sermoning 
or teaching; hence, homily; instruction; ad- 
vice. 
But herof was so long a sennoning, 
Hit were to long to make rehersing. 
Chaucer, flood Women, 1. 1184. 
If the like occasion come againe, hee shall lease need 
the help of breviates, or historical! rhapsodies, than your 
reverence to eek out your nennonin^H shall need repaire 
to Postills, or Polianthea's. 
Milton, On Def. of Humb. Remonst. 
sermonise, sermoniser. See sermonize, //<>- 
ieer. 
sermonish (ser'mon-ish), a. [< sermon + -igh 1 .} 
Like a sermon. [Rare.] Imp. Diet. 
sermqnist (ser'mon-ist), . [< sermon + -ist.} 
A writer or deliverer of sermons. 
sermonium (ser-mo'ni-um), . ; pi. sermonia (-a). 
[NL. (see def.), < L. sermo(n-), a speaking, dis- 
course: see sermon."} An interlude or histori- 
cal play formerly acted by the inferior orders of 
the Roman Catholic clergy, assisted by youths, 
in the body of the church. Bailey. 
sermonize (ser'mon-iz), v. ; pret. and pp. ser- 
monized, ppr. sermonizing. [< ML. sermonizari, 
< L. sermo(n-), a discourse: see sermon.} I. 
in trans. 1. To preach; discourse; harangue; 
use a dogmatic or didactic style in speaking or 
writing. 
In sailor fashion roughly sermonizing 
On providence and trust in Heaven. 
Tennyson, Enoch Arden. 
I feel as if I ought to follow these two personages of my 
sermonizing story until they come together or separate. 
O. W. Holmes, Atlantic Monthly, LXVI. 608. 
2. To lecture ; lay down the law. 
The dictates of a morose and sermonizing father. 
Chesterfield. (Latham.) 
Though the tone of it is distinctly religious, there is very 
little sermonizing and no false sentiment. 
St. James's Gazette, Dec. 22, 1886. (Encyc. Diet.) 
3. To make sermons ; compose or write a ser- 
mon. 
II. trans. To preach a sermon to ; discourse 
to in a formal way ; persuade, affect, or influ- 
ence by or as by a sermon. 
We have entered into no contest or competition which 
of us shall sing or sermonize the other fast asleep. 
Landor, Imag. Conv., Lord Brooke and Sir Philip Sidney. 
Also spelled sermonise. 
sermonizer (ser'mon-I-zer), 11. [< sermonize + 
-erl.] A preacher or writer of sermons: used 
chiefly in a depreciatory sense. Also spelled 
sermoniser. 
He [Crowley] was not less a favorite sermonizer. He 
touched a tremulous chord in the hearts of the people, and 
his opinions found an echo in their breasts. 
/. D'Israeli, Amen, of Lit, I. 377. 
sermount, A Middle English form of sermon. 
sermountain (ser'moun"tan), n. [< OF. ser- 
ntontain, " siler mountain, bastard loveage " 
(Cotgrave): see Siler.} A European umbel- 
liferous plant, said to be a kind of Laserpitium 
or Siler. 
sermuncle (ser'mung-kl), n. [< L. sermuncu- 
lus, a little discourse, common talk, tattle, dim. 
of sermo(n-), discourse, talk: see sermon.} A 
little sermon or discourse. 
The essence of this devotion is a series of sennuncles, 
meditations, hymns, or prayers. 
Church Times, April 2, 1886. (Encyc. Did.) 
serofibrinous (se-ro-fi'bri-nus), a. [< L. serum 
+ E. fibrin : see Jibrinous.} Consisting of serum 
which contains fibrin. 
seron, . [Trade-name; cf. seroon.} An ob- 
long package of mate, or Paraguay tea, holding 
about 200 pounds, of which the outer wrapping 
material is raw hide put on and sewed together 
while green, the subsequent shrinkage in dry- 
ing compacting the mass. 
Seroon (se-ron'), n. [Also ceroon, seron, se- 
rone; < Sp. seron, a hamper, crate (= Pg. cei- 
rSo, a great basket), aug. of sera, a large 
pannier or basket, also a rush, = Pg. ceira, a 
basket used by porters, a frail, also a rush. 
Cf. Cat. Sp. Harriet, a net or basket woven of 
rushes, = OF. sarrie, a pannier ; origin uncer- 
tain.] A hamper, pannier, or crate in which rai- 
sins, figs, almonds, and other fruit, seeds and 
other articles, especially from Spain or the Med- 
iterranean, are commonly packed. 
seropneumothorax (se-ro-mi-mo-thd'raks), . 
[< L. serum, serum, + Gr. wei'ftuv, lung, + 8u- 
paf, breast.] The presence of serous fluid to- 
gether with gas or air in a pleural cavity : same 
as pneiimohi/ili'iitnoraj'. 
seropurulent (se-ro-pu'ro-lent), a. [< L. se- 
rum, serum, + pwulmhw, purulent.] Com- 
posed of serum mixed with pus. 
5511 
serosanguinolent (se"ro-sang-gwin'o-lent), a. 
[< L. xerum, serum, + sanguiniitentim, bloody: 
see srnii/idiHi/i'iit.} Pertaining to or of the na- 
ture of bloody serum. 
seroset (se'ros), a. [< NL. "serosus: see se- 
rous.] Same as serous. Dr. H. More. 
serosity (se-ros'i-ti), n. [= F. seroxite = Sp. 
serositlad = Pg. seroxidade = It. serosita, siero- 
sita; as serous + -ity."} 1. The state of being 
serous or watery. 2. That which is serous or 
watery; a serous fluid; serum. [Rare.] 
In Elephantiasis Arabum . . . the other tissues, for ex- 
ample, of the lower limbs or neck become changed in struc- 
ture, intumescent, hard, and at times loaded more or less 
with serosity. J. M. Carnochan, Operative Surgery, p. 40. 
serotina (ser-o-ti'na), n. [NL., fern, of seroti- 
nus, late: see serotine.} The decidua serotina 
(which see, under decidua). 
serotine (ser'o-tin), n. [= F. serotine, < L. 
serotinus, late, backward, < sero, late, at a late 
time, prob. abl. neut. of serus, late.] A small 
European bat, Vespertilio or Vesperugo seroti- 
nus, of a reddish-brown color above and paler 
grayish- or yellowish-brown below, about 3 
inches long: so called because it flies late in 
the evening. 
serotinous (se-rot'i-nus), a. [= It. serotine, 
serotino, < L.' serotinus, late, backward: see 
serotine.} In bot., appearing late in a season, 
or later than some allied species. 
serous (se'rus), a. [< OF. sereux, F. sereux = 
Sp. Pg. seroso = It. sieroso, < NL. "serosus, < 
L. serum, whey, serum: see serum.'} 1. Hav- 
ing the character or quality of serum; of or 
pertaining to serum or serosity: as, a serous 
fluid; serous extravasation. 2. Secreting, con- 
taining, or conveying serum; causing serosi- 
ty; concerned in serous effusion: as, a serous 
membrane; a serous surface. 3. Consisting 
of whey. 
Bland, a subacid liquor made out of the serous part of 
the milk. Scott, Pirate, vi. 
Serous liquid or fluid, any liquid formed in the body 
similar to blood-serum, such as that which moistens se- 
rous membranes, or as the cephalorachidian fluid, or as 
that which accumulates in tissues or cavities in dropsy. 
But the liquid part of uncoagulated blood is called plasma, 
and the contents of lymphatic vessels are called lymph, 
and the latter word is used in application to other serous 
liquids, especially when they are normal in quantity and 
quality. Serous membrane. See membrane. 
serpedinous (ser-ped'i-nus), a. [< ML. serpe- 
do (-din-), equiv. to serpigo '(-gin-), ringworm: 
see serpiginous."} Serpiginous. [Rare.] 
The itch is a corrupt humour between the skin and the 
flesh, running with a serpedinous course till it hath denied 
the whole body. Rev. T. Adams, Works, I. 601. 
Serpens (ser'penz), n. [L.: see serpent.} An 
ancient northern constellation intimately con- 
nected with, but not treated as a part of, Ophi- 
uclius (which see). 
serpent (ser'pent), a. and . [Orig. adj., but in 
E. first used as a noun; also formerly and dial. 
sarpent; < ME. serpent, < OF. serpent, sarpent, F. 
serj)ent, dial, sarpent, sarpan, a serpent, snake, 
a musical instrument so called, = Pr. sarpent 
= Sp. serpiente = Pg. It. serpente, a serpent, < 
L. serpen(t-)s, creeping, as a noun a creeping 
thing, a serpent (also applied to a louse), ppr. 
of serpere, creep, = Gr. epntiv, creep, = Skt. 
I/ sarp, creep (> sarpa, a snake); usually iden- 
tified also with L. repere, creep (see repent*, 
reptile), the / sarp being perhaps seen also in 
E. salve: see salve 1 ."} I. a. 1. Crawling on the 
belly, as a snake, or reptant, as an ophidian; 
of or pertaining to the Serpentia: correlated 
with salient and gradient. 2. Having the form 
or nature of a serpent; of a kind similar to 
that which a serpent has or might have. 
Back on herself her serpent pride had curl'd. 
Tennyson, Palace of Art. 
3. Serpentine; winding; tortuous. 
Their serpent windings and deceiving crooks. 
P. Fletcher, Purple Island, ii. 9. 
II. w. 1. A scaly creature that crawls on the 
belly; a limbless reptile; properly, a snake; 
any member of the order Opliidia (which see for 
technical characters). Serpent and snake now mean 
precisely the same thing ; but the word serpent is some- 
what more formal or technical than snake, so that it seldom 
applies to the limbless lizards, many of which are popu- 
larly mistaken for and called snakes, and snake had origi- 
nally a specific meaning. (See snake. ) Serpents are found 
all over the world, except in very cold regions. Most 
of them are timid, inoffensive, and defenseless animals; 
others are among the most dangerous and deadly of all 
creatures. Some are very powerful. In consequence of their 
great size and faculty of constriction, aa boas, pythons, 
and anacondas. Those which are not venomous are known 
as i nnocmna serpents, or Innoaia ; those which are poison- 
ous are noximis serpents, or Nocua, sometimes collectively 
called Thanatophidia. All are carnivorous ; and most are 
serpent 
able, by means of their dilatable mouths and the general 
distensibilityof their bodies, to swallow animals of greater 
girth than themselves. In cold and temperate countries 
serpents hibernate in a state of torpidity. They are 
oviparous or ovoviviparous, and in some cases the young 
take refuge from danger by crawling into the gullet of the 
mother, whence the common belief that snakes swallow 
their young. Most serpents can be tamed, or at least ren- 
dered gentle, by handling; others, as the rat-snake of In- 
dia, are almost domestic ; but the more venomous kinds 
can be safely handled only when the fangs have been re- 
moved. There is a very general misapprehension respect- 
ing the comparative numbers of venomous and harmless 
serpents. Out of more than 300 genera of ophidians, only 
about 50, or one sixth, are poisonous, and more than half of 
these belong to the two families Najidfp and Crotalidee (the 
cobra and the rattlesnake families). The true vipers (Ft- 
peridee) and the sea-serpents (Hydrophidte), all venomous, 
have six or eight genera apiece ; and four other venomous 
families have but one to three genera apiece. The pro- 
portion of venomous to non-venomous species is still 
smaller than that of the genera, as the latter will average 
more species to a genus than the former. Poisonous ser- 
pents are mainly confined to tropical and warm temperate 
countries; they are more numerous and diversified in the 
Old World than in the New, and rather more forms are 
Proteroglypha than Solenoglypha (see these words). Ser- 
pents large enough to be formidable from their powers 
of constriction belong to the Boidss and Pythonidx. A 
few families contain very small species, worm-like in ap- 
pearance and to some extent in habits. A majority of all 
serpents belong to one family, the harmless Colubridte. 
See cuts under the various popular and technical names. 
And hadde not ben the doublet that he hadde of a ser- 
pentes skyn, deed hadde he ben with-oute recouer. 
Merlin (E. E. T. S.), ii. 336. 
Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the 
field. Gen. iii. 1. 
2. [cap.} Ina-s<ro.,aconstellationinthenorth- 
ern hemisphere. See Opniuchus. 3. A musical 
instrument, properly of the trumpet family, 
having a cupped mouthpiece, a conical wood- 
en tube bent 
to and fro 
several times 
and usually 
covered with 
leather, and 
nine finger- 
holes very ir- 
regularly dis- 
posed. Its com- 
pass extended 
from two to four 
from -ihi.nt the Fonnsof Serpent (def. 3). The left-hand figure 
ihM C below is " * f f *" -'"""<="' 
middle C, and included more or less diatonic and chro- 
matic tones according to the skill of the performer. Its 
tone was pervasive, though somewhat harsh. It is said 
to have been invented by a canon of Auxerre in 1590 for 
use in church music. It was retained in orchestras until 
the invention of the contrafagotto, and is still occasion- 
ally used in French churches. 
A serpent was a good old note ; a deep, rich note was 
the serpent. T. Hardy, Under the Greenwood Tree, iv. 
4. In organ-building, a reed-stop similar to the 
trombone. 5. Figuratively, a person who in 
looks or ways suggests a serpent ; a wily, treach- 
erous person ; rarely, a fatally fascinating per- 
son. 
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape 
the damnation of hell? Mat. xxiii. 33. 
He's speaking now, 
Or murmuring, " Where 's my serpent of old Nile ? " 
For so he calls me. Shak., A. and C., i. 5. 25. 
6. A kind of firework which burns with a zig- 
zag, serpentine motion or light. 
In fire-works give him leave to vent his spite, 
Those are the only serpents he can write. 
Dryden, Abs. and Achit., ii. 452. 
7. In firearms, same as serpentin Naked ser- 
pents. See naked. Pharaoh's serpent, a chemical toy 
consisting of a small quantity of sulphocyanide of mer- 
cury enveloped in a cone of tinfoil. The cone is placed 
upright on a flat dish, and is ignited at the apex, when a 
bulky ash is at once formed which issues from the burning 
mass in a serpent-like form. Rat- tailed serpent. See 
rat-tailed. Serpent Starfish. Same as serpent-star. 
The old serpent, Satan. 
And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which 
is the Devil, and Satan. Rev. xx. 2. 
Some, whose souls the old serpent long had drawn 
Down, as the worm draws in the wither'd leaf. 
Tennyson, Geraint. 
serpent (sfer'pent), v. [< OF. serpenter, crawl 
like a serpentj wriggle (= It. serpentare, im- 
portune, tease), < serpent, a serpent: see serpent, 
n.} I. intrans. To wind along like a snake, 
as a river ; take or have a serpentine course ; 
meander. 
A circular view to ye utmost verge of ye horizon, which 
with the serpenting of the Thames is admirable. 
Evelyn, Diary, July 23, 1679. 
II. trans. To entwine ; girdle as with the 
coils of a serpent. 
The feilds, planted with fruit-trees, whose boles are 
serpented with excellent vines. 
Evelyn, Diary, Jan. 29, 1646. 
[Rare in botli uses.] 
