Emily Dickinson Lexicon

SIGH-ING-LY, adv.

With sighing.

SIGHT, n. [Sax. gesiht, with a prefix; D. gezigt; G. sicht; Dan. sigt; Sw. sickt, from the root of see.]

1. The act of seeing; perception of objects by the eye; view; as, to gain sight of land; to have a sight of a landscape; to lose sight of a ship at sea. A cloud received him out of their sight. – Acts i.
2. The faculty of vision, or of perceiving objects by the instrumentality of the eyes. It has been doubted whether moles have sight. Milton lost his sight. The sight usually fails at or before fifty years of age. O loss of sight, of thee I most complain. – Milton.
3. Open view; the state of admitting unobstructed vision; a being within the limits of vision. The harbor is in sight of the town. The shore of Long Island is in sight of New Haven. The White mountain is in plain sight at Portland, in Maine; a mountain is or is not within sight; an engagement at sea is within sight of land.
4. Notice from seeing; knowledge; as, a letter intended for the sight of one person only.
5. Eye; the instrument of seeing. From the depth of hell they lift their sight. – Dryden.
6. An aperture through which objects are to be seen; or something to direct the vision; as, the sight of a quadrant; the sight of a fowling-piece or a rifle.
7. That which is beheld; a spectacle; a show; particularly, something novel and remarkable; something wonderful. They never saw a sight so fair. – Spenser. Moses said, I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burned. – Exod. iii. Fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. – Luke xxi. To take sight, to take aim; to look for the purpose of directing a piece of artillery, &c.

SIGHT-ED, a.

In composition only, having sight, or seeing in a particular manner; as, long-sighted, seeing at a great distance; short-sighted, able to see only at a small distance; quick-sighted, readily seeing, discerning or understanding; sharp-sighted, having a keen eye or acute discernment.

SIGHT-FUL-NESS, n.

Clearness of sight. [Not in use.] – Sidney.

SIGHT-LESS, a.

1. Wanting sight; blind. Of all who blindly creep, or sightless soar. – Pope.
2. Offensive or unpleasing to the eye; as, sightless stains. [Not well authorized.] – Shak.

SIGHT-LESS-LY, adv.

In a sightless manner.

SIGHT-LESS-NESS, n.

Want of sight.

SIGHT-LI-NESS, n.

Comeliness; an appearance pleasing to the sight.

SIGHT-LY, a.

1. Pleasing to the eye; striking to the view. Many brave sightly horses. – L'Estrange. We have thirty members, the most sightly of all her majesty's subjects. – Addison.
2. Open to the view; that may be seen from a distance. We say, a house stands in a sightly place.

SIGHTS-MAN, n.

Among musicians, one who reads music readily at first sight. – Busby.

SIG'IL, n. [L. sigillum.]

A seal; signature. – Dryden.

SIG'MA, n.

The name of the Greek letter Σ, ς. The Greeks originally used for this letter, the form of the English C, and the Romans adopted this form for their tables. The most honorable places at the table were the extremities. – Elmes.

SIG-MOID'AL, a. [Gr. σιγμα and ειδος.]

Curved like the Greek ς sigma. – Smith. Bigelow. The sigmoid flexure, in anatomy, is the last curve of the colon, before it terminates in the rectum. – Parr.

SIGN, n. [sine; Fr. signe; It. segno; Sp. seña; L. signum; Sax. segen; Arm. sygn, syn; Ir. sighin; G. zeichen; Sans. zaga. From the last three words it appears that n is not radical; the elements being Sg. If so, and the G. zeichen is of this family, then we learn that sign is only a dialectical orthography of token, for zeichen is the D. teeken, Dan. tegn, Sw. tecken, coinciding perhaps with Gr. δεικνυμι.]

1. A token; something by which another thing is shown or represented; any visible thing, any motion, appearance or event which indicates the existence or approach of something else. Thus we speak of signs of fair weather or of a storm, and of external marks which are signs of a good constitution.
2. A motion, action, nod or gesture indicating a wish or command. They made signs to his father, how he would have him called. – Luke i.
3. A wonder; a miracle; a prodigy; a remarkable transaction, event or phenomenon. Through mighty signs and wonders. – Rom. xv. Luke xxi.
4. Some visible transaction, event or appearance intended as proof or evidence of something else; hence, proof; evidence by eight. Show me a sign that thou talkest with me. – Judges vi.
5. Something hung or set near a house or over a door, to give notice of the tenant's occupation, or what is made or sold within; as, a trader's sign; a tailor's sign; the sign of the eagle.
6. A memorial or monument; something to preserve the memory of a thing. What time the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men and they became a sign. – Num. xxvi.
7. Visible mark or representation; as, an outward sign of an inward and spiritual grace.
8. A mark of distinction.
9. Typical representation. The holy symbols or signs are not barely significative. – Brerewood.
10. In astronomy, the twelfth part of the ecliptic. The signs are reckoned from the point of intersection of the ecliptic and equator at the vernal equinox, and are named respectively, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricornus, Aquarius, Pisces. These are borrowed from the constellations of the zodiac of the same denomination, which were respectively comprehended within the foregoing equal divisions of the ecliptic at the time when those divisions were first made; but on account of the precession of the equinoxes, the positions of these constellations in the heavens no longer correspond with the divisions of the ecliptic of the same name, but are considerably in advance of them. Thus the constellation Aries, is now in that part of the ecliptic called Taurus.
11. In algebra, a character indicating the relation or quantities, of an operation performed by them; as the sign + (plus) prefixed to a quantity, indicates that the quantity is to be added; the sign - (minus) denotes that the quantity to which it is prefixed is to be subtracted. The former is prefixed to quantities called affirmative or positive; the latter to quantities called negative.
12. The subscription of one's name; signature; as, a sign manual.
13. Among physicians, an appearance or symptom in the human body, which indicates its condition as to health or disease.
14. In music, any character, as a flat, sharp, dot, &c. Sign manual, one's own name written by himself.

SIGN, v.i.

To be a sign or omen. [Not in use.] – Shak.

SIGN, v.t. [sine.]

1. To mark with characters or one's name. To sign a paper, note, deed, &c. is to write one's name a defeat, or underneath the declaration, promise, covenant, grant, &c. by which the person makes it his own act. To sign one's name, is to write or subscribe it on paper. Signing does not now include sealing.
2. To signify; to represent typically. [Not in use.] – Taylor.
3. To mark.
4. To signify by the hand; to move the hand for intimating something to another.

SIG'NAL, a.

Eminent; remarkable; memorable; distinguished from what is ordinary; as, a signal exploit; a signal service; a signal act of benevolence. It is generally but not always used in a good sense.

SIG'NAL, n. [Fr. signal; Sp. señal; from L. signum.]

A sign that gives or is intended to give notice; or the notice given. Signals are used to communicate notice, information, orders and the like, to persons at a distance, and by any persons and for any purpose. A signal may be a motion of the hand, the raising of a flag, the firing of a gun, or of any thing which being understood by persons at a distance, may communicate notice. Signals are particularly useful in the navigation of fleet and in naval engagements. There are day-signals, which are usually made by the sails, by flags and pendants, or guns; night-signals, which are lanterns, disposed in certain figures, or false fires, rockets, or the firing of guns; fog-signals, which are made by sounds, as firing of guns, beating of drums, ringing of bells, &c. There are signals of evolution, addressed to a whole fleet, to a division or to a squadron; signals of movements to particular ships; and signals of service, general or particular. Signals used in an army are mostly made by a particular beat of the drum, or by the bugle. – Mar. Dict. Encyc.

SIG'NAL-FIRE, n.

A fire intended for a signal.

SIG-NAL'I-TY, n.

Quality of being signal or remarkable. [Not in use.] – Brown.

SIG'NAL-IZE, v.t. [from signal.]

To make remarkable or eminent; to render distinguished from what is common. The soldier who signalizes himself in battle, merits his country's gratitude. Men may signalize themselves, their valor, or their talents.

SIG'NAL-IZ-ED, pp.

Made eminent.

SIG'NAL-IZ-ING, ppr.

Making remarkable.

SIG'NAL-LY, adv.

Eminently; remarkably; memorably; in a distinguished manner.

SIG-NA'TION, n.

Sign given; act of betokening. [Not in use.]