Emily Dickinson Lexicon

cuirass, n. [Fr. cuirasse < cuir, leather.]

Armor; covering; protection; close-fitting breastplate and backplate covering body from neck to waist.

culminate, v. [late L. culmin-nāt-]

End; come to a close; become complete; come to a climax.

culpabler, adj. [ME < OFr coupable, guilty < L. culpābil-is, blameworthy.]

Guiltier; worse; more at fault; more deserving of blame.

culprit, n. [running together of AFr culpable, guilty, and OFr prest, ready; made by abbreviated writing used in legal records.]

Perpetrator; offender; criminal; guilty one; one at fault; underlying cause.

cultivate, v. [Fr. < L. cultīvāre, to till.] (webplay: better, wiser).

Encourage; promote; work on; improve by labor; devote attention to.

cultivation, n. [Fr.; see cultivate, v.]

Farming; tilling of land; raising of a crop.

cunning, adj. [OE cunnende, knowing; see can, v.] (webplay: forget, open, trickish).

1. Clever; witty; shrewd; crafty; quick-witted; scheming; sneaky.
2. Careful; wise; skillful; knowledgeable.
3. Cleverly made; ingeniously designed; marvelously crafted; [fig.] hidden; secret.

cunningly, adv. [see cunning, adj.]

Skillfully; cleverly; shrewdly; carefully; subtly; discreetly.

cup (-s), n. [OE < mod. Fr. coupe, drinking-vessel, cup.] (webplay: bell, coffee-cup, companions, drink, glass, little, pass, possible, runneth).

1. Drink; cupful; vessel with strong drink contained in it.
2. Drinking-vessel; small glass; small open container for liquids.
3. Eucharist; sacrament of the Lord's supper; wine taken at the Communion; [allusion to the “bitter cup”] suffering of Christ for all humankind in the garden of Gethsemane (see Luke 22:41-44).
4. Experience; [fig.] suffering; affliction; bitter agony of Christ's atonement (see Luke 22:42).

cupboard (-s), n. [combination of cup, n. and board, n.]

Cabinet; closet; small storage area with shelves and doors usually found in the kitchen.