Dictionary De - En
De - Es
De - Pt| English Dictionary: feather bed | by the DICT Development Group |
| 2 results for feather bed | |
| From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]: | |
| |
| From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: | |
|
Feather \Feath"er\, n. [OE. fether, AS. fe[?]der; akin to D. veder, OHG. fedara, G. feder, Icel. fj[94][?]r, Sw. fj[84]der, Dan. fj[91]der, Gr. [?] wing, feather, [?] to fly, Skr. pattra wing, feathr, pat to fly, and prob. to L. penna feather, wing. [root]76, 248. Cf. {Pen} a feather.] 1. One of the peculiar dermal appendages, of several kinds, belonging to birds, as contour feathers, quills, and down. Note: An ordinary feather consists of the quill or hollow basal part of the stem; the shaft or rachis, forming the upper, solid part of the stem; the vanes or webs, implanted on the rachis and consisting of a series of slender lamin[91] or barbs, which usually bear barbicels and interlocking hooks by which they are fastened together. See {Down}, {Quill}, {Plumage}. 2. Kind; nature; species; -- from the proverbial phrase, [bd]Birds of a feather,[b8] that is, of the same species. [R.] I am not of that feather to shake off My friend when he must need me. --Shak. 3. The fringe of long hair on the legs of the setter and some other dogs. 4. A tuft of peculiar, long, frizzly hair on a horse. 5. One of the fins or wings on the shaft of an arrow. 6. (Mach. & Carp.) A longitudinal strip projecting as a fin from an object, to strengthen it, or to enter a channel in another object and thereby prevent displacement sidwise but permit motion lengthwise; a spline. 7. A thin wedge driven between the two semicylindrical parts of a divided plug in a hole bored in a stone, to rend the stone. --Knight. 8. The angular adjustment of an oar or paddle-wheel float, with reference to a horizontal axis, as it leaves or enters the water. Note: Feather is used adjectively or in combination, meaning composed of, or resembling, a feather or feathers; as, feather fan, feather-heeled, feather duster. {Feather alum} (Min.), a hydrous sulphate of alumina, resulting from volcanic action, and from the decomposition of iron pyrites; -- called also {halotrichite}. --Ure. {Feather bed}, a bed filled with feathers. {Feather driver}, one who prepares feathers by beating. {Feather duster}, a dusting brush of feathers. {Feather flower}, an artifical flower made of feathers, for ladies' headdresses, and other ornamental purposes. {Feather grass} (Bot.), a kind of grass ({Stipa pennata}) which has a long feathery awn rising from one of the chaffy scales which inclose the grain. {Feather maker}, one who makes plumes, etc., of feathers, real or artificial. {Feather ore} (Min.), a sulphide of antimony and lead, sometimes found in capillary forms and like a cobweb, but also massive. It is a variety of Jamesonite. {Feather shot}, [or] {Feathered shot} (Metal.), copper granulated by pouring into cold water. --Raymond. {Feather spray} (Naut.), the spray thrown up, like pairs of feathers, by the cutwater of a fast-moving vessel. {Feather star}. (Zo[94]l.) See {Comatula}. {Feather weight}. (Racing) (a) Scrupulously exact weight, so that a feather would turn the scale, when a jockey is weighed or weighted. (b) The lightest weight that can be put on the back of a horse in racing. --Youatt. (c) In wrestling, boxing, etc., a term applied to the lightest of the classes into which contestants are divided; -- in contradistinction to {light weight}, {middle weight}, and {heavy weight}. {A feather in the cap} an honour, trophy, or mark of distinction. [Colloq.] {To be in full feather}, to be in full dress or in one's best clothes. [Collog.] {To be in high feather}, to be in high spirits. [Collog.] {To cut a feather}. (a) (Naut.) To make the water foam in moving; in allusion to the ripple which a ship throws off from her bows. (b) To make one's self conspicuous. [Colloq.] {To show the white feather}, to betray cowardice, -- a white feather in the tail of a cock being considered an indication that he is not of the true game breed. | |
