Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary

SPOUSE — SPURN

SPOUSE, n. [L., to engage.] One engaged or joined in wedlock; a married person, husband or wife. We say of a man, that he is the spouse of such a woman; or of a woman, she is the spouse of such a man.

SPOUSE, v.t. To wed; to espouse. [Little used. See Espouse.]

SPOUSED, pp. Wedded; joined in marriage; married; but seldom used. The word used in lieu of it is espoused.

SPOUSELESS, a. Destitute of a husband or of a wife; as a spouseless king or queen.

SPOUT, n. [G., to spit, and spotten is to mock, banter, sport. These are of one family; spout retaining nearly the primary and literal meaning. See Bud and Pout.]

1. A pipe, or a projecting mouth of a vessel, useful in directing the stream of a liquid poured out; as the spout of a pitcher, of a tea pot or water pot.

2. A pipe conducting water from another pipe, or from a trough on a house.

3. A violent discharge of water raised in a column at sea, like a whirlwind, or by a whirlwind. [See Water-spout.]

SPOUT, v.t.

1. To throw out, as liquids through a narrow orifice or pipe; as, an elephant spouts water from his trunk.

Next on his belly floats the mighty whale--He spouts the tide.

2. To throw out words with affected gravity; to mouth.

SPOUT, v.i. To issue with violence, as a liquid through a narrow orifice or from a spout; as, water spouts from a cask or a spring; blood spouts from a vein.

All the glittering hill is bright with spouting rills.

SPOUTED, pp. Thrown in a stream from a pipe or narrow orifice.

SPOUTING, ppr. Throwing in a stream from a pipe or narrow opening; pouring out words violently or affectedly.

SPOUTING, n. The act of throwing out, as a liquid from a narrow opening; a violent or affected speech; a harangue.

SPRAG, a. Vigorous; sprightly. [Local.] [Note. In America, this word is, in popular language, pronounced spry, which is a contraction of spright, in sprightly.]

SPRAG, n. A young salmon. [Local.]

SPRAIN, v.t. To overstrain the ligaments of a joint; to stretch the ligaments so as to injure them, but without luxation or dislocation.

SPRAIN, n. An excessive strain of the ligaments of a joint without dislocation.

SPRAINED, pp. Injured by excessive straining.

SPRAINING, ppr. Injuring by excessive extension.

SPRAINTS, n. The dung of an otter.

SPRANG, pret. of spring; but sprung is more generally used.

SPRAT, n. A small fish of the species Clupea.

SPRAWL, v.i. [The origin and affinities of this word are uncertain. It may be a contracted word.]

1. To spread and stretch the body carelessly in a horizontal position; to lie with the limbs stretched out or struggling. We say, a person lies sprawling; or he sprawls on the be or on the ground.

2. To move, when lying down, with awkward extension and motions of the limbs; to scrabble or scramble in creeping.

The birds were not fledged; but in sprawling and struggling to get clear of the flame, down they tumbled.

3. To widen or open irregularly, as a body of horse.

SPRAWLING, ppr.

1. Lying with the limbs awkwardly stretched; creeping with awkward motions; struggling with contorsion of the limbs.

2. Widening or opening irregularly, as cavalry.

SPRAY, n. [probably allied to sprig. The radical sense is a shoot.]

1. A small shoot or branch; or the extremity of a branch. Hence in England, spray faggots are bundles of small branches, used as fuel.

2. Among seamen, the water that is driven from the top of a wave in a storm, which spreads and flies in small particles. It differs from spoon-drift; as spray is only occasional, whereas spoon-drift flies continually along the surface of the sea.

SPREAD, SPRED, v.t. pret. and pp. spread or spred. [G., to spread. The more correct orthography is spred.]

1. To extend in length and breadth, or in breadth only; to stretch or expand to a broader surface; as, to spread a carpet or a table cloth; to spread a sheet on the ground.

2. To extend; to form into a plate; as, to spread silver. Jeremiah 10:9.

3. To set; to place; to pitch; as, to spread a tent. Genesis 33:19.

4. To cover by extending something; to reach every part.

And an unusual paleness spreads her face.

5. To extend; to shoot to a greater length in every direction, so as to fill or cover a wider space.

The stately trees fast spread their branches.

6. To divulge; to propagate; to publish; as news or fame; to cause to be more extensively know; as, to spread a report.

In this use the word is sometimes accompanied with abroad.

They, when they had departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country. Matthew 9:31.

7. To propagate; to cause to affect greater numbers; as, to spread a disease.

8. To emit; to diffuse; as emanations or effluvia; as, odoriferous plants spread their fragrance.

9. To disperse; to scatter over a larger surface; as, to spread manure; to spread plaster or lime on the ground.

10. To prepare; to set and furnish with provision; as, to spread a table. God spread a table for the Israelites in the wilderness.

11. To open; to unfold; to unfurl; to stretch; as, to spread the sails of a ship.

SPREAD, SPRED, v.i.

1. To extend itself in length and breadth, in all directions, or in breadth only; to be extended or stretched. The larger elms spread over a space of forty or fifty yards in diameter; or the shade of the larger elms spreads over that space. The larger lakes in America spread over more than fifteen hundred square miles.

Plants, if they spread much, are seldom tall.

2. To be extended by drawing or beating; as, a metal spreads with difficulty.

3. To be propagated or made known more extensively. Ill reports sometimes spread with wonderful rapidity.

4. To be propagated from one to another; as, a disease spreads into all parts of a city. The yellow fever of American cities has not been found to spread in the country.

SPREAD, SPRED, n.

1. Extent; compass.

I have a fine spread of improvable land.

2. Expansion of parts.

No flower has that spread of the woodbind.

SPREADER, SPREDDER, n.

1. One that spreads, extends, expands or propagates; as a spreader of disease.

2. One that divulges one that causes to be more generally know; a publisher; as a spreader of news or reports.

SPREADING, SPREDDING, ppr.

1. Extending; expanding; propagating; divulging; dispersing; diffusing.

2. a. Extending or extended over a large space; wide; as the spreading oak.

Gov. Winthrop and his associates at Charleston had for a church a large spreading tree.

SPREADING, SPREDDING, n. The act of extending, dispersing or propagating.

SPRENT, pp. Sprinkled. [See Sprinkle.]

SPRIG, n.

1. A small shoot or twig of a tree or other plant; a spray; as a sprig of laurel or of parsely.

2. A brad, or nail without a head. [Local.]

3. The representation of a small branch in embroidery.

4. A small eye-bolt ragged at the point.

SPRIG, v.t. To mark or adorn with the representation of small branches; to work with sprigs; as, to sprig muslin.

SPRIG-CRYSTAL, n. Crystal found in the form of a hexangular column, adhering to the stone, and terminating at the other end in a point.

SPRIGGED, pp. Wrought with representations of small twigs.

SPRIGGING, ppr. Working with sprigs.

SPRIGGY, a. Full of sprigs or small branches.

SPRIGHT, SPRITE, n. [G., spirit. It should be written sprite.]

1. A spirit; a shade; a soul; an incorporeal agent.

Forth he calld, out of deep darkness dread, legions of sprights.

And gaping graves receivd the guilty spright.

2. A walking spirit; an apparition.

3. Power which gives cheerfulness or courage.

Hold thou my heart, establish thou mu sprights. [Not in use.]

4. An arrow. [Not in use.]

SPRIGHT, v.t. To haunt, as a spright. [Not used.]

SPRIGHTFUL, a. [This word seems to be formed from the root of sprag, a local word, pronounced in America spry. It belongs to the family of spring and sprig.] Lively; brisk; nimble; vigorous; gay.

Spoke like a sprightful noble gentleman.

Steeds sprightful as the light.

[This word is little used in America. We use sprightly in the same sense.]

SPRIGHTFULLY, adv. Briskly; vigorously.

SPRIGHTFULNESS, n. Briskness; liveliness; vivacity.

SPRIGHTLESS, a. Destitute of life; dull; sluggish; as virtues sprightless cold.

SPRIGHTLINESS, n. [from sprightly.] Liveliness; life; briskness; vigor; activity; gayety; vivacity.

In dreams, with what sprightliness and alacrity does the soul exert herself.

SPRIGHTLY, a. Lively; brisk; animated; vigorous; airy; gay; as a sprightly youth; a sprightly air; a sprightly dance.

The sprightly Sylvia trips along the green.

And sprightly wit and love inspires.

SPRING, v.i. pret. sprung, [sprang, not wholly obsolete;] pp. sprung.

1. To vegetate and rise out of the ground; to begin to appear; as vegetables.

To satisfy the desolate ground, and cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth. Job 38:27.

2. To begin to grow.

The teeth of the young not sprung--

3. To proceed, as from the seed or cause.

Much more good of sin shall spring.

4. To arise; to appear; to begin to appear or exist.

When the day began to spring, they let her go. Judges 19:25.

Do not blast my springing hopes.

5. To break forth; to issue into sight or notice.

O spring to light; auspicious babe, be born.

6. To issue or proceed, as from ancestors or from a country. Aaron and Moses sprung from Levi.

7. To proceed, as from a cause, reason, principle, or other original. The noblest title springs from virtue.

They found new hope to spring out of despair.

8. To grow; to thrive.

What makes all this but Jupiter the king, at whose command we perish and we spring.

9. To proceed or issue, as from a fountain or source. Water springs from reservoirs in the earth. Rivers spring from lakes or ponds.

10. To leap; to bound; to jump.

The mountain stag that springs from highth to highth, and bounds along the plains--

11. To fly back; to start; as, a bow when bent, springs back by its elastic power.

12. To start or rise suddenly from a covert.

Watchful as fowlers when their game will spring.

13. To shoot; to issue with speed and violence.

And sudden light sprung through the vaulted roof--

14. To bend or wind from a straight direction or plane surface. Our mechanics say, a piece of timber or a plank springs in seasoning.

To spring at, to leap towards; to attempt to reach by a leap.

To spring in, to rush in; to enter with a leap or in haste.

To spring forth, to leap out; to rush out.

To spring on or upon, to leap on; to rush on with haste or violence; to assault.

SPRING, v.t.

1. To start or rouse, as game; to cause to rise from the earth or from a covert; as, to spring a pheasant.

2. To produce quickly or unexpectedly.

The nurse, surprisd with fright, starts up and leaves her bed, and springs a light.

[I have never heard such an expression.]

3. To start; to contrive or to produce or propose on a sudden; to produce unexpectedly.

The friends to the cause sprang a new project.

[In lieu of spring, the people int he United States generally use start; to start a new project.]

4. To cause to explode; as, to spring a mine.

5. To burst; to cause to open; as, to spring a leak. When it is said, a vessel has sprung a leak, the meaning is, the leak has then commenced.

6. To crack; as, to spring a mast or a yard.

7. To cause to close suddenly, as the parts of a trap; as, to spring a trap.

To spring a butt, in seamens language, to loosen the end of a plank in a ships bottom.

To spring the luff, when a vessel yields to the helm, and sails nearer to the wind than before.

To spring a fence, for to leap a fence, is not a phrase used in this country.

To spring an arch, to set off, begin or commence an arch from an abutment or pier.

SPRING, n.

1. A leap; a bound; a jump; as of an animal.

The prisner with a spring from prison broke.

2. A flying back; the resilience of a body recovering its former state by its elasticity; as the spring of a bow.

3. Elastic power or force. The soul or the mind requires relaxation, that it may recover its natural spring.

Heavns, what a spring was in his arm.

4. An elastic body; a body which, when bent or forced from its natural state, has the power of recovering it; as the spring of a watch or clock.

5. Any active power; that by which action or motion is produced or propagated.

--Like nature letting down the springs of life.

Our author shuns by vulgar springs to move the heros glory--

6. A fountain of water; an issue of water from the earth, or the basin of water at the place of its issue. Springs are temporary or perennial. From springs proceed rivulets, and rivulets united form rivers. Lakes and ponds are usually fed by springs.

7. The place where water usually issues from the earth, though no water is there. Thus we say, a spring is dry.

8. A source; that from which supplies are drawn. The real Christian has in his own breast a perpetual and inexhaustible spring of joy.

The sacred spring whence right and honor stream.

9. Rise; original; as the spring of the day. 1 Samuel 9:26.

10. Cause; original. The springs of great events are often concealed from common observation.

11. The season of the year when plants begin to vegetate and rise; the vernal season. This season comprehends the months of March, April and May, in the middle latitudes north of the equator.

12. In seamens language, a crack in a mast or yard, running obliquely or transversely. [In the sense of leak, I believe it is not used.]

13. A rope passed out of a ships stern and attached to a cable proceeding from her bow, when she is at anchor. It is intended to bring her broadside to bear upon some object. A spring is also a rope extending diagonally from the stern of one ship to the head of another, to make on ship sheer off to a greater distance.

14. A plant; a shoot; a young tree. [Not in use.]

15. A youth. [Not in use.]

16. A hand; a shoulder of pork. [Not in use.]

SPRINGAL, n. A youth. [Not in use.]

SPRING-BOK, n. An African animal of the antelope kind.

SPRINGE, n. [from spring.] A gin; a noose; which being fastened to an elastic body, is drawn close with a sudden spring, by which means it catches a bird.

SPRINGE, v.t. To catch in a springe; to ensnare.

SPRINGER, n.

1. One who springs; one that rouses game.

2. A name given to the grampus.

3. In architecture, the rib of a groin or concentrated vault.

SPRING-HALT, n. [spring and halt.] A kind of lameness in which a horse twitches up his legs.

SPRING-HEAD, n. A fountain or source. [Useless.]

SPRINGINESS, n. [from springy.]

1. Elasticity; also, the power of springing.

2. The state of abounding with springs; wetness; spunginess; as of land.

SPRINGING, ppr. Arising; shooting up; leaping; proceeding; rousing.

Sprining use, in law, a contingent use; a use which may arise upon a contingency.

SPRINGING, n.

1. The act or process of leaping, arising, issuing or proceeding.

2. Growth; increase. Psalm 65:10.

3. In building, the side of an arch contiguous to the part on which it rests.

SPRINGLE, n. A springe; a noose. [Not in use.]

SPRING-TIDE, n. [spring and tide.] The tide which happens at or soon after the new and full moon, which rises higher than common tides.

SPRING-WHEAT, n. [spring and wheat.] A species of wheat to be sown in the spring; so called in distinction from winter wheat.

SPRINGY, a. [from spring.]

1. Elastic; possessing the power of recovering itself when bent or twisted.

2. Having great elastic power.

3. Having the power to leap; able to leap far.

4. Abounding with springs or fountains; wet; spungy; as springy land.

SPRINKLE, v.t. [G., L.]

1. To scatter; to disperse; as a liquid or a dry substance composed of fine separable particles; to besprinkle; as, to sprinkle the earth with water; to sprinkle a floor with sand; to sprinkle paper with iron filings.

2. To scatter on; to disperse on in small drops or particles; to besprinkle; as, to sprinkle the earth with water; to sprinkle a floor with sand; to sprinkle paper with iron filings.

3. To wash; to cleanse; to purify.

Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience. Hebrews 10:22.

SPRINKLE, v.t.

1. To perform the act of scattering a liquid or any fine substance, so that it may fall in small particles.

The priest shall sprinkle of the oil with his fingers. Leviticus 14:16.

Baptism may well enough be performed by sprinkling or effusion of water.

2. To rain moderately; as it sprinkles.

SPRINKLE, n. A small quantity scattered; also, an utensil for sprinkling.

SPRINKLED, pp.

1. Dispersed in small particles, as a liquid or as dust.

2. Having a liquid or a fine substance scattered over.

SPRINKLER, n. One that sprinkles.

SPRINKLING, ppr.

1. Dispersing, as a liquid or as dust.

2. Scattering on, in fine drops or particles.

SPRINKLING, n.

1. The act of scattering in small drops or parcels.

2. A small quantity falling in distinct drops or parts, or coming moderately; as a sprinkling of rain or snow.

SPRIT, v.t. [G.] To throw out with force from a narrow orifice; to eject; to spirt. [Not in use. See Spurt.]

SPRIT, n.

1. A shoot; a sprout.

2. A small boom, pole or spar which crosses the sail of a boat diagonally from the mast to the upper aftmost corner, which it is used to extend and elevate.

SPRITE, n. A spirit.

SPRITEFUL. [See Sprightful.]

SPRITEFULLY. [See Sprightfully.]

SPRITELINESS. [See Sprightliness.]

SPRITELY. [See Sprightly.]

SPRIT-SAIL, n. [sprit and sail.]

1. The sail extended by a sprit.

2. A sail attached to a yard which hangs under the bowsprit.

SPROD, n. A salmon in its second year.

SPRONG, old pret. of spring. [Not in use.]

SPROUT, v.i. [G.]

1. To shoot, as the seed of a plant; to germinate; to push out new shoots. A grain that sprouts in ordinary temperature in ten days, may by an augmentation of heat be made to sprout in forty eight hours. The stumps of trees often sprout, and produce a new forest. Potatoes will sprout and produce a crop, although pared and deprived all their buds or eyes.

2. To shoot into ramifications.

Vitriol is apt to sprout with moisture.

3. To grow, like shoots of plants.

And on the ashes sprouting plumes appear.

SPROUT, n.

1. The shoot of a plant; a shoot from the seed or from the stump or from the root of a plant or tree. The sprouts of the cane, in Jamaica are called ratoons.

2. A shoot from the end of a branch. The young shoots of shrubs are called sprouts, and in the forest often furnish browse of cattle.

SPROUTS, n. plu. Young coleworts.

SPRUCE, a. Nice; trim; neat without elegance or dignity; formerly applied to things with a serious meaning; now applied to persons only.

He is so spruce, that he never can be genteel.

SPRUCE, v.t. To trim; to dress with great neatness.

SPRUCE, v.i. To dress ones self with affected neatness.

SPRUCE, n. The fir-tree; a name given to a species of evergreen, the Pinus nigra, which is used in families to give flavor to beer. It is used by way of decoction, or in the essence.

SPRUCE-BEER, n. A kind of beer which is tinctured with spruce, either by means of the essence or by decoction.

SPRUCELY, adv. With extreme or affected neatness.

SPRUCENESS, n. Neatness without taste or elegance; trimness; fineness; quaintness.

SPRUE, n.

1. A matter formed in the mouth in certain diseases.

2. In Scotland, that which is thrown off in casting metals; scoria.

SPRUG, v.t. To make smart. [Not in use.]

SPRUNG, pret. and pp. of spring. The man sprung over the ditch; the mast is sprung; a hero sprung from a race of kings.

SPRUNT, v.i. To spring up; to germinate; to spring forward. [Not in use.]

SPRUNTLY, adv. Vigorously; youthfully; like a young man. [Not in use.]

SPRY, a. Having great power of leaping or running; nimble; active; vigorous. [This word is in common use in New England, and is doubtless a contraction of sprig. See Sprightly.]

SPUD, n.

1. A short knife. [Little used.]

2. Any short thing; in contempt.

3. A tool of the fork kind, used by farmers.

SPUD, v.t. To dig or loosen the earth with a spud. [Local.]

SPUME, n. [L.] Froth; foam; scum; frothy matter raised on liquors or fluid substances by boiling, effervescence or agitation.

SPUME, v.i. To froth; to foam.

SPUMESCENCE, n. Frothiness; the state of foaming.

SPUMOUS, SPUMY, a. [L.] Consisting of froth or scum; foamy.

The spumy waves proclaim the watry war.

The spumous and florid state of the blood.

SPUN, pret. and pp. of spin.

SPUNGE, n. [L., Gr.]

1. A porous marine substance, found adhering to rocks, shells, etc. Under water, and on rocks about the shore at low water. It is generally supposed to be of animal origin, and consists of a fibrous reticulated substance, covered by a soft gelatinous matter, but in which no polypes have hitherto been observed. It is so porous as to imbibe a great quantity of water, and is used for various purposes in the arts and in surgery.

2. In gunnery, an instrument for cleaning cannon after a discharge. It consists of a cylinder of wood, covered with lamb skin. For small guns, it is commonly fixed to one end of the handle of the rammer.

3. In the manege, the extremity or point of a horse-shoe, answering to the heel.

Pyrotechnical spunge, is made of mushrooms or fungi, growing on old oaks, ash, fir, etc. which are boiled in water, dried and beaten, then put in a strong lye prepared with saltpeter, and again dried in an oven. This makes the black match or tinder brought from Germany.

SPUNGE, v.t.

1. To wipe with a wet spunge; as, to spunge a slate.

2. To wipe out with a spunge, as letters or writing.

3. To cleanse with a spunge; as, to spunge a cannon.

4. To wipe out completely; to extinguish or destroy.

SPUNGE, v.i.

1. To suck in or imbibe, as a spunge.

2. To gain by mean arts, by intrusion or hanging on; as an idler who spunges on his neighbor.

SPUNGED, pp. Wiped with a spunge; wiped out; extinguished.

SPUNGER, n. One who uses a spunge; a hanger on.

SPUNGIFORM, a. [spunge and form.] Resembling a spunge; soft and porous; porous.

SPUNGINESS, n. The quality or state of being spungy, or porous like spunge.

SPUNGING-HOUSE, n. A bailiffs house to put debtors in.

SPUNGIOUS, a. Full of small cavities, like a spunge; as spungious bones.

SPUNGY, a.

1. Soft and full of cavities; of an open, loose, pliable texture; as a spungy excrescence; spungy earth; spungy cake; the spungy substance of the lungs.

2. Full of small cavities; as spungy bones.

3. Wet; drenched; soaked and soft, like spunge.

4. Having the quality of imbibing fluids.

SPUN-HAY, n. Hay twisted into ropes for convenient carriage on a military expedition.

SPUNK, n. [probably from punk.]

1. Touchwood; wood that readily takes fire. Hence,

2. Vulgarly, an inflammable temper; spirit; as a man of spunk. Ill natured observations touched his spunk. [Low.]

SPUN-YARN, n. Among seamen, a line or cord formed of two or three rope yarns twisted.

SPUR, n.

1. An instrument having a rowel or little wheel with sharp points, worn on horsemens heels, to prick the horses for hastening their pace.

Girt with rusty sword and spur.

Hence, to set spurs to a horse, is to prick him and put him upon a run.

2. Incitement; instigation. The love of glory is the spur to heroic deeds.

3. The largest or principal root of a tree; hence perhaps, the short wooden buttress of a post; [that is, in both cases, a shoot.]

4. The hard pointed projection on a cocks leg, which serves as an instrument of defense and annoyance.

5. Something that projects; a snag.

6. In America, a mountain that shoots from any other mountain or range of mountains, and extends to some distance in a lateral direction, or at right angles.

7. That which excites. We say, upon the spur of the occasion; that is, the circumstances or emergency which calls for immediate action.

8. A sea swallow.

9. The hinder part of the nectary in certain flowers, shaped like a cocks spur.

10. A morbid shoot or excrescence in grain, particularly in rye.

11. In old fortifications, a wall that crosses a part of the rampart and joins to the town wall.

SPUR, v.t.

1. To prick with spurs; to incite to a more hasty pace; as, to spur a horse.

2. To incite; to instigate; to urge or encourage to action, or to a more vigorous pursuit of an object. Some men are spurred to action by the love of glory, others by the love of power. Let affection spur us to social and domestic duties.

3. To impel; to drive.

Love will not be spurrd to what it lothes.

4. To put spurs on.

Spurs of the beams, in a ship, are curving timbers, serving as half beams to support the deck, where whole beams cannot be used.

SPUR, v.i.

1. To travel with great expedition.

The Parthians shall be there, and spurring from the fight, confess their fear. [Unusual.]

2. To press forward.

Some bold men--by spurring on, refine themselves.

SPURGALL, v.t. [spur and gall.] To gall or wound with a spur.

SPURGALL, n. A place galled or excoriated by much using of the spur.

SPURGALLED, pp. Galled or hurt by a spur; as a spurgalled hackney.

SPURGE, n. [L.] A plant of the genus Euphorbia.

SPURGE-FLAX, n. A plant. [L.]

SPURGE-LAUREL, n. The Daphne laureola, a shrub, a native of Europe.

SPURGE-OLIVE, n. Mezereon, a shrub of the genus Daphne.

SPURGE-WORT, n. A plant. [L.]

SPURGING, for purging, not in use.

SPURIOUS, a. [L.]

1. Not genuine; not proceeding from the true source, or from the source pretended; counterfeit; false; adulterate. Spurious writings are such as are not composed by the authors to whom they are ascribed. Spurious drugs are common. The reformed churches reject spurious ceremonies and traditions.

2. Not legitimate; bastard; as spurious issue. By the laws of England, one begotten and born out of lawful matrimony, is a spurious child.

Spurious disease, a disease not of the genuine type, but bearing a resemblance in its symptoms.

SPURIOUSLY, adv. Counterfeitly; falsely.

SPURIOUSNESS, n.

1. The state or quality of being counterfeit, false or not genuine; as the spuriousness of drugs, of coin or of writings.

2. Illegitimacy; the state of being bastard, or not of legitimate birth; as the spuriousness of issue.

SPURLING, n. A small sea fish.

SPURLING-LINE, n. Among seamen, the line which forms the communication between the wheel and the tell-tale.

SPURN, v.t. [L., spur, kicking.]

1. To kick; to drive back or away, as with the foot.

2. To reject with disdain; to scorn to receive or accept. What multitudes of rational beings spurn the offers of eternal happiness!

3. To treat with contempt.

SPURN, v.i.

1. To manifest disdain in rejecting any thing; as, to spurn at the gracious offers of pardon.

2. To make contemptuous opposition; to manifest disdain in resistance.

Nay more, to spurn at your most royal image.

3. To kick or toss up the heels.

The drunken chairman in the kennel spurns.

SPURN, n. Disdainful rejection; contemptuous treatment.

The insolence of office, and the spurns that patient merit of the unworthy takes.