toad-eater 
toad-eater ii'l'e tei'), . [<<</ + >-i<t> /. As 
with lirif-iiitir. the Min]ile elyninloK.v t'nil* '" 
.satisfy .Mime writers, and lie t ions like that i unit- 
ed from lircwer are invented In explain tin- 
word.] It. A mountebank's boy who ate, or 
pl-etellileil to eat, toads (supposed to lie poison- 
ous), ill iii-der to give his master an opport unity 
to show his skill in expelling poison. 
Be tin in. .-i M'..rn tl Jack-pudding of the pack, 
And turn li'ttd-i'nti't- to borne torciKii i|iluck. 
Tuiii /.Vinc/i. satire mi an lirniinnit viia.'k (Work*, L 71). 
|(.V. anil <J., M Her., I. 129.) 
2. A i';i niii;.'. oiiseipiimis parasite; a mean 
sycophant ; a toad\ . 
I'miil i-nfi f. ... II is a iii.'hijilior taken from a moiintr- 
liank's hoy's eating toads, in unlcr to show his master's 
skill in expelling poison; it is built on a supposition . . . 
thai p. "|,l. who an- so unhappy aa to be in a staU.- of . l> 
puml.'ii. . n . i..) .-. 1 1 t.. <lo the most nans. -oils things that 
can he thought on. to please and humour their patrons. 
fiitfiili h'irtiUny, Advuntiirea nf David Simple (1744). 
I am r.-tiir.l hither like an old summer dowager; only 
that I have no toad-eater to take the air with me in the 
hack part of my lozenge-couch, and to be scolded. 
Walpole, Letters, II. 52. 
At the final overthrow of the Moors, the Castillans 
made them their servants, and their active habits and 
officious manners greatly pleased the proud and lazy Span* 
i.inK who called them mi tod&a (my factotum). Hence 
a cringing, ottlcious dependent, who will do all sorts of 
dirty work for you, is called a tottita or toad-eater. 
Brewer, Phrase and Fable. 
toad-eating (tod'e'ting), w. Servile or syco- 
phantic complaisance ; sycophancy. 
Without the offlclousness, the inqulstttveness, the ef- 
frontery, the toad-eatinif, the insensibility to all reproof, 
he [Boswell] never could have produced so excellent a 
book. Hacmday, Boswell'a Johnson. 
toad-eating (tod'e'ting), a. Pertaining to or 
characteristic of a toad-eater or sycophant; 
sycophantic. 
toad-fish (tod'fish), n. 1. A fish of the genus 
Batrachus, especially B. tau; the oyster-fish or 
sapo, of the Atlantic coast of the United States 
from Massachusetts to the West Indies, it is a 
very ugly nsh, of ungainly form, with a thick, heavy head 
and large mouth, naked skin, no lateral line, three dorsal 
Toad-fish (BafraehHi tau). 
spines, and when young a series of tufts or cirri on the 
back and sides ; the lips have fleshy appendages; the color 
is dusky-olive with irregular black markings both on the 
body and on the fins. 
2. A lophioid fish, Lopliius piscntoriiis, so called 
from its uncouth aspect; the fishing-frog, sea- 
devil, wide-gab, or angler. See cut under an- 
gler. 3. A swell-fish, as Tetrodonturgidits,the 
common puffer of the Atlantic coast of the 
United States, 12 inches long. Also called 
sicell-toad. 4. The frog-fish or mouse-fish, An- 
tennarins (or Pteropliryne) liistrio. D. S. Jordan. 
toad-flax (tod'flaks), n. A plant of the genus 
Linaria, primarily L. vul- 
garin, the common toad- 
flax, a showy but perni- 
cious plant, otherwise 
known as ranstead and 
butter-and-fggs. other 
noteworthy species are the 
Ivy-leafed toad-flax or Kenil- 
worth ivy, L. Cymbalaria, 
(see iryl), and the three-birds 
toad-flax, L. Mornithophora, a 
European plant cultivated for 
its large purple long-spurred 
flowers borne In whorls of 
three, and suggesting little 
birds. Several others are de- 
sirable in gardens, as the 
dwarf L. alpirut, alpine toad- 
flax, and the tall L. Dalmatica, 
with showy sulphur-yellow 
flowers ; the plant, however, is 
difficult to eradicate. See con- 
cencort. Bastard toad-flax, 
(a) In America, a plant of the 
genuB Comandra, of theSanfa- 
/."(.-*, which consists of 4 spe- 
cies, 3 North American and 1 
European, of low herbs or un- 
dershrubs, sometimes parasitic on roots. The common 
American plant is C. uinbellata, with leaves like those of 
toad-flax and white flowers in umbel-like clusters, (h) In 
Kngland, Theirium Linophyllon. which has leaves like those 
of toad-flax. - Ivy-leafed toad-flax. See def. 
toad-flower ndirrtou'er), . SaStapeUa, 
toadhead (tod'hed), . The American golden 
plover, Charadriux (tomiiiims. [Cape Cod, Mas- 
saehusetts.] 
The Inflorescence of Toad-flax 
(Ltnaria VMlgaris}, 
a, a flower, longitudinal sec- 
tion; *, the fruit; f, the seed. 
630] 
toadish (to'dish). . |< ("<' + '*'<'. 1 Kike a 
tl)H' I. 
toadlet (tod'let), a. (< t,Hi<l + -It-t. | A young 
or mall toad. ( nliruliji. 
toad-lily (to.riili), . 1. The white water-lily. 
Cufttnlia iitlnnilii : an old American nuine. St. 
Fritillitriti I'l/rrniiirii (!'. niynt): garden name. 
3. The Japanese liliaceous plant Trn-i/rlix 
liirtu: garden name, 
toadling (tod'Hug). . [< imid + -lint/ 1 .] A 
little toad; a tiwdlct. See ttnnl. '2. 
Your shyness, anil slyness, and pretending to know no- 
thing never took me in, whatever you may do with others. 
I always knew you for a toadling. 
Johnson, In Mine. D'Arblay's Diary, I. I.:::. 
toad-lizard (tod'H/'ilrd), . A no-called horned 
frog or toad. See under bind. 
toad-orchis (tod'dr'kis), H. The West African 
orchid Mii/iii-liiiniiii Biifo, the flowers of which 
resemble small toads and are arranged along 
the midrib of a green blade. The lip has a 
rapid spontaneous movement. 
toad-pipe (tod'plp), . Any one of various spe- 
cies of Kquisi-tiuii or horsetail. Also tii<l-pipc. 
toadrock (tod'rok), . Same as tutuMinii'-. 
toad-rush (tod'rush), . See ru.il/ 1 . 
toad's-cap (todz'kap), w. Same as toadxtunl . 
toadseye (todz'i), . [< toad's, poss. of toad, + 
fi/i . ] In mi, a nil., a variety of wood-tin. 
toad's-hat (todz'hat), . [< ME. totJyuhaite ; < 
tniuCx + hat 1 .] Same as toadstool. 
toad's-meat (todz'met), n. Same as toadstool, 
Hi ill* n a nd Holland. [Prov. Eng.] 
toad-snatcher (tod'snach'er), . The reed- 
bunting. [Prov. Eng.] 
toad-spit, toad-spittle (tod'spit, -spit'l), . 
The froth or spume secreted by various homop- 
terous insects. Also ealled/ro<7-.ty)i? and cuckoo- 
*/iit. See spit-bug and spittle-insect. 
toad-spotted (tod'spot'ed), a. Thickly stained 
or spotted, like a toad; hence, covered thickly 
with blemishes or stains of guilt. 
A most toad-spotted traitor. Shale., Lear, v. 8. 188. 
toadstone 1 (tod'ston), . [< toad + stone.] Any 
one of various natural or artificial objects re- 
sembling a toad in form or color, or which were 
believed to have been formed within the body 
of that animal, and which for many centuries, 
and over a large part of Europe, were held in 
high regard, and preserved with the greatest 
care. The earliest reference to objects of this kind is 
that of I'litiy, who, under the name of "hatrachites," de- 
scribed various stones which were said by him to resem- 
ble the frog in color, although he does not speak of their 
being possessed of any special virtues. This is the only 
reference to the toadstone to be found In classic authors ; 
but much later on the names "crapodinus" and "bufo- 
nftes " are found in various learned works written in Latin ; 
while the word "crapandlne" appears In French as early 
as the fourteenth century, and "krottenstein," "craden- 
stein," and " krbtenstein " not much later in German. Al- 
bertus Magnus and others also gave the name of "borax " 
to a stone supposed by them to be found In the head of the 
toad. This latter was the most common form of belief In 
regard to the origin of the toadstone, and it was very gen- 
erally thought that it was endowed with special virtues 
if the animal could be made to surrender ft voluntarily. 
Toadstones were preserved at the shrines of saints, worn 
as amulets, or set in rings, or in other ways treasured by 
their owners as charms, or antidotes to poison, or as hav- 
ing special therapeutic qualities, or simply as natural cu- 
riosities. Some of these objects were bit* of rock, or of 
jasper, or of other semi-precious or perhaps really precious 
stones, toad-like in color or shape ; others were fossils of 
various kinds, such as hrachiopods, fragments of crinoids, 
teeth of fossil fish, etc. ; in regard to many of them, how- 
ever, no reasonable guess can be made a to their real na- 
ture, shakspere refers to the toadstone in the lines : 
Sweet are the uses of adversity, 
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous, 
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head. 
( A.- >oii Like It, it. 1. 12-14.) 
If he would send his eyes, I would undertake 
To carry 'em to the jeweller ; they would otf 
For pretty loadstones. Shirley, The Brothers, li. 1. 
toadstone 3 (tod'ston), . [An accom. form, 
simulating toadstone^, of G. todtes gentein, lit. 
'dead (i. e. unproductive) rock.'] In geol., a 
volcanic rock varying in texture from a soft 
crumbly ash to a hard close-grained greenstone, 
several beds of which occur in the magnesian 
limestone of the lead-mining district of Derby- 
shire. Tin- toadstone has the position of an interbedded 
rock, is irregular in thickness, and traversed by numerous 
veins and faults. It much resembles the so-called whin- 
sill of Yorkshire, Durham, and Northumberland. Also 
called toadrock. 
toadstool (tod'stol), n. [Early mod. E. also 
loadcittoole, todentoole; < toad -f- stool.] A com- 
mon name for numerous umbrella-shaped fun- 
gi which grow abundantly on decaying vege- 
table matter. It is usually restricted to the genus 
Agaricus, but also is extended to various allied fungi, and, 
still further, is sometimes applied to almost any fungus 
that is large enough to attract general attention, such as 
toast 
u, Liiciifrrtlmi. l/'.r. -I,. II, i, . -tr I 1 . .pul uly, the mum 
i- :,].|,li. .1 ..lily I" III..-.- IniiiM -,:ii.]...M-.l ' 
poisonoiiA. iut distinguished fi..n. mushrooms, ..i 
forms, while as a matter of fact till tni. i,,...| 
inn t the ici'iiiiB Ayarim* or . I. !> a:li<.l f."<ra,are 
reully mushroom*, ami ma> or n...\ H..I i. i 
fl.'.|U. lltl\ htppcli* that Illl i-illblc -].r.i. s i - a 
with a highly poisonous specli , or grows In similar places, 
and can be duUngatebod only by a competent authority 
or by a careful microscopical i nmUUttOB. Also called 
toad imp, liiad'i-hat, taaa's-inral, froyttaol. 
toady' (t"'di), a. [< total + -//>.] I'u'ly and im- 
pulsive, like a toad ; hateful: beastly. [Hare.] 
Vice Is of such a toady complexion that she naturally 
teaches the soul to hate her. feltham. Resolves, I i:;. 
toady- (to'di). .; pi. tnmlii^ (-<li/.). [Said tn 
be shortened from toad-cater; but rather an 
adaptation of tmnly 1 , ., to express the nu -an 
ing of taad-tater. Tnml-i'iiler would hardly be 
" shortened" to toady.] 1. Asycophant; an in- 
ti -relied flatterer; a toad-eater. 
Young Bull licked him [young Lord Bucknuul In a fight 
of fifty-five minutes. . . . Boys are not all toailifi in the 
morning of life. Thackeray, Book of Snobs, v. 
2. A coarse rustic woman. St-ntt. (lm/>. l>" '. 
toady- (to'di), v. ; pret. and pp. toadied, ppr. 
tiiiiiti/iiii/. [< toady'*, H.] I. trans. To fawn 
upon in a servile manner; play the toady or 
sycophant to. 
The tutors toadied him. The fellows In hall paid him 
great clumsy compliments. Thackeray, Book of Snobs, v. 
II. intrant. To play the sycophant; fawn; 
cringe. 
What magic wand was it whose touch made the toady- 
ina servility of the land start up the real demon that It 
was ? IF. PkOlipt, Speeches, p. 186. 
toadyish (to'di-ish), a. [< toady* + -i*/t.] Hav- 
ing the character of a toady; given to toady- 
ism; toad-eating; boot-licking, 
toadyism (to'di-izm), . [< toady? + -i>w.] The 
practices of a toady ; sycophancy; servile adu- 
lation. Thackeray, Book of Snobs, iii. 
to-and-fro (to'and-fro'), a. and n. [< to and fro: 
seeuuder/ro.] I. . Forward and backward ; 
alternate: as, to-and-fro motion. 
II. n. 1. A movement or motion forward and 
backward in alternation. 
When the mestneriier Snow 
With his hand's first sweep , 
Put the earth to sleep, 
Twas a time when the heart could >how 
All how was earth to know, 
'Neath the mute hand's (o-amf-/ro .' 
Browning, A Lover's Quarrel. 
She, 
Like some wild creature newly-caged, commenced 
A to-and-fro. Tennyson, Princess, II. 
2f. The bandying of a question backward 
and forward ; a discussion. Bp. Bale, Vocacyon 
(Harl. Misc., VI. 459). 
Toarcian (to-ar'si-an), . [Named from Thou- 
ars, in western France.] In geol., a division 
of the Lias which lies between the Liassian, or 
Middle Lias, and the Bajocian, or lowest divi- 
sion of the Jurassic, according to the nomencla- 
ture of the French geologists. It is especially well 
developed in central and southern France, and its sub- 
divisions are characterized chiefly by the presence of cer- 
tain species of ammonites. 
toast 1 (tost), H. [Early mod. E. toste ; < ME. 
toost, < OF. toste, < ML. tosta, a toast of bread 
(cf. OF. tostee = Sp. tontada, a toast). < L. tos- 
ta, fern, of tostus. pp. of torrere, parch, toast : see 
torrent.'] Bread in slices superficially browned 
hy th. fire; a slice of bread so browned. 
Go fetch me a quart of sack ; put a toast In 't. 
Shall., M. W. of W., Hi. 5. 8. 
toast 1 (tost), r. [Early mod. E. also taste; < ME. 
fasten, < OF. toster = Sp. toxtar = Pg. tostar, 
toast (> tostado, toasted) ; from the noun.] I. 
trans. 1. To brown by the heat of a fire: as, to 
toast bread or bacon. 
Tis time I were choked with a piece of toasted cheese. 
Shale., M. W. of W., v. 5. 147. 
2. To warm thoroughly: as, to tun. it one's feet. 
[Colloq.] 
Around these fires the more Idle of the swarthy fellows 
squatted, and toasted their bare shins while they spun 
their wondrous tales. The Cetitury, XXXVI. 32S. 
II. in trans. 1. To brown with heat. 
There is a whiff of something floating about, suggestive 
of toasting shingles. 0. W. Holmes, Professor, vil. 
2. To warm one's self thoroughly at a fire. 
Ai we totted by the fire. IT. Browne, Shepherd's Pipe, L 
toast 2 (tost), w. [A particular use of toast 1 , ., 
of anecdotal origin, according to the story given 
in the " Tatler" (No. 24, June 4, 1709). See the 
second quotation.] 1. A person whose health is 
drunk, or who is named as the person to whom 
others are requested to drink ; especially, a wo- 
man who is the reigningbelle of the season, or in 
