heroic 
2. A heroic verse : most frequently used in the 
plural, sometimes sarcastically in the sense of 
bombast, or extravagant expressions of admi- 
ration or praise: as, to go into heroics over a 
picture. 
Tom Otway came next, Tom Shadwell's dear Zany, 
And swears for heroics, he writes best of any. 
Rochester, Trial of Poets for the Bays. 
heroical (he-ro'i-kal), a. [< heroic + -/.] 
Same as heroic. [Bare.] 
Tho' heroual be properly understood of demi-gods, as 
of Hercules and ^Eneas, whose parents were said to be, 
the one celestiall, the other mortal, yet it is also trans- 
ferred to them who for their greatness of mind came near 
to God. 
Drayton, England's Heroical Epistles, To the Reader. 
Many noble gentlemen and heroical spirits were to ven- 
ture their honours, lives and fortunes. 
S. Peeke (Arber's Eng. Garner, I. 628). 
heroically (he-ro'i-kal-i), adv. In a heroic 
manner ; with signal valor or fortitude ; cou- 
rageously; intrepidly; audaciously: as, the wall 
was heroically defended. 
He [Lord Craven] and the Duke of Albemarle (the noted 
Monk) heroically stayed in town during the dreadful pesti- 
lence. Pennant, London, p. 214. 
The garden bloomed and faded ten times over before 
Miss Manners found herself to be forty-six years old, 
which she heroically acknowledged one fine day to the 
census-taker. B. T. Cooke, Somebody's Neighbors, p. 42. 
heroicalness (he-ro'i-kal-nes), n. The qual- 
ity of being heroic; heroism. Sir K. IHgby. 
[Rare.] 
heroicly (he-ro'ik-li), adv. [< heroic + -fy 2 .] 
Like a hero'; heroically. [Bare.] 
Samson hath quit himself 
Like Samson, and heroickly hath nnish'd 
A life heroick. Milton, S. A., L 1710. 
heroicness (he-ro'ik-nes), n. Heroicalness. 
[Rare.] 
heroicomic (he"ro-i-kom'ik), a. [= F. heroi- 
comique; as heroic + comic.] Blending the he- 
roic and the ludicrous; consisting of lofty bur- 
lesque : as, a heroicomic poem. 
heroicomical (he^ro-i-kom'i-kal), a. [< heroi- 
comic + -al.~] Same as heroicomic. 
heroid (he-ro'id), n. [= F. lieroide, < Gr. jpuif 
(ripuid-), of heroic verse, < '/puf, a hero: see hero.] 
A poem in the epistolary form, expressive of 
heroic sentiments : from the Heroides or heroic 
epistles of Ovid. 
heroify (he-ro'i-fl), r. t. ; pret. and pp. hermfied, 
ppr. heroifying. [< hero + -i-fy.] To make 
heroic ; give a heroic character to. [Rare.] 
This act of Weston has heroijied the profession. 
Brummel. 
heroine (her'o-in), .. [< OF. heroine, F. hero- 
ine = Sp. heroina = Pg. heroina = It. eroina, < 
L. lieroina, a demigoddess, heroine, < Gr. r/puiv/i, 
a heroine, prop. fern, of t/patvof, adj., of a hero, 
< ijpaf, a hero: see hero.] 1. A female hero; 
a heroic woman. 
Heroes' and heroines' shouts confusedly rise ; . . . 
Like Gods they fight, nor dread a mortal wound. 
Pope, R. of the L., v. 41. 
When dames and heroines of the golden year 
Shall . . . rain an April of ovation round 
Their statues, borne aloft. Tennyson, Princess, vi. 
2. The principal female character in a poem, 
play, story, or romance, or the woman who 
plays the most important part. 
" Take Lilia, then, for heroine," clamour'd he, 
"And make her some great Princess, six feet high." 
Tennyson, Princess, Prol. 
heroism (her'o-izm), n. [= F. heroisme = Sp. 
Pg. heroismo '= It. eroismo; as hero + -ism.] 
The qualities of a hero, as courage, intrepidity, 
fortitude, etc. ; heroic character or action. 
If the Odyssey be less noble than the Iliad, it is more 
instructive ; the Iliad abounds with more heroism, this 
with more morality. W. Broome, Notes to the Odyssey. 
Heroism is the self-devotion of genius manifesting it- 
self in action. Hare. 
Heroism, like cowardice, is contagious. 
J. H. Ewing, We and the World. 
= Syn. Valor, gallantry, daring, boldness, fearlessness. 
See brave and heroic. 
heroistic (he-ro-is'tik), .. [< hero + -ist + -ic.~] 
Pertaining to or exhibiting heroism; relating 
to a hero or heroine. [Rare.] 
Agreeably, however, to the heroistic account of her, not 
only was she not called Ursula, but, etc. 
The Nation, Aug. 18, 1881, p. 141. 
heroize (he'ro-Iz), . *. ; pret. and pp. heroized, 
ppr. heroizing. [< hero + -ize.~] To make or 
represent as heroic. [Rare.] 
As in all other heroized forms of the god of the dead, 
there is both a terrible and a wise and beneficent side in 
the character of Minos. Encyc. Brit., XVI. 478. 
heron (her'pn), n. [(1) Early mod. E. also 
hearon; < ME. herotm, heyroun, heiron, < OF. 
2808 
ii, also In fan. F. lii'raii, dial. f : i/cw = Pr. 
(lit/roii = Sp. /(< = Cat. agro = It. aghirone, 
airone, a heron; with aug. suffix -on, -one, <. 
OHG. heigir, MHG. lieiger, a heron, = Icel. he- 
</ri = Sw. li/ii/cr = Dan. Ae/re, a heron. (2) The 
Scand. forms answer better to OHG. hehara, a 
magpie, a jay, MHG. kehcr, G. heher, haher, a 
jay, jackdaw, = AS. higora, higera, a magpie, 
or jay- woodpecker (cf. E. dial, heighaw, a wood- 
pecker). (3) A third group of forms appears in 
MHG. reiger, G. reiher = MLG. reiger = D. rei- 
ger = OS. li reiera = AS. hrdgra, a heron. These 
groups are not related, except as they may all 
be ult. imitative. Cf. W. cregyr, a screamer, 
a heron, <. creg, cryg, hoarse ; L. graculus, grac- 
culus, a jackdaw; and E. crake 2 and crow 2 . 
From the same source (OHG. through OF.) 
comes E. egret, q. v. Hence contr. hern 3 , q. v.] 
A long-legged, long-necked, long-billed, slen- 
der-bodied wading bird ; any bird of the family 
Ardeida;, but especially of the subfamily Arde- 
inie. Herons, including egrets, bitterns, etc., have the 
bill cleft below the eyes, naked lores, scaly legs bare above 
the shank, long toes fitted for perching, a comb on the nail 
of the middle toe, ample rounded wings, and short tail ; 
the plumage is loose, and often develops graceful flowing 
plumes, whence the name egret; a constant characteristic 
is the presence of two or more pairs of powder-down tracts, 
or patches of greasy pulviplumes. Herons are aquatic, 
and feed on fish and other creatures which they stalk for 
and capture by spearing with the sharp bill ; they gener- 
ally nest in trees, and lay two or three greenish, whole-col- 
ored, elliptical eggs. (See heronry.) They are nearly cos- 
mopolitan, and include numerous species of several mod- 
ern genera, such as Ardea, Herodias, Nyctiftrdea, and Bo- 
taurus. The common heron of Europe is Ardea cinerea, 
represented in America by the great blue heron, A. hero- 
dias, 3J to 4 feet long, and nearly 6 feet in expanse. The 
great white heron of Florida, A. occidentalis, is still larger ; 
the goliath heron of Africa, A. goliath, is probably the 
largest of alL White herons or egrets are of medium and 
small size. Night-herons are smaller, and green herons 
among the least of alL Bitterns are herons of the sub- 
family BotaurintE. Boat-billed herons form the subfam- 
ily Cancrominas. See Ardeidce, Herodionet, and cuts 
under Ardea, bittern^, and egret. 
Heron* seem encumbered with too much sail for their 
light bodies. Gilbert White, Nat Hist, of Selborne, xlii. 
And the heron, the shuh-shnh-gah, 
From her nest among the pine-trees, 
Gave a cry of lamentation. 
Longfellow, Hiawatha, v. 
herpnert, [< ME. heroner, heronere, < OF. 
haironnicr, q. v., a falcon trained to fly at the 
heron, < hairon, a heron: see heron. Hence 
oontr. Jierner, q. v.] A falcon trained to fly at 
the heron, exclusively or principally. 
Ech for his vertu holden is for deere, 
Both heroner and faucon for ryvere. 
Chaucer, Troilus, iv. 413. 
heronry (her'on-ri), M.; pi. heronries (-riz). [< 
heron + -n/.] A place where herons breed in 
large numbers. Most kinds of herons congregate in 
hundreds, sometimes thousands, to breed in woods or 
swamps, constructing loose bulky nests of sticks, etc., 
which are placed on trees or bushes, less frequently on 
the ground. The birds resort year after year to the same 
places, and some of these heronries have become histori- 
cal 
The heronry at Cressi-hall, which is a curiosity I never 
could manage to see. Fourscore nests of such a bird on 
one tree is a rarity which I would ride half as many miles 
to have a sight of. 
Gilbert White, Nat. Hist, of Selborne, xxii. 
Pine Island has a heronry. The American, XIV. 238. 
heron's-bill (her'onz-bil), n. A name of plants 
of the genus Erodlum, natural order Geraniacea;, 
particularly E. cicutariiim and E. moschatmn, 
from the supposed resemblance of the long- 
beaked fruit to the head and breast of a heron. 
Also called stortfs-bill. 
heronsew (her'on-su), . [Early mod. E. also 
heronsetee, herunsew, heronseugh; < ME. heron- 
sewe, < OF. *heronceau, found only in the earlier 
form heroncel, AF. herouncel, a heron (with dim. 
suffix -eel, -ceau, as also in F. lionceau, OF. liun- 
cel, dim. of lion, lion, grifoncel, dim. of grifon, 
griffin), equiv. to OF. haironneau, F. heronneau 
(with dim. -eau, -el), < hairon, F. heron, a heron : 
see heron. Hence by contraction hernsew, and 
by variation Aerns/mw; 2 , q. v.] Aheron. [Now 
only prov. Eng.] 
I wol nat tellen of her strange sewes, 
Ne of her swaunes, ne of her heronsewes. 
Chaucer, Squire's Tale, 1. 60. 
And the heronsewe shall be arayed in the same maner 
without ony moysture, & he shulde be eten with salte and 
poudre. Babees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 278. 
heronshawt (her'on-sha), n. [Also contr. hern- 
shaw 2 , q. v.] A variant of heronsew. 
So have wee scene a hawke cast off at an hertm-xhaw, 
to looke and flie a quite other way. 
Bp. Hall, Quo Vadis?, p. 69. 
heroogony (he-ro-og'o-ni), n. [< Gr. i?pwc, a 
hero, + -yovia, generation: see -gony.~] Abe- 
Herpestlnae 
getting or an imaginative creation of heroes ; 
a genealogy of heroes. [Rare.] 
A brief and abruptly terminated heroogony or genera- 
tion of heroes by immortal sires from mortal mothers. 
Encyc. Brit., XI. 777. 
heroologist (he-ro-ol'o-jist), H. [< heroology + 
-ist.] One who writes or discourses of heroes. 
Warton. [Rare.] 
heroology (he-ro-ol'o-ji), n. [< Gr. f/ptMAoyia, 
a tale of heroes, < Jjpuf, a hero, + -'/.o-yia, < At- 
yuv, speak: see -ology.'] A body of legendary 
or traditional lore relating to heroes ; a history 
of or a treatise on heroes. [Rare.] 
From the above specimens in Tacitus we may conclude 
that all the Teutonic races had a pretty fully developed 
Ueroology. drimm, Teut. Mythol. (trans.), L 866. 
heroon, . See heroum. 
Herophilist (he-rof'i-list), n. [< Herojiliilii* 
(see def.) + -ist."] A disciple of Herophilus, 
leader of one of the earliest schools of medicine 
in Alexandria (about 300 B. c.), and one of the 
first exact anatomists. 
The Herophilisti still reverenced the memory of Hippoc- 
rates, and wrote numerous commentaries on his works. 
Encyc. Brit., XV. 801. 
Hero's fountain. See fountain. 
heroship (he'ro-ship), . [< hero + -ship.'] The 
character, condition, or career of a hero. 
He, ... his three years of heroship expired, 
Returns indignant to the slighted plow. 
Cowper, Task, iv. 644. 
If he refused to sign, his heroship was lost. 
L. Wallace, Ben-Hur, p. 347. 
heroudt, . A Middle English form of herald. 
heroum, heroon (he-ro'um, -on), n. ; pi. heroa 
(-a). [L. heroum, < Gr. t/p<f>ov (sc. itp&v or erfoc), 
th"e shrine or temple of a hero, neut. of r/pifov, 
ypuiof, of a hero, < >jp<Jf, a hero: see hero.'] In 
Gr. antiq., a temple or shrine sacred to the 
memory of a hero, often erected over his re- 
puted tomb. 
The group [at Tegea] of Epochos supporting the wound- 
ed Ankeeos, whose axe was falling from his hand, was prob- 
ably rendered much as in the reliefs representing this 
hunt on the heroon at Gjolbaschi in Lycia, now in Vienna. 
A. S. Murray, Greek Sculpture, II. 289. 
hero-worship (he'ro-wer'ship), n. The wor- 
ship of heroes, practised by ancient nations of 
antiquity ; hence, reverence paid to heroes or 
great men, or to their memory. 
Hero-worship, heartfelt prostrate admiration, submis- 
sion, burning, boundless, for a noblest godlike Form of 
Man is not that the germ of Christianity itself ? 
Carlyle, Heroes and Hero -Worship, i. 
hero-worshiper (he'ro-wer'ship-er), n. One 
who pays reverence to, or who entertains ex- 
travagant admiration for, a hero or heroes. 
But all women rave about him ; for women are all hero- 
worshippers. Scribner's Mag., III. 632. 
herp. An abbreviation of herpetology. 
herpes (her'pez), n. [= F. herpes (OF. herpet, 
m., herpete, f.) = Sp. hcrpe = Pg. herpes = It. 
erpete, < L. herpes, < Gr. epnr/f (epwr/r-), herpes, 
lit. a creeping (so called from the tendency of 
the eruption to creep or spread from one part 
of the skin to another), < epxeiv =. L. serpere, 
creep: see serpent.} 1 . A cutaneous affection, 
also occurring sometimes on mucous mem- 
branes, characterized by the appearance of 
patches of distinct vesicles. Several forms of 
herpes are named, of which the principal are 
those given below. 2. [cap.] [NL.] Inentom., 
a genus of weevils, of the family Ciirculionida, 
having as type H. porcellos, of Asiatic Turkey. 
Bedel, 1874 Herpes facialis or labialis, herpes on 
the face, especially about the mouth, unaccompanied by 
neuralgia, and occurring in many acute febrile diseases ; 
cold-sores. Herpes zoster, herpes coinciding with the 
distribution of a sensory nerve, and accompanied by neu- 
ralgia, usually severe. The name originated in the re- 
semblance to a girdle in cases of intercostal herpes zoster, 
but is used for the same disease when it occurs else- 
where. Also called shingles, zona, and zoster. 
Herpestes (her-pes'tez), . [NL., appar. < Gr. 
ep-Jicrrif, a reptile, < Epnetv, creep (see herpes), 
but said to be (irreg.) < lpn(cT6v), a reptile, 
serpent, + eaffieiv, eat, devour. Cf. Spermestes, 
with similar termination.] The typical genus 
of ichneumons or mongooses of the subfamily 
Herpestince, formerly including the whole group, 
now restricted to such species as the Egyptian 
ichneumon or Pharaoh's rat (H. ichneumon), the 
mongoose of India (H. griseus), and several oth- 
ers, linger, 1811. See cut under ichneumon. 
Herpestida (her-pes'ti-de), n. pi. [NL. , < Her- 
pestes + -idee.'] The ichneumons rated as a 
family. See Herpestinw. 
Herpestinae (hfer-pes-ti'ne), n. pi. [NL., < Her- 
pestes + -inai.] The dog-footed or cynopodous 
carnivorous quadrupeds of the old world, of the 
