applied to quantities which are to be added, and opposed to negative, or such as are to be subtracted. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. That which affirms as opposed to that which denies; an affirmative proposition; that side of question which affirms or maintains the proposition stated; -- opposed to negative; as, there were forty votes in the affirmative, and ten in the negative. [ 1913 Webster ]

Whether there are such beings or not, 't is sufficient for my purpose that many have believed the affirmative. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A word or phrase expressing affirmation or assent; as, yes, that is so, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. a policy of making active efforts to improve the employment or educational opportunities available to members of minority groups or women; -- achieved by employers or schools by using various techniques, but excluding the use of simple quotas or outright discrimination against white males. affirmative action is required by law for certain employers in the United States. [ PJC ]

adv. In an affirmative manner; on the affirmative side of a question; in the affirmative; -- opposed to negatively. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Giving affirmation; assertive; affirmative. Massey. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who affirms. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Confrmed p. pr. & vb. n. Confirming. ] [ OE. confermen, confirmen, OF. confermer, F. confirmer, fr. L. confirmare; con- + firmare to make firm, fr. firmus firm. See Firm. ] 1. To make firm or firmer; to add strength to; to establish; as, health is confirmed by exercise. [ 1913 Webster ]

Confirm the crown to me and to mine heirs. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law. Ps. cv. 10. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To strengthen in judgment or purpose. [ 1913 Webster ]

Confirmed, then, I resolve
Adam shall share with me in bliss or woe. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To give new assurance of the truth of; to render certain; to verify; to corroborate; as, to confirm a rumor. [ 1913 Webster ]

Your eyes shall witness and confirm my tale. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

These likelihoods confirm her flight. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To render valid by formal assent; to complete by a necessary sanction; to ratify; as, to confirm the appoinment of an official; the Senate confirms a treaty. [ 1913 Webster ]

That treaty so prejudicial ought to have been remitted rather than confimed. Swift. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Eccl.) To administer the rite of confirmation to. See Confirmation, 3. [ 1913 Webster ]

Those which are thus confirmed are thereby supposed to be fit for admission to the sacrament. Hammond.

Syn. -- To strengthen; corroborate; substantiate; establish; fix; ratify; settle; verify; assure. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. That may be confirmed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Confirmation. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. confirmation, L. confirmatio. ] 1. The act of confirming or strengthening; the act of establishing, ratifying, or sanctioning; as, the confirmation of an appointment. [ 1913 Webster ]

Their blood is shed
In confirmation of the noblest claim. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. That which confirms; that which gives new strength or assurance; as to a statement or belief; additional evidence; proof; convincing testimony. [ 1913 Webster ]

Trifles light as air
Are to the jealous confirmations strong
As proofs of holy writ. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Eccl.) A rite supplemental to baptism, by which a person is admitted, through the laying on of the hands of a bishop, to the full privileges of the church, as in the Roman Catholic, the Episcopal Church, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

This ordinance is called confirmation, because they who duly receive it are confirmed or strengthened for the fulfillment of their Christian duties, by the grace therein bestowed upon them. Hook. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Law) A conveyance by which a voidable estate is made sure and not voidable, or by which a particular estate is increased; a contract, express or implied, by which a person makes that firm and binding which was before voidable. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. confirmativus: cf. F. confirmatif. ] Tending to confirm or establish. Sherwood.

-- Con*firm"a*tive*ly, adv. [1913 Webster]

n. [ L. ] One who, or that which, confirms; a confirmer. Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Serving to confirm; corroborative. [ 1913 Webster ]

A fact confirmatory of the conclusion. I. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Pertaining to the rite of confirmation. Compton. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. With confirmation. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A fixed state. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. confirmé, p. p. of confirmer. ] (Law) One to whom anything is confirmed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who, or that which, confirms, establishes, or ratifies; one who corroborates. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In a confirming manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. 1. To assert the contrary of; to contradict; to deny; -- said of that which has been asserted. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) To refuse to confirm; to annul, as a judicial decision, by a contrary judgment of a superior tribunal. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The act of disaffirming; denial; negation. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) Overthrow or annulment by the decision of a superior tribunal; as, disaffirmance of judgment. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The act of disaffirming; negation; refutation. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Compar. Firmer superl. Firmest. ] [ OE. ferme, F. ferme, fr.L. firmus; cf. Skr. dharman support, law, order, dh&unr_; to hold fast, carry. Cf. Farm, Throne. ] 1. Fixed; hence, closely compressed; compact; substantial; hard; solid; -- applied to the matter of bodies; as, firm flesh; firm muscles, firm wood. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Not easily excited or disturbed; unchanging in purpose; fixed; steady; constant; stable; unshaken; not easily changed in feelings or will; strong; as, a firm believer; a firm friend; a firm adherent. [ 1913 Webster ]

Under spread ensigns, moving nigh, in slow
But firm battalion. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

By one man's firm obediency fully tried. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Solid; -- opposed to fluid; as, firm land. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Indicating firmness; as, a firm tread; a firm countenance.

Syn. -- Compact; dense; hard; solid; stanch; robust; strong; sturdly; fixed; steady; resolute; constant. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ It. firma the (firm, sure, or confirming) signature or subscription, or Pg. firma signature, firm, cf. Sp. firma signature; all fr. L. firmus, adj., firm. See Firm, a. ] The name, title, or style, under which a company transacts business; a partnership of two or more persons; a commercial house; as, the firm of Hope & Co. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ OE. fermen to make firm, F. fermer, fr. L. firmare to make firm. See Firm, a. ] 1. To fix; to settle; to confirm; to establish. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

And Jove has firmed it with an awful nod. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To fix or direct with firmness. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

He on his card and compass firms his eye. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. firmamentum, fr. firmare to make firm: cf. F. firmament. See Firm, v. & a. ] 1. Fixed foundation; established basis. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Custom is the . . . firmament of the law. Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The region of the air; the sky or heavens. [ 1913 Webster ]

And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. Gen. i. 6. [ 1913 Webster ]

And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament. Gen. i. 14. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In Scripture, the word denotes an expanse, a wide extent; the great arch or expanse over out heads, in which are placed the atmosphere and the clouds, and in which the stars appear to be placed, and are really seen. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Old Astron.) The orb of the fixed stars; the most remote of the celestial spheres. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to the firmament; celestial; being of the upper regions. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Firmans xex>or [ Pers. fermān. ] In Turkey and some other Oriental countries, a decree or mandate issued by the sovereign; a royal order or grant; -- generally given for special objects, as to a traveler to insure him protection and assistance. [ Written also firmaun. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A chisel, thin in proportion to its width. It has a tang to enter the handle instead of a socket for receiving it. Knight. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. firmitudo. See Firm. ] Strength; stability. [ Obs. ] Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. firmitas. ] Strength; firmness; stability. [ Obs. ] Chillingworth. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Detached from substance. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Does passion still the firmless mind control? Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Infirm; unstable. “Firmless sands.” Sylvester. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In a firm manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The state or quality of being firm.

Syn. -- Firmness, Constancy. Firmness belongs to the will, and constancy to the affections and principles; the former prevents us from yielding, and the latter from fluctuating. Without firmness a man has no character; “without constancy, ” says Addison, “there is neither love, friendship, nor virtue in the world.” [ 1913 Webster ]

n. pl. [ From Firm, a. ] (Arch.) The principal rafters of a roof, especially a pair of rafters taken together. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. infirmus: cf. F. infirme. See In- not, and Firm, a. ] 1. Not firm or sound; weak; feeble; as, an infirm body; an infirm constitution. [ 1913 Webster ]

A poor, infirm, weak, and despised old man. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Weak of mind or will; irresolute; vacillating. “An infirm judgment.” Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]

Infirm of purpose! Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Not solid or stable; insecure; precarious. [ 1913 Webster ]

He who fixes on false principles treads or infirm ground. South.

Syn. -- Debilitated; sickly; feeble; decrepit; weak; enfeebled; irresolute; vacillating; imbecile. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ L. infirmare : cf. F. infirmer. ] To weaken; to enfeeble. [ Obs. ] Sir W. Raleigh. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A person dwelling in, or having charge of, an infirmary, esp. in a monastic institution. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Infirmaries [ Cf. OE. fermerie, OF. enfermerie, F. infirmerie, LL. infirmaria. See Infirm. ] A hospital, or place where the infirm or sick are lodged and nursed gratuitously, or where out-patients are treated. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. infirmatif. ] Weakening; annulling, or tending to make void. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An infirmary. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Infirmities [ L. infirmitas : cf. F. infirmite. See Infirm, a. ] 1. The state of being infirm; feebleness; an imperfection or weakness; esp., an unsound, unhealthy, or debilitated state; a disease; a malady; as, infirmity of body or mind. [ 1913 Webster ]

'T is the infirmity of his age. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A personal frailty or failing; foible; eccentricity; a weakness or defect. [ 1913 Webster ]

Will you be cured of your infirmity ? Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

A friend should bear his friend's infirmities. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

The house has also its infirmities. Evelyn.

Syn. -- Debility; imbecility; weakness; feebleness; failing; foible; defect; disease; malady. See Debility. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In an infirm manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Infirmity; feebleness. Boyle. [ 1913 Webster ]