Siffle, sif′l, n. a sibilant râle.—v.i. to whistle, hiss.—ns. Siff′let, a theatrical whistle; Siff′leur, a whistler. [Fr. siffler—L. sibilāre.]
Sift, sift, v.t. to separate with, or as with, a sieve: to examine closely.—n. Sift′er, one who, or that which, sifts. [A.S. siftan—sife, a sieve.]
Sigh, sī, v.i. to inhale and respire with a long, deep, and audible breathing, as in love or grief: to sound like sighing.—v.t. to express by sighs.—n. a long, deep, audible respiration.—n. Sigh′er.—adj. Sigh′ful.—adv. Sigh′ingly. [A.S. sícan; Sw. sucka.]
Sight, sīt, n. act of seeing: view: faculty of seeing: that which is seen: a spectacle: an object of especial interest: space within vision: examination: a small opening for looking through at objects: a metal pin on the top of a barrel of a gun to guide the eye in taking aim: (slang) a great many or a great deal.—v.t. to catch sight of: to present to sight or put under notice.—adjs. Sight′ed, having sight of some special character, as short-sighted: fitted with a sight, as a firearm; Sight′less, wanting sight: blind: (Shak.) invisible: (Shak.) unsightly, ugly.—adv. Sight′lessly.—ns. Sight′lessness; Sight′liness.—adjs. Sight′ly, pleasing to the sight or eye: comely; Sight′-outrun′ning (Shak.), running faster than the eye can follow.—ns. Sight′-read′er, one who reads at sight, as musical notes, passages in a foreign tongue, &c.; Sight′-reading; Sight′-see′ing, the act of seeing sights: eagerness to see novelties or curiosities; Sight′-sē′er, one who is eager to see novelties or curiosities; Sights′man, a local guide; Sec′ond-sight, a gift of prophetic vision, long supposed in the Scottish Highlands and elsewhere to belong to particular persons.—At sight, without previous study or practice; At sight, After sight, terms applied to bills or notes payable on, or after, presentation; Lose sight of, to cease to see: to overlook; Out of sight, too far away to be seen: not in sight: (coll.) beyond comparison; Put out of sight, to remove from vision: (slang) to consume, as food. [A.S. siht, ge-siht—ge-segen, pa.p. of seón, to see; Ger. sicht.]
Sight, sīt (Spens.)=Sighed.
Sigil, sij′il, n. a seal: a signature: an occult or magical mark.—adjs. Sig′illary, pertaining to a seal; Sig′illate, decorated, as pottery, with impressed patterns: (bot.) marked with seal-like scars.—ns. Sigillā′tion; Sigillog′raphy, knowledge of seals.—n.pl. Sig′la, abbreviations of names, &c., on seals. [L. sigillum, dim. of signum, sign.]
Sigillaria, sij-il-ā′ri-a, n. a family of fossil lycopods, abundant in Carboniferous strata, with pillar-like trunks, the columnar stems ribbed and fluted longitudinally, the fluting marked by rows or whorls of scars left by fallen leaves.—adjs. Sigillā′rian, Sig′illaroid, Sigillā′rioid. [L. sigillum, a seal.]
Sigma, sig′ma, n. the Greek letter corresponding to our s—written Σ (capital), σ (small initial) or ς (small final).—adjs. Sig′mate, Sigmat′ic.—ns. Sigmā′tion, the adding of s at the end of a word or syllable; Sig′matism, repetition of s or the s-sound: defective pronunciation of this sound.—adjs. Sig′moid, -al, formed like s.
Sign, sīn, n. mark, token: proof: that by which a thing is known or represented: a word, gesture, symbol, or mark, intended to signify something else: a remarkable event: an omen: a miraculous manifestation: a memorial: something set up as a notice in a public place: (math.) a mark showing the relation of quantities or an operation to be performed: (med.) a symptom: (astron.) one of the twelve parts of the zodiac, each comprising 30 degrees of the ecliptic.—v.t. to represent or make known by a sign: to attach a signature to.—v.i. to give one's signature: to make a particular sign.—adj. Sign′able, capable of being, or requiring to be, signed.—ns. Sign′board, a board with a sign telling a man's occupation or articles for sale; Sign′er; Sig′net, the privy-seal: (B.) a seal.—adj. Sig′neted, stamped or marked with a signet.—n. Sig′net-ring, a ring with a signet or private seal.—adj. Sign′less, making no sign.—ns. Sign′-man′ual, the royal signature, usually only the initial of the sovereign's name, with R. for Rex or Regina; Sign′-paint′er, one who paints signs for shops, &c.; Sign′post, a post on which a sign is hung: a direction-post. [Fr. signe—L. signum.]
Signal, sig′nal, n. a sign for giving notice, generally at a distance: token: the notice given: any initial impulse.—v.t. and v.i. to make signals to: to convey by signals:—pr.p. sig′nalling; pa.t. and pa.p. sig′nalled.—adj. having a sign: remarkable: notable: eminent.—ns. Sig′nal-book, a book containing a system of signals; Sig′nal-box, -cab′in, &c., a small house in which railway-signals are worked: the alarm-box of a police or fire-alarm system; Sig′nal-code, a code or system of arbitrary signals, esp. at sea, by flags or lights; Sig′nal-fire, a fire used for a signal; Sig′nal-flag, a flag used in signalling, its colour, shape, markings, and combinations indicating various significations; Sig′nal-gun, a gun fired as a signal.—v.t. Sig′nalise, to make signal or eminent: to signal.—ns. Sig′nal-lamp, a lamp by which signals are made by glasses or slides of different colours, &c.; Sig′nalling, the means of transmitting intelligence to a greater or less distance by the agency of sight or hearing.—adv. Sig′nally.—ns. Sig′nalman, one who makes signals and who interprets those made; Sig′nalment, the act of communicating by signals: description by means of marks; Sig′nal-post, a pole on which movable flags, arms, lights, are displayed as signals; Sig′nal-ser′vice, the department in the army occupied with signalling. [Fr.,—L. signalis, signum.]