SOR 



386 



SPE 



vulgdris, common), Guinea 

 Corn. 



sori, n. phi., sor f >l (Gr. soros, a 

 heap, a pile), in bot., the patches 

 of fructification on the back of 

 the fronds of ferns : sorus, n. 

 sing., sor'tis, in bot., a cluster of 

 sporangia in ferns : sorosis, n., 

 s6r'6z f >is, a kind of fleshy fruit, 

 resulting from the consolidation 

 in one mass of many flowers, as 

 in the pine-apple. 

 Soymida, n., sdym'id-a (its native 

 name), a genus of plants, Ord. 

 Cedrelacese : Soymida febrifuga, 

 fZb'Tif-ug'd (L. febris, a fever ; 

 fugo, I drive away), the Rohuna 

 of Hindustan, a kind of mahogany 

 whose bark is a useful tonic in in- 

 termittent fevers, and in typhus. 

 spadix, n., spdd'-iks, spadices, n. 

 plu., spdd-ls f ~ez (L. spadix, a 

 palm branch broken off together 

 with its fruits, a date or nut- 

 brown colour ; spddlds, of a date 

 or nut-brown colour, etc.), in 

 bot., a form of inflorescence in 

 which the flowers are closely 

 arranged around a thick fleshy 

 axis, and the whole wrapped in 

 a large leaf, called a spathe, as in 

 the arum : spadiceous, a. , spad- 

 ishf'US, of a clear reddish-brown 

 colour, resembling a spadix. 

 spanaemia, n., span-em'-i-a (Gr. 

 spanos, scarce ; haima, blood), 

 a diseased condition of the blood, 

 characterised by a deficiency in 

 its red globules ; the opposite 

 condition to plethora : spansBmic, 

 a., spdn-Zm'-ik, having the prop- 

 erty of impoverishing the blood ; 

 having an impoverished or thin 

 state of blood. 



spasm, n., spdzm (Gr. spasmos, 

 L. spasmus, a cramp, a spasm), 

 the violent and uncontrollable 

 action of a particular set of 

 muscles : spasms are of two sorts, 

 tonic and clonic ; in tonic spasms 

 (see 'tonic') the muscles of a part 

 contract violently, and remain 

 rigid and immovable during a 



shorter or longer interval, inde- 

 pendent of the will ; in clonic 

 spasms (see 'clonic') there are 

 regular alternations of sudden 

 contractions and relaxations ; in 

 common language, spasms are 

 grips and violent internal pains, 

 dependent on indigestion or con- 

 stipation : spasmodic, a., spdz- 

 mdd'-ic, of or pert, to spasms. 



spathe, n. , spdth, also spatha, n. , 

 spdth'a (L. spatha, Gr. spathe, a 

 broad blade or flat piece of wood), 

 in bot., a large membranous bract, 

 or kind of leaf, forming a sheath 

 to cover a spadix ; a calyx-like 

 sheath, found as a covering in 

 numerous flowers : spathed, a. , 

 spdtht, having a spathe or calyx 

 like a sheath : spathaceous, a., 

 spdth' d'-shtis, having the appear- 

 ance and membranous consistence 

 of a spathe : spathellae, n. plu. , 

 spath'$l'le(L. dim.), small spathes 

 surrounding separate parts of 

 the inflorescence : spatnose, a., 

 spath-oz', resembling a spathe. 



spathulate, a., spath'ul-dt (L. 

 spdthula, a broad piece, a spoon), 

 in bot. , spoon-shaped ; applied to 

 a leaf having a linear form, 

 enlarging suddenly into a rounded 

 extremity. 



spawn, n., spawn (Bav. span, 

 Dut. spenne, milk drawn from 

 the breast), the cellular axis of 

 Fungi, on which ultimately the 

 fructification is developed ; the 

 mycelium of frogs, etc. 



species, n., spesh'-ez (L. species, a 

 particular sort from specio, I 

 look at, I behold), a group of 

 individuals alike or identical with 

 each other that is, the indi- 

 viduals having no permanent or 

 marked difference an accidental 

 or minor difference in an individ- 

 ual being termed a variety; an 

 assemblage of individuals having 

 characters in common, and com- 

 ing from an original stock or 

 protoplast, as in a field of wheat : 

 specific, a., spZs'tf'-ik (L. facto, 



