Adjacent Words

S definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

S, the nineteenth letter of the English Alphabet, is a sibilant articulation, and numbered among the semi-vowels. It represents the hissing made by driving the breath between the end of the tongue and the roof of the mouth, just above the upper teeth. It has two uses; one to express a mere hissing, as in Sabbath, sack, sin, this, thus; the other a vocal hissing, precisely like that of z, as in muse, wise, pronounced muze, wize. It generally has its hissing sound at the beginning of all proper English words, but in the middle and end of words, its sound is to be known only by usage. In a few words it is silent, as in isle and viscount.
In abbreviations, S. stands for societas, society, or socius, fellow; as F.R.S. fellow of the Royal Society. In medical prescriptions, S.A. signifies secundem artem, according to the rules of art.
In the notes of the ancients, S. stands for Sextus; SP. for Spurius; S.C. for senatus consultum; S.P.Q.R. for senatus populusque Romanus; S.S.S. for stratum super stratum, one layer above another alternately; S.V.B.E.E.Q.V. for sivales, bene est, ego quoque valeo.
As a numeral, S. denoted seven. In the Italian music, S. signifies solo. In books of navigation and in common usage, S. stands for south; S.E. for south-east; S.W. for south-west; S.S.E. for south south-east; S.S.W. for south south-west, etc.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: 1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites [syn: second, sec, s]
2: an abundant tasteless odorless multivalent nonmetallic element; best known in yellow crystals; occurs in many sulphide and sulphate minerals and even in native form (especially in volcanic regions) [syn: sulfur, S, sulphur, atomic number 16]
3: the cardinal compass point that is at 180 degrees [syn: south, due south, southward, S]
4: a unit of conductance equal to the reciprocal of an ohm [syn: mho, siemens, reciprocal ohm, S]
5: the 19th letter of the Roman alphabet [syn: S, s]
6: (thermodynamics) a thermodynamic quantity representing the amount of energy in a system that is no longer available for doing mechanical work; "entropy increases as matter and energy in the universe degrade to an ultimate state of inert uniformity" [syn: randomness, entropy, S]

Merriam Webster's

I. verb Etymology: contraction of is, has, does Date: 1584 1. a. is <she's here> b. was <when's the last time you ate?> 2. has <he's seen them> 3. does <what's he want?> II. pronoun Etymology: by contraction Date: 1588 us — used with let <let's>

Merriam Webster's

I. abbreviation 1. satisfactory 2. short 3. standard deviation of a sample 4. svedberg II. symbol sulfur

Merriam Webster's

I. noun (plural s's or ss) Usage: often capitalized, often attributive Date: before 12th century 1. a. the 19th letter of the English alphabet b. a graphic representation of this letter c. a speech counterpart of orthographic s 2. a graphic device for reproducing the letter s 3. one designated s especially as the 19th in order or class 4. [abbreviation for satisfactory] a. a grade rating a student's work as satisfactory b. one graded or rated with an S 5. something shaped like the letter S II. abbreviation 1. sabbath 2. saint 3. schilling 4. scruple 5. second; secondary 6. section 7. senate 8. series 9. shilling 10. [L signa] label 11. siemens 12. signor 13. sine 14. singular 15. small 16. smooth 17. snow 18. society 19. son 20. sou 21. subject 22. symmetrical

Britannica Concise

Armed squads of Italian Fascists under B. Mussolini, who wore black shirts as part of their uniform. The squads, first organized in 1919, targeted socialists, communists, republicans, and others. Hundreds of people were killed as the squads grew in number. In 1922 Blackshirts from all over Italy participated in the March on Rome. In 1923 the private Blackshirts were officially transformed into a national militia. With Mussolini's fall in 1943, the Blackshirts fell into disgrace.

Britannica Concise

In law, the money awarded to a party in a civil suit as reparation for the loss or injury for which another is liable. The theory of an award of damages in a personal-injury or other tort case is that injured parties should be placed in the position they would have been in if the injury had not occurred, so far as this can be accomplished with a monetary award. Where the legal wrong at issue is the breach of a contract, the goal of the damages remedy is to give the injured parties the benefit they would have received had the contract been performed. More than one type of damages (e.g., direct, incidental, and punitive) may be awarded for a single injury.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. n. (also s) (pl. Ss or S's) 1 the nineteenth letter of the alphabet. 2 an S-shaped object or curve. 2. abbr. (also S.) 1 Saint. 2 siemens. 3 Society. 4 South, Southern. 3. symb. Chem. the element sulphur.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

S S ([e^]s), the nineteenth letter of the English alphabet, is a consonant, and is often called a sibilant, in allusion to its hissing sound. It has two principal sounds; one a mere hissing, as in sack, this; the other a vocal hissing (the same as that of z), as in is, wise. Besides these it sometimes has the sounds of sh and zh, as in sure, measure. It generally has its hissing sound at the beginning of words, but in the middle and at the end of words its sound is determined by usage. In a few words it is silent, as in isle, d['e]bris. With the letter h it forms the digraph sh. See Guide to pronunciation, [sect][sect] 255-261. Note: Both the form and the name of the letter S are derived from the Latin, which got the letter through the Greek from the Ph[ae]nician. The ultimate origin is Egyptian. S is etymologically most nearly related to c, z, t, and r; as, in ice, OE. is; E. hence, OE. hennes; E. rase, raze; erase, razor; that, G. das; E. reason, F. raison, L. ratio; E. was, were; chair, chaise (see C, Z, T, and R.).