Aspila 
of moths, family Noctuida; founded by Gu<5n<5e. 
The larvte are smooth, soft leaf-feeders. A. mrescens 
is a beautiful moth, 
with olivaceous fore 
wings, marked with 
three distinct pale 
lines, relieved by 
coincident deeper 
shades. 
2. A genus of 
coleopterous in- 
sects. Jspilavircscens. (Natural size.) 
aspinet (as'pin 
or -pin), a. [Irreg. < asp* + -in* 1 ,] Of or per- 
taining to an asp; snaky: as, "aspine venom," 
Quarles. 
aspirant (a-splr'ant or as'pi-rant), n. and a. 
[< F. aspirant, a" candidate (prop, ppr.), < L. 
aspiran(t-)s, ppr. of aspirare (> F. aspirer), as- 
pire: see aspire.'] I. n. One who aspires; one 
who seeks advancement, elevation, or prefer- 
ence. 
Our young aspirant to the name and honours of an Eng- 
lish senator. Bp- Hurd. 
" Beauty and extraordinary goodness " were her dowry ; 
and she was claimed by four separate aspirants. 
Bancroft, Hist. U. S., I. 196. 
II. a. 1. Aspiring; ambitious: as, "ouras- 
pirant souls," Mrs. Browning. 2. Ascending; 
mounting up: as, aspirant flames. [Rare in 
both uses.] 
aspirate (as'pi-rat), v. ; pret. and pp. aspi- 
rated, ppr. aspirating. [< L. aspiratus, pp. of 
aspirare, give the ft-sound to, breathe or blow 
upon: see aspire.'] I. trans. 1. To pronounce 
with a breathing or an audible emission of 
breath ; pronounce with such a sound as that of 
the letter 7i : as, we aspirate the words horse 
and house, but not hour and honor; cockneys 
often aspirate words beginning with a vowel. 
Such mutes as were originally aspirated that is to say, 
had an audible bit of an h pronounced after them. 
Whitney, Lang, and Study of Lang., p. 93. 
2. To remove by aspiration Aspirating wln- 
nowing-machine, one in which aspiration or suction 
is used instead of a blast. See winnower. 
II. in trans. To be uttered with an aspirate 
or strong breathing. [Rare.] 
Where a vowel ends a word, the next begins either with 
a consonant, or what is its equivalent ; for our w and h 
aspirate. Dryden. 
aspirate (as'pi-rat), a. and n. [< L. aspiratus, 
pp. : see the verb.] I. a. Pronounced with the 
aspirate or rough breathing ; pronounced with 
the 7*-sound, or with a strong emission of 
breath. 
The Zend often showing an aspirate mute where the 
Sanskrit has the unaspirate, and vice versa. 
J. Hadley, Essays, p. 172. 
They are not aspirate, i. e., with such an aspiration as h. 
Holder, Elem. of Speech. 
II. n. An aspirated sound, or a sound like 
our h ; a sound with which the ft-souud is com- 
bined, or which corresponds historically to a 
sound of this nature : thus, the Sanskrit kh, gh, 
Wi, etc., and the Greek ch, th, ph (x, 6, <t>) are 
called aspirates, as are also the English /, th, 
which are more properly called breathings or 
spirants; also, a character or combination of 
characters representing a sound thus described, 
as the letter h, the Greek rough breathing, etc. 
aspirated (as'pi-ra-ted), p. a. Same as aspirate. 
aspiration (as-pi-ra'shon), n. [< L. aspira- 
tio(n-), a breathing upon, aspiration of a sound, 
the aspirate letter h, < aspirare : see aspirate, 
v.] 1. The act of aspirating or breathing; a 
breath. 
Fanned with continued breezes, and gentle aspirations 
of wind. Steele, Englishman, No. 26. 
2. An aspirated sound ; a phonetic breathing. 
The li, the pure aspiration, is an expulsion of flatus 
through the position of the adjacent letter, whether 
vowel, semivowel, or nasal. 
Whitney, Life and Growth of Lang., p. 67. 
The Latin grammarian Priscian, about 500 A. D., tells 
us that the sound then expressed by /was originally sig- 
nified by p with an aspiration (that is, by ph). 
J. Hadley, Essays, p. 172. 
3. The act of aspiring or ardently desiring; an 
ardent wish or desire, chiefly after what is ele- 
vated or spiritual. 
She . . . feels neither inclination to pleasure nor aspi- 
ration after virtue. Johnson, Rambler, No. 112. 
All Emerson's aspirations were toward greatness of 
character, greatness of wisdom, nobility of soul. 
The Century, XXVII. 928. 
4f. Aid ; inspiration ; countenance. 
To God's honour, . . . without the aspiration and help 
of whose especial grace no labours of man can profit. 
Sir T. More, Works, p. 357. 
5. The act of removing afluid, as pus or serum, 
from some cavity of the body, by means of a 
342 
hollow needle or trocar connected with a suc- 
tion-syringe. 6. Suction; the act or process 
of drawing air through (by some method of ex- 
haustion), as opposed to the act or process of 
forcing it through that is, to a blast. 
For cleaning grain there are other kinds of apparatus in 
which the principle of aspiration, or drawing currents of 
air through the grain, is now extensively employed. 
Encyc. Brit., IX. 344. 
= Syn. 3. Longing, yearning. 
aspirator (as'pi-ra-tor), n. [NL., < L. aspirare, 
breathe or blow upon : see aspirate and aspire.] 
1. An apparatus for creating a vacuum by the 
action of a moving fluid. A common form is that of 
a simple vessel filled with water and connected with the 
receptacle to be drained of air. On permitting the water 
to escape below, a partial vacuum is formed above it. 
2. A surgical instrument, consisting of a hol- 
low needle, or trocar, connected with a suction- 
syringe, used in removing fluids from the cav- 
ities of the body. 3. A form of winno wing- 
machine employing aspiration instead of a 
blast. See aspiration,_ 6. 
aspiratory (a-splr'a-to-ri), a. [< L. as if *<w- 
piratorius, < aspirare j breathe upon: see aspi- 
rate and -ory.] Pertaining to breathing ; suit- 
ed to the inhaling of air. 
aspire (a-spir'), v. ; pret. and pp. aspired, ppr. 
aspiring". [< late ME. aspire, < F. aspirer = Pr. 
Sp. Pg. aspirar = It. aspirare, < L. aspirare, ad- 
spirare, breathe or blow upon, desire to reach, < 
ad, to, + spirare, breathe, blow : see spirit. Cf . 
conspire, expire, inspire, perspire, respire, suspire, 
transpire.] I.t trans. 1. To breathe to or into. 
To spreade his bearaes vpon vs, and aspire hys breth 
into vs. Sir T. More, Apol., xlix. (N. E. D.) 
2. To breathe forth or exhale. Shenstone. 
Whose notes the air aspire 
Of th' old Egyptian or the Thracian lyre. 
B. Jonson, Golden Age Restored. 
3. To breathe after; seek with eagerness to at- 
tain to ; long or try to reach ; attempt. 
Who dare aspire this journey ? Donne, Poems, p. 184. 
4. [See II., 2.] To mount or soar to; attain. 
That gallant spirit hath aspir'd the clouds. 
Shak., R. and J., ill. 1. 
Come, there was never any great thing yet 
Aspired, but by violence or fraud. 
B. Jonson, Catiline, iii. 3. 
II. intrans. 1. To be eagerly desirous; aim 
ambitiously, especially at something great or 
noble ; be ambitious : followed by an object 
with to or after, or by an infinitive : as, to aspire 
to a crown or after immortality. 
Aspiring to he gods, if angels fell, 
Aspiring to be angels, men rebel. 
Pope, Essay on Man, i. 127. 
He aspired to see 
His native Pisa queen and arbitress 
Of cities. Bryant, Knight's Epitaph. 
2. [Partly influenced by association with spire. ] 
To rise up as an exhalation, or as smoke or 
fire; hence, to mount or ascend; tower up or 
rise high. 
Whose flames aspire,^ 
As thoughts do blow them, higher and higher. 
Shak., M. W. of W., v. 5, song. 
aspiret (a-spir'), n. [< aspire, v.] Aspiration; 
ardent wish or desire. 
And mock the fondling for his mad aspire. Chapman. 
aspirementt (a-spir'ment), n. [< aspire + 
-went.'] The act of aspiring; aspiration. 
By which aspirement she her wings displays. 
Ant. Brewer (?), Lingua, iii. 8. 
aspirer (a-spir'er), n. One who aspires; an 
aspirant. 
aspiring (a-splr'ing), p. a. 1. Animated with 
an ardent desire, as of power, importance, or 
excellence; ambitious; soaring: as, "aspiring 
nobles," Macaulay, Hist. Eng., i. 
Aspiring beggary is wretchedness itself. 
Goldsmith, Vicar, iii. 
Ere he filled with loves, hopes, longings, this aspiring heart 
of man. Lowell, Anti-Apis. 
2. Rising ; towering or soaring. 
To sore destruction dooms the aspirinri wall. 
Pope, Iliad, xii. 368. 
aspiringly (a-splr'ing-li), adv. In an aspiring 
manner; soaringly; ambitiously. 
aspiringness (a-splr'ing-nes), n. The state of 
being aspiring ; ambitiousness. [Rare.] 
aspis (as'pis), n. [NL., < Gr. aairlf, an asp, the 
Egyptian cobra: see asp 2 .] 1. Same as asp 2 
or aspic 1 . Also used as a generic term. 2. 
leap.] A genus of coleopterous insects. Ger- 
mar. 3. [cop.] A genus of lepidopterous in- 
sects. Treitscltke, 1829. 
aspish (as'pish), a. [< asp 2 + -ish.] Of or 
pertaining to asps; snaky. N. E. D. 
asprino 
Aspisoma (as-pi-so'ma), n. [NL., irreg. < Gr. 
d<rax, a shield, + cu/ia, body.] A genus of 
South American fireflies, of the family Telepho- 
rida;, belonging to the malacodermatous divi- 
sion of pentamerous Coleoptera. A. lineatum 
is the common firefly of the Amazon region. 
Asplanchna (as-plangk'na), n. [NL., < Gr. 
amt'/Myxvos, without bowels, < o- priv. + 
anlMYxya, bowels.] A genus of free Botifera, 
having a rounded sac-like body, devoid of ap- 
pendages, and possessing neither anus nor 
intestine, whence the name. The genus is typi- 
cal of the family Asplanchnidce. 
asplanchnic (as-plangk'nik), a. [< Gr. 
do-Tr/la/^wc, without bowels (see Asplanchna), + 
-ic.] Having no intestine or alimentary canal ; 
anenterous. 
asplanchnid (as-plangk'nid), . A rotifer of 
the family Asplanehnidce. 
Asplanctinida (as-plangk'ni-de), n. pi. [NL., 
< Asplanchna + -id(e.] A family of rotifers hav- 
ing the trochal disk rounded, the wreath single 
and marginal, the trophi incudate, and no in- 
testine, anus, or foot. Asplanchna is the lead- 
ing genus. 
Asplenium(as-ple'ni-um), n. [NL., <Gr. aa^Jj- 
viov, also av~f.rfviav, usually amrAr/vov (> L. asple- 
num), spleenwort, supposed to be a cure for 
the spleen, < a- euphonic + CTT^V, spleen : see 
spleen.] A genus of ferns characterized by 
linear or oblong sori lying on the veins (which 
are free in most species) and obliquely to the 
costa, the involucre being conformable to the 
sorus and opening toward the costa when single. 
It is the largest genus of the order (Filices) excepting 
Polypodium, and its species are found in all parts of the 
world, wherever ferns grow. It includes very varied 
forms. Many of the species are evergreen, and some are 
cultivated for their beauty. Among the more common 
species, generally known as spleenwort, are the lady-fern 
{A. Filix-faemina), black maidenhair (A. Trichomanes), 
distributed around the globe, wall-rue (..4. Ruta-mnraria), 
and ebony spleenwort (A. ebeneuiri). 
aspodilt, n. An obsolete and corrupt form of 
asphodel (Asphodelus ramosus). Also aspod- 
flower. Holme, 1688. 
asporous (a-spo'rus), a. [< Gr. a- priv. + av6- 
pof, seed : see spore.] Without spores ; not de- 
veloping spores. 
In the case of the simplest and most minute Schizomy- 
cetes (Micrococcus, etc.) no definite spores have been dis- 
covered ; any one of the vegetative micrococci may com- 
mence a new series of cells by growth and division. We 
may call these forms asporous, at any rate provisionally. 
Encyc. Brit., XXI. 404. 
asport (as-port'), * [< L- asportare, carry 
away. < abs, away (see aft-), + portare, carry.] 
To carry away ; especially, to remove feloni- 
ously. N. E. D. [Rare.] 
asportation (as-por-ta'shon), . [< L. asporta- 
tio(n-), a carrying away, < asportare, pp. aspor- 
tatus: see asport.] 1. A carrying away or off. 
[Rare.] 
Ai 
had 
the 
2. In criminal law, the felonious removal of 
goods from the place where they were depos- 
ited. It may be theft, though the goods be not 
carried from the house or apartment. 
aspret, a. A Middle English form of asper 1 . 
Aspredinae (as-pre-dl'ne), n. pi. [NL., < As- 
predo + -ina;.] Same as Aspredinina or As- 
predinidce. Swainson, 1839. 
aspredinid (as-pred'i-nid), n. A fish of the 
family Aspredinidce. 
Aspredinidae (as-pre-din'i-de), n. pi. [NL., < 
Aspredo (-din-) + -idee.] A family of nematog- 
nathous fishes, exemplified by the genus As- 
predo, containing a few fresh-water catfishes 
of South America. They have no operculum, no adi- 
pose fin, no spine in the dorsal fin, reduced gill-openings, 
small eyes and mouth, and 6 to 8 barbels. The skin is 
either smooth or tuberculous. 
Aspredinina (as // pre-di-m'na), n. pi. [NL., < 
Aspredo (-din-) + -ina.] In Gunther's classifi- 
cation of fishes, a group of Siluridce prote- 
ropodes,' with the anterior and posterior nostrils 
remote from each other, the lower lip not re- 
verted, and the humerocubital process much 
developed and prolonged: synonymous with 
the family Aspredinida. 
Aspredo (as-pre'do), n. [NL., < L. aspredo, 
roughness, < asper, rough: see asper 1 .] A 
genus of nematognathous fishes, typical of the 
family Aspredinida;. 
asprelyt, adv. See asperly. 
asprenesst, n. See asperness. 
asprino (as-pre'no), n. [It., prop. dim. of as- 
pro, sour, sharp, < L. asper: see asper^.] A 
