174 I N T 
brother’s intercession, and to Show that he had a conflict 
with himfelf what he Should do. Bacon. —To thruSt in as 
an obPcruftion, interruption, or inconvenience.—Human 
frailty vviii too often interpofe itfelf among perfons of the 
holieft.function. Swift. 
What watchful cares do interpofe themfelves 
Betwixt your eyes and night ? Skahefpeare. 
To offer as a fuccour or relief.—The common Father of 
mankind feafonably interpofed his hand, and relcued mifer- 
able man out of the grofs ftupidity and fenfuality where- 
into be was plunged. Woodward. 
To INTERPOSE, v.n. To mediate; to aft between 
two parties.—To put in by way of interruption.—But, 
interpofes Elefttherius, this objection may be made indeed 
almoSt againft. any hypothefis. Boyle. 
INTERPQ'SER,/! One that comes between others: 
I will make hade; but, ’till I come again. 
No bed Shall e’er be guilty of my itay; 
No reft be interpofcr ’twixt us twain. Shakefpeare. 
An intervenient agent; a mediator. 
INTERPO'SING, /. The aft of coming between, or 
of interfering. 
INTERPOSI'TION, f. Intervenient agency.—There 
never was a time when the interpoftion of the magistrate 
was more neceftary to fecure the honour of religion. Al¬ 
ter bury. —Though warlike fuccefles carry in them often 
the evidences of a divine interpofition, yet are they no lure 
marks of the divine favour. Atteibury. —Mediation : agency 
between paities—The town and abbey would have corne 
to an open rupture, had it not been timely prevented 
by the interpofition of their common protectors. AddiJ'on .— 
Intervention ; lfate of being placed between two.—The 
nights are lo cold, frefh, and equal, by reafon of the in¬ 
tire interpofition of the earth, as I know of no other part 
of the world of better or equal temper. Raleigh. —Any 
thing interpofed : 
A fhe Iter, and a kind of fliading cool 
lnterpfvion, as a fummer’s cloud, Milton. 
To INTER'PRET, v. a. [interpreter , Fr. interpreter, Lat.] 
To explain ; to tranllate; to decipher; to give a folution 
to; to' clear by expofition ; to expound.—An excellent 
fpi it, knowledge, and underftanding, interpreting of dreams, 
and Ibowing of hard fentences, and dilfolving of doubts, 
were found in the fame Daniel. Dan. v. 12.. 
Hear his flghs, thou mute ! 
Unfkilful with what words to pray, let me 
Interpret for him. Milton. 
INTER PRETABLE, adj. Capable of being expounded 
or deciphered.—No man’s face is actionable ; thefe An¬ 
gularities are interpretable from more innocent cqufes. 
Collier. 
INTERPRETA'TION, f. The aft of interpreting: 
explanation : v 
Look how we can, or fad or merrily, 
Interpretation will mifquote our looks. Shakefpeare. 
The fenfe given by an interpreter; expofition.—The pri¬ 
mitive Chriltians knew how the Jews, who preceded our 
Saviour, interpreted thefe predictions, and the marks by 
which the Me (hah would be difeovered ; and how the 
Jewilh doctors, who fucceeded him, deviated from the in¬ 
terpretations of their forefathers. Aduijon— The power of 
explaining.—We befeech thee to prolper this great Sign, 
and to give us the interpretation and ufe of it in mercy. 
Bacon. 
INTER'PRETATIVE, adj. Collected by interpreta¬ 
tion.—Though the creed apoltolic were fufficient, yet, when 
the church hath erefted that additional bulwark againft 
heretics, the rejecting their additions may jtiftly be deemed 
an interpretative fuling with herefies. Hammond. 
INTERPRETA'TIVELY, adv. As may be collefted 
by interpretation.—By this provifton the Almighty inter" 
I N T 
prdalively Speaks to him in this manner: I have now placed 
thee in a w'dl-furniflied world. Ray. 
INTER'PRETER, /. An explainer; an expofitor; an 
expounder.—In the beginning the earth was without 
form and void; a fluid, dark, confufed, mafs; and fo it is 
underftood by interpreters, both Hebrew and Chriltian, 
Burnet. 
What we oft do beft. 
By lick interpreters, or weak ones, is 
Not ours, or not allow’d: what worft, as oft, 
Hitting a groffer quality, is cry’d up 
For our beft aft. Shakefpeare. 
A tranflator.—How Shall any man, who hath a genius for 
liiftory, undertake fuch a work with fpirit, when he con- 
fiders that in an age or two he Shall hardly be underftood 
without an interpreter. Swift. 
Nor word for word be careful to transfer. 
With the fame faith as an interpreter. Sherburne. 
INTER'PRET ING, f. The aft of explaining, tranf- 
lating, or expounding. 
INTERPUNC'TION, f. [ interpungo , Lat.] Pointing 
between words or fentences. 
INTERREG'NUM, f. [Latin.] The time in which a 
throne is vacant between the death of a prince and accel- 
flon of another.—He would Show the queen my memorial 
with the firSt opportunity, in order to have it done in this 
interregnum or fufpenfion of title. Swift. 
Nextenfu’d a vacancy; 
ThouSand worfe paflions then poSTefs’d 
The interregnum of my breaft: 
Blefs me from fuch an anarchy!_ Cowley. 
The word Should be limited to the time during which 
the throne is vacant in eleBive kingdoms ; for in fuch as are 
hereditary , like ours, there is no fuch thing as an inter¬ 
regnum, becaufe the right of fovereignty is fully verted 
in the fucceffbr to the throne by the very defeent of the 
crown. Hence the Statutes paffed in the firft year after 
the restoration of Charles II. are always called the afts of 
the 12th year of his reign ; and all the other legal pro¬ 
ceedings of that reign are reckoned from the year 1648,.. 
and not from 1660. 
INTERREI'GN, f [ interregne, Fr. interregnum, Lat.] 
Vacancy of the throne.—The king knew there could not 
be any interreign, or fufpenfion of title. Bacon. 
IN'TERREX,y. The magistrate who governs during 
an interregnum. This magillrate was eltablifhed in old 
Rome, and was almoft as ancient as the city itfelf; after 
the death of Romulus there was an, interregnum of a year, 
during which the Senators were each interrex in their 
turns, five days a-piece 1 . After the eltablifoment of con- 
fuls and a common-wealth, though there were no kings, 
yet the name and function of interrex was Still preferved ; 
for, when the magistrates were abfent, or there was any 
irregularity in their eleftion, or they had abdicated, fb 
that the comitia could not be held ; provided they were 
unwilling to create a dictator, they made an interrex, whole 
office and authority was to laft five days ; or, according 
to Plutarch, twelve hours ; after which they made ano¬ 
ther. To the interrex was delegated all the regal and con- 
fular authority, and he performed all their funftions. He 
aftembled the lenate, held comitia or courts, and took 
care that the eleftion of magistrates was according to rules. 
Indeed at firft it was not the cuftom of the interrex to 
hold comitia, at leaft we have no instance of it in the 
Roman history. The patricians alone had the right of 
elefting an interrex ; hut this office fell with the repub¬ 
lic, when the emperors made themfelves matters of ejvery 
thing. 
HsiTER'RING, / [from inter.') The aft of burying, 
or putting under ground. 
To INTERROGATE, v.a. \_inlerrogo, Lat. interroger , 
Fr.] To examine ; to question. 
To INTERROGATE, v.n. To aSkj to put questions. 
—His 
