author 
rived by purchase or otherwise than by way of 
descent. 
authort (a'thor), c. t. [< author, .] 1. To 
occasion; effect; do. 
Execrable slaughter! what hand hath uuflio,-l it? 
/v. id,, r (mul othi-ff), Bloody Brother, ill. 4. 
i>. ynii two think tmirh 
Tliat he thus wisely ami with need consents 
To what I uiitluir for your country's good, 
You being Tny tutor, you ni.v duuUMuorl 
FMMW(OM <itlu-,-s). Bloody Brother, 111. 1. 
2. To be authority for; vouch for. 
More "f him I ilui'e not author. 
Mii-ixin'i'i- 'ti"l l-'ifl'l. Fatal Dowry, Iv. 2. 
authoress (il'tlior-os), n. [Early mod. E. also 
authoiiri'Kx, uiilhri-xm-, nm-tressc, auctfice, < late 
ME. (iiiftiiiin : see mttlior and -ess.] A female 
author, in any sense of that word. [Author is 
commonly used for both sexes, except in case 
of special discrimination.] 
authorhood (a'thor-hud), it. [< author + 
-linoil.] The state of being an author (of 
books); the province of an author; author- 
ship. 
authorial (a-tho'ri-al), a. [< author + -iul. 
Cf. tinctorial.] Pertaining to an author (of 
books). Also niitorial. 
Must we then )>ow to itutlitiriiil dignity, and kiss hands 
because they are inked ? 
/. D'/trarli, Lit. I'iiar. Men of Genius, p. I4f,. 
Testing the aulnriat power. /'. Marginalia, cvi. 
authorisable, authorisation, etc. See author- 
izablc, etc. 
authorism (a'thor-izm), n. [< author + -ism.] 
Authorship ; the position or character of an au- 
thor. [Rare.] 
He [Burke] is a sensible man, but has not worn off hi 
authorism yet, and thinks there is nothing so charming 
as writers, and to be one. Waipole, Letters, II. 90. 
authoritarian (a-thor-i-ta'ri-an), n. and . [< 
authority + -arian.] I. a. Favoring the prin- 
ciple of authority, as opposed to that of indi- 
vidual freedom. 
The loyalists, who sympathized most strongly with . . . 
his authoritarian views. Atheiumm, No. 3088, p. 202. 
II. n. One who supports the principle of 
authority, as opposed to that of individual 
freedom. 
By looking only at the beginning and end of liis career, 
... an imaginary Napoleon has been obtained who Is ... 
a lover of liberty, not an authoritarian. 
Encyc. Brit., XVII. 226. 
authoritative (a-thor'i-ta-tiv), . [< authority 
+ -ative. Cf. ML. auctoritativus.'] 1. Having 
due authority; having the sanction or weight 
of authority ; entitled to credence or obedience : 
as, "authoritative teaching," Barrow. 
The Law of Duty remains indeed authoritative, but its 
authority seems scarcely so awful and unique as formerly. 
J. R. Seeley, Nat. Religion, p. 112. 
Anselm was compelled to publish an authoritative edi- 
tion of his Monologium, because BO many copies of it were 
already in circulation from notes of lectures. 
C. H. Pearson, Early and Mid. Ages of Eng., xxxv. 
2. Having an air of authority; positive; per- 
emptory; dictatorial. 
The mock authoritative manner of the one and the in- 
sipid mirth of the other. Svrtft, Examiner. 
Dogmatic and authoritative by nature and education, he 
hardly comprehended the meaning of toleration in mat- 
ters of religion. Whipple, Ess. and Eev., II. 90. 
= Syn. 2. Authoritative, Magisterial, etc. (see magisterial), 
commanding. 
authoritatively (a-thor'i-ta-tiv-li), adv. In an 
authoritative manner, (a) "With due authority. 
I think it [the law of repetition] is even more authorita- 
tively present in the minus of most great composers than 
the law of principality. Ruskin, Elem. of Drawing. 
(6) With a show of authority. 
authoritativeness (a-thor'i-ta-tiv-nes), n. The 
quality of being authoritative; an acting by 
authority ; authoritative appearance. 
authority (a-thor'i-ti), n.; pi. authorities (-iiz). 
[Early mod. E. also autoritie, auctoritie, etc., < 
ME. autorite, auctarite, < OF. autoritet. F. au- 
torite = Pr. auctoritat = Sp. autoridaa = Pg. 
autoridade = It. autorita, < L. auctorita(t-)g, 
counsel, will, decree, liberty, power, weight, 
authority, < auctor, author, originator: see au- 
thor.'] 1. Power or admitted right to com- 
mand or to act, whether original or delegated: 
as, the authority of a prince over subjects and 
of parents over children; the authority of an 
agent to act for his principal. In lair, an authority 
is general when it extends to all acts, or all connected 
with a particular employment, and special when confined 
to a single act. 
By what authority doest thou these things, and who 
uavethee this aullmrilii' Mark xi. 28. 
If law, authority, and power deny not, 
It will go hard with poor Antonio. 
Shak., M. of V., iii. 2. 
387 
If liis coiwvleiice were so narrow and peculiar to it selfe, 
it was not lltl his Anttiritu -h"tiM be so am]>]i- ami I Hi- 
vursall over others. Miltmi, Kikunokuutei, II. 
2. The power derived from opinion, respect, 
or long-estiililished reputation; influence con- 
ferred by character, office, station, mental su- 
periority, or the like; credit: as, the authority 
of age or example; the authority of Aristotle. 
But the mortallest enemy unto knowledge, ami tltat 
which huth done the greatest execution upon truth, hath 
tn'i n. a i>< ivinpt'Ty adhesion unto Auth'n-itii. ami esjie 
eially tin 1 eitai'lishing of our !>eliefe upon the dictates of 
Antiquities. For (as every capacity may observe), most 
men of Ages present, so snperstitiously do look upon 
A^'rs past, that the .1 ntlmt-it;,'* of the t<ne exi ee<l the rea- 
-Mii~ of the other. ,sVr T. BroWM, \ nig. Err. (1046), I. 20. 
Truth, wisdom, nanetitude severe and pure, . . . 
\Vhcnre trui' H"t/i:> i-iiii in men. Miltmi. I'. L., iv. -1i.">. 
3t. Power in a general sense. 
The . . . corrigible fiiithoritif of this lies in our wills. 
fihuk., nthello. i. :'.. 
4. A person or persons, or a body, exercising 
power or command : generally in the plural : 
,-!.-. the civil and military authorities. 6. The 
outward marks of authority; especially, the 
expression of authority in the countenance. 
Kent. You have that in your countenance which I would 
fain call master, 
/..in-. What's that? 
Kft/t. Anl/miifiL .SAii/,., Lear, i. 1. 
6. That to which or one to whom an appeal or 
reference may be made in support of any opin- 
ion, action, or course of conduct. () Testimony; 
witness ; that which or one who testifies. 
Something I have heard of this, which I would he glad to 
find by so sweet an authority confirmed. Sir P. Sidney. 
Had seen . . . 
Jesus, Messiah, Son of God declared, 
And on that high authoriti/ had believed. 
Milton, P. R., 11. s. 
(&) Weight of testimony ; credibility : as, a historian of 
no authority ; "authority of the Scriptures," Hooker. 
The registers of the English Peerage are of far higher 
iintltoritii than any other statistical documents. 
Macaulay, Sadler's Law of Population. 
(c) One who possesses adequate knowledge of a subject, and 
whose opinions or statements may be relied on ; an ex- 
S>ert ; a standard author or his writings : as, an authority 
n matters pertaining to geology. 
This practice we may learn, from a better and more 
ancient authority then any heathen writer hath to give 
us. Milton, Church-Government, Pref. 
(-/ 1 In /"", a precedent; a judicial decision; an official 
declaration or opinion, such as ought to be followed in 
similar cases, (e) Justification ; countenance ; warrant. 
Thieves for their robbery have authority, 
When judges steal themselves. 
Shak., M. for M., II. 2. 
Argument from authority. Same as argmaentum ail 
re I'n./m/ii cwhieh see, under amMMtmJi Consti- 
tuted authorities, the magistrates or governors of a 
nation, people, municipality, etc. General authority, 
the authority of a general agent, intended to apply to all 
matters which arise in the course of business, as distin- 
guished from special instances, though it may lie limited 
to a particular business and to a particular place. = Syn. 
1. Rule, dominion, government; warrant, permission, au- 
thorization. 2. Influence, Authority, Ascendancy, Con- 
trol, Sway, Domination, may all apply to persons or 
things, but seem primarily to belong to persons. Influ- 
ence and authority imply moral power ; the others may 
do so, and are considered to do so here. The words are 
arranged in the order of their strength. Influence may 
be small ; it is wholly apart from the power of office ; the 
word expresses the extent to which one affects the con- 
duct or character of others simply by their deference to 
him on account of his station, wealth, ability, character, 
etc. Authority is, in this connection, influence amount- 
ing to a recognized right to command : as, the authority 
of age, wisdom, experience. It is presumably rightful, 
while the other words often express undue or unwhole- 
some weight or power. Ascendancy is overmastering in- 
fluence, supremacy by influence ; the word is often used 
in a bad sense : as, the ascendancy of cunning over sim- 
plicity. Control is complete, or successful and continued 
authority: as, his control over the convicts was main- 
tained without resort to force. Sway is, by its deriva- 
tion, control over that which may be viewed as a weighty 
or massive object ; hence, a solid or powerful or control- 
ling influence. Domination, as it may be an absolute and 
tyrannical rule, may also be an absolute and tyrannical in- 
fluence or ascendancy: as, he was really under the domi- 
nation of those whom he thought his servants or tools. 
Mourn for the man of amplest influence, 
Yet clearest of ambitious crime. 
Tennyson, Duke of Wellington, iv. 
In the absolute authority accorded [by the Romans] to 
the father over the children we may trace the same habits 
of discipline that proved so formidable In the field. 
Lecky, Europ. Morals, I. 181. 
The application of gunpowder to the art of war has for 
ever settled the long conflict for ascendancy between civ- 
ilization and barbarism, in favor of the former. 
Calhoun, Works, I. 88. 
Government . . . has a general superintending control 
over all the actions and over all the publicly propagated 
doctrines of men. Burke, Unitarians, May 11, 1792. 
Horrible forms of worship that of old 
Held, o'er the shuddering realms, unquestioned suviy. 
Bryant, The Ages, xxv. 
They rose and took arms to resist Ordogno, son of Al- 
fonsus III., whose domination was too severe for them. 
J. Adams, Works, IV. 310. 
autobiographer 
authorizable (a'thor-I-za-bl), a. [Early mod. 
K. aurtorizahlr : < Sll-. MIMWiMMKf, aurtori- 
zdhiliM, etc., < aiirtorizarr: see authorize and 
-n hti-.] That maybe authorized: as, "a ceu- 
-in-c iii<tliiiri,:ali/i," Hammond, Works, I. 242. 
Also spelled aittliorixniili . 
authorization (a'thor-i-zn'shon), . [=.an- 
tiifiMttioii, < Mlj.*aurtori:atio(ii-), < aui-tnri'.iin , 
pp. uurt<iri;atux: sc-c anthori-r.'] The act of 
authorizing; the act of giving authority or legal 
power; establishment by authority: as, "the 
nutlinri:ation of laws," Motley. Also spelled 
tiiitliorinatioit. 
authorize (a'thor-iz), c. t. ; pret. and pp. - 
thori:eil, ppr. <n'itlt<in.:iii</. [Early mod. E. also 
uuetori'i', < ME. iiiii'loi'ixni, iiutiinxeii, < OF. ane- 
tin-ixi r, later autliorixer, mod. F. autorixer = 
Pr. autliorinnr = Sp. nutoriziir = Pg. autorisar 
= It. autori:;arr, < ML. auctorisarc, nuctori:ari; 
niithorinare, etc., < L. auctor, author: seeauthor 
and -ire.] 1. To give authority, warrant, or 
legal power to; empower (a person): as. to 
i-.-i c'ominissioners to settle the boundary 
of a state. 2. To give authority for; approve 
of and permit; formally sanction (an act or a 
proceeding). 
The report of the eommission was taken into Immediate 
roiihiilenitimi by the estates. They resolved, without .me 
dissentient voice, that the order signed by William did not 
authorize the slaughter of Glencoe. 
MiK'tiutati, Hist. Eng., xxl. 
The money, then, is borrowed on the credit of the United 
.States nn act which Congress alone is competent to au- 
tharize. 1). Webster, Speech, Senate, May 7, 1834. 
3f. To make authoritative or valid; legalize; 
validate. 
She shall authorize 
Our undertakings to the ignorant people, 
As if what we do were by her command. 
Fletcher (anil another), False One, v. 2. 
4. To establish by authority or usage : as, an 
authorised idiom. 5. To warrant; vouch for. 
[Rare.] 
A woman's story, at a winter's fire, 
Authoris'd by her grandam. 
Shak., Macbeth, ill. 4. 
6f. To support (one's self ) upon the authority 
(of). 
The Historian . . . authorizing himself, for the most 
part, upon other histories. 
Sir P. Sidney, Vet. of Poesie (Arber), p. 81. 
Also spelled authorise. 
authorizer (a'thor-I-zer), w. One who author- 
izes. Also spelled authorise!'. 
authorlet (a'thor-let), n. [< author + dim. -let.] 
A petty author" Blackwood?s Mag. [Bare.] 
authorling (a'thor-ling), . [< author + dim. 
-ling.] A petty author. [Rare.] 
Oh thou poor authorlinri .' Reach a little deeper Into the 
human heart ! Longfellow, Hyperion, Iv. 1. 
authorly (a'thor-li), a. [< author + -lyl.] Be- 
longing to an author ; authorial. [Bare.] 
He keeps his own authorly secrets. 
Counter, Letter to Unwin. 
authorship (a'thor-ship), w. [< author + -ship.] 
1 . The source or" cause of anything that may 
be said to have an author ; origination ; causa- 
tion : as, the authorship of an invention or of 
a political movement; a book whose author- 
ship is unknown. 2. The state of being an 
author ; the occupation of writing books. 
If the formalists of this sort were erected into patentees 
with a sole commission of authorship, we should undoubt- 
edly see such writing in our days as would either wholly 
wean us from all books in general, or at least from all 
such as were the product of our own nation. 
Kha.ftebury, Characters (ed. 1869), I. S47. 
auto (ou'to), w. [Sp. Pg., < L. Hi-tux, an act: 
see act, n.] 1. In Spanish literature, a play. 
The miracle-plays of the people attained a high degree 
of excellence in the autos or sacred Christmas plays of 
Gil Vicente (1470-1536). Encyc. Brit., XIX. 556. 
2. In Spanish law : (a) An order ; a decree ; a 
sentence ; a decision, (i) pi. The pleadings and 
proceedings in a lawsuit. 3. An auto de fe. 
auto-. [< Gr. avro- (before a vowel avr-, which 
before a rough breathing becomes aH)-), stem 
of oiVof, self (myself, thyself, himself, etc.).] 
An element in compound words of Greek origin, 
meaning self, of itself (natural), of one's self 
(independently), of nothing but . . . , etc. : 
very common in English and other modern lan- 
guages, especially in scientific terms. 
autobiographer (a"t6-bi-og'ra-fer), n. [< Gr. 
otirof, self, + biogran'her.] One who writes an 
account of his own life. 
"And yet, O man born of Woman,' cries the Autobioy- 
rapher, with one of his sudden whirls, "wherein is my 
case peculiar?" Carlyle, Sartor Resartus, p. 58. 
