inventive 
pertaining to invention; characterized by or 
manifest in;; original contrivance. 
The leading characteristics of modern societies are in 
consei|Uen< i iii.-iikril ""I nmi-li iimrr by 111. triumphs of 
inventive skill t ban by the unstained energy of moral causes. 
Leck'f, Kuro|>. Morals, 1. 131. 
A short course of lectures cm the Kindergarten, on the 
teaching of language, on industrial and inventive drawing. 
Nineteenth Century, XXIV. 489. 
2. Able to invent; quick at contriving ; ready 
at expedients. 
As he had an inventive brain, so there never lived any 
man that believed better thereof, and of himself. 
Raleiyh. 
Ingenious love, inventive in new arts, 
M inglcd in plays, and quickly touch'd our hearts. 
Dryden and Soame, tr. of Horace's Art of Poetry, ill. 91. 
We should find the most remarkable instance of the dif- 
ference between an Imaginative and an inventive poet to 
be furnished by the cases of Shakspeare and Spenser. 
Athenteum, No. 3088, p. 196. 
inventively (in-ven'tiv-li), adv. By the power 
of invention, 
inventiveness (in-ven'tiv-nes), n. The quality 
of being inventive ; the faculty of inventing. 
The knowledge that clear and appropriate ideas are 
requisite for discovery, although it does not lead to any 
very precise precepts, or supersede the value of natural 
sagacity and inventiveness, may still be of use in our pur- 
suit after truth. Whewell, Hist. Scientific Ideas. 
inventor (in-ven'tor), n. [Formerly also iii- 
venter; = F. invsnteur = Sp. Pg. inventor = It. 
inventore, < L. inventor, a finder, contriver, au- 
thor, inventor, < invenire, pp. inventus, find out, 
invent: see invent.] One who invents or de- 
vises something new ; one who makes an in- 
vention. 
We but teach 
Bloody instructions, which, being taught, return 
To plague the inoentor. Shak., Macbeth, i. 7, 10. 
His sister Naaniah is accounted by some Rabblnes the 
first inuenter of making Linnen and Woollen, and of vocall 
Musicke. Purchas, Pilgrimage, p. 84. 
The lone Inventor by his demon haunted. 
Lowell, To the Future. 
inventorial (iu-ven-to'ri-al), a. [< inventory + 
-nl.] Of or pertaining to an inventory. 
inventorially (in-ven-to'ri-al-i), adv. In the 
manner of an inventory. 
To divide him inventorially would dizzy the arithmetic 
of memory. Shak., Hamlet, v. 2, 118. 
inventory (in'ven-to-ri), .; pi. inventories 
(-riz). [Formerly also, erroneously, invitory ; 
prop, "inventory (the form inventory, OF. in- 
ventore (< late ML. infentorium), involving an 
irreg. use of the suffix -ory) = F. inventaire = 
Pr. inventari = Sp. Pg. It. invsntario, < LL. 
invstttarium, a list, inventory, < L. invenire, 
Sp. iiiventus, find out: see invent."] A detailed 
escriptive list of articles, such as goods and 
chattels, or of parcels of land, with the num- 
ber, quantity, and value of each ; specifically, 
a formal list of movables, as of the goods or 
wares of a merchant: as, an inventory of the 
estate of a bankrupt, or of a deceased person. 
There, take an inventory of all I have, 
To the last penny. Shak. , Hen. VIII. , Iii. 2, 124. 
There are stores laid up iu our human nature that our 
understanding can make no complete inventory of. 
George Eliot, Mill on the Floss, v. 1. 
Benefit of inventory, in civil law, the limit of liability 
secured by an executor, legatee, or heir, in respect of 
debts of the deceased, by making and filing an inventory 
showing the value of the assets coming to his hands. 
=8yn. Schedule, Register, etc. See list. 
inventory (in'ven-to-ri), r. t. ; pret. and pp. in- 
n nt/>ried, ppr. inventorying. [< inventory, n.] 
To make a list, catalogue, or, schedule of; in- 
sert or register in an account of goods. 
I will give out divers schedules of my beauty. It shall 
be inventoried, and every particle and utensil labelled. 
Shak., T. N., i. 5, 264. 
The learned author himself is inventoried and sunim'd 
up to the utmost value of his livery-cloak. 
MUton, Colasterion. 
in ventre (in ven'tre). [L.: in, in; ventre, abl. 
of venter, belly, womb: see venter.] In lair, iu 
the womb. Also en venter In ventre sa mere, 
begotten but not yet born. The law recognizes the exis- 
tence, and protects the rights, of an infant in rentre sa 
inventress (in-ven'tres), . [< OF. ixvexterexse; 
as inn-Htiir + -fax. Cf. F. inventrice = It. f- 
i'1'iifricc, < L. inventrix, fern, of inventor, an in- 
ventor: see inventor.] A female inventor. 
Mistress Turner, the first Inventress of yellow Starch, 
was executed in a Cobweb Lawn Ruff of that Colour at 
Tyburn. Uowett, Letters, I. i. 2. 
At last divine Cecilia came, 
Inventress of the vocal frame. 
Dryden, Alexander's Feast. 
inver-. [Gael.; cf. aber.] An element in some 
Scotch place-names of Gaelic origin, meaning 
:U71 
a confluence of a river with another or with 
the sra : us. liirrrnmui, /nrcrnry, /iirrr<ir<tn>i, 
Inri'riirii. luri I'/ocliy. 
inveracity (in-ve-ras'i-ti), H. ; pi. inveracities 
(-ti/.). [< i'- :t +' rtracity.] Lack of veracity 
or truthfulness; an untruth. 
The anile aphorism still triumphs, solemnly devolving 
from age to age its loathsome spawn of shams and in- 
veracities. I', ll'ill, Mod. Eng., p. 146. 
inverisimilitude (iu-ver'i-si-mil'i-tud), n. [< 
i//- ;! + << rixiiiiilitiuti:] Lack of verisimilitude ; 
improbability. Coleridge. 
invermination (in-ver-mi-na'shon), ti. [< L. 
in, iu, + verminatio(n-), a writfiing pain, the 
disease called worms, \ vsrntinare, suffer from 
worms, < vermis, a worm: see vermin.] In j>a- 
thol., the state or condition of being infested 
by worms; helminthiasis. [Rare.] 
inversatile (in-ver'sa-til), a. [< in-3 + versa- 
tile.] In entom., not versatile; not moving on 
the supporting parts: as, inversatile antennae. 
inverse (in-vers or in'vers), a. and n. K ME. 
invern, enters, < OF. invers, F. inverse = Pr. ett- 
vers = Sp. Pg. It. inverso, < L. inversus, pp. of 
inverters, turn about, invert : see invert.'] I. a. 
1. Turned end for end, or in the opposite di- 
rection; having a contrary course or tendency; 
inverted: opposed to direct. 
The reigning taste was so bad that the success of a 
writer was in inverse proportion to his labour, and to his 
desire of excellence. Macaulay, Dryden. 
2. In math., opposite in nature and effect: said 
with reference to any two operations which, 
when both performed in succession upon the 
same quantity, leave it unaltered : thus, sub- 
traction is inverse to addition, division to mul- 
tiplication, extraction of roots to the raising of 
powers, etc. A direct operation produces an unam- 
biguous and possible value, and between two operations 
the one which combines quantities symmetrically is 
preferably considered as direct. Addition, multiplication, 
involution, and differentiation are considered as direct 
operations ; subtraction, division, evolution, and integra- 
tion as Inverse operations. Corresponding to every direct 
operation there are, generally speaking, two inverse opera- 
tions: thus, if V(x, y) be the direct operation, the two in- 
verse operations are the one which gives x from F(z, i/) 
and //, and the one which gives // from V(x, y) and r. 
Inverse congrulty, current, difference, etc. See the 
nouns. Inverse curve, line, point, etc., a curve, line, 
point, etc., resulting from spherical, quadrlc, and other 
varieties of geometrical inversion. Inverse ellipsoid 
of Inertia. See ellipsoid. Inverse matrix. See ma- 
Mx. Inverse method of fluxions. See fluxion. In- 
verse method of tangents. See tangent Inverse 
mood, in luiilc, an indirect mood. Inverse order of 
alienation, in the law of judicial or forced sales, a fixed 
order according to which parcels that the debtor has not 
aliened shall be first sold, and of those that he has aliened 
the later shall be sold before the earlier : a rule for the pro- 
tection of earlier over later grantees. Inverse problem, 
a problem like finding the equation to the ordlnate of a 
curve when its arc is given in terms of the abscissa. In- 
verse proportion, ratio, etc. See the nouns. Inverse 
rule of three, the rule of three as applied to quantities 
in inverse proportion to one another. 
II. n. An inverted state or condition ; a di- 
rect opposite ; something directly or absolutely 
contrary to something else : as, the inverse of a 
proposition. 
inversedt (in-versf), a. [ME. enversed; < in- 
verse + -ed 2 .] Inverted. 
The bough to sette is best In germynyng, . . . 
Hut hem to setto enversrd nought to doone is. 
Palladia, Husbondrle (E. E. T. S.), p. 115. 
Ill versed proportion , inverse proportion. See propor- 
tion. 
inversely (in-vers'li), adv. In an inverted or- 
der or manner ; in an inverse ratio or propor- 
tion, as when one thing is greater or less in 
proportion as another is less or greater. 
inversion (in-ver'shon), n. [= F. inversion = 
Sp. inversion = Pg. invers3o = It. inversione,<. 
L. inversion-), inversion, < inverters, pp. inver- 
sus, turn about: see invert.'] The act of in- 
verting, or the state of being inverted ; a turn- 
ing end for end, upside down, or inside out; 
any change of order such that the last becomes 
first and the first last; in general, any reversal 
of a given order or relation. 
We shall one day give but an ill and lame account of 
our watching and praying, if, by an odd inversion of the 
command, all that we do is first to pray against a tempta- 
tion, and afterwards to watch for it. South, Works, VI. x. 
Specifically (o) In gram., a change of the natural or 
recognized order of words: as, "of all vices, impurity Is 
one of the most detestable," instead of " impurity is one 
of the most detestable of all vices." (6) In rhet.. a mode 
of arguing by which the speaker tries to show that the 
arguments adduced by an opponent tell against his cause 
and are favorable to the speaker's, (c) In music: (1) The 
process, act, or result of transposing the tones of an inter- 
val or chord from their original or normal order. The 
several inversions of a chord are called first, second, and 
third respectively. See interval, 5, and chord, 4. (2) The 
process, act, or result of repeating a subject or theme with 
Invertebrata 
all its upward intervals or steps taken downward, and 
vice versa. Also called imilaivin by inoenum or in em- 
Irnr/i motion. (See imitation, 3.) Retrograde inversion, 
however, Is the same as retrograde imitation (which see, 
umlrr imitation, .H). (3) In double counterpoint, the trans- 
position of the upper voice-part below the lower, and 
vice versa. Inversion is the test of the correctness of the 
composition. The transposition may be either of an oc- 
tave or of any other Interval, (cf) In niafA. : (1) A turn- 
ing backward ; a contrary rule of operation : as, to prove 
an answer by inversion, as division by multiplication or 
addition by subtraction. (2) Change in the order of the 
terms. (:t) Certain transformations. Also the operation of 
reversing the direction of every line in a body without alter* 
Ing its length. (<) Inyeol., the folding back of strata upon 
themselves, as by upheaval, in such a way that the order 
of succession appears reversed. (/) Hilit., a movement 
in tactics by which the order of companies in line Is in- 
verted, the right being on the left, the left on the right, 
and so on. (y) In chew., a decomposition of certain sugars 
and other carbohydrates, Induced by the action of a fer- 
ment or dilute acid by which the element! of water are 
added to a carbohydrate, each molecule of which breaks 
up into two molecules of a different carbohydrate. Thus, 
cane-sugar in solution, when heated with a dilute acid, 
takes up water and breaks up into equal parts of dextrose 
and levulose. See invert-sugar. Circle Of Inversion, a 
circle with respect to which a given curve is its own In- 
verse. Geometrical Inversion (usually taken to mean 
cyclical or spherical inversion), a transformation by which 
for each point of a figure is substituted a point in the 
same direction from a fixed point, called the center of in- 
version, and at a distance therefrom equal to the recipro- 
cal of the distance of the first point. Inversion of an 
organ- or pedal-point. See oryan-point. Inversion 
of parts. See def. (c) (SX- Inversion of subjects. 
See def. (c) (2). Quadiic Inversion, in math., a trans- 
formation of a figure consisting In substituting for each 
point one lying In the same direction from a fixed center, 
and on the polar of the variable point with reference to 
a quadrlc surface. Tangential Inversion, in math., a 
transformation by whichfor every straight line of a figure 
is substituted a parallel line passing through the pole of 
the first with reference to a conic. 
inversive (in-ver'siv), a. [< inverse + -ive.] 
Of or pertaining to inversion ; capable of caus- 
ing inversion. 
invert (in-vert'), r. t. [= OF. invertir = Sp. 
invertir = Pg. inverter = It. invertere, < L. in- 
vertere, turn upside down, turn about, upset, 
invert, < in, in, to, toward, + vertere, turn : see 
verse. Cf. advert, convert, evert, etc.] 1. To 
turn in an opposite direction ; turn end for end, 
upside down, or inside out ; place in a contrary 
order or position : as, to invert a cone or a sack; 
to invert the order of words. 
Invert 
What best is boded me, to mischief. 
Shak., Tempest, lit 1, 70. 
Let no attraction invert the poles of thy honesty. 
Sir T. Broiene, Christ. Mor., 1. 9. 
We begin by knowing little and believing much, and we 
sometimes end by inverting the quantities. 
'.'...'..." Eliot, Middlemarch, I. 215. 
We invert the relation of cause and effect when we con- 
sider that our emotions are determined by our imagina- 
tive creeds. Leslie Stephen, Eng. Thought, I. 1 16. 
2f. To divert ; turn into another.channel ; de- 
vote to another purpose. 
Solyman charged him bitterly with inverting his trea- 
sures to his own private use. Knollet, Hist. Turks. 
=8yn. 1. Overthrow, Subvert, etc. See overturn. 
invert (in'vert), n. [< invert, v.] 1. In arch., 
an inverted arch; specifically, the floor of the 
lock-chamber of a canal, which is usually in 
the form of an inverted arch, or the bottom of 
a sewer. 
The bottom of the sewer is called the inrert, from a 
general resemblance in the construction to an " inverted " 
arch. Mayhem, London Labour and London Poor, II. 445. 
2. In teleg., an inverted or reversed insula- 
tor. 
An effort is at present being made to introduce a form 
of invert in which the bolt passes nearly to the top of the 
Insulating material. 
Preece and Sivemright, Telegraphy, p. 224. 
invertant (in-ver'tant), a. [< invert + -ant.] 
In her., same as inverted. 
invertebracy (in-ver'te-bra-si), . [< inrerte- 
hra(te) + -cy.] The condition of being inverte- 
brate, or without a backbone ; figuratively, lack 
of moral stamina ; irresolution. [Bare.] 
A person may reveal his hopeless invertebracy only when 
brought face to face with some critical situation. 
New York Semi-weekly Tribune, Dec. 24, 1886. 
invertebral (in-ver'te-bral), a. [< in-3 + ver- 
tebral.] Same as invertebrate. 
Invertebrata (in-ver-te-bra't&), n. pi. [NL., 
neut. pi. of invertebratus, invertebrate : see in- 
vertebrate.] That one of two great divisions of 
the animal kingdom (the other being the f'erte- 
brata) which includes animals having no spinal 
column or backbone. It includes seven of the eight 
main branches into which Animalia are divisible, namely 
Prot<&oa,Caelenterata. Kchinodermata, Vermes, A rthropoda, 
Mulluscnidfa, and Miilhixa. thus leaving only the I'erttbrata 
as the remaining subkingdom. of equal rank only with 
any one of the others, not with them all collectively. The 
word, however, no longer retains any exact taxouomic 
