ELLOPS, el'ops, n. a kind of serpent or fish. [Gr.]

ELM, elm, n. a genus of trees of the natural order Ulmaceæ, with serrated leaves unequal at the base, and small flowers growing in clusters appearing before the leaves.--adjs. ELM'EN, made of elm; ELM'Y, abounding with elms. [A.S. elm; Ger. ulme, L. ulmus.]

ELMO'S FIRE, el'm[=o]z f[=i]r, n. the popular name of an electric appearance sometimes seen like a brush or star of light at the tops of masts, spars, &c.--Also known as the Fire of St Elias, of St Clara, of St Nicholas, and of Helena, as well as composite or composant (corpus sanctum) on the Suffolk sea-board. [Explained as a corr. of Helena, name of the sister of Castor and Pollux, or of St Erasmus, a 3d-cent. bishop, Italianised as Ermo, Elmo.]

ELOCUTION, el-o-k[=u]'shun, n. the art of effective speaking, more esp. of public speaking, regarding solely the utterance or delivery: eloquence.--adj. ELOC[=U]'TIONARY.--n. ELOC[=U]'TIONIST, one versed in elocution: a teacher of elocution. [Fr.,--L. elocution-em, eloqui, eloc[=u]tus--e, out, loqui, to speak.]

ÉLOGE, [=a]-l[=o]zh', ELOGIUM, [=e]-l[=o]'ji-um, ELOGY, el'o-ji, n. a funeral oration: a panegyric.--n. EL'OGIST, one who delivers an éloge. [Fr. éloge--L. elogium, a short statement, an inscription on a tomb, perh. confused with eulogy.]

ELOHIM, e-l[=o]'him, n. the Hebrew name for God.--n. EL[=O]'HIST, the writer or writers of the Elohistic passages of the Old Testament.--adj. ELOHIST'IC, relating to Elohim--said of those passages in the Old Testament in which Elohim is used as the name for the Supreme Being instead of Jehovah. [Heb., pl. of Eloah--explained by Delitzsch as a plural of intensity.]

ELOIN, ELOIGN, e-loin', v.t. to convey to a distance, to separate and remove.--ns. ELOIN'MENT, ELOIGN'MENT. [O. Fr. esloignier (Fr. éloigner)--Low L. elong[=a]re. See ELONGATE.]

ELONGATE, e-long'g[=a]t, v.t. to make longer: to extend.--p.adjs. ELONG'ATE, -D.--n. ELONG[=A]'TION, act of lengthening out: distance. [Low L. elong[=a]re, -[=a]tum--e, out, longus, long.]

ELOPE, e-l[=o]p, v.i. to escape privately, said esp. of a woman, either married or unmarried, who runs away with a lover: to run away, bolt.--n. ELOPE'MENT, a secret departure, esp. of a woman with a man. [Cf. Old Dut. ontl[=o]pen, Ger. entlaufen, to run away.]

ELOQUENT, el'o-kwent, adj. having the power of speaking with fluency, elegance, and force: containing eloquence: persuasive.--n. EL'OQUENCE, the utterance of strong emotion in correct, appropriate, expressive, and fluent language: the art which produces fine speaking: persuasive speech.--adv. EL'OQUENTLY. [L. eloquens, -entis, pr.p. of eloqui.]

ELSE, els, pron. other.--adv. otherwise: besides: except that mentioned.--advs. ELSE'WHERE, in or to another place; ELSE'WISE, in a different manner: otherwise. [A.S. elles, otherwise--orig. gen. of el, other; cf. Old High Ger. alles or elles.]

ELSIN, el'sin, n. (Scot.) an awl. [From Old Dut. elssene (mod. els), from same root as awl.]

ELTCHI. Same as ELCHEE.

ELUCIDATE, e-l[=u]'si-d[=a]t, v.t. to make lucid or clear: to throw light upon: to illustrate.--n. ELUCID[=A]'TION.--adjs. EL[=U]'CIDATIVE, EL[=U]'CIDATORY, making clear: explanatory.--n. EL[=U]'CIDATOR. [Low L. elucid[=a]re, -[=a]tum--e, inten., lucidus, clear.]

ELUCUBRATION. Same as LUCUBRATION.

ELUDE, e-l[=u]d', v.t. to escape by stratagem: to baffle.--adj. EL[=U]'DIBLE.--n. EL[=U]'SION, act of eluding: evasion.--adj. EL[=U]'SIVE, practising elusion: deceptive.--adv. EL[=U]'SIVELY.--n. EL[=U]'SORINESS.--adj. EL[=U]'SORY, tending to elude or cheat: evasive: deceitful. [L. elud[)e]re, elusum--e, out, lud[)e]re, to play.]

ELUL, [=e]'lul, n. the 12th month of the Jewish civil year, and 6th of the ecclesiastical. [Heb.,--âlal, to reap.]

ELUTRIATE, e-l[=u]'tri-[=a]t, v.t. to separate by means of water the finer particles of earth and pigments from the heavier portions.--ns. EL[=U]'TION, washing from impurity; ELUTRI[=A]'TION. [L. elutri[=a]re, -[=a]tum, to wash out, elu[)e]re--e, out, lu[)e]re, to wash.]

ELVAN, elv'an, n. the miner's name in the south-west of England for a granular crystalline rock, composed of quartz and orthoclase, which forms veins associated with granite.--Also ELV'ANITE. [Prob. Corn. elven, spark.]

ELVAN, ELVES, ELVISH. See under ELF.

ELYSIUM, e-lizh'i-um, n. (myth.) among the Greeks, the abode of the blessed after death: any delightful place.--adj. ELYS'IAN, pertaining to Elysium: delightful: glorious. [L.,--Gr. [=e]lysion (pedion), the Elysian (plain).]

ELYTRUM, el'it-rum, n. the fore-wing of beetles, modified to form more or less hard coverings for the hind pair--also EL'YTRON:--pl. EL'YTRA.--adjs. EL'YTRAL; ELYT'RIFORM; ELYTRIG'EROUS. [Gr. elytron, a sheath.]

ELZEVIR, el'ze-vir, adj. published by the Elzevirs, a celebrated family of printers at Amsterdam, Leyden, and other places in Holland, whose small neat editions were chiefly published between 1592 and 1681: pertaining to the type used in their 12mo and 16mo editions of the Latin classics.--n. a special form of printing types.

EM, em, n. the name of the letter M: (print.) the unit of measurement in estimating how much is printed on a page.

'EM, [.e]m, pron. him: (coll.) them. [Orig. the unstressed form of hem, dat. and accus. pl. of he; but now used coll. as an abbreviation of them.]

EMACIATE, e-m[=a]'shi-[=a]t, v.t. to make meagre or lean: to deprive of flesh: to waste.--v.i. to become lean: to waste away.--p.adjs. EM[=A]'CIATE, -D.--n. EMACI[=A]'TION, the condition of becoming emaciated or lean: leanness. [L. emaci[=a]re, -[=a]tum--e, inten., maci[=a]re, to make lean--macies, leanness.]

EMANATE, em'a-n[=a]t, v.i. to flow out or from: to proceed from some source: to arise.--adj. EM'ANANT, flowing from.--ns. EMAN[=A]'TION, a flowing out from a source, as the universe considered as issuing from the essence of God: the generation of the Son and the procession of the Spirit, as distinct from the origination of created beings: that which issues or proceeds from some source; EM'ANATIST.--adjs. EM'ANATIVE, EM'ANATORY, EMAN[=A]'TIONAL. [L. eman[=a]re, -[=a]tum--e, out from, man[=a]re, to flow.]

EMANCIPATE, e-man'si-p[=a]t, v.t. to set free from servitude: to free from restraint or bondage of any kind.--ns. EMANCIP[=A]'TION, the act of setting free from bondage or disability of any kind: the state of being set free; EMANCIP[=A]'TIONIST, an advocate of the emancipation of slaves; EMAN'CIPATOR; EMAN'CIPIST, a convict who has served his time of punishment in a penal colony. [L. emancip[=a]re, -[=a]tum--e, away from, mancip[=a]re, to transfer property--manceps, -cipis, one who gets property, from manus, the hand, cap[)e]re, to take.]

EMARGINATE, e-mär'jin-[=a]t, v.t. to take away the margin of.--p.adj. (bot.) depressed and notched instead of pointed at the summit, as a leaf: (min.) having all the edges of the primitive form crossed by a face: (zool.) having the margin broken by a notch or segment of a circle.--n. EMARGIN[=A]'TION. [L. emargin[=a]re, -[=a]tum--e, out, margin[=a]re, to provide with a margin--margo, a margin.]

EMASCULATE, e-mas'k[=u]-l[=a]t, v.t. to deprive of the properties of a male: to castrate: to deprive of masculine vigour: to render effeminate.--ns. EMASCUL[=A]'TION; EMAS'CUL[=A]TOR.--adj. EMAS'CUL[=A]TORY. [Low L. emascul[=a]re, -[=a]tum--e, neg., masculus, dim. of mas, a male.]

EMBACE, em-b[=a]s', v.t. (Spens.). Same as EMBASE.

EMBALE, em-b[=a]l', v.t. to make up, as into a bale: to bind up: to enclose. [Fr. emballer--em--L. in, balle, a bale.]

EMBALL, em-bawl', v.t. to encircle: ensphere.--n. EMBALL'ING.

EMBALM, em-bäm', v.t. to preserve from decay by aromatic drugs, as a dead body: to perfume: to preserve with care and affection.--ns. EMBALM'ER; EMBALM'ING; EMBALM'MENT. [Fr. embaumer, from em, in, and baume. See BALM.]

EMBANK, em-bangk', v.t. to enclose or defend with a bank or dike.--n. EMBANK'MENT, the act of embanking: a bank or mound made to keep water within certain limits: a mound constructed so as to carry a level road or railway over a low-lying place. [Coined from em, in, and bank.]

EMBAR, em-bär', v.t. to shut in; to hinder or stop:--pr.p. embar'ring; pa.p. embarred'.--n. EMBAR'RING.

EMBARCATION. Same as EMBARKATION.

EMBARGO, em-bär'g[=o], n. a temporary order from the Admiralty to prevent the arrival or departure of ships: a stoppage of trade for a short time by authority:--pl. EMBAR'GOES.--v.t. to lay an embargo on: to seize.--pr.p. embar'g[=o]ing; pa.p. embar'g[=o]ed. [Sp.,--embargar, to impede, to restrain--Sp. em, in, barra, a bar. See BARRICADE and EMBARRASS.]

EMBARK, em-bärk', v.t. to put on board ship: to engage in any affair.--v.i. to go on board ship: to engage in a business: to enlist.--n. EMBARK[=A]'TION, a putting or going on board: that which is embarked: (obs.) a vessel.--p.adjs. EMBARKED'; EMBARK'ING.--n. EMBARK'MENT. [Fr. embarquer, from em, in, barque, a bark.]

EMBARRASS, em-bar'as, v.t. to encumber: to involve in difficulty, esp. in money matters: to perplex.--p.adj. EMBARR'ASSED, perplexed: constrained.--n. EMBARR'ASSMENT, perplexity or confusion: difficulties in money matters.--EMBARRAS DES RICHESSES, a superabundance of materials, an abundance so great that choice is difficult. [Fr. embarrasser--em, in, barre, bar.]