bell | noun (n.) A hollow metallic vessel, usually shaped somewhat like a cup with a flaring mouth, containing a clapper or tongue, and giving forth a ringing sound on being struck. |
| noun (n.) A hollow perforated sphere of metal containing a loose ball which causes it to sound when moved. |
| noun (n.) Anything in the form of a bell, as the cup or corol of a flower. |
| noun (n.) That part of the capital of a column included between the abacus and neck molding; also used for the naked core of nearly cylindrical shape, assumed to exist within the leafage of a capital. |
| noun (n.) The strikes of the bell which mark the time; or the time so designated. |
| verb (v. t.) To put a bell upon; as, to bell the cat. |
| verb (v. t.) To make bell-mouthed; as, to bell a tube. |
| verb (v. i.) To develop bells or corollas; to take the form of a bell; to blossom; as, hops bell. |
| verb (v. t.) To utter by bellowing. |
| verb (v. i.) To call or bellow, as the deer in rutting time; to make a bellowing sound; to roar. |
fell | noun (n.) A skin or hide of a beast with the wool or hair on; a pelt; -- used chiefly in composition, as woolfell. |
| noun (n.) A barren or rocky hill. |
| noun (n.) A wild field; a moor. |
| noun (n.) The finer portions of ore which go through the meshes, when the ore is sorted by sifting. |
| noun (n.) A form of seam joining two pieces of cloth, the edges being folded together and the stitches taken through both thicknesses. |
| noun (n.) The end of a web, formed by the last thread of the weft. |
| adjective (a.) Cruel; barbarous; inhuman; fierce; savage; ravenous. |
| adjective (a.) Eager; earnest; intent. |
| adjective (a.) Gall; anger; melancholy. |
| verb (v. i.) To cause to fall; to prostrate; to bring down or to the ground; to cut down. |
| verb (v. t.) To sew or hem; -- said of seams. |
| (imp.) of Fall |
| () imp. of Fall. |
shell | noun (n.) A hard outside covering, as of a fruit or an animal. |
| noun (n.) The covering, or outside part, of a nut; as, a hazelnut shell. |
| noun (n.) A pod. |
| noun (n.) The hard covering of an egg. |
| noun (n.) The hard calcareous or chitinous external covering of mollusks, crustaceans, and some other invertebrates. In some mollusks, as the cuttlefishes, it is internal, or concealed by the mantle. Also, the hard covering of some vertebrates, as the armadillo, the tortoise, and the like. |
| noun (n.) Hence, by extension, any mollusks having such a covering. |
| noun (n.) A hollow projectile, of various shapes, adapted for a mortar or a cannon, and containing an explosive substance, ignited with a fuse or by percussion, by means of which the projectile is burst and its fragments scattered. See Bomb. |
| noun (n.) The case which holds the powder, or charge of powder and shot, used with breechloading small arms. |
| noun (n.) Any slight hollow structure; a framework, or exterior structure, regarded as not complete or filled in; as, the shell of a house. |
| noun (n.) A coarse kind of coffin; also, a thin interior coffin inclosed in a more substantial one. |
| noun (n.) An instrument of music, as a lyre, -- the first lyre having been made, it is said, by drawing strings over a tortoise shell. |
| noun (n.) An engraved copper roller used in print works. |
| noun (n.) The husks of cacao seeds, a decoction of which is often used as a substitute for chocolate, cocoa, etc. |
| noun (n.) The outer frame or case of a block within which the sheaves revolve. |
| noun (n.) A light boat the frame of which is covered with thin wood or with paper; as, a racing shell. |
| noun (n.) Something similar in form or action to an ordnance shell; |
| noun (n.) A case or cartridge containing a charge of explosive material, which bursts after having been thrown high into the air. It is often elevated through the agency of a larger firework in which it is contained. |
| noun (n.) A torpedo. |
| noun (n.) A concave rough cast-iron tool in which a convex lens is ground to shape. |
| noun (n.) A gouge bit or shell bit. |
| verb (v. t.) To strip or break off the shell of; to take out of the shell, pod, etc.; as, to shell nuts or pease; to shell oysters. |
| verb (v. t.) To separate the kernels of (an ear of Indian corn, wheat, oats, etc.) from the cob, ear, or husk. |
| verb (v. t.) To throw shells or bombs upon or into; to bombard; as, to shell a town. |
| verb (v. i.) To fall off, as a shell, crust, etc. |
| verb (v. i.) To cast the shell, or exterior covering; to fall out of the pod or husk; as, nuts shell in falling. |
| verb (v. i.) To be disengaged from the ear or husk; as, wheat or rye shells in reaping. |
smell | noun (n.) To perceive by the olfactory nerves, or organs of smell; to have a sensation of, excited through the nasal organs when affected by the appropriate materials or qualities; to obtain the scent of; as, to smell a rose; to smell perfumes. |
| noun (n.) To detect or perceive, as if by the sense of smell; to scent out; -- often with out. |
| noun (n.) To give heed to. |
| verb (v. i.) To affect the olfactory nerves; to have an odor or scent; -- often followed by of; as, to smell of smoke, or of musk. |
| verb (v. i.) To have a particular tincture or smack of any quality; to savor; as, a report smells of calumny. |
| verb (v. i.) To exercise the sense of smell. |
| verb (v. i.) To exercise sagacity. |
| verb (v. t.) The sense or faculty by which certain qualities of bodies are perceived through the instrumentally of the olfactory nerves. See Sense. |
| verb (v. t.) The quality of any thing or substance, or emanation therefrom, which affects the olfactory organs; odor; scent; fragrance; perfume; as, the smell of mint. |
spell | noun (n.) A spelk, or splinter. |
| noun (n.) The relief of one person by another in any piece of work or watching; also, a turn at work which is carried on by one person or gang relieving another; as, a spell at the pumps; a spell at the masthead. |
| noun (n.) The time during which one person or gang works until relieved; hence, any relatively short period of time, whether a few hours, days, or weeks. |
| noun (n.) One of two or more persons or gangs who work by spells. |
| noun (n.) A gratuitous helping forward of another's work; as, a logging spell. |
| noun (n.) A story; a tale. |
| noun (n.) A stanza, verse, or phrase supposed to be endowed with magical power; an incantation; hence, any charm. |
| verb (v. t.) To supply the place of for a time; to take the turn of, at work; to relieve; as, to spell the helmsman. |
| verb (v. t.) To tell; to relate; to teach. |
| verb (v. t.) To put under the influence of a spell; to affect by a spell; to bewitch; to fascinate; to charm. |
| verb (v. t.) To constitute; to measure. |
| verb (v. t.) To tell or name in their proper order letters of, as a word; to write or print in order the letters of, esp. the proper letters; to form, as words, by correct orthography. |
| verb (v. t.) To discover by characters or marks; to read with difficulty; -- usually with out; as, to spell out the sense of an author; to spell out a verse in the Bible. |
| verb (v. i.) To form words with letters, esp. with the proper letters, either orally or in writing. |
| verb (v. i.) To study by noting characters; to gain knowledge or learn the meaning of anything, by study. |
swell | noun (n.) The act of swelling. |
| noun (n.) Gradual increase. |
| noun (n.) Increase or augmentation in bulk; protuberance. |
| noun (n.) Increase in height; elevation; rise. |
| noun (n.) Increase of force, intensity, or volume of sound. |
| noun (n.) Increase of power in style, or of rhetorical force. |
| noun (n.) A gradual ascent, or rounded elevation, of land; as, an extensive plain abounding with little swells. |
| noun (n.) A wave, or billow; especially, a succession of large waves; the roll of the sea after a storm; as, a heavy swell sets into the harbor. |
| noun (n.) A gradual increase and decrease of the volume of sound; the crescendo and diminuendo combined; -- generally indicated by the sign. |
| noun (n.) A showy, dashing person; a dandy. |
| adjective (a.) Having the characteristics of a person of rank and importance; showy; dandified; distinguished; as, a swell person; a swell neighborhood. |
| verb (v. i.) To grow larger; to dilate or extend the exterior surface or dimensions, by matter added within, or by expansion of the inclosed substance; as, the legs swell in dropsy; a bruised part swells; a bladder swells by inflation. |
| verb (v. i.) To increase in size or extent by any addition; to increase in volume or force; as, a river swells, and overflows its banks; sounds swell or diminish. |
| verb (v. i.) To rise or be driven into waves or billows; to heave; as, in tempest, the ocean swells into waves. |
| verb (v. i.) To be puffed up or bloated; as, to swell with pride. |
| verb (v. i.) To be inflated; to belly; as, the sails swell. |
| verb (v. i.) To be turgid, bombastic, or extravagant; as, swelling words; a swelling style. |
| verb (v. i.) To protuberate; to bulge out; as, a cask swells in the middle. |
| verb (v. i.) To be elated; to rise arrogantly. |
| verb (v. i.) To grow upon the view; to become larger; to expand. |
| verb (v. i.) To become larger in amount; as, many little debts added, swell to a great amount. |
| verb (v. i.) To act in a pompous, ostentatious, or arrogant manner; to strut; to look big. |
| verb (v. t.) To increase the size, bulk, or dimensions of; to cause to rise, dilate, or increase; as, rains and dissolving snow swell the rivers in spring; immigration swells the population. |
| verb (v. t.) To aggravate; to heighten. |
| verb (v. t.) To raise to arrogance; to puff up; to inflate; as, to be swelled with pride or haughtiness. |
| verb (v. t.) To augment gradually in force or loudness, as the sound of a note. |
tell | noun (n.) That which is told; tale; account. |
| noun (n.) A hill or mound. |
| verb (v. t.) To mention one by one, or piece by piece; to recount; to enumerate; to reckon; to number; to count; as, to tell money. |
| verb (v. t.) To utter or recite in detail; to give an account of; to narrate. |
| verb (v. t.) To make known; to publish; to disclose; to divulge. |
| verb (v. t.) To give instruction to; to make report to; to acquaint; to teach; to inform. |
| verb (v. t.) To order; to request; to command. |
| verb (v. t.) To discern so as to report; to ascertain by observing; to find out; to discover; as, I can not tell where one color ends and the other begins. |
| verb (v. t.) To make account of; to regard; to reckon; to value; to estimate. |
| verb (v. i.) To give an account; to make report. |
| verb (v. i.) To take effect; to produce a marked effect; as, every shot tells; every expression tells. |
word | noun (n.) The spoken sign of a conception or an idea; an articulate or vocal sound, or a combination of articulate and vocal sounds, uttered by the human voice, and by custom expressing an idea or ideas; a single component part of human speech or language; a constituent part of a sentence; a term; a vocable. |
| noun (n.) Hence, the written or printed character, or combination of characters, expressing such a term; as, the words on a page. |
| noun (n.) Talk; discourse; speech; language. |
| noun (n.) Account; tidings; message; communication; information; -- used only in the singular. |
| noun (n.) Signal; order; command; direction. |
| noun (n.) Language considered as implying the faith or authority of the person who utters it; statement; affirmation; declaration; promise. |
| noun (n.) Verbal contention; dispute. |
| noun (n.) A brief remark or observation; an expression; a phrase, clause, or short sentence. |
| verb (v. i.) To use words, as in discussion; to argue; to dispute. |
| verb (v. t.) To express in words; to phrase. |
| verb (v. t.) To ply with words; also, to cause to be by the use of a word or words. |
| verb (v. t.) To flatter with words; to cajole. |
work | noun (n.) Exertion of strength or faculties; physical or intellectual effort directed to an end; industrial activity; toil; employment; sometimes, specifically, physically labor. |
| noun (n.) The matter on which one is at work; that upon which one spends labor; material for working upon; subject of exertion; the thing occupying one; business; duty; as, to take up one's work; to drop one's work. |
| noun (n.) That which is produced as the result of labor; anything accomplished by exertion or toil; product; performance; fabric; manufacture; in a more general sense, act, deed, service, effect, result, achievement, feat. |
| noun (n.) Specifically: (a) That which is produced by mental labor; a composition; a book; as, a work, or the works, of Addison. (b) Flowers, figures, or the like, wrought with the needle; embroidery. |
| noun (n.) Structures in civil, military, or naval engineering, as docks, bridges, embankments, trenches, fortifications, and the like; also, the structures and grounds of a manufacturing establishment; as, iron works; locomotive works; gas works. |
| noun (n.) The moving parts of a mechanism; as, the works of a watch. |
| noun (n.) Manner of working; management; treatment; as, unskillful work spoiled the effect. |
| noun (n.) The causing of motion against a resisting force. The amount of work is proportioned to, and is measured by, the product of the force into the amount of motion along the direction of the force. See Conservation of energy, under Conservation, Unit of work, under Unit, also Foot pound, Horse power, Poundal, and Erg. |
| noun (n.) Ore before it is dressed. |
| noun (n.) Performance of moral duties; righteous conduct. |
| noun (n.) To exert one's self for a purpose; to put forth effort for the attainment of an object; to labor; to be engaged in the performance of a task, a duty, or the like. |
| noun (n.) Hence, in a general sense, to operate; to act; to perform; as, a machine works well. |
| noun (n.) Hence, figuratively, to be effective; to have effect or influence; to conduce. |
| noun (n.) To carry on business; to be engaged or employed customarily; to perform the part of a laborer; to labor; to toil. |
| noun (n.) To be in a state of severe exertion, or as if in such a state; to be tossed or agitated; to move heavily; to strain; to labor; as, a ship works in a heavy sea. |
| noun (n.) To make one's way slowly and with difficulty; to move or penetrate laboriously; to proceed with effort; -- with a following preposition, as down, out, into, up, through, and the like; as, scheme works out by degrees; to work into the earth. |
| noun (n.) To ferment, as a liquid. |
| noun (n.) To act or operate on the stomach and bowels, as a cathartic. |
| noun (n.) Break; twist. |
| noun (n.) The causing of motion against a resisting force, measured by the product of the force into the component of the motion resolved along the direction of the force. |
| noun (n.) Ore before it is dressed. |
| verb (v. t.) To labor or operate upon; to give exertion and effort to; to prepare for use, or to utilize, by labor. |
| verb (v. t.) To produce or form by labor; to bring forth by exertion or toil; to accomplish; to originate; to effect; as, to work wood or iron into a form desired, or into a utensil; to work cotton or wool into cloth. |
| verb (v. t.) To produce by slow degrees, or as if laboriously; to bring gradually into any state by action or motion. |
| verb (v. t.) To influence by acting upon; to prevail upon; to manage; to lead. |
| verb (v. t.) To form with a needle and thread or yarn; especially, to embroider; as, to work muslin. |
| verb (v. t.) To set in motion or action; to direct the action of; to keep at work; to govern; to manage; as, to work a machine. |
| verb (v. t.) To cause to ferment, as liquor. |
world | noun (n.) The earth and the surrounding heavens; the creation; the system of created things; existent creation; the universe. |
| noun (n.) Any planet or heavenly body, especially when considered as inhabited, and as the scene of interests analogous with human interests; as, a plurality of worlds. |
| noun (n.) The earth and its inhabitants, with their concerns; the sum of human affairs and interests. |
| noun (n.) In a more restricted sense, that part of the earth and its concerns which is known to any one, or contemplated by any one; a division of the globe, or of its inhabitants; human affairs as seen from a certain position, or from a given point of view; also, state of existence; scene of life and action; as, the Old World; the New World; the religious world; the Catholic world; the upper world; the future world; the heathen world. |
| noun (n.) The customs, practices, and interests of men; general affairs of life; human society; public affairs and occupations; as, a knowledge of the world. |
| noun (n.) Individual experience of, or concern with, life; course of life; sum of the affairs which affect the individual; as, to begin the world with no property; to lose all, and begin the world anew. |
| noun (n.) The inhabitants of the earth; the human race; people in general; the public; mankind. |
| noun (n.) The earth and its affairs as distinguished from heaven; concerns of this life as distinguished from those of the life to come; the present existence and its interests; hence, secular affairs; engrossment or absorption in the affairs of this life; worldly corruption; the ungodly or wicked part of mankind. |
| noun (n.) As an emblem of immensity, a great multitude or quantity; a large number. |
worm | noun (n.) A creeping or a crawling animal of any kind or size, as a serpent, caterpillar, snail, or the like. |
| noun (n.) Any small creeping animal or reptile, either entirely without feet, or with very short ones, including a great variety of animals; as, an earthworm; the blindworm. |
| noun (n.) Any helminth; an entozoon. |
| noun (n.) Any annelid. |
| noun (n.) An insect larva. |
| noun (n.) Same as Vermes. |
| noun (n.) An internal tormentor; something that gnaws or afflicts one's mind with remorse. |
| noun (n.) A being debased and despised. |
| noun (n.) Anything spiral, vermiculated, or resembling a worm |
| noun (n.) The thread of a screw. |
| noun (n.) A spiral instrument or screw, often like a double corkscrew, used for drawing balls from firearms. |
| noun (n.) A certain muscular band in the tongue of some animals, as the dog; the lytta. See Lytta. |
| noun (n.) The condensing tube of a still, often curved and wound to economize space. See Illust. of Still. |
| noun (n.) A short revolving screw, the threads of which drive, or are driven by, a worm wheel by gearing into its teeth or cogs. See Illust. of Worm gearing, below. |
| noun (n.) To cut the worm, or lytta, from under the tongue of, as a dog, for the purpose of checking a disposition to gnaw. The operation was formerly supposed to guard against canine madness. |
| noun (n.) To wind rope, yarn, or other material, spirally round, between the strands of, as a cable; to wind with spun yarn, as a small rope. |
| verb (v. i.) To work slowly, gradually, and secretly. |
| verb (v. t.) To effect, remove, drive, draw, or the like, by slow and secret means; -- often followed by out. |
| verb (v. t.) To clean by means of a worm; to draw a wad or cartridge from, as a firearm. See Worm, n. 5 (b). |