refraction 
2. In logic, the relation of the Theophrastian 
moods to the direct moods of the first figure. 
Astronomical or atmospheric refraction, the appa- 
rent angular elevation of the heavenly bodies above their 
true places, caused by the refraction of the rays of light in 
their passage through the earth's atmosphere, so that in 
consequence of this refraction those bodies appear higher 
than they really are. It is greatest when the body is on 
the horizon, and diminishes all the way to the zenith, 
where it is zero. Axis of double refraction. See 
optic axis (b\ under optic. Axis of refraction. See 
axiai. Caustic by refraction. See diacamtic. Coni- 
cal refraction, the refraction of a single ray of light, 
under certain conditions, into an infinite number of rays 
in the form of a hollo\v luminous cone, consisting of 
two kinds, external conical refraction and internal coni- 
cal refraction, the ray in the former case issuing from the 
refracting crystal as a cone with its vertex at the point of 
emergence, and in the latter being converted into a cone 
on entering the crystal, and issuing as a hollow cylinder. 
Double refraction. See def. l. Dynamic refrac- 
tion, refraction of the eye as increased in accommoda- 
tion. Electrical double refraction, the double refrac- 
tion produced in an isotroplc dielectric medium, as glass, 
under the action of an electrical strain. Index of re- 
fraction. See index, and def. 1. Plane of refrac- 
tion, the plane passing through the normal or perpen- 
dicular to the refracting surface at the point of incidence 
and the refracted ray. Point of refraction. Bee point!. 
Refraction equivalent, a phrase used by Landolt to 
express in the case of a liquid the quantity obtained by 
multiplying the molecular weight of the liquid by the 
so-called specific refractive energy, as defined by Glad- 
stone and Dale (namely, the refractive index less unity 
divided by its density referred to water). The refraction 
equivalent of a compound is said to be equal to the sum of 
the equivalents of its component parta. Refraction of 
altitude and declination, of ascension and descen- 
sion, of latitude and longitude, the change in the 
altitude, declination, etc., of a heavenly body due to the 
effect of atmospheric refraction. Refraction of sound, 
the bending of a beam of sound from its rectilinear course 
whenever it undergoes an unequal acceleration or retar- 
dation, necessarily turning toward the side of least ve- 
locity and from the side of greatest velocity. Static re- 
fraction, refraction of the eye when the accommodation 
is entirely relaxed. Terrestrial refraction, that re- 
fraction which makes terrestrial objects appear to be 
raised higher than they are in reality. This arises from 
the air being denser near the surface of the earth than it 
is at higher elevations, its refractive power increasing as 
the density increases. The mirage is a phenomenon of 
terrestrial refraction. 
refractive (re-frak'tiv), a. [< F. refractif= Pg. 
refractive; as refract + -ive.] Of or pertaining 
to refraction ; serving or having power to re- 
fract or turn from a direct course Refractive 
index. Same as index of refraction. See index and re- 
fraction. Refractive power, in optics, the degree of in- 
fluence which a transparent body exercises on the light 
which passes through it : used also in the same sense as 
refractive index. 
refractiveness (re-frak'tiv-nes), n. The state 
or quality of being refractive. 
refractivity (re-frak-tiv'i-ti), . [< refractive 
+ -ity.~\ See the quotation. 
The refracticity of a substance is the difference between 
the index of refraction of the substance and unity. 
Philosophical Mag., 5th ser., XXVIII. 400. 
refractometer (re-frak-tom'e-ter), n. [Irreg. < 
L. refractus, pp. of refringere, break up (see re- 
fract), + Gr. fierpov, measure.] An instrument 
used for measuring the refractive indices of 
different substances. Many forms of this have been 
devised ; and the term is specifically applied to an in- 
strument which employs interference fringes and which 
allows of the measurement of the difference of path of 
two interfering rays the immediate object of observa- 
tion being the displacement produced by the passage of 
the ray through a known thickness of the given medium, 
from which its refractive power can be found. Such re- 
fractometers (inferential refractometers) may also be em- 
ployed for other purposes, for example, in certain cases 
of linear measurement. 
refractor (re-frak'tor), n. [= P. rcfracteur; 
as refract 4- -or 1 .]' A refracting telescope. 
See telescope. 
refractorily (re-frak'to-ri-li), adv. In a refrac- 
tory manner ; perversely ; obstinately. Imp. 
Diet. 
refractoriness (re-frak'to-ri-nes), n. The state 
or character of being refractory, in any sense. 
refractory (re-frak'to-ri), a. and n. [Errone- 
ously for the earlier refractory. < L. refractarius, 
stubborn, obstinate, refractory: see refractory.'] 
La. 1. Resisting; unyielding; sullen or per- 
verse in opposition or disobedience; obstinate 
in non-compliance ; stubborn and unmanage- 
able. 
There is a law in each well-order'd nation 
To curb those raging appetites that are 
Most disobedient and refractory. 
Shak., T. and C., ii. 2. 182. 
Our care and caution should be more carefully employed 
in mortification of our natures and acquist of such virtues 
to which we are more refractory. 
Jer. Taylor, Works (ed. 1835), H. 8. 
He then dissolved Parliament, and sent its most refrac- 
tory members to the Tower. 
D. Webster, Speech, Senate, May 7, 1834. 
2. Resisting ordinary treatment or strains, etc. ; 
difficult of fusion, reduction, or the like: said 
6039 
especially of metals and the like that require 
an extraordinary degree of heat to fuse them, 
or that do not yield readily to the hammer. 
In metallurgy an ore is said to be refractory when it is 
with difficulty treated by metallurgical processes, or when 
it is not easily reduced. Stone, brick, etc., are refractory 
when they resist the action of fire without melting, crack- 
ing, or crumbling. Refractory materials are such as can 
be used for the lining of furnaces and crucibles, and for 
similar purposes. 
3. Not susceptible; not subject; resisting (some 
influence, as of disease). [Rare.] 
Pasteur claimed to so completely tame the virus that a 
dog would, in being rendered refractory to rabies by hy- 
podermic inoculation or trepanning, show no sign of ill- 
ness. Science, III. 744. 
Refractory period of a muscle, the time after a first 
stimulus when the muscle is not irritable by a second stim- 
ulus. This has been found for striated frog's muscle, after 
a maximal first stimulation, to be about ,,',,, scruml. =Syn. 
1. Stubborn, Intractable, etc. (see obstinate), unruly, ungov- 
ernable, unmanageable, headstrong, mulish. 
II. .; pi. refractories (-riz). If. One who is 
obstinate in opposition or disobedience. 
Render not yourself a refractory on the sudden. 
B. Jonson, Cynthia's Revels, v. 2. 
2f. Obstinate opposition. 
Glorying in their scandalous refractories to public order 
and constitutions. 
Jer. Taylor (?), Artif. Handsomeness, p. 138. 
3. In pottery, a piece of ware covered with a 
vaporable flux and placed in a kiln to communi- 
cate a glaze to other articles. E. S. Knight. 
refracture (re-frak'tur), n. [< re- + fracture. In 
def. 2 with ref. to refractory.] 1. A breaking 
again, as of a badly set bone. 2f. Refractori- 
ness; antagonism. [Rare.] 
More veniall and excusable may those verbal! reluctan- 
cies, reserves, and refractures (rather than anything of 
open force and hostile rebellions) seem. 
Bp. Oauden, Tears of the Church, p. 562. (Danes.) 
refragability (ref'ra-ga-bil'i-ti), . [< ML. 
refragabilita(t-)s, < refragabilis, refragable : see 
refragable.] The state or quality of being ref- 
ragable; refragableness. Bailey. 
refragable (ref'ra-ga-bl), a. [= Pg. refragavel, 
< ML. refragabilis, resistible, < L. refragari, 
oppose, resist, gainsay, contest: see refragate.] 
Capable of being opposed or resisted ; refuta- 
ble. Bailey. 
refragableness (ref'ra-ga-bl-nes), n. The char- 
acter of being refragable. [Rare.] 
refragatet (ref'ra-gat), v. i. [< L. refragatus, 
pp. of refragari, "oppose, resist, contest, gain- 
say, < re-, back, again, -f- fragari, perhaps < 
frangere (-^ frag), break: see fragile.] To op- 
pose ; be opposite in effect ; break down under 
examination, as theories or proofs. 
And 'tis the observation of the noble St. Alban that 
that philosophy is built on a few vulgar experiments; 
and if, upon further inquiry, any were found to refragate, 
they were to be discharg'd by a distinction. 
Glanmlle, Vanity of Dogmatizing, xix. 
refrain 1 (re-fran'), v. [Early mod. E. refrayiie, 
refreyne, <'ME. refreinen, refreynen, refraynen, 
< OF. refraindre, refreindre, also rcfrener, F. re- 
frener, bridle, restrain, repress, = Pr. Sp. re- 
frenar = Pg. refrear = It. raffrenare, < LL. re- 
frenare, bridle, hold in with a bit, < L. re-, back, 
+ frenwm, freenum, a bit, curb, pi. frena, curb 
and reins, a bridle: seefrenum.] I. trans. 1. 
To hold back; restrain; curb; keep from ac- 
tion. 
My son, . . . refrain thy foot from their path. 
Prov. 1. 16. 
In this plight, therefore, he went home, and refrained 
himself as long as he could, that his wife and children 
should not perceive his distress. 
Bunyan, Pilgrim's Progress, p. 84. 
The fierceness of them shalt thou refrain. 
Ps. Ixxvi. 10 (Psalter). 
2t. To forbear ; abstain from ; quit. 
Men may also refreyne venial sinne by receyvynge 
worthily of the precious body of Jhesu Crist. 
Chaucer, Parson's Tale. 
At length, when the sun waxed low, 
Then all the whole train the grove did refrain, 
And unto their caves they did go. 
Robin Hood and Little John (Child's Ballads, V. 222). 
I cannot refrain lamenting, however, in the most poig- 
nant terms, the fatal policy too prevalent in most of the 
states. 
Washington, quoted in Bancroft's Hist. Const., I. 282. 
II, intrans. To forbear; abstain; keep one's 
self from action or interference. 
Dreadfnll of daunger that mote him betyde, 
She oft and oft adviz'd him to refraine 
From chase of greater beastes. 
Spenser, F. Q., III. i. 37. 
Refrain from these men, and let them alone. 
Acts v. 38. 
The chat, the nuthatch, and the jay are still ; 
The robin too refrains. 
Harper's Mag., LXXVII. 718. 
refreid 
refrain 2 (re-fran'), n. [< ME. refraine, refrrym . 
< OF. (and F.) refrain, a refrain (= Pr. refranli, 
n-frim, a refrain, = Sp. refran = Pg. refrSo, a 
proverb, an oft-repeated saying), < refraindre, 
repeat, sing a song, = Pr. refranlier, refrenher, 
repeat, = It. refragnere, refract, reverberate, < 
L. refringere, break back, break off: see re- 
fract.] 1 . A burden or chorus recurring at reg- 
ular intervals in the course of a song or ballad, 
usually at the end of each stanza. 
Everemo "alias?" was his refreyne. 
Chaucer, Troilus, ii. 1571. 
They sang the refrain: 
"The roads should blossom, the roads should bloom, 
So fair a bride shall leave her home ! " 
Longfellow, Blind Girl of Castel-Cuille. 
2. The musical phrase or figure to which the 
burden of a song is set. It has the same relation to 
the main part of the tune that the burden has to the main 
text of the song. 
3. All after-taste or -odor; that impression 
which lingers on the sense : as, the refrain of a 
Cologne water, of a perfume, of a wine. 
refrainer (re-fra'ner), n. [Early mod. E. re- 
freinor; < refrain 1 + -er 1 .] One who refrains. 
So these ii. persons were euer cohibetors and refreinors 
of the kinges wilfull skope and vnbrideled libertie. 
Hall, Hen. VII., an. 18. 
refrainingt (rf-fra'ning), n. [< ME. refrain- 
ing, the singing of the burden of a song ; verbal 
n. of 'refrain 2 , v.,< OF. refrener, sing a refrain, 
refraindre, repeat, sing a song: see refrain 2 .] 
The singing of the burden of a song. 
She . . . couthe make in song sich refreynynge, 
It sat [became] hir wonder wel to synge. 
Rom. of the Rose, 1. 749. 
refrainment (re-fran'ment), n. [= F. refrene- 
ment = Sp. refrenamienio = Pg. refreamento = 
It. raffrenamento; as refrain 1 + -ment.] The 
act of refraining; abstinence ; forbearance. 
Forbearance and Indurance ... we may otherwise call 
Refrainment and Support. 
Shaftesbury, Judgment of Hercules, vi. $ 4. 
refraitt, . [Also refret; < ME. refraite, refraide, 
refrayde, refret, < OF. refrait, a refrain, < refrain- 
dre, repeat : see refrain 2 .] Same as refrain 2 . 
The refraite of his laye salewed the Kynge Arthur and 
the Queue Gonnore, and alle the other after. 
Merlin (E. E. T. S.), iii. 615. 
reframe (re-fram'), v. t. [< re- + frame.] To 
frame or put'together again. 
refranation (ref-ra-na'shon), u. [Irreg. < L. 
refrienatio(n-), refrenation: see refrenation.] 
In astral., the failure of a planetary aspect to 
occur, owing to a retrograde motion of one of 
the planets. 
refrangibility (re-fran-ji-bil'j-ti), n. [= F. re- 
frangibilile = Sp. refrangibilidad = Pg. refran- 
gibilidade = It. rifrangibilita ; as refrangible + 
-ity (see -bility).] The property of being re- 
frangible; susceptibility of refraction; the dis- 
position of rays of light, etc., to be refracted or 
turned out of a direct course in passing out of 
one medium into another. 
refrangible (re-fran'ji-bl), a. [= F. refrangi- 
ble = Sp. refrangible = Pg. refrangivel = It. ri- 
frangibile, refrangible, < L. refringere, refract 
(see refract), + -ible.] Capable of being re- 
fracted in passing from one medium to an- 
other, as rays of light. The violet rays in the 
spectrum are more refrangible than those of 
greater wave-length, as the red rays. 
Some of them [rays of light] are more refrangible than 
others. Locke, Elem. of Nat. 1-hilos., xi. 
refrangibleness (re-fran'ji-bl-nes), n. The 
character or property of being refrangible ; re- 
frangibility. Bailey. 
refreeze (re-frez'), v. t. [< re- + freeze.] To 
freeze a second time. 
Partially refrozen under continual agitation. 
Proc. Physical Soc., London, ii. 62. (Encyc. Diet.) 
refreidt, refroidt, v. [ME. refreiden, refreyden, 
refroiden, < OF. refreider, refreidier, rcfroidir, 
reffroidir, F. refroidir, render cold or cool, chill, 
etc., = Pr. refreidar, refreydir = Sp. Pg. resfriar 
= It. raffreddare, (. ML. refrigidare, make cold 
or cool, < L. re-, again, + frigidus, cold: see 
frigid. Cf. refrigerate.] I. trans. To make 
cool; chill. 
He ... shal som tyme be moeved in hymself, but if he 
were al refreyded by siknesse, or by maleflce of sorcerie, 
or colde drynkes. Chaucer, Parson's Tale. 
Nevew, be not so roth, refroide youre maltalente, ffor 
wrath hath many a worthi man and wise made to be holde 
for foles while the rage endureth. 
Merlin (E. E. T. S.), ill 500. 
II. intrans. To grow cool. 
God wot, refreyden may this hoote fare, 
Er Calkas sende Troylus Cryseyde. 
Chavcer, Troilus, v. 607. 
