west 
bounded on the west by the Atlantic. — 3. The 
western part or division of a region mentioned 
or understood: as. the west of Europe or of 
England ; the Canadian tcest ; he lives in the 
west (of a town, county, etc.). Specifically — (a) 
[cap.] The western part of the world, as distinguished from 
the East or Orient ; the Occident, either as restricted to 
the greater part of Eumpe or as including also the west- 
ern hemisphere, or America. See Occirfe/i/, 2. {b) [cap.] In 
the United States, formerly, the part of the country lying 
west of the original thirteen States along the Atlantic 
seat)oard, and particularly the northern part of this re- 
gion : now, indefinitely, the region beyond the older sea- 
board and central States, or more specifically that in- 
cluded mainly between the Mississippi river and the 
Pacific Ocean, and especially the northern part of this 
region. 
4. Eccles.: (a) The point of the compass to- 
ward which one is turned wlien looking from 
the altar or high altar toward the further end 
of the nave or the usual position of the main en- 
trance of a church. Seeeast,ii.,l. (i) [frtj>.] In 
church hist., the church in the Western Empire 
and countries adjacent, especially on the nortli ; 
the Western Church — By west, westward; toward 
the west : as, north by irest. 
A shipman was ther, woning fer by wegte. 
Chaucer, Gen. Prol. to C. T., 1. 38S. 
Empire of the West. See Weetem Empire, under e/n- 
pire, 
n. a. 1. Situated in. on, or to the west; be- 
ing or lying westward with reference to some- 
thing else ; western : as, the West Indies ; West 
Virginia ; the iccst bank or the west fork of a 
river; ice«* longitude. 
This shall be your weiA border. Num. xxxiv. t). 
Qo thoa with her to the xcegl end of the wood. 
SAa*.,T. O. of v., y. 3. 9. 
2. Coming or moving from the west or western 
region: as, a west wind. — 3. Ecclcs., situated 
in, or in the direction of, that part of a church 
which is furthest from the altar or high altar; 
opposite the ecclesiastical east West dial Slc 
duU. — West End, the western part of London; specifi- 
cally, the f.ishionable or aristocratic quarter ; often used 
attributively. 
west (west), nrfr. [See ifcwi, «.] To or toward 
the west ; westward or westerly ; specifically 
(eccleg.), toward or in the direction of that part 
of a church which is furthest from the altar or 
high altar. 
Go vegt, young man, and grow up with the country. 
Horace Greeley. 
west (west), r. i. [< ME. western; < west, «.] 
To move toward the west; turn or veer to the 
west. [Kare or obsolete.] 
On a bed of gold she lay to reste 
Tyl that the bote sonne gan to watte. 
Chaueer. Parliament of Fowls, 1. 260. 
Twice hath he risen where he now doth West, 
And wetted twice where he ought rise aright. 
Speiixr, ¥. q., v., Prol., st. 8. 
west-abont (west'a-bout"), <i<h\ Around to- 
ward the west; in a westerly direction. 
westent, «. [ME.. < AS. ice.ften (= OFries. 
uOstene, westeiie, wcstenie = OS. wostiiinea = 
OHG. wostinna), a waste, desert, < weste, waste, 
desert: see icn^tei.] A waste; a desert. Old 
Ktifi. Homilies, I. 245. (Strntmann.) 
wester (wes't^r), c. i. [< ME. wcstren, tend to- 
ward the west, < west, west: see west, n. Cf. 
western, westerly.'^ To tend or move toward the 
west; trend or turu westward. [Obsolete or 
archaic] 
The Sonne 
Gan westren faste and dounward for to wrye. 
Chaucer, Troilus, ii. 90«. 
The winde did Wenter, so that wee lay South southwest 
with a flawne sheete. Ilaktuyts Voyages, I. 447. 
Thy fame has journeyed irejrfm/i^with the sun. 
O. W. llolmcjf. To Christian tJottfried Ehrenberg. 
westerling (wes'ter-liug), «. [< we.ster(ii) + 
-liiiijl. CT. easterliny.] A person belonging to 
a western country or region with reference to 
one regarded as eastern. [Kare.] 
T was set forth at the sole charge of foure Merchants 
of London ; the Country being tlien reputed by your 
wetterliiigi a most rockie, barren, destjlate desart. 
Quoted in Cn;-(. John SmittCg Works, IL 262. 
westerly (wes'tei--li), «. [< wcstcrln) + -///l. 
Cf. easterh/, etc.] 1. Having a generally west- 
ward direction; proceeding or directed main- 
ly toward the west : as. a Hv.sfer/// cuiTcnt or 
course; the westerly trend of a mountain-chain. 
— 2. Situated toward the west; lying to the 
westward: as, the wrsterly parts of a country. 
The Hugll is the most wegterbi of the network of chan- 
nels by which the Ganges iHvurs into the sea. 
Xinetectvth Century, XXJU. 41. 
3. Looking toward the west; as, a «y.s^-(/// ex- 
posure. — 4. Coming from the general direction 
6881 
of the west; blowing from the westward, as 
wind: sometimes used substantively. 
The sea was crisping by a refreshing westerly breeze. 
T. B. Aldrich, Ponkapog to Pesth, p. 206. 
westerly (wes'ter-li), ado. [< we.'iterly, a.] To 
the westward; in a westerly direction. 
From spire and barn looked westerly the patient weather- 
cocks. Whittier, Huskers. 
western (wes'tern), a. and n. [< ME. western, 
westreH, < AS. *westerne (in eomp. suthan-wcst- 
erne, southwestern) (= OS. OHG. westrOni), < 
west, west: see west, and ef. eastern, northern, 
southern.~\ I. a. 1. Of or pertaining to the west, 
or the quarter or regioti of sunset; being or ly- 
ing on or in the direction of the west ; occiden- 
tal: as, the western horizon; the western part or 
boundary of a country. 
Apollo each eve doth devise 
A new apparelling for western skies. 
Keats, Endymion, ill. 
His cheery little study, where the sunshine glinnnered 
so pleasantly through the willow branches, on the icestem 
side of the Old Manse. 
Hawthorne, Scarlet Letter, Int., p. 7. 
2. Tending or directed towaid the west; ex- 
tending or pursued westward : as, a western 
course; a ic<;«fer« voyage. — 3. Belonging to or 
characteristic of some locality in the west, 
or some region specifically called the West 
(in the latter case often capitalized): as, west- 
ern people or dialects (as in England) ; a ll'est- 
ern city or railroad, or Western enterprise (as 
in the United States); the Western Empire. — 
4. Declining in the west, as the setting sun ; 
hence, figuratively, passing toward the end; 
waning. 
He! that a gentleman of your discretion, 
Crown'd with such reputation in youryouth. 
Should, in your western days, lose th' good opinion 
Of all your friends. T. Toinlcis (?), Albumazar, v. 6. 
The weiytern sun now shot a feeble ray. 
And faintly scattei'ed the remains of day. 
Addison, The Campaign. 
5. Coming from the west : as, a western wind. — 
Connecticut Western Reserve. See re«erie.— West- 
em barred owl, Si/rymnn occidetitale (or Strix occiden- 
talis), discovered by J. Xantus at >'ort Tejon, California. 
It resembles but is specifically distinct from the owl 
figured under Strix. Western bluebird. See hluchird 
and Sialia. — Western chickadee, Pams occidentalis oi 
the Pacific coast of North America. — Western chinka- 
pin. Same as chinkapin, 2. — Western Church. Sec 
cAtircA. — Western cricket, the shiekl-ljacked grasshop- 
per. See »(Aw?/d-6acfrc(i. — Western daisy, a plant, Betlis 
inteyrififlia, found from Kentucky southwcstward, the 
only species of the true daisy geims native in the liiited 
States. Differently from B. perennis, the garden species, it 
has a leafy stem ; the heads, borne on slender peduncles, 
have pale violet-purple rays. — Western dowitcher. Ma- 
erorhatnphus scAopaceus, a long-billed variety of ^[. yri- 
seus, perhuits a distinct species, found chiefly in western 
parts of North America.— Western Empire. Seeempiie. 
—Western grassfinch, that variety of the vesper-bird 
which is found from the plains to the Pacific. — West- 
em grasshopper. See (ocH<ti,i.— Western grebe, the 
largest grebe of North America. See cut under ^j-^ch- 
mophorus.— Western hemisphere. See hemisphere.— 
Western herring-gull, I.arus occidentalis of Audubon, 
a large thick-l>illed and dark-mantled gull common on 
the Pacific coast of North Amelica.— Western house- 
wren, I'arkman's wren (which see, under irren). — West- 
ern meadow-lark, the l)i.d figured under Sturnella. — 
Western mudfish. Same as lake-lawyer, 1. — West- 
em nonpareil, the prusiano. — Western redtail, Bnieo 
horcalis ealurus {B. calurus ol Cassiii), the commonest and 
most characteristic representative of the hen-hawk or red- 
tail in most parts of western North America from the 
plains to the Pacific, where it runs into several local races. 
— Western States, formerly, the States of the American 
I'nion lyini,' west of the .Alleghanies; as the country de- 
velonetl, the phrase came to include all the States west- 
ward to the Pacific and north of the slave States, although 
certain States have been classed l>oth as Southern and as 
Western States. The jjlirase is very indefinite : sometimes 
it is restricted to the States west of the Mississippi (ex- 
cluding the so-called Southwest) ; sometimes it includes 
the northern part of the entire region from Ohio to 
California. — Western wallflower. See wall lUm-er.— 
Western warbler. See icarWcr.- Western yellow- 
nunp. Same as Audubon's warbler (wliich see, under 
warbler). 
II. H. 1. An inhabitant of a western region, 
orof the West or Occident ; specifically, a mem- 
ber of a Western race as distinguished from the 
Eastern races. — 2. ['■«/).] A member of the 
Latin or Western Chureli. 
westerner (wes'ter-ner). «. [< western + -er^.'] 
A person belonging to the west, or to a west- 
ern region ; specifically [(Jo/).], an inhabitant 
of the western part of the United States. 
westernism (wes'tern-iztn), H. [< western + 
-('•s/«.] Tlie jieculiarities or characteristics of 
western people ; specifically, a word, an idiom, 
or a manner peculiar to inhabitants of the west- 
ern United States — that is, of the Northern 
States called Western. 
westward 
A third ear-mark of Westernism is a curious use of a verb 
for a noun. The Independent (New York), Dec. ilO, 1869. 
westernmost (wes'tem-most), a. sii[ierl, [< 
western + -most. Cf. we.itniost.'i Furthest to 
the west ; most western. Cooli, Second Voyage, 
i. 7. 
westing (wes'ting), (I. [Verbal n. of west, r.] 
Space or distance westward; space reckoned 
from one point to another westward from it ; 
specifically, in plane sailiny, the distance, ex- 
pressed in nautical miles, which a ship makes 
good in a westerly direction ; a ship's departure 
when sailing westward. See departure, 5. 
westlingl (west'ling), a.and». l<west+ -Un{/^.'] 
I. a. Being iu or coining ft-otn the west; west- 
ern; westerly. [Old Eng. and Scotch.] 
Saft the westlin breezes blaw. 
It. Tannahill, Gloomy Winter 's now Awa". 
The fringe was red on the westlin hill. Iloyy, Kilmeny. 
II. H. An inhabitant of the west ; one who 
inhabits a western country or district. [Rare.] 
westling3 (west'ling), adv. [< tcest + -ling^.] 
Toward the west ; westward, 
westlins (west'linz), flrfi'. [Alao westlines ; for 
"westlings, < westting^ + adv. gen. -.s-.] Same 
as westling^. [Scotch.] 
Now frae th' east nook of Fife the dawn 
Speel'd westlincs up tlie lift. 
Ramsay, Christ's Kirk on the Green, iii. 1. 
Westminster Assembly. See Assembly of Di- 
vines at Westminster, under assembly. 
Westminster Assembly's catechism. See 
cateeliisni, '2. 
westmost (west'most), a. su[}erl. [< ME. 'west- 
mcst, < AS. tvestmest, wcstemest, < iccA-f + -mest, 
a doulile superl. suffix: see -most.~\ Furthest 
to the west. [Rare.] Imp. Diet. 
Westplial balance. A fortn of balance used 
indetermiuitig the specific gravity of solutions 
and also of mineral fragments. In the case of frag- 
ments a "heavy solution " is first obtained, in wliich tliey 
just float. The balance consists of a bar supported on a 
fulcrum near the middle, and having one halt of it, from 
whose extremity hangs a sinker, graduated into ten parts. 
The sinker is immersed in the liquid under experiment, 
and then riders are hung at suitafile points on the bar 
until it is brought back into a horizontal position as in- 
dicated by the fixed scale at the other end. The position 
and size of the riders give the means of reading off at once 
the required specific gravity without calculation. 
Westphal-Erb symptom. Same as WestphaVs 
.•iifniptom. See symptom. 
Westphalian (west-fa'li-an), a. and n. [< West- 
phalia (see def.) -I- -an.y I. a. Of or pertain- 
ing to Westphalia, a province of Prussia, bor- 
dering on Hanover, the Rhenish Province, the 
Netherlands, etc. Westphalia was formerly a 
duchy, and (with larger territory) a Napoleoiuc 
kingdom from 1807 to 1813. 
The Westphatian treaties, which terminated the thirty 
years' war, were finally signed on Oct. 24, 164S. 
Amer. Cyc., XVI. 570. 
Westphallan gerlcht. Same as vchmyericht. 
II. H. A native or an inhabitant of West- 
phalia. 
Westphal's foot-phenomenon. A series of 
rhythmical contractions of the calf-muscles 
following a sudden pushing uj) of the toes and 
ball of the foot, thereby putting the tendo 
Achillis on the stretch; ankle-clonus. 
Westphal's symptom. See symptom. 
westret, ''. /. An old form of wester. 
Westringia (wes-trin'ji-ji), «. [NL. (Sir J. E. 
Smith, 1798), named after J. P. Westring, a phy- 
sician of Linkiiping, Sweden, who died in 1833.] 
A genus of gainopetalous plants, of the order 
Labiatie and tribe rrostanthereie. it is character- 
ized by a calyx with five equal teeth, a corolla with the 
upper lip fiattish, and anther-connectives without an ap- 
pendage. There are !) or 11 species^ all natives of extra- 
ti'opical Australia. They are shrubs with small entire 
leaves in whorls of three or four together, and sessile 
or shoit-pedicelled twin flowers scattered in the axils 
of the leaves, or rarely crowded in leafy terminal Iieads. 
ir. rosmarini/i.nnis, the Victorian loseniary, an ever- 
green shrul) growing about 8 feet high, is sometimes 
cultivated. 
West -Virginian (west-ver-,iin'i-!ni). a. and n. 
I. a. Of or ])ertaining to West Virginia, one 
of the United States, set apart frofn Virginia 
durifig the civil war, and admitted to the Union 
in 1863. 
II. n. A native or an inhabitant of West Vir- 
ginia. 
westward (west'wiird), adv. [< ME. west- 
ward; < AS. westweard, westcweard, westward, 
< west, west, -I- -weard, E. -ward.^ 1. Toward 
the west; ina westerly direction: as, to ride or 
sail westward. 
Westward the course of empire takes its way. 
Bp. Berkeley, .\rts and Learning in -America. 
