Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary

UNDERN — UNDIAPHANOUS

UNDERN, n. The third hour of the day, or nine o’clock. [Not in use.]

UNDERNEATH, adv. [under and neath. See Nether.]

Beneath; below; in a lower place.

Or sullen Mole that runneth underneath.

The slate did not lie flat upon it, but left a free passage underneath.

UNDERNEATH, prep. Under; beneath.

Underneath this stone doth lie. As much beauty as could die.

UNDEROFFICER, n. A subordinate officer.

UNDEROGATORY, a. Not derogatory.

UNDERPART, n. A subordinate part.

UNDERPETTICOAT, n. A petticoat worn under a skirt or another petticoat.

UNDERPIN, v.t.

1. To lay stones under the sills of a building, on which it is to rest.

2. To support by some solid foundation; or to place something underneath for support.

UNDERPINNED, pp. Supported by stones or a foundation.

UNDERPINNING, ppr. Placing stones under the sills for support.

UNDERPINNING, n.

1. The act of laying stones under sills.

2. The stones on which a building immediately rests.

UNDERPLOT, n.

1. A series of events in a play, proceeding collaterally with the main story, and subservient to it.

2. A clandestine scheme.

UNDERPRAISE, v.t. s as z. To praise below desert.

UNDERPRIZE, v.t. To value at less than the worth; to undervalue.

UNDERPRIZED, pp. Undervalued.

UNDERPRIZING, ppr. Undervaluing.

UNDERPROP, v.t. To support; to uphold.

And underprop the head that bears the crown.

UNDERPROPORTIONED, a. Having too little proportion.

Scanty and underproportioned returns of civility.

UNDERPULLER, n. An inferior puller. [Not in use.]

UNDERRATE, v.t. To rate too low; to rate below the value; to undervalue.

UNDERRATE, n. A price less than the worth; as, to sell a thing at an underrate.

UNDERRUN, v.t. To pass under in a boat.

To underrun a tackle, to separate its parts and put them in order.

UNDERSATURATED, a. Not fully saturated; a chimical term.

UNDERSAY, v.t. To say by way of derogation or contradiction. [Not in use.]

UNDERSECRETARY, n. A secretary subordinate to the principal secretary.

UNDERSELL, v.t. To sell the same articles at a lower price than another.

UNDERSELLING, ppr. Selling at a lower price.

UNDERSERVANT, n. An inferior servant.

UNDERSET, v.t. To prop; to support.

UNDERSET, n. A current of water below the surface.

UNDERSETTER, n. A prop; a pedestal; a support. 1 Kings 7:30.

UNDERSETTING, ppr. Propping; supporting.

UNDERSETTING, n. The lower part; the pedestal.

UNDER-SHERIFF, n. A sheriff’s deputy.

UNDERSHERIFRY, n. The office of an under-sheriff. [Not in use.]

UNDERSHOT, a. Moved by water passing under the wheel; opposed to overshot; as an undershot mill or mill-wheel.

UNDERSHRUB, n. A low shrub, permanent and woody at the base, but the yearly branches decaying.

UNDERSOIL, n. Soil beneath the surface; subsoil.

UNDERSONG, n. Chorus; burden of a song.

Menalcas shall sustain his undersong.

UNDERSTAND, v.t. pret. and pp. understood. [under and stand. The sense is to support or hold in the mind.]

1. To have just and adequate ideas of; to comprehend; to know; as, to understand a problem in Euclid; to understand a proposition or a declaration.

2. To have the same ideas as the person who speaks, or the ideas which a person intends to communicate. I understood the preacher; the court perfectly understand the advocate or his argument.

3. To receive or have the ideas expressed or intended to be conveyed in a writing or book; to know the meaning. It is important that we should understand the sacred oracles.

4. To know the meaning or signs, or of anything intended to convey ideas; as, to understand a nod, a wink, or a motion.

5. To suppose to mean.

The most learned interpreters understood the words of sin, and not of Abel.

6. To know by experience.

7. To know by instinct.

-Amorous intent, well understood.

8. To interpret, at least mentally.

9. To know another’s meaning.

10. To hold in opinion with conviction.

11. To mean without expressing.

War then, war, open or understood must be resolv’d.

12. To know what is not expressed.

I bring them to receive from thee their names, and pay thee fealty with low subjection; understand the same of fish.

13. To learn; to be informed. I understand that congress have passed the bill.

UNDERSTAND, v.i.

1. To have the use of the intellectual faculties; to be an intelligent and conscious being.

All my soul be imparadis’d in you, in whom alone I understand, and grow, and see.

2. To be informed by another; to learn.

I understood of the evil that Eliashib did. Nehemiah 13:7.

UNDERSTANDABLE, a. That can be understood. [Not much used.]

UNDERSTANDER, n. One who understands or knows by experience. [Little used.]

UNDERSTANDING, ppr.

1. Comprehending; apprehending the ideas or sense of another, or of a writing; learning or being informed.

2. a. Knowing; skillful. He is an understanding man.

UNDERSTANDING, n.

1. The faculty of the human mind by which it apprehends the real state of things presented to it, or by which it receives or comprehends the ideas which others express and intend to communicate. The understanding is called also the intellectual faculty. It is the faculty by means of which we obtain a great part of our knowledge. Luke 24:45; Ephesians 1:18.

By understanding I mean that faculty whereby we are enabled to apprehend the objects of knowledge, generals or particulars, absent or present, and to judge of their truth or falsehood, good or evil.

There is a spirit in man, and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth him understanding. Job 32:8.

2. Knowledge; exact comprehension.

Right understanding consists in the perception of the visible or probably agreement or disagreement of ideas.

3. Intelligence between two or more persons; agreement of minds; union of sentiments. There is a good understanding between the minister and his people.

UNDERSTANDINGLY, adv. Intelligibly; with full knowledge or comprehension of a question or subject; as, to vote upon a question understandingly; to act or judge understandingly.

The gospel may be neglected, but it cannot be understandingly disbelieved.

UNDERSTOOD, pret. and pp. of understand.

UNDERSTRAPPER, n. A petty fellow; an inferior agent.

UNDERSTRATUM, n. Subsoil; the bed or layer of earth on which the old or soil rests.

UNDERSTROKE, v.t. To underline.

UNDERTAKABLE, a. That may be undertaken. [Not in use.]

UNDERTAKE, v.t. pret. undertook; pp. undertaken. [under and take.]

1. To engage in; to enter upon; to take in hand; to begin to perform. When I undertook this work, I had a very inadequate knowledge of the extent of my labors.

2. To covenant or contract to perform or execute. A man undertakes to erect a house, or to make a mile of canal, when he enters into stipulations for that purpose.

3. To attempt; as when a man undertakes what he cannot perform.

4. To assume a character. [Not in use.]

5. To engage with; to attack.

Your lordship should not undertake every companion you offend. [Not in use.]

6. To have the charge of.

- Who undertakes you to your end. [Not in use.]

UNDERTAKE, v.i.

1. To take upon or assume any business or province.

O Lord, I am oppressed; undertake for me. Isaiah 38:14.

2. To venture; to hazard. They dare not undertake.

3. To promise; to be bound.

I dare undertake they will not lose their labor.

To undertake for, to be bound; to become surety for.

UNDERTAKEN, pp. of undertake. The work was undertaken at his own expense.

UNDERTAKER, n.

1. One who undertakes; one who engages in any project or business.

2. One who stipulates or covenants to perform any work for another.

3. One who manages funerals.

UNDERTAKING, ppr. Engaging in; taking in hand; beginning to perform; stipulating to execute.

UNDERTAKING, n. Any business, work or project which a person engages in, or attempts to perform; an enterprise. The canal, or the making of the canal, from the Hudson to lake Erie, a distance of almost four hundred miles, was the greatest undertaking of the kind in modern times. The attempt to find a navigable passage to the Pacific round North America, is a hazardous undertaking, and probably useless to navigation.

UNDERTENANT, n. The tenant of a tenant; one who holds lands or tenements of a tenant.

UNDERTIME, n. Undern-tide; the time after dinner, or in the evening. [Not in use.]

UNDERTOOK, pret. of undertake.

UNDERTREASURER, n. undertrezh’urer. A subordinate treasurer.

UNDERVALUATION, n. The act of valuing below the real worth; rate not equal to the worth.

UNDERVALUE, v.t.

1. To value, rate or estimate below the real worth.

2. To esteem lightly; to treat as of little worth.

In comparison of the discharge of my duties, I undervalued all designs of authority.

3. To despise; to hold in mean estimation.

I write not this with the least intention to undervalue the other parts of poetry.

UNDERVALUE, n. Low rate or price; a price less than the real worth.

UNDERVALUED, pp. Estimated at less than the real worth; slighted; despised.

UNDERVALUER, n. One who esteems lightly.

UNDERVALUING, ppr. Estimating at less than the real worth; slighting; despising.

UNDERWENT, pret. of undergo. He underwent severe trials.

UNDERWOOD, n. Small trees that grow among large trees.

UNDERWORK, n. Subordinate work; petty affairs.

UNDERWORK, v.t.

1. To destroy by clandestine measures.

2. To work or labor upon less than is sufficient or proper.

3. To work at a less price than others in the like employment; as, one mason may underwork another; a shoemaker cannot underwork a joiner.

UNDERWORKER, n. One who underworks; or a subordinate workman.

UNDERWORKING, ppr. Destroying clandestinely; working at a less price than others in the like employment.

UNDERWORKMAN, n. A subordinate workman.

UNDERWRITE, v.t. [See Write.]

1. To write under something else.

The change I have made, I have here underwritten.

2. To subscribe. We whose names are underwritten, agree to pay the sums expressed against your respective names.

3. To subscribe one’s name for insurance; to set one’s name to a policy of insurance, for the purpose of becoming answerable for loss or damage, for a certain premium per cent. Individuals underwrite policies of insurance, as well as companies.

The broker who procures insurance, ought not, by underwriting the policy, to deprive the parties of his unbiased testimony.

UNDERWRITE, v.i. To practice insuring.

UNDERWRITER, n. One who insures; an insurer; so called because he underwrites his name to the conditions of the policy.

UNDERWRITING, ppr.

1. Writing under something.

2. Subscribing a policy; insuring.

UNDERWRITING, n. The act or practice of insuring ships, goods, houses, etc.

UNDERWRITTEN, pp. Written under; subscribed.

UNDESCENDIBLE, a. Not descendible; not capable of descending to heirs.

UNDESCRIBED, a. Not described.

UNDESCRIED, a. Not descried; not discovered; not seen.

UNDESERVED, a. s as z. Not deserved; not merited.

UNDESERVEDLY, adv. Without desert, either good or evil.

UNDESERVEDNESS, n. Want of being worthy.

UNDESERVER, n. One of no merit.

UNDESERVING, a.

1. Not deserving; not having merit. God continually supplies the wants of his undeserving creatures.

2. Not meriting; with of; as a man undeserving of happiness, or of punishment. [This is rather harsh and unusual.]

UNDESERVINGLY, adv. Without meriting any particular advantage or harm.

UNDESIGNED, a. Not designed; not intended; not proceeding from purpose; as, to do an undesigned injury.

UNDESIGNEDLY, adv. Without design or intention.

UNDESIGNEDNESS, n. Freedom from design or set purpose.

UNDESIGNING, a.

1. Not acting with set purpose.

2. Sincere; upright; artless; having no artful or fraudulent purpose. It is base to practice on undesigning minds.

UNDESIRABLE, a. s as z. Not to be desired; not to be wished; not pleasing.

UNDESIRED, a. s as z. Not desired, or not solicited.

UNDESIRING, a. Not desiring; not wishing.

UNDESPAIRING, a. Not yielding to despair.

UNDESTROYABLE, a. Indestructible. [Not in use.]

UNDESTROYED, a. Not destroyed; not wasted; not ruined.

UNDETECTED, a. Not detected; not discovered; not laid open.

UNDETERMINABLE, a. That cannot be determined or decided.

UNDETERMINATE, a. Not determinate; not settled or certain. [But indeterminate is now generally used.]

UNDETERMINATENESS, n. Uncertainty; unsettled state.

UNDETERMINATION, n. Indecision; uncertainty of mind. [See Indetermination, which is chiefly used.]

UNDETERMINED, a.

1. Not determined; not settled; not decided.

2. Not limited; not defined; indeterminate.

UNDETERRED, a. Not deterred; not restrained by fear or obstacles.

UNDETESTING, a. Not detesting; not abhorring.

UNDEVELOPED, a. Not opened or unfolded.

UNDEVIATING, a.

1. Not deviating; not departing from the way, or from a rule, principle or purpose; steady; regular; as an undeviating course of virtue.