ainsel' 
ainsel', ainsell (an-sel'), n. [< ain = E. own, 
+ *ul/ = 'K. ,//'.] Own self. [Scotch.] 
ain't, an't (ant). A vulgar contraction of the 
negative phrases am not and are not : often used 
for is not, and also, with a variant hain't, for 
/(are not and has not. 
Aiolian (a-6'li-an), a. and . Same aa JEolieini 
and MoUaift. 
Aiolic (a-ol'ik), a. Same as JEoKc. 
Aiolism (a'o-lizm), n. Same as JEolism. 
air 1 (ar), n, ' [Early mod. E. ayre, also aer (after 
L.), < ME. (Aer, aire, eire, ayer, eyer, ayre, eyre, 
aier, eyr, eir, < OF. air, F. air, the air, breath, 
wind, = Pr. air, aire = Sp. aire = Pg. ar = It. 
aere, aire, now commonly aria, all in the physi- 
cal sense; < L. aer, < Gr. dr/p (de/>), air, mist, 
< aetv, breathe, blow, prob. akin to E. wind, 
q. v. See air 2 and air s , ult. identical with air 1 , 
but separated in sense and in time of intro- 
duction.] 1. The respirable fluid which sur- 
rounds the earth and forms its atmosphere. 
It is inodorous, invisible, insipid, colorless, elastic, pos- 
sessed of gravity, easily moved, rarefied, and condensed, 
essential to respiration and combustion, and is the medium 
of sound. It is composed by volume of 21 parts of oxygen 
and 79 of nitrogen ; by weight, of 23 of oxygen and 77 of 
nitrogen. These gases are not chemically united, but are 
mixed mechanically. Air contains also ^TfW f carbon 
dioxid, some aqueous vapor, and small varying amounts of 
ammonia, nitric acid, ozone, and organic matter. The 
specific gravity of the air at 32 F. is to that of water as 1 
to 773, and 1000 cubic inches at mean temperature and 
pressure weigh 30i grains. When air is inhaled into the 
lungs oxygen is separated from the nitrogen, and, uniting 
with the carbon in the blood, is expelled as carbon dioxid ; 
it thus serves to purify the blood and furnishes the body 
with heat. By the ancient philosophers air was consid- 
ered one of the four elements of all things, and this view 
was maintained until comparatively recent times. 
The greate house, formerly the Duke of Buckingham's, 
a spacious and excellent place for the extent of ground, 
and situation in a good aire. Evelyn, Diary, Jan. 15, 1678. 
The health of the mental and bodily functions, the 
spirit, temper, disposition, the correctness of the judg- 
ment, and brilliancy of the imagination, depend directly 
upon pure air. Huxley and Youmans, Physiol., 395. 
2. In old chem., gas: still in use in this sense 
in foundries and machine-shops, especially for 
such gases as are mingled with air or formed 
from it, as the gases from a furnace. In distinc- 
tion from this use, common air is often called atmospheric 
air. 
3. A movement of the atmosphere; a light 
breeze: usually in the plural. 
The summer aim blow cool. Tennyson, May Queen, ii. 
4. Utterance abroad ; publication ; publicity. 
You gave it air before me. 
Dryden. 
Hence 5f. Intelligence; information; advice. 
It grew from the aim which the princes and states 
abroad received from their ambassadors and agents here. 
Bacon, Hist. Hen. VII. 
6. The graphic representation, as in a painting, 
of the effect of the atmospheric medium through 
which natural objects are viewed. 7. In the 
Gr. Ch., a very thin veil spread over both the 
paten and the chalice, in addition to the paten 
and chalice veils. Also called nephele. 
The third [chalice veil] is called . . . air, because, as the 
air surrounds the earth, so does this surround the holy 
gifts. . . . This name, air, has found its way into our own 
Church, through Bishop Andrewes, and the divines of his 
time, who (especially Wren) were well versed in the East- 
ern Liturgies. J. H. Neale, Eastern Church, i. 350, note. 
Dephlogis ticated air, in old chem. , oxygen : so called 
from the notion that it was ordinary air deprived of phlo- 
giston (which see). Fixed air, the name given by Dr. 
Joseph Black of Edinburgh to carbonic-acid gas on his 
disco very of it in 1754, because it was found in solid bodies. 
See carbonic. Ground-air, air inclosed in porous surf ace- 
soil, like surface-moisture or ground-water. Like ground- 
water, ground-air is regarded as an important factor in de- 
termining the sanitary condition of a locality. Ground-air 
fluctuates with the barometric pressure, and with the con- 
ditions of temperature and the rise and fall of ground-wa- 
ter. In the air. (a) In circulation ; flying about from one 
to another ; hence, generally felt or anticipated : as, there 
is a rumor of war in the air; it is in the air that he can- 
not succeed. (/>) Without foundation or actuality ; vision- 
ary or uncertain : as, a castle in the air (see castle) ; our 
prospects are in the air. (c) Milit. , in an unsupported or 
disconnected position ; incapable of receiving or giving aid ; 
improperly exposed or separated : as, the left wing of the 
army was in the air. Residual air, the air which re- 
mains in the chest and cannot be expelled, variously esti- 
mated at from 80 to 120 cubic inches. Also called supple- 
mental air. Tidal air. See tidal. To beat the air. 
See beat, v. t. To take air, to be divulged ; be made pub- 
lic : as, the story has taken air. To take the air, to go 
abroad ; walk or ride a little distance. 
I din'd at Sir William Godolphin's, and with that learned 
gentleman went to take y* aire in Hyde Park, where was 
a glorious cortege. Evelyn, Diary, July 1, 1679. 
[Air is used in many compounds of obvious meaning ; only 
those which have a peculiar or specific sense are entered 
below in alphabetical order.] 
air 1 (ar), v. [First in mod. E. ; from the noun.] 
I. trans. 1. To expose to the air; give access 
122 
to the open air ; ventilate : as, to air clothes ; to 
air a room. 
I ayre or wether, as men do thynges whan they lay them 
in the open ayre, or as any lynen thyng is after it is newe 
wasshed or it be worne. . . . Ayre these clothes for t'eure 
of mothes. Palsgrave. 
To this [public prison] is also annexed a convenient 
yard to air the criminals in, for the preservation of their 
life and health, till the time of their trial. 
Benrley, Virginia, iv. 1[ 68. 
Hence 2. To expose ostentatiously; display; 
bring into public notice : as, to air one's views. 
Airing a snowy hand and signet gem. 
Tennyson, Princess, i. 
3. To expose to heat ; warm: as, to air linen ; to 
air liquors. 4. re/I. To expose (one's self) to 
the air. 
To go and air myself in my native fields. Lamb, Elia. 
It is my pleasure to walk forth, 
And air myself & little. 
Middleton, Chaste Maid, ii. 2. 
II. intrans. To take the air. 
She went airing every day. 
Ming Mitford, Our Village, 2d ser., 317. 
air 2 (ar), n. [First in mod. E. (end of 16th cen- 
tury); < F. air, OF. aire, nature, disposition, 
manner, mien, air, = Pr. aire = It. aire , aere, 
now aria, manner, mien, countenance ; a word 
of disputed origin, prob. the same as OF. air, 
Pr. air, aire, E. air 1 , the atmosphere (cf. atmo- 
sphere in similar uses): see air 1 and air 3 .] 1. 
The peculiar look, appearance, and bearing of 
a person : as, the air of a youth ; a graceful air ; 
a lofty air. 
Then returned to my side, . . . and strolled along with 
the air of a citizen of the place pointing out the objects 
of interest to a stranger. 
C. J). Warner, Roundabout Journey, xiv. 
2. The general character or complexion of 
anything ; appearance ; semblance. 
Too great liberties taken [in translation] in varying 
either the expression or composition, in order to give a 
new air to the whole, will be apt to have a very bad effect. 
Sp. Lowth, On Isaiah. 
As it was communicated with the air of a secret, it soon 
found its way into the world. Pope, Ded. of R. of the L. 
3. pi. Affected manner; manifestation of pride 
or vanity ; assumed haughtiness : chiefly in the 
phrases to put on airs, to give one's self airs. 
Mrs. Crackenbury read the paragraph in bitterness of 
spirit, and discoursed to her followers about the aim 
which that woman was giving herself. 
Thackeray, Vanity Fair, Ixviii. 
And the queen of the hoopoes gave herself airs, and sat 
down upon a twig ; and she refused to speak to the me- 
rops her cousin, and the other birds who had been her 
friends, because they were but vulgar birds. 
It. Curzon, Monast. in the Levant, p. 136. 
4f. pi. The artificial motions or carriage of a 
horse. 5. In painting, that which expresses 
action, manner, gesture, or attitude. 
air 3 (ar), H. [First in mod. E. (end of 16th cen- 
tury); < F. air, a tune, sound, or air in music, 
< It. aere, aire, now aria (> Sp. Pg. aria, E. aria, 
q. v.); prob. identical (through aere, aire, aria, 
manner, E. air 2 ; cf. L. modus, manner, mode, 
musical mode, melody) with aere, aire, aria, E. 
air 1 .] 1. In music: (a) A rhythmical melody; 
a tune consisting of single successive notes 
divided into groups which, in duration, have 
some definite ratio to one another, recognizable 
by the ear. (6) A song or piece of poetry for 
singing: as, the air ? "Sound an Alarm." (c) 
The soprano part in a harmonized piece of 
music. Also called aria. 2. Any piece of 
poetry. [Rare.] 
The repeated air 
Of sad Electra's poet. Milton, Sonnets, iii. 
National air, in music, a popular tune peculiar to or 
characteristic of a particular nation ; specifically, that 
tune which by national selection or consent is usually 
sung or played on certain public occasions, as " God Save 
the Queen" in England, "Hail, Columbia," in the United 
States, the "Marseillaise" in France, the "Emperor's 
Hymn " in Austria, etc. 
air 3 t (ar), v. t. [< air 3 , .] To set to music. 
For not a drop that flows from Helicon 
But ayred by thee grows streight into a song. 
J. Cobb, Prefix to Lawes's Ayres and Dialogues (1653). 
airH, Same as airy 2 , aer;/ 2 . 
air 5 (ar), adv. and a. [Also written ear; = 
E. ere, < AS. air, rarely used as an adj., com- 
mon as a prep, and adv. : see ere and early.'] 
Early. [Scotch.] 
An air winter's a sair winter. Scotch proverb. 
Aira (a'ra), n. [NL., prop. *cera, < Gr. alpa, a 
kind of Sarnel, prob. Lolium tenmlentum (Lin- 
naeus).] A genus of slender perennial grasses 
of temperate regions, mostly of little value. The 
more common species are known as hair-grass. 
airablet (Sr'a-bl), a. [<air 3 ,., + -a6te.] Suit- 
able to be sung. Howell. 
air-cane 
air-bag (ar'bag), n. A large bag composed of 
layers of canvas, saturated or coated with air- 
proof and water-proof preparations and filled 
with air, designed for use in raising sunken 
vessels. When needed for use, empty air-bags are secured 
to the vessel beneath the surface of the water, and air is 
then forced into them. Also called air-cunltitnt. 
air-balloon (Sr'ba-lon*), n. See balloon. 
air-bath (ar'bath), re. 1. The protracted ex- 
Eosure of the person to the action of the air, 
>r the promotion of health, usually under the 
direct rays of the sun. See sun-bath. 2. An 
arrangement for drying substances by exposing 
them to air of any desired temperature. 
air-bed (ar'bed), . A bed made by inflating 
an air-tight bed-shaped bag with air. 
air-bladder (ar'blad*'er), n. 1'. A vesicle in an 
organic body filled with air. 
The pulmonary artery and vein pass along the surfaces 
of these air-bladders in an infinite number of ramifications. 
Arbuthnot, Aliments. 
2. In ichth., the sound or swim,-bladder ; a sym- 
metrical bladder or sac filled with air, generally 
situated directly under the vertebral column in 
front, and homologous with the lungs of air- 
breathing animals. Its principal function is the regu- 
lation of the equilibrium of the body. It is either connected 
by a tube with the intestinal canal, as in the physostomous 
fishes, or shut off from all communication with it, as in the 
physoclistous fishes. It is subject to great variation in 
form, and is liable to atrophy or complete abortion in 
species allied to such as have it well developed. 
air-blast (ar'blast), n. A stream or current of 
air under pressure ; specifically, such a stream 
used to urge fires in forges or to assist combus- 
tion in furnaces. When heated it is called a hot 
blast ; when at normal temperature, a cold blast. Air- 
blasts are also used to perform certain kinds of light work, 
as separating hairs and dust from fur in hat-making, re- 
moving dust or chaff in grinding, sawing, etc., and picking 
up paper and light materials. 
air-bone (ar'bon), n. A bone having a large 
cavity filled with air, as in birds. Owen. Spe- 
cifically, the atmosteon (which see). 
air-box (ar'boks), n. 1. A ventilating flue; 
specifically, a wooden tube or box used to con- 
vey air to a mine for ventilation. 2. A flue 
used to supply air to a furnace, either (a) to 
promote combustion, or (6) to be heated in 
order to warm apartments. 3. A chamber at 
the rear of the fire-box of a furnace to supply 
air for the more complete combustion of the 
gases disengaged from the fuel. 
air-brake (ar'brak), n. A system of continuous 
railway-brakes operated by compressed air. 
The air is compressed by a pump upon tne locomotive, 
and conveyed, through pipes beneath the cars and flexible 
hose between them, to cylinders under each car. The 
pistons of the cylinders are connected with and move the 
brake-levers, which transmit pressure to the brake-shoes. 
See vacuum-brake. 
air-braving (ar'bra/ving), a. Breasting or de- 
fying the air or wind. 
Stately and air-braving towers. 
Shale., 1 Hen. VI., iv. 2. 
air-breather (ar'bre'THer), . An animal 
which breathes air; specifically, a marine ani- 
mal breathing out of water by means of lungs, 
instead of under water by means of gills. 
air-brick (ar'brik), n. 1. A brick perforated 
or with open sides, to permit the now of air 
through it for purposes of ventilation. 2. 
A metal box of the size of a brick, with grated 
sides for the passage of air. See air-grating. 
air-bridge (ar'brij), n. A furnace-bridge so 
constructed as to admit air to the gases pass- 
ing over it, to facilitate their combustion. See 
bridge. 
air-brush (ar'brush), n. A peculiar kind of 
atomizer invented by Walkup, used by lithog- 
raphers and artists for the distribution of col- 
or in minute quantities over a paper surface. 
It consists of a reservoir filled with compressed air, con- 
necting with a nozle by means of an elastic tube. 
air-bucket (ar'buk^et), n. A water-wheel 
bucket, so constructed as to permit the unim- 
peded outflow of the air displaced by the water 
as it enters the bucket. 
air-buffer (ar'buf "er), n. Same as air-spring. 
air-bug (ar'bug), n. Any heteropterous hemip- 
terous insect of the division Geocores (land- 
bugs) or of the Aurocores. 
air-built (ar'bilt), a. Erected in the air; hav- 
ing no solid foundation ; chimerical : as, an air- 
built castle ; air-built hopes. 
air-camel (ar'kam^el), n. A caisson or air- 
chamber placed beneath or alongside of vessels, 
to diminish their draft and enable them to pass 
over shallow spots or obstructions, and also 
used in raising sunken vessels. 
air-cane (ar'kan), n. A walking-stick having 
an air-gun concealed within it. 
