how 
I sail assaye the see 
How depe that it is here. 
York Plays, p. 61. 
His Ma*y told me how exceedingly the Dutch were dis- 
pleas'd at ray treatise of the " Historic of Commerce." 
Evelyn, Diary, Aug. 19, 1674. 
By how much such an act towards him is detestable, by 
so much an act of kindness towards him is laudable. 
Steele, Spectator, No. 248. 
4. In what state, condition, or plight. 
Mordecai walked every day ... to know how Esther 
did. Esther ii. 11. 
We also deliberated on some fit person to go as Com- 
missioner to inspect their actions in Hew England, and 
from time to time report how their people stood affected. 
Evelyn, Diary, Feb. 12, 1672. 
5. At what price: as, he inquired how the stocks 
were selling. 6. For what reason; why. 7. 
That : with reference to the manner, and also 
to the result: in objective clauses, after say, tell, 
relate, report, etc. 
Whan Merlin a-while hadde be ther he tolde hym how 
the kynge Arthur was spoused to his wif. 
Merlin (E. E. T. S.), ill. 662. 
He sayed how ther was a knight, 
A ryche man of gret myght. 
Seven Sages, 1. 726. 
Especially in combination : (a) How that, that. [Nearly 
obsolete.] 
Brother Ned related how that, exactly thirty-five years 
ago, Tim Linkinwater was suspected to have received a 
love-letter. Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby, xxxvii. 
(6) As how, that. [Vulgar.) 
She says as how I bawl worser than the broom man. 
Foote, Mayor of Garratt, L 1. 
How and about. Same as about, prep. [Colloq.] 
Be good, and write me everything hate and about it ; 
and write to the moment ; you cannot be too minute. 
Richardson, Sir Charles Grandison, VI. 68. 
how 1 (hou), . [< how 1 , adv.] The manner of 
doing or becoming; way. 
The people remarked that it was " a straange pity to see 
good coals used e' this how, for if rich men led 'em away e' 
big lots like this, all th' coals e' Yerksheer wo' d be bont 
up in a year or two." N. and <j., 7th ser., VI. 224. 
Science investigates the how, but revelation defines the 
why. BiMiotheca Sacra, XLV. 661. 
The feverous days, 
That, setting the how much before the how, 
Cry, like the daughters of the horseleech, "Give." 
Tennyson, Golden Year. 
Careful of honest custom's hoir and when. 
Lowell, Agassiz, ii. 1. 
how 2 (hou), H. [Also hough, hoe; < ME. hogh 
(pi. hoes for 'hogett), a hill, < Icel. haugr, a how, 
mound, = Sw. hog, a heap, pile, mound, = 
Dan. ho'j, a hill, = OHG. houg, MHG. hove 
(houg-), a hill (in mod. G. proper names, as 
Donnersfepfc), dim. hugel, a hill; < Icel. hdr 
= Sw. hog = Dan. ho'j = OHG. hoh, MHG. G. 
hoch = AS. hedh, E. high : see high, of which 
how 2 is thus a derivative, through the Scand. ; 
cf. G. ho'lie, a height, and E. height, in same 
sense.] A low hill: obsolete or dialectal, but 
retained in some place-names : as, Silver How, 
near Grasmere; Fox How. [Eng.] 
The hunteres thay haulen by hurstes and by hoes. 
Anters of Arther, st. 5 (Three Early Eng. Metr. Rom., ed. 
[Robson). 
Bath ouer hil and hogh. 
Cursor Mundi (Gott. MS.), 1. 16826. 
Lyk hartes, up hmves and hillis the! ramie. 
Battle ofBalrinnes (Child's Ballads, VII. 229). 
Witnes yet unto this day 
The westerne Hogh, besprincled with the gore 
Of mighty Goemot, whome in stout fray 
Corineus conquered, and cruelly did slay. 
Spenser, F. Q., II. x. 10. 
how 3 (hou), a. and n. [A dial, form of hole 1 , 
a.] I. a. Hollow; deep or low. [Prov. Eng. 
and Scotch.] 
This is the how and hungry hour. 
Walty and Madge, Herd's Collection. 
II. n. If. Any hollow place. 
He taks the gate and travels, as he dow, 
Hamewith, thro' mony a toilsome height and how. 
Ross, Helenore, p. 44. 
2t. The hold of a ship. 3. A glen; a dell; 
also, a plain. [Scotch.] 
They . . . showr'd then- shot down in the howe. 
Battle ofBothwell Bridge (Child's Ballads, VII. 151). 
This sheltered farm-house, called, from its situation in 
a low woody dell, The How. 
J. Wilson, Lights and Shadows of Scottish Life, p. 168. 
how 4 t, v. i. [< ME. howen, hogen, < AS. hogian, 
think, care, mind, akin to hycgan, think.] To 
care. 
how^t, n. [< ME. hmoe, < AS. hogu, care, anxiety, 
< hogian, think, care : see how*, v.] Care ; anxi- 
ety. 
Wel neighe wode for dred and howe, 
Up thou schotest a windowe. 
Arthour and Merlin, p. 48. 
2906 
how 4 t, a. [< ME. howe, < AS. hoga, careful, 
prudent, < hogu, care: see how*, .] Careful. 
The home wiif anon it fett, 
And yede and held it bi the fer. 
Arthour and Merlin, p. 38. 
how 5 (hou), n. A Scotch form of Jtouve. Silly 
how, literally, a blessed cap, or caul. See the quotation. 
Various were the Superstitions, about hah* a Century 
ago, concerning a certain membranous Covering, common- 
ly called the tiillti How, that was sometimes found about 
the Heads of new-born Infants. 
Bourne's Pop. Antiq. (1777), p. 868. 
how 6 (hou), interj. [Amer. Ind., also written 
phonetically (as in continental use) hau: a mere 
aspirated syllable, like ha 1 , ho 1 , q. v., perhaps in 
part an abbr. of the common E. greeting "How 
do you dot"] A syllable of salutation among 
various tribes of American Indians. "When 
friends or kindred have not met for about a month they 
say, on meeting, 'Hau.' kageha,' ho.' younger brother, 
'Hau! negtha,' ho! mother's brother, etc., calling each 
other by their respective kinship titles, if there be any, 
and then they shake hands. There are no other verbal 
salutations." (Dorsey, Omaha Sociology, Sd An. Rep. Bur. 
Ethn., 1881-2.) 
howadji (hou-aj'i), n. [< Ar. Tchawdja, in Bag- 
dad kauja, < Pers. Jch'aja, a merchant, a rich 
gentleman.] In the East, a merchant; a rich 
gentleman; a European gentleman. 
howballt, n. Same as hooall. 
howbet (hou'be), adv. Howbeit. 
howbeit (hou-be'it), adv. [< ME. hou be it; 
cf. albeit.'] Be it as it may; nevertheless; not- 
withstanding; however. 
And off bestes wilde many on gan sle, 
Hou be it that he suffred full grett pain. 
Rom. of Parttnay (E. E. T. S.), 1. 5910. 
Howbeit I know, if ancient prophecies 
Have err'd not, that I march to meet my doom. 
Tennyson, Guinevere. 
howdah (hou'da), n. [Also houdah. sometimes 
hauda, < Hind, haudah, a corrupt form of Ar. 
haiidaj (> Turk, lievdej), a litter carried by a 
camel (in Arabia, etc. ) or an elephant (in India), 
in which persons (in Arabia chiefly women) are 
conveyed; cf. Ar. huddja, huddsha, a camel- 
saddle.] A seat, commonly with a railing and 
canopy, erected on the back of an elephant for 
two or more persons to ride in. 
Most of our party . . . were soon to be seen leaning 
over the rails of the Howdahs, surveying the surrounding 
country from their commanding eminence. 
J. W. Palmer, Up and Down the Irrawaddi, p. 60. 
The sturdy Englishman condescended to accept a seat 
in the howdah, and to kill his game with somewhat less 
risk than usnal. F. M. Crawford, Mr. Isaacs, ix. 
howdee (hou'de), interj. See howdy 1 . 
howdie, howdy 2 (hou'di), n. [Sc., in comp. 
howdy-wife; there is also a Sc. verb howd, act 
as midwife. "Perhaps ludicrously formed from 
how d' yet this generally being the first question 
directed by a midwife to a lying-in woman" 
(Webster's Diet.): see howdy 1 /] A midwife. 
Also houdie. 
howdy 1 (hou'di), inter;. [Formerly also how- 
dee ; a further contraction of how d 1 ye for how 
do you or how do ye (do)?] A contraction of how 
do you (do) f a colloquial greeting, now almost 
peculiar to the southern and western United 
States, the fuller form howdy do f being used 
elsewhere : also used as a noun for a greeting 
with this phrase. 
Such was thy suddain how-dee and farewell, 
Such thy return, the angels scarce could tell 
Thy miss. Fletcher. 
I have been returning the visits of those that sent how- 
dees in my sickness. Swift, Journal to Stella, May 10, 1712. 
"Howdy, Rachel!" said Henry Miller, as he reached 
the gate, and "Howdy! Howdy .'" came from the two sis- 
ters, to which Rachel answered "Howdy! Come in!" 
meant for the three. E. Eggletton, The Graysons, i. 
howdy 2 ,". See howdie. 
howdy-do (hou'di-do'), n. [< howdy dof a con- 
tracted form of greeting: see howdy 1 ."] 1. A 
greeting. 2. An embarrassing or troublesome 
state of affairs which suddenly encounters one. 
[Colloq.] 
"You've confessed enough now to make the grand jury 
indict you." "Fer what? Fer savin' the life uv a inner- 
cent man? That'd be apurty howdy-do, now wouldn't it?" 
E. Eggleston, The Graysons, xxviii. 
Here's a howdy-do, 
If I marry you ! . . . 
Here's a pretty state of things, 
Here's a pretty howdy-do! 
W. S. Gilbert, Mikado. 
Howea (hou'e-a), n. [NL. (Beccari, 1877), named 
after Lord Howe.] A genus of feather-palms 
of the tribe Arecece and the subtribe Linospa- 
dicece, distinguished from Linospadix by its nu- 
merous stamens, the absence of stamiuodia in 
the female flowers, and the erect ovule, only 
two species, or according to some authors only one, are 
howitzer 
known, exclusively confined to Lord Howe's Island off the 
coast of Australia. They are tall trees with a thick trunk, 
and with numerous terminal leaves 6 to 8 feet in length. 
The oblong or ellipsoid fruit is 1 j inches long ; the pericarp 
is hard in a dried state. U. Fosteriana (Kentia FosUriana) 
is the thatch or flat-leafed palm. 
howel (hou'el), n. [Prob. < Dan. horl = Sw. 
hyfvel = mod. Icel. hefill = MHG. hovel, hobel, G. 
hobel, a plane; root uncertain.] A coopers' tool 
for smoothing work, as the inside of a cask. 
howel (hou'el), v. t. To smooth ; plane. 
however (hou-ev'er), adv. and con/. [< how 1 
+ ever, in its indef. generalizing use. Not in 
ME.; cf. howsoever.] I. adv. 1. In whatever 
manner; to whatever extent or degree: as, 
however badly or rudely one may act ; however 
distant from the starting-point. 
Every device, however paltry, was resorted to. 
Prescott, Ferd. and Isa., U. 1. 
However or whenever we who live endeavour to realize 
an end to this healthy life of action in ourselves or in our 
brethren, the effort is a painful one. 
W. K. Clifford, Lectures, I. 2v!9. 
I prefer in every case the ruined, however ruined, to the 
reconstructed, however splendid: . . . the one is history, 
the other is fiction. H. Jamet, Jr., Little Tour, p. 152. 
2f. At all events; in any case; by any means. 
So wise he judges it to fly from pain 
However, and to 'scape his punishment. 
Milton, P. L., iv. 911. 
He that swears often, many times swears false, and, how- 
ever, lays by that reverence which, being due to God, the 
Scripture determines it to be due to his name. 
Jer. Taylor, Works (ed. 1835), I. 206. 
Our chief end is to be freed from all, if it may be, hmr- 
ever from the greatest evils. . TUlotson. 
[However often occurs in recent colloquial or provincial 
use, chiefly in England, for howl, interrogative and rela- 
tive, where the proper usage is how . . . ever, one or more 
words intervening. So whatever is similarly used for what 
. . . ever. 
Oh, bitter is my cup ! 
However could I do it? 
I mixed those children up, 
And not a creature knew it ! 
W. S. Gilbert, Pinafore.) 
II. con/. Nevertheless; notwithstanding; yet; 
still: as, a costly article, which, hoicever, is 
worth the price. 
2 Gent. He of Winchester 
Is held no great good lover of the archbishop's. . . . 
::'.'.,.' All the land knows that : 
However, yet there's no great breach. 
SAo*., Hen. VIII., iv. 1. 
howff, houff (houf), n. [Sc., also hoif, and in 
less corrupt forms hore and hoff, a hall, a haunt, 
a burial-place, appar. < ME. "*7<o/, < AS. hof, a 
house (or from uie Scand. form of the same), 
affected, as to the sense 'a haunt,' by the sense 
of the related verb hove, linger, loiter: see hove 1 , 
hover, hovel.] Any place of resort ; a haunt, as 
a drinking-house. [Scotch.] 
The company had not long left the Howff, as Blane's 
public-house was called, when the trumpets and drums 
sounded. Scott, Old Mortality, iv. 
howff, houff (houf), v. i. [< howff, n.] To 
resort frequently to a place ; hang around. 
[Scotch.] 
Where was 't that Robertson and you were used to how/ 
thegither? Somegate about the Laigh Calton, I am think- 
ing. Scott, Heart of Mid-Lothian, jcvii. 
howgatest (hou'gats), adv. [< ME. hou-egates; 
< how 1 + gates, adv. gen. of gate?.] In what way 
or manner ; how (interrogative or relative). 
That will Jesu be justified 
By oure jugement ; 
Bnt howe-gates bought schall he be? 
Bidde furthe thy bargayne. York Plays, p. 229. 
Thise thre commandementes lerres mane howgates he 
salle hafe hym ynence Godd the Trynite. 
MS. Lincoln, A. L 17, f. 201. (Hallitcelt.) 
howitzt (hou'its), n. [= F. obus = Sp. obus = 
Pg. obuz = It. obiza, obice, < G. haubitze, for- 
merly haubnitze, late MHG. hawffnitz, < Bohem. 
haufnice, haufenice, a howitzer, orig. a sling for 
casting stones.] Same as howitzer. 
Howitzers. 
, mountain howitzer; *. field-howitzer; c, siege-howitzer, 1850; 
ff, siege-howitzer, 1861. 
