thaumaturgism 
thaumaturgism (tha-ma-ter'jizm), . Magic, 
us a pretended science ; "tliaumaturgy (which is 
the better word). 
thaumaturgist (tha'ma-ter-jist), . [< thau- 
iiuitiirg-y + -ist.] Same as thaumaturge. 
Cagliostro, Thaumaturgist, Prophet, and Arch-Quack. 
Carlyle, Diamond Necklace, xvi. 
thaumaturgus(tha-ma-ter'gus), .; pi. thauma- 
turyi (-JI). [ML., < Gr. 6av[iaTt>vp}'6f, wonder- 
working: see thaumaturge.] A thaumaturge 
or thaumatuvgist: used especially as a title of 
Gregory Thaumaturgus (bishop of Nescaasarea 
in Pontus in the third century), from the nu- 
merous and wonderful miracles ascribed to him. 
Nature, the great Thaumaturgus, has in the Vocal Mem- 
non propounded an enigma of which it is beyond the scope 
of existing knowledge to supply more than a hypotheti- 
cally correct solution. Edinburgh Jtev., CLXIV. 283. 
thaumaturgy(tha'ma-ter-ji),. [= F.thauma- 
turgie, < Gr. tiavftarovpyia, a working of wonders, 
< dav/MTovpyos, wonder-working: see thauma- 
turge.] The act of performing something won- 
derful or marvelous ; wonder-working; magic. 
But in those despotic countries the Police is so arbi- 
trary ! Cagliostro's thaumaturgy must be overhauled by 
the Empress's physician ... is found nought. 
Carfyle, Cagliostro. 
His reporters . . . are men who saw tkaumaturgy in all 
that Jesus did. M. Arnold, Literature and Dogma, v. 
thave, n. See tlieave. 
thaw (tha), v. [Also dial, thow ; < ME. tltawen, 
thowen, < AS. thdwian = D. dooijen = OHG. 
towan, douwen, dowen (doan), MHG. touwen, 
touwen, G. tauen, thaw, digest, = Icel. theyja 
(cf. tha, a thaw, theyr, a thaw) = Sw. too, = 
Dan. to (Goth, not recorded), thaw; root un- 
certain.] I. intrans. 1. To pass from a frozen 
to a liquid or semi-fluid state ; melt ; dissolve : 
said of ice or snow ; also, to be freed from frost ; 
have the contained frost dissolved by heat : said 
of anything frozen. 
Dire hail which on firm land 
Thaws not. Milton, P. L., ii. 590. 
2. To become so warm as to melt ice and 
snow; rise above a temperature of 32 Fahren- 
heit : said of the weather, and used imperson- 
ally. 3. To be released from any condition, 
physical or mental, resembling that of freez- 
ing; become supple, warm, or genial; be freed 
from coldness, embarrassment, formality, or 
reserve; unbend: often with out. 
The bog's green harper, thawing from his sleep, 
Twangs a hoarse note and tries a shortened leap. 
O. W. Holmes, Spring. 
Arthur took a long time thawing, . . . was sadly timid. 
T. Hughes, Tom Brown at Rugby, ii. 2. 
II. trans. 1. To reduce from a frozen to a 
liquid state, as ice or snow; also, to free from 
frost, as some frozen substance : often with out. 
2. To render less cold, formal, or stiff; free 
from embarrassment, shyness, or reserve; make 
genial: often with out. 
Thaw this male nature to some touch of that 
Which . . . drags me down ... to mob me up with all 
The soft and milky rabble of womankind. 
Tennyson, Princess, vi. 
With a hopeless endeavor to thaw him out and return 
good for evil, I ventured to remark that . . . the gen- 
eral had, during the evening, highly entertained us by 
reading some of his (Mr. P.'s) poetry. 
J.Je/erson, Autobiog., xii. 
=Syn. 1. Dissolve, Fuse, etc. See melti. 
thaw (tha), n. [= Icel. tha (also theyr) = Sw. 
Dan. to, a thaw ; from the verb.] 1. The melt- 
ing of ice or snow ; also, the melting by heat of 
any substance congealed by frost. 
Still, as ice 
More harden'd after thaw. 
MUton, P. L., xii. 194. 
If the Sun of Righteousness should arise upon him, his 
frozen heart shall feel a thaw. 
Bunyan, Pilgrim's Progress, ii. 
2. Warmth of weather, such as liquefies or 
melts anything congealed. 
She told me ... that I was duller than a great thaw. 
Shak., Much Ado, ii. 1. 252. 
The day after our arrival a tftaiv set in, which cleared 
away every particle of snow and ice. 
B. Taylor, Northern Travel, p. 24. 
3. The state of becoming less cold, formal, or 
reserved Silver thaw, glazed frost; the frozen sur- 
face which is occasionally produced at the beginning of a 
thaw, or when a fall of rain or mist occurs while the air- 
temperature at the earth's surface is below 32 F. 
thaw-drop (tha'drop), n. A drop of water 
formed by melting snow or ice. 
She gave me one cold parting kiss upon my forehead, 
like a thaw-drop from the stone porch it was a very 
frosty day. JXckens, Bleak House, iii. 
thawless (tha'les), a. [< thaw + -less.] With- 
out a thaw ; not thawing : as, a thaicless winter. 
C208 
The winter gives them [flowers) rest under thawless se- 
renity of snow. 
Kiuskin, in St. James's Gazette, Feb. 9, 1886. (Encyc. Diet.) 
thawy (tha'i), a. [< thaw + -y 1 .] Growing 
liquid ; thawing ; inclined to thaw. 
Of a warm thauy day in February, the snow is suddenly 
covered with myriads of snow fleas. 
The Century, XXV. 679. 
the 1 (THe, THe, or THe), def. art. [< ME. the, < 
AS. the, rare a's an article but common as a rela- 
tive, f . thed, also rare, neut. theet, the ; the usual 
forms being se, m., seo, f., thset, neut., with the 
base the (tha-) appearing in all the oblique forms 
(gen. thsss, m., thiere, f., tlixs, neut.; dat. tharn, 
thsere, tham; ace. thane or thone, tha, theet; 
instr. thy or the, thiere. thy or the; pi. for all gen- 
ders, nom. ace. tha, gen. thdra, dat. instr. thdm, 
th&m) ; = OS. the = OFries. thi, the, = D. de = 
MLG. LG. de = OHG. MHG. der, diu, daz, G. der, 
die, das, the, that, = Icel. that, the, = Sw. den, 
this, = Dan. den, the, = Goth, sa, m., so, f., 
thata, neut. (see that) = Lith. tas, ta, that, = 
Russ. totu, ta, to, that, =L. -te in iste, ista, istud, 
that, = Gr. o, i], r6 = Skt. tat, it, that; from a 
pronominal (demonstrative) base ta, Teut. tha, 
'that,' the common base of many pronominal 
adjectives and adverbs, as that, they (their, 
them), this, these, those, thus,JShe 2 , there, then, 
than, thence, thither, though, etc., correlative 
to similar demonstrative forms in h-, as here, 
her, hence, hither, and interrogative and rela- 
tive forms in wh- (who, what, why, where, when, 
whence, whither, etc.). In some cases, as in the 
father, the tone, the arises from a merely me- 
chanical misdivision of thet other, thet one, i. e. 
that other, that one (see tother, tone 2 ). It may 
be noted that initial th (AS. lp or 5) is in the and 
all the words of this group pronounced TH, while 
in all other cases it is in mod. E. always pro- 
nounced th.] 1. A word used before nouns 
with a specifying or particularizing effect, op- 
posed to the indefinite or generalizing force of a 
or an : as, the gods are careless of mankind ; the 
sun in heaven; Wiedayisfair; long Ii ve the king! 
Zuych [such] wyt zet the holy gost ine herte. 
AyeiMte oflnwyt (E. E. T. S.), p. 251. 
In a somere seyson, whan softe was the sonne. 
Piers Plowman (C), i. 1. 
Out went '/"' taper as she hurried in. 
Keats, Eve of St. Agnes. 
2. A word used before a noun to indicate a 
species or genus : as, the song of the nightin- 
gale : used in generalization : as, the man that 
hath no music in himself. 
The mellow plum doth fall, the green sticks fast. 
Shak., Venus and Adonis, I. 527. 
3. A word used with a title, or as part of a 
title : as, the Duke of Wellington ; the Right 
Honorable the Earl of Derby; the Lord Brook; 
the Reverend John Smith. Frequently, with more 
or less of technical accuracy, the is omitted, especially 
when the distinctive title is not followed by of: as, Earl 
Grey, Viscount Palmerston. With the designation Lord, 
as applied to a peer of any rank, the is generally omitted : 
the Marquis of Salisbury, for instance, is frequently styled 
Lord Salisbury. In Scotland and Ireland, the is sometimes 
placed before family names with somewhat of the force of 
a title, indicating the head of the clan or family : as, the 
Macnab ; the O'Donoghue. 
At last the Duglas and the Perse (Percy] met, 
Lyk to [two] captayns of myght and of mayne. 
The Hunting of the Cheviot (Child's Ballads, VII. 35). 
I became acquainted with the Mulligan through a dis- 
tinguished countryman of his, who, strange to say, did not 
know the chieftain himself. . . . The greatest offence that 
can be offered to him is to call him Mr. Mulligan. 
Thackeray, Mrs. Perkins's Ball. 
4. Indicating the most approved, most desira- 
ble, most conspicuous, or most important of its 
kind: as, Newport is tlie watering-place of the 
United States : in this use emphatic, and fre- 
quently italicized. The is often placed before 
a person's (especially a woman's) name, to in- 
dicate admiration or notoriety (a colloquial 
use): as, the Elssler. 
Joel Burns was a rich man, as well as the man cf the 
place. R. B. Kimball, Was He Successful? vi. 
5. Before adjectives used substantively, denot- 
ing: (a) An individual: as, she gazed long on 
the face of the dead. 
The dead 
Steer'd by the dumb went upward with the flood. 
Tennyson, Lancelot and Elaine. 
(6) A class, or a number of individuals: as, the 
good die first; do not mix the new with the old. 
Now this, . . . though it make the unskilful laugh, can- 
not but make the judicious grieve. 
Shak., Hamlet, iii. 2. 29. 
(c) An abstract notion : as, the beautiful. 
One step above the sublime makes the ridiculous. 
T. Paine, Age of Reason, ii. 
T-head 
6. Denoting that which is well known or famed: 
as, the prodigal son. 
Like the poor cat i' the adage. Shak., Macbeth, i. 7. 45. 
Cry, like the daughters of the horseleech, " Give ! " 
Tennyson, Golden Year. 
7. Used distributively to denote any one sepa- 
rately: as, the fare is a dollar the round trip. 
So muche money as will byy the same [gunpowder] after 
xiij' 1 the pound. 
Sir H. Knevett (1588), quoted in H. Hall's Society in the 
[Elizabethan Age, App. ii. 
The country inn cannot supply anything except bran- 
died sherry at five shillings the bottle. 
Mortimer Collins, Thoughts in my Garden, I. 85. 
8. Used in place of the possessive pronoun to 
denote a personal belonging: as, to hang the 
head and weep. 
Is there none of Pygmalion's images ... to be had 
now, for putting (Aehand in the pocket? 
Shall., M.. forM.,iii. 2. 49. 
Voltaire is the prince of buffoons: ... he shakes 
the sides ; he points the finger ; he turns up the nose ; he 
shoots out the tongue. Macaulay, Addison. 
9. Used to denote a particular day in relation 
to a given week, or to some other day of the 
same week. [Obsolete or colloq.] 
I mene, if God please, to be at Salisburie the wekes-daie 
at night before Easterdaie. 
SirJ. PopAam(1582), quoted in H. Hall's Society in the 
[Elizabethan Age, App. ii. 
Mrs. Proudie had died on the Tuesday, . . . and Mr. 
Robarts had gone over to Sllverbridge on the Thursday. 
Trollope, Last Chronicle of Barset, Ixviii. 
10. Used before a participial infinitive, or 
gerund, followed by an object: the article is 
now omitted in this construction. 
He alter'd much upon the hearing it. 
Shak., 2 Hen. IV., Iv. 5. 12. 
11. Used before the relative which: now an 
archaism. 
Clerkes of holikirke that kepen Crystes tresore, 
The which is mannes soul to saue. 
Piers Plowman (B), x. 474. 
[The is generally pronounced as if a syllable (unaccented) 
of the following word (a proclitic), and its vowel is accord- 
ingly obscured, before a consonant, into the neutral vowel- 
sound of her or but, very lightly sounded (quite like the 
French "mute e ") ; before a vowel, often in the same man- 
ner, but more usually with the short i sound of pin, only 
less distinct; when emphatic, as the long e of thee. In 
poetry, before a word beginning with a vowel-sound, the 
vowel of the generally may slide into that of the next word, 
and form with it one metrical syllable ; metrically the e is 
accordingly often cut off in printing. The same Bo-called 
elision (synalephe) often took place in Middle English, the 
being written with the following noun as one word : as, 
themperour, the emperor. 
Th' one sweetly flatters, th' other feareth harm. 
Shak., Lucrece, 1. 172. 
In Middle English manuscripts the was often written, as 
in Anglo-Saxon be, with the character )> ; in early print this 
character was represented by a form nearly like y, and 
later printers actually used y instead, }ie, erroneously 
printed )x as if contracted, like J>' for that, being printed 
ye or y, but always pronounced, of course, the. Modern 
archaists often affect ye for the, and many pronounce it as 
it looks, "ye." 
And on ye Tewsday at nyght we passed by the yle of 
Pathemos. Sir R. Guyl/orde, Pylgrymage, p. 14. 
We afterwards fell into a dispute with a Candiot con- 
cerning the procession of y Holy Ghost. 
Evelyn, Diary, June, 1645.) 
the 2 (THe, THe, or THe), adv. [< ME. the, thi, < 
AS. the, thy = OS. thin, diu, weakened te, de as 
an enclitic in des te, des de = D. des te = MLG. 
deste, duste = MHG. deste, dest, G. desto (cf . AS. 
thses the) = Dan. des, desto = Sw. dess, desto = 
Icel. thvi, thi = Goth, the, instr. of thata (AS. 
thxt): see that, the^.~] Used to modify adjec- 
tives and adverbs in the comparative degree: 
(a) Correlatively, having in the first instance a relative 
force, = by how much, and in the second a demonstrative 
force, = by so much : as, the sooner the better ; the more 
the merrier. 
The mightier man, the mightier is the thing 
That makes him honour'd, or begets him hate. 
Shak., Lucrece, I. 1004. 
And the sooner it 's over the sooner to sleep. 
Kingsley, The Fishermen. 
(6) Used without correlation, it signifies in any degree ; in 
some degree ; as, Are you well ? The better for seeing you. 
Al for loue of owre lorde, and the bet to loue the peple. 
Piers Plowman (B), xi. 169. 
Thou shalt not be the worse for me ; there 's gold. 
Shak., T. N., v. 1. 30. 
the 3 t, v. i. See thee 1 . 
the*t, conj. A Middle English form of though. 
the 5 t, A Middle English form of thigh. 
Tliea (the'a), n. [NL. (Linnteus, 1737): see 
tea'.] A former genus of plants, now included 
as a section under Camellia, and comprising the 
species yielding tea. See cuts under ti^. 
T-head (te'lid),. 1. A cross-bar fastened at 
its middle to a chain, as a watch-chain, trace- 
chain, etc., for use as a fastening by passing it 
