homer 
homer 3 (ho'mi-r), ii. _ [< Heb. khdiner, a homer, 
also a mound, < iiiannir, undulate, surge up, 
swell up.] A Hebrew measure, coutaiuing 75 
gallons and 5 pints wine-measure. As a dry 
measure it was equivalent to 10 ephahs, or 11^ 
bushels. Also written clionter and gamer. 
An homer of barley-seed shall be valued at fifty shekels 
of silver. Lev. xxvii. 10. 
Homerian (ho-me'ri-au), a. [< Homer (see 
Homeric) + -/.] Same as Homeric. [Bare.] 
His [Homer's] figure was one of the stock types onSmyr- 
niean coins, one class of which was calltd ifomerian. 
Eneye. Brit., XXII. 187. 
Homeric (ho-mer'ik), . [< L. Homericus, < 
Gr. '0/i>iptK6f', relating to Homer, < '0/tr/pof, L. 
Homerns, Homer. The name first occurs (dis- 
regarding a doubtful fragment of Hesiod) in a 
fragment of the poet Xenophanes (6th century 
B. c.). According to the life of Homer falsely 
attributed to Herodotus, o/ajpo^ in the Cumssan 
dialect meant 'blind,' whence some explain the 
tradition of Homer's blindness. The name has 
been otherwise explained, e. g. as an eponym 
of the Homeridte (Gr. "Quqplfai), a gild of poets 
in Chios, or, generally, the rhapsodists who re- 
cited the poems ascribed to Homer; but the 
meaning of the name and the very existence 
of the poet as a distinct person remain doubt- 
ful.] Pertaining to Homer, the great epic poet 
of ancient Greece, or to the poetry that bears 
his name, and specifically to the Iliad and the 
Odyssey ; resembling Homer's verse, or having 
some characteristic of his works. 
Homerical (ho-mer'i-kal), a. [< Homeric + -al.~\ 
Same as Homeric. 
It has been objected by some who wish to be numbered 
among the sons of learning that Pope's version of Homer 
is not Homerical. Johnson, Pope. 
Homerid (ho'me-rid), . One of the Homeridse. 
Homeridae (ho-mer'i-de), n. pi. [< Gr. 'O/aipifat, 
pi., appar. (see Homeric') < "Ofiqpof, Homer, + 
-ifai, sing. -/<%, a patronymic suffix.] A hered- 
itary school of rhapsodists which flourished at 
an early date on the island of Chios, the mem- 
bers of which were regarded as descendants of 
Homer; hence, in general, rhapsodists who re- 
cited the Homeric poems throughout Greece. 
Homeridian (ho-me-rid'i-an), a. [< Homerid 
+ -tan.'} Of or pertaining to the Homerids or 
Homeridre. 
The Homeridian Hymns. 
C. A. Bristed, English University, p. 816. 
Homerology (ho-me-rpl'o-ji), . [< Gr. "0/ui- 
pof, Homer, + -/loyi'a, < Atyeiv, speak : see -ology.] 
The study of Homer, and of whatever relates 
to him; the whole body of knowledge concern- 
ing Homer, his poems, and his times. W. E. 
Gladstone. 
Homeromastix (ho-me-ro-mas'tiks), n. [L., 
< Gr. '0/ir/pofidoTii;, scourge of Homer, < "O/tqpof, 
Homer, + fidanf, a scourge.] Scourge of Ho- 
mer: an appellation of the ancient gramma- 
rian Zoilus, from his severe criticisms of the 
Homeric poems. 
If there were another Homer, there would be another 
Hmneromastix. 0. W. Holmes, The Atlantic, LI. 67. 
home-ruler (hom'ro'ler), n. A person who ad- 
vocates the political doctrine of home rule ; 
specifically, in British politics, one who favors 
home rule for Ireland. See home rule, under 
home, a. 
homesick (hom'sik), a. Ill or depressed from 
being absent from home ; affected with home- 
sickness. 
2865 
Our Saviour, who had all gifts in him, was Lord to ex- 
prusse his indoctrinating power in what sort him best 
seem'd : sometimes by a milde and familiar converse, 
sometimes with plaine and iuipartiall home-speaking. 
Milton, Apology for Smectynmuus. 
homespun (hom'spuu), a. and u. [< home + 
sjii/n, pp. of spin, v.] I. a. 1. Spun or wrought 
at home; of domestic manufacture . 
The cloath was homespun, but for colour and make 
It might a beseem 'd our queen. 
Jtobin Hood's Birth (Child's Ballads, V. 344). 
Those youths in homespun suits and ribboned queues, 
Whose hearts are beating in the high-backed pews. 
0. W. Holmes, A Family Record. 
Hence 2. Of domestic origin; plain; famil- 
iar; commonplace. 
These travellers 
Shall find, before we have done, a home-spun wit, 
A plain French understanding, may cope with 'em. 
Fletcher, Wildgoose Chase, iv. 1. 
We say, in our homespun English proverb, He killed 
two birds with one stone. Dryden. 
Mr. Potter seemed to carry about with him a certain 
homespun certificate of authority which made it natural 
for lesser men to accept his conclusions. 
Josiah Quincy, Figures of the Past, p. 278. 
II. . 1. Cloth made at home; home-made 
clothing. 
The dress of the girl was a well-worn but neat-checked 
homespun, and at the throat was a bit of faded ribbon. 
The Century, XXXVI. 896. 
2. A coarse and loosely woven woolen mate- 
rial, made in imitation of actual home-made 
cloth. 3. A coarse, unpolished, or rustic per- 
son. [Bare.] 
What hempen homespuns have we swaggering here, 
So near the cradle of the fairy queen ? 
Shak.,M. N. D.,iii. 1. 
homestall (hom'stal), n. [< home + stall.'] 1. 
A homestead ; a dwelling-place. [Bare or lo- 
cal.] 
And thou [Omai] hast found again 
Thy cocoas and bananas, palms and yams, 
And homestall thatch'd with leaves. 
Cowper, Task, 1. 640. 
2. One of the small inclosures for rearing 
young cattle usually placed near the center of 
an ancient English village community. 
homestead (hom'sted), n. [= D. heemstede = 
Dan. hjemsted; as home + stead.'] 1. A family's 
dwelling-place, with the inclosure or ground 
immediately contiguous; an abode; a home. 
The abuse of war, . . . 
The smouldering homestead, and the household flower 
Torn from the lintel. Tennyson, Princess, v. 
We cross the prairie as of old 
The pilgrim crossed the sea, 
To make the West, as they the East, 
The homestead of the free ! 
Whittier, Kansas Emigrants. 
When you think of the old homestead, if you ever do, 
your thoughts go straight to the wide chimney and its 
burning logs. C. D. Warner, Backlog Studies, p. 3. 
2. In law, real property owned by the head of 
a family and occupied by the family as a home. 
The laws of the United States give to every citizen who 
is the head of a family, or who has arrived at the age of 
homiculture 
and cultivating it for a term of years ; and meanwhile it 
cannot be taken from him for any outstanding debts. 
H. King, The Century, XIX. 136. 
homeward (hom'wiird), adv. [< ME. homward, 
Itamward, < AS. hdmweard, homeward, < ham, 
home, + -iveard, E. -ward.] Toward home; 
toward one's habitation; toward one's native 
country. Also homeward*. 
And also we passyd by the gate of the Temple of the 
holy Sepulcre, and in ower wey homward we cam to the 
Chirche that the Jacohyns liold. 
Torldngton, Diarie of Eng. Travell, p. S3. 
homeward (hom'ward), a. [< homeward, adv.'] 
Being in the direction of home : as, a homeward 
journey. 
homeward-bound (horn' ward-bound), a. Bound 
or destined for home : saicfespecially of vessels 
returning from a foreign country, or of persons 
returning home by sea Homeward-bound pen- 
nant, a long pennant reaching from the royalmast-head 
to the water, set by a man-of-war on starting for home after 
a cruise. 
homewardly (hom'ward-li), adv. [< homeward 
+ -ty 2 .] Homeward;' [Bare.] 
It was eve 
When homewardly I went. Southey, Hannah. 
homewards .(hom'wardz), adv. [< ME. 'hom- 
wardes, hamewardes, < AS. hamweardes. home- 
wards, < hamweard, homeward, + -es, adverbial 
gen. suffix.] Same as homeward. 
Come, you look paler and paler ; pray you, draw home- 
wards. Shak., As you Like it, iv. 3. 
homewort (hom'wert), n. The houseleek, Sem- 
pervivum tectornm. 
homey, a. See homy. 
homicidal (hom'i-sl-dal), a. [< LL. homicidalis, 
also homocidalis, < L. Komicida, a homicide, LL. 
homiciditim, homicide: see homicide 1 , homicide^.] 
Characterized by homicide ; leading to, result- 
ing in, or tending toward homicide ; murderous ; 
bloody: as, a homicidal act; homicidal mania. 
The troop, forth issuing from the dark recess, 
With homicidal rage the king oppress. 
Pope, Odyssey, iv. 
homicidally (hom'i-sl-dal-i), adv. In a homi- 
cidal manner ; with homicidal intent. 
A severe wound in the throat, which was homicidally in- 
flicted. A. S. Taylor, Med. Jour., p. 213. 
homicide 1 (hom'i-sld), . [< ME. homicide, < 
OF. homicide, F. homicide = Pr. homecida, omi- 
cida = Sp. Pg. homicida = It. omicida, < L. homi- 
cida, a inanslayer, homicide, murderer, < homo, 
man, + caidere (perf. cid i), kill, slay, + -a, suffix 
of agent. Cf. homicide?. The two words, alike 
in F. and E., differ in other tongues and in the 
orig. L. in termination. So all similar words, 
fratricide, parricide, suicide, etc.] A person 
who kills another; a manslayer. 
He that hnteth his brother Is an homicide. 
Chaucer, Parson's Tale. 
For what is he they follow ? truly, gentlemen, 
A bloody tyrant and a homicide. 
Shak., Rich. III..T. 8. 
The koine-sick dreamer's brow is nightly fanned 
ring of his native land. 
Whittier, Bridal of Pennacook, vi. 
By breezes whispering of his native lan 
Homesick as death ! was ever pang like this? . . . 
Too old to let my watery grief appear 
And what so bitter as a swallowed tear ! 
0. W. Holmee, The School-Boy. 
homesickness (h6m'sik"nes), n. A depressed 
state of mind in persons away from home ; nos- 
talgia. It is characterized by an intense longing for 
home and the society of absent friends ; it may also in- 
volve profound interference with nutrition, and give rise 
to further mental disturbance marked by delirium, inco- 
herence, hallucination, or suicidal attempts. Generally the 
word signifies only a temporary or occasional depression of 
spirits from a longing for the renewal of former associa- 
tions, actual or severe illness from this cause being rare. 
Home-sickness is a wasting pang ; 
This feel I hourly more and more ; 
There's healing only in thy wings, 
Thou breeze that play'st on Albion's shore ! 
Coleridge, Home-sick. 
homesocken (hom'sok-n), n. Same as IIHIHI-- 
sticken. 
home-speakingt (hom'spe'king), n. Forcible 
and efficacious speaking. 
wise unappropriated public lands, without cost, except 
entry fees. Encyc. Brit., XII. 122. 
3. Native seat ; station or place of residence. 
[Bare.] 
We can trace them back to a homestead on the rivers 
Volga and Ural. W. Tooke. 
Homestead Act, a United States statute of 1862 (12 Stat. , 
392, U. S. Rev. St., 2289 et seq.), by which a citizen, or an 
alien who has filed his declaration of intention to become 
a citizen, may enter upon not more than 160 acres of the 
unappropriated public land, and, by complying with cer- 
tain requirements, may after five years acquire title to it 
by patent. Homestead law. (a) In the United States, 
a constitutional or statutory provision of a State exempting 
from seizure or forced sale for debt a limited amount of 
real estate owned and occupied by a family as a home- 
stead. Provisions of this nature exist in nearly all the 
States, varying widely in their terms and limitations. (i>) 
Same as Homestead Act. 
homestead (hom'sted), v. t. [< homestead, n.] 
To acquire as one's established homestead or 
residence. [Western U. S.] 
An Indian who had been married Indian fashion, . . . 
but who had homesteaded a farm, thought it best to be 
married in a more civilized way. 
American Missionary, Nov., 1879, p. 343. 
The new farmers are settling into Dakota, Nebraska, 
and Kansas, where promising land can be home-steaded 
or preempted. W. Shepherd, Prairie Experiences, p. 5. 
homesteader (hom'sted-er), . One who set- 
tles upon the public land, or acquires a resi- 
dence under the Homestead Act. [Western 
U. S.] 
The homesteaders ... are the pioneers of slender 
means, taking advantage of the beneficent law which gives 
a man (or woman if she be the head of a family) a home 
upon the public domain at the simple price of occupying 
tidie, homicidy, < OF. homicide, F. homicide^ Pr. 
homieidi, omicidi = Sp. Pg. homicidio = It. omi- 
cidio,<.l,Ij.homicidium, manslaughter, homicide, 
murder, < homo, man (see Homo), + caidere (rid-), 
kill, slay, + -turn, neut. suffix. See homicide 1 .'] 
The killing 
Homicide in its largest sense is generic, embracing every 
mode by which the life of one man is taken by the act of 
another. Shaw, Ch. J. It includes suicide, and also death 
caused by culpable neglect. In law homicide is usually 
classed as justifiable, excusable, a.nd felonious : justifiable, 
when it proceeds from necessity, as where the proper officer 
inflicts capital punishment, where an officer of justice kills 
an offender who assaults or resists him and who cannot 
otherwise be captured, or where persons are killed in the 
dispersion of rebellious or riotous assemblies, or for the 
prevention of some atrocious crime ; excusable, when it 
happens from misadventure, as where a man in doing a 
lawful act, without any intention of hurt, kills another by 
accident, or in self-defense, or in defense of wife, chil- 
dren, parent, servant, etc. (also called homicide by misad- 
venture} ; felonious, when it proceeds from malice, or is 
done in the prosecution of some unlawful act, or in a sud- 
den passion, or it may be by criminal neglect. Felonious 
homicide comprehends murder and manslaughter. In 
Scots law manslaughter is called culpable homicide. 
Thou cruell didst it : therefore, Homicide, 
Cowardly treason, cursed Paricide, 
Vn-kinde Rebellion, ener shall remain 
Thy house-hold Guests. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, ii., The Trophies. 
homicidyt, n. An obsolete variant of homicide 2 . 
Chaucer. 
homiculture (hom'i-kul-tur). H. [< L. homo, 
man, + cultura, culture.^ The physical im- 
provement of the human race by means anal- 
ogous to those used in improving the breed of 
the lower animals. [Bare.] 
