length 
cented or unaccented in modern or accentual 
poetry. See long 1 , a. 7. A piece or portion of 
the extent of anything iu space or time ; a part 
of what is extended or elongated : as, a length 
of rope; a dress-length; to cut anything into 
short lengths: often used specifically of a defi- 
nite portion, of known extent, of the thing spo- 
ken of, as of an acting drama (namely, forty 
or forty-two lines) : as, an actor's part of six 
lengths; won by a length (that is, of the horse, 
boat, etc., engaged in the contest). 
Large lengths of seas and shores 
Between my father and my mother lay. 
SAo*.,K. John, i. 1.105. 
Time glides along with undiscover'd haste, 
The future but a length behind the past. 
Dryaen, tr. of Ovid. 
Ten lengths from the big double he was out of his rider's 
hand, and going as fast as he could drive. 
Whyte Melville, Satanella, p. 128. 
8. In archery, the distance from the archer to 
the target he is to shoot at A cable's length, 
a measure of distance in charts and sailing directions, 
about 100 fathoms (600 feet). The regular length of a chain 
cable is 120 fathoms (720 feet). See cable's-length.A. 
great length, a long way or distance toward any end or 
object At full length, fully extended; to or in the 
greatest extension. At length, (a) To or in the full 
extent ; without curtailment : as, to write a name at length; 
to read a document at length, (b) After a time ; at last ; 
at the end, or at a point of transition : as, at length he 
came to a spring; at length they were subdued. Bast- 
alveolar length. See basi alveolar. Basinasal length. 
See baeinasal. Butt's length. See butt'*. Focal 
length. See focal distance (b), under focal. Iron's 
length. See iron. Length Of days, long life; pro- 
longed existence. 
Length of days is in her right hand. Prov. iii. 18. 
Length of one's nose. See nose. On lengtht, away. 
Draw the to pese with alle thy strength ; 
Fro stryf and bate draw the on lengths. 
Babees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 304. 
To go to all lengths, to exhaust all means ; use extreme 
efforts or measures to do everything possible without 
scruple : as, he went to all lengths to compass his purposes. 
To go to the length Of. (a) To go to ; proceed as far as. 
(6) To go to the extent of ; rise to the pitch or height of : 
commonly used of inordinate action or speech : as, he 
went to the length of tearing down his house, of denying 
his identity, or of sacrificing his own interests. To keep 
a length, in archery, to maintain the same distance in 
shooting ; shoot uniformly as to distance ; shoot the same 
distance with each arrow. To march to the length 
oft. Same as to go to the length of (a). 
He had marched to the length of Exeter. 
Clarendon, Great Rebellion. 
To measure one's length. See measure. Dnlt of 
length. See unit. 
lengtht (length), v. t. [ME. lengthen; < length, 
.] To extend; lengthen. 
"For sche hade broujt hem of bale bothe," thei seide, 
" & i-lengthed here lif mani long gere." 
William of Palerne (E. E. T. S.), 1. 1040. 
And knowes ful wel life doth but length his paine. 
Mir. for Mags., p. 264. 
And mingled yarn to length her web withall. 
Sylveiter, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, i. 2. 
lengthen (leng'thn), v. [< length + -en^. Cf. 
length, .] I. trans. To make long or longer; 
extend or elongate in space or in duration ; pro- 
tract or prolong: as, to lengthen a line; to lengthen 
life ; to lengthen a vowel or syllable in pronun- 
ciation. 
Why do I overlive? 
Why am I mock'd with death, and lengthen'd out 
To deathless pain 1 Milton, P. L., x. 774. 
The bare white roads 
Lengthening in solitude their dreary line. 
Wordsworth, Prelude, xlii. 
II. intrans. To grow long or longer; extend 
in length. 
And gasping, panting, fainting, labour on 
With heavier strides, that lengthen tow'rd the town. 
Pope, niad, xxi. 638. 
Drags at each remove a lengthening chain. 
Ooldsmith, Traveller, 1. 10. 
lengthful (length 'ful), a. [< length + -ful] 
Of considerable or remarkable length ; lengthy; 
long. [Bare.] 
The driver whirls his lengthful thong. Pope, Iliad, xi. 
lengthily (leng'thi-li), adv. In a lengthy man- 
ner ; at great length. 
lengthiness (leng'thi-nes), n. The quality of 
being lengthy ; prolixity. 
lengthways (length'waz), adv. Same as length- 
wise. 
lengthwise (length ' wiz), adv. [< length + 
-wise.] In the direction of the length; in a 
longitudinal direction. 
lengthy (leng'thi), a. [< length + -01.] Hav- 
ing length; long; especially, of great length; 
immoderately long, sometimes with the idea 
of tediousness attached : applied chiefly to dis- 
courses, writings, arguments, proceedings, etc.: 
3408 
as, a lengthy sermon; a lengthy dissertation. 
[Said by Richardson to have originated in the 
United States (see the allusions in Southey and 
Lowell below), but the earliest quotations found 
are from British authors.] 
Sometimes a poet when he publishes what in America 
would be called a lengthy poem with lengthy annotations, 
advises the reader in his preface not to read the notes in 
their places as they occur, . . . but to read the poem by 
itself at flrat. Southey, The Doctor, clx. 
The word lengthy has been charged to our American 
account, but it must have been invented by the first reader 
of Oower's works, the only inspiration of which they were 
ever capable. Lowell, Study Windows, p. 269. 
Next came a body of about one hundred and fifty per- 
sons on horseback, each carrying a very lengthy Persian- 
made rifle. Of Donovan, Merv, x. 
lenience (le'niens), n. [<le>rien(t) + -ce.] Same 
as leniency. 
leniency (le'nien-si), n. [< lenien(t) + -cy.~\ 
The quality of being lenient; mildness; gentle- 
ness; lenity. 
The House has always shown a wise leniency in dealing 
with improper words blurted out in the heat of argument. 
Fortnightly Rev., N. S., XXXIX. 264. 
= Syn. Leniency, Lenity, Clemency, Mercy; humanity, ten- 
derness, forbearance. Clemency is exercised only toward 
offenders, being especially the attribute of those in exalted 
places having power to remit or lighten penalty. Le- 
niency, as a word, is much more common and expressive 
than lenity; leniency or lenity may be practised by any 
one having authority to lighten or remit penalty or to ex- 
cuse from tasks: as, the leniency of a judge, a parent, or 
a teacher. Mercy has a twofold use, expressing clemency 
toward offenders or great kindness toward the distressed; 
in either sense it is a strong word, 
lenient (le'nient), a. and . [= OF. lenient = 
Sp. Pg. It. leiiiente, < L. lenien(t-)s, ppr. of lenire, 
soften, soothe, < lenis, soft : see lenity.] I. a. 1. 
Softening; mitigating; assuasive. [Archaic.] 
Consolatories writ 
With studied argument, and much persuasion sought, 
Lenient of grief and anxious thought. 
Milton, S. A., 1. 659. 
Those lenient cares, which with our own combined. 
By mix'd sensations ease th' afflicted mind. 
Crabbe, Works, I. 140. 
[Old Time] upon these wounds hath laid 
Ilis lenient touches. Wordsworth, Sonnets, iii. 8. 
2. Relaxing; emollient; lenitive. [Rare.] 
Oils relax the fibres, are lenient, balsamic. 
Arbuthnot, Aliments. 
3. Acting or disposed to act without rigor or 
severity; mild; gentle; merciful; clement. 
The law is remarkably lenient towards debtors. 
E. W. Lane, Modern Egyptians, I. 124. 
A critic should be lenient when considering speculations 
of this nature. Science, VII. 556. 
= Syn. 3. Forbearing, tender. See leniency. 
II. t n. An emollient ; a lenitive. 
Therefore I do advise the use of lenients, not only by 
the authority of those ancient and modern chirurgeons, 
but by my own practice. Wiseman, Surgery, v. 9. 
leniently (le'nient-li), adv. In a lenient man- 
ner; assuagingly; mildly. 
Leniently as he was treated by his contemporaries, pos- 
terity has treated him more leniently still. 
Macaulay, Lord Bacon. 
lenify (leu'i-fl), v. t.; pret. and pp. Unified, ppr. 
Unifying. [< OF. Unifier, F. Unifier = Pr. Sp. 
Pg. Unificar = It. Unificare, < L. lenis, smooth, 
soft, mild, + facere, make: see -fy.] To as- 
suage; soften; mitigate. [Now rare.] 
That sorowe whiche shall assaile me by reason of your 
absence I will sweten and lenefie with contentation. 
Barnaby Rich, Farewell to Military Profession. 
My Lord Treasurer Clifford, who could not endure I 
should loiiinc my style when a war with Holland was the 
subject. Evelyn, To Pepys. 
All soft'ning simples, known of sov'reign use, 
He presses out and pours their noble juice ; 
These first infus'd, to lenify the pain, 
He tugs with pincers, but he tugs in vain. 
Dryden, .Sneid, xii. 592. 
leniment (len'i-ment), n. [= OF. Uniment, 
liniment, < L. lenimentum, a soothing remedy, < 
lenire, soften, soothe: see lenient, a.] A sooth- 
ing application; a liniment. 
lenitive (len'i-tiv), a. and n. [= F. Unitif = 
Pr. lenitiu = Sp. Pg. It. Unitivo, < L. as if *leni- 
tivus,(. lenituSf'pp. of lenire, soften: see lenient.] 
I. a. Assuaging; palliating. 
Those milks have all an acrimony ; though one would 
think they should be lenitive. Bacon, Nat. Hist., 639. 
II. n. 1. A medicine or an application that 
has the quality of easing pain ; anything which 
softens or mitigates. 
Thy linative appli'de did ease my paine ; 
For, though thou did forbid, twas no restraine. 
Marie Magdalens Lamentations (1601). (Nares.) 
Address 
Some lenitives, t' allay the fl'riness 
Of this disease. Daniel, Civil Wars, viii. 
lens 
Their pain soft arts of pharmacy can ease, 
Thy breast alone no lenitives appease. 
Pope, Iliad, xvi. 39. 
2. Anything which tends to allay passion or ex- 
citement ; a palliative. 
I did apply some lenitives to soften 
His anger, and prevail'd. 
Shirley, Brothers, iv. 1. 
There is one sweet lenitive at least for evils, which Na- 
ture holds out ; so I took it kindly at her hands, and fell 
asleep. Sterne, Sentimental Journey, p. 43. 
lenitiveness (len'i-tiv-nes), n. The quality of 
being lenitive or emollient. Bailey, 1727. 
lenitudet (len'i-tud), n. [= OF. Unitude, < L. 
Unitudo, softness, mildness, < lenis, soft: see 
lenity.] Lenity. Blount. 
lenity (len'i-ti), [< OF. Unite, F. Unite = Sp. 
lenidad = 'Pg. Unidade = It. Unitd, < L. Uni- 
ta(t-)s, softness, smoothness, mildness, < lenis, 
soft, smooth.] Mildness of temper ; softness; 
tenderness; mercy. 
But they now, made worse through his lenitie & gentle- 
nes, cast stones at him & brake his head. 
J. IfdaU, On Mark xii. 
Glorious is the victprie 
Conquerours use with lenitie. 
Puttenham, Arte of Eng. Poesie, p. 104. 
= Syn. See leniency. 
lennert (len'ert), n. [A dial. var. of linnet^.] 
The linnet or. Untie. [Prov. Eng.] 
leno (le'no), n. [A corrupt form of F. linon, 
lawn : see linon.] A very thin linen cloth made 
in imitation of muslin, and sometimes called 
linen muslin. It is used for translucent window-blinds, 
and for other purposes for which a gauzy fabric is needed. 
"Why, twenty years ago," she exclaimed, "I bought a 
lot of leno cheap it was just about going out of fashion 
for caps then, I think." 
Mayhew, London Labour and London Poor, I. 430. 
lenocinantt (le-nos'i-nant), a. [< L. lenoci- 
nan(t-)s, ppr. of lenocindri, natter, entice, < leno, 
fern. Una, a pander : see lena 1 .] Given to lewd- 
ness. 
lenocinium (le-no-sin'i-um), n. [L., the trade 
of a pander, < leno, a pander: see Una 1 .] In 
Scots law, a husband's connivance at his wife's 
adultery. 
lens (lenz), .; pi. lenses (len'zez). [= Sp. Pg. 
It. lente (It. also, as E., after L., lens = D. lens 
= GK linse = Dan. lindse = Sw. lins), < NL. 
lens, a lens, so called from its shape, < L. lens, 
a lentil (which is shaped like a double-convex 
lens): see lentil.] 1. A piece of transparent 
substance bounded by two curved surfaces 
(usually spherical), or by a curved surface and 
a plane. The ordinary use of a lens is to cause pencils 
of rays to converge or diverge systematically after passing 
through it. Lenses for optical purposes are usually made 
of glass ; acoustic lenses, of carbon dioxid inclosed be- 
tween two thin membranes ; lenses for action upon elec- 
trical radiations, of paraffin or pitch, substances which 
are transparent to electrical rays, though opaque to 
light. Optical lenses alone are in common use. Ordi- 
nary lenses are distinguished into two classes convex or 
magnifying lenses, which are thickest in the center, and 
concave, which are thinnest in the center. Each class has 
three varieties, as 
shown in fig. 1. A B c D E F 
To the first be- 
long D, thedouble- 
convexor biconvex; 
C, the plano-con- 
vex; and E, the 
meniscus. The 
concave lenses are 
B, the double-con- 
cave or biconcave; 
Fig. i. 
A, the plano-concave ; and F, the concavo-convex, some- 
times improperly called concave meniscus. The line which 
passes through the centers of curvature of the two sur- 
faces is the axis of the lens, and a point on this axis so 
taken that every line drawn through it pierces parallel 
elements of the two surfaces is its optical center. A con- 
vex lens converges rays which are parallel to its axis, 
approximately to 
>. a point called its 
principal focus 
(F in fig. 2). The 
distance from the 
optical center to 
this focus is the 
same on both sides 
of the lens, and de- 
pends upon the ra- 
dii of its curved surfaces and the material of which it is 
made. Rays diverging from a point beyond the principal 
focus F on either side of the lens are approximately collect- 
ed to a "real " focus beyond the principal focus on the other 
side (see fig. 3); 
but if the source 
of light is be- 
tween the lens 
and its principal 
focus, the rays 
after emergence 
diverge as if they 
came from a so- 
called virtual focus behind the luminous point. The 
luminous point and its focus are interchangeable, and are 
called conjugate foci, as, for instance, L and 1 in ng. 3. 
Fig. 3. 
