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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 (gcide)

Foot \Foot\ (f[oo^]t), n.; pl. {Feet} (f[=e]t). [OE. fot, foot,
pl. fet, feet. AS. f[=o]t, pl. f[=e]t; akin to D. voet, OHG.
fuoz, G. fuss, Icel. f[=o]tr, Sw. fot, Dan. fod, Goth.
f[=o]tus, L. pes, Gr. poy`s, Skr. p[=a]d, Icel. fet step,
pace measure of a foot, feta to step, find one's way.
[root]77, 250. Cf. {Antipodes}, {Cap-a-pie}, {Expedient},
{Fet} to fetch, {Fetlock}, {Fetter}, {Pawn} a piece in chess,
{Pedal}.]
1. (Anat.) The terminal part of the leg of man or an animal;
esp., the part below the ankle or wrist; that part of an
animal upon which it rests when standing, or moves. See
{Manus}, and {Pes}.
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2. (Zool.) The muscular locomotive organ of a mollusk. It is
a median organ arising from the ventral region of body,
often in the form of a flat disk, as in snails. See
Illust. of {Buccinum}.
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3. That which corresponds to the foot of a man or animal; as,
the foot of a table; the foot of a stocking.
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4. The lowest part or base; the ground part; the bottom, as
of a mountain, column, or page; also, the last of a row or
series; the end or extremity, esp. if associated with
inferiority; as, the foot of a hill; the foot of the
procession; the foot of a class; the foot of the bed;; the
foot of the page.
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And now at foot
Of heaven's ascent they lift their feet. --Milton.
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5. Fundamental principle; basis; plan; -- used only in the
singular.
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Answer directly upon the foot of dry reason.
--Berkeley.
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6. Recognized condition; rank; footing; -- used only in the
singular. [R.]
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As to his being on the foot of a servant. --Walpole.
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7. A measure of length equivalent to twelve inches; one third
of a yard. See {Yard}.
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Note: This measure is supposed to be taken from the length of
a man's foot. It differs in length in different
countries. In the United States and in England it is
304.8 millimeters.
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8. (Mil.) Soldiers who march and fight on foot; the infantry,
usually designated as the foot, in distinction from the
cavalry. "Both horse and foot." --Milton.
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9. (Pros.) A combination of syllables consisting a metrical
element of a verse, the syllables being formerly
distinguished by their quantity or length, but in modern
poetry by the accent.
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10. (Naut.) The lower edge of a sail.
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Note: Foot is often used adjectively, signifying of or
pertaining to a foot or the feet, or to the base or
lower part. It is also much used as the first of
compounds.
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{Foot artillery}. (Mil.)
(a) Artillery soldiers serving in foot.
(b) Heavy artillery. --Farrow.

{Foot bank} (Fort.), a raised way within a parapet.

{Foot barracks} (Mil.), barracks for infantery.

{Foot bellows}, a bellows worked by a treadle. --Knight.

{Foot company} (Mil.), a company of infantry. --Milton.

{Foot gear}, covering for the feet, as stocking, shoes, or
boots.

{Foot hammer} (Mach.), a small tilt hammer moved by a
treadle.

{Foot iron}.
(a) The step of a carriage.
(b) A fetter.

{Foot jaw}. (Zool.) See {Maxilliped}.

{Foot key} (Mus.), an organ pedal.

{Foot level} (Gunnery), a form of level used in giving any
proposed angle of elevation to a piece of ordnance.
--Farrow.

{Foot mantle}, a long garment to protect the dress in riding;
a riding skirt. [Obs.]

{Foot page}, an errand boy; an attendant. [Obs.]

{Foot passenger}, one who passes on foot, as over a road or
bridge.

{Foot pavement}, a paved way for foot passengers; a footway;
a trottoir.

{Foot poet}, an inferior poet; a poetaster. [R.] --Dryden.

{Foot post}.
(a) A letter carrier who travels on foot.
(b) A mail delivery by means of such carriers.

{Fot pound}, & {Foot poundal}. (Mech.) See {Foot pound} and
{Foot poundal}, in the Vocabulary.

{Foot press} (Mach.), a cutting, embossing, or printing
press, moved by a treadle.

{Foot race}, a race run by persons on foot. --Cowper.

{Foot rail}, a railroad rail, with a wide flat flange on the
lower side.

{Foot rot}, an ulcer in the feet of sheep; claw sickness.

{Foot rule}, a rule or measure twelve inches long.

{Foot screw}, an adjusting screw which forms a foot, and
serves to give a machine or table a level standing on an
uneven place.

{Foot secretion}. (Zool.) See {Sclerobase}.

{Foot soldier}, a soldier who serves on foot.

{Foot stick} (Printing), a beveled piece of furniture placed
against the foot of the page, to hold the type in place.


{Foot stove}, a small box, with an iron pan, to hold hot
coals for warming the feet.

{Foot tubercle}. (Zool.) See {Parapodium}.

{Foot valve} (Steam Engine), the valve that opens to the air
pump from the condenser.

{Foot vise}, a kind of vise the jaws of which are operated by
a treadle.

{Foot waling} (Naut.), the inside planks or lining of a
vessel over the floor timbers. --Totten.

{Foot wall} (Mining), the under wall of an inclosed vein.
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{By foot}, or {On foot}, by walking; as, to pass a stream on
foot.

{Cubic foot}. See under {Cubic}.

{Foot and mouth disease}, a contagious disease (Eczema
epizo["o]tica) of cattle, sheep, swine, etc.,
characterized by the formation of vesicles and ulcers in
the mouth and about the hoofs.

{Foot of the fine} (Law), the concluding portion of an
acknowledgment in court by which, formerly, the title of
land was conveyed. See {Fine of land}, under {Fine}, n.;
also {Chirograph}. (b).

{Square foot}. See under {Square}.

{To be on foot}, to be in motion, action, or process of
execution.

{To keep the foot} (Script.), to preserve decorum. "Keep thy
foot when thou goest to the house of God." --Eccl. v. 1.

{To put one's foot down}, to take a resolute stand; to be
determined. [Colloq.]

{To put the best foot foremost}, to make a good appearance;
to do one's best. [Colloq.]

{To set on foot}, to put in motion; to originate; as, to set
on foot a subscription.

{To} {put one on his feet}, or {set one on his feet}, to put
one in a position to go on; to assist to start.

{Under foot}.
(a) Under the feet; (Fig.) at one's mercy; as, to trample
under foot. --Gibbon.
(b) Below par. [Obs.] "They would be forced to sell . . .
far under foot." --Bacon.
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To \To\ (?, emphatic or alone, ?, obscure or unemphatic), prep.
[AS. t[=o]; akin to OS. & OFries. t[=o], D. toe, G. zu, OHG.
zuo, zua, z[=o], Russ. do, Ir. & Gael. do, OL. -do, -du, as
in endo, indu, in, Gr. ?, as in ? homeward. [root]200. Cf.
{Too}, {Tatoo} a beat of drums.]
1. The preposition to primarily indicates approach and
arrival, motion made in the direction of a place or thing
and attaining it, access; and also, motion or tendency
without arrival; movement toward; -- opposed to {from}.
"To Canterbury they wend." --Chaucer.
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Stay with us, go not to Wittenberg. --Shak.
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So to the sylvan lodge
They came, that like Pomona's arbor smiled.
--Milton.
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I'll to him again, . . .
He'll tell me all his purpose.
She stretched her arms to heaven. --Dryden.
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2. Hence, it indicates motion, course, or tendency toward a
time, a state or condition, an aim, or anything capable of
being regarded as a limit to a tendency, movement, or
action; as, he is going to a trade; he is rising to wealth
and honor.
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Note: Formerly, by omission of the verb denoting motion, to
sometimes followed a form of be, with the sense of at,
or in. "When the sun was [gone or declined] to rest."
--Chaucer.
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3. In a very general way, and with innumerable varieties of
application, to connects transitive verbs with their
remoter or indirect object, and adjectives, nouns, and
neuter or passive verbs with a following noun which limits
their action. Its sphere verges upon that of for, but it
contains less the idea of design or appropriation; as,
these remarks were addressed to a large audience; let us
keep this seat to ourselves; a substance sweet to the
taste; an event painful to the mind; duty to God and to
our parents; a dislike to spirituous liquor.
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Marks and points out each man of us to slaughter.
--B. Jonson.
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Whilst they, distilled
Almost to jelly with the act of fear,
Stand dumb and speak not to him. --Shak.
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Add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance
patience; and to patience godliness; and to
godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly
kindness charity. --2 Pet. i.
5,6,7.
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I have a king's oath to the contrary. --Shak.
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Numbers were crowded to death. --Clarendon.
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Fate and the dooming gods are deaf to tears.
--Dryden.
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Go, buckle to the law. --Dryden.
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4. As sign of the infinitive, to had originally the use of
last defined, governing the infinitive as a verbal noun,
and connecting it as indirect object with a preceding verb
or adjective; thus, ready to go, i.e., ready unto going;
good to eat, i.e., good for eating; I do my utmost to lead
my life pleasantly. But it has come to be the almost
constant prefix to the infinitive, even in situations
where it has no prepositional meaning, as where the
infinitive is direct object or subject; thus, I love to
learn, i.e., I love learning; to die for one's country is
noble, i.e., the dying for one's country. Where the
infinitive denotes the design or purpose, good usage
formerly allowed the prefixing of for to the to; as, what
went ye out for see? (--Matt. xi. 8).
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Then longen folk to go on pilgrimages,
And palmers for to seeken strange stranders.
--Chaucer.
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Note: Such usage is now obsolete or illiterate. In colloquial
usage, to often stands for, and supplies, an infinitive
already mentioned; thus, he commands me to go with him,
but I do not wish to.
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5. In many phrases, and in connection with many other words,
to has a pregnant meaning, or is used elliptically. Thus,
it denotes or implies:
(a) Extent; limit; degree of comprehension; inclusion as
far as; as, they met us to the number of three
hundred.
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We ready are to try our fortunes
To the last man. --Shak.
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Few of the Esquimaux can count to ten. --Quant.
Rev.
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(b) Effect; end; consequence; as, the prince was flattered
to his ruin; he engaged in a war to his cost; violent
factions exist to the prejudice of the state.
(c) Apposition; connection; antithesis; opposition; as,
they engaged hand to hand.
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Now we see through a glass, darkly; but then
face to face. --1 Cor. xiii.
12.
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(d) Accord; adaptation; as, an occupation to his taste;
she has a husband to her mind.
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He to God's image, she to his was made.
--Dryden.
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(e) Comparison; as, three is to nine as nine is to
twenty-seven; it is ten to one that you will offend
him.
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All that they did was piety to this. --B.
Jonson.
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(f) Addition; union; accumulation.
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Wisdom he has, and to his wisdom, courage.
--Denham.
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(g) Accompaniment; as, she sang to his guitar; they danced
to the music of a piano.
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Anon they move
In perfect phalanx to the Dorian mood
Of flutes and soft recorders. --Milton.
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(h) Character; condition of being; purpose subserved or
office filled. [In this sense archaic] "I have a king
here to my flatterer." --Shak.
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Made his masters and others . . . to consider
him to a little wonder. --Walton.
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Note: To in to-day, to-night, and to-morrow has the sense or
force of for or on; for, or on, (this) day, for, or on,
(this) night, for, or on, (the) morrow. To-day,
to-night, to-morrow may be considered as compounds, and
usually as adverbs; but they are sometimes used as
nouns; as, to-day is ours.
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To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow;
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day.
--Shak.
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{To and again}, to and fro. [R.]

{To and fro}, forward and back. In this phrase, to is
adverbial.
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There was great showing both to and fro. --Chaucer.
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{To-and-fro}, a pacing backward and forward; as, to commence
a to-and-fro. --Tennyson.

{To the face}, in front of; in behind; hence, in the presence
of.

{To wit}, to know; namely. See {Wit}, v. i.
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Note: To, without an object expressed, is used adverbially;
as, put to the door, i. e., put the door to its frame,
close it; and in the nautical expressions, to heave to,
to come to, meaning to a certain position. To, like on,
is sometimes used as a command, forward, set to. "To,
Achilles! to, Ajax! to!" --Shak.
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To- \To-\ (?, see {To}, prep.), [AS. to- asunder; akin to G.
zer-, and perhaps to L. dis-, or Gr. ?.]
An obsolete intensive prefix used in the formation of
compound verbs; as in to-beat, to-break, to-hew, to-rend,
to-tear. See these words in the Vocabulary. See the Note on
{All to}, or {All-to}, under {All}, adv.
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Constable \Con"sta*ble\ (k[o^]n"st[.a]*b'l or
k[u^]n"st[.a]*b'l), n. [OE. conestable, constable, a
constable (in sense 1), OF. conestable, F. conn['e]table, LL.
conestabulus, constabularius, comes stabuli, orig., count of
the stable, master of the horse, equerry; comes count (L.
companion) L. stabulum stable. See {Count} a nobleman, and
{Stable}.]
1. A high officer in the monarchical establishments of the
Middle Ages.
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Note: The constable of France was the first officer of the
crown, and had the chief command of the army. It was
also his duty to regulate all matters of chivalry. The
office was suppressed in 1627. The constable, or lord
high constable, of England, was one of the highest
officers of the crown, commander in chief of the
forces, and keeper of the peace of the nation. He also
had judicial cognizance of many important matters. The
office was as early as the Conquest, but has been
disused (except on great and solemn occasions), since
the attainder of Stafford, duke of Buckingham, in the
reign of Henry VIII.
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2. (Law) An officer of the peace having power as a
conservator of the public peace, and bound to execute the
warrants of judicial officers. --Bouvier.
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Note: In England, at the present time, the constable is a
conservator of the peace within his district, and is
also charged by various statutes with other duties,
such as serving summons, precepts, warrants, etc. In
the United States, constables are town or city officers
of the peace, with powers similar to those of the
constables of England. In addition to their duties as
conservators of the peace, they are invested with
others by statute, such as to execute civil as well as
criminal process in certain cases, to attend courts,
keep juries, etc. In some cities, there are officers
called {high constables}, who act as chiefs of the
constabulary or police force. In other cities the title
of constable, as well as the office, is merged in that
of the police officer.
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{High constable}, a constable having certain duties and
powers within a hundred. [Eng.]

{Petty constable}, a conservator of the peace within a parish
or tithing; a tithingman. [Eng.]

{Special constable}, a person appointed to act as constable
of special occasions.

{To} {overrun the constable}, or {outrun the constable}, to
spend more than one's income; to get into debt. [Colloq.]
--Smollett.
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