Emily Dickinson Lexicon

carve (-d), v. [OE ceorfan, corresponding to mod. Gk. kerben, notch, carve; cognate with Gk. γράφ-ειυ, to write, orig. to scratch or engrave.] (webplay: figures, take).

1. Engrave; write; [fig.] impress; instill.
2. Dissipate; dissolve; disperse; scatter.

carved, verbal adj. [see carve, v.] (webplay: chisel, stone).

Etched; chiseled; sculpted; fashioned into shape by cutting into a hard material; [fig.] rigid; fixed; stiff; static; limited; defined; set within narrow boundaries.

case (-s), n. [ME cas < L. casu-s, fall, chance, occurrence, case.] (webplay: certain, comes, crown, fall, friend, last, supposition, unfurnished).

1. Condition; specific situation; particular circumstances; exceptional personal history; individual state of affairs.
2. Argument; reason; point.
3. Phrase. “In case”: perchance; in the event; for the contingency; to be ready if; if it should so happen.

casement, n. [med. L. casamentum; in It. casamento, a building or house-frame.]

Tabernacle; container; houseboat; large water craft; [fig.] frame; window sill; [kenning “floating casement”] Noah's ark (see Genesis 8); [historical] Dutton called Webster's 1828 dictionary “Noah's Ark” because it contained “unclean” Americanisms as well as standard British English.

cash, n. [Fr. case, box, case, or chest to carry or keep wares in, also a merchant's cash or counter < L. capa, coffer.] (webplay: pay).

Money; method of payment; [kenning “Satin Cash”] unconventional currency made of flower petals; [metaphor] poetry.

Cashmere, proper adj. [see Cashmere, proper n.]

Rich; elegant; costly; exotic; luxurious; prismatic; iridescent; multi-colored; semi-precious; jewel-like; [see ED letters.]

Cashmere, proper n. [Sanskrit kāshyapamara, land of Kashyapa, primordial Hindu god.]

1. Kashmir; region in India; valley south of the Himalayas; [fig.] paradise; eastern semi-tropical garden.
2. Fine-quality yarn; soft goat's wool.

cask, n. [Fr. casque, the head-piece termed a cask < Sp. casco, a caske or burganet, also a head, a pate, a sconce, an earthen pot, shard, or galley cup.]

Container; vat; tun; place for storing liquids, particularly liquors; [fig.] body; mortal frame; corporeal existence.

casket (-s), n. [form suggests a dim. of cask; but casket, in fact, occurs earlier than cask, and is without precedent as to meaning in Fr. or other languages.]

Small box; chest for holding jewels; container for small trinkets; [fig.] coffin; grave; burial plot; [metaphor] cloud; weather front; ice bank.

Caspian, proper adj. [see Caspian, proper n.]

1. Iranian; Persian; Indo-European; pre-Germanic; antedating the Anglo-Saxon language; [fig.] soothing; rhythmic; lyrical; enchanting; peacefully flowing; gently rippling; pertaining to sound waves.
2. Aquatic; water-filled; oasis-like; having a source of water; [fig.] vital; essential; life-giving.