perfectly 
2. With the highest decree <>l thoTOttgbneM IT 
excellence; ill siicli way as to leave nothing 
to 1)0 de.-ircd: as, she dances ]><rl'< i-tlij; he 
speaks the language jM-rfi-rtti/. 
And can (know] you these tongues perfectly f 
Hutu, and Ft., roxcomb, fv. 1. 
So may an excellent virtue of the soul smooth and cal- 
cine the body, and make it serve i>erfectly, and without 
i . n. Ilidiis iiulispcsjlioiis. 
Jer. Taylor, Works (e<l. 1HS6), I. 845. 
3. With tfrciit exactness, nicety, or precision; 
accurately; exactly: as, a perfertly adjusted or 
hiilaneed contrivance. 
I never knew any man in my life who could not bear 
another's misfortunes perfectly like a Christian. 
/'/. Thoughtu on Various Subjects. 
perfectness (per'fekt-nes), H. The character 
or stute of being perfect or complete; perfec- 
tion; completeness. 
perfervid (per-fer'vid), a. [< L. iM-rfi-rri<li<x, a 
I'alse reading (though in form correct) for prie- 
I'rrriilns, very hot. < L. prtr, before (used in- 
tensively), + frrridus, boiling, hot: see/em'rf.] 
Very fervid or hot; very ardent. 
Instruction, properly so called, they [the colored preach- 
ers] are not qualified to give, but the emotional nature Is 
aroused by perfervid appeals and realistic imagery. 
Fortnightly Rev., N. S., XLIII. 861. 
perfervidness (per-fer'yid-nes), n. The char- 
acter of being perfervid; extreme heat or ar- 
dor ; great fervor or zeal. 
perficient (per-fish'ent), a. and n. [= Sp. Pg. 
It. pirjicicnle, < Ii." pcrficien(t-)s, ppr. of per- 
tici're, finish, complete, acliieve : see perfect.'] 
1. a. Effectual; actual. 
The endower [Is] the perflcie/it founder of all eleemosy. 
nary [corporations.] Elackstone, Com., I. ivlli. 
The perficient objection [to pronouncing grace] was 
probably the inconvenience to the service of the repast. 
Science, XII. 8. 
Perflcient action. See action. 
II. M. Literally, one who performs a com- 
plete or lasting work ; specifically, one who en- 
dows a charity. 
perfidious (per-fid'i-us), . [= Pg. It. perfldi- 
oso, < L. pcrfidiosus, < perfidia, falsehood: see 
perfidy.] 1. Faithless; basely treacherous; 
false-hearted. 
What of him ? 
He 's quoted for a most perfidious slave. 
5*0*., All's Well, v. 3. 205. 
An air of magnanimity which, perfidious as he was, he 
could with singular dexterity assume. 
M a f a u I n ii. Hist Eng., vli. 
2. Proceeding from or characterized by perfidy 
or base treachery; false: as, & perfidious act. 
= 8yn. 1. Unfaithful, Faithless, Treacherous, Perfidious. 
Unfaithful represents negatively the meaning; that Is com- 
mon to these words, but it especially means a lack of 
fidelity to trust or duty, a failure to perform what Is due, 
however much may be Implied in that. Faithlessis nega- 
tive In form, but positive in sense; the faithless man does 
something which is a breach of faith ; the sleeping senti- 
nel is unfaithful; the deserter isfail/dtsii. Treachery and 
perfidy are kinds of faithlessness. The treacherous man 
either betrays the confidence that is reposed in him, or 
lures another on to harm by deceitful appearances: as, 
the treacherous signals of the wrecker. The perfidious 
man carries treachery to the basest extreme ; he betrays 
acknowledged and accepted obligations, and even the 
most sacred relationships and claims : as, Benedict Arnold 
and Judas an types of perfidy. 
His honour rooted In dishonour stood, 
And faith unfaithful kept him falsely true. 
'ini. Lancelot and Elaine. 
Votaries of business and of pleasure prove 
Faithless alike In friendship and in love. 
Camper, Verses from Valediction. 
If King Edward be as true and just 
As I am subtle, false, and treacherous. 
Shak., Kich. III., i. 1. 37. 
conscious of great powers and great virtues, he (Burke] 
found himself, hi age and poverty, a mark for the hatred 
of a perfidious court and a deluded people. 
Min-atiliti/, Warren Hastings. 
perfidiously (per-fid'i-us-li), adi: In a perfid- 
ious manner; with perfidy; treacherously; 
traitorously. 
Thou 'ast broke perfidiously thy oath. 
And not performed thy plighted troth. 
S. Butler, Hudibras, III. L 257. 
perfidiousness (per-fid'i-us-nes), ii. The char- 
acter of being perfidious; treachery; traitor- 
ousuess ; faithlessness. 
There needs no Pope to dispense with the Peoples Oath, 
the Kings themselves by their own perjidiousness having 
absolved their subjects. Milton, Answer to Salmasius. 
perfidy (per'ft-di), n. [< F. perMie = Sp. Pg. 
It. iM-rfidia, < L. perftdia, perfidy, < prrfidus (> 
It. Pg. perfido = Sp.'perfido = Y.perfide), faith- 
less, < per, from, + flden, faith: see faith.] 
Breach of faith or trust; base treachery; faith- 
lessness. 
4393 
These great virtues were balanced by great vices; In- 
human malty; jn'nnlit mop- than I'unir; no truth, no 
faith; no regard to oaths. Uuitie, On .Morals, App. 4. 
= 8yn. See perjidiotu. 
perntt, perfitet, . Old forms olpe>j< et, 
perfixt (pcr-liks'), ;. t. [Appar. an error for 
I'l-i'fif, in sense of 'pre-appoint.'] To fix; set- 
tle; appoint. 
Take heed, as you are gentlemen, this quarrel 
Sleep till the hour perft xt. 
l-'l-tcher (and another\ Two Noble Kinsmen, ill. 7. 
perflablet (iVfla-bl), a. [ME..< OF.i>e>-fl<il>l>, 
< L. pirjltMUl, that may be blown through, < 
perflare, blow through : see perflate.] Capable 
of being blown through. 
llut make It high, on everle half perJIaNe. 
Palladius, Husbondrle (E. E. T. S.), p. 37. 
perflatet (per-flaf), . t. [< L. perflatits, pp. of 
perflare, blow through, < per, through, + JUn, 
blow: see flatus. Cf. inflate.] To blow through. 
If easteni winds did perftate our climates more fre- 
quently, they would clarify and refresh our air. Ilartey. 
perflationt (per-fla'shon), u. [= F. perflatimi, 
< LL. perflatio(n-), a blowing through, < L. per- 
flare, pp. perflatiis, blow through: seeperflate.] 
The act of blowing through. 
Miners, by prrf/ations with large bellows, give motion 
to the air, which ventilates and cools the mines. 
Woodward. 
That | barn] . . . was so contrived . . . as, by perpetual 
perftation, to prevent the mow from heating. 
A Journey, etc , quoted in Hall's Mod. Eng., p. 205. 
perfoliate (per-fo'li-at), a. [= F. perfolit (cf. 
OF. perfoliate, "through-wax, through-leaf (an 
herb)" Cot- 
grave),=Sp.Pg. 
perfoliado, < NL. 
perfoliatns, < L. 
per, through, + 
folium, a leaf: 
see foliate.] 1. 
In hot., having 
a stem which 
seems to pass 
through the 
blade : said of a 
leaf. This appear- 
ance Is produced 
by the congenital 
union of the edges 
of the sinus of an 
amplexicaul leaf. //,,,,. , 
Uvularia perfoliata, honeysuckle (Lonicrra iimftruirtiit) 
Baptisia perfoliata, 
and r,u /ill ufiim rolundifolium afford examples of perfo- 
liate leaves. When opposite leaves have their bases 
united, so that the stem passes through, they are said to 
be amnate-perfoliate, as in leaves of honeysuckles. See 
also cut under connate. 
2. In entom., having the outer joints much di- 
lated laterally all around, but not forming a 
compact club; taxicorn: said of antennte ap- 
pearing like a number of round plates joined by 
a shaft or stem running through, their centers. 
Also perfolia ted. 
perforable (per'fo-ra-bl), . [< L. as if "perfo- 
rabilis, < perforare, "perforate : see perforate.'] 
Admitting of perforation; that can be bored 
or pierced through. 
perforans (per'fo-ranz), n. ; pi. perforantes 
(per-fo-raii'tez). [NL., ppr. of L. perforare, 
perforate: see perforate.] The long flexor 
muscle of the toes, or the deep flexor muscle of 
the fingers : so called because their tendons per- 
forate the tendons of the perforatus muscles 
near the points of insertion. 
perforant (per'fo-rant), a. [< L. perforan(t-)s, 
ppr. of perforare, perforate: see perforate.] 
Perforating, as the tendon of a flexor muscle. 
Perforata (per-fo-ra'tft), n.pl. [NL.. neut. pi. 
of L. perforatus, perforate: see perforate, a.] 
1. One of the groups into which Edwards and 
Hairne (1850) divide the corals : distinguished 
from Aporosa, Tabulata, and Sugosa. It in- 
cludes the Madreporidx, Poritidse, etc. Also 
called Porosa. 2. The perforate foraminifers, 
a large group (subclass, order, or suborder) of 
filose protozoans inclosed in a test perforated 
with numerous foraminules besides the main 
opening, through all of which the thready pseu- 
dopods may protrude : opposed to Imperforata. 
Leading forms are the Textulariidie, Laaenidfe, 
Gloli</i'riiii<l;r, Ilotaliidie, and Xiimniiiliiiidee. 
perforate (per'fo-rat), t'. /. ; pret. and pp. per- 
forated, ppr. perforating. [< L. perforatus, pp. 
of perforare, bore through (> It. perforare = 
Sp. Pg. pei-forar = F. perforer), < per, through, 
+ forare, bore: see bore 1 , foramen, etc.] To 
bore through ; pierce ; make a hole or holes in, 
as by boring or driving. 
i. Perfoliate leaves of Uvularin per- 
Connate-peifoliate leaves of 
perforator 
There Is an abundant ii|.]>ly of m-clar in the nectary of 
Trop>olum tricolor, yet I have found tbiKplant untouched 
in inure than om ^ai'lrn. u hilc tile Hi tueis of other plants 
had iici-n extensively jwr/orotel 
Daririn, Cross and Self Kcrtlllsation, p. 427. 
= Syn. Rare throuyh, Pient, etc. See penetrate. 
perforate (per'i'o-rut), . [< L. ; r/oraMM, pi>. : 
see the verb.] liored or pierced through ; pene- 
trated. 
An earthen pot perforate at the bottom. 
Bacon, Vat. Hint. 
Specifically (a) In bot., pierced with one or more small 
holes, or, more commonly, having tranilucent dots which 
resemble holes, as In most plantsof the order Hypericineir. 
(6) In .fn'iili., noting the nostril of a bird when lacking 
a nasal septum, so that a hole appears from side to side of 
the bill, as In the turkey-buzzard, crane, etc. (e) In anal., 
ri ; opened through ; affording passage or communiea- 
; having the character or quality of a perforation; fo- 
raminate. (rf) In zool., full of little holes or perforations ; 
cribrone ; foramlnulate ; specifically, of or pertaining to 
the Perforata: as, A perforate coral; a perforate foramlnl- 
fer. Perforate elytra, I" entom., elytra which have a 
dlscal perforation, as In certain Catndieor tortolse-lwetles. 
perforated (per'fo-ra-ted),;). a. [Pp. of jjer/o- 
rate, t'.] 1. Same as perforate. 2. By exten- 
sion, cut through in many places and with ir- 
regular and somewhat largo openings. Com- 
pare A jour. 
A carved oak panel by Grlnllng Gibbons ; the panel Is 
perforated and carved both sides alike. 
W. *'. Ogden, Antique Furniture. 
3. In her., same as cteclie.- Perforated file. See 
Jtlei. Perforated medallion. See pierced medallion, 
under pierced. Perforated space, (a) Anterior, a de- 
pression on either side, near the entrance of the Sylvlan 
nssure, floored with gray matter, and pierced with numer- 
ous small foramina for the passage of blood-vessels, most 
of which are destined for thecorpusstrlatum. Immediately 
above. (6) Posterior, a deep fossa situated back of the 
corpora alblcantla, and between the crura cerebri, per- 
forated by numerous holes for the passage of blood-vessels. 
perforati, . Plural of perforatus. 
perforating (per'fo-ra-ting),j>. a. In awn/., spe- 
cifically, perforRnt ; passing through a perfora- 
tion : applied to the deep flexor muscles of the 
fingers or toes. See perforans Perforating ar- 
teries, (a) Of the foot, small communicating branches be- 
tween the dorsal and plantar arteries, In the Interosseous 
spaces and near the clefts of the toes. (&) Of the hand, 
branches of communication between the deep palmar ar- 
tery and the dorsal Interosseous arteries, through the In- 
terosseous spaces, (c) Of the thiyh, usually four branches 
of the profunda artery which pierce the adductor mus- 
cles to supply the parts at the back of the thigh. /) Of 
the thorax, branches of the internal mammary which 
pierce the intercostal muscles to supply the pectoral mus- 
cle, skin, and mammary gland. Perforating cutaneous 
nerves, perforating nerve of Casser. See ncree. Per- 
forating fibers of bone. Same as Sharpey'sfibert (which 
see, under fberi). Perforating peroneal artery, the 
anterior peroneal. Perforating rods of Sharpey- 
Same as Sharpey's fibers (which see, under Jiberi). Per- 
forating ulcer of the foot, an ulcer beginning on the sole 
and usually obstinately progressive. Involving the deeper 
tissues. Including the Ixmes. It has been observed in 
tabes, in dementia paralytica, and with other nervous le- 
sions. Also called perforating disease of the foot, inalum 
perforans pedis, malverforant du pied. A similar condi- 
tion has been found in the hand. 
perforating-machine (per ' fo - ra - ting - ma - 
shen'), . 1. A machine for stamping lines of 
holes or perforations in sheets of postage-stamps 
or paper leaves, as in a check-book or receipt- 
book, to facilitate separation ; a paper-perfo- 
rating machine. 2. A machine for stamping 
the perforated ribbons of paper used with the 
rapid or other forms of automatic telegraphic 
machines. 3. A rock-drill or perforator. 
perforation (per-fo-ra'shon), . [= T. perfora- 
tion = Sp. perforacion == Pg. perfora^ao = It. 
perforazione, < ML. pcrfoi-atio(n-), < L. perfo- 
rare, pp. perforatiis, "bore through : see perfo- 
rate.'} 1 . The act of boring or piercing through. 
The perforation of the body of the tree In several places. 
Bacon. 
2. A hole bored ; any hole or aperture passing 
through anything, or into the interior of a sub- 
stance. 
Each bee, before It has had much practice, mutt lose 
some time in making each new perforation, especially when 
the perforation has to be made through both calyx and 
corolla. Daricin, Cross and Self Fertilisation, p. 433. 
perforative (p*r'fo-ra-tiv), a. [= F. perfora- 
tif Pg. perfora tiro ; as perforate + -ire.] 
Having power to perforate or pierce. 
perforator (per'fo-ra-tor), . [= F. perfora- 
teur = Pg. perforador = It. perforatore, <. NL. 
'perforator, < Li. perforare, perforate: see per- 
forate.'} One who or that which perforates, 
bores, or pierces, .specifically -(a) In olaUt., an in- 
strument for perforating the skull of a fetus when it is 
necessary to reduce its size. (6) An Instrument used to 
punch the ribbons of paper used in certain kinds of teleg- 
raphy. 
The per/orator . . . prepares the message by punching 
holes In a paper ribbon. 
Prtece and Sitcvright, Telegraphy, p. 118. 
