Curtal, kur′tal, n. a horse with a curt or docked tail: anything docked or cut short.—adj. docked or shortened.—n. Cur′tal-frī′ar (Scott), a friar with a short frock. [Fr. courtaud—court. See Curtail.]
Curtal-ax, kur′tal-aks, Curt-axe, kurt′aks, n. (Spens.), a short, broad sword. [A corr. of the earlier forms coutelas, curtelas. See Cutlass.]
Curtilage, kur′til-āj, n. a court attached to a dwelling-house. [O. Fr. courtillage. See Court.]
Curtsy, Curtsey, kurt′si, n. an obeisance, made by bending the knees, proper to women and children.—v.i. to make a curtsy. [See Courtesy.]
Curule, kū′rōōl, adj. applied to a chair in which the higher Roman magistrates had a right to sit. [L. curulis—currus, a chariot.]
Curve, kurv, n. anything bent: a bent or curved line: an arch.—v.t. to bend: to form into a curve.—adjs. Cur′vāte, -d, curved or bent in a regular form.—n. Curvā′tion.—adj. Cur′vative.—n. Cur′vature, a curving or bending: the continual bending or the amount of bending from a straight line.—adjs. Curved; Cur′vicaudate, having a crooked tail; Curvicos′tate, having curved ribs; Curvifō′liate, having curved leaves; Cur′viform; Cur′ving; Curviros′tral, with the bill curved downward; Cur′vital, of or pertaining to curvature.—n. Cur′vity, the state of being curved. [L. curvus, crooked.]
Curvet, kur′vet, kur-vet′, n. a light leap of a horse in which he raises his forelegs together, next the hindlegs with a spring before the forelegs touch the ground: a leap, frolic.—v.i. (kur-vet′, kur′vet) to leap in curvets: to frisk:—pr.p. curvet′ting, curvet′ing; pa.p. cur′veted. [It. corvetta, dim. of corvo—L. curvus.]
Curvilinear, kur-vi-lin′i-ar, Curvilineal, kur-vi-lin′i-al, adj. bounded by curved lines.—n. Curvilinear′ity. [L. curvus, and linearis—linea, a line.]
Cuscus, kus′kus, n. the grain of the African millet. Same as Couscous. [Fr. couscou.]
Cuscus, kus′kus, n. the fibrous root of an Indian grass, used for making fans, &c. [Pers. khas khas.]