testudo 
Common European Tortoise ( Ttstudo grfcca). 
testule (test'ul), . [< L. testula, dim. of testa, 
& shell, etc. : see test 2 , 2. ] In bot., the silicified 
crust of a diatom, usually called the fnstule. 
testy (tes'ti), a. [Early mod. E. testie, teastie; 
< ME. testif, < OF. testu, F. Utu, heady, head- 
strong, testy, < teste, head: see test 2 .] Irrita- 
ble; irascible; choleric; cross; petulant. 
Hardy and testy, strong and chivalrus. 
Chaucer, Troilus, v. 802. 
I was displeased with myself ; I was testy, as Jonah was 
when he should go preach to the Ninevites. 
Latimer, Sermon bef. Edw. VI., 1650. 
Must I stand and crouch 
Under your testy humour? Shak., J. C., iv. 3. 46. 
Thou testy little dogmatist, 
Thou pretty Katydid ! 
0. W. Holmes, To an Insect. 
= Syn. Pettish, touchy, waspish, snappish, peevish, sple- 
netic, captious, peppery. 
tet (tet), n. Same as tit 1 . 
tetanet, [< L. tetanus: see tetanus.] Teta- 
nus. Donne, Letters, xiv. 
tetanic (te-tan'ik), a. and . [= F. tetanimie 
= Sp. tetdnico = Pg. tctanico,<. L. tetanictis,< Gr. 
rerovocof, affected with tetanus, < reravof, teta- 
nus: see tetanus.'] I. a. Pertaining to, of the 
nature of, or characterized by tetanus Tetan- 
ic spasm, tonic spasm of the voluntary muscles, as seen 
in tetanus, strychnic poisoning, or the first stage of a typi- 
cal epileptic attack. 
II. . In med., a remedy which acts on the 
nerves, and through them on the muscles, as nux 
vomica, strychnia, brucina, etc. If taken in over- 
doses tetanics occasion convulsions and death. 
tetaniform (tet'a-ni-form), a. [< L. tetanus, 
tetanus, + forma, form.] Of the nature of or 
resembling tetanus ; tetanoid. 
tetanigenous (tet-a-nij'e-nus), a. [< L. tetanus, 
tetanus, + gignere, produce.] Producing teta- 
nus, or spasms similar to those of tetanus. 
tetanilla (tet-a-nil'a), n. [NL., dim. of teta- 
nus.'] 1. Tetaiiy. 2. An affection (paramyoc- 
lonus multiplex) characterizedby a clonic spasm 
of groups of voluntary muscles, often symmet- 
rical, which ceases during sleep. Althaus. 
tetanin (tet'a-7iin), . [< tetanus (see def.) + 
-Jw2.] A toxin (C 14 H 30 N 2 O4) obtained from 
cultures of the Bacillus tetani. 
tetanization (tefa-ni-za'shon), n. [< tetanize 
+ -ation.] The production of tetanus; the 
application of a rapid succession of stimuli to 
a muscle or a nerve such as would produce 
tetanic contraction in a muscle. 
tetanize (tet'a-niz), c. t, ; pret. and pp. tetanized, 
ppr. tetanizing. [< tetan-us + -ize.~\ To pro- 
duce tetanus in. 
tetanoid (tet'a-noid), a. and . [< Gr. TeTameiSt/c, 
like tetanus, < rfrat'Of, tetanus, + fidof, form.] 
I. a. Resembling tetanus Tetanoid pseudo- 
paraplegia. Same as spastic spinal paralysis (which see, 
under paralysis). 
II. n. An attack of tetanus or some similar 
spasmodic disease. 
tetanomotor (tet"a-no-m6'tor), n. [< L. tetanus, 
tetanus, lit. a stretching, -f- motor, a mover.] 
An instrument devised by Heidenhain for 
stimulating a nerve mechanically by causing 
an ivory hammer attached to the vibrating 
spring of an induction-machine to beat upon it. 
tetanotoxin (tet"a-no-tok'sin), n. [< tetanus 
(see def.) + toxin.] ' A toxin (C 5 H U N) ob- 
tained from cultures of Bacillus tetani. 
tetanus (tet'a-nus), n. [NL., < L. tetanus, teta- 
nus, < Gr. riravos, spasm, tetanus, lit. a stretch- 
ing, tension (cf . reravof , stretched), reduplicated 
from reiveiv (-\/Tev, rav), stretch: see tend 1 .] 1. 
A disease characterized by a more or less violent 
and rigid spasm of many or all of the muscles 
of voluntary motion. The varieties of this disease 
are (1) trismm, or lockjaw; (2) opisthotonos, where the 
body is thrown back by spasmodic contractions of the 
muscles ; (3) empnsthotmnas, where the body is bent for- 
posure to cold or by some irritation of the nerves in con- 
6254 
sequence of local injury by puncture, incision, or lacera- 
tion : hence the distinction of tetanus into idiopathic and 
traumatic. Lacerated wounds of tendinous parts prove, 
in warm climates, a very frequent source of these com- 
plaints. In cold climates, as well as in warm, lockjaw (in 
which the spasms are confined to the muscles of the jaw or 
throat) sometim es arises in consequence of the amputation 
of a limb, or from lacerated wounds. Tetanic affections 
which follow the receipt of a wound or local injury 
usually prove fatal. Tetanus is also distinguished, ac- 
cording to its intensity, into acute and chronic. It has 
been observed among domesticated animals, such as the 
horse, ox, sheep, pig, and dog. It is usually the sequel of 
wounds and injuries. It may follow the operation of cas- 
tration, and appeal' after parturition in cows. In the horse 
injuries of the foot are most frequently the cause of teta- 
nus. The disease is caused by a characteristic bacillus, 
the same in animals as in man. 
2. In physio!., the state or condition of pro- 
longed contraction which a muscle assumes 
under rapidly repeated stimuli. 
The term tetanus applies primarily to the muscle only ; 
but the application of rapidly repeated shocks to the nerve, 
such as would produce "tetanic contraction " of the mus- 
cle, may be called the "tetanization of a nerve," . 
O. T. Ladd, Physiol. Psychology, p. 106. 
Artificial tetanus, a state of the system induced by cer- 
tain poisons, as strychnia, brucina, or the salts of either, 
in which the symptoms of intense tetanus are exhibited. 
tetany (tet'a-ni), n. [< L. tetanus, tetanus: 
gee tetanus.'] A disease characterized by ir- 
regularly intermittent tonic spasms of various 
groups of muscles, more commonly those of the 
upper extremities, unaccompanied, as a rule, 
by fever. It is seen most frequently in individuals be- 
tween fifteen and thirty-five years of age. Among the 
causes of the affection are mentioned pregnancy, lacta- 
tion, exposure to cold and wet, intestinal irritation, and 
mental shock. It sometimes occurs as a sequel to scarlet 
fever and other diseases of childhood. The disease sel- 
dom results fatally, except when the muscles of respira- 
tion are profoundly affected. 
tetartohedral (te-tar-to-he'dral), a. [< Gr. n- 
raprof, fourth (< rfoo-apef, four: 'see fourth, four), 
+ 'idpa, a seat, a base.] In crystal., having one 
fourth the number of planes requisite to com- 
plete symmetry. 
tetartohedraliy (te-tar-to-he'dral-i), adr. In 
a tetartohedral form or arrangement. 
tetartohedrism (te-tar-to-he'drizm), . [< te- 
tartohedr(al) + -ism.'] In crystal., the state or 
property of being modified tetartohedrally, or 
of being characterized by the presence of one 
fourth of the planes required by holohedral 
symmetry. It can most simply be regarded as result- 
ing from the application of the two methods of hemi- 
hedrism, and hence is possible in the isometric, tetrag- 
onal, and hexagonal systems, in which the two kinds of 
hemihedrism are observed. Practically it has been noted 
in a few substances crystallizing in the isometric system, 
and in a number belonging to the hexagonal system. In 
the latter there are two kinds : the first is called rhombo- 
hedral tetartohedrism-, when the resulting tetartohedral 
form is a rhombohedron, as, for example, with dioptase 
and phenacite ; and the second trapezohedral tetartohe- 
drism, when the resulting form is a trigonal trapezohe- 
dron : this is characteristic of quartz and cinnabar, and 
is important as being connected with the phenomena of 
circular polarization. 
tetartoprismatic (te-tar"to-priz-mat'ik), a. 
[< Gr. riraprof, fourth, -f- 7rp!a/ia(T-), prism : see 
prismatic.] In crystal., same as triclinic. 
tetartopyramid (te-tar-to-pir'a-mid), n. [< Gr. 
Tfrap-rof, fourth, + nvpaulf, pyramid: see pyra- 
mid.] A quarter-pyramid: said of the pyrami- 
dal planes of the triclinic system, which appear 
in sets of two (that is, one fourth the number 
required by a complete pyramid). 
tetaug(te-tag'), n. Sameastato</. Imp. Diet. 
tetcht, ". A variant of tacheS. 
tetchily, tetchiness, etc. See techily, etc. 
tSte (tat), H. [F., head: see test?.] False hair; 
a kind of wig or cap of false hair. 
Her wig or tete . . . thrown carelessly upon her toilette. 
Graves, Spiritual Quixote, iii. 20. (Latham.) 
tSte-a-t&te (tat'a-taf), adv. [F., face to face, 
lit. 'head to head': tete, head; a (< L. ad), to; 
tete, head : see test 2 .] Face to face ; in private ; 
in close confabulation. 
The guests withdrawn had left the treat, 
And down the mice sat tete-a-tete. 
Pope, Imit. of Horace, II. vt. 197. 
Lord Monmouth fell into the easy habit of dining in his 
private rooms, sometimes tUe-d-tete with Villebecque. 
Disraeli, Coningsby, viii. 1. 
tte-a-tte (tat'a-taf), [< tete-a-tete, adv.] 
Private; confidential; with none present but 
the persons concerned: as, a tSte-a-tete con- 
versation Tete-a-tete set, a set of table utensils 
intended for two persons only. 
t&te-a-tete (tat'a-taf), n. [P., a private inter- 
view, < tte-a-ttte, face to face: see tete-a-tete, 
ado.] 1. A private interview; a friendly or 
close conversation. 
Of course there was no good in remaining among those 
damp, reeking timbers now that the pretty little Kte-a- 
tttf was over. Thackeray, Philip, xiv. 
tetrabranch 
2. A short sofa, on which only two persons can 
comfortably sit. 
The sofa of this set was of the pattern named tete-a-tete, 
very hard and slippery. 
C. F. Woolson, Jupiter Lights, xiii. 
tete-de-mouton (tat 'de -mo 'ton), . [F., lit. 
'sheep's head': tte, head (see test' 2 ) ; de, of; 
motiton, sheep : see mutton.] A head-dress, 
common in the seventeenth century, in whicli 
the hair was arranged in short, thick, frizzled 
curls. 
tete-de-pont (tat'de-pon'), n. [F.: ttte, head 
(see test 2 ); de, of ; pont, bridge: see pons.] In 
fort., a work that defends the head or en- 
trance of a bridge nearer the enemy. See 
bridge-head. 
tetel (tet'el), . [Ar.] A large bubaline ante- 
lope of Africa, Alcelaphus tora, with strongly 
divergent and ringed horns. 
tetert, Middle English form of tetter. 
tether (teTH'er), n. [Formerly or dial, tedder; 
< ME. tedir, tedyre (not found in AS.) = OFries. 
tiader, tieder, NFries. tjudder, tjodder = MD. 
tudder, tnycr = MLG. tuder,_ tudder, LG. toder, 
tuder, tider, tier = Icel. tjodhr = Sw. tjuder, 
OSw. tinther = Dan. to'ir, tether; perhaps, with 
formative -ther (as in rudder^, formerly rother, 
etc.), < AS. tedn, etc., draw, lead: see tee 1 , 
tie 1 , tott'l. According to Skeat, of Celtic ori- 
gin, < Gael, teadhair, a tether; but this Gael. 
form is prob. itself of E. origin ; no similar Ir. 
or W. form occurs, and very few words of com- 
mon Teut. range are of Celtic origin. The Gael, 
term may, however, be independent of the E., 
being appar. related to taod, a halter, rope, 
chain, cable, taodan, a little cord, Ir. tead, teud, 
a cord, rope, W. tid, a chain, Manx teod, teid, 
a rope.] A rope, chain, or halter, especially 
one by which a grazing animal is confined 
within certain limits: often used figuratively, 
in the sense of a course in which one may move 
until checked ; scope allowed. 
The bishops were found culpable, as eating too much 
beyond their tether. Hooker, Eccles. Polity, vii. 23. 
Then in a tether hell swing from a ladder. 
Battle of Sheriff- Muir (Child's Ballads, VII. 162). 
We live joyfully, going abroad within our tedder. 
Bacon. 
tether (teTH'er), v. t. [< tether, n.] To con- 
fine, as a grazing animal, with a rope or chain 
within certain limits; hence, to tie (anything) 
with or as with a rope or halter. 
The Links of th' holy Chain which tethers 
The many Members of the World togethers. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, i. 2. 
And, it was said, tethered his horse nightly among the 
graves in the church-yard. Irving, Sketch-Book, p. 444. 
tether-stick (teTH'er-stik), n. The stake, peg, 
or pin to which a tether is fastened. 
His teeth they were like tether sticks. 
Eempy Kaye (Child's Ballads, VIII. 140). 
Tethyidae (te-thi'i-de), . pi. [NL., < Tethys 
+ -idee.] A family of polybranchiate nudi- 
branchiate gastropods, typified by the genus 
Tethys, and characterized by the absence of a 
tongue. The body is depressed, the mantle is indis- 
tinct, the tentacles are two, and branchial plumes alter- 
nate with papillae along the back. 
Tethys (te'this), n. [NL. (Linnseus, 1740), < 
Gr. T>70('f, Tethys, a sea-goddess.] A genus of 
nudibranchiates, typical of the family Tethyidsp. 
te-totum, n. See tee-totmn. 
tetra-. [< Gr. rerpa-, combining form of TETTO- 
pff, Ttaaapcf, Doric rerropei;, rtropff, etc., neut. 
Tscaapa, etc., = L. quattuor, four: see/own Cf. 
qwadri-.] A prefix in compounds derived from 
the Greek, signifying 'four': as, iefrochord, 
tetragon, tefrarch, tetraraerous, teirapetalous, 
fetraspermous. 
tetrablastic (tet-ra-blas'tik), a. [< Gr. nrpa-, 
four, + /j/laordf, a germ.] Having four ger- 
minal layers or blastodermic membranes, as an 
embryo namely, an endoderm, ectoderm, and 
an inner and outer layer of mesoderm, or soma- 
topleure and splanchnopleure. Such a four-layered 
germ is the common case of animals which have a true 
ccelom or body-cavity. 
tetrabrach (tet'ra-brak), n. [< LGr. rerpd- 
[jpaxvs, of four shorts, < Gr. rerpa-, four, + ftpaxi-f 
= L. brevis, short.] In anc. pros., a foot con- 
sisting of four short times or syllables ; a pro- 
celeusmatic. Also tetrabrachys. 
tetrabrachius (tet-ra-bra'ki-us), n.; pi. tetra- 
brachii (-1). [NL.,"< Gr. rerpa-, four. 4- L. 
biaehium, an arm.] In teratol., a monster with 
four arms. 
tetrabranch (tet'ra-brangk), a. and n. I. <i. 
Having two pairs of gills, as a eephalopod ; be- 
