abduce 
abduce (ab-dus'), r. t. ; pret. and pp. 
ppr. abtlucimj. [<L. aMucrre, < ab, away, 
+ diieere, lead: see </MfH/r.] 1). To draw or 
lead away by persuasion or argument. 2. To 
lead away or carry off by improper means; 
abduct. [Rare.] 3f. To draw away or aside, 
as by the action of an abductor muscle. 
If we aliilm-,' the eye unto either corner, the object will 
not duplicate. XiV T. />Viy/rm-, Vtilg. Err., iii. '.ill. 
abducens (ab-du'senz), . ; pi. abducentes 
(-sen'tez). [L. : see abducent, a.] In anat., 
one of the sixth pair of cranial nerves: so 
called because it is the motor nerve of the 
rectus externus (external straight) muscle of 
the eye, which turns the eyeball outward. 
abducent (ab-du'sent), . and . [< L. abdu- 
ce( -)*, ppr. of abducvre, draw away: see ab- 
duce.'] 1. u. Drawing away; pulling aside, in 
anat., specifically applied (a) to those muscles which 
draw certain parts of the body away from the axial line 
of the trunk or of a limb, in contradistinction to the ad- 
ducent intmcleit or adductor*; (6) to motor nerves which 
effect this action. Abducent nerves, the sixth pair of 
cranial nerves ; the abducentes. 
U. . That which abducts ; an abducens. 
abduct (ab-dukf), v. t. [<L. abductim, pp. of 
abducere, lead away : see abduce. ] 1. To lead 
away or carry off surreptitiously or by force ; 
kidnap. 
The thing is self-evident, that his Majesty has been 
abducted or spirited away, "enleve," by some person or 
persons unknown. Carlyle, French Rev., II. iv. 4. 
2. In jihysiol., to move or draw away (a limb) 
from the axis of the body, or (a digit) from the 
axis of the limb : opposed to adduct. 
abduction (ab-duk'shon), n. [< L. abductio(n-), 
< abducere: see abduce.] 1. The act of abdu- 
cing or abducting. () In law, the act of illegally 
leading away or carrying off a person ; more especially, 
the taking or carrying away of a wife, a child, a ward, or 
a voter by fraud, persuasion, or open violence. (6) In 
phyitiol., the action of the muscles in drawing a limb or 
other part of the body away from the axis of the body or 
of the limb, as when the arm is lifted from the side, or the 
thumb is bent away from the axis of the arm or the 
middle line of the hand, (c) In mrg. , the receding from 
each other of the extremities of a fractured Iwne. 
2. [< NL. abdnctio, a word used by Giulio Pacio 
(1550-1635), in translating avayuyii in the 25th 
chapter of the second book of Aristotle's Prior 
Analytics, in place of deductio and reductio, 
previously employed.] In logic, a syllogism of 
which the major premise is evident or known, 
while the minor, though not evident, is as cred- 
ible as or more credible than the conclusion. 
The term is hardly used except in translations from the 
passage referred to. 
After adverting to another variety of ratiocinative pro- 
cedure, which he calls Apagoge or Abduction (where the 
minor is hardly more evident than the conclusion, and 
might sometimes conveniently become a conclusion first 
to be proved), Aristotle goes on to treat of objection 
generally. Grote, Aristotle, vi. 
abductor (ab-duk' tor), n. [NL., <L. abducere : 
see abduce. ] One who or that which abducts. 
Specifically, in anat. [pi. abductaret (ab-duk-to'rez)J, a 
muscle which moves certain parts from the axis of the 
body or of a limb : as, the abductor pollicis, a muscle which 
pulls the thumb outward : opposed to adductor. The 
abductor muscles of the human body are the abductor 
pollicis (abductor of the thumb) and abductor minimi 
digiti (abductor of the least digit) of the hand and foot 
respectively. The first dorsal interosseous muscle of the 
human hand is sometimes called the abductor indicis 
(abductor of the forefinger). The abductor tertii inter- 
i n n I i i secundi digiti (abductor of the third internode of the 
second digit) is a peculiar muscle of both hand and foot 
of the gibbons (Hylobatet), arising from the second meta- 
carpal or metatarsal bone, and inserted by a long tendon 
into the preaxial side of the lingual internode of the second 
digit. The abductor metacarpi quinti (abductor of the fifth 
metacarpal) is a muscle of the hand in certain lizards. 
For the abductors in human anatomy, see cut under musclf.. 
abe (a-be'), v. i. [For be; prefix unmeaning, 
or as in ado.] Used in the same sense as be. 
Also spelled abee To let abe, to let be ; let alone. 
Hence, tet-abe is used in the substantive sense of forbear- 
ance or connivance, as in the phrase Ift-abe for let-abe, 
one act of forbearance in return for another, mutual for- 
bearance. 
I am for let-abe far let-abe. Scott, Pirate, II. xvii. 
Let abe, let alone ; not to mention ; far less : as, he 
couldna sit, let abf stand. (Scotch.) 
abeam (a-bem'), pre/>. phr. as adr. or a. [< a 3 , 
prep., on, + beam. ] Naut., in or into a direc- 
tion at right angles to the keel of a ship ; 
directly opposite the middle part of a ship's 
side, and in line with its mam-beam : as, we 
had the wind abeam. 
The wind was hauling round to the westward, and we 
could not take the sea abeam. 
Kaw, Sec. Orinn. Exp., II. 257. 
The sea went down toward night, and the wind hauled 
ubniiii. R. 11. Dana, Jr., Before the Mast, p. 347. 
abear (a-bar'), r. '. [< ME. a&eren, < AS. abernii, 
< <(- + beran, bear : see a- 1 and bear 1 . ] If. To 
bear; behave. 

So diil the Faerie Knight him.sclt'c /.. 
>>-/iwr, F. ((., V. \ii. in. 
2. To suffer or tolerate. [Provincial or vulgar.] 
Hut if I mnn doy I mun doy, for I couldn nhfur to see it. 
'/'./,(/,-,,, Northern Farmer. 
abearancet (a-bar'ans), . [< abrar + -iiin-c : 
substituted for nln'/iriinj, ME. uliiriiii/.] Be- 
liavior ; demeanor. 
The other species of recognizances with sureties is for 
the good itl'<-iifitiu l i' or good behaviour. 
Illaekxtintr, Com., IV. .\viii. 
abearingt (a-bar'ing), . [ME. aberin;/, verbal 
n. of abtirt-n, abear.] Behavior ; demeanor. 
abecedaria, . Plural of abvcedarinm. 
abecedarian (a"be-se-da'ri-an), a. and n. [Cf . F. 
abecedaire; < OiLi.abecedarius(psalmiabecetliirii, 
alphabetical psalms), < a + be + ce + de, the 
first four letters of the alphabet (cf. alphabet), 
+ -arius : see -arian.] I. a. 1. Pertaining to or 
formed by the letters of the alphabet. 2. 
Pertaining to the learning of the alphabet, or 
to one engaged in learning it ; hence, relat- 
ing to the first steps in learning. 
There is an Abecedarian ignorance that precedes know- 
ledge, and a Doctoral ignorance that comes after it. 
Cotton, tr. of Montaigne, I. GOO. 
Another form is abecedary. 
Abecedarian psalms, hymns, etc., psalms, hymns, etc. 
(as the lliHh psalm), in which the verses of successive 
distinct portions are arranged in alphabetical order. 
II. n. 1. One who teaches or learns the let- 
ters of the alphabet. 2. [.cap.] A follower of 
Nicolas Storch, an Anabaptist of Germany, in 
the sixteenth century. The Abecedarians are said 
to have been so called because Storch taught that study 
or even a knowledge of the letters was unnecessary, since 
the Holy Spirit would impart directly a sufficient under- 
standing of the Scriptures. 
abecedarium (a"be-se-da'ri-um), n. ; pi. abe- 
cedaria (-a). [Neut. of LL. abecedarius : see 
abecedarian.] An a-b-c book. 
It appears therefore that all the Italic alphabets were 
developed on Italian soil out of a single primitive type, of 
which the abecedaria exhibit a comparatively late survival. 
IOM Taylor, The Alphabet, II. 131. 
Logical abecedarium, a table of all possible combina- 
tions of any finite number of logical terms. Jevons. 
abecedary (a-be-se'da-ri), a. and n. [<L. abece- 
darius: see abecedarian.] I. a. Same as abe- 
cedarian. 
II. n. 1. An a-b-c book; a primer. Hence 
2. A first principle or element ; rudiment : as, 
" such rudiments or abecedaries," Fuller, Ch. 
Hist., VIII. iii. 2. 
abechet, c. t. [ME., < OF. abecher (ML. abbe- 
care), < a, to, + bee, beak: see fteafc 1 .] To feed, 
as a parent bird feeds its young. 
Yet should I somdele ben abeched, 
And for the time well refreshed. 
Gower, Conf. Amant., v. 
abed (a-bed'), adv. [< ME. a bedde, < AS. on 
bedde ." prep, on, and dat. of bedd, bed : see 3 
andficrf. ] 1. In bed. 
Not to be abed after midnight is to be up betimes. 
Shale., T. N., ii. 3. 
2. To bed. 
Her mother dream'd before she was deliver'd 
That she was brought abed of a buzzard. 
Beau, and Fl., False One, iv. 3. 
abee (a-be'), . [A native term.] A woven 
fabric of cotton and wool, made in Aleppo. 
Simmonds. 
abegget, '. t. An old form of abyl. 
There dorste no wight hond upon him legge, 
That he ne swore he shuld anon abegge. 
Chaucer, Reeve's Tale, 1. 18. 
abeigh (a-bech'), ode. [A variant of ME. abey, 
abai, etc. : see bay 5 , n.] Aloof ; at a shy dis- 
tance. [Scotch.] TO stand abeign, to keep aloof. 
Maggie coost her head t'n high, 
Look'd asklent an' unco skeigh, 
Gart poor Duncan stand abeigh 
Ha, ha, the wooing o't. Burns, Duncan Gray. 
abele (a-beT), n. [Formerly abeele,abeal, etc., 
< D. abeel, in comp. abeel-boom, < OF. abel, ear- 
lier aitbel, < ML. albellus, applied to the white 
poplar, prop. dim. of L. albus, white.] The 
white poplar, Populus alba : so called from the 
white color of its twigs and leaves. See poplar. 
Also called abel-tree, and sometimes abbey. 
Six abelex i' the kirkyurd grow, on the north side hi a row. 
Mrs. Browning, Duchess May. 
Abelian 1 (a-bel'i-an), n. [< Abel + -ian; also 
Abelite, < LL. Ab'elita:, pi., < Abel: see -i>i.] 
A member of a religious sect which arose in 
northern Africa in the fourth century. The 
Abelians married, but lived in continence, after the man- 
ner, as they maintained, of Abel, and attempted to keep 
up the sect by adopting the children of others. They are 
known only from the report of St. Augustine, written after 
t)u > had lieeonicextinet. Alsocalled.-lOeVite alld Abeltrniitn. 
aberrancy 
Abelian 2 (ft-beri-an;, </. Of or pertaining to 
tin- Norm ^'ijn mathematician Niels H.-nrik 
Alirl ( Isii^-lK-J!)). Abelian equation, an invducihi.- 
:tl^<-l H'air nj nation, one .if \vlm,r tu.it- I- r\]ii r-Mhle U ft 
rational function of a >econd, anil Miown by Abe] to be 
solvable by the solution of a sec ..... 1 equation of a lower 
||'-"-e. Abelian function, in nmi/,.. a h } pel-elliptic 
function ; a symmetric function of inverses of Aln:liuli 
integrals. The name has been used in slightly diltcnnt 
senses by different authors, but it istn-st applied to a ratio 
of double theta functions. Abelian Integral, one of a 
class of ultraelliptic integrals first investigated by Aln-1; 
any integral of an algebraic function not reducible to 
elliptic functions. 
Abelite, Abelonian (a'bel-lt, a-bel-6'ni-au), . 
Same as Abelian 1 . 
Abelmoschus (a-bel-mos'kus), . [ML., < Ar. 
nhu'l-Hinxl;, -niixk, father (source) of musk: abu. 
father; al, the; un>.tk, misl;, musk: see abba 1 and 
musk.] A generic name formerly applied to 
some species of plants now referred to Hibis- 
cus, including A. moschatux or //. Alielmosehun, 
the abelmosk or muskmallow of India and 
Egypt, producing the musksecd used in per- 
fumes, and A. or H. esculentus, the okra. See 
Hibiscus. 
abelmosk (a'bel-mosk). . [< ML. Abelmos- 
chuK.~\ A plant of the former genus Abelmon- 
cltm. Also spelled abelmusk. 
abel-tree (a'bel-tre), n. Same as abele. 
abelwhacketst, . See ablewhacketn. 
a bene placito (a ba'ne pla'che-to). [It. : a, 
at; bene (<L. bene), well; placito' (<. t,. placi- 
tum), pleasure: see please and plea.] In 
music, at pleasure ; in the way the performer 
likes best. 
Abeona (ab-e-6'na), . [LL. Abeona, the god- 
dess of departing, < L. abire, go away, abeo, I 
go away, < ab, away, + ire, go, eo, I go.] 1. In 
HIIM. myth., the goddess who presided over 
departure, as of travelers. 2. [NL. (Chas. 
Girard, 1854).] In ichth., a genus of viviparous 
embiotocoid fishes of the family Jfolconotidte, 
represented by such surf -fishes as A. troic- 
bridgi, of the Calif omian coast. 3. In en torn., 
a genus of hemipterous insects. St&l, 1876. 
aber (ab'er), . [Gael, abar = W. aber, a con- 
fluence of waters, the mouth of a river. Cf. 
Gael. inbMr, with same senses, = W. ynfer, in- 
flux: see inver-.] A Celtic word used as a pre- 
fix to many place-names in Great Britain, and 
signifying a confluence of waters, either of 
two rivers or of a river with the sea : as, Aber- 
deen. Aberdour, Abergaeenny, Aberysttrith. 
aberdavine, n. See aberdevine. Latham. 
aberdeen (ab'er-den), n. [Etym. uncertain. 
Cf. aberdevine.] In ornith., a name of the knot 
(which see), Tringa canutus. 
aberdevine (ab*er-de-v!n'), n. [Etym. un- 
known: see below. ] The siskin, Clirysomitrix 
spinus, a well-known European bird of the 
finch family (Fringillidce), 7iearly related to the 
goldfinch, and somewhat resembling the green 
variety of the canary-bird. See siskin. Also 
spelled aberdavine, abaderine. [Local, Eng.] 
About London, the siskin is called the aberdevine by 
bird-catchers. Rennie, ed. of Montagu's Diet., 1831, p. 2. 
[The word (aberdevine) is not now in use, if it ever was. 
I believe it was first published by Albin (17:i7), awl that 
it was a bird-catchers' or bird-dealers' name about Lon- 
don ; but I suspect it may have originated in a single 
bird-dealer, who coined it to give fictitious value to a 
common bird for which he wanted to get a good price. 
Book-writers have gone on repeating Albin's statement 
without adding any new information, and I have never 
met with any one who called the siskin or any other bird 
by this name. No suggestion as to its etymology seems 
possible. Prof. A. Xeietmi, letter.] 
aberr (ab-er'), r. '. [<L. aberrare: see aber- 
rate.] To wander ; err. [Rare.] 
Divers were out in their account, aberrinff several ways 
from the true and just compute, and calling that one year, 
which perhaps might be another. 
Sir T. Browne, Vulg. Err., iv. 12. 
aberrance (ab-er'ans), n. Same as aberrancy. 
aberrancy (ab-er'an-si), . ; pi. a6emi<-/<-. 
(-siz). [<L. as if "aberrantia, < aberran(t-)s : 
see aberrant.] A wandering or deviating from 
the right way; especially, a deviation from 
truth or rectitude. Another form is aberrance. 
[Rare.] 
They do not only swarm with errours, but vices depend- 
ing thereon. Thus they commonly affect no man any 
farther than he deserts his reason, or 
_ A complies with their abrrranciet. 
Sir T. Broit-nt, Vulg. Err., L 3. 
Aberrancy of curvature, in <(*.. 
the angle between the normal to a 
curve at any point and the line 
from that point to the middle point 
Aberrancy of Curvature, of the infinitesimal chord parallel 
the angle a * r. 
to the tangent 
