alone 
3f. Without a parallel; above or beyond all 
others; unique. 
To her, whose worth makes other worthies nothing ; 
She is alune. tiliak., T. G. of V., ii. 4. 
J am alone the villain of the earth. 
Shale., A. andC., iv. 6. 
4f. Devoid; destitute. 
For bothe a wydowe was she and allone 
Of ony frend to whom she dorst hire mone. 
Chaucer, Troilus, i. 98. 
To let alone. See let.= Syn. Alone, Only. The attribu- 
tive use of alune is now very rare. In the Bible and earlier 
English alone is often used for the adverb only, but it is 
now becoming restricted to ite own sense of solitary, un- 
accompanied by other persons or things. 
Who can forgive sins but God alone f Luke v. 21. 
Not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia. 
Acts xix. 26. 
In each of these examples only would now be considered 
better, though not alone for not only is in common use. 
Alone means unaccompanied: as, he stood alone. Only ap- 
plies to that of which there is no other : as, an only'son ; 
adverbially, only this. 
And I only am escaped alone to tell thee. Job i. 15. 
alonelyt (a-16n'li), adv. and a. [< ME. aloonly, 
alonlij, usually separated, al only, all only, al 
onli, al oonly, etc. : al, all, adv. ; only, adv. Cf. 
alone, allenarly. In mod. use abbrev. lonely, esp. 
as attrib. adj.] I. adv. Only; merely; singly. 
This said spirit was not given alonely unto him, but 
unto all his heirs and posterity. Lalimer. 
Farewell with him [the medical attendant] all that made 
sickness pompous the spell that hushed the household, 
. . . the sole and single eye of distemper alonely flxeU 
upon itself. Lamb, Ella, p. 311. 
II. a. Exclusive; sole; only. 
The alonely rule of the land rested in the queen. 
Fubyan, Chron., an. 1328. 
aloneness (a-lon'nes), . The state of being 
alone or without company. 
Watching over his aloneness. 
J. Legge, Life of Confucius, p. 44. 
along 1 (a-long'), prep, and adv. [<ME. along, 
along, earlier anlong, also (by confusion with 
the early forms of endlong, q. v.) andelong, en- 
delong, endlong, etc., < AS. andlang, along (= 
OFries. ondllng, ondlinga, ondlenge = Q. entlang, 
along), < and-, over against, away toward, + 
long, long: see and-, n- 6 , and long*. Orig. (in 
AS.) an adj., 'stretching long or far away,' 
applied, as found, only to periods of time, ' the 
livelong' day or night, but prob. also to space; 
then used adverbially with dependent gen., 
afterward taken as direct obj. of along as a 
prep., the prep, implied in the orig. gen. being 
subsequently expressed by on, upon, by, with, 
thus giving along the construction of an adv. 
Quite different from along" 2 ; owing to, q. v.] I. 
prep. Through or by the length of; from one 
end to or toward the other of; lengthwise or in 
a longitudinal direction through, over, or by the 
side of: implying motion or direction: as, to 
walk along a river or highway. 
And the messages that go along my nerves do not con- 
sist in any continuous action. 
W. K. Cli/ord, Lectures, I. 258. 
II. adv. 1. By the length; lengthwise; paral- 
lel to or in a line with the length. 
Some laid along, 
And bound with burning wires, on spokes of" wheels are 
hung. Dryden. 
2. In a line, or with a progressive motion; 
onward: as, let us walk along. 
A firebrand carried along leaveth a train. 
Bacon, Nat. Hist. 
3. In company; together. 
He to England shall [go] along with you. 
Shak., Hamlet, iii. 3. 
The queen took her leave of Say's Court, having brought 
confusion along with her, and leaving doubt and appre- 
. hension behind. Scott, Kenilworth, I. xv. 
[In this sense it is often used absolutely in common speech 
in the United States: as, I was not along.] All along 
See all. 
along 2 (a-16ng'), prep. [Also abbrev. long (see 
long*) ; < ME. along, Hong, < AS. gelang (= OS. ge- 
ton<7 = OHG. gilang), adj., belonging, depending 
(with prep, on, on, or (et, at), lit. in line with, 
in connection with, < ge-, generalizing prefix, 
+ long, long: see ge-, <i-6, and long*. Cf. be- 
long.'} Owing to; on account of: with of, for- 
merly with on. 
I can nat telle wheron it was along [vac. long], 
But wel I wot greet stryf is vs among. 
Chaucer, Yeoman's Tale, 1. 377. 
'Tis all along of you that I am thus haunted. 
B. Brooke, Fool of Quality, II. 88. 
All along of the accursed gold. Scoff. 
Lady Magdalen. Unhappiest 
Of Queens and wives and women. 
Alice. And all along 
Of Philip. Tennyson, Queen Mary, v. 2. 
[This preposition is now always followed by of, and its use 
is mainly confined to colloquial or dialectal speech.] 
156 
alongshore (a-16ng'shor), prep. phr. as aclr. 
[< aloitt/i + ,-i'liore 1 .] By the shore or coast; 
lengthwise of the shore and near it. 
I see ... California quartz-mountains dumped down 
in New York to be replied architecturally aUmf&ontrom 
Canada to Cuba, and thence westward to California again. 
A'//*, raon, < ivilization. 
alongshoreman (a-l&ng'shor-man), n. ; pi. 
(ilniiiislniri'iiii'ii (-men). [< alongshore + man.] 
A laborer employed about docks or wharves 
and in the loading and unloading of vessels. 
Commonly shortened to 'longshoreman. 
alongside (a-16ng'sid), prep. phr. as adv. and 
prep. [< along 1 + side 1 .] l. adv. Along or by 
the side; at or to the side of anything, as a 
ship : as, to be alongside of the wall. 
Several large boats came alongside. 
B. Taylor, Lands of the Saracen, p. 18. 
II. prep. Beside; by the side of: as, the ves- 
sel lay alongside the wharf. 
We first tested this case by laying it alongside the his- 
toric facts in the case. 
S. Lanier, The English Novel, p. 46. 
alongstt (a-longsf), prep. [ME. alongest, in 
longes; < along 1 + -est, -si, after amongst from 
among,againstfTomagain,ete.] Along; through 
or by the length of. 
The Turks did keep straight watch and ward in all their 
parts alongst the sea-coast Knolles, Hist. Turks. 
aloof (a-lof), prep. phr. as adv. and prep. 
[Early mod. E. aloof e, aloufe, a loofe, a luf; < aS, 
on, + loof, < D. loef, loof, luff; cf. D. te loef, to 
loof, i. e., to windward; loef houden, lit. hold 
loof, keep to the windward: cf. the E. phrase 
to hold aloof. See too/2, luff*.] i. n( j,.. At a 
distance, but within view; intentionally re- 
maining apart, literally or figuratively; with- 
drawn. 
It is necessary the Queen join, for if she stand aloof 
there will be still suspicions. Svckling. 
Aloof he sits 
And sullen, and has pitched his tents apart. 
M. Arnold, Sohrab and Rustum. 
Thy smile and frown are not aloof 
From one another ; 
Each to each is dearest brother. 
Tennyson, Madeline. 
II. prep. At or to a distance from; away or 
apart from. [Bare.] 
The great luminary, 
Aloof the vulgar constellations thick, 
That from his lordly eye keep distance due, 
Dispenses light from far. Milton, P. L., iii. 577. 
aloofness (a-16'f'nes), n. The state of being 
aloof, or of keeping at a distance ; indifference. 
Unfaithfulness and aloof ness of such as have been great- 
est friends. D. Rogers, Naaman, p. 93. 
By the wary independence and aloofness of his [the In- 
dian's] dim forest life he preserves his intercourse with 
his native gods. 
Thoreau, Concord and Merrimac Elvers, p. 59. 
alopecia (al-o-pe'si-a), n. [NL., < F. alopeeie, < 
L. alopecia, < Gr. ti*inrtida, a disease like the 
mange of foxes, in which the hair falls off, < 
dAujn/f (d/UrK-),afox, possibly akin to L. vulpes, 
a fox : see Vulpes. ] Baldness ; loss of hair. Also 
written alopecy Alopecia areata (NL. areatu*, hav- 
ing areas or spots), a disease of the hairy regions of the skin, 
characterized by the appearance of one or more bald spots, 
extending themselves with rounding outlines, and some- 
times by coalescence producing complete baldness. The 
bald spot has a center which is naked and smooth, sur- 
rounded by a peripheral zone, scaly and presenting nu- 
merous broken short hairs. It is by some considered due 
to a vegetable parasite, and by others to nervous disturb- 
ance. Also called area Celsti, or simply area. Alopecia 
pltyrodes (NL. pityrodes, bran-like), a disease of the hairy 
parts of the skin, characterized by a progressive reduction 
in the length, size, and number of the hairs, attended with 
an abundant furfuraceous accumulation on the surface of 
the skin. Alopecia unguium (L. UKTW, a nail), falling 
off of the nails. 
alopecian (al-o-pe'si-an), . A shark of the 
family Alopeciida;. Sir J. Eichardson. 
Alopecias (al-o-pe'si-as), n. [NL., < Gr. O>M- 
-Ejaaf, the thresher-shark, < okim!;, a fox, also a 
kind of shark.] Same as Alopias. 
alopeciid (al-o-pe'si-id), n. A fox-shark; a 
shark of the family Alopeciida!. 
Alopeciidae (al-o-pe-si'i-de), n.pl. [NL., < Alo- 
pecias + -ida!.] Same as Alopiida!. 
alopecist (al'o-pe-sist), n. [< alopecia + -ist.] 
One who undertakes to cure or prevent bald- 
ness. JV. E. D. 
alopecoid (al-o-pe'koid), n. and n. [< Gr. *d/U>- 
xeKoeiffqi;. confr. <&tmeKi>6r/(;, fox-like, < d/Wm^f, 
fox, + <5of, form.] I. a. Fox-like ; vulpine : 
applied to a group or series of carnivorous mam- 
mals of which the common fox is the type, as 
distinguished from the thoo'id series, which in- 
cludes the dogs and wolves. 
alp 
II. n . One of the alopecoid or vulpine series 
of canine quadrupeds: as, " alopecoids, or vul- 
pine forms," W. H. Flower, Encyc. Brit., XV. 
438. 
Alopecurus (aFo-pe-ku'rus), n. [NL., < Gr. 
(MwTTtKOiyjOf, 
ten** is a valuable odder-Brass ; some of the other spedes 
are not only worthless, but troublesome ;is weeds, s, ,- 
/"^'"'Vv""- 
alopecy (al'o-pe-si), n. Same as alopecia. 
Alopias (a-16'pi-as), . [NL., shortened from 
xrias, q- v.J A genus of selachians, con- 
Thresher-shark (Alopias vulffs). 
taming the shark known as the sea-ape, sea-fox, 
fox-shark, or thresher, Alopias vulpes, and giv- 
ing name to the family Alopiida;. Also called 
Alopecias. 
The thresher-shark, Alopias vulpe*, is readily recognized 
by its extraordinarily long tail, which forms over half the 
length of the whole animal. It is distributed in both At- 
lantic and Pacific oceans. Stand. Nat. Hist., III. 80. 
Alopiidae (al-o-pi'i-de), n. pi. [NL., shortened 
from Alopeciida!; also written Alopiada; ; < AU>- 
pias + -idee, -ada>.] A family of anarthrous 
selachians, represented by the genus Alopias. 
Alosa (a-16'sii), n. [L., also alausa, > F. alose, 
> E. allice, q. v.] A genus of fishes, of the fam- 
ily Clupeidce, including the shad (which see). 
Also written Alausa. 
alose 1 (a-16s'),. A member of the genus Alosa. 
alose 2 t, ''. '. f < OF. aloser, < a- + los, praise : see 
a- 11 and 7oe 2 .] To praise. Chaucer. 
alouate, alouatte (al'8-at), . [Prob. a F. 
form of a native name.] A name given by 
French naturalists, as Buffon, to the red howl- 
ing monkey of Guiana, afterward known as My- 
cetes seniculus (Dliger) ; hence used as a general 
name, like hurleur, for the South American 
howlers. See cut under howler. 
alouatta (al-o-at'a), . Same as alouate. 
alouchi, aluchi (a-16'chi), n. [Native name.] 
A resin obtained from Idea heterophylla, a tree 
of Madagascar. It is thought to have some me- 
dicinal properties. See acouchi-resin. 
aloud (&-]o\id'),prep. phr. as adv. [ME. aloud, 
a loude; < 3 + i otl( j_ Cf. alow^, ahiqh.] 1. 
With a loud voice or great noise ; loudly. 
Cry aloud, spare not. Is. Ivlii. 1. 
2. Audibly; with the natural tone of the voice 
as distinguished from whispering: as, he has a 
severe cold and can hardly speak aloud. 
a 1'outrance (a 16-trons'). See d outrance. 
alow 1 (a-16'), prep. phr. as adv. [ME. alow, 
alotce, atouglt, alogh, alog; < a 3 + low. Cf. be- 
low and ahigh.] In or to a low place, or a lower 
part ; below ; down : opposed to aloft. 
Sometimes aloft he layd, sometimes alow, . . . 
So doubtfully, that hardly one could know 
Whether more wary were to give or ward the blow. 
Spenser, F. Q., VI. viii. 13. 
After doubling Point Pinos, we bore tip, set studding- 
sails alow and aloft, and were walking off at the rate of 
eight or nine knots. 
R. H. Dana, Jr., Before the Mast, p. 97. 
alow 2 (a-lou'), adv. [< <z3 + low^, fire : see 7o>3.] 
Afire; in a flame. [Scotch.] To gang alow, to 
take fire, or be set on fire ; blaze ; be burned. 
That discreet man Cardinal Beaton is e'en to gang aloiee 
this blessed day if we dinna stop it. Tennant. 
alp 1 (alp), n. [< ME. alpe. In Norfolk (Eng- 
land) the bullfinch is called blood-olph, and the 
green grosbeak green-olf, where olph, olf, may 
be the same as alp; cf. ouphe and the other 
forms of elf, q. v. Possibly a humorous use, 
with a similar allusion to that in bullfinch, of 
ME. alp, elp, < AS. elp, yip, an elephant, < L. 
elephas: see elephant.] An old local name for 
the bullfinch, Pyrrhula vulgaris. 
Alpes, fynches, and wodewales. 
Kom. of the Rose, 1. 658. 
alp 2 (alp), . [Sing, from pi. alps, < L. alpes, 
high mountains, specifically those of Switzer- 
land ; said to be of Celtic origin : cf . Gael, alp, 
Ir. ailp, a high mountain ; so OHG. Alpiin, Alpi, 
MHG. Gr. Alpen, the Alps, MHG. albe, G. (Swiss) 
alpe, a mountain pasture.] 1. A high moun- 
tain ; specifically, any one of the higher Swiss 
mountains, and, as a proper name in the plural, 
the great mountain-ranges in Switzerland and 
