quickening : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: quickening	by the DICT Development Group
3 results for quickening
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
quickening n the process of showing signs of life; "the quickening of seed that will become ripe grain" the stage of pregnancy at which the mother first feels the movements of the fetus the act of accelerating; increasing the speed Synonym(s): acceleration, quickening, speedup Antonym(s): deceleration
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Quickening \Quick"en*ing\, n. 1. The act or process of making or of becoming quick. 2. (Physiol.) The first motion of the fetus in the womb felt by the mother, occurring usually about the middle of the term of pregnancy. It has been popularly supposed to be due to the fetus becoming possessed of independent life.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Quicken \Quick"en\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {quickened}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Quickening}.] [AS. cwician. See {Quick}, a.] 1. To make alive; to vivify; to revive or resuscitate, as from death or an inanimate state; hence, to excite; to, stimulate; to incite. The mistress which I serve quickens what's dead. --Shak. Like a fruitful garden without an hedge, that quickens the appetite to enjoy so tempting a prize. -- South. 2. To make lively, active, or sprightly; to impart additional energy to; to stimulate; to make quick or rapid; to hasten; to accelerate; as, to quicken one's steps or thoughts; to quicken one's departure or speed. 3. (Shipbuilding) To shorten the radius of (a curve); to make (a curve) sharper; as, to quicken the sheer, that is, to make its curve more pronounced. Syn: To revive; resuscitate; animate; reinvigorate; vivify; refresh; stimulate; sharpen; incite; hasten; accelerate; expedite; dispatch; speed.