Emily Dickinson Lexicon

DE-CID'ED-LY, adv.

In a decided or determined manner; clearly; indisputably; in a manner to preclude doubt.

DE-CI'DENCE, n. [L. decidens.]

A falling off. [Not in use.] – Brown.

DE-CID'ER, n.

One who determines a cause or contest.

DE-CID'ING, ppr.

Determining; ending; concluding.

DE-CID'U-OUS, a. [L. deciduus; decido; de and cado, to fall.]

Falling; not perennial or permanent. In botany, a deciduous leaf is one which falls in autumn; a deciduous calyx is that which falls along with the corol and stamens; distinguished from permanent. – Martyn.

DE-CID'U-OUS-NESS, n.

The quality of falling once a year.

DEC'I-GRAM, n.

A French weight of one tenth of a gram.

DE'CIL, a.

An aspect or position of two planets, when they are distant from each other a tenth part of the zodiac. – Encyc.

DEC'IL-IT-ER, n.

A French measure of capacity equal to one tenth of a liter.

DE-CIL'LION, n.

A number involved to the tenth power.

DE-CILL'IONTH, a.

Pertaining to a decillion.

DEC'IM-AL, a. [L. decimus, tenth, from decem, ten; Gr. δεκα; Goth. tig, ten, Sax. a tie.]

1. Numbered by ten; as, decimal progression. – Locke.
2. Increasing or diminishing by ten; as, decimal numbers; decimal arithmetic; decimal fractions.
3. Tenth; as a decimal part.

DEC'IM-AL, n.

A tenth.

DEC'IM-AL-LY, adv.

By tens, by means of decimals.

DEC'IM-ATE, v.t. [L. decimo, from decem, ten.]

1. To tithe; to take the tenth part.
2. To select by lot and punish with death every tenth man; a practice in armies, for punishing mutinous or unfaithful troops.
3. To take every tenth. – Mitford.

DEC'IM-A-TED, pp.

Tithed; taken by lots.

DEC'IM-A-TING, ppr.

Tithing; taken by lots.

DEC-IM-A'TION, n.

1. A tithing; a selection of every tenth by lot.
2. The selecting by lot for punishment every tenth man, in a company or regiment, &c.

DEC'IM-A-TOR, n.

One who selects every tenth man for punishment. – South.

DE-CIM'E-TER, n.

A French measure of length equal to the tenth part of a meter, or 3 inches and 93710 decimals.

DEC'IM-O-SEX-TO, a. [L.]

A book is in decimo-sexto, when a sheet is folded into sixteen leaves. – Taylor.

DE-CI'PHER, v.t. [Fr. dechiffrer; de and chiffre, a cipher; It. deciferare; Sp. descifrar; Port. decifrar. See Cipher.]

1. To find the alphabet of a cipher; to explain what is written in ciphers, by finding what letter each character or mark represents; as, to decipher a letter written in ciphers.
2. To unfold; to unravel what is intricate; to explain what is obscure or difficult to be understood; as, to decipher an ambiguous speech, or an ancient manuscript or inscription. 3. To write out; to mark down in characters. Locke. [This use is now uncommon, and perhaps improper.]
3. To stamp; to mark; to characterize. [Unusual.] – Shak.

DE-CI'PHER-A-BLE, a.

That may be deciphered, or interpreted.

DE-CI'PHER-ED, pp.

Explained; unraveled; marked.

DE-CI'PHER-ER, n.

One who explains what is written in ciphers.