softener 
2. Specifically, in ceram., a broad brush used 
to spread verifiable color thinly and uniformly 
on the biscuit. 
softening (sofniug), . [Verbal n. of soften, v.] 
1. ihe act of making soft or softer 2 In 
painting, the blending of colors into each other 
~ , i. ,^" '' a dimi nutiou of the natural 
thy firmness of organs or parts of or- 
gans; mollities. Cerebral softening, softening of 
e Drain. Colloidal Softening. Same as colloid df 
generation (which see, under eottaB) - Softening of th 
brain, an affection of some part n pZrt?rft taSf 
in which it is necrosed and softened Red yellow a i 
wink' softening, are distinguished. The color depends o 
the presence or absence of blood-pigmei.t. These snots 
softening are usually produced by the occlusion of an i" 
tery most frequently by embolUi or thrombo Is Rarer 
conditions are ascribed to a local inllnmmation The 
phrase is sometimes popularly but improperly applied to 
dementia paralytica.- Softening of the spinal cord 
a local condition similar to thelike-nanied inthi brain 
but most frequently dependent on inflammation. 
softening-iron (sorning-I'ern), . In leather- 
manuf., a round-edged iron plate mounted on 
an upright beam, and fixed to a heavy plank 
securely fastened in the floor of a drying-loft 
The skins are wetted, and then stretched upon 
this iron. Also called stretching-iron. 
softening-machine (sof 'ning-ma-shen*), n. In 
teather-manuf., a machine for treating dry hides 
with water to prepare them for the tan-pits, 
and also for treating sheepskins, etc., with oil 
soft-eyed (sdft'id), a. Having soft, gentle, or 
tender eyes. 
5749 
SSSKJ SJfft^Jlr!" J ^*SSS&'- 
soft-sawder (idft'iA'dte), p. *. | < wrt MwA / 
see under sawder.-] To flatter; blarney. [Slang', 
' 
nfn ( sd ^' A 8hel ). Same as soft-shelled. 
soft-shelled (s6ft'sheld), a. Having a soft 
. 
any soft clam See cuts under Mya L\ J^te- 
sSfflfkSffi^l c '; n ' mo " c '"" 10 crab ** u 'i 
alien i',H ?" A <"*<"" 8 - whe " " has molted its lu.nl 
11 and not yet grown another, so that it is ooraredonl. 
T? Xlble , 8 , ki "- In thl " state ll is accounted a delf. 
Sn t "! OCCUP8 from late '" tno "Prl'iB through- 
edilZ rr 1 "1 8 ", n ! 1 " e , r - The tern, is extended to Btfin 
r A^intheactofcastingltsshellista.m.l 
r, peeler or fciwter; when the new shell begins ( 
c kler - s <* cut under paddle-crab. -Soft- 
rr P rt J^ 8 or turtles, tortoises or turtles of the 
whtfl '.".'","'*!. "'I 11 othcr8 Wno8e caPce is some- 
what flexible ; eatherbacks or leathcr-turtfes. Also toft 
See cut8 under 
Give Virtue scandal, Innocence a fear 
Or from the soft-eyed virgin steal a tear ! 
Pope, Prol. to Satires, 1. 286. 
soft-finned (sdft'find), a. In iclith., having no 
nn-spmes; spineless; anacanthiue; malacop- 
terous; malacopterygian. See Malacopterunii. 
soft-grass (soft'gras), n. See Holcus. 
soft-handed (soft'han'ded), a. Having soft 
hands. Hence, figuratively -(o) Unused and therefore 
unable to work (6) Not firm In rule, discipline, or the 
like : aa, a soft-handed kind of justice 
soft-headed (soft'hed'ed), a. Having a soft 
or silly head ; silly ; stupid. 
soft-hearted (soft'har'ted), a. Having a soft 
or tender heart. 
SOft-heartedness (s6ft'har"ted-nes), n. The 
quality of being soft-hearted ; tendency or dis- 
position to be touched, or moved to sympathy ; 
tenderness of heart; benevolence; gentleness. 
Soft-heartedness, in times like these, 
Shows sof'ness in the upper story ! 
Lowell, Biglow Papers, 2d ser., vii. 
SOfthorn (sdft'hdru), . A foolish person; one 
easily imposed upon; a greenhorn. [Colloq.1 
softie, H. See softi/. 
SOftlingt (soft'liiig), H. [< soft + -lingl.] A 
sybarite ; a voluptuary. 
Effeminate men and softlingi cause the stoute man to 
waxe tender. Bp. Woolton, Christ. Manual (1576). 
SOftlyt (sdft'li), a. [_<soft + -lyi.] Soft; easy: 
gentle; slow. 
The gentle Prince not farre away they spyde 
Ryding a softly pace with portance sad. 
Spenser, F. Q., VI. vii. 6. 
y, softeli, 
.--, . ~~j ~ . .y .j j.ii ,j ovi.i/ manner, 
(o) Without force or violence; gently : as, he softlv 
pressed my hand. (6) Not loudly; without noise: as 
speak softly; walk softly. 
soft-sized (soft'sizd), . See m'raf' 
soft-skinned (sdft ' skind), a. Having a soft 
skin; specifically, in zool., malacodermatous. 
soft-soap (sdft'sop'), v. t. [< soft soap: see 
under soap.] To flatter, especially for the 
attainment of some selfish end. See soav n 
and t>. [Colloq.] 
soft-solid (sdft'soPid), a. Pulp-like in consis- 
tence. 
soft-spoken (sdft'spo'kn), a. Speaking soft- 
ly ; having a mild or gentle voice ; hence, mild ; 
affable; plausible. 
He has heard of one that's lodged in the next street to 
him who is exceedingly soft-spoken, thrifty of her speech, 
that spends but six words a day. B. Jonson, Epiccene, 1. 1. 
A nice, soft-spoken old gentleman; . . . butter wouldn't 
It in his mouth. Thackeray, Pendennis, xi. 
soft-tack (soft'tak), . Soft wheaten bread, as 
soil 
soil' (soil). ,,. [Enrly mod. E. also.sW,, >/, . 
< -ME. soile, no,//,, tojflh. Mfe, -oil, ground 
earth; (a) < OF. .ml, F. *,,i = p r . snl = Sp. ,, /,', 
Fg. fOto = It. miolo, bottom, ground, soil 
pavement, < L. soluni, the bottom, foundation 
ground, soil, earth, land, the sole of the foot or 
of a shoe (see so/el); the E. form tott instead 
ot sole in this sense ('soil, ground,' etc.) being 
due to confusion with (I,) OF. ,,/. 
seutt, threshold, also area, place, F. muil = Pr 
'/-. Ml.. foIteM, tolmm, tueuotd, < L.Mfan 
(see above); (c) OF. .,/,, m , H i c = Sp. sueln = 
Pg. sola = Olt. sHola. sola, It. siiola, sole of a 
slmo, tOffUa, threshold/ L. solea, a sole, sandal 
sill, threshold, etc., ML. also ground, joist, etc. 
(see *o/el); (rf) OF. toil, toM, a mirv place 
(see oi72). The forms and senses of soil' and 
Holci are much involved with other forms and 
senses.] 1. The ground; the earth. 
That euery man kepe his soyle clene ayenst his tenement, 
ana his pavyment hole. In peyne of xl. d. 
English Gild* (E. E. T. 8.), p. 884. 
2. Land; country; native land. 
Paris, that the prlnse loult, . . 
lhat ordant on all wise after his dethe, 
The souerain to send into his soile horn. 
Destruction of Troy (E. E. T. 8.), 1. 9068. 
Dorset your son, that with a fearful soul 
Leads discontented steps in foreign soil. 
Shale., Rich. III., Iv. 4. Sit 
3. A mixture of fine earthy material with more 
or less organic matter resulting from the growth 
and decomposition of vegetation on the surface 
of the ground, or from the decay of animal mat- 
ter (manure) artificially supplied. The existence 
of soil over any area Implies a previous decomposition of 
the rocks, and climatic and other physical conditions fa- 
vorable to the growth of vegetation. As these conditions 
"jr- . '""' "/I " " wiieaieii ureaa, as vary, so varies the thickness of the soil. That which II 
distinguished from hardtack, or hard sea-bread *""* beneath the soil and partakes of its qualities but to 
or -biscuit. [Sailors' and soldiers' slang 1 " less degree, is called the .ufwofl. 
i**^^j /AW/ , J4 . o . S'r Walter Blunt, new lighted from his horse, 
Stain'd with the variation of each soil 
Betwixt that Holmedon and this seat of ours. 
Shale., 1 Hen. IV., I. 1. . 
ui -uiBcuiu. Loauors- ai m soldiers' slang.] 
softwood (spft'wud), n. See Myrsine. 
softy (sdf'ti), n.; pi. softies (-tiz). [< soft + 
dim. -y2.] A soft or silly person. Also softie. 
[Colloq.] 
Nancy . . . were but a softy after all, for she left off 
doing her work in a proper manner. 
Mrs. Gaskell, Sylvia's Lovers, xv. 
He is a kind of softie all alive on one side of his brain 
and a noodle on the other. 
Mrs. Humphry Ward, Robert Elsmere, ill. 
sog 1 (sog), . [Cf. Icel. so'ggr, dank, wet, saggi, 
moisture, wet, dampness; prob. akin to t/juya 
= AS. sugan, sucan, suck, AS. soeiaii, E. soak: 
seesoafc.] A bog; quagmire 
A lethargy. Bartlett. [U. S.] 
waved a limp hand warningly 
"She's layln 1 in a sog," he 
SOg 2 (sog), . 
Old Ezra Barnet . . . 
toward the bedroom door. nog e 
said, hopelessly. S. 0. Jewett, Scribner's Mag., II. 788. 
soger (so'jer), M. 1. A dialectal or colloquial 
form of soldier. Also soier, so<lger. 2. Naut., 
a skulk or shirk ; one who is always trying to 
evade his share of work. 
The captain called him a soger. 
R. U. Dana, Jr., Before the Mast, p. 142. 
apenser, n. y., v 
softly (sdft'li), adv. [< ME. softly, softely, 
softeliche; < soft + -ly?.] In a soft m 
*-\ u-;n,~,,* .- . ... -i_._ _ _ 
And seide ful softly in shrifte as it were. 
Piers Plowman (B), iii. 37. 
In this dark silence softly leave the Town. 
Dryden, Indian Emperor, iii. 1. 
(c) Gently; slowly; calmly; quietly; hence, at an easy 
pace : as, to lay a thing down softly. 
His bowe he toke in hand toward the deere to stalke 
Y prayed hym his shote to leue & softely with me to walke 
Babees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 118. 
He commaunded certaine Captaines to stay behinde, and 
to row softly after him. North, tr. of Plutarch, p. 178. 
(d) Mildly ; tenderly. 
The king must die 
Though pity softly plead within my soul. 
Dryden, Spanish Friar, iii. 3. 
(e) Slackly; carelessly. 
All that softly shiftless class who, for some reason or 
other, are never to be found with anything In hand at the 
moment that it is wanted. H. B. Stowe, Oldtown, p. 843. 
softner, . Same as softener. 
softness (soft'nes), n. [< ME. softnesse, < AS. 
softness, seftnes, < softe, soft: see soft and -ness.] 
The property or character of being soft, in any 
sense of that word. 
There is on the face of the whole earth no do-nothing 
whose softness, idleness, general inaptitude to labor, and 
everlasting, universal shiftlessness can compare with that 
of this worthy. a. B. Stowe, Oldtown, p. 29. 
SOft-rayed (soft'rad), a. In ichth., malacop- 
terygian ; soft-finued: said of a fish or its fins. 
soger (so'jer), r. f. [< soger, n. : see soger, it., 2.] 
Naut., to play the soger or shirk. 
Reefing is the most exciting part of a sailor's duty 
All hands are engaged upon it. and, after the halyards are 
let go, there is no time to be lost no sogering. or hang- 
ing back, then. R. H. Dana, Jr., Before the Mast, p. 20. 
SOgett. A Middle English form ofsutyect. 
soggetto (so-jet'to), n. [It. : see subject.] In 
music, same as subject or theme. 
SOggy (sog'i), a. [< sogl + -#1 ; in part a var. 
of socky, soaky.] Soaked with water or moist- 
ure; thoroughly wet; damp and heavy: as, 
soggy land; soggy timber; soggy bread. 
Cor. How now, Mitis ! what 't that you consider so seri- 
ously? 
Mil. Troth, that which doth essentially please me, the 
warping condition of this green and soggy multitude. 
B. Jonson, Every Man out of his Humour, 111. 2. 
soh (so), interj. See so 1 , interj. 
sohare, n. Same as sura-hai. 
soho (so-ho'), interj. [< ME. sohoice: see so 1 
and ho 1 .] A word used in calling from a dis- 
tant place ; a sportsmen's halloo. 
Launce. Soho! soho! 
Pro. What seestthouV 
Launce. Him we go to find. 
Shale., T. O. of V., III. 1. 189. 
So ho, birds ! (Holds up a piece of bread.) 
How the eyasses scratch and scramble ! 
Jfassinger, The Picture, v. 1. 
soi-disant (swo-de-zon'), a. [P.: soi, reflexive 
pron., oneself ('<. L. se, oneself); disant (< L. 
dicen(t-)s), ppr. of dire, say, speak, < L. rft- 
cere, say: see diction.] Calling one's self ; self- 
styled; pretended; would-be. 
Life without a plan, 
As useless as the moment It began, 
Serves merely as a soil for discontent 
To thrive in. Cowper, Hope, L 97. 
4. In soldering, a mixture of size and lamp- 
black applied around the parts to be joined to 
prevent the adhesion of melted solder. 
soil 2 (soil), n. [Early mod. E. also soyl, sovle 
< OP. soil, souil, F. souille, the mire in which a 
wild boar wallows, = Pr. solh, mire, prob. < L. 
suillug, belonging to swine, < sits, swine, sow 
see oic2. Cf . soi ft, v.] A marshy or wet place 
to which a hunted boar resorts for refuge; 
hence, a wet place, stream, or water sought 
for by other game, as deer. 
Soil, or souU de tanglier, the toile of a wllde boare, the 
slough or mire wherein he hath wallowed. Cotgravc. 
As deer, being struck, fly through many tails, 
Yet still the shaft sticks fast. 
Manton, Malcontent, Iii. 1. 
To take soil, to run into the water or a wet place as an 
animal when pursued ; hence, to take refuge or shelter. 
O! what a sport, to see a Heard of them [harts] 
Take soyl in Sommer In som spacious stream ' 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, L 6. 
O, sir, have you ta'en sou here? It 's well a man may 
reach you after three hours running yet. 
B. Jonson, Bartholomew Fair, L 1. 
soil 3 (soil), v. [Early mod. E. also soyle; < ME. 
soilen, soillen, stiilen, soulen, suylen, < 6F. sollier 
soiller, soil, refl. (of a swine), take soil, wal- 
low in the mire, F. souiller, soil, sully, dirty, 
= Pr. sulhar, solar = Pg. sujar= Olt. sogliare, 
soil; from the noun soil?: see soi&. In an- 
other view, F. souiller, soil, dirty, is < L. *sucu- 
lare, wallow like a pig, < LL. suculus, a porker, 
dim. of sus, swine, sow, being thus from the 
same ult. source as above; so Pr. sulhar, soil, 
< mBa, a sow ; cf. Sp. emporcar, soil,< Ij.porctis, 
a pig. The relations of the forms here grouped 
under soifi are somewhat uncertain. The word 
is not akin to sully.-] I. trans. 1. To make 
dirty on the surface; dirty; defile; tarnish: 
sully; smirch; contaminate. 
I haue but one hool hatere. ... I am the lasse to blame 
Though it be soiled and selde clene. 
Piert Plowman (B), xhr. t. 
Our kingdom's earth should not be soil'd 
With that dear blood which It hath fostered. 
Shalr., Rich. II., I. 3. 126. 
Truth is as Impossible to be soiled by any outward 
touch as the sunbeam. Milton, Divorce. 
2. To dung; manure. 
Men . . . soil their ground: not that they love the dirt, 
but that they expect a crop. South. 
