Dictionary: AV'A-RICE – AV'ER-AGE

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AV'A-RICE, n. [L. avaritia, from avarus, from aveo, to covet.]

An inordinate desire of gaining and possessing wealth; covetousness; greediness or insatiable desire of gain. – Shak. Avarice sheds a blasting influence over the finest affections and sweetest comforts of mankind. – Buckminster.

AV-A-RI'CIOUS, a.

Covetous; greedy of gain; immoderately desirous of accumulatina property.

AV-A-RI'CIOUS-LY, adv.

Covetously; with inordinate desire of gaining wealth. – Goldsmith.

AV-A-RI'CIOUS-NESS, n.

The quality of being avaricious; insatiable or inordinate passion for property.

AV'A-ROUS, a.

Covetous. [Not used.] – Gower.

A-VAST, exclam. [Ger. basta, stop; bastant, sufficient; from It. basta, enough; Per. bas, enough.]

In seamen's language, cease; stop; stay.

AV-A-TAR', n.

A Hindoo word, denoting incarnation, or descent of a deity in a visible form.

A-VAUNT', exclam. [W. ibant, begone.]

Begone; depart; a word of contempt or abhorrence, equivalent to the phrase, “Get thee behind me.”

A'VE-MA-RY, n. [From the first words of Gabriel's salutation to the Virgin Mary; L. ave, hail.]

A form of devotion in the Romish Church. Their chaplets and rosaries are divided into a certain number of ave-marys and paternosters.

AV-E-NA'CEOUS, a. [L. avenaceus, from avena, oats; Fr. avoine.]

Belonging to, or partaking of the nature of oats.

AV'E-NAGE, n. [Fr.]

A certain quantity of oats paid by a tenant to a landlord in lieu of rent or other duty. – Spelman.

AV'EN-ER, or AV'EN-OR, n. [Norm. French.]

In English feudal law, an officer of the king's stable whose duty was to provide oats.

A-VENGE, v.t. [avenj'; Fr. venger; Sp. vengar; Port. vingar; L. vindex. In Sax. winnan, to contend, to gain, to win.]

  1. To take satisfaction for an inquiry by punishing the injuring party; to vindicate by indicating pain or evil on the wrong doer. Shall not God avenge his own elect? – Luke xviii. Avenge me of my adversary. – Id. ver. 3. In these examples, avenge implies that the evil inflicted on the injuring party is a satisfaction or justice done to the injured, and the party vindicated is the object of the verb.
  2. To take satisfaction for, by pain or punishment inflicted on the injuring party. He will avenge the blood of his servants. – Deut. xxxii. Here the thing for which satisfaction is taken is the object of the verb.
  3. To revenge. To avenge and revenge, radically, are synonymous. But modern usage inclines to make a valuable distinction in the use of these words, restricting avenge to the taking of just punishment, and revenge to the infliction of pain or evil, maliciously, in an illegal manner.
  4. In the passive form, this verb signifies to have or receive just satisfaction, by the punishment of the offender. Shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? – Jer. v.

A-VENGE-ANCE, a.

Punishment. [Not used.] [See Vengeance.]

A-VENG'ED, pp.

Satisfied by the punishment of the offender; vindicated; punished.

A-VENGE-MENT, a.

Vengeance; punishment; the act of taking satisfaction for an injury by indicting pain or evil on the offender; satisfaction taken; revenge.

A-VENG'ER, n.

One who avenges or vindicates; a vindicator; a revenger.

A-VENG'ER-ESS, a.

A female avenger. – Spenser.

A-VENG'ING, ppr.

Executing vengeance; taking satisfaction for an injury by the punishment of the offender; vindicating.

AV'ENS, n.

The herb bennet. Geum urbanum.

AV'EN-TINE, a.

Pertaining to Mous Aventinus, one of the seven hills on which Rome stood. – Bryant.

A-VEN'TURE, n. [Fr. aventure, from L. venio, to come.]

A mischance causing a person's death without felony; as by drowning, or falling from a house. [See Adventure.] – Cowel.

AV'E-NUE, n. [Fr. from venir, to come or go; L. venio.]

  1. A passage; a way or opening for entrance into a place; any opening or passage by which a thing is or may be introduced.
  2. An alley or walk in a garden, planted with trees, and leading to a house, gate, wood, &c., and generally terminated by some distant object. The trees may be in rows on the sides, or, according to the more modern practice, in clumps at some distance from each other. – Encyc.
  3. A wide street, as in Washington, Columbia.

A-VER', v.t. [Fr. averer; It. avverare, to aver or verify; Arm. quirya, from the root of verus, true; Ir. feor or fir; W. gwir; Corn. uir; Ger. wahr; D. waar. See Verify.]

To affirm with confidence; to declare in a positive or peremptory manner, as in confidence of asserting the truth. Prior.

AV'ER-AGE, a.

Medial; containing a mean proportion. – Price. Beddoes. Kirwan. Edwards's West Indies.