Merops 
the tail has the two middle feathers lengthened, and the 
plumage is beautifully variegated with bright colors. 
They prey on insects, especially bees, wasps, aud other hy- 
menopters, which they capture on the wing. There are 
several species, the best-known of which is M. apiaster, 
the only one of general distribution in Europe, though a 
second, Sf. cegyptius, is also found in parts of Europe. See 
bee-eater. Also called Apiaster. 
merorganization (me-r6r"gan-i-za'shon), n. 
[< Gr. /w'pof, part, + E. organization.'} Organ- 
ization in part, or partial organization. [Rare.] 
meros, merus (me'ros, -rus), n. [NL., < Gr. 
Mptif, thigh.] 1. In soot., one of the joints of 
a maxilliped. 2. In anat., the thigh, femur, 
or femoral segment of the hind limb, extending 
from the hip to the knee, and corresponding to 
the brachium of the fore limb. 
merosomal (mer'o-so-mal), . [< merosome + 
-al.~\ Of the nature of a merosome. 
merosome (mer'o-som), n. [< Gr. fiepof, a part, 
+ aufta, body.] 'In sool. , one of the definite suc- 
cessive parts or segments of which the body is 
composed ; a metamere ; a somite. Thus, one 
of the rays of a starfish, or one of the rings of a 
worm or crustacean, is a merosome. 
Merostomata (mer-o-sto'ma-ta), n. pi. [NL., 
< Gr. fttpof, a part, H- oro/ia,' mouth.] A group 
of articulated animals to which various values 
and limits have been assigned, (a) Named by De 
Blainville as an order of crustaceans, containing the horse- 
shoe-crabs, together with certain heterogeneous forms. 
(b) Extended to the Limulida and the Eurypterida. (c) 
Extended to the Umulidce, Eurypterida, and Trilobita, as 
a class of crustaceans : synonymous with Giyantostraca 
and with Palceocarida. (d) Having the same limits as (cX 
but associated with the Arachnida. () Restricted, as an 
order of crustaceans, to the Limulidw: synonymous with 
Xiphosura. (/) Restricted, as an order of Gigantostraca, 
to the Eurypterida, and synonymous therewith. See Pee- 
cilopoda. llc&natobranchia is a synonym. 
merostomatous (mer-6-stom'a-tus), a. [< Me- 
rostomata + -ows.] Pertaining to the Merosto- 
mata, or having their characters. 
merostome (mer'o-stom), w. One of the Mero- 
stomata, as a trilobite or a horseshoe-crab. 
merostomous (me-ros'to-mus), a. [< merostome 
+ -OKA'.] Same as merostomatous. 
-merOUS. [< Gr. -pepf/f, combining form of pe po$ , 
a part.] A suffix denoting 'parted,' 'divided 
into parts ' : often used in botany with a numer- 
ical prefix, as 2-merous, 3-merous, etc., to be 
read dimerous, trimerous, etc., according to the 
Greek. 
Merovingian (mer-o-vin'ji-an), a. and n. [= F. 
Merovingien, (. ML. Merovingi, the descendants 
of Merovaius, an ancestor of the founder of the 
dynasty, < OHG. "Meroioig or Merwig.] I. a. 
Taking name from Mero wig or Mer wig (L. Mero- 
vasus), an alleged chief or king of a part of the 
Saliau Franks and grandfather of Clo vis : as, the 
Merovingian race, dynasty, or period, ciovis, in- 
vading the Roman part of Gaul in A. D. 486, founded the 
Merovingian or first race of French kings (several often 
reigning at the same time in different parts of France), 
which was succeeded by the Carolingian dynasty in 751 or 
752. Some suppose Meroicig or Merovceus to have been 
the patronymic of the family or clan of Ciovis, derived from 
a more remote ancestor. Merovingian writing, a va- 
riety of cursive script full of flourishes and difficult en- 
lacements and combinations of letters, peculiar to the 
Merovingian period in France : used in many documents 
still in existence. 
The writing of the Frankish empire to which the title of 
Meromtiijian has been applied had a wider range than the 
other national hands. It had a long career both for diplo- 
matic and literary purposes. In this writing, as it ap- 
pears in documents, we see that the Roman cursive is sub- 
jected to a lateral pressure, so that the letters received a 
curiously cramped appearance, while the heads and tails 
are exaggerated to inordinate length. 
Encyc. Brit., XVIII. 157. 
II. n. A member of the family to which the 
first dynasty of French kings belonged. See I. 
meroxene (me-rok'sen), n. [< Gr. [ttpof, a part, 
+ f tvof , strange, foreign. ] A variety of the kind 
of mica called biotite, distinguished by its optical 
characters. See biotite and mica 2 . The name was 
early given by Breithanpt to the Vesuvian biotite, but has 
recently been limited by Tschermak to those kinds of bio- 
tite in which the optic axial plane is parallel to the plane 
of symmetry. 
merpeople (mer'pe"pl), n. pi. [< mer- (in mer- 
maid, merman) + people.'] Fabled inhabitants 
of the sea with a human body and a fish-like 
tail : a collective name for mermaids and mer- 
men. GUI, Forum, III. 85. 
merret, v. t. A Middle English form of marl. 
merrify (mer'i-fi), v. t.; pret. and pp. merrified, 
ppr. merrifying. [< merry 1 + -fy.] To cause 
to be or become merry. [Bare.] 
It merryfied us all. 
Mme. D'ArWay, Wary, I. 324. (Davies.) 
merrily (mer'i-li), adv. [< ME. mer ill/, meriely; < 
merry! + 4i/2.] In a merry, cheerful, or glad 
manner; with mirth and jollity. 
3720 
merrimake (mer'i-mak), n. and v. See merry- 
make. 
merriment (mer'i-ment), n. [< merry 1 + -ment.'} 
1. The state of being merry or frolicsome; 
hilarious enjoyment ; jollity: as, boisterous mer- 
riment. 
Yet was there not with her else any one, 
That to her might move cause of meriment. 
Spenser, F. Q., II. vi. 8. 
His deep eye laughter-stirr'd 
With merriment of kingly pride. 
Tennyson, Arabian Nights. 
2. The act of making merry; mirthful enter- 
tainment ; frolic. 
A number of merriments and jests . . . wherewith they 
have pleasantly moved much laughter at our manner of 
serving God. Hooker, Eccles. Polity, v. 30. 
We . . . therefore met your loves 
In their own fashion, like a merriment. 
Shak., L. L. L., v. 2. 794. 
3f. A short comedy or play. 
Some menial servants of mine own are ready 
For to present a merriment. Ford, Fancies, v. 3. 
= Syn. See jolly. 
merriness (mer'i-nes), n. [< merry 1 + -ness.'} 
1. The quality of being merry; mirthfulness. 
[Bare.] 
Be it as the style shall give us cause to climb in the mer- 
riness. Shak., L. L. L., i. 1. 202. 
2f. Pleasure ; happiness. 
Wyf and chyldren that men desyren for cause of delit 
and of meryitesse. Chaucer, Boethius, iii. prose 2. 
merrow (mer'6), n. [< Ir. moruach, moruadh, 
a mermaid, < muir, the sea: see mere 1 .] A 
mermaid. 
An Irishman caught a merrow, with her . . . enchanted 
cap lying beside her. 
Baring-Gould, Myths of the Middle Ages, p. 505. 
merry 1 (mer'i), a. [Early mod. E. merrie, < 
ME. merie, mine, myrie, murie, murge, < AS. 
merige, mirige, myrige, myrege, also syncopated 
murge, gen. myrges, etc., in pi. merge, mergan, 
pleasant, delightful (said of grass, trees, land- 
scape, the world, music, song, etc.; not applied 
to a humorous or sportive mood, nor to speech 
or conduct); appar. without Teut. cognates, and 
perhaps, with AS. adj. suffix -ig, < Ir. Gael. 
mear, mirthful, playful, wanton; cf. Ir. Gael. 
mire, play, mirth, levity, madness, Gael, mir, v., 
play, sport, mirigeach, playful, merry. Hence 
mirth.'] 1. Exciting feelings of enjoyment and 
gladness; causing cheerfulness or light-hearted- 
ness; pleasant; delightful; happy: as, the merry 
month of May; a merry spectacle. 
That hee had delyveryd hym oujt of his peynne, 
And brougt hym into a mirgurre [merrier] plase. 
Chron. VHodun, p. 125. (Uattiu'ell.) 
The seson was myri and softe, and the contre feire and 
delitable. Merlin (E. E. T. S.), iii. 384. 
When the merry bells ring round. 
Hilton, I/Allegro, 1. 93. 
2. Playfully cheerful or gay; enlivened with 
gladness or good spirits ; mirthful in speech or 
action; frolicsome; hilarious; jubilant: as, a 
merry company. 
On that othir syde he was oon of the beste felowes and 
myriest that myght be founde. Merlin(E,. E. T. S.X ii. 136. 
Be merry, be merry, my wife has all ; 
For women are shrews, both short and tall ; 
'Tis merry in hall, when beards wag all. 
Shak., 2 Hen. IV., v. 3. 35 (song). 
Be merry, sister ; I shall make you laugh anon. 
B. Jonson, Cynthia's Revels, v. 2. 
3. Sportive and mirthful in quality or charac- 
ter; jocund; jovial; rollicking; funny: as, a 
merry heart ; a merry song. 
This riding rime serueth most aptly to wryte a merie tale, 
so Rythme royall is fittest for a graue discourse. 
Gascoigne, Notes on Eng. Verse (ed. Arber), 16. 
There is a kind of merry war betwixt Signior Benedick 
and her. Shak., Much Ado, I. 1. 62. 
4. Brisk; lively; cheery. 
Thus to the sea faire Maudlin is gone 
With her gentle master; God send them a merry wind. 
The Merchant's Daughter (Child's Ballads, IV. 333). 
We tacked about and stood our course W. and by S., with 
a merry gale in all our sails. 
WinOirop, Hist. New England, I. 18. 
5f. Full of gibes; sneering; sarcastic, lip. 
Atterbury. As merry as a grig. See grigi. Merry 
dancers. See dancer. Merry Greek. See Greek. 
Merry men, followers ; retainers. 
His merie men comanded he 
To make him bothe game and glee. 
Chaucer, Sir Thopas, 1. 128. 
They drave back our merry men, 
Three acres bredth and mair. 
Battle of Harlaw (Child's Ballads, VII. 318). 
Merry time*, merry weathert, pleasure ; joy ; delight. 
Whi, doth not thi cow make myry-wedir in thy dish? 
MS. Digby 41, f. 8. (Uattiwett.) 
merryman 
The Merry Monarch, CharlesII. of England. me more 
the merrier, the larger the company the greater the en- 
joyment. 
But vchon enle we wolde were fyf, 
The mo the myryer so god me blesse. 
Alliterative Poems (ed. Moms), i. 849. 
TO make merry, to be jovial ; indulge in feasting and 
mirth. See merrymake. = Syn. 1-3. Mirthful, Jovial, etc. 
(see jolly), gleeful 
merry 1 (mer'i), v. t. [< merry 1 , a.] To make 
merry or glad; please; gratify; delight. [Bare.] 
Though pleasure merries the senses for a while, yet hor- 
ror after vultures the uuconsuming heart. 
Feltham, Resolves, p. 43. 
merry 1 (mer'i), adv. [< ME. mery, murye; < mer- 
ry 1 , a.] Merrily; in a lively manner. 
Daunsith he murye that is myrtheles? 
Chaucer, Parliament of Fowls, 1. 592. 
merry 2 (mer'i), n. [Orig. "merise, then mer- 
ries, applied as a plural to the fruit, whence 
the sing, merry ; < F. merise, wild cherry; origin 
uncertain. Cf. cherry 1 , ult. < F. cerise, cherry.] 
The wild cherry of England, Prunus avium. 
merry-andrew (mer"i-an'dro), . [< merry 1 
+ Andrew, a man's name : see Andrew. The 
name Andrew may refer to some buffoon of 
that name, of whom nothing is now known 
(cf . a similar use of some man's name in smart 
Aleck, a slang term for a would-be smart fel- 
low), or it may be a general appellation like 
zany, a merry-andrew, ult. identical with Jolm. 
There appears to be no evidence for the as- 
sertion (appar. first made by Hearne) that 
the name orig. referred to Andrew Boorde, 
doctor of physic in the reign of Henry VIII., 
the author of the ' 'Introduction to Knowledge " 
and other works, and to whom several jest-books 
were erroneously ascribed (perhaps because of 
his surname, which recalls ME. boorde, horde, 
bourde, a jest : see bourd 1 )."] One whose busi- 
ness it is to make sport for others by jokes and 
ridiculous posturing ; a buffoon; a clown. 
Th' Italian Merry Andrews took their place, 
And quite debauch'd the Stage with lewd grimace. 
Sryden, Epil. to Univ. of Oxford (1673), 1. 11. 
merryboukt, n. [Formerly also merribowke; ap- 
par. < merry 1 + bouk 1 .] A cold posset. 
A sillibub or merribowke. Cotgrave. 
merry-go-down (mer'i-go-doun'), . Strong 
ale, or miff-cap. [Old cant.] 
I present you with meate, and you . . . can do no less 
than present mee with the best morning's draught of 
merry-go-downe in your quarters. 
Sashe, Lenten Stuff e, Ded. (Harl. Misc., VI. 145). 
merry-go-round (mer'i-go-round'), n. A re- 
volving machine, consisting of a series of wood- 
en horses or carriage-seats, mounted on a cir- 
cular platform, on orin which children and some- 
times grown persons ride for amusement. In 
the United States also called a carrousel. 
merry-maid (mer'i-mad), . A dialectal form 
of mermaid. [Cornwall, Eng.] 
merrymake (mer'i-mak), v. i.; pret. and pp. 
merrymade, ppr. merrymaking. [Also merri- 
make; < merry 1 + make 1 .'] To make merry; 
frolic. 
With thee 'twas Marian's dear delight 
To moil all day, and merrimake at night. 
Gay, Shepherd's Week, Tuesday. 
The weak and wronged shall sit with me, 
And eat and drink, and merrymake and go, 
Singing a holiday for every one. 
Harper'Mag., LXXVIII. 180. 
merrymake (mer'i-mak), n. [< merrymake, v.~\ 
A merrymaking ; sport; pastime. Also written 
merrimake. 
But when he saw her toy, and gibe, and geare, 
And passe the bonds of modest merimake, 
Her dalliauuce he despis'd and follies did forsake. 
Spenser, F. IJ., II. vi. 21. 
We'll have feasts, 
And funerals also, merrymakes and wars. 
Mrs. Browning, Drama of Exile. 
merrymaking 1 (mer'i-ma / 'king), n. The act of 
making merry; a convivial entertainment; a 
gay festival. 
Is this a place for mirthful cheer? 
Can merry-making enter here? 
Wordsworth, Matron of Jedborough. 
merrymaking 2 (mer'i-ina'*kmg), a. Producing 
mirth or sport. 
His talents lending to exalt the freaks 
Of merry-making beggars, . . . provoked 
To laughter multiplied in louder peals 
By his malicious wit. Wordsicorth, Excursion, vi. 
merryman 1 (mer'i-man), . A dialectal form 
of merman. [Cornwall, Eng.] 
merryman 2 (mer'i-man), .; pi. merrymen 
(-men). A merry-andrew ; a buffoon; a clown: 
used as an appellative or pretended surname 
for a clown : as, Mr. Merryman. 
