rteV ^x:/ siiri fc^r'U ^- '^^^ twenty-fifth letter 
|3fc(\3Jife|5S3 ill the English alphabet. It 
^ ■^^■'^^^ '-'^^^^^ Ijag ijoth a"^ vowel and a conso- 
nant value. The character (aa 
was pointed out under U) is the 
fliially estalilished Greek form 
of the sign added by the Greeks 
next after T (whiuli had been the 
lust Plienician letter) to express 
tlieoo(b)-sound; {/"and Kareother 
forms of it, whicli have kept more 
nearly their original place and value. As a Greek vowel, 
yunderwent a phonetic change which niadeof it the equiv- 
alent of the present French u, German «, a rounded i, or 
a blending of the i- and n-souuds ; and in the first century 
B. c. it was added Ijy the Romans to their alphabet (which 
had till then ended with x) to express this sound in the 
Greek words borrowed into their language. With the same 
value it passed also into Anglo-Saxon xise; but its sound 
gradually changed to that of a pure or unrounded i; and 
then its further development into a sign for both vowel and 
consonant is analogons with the partial differentiation of 
CorKand IF(see W). It differs from w>, the other character 
having the double value of vowel and consonant, in being 
not only exclninged with t in diphtliongs and vowel-di- 
graphs — asaiat/, ei ey, oi oy — but also commonly used by 
itself as the vowel of a syllable, as in by, deny, lylph, lyinrj, 
taking tlie place of i both at the end of a word (since no 
proper English word except tlie pronoun /is allowed to enil 
with t) and elsewhere, and constantly exchanging witli i 
andt'e in the different inflectional forms of tlte same words : 
as, potly, ponies; pretty, prettier; deny, denies, denied, de- 
nier; andsoon. In Anglo-Saxon 1/ properly expressed the 
mixed sound m; but it early began to interchange with 
i, and in Middle English the two became convertible, 1/ 
being often substituted for i as being njore legible, and as 
affording, especially at the end of a word, an opportunity 
for a calligraphic flourish. Hence its present prevalence 
at the end of words, while in the inflected forms the older 
lis retained, /omi'Kes, tlie plural of /omai«, remaining be- 
side /aini<«, the flourished spelling, without the original 
final e, of familie. As a vowel-sign, y is a superfluity in 
our alphabet, signifying nothing which would not be just 
as well signified by i. The consonant y is really a differ- 
ent letter, representing the Middle English j, the Anglo- 
Saxon g. Tlie value is that of a semivowel, related to the 
i-sonnds (t and e) precisely as wis related to the ^(-sounds 
(liand oooro); if at all dwelt on or prolonged, it becomes 
an I or e. With this value it stands al ways before another 
vowel, as in yam, ye, yield, you,_ i'u e. In very many words 
it is a matter of comparative indifference, and subject to 
constant variation in practice, wliether an i before a vowel 
shall be pronounced aa a vowel, making a separate sylla- 
ble, or as y, combining iTito one syllable with its successor. 
In the respellings for pronunciation of this dictionary, 
such cases are often written with an i in the same syllable 
with the ftjilowing vowel; examples are cor-dial, fo-lio, 
fa-shient, e-ras-tian. Tlie semivowel ?/-sound is not only 
thus written with y and with i (sometimes also with e, as 
in the ending -ceous), but it is sounded without being writ- 
ten in a large class of words as the first element of what is 
called "long w" (that is, ?;oo.- aec IT), afimttse, union: and 
then, even wlien the 00 (0) part of the combination is re- 
duced l)y slighting even to the neutral-vowel sound (it or 
« or e"), the ?/ remains: hence, fif/yer, noi fg'Sr, for ft ff'Hr 
{fio'yor). In all these varieties of designation, the semi- 
vowel ?/-8ound is a much rarer element than the ic-sound 
in English utterance, making but % of one per cent, of the 
latter, wliile the w is 1\ per cent. The character y in the 
archaic forms or abbreviations ye, yat, yf, y^, etc., is neither 
the Greek y nor the Anglo-Saxon y (.j), but a foim of the 
Anglo-Saxon and Middle English ]i, now written th, and is 
to be pronounced, of course, as Ih. 
2. As a symbol: (a) In clicm., the symbol of 
yttrium, (b) In ornith., in myologlcal formulas, 
the symbol of the accessory semitendinosus. 
A. H'. Gftrrod. (c) In math.: (1) [L c] In al- 
gebra, the second of the variables or unknown 
quantities. (2) [I. c.l In analytical geometry, 
the symbol of the ordinate or other rectilinear 
point-coordinate. (3) In mechanics, the com- 
ponent of a force in the direction of the axis 
of y. (<l) As a medieval Roman numeral, 
the symbol for 150, and with a line drawn 
above it (Y), 150,000.— 3. [I.e.] An abbrevia- 
tion oiyear — Yn function, Hee function. 
Y^ (wi), )(. [From the letter y.] Something 
resembling tlie letter Y in shape. Speciftcally— 
(a) A forkeri clamp for holding drills or other tools. {It) 
One of the forked sni)pnrts in the angle of which is placed 
either a telescope or one of the extremities of the axis 
about which a telescope or other instrument or apparatus 
turns, (c) Same as Y-trnck. {d) A two-way pipe or coup- 
ling used to unite a hot- and cold-water pipe in one dis- 
charge, as in a bath-tub; a Ypipe or Y-cross. (e) In 
entom., a Y-moth. 
Y'^t, An old mode of writing the pronoun I. 
For tlie by sory nicht and day, 
y may say, hay wayleway ! 
Y luf the mar than mi lif. Rel. Antiq., I. 145. 
y-. See i-1. For Middle English words with this 
prefix, see i-, or the form without the prefix. 
-yl. [Early mod. E. also -ie, -ye; < ME. -y, -ie, 
-ye, -i, -i$, < AS. -Uj = D. -Uj = OHG. -ig, -ic, 
MHG. -ic, -ec, G. -ig = Icel. -igr, -iigr = Sw. 
Dan. -ig = Goth, -ags (cf. L. -ic-un = Gr. -ik-6^), 
an adj. suffix, as in AS. stsenig, stony, isig, icy, 
(ledwig, dewy, etc. This suffix is often spelled 
-ey, especially when attached to a word ending 
in -y, as in clayey, skyey.'] A very common suffix 
used to form adjectives from nouns, and some- 
times from verbs, such adjectives denoting 
'having,' ' covered with,' 'full of,' etc., the thing 
expressed by the noun, as in stony, rocky, icy, 
watery, rainy, dewy, meaty, juicy, mealy, salty, 
peppery, jiowdery, flowery, spotty, speckly, etc. 
It may be used with almost any noun, hut is found chiefly 
with monosyllables, while examples of its use with trisyl- 
lables are rare. 
-y2. [Also -ie (rarely -ee) ; < ME. -ye, 4e (rare) ; 
a dim. suffix, prob. due to a merging of the 
familiar adj. suffix -?/l, -jel, with the orig. fem. 
suffix -!£•*, -(/3^ and perhaps in some cases with 
the D. dim. suffix -je, which is short for -jen, a 
later var. of -ken (see -kin).'] A diminutive 
suffix, appearing chiefly in childish names of 
animals, etc., as kitty, doggy, piggy, Urdy, 
froggy, mousy, and similar names, or familiar 
forms of personal names, as Katy or Kitty (di- 
minutive of Kate), Jenny, Hetty, Fanny, Willy, 
Johnny, Tommy, etc., such names being often 
spelled with -ic, as Willie, Davie, etc., a spelling 
common in Scotch use, and also in general use 
in names of girls, as Katie, Jennie, Hettie, Carrie, 
Lizzie, Nellie, Annie, etc. Such names coincide in 
terminal form with some feminine names not actually 
diminutive, as Mary, Lucy, Lily, formerly and sometimes 
still written Marie, Lucie, Litlie, etc. 'ilie diminutive ter- 
mination is not used, except as above, in English literary 
speech, but it is common in Scotch, as in l)eastie, mannie, 
laside, sometimes with a second diminutive suffix, as in las- 
siekie, etc. 
-y3. [Early mod. E. also -ye. -ie; < ME. -if, -ye. 
< OF. -ie, F. -ie = Sp. -ia, in some words of 
Gr. origin -ia = Pg. It. -ia, < L. -ia = Gr. -ia, a 
common term, of fem. abstract (and concrete) 
nouns, as in L. familia, family, mania (< Gr. 
Iiavla), madness, etc. See def. Cf. -cy, -ency, 
-ce, -ence, etc.] A termination of nouns from 
the Latin or Greek, or of modem formation on 
the Latin or Greek model. Snch nouns are or were 
originally abstract, but many are now concrete. Examples 
are family, innocency, homily, theory, geography, philoso- 
phy, pliilology, etc. ; the list is innumerable. Besides words 
from the Latin and Greek, many other words have the ter- 
niination -y, either after the analogy of the Latin and 
Greek termination, or from some otiier source. As the ter- 
mination in snch cases usually has no significance, and 
is therefore not used as formative within tlie meaning as- 
signed to that word, such words, which are very numerous 
and intractable to classification, are here ignored. 
ya^t. An old spelling of yea. 
ya^ (ya), pron. A dialectal form of you. 
yacare (yak'a-re), n. [Braz.] Same &sjacare. 
yacca (.yak'ii), n. [W. Ind.] Either of two 
West Indian" evergreens, Podocarjms Purdieana 
and P. coriacea, trees becoming respectively 
100 feet and 50 feet high, and affording timber 
suitable for cabinet and plain purposes. 
yacca-tree (yak'il-tre), n. Same as yacca. 
yacca-wood (yak'ii-wud), «. The wood of the 
yacca-tree. 
yacht (yot), n. [Formerly also yntcht, yofeh 
(cf. F. yacht, < E.) ; = G. jacht, < MD. jachf, D. 
jagt, a yacht, lit. a chase, hunting (= OHG. 
"jagof, MHG. jagdt, G. jngd. chase, htmting), 
< jagen = OHG. jagon, MHG. G. jagen, hunt.] 
A vessel propelled either by sails or by steam, 
most often light or comparatively small, but 
sometimes of large size, used for pleasure-trips 
or for racing, or as a vessel of state to convey 
persons of distinction by water. There are two 
distinct types of sailing yacht : the racer with large spars 
and sails and fine lines, but sacrificing comfort to speed; 
and the ctmimodious well-proportioned cruising-yacbt. 
Sailing yachts are seldom or never of a more elaborate 
rig than that of the schooner ; but steam-vessels of every 
class from launches up are common as yachts. 
7006 
I sailed this morning with his Majesty in one of his 
yachts (or pleasure-boats), vessels not known among us 
till the Dutch East India Company presented that curious 
piece to tlie king. Evelyn, Diary, Oct. 1, 1661. 
Yatcht, a Dutch Vessel or Pleasure boat about the big- 
ness of our Barge. Blount, Glossogi-aphia (1670). 
Yaehf, a small sort of a Ship, built rather for Swiftness 
and Pleasure than for Merchandize or Warlike Service. 
E. Phillips, 1706. 
yacht (yot), v. i. [< yacht, n.] To sail or cruise 
in a yacht. 
The young English . . . seek for travels as dangerous 
aswar, diving into Maelstroms, . . . j,acAti7iff among the 
icebergs of Lancaster Sound. Emerson, Power. 
yacht-built (yot'bilt), a. Constructed on the 
model of a yacht. 
On the coast of Florida, there are the skimming-dish, 
the pumpkin-seed, and tlie flat-iron models, all half-round 
yacht-built boats, broad and beamy, cat-rigged or sloop- 
rigged ; they all pound and spank in a sea-wave, and are 
very wet. J. A. Henshall, Forest and Stream, XIII. 683. 
yacht-club (yot'klub), n. A club or union of 
yacht-owners for racing purposes, the promo- 
tion of yachting, etc., usually presided over 
by a commodore. 
yachter (yot'er), n. [< yacht -I- -erl.] One who 
commands a yacht ; also, one who sails in a 
yacht; a yachtsman. 
yachting (yot'ing). n. [Verbal n. of yacht, v.] 
The art of navigating a yacht; the sport of 
sailing or traveling in a yacht. Also used at- 
tributively: as, a yachting voyage; a yachting 
suit. 
yachtsman (yots'man), n.; pi. yachtsmen 
(-men). One who keeps or sails a yacht. 
The men . . . were hauling up the mainsail, Claud and 
Freddy lending superfluous aid, and making themselves 
very hot over it, as the manner of yachtsuten is. 
If'. E. Xorri^i, Matrimony, v. 
yachtsmanship (yots'man-ship), n. [< yachts- 
man + -ahip.] The art or science of sailing or 
managing a yacht. Also yachtmanship. 
The partisans of English yachtmamhip need not be 
disconcerted. 
St. James's Gazette, Sept. 8, 1886. (Eneyc. Diet.) 
yaft. A Middle English form of garc, preterit 
of f/M'cl. 
yaff (yaf), r. i. [Imitative; cf. yajA and icaff^.] 
To bark like an angry dog: yelp; hence, to talk 
pertly. [Prov. Eng. and Scotch.] 
This said, up came a i:apng cur. 
A. Scott, The Hare's Complaint. {Jamieson.) 
yaffil (yaf'il), n. Same as yaffle''-. 
yaffingale (yaf'ing-gal), n.' [Appar. altered 
from yaffle'^, with term, conformed to that of 
nightingale.] Sumensyaffle^. Also yappingale. 
[Prov. Eng.] 
I am woodman of the woods, 
And hear the garnet-headed yaffingale 
Mock them. Tennyson, Last Tournament 
yafflel (yaf'l), n. [Imitative; cf. yaff.] The 
green woodpecker, Gecinus riridis : from its 
loud laughing notes. Also yaffil, yaffler, yaffin- 
gale. See autnuAev popinjay. [Prov. Eng.] 
The Green Woodpecker, Gecinus or Picus viridis, though 
almost unknown in Scotland or Irtland, is the common- 
est; frequenting wooded districts, and more often heard 
than seen, its laughing cry (v hence the name "Y.iflU" or 
"Yaffie." by which it is in mnny parts kii'-wn) and undu- 
lating flight aflord equally good means of recognition. 
Eneyc. Brit., XXIV. 651. 
yaffle^ (yaf'l), n. [Also yafful; origin obscure.] 
1. An armful. [Prov. Eng.]— 2. A pile of cod- 
fish to be carried from the flakes to the store- 
house. [Local. Massachusetts.] 
yaffle^ (vaf'l), r. i. ; pret. and pp. yaffied. ppr. 
ya fling.' [<. yafir-. n.] To transport yafiles of 
fish: as, "now, boys, go to yaffiing.'" [Prov- 
incotown. Massachusetts.] 
yaffler (yaf'ler), n. Same as yaffle^. [Prov. 
Eng. ] 
yager (ya'g^r), ». [< G. jdger (= D. jager), a 
huntsman , < jagen . hunt : see yach t. Cf . jager.] 
1. Formerly, a member of various bodies of 
light infantry in the armies of different German 
