Webster's Unabridged Dictionary - Letter O - Page 20

Opsimathy (n.) Education late in life.

Opsiometer (n.) An instrument for measuring the limits of distincts vision in different individuals, and thus determiming the proper focal length of a lens for correcting imperfect sight.

Opsonation (n.) A catering; a buying of provisions.

Optable (a.) That may be chosen; desirable.

Optate (v. i.) To choose; to wish for; to desire.

Optation (n.) The act of optating; a wish.

Optative (a.) Expressing desire or wish.

Optative (n.) Something to be desired.

Optative (n.) The optative mood; also, a verb in the optative mood.

Optatively (adv.) In an optative manner; with the expression of desire.

Optic (a.) The organ of sight; an eye.

Optic (a.) An eyeglass.

Optic (a.) Alt. of Optical

Optical (a.) Of or pertaining to vision or sight.

Optical (a.) Of or pertaining to the eye; ocular; as, the optic nerves (the first pair of cranial nerves) which are distributed to the retina. See Illust. of Brain, and Eye.

Optical (a.) Relating to the science of optics; as, optical works.

Optically (adv.) By optics or sight; with reference to optics.

Optician (a.) One skilled in optics.

Optician (a.) One who deals in optical glasses and instruments.

Optics (n.) That branch of physical science which treats of the nature and properties of light, the laws of its modification by opaque and transparent bodies, and the phenomena of vision.

Optigraph (a.) A telescope with a diagonal eyepiece, suspended vertically in gimbals by the object end beneath a fixed diagonal plane mirror. It is used for delineating landscapes, by means of a pencil at the eye end which leaves the delineation on paper.

Optimacy (n.) Government by the nobility.

Optimacy (n.) Collectively, the nobility.

Optimate (a.) Of or pertaining to the nobility or aristocracy.

Optimate (n.) A nobleman or aristocrat; a chief man in a state or city.

Optimates (n. pl.) The nobility or aristocracy of ancient Rome, as opposed to the populares.

Optime (n.) One of those who stand in the second rank of honors, immediately after the wranglers, in the University of Cambridge, England. They are divided into senior and junior optimes.

Optimism (n.) The opinion or doctrine that everything in nature, being the work of God, is ordered for the best, or that the ordering of things in the universe is such as to produce the highest good.

Optimism (n.) A disposition to take the most hopeful view; -- opposed to pessimism.

Optimist (n.) One who holds the opinion that all events are ordered for the best.

Optimist (n.) One who looks on the bright side of things, or takes hopeful views; -- opposed to pessimist.

Optimistic (a.) Of or pertaining to optimism; tending, or conforming, to the opinion that all events are ordered for the best.

Optimistic (a.) Hopeful; sanguine; as, an optimistic view.

Optimity (n.) The state of being best.

Option (n.) The power of choosing; the right of choice or election; an alternative.

Option (n.) The exercise of the power of choice; choice.

Option (n.) A wishing; a wish.

Option (n.) A right formerly belonging to an archbishop to select any one dignity or benefice in the gift of a suffragan bishop consecrated or confirmed by him, for bestowal by himself when next vacant; -- annulled by Parliament in 1845.

Option (n.) A stipulated privilege, given to a party in a time contract, of demanding its fulfillment on any day within a specified limit.

Optional (a.) Involving an option; depending on the exercise of an option; left to one's discretion or choice; not compulsory; as, optional studies; it is optional with you to go or stay.

Optional (n.) See Elective, n.

Optionally (adv.) In an optional manner.

Optocoele (n.) Alt. of Optocoelia

Optocoelia (n.) The cavity of one of the optic lobes of the brain in many animals.

Optogram (n.) An image of external objects fixed on the retina by the photochemical action of light on the visual purple. See Optography.

Optography (n.) The production of an optogram on the retina by the photochemical action of light on the visual purple; the fixation of an image in the eye. The object so photographed shows white on a purple or red background. See Visual purple, under Visual.

Optometer (n.) An instrument for measuring the distance of distinct vision, mainly for the selection of eveglasses.

Opulence (n.) Wealth; riches; affluence.

Opulency (n.) See Opulence.

Opulent (a.) Having a large estate or property; wealthy; rich; affluent; as, an opulent city; an opulent citizen.

Opuntia (n.) A genus of cactaceous plants; the prickly pear, or Indian fig.

Opera (pl. ) of Opus

Opus (n.) A work; specif. (Mus.), a musical composition.

Opuscle (n.) Alt. of Opuscule

Opuscule (n.) A small or petty work.

Opuscula (pl. ) of Opusculum

Opusculum (n.) An opuscule.

Opye (n.) Opium.

Oquassa (n.) A small, handsome trout (Salvelinus oquassa), found in some of the lakes in Maine; -- called also blueback trout.

-or () A noun suffix denoting an act; a state or quality; as in error, fervor, pallor, candor, etc.

-or () A noun suffix denoting an agent or doer; as in auditor, one who hears; donor, one who gives; obligor, elevator. It is correlative to -ee. In general -or is appended to words of Latin, and -er to those of English, origin. See -er.

Or (conj.) A particle that marks an alternative; as, you may read or may write, -- that is, you may do one of the things at your pleasure, but not both. It corresponds to either. You may ride either to London or to Windsor. It often connects a series of words or propositions, presenting a choice of either; as, he may study law, or medicine, or divinity, or he may enter into trade.

Or (prep. & adv.) Ere; before; sooner than.

Or (n.) Yellow or gold color, -- represented in drawing or engraving by small dots.

Ora (n.) A money of account among the Anglo-Saxons, valued, in the Domesday Book, at twenty pence sterling.

Orabassu (n.) A South American monkey of the genus Callithrix, esp.

Orach (n.) Alt. of Orache

Orache (n.) A genus (Atriplex) of herbs or low shrubs of the Goosefoot family, most of them with a mealy surface.

Oracle (n.) The answer of a god, or some person reputed to be a god, to an inquiry respecting some affair or future event, as the success of an enterprise or battle.

Oracle (n.) Hence: The deity who was supposed to give the answer; also, the place where it was given.

Oracle (n.) The communications, revelations, or messages delivered by God to the prophets; also, the entire sacred Scriptures -- usually in the plural.

Oracle (n.) The sanctuary, or Most Holy place in the temple; also, the temple itself.

Oracle (n.) One who communicates a divine command; an angel; a prophet.

Oracle (n.) Any person reputed uncommonly wise; one whose decisions are regarded as of great authority; as, a literary oracle.

Oracle (n.) A wise sentence or decision of great authority.

Oracled (imp. & p. p.) of Oracle

Oracling (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Oracle

Oracle (v. i.) To utter oracles.

Oracular (a.) Of or pertaining to an oracle; uttering oracles; forecasting the future; as, an oracular tongue.

Oracular (a.) Resembling an oracle in some way, as in solemnity, wisdom, authority, obscurity, ambiguity, dogmatism.

Oraculous (a.) Oracular; of the nature of an oracle.

Oragious (a.) Stormy.

Oraison (n.) See Orison.

Oral (a.) Uttered by the mouth, or in words; spoken, not written; verbal; as, oral traditions; oral testimony; oral law.

Oral (a.) Of or pertaining to the mouth; surrounding or lining the mouth; as, oral cilia or cirri.

Orally (adv.) In an oral manner.

Orally (adv.) By, with, or in, the mouth; as, to receive the sacrament orally.

Orang (n.) See Orang-outang.

Orange (n.) The fruit of a tree of the genus Citrus (C. Aurantium). It is usually round, and consists of pulpy carpels, commonly ten in number, inclosed in a leathery rind, which is easily separable, and is reddish yellow when ripe.

Orange (n.) The tree that bears oranges; the orange tree.

Orange (n.) The color of an orange; reddish yellow.

Orange (a.) Of or pertaining to an orange; of the color of an orange; reddish yellow; as, an orange ribbon.

Orangeade (n.) A drink made of orange juice and water, corresponding to lemonade; orange sherbet.

Orangeat (n.) Candied orange peel; also, orangeade.

Orangeism (n.) Attachment to the principles of the society of Orangemen; the tenets or practices of the Orangemen.

-men (pl. ) of Orangeman

Orangeman (n.) One of a secret society, organized in the north of Ireland in 1795, the professed objects of which are the defense of the regning sovereign of Great Britain, the support of the Protestant religion, the maintenance of the laws of the kingdom, etc.; -- so called in honor of William, Prince of Orange, who became William III. of England.

Orangeroot (n.) An American ranunculaceous plant (Hidrastis Canadensis), having a yellow tuberous root; -- also called yellowroot, golden seal, etc.

Orangery (n.) A place for raising oranges; a plantation of orange trees.

Orangetawny (a. & n.) Deep orange-yellow; dark yellow.

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