lady-hen 
lady-hen (la'di-hen), M. .1. The skylark. 2. 
The wren: a contraction of thir l.nilif.t Inn. 
See /icl. [Prov. Eng.] 
ladyhood (la'di-hud), /i. [< Indy + -hood.'] The 
condition, character, quality, rank, etc., of a 
lutly. 
There WHS that in his tone . . . which was unpleaslng 
to Aimir's laili/hoixl. 
Qearye itacDotudd, What's Mine's Mine, p. 190. 
lady-key (la'di-ke), . Primula rrris, the prim- 
rose. 
lady-killer (la'di-kil'er), . A man supposed 
to be dangerously fascinating to women as 
u real or pretended lover; one whose fascina- 
tions are potent ; a general lover. [Humor- 
ous slang.] 
I'm a modest man, . . . I don't Bet up lobe & lady-killer. 
Thackeray, Vanity Fair, xili. 
lady-killing (la'di-kil'ing), n. The acts or arts 
of a lady-killer ; assiduous gallantry. [Humor- 
ous slang.] 
ladykin (la'di-kin), M. [< lady + -tin.] A lit- 
tle lady : applied by Elizabethan writers, in the 
abbreviated form Lakiu. to the Virgin Mary. 
[Bare.] 
ladylike (lii'di-lik), a. 1. Like a lady in any 
respect; refined; well-bred; courteous in man- 
ner. 2. Applied to men, affected ; effeminate. 
Some of these so rigid, yet very spruce ladylike preach- 
ers, think fit to gratify as their own persons, so their kind 
hearers and spectators. 
Jer. Taylor ('/), Artificial Handsomeness, p. 179. 
Fops at all comers, ladylike in mien, 
Civeted fellows, smelt ere they are seen. 
Coipper, Tirocinium, 1. 830. 
=8yn. Womanly, etc. See/emtnt'ne. 
lady-love (la'di-luv), H. 1. A female sweet- 
heart; a woman who is loved. 2. Love for a 
lady ; romantic love. 
And, like the Ariosto of the North, 
Sang ladye-lnoe and war, romance and knightly worth. 
Byron, Childe Harold, Ir. 40. 
ladymeatt (la'di-met), n. See the quotation. 
Many an alms was given for her sake ; and the food so 
set aside in almost every house to be bestowed upon the 
poor went by the name of Ladytneat. The victuals given 
to the poor in honour of the Blessed Virgin were often 
known by the above name. 
Jtock, Church of our Fathers, III. i. 284. 
lady's-bedstraw (la'diz-bed'stra), n. A plant, 
Our Lady's bedstraw, Galiuni verum. 
lady's-bower (la'diz-bou'er), n. The only 
British species of clematis, Clematis Vitalba. 
Also called traveler's-joy. 
lady's-comb (la'diz-kom), n, A small annual 
umbelliferous plant of Europe, Scandix Pecten- 
Veneris, with umbels of small white flowers, and 
pale-green finely divided leaves, growing in cul- 
tivated fields. The frott is laterally compressed and 
destitute of vitUe, or oil-vessels; it has long and sharp 
points, to which the name alludes. Also called Vemu's- 
comb and shepherd' a-netdle. 
lady's-cushion (la'diz-kush'on), n. The thrift, 
Arnteria vulgaris, a maritime plant with a dense 
cushion-like growth: also called .tea-cushion. 
Several other plants have sometimes been 
named lady's-cushion. 
lady's-delight (la'diz-de-lif), . The pansy, 
Viola tricolor. 
Ladifs' -delights and periwinkles. 
S. 0. Jewett, A Country Doctor, p. 237. 
lady's-eardrops (la'diz-er'drops), . The com- 
mon cultivated fuchsia. 
lady's-flnger (la'diz-fing*ger), n. 1. pi. The 
kidney-vetch, Antliyllix Vulneraria. The name 
has also been given to many other plants. 
2. One of the hairy appendages of the legs 
of lobsters, attached to the base of the leg. 
They are the gills or branchite. See exopo- 
dite. 3. A kind of confectioners' cake, or of 
sponge-cake, so named from the long and slen- 
der form. 
" Fetch me that Ottoman, and prithee keep 
Your voice low," said the Emperor, "and steep 
Some lady s fingers nice in Candy wine." 
Kent*. Cap and Bells, st. 48. (Daritt.) 
4. A finger-shaped variety of the potato for- 
merly common, small, white, and of delicate 
flavor. 5. A variety of apple. 
Also huh/tiiii/i r. 
lady's-glove (la'diz-gluv), . The purple fox- 
glove, Dii/itii/itt juir/ntrfii. The name is also 
given to one or two other plants, as Inulii 
lady's-gown (la'diz-goun), H. In Scots laic, a 
gift sometimes made by a purchaser to a ven- 
dor's wife on her renouncing her life-rent in 
her husband's estate. 
3320 
lady's-hair (la'diz-har), . 1. The quaking- 
grass, liri:<i media. 2. One of the maiden- 
hair ferns, .Idiinitiini ( 'a/iUlux- \ ' 
ladyship (la'di-ship), . [< lady + -ship.] 
The condition or rank of a lady. Her or your la- 
dyship, a form used in speaking of or to a woman having 
the title of Lady. 
1 did what your Ladythip commanded me at York- 
house. Uouxll, Letters, I. v. 23. 
lady-slipper (la'di-slip'er), w. See lady's-slip- 
per. 
lady's-maid (la'diz-mad), n. A female atten- 
dant upon a lady. 
lady's-mantle (la'diz-man'tl), n. An Old 
World rosaceous herb, Alchemilla vulgaris. It 
has a bitterish, astringent taste, and was for- 
merly used in medicine as an astringent. 
lady's-seal (la'diz-sel), . 1. A plant, Tamus 
communist, of the natural order Dioxcoreaeea: 
It IB a perennial climber, with greenish-white flowers and 
scarlet perries, and grows in hedges and woods in England. 
Also called black bryony. 
2. The Solomon's-seal of England, Polyyona- 
turn multifloriini. 
lady's-slipper (la'diz-slip'er), n. 1. Any or- 
chid of the genus Cypripedium. In America the 
most conspicuous wild laay's-slippers are the larger yel- 
low, C. pnoeiKfitu ; the smaller yellow, C. parcifttmtin; the 
showy, C. Hpectabile ; and the stemlcss, C. acatue. The roots 
of the first two yield an officinal remedy, regarded as a gen- 
tle nervous stimulant and antlspasinodlc. 
2. The garden-balsam, Impatient balsamina. 
[U. 8.] The name has also been given locally 
to other plants. 
lady's-smock (la'diz-smok), M . \ cruciferous 
plant, Cardamine pratensis. Also called cuckoo- 
flower. Commonly called lady-smock. 
Daisies pied and violets blue. 
And lady-tmofJa all silver-white. 
SAot.,L. L.L..V.2.906. 
That meadow, chequered with water-lilies and lady- 
smocks. I. Walton, Complete Angler, p. 58. 
lady's-thistle (la'diz-this'l), . 1 . The blessed 
thistle, CHICKS benedictus. 2. The milk-thistle, 
Carauus Marianum. 
lady's-thumb (la'diz-thum), . The common 
persicaria, Poly gonum Persicaria : so called from 
its dense oblong reddish spike. [U. S.] 
lady's-tresses (la'diz-tres'ez), n. An orchid, 
Spiranthes autumnalis; also, any orchid of that 
genus. These orchids are low plants, notable for their 
spikes of white spirally arranged flowers. In the United 
States S. ceriuia is perhaps the best-known species. 
Laelaps (le'laps), n. [NL., < L. L&laps, the 
name of a dog in Ovid's " Metamorphoses," < 
Or. ha&Mty, a dark, furious storm, a hurricane.] 
1. In rod'/., a generic name used in various 
senses, (a) A genus of arachnidans. Koch, 1835. (6) 
A genus of hymenopterous parasites, of the chalcid sub- 
family Pteromalitue, with two West Indian species, /-. 
sadttles and L. pulchricornin. Usually Lelapn, as Walker, 
1843. ( r-) A genus of gigantic dlnosaurian reptiles, estab- 
lished by Cope in 1866. Some of the species stood 18 feet 
high, and they were shaped like kangaroos, progressing 
on their plantigrade hind feet with the assistance of the 
massive tail. The jaws were large and armed with sharp 
teeth. The animals were carnivorous and rapacious to a 
high degree. 
2. [/. c.] A species or an individual of the ge- 
nus Lcelaps (c). 
When hunting, the lcefap probably wandered around 
the lowlands, or swam along the shore until It arrived 
within twenty-five or thirty feet of its victim, when with a 
spring it cleared the distance. Stand. Hat. lint.. III. 487. 
Lselia (le'li-ft), n. [NL. (Lindley, 1830), named 
after /.//.-, a Roman statesman.] A genus of 
orchidaceous plants of the tribe Epidcndrece, 
type of the subtribe Lceliece, having the sepals 
and petals flat, the lateral lobes of the lip broad 
and loosely investing the column, and the flow- 
ers large and showy. They are epiphytes furnished 
with pseiidolmll is, which are often elongate and stem-like, 
and coriaceous or fleshy leaves. The flowers are borne on 
simple terminal racemes. About 20 species have been 
discovered, inhabiting tropical America from Brazil to 
Mexico. Several of them are common in collections of 
orchids. 
Laelieae (le-li'e-e), n. pi. [NL. (Bentham and 
Hooker, 1883)', < Lcelia + -eoc.] A subtribe of 
orchidaceous plants of the tribe Epidendre<r, 
chiefly epiphytes with terminal inflorescence, 
the pollinia in one or two series of four. It 
embraces 15 genera besides l.n-iin, the type, 
including Epidendrum, Cattteya, etc. Written 
Laliada; by Lindley. 
laemmergeier, laeinmergeyer, n. See lammer- 
gcier. 
loemodipod (le-mod'i-pod), a. and n. [As Lce- 
MxNfWda.] 1. a. Pertaining to the Lwmodipo- 
da, or having their characters. Also lannodipo- 
(tllHU. 
II. a. A member of the order L<emodij>oda. 
Also Itemodipodan. 
lafayette 
Lsemodipoda (lo-mo-dip'o-djii, ti.pl. [NL., 
neut. pi. of lii'iiinilipiif, < ( ir. /aifiof, the throat, + 
' ~ 
f (<?<ro<?-), two-footed : see dipotlr, IHpus.~\ 
An order of edriophthalmous crustaceans, re- 
lated to the amphipods, by Home made a group 
otAniphipinlii. It ls characterized by having the abdo- 
men rudimentary, reduced to a mere papilla, the first two 
thoracic somites coalesced with the head, so that the cor- 
responding pairs of limbs seem to be attached to this part, 
branchial vesicles on several thoracic somites, and in the 
female laminar oostegites for carrying the ova. The group 
consists of two families, Cyamida and Cavrcllida, or the 
whale-lice and the mantis- or specter-inrimps. These 
animals are marine and parasitic. The Lamodipoda were 
at one time made a part of the Itopnda, corresponding to 
a section, Cuntibranchia; of that order. They were later 
raised to ordinal rank, and divided by Latrt- ille into Fili- 
furtnia and Ocalia, which divisions correspond to the 
modern families Caprellidce and Oyamida. See these 
words. Also spelled Lemwlipoda. 
laemodipodan (le-mo-dip'o-dan), . and n. 
Same as la-modipod. 
laemodipodiform (le-mo-dip'o-di-fdrm), a. [< 
NL. ta-modipus (see La~modipoda) + L. forma, 
form.] In entom., resembling the Lannodipoda 
in shape : an epithet applied by Kirby to certain 
orthopterous larv with elongate, subcylindri- 
cal bodies, long antennee. and the anterior legs 
distant from the intermediate ones, as the Phas- 
m ulif or walking-sticks. 
laemodipodous (le-mo-dip'o-dus), a. [< NL. 
Icemodipus: see Laxnodipoda.] Same as l<emodi- 
pod. 
lasnt, . [AS. Icen, a loan, grant, fee, fief: see 
loan 1 .] In one. Eng. law, the tenure of land 
as a benefice, either by mere permission, as in 
the case of the ordinary leen, where the tenant 
was dependent on the will of the lord, and pro- 
tected only by custom, or by a writing called a 
book (bok), expressing the terms of the tenure 
and the right of the tenant. The tenant paid for 
the use either in money, in produce, or in labor, frequent- 
ly In all. At the expiration of the tenancy, which was 
usually for life, the laud reverted to the grantor. 
laena (le'nft), .; pi. /?; (-lie). [L., = Gr. 
j/Uuva, a cloak.] In anc. Bom. costume, a woolen 
cloak usually of two thicknesses of cloth, worn 
over the pallium or the toga as a protection 
from the weather. It occurred in an ornamented 
form as an early robe of state, and also formed part of the 
costume of office of the flamens. In late times it was 
worn to some extent as a substitute for the toga. 
laen-landt, n. [AS., latnland, lanland, < lien, a 
grant (see lam), + land, land.] In Anglo-Saxon 
law, land held and occupied by virtue of a laen. 
Either bookland or folkland could be let. lent, or leased 
out by its holders ; and, under the name of lowland, held 
by free cultivators. StuMw, Const. Hist, i 36. 
laeotropic (le-o-trop'ik), a. [As laiotrop-ous + 
-ic.] Sinistral ; turning or turned to the left, 
as the whorls of a spiral shell : opposed to dexio- 
tropic. 
laeotropous (le-ot'ro-pus), a. [< Gr. )ai6f (= L. 
Icevus), left, + rptirtiv, turn.] Turning to the 
left; sinistral : opposed to dextrotropous. 
laet (AS. pron. lat), n. [AS. tef.] Among the 
Anglo-Saxons, one of a class inferior to that of a 
ceorl, but above that of a slave. See freeman, 3. 
Laetare (le-ta're), w. [So called from the first 
word of the introit of the mass on this day. L. 
ItKtare, 2d pers. sing. impv. of latari, rejoice, < 
Icetns, joyful, glad.] Eccles., the fourth Sunday 
in Lent. It is on this Sunday that the Pope 
blesses the golden rose. Also called Mid-Lent 
Sunday. 
laevigate, laevigatous, a. See lerigate 1 . 
Lxvigrada (le-vig'ra-da), n. pi. [NL.,< L. 
fafw, light, + gradi, step.J One of many names 
of the Pycnogonida. 
laevoglucose, laevogyrate, etc. See levoglucone, 
etc. 
lafayette (la-fa-yef), [So named because 
it first became well known about the time of 
the last visit of Lafayette to the United States 
(1824-5).] 1. A sciaenoid fish of the northern 
Laftrette (Luttamui jr<r*/4nu). 
United States, Liostomus xanthurus, of an ob- 
long form, with the back elevated toward the 
front, a steep profile, and no teeth in the lower 
jaw. The sides are marked with about 16 dark bauds 
