morsbunker 
niorsbunkert, . See inossbunl'er. 
morse 1 ! (mdrs), it. [Also mnrsse, mors ; < F. 
morse = Lapp, moral.; perhaps < Russ. morjfi, 
morzhu, a morse, perhaps < more, the sea (cf. 
morskaya korova, the morse, lit. 'sea-cow'). 
In another view, morse is a contracted form, 
< Norw. mar, the sea, + ros, a horse ; cf. Norw. 
rosmar, with the same elements reversed ; and 
cf. walrus.] 1. The walrus. 
Neere to New-found-land in 47. deg. is great killing of 
the Horse or Sea-oxe. . . . They are great as Oxen, the hide 
dressed is twice as thicke as a Bulles hide : It hath two 
teeth like Elephants, but shorter, about a foote long grow- 
ing downe wards, and therefore lesse dangerous, dearer 
sold then Inoru, and by some reputed an Antidote, not in- 
feriour to the Vnicornes home. 
Purchax, Pilgrimage, p. 748. 
The tooth of a marge or sea-horse. 
Sir T. Browne, Vulg. Err., iii. 23. 
2. In her. , same as sett-lion. 
morse 2 (mdrs), . [< L. morsus, a biting, a 
clasp, < mordere, pp. morsus, bite : see mor- 
dant.] The clasp or fastening of a cope and 
similar garments, generally made of metal, and 
set with jewels. Also called pectoral. 
To hinder the cope from slipping off, it was fastened 
over the breast by a kind of clasp, which here in England 
was familiarly known as the morse, ... in shape flat or 
convex. Sock, Church of our Fathers, ii. 37. 
Morse alphabet. See alphabet. 
Morse key. See telegraph. 
morsel (mor'sl), n. [Also dial, mossel; < ME. 
morsel, mossel, mussel, < OF. morsel, morcel, F. 
morceau (also used in E.: see morceau) = It. 
morsello, < ML. morsellum, a bit, a little piece, 
dim. of L. morsitm, a bit, neut. of morsus, pp. 
of mordere, bite : see morse 2 , mordant. Cf. muz- 
zle."] 1. A bite; a mouthful; a small piece of 
food; a small meal. 
And after the mossel, thanne Satanas entride into him. 
Wyclif, John xiii. 27. 
Ete thi mete by smalle mosselles. 
Bailees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 18. 
Liquorish draughts 
And morsels unctuous. 
Shak.,T. of A.,iv. 3. 195. 
She so prevails that her blind Lord, at last, 
A morsell of the sharp-sweet fruit doth taste. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, ii. , The Imposture. 
2. A small quantity of anything considered as 
parceled out, often of something taken or in- 
dulged in ; a fragment; a little piece. 
Revenge was no unpleasing morsel to him. 
Milton, Eikonoklastes, ix. 
Of the morsels of native and pure gold he had seen, some 
weighed many pounds. Boyle. 
3f. A person : used jestingly or in contempt. 
To the perpetual wink for aye might put 
This ancient morsel, this Sir Prudence. 
Shak., Tempest, ii. 1. 286. 
How doth my dear morsel, thy mistress? 
SAo*.,M. forM., iii. 2. 67. 
morselization (m6r"sl-i-za'shon), . [< morsel 
+ -ize + -ation.'] The act of breaking up 
into fragments ; subdivision ; decentralization. 
[Bare.] 
The unsatisfactory condition of the foremost nations of 
Europe resulted . . . from the infinite morselization (moi- 
cellement inflni) of interests. 
A. G. Warner, tr. of Le Play, iu Pop. Sci. Mo., XXIX 798. 
morsing-horn (mor' sing-horn), n. [< "morsinij, 
verbal n. of "morse, v., prob. for 'amorce, < F. 
amorcer, prime (a gun), bait, < amorce, prim- 
ing, bait: see amorce.] The small flask for- 
merly used to contain the fine powder used for 
priming; hence, a powder-horn in general. 
Buff-coats, all frounced and broider'd o'er, 
And morsing-horns and scarfs they wore. 
Scott, L. of L. M., iv. 18. 
morsitationt (m&r-si-ta'shon), n. [< ML. as if 
*morsitatio(n-), < *morsitare, freq. of mordere, 
pp. morsus, bite: see mordant, morse 2 .'] The 
act of gnawing ; morsure. Worcester. 
morsure (mor'sur), n. [= F. morsure = It. 
morsura, < L. as if "morsurus, < mordere, pp. 
morsus, bite : see morse 2 .'] The act of biting. 
It Is the opinion of choice virtuosi that the brain is only 
a crowd of little animals, and . . . that all invention is 
formed by the mormre of two or more of these animals 
upon certain capillary nerves. 
Svrift, Mechanical Operation of the Spirit, 2. 
morsus (mdr'sus), n. [L., a biting, bite: see 
worse 2 .] In anat., a bite, biting, or morsure. 
Morsus dlaboli, or morsus dlabollcus, the devil's 
bite; the diabolical biting: a fanciful name for the flm- 
briated or infundibuliform orifice of the Fallopian tube or 
oviduct. 
(mart), n. [< F. mart = Sp. m uerte = Pg. 
It. morte, < L. mor(t-)s, death, < mort (pp. mor- 
titim), die, = Pers. tir, niiinltin = Skt. -^ mm; 
die (mritii, dead). Cf. mttrtlt, mitrthr, from the 
3864 
same ult. root.] 1. Death. 2. A nourish 
sounded at the death of game. 
He that bloweth the mort before the fall of the buck, 
may very well miss of his fees. Greene, Card of Fancy. 
They raised a buck on Rooken Edge, 
And blew the mort at fair Ealylawe. 
Death of farcy Meed (Child's Ballads, VI. 141). 
mort 2 (m6rt), a. and n. [< F. mort = Sp. muerto 
= Pg. It. morto, < L. mortuus, dead (= Gr. (Jporof 
(for *fi/}por6f, "fiporof, cf. neg. a/ifiparof), mortal, 
= Skt. mrita, dead), pp. of won, die: see wort 1 .] 
I.t a. Dead. 
Thy mede is markyd, whan thow art mort, in blysse. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Kurnivall), p. 159. 
II. n. The skin of a sheep or lamb which 
has died by accident or disease. [Obsolete or 
Scotch.] 
The sadler he stuffes his pannels with straw or hay and 
over gasetb them with haire, and makes the leather of 
them of Marts or tan'd sheep's skins. 
Greene, Quip for an Upstart Courtier (Harl. Misc., V. 413). 
mort 3 (mort), n. [Also murth (Halliwell) ; per- 
haps < Icel. mart for margt, neut. of martjr = 
E. many: see many' 1 .'] A great quantity or 
number. [Prov. Eng.] 
And sitch a mort of folk began 
To eat up the good cheer. 
Bloomjield, The Horkey. 
But pray, Mr. Fag, what kind of a place is this Bath ? 
I ha' heard a deal of it here 's a mort o' merry-making, 
hey? Sheridan, The Rivals, i. 1. 
mort 4 ! (mort), . [Origin obscure.] A woman. 
[Thieves' slang.] 
Male gipsies all, not a mort among them. 
/;. Jonson, Masque of Gipsies. 
When they have gotten the title of doxies, then they 
are common for any, and walke for the most part with 
their betters (who are a degree above them), called marts. 
... Of marts there be two kindes that is to say, a walking 
mart and an antem murt. The walking mort is of more 
antiquitie then a doxy, and therefore of more knaverie : 
they both are unmarried, but the doxy professes herselfe 
to bee a niaide (if it come to examination), and the walk- 
ing mort sayes shee is a widow. ... An antem murt is a 
woman married (for antem in the beggers' language is a 
church). Dekker, Belman of London (1608). 
mortaiseH, n. and v. See mortise. 
mortaise 2 t, tv. [Early mod. E. also mortayse; < 
ME. mortaisen, morteisen, < OF. mortasier, grant 
in mortmain, < mort, dead: see mort 2 , and cf. 
mortmain,] To grant in mortmain. Palsgrave. 
Churches make and found, which deuised were ; 
Bothe landes, rentes, thought he morteis there, 
To found and make noble churches gret. 
Rom. of Partenay(K E. T. 8.), 1. 6083. 
mortal (mor'tal), a. and n. [< ME. mortal, 
mortel, < OF. niortel, mortal, F. mortal = Sp. Pg. 
mortal = It. mortals, < L. mortalis, subject to 
death, < mor(t-)s, death: see mort 1 .'] I. a. 1. 
Subject to death; destined to die. 
Thou shalt die, 
From that day mortal. 
Milton, P. L., viii. 331. 
Hence 2. Human; of or pertaining to man, 
who is subject to death: as, mortal knowledge; 
mortal power. 
Thys geant tho fall to mortal deth colde 
With that mighty stroke Qaffray hym yeuyng. 
Rom. of Partenay (E. E. T. S.), 1. 4719. 
The voice of God 
To mortal ear is dreadful. Milton, P. L., xii. 236. 
When the Lord of all things made Himself 
Naked of glory for His mortal change. 
Tennyson, Holy Grail. 
3. Deadly; destructive to life ; causing death, 
or that may or must cause death; fatal. 
This gentleman, the prince's near ally, 
My very friend, hath got his mortal hurt 
In my behalf. Shak., R. and J., iii. 1. 115. 
The fruit 
Of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste 
Brought death into the world, and all our woe. 
Milton, P. L,, I. 2. 
4. Deadly; implacable; to the death; such as 
threatens life : as, mortal hatred. 
Longe endured the mortall hate be-twene hem, as longe 
as thir lif dured. Merlin (E. E. T. S.), i. 124. 
Dead or alive, good cause had he 
To be my mortal enemy. 
Scott, Marmion, iv. 21. 
5. Such that injury or disease affecting it may 
cause death. 
Last of all, against himself he turns his sword, but, miss- 
ing the mortal place, with his poniard finishes the work. 
Milton. 
6. Bringing death ; noting the time of death. 
Safe in the hand of one Disposing Power, 
Or in the natal, or the mortal hour. 
Pope, Essay on Man, i. 288. 
7. Incurring the penalty of spiiitual death; 
inferring divine condemnation: opposed to 
rental: as, a mortal sin (si-e sin). 
mortalize 
Some sins, such as those of blasphemy, perjury, im- 
purity, are, if deliberate, always mortal. 
Cath. Diet., p. 763. 
8. Extreme ; very great or serious : as, mortal 
offense. [Colloq.] 
The nymph grew pale, and in a mortal fright. 
Drydm, tr. of Ovid's Metamorph, i. 733. 
I go there a mortal sight of times. 
Dickens, Bleak House, xiv. 
9. Long and uninterrupted; felt to be long and 
tedious. [Colloq.] 
Six mortal hours did I endure her loquacity. Scott. 
They performed a piece called Pyramus and Thisbe, in 
five mortal acts. R, L. Stevenson, Inland Voyage, p. 255. 
10. Euphemistically, confounded; cursed: as, 
notawrtethingtoeat. 11. Drunk. [Slang.] 
He had lost his book, too, and the receipts ; and his men 
were all as mortal as himself. 
H. L. Stevenson and L. Qsbourne, The Wrong Box, vi. 
II. . 1. Man, as a being subject to death; 
a human being. 
And you all know, security 
Is mortals' chiefest enemy. 
Shak., Macbeth, iii. 5. 33. 
2. That which is mortal. 
So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, 
and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall 
be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is 
swallowed up in victory. 1 Cor. xv. 54. 
mortal (mdr'tal), adv. [< mortal, a.] Extreme- 
ly; excessively; perfectly: as, mortal angry; 
mortal drunk. [Colloq.] 
I was mortal certain I should find him here. 
D. Jerrold, Men of Character, iii. 
Forty-two mortal long hard-working days. 
Dickens, Oliver Twist, xviii. 
mortalise, v. t. See mortalize. 
mortality (mor-tal'i-ti), n. [< ME. mortalite, 
mortalyte, < OF. mortalite, F. mortality = Sp. 
mortalidad = Pg. mortalidade = It. mortalita, < 
L. mortalita(t-)s, the state of being subject to 
death, < mortalis, mortal: see mortal.] 1. The 
condition or character of being mortal, or of 
being subject to death, or to the necessity of 
dying. 
When I saw her dye, 
I then did think on your mortalitU. 
Carew, An Elegie. 
We that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened : 
not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that 
mortality might be swallowed up of life. 2 Cor. v. 4. 
2. Death. 
Gladly would I meet 
Mortality, my sentence. Milton, P. L., x. 776. 
3. Frequency of death; numerousness of 
deaths; deaths in relation to their numbers: 
as, a time of great mortality. 
In that bataile was grete mortalite on bothe parties, but 
the hethen peple hadde moche the werse. 
Merlin (E. E. T. 8.), i. 56. 
Ther fell suche a mortalyte in the hoost that of flue ther 
dyed thre. Berners, tr. of Froissart's Chron., I. cccxxxl. 
In the extreme mortality of modern war will be found 
the only hope that man can have of even a partial cessa- 
tion of war. , The Century, XXXVI. 885. 
4. Specifically, the number of deaths in pro- 
portion to population: usually stated as the 
number of deaths per thousand of population. 
5. The duration of human life. [Bare.] 
This Age of ours 
Should not be numbered by years, dayes, and howra, 
But by our brave Exployts ; and this Mortality 
Is not a moment to that Immortality. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, ii., The Magnificence. 
6. Humanity; human nature; the human race. 
Like angels' visits, short and bright, 
Mortality 's too weak to bear them long. 
Norris, The Parting. 
Bills of mortality, abstracts from public registers show- 
ing the numbers that have died in any parish or place dur- 
ing certain periods of time. 
He proceeded to acquaint her who of quality was well 
or sick within the bills of mortality. Steele,TMer, No. 207. 
Law of mortality, the principle, deduced from a study and 
analysis of the bills of mortality and the experiences of in- 
surance companiesduring a long number of years, which de- 
termines what average proportion of the persons who enter 
upon a particular period of life will die during that period, 
and consequently the proportion of those who will survive. 
Tables showing the estimated number of pel-sons of a given 
age that will die in each succeeding year are called tables 
of mortality. Thus, of 100,000 persons of the age of 10, 490 
will not reach the age of 11 ; of 99,510 persons remaining 
alive, 807 will die before reaching the age of 12, and so on. 
On these tables are largely founded the calculations of in- 
surance actuaries in regard to rates of premium, present 
value of_policies, etc. 
mortalize (mor'tal-iz), i'. t. ; pret. and pp. mor- 
tnli-tfl, ppr. mortaKeing. [< mortal + -!><?.] To 
make mortal. Also spelled mortalise. 
\\'c know you're flesh and blood as well as men, 
And when we will, can mnrtalize and make you so again. 
A. Brome, Plain Dealing. 
