purpose 
The iblp naked helpless hull l> left ; 
Korc'd round n<l round, she quit* her purpos'd way, 
And bounds uncertain o'er the (welling tea. 
Ittiwt, tr. of Lucan's Pharsalla, Ix. 
9. To resolve; determine, or determine on. 
Because you look not to hear of your well-doing of man, 
I am purposed to MBS It over with silence. 
J. Bradford, Letters (I'arkerSoc., 1868), II. 52. 
Reg. For hl particular, 111 receive him gladly, 
Bat not one follower. 
(,'I.M So am I purpotta. 
Shall., Lear, II. 4. -".Hi. 
= 8yn. L To mean, meditate. 
U. intruus. 1. To have intention or design ; 
intend; mean. 
Upon my aoul, 
You may believe him ; nor did he e'er purpose 
To me but nulily. 
Fletcher (and another 1), Prophetess, Ir. 1. 
2f. To discourse. 
Although It scrre you to purpote with the Ignorant and 
vulgar sort, who measure by tale and not by weight 
Hooker, Eccles. Polity, Pref., iv. 
She In merry sort 
Them gan to bord, and purpote dlversly. 
Spenser, F. Q., II. xli. 16. 
purpose (per'pos), . [< ME. purpose, porpose, 
purpos, porpos; < OF. pourpos, purpose, porpos, 
a var. of propos, propost, F. propos, a purpose, 
aim, end, < L. proposition, a thing proposed or 
intended, neut. of propositus, pp. of proponere, 
set forth, placfi before : see propose, propound. 
Ct. purpose, .] 1. A thing proposed or in- 
tended ; an object to be kept in view or sub- 
served in any operation or course of action; 
end proposed ; aim. 
True It is, that the kingdom of God must be the first 
thing in our purposes and desires. 
Hooker, Eccles. Polity, L 10. 
I wondred to what purpose they built Castles so near. 
Coryat, Crudities, I. 98. 
When they had environed and beset the fields in this 
manner, they thought their purpose sure. 
Quoted In Copt. John Smith's Works, I. 218. 
Thosi- great number of Oriental Books he had most 
from his Nephew, whom he sent abroad for thatpiirpow. 
Lixtrr, Journey to Paris, p. 102. 
This man . . . had made a vow that, every Lent, he 
would spend the whole forty days in some part of the 
Abyssinian kingdom ; and to this purpose he had raised, 
at his own expence, a small body of veteran troops, whom 
he Inspired with the same spirit and resolution. 
Bruce, Source of the Nile, II. 115. 
Nothing can make ritual safe except the strict obser- 
vance of Its purpose, namely that It shall supply wings to 
the human soul in Its callow efforts at upward flight. 
Gladstone, Might of Right, p. i22. 
2t. Proposition; proposal; point to bo eou.sid- 
ered or acted upon. 
As I bod Thoii3t thone mene bltwene. 
And put forth sommepurjxw to prouen his wittes. 
Piers Plourman(B), vlll. 120. 
And therefore have we 
Our written purpones before us sent ; 
Which, If thou hast consider d, let us know 
If 'twill tie up thy discontented sword. 
Shot., A. and C., II. 6. 4. 
Hence 3. Intended or desired effect ; practi- 
cal advantage or result; use; subject or mat- 
ter in hand ; question at issue : as, to speak to 
the purpose. 
He was wont to speak plain and to the purpose, like an 
honest man and a soldier. Shak., Much Ado, II. 3. 20. 
He would answer me quite from the purpose. 
B. Jonson, Volpone, ill. 2. 
It Is to small purpose to have an erected face towards 
heaven, and a perpetual grovelling spirit upon earth. 
Bacon, Advancement of Learning, II. 351. 
The speech he made was so little to the purpose that I 
shall not trouble my readers with an account of It. 
Addison, Sir Roger at the Assizes. 
4. Intention; design; resolve; resolution; de- 
termination. 
Full long agoo I was In this purpose. 
Butt thenne I mygbt not telle yow what I ment. 
Oenerydes (E. E. T. S.X 1. 484. 
I schall do my part as feythfully as I can to It-it Wynd- 
yl ye c 
Infirm of purpose ! 
hamys ptrrpose tyf ye come home. Paston Letters, I. 2r>9. 
(ilve me the dagger*. Shak., Macbeth, 11. 2. 52. 
At this Time Intelligence was given to the Lords that 
Klchard, King of the Romans, had a Purpose to come Into 
F.ngland. Baker, Chronicles, p. 8ft. 
The purpose firm Is equal to the deed : 
Who does the best his circumstance allows 
Does well, act* nobly ; angels could no more. 
Young, Night Thought*, II. I. 90. 
A certain hot fcllness of purpose, which annihilated 
everything hut Itself. llaiiihorne, Seven Cables, vlll. 
6. Import; meaning; purport; intent. 
The Intent and purpose of the law 
Hath full relation to the penalty, 
Which here appeareth due upon the bond. 
Shot., M.of V.,lv. 1. 247. 
With words to this pui-p*-. he [Ambrose] put back the 
Kmptror as Inferior to himself. 
Milton, Ana. to Halmailui. 
AMI 
6f. Discourse; conversation. 
For she In pleasaunt purpose did abound, 
And greatly Joyed merry tales to faine. 
Spenser, V. Q., II. vL 6. 
7t. Instance; example. 
TIs common for double dealers to be taken in their own 
snares as. for the purpose, in the matter of power. 
Sir A. L'KHnmge. 
8t. pi. A sort of conversational game. Com- 
pare cross-purpose, 2. 
Ott purposes, oft riddles he devysd, 
And thousands like which flowed in his bralne. 
Spenser, F. Q., III. x. 8. 
For sport's sake let 's have some Riddles or Purposes ho ! 
B. Jonson, Cynthia's Revels, iv. 1. 
9f. A dance resembling a cotillion, a charac- 
teristic feature of which was the introduction 
of confidential or coquettish conversation. 
The Purpose was so called because the figure exacted 
that at stated intervals the couples should dance together 
through the doorway into an adjoining room, and, having 
made the circuit of that apartment, should return, un- 
bosomed of any secrets they might have had to Inter- 
change, to the rest of the laughing company. It was a 
figure obviously adopted for the triumph of coquetry and 
the discomfiture of mankind. 
Whijte Melville, Queen's Maries, xvL 
Of purpose, on purpose, purposely . Intentionally ; with 
design : as, to do a thing o purpose ; the door was left 
open of purpose. 
Wherefore we must thlnke he did It of purpose, by the 
odde slllable to giue greater grace to his ineeter. 
Puttenham, Arte of Eng. I'oesie, p. 108. 
Nature hei-sclf seemed to have studied of purpose how 
to make herself there admired. Howell, Letters, I. 1. 39. 
Her father, a hale and hearty man, died, on purpose, I 
believe, for the pleasure of plaguing me with the care of 
his daughter. Sheridan, School for Scandal, Hi. 1. 
To all intents and purposes. See intent To be in 
purpose*, to be resolved; intend. 
I am in purpos to passe perilous wayes. 
To kaire with my kene mene, to conquere 3one landes. 
Morir Arthure (E. E. T. S.), L 641. 
purposedlyt (per'post-li), adv. [< purposed, 
pp. of purpose, r., + -///'-'. Cf. purposely.'] Inten- 
tionally; designedly; purposely. XortJi,ti.of 
Plutarch, p. 615. 
purposeful (per'pos-ful), a. [(purpose + -fill.} 
1. Characterized by purpose or definite aim ; 
having an object in view; full of purpose or 
meaning; of serious import or significance: op- 
posed to aimless. 
The group of mother and child on page 89 is sincere, 
purposeful, downright drawing. 
Thf A'ation, Dec. 16, 1869, p. 539. 
The funeral offerings of food, clothing, weapons, A r.. to 
the dead are absolutely intelligible and purposeful among 
savage races, who believe that the souls of the departed 
are ethereal beings, capable of consuming food. 
E. B. Tylor, Encyc. lirit., II. 122. 
Hence 2. Intended; made or introduced on 
purpose. 
The angles |were| all measured, and the purposeful vari- 
ation of width in the border therefore admit* of no dispute. 
Ruskin. 
purposefully (per'pos-ful-i), adv. With full 
purpose or design ; of set purpose. 
You may Indeed perhaps think . . . that It is much 
more pardonable to slay needlessly than purposefully. 
Buskin. 
purposefulness (per'pos-ful-nes), w. Purpose- 
ful character or quality ; adaptation to a pur- 
pose : as, the pnrposrfulness of an architectural 
design. 
The purposeMnets of the process of evolution. 
Encyc. Brit., VIII. 769. 
purposeless (per'pos-les), a. [(.purpose + -less."\ 
Lacking purpose or use ; without practical ad- 
vantage; aimless; useless. 
purposelessly (per'pos-les-li), adv. In a pur- 
poseless manner; aimlessly; without apparent 
object. 
purposelessness (per'pos-lea-nes), . 1. Lack 
of definite or practical purpose or aim. 2. 
The state or quality of being purposeless, and 
therefore without design or final cause. See 
(li/*trleulo<ii/. 
purpose-like (per'pos -Ilk), a. 1. Having a 
definite purpose or object to be subserved: as, 
M /mi -piise-liki person or action. 2. Having the 
appearance of being fit for a purpose. 
Cuddle soon returned, assuring the stranger . . . that 
the gudewife should make a bed up for him at the house, 
malr purprtse-like and comfortable than the like o' them 
ei.nld gie him. "" Old Mortality, xxxvlll. 
purposely (per'pos-li), adv. [A reduction of 
ptjrpMMwy; as if jnir/ione + -ly^.} Intention- 
ally; designedly; on purpose. 
purposer <p 'I I '|.-'T), w. [< purpose + -/r 1 .] 
1. One who purposes, resolves, or determines 
on any particular course of action; one who 
purpura 
forms a resolution. 2. One who proposes or 
sets forth anything, 
purposive (per'pos-iv), a. [< purpose + -in . } 
1. Having an aim or purpose; having an end 
in view; purposeful. [Rare.] 
We want a word to express the adaptation of means to 
an end, whether involving consciousness or not ; the word 
purpose will do very well, and the adjective purposive has 
already been used in this I BUM, 
W. K. Cli/ord, Lecture*, II. 168. 
To ascertain the origin and progress of purposive action 
it seems, then, that we must look to the effect* of pain 
rather than to those of pleasure. Encyc. Brit., XX. 73. 
2. Accomplishing some end ; functional; use- 
ful in animal or vegetable economy: applied in 
biology to parts and organs which are not rudi- 
mentary or vestigial, and may therefore be re- 
garded as teleological. 
purposiveness (per'pos-iv-nes), n. The quality 
or character of being purposive, or designed 
for an end. [Rare.] 
It* movements. Instead of being wholly at random, show 
more and more signs of purposicenest. Contemporary Ret. 
purpoyntt, " An obsolete form of pourjioint. 
purpret, . and a. An obsolete variant of purple. 
Chaucer. 
purprestnre (per-pres'tur), n. [Also pourpres- 
ture; < OF. purpresture, pourprcsture, purpres- 
tiireCM.lj.purprestura,porprestura,proprestura), 
an encroachment, purpresture, a fee paid by 
villeins for the privilege of inclosing land; a 
variant of pourpresure, porprcsure, pourpris- 
gure, an incfosure, space occupied, < pourprise, 
porprise, purprise, pom-pritise, an mclosure: 
see purprise.} In law, a nuisance consisting 
in an iuclosure of or encroachment on some- 
thing that belongs to another person or to the 
public, as the shutting up or obstruction of a 
highway or of navigable waters. Encroach- 
ments other than against the public are no 
longer termed purprestures. 
The offence of purprtsture . . . was an encroachment 
on the forest rights, by building a house within the forest, 
and it made no difference whether the land belonged to 
the builder or not Encyc. Brit., IX. 409. 
purprise (per-priz' ), n. [Early mod. E.also/wnr- 
pnttr; < tfE. purprigf, < OF. pourprise, porprise, 
purprise, an inelosure, < pourpris, porpris, pur- 
pris, pp. of pourprciidre, porpmidre, purpren- 
dre, seize upon, occupy, encroach upon, invest, 
surround, inclose, < pour-, par-, pur-, < L. pro, 
before, + prendere, take : see prehe lid and jiHrel, 
surprise, etc. Cf. purpresture.} A close or ill- 
closure ; also, the whole compass of a manor. 
And eke amydde this purprixe 
Was maad a tour of gret malstrlse. 
Rom. of the Rose, 1. 4171. 
Mil- place of Justice is a hallowed place ; and therefore 
not only the bench, but the footpace and precincts and 
purprue thereof ought to be preserved without scandal 
and corruption. Bacon, Judicature (ed. 1887). 
purpult, a. A Middle English form of purple. 
purpura (per'pu-rii), n. fNL., < L. purpura, < 
Gr. iropdw/xi, the purple-fish, a purple dye or 
color: see purple.} 1. In 
med., an eruption of small 
purple spots and patches, 
caused by extravasation of 
blood in the skin; the pur- 
ples. 2. [cap.} A genus of 
gastropods, typical of the 
family Purpuridee. The ani- 
mal ha* a purpurigenons gland, 
and secretes a purplish fluid which 
has given name to the genus. The 
shell is generally oblong ovate, its 
surface usually being rather rough 
with spines or tubercles. The spe- 
cies are numerous, and are di- 
vided In various subgeuera, consid- 
ered by some as genera. /'. lapil- 
lus Is an abundant northern spe- 
cies, common to both shores of the 
Atlantic. See also cut under oprrculum Malignant 
purpura, cercbrosplnal fever. Purpura hemorrha- 
glca, purpura attended with hemorrhage Into and from 
mucous membranes, and often Into scruns membranes and 
cavities. Pyrexta may be present or absent. Also called 
morbwi macvlofus Werlho/H. - Purpura nautlca, scurvy. 
Purpura nervosa, pnrpura with rheumatoid pains, 
with colic and vomiting, sometimes hemorrhage from tin- 
bowels, and frequently cutaneous edema. It occurs most- 
ly in children. The specific name refers to a supposed de- 
pendence on the sympathetic nervous system. Pnrpura 
papulosa, puipiirii in which the eccliymoses are Inter- 
spersed with livid papules. Also called lichen liridut. 
Purpura rheumatica, a disease characterized by a pur- 
purlc eruption, often with some fever, nausea, colicky 
pains, diarrhea, or constipation, and with rheumatoid 
pains and often swelling and redness In certain joint*. 
Pnrpura Simplex, n disease characterized by a pur- 
pnric eruption, with slight general symptoms such as lan- 
guor ami l"f of appetite. The s].t ,-,. tit in suc- 
cessive crops, each lasting a week or ten dtt>-. there may 
be a number of such recurrent eruptions. Purpura 
lafillus. 
