Emily Dickinson Lexicon

ID'I-OM, n. [Fr. idiome; L. idioma, from Gr. ιδιωμα, from ιδιος, proper, or peculiar to one's self. The root of ιδιος is that of divide, Hetrurian iduo, Eng. widow, wide, Ar. بَدَّ badda, to separate. Class Bd, No. 1.]

1. A mode of expression peculiar to a language; peculiarity of expression or phraseology. In this sense it is used in the plural to denote forms of speech or phraseology, peculiar to a nation or language. And to just idioms fix our doubtful speech. Prior.
2. The genius or peculiar cast of a language. He followed the Latin language, but did not comply with the idiom of ours. Dryden.
3. Dialect.

ID-I-O-MAT'IC, or ID-I-O-MAT'IC-AL, a.

Peculiar to a language; pertaining to the particular genius or modes of expression which belong to a language; as, an idiomatic phrase.

ID-I-O-MAT'IC-AL-LY, adv.

According to the idiom of a language.

ID-I-O-PATH'IC, a. [See Idiopathy.]

Pertaining to idiopathy; indicating a disease not preceded and occasioned by any other disease; opposed to symptomatic.

ID-I-O-PATH'IC-AL-LY, adv.

In the manner of an idiopathic disease; not symptomatically.

ID-I-OP'A-THY, n. [Gr. ιδιος, proper, peculiar, and παθος, suffering, disease, from πασχω, to suffer.]

1. An idiopathic state or condition of disease; a morbid state or condition not preceded and occasioned by any other disease.
2. Peculiar affection. More.

ID-I-O-RE-PUL'SIVE, a.

Repulsive by itself; as, the idiorepulsive power of heat.

ID-I-O-SYN'CRA-SY, n. [Gr. ιδιος, proper, συν, with, and κρασις, temperament.]

A peculiarity of constitution and susceptibility occasioning certain peculiarities of effect from the impress of extraneous influences or agencies. Synonymous with idiocrasy.

ID-I-O-SYN-CRAT'IC-AL, a.

Of peculiar temper or disposition.

ID'I-OT, n. [L. idiota; Gr. ιδιωτης, private, vulgar, unskilled, from ιδιος, peculiar, that is, separate, simple; Sp. and It. idiota; Fr. idiot. See Idiom.]

1. A natural fool, or fool from his birth; a human being in form, but destitute of reason; or the ordinary intellectual powers of man. A person who has understanding enough to measure a yard of cloth, number twenty correctly, tell the days of the week, &c., is not an idiot in the eye of the law. Encyc.
2. A foolish person; one unwise. [“A collection of picturesque words, found among our ancient writers, would constitute a precious supplement to the history of our language. Far more expressive than our term of executioner is their solemn one of the deathsman; – than our vagabond their scatterling; – than our idiot or lunatic their moonling; a word which Mr. Gifford observes, should not have been suffered to grow obsolete.” D'Israeli's Curiosities of Literature, 2d Series, 2d edit. vol. i. p. 407. – E. H. B.] [See Innocent.]

ID'I-OT-CY, n.

State of being an idiot.

IDI-OT'IC, a.

Like an idiot; foolish; sottish.

ID'I-OT-ISH, a.

Like an idiot; partaking of idiocy; foolish. Paley.

ID'I-OT-ISM, n. [Fr. idiotisme; It. and Sp. idiotismo; Gr. ιδιωτισμος, a form of speech taken from the vulgar, from ιδιος.]

1. An idiom; a peculiarity of expression; a mode of expression peculiar to a language; a peculiarity in the structure of words and phrases. Scholars sometimes give terminations and idiotisms, suitable to their native language, to words newly invented. Hale.
2. Idiocy. Beddoes, Hygeia. But it would be well to restrain this word to its proper signification, and keep idiocy and idiotism distinct.

ID'I-OT-IZE, v.i.

To become stupid. Pers. Letters.

I'DLE, a. [Sax. idel, ydel, vain, empty; G. eitel, mere, pure, idle, frivolous; D. ydel, vain, empty, idle; Dan. and Sw. idel, mere, pure, unmixed. See Addle. Class Dl, No. 6, 16, 25, 29.]

1. Not employed; unoccupied with business; inactive; doing nothing. Why stand ye here all the day idle? 1 Matt. XX. To be idle, is to be vicious. Rambler.
2. Slothful; given to rest and ease; averse to labor or employment; lazy; as, an idle man; an idle fellow.
3. Affording leisure; vacant; not occupied; as, idle time; idle hours.
4. Remaining unused; unemployed; applied to things; as, my sword or spear is idle.
5. Useless; vain; ineffectual; as, idle rage. Down their idle weapons dropped. Milton.
6. Unfruitful; barren; not productive of good. Of antres vast and idle desarts. Shak Idle weeds. [Obs.] Shak.
7. Trifling; vain; of no importance; as, an idle story; an idle reason, idle arguments. Hooker. Dryden. Swift.
8. Unprofitable; not tending to edification. Every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give an account thereof in the day of judgment. Matth. xii. Idle differs from lazy; the latter implying constitutional or habitual aversion or indisposition to labor or action, sluggishness; whereas idle, in its proper sense, denotes merely unemployed. An industrious man may be idle but he can not be lazy.

I'DLE, v.i.

To lose or spend time in inaction, or without being employed in business. To idle away, in a transitive sense, to spend in idleness; as, to idle away time.

I'DLE-HEAD-ED, a. [idle and head.]

1. Foolish; unreasonable. Carew.
2. Delirious; infatuated. [Little used.] L'Estrange

I'DLE-NESS, n.

1. Abstinence from labor or employment; the state of a person who is unemployed in labor, or unoccopied in business; the state of doing nothing. Idleness is the parent of vice. Through the idleness of the hands the house droppeth through. Eccles. x.
2. Aversion to labor; reluctance to be employed, or to exertion either of body or mind; laziness; sloth; sluggishness. This is properly laziness; but idleness is often the effect of laziness, and sometimes this word may be used for it.
3. Unimportance; trivialness. Apes of idleness. Shak.
4. Inefficacy; uselessness. [Little used.]
5. Barrenness; worthlessness. [Little used.]
6. Emptiness; foolishness; infatuation; as, idleness of brain. [Little used.] Bacon.

I'DLE-PA-TED, a.

Idleheaded; stupid. Overbury.

I'DLER, n.

1. One who does nothing, one who spends his time in inaction, or without being engaged in business.
2. A lazy person; a sluggard. Ralegh.

I'DLES-BY, n.

An idle or lazy person. [Not used.] Whitlock.

I'DLING, ppr.

Spending in idleness or inaction.

I'DLY, adv.

1. In an idle manner, without employment.
2. Lazily; sluggishly.
3. Foolishly; uselessly; in a trifling way. A shilling spent idly by a fool, may be saved by a wiser person. Franklin.
4. Carelessly; without attention. Prior.
5. Vainly; ineffectually; as, to reason idly against truth.

ID'O-CRASE, n. [Gr. ιδεα, form, and κρασις, mixture; a mixed figure.]

A mineral, the vesuvian of Werner, sometimes massive, and very often in shining prismatic crystals. Its primitive form is a four-sided prism with square bases. It is found near Vesuvius, in unaltered rocks ejected by the volcano; also in primitive rocks in various other localities. Cleaveland.