demulce 
demulcet (de-muls'), r. t. [= It. demulcere, < L. 
demulcere, stroke down, soften, < dc, down, + 
iintlcere, stroke, allay.] To soothe, mollify, or 
pacify. 
Wherewith Saturn was demulced and appeased. 
Sir T. Elyot, The Goveruour, fol. 64. 
demulcent (de-mul'sent), a. and n. [= Sp. 
demulcente, < L. demulcen(t-)s, ppr. of demulcere: 
see demulce.] I. a. Softening; mollifying; 
soothing: as, a demulcent medicine. 
There are other substances, which are opposite to both 
sorts of acrimony, which are called demulcent or mild. 
Arbuthnot, Aliments, v. 
II. n. Any medicine which assuages the ef- 
fects of irritation; that which softens, soothes, 
or mollifies, as gums, oils, flaxseed, and other 
mucilaginous substances. 
It [gum-acacia] is much used in medicine as a simple 
(tonwMnt. for lubricating abraded surfaces. 
A. G. F. Eliot James, Indian Industries, p. 171. 
demulsiont (de-mul'shpn), n. [An erroneous 
form (by confusion with emulsion, q. v.) for *de- 
mulction, < L. as if *demulctio(n-), < demulctus, 
pp. of demulcere, stroke: see demulce.] 1. The 
act of soothing or imparting comfort or con- 
tent. 2. That which soothes or contents ; flat- 
tery. 
Vice garlanded with all the soft demulsions of a pres- 
ent contentment. Feltham, Resolves, ii. 57. 
demur (de-mer'), v. ; pret. and pp. demurred, 
ppr. demurring. [Early mod. E. also demurre; 
< ME. "demoren, demeoren, demeren, < OF. de- 
morer, demourer, demurer, demeurer, F. demeurer 
= Pr. Sp. Pg. demorar = It. dimorare, < L. de- 
morari, delay, retard, < de + morari, delay, < 
mora, hesitation, delay.] I. intrans. If. To 
delay; linger; tarry. 
Yet durst they not demur nor abide upon the camp. 
A'icolls, tr. of Thucydides, fol. 73. 
2f. To hesitate; suspend proceedings; delay 
conclusion or action. 
3. To have or suggest scruples or difficulties ; 
object irresolutely; take exception: as, they 
demurred to our proposals. 
My process was always very simple in their younger 
days, 'twas "Jack, do this;" if he demurred, I knocked 
him down ; and if he grumbled at that, I always sent him 
out of the room. Sheridan, The Rivals, i. 2. 
If he accepts it, why should you demur? 
Bmuming, Ring and Book, I. 159. 
4. In law, to interpose a demurrer. 
Il.t trans. 1. To put off; delay; keep in sus- 
1530 
The demure parlour-maid, as she handed the dishes and 
changed the plates, saw that all was not right, and was 
more demure than ever. Trollope. The Warden, x. 
demuret (<le-mur'), r. /. [< demure, a.] To look 
with reserve or bashfulness. 
Your wife Octavia, with her modest eyes, . . . 
Demuring upon me. Shak., A. and C., iv. 13. 
demurely (de-mur'li), adv. With a grave coun- 
tenance ; with a show of gravity. 
Nay, to see how demurely he will bear himself before 
our husbands, and how jocund when their backs are 
turned. Dekker and Webster, Westward Hoe, i. 2. 
Esop's damsel sat demurely at the board's end. Bacon. 
demureness (de-mur'nes), . The state or as- 
pect of being demure ; gravity of countenance 
or demeanor, real or affected ; a show of mod- 
esty. 
demurity (de-mu'ri-ti), x. [< demure + -ity.] 
If. Demureness; decorum. 
They pretend to such demurity as to form a society for 
the Regulation of Manners. Tom Brown, Works, II. 182. 
They placed their justification upon their patience and 
suffering for their opinions, and on their righteous life 
and retired demurity, and affected singularity both in 
word and gesture. 
N. Morton, New England's Memorial, p. 281. 
2. An impersonation of demureness ; one who 
behaves demurely. [Humorous.] 
She will act after the fashion of Richardson's demuri- 
ties. Lamb, To Southey. 
demurrable (de-mer'a-bl), a. [< demur + 
-able.] That maybe demurred to ; that excep- 
tion may be taken to. 
demurrage (de-mer'aj), n. [Formerly demor- 
age; < OF. demorage, demourage,demoraige,<. de- 
morer, delay: see demur and -age.] 1. In mari- 
time law : (a) Any detention of a vessel by the 
freighter in loading or unloading beyond the 
time originally stipulated. When a vessel is 
thus detained she is said to be on demurrage, 
(b) The compensation which the freighter has 
to pay for such delay or detention. 
This day Captain Taylor brought me a piece of plate, a 
little small state dish, he expecting that I should get him 
some allowance for demorage of his ship William, kept 
pense. 
He demands a fee, 
And then demurs me with a vain delay. 
Quarter, Emblems, iv. 11. 
2. To doubt of ; scruple concerning ; hesitate 
about: as, "to demur obedience," Fenton. 
demur (de-mer'), n. [Early mod. E. also de- 
murre, demeure; < OF. demor, devour, demem; 
m., demore, demeure, f., stop, delay; from the 
verb.] 1. Stop; pause; hesitation as to pro- 
ceeding or decision. 
The suit we join'd in must not 
Fall by too long demur. Ford, Broken Heart, ii. 2. 
Works adjourned have many stays, 
Long demurs breed new delays. Southwell. 
2. Exception (taken) ; objection (urged). 
Caesar also, then hatching Tyranny, injected the same 
scrupulous demurrs to stop the sentence of death in full 
and free Senat decreed on Leritalus and Cethegus. 
Milton, Eikonoklastes, ix. 
All my demurs but double bis attacks. Pope. 
He yielded, wroth and red, with fierce demur. 
Tennyson, Princess, v. 
demure (de-mur'), a. [< ME. demure, < OF. de 
murs, for de bounes murs (buens murs, boines 
mours), lit. of good manners (in formation like 
debonair, q. v.): de, < L. de, of; ban, < L. bonus, 
good ; murs, mors, mours, m., f ., F. mceurs, f., 
manners, < L. mores, manners : see moral.'] 1. 
Sober; grave; modest; formally decorous : as, 
a demure look. 
I sawe there luges, sittyng fulle demvre, 
With out semblant [regard], othir to moste or leest, 
^otwithstandyng thei hadde them vnder cure. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Furnivall), p. 65. 
Loe ! two most goodly Virgins came in place, . . . 
With countenance demure, and modest grace. 
Spenser, F. Q., I. x. 12. 
His fashion and demure Habit gets him in with some 
Town-precisian, and inaks him a Guest on Fryday nights. 
Bp. Earle, Micro-cosmographie, A Young Rawe Preacher. 
2. Affectedly modest; making a demonstra- 
tion of gravity or decorum. [This is the sense 
in which the word is now chiefly used.] 
,ong at Tangier, which I shall, and may justly do. 
Pepys, Diary, II. 56. 
The claim for demurrage ceases as soon as a ship is 
cleared out and ready for sailing. 
JU'Culloch, Diet, of Commerce. 
2. (a) Detention of railway-wagons, etc. (b) 
A charge of l^rf. per ounce, made by the Bank 
of England in exchanging notes or coin for 
bullion. [Eng.] 
demurral (de-mer 'al), n. [< demur + -al.] 
Hesitation in proceeding or decision ; demur. 
Soutliey. 
demurrer 1 (de-mer'er), n. [< demur + -er 1 .] 
One who demurs. 
And is Lorenzo a demurrer still? 
Young, Night Thoughts, ix. 1366. 
demurrer 2 (de-mer'er), n. [< OF. demorer, de- 
murer, inf. as noun: see demur.] 1. In law, a 
pleading in effect that, even conceding the 
facts to be as alleged by the adversary, he is 
not entitled to the relief he asks. A general de- 
murrer is one that does not specify an objection, but 
rests on some defect in substance ; a special demurrer is 
one that specifies some defect in the form of the adver- 
sary's allegation. 
This demurrer our suit doth stay. 
Sir P. Sidney (Arber's Eng. Garner, I. 629). 
2. A demur; an objection. [Bare.] 
"Surely you would not have this misery continue ! " ex- 
claims some one, if you hint a demurrer to much that is 
now being said and done. 
//. Spencer, Man vs. State, p. 28. 
Demurrer ore tenus, an informal oral demurrer; an 
objection taken orally, on the argument of some proceed- 
ing in the cause, that the facts alleged do not constitute a 
cause of action, that the court has no jurisdiction, or the 
like. Demurrer to evidence, an admission, on the 
trial, of the truth of the evidence offered by the other 
party, coupled with an objection that it is insufficient, and 
a submission of the controversy to the court thereon. 
Demurrer to interrogatory, a reason given by a wit- 
ness for refusing to answer an interrogatory. [Rare.] 
Plea Of parol demurrer. Same as age-prayer. 
demus (de'mus), w. [L.] See derne* and demos. 
demy (de-mi'), a. and n. [< F. demi, half: see 
demi-.] I. a. Half: used to indicate a particu- 
lar size of paper. See II. 
U.K.; pi. demies (-imz'). 1. A particular size 
of paper. In America this name is applied only to writ- 
ing-paper of the size 16 x 21 inches. In Great Britain the 
printing-paper known as demy is m x 22 inches, and dou- 
ble-demy is 26 x 38J inches. English writing-demy is 15 x 
20 inches. 
2. A holder of one of certain scholarships in 
Magdalen College, Oxford. Also spelled demi. 
denarius 
He maintained his school attachment to Addison, then 
n il/'tint at Magdalen. A. Dvbaon, Introd. to Steele, p. xiii. 
3. A Scotch gold coin issued by James I. in 
1433, and worth at that time 3s. 4d. English. 
Obverse type, arms in a lozenge ; reverse, cross 
in tressure. 4f. A short close vest. Fairholt. 
He . . . stript him out of his golden demy or mandillion, 
and Head him. Nashe, Lentu Stufle (Harl. Misc., VI. 166). 
demy-pourpointt, . A pourpointed or stuffed 
garment covering the body only, without skirts, 
worn in the fourteenth century. 
demyship (de-mi'ship), n. [< demy + -ship.] 
In Magdalen College, Oxford, one of certain 
scholarships, namely, eight Senior, of the an- 
nual value of 100 each, open to members of 
the university who have passed all the exami- 
nations requisite for the degree of B. A., and 
thirty Junior, of the annual value of 50 each. 
Dr. Lancaster . . . obtained for him [Addison] in 1689 
one of the demyships at Magdalen. 
Diet. Nat. Biog., I. 122. 
den 1 (den), n. [Early mod. E. also denne; < 
ME. den, denne, a den, lair, < AS. demi, a den, 
lair (of wild beasts), = OD. denne, a den, cave; 
perhaps connected with AS. denu, ME. dene, a 
valley : see den 2 , dean 1 . Cf . OD. denne, a floor, 
deck, = OHG. tenni, denni, neut., MUG. tenne, 
neut. and fern., G. tenne, fern., tenn, neut., a 
floor, threshing-floor.] 1. A hollow place in 
the earth or in a rock; a cave, pit, or subterra- 
neous recess, used for concealment, shelter, 
protection, or security : as, a lion's den. 
The beasts go into dens. Job xxxvii. 8. 
The children of Israel made them the dens which are in 
the mountains. Judges vi. 2. 
2f. A grave. 
Whanne thei be doluen in her den. 
Babees Book (E. E. T. 8.), p. 52. 
3. Any squalid place of resort or residence ; a 
haunt : always used in a bad sense : as, dens of 
misery. 
Those squalid dens, . . . the reproach of large capitals. 
JUacaulay. 
4. A small or secluded private apartment; a 
retreat for work or leisure. [Colloq.] 
Mr. Jones has to go into his den again to serve the last 
arrival. W. M. Baker, New Timothy, p. 152. 
Another door in the audience-room leads to Prince Bis- 
marck's private apartments, the first of which is the li- 
brary, containing books on all subjects of general interest, 
and presenting by no means the character of a bookworm's 
favourite den. Quoted in Lowe's Bismarck, II. 501. 
den 1 (den), v. i. ; pret. and pp. denned, ppr. den- 
ning. [< ME. dennen; < den 1 , n.] To dwell in 
or as if in a den. 
Sluggish salvages that den below. 
G. Fletcher, Christ's Triumph. 
To den up, to retire into a den for the winter : said of 
hibernating animals, as bears. [Colloq., U. 8.] 
den 2 (den), n. [A variant of dean 1 , < ME. dene, 
< AS. denu, a valley: see dean 1 .] A narrow 
valley; a glen; a dell. [Chiefly Scotch.] 
The dowie dens o' Yarrow. 
Old Ballad. 
It's up and down in Tiftie's den, 
Where the burn runs clear and bonny, 
I've often gone to meet my love. 
Andrew Lammie (Child's Ballads, II. 193). 
den 3 t (den), n. [In the phrase good den, in the 
early dramatists; also written goodden, godden, 
and in the fuller phrase God give you good den, 
or God ye good den, and corruptly as one word, 
Godgigoden, Godigeden (Shak., 1623); prop.j/ood 
e'en, good even, and often so written: see good 
and even 1 , evening.] A corruption of even in the 
phrase good even. 
Xur. God ye good morrow, gentlemen. 
Her. God ye good den, fair gentlewoman. 
Xur. Is it yood den) Shak., R. and J., ii. 4. 
denarcotize (de-nar'ko-tiz), v. t. ; pret. and pp. 
denarcolised, ppr. denarcotizing. [< de- priv. 
+ narcotize.] To deprive of narcotin: as, to 
denarcotize opium, 
denarius (de-na'ri-us), n. ; pi. denarii (-i). [L. 
(sc. nummus, a coin), prop, containing ten 
(asses), < deni, ten each, by tens, for "deem, 
< decent = E. ten : see decimal, etc. Hence F. 
denier (see denier^), Ar. dinar, etc.] 1. The 
principal silver 
coin of the Ro- 
mans under the 
republic and the 
empire. It was first 
minted in 269 or 268 B. 
<'.. when it weighed 72 
trains ; the weight wim 
shortly afterward re- 
Denarius, in the British Museum. (Size duceil to < grains 
of the original. troy. The obverse bore 
