wentletrap 
a turning (< wenden, turn: see xoemV-, and ef. 
win<He), + treppe,s,t-A\v: see /raj)^.] A shell of 
the genus Scniaria or family Scalariidee ; a lad- 
der-shell. See Scalariidse, and cut under Scci- 
laria. 
wept. An obsolete preterit of tceejA. 
wepelyt, "• See icecj^li/. 
wepent, wepnet, -weppont, weppynt, etc., )(. 
Obsolete forms of weapon. 
wept (wept). Preterit and past participle of 
wecp'^. 
werH,". [Alsoicfre; ME. wer, were, < AS. wee, 
a man, also a fine so called, wergild, = OS. tcer 
= OHG. (rer = leel. verr = Goth, wair = L. vir, 
a man. Hence, in comp., wergild, werwolf. 
From the L. rir are ult. E. ririle, virtue, etc.. 
and the second element of decemvir, duumvir, 
triumvir, etc.] 1. A man. 
6880 
terials of all the rocks In solution, and from which ocean 
the various formations were precipitated one after an- 
other. 
The Wemerian notion of the aqueous precipitation of 
" Trap " has since that date never held up its head. 
6. P. Serope, Geol. and Extinct Volcanos of Central 
[France, Pref., p. ix. 
II. n. In ^eo?., an advocate of the Wemerian 
theory. 
My two friends agreed with me in the opinion that the 
error of the Werneriam in undervaluing, or rather despis- 
ing altogether as of no appreciable value, the influence 
west 
About the field religiously they went, 
With hollowing charms the warwolf thence to fray, 
That them and theirs awaited to betray. 
Drayton, Man in the Moon. 
In the old doctrine of Werewolves, not yet extinct in 
Europe, men who are versipelles or turnskins have the 
actual faculty of jumping out of their skins, to become 
for a time wolves. E. B. Tylor, Prim. Culture, I. 77. 
werwolflsh, werewolflsh. ( wer'-, wer' wul'fish ), 
a. [< wenvolf + -jsfti.] Like a werwolf ; 1}'- 
oanthropic; having or exhibiting the appear- 
ance or propensities attributed to werwolves. 
of volcanic forces in the production of the rocks that com- ,„■' wprpwnlfisni fwer'- wer'wul 
pose the surface of the globe formed a fatal bar to the WerWOinsm, Werewoinsm (,wer , wer wm 
progress of sound geological science which it was above 
all things desirable to remove. 
O. P. Serope, Geol. and Extinct Volcanos of Central 
[France, Pref., p. vi. 
Neptune had failed to extinguish the torch of Plutx>, 
and the Werneriam were retreating before the Huttoni- 
ans. Nature, XLII. 218. 
Me hwet is he tlies icere that tu art to Iweddet? 
Life of St. JnliaiM (E. E. T. S.), 1. 
Ne lipne no wif to hire were, ne were to his wyne. 
Wer [in ancient English criminal law] was a species of 
fine, a price set upon a man according to his rank in life. 
Stephen, Hist. Crim. Law, I. hi. 
flzm), n. [< icerwolf + -ism.'] Lycanthropy; 
also, the body of tradition and belief on that 
subject. 
English folklore is singularly barren of were-wolf 
stories. . . . The traditional belief in were-wdlftsm must, 
however, have remained long in the popular mind, , . . 
for the word occurs in old ballads and romances. 
S. Baring-Gould, Book of Were- Wolves, viiL 
weryt. An old form of weary'^, warry, worry, 
warruy. 
wernerite (wer'ner-it), n. [< Werner (see Wer- 
Pierian) + -ite^.'] A variety of scapolite. 
— „ • . ,. ,o, , oi Werner's map-projection. See projection. ,„„,„„ 
Old Eng. HomUies (E. E. T. S.), 1st ser. Moral Ode, 1. 32. Wernicke's fissurC. The exoceipital fissure of ^eryanglet ". Same as warriangle, 
2. Wergild. the cerebrum ; one of the so-called ape-fissures, .^esandt, ".' An old spelling of weasand. 
Every man was valued at a certain sum, which was found in apes as well as in man. we'se (wez). 1. A dialectal reduction of we 
called his were. BoswortA, Anglo Saxon Diet. ^erOWanCCt, "• [Amer. Ind.J An Indian ^;jaH._ 2. A dialectal reduction of «;<; M for ice 
chief. are. [Negro dialect, U. S.] 
A tFeroMa?ice is a military officer, who of couree takes •^fesllt WCSSllt. Obsolete preterits of wash. 
upon him the command of all parties, either of hunting, —.-oVo'ttU « fiamp aa wnsxnil 
travelling, warring, or the like, and the word signifies a Weslieylt, «• bdme as '"assajf. 
war-captain, Beceriei/, Virginia, iii. H 4,5. we8llt(we'zil),». [See roertsand. J The weasand. 
Bacon . 
wer^t, ». An obsolete form of roeir. 
'WBT^, pron. A dialectal form of onr'^. 
werblet, >'■ and "• -A-n old form of warUe^. 
wercht, «'. and n. An old form of work^. 
werche, a. Same as iversli. 
werdt, ". A Middle English form of weird. 
werelf. An obsolete form of jpearl, wear'^, 
weir, war^, rair. 
were^t, «. See wer'^. 
were^. Indicative plural and subjunctive sin- 
gular and plural of teas. See was. 
were-angel, «. An obsolete or dialectal form 
of warriantjle. 
weregild, n. See wer<jild. 
werelyet, «• Same as warely. 
weremod, ". Same as wormwood. [Obsolete 
or prov. Eng.] 
werent. An obsolete form of wereS. 
werena (wer'na). A Scotch form of icere no 
that is, were not. 
werewolf, werewolflsh, etc. See werwolf, etc. 
wergild, weregild (wer'-, wer'gild), n. [Also 
ti-eregeld; prop, weryild, repr. AS. xoergild, wer- 
geld, weryld, also erroneously tvseregild, weregild 
(= OHG. MHG. wergelt, G. wergeld, wehrgeU), < 
wer, a man, -t- geld, gild, gyld, retribution, com- 
see !ce>-l and yield, n., geld^, gild^.] 
The Indians were also deprived of the power of choos- 
ing their own chief or werowance. 
E. D. Neill, Virginia Carolorum, viii. 
werret. A Middle English foi-m of warl, war"^. 
werreiet, werreyt, werryt, 'v- 1. Middle English 
forms of warray. 
werreyourt, »'• A Middle English form of war- 
rior. 
werset, «• An old spelling of icorse. 
wersh (wersh), a. [Also tcarsh, werche; a re- 
duced form of weomL] Insipid; tasteless; deli- 
cate ; having a pale and sickly look. [Scotch.] 
Wersh parritch, neither gude to fry, boil, nor sup cauld. 
Scott, Old Mortality, ix. 
werstet, «• An old spelling of worst. 
wert^ (wert). See was. 
wert^t, «. A Middle English variant of ivarf^ 
Wesleyan (wes'li-an), a. and n. [< Wesley 
(see def.) + -an.} I. a. 1. Pertaining or re- 
lating to the English family to which John and 
Charles Wesley belonged, or to any of its mem- 
bers: as, Wesleyan genealogy or characteris- 
tics; Wesleyan hymnology. Specifically — 2. 
Of or pertaining to John Wesley (1703-91), 
or the denomination founded by him: as, 
the Wesleyan Methodists; Wesleyan doctrine or 
Methodism. See Methodist. 
II. n. A follower of John Wesley; a Wes- 
leyan Methodist. See Methodist. 
Wesleyanism (wes'li-an-izm), n. [< Wesleyan 
+ -ism.'] Arminian Methodism ; the system of 
doctrines and church polity of the Wesleyan 
Methodists. 
Wertherian'^(ver-te%n'an)ra. ' "(rWertlier^ i\^e west (west), n. and «. [< ME. west, n., west 
hero of Goethe's romance, "Die Leiden des ' ' "" 
jungen Werther" ('The Sorrows of Young 
Werther'), a type of the sentimental young 
German, + -i-an.] Resembling the character of 
Werther; characteristic of the sentiments and 
modes of thought exemplified by Werther. 
A love-lorn swain, . . . full of imaginary sorrows and 
Wertherian grief. TroUope, P.archester Towers. (Roppe.) 
pensation: _ , . 
In Anglo-Saxon and ancient Teutonic law, a . ^ r^ ti- ,.7 / 
kind of fine for manslaughter and other crimes Werthensm (ver ter-izm), ». [< Werther (see 
against the person, by paying which the oflfend- Wertherian) -t- ■ism.'] Wertherian sentiment. 
er freed himself from every further obligation The romance of Jacobinism which thrilled in Shelley, 
or punishment. The fine or compensation due by the the romance of Wertherlsr,i which glowed with sullen fire 
offender varied in amount according to his rank or station m Byron, are extinct as poetic impulses 
and that of the person killed or injured, and also accord- Edinburgh Rev., CLXIII. 46». 
ing to the nature of the injury. It was in general paid to -^ervelst n. pi. An obsolete ioYva ot varvels. 
therelativesof him whohadbeenslain, or, in thecaseof ,f ' If (^ A /_ ■n.er'wulf") n- xA 
a wound or other bodily harm, to the person who sustain- WerWOlI, WerCWOlI (.wer , wer wuii;, «. , pi. 
ed the injury; but, if the cause was brought before the werwolves, werewolves (-wulvz). [Also loehr- 
■ ' - ■ ' . -.1^-^-- IV. ^^^y, ^jjjj formerly warwolf; prop, werwolf, < 
ME. werwolf {-p\. w'erwolves), < AS. werwulf, also 
erroneously iverewulf, a werwolf (also used as 
an epithet of the devil) (= MD. loeerwolf waer- 
wolf, weyrwolf, wederwolf, D. waarwolf = MLG. 
tvertculf, werwolf, warivulf = MHG. werwolf, G. 
werwolf, also erroneously wa7ir(P0//= Sw. varulf 
= Dan. vantlv, werwolf; cf. OF. wareul, garoul, 
P. garott (in comp. loup-garou), dial, gairou, 
varou, etc., ML. gerulplius, garulplnis, < Tent.), 
lit. 'man-wolf (tr.Gr. 'AvKavdpunoQ, >ML. lycan- 
thropus, > E. h/canthropc), < wer, man, -f- tculf, 
wolf: see iceri and wolf. ] In old superstition, 
a human being turned into a wolf while retain- 
ing human intelligence. This transformation was 
either voluntarily assumed, through infernal aid, for the 
giatiflcation of cannibalism or other beastly propensities, 
or inflicted by means of witchcraft ; and it might be made 
and unmade at its subject's will in the former case, or be 
either temporary or permanent in the latter. A volun- 
tary werwolf was the most dangerous of all creatures, 
and trials of men on charge of crimes committed while in 
this form took place in Europe as late as the seventeenth 
century. But an involuntary werwolf might retain hu- 
mane feelings and sympathies, and act beneficently as tlie 
protector of persons in distress or otherwise ; and many 
medieval legends are based upon this idea. The former 
belief in werwolves throughout Europe (not yet entirely 
extinct in regions where wolves still abound) has given 
the general name lycanthropy to belief in the metanior- 
pliosia of men into beasts of any kind (generally the most 
destructive or obnoxious of the locality), prevalent among 
nejuly all savage and semi-civilized peoples. 
Sir MaiTocke, the good knight that was betrayed by his 
wife, fur slice made him well a seven years a warwol'f. 
Sir T. Malory, Mort d' Arthur, III. cxxxix. 
community the plaintiff received only part of the flue, the 
community, or the king when there was one, receiving the 
remainder. 
weriet, v. t. A Middle English form of wear^. 
werisht, werishnesst. Same as toearish, wear- 
ishness. 
werkandt, a. See warkand. 
werlaughet, ". An obsolete variant of war- 
lock'^. 
Werlhop's disease. Purpura hemorrhagica. 
werlyt, ". An old form of warely. 
wermodt, «. An old form of wormwood. 
wernt, v. 1. An old form of warn. 
wernardt, ". [ME., < OF. guemart, deceitful, 
prob., with suffix -art, E. -ard, < "gnernir, deny, 
< OS. wernian, etc., deny: see warn.] A de- 
ceiver; a liar. 
Wel thow wost, u-ernftrd. but gif thow wolt gabbe, 
Thow hast lianged on myne half elleuene tymes. 
Piers Plowman (B), iii. 179. 
Thus saistow, wernard, God give the mescliaunce. 
Chaucer, I'rol. to Wife of Bath's Tale, 1. 260 (in some M8S.). 
Wemerian (wer-ne'ri-an), 0. and )i. [< Werner 
(sec ilcf. ) -t- -i-aii.] I. a. Partaking of or in 
conformity with the views of Abraham Gottloli 
Werner (1750-1817), a (icrman geologist, pro- 
fessor in the mining-school of Freiberg, Saxony, 
who had much influence on the development of 
geology at the time when this branch of sci- 
ence began to be seriously studied. He was the 
principal expounder of the .so-called Neptunian theory of 
the earth's formation, according to which tlie earth was 
originally covered by a cha(»tic ocean which held the ma- 
(aee. west as adv.), < AS. west, adv., west, west- 
ward (cf. westan, from the west, westmest, west- 
most ; in comp. west-, a quasi-adj., as in west- 
dxl, the west part,, west-ende, the west end, etc.), 
= OFries. tcest = D. west, adv., n., and a. (cf. 
OF. west, onest, F. ouest = Sp. Pg. oeste = It. 
ovest, n., west, < E.), = OHG. MHG. west- (in 
comp.) = leel. vestr, n., the west, = Sw. Dan. 
vest, the west; orig. adv., the noun uses being 
developed from the older adverbial uses: (1) 
AS. west, adv., = D. west = ljG. west{m comp.), 
to the west, in the west, west; (2) AS. icc«to« 
= OHG. ivestana, MHG. G . westen, from the west, 
in MHG. and G. also in the west; hence the 
noun, MLG. westen = OHG. westan, MHG. G. 
westen, the west; (3) OS. wester ^OTries. wes- 
ter, D. wester =MLG. wester = OHG. westar, G. 
ivester- (in comp.), west; (4) AS. 'icestrene (in 
comp. ), western ; all from Teut. stem "west (im- 
perfectly reflected in the first element of the LL. 
"Fisigothee, West Goths), prob. connected with 
leel. vist, abode, esp. lodging-place, Goth, wis, 
rest, calm of the sea, L. vesper, vespera = Gr. 
cTTTepoc, iairipa, evening (see vesper) ; Gr. dorti, a 
city, Skt. rdstu, a house (the term west appar. al- 
luding to the abiding-place of the sun at night), 
< -4/ was, Skt. y ras, dwell : see teas. The forms 
and construction of west agree in great part 
with those of east, north, and south,] I. ». 1. 
One of the four cardinal points of the com- 
pass, opposite to the east, and lying on the 
left hand when one faces the north ; the point 
in the heavens where the sun sets at the equi- 
nox, or the corresponding point on the earth; 
more generally, the place of sunset. Abbrevi- 
ated 71'. 
As far as the east is from the irest, so far hath he re- 
moved our transgressions from us. Ps. ciii. 12. 
When ye see a cloud rise out of the ipe<sf, straightway ye 
say. There conieth a shower. Luke xii. 54. 
A certain aim he took 
At a fair vestal throned by the ivest. 
Shak., M. N. D., ii. 1. 168. 
2. The quarter or direction toward the mean 
point of sunset ; the tendency or trend direct- 
ly away from the east ; the western part or 
side: -with to, at, or on : as, that place lies to 
the west of this; to travel to the west; at or 
on the west were high mountains; Europe is 
