comatous 
comatous (ko'ma-tun), it. Sumo a* rnmalnnr. 
Comatula (ko-irmt'u-lii), w. [N'L., fern, of LL. 
i-iimntH/HH, dim. of L. comatus, hairy: see co- 
muti^.] The typical genus of living rrinoids of 
the family Comaiulieta or feather-sinrs. The rosy 
t. atliiT star, Cnmtitiilti ii/-'<lit,'/-r,i/f :i, K aKo known as An- 
t,'/i.:i ,...--',i;;l, ;itl'l ill it.H llxe.l stalke.i state US /Vjl/" 
mri'i'ini*. Luiniii't'k, 1MI>. 
comatulid (ko-mat'u-lid), w. A member of the 
family ' 'onm I n/t(lrr. 
Comatulidae (kom-a-tu'li-de), n.pl. [NL.,< 
Ciiiiinlitlii + -iiln:\ "A family of extant free- 
Hwiinminf; crinoids, of the clasn ('riiiniil/ii, typi- 
fied by the genus I'linintuln ; the feather-stars 
Or hair-Stars. They are stalked ami llxe.l only ln n 
young, and the larva in fire ami vermiform, with fonrclli- 

.4. Rosy Feather-star, Cotnatnla mtdittrranta (or Antedon 
171. .irlnlt free form. W. Young stalked form of Comatul, 
'nttdon) dintata, slightly enlarged. 
ateil zones anil a tuft of cilia at the alioral end of the body. 
In the adult state they have a mouth and an anus, and 
usually ten cirrous arms, which they have the jwjwer of 
lashing toward the ventral surface, so as to propel them- 
selves, as well as to bring food within their grasp. Repre- 
sentatives of the family are found in most seas. 
comb 1 (kom), n. [< ME. ctimb, earlier camb, a 
comb, crest (of a cock, a hill, a dike, etc.), also 
honeycomb, < AS. camb, a comb, crest (of a 
helmet, a hat, etc.), also a honeycomb, = OS. 
camb = MD. kanime, D. kant = OHO. chamb, 
MHG. learn, Tcamp, G. kamm = Icel. kambr = 
Norw. kamb = Sw. Dan. Icam, a comb, crest, 
etc. (Dan. and G. also a cam : see cam 1 ), lit. a 
'toothed' implement, = Or. yd//0or, a peg, bolt, 
style (orig. tooth T, > yo/j<j>iof, a grinder-tooth, 
the tooth of a key) ; cf. Yaufyai, yautyjlai, pi., the 
jaws, = Skt. jambha = OBulg. zabu, tooth. See 
cam 1 , a doublet of comb 1 .] 1. A thin strip of 
wood, metal, bone, ivory, tortoise-shell, etc., 
one or both edges of which are indentated so 
as to form a series of teeth, or to which teeth 
have been attached ; or several such strips set 
parallel to one another in a frame, as in a cur- 
rycomb. Combs are used for arranging the hair in 
dressing it ; also, iu a great variety of ornamental forms, 
for keening women's hair in place after it is dressed ; and 
for various other purposes. Those worn iu the hair are 
often carved and elaborately decorated. 
When you have apparelled your selfe hansomely, combe 
your head softly and easily with an luorle combe; for no- 
thing recreateth the memorie more. 
Babeet Book (E. E. T. 8.), p. 249. 
And fair Ligea's golden comb, 
Wherewith she sits ou diamond rocks, 
Sleeking her soft alluring locks. 
Milton, Comus, I. 880. 
2. Anything resembling a comb in appearance 
or use, especially for mechanical use. Specin- 
eally (re) A card used in hand-carding or in a cardiug- 
maehine for separating and dressing wool. (i,) A toothed 
blade which removes the cotton from the doner of a card- 
ing-machine, (c) In hat-maJtinrj, the former on which 
a fleece of fiber is taken up and hardened into a bat. 
h\ II. Kni'tht. ((/) A toothed metal instrument used by 
painters iu graining, (e) A tool with teeth of wire used in 
making marbled papers. (/) A steel tool with teeth cor- 
responding t" the thread of a screw, used for chasing 
seiv\vs or work which is rotated in a lathe. E. H. Kniflht. 
(ff) A row of sharp brass points connected with one another 
and with the prime conductor of an electrical machine, 
and placed near the revolving plate to carry off the elec- 
tricity generated. (A) In medieval armor, the upright 
blade which took the place of a crest ou the morions of 
the sixteenth century. (0 The dilated and regularly pec- 
tinated inner edge of the middle claw of sundry birds, as 
herons and goatsuckers. ( /) A comb-like set of points or 
processes of a tooth. 
It (the pulp-cavity of a tooth) may be divided, antero- 
posteriorly, as in notched incisors, and especially in the 
comb-like ones of the Hying lemur, where a branch of the 
pulp-cavity ascends each process of the comb. 
Mii-iii'i. Elem. Anat, p. 273. 
(k) The notched scale of a wire micrometer. E.H.Kniyht. 
(0 The window-stool of a casement. Grose. 
3. The fleshy crest or caruncle growing, in one 
of several forms, on the head of the domestic 
fowl, and particularly developed in the male 
birds: so called from its serrated indentures 
1117 
in tho typical form, or single comb, which re- 
semble the teeth of a comb. Several ' < 
taiiati..n~ ji, I),,, i,, ,,,, ,,i tiir eomli lia. r.eeh.-.i .lisline- 
tive names. An 'in//. /> /.-./,/, I^OIH btviag more or IMS 
the form of a stag's antlers, ai seen in l'..]i>-li aiel Lai 
fowls, often in Ho u. Inn.-, i i. Cl lias nmrh tin' 
fnnn of a .-tia l. i r\ 1,-af, set t , n tl[,. In ail. 
It i tin pref. Table form of <-.,ml> in Boodan fowll. II,. 
ml app. als a- II lollnrdol thiv.- lo, bllllllly M.T- 
rated e.'MiM - 1 >iile liy -i'li- on 111-- l..-a<l, Id. lui.ltlle one 
of I lie thiTc Ix'ing I he- highest. It is I lie t \pi.-al ,,,ml. of 
flu Hrahm:i fowls. A nar-fituib Is a l" eoml, -.1 flat on 
tin- bcail, like a cap, broad in front, unit tapering to a 
project jie.: spike l.i iini'l, the njip.-r part U'H 
vuth small projei lions. If is best illnsllaf.'il in 111. 
llaml.un: fowls, nn ml in tin- \\yan.l'.:' 
Si-briuht liantam, ami other varii'iii-s. Tlii- ftravbtrry. 
enmh ]. -,.|,il'l' . a ball "I a -.frauli.ru, . ii'i.ilh WOk 
what wrinkled, ami set well forwafl on Hi.- li'.i.l. It is 
characteritii: of tile .Malay and til. Snmati.i fowls. 
His cinnb was redder than the fyn coral, 
And bataylld, as It were a castel wall. 
f, Nun's I'rirnt's Tale, 1. 3H. 
Cocks have great combt and spurs ; hens little or noin -. 
/;. . i 
4. Anything resembling in nature, shape, or 
position the caruncle on a fowl's head. S|N-.-iti 
cully (a) The similar but erectile and variable flcuh.v ami 
vascular colored process growing over each eye of ttomr 
gallinaceous birds, as ptarmigan and other grouse. (6) 
The top or creit of a wave. 
6. The pecten or marsupinm in the interior of 
a bird's eye. [Rare.] 6. In miiiina, the divi- 
sion of the mass of a lode into parallel plates, 
or layers of crystalline material parallel to its 
walls. Some lodes have several such combs, syn -t- 
rlcally arranged, so that each comb on one side of the 
- . niTof the mass has its counterpart on the other. Often 
the face of the comb turned toward the center of the 
lode Is covered with well-developed crystals, and where 
tbe central combs meet a cavity studded with crystals is 
formed. 
7. The projection on the top of the hammer of 
a gun-lock. E. H. Knight. 8. The top comer 
of a gun-stock, on which the cheek rests in fir- 
ing. 9. A honeycomb. 
They sport abroad, and rove from home, 
And leave the cooling hive, and quit the unfinished comb. 
Addition, tr. of Virgil's Qeorglcs, Iv. 
comb 1 (kom), v. [< coro&l, n. The old verb is 
kemb, q. v.] I. trans. 1. To dress with a comb: 
as, to comb one's hair. 
With a comb of pearl I would comb my hair, 
And still as I comb'd I would sing and say. 
"Who is it loves me? who loves not me? 
Tennymn, The Mermaid. 
2. To card, as wool; hackle, as flax. 3. To 
grain with a painter's comb. Combed-out work 
a kind of embroidery in which loops of wool are cut, ami 
the threads then combed out until they are finely sub- 
divided ; they are then secured to the foundation by gum. 
Combed ware, pottery or china decorated with color 
which has been drawn Into zigzag lines or waves by a 
process similar to that used in the marbling of paper. 
To comb one's hair the wrong way. See hairi. 
H. in trans. To roll over or break with a white 
foam, as the top of a wave. 
My foe came quite to the verge of the fall where the 
river began to comb over. 
R. D. Blackmore, Lorna Doone, xxxif. 
Lake des Allemands was combing with the tempest ami 
hissing with the rain. 
O. W. Cable, The Century, XXXV. !H. 
comb 2 (kom). n. [Also written coomb ; < ME. 
"comb (f), < AS. cumb, a vessel of a cer- 
tain capacity (used for liquids), = MLG. kump, 
LG. kumji, also kunipen (> G. kump, kumpen) = 
OHG. chnmph, MHG. kumph, komph, kumpf, G. 
kumnf, m., a hollow vessel, a basin, t)owl, trough. 
< ML. *cumbus, 'cumpus, cimpus, a basin, bowl 
(cf . cumba, a bowl (a trough t), a boat, a tomb of 
stone: see catacomb), < Gr. Ki'/tfiof, a hollow ves- 
sel, cup, basin, nbpfri, a drinking-vessel, cup, 
bowl, boat (see cymbal), = Skt. kumbha, a pot. 
Cf. cup.] 1. A dry measure of 4 bushels, or half 
a quarter. [Eng.J 2. A brewing-vat. [Prov. 
Eng.l 
comb :i , coomb 2 (kom, kom), n. [Also written 
combe, coom; < ME. "comb, < AS. cumb, a narrow 
valley, prob. < W. cwm (pron. kom), a hollow 
between two hills, a dale, a dingle, = Corn. 
cum, a valley, a dingle, a valley opening down- 
ward, = Ir. cumar, a valley, bed of an estuary. 
Cf. OF. combe = Pr. comfta = It. dial, comba 
(ML. cumba), a valley, appar. also of Celtic ori- 
gin. Prob. orig. a 'hollow,' akin to L. earns, 
hollow, Gr. Kvap, a cavity, icoi/of, hollow, etc. : 
see care 1 , cage, ceil, ceelum."] A more or less 
rounded, bowl-shaped hollow or valley inclosed 
ou all sides but one by steep and in some cases 
perpendicular cliffs. The use of the word Is closely 
limited to certain portions of southwestern England and 
Wales, and to a part of Ireland, especially to county Kerry, 
where the combs (there also called cornet) are numerous 
and of great size, many of them containing lakes. 
From those heights 
We dropped, at pleasure, Into sylvan comb*. 
Wordsworth, Excursion, ili. 
combative 
Anon they p>n a u. in. in 
'* ' -iat.s of roek with figures, knitfhu on honw, 
>. lll|.: 
combacyt, . 
hat. 
[Irreg. < combat + -cy.] Com- 
* 'oltl 
To will ..r I" 
F'ng. , Iv. 22. 
combat (kom'- or kuin'liaf). <. [First in early 
mod. K. ; < F. c</////i-. now i-nmlHitlri; = 1'r. 
fiimliillli' = Sp. i-iniilHllir = IV- niililnlli r = It. 
l-iiinhll I/I',;, lif,'ht, Icillle, < ML. fiiiiilxlttrri-, < L. 
row-, together, + ML. Ihillin. l>"Hl. t'lL'li! 
hul: 1 and laittifl.] I. iutfilii*. 'fn litfllt; KtniJJ- 
^'le or ecinteml; buttle; e B |,ei-i;illy, ill earlier 
use, engage in -ite.'le tL'lit. 
I ..... I Ijy III.- li.le tocombal with the wind. 
>7,..;, .; ll.i. \ I , II. :>. 
Onren.leavotus an- nut only to >-<>u<lt< witb <loiil.' 
always to dispute witb tin .1. \ ii 
i-nr, Rcllglo M. .Ii. ; 
After the fall of the republic, theRomanieomiatn/ only 
for the choice of masters. NOT 
n. trans. Tofightordobattlewitli : opjiOHeby 
force; contend again>t : n -i-t <-ontentiously: 
as, to combat an antagonist; to combat argu- 
ments or opinions. 
Sin b was the very armour he had on 
When he the ambitious Norway mmbatrd. 
".V/..U-.. Hamlet, L L 
HU will did never ,-.'n,'-il thine, 
And take it prisoner. 
Beau, and Fl., King and N'o King, 1. 2. 
They who would combat general authority with particu- 
lar opinion, must first establish themselves a reputation 
of understanding better than other men. 
Dryden, fret, to State of Innocence. 
He needs must combat might with might. 
Tennyson, Epilogue. 
combat (kom'- or kum'bat), n. [After F. com- 
bat, n., from the verb.] A fight, especially, in 
earlier use, between two ; in general, a strug- 
gle to resist, overthrow, or conquer: contest; 
engagement; battle. 
About this Time also the Duke of Lancaster wa to per- 
form a Combat, upon a Challenge with a Prince of Bohe- 
mia. Raker, Chronicles, p. 123. 
My courage try by combat, if thou dar'st 
Shak., 1 Hen. VL, L 4. 
The combat deepens. On, ye brave, 
Who rush to glory or the grave ! 
Campbell, Hohenllnden. 
Single combat, a fight between two; a duel. = 8yn. Con- 
Jliet. Contrtt, etc. See battlel. 
combatable (kom-bat'a-bl), a. [< combat + 
-able; = F. combattablr, etc.] Capable of being 
combated, disputed, or opposed. 
combatant (kom'- or kumba-tant), a. and n. [< 
F. combatant, now combattant, ppr. of combatre, 
cnmbattre, combat : see combat, i\] I. a. 1. Con- 
tending; disposed to combat or contend. 
Their valours are not yet so combatant. 
B. Jonmn, Magnetick Lady, ill. 4. 
2. In her., same as affronts', but applied only 
to ferocious creatures, such as 
lions. 
Two rampant lions, face to face, arc 
said to be combatant. 
Rookr of Precedence (E. E. T. 8., extra 
(ser.), i. gloss., p. 113. 
Combatant officer. See officers / the 
line, under line. 
II. n. 1. A person who com- 
bats ; one who engages in battle ; 
one who fights, whether in single combat or in 
an army or a fleet. 
Sound, trumpets ; and set forward, combatant*. 
Shale. , Eich. II., I. 3. 
A combatant is any person directly engaged in carrying 
on war, or concerned in the belligerent government, or 
present with its armies and assisting them : although 
those who are present for purposes of humanity and re- 
ligion as surgeons, nurses, and chaplains are usually 
classed among non-combatant*, unless special reasons re- 
quire an opposite treatment of them. 
Wooltcy, Introd. to Inter. Law, $ 128. 
2. A person who contends with another in ar- 
gument or controversy. 
A controversy which long survived the original combat- 
antn. Macaulay. 
3. A name of the ruff, Machetes putjnax. See 
ruff. 4. In her., a figure drawn like a sword- 
player standing upon his guard. Bailey. 
combater (kom'- or kum'ba-ter), n. One who 
combats, disputes, or contends ; a combatant. 
[Rare.] 
Combaterg or fighters. Shencood. 
combative (kom'- or knm'ba-tiv), a. [< com- 
bat + -ire.] Disposed to combat ; pugnacious; 
showing a disposition to fight, contend, or op- 
pose. 
His flue combative manner. Lamb, To Wordiworth. 
