Sunday, 13 September 2015

OBSCURE WORDS Q

quadra
n. - plinth; square frame.
  quadragintesimal
adj. - in forty parts; forty-fold.
  quadral
adj. - in four parts.
  quadrant
n. - quarter of circumference of circle; instrument for measuring
altitudes. quadrantal, adj.
  quadrat
n. - small square area or block, especially used as space in printing
(abbr. quad).
  quadrate
v. - square; agree; make to agree; n. & a., square; oblong; Astronomy,
distant 90° from each other. quadratic, adj. square; applied to
algebraic expression containing square but no higher power of unknown
quantity; n. such equation. quadratics, n. algebra dealing with
quadratic equations. quadrature, n. problem or act of finding square
with area equal of another known figure; act of determining areas;
Astronomy, relation of quadrate heavenly bodies.
  quadrel
n. - small block (of stone, wood etc.).
  quadrennial
adj. - lasting four years; occurring every fourth year; n. fourth
anniversary. quadrennium, n. (pl. -nia) period of four years.
  quadrimum
n. - best or oldest wine. quadrimum merum, four- year-old wine.
  quadripartite
adj. - pertaining to or for four parts or parties. quadripartition, n.
  quadrisect
v. - divide into four equal parts. quadrisection, n.
  quadrivial
adj. - leading in four directions; pertaining to meeting of four ways.
  quadrivium
n. - (pl. -ia) higher division of seven liberal arts studied in Middle
Ages: arithmetic, music, astronomy, geometry.
  quadrivoltine
adj. - having four broods in one year; n. such creature.
  quadrual
adj.,n. - (number) denoting four.
  quadrumanous
adj. - (of apes, etc.) with all four feet adapted for use as hands.
  quaestor
n. - ancient Roman public treasurer or assistant military commander.
quaestorial, adj.
  quaestuary
adj.,n. - archaic, (person) in business for profit, or having profit
as sole aim.
  quaintise
n. - ingenuity, cunning; a trick or stratagem
  quale
n. - (pl. -lia) thing having quality; sensation considered in virtue
of its own quality alone; quality having independent existence.
  quant
n. - punting pole; v.t. propel with quant.
  quantulum
n. - small quantity.
  quaquaversal
adj. - dipping in all directions; dome-like.
  quarender, quarenden
n. - kind of dark red apple.
  quartan
adj. - (fever) recurring after approximately seventy-two hours.
  quarto
n. - book size made by folding sheet into four leaves: foolscap
quarto, 81/2 x 63/4 in; crown quarto, 10 x 71/2 in; demy quarto, 111/4
x 83/4 in; royal quarto, 121/2 x 10 in; imperial quarto, 15 x 11 in
(abbr. 4to).
  quatercentenary
n. - four-hundredth anniversary.
  quatrefoil
n. - any figure like leaf or flower with four leaflets. quatrefoliated, adj.
  quattrocento
n. - 15th century.
  quebracho
n. - several tropical American trees and their timber or bark.
  qued
adj. - evil, bad
  quenelle
n. - fish or meat forcemeat ball.
  quenouille
adj. - applied to training of trees, etc., into cone-like outline.
  quercetum
n. - oak plantation.
  querimony
n. - a complaint
  quern
n. - hand-power grinding mill.
  querulent
adj.,n. - habitually and abnormally suspicious (person). querulous,
adj. peevish; fretful; complaining.
  question extraordinaire
n. - n. final or severest torture.
  qui vive
n. - 'who goes there?' on the qui vive, on the alert.
  quidam
n. - obscure, unknown person
  quiddity
n. - the essence or nature of a thing
  quidnunc
n. - gossiper; inquisitive person.
  quiescent
adj. - resting; dormant. quiescence, quiescency, n.
  quietism
n. - kind of mysticism in which indifference to world is obtained by
passive contemplation of divinity; passivity. quietist, n.
  quietus
n. - receipt; release; act of dispatching or disposing of; knockout or
fatal blow; death.
  quillet
n. - archaic, quibble; small tube.
  quinary
adj. - pertaining to or comprising five; in fives; Mathematics, having
five as base.
  quincentenary
n. - (pertaining to) five hundredth anniversary.
  quincunx
n. - four corners and centre of rectangle; arrangement of five things
in those positions. quincuncial, adj.
  quindecagon
n. - 15-sided plane figure. quindecasyllabic, adj. having 15
syllables. quindecennial, adj. pertaining to 15 years.
  quinquagenarian
adj.,n. - (person) in from fiftieth to sixtieth year. quinquagenary,,
adj. fifty-year-old; n. 50th anniversary.
  Quinquagesima
n. - Sunday before Lent. Quinquagesimal, adj. pertaining to fifty days.
  quinquennial
adj. - lasting five years; occurring every fifth year. quinquennium,
n. (pl. -nia) period of five years.
  quinsy
n. - severe inflammation of tonsils and throat.
  quintain
n. - object, or target, tilted at; tilting at quintain.
  quintal
n. - hundredweight; 100 lb; metric unit of 100 kg.
  quintan
adj. - (fever) recurring after five days (i.e. every fourth day).
  quintant
n. - instrument having arc of fifth part of circumference of circle
for taking altitudes.
  quintic
adj. - Mathematics, of or pertaining to fifth degree.
  quipu
n. - device of knotted cords, used by Incas of Peru to calculate or
order information.
  quire
n. - two dozen sheets of paper.
  quirt
n. - a riding crop or whip
  quisguous
adj. - perplexing
  quisling
n. - traitor collaborating with enemy occupiers of his or her country.
  quisquillian
adj. - trashy
  quitrent
n. - small nominal rent commuting feudal services.
  quo vadis
phr. - 'whither goest thou?'
  quod erat demonstrandum
phr. - 'which was to be demonstrated' (abbr. Q.E.D.). quod erat
faciendum, 'which was to be done' (abbr. Q.E.F.).
  quodlibet
n. - 'what you like'; moot or subtle point; fruitless or pedantic argument.
  quoin
n. - angle; wedge; cornerstone.
  quondam
adj. - 'formerly'; a. former.

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