Emily Dickinson Lexicon

C,

the third letter in the English alphabet, and the second articulation or consonant, is a palatal, nearly corresponding in sound with the Greek κ, kappa, and with the Hebrew כ, caph. It bears a middle place in pronunciation, between the aspirate ה, and the palatal ג. It is a Roman character, borrowed from the Gr. κ, or from the oriental כ, which was used in languages written from right to left, and when inverted and the corners rounded, becomes C. In the old Etruscan, it was written Ɔ, with the corners rounded, but not inverted; in Arcadian, C, as now written. That its sound in Latin was the same, or nearly the same, as that of kappa, may be known from the fact, that the Greeks, while the Latin was a living language, wrote kappa for the Roman C. Perhaps the same character may be the basis of the Arabic ح. As an abbreviature, C. stands for Caius, Carolus, Cæsar, condemno, &c., and CC. for consulibus. As a numeral, C. stands for 100; CC. for 200; &c. In music, C after the clef, is the mark of common time. Encyc. In English, C has two sounds, or rather it represents two very different articulations of the organs; one close, like K, which occurs before a, o and u; the other, a sibilant, precisely like s, which occurs before e, i and y. The former is distinguished in this vocabulary by C, which may be called ke. In Russ., C is precisely the English s, as it was in the old Greek alphabet. C before k, is mute; as in brick, sick.

C,

Hurry; hasten; rush; go quickly. 156/218 That night will never be – / When frightened – home to Thee I run

C,

Rendering; allusion; echo of Biblical passages. 802/858 By Processes [rudiments] of Size / For the Stupendous Vision ruff, adj. [see rough and ruffle.] Frill; lace collar; fine-spun border; circular white edge of a neckline. 1138/1163 If Ruff it was of Dame / Or Shroud of Gnome ruffle, n. [Origin obscure, perhaps imitative.] Drum roll; snare sound; trilling beat; military band sound; [fig.] mark of respect. 944/891 A Ruffle – or a Tune ruffle (-s), v. [Origin obscure, similar to Late Ger. ruffelenk, to crumple and ON hrufla, to scratch.] Discompose; disturb; agitate; threaten to end a calm state of mind; [word play] cover with lacy white edges. 311/291 It Ruffles Wrists of Posts / As Ankles of a Queen ruffled, verbal adj. [see ruffle, v.] Frilly; ornamented. 339/367 A Hyacinth – I hid – / Puts out a Ruffled Head rugged, adj. [prob. < Norw. rugga or Sw. rugg, ruffled or coarse hair.] Rough; full of asperities on the surface; broken into sharp or irregular points or crags, or otherwise uneven, as, a rugged mountain; a rugged road. 1487/1538 A rugged billion Miles ruin, n. [OFr ruyne < L. ruěre, to fall.]

C,

Red; reddish. 1152/1148 Ruddy as that coeval Apple rude, adj. [OFr ruide or L. rudis, unformed, inexperienced.]

C,

Ordained; hallowed. 235/250 I'll seek his royal feet / I'll say – Remember – King “

C,

Outside of; close to; standing near to; in the area of; gathering in the vicinity of. 335/528 The Shiverers round Farmer's doors – / For whose reluctant Crumb – / We stipulate round, v. [see round, adj.]

C,

Inner lid; coffin lining. 216/124 Safe in their alabaster chambers … Sleep the meek members of the Resurrection, / Rafter of satin, and roof of stone. rag (-s), n. [ME ragge < ON rogg, tuft or strip of fur; NW says Saxon hracod, torn or old clothes.] Worn clothing; threadbare garment; tattered appearance; shabby apparel of the poor; [fig] cloud; sunset color. 117/102 In rags mysterious as these / The shining Courtiers go, / Vailing the purple ragged, adj. [see rag, n.] (webplay: coat). Threadbare; worn; tattered; dressed in shabby garments; [fig.] poor; destitute; beggarly; indigent; poverty-stricken. 717/496 Hands … Lifted adoring … To Him whom never Ragged – Coat / Did supplicate in vain rail, n. [OFr reille< L. rēgula, straight stick, bar, rod; NW says Greek riegel, bolt or bar.] (webplay: fences, inclosing, posts, road, wood).

C, [Fig.]

autumn leaves. 656/465 The name – of it – is “Autumn” … Oh, the Shower of Stain – / When Winds … spill the Scarlet Rain rainbow (-s, 's), n. [OE; see rain and bow, n.] (webplay: clouds, colored, day, drop, eyes, heaven, horizon, sun, sea, water).

C, [Fig.]

hope; calm after a storm; resurrection; life after death. 194/216 On this long storm the Rainbow rose … The Clouds … Horizons straggled down … death – / No Daybreak – can bestir

C,

Mature; age; develop; ripen. 586/392 We handled destinies … As we – Disposers – be … When Girls, to Women, softly raised / We – occupy – Degree

C,

Approach; verge on; pass near to. 963/824 A nearness to Tremendousness … Affliction ranges Boundlessness … Contentment's quiet Suburb – / Affliction cannot stay

C,

Position; place; station; proper location in a hierarchy. 336/395 The face I carry … To take my Rank – by … That – Sir – was my Degree – / In Kingdoms … the Raised – / Refer to

C,

Enraptured; overjoyed; elated; awed. 246/264 joy – to put my piece away / For … Heaven – / Rapt neighborhoods of men – / Just finding out – what puzzled us

C, [Fig.]

expression of intimacy; consummation of love. 1339/1351 A Bee … Drove boldly to a Rose … Their Moment consummated … Remained for her – of rapture / But the humility.

C, [Fig.]

ethereal; invisible; incorporeal; phantom; spirit-like; heavenly; celestial; glorified; immortal; imperceptible to physical senses. 338/365 He has hid his rare life / From our gross eyes … 'Tis a fond Ambush rare (-r), adv. [see rare, adj.] Infrequently; seldom; not often; sparingly; frugally; thriftily; scantily, meagerly; sparsely. 1045/1086 Nature rarer uses Yellow / Than another Hue rascality, n. [OFr rascaille.] Dishonesty; fraud; deceit; knavery; roguery; mischief. 3/2 Gentility is fine / Rascality, heroic / Insolvency, sublime rashness, n. [Origin uncertain; perhaps OE *ræsc.] Harshness; violence; torture; callousness; cruelty; heartless acts; unthinkable brutality; [fig.] wounds, bleeding, stripes, lashmarks, and other physical traumas of Christ's crucifixion. 1432/1485 Spurn the temerity – / Rashness of Calvary rat, n. [OE ræt.] (webplay: cat, noise). Rodent; mouse; vermin; lowly pest; despised creature perceived as a nuisance by humans; animal often preyed upon by house cats; small, four-legged, hairy mammal that makes its home by gnawing holes in the walls of houses. 1185/1236 The cat … in the corner sits … The rat but a tradition now … not to make a bit of noise rate (-s), n. [OFr rate < L. rērī, think, judge.] (webplay: comparative). Value; price; amount; quantity required in exchange for a desired object; [fig.] knowledge of the afterlife. 382/644 How the gifts of Life / With Death's gifts compare, / We know not – / For the rates stop Here rather, adv. [OE hraðe.] (webplay: art, better, death, fear'd, God, hasty, hear, life, ready, slain, sought, speak, word).

C,

More correctly; more precisely. 382/644 For Death, – or rather / For the things 'twill buy, / These put away / Life's opportunity.

C,

Approve; sanction; countenance; authorize; allow; endorse. 1548/1578 As often as a Century / An error so divine / Is ratified by Destiny ratio, n. [L. rat-, ppl. stem of rērī, to think.] (webplay: common, dear, estimate, hour).

C,

Abducted; removed; translated; [fig.] otherworldly; transferred to another existence. 65/164 Saints, with ravished slate and pencil / Solve our April Day! ravished, verbal adv. [see ravish, v.] (webplay: knowledge). Blissfully; ecstatically; joyously; rapturously; reverently; in an awe-stricken manner. 506/349 And now, I'm not different from before… if I might come … to Jerusalem, / Would not so ravished turn raw, adj. [OE hréaw.] (webplay: eat, frighten, head).

C,

Touch; hold; grasp; clutch; seize; make physical contact with; extend the arm and hand far enough to take hold of. 509/354 If Anybody's friend be dead … You try to [reach] the smile / And dip your fingers in the frost

C,

Interpret; construe; understand. 168/179 Those who read the “revelations” / Must no criticize / Those who read the same Edition – / With beclouded Eyes!

C, [Fig.]

sure; certain; secure; safe; actually possessed. 1349/1366 I'd rather recollect a Setting / Than own a rising Sun / Though one is beautiful forgetting / And [real] the other one.

C,

Region; area; place; district; sphere; world; [fig.] home; usual residence. 1543/1573 Obtaining but our own extent / In whatsoever Realm

C,

Departing; dying; deteriorating; failing; expiring; passing away. 1416/1365 Inquire of the proudest Rose / Which rapture – she preferred / And she [will point undoubtedly] / [To her receding] Bud receipt, n. [ME < OFr < L. recipěre, receive.] (webplay: food, good, hope, partakes). Acquisition; attainment; getting; taking; act of obtaining; [word play] recipe; list of ingredients for preparing a dish. 439/626 Food – / Far off … Hopeless – / And therefore – Good – // Partaken – it … proves us / That Spices fly / In the Receipt receipt (-ed), v. [see receipt, n.] Meet; greet; welcome; approach; [fig.] face; confront; overtake; accost. (1634/1655) 1203/1273 To look her in the Face / A Transport may receipt us / Or a Disgrace receipted, verbal adj. [see receipt, n.] (webplay: grace).

C,

Accept; welcome; honor; embrace; enjoy; countenance; partake of willingly. 1/1 The bee doth court the flower, the flower his suit receives, / and they make a merry wedding, whose guests are hundred leaves

C,

Acknowledge; confess; glorify; praise. 1591/1620 He [recognized his maker – ] / And shouted Let us pray recollect (-ed, -ing, -s), v. [L. re-, again + col-, together + ligěre, gather.] (webplay: back, before, call, consequence, knowledge, memory, met, name, period, place, remembrance, seen).