238 



THE STANDARD DICTIONARY t F FACTS 



I.. |>jtri-**. H.ir 

 treated either in his 

 reclines: be is harassed 



Harass. Pe 



Perple 



ward ci 



x. A person is dis- 

 outward circumstances or his 

 HBI* UMBVCU mentally or corporeally; he is per- 

 plexed in his understanding, more than in his feeling: a 

 deprivation distresses; provocations and hostile meas- 

 ures harass; stratagems and ambiguous measures perplex. 

 rust. Suspicion. Dtniil. n. . is said 



either of ourselves or others; suspicion is said only of 

 others; diffidence only of ourselves: to be distrustful 

 of a person in to impute no good to him ; to be suspicious 

 of a person is to impute positive evil to him. As regards 

 one's self, a person may distrust his own powers for the 

 execution of a particular office, or have a distrust of 

 himself in company; he has a general diffidence, or he 

 is naturally diffident. 



To Disturb. Interrupt. We may be disturbed 

 either inwardly or outwardlv; we are interrupted only 

 outwardly: our minds may be disturbed by disquieting 

 reflections, or we may be disturbed in our rest or in our 

 hnninnai by unseemly noises. 



T.. Divi.l,. ^, pa rate, Part. That is said to be 

 divided which has been or is conceived to be a whole, 

 that is separated which might be joined : an army may 

 be divided into two or* three divisions or portions: the 

 divisions are frequently separated in their march; to 

 divide is properly to make any whole into two parts. 



To Di Mil.-. in-tribal, . Share. We divide the 

 thine; we distribute to the person. To share is to make 

 into parts, the same as divide, and it is to give those 

 parts to some persons, the same as distribute; but the 

 person who snares takes a part himself; he who dis- 

 tributes gives it all to others. 



Doctrine. Precept, Principle. A doctrine requires 

 a teacher; a precept requires a superior with authority; 

 a principle requires only a maintainer or holder. A 

 doctrine is always framed by some one; a precept is 

 enjoined or laid down by some one; a principle lies in 

 the thing itself. A doctrine is composed of principles; 

 a precept rests upon principles or doctrines. 



Doctrine, Dogma. Tenet. A doctrine rests on the 

 authority of the individual by whom it is framed; the 

 dogma on the authority of the body by whom it is main- 

 tained; a tenet rests on its own intrinsic merits. A 

 tenet is a species of principles maintained in matters of 

 opinion by persons in general. 



To Doubt, Question. Doubt lies altogether in the 

 mind; it is a less active feeling than question: by the 

 former we merely suspend decision; by the latter we 

 actually demand proofs in order to assist us in deciding. 

 We may doubt in silence: we cannot question without 

 expressing it, directly or indirectly; we doubt the truth 

 of a position ; we question the veracity of an author. 



Doubt. Suspense. Doubt respects that which we 

 should believe; suspense that which we wish to know 

 or ascertain. We are in doubt for the want of evidence; 

 we are in suspense for the want of certainty. Doubt inter- 

 rupts our progress in the attainment of truth; suspense 

 impedes us in the attainment of our objects. 



To Draw* Drag, Haul, or Hale, Pull, Pluck, Tug. 

 Draw expresses here the idea common to the first three 

 terms, namely, of putting a body in motion from behind 

 one's self or toward one's self; to drag is to draw a thing 

 with violence, or to draw that which makes resistance; 

 to haul is to drag it with still greater violence. To pull 

 signifies only an effort to draw without the idea of mo- 

 tion; horses pull very long sometimes before they can 

 draw a heavily laden cart uphill. To pluck is to pull 

 with a sudden twitch in order to separate; to tug is to 

 pull with violence. 



Dream, Reverie. Dreams and reveries are alike 

 opposed to the reality, and have their origin in the 

 imagination; but the former commonly passes in sleep, 

 and the latter when awake. 



Dull, .I.Mim\. > :i |. Dismal. When applied to 

 natural objects, dull and gloomy denote the want of 

 necessary light or life: in this sense metals are more or 

 less dull according as they are stained with dirt : the 

 weather is dull when the sun is obscured by clouds, and 

 gloomy when the atmosphere is darkened by fogs or 

 thick clouds; dismal denotes not merely the want of 

 that which is necessary, but also the presence of that 

 which is repugnant to the senses; as a glare of light or 

 a sound may be dismal. Sad is not applied so much 

 to sensible as moral objects; the loss of a parent is sad. 



Durable. Lasting, Permanent. Durable is natur- 

 ally said of material substances; and lasting of those 

 which are spiritual; although in ordinary discourse 

 sometimes they exchange offices: permanent applies 

 more to the affairs of men. That which perishes quickly 

 is not durable; that which ceases quickly is not lasting; 

 that which is only for a ,ime is not permanent. 



Durable, Constant. What is durable is so from 

 Us inherent property; what is constant is so by the 



power of the mind. No durable connections can be 

 formed where avarice or lust prevails. 



Duty. Obligation. Duty has to do with the con- 

 science, and arises from the natural relations of society; 

 an obligation arises from circumstances, and is a species 

 of duty. He who guarantees to pay a sum of money 

 contracts an obligation. He who marries contracts new 

 duties. 



. Quiet, Rest, Repose. Ease and quiet 

 respect action on the body; rest and repose respect the 

 action of the bodv; ease denotes an exemption from 

 any painful agency in general; quiet denotes an exemp- 

 tion from that in particular which noise, disturbance, 

 or the violence of others may cause; rest simply denotes 

 -atioa of motion; repose is that species of rest 

 which is agreeable after labor. 



Easy, Ready. Easy marks the freedom of being 

 done; ready the disposition or willingness to do; the 

 former refers mostly to the thing or the manner, the 

 latter to the person. 



To Eclipse, Obscure. Heavenly bodies are eclipsed 

 by the intervention of other bodies between them and 

 the beholder; things are in general obscured which are 

 in any way rendered less striking or visible. So, figur- 

 atively, real merit is eclipsed by the intervention of 

 superior merit; it is often obscured by an ungracious 

 exterior in the possessor, or by his unfortunate circum- 

 stances. 



Education, Instruction, Breeding. Instruction 

 and breeding are to education as parts to a whole; in- 

 struction respects the communication of knowledge 

 and breeding respects the manners or outward conduct; 

 but education comprehends not only both these, but the 

 formation of the mind, the regulation of the heart, and the 

 establishment of the principles: good instruction makes 

 one wiser; good breeding makes one more polished and 

 agreeable; good education makes one really good. 



To Effect, Produce, Perform. To produce signi- 

 fies to bring something forth or into existence; to per- 

 form to do something to the end : to effect is to produce 

 an effect by performing; whatever is effected is the 

 consequence of a specific design; it always requires, 

 therefore, a rational agent to effect: what is produced 

 may follow incidentally, or arise from the action of an 

 irrational agent or an inanimate object; what is per- 

 formed is done by specific efforts. 



Effusion, Ejaculation. An effusion commonly 

 flows from a heated imagination uncorrected by the judg- 

 ment; it. is, therefore, in general not only incoherent 

 but extravagant and senseless: an ejaculation is produced 

 by the warmth of the moment, but never without refer- 

 ence to some particular circumstance. Enthusiasts 

 are full of extravagant effusions; contrite sinners will 

 often express their penitence in pious ejaculations. 



Elderly, Aged, Old. The elderly man has passed 

 the meridian of life; the aged man is fast approaching 

 the term of our existence; the old man has already 

 reached this term, or has exceeded it. 



Eligible, Preferable. . What is eligible is desirable 

 in itself, what is preferable is more desirable than another. 



To Embarrass, Perplex, Entangle. Embarrass- 

 ments depend altogether on ourselves; the want of 

 prudence and presence of mind is the common cause; 

 perplexities depend on extraneous circumstances as well 

 as ourselves; extensive dealings with others are mostly 

 attended with perplexities; entanglements arise mostly 

 from the evil designs of others. 



Emissary, Spy. Both these words designate a per- 

 son sent out by a body on some public concern among 

 their enemies; but they differ in their office according 

 to the etymology of the words. The emissary is sent 

 so as to mix with the people to whom he goes, to be in 

 all places, and to associate with every one individually 

 as may serve his purpose; the spy, takes his station 

 wherever he can best perceive what is passing; he 

 keeps himself at a distance from all but such as may 

 particularly aid him in the object of his search. The 

 emissary is generally employed by those who have some 

 illegitimate object to pursue; spies, on the other hand, 

 are employed by all regular governments in a time of 

 warfare. 



Empire, Reign, Dominion. As empire signifies 

 command, or the power exercised in commanding, 

 it properly refers to the country or people commanded; 

 and as reign signifies the act of reigning, it refers to the 

 individual who reigns. Dominion may be applied in 

 the proper sense to the power which man exercises over 

 the brutes or inanimate objects, and figuratively to the 

 power of the passions. 



To Employ, Use. We employ whatever we take 

 into our service, or make subservient to our convenience 

 for a time; we use whatever we entirely devote to our 

 purpose. 



