Adjacent Words

Quaternary definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

QUATERN'ARY, n. [L. quaternarius, from quatuor, four.]
The number four.
QUATERN'ARY, a. Consisting of four.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: consisting of or especially arranged in sets of four; "quaternate leaves"; "a quaternary compound" [syn: quaternate, quaternary]
2: coming next after the third and just before the fifth in position or time or degree or magnitude; "the quaternary period of geologic time extends from the end of the tertiary period to the present" [syn: fourth, 4th, quaternary] n
1: last 2 million years [syn: Quaternary, Quaternary period, Age of Man]
2: the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one [syn: four, 4, IV, tetrad, quatern, quaternion, quaternary, quaternity, quartet, quadruplet, foursome, Little Joe]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Latin quaternarius, from quaterni four each Date: 1605 1. a. of, relating to, or consisting of four units or members b. of, relating to, or being a number system with a base of four 2. capitalized of, relating to, or being the geological period from the end of the Tertiary to the present time or the corresponding system of rocks — see geologic time table 3. consisting of, containing, or being an atom bonded to four other atoms II. noun (plural -ries) Date: 1880 1. capitalized the Quaternary period or system of rocks 2. a member of a group fourth in order or rank

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. & n. --adj. 1 having four parts. 2 (Quaternary) Geol. of or relating to the most recent period in the Cenozoic era with evidence of many species of present-day plants and animals (cf. PLEISTOCENE, HOLOCENE). Usage: Cf. Appendix II. --n. (pl. -ies) 1 a set of four things. 2 (Quaternary) Geol. the Quaternary period or system. Etymology: ME f. L quaternarius f. quaterni distrib. of quattuor four

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Quaternary Qua*ter"na*ry, a. [L. quaternarius consisting of four each, containing four, fr. quaterni four each, fr. quattuor four: cf. F. quaternaire. See Four.] 1. Consisting of four; by fours, or in sets of four. 2. (Geol.) Later than, or subsequent to, the Tertiary; Post-tertiary; as, the Quaternary age, or Age of man.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Quaternary Qua*ter"na*ry, n. [L. numerus quaternarius: cf. F. quaternaire.] 1. The number four. --Boyle. 2. (Geol.) The Quaternary age, era, or formation. See the Chart of Geology.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. Four, fourfold, consisting of four.

Moby Thesaurus

Little Joe, biquadrate, biquadratic, four, four-legged, four-part diaphony, four-rayed, foursome, foursquare, quad, quadrangle, quadrature, quadrennium, quadric, quadrilateral, quadrille, quadrinomial, quadrivalent, quadruped, quadruplet, quartet, quartic, quartile, quatern, quaternion, quaternity, quatrefoil, rectangle, square, square dance, squaring, tetractinal, tetrad, tetragon, tetragram, tetragrammaton, tetrahedron, tetralogy, tetraphony, tetrapody, tetravalent