| wapacut | <zoology> The American hawk owl. See Hawk. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| wapatoo | <botany> The edible tuber of a species of arrowhead (Sagittaria variabilis); so called by the Indians of Oregon. Alternative forms: wappato. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| wapentake | In some northern counties of England, a division, or district, answering to the hundred in other counties. Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Nottinghamshire are divided into wapentakes, instead of hundreds. Alternative forms: wapentac. Origin: AS. Wpengec, wpentac, from Icel. Vapnatak, literally, a weapon taking or weapon touching, hence an expression of assent ("si displicuit sententia fremitu aspernantur; sin placuit frameas concutiunt."). See Weapon, and Take. This name had its origin in a custom of touching lances or spears when the hundreder, or chief, entered on his office. "Cum quis accipiebat praefecturam wapentachii, die statuto in loco ubi consueverant congregari, omnes majores natu contra eum conveniebant, et descendente eo de equo suo, omnes assurgebant ei. Ipse vero, erecta lancea sua, ab omnibus secundum morem foedus accipiebat; omnes enim quot-quot venissent cum lanceis suis ipsius hastam tangebant, et ita se confirmabant per contactum armorum, pace palam concessa. Waepnu enim arma sonat; tac, tactus est hac de causa totus ille conventus dicitur Wapentac, eo quod per tactum armorum suorum ad invicem confoederati sunt.". Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| wapiti | <zoology> The American elk (Cervus Canadensis). It is closely related to the European red deer, which it somewhat exceeds in size. By some writers it is thought to be a variety of the red deer, but it is considered a distinct species by others. It is noted for the large, branching antlers of the male. Origin: Probably the Iroquois name. Bartlett. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| wappato | <botany> See Wapatoo. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| wapper | <zoology> A gudgeon. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| war | 1. A contest between nations or states, carried on by force, whether for defence, for revenging insults and redressing wrongs, for the extension of commerce, for the acquisition of territory, for obtaining and establishing the superiority and dominion of one over the other, or for any other purpose; armed conflict of sovereign powers; declared and open hostilities. "Men will ever distinguish war from mere bloodshed." (F. W. Robertson) As war is the contest of nations or states, it always implies that such contest is authorised by the monarch or the sovereign power of the nation. A war begun by attacking another nation, is called an offensive war, and such attack is aggressive. War undertaken to repel invasion, or the attacks of an enemy, is called defensive. 2. A condition of belligerency to be maintained by physical force. In this sense, levying war against the sovereign authority is treason. 3. Instruments of war. "His complement of stores, and total war." (Prior) 4. Forces; army. "On their embattled ranks the waves return, And overwhelm their war." (Milton) 5. The profession of arms; the art of war. "Thou art but a youth, and he is a man of war from his youth." (1 Sam. Xvii. 33) 6. A state of opposition or contest; an act of opposition; an inimical contest, act, or action; enmity; hostility. "Raised impious war in heaven." "The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart." (Ps. Lv. 21) Civil war, a war between different sections or parties of the same country or nation. Holy war. See Holy. Man of war. Public war, a war between independent sovereign states. War cry, a cry or signal used in war; as, the Indian war cry. War dance, a dance among savages preliminary to going to war. Among the North American Indians, it is begun by some distinguished chief, and whoever joins in it thereby enlists as one of the party engaged in a warlike excursion. War field, a field of war or battle. War horse, a horse used in war; the horse of a cavalry soldier; especially, a strong, powerful, spirited horse for military service; a charger. War paint, paint put on the face and other parts of the body by savages, as a token of going to war. "Wash the war paint from your faces." . War song, a song of or pertaining to war; especially, among the American Indians, a song at the war dance, full of incitements to military ardor. War whoop, a war cry, especially that uttered by the American Indians. Origin: OE. & AS. Werre; akin to OHG. Werra scandal, quarrel, sedition, werran to confound, mix, D. Warren, G. Wirren, verwirren, to embroil, confound, disturb, and perhaps to E. Worse; cf. OF. Werre war, F. Querre, of Teutonic origin. Cf. Guerrilla, Warrior. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| war crimes | Criminal acts committed during, or in connection with, war, e.g., maltreatment of prisoners, willful killing of civilians, etc. (12 Dec 1998) |
| war neurosis | A stress condition or mental disorder induced by conditions existing in warfare. See: battle fatigue. Synonym: battle neurosis, military neurosis. (05 Mar 2000) |
| warble | 1. <veterinary> A small, hard tumour which is produced on the back of a horse by the heat or pressure of the saddle in traveling. A small tumour produced by the larvae of the gadfly in the backs of horses, cattle, etc. Synonym: warblet, warbeetle, warnles. 2. <zoology> See Wormil. Origin: Cf. Wormil. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| warble botfly | A large, blue, brown-winged species whose larvae develop in open boil-like lesions in the skin of humans, many domestic animals, and some fowl. It is a very serious and damaging cattle parasite and frequently attacks small children in Central and South America. Its eggs are laid on the legs or abdomen of another insect, such as the mosquito; the eggs later hatch, when stimulated by warmth or other factors, to release the botfly larvae on the skin of the mosquito's bloodmeal host, and the larvae quickly invade the skin to initiate myiasis. Synonym: Dermatobia cyaniventris, human botfly, skin botflies, warble botfly. (05 Mar 2000) |
| warble fly | See: botfly. (05 Mar 2000) |
| warbler | 1. One who, or that which, warbles; a singer; a songster; applied chiefly to birds. "In lulling strains the feathered warblers woo." (Tickell) 2. <ornithology> Any one of numerous species of small Old World singing birds belonging to the family Sylviidae, many of which are noted songsters. The bluethroat, blackcap, reed warbler (see under Reed), and sedge warbler (see under Sedge) are well-known species. 3. <ornithology> Any one of numerous species of small, often bright coloured, American singing birds of the family or subfamily Mniotiltidae, or Sylvicolinae. They are allied to the Old World warblers, but most of them are not particularly musical. The American warblers are often divided, according to their habits, into bush warblers, creeping warblers, fly-catching warblers, ground warblers, wood warblers, wormeating warblers, etc. Bush warbler, any one of numerous American warblers of the genus Dendroica. Among the most common wood warblers in the Eastern States are the yellowbird, or yellow warbler (see under Yellow), the black-throated green warbler (Dendroica virens), the yellow-rumped warbler (D. Coronata), the blackpoll (D. Striata), the bay-breasted warbler (D. Castanea), the chestnut-sided warbler (D. Pennsylvanica), the Cape May warbler (D. Tigrina), the prairie warbler (see under Prairie), and the pine warbler (D. Pinus). See also Magnolia warbler, and Blackburnian warbler. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| Warburg's apparatus | An apparatus for measuring the oxygen consumption of incubated tissue slices by manometric measurement of changes in gas pressure produced by oxygen absorption in an enclosed flask. Synonym: Barcroft-Warburg apparatus. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Warburg's old yellow enzyme | <enzyme> A flavoprotein that reversibly oxidises NADPH to NADP and a reduced acceptor. Chemical name: NADPH:(acceptor) oxidoreductase Registry number: EC 1.6.99.1 (12 Dec 1998) |