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

Sciaenoid \Sci*ae"noid\, a. [L. sciaena a kind of fish (fr. Gr.
?) -oid.] (Zool.)
Of or pertaining to the {Sciaenidae}, a family of carnivorous
marine fishes which includes the meagre ({Sciaena umbra} or
{Sciaena aquila}), and fish of the {drum} and {croaker}
families. The {croaker} is so called because it may make a
croaking noise by use of its bladder; the {Atlantic croaker}
({Micropogonias undulatus}, formerly {Micropogon undulatus})
and the squeteague are a members of the croaker family, and
the {kingfish} is a drum.
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Swag \Swag\, n.
1. A swaying, irregular motion.
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2. A burglar's or thief's booty; boodle. [Cant or Slang]
--Charles Reade.
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3. [Australia]
(a) A tramping bushman's luggage, rolled up either in
canvas or in a blanket so as to form a long bundle,
and carried on the back or over the shoulder; --
called also a {bluey}, or a {drum}.
(b) Any bundle of luggage similarly rolled up; hence,
luggage in general.

He tramped for years till the swag he bore
seemed part of himself. --Lawson.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]


Vase \Vase\ (v[=a]s or v[aum]z; 277), n. [F. vase; cf. Sp. & It.
vaso; fr. L. vas, vasum. Cf. {Vascular}, {Vessel}.]
1. 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}.
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No chargers then were wrought in burnished gold,
Nor silver vases took the forming mold. --Pope.
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2. (Arch.)
(a) 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}.
(b) The body, or naked ground, of the Corinthian and
Composite capital; -- called also {tambour}, and
{drum}.
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Note: Until the time of Walker (1791), vase was made to rhyme
with base, case, etc., and it is still commonly so
pronounced in the United States. Walker made it to
rhyme with phrase, maze, etc. Of modern English
practice, Mr. A. J. Ellis (1874) says: "Vase has four
pronunciations in English: v[add]z, which I most
commonly say, is going out of use, v[aum]z I hear most
frequently, v[=a]z very rarely, and v[=a]s I only know
from Cull's marking. On the analogy of case, however,
it should be the regular sound."
The Merriam-Webster's 10th Colletgiate Dictionary says:
"U. S. oftenest v[=a]s; Canada usu. and U. S. also
v[=a]z; Canada also & U. S. sometimes v[aum]z."
One wit has noted that "a v[aum]z is a v[=a]z that
costs more than $100.", suggesting that the former is
considered a higher-class pronunciation.
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3. (Bot.) The calyx of a plant.
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Croaker \Croak"er\ (-?r), n.
1. One who croaks, murmurs, grumbles, or complains
unreasonably; one who habitually forebodes evil.
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2. (Zool.)
(a) A small American fish ({Micropogon undulatus}), of the
Atlantic coast.
(a) An American fresh-water fish ({Aplodinotus
grunniens}); -- called also {drum}.
(c) The surf fish of California.
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Note: When caught these fishes make a croaking sound; whence
the name, which is often corrupted into crocus.


Drum \Drum\, v. t.
1. To execute on a drum, as a tune.
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2. (With out) To expel ignominiously, with beat of drum; as,
to drum out a deserter or rogue from a camp, etc.
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3. (With up) To assemble by, or as by, beat of drum; to
collect; to gather or draw by solicitation; as, to drum up
recruits; to drum up customers.
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Drum \Drum\, n. [Cf. D. trom, trommel, LG. trumme, G. trommel,
Dan. tromme, Sw. trumma, OHG. trumba a trumpet, Icel. pruma a
clap of thunder, and as a verb, to thunder, Dan. drum a
booming sound, drumme to boom; prob. partly at least of
imitative origin; perh. akin to E. trum, or trumpet.]
1. (Mus.) An instrument of percussion, consisting either of a
hollow cylinder, over each end of which is stretched a
piece of skin or vellum, to be beaten with a stick; or of
a metallic hemisphere (kettledrum) with a single piece of
skin to be so beaten; the common instrument for marking
time in martial music; one of the pair of tympani in an
orchestra, or cavalry band.
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The drums cry bud-a-dub. --Gascoigne.
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2. Anything resembling a drum in form; as:
(a) A sheet iron radiator, often in the shape of a drum,
for warming an apartment by means of heat received
from a stovepipe, or a cylindrical receiver for steam,
etc.
(b) A small cylindrical box in which figs, etc., are
packed.
(c) (Anat.) The tympanum of the ear; -- often, but
incorrectly, applied to the tympanic membrane.
(d) (Arch.) One of the cylindrical, or nearly cylindrical,
blocks, of which the shaft of a column is composed;
also, a vertical wall, whether circular or polygonal
in plan, carrying a cupola or dome.
(e) (Mach.) A cylinder on a revolving shaft, generally for
the purpose of driving several pulleys, by means of
belts or straps passing around its periphery; also,
the barrel of a hoisting machine, on which the rope or
chain is wound.
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3. (Zool.) See {Drumfish}.
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4. A noisy, tumultuous assembly of fashionable people at a
private house; a rout. [Archaic]
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Not unaptly styled a drum, from the noise and
emptiness of the entertainment. --Smollett.
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Note: There were also drum major, rout, tempest, and
hurricane, differing only in degrees of multitude and
uproar, as the significant name of each declares.
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5. A tea party; a kettledrum. --G. Eliot.
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{Bass drum}. See in the Vocabulary.

{Double drum}. See under {Double}.
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Drum \Drum\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Drummed}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Drumming}.]
1. To beat a drum with sticks; to beat or play a tune on a
drum.
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2. To beat with the fingers, as with drumsticks; to beat with
a rapid succession of strokes; to make a noise like that
of a beaten drum; as, the ruffed grouse drums with his
wings.
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Drumming with his fingers on the arm of his chair.
--W. Irving.
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3. To throb, as the heart. [R.] --Dryden.
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4. To go about, as a drummer does, to gather recruits, to
draw or secure partisans, customers, etc,; -- with for.
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Drumfish \Drum"fish`\, n. (Zool.)
Any fish of the family {Sci[ae]nid[ae]}, which makes a loud
noise by means of its air bladder; -- called also {drum}.
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Note: The common drumfish ({Pogonias chromis}) is a large
species, common south of New Jersey. The southern red
drum or red horse ({Sci[ae]na ocellata}), and the
fresh-water drum or croaker ({Aplodionotus grunniens}),
are related species.
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