| spo | 1. Anything steeped, or dipped and softened, in any liquid; especially, something dipped in broth or liquid food, and intended to be eaten. "He it is to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it." (John xiii. 26) "Sops in wine, quantity, inebriate more than wine itself." (Bacon) "The bounded waters Should lift their bosoms higher than the shores, And make a sop of all this solid globe." (Shak) 2. Anything given to pacify; so called from the sop given to Cerberus, as related in mythology. "All nature is cured with a sop." (L'Estrange) 3. A thing of little or no value. <botany> Sops in wine, an old name of the clove pink, alluding to its having been used to flavor wine. "Garlands of roses and sops in wine. <botany>" (Spenser) Sops of wine, an old European variety of apple, of a yellow and red colour, shading to deep red. Synonym: sopsavine, and red shropsavine. Origin: OE. Sop, soppe; akin to AS. Span to sup, to sip, to drink, D. Sop sop, G. Suppe soup, Icel. Soppa sop. See Sup, and cf. Soup. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| spodic horizon | A subsurface layer of soil characterised by the accumulation of aluminum oxides (with or without iron oxides) and organic matter, a diagnostic horizon for spodosols. (09 Oct 1997) |
| spodogenous | Caused by waste material. Origin: G. Spodos, ashes, + -gen, producing (05 Mar 2000) |
| spodogram | The pattern of ash residue formed by microincineration of a minute tissue specimen, usually a thin section. Origin: G. Spodos, ashes, + gramma, a drawing (05 Mar 2000) |
| spodography | Synonym: microincineration. Origin: G. Spodos, ashes, + grapho, to write (05 Mar 2000) |
| spodomancy | Divination by means of ashes. Origin: Gr. Spodos ashes + -mancy. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| spodomantic | Relating to spodomancy, or divination by means of ashes. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| spodophorous | Removing or carrying off waste materials from the body. Origin: G. Spodos, ashes, + phoros, bearing (05 Mar 2000) |
| spodoptera | A genus of owlet moths of the family noctuidae. These insects are used in molecular biology studies during all stages of their life cycle. (12 Dec 1998) |
| spodumene | <chemical> A mineral of a white to yellowish, purplish, or emerald-green colour, occuring in prismatic crystals, often of great size. It is a silicate of aluminia and lithia. See Hiddenite. Origin: Gr, p. Pr. Pass. From to burn to ashes, from spodos ashes; cf. F. Spodumene. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| spoffish | Earnest and active in matters of no moment; bustling. Origin: probably from Prov. E. Spoffle to be spoffish. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| spoil | 1. That which is taken from another by violence; especially, the plunder taken from an enemy; pillage; booty. "Gentle gales, Fanning their odouriferous wings, dispense Native perfumes, and whisper whence they stole Those balmy spoils." (Milton) 2. Public offices and their emoluments regarded as the peculiar property of a successful party or faction, to be bestowed for its own advantage; commonly in the plural; as to the victor belong the spoils. "From a principle of gratitude I adhered to the coalition; my vote was counted in the day of battle, but I was overlooked in the division of the spoil." (Gibbon) 3. That which is gained by strength or effort. "each science and each art his spoil." (Bentley) 4. The act or practice of plundering; robbery; aste. "The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treason, stratagems, and spoil." (Shak) 5. Corruption; cause of corruption. "Villainous company hath been the spoil of me." (Shak) 6. The slough, or cast skin, of a serpent or other animal. Spoil bank, a bank formed by the earth taken from an excavation, as of a canal. The spoils system, the theory or practice of regarding public and their emoluments as so much plunder to be distributed among their active partisans by those who are chosen to responsible offices of administration. Origin: Cf. OF. Espoille, L. Spolium. 1. To practice plunder or robbery. "Outlaws, which, lurking in woods, used to break forth to rob and spoil." (Spenser) 2. To lose the valuable qualities; to be corrupted; to decay; as, fruit will soon spoil in warm weather. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| spoilfive | A certain game at cards in which, if no player wins three of the five tricks possible on any deal, the game is said to be spoiled. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| spoke-shave | A circular or oval ring with internal cutting edge, on the model of the carpenter's spoke-shave, for shaving off tumours in the nasal and other cavities. Synonym: spoke-shave. (05 Mar 2000) |
| spokein | <protein> Constituent protein of the radial spokes of the ciliary axoneme. Since a number of complementary spoke mutants are known to occur in Chlamydomonas and one mutant lacks 17 proteins, it seems likely that spokein is a complex mixture. (18 Nov 1997) |