comprehensible 
bonded or included; possible lo be comprised. 
[Kare.] 
"oil . . . is not '.,, ,.;//',-/,,',,,, nor , ir, uinseril.e.l .... 
where. .sir T. Mm,. Works, p. i.'l. 
Narrations and relations of actions, as the War of Ivlo 
poniiesiis, . . , may choose an aruumenl r',,,,,,,.1 
within the mil >< and instructions of the writer. 
/liinii, Adian.enicnt of Learning, ii 
2. Capable of being understood; conceivable 
by the mind; intelligible. 
An actual, l.odih , ,-n, /,,,/,. mil,/,- place of torment 
Miliaaii, Ijitin Christianity, xiv. >. 
Qni<-k ohscrvation and a penetriitinu' intnilion. making 
instantly ,;nii},i;-l,: .,/,/, the slat.- of mind and its origin. 
//. Si',-,1,;-,-, llata of Kthi. 
comprehensibleness (kom-pre-hcn'si-bl-nes), 
ii. [< comprehentiNt + -.] Capability of 
being understood; comprehensibilit v. 
\\ liich facility and i;iiii]iri'/it-,i\il,/,'/it-nn must needs 1m- 
pro\-e the nsetnlness of these e\p,.silions. 
Hi: II. Mm;-, Kpistles I,, the Seven Chun-lies. 
In 
1155 
I shall begin with the most comprehensive relation, 
-herein all thin;;* Ihat do or can e\i-t an- eon 
Unman I'ndei-slandini:, II. xv. 11. 
So diffusive, so comprehension, and so catholic a grace U 
chanty. B p . >, 
3. Having the power to comprehend or under- 
stand. 
His hand nnstain d, hl iincomipted heart, 
His. lead. J'',]", Moral Eatayi, 1. 83. 
They know not what It Is to feel within 
\ . ..,/./,,, I,, /.x.'iv faculty, that grasps 
(Jreat purposes with ease. i',,,,- : * r , Task, v. 241. 
= Syn. 1 and 2. litoad, extensive, large, capacious. 
comprehensively (kom-pre-hen'xiv-ii i. <nii\ in 
a comprehensive manner. '() So a to contain nnn-h 
in smiiM compass ; concisely. 
And here I shall not restrain righteousness to the par- 
ticular virtue of justice, but enlarge it according to the 
ui-nins and strain of the hook of the l'n,\er!,s. in which tin- 
words wisdom and i i-hteoii,ness are eominonlv u-rd \. i> 
.-.. /,-/.,/,, V,,, a, to sj.^nil) all r.-lii: and >litnc. 
rmotm, I. III. 
(') With ureat scope; so as to include a wide extent or 
many particular*. 
comprehension (koiii-pre-ii..n'shon)7'r" [=F. comprehensiveness (kom-pre-hen'sjv-nes), . 
miii/in'-hi itniiin = Sp. comprfimioii,"ri>Hii>rehenioH 
= Pg. i-nmiin-lli nxil'i It. fiiiHi>rrii.i<iHi; < \..i;i,n- 
pp. OOMPrOMMtU, comprehend: see com/ir, - 
In it<l.~\ 1. The act of comprehending, includ- 
ing, or embracing ; a comprising ; inclusion. 
comprehensibly (kom-pre-lien'si-bli), mi,-. 
a comprehensible manner: conceivably. 
In the old Testament there is a close mmprehenn'un of 
the Ne ; in the New, an open discovery of the old. 
Hooker. 
Was It less easy to obtain, or at least to ask for, their 
concurrence in a niniprelieiurion or toleration of the I'res- 
byterian clergy? Haltain. 
The affluence and comprehension of our language is very 
illustriously displayed in our poetical translations of an- 
cient writers ; a work which the French seem to relinquish 
In despair, and which we were long unable to perform 
with dexterity. Johnson, Dryden. 
3f. That which comprehends or contains with- 
in itself; a summary; an epitome. 
gether, 
bytcr.] 
X"'," ... " comprehensort (kom-pre-hen'sor), . [= 
2. The quality or state of being comprehensive ; compressor = Pg. tnSnkauofm It, com,> 
comprehensiveness. [Bare.] %% < ML . com >r el,ensor, < L. comprehen'dere, 
pp. comi>rehensus, comprehend: see coin/n-i- 
7/cnrf.] One who comprehends or has obtained 
possession, as of knowledge. 
When I shall have dispatched this weary pilgrimage, and 
from a traveller shall come to Iw a comprthensor, then fare- 
well faith, and welcome vision. 
Bp. {{all, Satan's Fiery Darts, I. 
Jru of 'them"*" ' " ln<larae " tel8 ' * et comprendt, r. An obsolete variant of compre- 
Chillinnimrth, Relig. of Protestant Church, i. 4. '"'"'' ' 'hnuccr. 
4. Capacity of the mind to understand; power compresbytert (kom-pres'bi-ter), 11. [= Sp. 
of the understanding to receive and contain ^'Jf^f?' i^''^'.* \C. eom ^ to ' 
ideas ; ability to know. 
How much soever any truths may seem above our un- 
derstanding and ctimpreheiurioii. 
Bp. Bemridge, Sermons, I. xxxiv. 
5. The act or fact of understanding; successful 
exercise of the knowing faculty; grasp of the 
significance or particulars of anything: as, to 
be quick of comprehension ; the distinct compre- 
hension of a term or of a subject. 
Like other Englishmen of his time, he [LandorJ had no COmpresbyterialt (kom 
adequate compreheiixion of men and things on this side of COmpresbyter 4- -?.] 
the Atlantic. ,si,-,iiiian, Viet. Poets, p. 64. with a presbyter. 
6. In rhct., a trope or figure by which the name He ... has his coequal anil mmpresbyterial power. 
Mil/tin, Reformation In Eng., I. 
compressor 
ton, etc., are pressed into the smallest possible 
compass for stowage. 
compressed (koin-prcsr>, /,. . [pp. ,,f ,.,,,_ 
. '.I I'l-e-sed into narrow con,! 
peciallv, llattened laterally nr length- 
wise ; having the two .,ppo-itc sides t'lattened or 
I'lailC. S|K-cillelly (, In 
from side to M,|e, and II,. ll : as 
the ,.,,,.,.,.,,/ l.od\ of ., ' ...|| ,,( 1,'jpj '. 
"I'l d lo- :.|.rite 
sfdcs of the tail ol 
'I flon, 
tJ*-,nni,rr**r<t, that Is, flattened ni' i. ; Com- 
pressed air, air , p, into a 
at moie ,,, 1, ,, in, ,. u, i 
t uii'd li-oni the . \panMon ol ^ i . .,,.| . u , M1 ;l 
c>lln-i i. n,.,| in 'mant ajipli, at 
a substitute for thai of sleam or ..tin r 1 ;,, m n 
ingdrills.and in special!* ' onMruotcdsflfjBes. \ii 
yiimilll also for oil,,! purposes, as in a 
lor evpellini: the naler and lor keeping up ,,,, almo.pliei i. 
e'i'liiii. n. Bttcompntmrld) Compressed-air bath. 
.-ce'n/i]. Compressed-air engine, in ,,,-rl, an 
ilriven h> th.-. -last i.- force of compressed air. Its construc- 
tion is usually like thai of a steam -,11-11,,-. th. 
ei|Miiiliiigalrbelngr n il imdi-r. 
Compressed glass. Compressed har- 
mony, s, /.,,.- hi, ,-n ,,,,,i. under /,,;,,,,,,. Corn- 
pressed score, m n In hleb more than one 
rolM part Is Miltten on a Mie_-l,- -tail : es|x-elally n 
four part harmony written upon two M.dls. \!-..,,il|,d 
short score.- Compressed type, a variety of prliitiinr- 
type in which the letters are slightly condensed lat.-ialu 
or elongated vertically. 
compressibility (kom-pres-i-biri-ti), . [= 
!'. i-miiii!-..-.*!/!!/!/,'- Sp. compresibilidad a Pg. 
"liiluili- = It. I'lmijirt-KsibilitA : gee com- 
pressible and -bility.'] The quality of being 
compressible, or of yielding to pressure ; the 
quality of being capable of compression into a 
smaller space orcompass : as, the compressibility 
of elastic fluids. The compressibility of bodies arises 
from their porosity; when a body Is compressed Into a 
smaller hulk, the size of its pores is diminished, or Its con- 
stituent particles are brought into closer contact, while Its 
quantity of matter remains the same. All bodies prob- 
ably are compressible In a greater or less degree. Those 
bodies which return to their former shape and dimensions 
when the compressing force Is removed are said to lie 
elastic. See elastic. 
The great compressibility. If I may so speak, of the air. 
Boyle, Works, III. 607. 
Comprcssibiliti/, Implying the closer approach of the 
constituent particles of the body, is utterly out of the 
question, unless empty space exists between these imrtl- 
='es. J. Fiske, Cosmic Philos., I. 3. 
i. pre6yter,"presbyte'r. Cf. co-pres- compressible (kom-pres'i-bl), a. [= F. com- 
A fellow-presbyter. pressiblc = Sp. rompresible = Pg. compressirel = 
It. compressibile, < L. as if 'compressibilis, < 
1. The quality of being comprehensive. (a/The 
quality of includinK much In a narrow compass. 
I'ompaie the l,eaiityandfOTn/>rAfiurfKrKMoflegeii,U ..n 
am-ient coins. Addison, Ancient Medals. 
((<) The quality of ,- prehendiiiK or embrai-ing a great 
nianj parti, -ulai -; extenslveness of scope or range. 
2. The power of understanding, comprehend- 
ing, or taking in ; especially, greatness of intel- 
lectual range ; capaciousness of mind. 
For Bacon we claim the decided superiority [over Des- 
cartes] in cowprthtnrivenrts of mind. J. 1). Miirrell. 
Saint Hierome was rather content* to joine the Latlne con- 
junctive with the i in-ke woorde and call it cotnpresbyter, 
than to chaunge that woorde signifying the office into se- 
nior and consenlor, signifying but the age. Sir T. Brotrne. 
compressus, pp. of cotuprimcre, compress : see 
compress, r.f Capable of being forced or com- 
into J . 8ffi ^ ller space ^ narrow er com- 
whereas by the same place it appears he was a bishop. 
tlilt " ' " ~ 
L. cmiipressus, pp., compressed, + cauda, tail, 
-t- -ate 1 . See conqrress and caudate.'] In zool., 
having the tail compressed. 
of a whole is put for a part, or that of a part 
tfeq.compressare, press, compress, 
nmi)rchension of 
ception man : opposed to extension, extent. 
Body, in Its romprchcnrion, takes in solidity, figure 
quantity, mobility. Waltn, Logic. 
The Internal Quantity of a notion, its Intension or 
Comprtlieiuioii, Is made up of those different attributes of 
which the concept is the conceived sum ; that is, the va- 
rious characters connected by the concept itself into a 
single whole in thought. Sir W. Hamilton, Logic, viil. 
= Syn. 4. See list under apprehension. 
comprehensive (kom-pre-hen'siv), a. f= F. 
00MprA*tt#(/ = Sp. comprensivo, comprehetisiro 
= Pg. comprehensive = It. comprengino, < LL. 
oomfnhtntmu, < L. comprehensus, pp. of com- 
prchenclere, comprehend : see comprehend.] 1. 
Comprehending, including, or embracing much 
in a comparatively small compass ; containing 
much within narrow limits. 
I was for using fmnprfhetwipe Nantes ; and therefore 
these three Names of U hint irk, Indian, and South Seas or 
Oceans serve me for the whole Ambit of the Torrid Zone, 
and what else I have occasion to speak of. 
Dampier, Voyages, II., Pref. 
A most comprehensive prayer. /*. Taylor. 
More specifically 2. Having the quality of 
comprehending or including a great number 
of particulars or a wide extent, as of space or 
time; of large scope ; capacious. 
To hecin. then, \\ith shakspcare. He was the man who 
of all modern, and perhaps ancient poets, had the largest 
and most cn/nprffanifsj soul. 
Dnjften, Ess. on Dram. Poesy. 
-. , -. i T ' act of compressing, or the state of 1 
oppress), < com-, together, + premere, pp. pres- pressed . a P con aitfon of being pressecTinto'in"- 
creased density or closeness : used in both liter- 
al and figurative senses. 
They who can form parallels, discover consequences, and 
multiply conclusions, are best pleased with Involution of 
argument and compression of thought. Idler, No. 70. 
Compression |ln a steam-engine) is confinement of steam 
by closing the exhaust opening before the return stroke 
is ended, thus causing a rise in pressure and assisting to 
stop the motion of the reciprocating parts. 
Set. Amer., N. S., LIV. 66. 
Compression casting. See casting. Compression of 
the earth, the excess of the equatorial over the polar di. 
ameter of the earth divided by half their sum. It is equal 
to 1-293. =Sjm. Compression, Coiuteiuatim. Cotiiprestion 
is primarily the reductive action of any force on a body, 
whether temporary or permanent ; while eoiulensation Is 
primarily the reduction in bulk, which is the effect of 
cnrnpreuiinn, though It may also be brought aliout by 
-, , r . ... othermeans. 
Syn. 1. To crowd, squeeze. COmpresslon-COck (kqm-presh'on-kok), . A 
compress (kom pres), n. [< F. compresse = Sp. cock with a rubber tube which collapses when 
compresa = Pg. It. compressa, < NL. compressa, a pressed by the end of a screw-plug wound by 
compress,< L. compressa, fern, of compressiu, pp. the key, thus preventing the flow of the liquid 
of comprimere, compress: see compress, r.] 1. E. H. Knight. 
In *wttjr., a soft mass formed of tow, lint, or compressive (kom-pres'iv), a. [= F. compres- 
soft linen cloth, so contrived as by the aid of a sif = Sp. compfesiro = Pg. It. compressiro; aa 
bandage to make due pressure on any part. comiiress + -ice.] Having power to compress; 
2. In hydropathic practice, a wet cloth applied tending to compress. 
n --, f JJff'f 
sus, press: see press 1 , andcf. oppressed, depress, 
express, impress, repress, suppress.'] 1. To press 
or pack together; force or drive into a smaller 
compass or closer relation ; condense. 
Can Infect the air, as well as move it or compress it 
Raleigh, Hist. World, i. 2. 
Raised her head with lips comprest. 
Tennyson, The Letters. 
The air In a valley is more compressed than that on the 
top of a mountain. o. Adanu. 
It would be Impossible to compress his style ; for the 
short, sharp sentences are the perfection of brevity. 
Whipple, Ess. and Rev., I. SI. 
2f. To embrace sexually. 
Some write that It (Rhodes] took this name of Rhoda a 
uwdhy Apollo. 
ty, Travailes, p. 71. 
Nymph of the Sea, and there compressed by Apollo. 
San 
ding to compress. 
to the surface of a diseased part, and covered compressor (kom-pres'or), n. [< L. compressor, 
bandage of dry cloth or oiled < comprimere, "pp. compressus, compress: see 
with a layer or 
cloth. 3. An apparatus in which bales of cot- 
compress, r.] One who or that which compresses. 
