Life, līf, n. state of living: animate existence: union of soul and body: the period between birth and death: present state of existence: manner of living: moral conduct: animation: a living being: system of animal nature: social state: human affairs: narrative of a life: eternal happiness, also He who bestows it: a quickening principle in a moral sense: the living form and expression, living semblance: (cricket) an escape, as by a missed or dropped catch:—pl. Lives (līvz).—interj. used as an oath, abbreviated from God's life.—adj. Life′-and-death′, critical: desperate.—ns. Life′-annū′ity, a sum paid to a person yearly during life; Life′-assur′ance, Life′-insur′ance (see Insurance); Life′-belt, a belt either inflated with air, or with cork attached, for sustaining a person in the water; Life′-blood, the blood of an animal in the body: that which gives strength or life; Life′boat, a boat for saving shipwrecked persons, having air-chambers or the like, by which it is rendered specially buoyant and sometimes self-righting; Life′-buoy, a buoy intended to support a person in the water till he can be rescued; Life′-estate′, an estate held during the life of the possessor.—adjs. Life′ful (Spens.), full of vital energy; Life′-giv′ing, imparting life: invigorating.—ns. Life′-guard, a guard of the life or person: a guard of a prince or other dignitary; Life′-his′tory, Life′-cy′cle, the series of vital phenomena exhibited by an organism in its passage from the ovum to full development; Life′hold, land held by lease for life; Life′-in′terest, an interest lasting during one's life.—adj. Life′less, dead: without vigour: insipid: sluggish.—adv. Life′lessly.—n. Life′lessness.—adj. Life′-like, like a living person.—n. Life′-line, a rope stretched anywhere on board a vessel for support of the sailors in difficult operations or during wild weather: a line attached to a life-buoy or lifeboat for an immersed person to seize hold of.—adj. Life′long, during the length of a life.—ns. Life′-mor′tar, a mortar for throwing a shot of some kind to carry a rope from the shore to a ship in distress; Life′-peer, a peer whose title is not hereditary; Life′-peer′age; Life′-preserv′er, an invention, as a buoyant belt or jacket, for the preservation of life in cases of shipwreck: a cane with a loaded head; Life′-raft, a raft-like structure for use in case of shipwreck; Life′-rate, rate of payment on a policy of life-insurance.—adj. Life′-ren′dering (Shak.), yielding up life.—ns. Life′rent, a rent that continues for life; Life′renter, one who enjoys a liferent:—fem. Life′rentrix; Life′-rock′et, a rocket for carrying a line from the shore to a ship in distress.—adjs. Life′-sav′ing, designed to save life, esp. from drowning.—n. Life′-school, a school where artists work from living models.—adjs. Life′-size, similar in size to the object represented; Life′some, full of life: gay, lively.—ns. Life′-tā′ble, a table of statistics as to the probability of life at different ages; Life′-ten′ant, the owner of a life-estate: one who holds lands, &c., for the term of his own or another's life; Life′-time, continuation or duration of life.—adj. Life′-wea′ry (Shak.), weary of life: wretched.—n. Life′-work, the work to which one's life is or is to be devoted.—Life-saving apparatus, all materials, appliances, &c. available for preserving life in cases of shipwreck or fire.—Bring to life, to restore to life one apparently dead; Come to life, to be reanimated; For life, for the whole period of one's existence: so as to save life: very fast or strenuously; High life, the manner of living of those in high or fashionable society: the upper classes of society; Line of life (see Line); To the life, very closely resembling the original: exactly drawn. [A.S. líf; Ice. líf, Sw. lif, Dut. lijf, body, life; Ger. leben, to live.]
Lift, lift, n. (Scot.) the air, heavens, sky. [A.S. lyft; Ger. luft, Ice. lopt, Goth. luftus, the air.]
Lift, lift, v.t. to bring to a higher position: to elevate or keep elevated: to elate: to take and carry away: (obs.) to bear, support: (slang) to arrest: to steal.—v.i. to rise: to try to rise.—n. act of lifting: that which is to be raised: that which assists to lift: a hoisting-machine: advancement.—adj. Lift′able.—ns. Lift′er, one who, or that which, lifts: (Shak.) a thief; Lift′ing-bridge, a drawbridge raised so as to allow ships to pass; Lift′-pump, any pump which is not a force-pump.—Lift the hand, to raise it in hostility; Lift up the eyes, to look, direct one's eyes, or thoughts, to; Lift up the face, to look upward, as in supplication; Lift up the hand, to make oath, swear: to pray; Lift up the head, to rejoice, exult; Lift up the voice, to cry loudly.—Dead lift (see Dead). [Ice. lypta—lopt, the air.]
Lig, lig, v.i. (Spens.) to lie. [See Lie.]
Ligament, lig′a-ment, n. anything that binds: (anat.) the membrane connecting the movable bones: a bond of union.—adjs. Ligament′al, Ligament′ous, composing or resembling a ligament.—ns. Ligā′tion, act of binding: state of being bound; Lig′ature, anything that binds: a bandage: (mus.) a line connecting notes: (print.) a type of two letters: (med.) a cord for tying the blood-vessels, &c.: impotence produced by magic.—adj. Lig′atured, bound by a ligature. [Fr.,—L. ligamentum—ligāre, to bind.]
Ligan, lī′gan, n. goods sunk at sea, with a float attached for recovery. [L. ligamen, a band.]
Ligger, lig′ėr, n. the horizontal timber of a scaffolding: a nether millstone: a board-pathway over a ditch: a coverlet for a bed: a kelt or spent salmon: a night-line with float and bait for pike-fishing.
Light, līt, n. that which shines or is brilliant: the agent by which objects are rendered visible: the power of vision: day: dawn of day: that which gives light, as the sun, a candle: the illuminated part of a picture: means of communicating fire or light: a lighthouse: (fig.) mental or spiritual illumination: enlightenment: knowledge: public view: point of view: a conspicuous person: an aperture for admitting light: (B.) prosperity, favour.—adj. not dark: bright: whitish.—v.t. to give light to: to set fire to: to attend with a light.—v.i. to become light or bright:—pr.p. light′ing; pa.t. and pa.p. light′ed or lit.—adj. Light′able.—n. Light′-ball, a composition of saltpetre, sulphur, resin, and linseed-oil formed into a ball, and used by soldiers to give light during military operations.—n.pl. Light′-dues, tolls taken from ships in certain waters, for the maintenance of lighthouses.—ns. Light′er; Light′house, a tower-like construction exhibiting a light for indicating to vessels, when nearing a port or coasting along shore, the proximity of rocks, shoals, and other dangers; Light′house-man, Light′-keep′er, the keeper of a lighthouse.—adj. Light′less.—ns. Light′ness; Light′-room, in a man-of-war, a small room separated from the magazine by thick glass windows, and used to illuminate it: the room in a lighthouse containing the lighting apparatus; Light′-ship, a stationary ship carrying a light and serving the purpose of a lighthouse in very deep waters.—adj. Light′some, full of light.—n. Light′wave, a wave of the luminous ether.—Light of nature, intellectual perception or intuition: (theol.) man's capacity of discovering truth unaided by revelation.—Between the lights, in the twilight; Between two lights, under cover of darkness; Bring to light, to reveal; Children of light, Christians as under the illumination of the Divine light, that illumination which comes directly from God; Come to light, to be revealed; Fixed light, in lighthouses, a light which is maintained steadily without change, as opposed to a revolving light; Floating light, a light displayed at the mast-head of a lightship to show dangers to navigation; Foot, Ground, lights, a row of lights used on a stage to light up the base of a scene; Inner light, spiritual illumination, light divinely imparted; Northern lights, aurora borealis; See the light, to come into view; Stand in one's own light, to hinder one's own advantage. [A.S. leóht; Ger. licht.]
Light, līt, adj. not heavy: of short weight: easily suffered or performed: easily digested: not heavily armed: active: not heavily burdened: unimportant: not dense or copious or intense: gentle: gay, lively: amusing: unchaste: loose, sandy: giddy, delirious: idle, worthless.—vs.t. Light, Light′en, to make less heavy: to alleviate, cheer.—advs. Light, Light′ly (Shak.), commonly, usually.—adj. Light′-armed, armed in a manner suitable for active service.—ns. Light′er, a large open boat used in unloading and loading ships; Light′erage, price paid for unloading ships by lighters: the act of thus unloading; Light′erman.—adjs. Light′-fing′ered, light or active with one's fingers: thievish; Light′-foot, -ed, nimble, active; Light′ful (rare), cheery, happy; Light′-hand′ed, with light or dexterous touch: having little in the hand: empty-handed: insufficiently manned; Light′-head′ed, giddy in the head: delirious: thoughtless: unsteady.—n. Light′-head′edness.—adj. Light′-heart′ed, light or merry of heart: free from anxiety: cheerful.—adv. Light′-heart′edly.—n. Light′-heart′edness.—adj. Light′-heeled, swift of foot.—ns. Light′-horse, light-armed cavalry; Light′-horse′man; Light′-in′fantry, infantry lightly or not heavily armed.—adjs. Light′-legged, swift of foot; Light′-mind′ed, having a light or unsteady mind: not considerate.—ns. Light′-mind′edness; Light′ness (Shak.), light-headedness; Light′ning (Shak.), an exhilaration of the spirits; Light′-o'-love, a capricious and wanton woman: an old dance tune.—n.pl. Lights, the lungs.—adj. Light′some, light, gay, lively, cheering.—n. Light′someness.—adj. Light′-spir′ited, having a cheerful spirit.—n. Light′-weight, in sporting and especially boxing, a man or animal of a certain weight prescribed by the rules, intermediate between the middle-weight and the feather-weight: a person of little importance.—adj. Light′-winged, having light wings: volatile.—Make light of, to treat as of little consequence. [A.S. leóht; Ger. leicht, Ice. léttr; L. lĕvis.]
Light, līt, v.i. (with on, upon) to stoop from flight: to settle: to rest: to come by chance: (with down, from) to descend, to alight:—pr.p. light′ing; pa.t. and pa.p. light′ed or lit.—v.i. Light′en upon′ (Pr. Bk.), to alight or descend upon. [A.S. líhtan, to dismount, lit. 'make light,' relieve of a burden.]