*vola*

v. i. [ L. avolare; a (ab) + volare to fly. ] To fly away; to escape; to exhale. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ LL. avolatio. ] The act of flying; flight; evaporation. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. any of various tropical American orchids with usually solitary fleshy leaves and showy white to green nocturnally fragrant blossoms solitary or in racemes of up to 7. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. [ L. circumvolans, p. pr. See Circumvolation. ] Flying around. [ 1913 Webster ]

The circumvolant troubles of humanity. G. Macdonald. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. circumvolate. -volatum, to fly around; circum + volare to fly. ] The act of flying round. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. [ L. evolare to fly away; e out + volare to fly. ] Apt to fly away. [ Obs. or R. ] Blount. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. evolatio. ] A flying out or up. [ Obs. ] Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. not readily evaporated. Opposite of volatile. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

adj. not able to be volatilized. [ Narrower terms: nonvolatile (vs. volatile) ] WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ F. pont bridge + volant flying. ] (Mil.) A kind of light bridge, used in sieges, for surprising a post or outwork which has but a narrow moat; a flying bridge. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Pref. sub + It. nuvola cloud: cf. L. subnubilus somewhat cloudy. ] Under the clouds; attended or partly covered or obscured by clouds; somewhat cloudy. [ R. & Poetic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Subnuvolar lights of evening sharply slant. Milnes. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. transvolare to fly over or across; trans across + volare to fly. ] The act of flying beyond or across. Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. velivolans; velum a sail + volare to fly. ] Flying with sails; passing under full sail. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. volare to fly. ] Apt or fit to fly. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Sp. ] (Zool.) (a) A flying fish of California (Exocœtus Californicus): -- called also volator. (b) The Atlantic flying gurnard. See under Flying. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ F. ] Light; giddy. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

They wroughten all their lust volage. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. volans, -antis, p. pr. of volare to fly: cf. F. volant. ] 1. Passing through the air upon wings, or as if upon wings; flying; hence, passing from place to place; current. [ 1913 Webster ]

English silver now was current, and our gold volant in the pope's court. Fuller. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Nimble; light and quick; active; rapid. “His volant touch.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Her.) Represented as flying, or having the wings spread; as, an eagle volant. [ 1913 Webster ]

Volant piece (Anc. Armor), an adjustable piece of armor, for guarding the throat, etc., in a joust. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Sp., prop., flying. ] A two-wheeled carriage formerly much used in Cuba. The body is in front of the axle; the driver rides on the horse. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. Literally, world's speech; the name of an artificial language invented by Johan Martin Schleyer, of Constance, Switzerland, about 1879. For more about “planned languages”, see Esperanto. [ 1913 Webster + PJC ]

n. One who is conversant with, or who favors adoption of, Volapük. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. vola the palm of the hand, the sole of the foot. ] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the palm of the hand or the sole of the foot. [ 1913 Webster ]

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

a. [ F. volatil, L. volatilis, fr. volare to fly, perhaps akin to velox swift, E. velocity. Cf. Volley. ] 1. Passing through the air on wings, or by the buoyant force of the atmosphere; flying; having the power to fly. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Capable of wasting away, or of easily passing into the aeriform state; subject to evaporation. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Substances which affect the smell with pungent or fragrant odors, as musk, hartshorn, and essential oils, are called volatile substances, because they waste away on exposure to the atmosphere. Alcohol and ether are called volatile liquids for a similar reason, and because they easily pass into the state of vapor on the application of heat. On the contrary, gold is a fixed substance, because it does not suffer waste, even when exposed to the heat of a furnace; and oils are called fixed when they do not evaporate on simple exposure to the atmosphere. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Fig.: Light-hearted; easily affected by circumstances; airy; lively; hence, changeable; fickle; as, a volatile temper. [ 1913 Webster ]

You are as giddy and volatile as ever. Swift. [ 1913 Webster ]

Volatile alkali. (Old Chem.) See under Alkali. --
Volatile liniment, a liniment composed of sweet oil and ammonia, so called from the readiness with which the latter evaporates. --
Volatile oils. (Chem.) See Essential oils, under Essential. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. volatile. ] A winged animal; wild fowl; game. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ Cf. F. volatilité. ] Quality or state of being volatile; disposition to evaporate; changeableness; fickleness. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- See Levity. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. volatisable. ] Capable of being volatilized. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. volatilisation. ] The act or process of volatilizing, or rendering volatile; the state of being volatilized. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Volatilized p. pr. & vb. n. Volatilizing ] [ Cf. F. volatiliser. ] To render volatile; to cause to exhale or evaporate; to cause to pass off in vapor. [ 1913 Webster ]

The water . . . dissolving the oil, and volatilizing it by the action. Sir I. Newton. [ 1913 Webster ]