abjuror 
abjuror (ab-jo'ror), n. Sec nhjiirrr. 
abkar I ab'kar), . [Hind. Pers. abkar, a distil- 
ler, < Hind. Pers. 6, Skt. tip, water, + kdr, Skt. 
ki'ira, making, < Skt. i/ kar, make : see abkuri. \ 
In India, one who makes or sells spirituous 
liquors; one who pays abkari. 
abkari, abkary (ab-ka'ri), . [< Hind. Pers. 
dbkari, the liquor-business, a distillery, < abkar, 
a distiller: sec abkar.] Literally, the manu- 
facture and sale of spirituous liquors ; hence, 
specifically, in British India, the government 
excise upon such liquors; the licensing of deal- 
ers in strong drink. The method of obtaining revenue 
from this source, called the aliknri *;III'IH, is hy farming 
out the privilege to contractors, who supply the rctiiil 
<lf;ik'l-H. Also spelled itbfiiiri-f, ntthkaitrii. rtr. 
Abkhasian (ab-ka'zian). n. and . I. a. Of 
or belonging to a Caucasian tribe occupying 
the Russian territory of Abkhasia on the north- 
east coast of the Black Sea. 
II. n. A member of this tribe. 
Also written Abkasian, Abchattiun, Abasian. 
abl. An abbreviation of ablative. 
ablactate (ab-lak'tat), r. 1. ; pret. and pp. 
ablactated, ppr. ablaetating. [< L. ablactnliis, 
pp. of ablactare, wean, < ab, from, + lactare, P'< 
give suck : see Jactation.] To wean from the " 
breast. [ Rare. ] 
ablactation (ab-lak-ta'shon), . [< L. ablacia- 
tio(n-), weaning, < ablactare, wean : see ablae- 
tate.~\ 1. The weauing of a child from the 
breast. 2. In hort., same as inarching. See 
inarch. 
ablaquet, ablackt (ab'lak), n. A sort of stuff 
used in the middle ages, supposed to have been 
made from the silk of a mollusk, the pinna, 
and probably similar to that still made on the 
shores of the Mediterranean from the same 
material. 
ablaqueatet (ab-lak'we-at), v. t. [<L. abla- 
queatits, pp. of ablaqueare, turn up the earth 
around a tree, prop, disentangle, loosen, <afe, 
from, + laquens, a noose: see lace.] To lay 
bare in cultivation, as the roots of trees. 
ablaqueationt (ab-lak-we-a'shon), . [< L. ab- 
laqueatio(n-), <. ablaqueare : see ablaqiieate. ] A 
laying bare of the roots of trees to expose 
them to the air and water. Evelyn. 
ablastemic (a-blas-tem'ik), a. JX Gr. a ~ priv. 
+ E. blastemic.] Not blastemic; non-germinal. 
ablastoUS (a-blas'tus), a. [< Gr. a/3^aarof, not 
budding, barren, < a- priv. + ftAamof, a bud, 
13 
languages of the Indo-European family, and 
has been retained by some of them, as Latin, 
Sanskrit, and Zend, while in some it is lost, or 
merged in another case, as in the genitive in 
Greek. It is primarily the /row-case. 3. Per- 
taining to or of the nature of the ablative case : 
as, an ablative construction. 
II. n. In i/ram., short for ablative mxt; See 
ablntirr, n.'l. Often abbreviated to abl.- Abla- 
tive absolute, in Lirtin v'"'"-. the name given to a noun 
with a participle or some other attributive or qualifying 
wnnl, either expressed or understood, in the ablatin otte, 
which i.s not dependent upon any other word in the sen- 
tence. 
ablaut (ab'lout ; G. pron. ap'lout), n. [G.,<6, 
off, noting substitution, + laut, n., sound, < Inut, 
a., loud: see loud.] In philol., a substitution of 
one vowel for another in the body of the root of 
a word, accompanying a modification of use or 
meaning: as, bind, band, bound, bond, German 
tin ml; more especially, the change of a vowel to 
indicate tense-change in strong verbs, instead 
of the addition of a syllable (-ed\ as in weak 
verbs : as, get, gat, got; sink, sank, sunk. 
ablaze (a-bl'az'), prep. phr. as adv. or a. [< a 3 , 
<'!>., on, + blaze*-, q. v.] 1. On fire ; in a 
aze; burning briskly : as, the bonfire is ablaze. 
2. Figuratively, in a state of excitement or 
eager desire. 
The young Cambridge democrats were all ablaze to as- 
sist Torrijos. Carlyle. 
This was Emerson's method, ... to write the perfect 
line, to set the imagination ablaze with a single verse. 
The Century, XXVII. 930. 
germ.] Without germ or bud. 
abla 
ablatet (ab-laf), v. t. [< L. ablatus, taken away : 
see ablative.] To take away; remove. Boorde. 
ablation (ab-la'shon), n. [< L. ablatio(n-), a 
taking away, < abla tun, taken away : see ablate 
&ndablative, a.] 1. A carrying or taking away ; 
removal ; suppression. 
Prohibition extends to all injustice, whether done by 
force or fraud ; whether it be by ablation or prevention or 
detaining of rights. Jer. Taylor, Great Exemplar, 37. 
Complete ablation of the functions of the nervous sys- 
tem in death. Jour, of Ment. Sci., XXII. 15. 
2. In med., the taking from the body by me- 
chanical means of anything hurtful, as a 
diseased limb, a tumor, a foreign body, pus, 
or excrement. 3. In chem., the removal of 
whatever is finished or no longer necessary. 
4. In geol., the wearing away or waste of a 
glacier by melting or evaporation. 
ablatitious (ab-la-tish'us), a. [<L. ablatus, 
taken away, + -iiius, -icius, E. -itious, as in ad- 
dititioiis, adscititious, etc.] Having the quality 
or character of ablation Ablatitious force, in 
astron., that force which diminishes the gravitation of a 
satellite toward its planet, and especially of the moon to- 
ward the earth. N. E. D. 
ablatival (ab-la-ti'val), a. [(ablative + -al.] 
In gram., pertaining or similar to the ablative 
case. See ablative. 
The ablatival uses of the genitive. 
Trans. Amcr. Philol. Ass., XV. 5. 
ablative (ab'la-tiv),a. and w. [<L. ablativus,t\ie 
name of a case, orig. denoting that from which 
something is taken away, < ablatus, pp. asso- 
ciated with auferre, take away, < ab, = E. off, + 
ferre= E. bear 1 , with which are associated the 
pp. latus and supine latum, OL. flatus, tlatum, 
\f*tla =Gr. T)..qvat, bear, akin to OL. tulere, L. 
tollere, lift, and E. thole?, q. v.] I. a. 1. Taking 
or tending to take away ; tending to remove ; 
pertaining to ablation. [Rare.] 
Where the heart is forestalled with mis-opinion, ablatire 
directions are found needfull to unteach error, ere we can 
learne truth. Rp. Hall, Sermons, Deceit of Appeanttir- . 
2. In gram., noting removal or separation: 
applied to a case which forms part of the origi- 
nal declension of nouns and pronouns in the 
3. Gleaming ; brilliantly lighted up : as, ablaze 
with jewelry. 
able 1 (a'bl), a. [< ME. able, abel, etc., < OF. able, 
hable = Pr. Sp. Pg. habil, It. abile, < L. habilis, 
ace. habilem, apt, expert, < tiabere, have, hold : 
see liabit.] 1. Having power or means suffi- 
cient ; qualified ; competent : as, a man able to 
perform military service ; a child is not able 
to reason on abstract subjects. 
Every man shall give as he is able. Deut. xvi. 17. 
To be conscious of free-will must mean to be conscious, 
before I have decided, that I am able to decide either 
way. J. S. Mill. 
The memory may be disciplined to such a point as to be 
able to perform very extraordinary feats. 
Macaulay, Lord Bacon. 
2. Legally entitled or authorized ; having the 
requisite legal qualification : as, an illegitimate 
son is not able to take by inheritance. 3. In 
an absolute sense : (a) Vigorous; active. 
His highness comes post from Marseilles, of as able body 
as when he numbered thirty. Shak., All's Well, iv. 5. 
(6) Having strong or unusual powers of mind, 
or intellectual qualifications : as, an able min- 
ister. 
Provide out of all the people able men. Ex. xviii. '21. 
With the assassination of Count Rossi, the ablest of the 
Roman patriots, there vanished a last hope of any other 
than a violent solution of the Papal question. 
E. Dicey, Victor Emmanuel, p. 97. 
Able for is now regarded as a Scotticism, though Shak- 
spere has 
" Be able for thine enemy rather in power than use." 
All's Well, i. 1. 
His soldiers, worn out with fatigue, were hardly able for 
such a march. Pnitcipal Robertson. 
Able seaman, a seaman who is competent to perform 
any work which may be required of him on board ship, 
such as fitting and placing rigging, making and mending 
sails, in addition to the ability to " hand, reef, and steer." 
Syn. 1 and 3. Capable, competent, qualified, fitted, 
adequate, efficient ; strong, sturdy, powerful, vigorous ; 
talented, accomplished, clever. 
ableM (a'bl), '. t. [< ME. ablen. abilen, ena- 
ble, < ME. able, abil, able.] 1. To enable. 
And life by this death abled shall controll 
Death, whom thy death slew. Donne, Resurrection. 
2. To warrant or answer for. 
None does offend, none, I say none ; I'll able 'em. 
Shalr., Lear, iv. 6. 
|" For some time the verb able was not uncommon. 
Bishop Bale uses it often ; Bishop Latimer, Shakespeare, 
Dr. Donne, Chapman, etc., have it too." F. Hall.] 
able' 2 (a'bl), n. [F. : see ablet.] Same as ablet. 
-able, -ible. [(a) ME. -able, < OF. -able, mod. 
F. -able = Sp. -able = Pg. -avel = It. -abile, < L. 
-abilis, ace. -dbilem ; (b) ME. -ible, < OF. -ible, 
ablet 
</mnv-/r, shudder; (<) ild-ibli (negative, ;- 
ilflible, conformed t preceding), < L. deltbiiix, 
<tlrlf~-ri; destroy. From adjectives in -ble are 
formed nouns in -<. (-hit -<), or, from or 
after the L., in -bilitu, which in some cases is a 
restored form of ME. and OF. -blctf, < L. -luli- 
tas, ace. -bili-i<it-tm. See -lilt; -lii/ity, -ity, -ty.] 
A common termination of English adjectives, 
especially of those based on verbs. To the base to 
which it i.s attached it generally iutils tlir not inn i,f capable 
iff, worthy nf, alul soMii-tilnr.> full of. railMMi,' : a>. >,t,t<ii,/ 
able, capable of being obtained ; '"/. i v/-/. , < apable of being 
lH>rne ; latHlablr, worthy of praise ; fre<tibl<; that may be 
believed, or worthy of belief ; fitrrililr. full of force ; hor- 
</,, i,Trililf, full of or causing horror, terror. Many of 
these adjectives, such as toleraMe, emliM,-, ?../;,, have 
been borrowed directly from the Latin or the French, and 
are in a somewbat different position from those formed by 
adding the termination to an already existing English 
word, as in the ease of obtaiiuMe. Adjectives of this 
kind, with a passive signification, are the most numerous, 
and the base may be Anglo-Saxon or Latin ; eatable, bear- 
able, readable, be.lievablr, etc., are of the former kind. Of 
those in -able with an active signification we may mention 
delectable, tntitaltle, capable. Of a neuter signification are 
durable, equable, conformable. All these are from verbal 
bases, but there are others derived from nouns, such as 
actionable, objectionable, peaceable, salable, serviceable. 
As to when -able and when -ible is to be used, Mr. Fitzed- 
ward Hall remarks: " Generally, the termination ia -Me, 
if the base is the essentially uncorrupted stem of a Latin 
infinitive or supine of any conjugation hut the first. . . . 
To the rule given above, however, there are many excep- 
tions. ... To all verbs, then, from the Anglo-Saxon, to 
all based on the uncorrupted infinitival stems of Latin 
verbs of the first conjugation, and to all substantives, 
whencesoever sprung, we annex -able only." See his work 
"On English Adjectives in -Able, with Special Reference 
to Reliable," pp. 45-47. 
able-bodied (a'bl-bod'id), a. [< ofttei + body 
+ -ed?. ] Having a sound, strong body ; having 
strength sufficient for physical work : as, a 
dozen able-bodied men ; an able-bodied sailor. 
In a ship's papers abbreviated to A. B. 
Feeding high, and living soft, 
flrew plump and able-bodied. 
Tennyson, The Goose. 
ablegatet (ab'le-gat), v. t. [<L. ablegatus, pp. 
of aolegare, send away, < ab, off, away, + legare, 
send as ambassador: see legate.] To send 
^abroad. 
ablegate (ab'le-gat), . [< L. ablegatus, pp. : 
see ablegate, v.] A papal envoy who carries 
insignia or presents of honor to newly ap- 
pointed cardinals or civil dignitaries. Apostolic 
ablegates are of higher rank than those desig- 
nated pontifical. 
allegation (ab-le-ga'shon), . [< L. ablega- 
tio(u-), < ablegarc : see abletjate, v.] The act 
of ablegating, or sending abroad or away ; the 
act of sending out. 
An arbitrarious ableoation of the spirits into this or that 
determinate part of the body. 
Dr. II. More, Antid. against Atheism, I. ii. 7. 
ablen (ab'len), n. A dialectal form of ablet. 
ablenesst (a'bl-nes), n. [< ME. abulnesse, < abul, 
abel, able, + -nesse, -ness. ] Ability ; power. 
I wist well thine ablenens my service to further. 
Testament of Lore. 
Ablephari (a-blef'a-ri), n. pi. A group of rep- 
tiles taking name from the genus Ablepharus. 
Ablepharns (a-blef'a-rus), n. [NL., < Gr. /??./- 
, without eyelids, < a- priv., without, + /&f- 
, eyelid, < ffleireiv, see. Cf. ablepsia.] A 
. 
-eble, mod. F. -ible = Sp. -ible = Pg. -irel = 
-ihilc, < L. -ibilis, ace. -ibilem; (c) rarely -eble, 
< L. -ebilis, ace. -ebilem, etc. ; being -ble. L. 
-hi/is, suffixed in Latin to a verb-stem ending, 
or made to end, in a vowel, a, i, e, etc. : see 
-fete. Examples are: (a) ami-able, < MK. aimi- 
ulile, < OF. aimable, < L. amicabilis, friendly, 
< arnica-re, make friendly; (b) horr-ible, < ME. 
horrible, orrible, < OF. orrible, < L. hoiribilis, 
Ablepharus. 
genus of harmless lizards, family Scincidce, 
with five-toed feet and only rudimentary eye- 
lids. 
ablepsia (a-blep'si-a), n. [LL.. <Gr. d/S^Hz, 
blindness, < <i- priv., not, + /3/teirTof, < fftiirtiv, 
see.] Want of sight ; blindness. [Rare.] 
ablepsy (a-blep'si), w. Same as ablepsia. 
ableptically (a-blep'ti-kal-i), adr. [< ablepsia 
(ablrpt-) + -ic + -al + -ly' 2 .] Blindly ; unob- 
servingly; inadvertently. 
ablet (ab'let), . [< F. ablctte, dim. of able, < 
ML. abula, for albula, a bleak, dim. of L. albug, 
white : see alb.] A local English (Westmore- 
land) name of the bleak. See bleak 2 , n. Also 
called ablen and able, , 
