Adjacent Words

Candle definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CANDLE, n.
1. A long, but small cylindrical body of tallow, wax or spermaceti, formed on a wick composed of linen or cotton threads, twisted loosely; used for a portable light of domestic use.
2. A light.
3. A light; a luminary. In scripture, the candle of the Lord is the divine favor and blessing, Job 14. 3.; or the conscience or understanding. Prov
20:27.
Excommunication by inch of candle, is when the offender is allowed time to repent, while a candle burns, and is then excommunicated.
Sale by inch of candle, is an auction in which persons are allowed to bid, only till a small piece of candle burns out.
Medicated candle, in medicine, a bougie.
Rush-candles are used in some countries; they are made of the pith of certain rushes, peeled except on one side, and dipped in grease.
CANDLE-BERRY TREE, n. The Maraca cerifera, or wax-bearing myrtle; a shrub common in North America, from the berries of which a kind of wax or oil is procured, of which candles are made. The oil is obtained by boiling the berries in water; the oil rising to the surface is skimmed of, and when cool, is of the consistence of wax, and of a dull green color. In popular language, this is called bayberry tallow.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: stick of wax with a wick in the middle [syn: candle, taper, wax light]
2: the basic unit of luminous intensity adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites; equal to 1/60 of the luminous intensity per square centimeter of a black body radiating at the temperature of 2,046 degrees Kelvin [syn: candle, candela, cd, standard candle] v
1: examine eggs for freshness by holding them against a light

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English candel, from Old English, from Latin candela, from cand?re Date: before 12th century 1. a usually molded or dipped mass of wax or tallow containing a wick that may be burned (as to give light, heat, or scent or for celebration or votive purposes) 2. something resembling a candle in shape or use <a sulfur candle for fumigating> 3. required effort, expense, or trouble — usually used in the phrase not worth the candle 4. candela II. transitive verb (candled; candling) Date: 1879 to examine by holding between the eye and a light; especially to test (eggs) in this way for staleness, blood clots, fertility, and growth • candler noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a cylinder or block of wax or tallow with a central wick, for giving light when burning. 2 = CANDLEPOWER. --v.tr. test (an egg) for freshness by holding it to the light. Phrases and idioms: cannot hold a candle to cannot be compared with; is much inferior to. not worth the candle not justifying the cost or trouble. Derivatives: candler n. Etymology: OE candel f. L candela f. candere shine

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Candle Can"dle, n. [OE. candel, candel, AS, candel, fr. L. candela a (white) light made of wax or tallow, fr. cand["e]re to be white. See Candid, and cf. Chandler, Cannel, Kindle.] 1. A slender, cylindrical body of tallow, containing a wick composed of loosely twisted linen of cotton threads, and used to furnish light. How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a naughty world. --Shak. Note: Candles are usually made by repeatedly dipping the wicks in the melted tallow, etc. (``dipped candles''), or by casting or running in a mold. 2. That which gives light; a luminary. By these blessed candles of the night. --Shak. Candle nut, the fruit of a euphorbiaceous shrub (Aleurites triloba), a native of some of the Pacific islands; -- socalled because, when dry, it will burn with a bright flame, and is used by the natives as a candle. The oil has many uses. Candle power (Photom.), illuminating power, as of a lamp, or gas flame, reckoned in terms of the light of a standard candle. Electric candle, A modification of the electric arc lamp, in which the carbon rods, instead of being placed end to end, are arranged side by side, and at a distance suitable for the formation of the arc at the tip; -- called also, from the name of the inventor, Jablockoff candle. Excommunication by inch of candle, a form of excommunication in which the offender is allowed time to repent only while a candle burns. Not worth the candle, not worth the cost or trouble. Rush candle, a candle made of the pith of certain rushes, peeled except on one side, and dipped in grease. Sale by inch of candle, an auction in which persons are allowed to bid only till a small piece of candle burns out. Standard candle (Photom.), a special form of candle employed as a standard in photometric measurements; usually, a candle of spermaceti so constructed as to burn at the rate of 120 grains, or 7.8 grams, per hour. To curse by bell, book and candle. See under Bell.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(candles) 1. A candle is a stick of hard wax with a piece of string called a wick through the middle. You light the wick in order to give a steady flame that provides light. The bedroom was lit by a single candle. N-COUNT 2. If you burn the candle at both ends, you try to do too many things in too short a period of time so that you have to stay up very late at night and get up very early in the morning to get them done. PHRASE: V inflects

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Heb. ner, Job 18:6; 29:3; Ps. 18:28; Prov. 24:20, in all which places the Revised Version and margin of Authorized Version have "lamp," by which the word is elsewhere frequently rendered. The Hebrew word denotes properly any kind of candle or lamp or torch. It is used as a figure of conscience (Prov. 20:27), of a Christian example (Matt. 5:14, 15), and of prosperity (Job 21:17; Prov. 13:9).

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Taper, light.

Moby Thesaurus

ASA scale, Agnus Dei, British candle, Hefner candle, Holy Grail, Host, Pieta, Sanctus bell, Sangraal, Scheiner scale, ark, asperger, asperges, aspergillum, bambino, bayberry candle, beadroll, beads, bougie, bougie decimale, candle lumen, candle power, candle-foot, candle-hour, candle-meter, censer, chaplet, ciborium, corpse candle, cross, crucifix, cruet, decimal candle, dip, electric light bulb, eucharistial, exposure meter, farthing dip, fire, flame, flux, holy cross, holy water, holy-water sprinkler, icon, illuminant, illuminator, incandescent body, incensory, intensity, international candle, lamp, lamp-hour, lantern, light, light bulb, light meter, light quantum, light source, lumen, lumen meter, lumen-hour, lumeter, luminant, luminary, luminous flux, luminous intensity, luminous power, lux, match, matzo, menorah, mezuzah, mikvah, monstrance, moon, osculatory, ostensorium, paschal candle, pax, photon, phylacteries, prayer shawl, prayer wheel, pyx, quantum, relics, rood, rosary, rush candle, rushlight, sacramental, sacred relics, sacring bell, shofar, source of light, stars, sukkah, sun, tabernacle, tallith, tallow candle, tallow dip, taper, thurible, torch, unit of flux, unit of light, urceole, veronica, vigil light, votary candle, votive candle, wax candle