wayward 
the person is full of self-wUI, wliich asserts itself against 
those whose wishes ought to t>e deferred to or whose 
commands should be obeyed. Contrary and ttntoicard ex- 
press the same idea, the one in a positive, tlie other in a 
negative form. Contrary is an energetic word, express- 
ing the idea that one tal^es, or is disposed to talie, the 
course exactly opposite to that which he is expected or 
desired to take. Contrariness, when ingrained, becomes 
perverseness : as, a co/i(rarj/ disposition; a contrary fellow. 
This use of contrary is by many considered colloquial, but 
has the recommendation of figurative force. Contrary 
and itntoicard view the person as one to be managed ; 
untoward views the person also as the object of mental or 
moi-al discipline : this perhaps through its use in Acts ii. 40. 
An untoward person is not responsive to persuasion, ad- 
vice, influence, or requests ; untoward circumstances are 
similarly such as do not help ua in our plans. All these 
words imply that the only consistency in the person's con- 
duct is in this self-willed independence of others' wishes 
or oppositicm to them, but untoirard implies itleast. See 
perverse. 
way-warden (wa'war^'dn), n. A keeper or sur- 
veyor of roads. 
Woodcutter. Had'st best repent and mend thy ways. 
Peasant. The way-ieard'-'n may do that ; I wear out no 
ways; I go across country. 
Kingdey, Saint's Tragedy, ii. 6. 
waywardly (wa'wjird-li), adv. In a wayward 
manner: frowardly; perversely. 
waywardness (wa'ward-nes), n. [< ME. wei- 
wardaesscj perverseness; < traificard + -)wss.'] 
The character of being wayward ; f rowardness ; 
perverseness. 
The iiuTuly irayicardness that infirm and choleric years 
bring with them, Shak., Lear, i. 1. SOJ. 
waywise (wa'wiz), a. [< way^ + tcisc^. Of. 
icny-icitty ; see also Wfl^ic/^cr.] Expert in find- 
ing or keeping the way; knowing the way or 
route. Ash. 
waywisert (wa'wi'z^r), n, [= D. icef/wiper, a 
Kuide, = G. wef/iceiser, a way-mark, guide. = Sw. 
idyvi.iare = Dan. vejiiseVy a guide, a directory; 
as way'^ + *iciser, shower, indicator, < irise''^, 
point out, show, + -cr^] An instrument for 
measuring the distance which a wheel rolls 
over a road; an odometer or perambulator. 
I went to see Colonel Blount, who showed nie the ap- 
plication of the trai/-7fi«cr to a coacli, exactly measuring 
the miles, and showing them by an index a^ we went on. 
It had three circles, one pointing to the number of rods, 
another to the miles, by 10 to UKK), with all the subdivi 
sious of quarters. Evelyn, Diary, Aug. 6, 16;>7. 
Way-Wlttyt, «. [ME. xcmcitti; < xvay'^ + iritty. 
Vi. icayicisc.'\ Same as tcaywisc. 
waywode, waywodeship. Same as voivodcj 
voivodf shift. 
wayworn (wa'woni)? «• Wearied or worn by 
or in traveling. 
A way-worn traveller. Lony/elloic, Hyperion, iii. 2. 
waywort (wa'w^^rt), i». The pimpernel, Ana- 
(jmlis ari-eHain. [Prov. Eng.] 
wayz-goosef, «. [An erroneous spelling of 
* wa.sc-{/oo.sf., < tcaf(A + tfoos€.'\ 1. A stubble- 
goose; hence, a fat goose — that is, one ready 
to kill in harvest-time. — 2. An entertainment 
given by an apprentice to Ids fellow-workmen, 
of which the goose was the crowning dish; 
hence, in recent times, a printers* annual din- 
ner, the funds for which are collected by stew- 
ards regularly appointed by *'the chapel.'' 
we (we), />r«H. ; j)!. of 72. [Early mod. E. also 
wee; < ME. irr, < AS. ice = OS. irl = OFries. trt 
= D. wij = OHG. MHG. G. irir = Icel. ver, rar 
= Sw. Dan. ri = Gotli. iretfi, < Teut. *tri::, ^'wis, 
with appar. nom. suffix -s, i)rob. = Skt. vayam, 
we. The L. and Gr. forms are diflferent; L. 
nos^ pi. (including dual). = Gr. rw, dual; Gr. 
7//t/f, we, ap])ar. belonging to the stem of f/i*, 
etc., me (see me^). In AS. wr had a dual, icif. 
which disappeared in tiie earliest ME. period. 
See /2, met, our, and us.] I and another or 
others; I and he or she, or I and they: a per- 
sonal pronoun, taking the possessive our or 
ours (see OMr^) and the objective (dative or ac- 
cusative) us. 
Oo we now on goddes lialuc. 
H'illiam of Palerne (E. E. T. S.), 1. 2&J3. 
How goes the day with rw^ (>. tell me, Hubert. 
Shak., K.John, v. 3. 1. 
On the left hand left wre two little I;ilands. 
S'(7idyn, Travailes, p. 8. 
It may be that the gulfn will wash vs down ; 
It may Iw we shall touch the Happy Isles, 
And see the great Achilles, whom we knew. 
Tennyson, I'lysscs. 
We is Boniettrnes, like they, vayuely used for society, peo- 
ple in general, the world, etc.; but whun the speaker or 
writer unea ire he identifies himself more or less (lirectly 
with the Btattmcnt : when he U8<s they lie implies no such 
identincatiun. B<)th pronouns thus used may i>e translated 
by the French o» and the Otrnian man: as, we (or they) 
•ay, French on dit, <i»,rmun man mi/t. 
Vet set'H ifH) oft, faniiliar with her [vice's] fuce, 
We first endure, then pity, then embrace. 
Pt-pe, Knnay on Man. ii. 22U. 
6857 
The instances in which our feelings bias us in spite of 
ourselves are of hourly recuiTence. 
H. Spencer, Social Statics, p. 196. 
Many tongues have a double first person plural, one in- 
clusive and one exclusive of the person or persons ad- 
dressed : one we which means ' I and my party, ' as opposed 
to you ; and one that means ' my party and yours,' as op- 
l>osed to all third persons. 
Whitney, Life and Growth of Lang., p. 219. 
We is frequently used by individuals, as editors and au- 
thors, when alluding to themselves, in order to avoid 
the appearance of egotism whicii it is assumed would re- 
sult from the frequent use of the pronoun I. The plu- 
ral style is used also by kings and other potentates, and is 
said to have been first used in his edicts by King .John of 
Englatul ; according to others, by Richard I. The French 
and German sovereigns followed the example about the 
beginning of the thirteenth century. 
We charge you, on allegiance to otfrself. 
To hold your slaughtering hands. 
Shak., 1 Hen. VI., iii. 1. 86. 
We and us are sometimes misused for each other. 
To poor we 
Thine enmity 's most capital. 
Shak., Cor., v. 3. 103. 
Nay, no compliment : . . . Shall 's to diimer, gentle- 
men? Dekker and Webster, Northward Ho, ii. 2. 
Our bodies themselves, are they simply ours, or are they 
us? W. James, Prin. of Psychol., I. 291. 
We-ims (literally, we onesX we or us. [Dialectal, south- 
ern U. S.] 
*'Grind some fur we-uns ter-morrer?" asked Ab. "I'll 
grind yer bones, ef ye'll send em down," said Amos. 
M. N. Murfree, Prophet of the Great Smoky Mountains, ix. 
weabit, u. See way-hit. 
weak (wek), a. [< ME. tceikjweyl-j tcaik, icnyl; 
a northern form (< Icel, veikr, vfykr) taking the 
place of the sonthern form ivoke^ woe, tcakCy waCj 
< AS. wae, waae^ pliant, weak, easily bent, = 
OS, wek = D. week = MLG. wek, LG. week = 
OHG, Weill, MHG. G. weich = Icel. veikrj veykr, 
rarely vdkr = Sw. rck = Dan. ver/, pliant, 
weak; from the verb appearing in AS. wican 
(pret. wde^ pp. wiceu) = OS. wikan = OFries. 
tr(7.Y/, wiaka = D, wijken = OHG. wikkau, MHG. 
wickeii, G, U'cichen, give way, yield, = Icel. 
vikja (pret. rcyk, pp. vikinn) = Sw. rika = Dan. 
vifjCf tnrn, tnrn aside, veer; cf. Gr. uKeiv (for 
Feikuv)^ yield, give way, = L. -y/ vie in vitare 
(for *vieitarc)^ shun, avoid, *tj/x, vieis, change. 
To the same root are referred wick^y wieker.] 
1. Bending under pressure, weight, or force; 
pliant or pliable; yielding; lacking stiffness or 
firmness: as, the weak stem of a plant. 
For men have marble, women waxen, minds. 
And therefore are they form'd as marble will ; 
The MVrtA- oppress'd (impressed), the impression of strange 
kinds 
Is form'd in them by force, by fraud, or skill. 
Shak., Lucrece, 1. 1242. 
2. Lacking strenfrth; not strong. Specifically - 
(a) Breaking down under force or stress ; liable to fall, fail, 
or collapse umler strain; incapable of long resistance or 
endurance; frail, fragile, or resistless: as, a ^veak vessel, 
bridge, rope, etc. ; a weak fortress. 
How weak the barrier of mere Nature proves, 
Oppofi'd against the pleasures Nature loves ! 
Cowper, Tirocinium, I. 1C9. 
Tlie gate, 
Half-parted from a 2veak and scolding hinge. 
Tennyson, Tlie Brook. 
(6) Deficient in bodily strength, vigor, or robustness; fee- 
ble, either constitutionally or from age, disease, etc. ; in- 
firm ; of the organs of the body, deficient in functional en- 
ergy, activity, or the like : :is, a tveak stomach ; weak eyes. 
Min wlite [face] is wan, 
»t min herte woe. 
Mine dagis arren nei done. 
liel. Antiq., L 18(i. 
I have, God woot, a large feeld to ere; 
And icayke been the oxen in my plough. 
Chaucer, Knight's Talc, 1. 20. 
A pofir, infirm, weak, and despised old man 
Shak., Lear, i: 
. 20. 
(c) Lacking moral strength or firmness ; liable to waver or 
succumb when urged or tempted ; deficient in steady prin- 
ciple or in force of character. 
Him that is treak in the faith receive ye, but not to 
doubtful disputations. Rom. xiv. 1. 
Superior and unmoved; here only weak 
Against the charm of beauty's powerful glance. 
Milton, P. L., viii. r>32. 
If weak Women went astray, 
Their Stars were more in Fault than they. 
Prior, Hans Carvel. 
(rf) Lacking mental power, ability, or balance; simple; 
silly ; foolish. 
It is privatfly whispered That King Henry was of a 
2ccak Cajiacity, and easily abused. 
Baker, Chronicles, p. 190. 
The traditi'iii is that the water was conveyed from 
this pillar to the top of the famous temple, on which tlic 
people arc so weak as t<i imagine there was a garden. 
Pococke, Description of the Kast, II. i. 107. 
(f) Unequal to a particular need or emergency ; ineffectual 
or inefflcacioUH; inadeiiuate or unsatisfactory ; incapable; 
impotent. 
weakener 
My ancient incantations are too weak. 
Shak., 1 Hfn. VI., v. 3. 27. 
How vain is Reason, Elotpience how weak! 
If Pope must tell what Harcourt caimot speak. 
Pope, On the Hon. 8. Harcourt. 
One equal temper of heroic heai-ts. 
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will 
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. 
Tennyson, Ulysses. 
(/) Incapable of support; not to be sustained or main- 
tained; unsupported by truth, reason, or justice: as, a 
weak claim, assertion, argument, etc. 
A case so weak and feeble hath been much persisted in. 
Hooker. 
I know not what to say ; my title 's weak — 
Tell me, may not a king adopt an heir? 
Shak., 3 Hen. VI., i. 1. 134. 
(g) Deficient in force of utterance or sound ; having little 
volume, loudness, or sonorousness; low; feeble; small. 
A voice, not softe, weake, piping, womannishe. 
Ascham, The Scholemaster, p. 39. 
(A) Xot abundantly or sufficiently impregnated with the 
essential, required, or usual ingredients, or with stimu- 
lating or nourishing substances or properties ; not of the 
usual strength: as, weak tea; weak broth; a weak infu- 
sion ; iveak punch. 
Sip this weak wine 
From the thin green glass flask. 
Brouminy, Englishman in Italy, 
(i) Deficient in pith, pregnancy, or point ; lacking in vigor 
of expression : as, a weak sentence ; a iveak style. 
There arc to whom my satire seems too bold : . . . 
The lines are weak, another 's pleased to say. 
Pope, Iniit. of Hor., II. i. 5. 
(j) Resulting from or indicating lack of judgment, discern- 
ment, or flrnmess ; arising from want of moral courage, of 
self-denial, or of determination; injudicious: as, a weak 
compliance ; a tveak surrender. 
If evil thence ensue. 
She first his teeak indulgence will accu.'-e. 
Milton, P. L , ix. 1186 
(k) Slight; inconsiderable; trifling. [Rare.] 
Mine own weak merits, Shak., Othello, iii. 3. 187. 
(I) In gram., inflected — (1) as a verb, by regular syllabic 
addition instead of by change of the radical vowel ; (2) 
as a noun or an adjective, with less full or original diifer- 
ences of case- and number-forms ; opposed to sfrony (which 
see), (m) Poorly supplied ; deficient : as, a hand v:eak in 
trumps, (n) Tending downward in i>rice : as, a weak 
market; corn was weak.~The weaker sex. Sif sex^.~ 
The weaker vessel. See rp«xe/.- Weak accent, beat, 
or pulse, in music, a comparatively um-niphatic rhyth- 
mical unit : opposed to a heavy or atrony accent, etc. Sec 
rhythm. — Weak election. See election.— Wesik. side, 
weak point, that side, aspect, or feature of a pcrson'.s 
character or disposition in which he is nmst easily influ- 
enced or affected. 
Guard thy heart 
On this weak side where most our nature fails. 
Addison, Cato, i. l. 
Weak verb. See def. 2 (0- 
weakt (wek), t\ [< ME. weykeiiy wayken, wokev. 
wokicu, wakicn, < AS. wdciav, become weak, lan- 
giiish, vacillate (= MD. weeeketiy become soft, 
D. weekeUy soak, = OHG. weiehan^ MHG. G. wvi- 
ehctiy become weak), w^cau, make weak, weak- 
en, soften, afflict, < wdCy weak: see weak, a.] 
1, trrnis. 1. To make weak; weaken. 
It is hey tyme ; he drawyt fast h<uiie m ard, and is ryte 
lowe browt, and sore weykid and fublyd. 
Paston Letterx, I. 444. 
Wc must toyle to make our doctrine good, 
Which will empair the flesh and weak the knee. 
Dr. H. More, Psychozoia, ii. 80. 
2. To soften. 
Ac grace groweth nat til goode wil gynno rcyne, 
And wokie thorwe good wcrkes wikkedc liertes. 
Piers Plowman (t'), xv. 25. 
II, iiitratis. To become weak. Chauver. 
weak-built (wek'bilt), a. Ill-foniKled. [Hare.] 
Yet ever to obtain liis will resolving. 
Though weak-built hopes persuade him to jibslainiiig. 
Shak., I-ucrece, I. 130. 
weaken (we'kn), r. [< weak + -eu^.'} I. iu- 
(raiis. To become weak or weaker: as, he weak- 
rwi' from (lay to day. 
Somewhat to ivoken [var. wayken] gan the peytie 
By lengthe of pleynte. Chaucer, Troilus, iv. 1144. 
His notion weaken/^, his discernings 
Are lethargied. Shak., Lear, i. 4. 248. 
II. tratts. To make weak or weaker; lessen 
or reduce the strength, power, ability, influ- 
ence, or quality of: as, to weaken the body or 
the mind; to weaken a solution or infusion 
by dilution; to weaken the force of an argu- 
ment. 
So strong a CoiTosive is Grief of Mind, when it nicL't.s 
with a Body weakened before with .Sicknes«. 
Baker, Chronicles, p. Oil. 
In all these things hath the Kingdomc bhi of. lute .son: 
treak'nd. Milton, Reformation in Kng., ii. 
A languor came 
Tpon him, gentle sickness, gradually 
Weaktnitiy the man, till he could do no more, 
Tennyson, rnoi-b Ardcn. 
weakener (wek'ner), ». One who or tliat which 
weakens. 
