kirtle 
This sideless kirtle or cote-hardi continued to enjoy un- 
abated favour for not much less than two centuries. 
Encyc. Brit., VI. 467. 
2. An outer petticoat. HalUwell. [Prov. Eng.] 
Folded her kirtle over her head, 
And sped away like a startled doe. 
R. T. Cooke. 
3f. A coat or layer of plaster. 
The kirtils doo theron of marble greyne, 
But first lete oon be drie. 
Pattadius, Husbondrie (E. E. T. S.), p. 16. 
Full kirtle, the larger kirtle, cither coat or petticoat : so 
called in contradistinction to half-kirtle. 
kirtle 1 (ker'tl), v. t. ; pret. and pp. kirtled, ppr. 
kirtling. [< kirtle 1 , n.] To dispose in the man- 
ner of a kirtle. 
Escape by pulpit stairs is even becoming doubtful with- 
out kirtling those outward investments which distinguish 
the priest from the man so high that no one will see there 
is anything but the man left. Huxley. 
kirtle 2 (ker'tl), n. [Origin obscure.] A quan- 
tity of flax, about 100 pounds. 
kirtled (ker'tld), a. [< kirtle 1 + -e<&.] Wearing 
a kirtle. 
The flowery-Hrtferf Naiades, 
Culling their potent herbs and baleful drugs. 
Milton, Comus, 1. 264. 
Unmatched in strength, a giant he, 
With quivered back and kirtled knee. 
Scott, Rokeby, L 20. 
kirumbo (ki-rum'bo), n. [Malagasy.] A Mada- 
gascarian bird, Leptosomus discolor, the only liv- 
ing representative of the family Leptosomidee. 
The male is glossy green, gray below and on the sides of 
the head and around the neck ; the female is spotted and 
barred with blackish and rufous brown. The birds live 
in small flocks in woodland, and have the habit of tum- 
bling in the air from a great height, like the rollers (Cora- 
das). See cut under Leptosomus. 
kirve (kerv), v. t. In coal-mining, to hole or 
undercut. Also kerve. [North. Eng.] 
kisel (ke'sel), n. [= G. kissel; < Kuss. kiselu 
= Pol. kisiel, sour jelly (see def.), = OBulg. 
kyselii, sour, akin to kysnati, become wet, be- 
come sour, kvasti = Russ. kvasii, etc., a sour 
drink : see kvass.] A slightly acidulated jelly 
made of flour, water, and the juice of some 
fruit, common in all Slavic countries. 
kisb. 1 (kish), . [Origin obscure.] A largo 
basket. [Ireland.] 
In the middle of the crowd were two common country 
farm carts, with a large kish (a very large basket used for 
the carriage of turf, peat. Ac.) in each. Seated in each 
kish, packed closely together, and not at all at their ease 
apparently, were six men. N. and Q., 7th ser., V. 97. 
kish. 2 , keesh (kish, kesh), n. [< G. toes, gravel, 
pyrites: see ehesil.] In metal., a name given 
by furnacemen to the graphite which appears 
on the surface of the iron in the blast-furnace 
during the process of tapping. 
kishon (kish'on), n. [Manx (?).] A certain 
measure used in the Isle of Man ; a peck. 
kisk (kisk), n. A dialectal variant (transposed) 
of kex. 
kiskatom (kis'ka-tom), n. [Also kiskitom, kis- 
kitomas, and formerly keskataina ; an Amer. Ind. 
name, said to be < kushki or koshki, rough.] A 
hickory-nut. 
kiskitomas-nut (kis-ki-tom'as-nut), n. Same 
as kiskatom. Also, grotesquely, kisky-TJiomas- 
nut. 
Many descendants of the Dutch settlers who inhabit 
the parts of New Jersey near the city of New York call it 
kisky-Thomas-mtt. Michaux, North Am. Sylva. 
Hickory, shell-bark, kiskitomas nut I 
Or whatsoever thou art called, thy praise 
Has ne'er been sounded yet in poet s lays. 
Literary World, Nov. 2, 1860. 
Kisleu, n. See Chisleu. 
kismet (kis'met), . [< Turk, qismet, Pers. 
Hind, qismat, < Ar. qisma(t), portion, lot, des- 
tiny, < qasama, divide.] Lot; destiny; fate: 
an Oriental term denoting man's lot in life or 
any detail or incident of it. 
kiss (kis), n. [< ME. kiss, kyss, Ja/s, cus, cuss (with 
vowel altered to suit the derived verb), orig. coss, 
cos, < AS. coss = OS. kus = OFries. kos = D. 
kus = MLG. kits = OHG. CMS, chits, MHG. kus, 
kuz, G. kitss = Icel. fcoss = Sw. kyss = Dan. kys, 
a kiss ; perhaps connected with Goth, kustus, a 
proof, test (= L. gustus, taste), from the verb, 
AS. cedsan, etc., choose: see choose and gust*. 
Otherwise connected, in some way not ex- 
plained, with Goth, kukjnn, kiss, of which there 
is besides no Teut. cognate. Cf . W. cus, cusan, 
Corn, cussin, a kiss.] 1. A salute or caress given 
by smacking with the lips. See kiss, v. t., 1. 
But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son 
of man with a kiss? Luke xxii. 48. 
We will kiss sweet kisses and speak sweet words. 
Tennyson, The Sea-Fairies. 
3294 
2. (a) A confection, usually made of whites of 
eggs and powdered sugar, mixed, and baked in 
an oven. (6) A sugar-plum or candied confec- 
tion made of pulled sugar and variously colored 
and flavored. 3. pi. Same as kiss-me. Kiss 
Of peace, in the early church, a kiss exchanged as a greet- 
ing and in sign of Christian love, and used ceremonially at 
baptism and on other occasions, but especially in the eu- 
charistic service introduced by the words " Peace be with 
you " (response, "and with thy spirit"), and "Greet ye one 
another with an holy kiss," or some similar form. (See 
1 Cor. xvi. 20, and otherpassages of Scripture.) Kissing as 
an act of salutation was not unusual in ordinary inter- 
course in some of the countries where Christianity first 
prevailed ; but among the Christians the kiss of peace was 
ordered at a very early date to be confined to persons of the 
same sex. Later, the custom of actually giving the kiss fell 
into gradual disuse, though liturgical forms still survive to 
represent its spiritual meaning of reconciliation to God and 
man. In the Western Church the kissing of a tablet called 
the pax has, since the thirteenth century, replaced the 
kiss between persons ; and this form of the ceremony is 
still sometimes used at high mass in the Roman Catholic 
Church, but Is not extended to the congregation. Some- 
times called simply the peace. See pax. 
kiss (kis), r. [< ME. kissen, kyssen (pret. kist, 
kiste), < AS. cyssan (pret. cyste) = OS. kussjan 
= OFries. kessa = D. kussen = MLG. kussen 
OHG. chussen, chussan, citssan, MHG. G. kus- 
sen = Icel. kyssa = Dan. kysse = Sw. kyssa, 
kiss; from the noun: see kiss, n, Cf. Goth. 
kukjan, kiss.] I. trans. 1. To smack with the 
pursed lips (a compression of the closed cavity 
of the mouth by the cheeks givingaslight sound 
when the rounded contact of the lips with one 
another is broken) ; press one's lips to, or touch 
with the lips, as a mark of affection or rever- 
ence, or as a conventional salutation; salute or 
caress with the lips : as, to kiss the Bible in tak- 
ing an oath ; to kiss a lady's hand ; to kiss one on 
the cheek ; they kissed each other. 
In the left syde of the Walle of the Tabernacle is, well 
the heighte of a man, a gret Ston to the quantytee of 
a mannes Hed, that was of the Holy Sepulcre ; and that 
Ston kissen the Pilgrymes that comen thidre. 
tlandemlle, Travels, p. 76. 
"Thow seist soth," quath Eyghtwisnesse, and reuerent- 
liche heo cugte 
Pees, and Pees heore. Piers Plowman (C), xxi. 467. 
The wife, and mother, frantic with despair, 
Kiss his pale cheek, and rend their scatter'd hair. 
Pope, Iliad, xxiv. 889. 
2. To touch gently, as if with fondness; im- 
pinge upon softly. [Poetical.] 
When the sweet wind did gently kiss the trees. 
Shak., M. of V., v. 1, 2. 
The moon-beam kiss'd the holy pane, 
And threw on the pavement a bloody stain. 
Scott, L. of L.M.,iLll. 
Hence 3. To touch slightly, as one ball an- 
other, in billiards and other games To kiss 
away, to lose through amorous fondling and consequent 
neglect ; squander in gallantry. 
\Ve have kiss'd away 
Kingdoms and provinces. 
Shak., A. and C., iii. 10, 7. 
To kiss hands, to salute one's sovereign by hand kissing 
on certain state occasions especially, in Great Britain, on 
the occasion of a minister's acceptance of office. 
The Queen again gave audience to Lord Salisbury in the 
afternoon, when he kissed hands on his appointment as 
First Lord of the Treasury. 
The Graphic (London), July 31, 1886. 
To kiss the dust, to be overthrown ; be slain. To kiss 
the postt, to be shut out ; be too late for anything. Nares. 
Dost thou hear me, Ned? If I shall be thy host, 
Make haste thou art best, for fear thou kiss the post. 
Heywood, Edward IV., 1600. 
To kiss the rod, to accept punishment submissively. 
How wayward is this foolish love, 
That, like a testy babe, will scratch the nurse, 
And presently all humbled kiss the rod. 
Shak., T. G. of V., i. 2,69. 
H. intrans. 1 . To salute with the lips mutu- 
ally, especially as a token of affection, friend- 
ship, or respect: as, to kiss and part. 2. To 
meet with a gentle touch or impact; meet; just 
come in contact. 
These violent delights have violent ends, 
And In their triumph die, like fire and powder, 
Which as they kiss, consume. 
Shak., R. and J.,ii. 6, 11. 
kissar (kis'ar), n. [African.] A five-stringed 
lyre used by the inhabitants of northern Africa 
and Abyssinia, of similar form to an instru- 
ment represented in the hands of captives on 
Assyrian bas-reliefs. 
kissee (kis-e'), n. [< kiss + -ee 1 .] The recipient 
of a kiss; one who is kissed. Bulwer. [Rare.] 
kisser (kis'er), n. One who kisses. 
Are you not he that is a kisser of men in drunkenness, 
and a berayer in sobriety? 
Fletcher (and another), Love's Cure, ii. 1. 
kissing-comfit (kis'ing-kum"fit), n. A per- 
fumed sweetmeat, consisting of the candied 
kit 
root of Eri/ni/ium maritimum, the sea-eryngo, 
used to sweeten the breath. 
Let it ... hail kissing -comfits and snow eringoes. 
Shak., M. W. of W., v. 5, 22. 
Sure your pistol holds 
Nothing but perfumes or kissing -comfits. 
Webster, Duchess of Malfl. 
kissing-crust (kis'ing-krust), . In cookery, 
an overhanging edge of the upper crust of a 
loaf, that touches another loaf while baking. 
He cuts a massy fragment from the rich kissing- crust 
that hangs like a fretted cornice from the upper half of 
the loaf. W. Howitt. 
kissing-hand (kis'ing-hand), n. The two-toed 
ant-eater, Cydotliurus didactylus. [Local, Su- 
rinam.] 
kissing-stringst (kis'ing-stringz), . pi. Cap- 
or bonnet-strings tied under the chin. 
Behind her back the streamers fly, 
And ki&ting-strings hang dangling by. 
London Ladies Dressing Room, 1705. (Nares.) 
The first time I to town or market gang, 
A pair of kissing -strings, and gloves, fire-new, 
As gueed as I can wyle, shall be your due. 
A. Bass, Helenore, p. 84. 
kiss-me (kis'me), . The wild form of Viola 
tricolor, the pansy. Also called kisses. 
kist 1 (kist), n. An obsolete or dialectal form 
of chest 1 . 
kist 2 , n. See cistf. 
kist 3 . Another spelling of kissed, preterit and 
jjast participle of kiss. 
kist 4 . An obsolete or dialectal preterit and past 
participle of cast 1 . 
kist" (kist), n. [E. Ind.] In the East Indies, 
an instalment of rent, of a tax, or the like. 
kistresst, [See kestrel.] A kestrel-hawk. 
Blomc; HalUwell. 
kistvaen, n. See cistvaen. 
kit 1 (kit), n. [< ME. Jcytt, < MD. Icitte, beaker, 
decanter, a large drinkmg-vessel made of staves 
and hoops, D. kit, a beaker. Cf. Norw. kitte, a 
corn-bin.] 1. A pail, small tub, box, or chest 
containing or for holding particular commodi- 
ties or articles: as, a kit of mackerel; a kit of 
tools. 
In pails, kits, dishes, basins, pinboukes, bowls, 
Their scorched bosoms merrily they baste. 
Drayton, Moses. 
Hence 2. An outfit of necessaries for a trade 
or occupation, or for some special purpose: as, 
a traveler's or an angler's kit. A mechanic's kit 
comprises the tools required for his work ; a soldier's or 
sailor's kit, such personal necessaries as he has to provide 
at his own cost. 
She gave in like a wise woman, and proceeded to pre- 
pare Tom's kit for his launch into a public school. 
T. Hughes, Tom Brown at Rugby, i. 3. 
There is always the pitiful little lit that a girl makes 
up when she leaves the old home-roof. 
Smtmer's Mag., IV 347. 
3. Abasket; especially, a straw or rush basket. 
4. Inphotog., a flat rectangular frame fitted 
into a plate-holder to enable it to carry a plate 
smaller than the size for which it is made. 
kit 1 (kit), v. t.; pret. and pp. kitted, ppr. kitting. 
[< kit 1 , n.] To pack in kits for market: as, 
kitted mackerel, as distinguished from barreled 
mackerel. 
The flsh is brought ashore again to the cooper's offices, 
boiled, pickled, and kitted. 
Pennant, The Common Salmon. 
kit 2 (kit), v. and n. A dialectal and Middle 
English variant of cut. 
Tho redde he me how Sampson loste hise heres, 
Slepynge, his leinman kitte it with Mr shores. 
Chaucer, Prol. to Wife of Bath's Tale, 1. 722. 
kit 3 (kit), n. [A dial. var. of kith.'] A family ; 
a brood. AU the kit, or the whole ttt, the whole 
lot or assemblage ; every one : used, with reference to 
persons, in contempt : as, I defy the whole kit of them. 
[Colloq.) 
But now I wad na gi'e ae louse 
For a' the tit. 
.R. Galloway, Poems, p. 170. 
There was good reason to fear that "the whole kit and 
biling," as our men invariably called our traps, would be 
swept away. Trip to the Rocky Mountains (1869). 
You're jess one quarter richer 'n ef you owned haff, and 
jess three quarters richer 'n ef you owned the hull kit and 
boodle of it. T. Winthrop, John Brent, ii. 
kit 4 (kit), . [Abbr. of kitten.] 1. A kitten. 
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives, 
How many were going to St. Ives? 
Nursery riddle. 
2f. A light woman. Davies. 
Such foolish Kittes of such a skittish kinde 
In Bridewell booke are every where to flnde. 
Breton, Pasquil's Fooles-cappe, p. 21. 
kit 5 (kit), H. [Appar. ult. abbr. of AS. cytere, < 
L. cithara, a guitar: see cittern, gittcrn, guitar.] 
