committent 
committent (kg-mit'eut), H. [< L. commit- 
tc(f-)s, ppr. of' commiitere, commit: see com- 
mit.] One who commits a matter or matters 
into the care or charge of another; a commit- 
tor. 
committer (ko-mit'er), . 1. One who com- 
mits. () One who intrusts something or some person to 
the care of another. See committor. (o) One who does 
or perpetrates : as, a eommitttr of sacrilege. Martin. 
Thus would the Elements wash themselves clenne from 
it [sin] and the eunnailltn thereof. 
Purchan, Pilgrimage, p. 40. 
Specifically 2f. Afornicator; an adulterer. 
If all coininitten stood in a rank, they'd make a lane in 
which your shame might dwell. 
DtUUT and JUiddleton, Honest Whore. 
committiblet (ko-mit ' i-bl), a. [< commit + 
-ible. According to present E. use, the form 
should be committable.'] That may be com- 
mitted. 
Mistakes com mittible. Sir T. Broime,\\\\g. Err., iv. 12. 
committing (ko-mit'ing), p. a. [Ppr. of com- 
mit, r.] In taw, authorized to commit to prison. 
Committing magistrate, one whose duty it is, on 
probable evidence, to commit accused persons for trial by 
a higher court, or to require suitable bail for their ap- 
pearance. 
committor (ko-mif or), n. [< commit + -or,'] 
Same as committer, but in this spelling, specifi- 
cally, a judge who commits a person of unsound 
mind to the custody of another ; the lord chan- 
cellor when so acting. [Eng.] 
commix (ko-miks'),t'- t. or i. [< ME. eommixeii, 
eomixen, < com- + mixen, E. mix, after equiv. L. 
commiscere, pp. commixtus, commisttts, < com-, 
together, + miscere = E. mix, q. v. Cf. com- 
mingle.'] To mix or mingle ; blend. 
Yeve hem [thrushes] flgges grounde 
i ',,n,iij! with Hi iiir to make hem faat and roiinde. 
Palladiwi, Husbondrie (E. E. T. S.), p. 21. 
I have written against the spontaneous generation of 
frogs in the clouds, or on the earth out of dust and rain- 
water commixed. Ray, Works of Creation. 
Boldly commizmsrwiththecloudsofheaven. J. Baillie. 
commixationt (kom-ik-sa'shon), . [< entumix 
+ -at ion.] Mingling; commixture. 
The trim commixation 
Of confus'd fancies, full of alteration, 
Makes th' vnderstandiug dull. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, ii., Eden. 
commixiont (ko-mik'shon), M. An improper 
form of commixtion. 
commixtion (ko-miks'chon), . [< ME. coinijc- 
tioun = OF. commixtion, later commixtion, F. 
commixtion = Sp. comistion, conmistion = Pg. 
commistSo = It. commistione, < LL. commix- 
tio(n-), commistio(n-), < L. commiscere, pp. eom- 
mixtus, commistus : see commix.'] 1. Mixture; 
a blending, uniting, or combining of different 
ingredients in one mass or compound. 
Therfore it heelith perfljtly the contynuel fenere ; name- 
ly with commixtiouH of the 5 essence of gold and peerle. 
Book of Quinte Essence (ed. Furnivall), p. 21. 
Were thy commixtion fireek and Trojan so 
That thou could'st say " This hand is Grecian all, 
And this is Trojan." Shak., T. and C., iv. 5. 
The whispered Agnus Dei prefaced the commixtion of 
the third part of the Host with the consecrated wine. 
R. W. Dixon, Hist. Church of Eng., xv. 
2. In Scots law, the blending of substances be- 
longing to different proprietors, as two parcels 
of corn, giving rise to certain questions regard- 
ing rights of property. 
comm&ture (ko-miks'tur), . [= It. eommistu- 
ra, < L. commixtura, commistttra, < commiscere, 
commix: see commix, andcf. mixture.'] 1. The 
act of mixing ; the state of being mingled ; the 
blending or joining of ingredients in one mass 
or compound ; mingling ; incorporation. 
The commixture of any thing that is more oily or sweet. 
Bacon, Nat. Hist. 
2. The mass formed by mixing or blending 
different things ; a composition ; a compound. 
Some apprehended a purifying virtue in tire, refining 
the grosser commixture. Sir T. AYMMM, Urn-burial, i. 
3. Eceles., in both the Greek and the Western 
Church since early times, the rite of putting a 
particle of the consecrated bread or host into 
the chalice, an act emblematic of the reunion 
of body and soul at the resurrection. 
This commixture [of the bread and wine], if not abso- 
lutely primitive, is at least of very venerable antiquity. 
In the West we find it recognized by the most ancient 
Missals; by the Council of Orange, A. D. 441 ; and by the 
fourth of Toledo. J. M. Neale, Eastern Church, i. 520. 
commodate (kom'o-dat), w. [= F. commodat 
= Sp. comodato = Pg. It. commodato, < LL. 
commodatum, a loan, orig. neut. of commodatus, 
pp. of L. commodore, make fit, ada.pt, accom- 
modate, lend to, < commodus, fit : see commo- 
dious.'] In law, a species of loan, gratuitous on 
1132 
the part of the lender, by which the borrower is 
obliged to restore the identical thing which was 
lent, in the condition in which he received it. 
commodationt (kom-o-da'shpn), . [< LL. COIH- 
mo<latio(n-), < L. commodore, adapt : see comma- 
date. ~] Convenience ; utility ; adaptation for 
use. Nir .M. Hale. 
commode (ko-mod'), . and . [< Y.coniuioili , 
commodious, accommodating, kind, < L. com- 
modus, convenient: see commodious."] I.t a. 
Accommodating; obliging. 
So, sir, am I not very commode to you? 
Cibber, Provoked Husband, iv. 
II. . [< F. commode, a particular use of the 
adj.] 1. A large and high head-dress, mount- 
ed on a frame of wire, covered with silk, lace, 
bows of ribbon, etc., worn about the end of the 
seventeenth century and the beginning of the 
eighteenth. 
A niceness that wou'd as ill become me as ... a high 
commode a lean Face. Southern, Maid's Last Prayer, ii. 
When we say of a Woman, she has a tine, a long, or a 
good Head, we speak only in relation to her Commode. 
Spectator, No. l!li.'>. 
2. Any piece of furniture containing drawers 
and shelves for holding clothes, handy articles, 
tools, etc. 
Old commodes of rudely carved oak. 
Buhner, Eugene Aram, iv. 10. 
S. A small piece of furniture containing a 
chamber-pot below and a drawer and shelf 
above, and conveniently arranged in a bedroom 
for necessary purposes. 4. A night-stool. 
5t. A procuress ; a bawd. Foote. 
commodelyt (ko-mod'li), adv. Conveniently. 
It will fall in very commodely between my parties. 
Walpole, Letters (1759), II. 103. 
You found the whole garden filled with masks, and 
spread with tents, which remained all night very com- 
modely. Walpole, Letters (1749), II. 28H. 
commodious (ko-mo'di-us), a. [< ME. commo- 
dious, < ML. commodiosus, useful, < L. comtnn- 
dum, a useful thing, convenience, prop. neut. 
of commodus (> It. commodo = Sp. comodo = 
Pg. commodo = F. commode, > E. commode, q. 
v.), useful, fit, convenient, < com-, with, accord- 
ing to, + modus, measure : see mode.] If. Bene- 
ficial; helpful; useful; favorable. 
Thai sayen the pyne unto all thing under sowe (sown un- 
der it] 
Is commodious. Palladius, Husbondrie (E. E. T. S.), p. 213. 
Wine and manv things else commodious for mankind. 
Raleiyh, Hist. World, I. vi. 6. 
Long sojourning ... of the . . . army at Newcastle, 
for lack of commodious winds. 
Exp. in Scotland (Arher's Eng. Garner, I. 115). 
2. Suitable; fit; proper; convenient; becom- 
ing: in a general sense. 
He [the sphere] conteyneth in him the commodious de- 
scription of enery other figure, & for his ample capacitie 
doth resemble the world or vniuers. 
Puttenham, Arte of Eng. Poesie, p. 81. 
If they think we ought to prove the ceremonies comma- 
dious, they do greatly deceive themselves. 
Hooker, Eccles. Polity, iv. 4. 
3. Affording good accommodation ; convenient 
and roomy; suitable and spacious: as, a com- 
modious dwelling; a commodious harbor. 
An antiquated but commodious manor-house. 
Rarham, Ingoldshy Legends, I. Ifi. 
= Syn. Convenient, suitable, fit, proper, useful, comfort- 
able. 
commodiously (ko-mo'di-us-li), adr. 1. So as 
to be commodious: as, a house commodious!;/ 
constructed. 2f. Suitably; usefully; service- 
ably; conveniently. 
Eke se thi laude 
Be beririg, and commodiously stande. 
Palladius, Huslxiudrie (E. E. T. S.), p. 2. 
Wisdom may have framed one and the same thing to 
serve commodiously for divers ends. 
Hooker, Eccles. Polity, v. 42. 
On the South side was a piece of plank supported by a 
Post, which we understood was the Reading Desk, just by 
which was a little hole commodiously broke thro' the Wall 
to give light to the Reader. 
Maundrell, Aleppo to Jerusalem, p. 8. 
3f. Agreeably; comfortably. 
We need not fear 
To pass commodiously this life, sustain'd 
Ity him with many comforts. 
Milton, P. L., x. 1083. 
commodiousness (ko-mo'di-us-nes), . The 
state or quality of being commodious ; suitable- 
ness for its purpose ; convenience; fitness: as, 
the commodiousness of a house. 
The commodiousness of the harlxnir. 
Johnson. Jour, to Western Isles. 
commoditablet (ko-mod'i-ta-bl), a. [Irreg. for 
commodity + -able"'] Fit for purchase or sale. 
Joseph Richardson, quoted by F. Hall. 
commolition 
commodity (ko-mod'i-ti), .; pi. commodities 
(-tiz). [< F. c'ommod'ite = Pr. comoditat = Sp. 
coiiititlitltiil = Pg. commodidade = It. cotnodita, 
convenience, commodity, < L. commodita(t-)s, 
fitness, convenience, ML. commodity (merchan- 
dise), < commodus, fit, convenient: see commo- 
dious.'] If. Accommodation; convenience; 
suitableness; commodiousness. 
It being also no smalle Comodtiy that the nobility ol 
England shalhe therby in their youthes brought vp in ami- 
ty and acquintaunce. 
Booke of Precedence (E. E. T. S., extra ser.), i. 11. 
Travellers turn out of the highway, drawn either by the 
commodity of a footpath, or the delicacy or the freshness 
of the fields. B. Jontnn, Discoveries. 
For commoditie of river and water for that purpose, 
there is no where lietter. 
Quoted in Strutt's Sports and Pastimes, p. 152. 
2t. Profit; advantage; interest. 
Their ordinances were framed for the " better relief and 
comodtftie of the porer sorte." 
English Gilds (E. E. T. S.), p. cxxvi. 
They knew that howsoever men may seek their own 
miaiiiinliti/, yet if this were done with injury unto others, 
it was not to be suffered. Hooker, Eccles. Polity, i. % 10. 
I will turn diseases to commodity. 
Shak., 2 Hen. IV., i. -2. 
3. That which is useful ; anything that is use- 
ful, convenient, or serviceable; particularly, 
an article of merchandise; anything movable 
that is a subject of trade or of acquisition. 
Dyners comedytess that comyn of the shepe 
Causythe no werre, what so men langylle or muse. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Furnivall), p. 20. 
Some offerme commodities to buy. Shak., C. of E., iv. 3. 
Under the general name of Commodity I rank all those 
advantages which our senses owe to nature. 
Emerson, Nature. 
This tax ... included all freeholders of lands, tene 
mi-Hi-, rents, services, annuities, offices, fees, profits, or 
commodities within the kingdom to the yearly value ol 
20s. clear of charge, commodity being a wide term to in- 
clude any interest, advantage or profit. 
S. Dowell, Taxes in England, I. 127. 
4f. Distribution of wares ; parcel ; supply. 
Now Jove, in his next commodity of hair, send thee a 
beard! Shak., T. N., Hi. 1. 
Commodity of brown papert. a phrase much used by 
the old dramatists to signify worthless goods taken in part 
satisfaction for a bond or obligation by needy persons who 
lx>rrowed money of usurers. 
Here's young master Rash ; he's in [prison) for a com- 
modity of brown paper and old ginger ; nine score and 
seventeen pounds. Shak., M. for M., iv. S. 
= Syn. Merchandise, Goods, etc. See property. 
commodore (kom'o-dor), . [Appar. a corrup- 
tion of Sp. comendador (= Pg. commendador), a 
knight, commander, superior of a monastery, = 
It. comandatore = F. commandeur, OF. comman- 
deor, > ME. commaundour, E. commander, q. v. 
F. commodore is from E.] 1. An officer in the 
navy next in rank below a rear-admiral and 
above a captain. In the navy of the United States 
(in which the office was first created in 1862) a commo- 
dore ranks with a brigadier-general in the army, and 
may command a division or a squadron, or be chief of 
staff of a naval force commanded by an admiral or a vice- 
or rear-admiral ; or he may command ships of the first 
class, or naval stations. In the British navy the rank of 
commodore is a temporary one, and of two kinds, of which 
the first conveys authority over a captain in the same ship, 
while the second does not. The former gives the rank, 
pay, and allowances of a rear-admiral ; the latter, the pay 
and allowances of a captain. They both carry distinguish- 
ing pennants. Abbreviated Com. 
2. By courtesy or by extension (a) The senior 
captain when three or more ships of war are 
cruising in company. Before 1862 captains in the 
United States Navy commanding or having commanded 
squadrons were recognized as commodores by courtesy. 
(6) The senior captain of a line of merchant 
vessels, (c) The president of a yachting-club 
or of an organization of boat-clubs, (d) The 
convoy or leading ship in a fleet of merchant- 
men, which carries a light in her top to con- 
duct the other ships. 
COmmodulationt (ko-mod-u-la'shon), n. [< L. 
commodulatio(H-), < com- (intensive) + modu- 
latio(n-), proportion : see modulation.'] Pro- 
portion. 
If they hold that symmetric and commodulation (as 
Vitruvius calls it) which they ought, from the proportion 
of the head, the hand, ... or the least tone may the di- 
mensions of the whole body be infallibly collected. 
Hakewill, Apology, p. 190. 
commoignet, H. [OF., also commoine, < ML. as 
if *commonis, equiv. to commonachiis, < L. COM-, 
together, + LL. monachus (also "monius, > F. 
moine), a monk: see monk:'] A monk of the 
same co_nvent. Seldrti. 
commolitiont (kom-o-lish'ou), n. [< ML. *eom- 
molitio(it-), < commolere, pp. commoUtits, grind 
together, demolish, < L. com-, together, + mo- 
lere, pp. molitus, grind : see mill 1 , and cf . amolish, 
