henceforward 
Henceforward all things shall be in common. 
SAafc,2Heii. VI.,iv. 7. 
She would willingly afford him [the French king] all 
the assistence she conveniently could, lest the adversaries 
hence-forward, as heretofore, could reap advantage by his 
necessity. Camden, Elizabeth, an. 1595. 
hencemeantt (hens'ment), a. Intended or plot- 
ted from this place. 
Henry, as if by miracle preserved by foreigns long 
From hencemeant treasons, did arrive to right his natives' 
wrong. Warner, Albion's England, vi. 33. 
hench 1 (bench), v. t. A variant of haunch. 
hench 2 (hench), v. i. [Cf. hench 1 .] To halt or 
limp. Jamieson. [Scotch.] 
henchboyt (hench'boi), n. [Also hinchboy; < 
hench- as in henchman + boy.] A follower; a 
footman ; a page. 
He said grace as prettily as any of the sheriff's hinch- 
boys. B. Jonson, Masque of Christmas. 
Call me your shadow's hench-boy. 
Ford, Lady's Trial, i. 1. 
Sir, I will match my lord-mayor's horse, make jockeys 
Of his hench-boys, and run 'em through Cheapside. 
Sir W. Davenant, Wits. 
hencher (hen'cher), n. One who haunches. 
[Scotch.] 
Being a dextrous hencher of stones, it required great 
nimbleness on the part of the youthful tormentors to 
avoid his aim. Dr. J. Brawn, Spare Hours, 3d ser., p. 336. 
henchman (hench ' man), n. ; pi. henchmen 
(-men). [Early mod. E. also hencheman, hense- 
man, henxman, hanshman, haunsman (as a sur- 
name existing in the forms Henchman, Hens- 
man, Hinchman, Hincksman, Hinxman), < late 
ME. hencheman, henshman, hensman, heynceman, 
henxman, a groom, a page or attendant, prob. 
contr. from "hengest-man, lit. ' horse-man,' i. e. 
groom (= G. hengstmann = Icel. hestamadhr, a 
groom), < ME. hengcst, a horse, recorded but 
once, namely, as hcengest, in Layamon, 1. 3546 
(about A. D. 1200), but prob. surviving much 
later, or renewed in the compound through 
Scand. influence, < AS. hengest, hengst, a horse, 
steed (also in compound local names, as Hen- 
gestes-broc, now Hiitjcbrook, Hengestesgeat, now 
Hinxgate, Hengestesrigc (for *Hengesteshrycg), 
now Henstridge), = OFries. hengst = D. hengst 
= OHG. hengist, MHG. hengest, G. hengst, a 
horse (in OHG. also a gelding) (> ODan. hengst, 
Dan. Sw. hingst, a horse, stallion: the Scand. 
forms being prop, contracted and the sense 
more general), = Dan. hest = Sw. hast = Icel. 
hestr, a horse (Goth, not recorded), + man. 
For the sense, of. Icel. hestvordhr (lit. ' horse- 
ward'), a mounted guard, Sw. hingstridare (lit. 
'horse-rider'), a groom of the king's stable who 
rides before his coach, a f orespurrer, a jockey 
(= MHG. hengestritter, a rider); so the OHG. 
forms repr. by ML. hengistfuster, a groom (lit. 
'horse-feeder': see foster 1 ), and hengistnotm, a 
groom (OHG. not, need). The usual explana- 
tion of henchman as 'hatmchman,' an invented 
compound defined as 'a man who stands at 
one's haunch,' is erroneous.] 1. A groom; a 
footman ; a male attendant ; a follower. [Ar- 
chaic.] 
To John Clreyne, Squier for the Body of cure said Souv- 
erain Lorde the King and Maister of his Henmnen, for 
thapparaile of the saide Maister and vij of the Kinges 
Henxemen ayenst the feste of Midsomer, etc. 
Wardrobe Accounts of Edw. IV., quoted in N. and Q., 
[7th ser., III. 213. 
And every knight had after him riding 
Three hensh-men on him awaiting. 
Flower and Leaf, 1. 252. 
Her hlghnes [Queen Elizabeth] hath of late, whereat 
some doo moche marvel, dissolved the auncient office of 
the Henchemen. 
E. Lodge, Illustrations, F. Alen to Earl of Shrewsbury, 
[Dec. 11, 1565. 
I do but beg a little changeling boy 
To be my henchman. Shak., M. N. D., ii. 2. 
Thou Shalt obey my servants when they call, 
And wait upon my henchmen in the hall ! 
Longfellow, Wayside Inn, Sicilian's Tale. 
Hence 2. A mercenary adherent; a venal 
follower ; one who holds himself at the bidding 
of another. 
A henchman of his [Tweed's], who had a place on the 
police force, . . . besought the great man's intercession 
to save him from dismissal. N. A. Rev., CXX. 127. 
Twenty -five years ago, if you spoke to an American of a 
Henchman, he would have understood that you were mak- 
ing an historical allusion. ... At this moment, however, 
the term designates a very familiar figure in American poli- 
tics. . . . The Henchman is, in fact, a necessity of what 
is called machine politics, or, in plainer language, of the 
present mode of getting and keeping high office. ... It is 
the Henchman who corresponds with the chief, and goes on 
to Washington or elsewhere to see him when any emer- 
gency arises. The Nation, XXX. 398. 
2793 
hen-clam (hen'klam), n. [So called as being 
mistaken for the hen or female of some other 
kind of clam.] 1. The sea-clam, Mactra or 
Spisula solidissima, of the Atlantic coast of 
North America. The flesh is edible, and much used 
for soups and chowders ; the large deep shells are used for 
various domestic purposes, as for scoops, skimmers, etc. 
Mactra solidissima and the closely allied M. ovalis are 
known along our northern coasts as hen-clam, sea-clam, 
and surf -clam. Stand. Nat. Hist., I. 278. 
2. On the Pacific coast of the United States, 
Pachyderma crassatelloides. 
hen-coil (hen'koil), n. Same as coil 3 . [Prov. 
Eng.] 
hen-coop (hen'kop), n. A coop, pen, cage, or 
crib of any kind for confining poultry. 
hen-cotet, [ME. hen-cote; (hen 1 + cote 1 . Cf. 
dove-cote.] A hen-coop. 
hen-curlew (hen ' ker " lu), n. The long-billed 
curlew, Numenius longirostris. [Massachusetts, 
U. S.] 
hend 1 t (hend), v. t. [< ME. henden (pret. hende), 
< AS. ge-hendan (only once), take hold of, = 
OFries. henda, handa, take hold of, seize, = Icel. 
henda, seize, also (mod.) fling, lit. 'take hold 
of with the hand,' < AS. hand = OFries. hand 
= Icel. hond, etc., hand. The verb is thus a 
doublet of hand, v., in which there is a rever- 
sion to the orig. vowel. Cf. hendy, now handy. 
A different word from hent 1 , q. v.] To seize ; 
lay hold on ; grasp. 
They . . . toke the temple of Apolyn ; 
Thei felde it down and hende Mahoun, 
And al the tresore of the toun. 
Richard Coer de Lion, \. 4032. 
She flew at him like to an hellish feend, 
And on his shield tooke hold with all her might, 
As if that it she would in peeces rend, 
Or reave out of the hand that did it hend. 
Spenser, F. Q., V. xi. 27. 
hend 2 t, . and n. [< ME. Jiend, hende, heende, 
hinde, heynde, hynd, hynde, < AS. gehende (= 
OHG. gehende, gehente), at hand, near, < ge-, a 
collective prefix (see i- 1 ), + hand, hand: see 
hand. This word, in the var. hendi, hendy, be- 
came in later E. handy: see hendy, handy.] I. 
a. 1. At hand; near at hand; near; nigh; con- 
venient: in this sense generally in the predi- 
cate, and equivalent to the adverb. See hend, 
adv. 
Hi f undcn hem so hende 
To the lond ther his lemman is, 
Him thugte he was in parais. 
King Horn (E. E. T. S.), p. 53. 
They boden clerkes forth to wende 
To every kyrke f er and hende. 
Richard Coer de Lion, 1. 1205. 
2. Handy; dexterous; clever; accomplished. 
This clerk was cleped hende Nicolas. 
Chaucer, Miller's Tale, L 13. 
3. Civil ; courteous ; polite ; gracious ; kind ; 
gentle; noble: excellent; good: much used in 
Middle English poetry as a general expression 
of praise. 
Oure hoost tho spak, "A, sire, ye sholde be hende 
And curteys, as a man of youre estaat." 
Chaucer, ProL to Friar's Tale, 1. 22. 
Ihesn Crist, holl and hende, 
That beerde was blessid that bare thee. 
Hymns to Virgin, etc. (E. E. T. S.), p. 13. 
Sir Oluf the hend has ridden sae wide, 
All unto his bridal feast to bid. 
Sic Olufand the Elf-King's Daughter (Child's Ballads, 
[I. 299). 
4. Good ; excellent : used of things. 
In that mynster that ys so hende, 
Fowr dores shalt thou fynde. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Furnivall), p. 126. 
Come, brother Cayme, I wolde we wente, with hert ful 
hende. York Plays, p. 36. 
II. n. A gentle, noble, excellent person. 
[Poetical.] 
For sorowe my selffe I schende, 
When I thynke hartely on that hende, 
1 f ande hym ay a faithfull frende. 
York Plays, p. 452. 
hend 2 t, hendet, adv. [ME. ; <hend, a.] 1. At 
hand; nearatnand. See hend, a. 2. Civilly; 
courteously; kindly; honorably. 
Of this hert & this hinde hende now listener 
William of Palerne (E. E. T. S.), 1. 2713. 
To restore ajen that y took mys, 
And to paie my dettis fair and hende. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Furnivall), p. 185. 
hendecacolic (hen-dek-a-kol'ik), a. [< LGr. 
fixScjcoKuAof (Heliodorus), of eleven cola, < Gr. 
cvdeica, eleven (< iv, neut. of <?, one (prob. allied 
to E. same), + dtita = E. ten), + nu'Aov, a member, 
colon: see colon 1 .] Inpros., consisting of eleven 
cola or series: as, a hendecacolic period. 
hendecagon (hen-dek'a-gon), n. [< Gr. evSeita, 
eleven, + yuvia, an angle.] In geom., a plane 
hendy 
figure of eleven sides and as many angles. 
Also endecagon. 
hendecagorial (heu-de-kag'o-nal), a. [< hen- 
decagon + -al.'] Resembling or pertaining to 
a hendecagon. Also endecagonal Hendecago- 
nal number, a number of the f orm - (9 n 7). Such are 
1, 11, 30, 58, 95, etc. 
hendecagynous (hen-de-kaj'i-nus), a. [< Gr. 
zvdeKa, eleven, + yvvfj, female (mod. bot. a pis- 
til).] In lot., having eleven pistils. [Rare.] 
hendecahedron (hen-dek-a-he'dron),n. [NL., 
< Gr. evfeica, eleven, + eS'pa, a se'at.] A solid 
having eleven plane faces. 
hendecandrous (hen-de-kan'drus), a. [< Gr. 
,i><!a, eleven, + avi]p (avdp-), male (mod. bot. 
a stamen).] In bot., having eleven stamens. 
hendecaphyllous (hen-dek-a-fil'us), a. [< Gr. 
evSexa, eleven, + fvtyav, lea.] In bot., having 
eleven leaflets : applied to a pinnate leaf. 
hendecasemic (hen-dek-a-se'mik), a. [< LGr. 
(Heliodorus), of eleven morse, < Gr. 
eleven, + cr^ua, a sign, mark, ar/^elov, a 
sign, mark, unit of time, mora: see disemic, dode- 
casemic.] In anc. pros., containing or amount- 
ing to eleven morse or semeia ; having a magni- 
tude of eleven units of time or normal shorts. 
hendecasyllabic (hen-dek"a-si-lab'ik), a. and 
n. [< Gr. i>6cKaavMaflo(;, eleven-syllabled, < cv- 
dena, eleven, + auHAa/3^, syllable.] I. a. Con- 
sisting of eleven syllables: as, a hendecasyl- 
labic line or verse. 
The strambotto, . . . one of the three characteristic 
forms of Italian popular poetry, consists of a single stro- 
phe of from four to eight endecasyllabic verses with alter- 
nate rhyme in the south of Italy, and rhyme in couplets 
for the rest of the country, both schemes sometimes oc- 
curring in the longer strambotti. 
N. A. Rev., CXXVII. 517. 
II. n. In pros., a line or colon (series) con- 
sisting of eleven syllables. In ancient metrics the 
name is especially given to certain frequent logacedic 
meters, namely : the alcaic hendecaxyllabic (Q ~ - ~ 
w w _ w ^)y the Phalcecean hendecasyllabic ( ^ w w _ 
~ -^ ~), and the Sapphic hendecasyllabic ( ~ 
w w _ w ^). This last in the form ^ ^_ww_^_ 
- is the Pindaric hendecasyllabic. An Archilochian hen- 
decasyllabic is an iambic trimeter catalectic (i w | o 
_ w I w =). An example of Phalcecean hendecasyl- 
labics in English is 
6 you | chords 6f | Ind6 | lent rS | viewers, . . . 
Look,! I come to thS | test, a | tiny | poSm 
All com | posed In a | metre | of Ca | tullfls. 
Tennyson, Hendecasyllabics. 
hendecasyllable (hen-dek-a-sil'a-bl), n. [< Gr. 
evdeKoavZAafiof, eleven-syllabled ; accom. in term, 
to E. syllable: see hendecasyllabic.'] A metri- 
cal line of eleven syllables. 
hendelaykt, n. [ME., < hend, hende, civil, cour- 
teous, + -layk (< Icel. -leikr), equiv. to -lock in 
wedlock.'} Civility; courtesy. 
Your honour, your hendelayk is hendely praysed 
With lordej, wyth ladyes, with alle that lyf here. 
Sir Gawayne and the Green Knight (E. E. T. 8.), 1. 1228. 
hendelyt, adv. See hendly. 
hendiadys (hen-di'a-dis), n. [NL. , also hendia- 
dis; < Gr. cv Sia Svoiv, one by two: et>, neut. of 
elf, one ; fiia, prep., by, through (see dia-) ; 6voiv, 
gen. dual of Siio = E. too.] In rhet., a figure 
which consists in using two words connected 
by a copulative conjunction to express a single 
complex idea; especially, substitution of two 
substantives so coordinated for a substantive 
with its attributive adjective or limiting geni- 
tive. Thus Virgil (Georgics ii. 192) says 'pateris Kbamus 
et auro,' we pour out (wine) in libation from paterae and 
gold that is, 'from golden paterse'; Cicero (II. Verr. V. 
xiv. 36) speaks of 'jus imaginis ad menwriam posterita- 
temque prodendce,' the right of transmitting one's portrait 
to memory and posterity, for ' to the memory of posteri- 
ty.' Verbs can be used in the same way: as, 'fundifu- 
garique,' to be overthrown and put to flight that is, to 
be utterly routed. 
hendlyt, a. [ME. hendlic, hendelich; < hcnd% + 
-Zyi.] Same as hend, 3 and 4. Layamon. 
hendlyt, adv. [ME. hendly, hendely, hendeli, 
hendlich, hendeliche, hindely,hyndly, etc. ; < hend 
+ -ly 2 .] Conveniently; easily; skilfully; clev- 
erly; courteously; graciously. 
I knelid & pullid the brere me fro, 
And redde this word ful hendeli. 
Hymns to Virgin, etc. (E. E. T. S.X p. 91. 
hendnesst, [ME. also hendeness; < hend 2 , 
a., + -ness.] Civility; courtesy. 
hen-drivert (hen'dri"ver), n. A kind of hawk, 
perhaps the same as hen-harrier. I. Walton. 
hendyt (hen'dl), a. [< ME. hendi, hendy, var. 
of hende: see hend' 2 . Cf. handy.] Same as 
hend. 
So loveth she this hendy Nicholas. 
Chaucer, Miller's Tale, 1. 3386. 
