Emily Dickinson Lexicon

LIM'BEC, n. [contracted from alembic.]

A still; a word not now used.

LIM'BEC, v.t.

To strain or pass through a still. [Obs.] Sandys.

LIMB'ED, a.

In composition, formed with regard to limbs; as, well-limbed; large-limbed; short-limbed. Pope.

LIM'BER, a. [perhaps from the W. llib, llibin; for m and b are convertible, and m before b, is often casual.]

Easily bent; flexible; pliant; yielding. In America, it is applied to material things; as, a limber rod; a limber joint.

LIM'BER-NESS, n.

The quality of being easily bent; flexibleness; pliancy.

LIM'BERS, n.

1. A two-wheeled carriage, having boxes for ammunition.
2. Thills; shafts of a carriage. [Local.]

LIM'BERS, or LIM'BER-HOLES, n.

In a ship, square holes cut through the floor timbers, as a passage for water to the pump-well. Mar. Dict.

LIM'BIL-ITE, n.

A mineral from Limbourg, in Swabia, of a honey yellow color, and compact texture. Saussure.

LIMB'LESS, a.

Destitute of limbs. Massinger.

LIMB'-MEAL, a.

Piece-meal. Shak.

LIM'BO, or LIM'BUS, n. [L. limbus.]

1. A region bordering on hell, or hell itself. Shak. Among Romanists, a place where the souls of persons are lodged after death.
2. A place of restraint. Dryden.

LIME, n. [Sax. lim, lime, whence geliman, to glue; Sw. and Dan. lym, D. hem, G. leim and lehem, loam; L. limus; It. and Sp. limo; probably Gr. {foreign}, {}, and allied to clammy. On this word is formed slime.]

1. A viscous substance, sometimes laid on twigs for catching birds. Dryden.
2. Calcarious earth, oxyd of calcium, procured from chalk and certain stones and shells, by expelling from them the carbonic acid, by means of a strong heat in a furnace. The best lime for mortar or cement is obtained from limestone, or carbonate of lime, of which marble is a fine species. Hooper. Nicholson.
3. The linden tree, or Tilia.
4. [Fr. lime. See Lemon.] A species of acid fruit, smaller than the lemon.

LIME, v.t. [Sax. geliman.]

1. To smear with a viscous substance. L'Estrange.
2. To entangle; to ensnare. Shak.
3. To manure with lime. Land may be improved by draining, marling, and liming. Child.
4. To cement. Shak.

LIME'-BURN-ER, n.

One who burns stone to lime.

LIM'ED, pp.

Smeared with lime; entangled; manured with lime.

LIME'-HOUND, n.

A dog used in hunting the wild boar; a limer. Spenser.

LIME'-KILN, n. [li'mekil.]

A kiln or furnace in which stones or shells are exposed to a strong heat and reduced to lime.

LIME'STONE, n.

Stone of which lime is made by the expulsion of its carbonic acid, or fixed air. It is called carbonate of lime. Of this there are several species.

LIME'-TWIG, n.

A twig smeared with lime. Milton.

LIME'-TWIG-GED, a.

Smeared with lime. Addison.

LIME'-WA-TER, n.

Water impregnated with lime.

LIM'ING, ppr.

Daubing with viscous matter; entangling; manuring with lime.

LIM'IT, n. [L. limes; Fr. limites. See Limb.]

1. Bound; border; utmost extent; the part that terminates a thing; as, the limit of a town, city or empire; the limits of human knowledge.
2. The thing which bounds; restraint.
3. Limits, plur., the extent of the liberties of a prison.

LIM'IT, v.t.

1. To bound; to set bounds to.
2. To confine within certain bounds; to circumscribe; to restrain. The government of England is called a limited monarchy. They tempted God and limited the Holy One of Israel. Ps. lxxviii.
3. To restrain from a lax or general signification. World sometimes signifies the universe, and sometimes its signification is limited to this earth.

LIM'IT-A-BLE, a.

That may be limited, circumscribed, bounded, or restrained. Hume.