| Words | Parts of Speech | Meaning/Definition/Similar Words |
|---|---|---|
| vade | verb i. | To fade; hence, to vanish. |
| vail | noun & verb t. | Same as Veil., Avails; profit; return; proceeds., An unexpected gain or acquisition; a casual advantage or benefit; a windfall., Money given to servants by visitors; a gratuity; — usually in the plural., To let fail; to allow or cause to sink., To lower, or take off, in token of inferiority, reverence, submission, or the like., To yield or recede; to give place; to show respect by yielding, uncovering, or the like., Submission; decline; descent. |
| vain | superl. | Having no real substance, value, or importance; empty; void; worthless; unsatisfying., Destitute of forge or efficacy; effecting no purpose; fruitless; ineffectual; as, vain toil; a vain attempt., Proud of petty things, or of trifling attainments; having a high opinion of one’s own accomplishments with slight reason; conceited; puffed up; inflated., Showy; ostentatious., Vanity; emptiness; — now used only in the phrase in vain. |
| vair | noun | The skin of the squirrel, much used in the fourteenth century as fur for garments, and frequently mentioned by writers of that period in describing the costly dresses of kings, nobles, and prelates. It is represented in heraldry by a series of small shields placed close together, and alternately white and blue. |
| vale | noun | A tract of low ground, or of land between hills; a valley., See 2d Vail, 3. |
| vamp | verb i. | To advance; to travel., The part of a boot or shoe above the sole and welt, and in front of the ankle seam; an upper., Any piece added to an old thing to give it a new appearance. See Vamp, v. t., To provide, as a shoe, with new upper leather; hence, to piece, as any old thing, with a new part; to repair; to patch; — often followed by up. |
| vane | noun | A contrivance attached to some elevated object for the purpose of showing which way the wind blows; a weathercock. It is usually a plate or strip of metal, or slip of wood, often cut into some fanciful form, and placed upon a perpendicular axis around which it moves freely., Any flat, extended surface attached to an axis and moved by the wind; as, the vane of a windmill; hence, a similar fixture of any form moved in or by water, air, or other fluid; as, the vane of a screw propeller, a fan blower, an anemometer, etc., The rhachis and web of a feather taken together., One of the sights of a compass, quadrant, etc. |
| vang | noun | A rope to steady the peak of a gaff. |
| vant | verb i. | See Vaunt. |
| vara | noun | A Spanish measure of length equal to about one yard. The vara now in use equals 33.385 inches. |
| vare | noun | A wand or staff of authority or justice., A weasel. |
| vari | noun | The ringtailed lemur (Lemur catta) of Madagascar. Its long tail is annulated with black and white. |
| vark | noun | The bush hog, or boshvark. |
| vary | verb t. | To change the aspect of; to alter in form, appearance, substance, position, or the like; to make different by a partial change; to modify; as, to vary the properties, proportions, or nature of a thing; to vary a posture or an attitude; to vary one’s dress or opinions., To change to something else; to transmute; to exchange; to alternate., To make of different kinds; to make different from one another; to diversity; to variegate., To embellish; to change fancifully; to present under new aspects, as of form, key, measure, etc. See Variation, 4., To alter, or be altered, in any manner; to suffer a partial change; to become different; to be modified; as, colors vary in different lights., To differ, or be different; to be unlike or diverse; as, the laws of France vary from those of England., To alter or change in succession; to alternate; as, one mathematical quantity varies inversely as another., To deviate; to depart; to swerve; — followed by from; as, to vary from the law, or from reason., To disagree; to be at variance or in dissension; as, men vary in opinion., Alteration; change. |
| vasa | plural | of Vas |
| vase | noun | A vessel adapted for various domestic purposes, and anciently for sacrificial uses; especially, a vessel of antique or elegant pattern used for ornament; as, a porcelain vase; a gold vase; a Grecian vase. See Illust. of Portland vase, under Portland., A vessel similar to that described in the first definition above, or the representation of one in a solid block of stone, or the like, used for an ornament, as on a terrace or in a garden. See Illust. of Niche., The body, or naked ground, of the Corinthian and Composite capital; — called also tambour, and drum., The calyx of a plant. |
| vast | superl. | Waste; desert; desolate; lonely., Of great extent; very spacious or large; also, huge in bulk; immense; enormous; as, the vast ocean; vast mountains; the vast empire of Russia., Very great in numbers, quantity, or amount; as, a vast army; a vast sum of money., Very great in importance; as, a subject of vast concern., A waste region; boundless space; immensity. |
| vaut | verb i. | To vault; to leap., A vault; a leap. |