semblable 
And the suiue tyme, in semblable wise, there to be redde 
the Maires Commission of the Staple. 
English Gild* (E. E. T. S.), p. 419. 
It is a wonderful thing to see the semblable coherence 
of his men's spirits and his. Shak., 2 Hen. IV., v. 1. 72. 
II. n. Likeness; resemblance; representa- 
tion ; that which is like or represents a certain 
thing. 
His semblable is his mirror. Shak., Hamlet, v. 2. 124. 
semblablyt (sem'bla-bli), adv. [< ME. xcmbln- 
hly; < semblfiblc + -ty' 2 .] In a similar manner; 
similarly. 
After hys hoires eemblaUy werkyng, 
Eegnyng after hym as men full myghty. 
Rotn. of Partenay (E. E. T. S.), 1. B330. 
A gallant knight he was, his name was Blunt ; 
Semblably furnish'd like the king himself. 
Shalt., 1 Hen. IV., v. 3. 21. 
SemMably he intended for to winne the plaine earth. 
llakluyt's Voyages, II. 88. 
semblance (sem'blans), n. [< ME. ta-iiihlintci; 
semllaunce, < OF. semblance, F. semblance (= Pr. 
semblansa, semlansa = STp.semblanza = Pg.seme- 
/hfii/ga = It. sembianza), < semblant, appearing, 
seeming: see semblant.'] 1. The state or fact 
of being like or similar ; likeness; similarity; 
resemblance. 
I thought nobody had been like me ; but I see there was 
some semblance betwixt this good Man and me. 
Bunyan, Pilgrim's Progress, p. 298. 
The Reins were cloath'd in whitest silk, to hold 
Some semblance to the Hand that them controlled. 
J. Beaumont, Psyche, ill. 67. 
2. Likeness; image; exterior form. 
And Merlyn com to Vlfyn, and transfigured hym to the 
semblaunce of lurdan, and than sente hym to the kynge. 
And whan the kynge saugh Vlfyn, he hym blissed, and 
seide, " Mercy God ! how may eny man make oon man so 
like a-nother?" Merlin (E. E. T. 8.), 1. 76. 
Ho more than wax shall be accounted evil 
Wherein is stamp'd the semblance of a devil. 
Shak., Lucrece, 1. 1246. 
3f. Face ; countenance ; aspect. 
Their semblance kind, and mild their gestures were. 
Fair/ax. 
4. Appearance; outward seeming; show. 
His words make a semblance as If hee were magnani- 
mously exercising himself. Mil/mi, Eikouoklastes, xxvii. 
If you could be alarmed into the semblance of modesty, 
you would charm everybody. 
Sydney Smith, To Francis Jeffrey. 
semblandt, See semblant. 
semblant(sem'blant),.and. [I. .<ME.*em- 
blant, *semblaunt (only as a noun ?), < OF. (and 
F.) semblant (= Pr. semblant, semlant = Sp. sem- 
blante = Pg. semelhante = It. sembiante), like, 
similar, apparent, ppr. of sembler, seem, simu- 
late: see semble. II. . Early mod. E. semblaunt, 
< ME. semblant, semblaunt, sembland, semlant, 
semelant, semelaunt, < OF. semblant, "semlant, 
F. semblant (= Pr. semblant, semlant = Sp. sem- 
biante = Pg. sembiante = It. sembiante, sem- 
biante), resemblance, appearance, aspect, coun- 
tenance^ semblant, like, apparent: see I.] I. 
a. If. Like; resembling. 
Comparing them together, see 
How in their semblant Vertues they agree. 
Heyu'ood, Hierarchy of Angels, p. 275. 
Thy Picture, like thy Fame, 
Entire may last, that as their Eyes survey 
The semblant Shade, Men yet unborn may say 
Thus Great, thus Gracious look'd Britannia's Queen. 
Prior, An Epistle, desiring the Queen's Picture. 
2. Appearing; seeming, rather than real ; spe- 
cious. 
Thou art not true ; thou art not extant only semblant. 
Carlyle. 
II. t n. 1. Appearance; aspect; show; sem- 
blance. 
Mekely she leet her eyen falle, 
And thilke semblant sat her wel withalle. 
Chaucer, Good Women, 1. 1735. 
It semes by his seinbland he had leuere be sette 
By the feruent lire, to flenie hym fro colde. 
York Plays, p. 257 
Be of fayre semdaunt and contenaunce, 
For by fayre manerys men may thee a-vaunce. 
Babees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 401. 
Tho, backe returning to that gorie Dame, 
He shewed semblant of exceeding mone 
By speaking signes, as he them best could frame. 
Spenser, F. Q., VI. v. 4. 
2. Face ; countenance ; aspect. 
Sothli whenne the! dredden, and bowiden her semelant 
in to erthe, thei seiden to hem, What seke ye thelyuynge 
with deede men? Wyclif, Luke xxiv. 5. 
With glad semblaunt and pure good cher. 
Babees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 305. 
All dreri then was his semblaunte. 
Lytett Oeste of Hobyn Hade (Child's Ballads, V. 48). 
semblativet (sem'bla-tiv), a. [< semblei + 
-iitice.] In simulation or likeness; like (to). 
[Rare.] 
5482 
And all is wmblative a woman's p;ut. 
Shale., T. N., i. 4. 34. 
semblauntt, See m-inlilinit. 
semble 1 (sem'bl), v. i. ; pret. and pp. xemWed, 
ppr. scmhlini/. [< ME. si n/lilcn. xi-mln li-ti. seem, 
< OF. (and F.) sciiihlcr, resemble, appear, seem, 
= Pr. xciiiblni-, xi'iiilitr = Sp. xt'ti/liltir (obs. ), 
.ii'iiicjar = It. sembrare, scmbiare, < L. ximuliiri-. 
simulate, resemble: see siiiiiiluli: nnd cf. dix- 
xt-mble, resemble.] If. To appear; seem. 
Hi sembeles that he slepand is. 
Old En'j. tletr. limn. (ed. Small), p. 134. 
2. In law, used impersonally (generally abbre- 
viated sent, or scmb.) as Old French, semble, it 
appears, it seems, preceding a statement of 
opinion, thus qualified, on a point of law (not 
necessary to be decided in the case) which has 
not been directly settled. 3t. To dissemble. 
He tell thee what, thou wilt even temKe and cog with 
thine own father, 
A couple of false knaves together, a theefe and a broker. 
Three Ladies of London (1584). (tfares.) 
4f. To make a likeness; practise the art of 
imitation. 
Let Europe, sav'd, the column high erect, 
Than Trajan's higher, or than Antonine's, 
Where tembling art may carve the fair effect, 
And full achievement of thy great designs. 
Prior, Ode to the Queen. 
semble't (sem'bl), a. [Irreg. < semble^, r., as if 
ult. < L. similix, like : see similar.] Like; simi- 
lar. [Rare.] 
A tyrant vile, 
Of name and deed that bare the semble stile 
That did this King. 
Hudson, tr. of Du Bartas's Judith, i. 
^t, '' t. and i. [< ME. semblen, semeleit, by 
apheresisfroma.wwifeJeM: see assemble 1 , v.] To 
assemble; meet; gather together. 
Than aswithe thei sembled to-gader, 
& alle maner menstracie maked was sone. 
William of Palerne (E. E. T. S.), L 3811. 
He sembled all his men full still. 
Specimens of Early English (ed. Morris and Skeat), II. 129. 
semble 2 t, [ME. semble; by apheresis from n- 
semlile: see assemble 1 , n., assembly.] A gather- 
ing; a meeting ; an assembly. 
Barouns and burgeis and bonde-men also 
I -:in ,; in that semble as je schul heren her-aftur. 
Piers Plowman (A), Prol., 1. 97. 
semet. An obsolete spelling of seem, seam?. 
seme (se-ma'), a. and n. [F., pp. of semer, < 
L. seminare, sow : see geminate.] I. a. In her., 
covered with small bearings 
whose number is not fixed, and 
which form a sort of pattern 
over the surface : said of the 
field or of any bearing, where 
the bearings are distributed equally, 
and those which come next to the 
edges of the escutcheon are cut off, 
it is held by some writers that the 
blazon must be semJ, and not sans 
nmnbre (see sang notnbre). Alsopow- 
dered, aspersed. 
Heralds in blew velvet semee with 
fleurs de lys. 
Evelyn, Diary, Sept. 7, 1651. 
II. n. In decorative art, a 
powdering ; a small, constant- 
ly repeated figure; a decora- 
tion of which the different 
units do not touch one another, but are sepa- 
rated by the background. 
Semecarpus (sem-e-kiir'pus), n. [NL. (Linnseus 
filius, 1^81), so called from the use of the un- 
ripe fruit in Ceylon in marking cotton cloths; 
irreg. < Gr. a^/tslor, a mark or badge, + xapffof, 
fruit.] A genus of polypetalous trees, of the 
order Anacardiaeeee and tribe A aacardicx. It is 
characterized by simple flowers with five imbricated pet- 
als, five stamens, a one-celled ovary with three styles, and 
a single ovule pendulous from the apex. There are about 
40 species, chiefly natives of the East Indies, especially in 
Ceylon. They are trees with alternate coriaceous leaves, 
and small flowers in terminal or lateral bracted panicles, 
followed by hard kidney-shaped nuts with a thick resinous 
cellular pericarp, the source, in the leading species, of an 
indelible ink, and, after ripening, of a varnish and of a cor- 
rosive application used by the Hindus for rheumatism. 
See marHmj-mit, and Oriental cashew-nut (under cashew- 
nut). 
semeia, . Plural of semeion. 
semeiography, semeiologic, etc. See semiog- 
raphy, etc. 
semeion (se-ml'on), . ; pi. semeia (-a). [< Gr. 
aijfte'iov, a mark, sign, token, < ojjfia, a mark, sign, 
token, etc. : see semntie.] 1. In one. pros. : (a) 
The unit of time ; a primary time, or mora. See 
time, (b) One of the two divisions of a foot, 
known as thesis and arsis, or an analogous 
division of a measure or colon for instance, 
-. | ^, ; ^^|_^; JL . | _ w - . 2. Ill 
A Shield Seme of 
Fleurs-de-lis. 
semi-ape 
l>aleoi/., a mark, such as the corpnis, asterisk. 
diple, etc., used to indicate metrical and other 
divisions. 
semelantt, semelauntt, Middle English 
forms of gemblant. 
semele't, c. A Middle English form of semble' 2 . 
Semele- (sem'e-le), n. [L., < Gr. Ze/it'/n.] 1. 
In classical myth., the mother of Bacchus, by 
Zeus (Jupiter). 2. In conch., a genus of bi- 
valves, regarded by some as typical of the fam- 
semelichet, semelyt, a. Middle English forms 
of seemly. 
Semelidae(se-mel'i-de), n.pl. [< Semele? + -idee.] 
A family oif bivalves, typified by the genus 
fii'uiclc, generally united with the family .S'cro- 
bictdariidii: 
semeline (sem'e-lin), n. [< L. semen lini, flax- 
seed (from the form of the crystals): semen, 
seed; lini, gen. of liniini, flax.] A variety 
of titanite found in volcanic rocks near the 
Laacher See near the Eifel. 
semelinesst, ". A Middle English form of seem- 
lilll'XX. 
semelyhedet, A Middle English form of seem- 
lilicaa. 
semen (se'men), . [NL., < L. semen, seed, < 
serere, pp. satus (\/ se, sa), sow: see sow.] 1. 
In bot., the seed of plants, or the matured ovule. 
2. A thick whitish fluid of a peculiar odor, 
the combined product of the testes and acces- 
sory generative glands, containing spermato- 
zoa as its essential constituent Semen contra. 
Same as semencine. 
semencine (se'men-sin), n. [< F. semencine, < 
NL. semen cinee: L. semen, seed; citite, gen. of 
etna, a local name of santonica, 1.] Same as 
xantonica, 2. 
semen-multiplex (se'men-mul'ti-pleks), n. In 
hot., same as sporidesm. 
semese (se-mes'), a. [< L. semesus, half -eaten, 
< semi-, half, + eaus, pp. of edcre, eat, = E. eat.] 
Half-eaten. [Rare.] 
No ; they're sons of gyps, and that kind of thing, who 
feed on the semese fragments of the high table. 
Farrar, Julian Home, vii. 
semester (se-mes'ter), n. [< F. semestre = G. 
semester, < L. scmestris, half-yearly, < sex. six 
(see six), + mensis, a month: see month.] A 
period or term of six months ; specifically, one 
of the half-year courses in German and many 
other Continental universities, and hence in 
some colleges in the United States: as, the 
summer and winter semesters. 
semestral (se-mes'tral), a. [< L. semestris, half- 
yearly, + -al.] Relating to a semester ; half- 
yearly; semiannual. 
semi- (sem'i). [F. semi- = Sp. Pg. It. semi-, < 
L. gemi- = Gr. T//II-, half, = Skt. garni, half-way, 
= AS. sdm-, half: see liemi- and sam-.] A pre- 
fix of Latin origin, meaning 'half': much used 
in English in the literal sense, and, more loose- 
ly, to mean 'in part, partly, almost, largely, im- 
perfectly, incompletely.' It may be used, like half, 
with almost any adjective or noun. Only a few com- 
pounds are given below (without etymology, if of recent 
formation in English). 
semiacid (sem-i-as'id), n. and a. Half-acid; 
subacid. 
semi-adherent (sem"i-ad-her'ent), a. In bot., 
having the lower half adherent, as a seed, sta- 
men, etc. 
semia mplexicaul (sem"i-am-plek'si-kal), . In 
bot., half-amplexicaul ; embracing half of the 
stem, as many leaves. 
semianatropal, semianatropous (sem"i-a- 
nat'ro-pal, -pus), a. In bot., same as timphit- 
ropoiis. 
semiangle (sem'i-ang-gl), n. The half of a 
given or measuring angle. 
semiannual (sem-i-an'u-al), a. Half-yearly. 
semiannually (sem-i-ari'u-al-i), adv. Once 
every six months. 
semiannular (sem-i-an'u-lar), . Forming a 
half -circle ; semicircular. 
Another boar tusk, somewhat slenderer, and of a >emi- 
annvlar figure. N. Grew, Museum. 
semi-anthracite (sem-i-an'thra-sit), . Coal 
intermediate in character between anthracite 
and semibituminous coal. In anthracite the vola- 
tile matter is usually less than 7 per cent, in quantity ; in 
semi-anthracite, less than 10 per cent, 
Semi-anthracite is neither as hard nor as dense as anthra- 
cite, its luster not so brilliant ; its percentage of volatile 
matter is greater, and the cleavage planes or " cleats " are 
much closer, the fracture often approaching the cuboidal. 
Penn. Survey, Coal Mining, p. 16. 
semi-ape (sem-i-ap'), . A lemur or allied ani- 
mal ; a prosimian ; any one of the I'rosimiee. 
