Spathe, spāth, n. (bot.) a sheathing bract, which encloses one or more flowers, as in the narcissus.—adjs. Spathā′ceous, spathe-bearing; Spāthed, having a spathe.—n. Spathil′la, a secondary or diminutive spathe.—adjs. Spā′those, Spā′thous (bot.), having a spathe or sheath-like bract, bursting longitudinally. [L. spatha—Gr. spathē, a broad blade.]
Spathic, spath′ik, adj. (min.) foliated, lamellar.—adj. Spath′iform, spathic. [Ger. spath, spar.]
Spathura, spā-thū′ra, n. a genus of humming-birds with peculiar tail-feathers expanding into a spatule at the end, and leg-muffs. [Gr. spathē, a blade, oura, a tail.]
Spatial, spā′shal, adj. relating to space.—n. Spātial′ity.—adv. Spā′tially.
Spatilomancy, spā-til′ō-man-si, n. divination by means of animal excrements. [Gr. spatilē, excrement, manteia, divination.]
Spatter, spat′ėr, v.t. to throw out or scatter upon: to scatter about: to sprinkle with dirt or anything moist: to defame.—n. the act of spattering: what is spattered.—n.pl. Spatt′er-dash′es, coverings for the legs, to keep them clean from water and mud, a kind of gaiters.—n. Spatt′er-work, a method of producing designs by covering the surface with the pattern and then spattering colouring matter on the parts exposed. [A freq. of spot.]
Spatula, spat′ū-la, Spattle, spat′l, n. a little spade: a broad kind of knife for spreading plasters.—n. Spat′ulamancy, a method of divination by a sheep's shoulder-blade.—adj. Spat′ulāte, shaped like a spatula.—n. Spat′ule, a spatulate formation.—adjs. Spat′uliform, Spatulig′erous. [L. spatula, spathula, dim. of spatha—Gr. spathē.]
Spavin, spav′in, n. a disease of horses occurring under two different forms—bog-spavin, in which the hock-joint is distended with dark-coloured synovia or joint-oil, and bone-spavin, in which a bony enlargement occurs towards the inside of the hock, at the head of the shank-bone, or between some of the small bones of the hock.—adj. Spav′ined, affected with spavin. [O. Fr. esparvain (Fr. éparvin)—Old High Ger. sparo, sparwe, a sparrow.]
Spawl, spawl, n. spittle, slaver.—v.i. to eject saliva.