catflap.org Online Dictionary Query


Query string:
Search type:
Database:

Database copyright information
Server information


3 definitions found
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 :   [ gcide ]

  Master \Mas"ter\ (m[.a]s"t[~e]r), n. [OE. maistre, maister, OF.
     maistre, mestre, F. ma[^i]tre, fr. L. magister, orig. a
     double comparative from the root of magnus great, akin to Gr.
     me`gas. Cf. Maestro, Magister, Magistrate, Magnitude,
     Major, Mister, Mistress, Mickle.]
     1. A male person having another living being so far subject
        to his will, that he can, in the main, control his or its
        actions; -- formerly used with much more extensive
        application than now.
        (a) The employer of a servant.
        (b) The owner of a slave.
        (c) The person to whom an apprentice is articled.
        (d) A sovereign, prince, or feudal noble; a chief, or one
            exercising similar authority.
        (e) The head of a household.
        (f) The male head of a school or college.
        (g) A male teacher.
        (h) The director of a number of persons performing a
            ceremony or sharing a feast.
        (i) The owner of a docile brute, -- especially a dog or
            horse.
        (j) The controller of a familiar spirit or other
            supernatural being.
            [1913 Webster]
  
     2. One who uses, or controls at will, anything inanimate; as,
        to be master of one's time. --Shak.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Master of a hundred thousand drachms. --Addison.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              We are masters of the sea.            --Jowett
                                                    (Thucyd.).
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. One who has attained great skill in the use or application
        of anything; as, a master of oratorical art.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Great masters of ridicule.            --Macaulay.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              No care is taken to improve young men in their own
              language, that they may thoroughly understand and be
              masters of it.                        --Locke.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     4. A title given by courtesy, now commonly pronounced
        m[i^]ster, except when given to boys; -- sometimes written
        Mister, but usually abbreviated to Mr.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     5. A young gentleman; a lad, or small boy.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Where there are little masters and misses in a
              house, they are impediments to the diversions of the
              servants.                             --Swift.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     6. (Naut.) The commander of a merchant vessel; -- usually
        called captain. Also, a commissioned officer in the navy
        ranking next above ensign and below lieutenant; formerly,
        an officer on a man-of-war who had immediate charge, under
        the commander, of sailing the vessel.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     7. A person holding an office of authority among the
        Freemasons, esp. the presiding officer; also, a person
        holding a similar office in other civic societies.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     Little masters, certain German engravers of the 16th
        century, so called from the extreme smallness of their
        prints.
  
     Master in chancery, an officer of courts of equity, who
        acts as an assistant to the chancellor or judge, by
        inquiring into various matters referred to him, and
        reporting thereon to the court.
  
     Master of arts, one who takes the second degree at a
        university; also, the degree or title itself, indicated by
        the abbreviation M. A., or A. M.
  
     Master of the horse, the third great officer in the British
        court, having the management of the royal stables, etc. In
        ceremonial cavalcades he rides next to the sovereign.
  
     Master of the rolls, in England, an officer who has charge
        of the rolls and patents that pass the great seal, and of
        the records of the chancery, and acts as assistant judge
        of the court. --Bouvier. --Wharton.
  
     Past master,
        (a) one who has held the office of master in a lodge of
            Freemasons or in a society similarly organized.
        (b) a person who is unusually expert, skilled, or
            experienced in some art, technique, or profession; --
            usually used with at or of.
  
     The old masters, distinguished painters who preceded modern
        painters; especially, the celebrated painters of the 16th
        and 17th centuries.
  
     To be master of one's self, to have entire self-control;
        not to be governed by passion.
  
     To be one's own master, to be at liberty to act as one
        chooses without dictation from anybody.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     Note: Master, signifying chief, principal, masterly,
           superior, thoroughly skilled, etc., is often used
           adjectively or in compounds; as, master builder or
           master-builder, master chord or master-chord, master
           mason or master-mason, master workman or
           master-workman, master mechanic, master mind, master
           spirit, master passion, etc.
           [1913 Webster]
  
                 Throughout the city by the master gate.
                                                    --Chaucer.
           [1913 Webster]
  
     Master joint (Geol.), a quarryman's term for the more
        prominent and extended joints traversing a rock mass.
  
     Master key, a key adapted to open several locks differing
        somewhat from each other; figuratively, a rule or
        principle of general application in solving difficulties.
        
  
     Master lode (Mining), the principal vein of ore.
  
     Master mariner, an experienced and skilled seaman who is
        certified to be competent to command a merchant vessel.
  
     Master sinew (Far.), a large sinew that surrounds the hough
        of a horse, and divides it from the bone by a hollow
        place, where the windgalls are usually seated.
  
     Master singer. See Mastersinger.
  
     Master stroke, a capital performance; a masterly
        achievement; a consummate action; as, a master stroke of
        policy.
  
     Master tap (Mech.), a tap for forming the thread in a screw
        cutting die.
  
     Master touch.
        (a) The touch or skill of a master. --Pope.
        (b) Some part of a performance which exhibits very
            skillful work or treatment. ``Some master touches of
            this admirable piece.'' --Tatler.
  
     Master work, the most important work accomplished by a
        skilled person, as in architecture, literature, etc.;
        also, a work which shows the skill of a master; a
        masterpiece.
  
     Master workman, a man specially skilled in any art,
        handicraft, or trade, or who is an overseer, foreman, or
        employer.
        [1913 Webster]

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) :   [ web1913 ]

  Master \Mas"ter\, n. [OE. maistre, maister, OF. maistre, mestre,
     F. ma[^i]tre, fr. L. magister, orig. a double comparative
     from the root of magnus great, akin to Gr. ?. Cf. Maestro,
     Magister, Magistrate, Magnitude, Major, Mister,
     Mistress, Mickle.]
     1. A male person having another living being so far subject
        to his will, that he can, in the main, control his or its
        actions; -- formerly used with much more extensive
        application than now.
        (a) The employer of a servant.
        (b) The owner of a slave.
        (c) The person to whom an apprentice is articled.
        (d) A sovereign, prince, or feudal noble; a chief, or one
            exercising similar authority.
        (e) The head of a household.
        (f) The male head of a school or college.
        (g) A male teacher.
        (h) The director of a number of persons performing a
            ceremony or sharing a feast.
        (i) The owner of a docile brute, -- especially a dog or
            horse.
        (j) The controller of a familiar spirit or other
            supernatural being.
  
     2. One who uses, or controls at will, anything inanimate; as,
        to be master of one's time. --Shak.
  
              Master of a hundred thousand drachms. --Addison.
  
              We are masters of the sea.            --Jowett
                                                    (Thucyd. ).
  
     3. One who has attained great skill in the use or application
        of anything; as, a master of oratorical art.
  
              Great masters of ridicule.            --Maccaulay.
  
              No care is taken to improve young men in their own
              language, that they may thoroughly understand and be
              masters of it.                        --Locke.
  
     4. A title given by courtesy, now commonly pronounced
        m[i^]ster, except when given to boys; -- sometimes written
        Mister, but usually abbreviated to Mr.
  
     5. A young gentleman; a lad, or small boy.
  
              Where there are little masters and misses in a
              house, they are impediments to the diversions of the
              servants.                             --Swift.
  
     6. (Naut.) The commander of a merchant vessel; -- usually
        called captain. Also, a commissioned officer in the navy
        ranking next above ensign and below lieutenant; formerly,
        an officer on a man-of-war who had immediate charge, under
        the commander, of sailing the vessel.
  
     7. A person holding an office of authority among the
        Freemasons, esp. the presiding officer; also, a person
        holding a similar office in other civic societies.
  
     Little masters, certain German engravers of the 16th
        century, so called from the extreme smallness of their
        prints.
  
     Master in chancery, an officer of courts of equity, who
        acts as an assistant to the chancellor or judge, by
        inquiring into various matters referred to him, and
        reporting thereon to the court.
  
     Master of arts, one who takes the second degree at a
        university; also, the degree or title itself, indicated by
        the abbreviation M. A., or A. M.
  
     Master of the horse, the third great officer in the British
        court, having the management of the royal stables, etc. In
        ceremonial cavalcades he rides next to the sovereign.
  
     Master of the rolls, in England, an officer who has charge
        of the rolls and patents that pass the great seal, and of
        the records of the chancery, and acts as assistant judge
        of the court. --Bouvier. --Wharton.
  
     Past master, one who has held the office of master in a
        lodge of Freemasons or in a society similarly organized.
        
  
     The old masters, distinguished painters who preceded modern
        painters; especially, the celebrated painters of the 16th
        and 17th centuries.
  
     To be master of one's self, to have entire self-control;
        not to be governed by passion.
  
     To be one's own master, to be at liberty to act as one
        chooses without dictation from anybody.
  
     Note: Master, signifying chief, principal, masterly,
           superior, thoroughly skilled, etc., is often used
           adjiectively or in compounds; as, master builder or
           master-builder, master chord or master-chord, master
           mason or master-mason, master workman or
           master-workman, master mechanic, master mind, master
           spirit, master passion, etc.
  
                 Throughout the city by the master gate.
                                                    --Chaucer.
  
     Master joint (Geol.), a quarryman's term for the more
        prominent and extended joints traversing a rock mass.
  
     Master key, a key adapted to open several locks differing
        somewhat from each other; figuratively, a rule or
        principle of general application in solving difficulties.
        
  
     Master lode (Mining), the principal vein of ore.
  
     Master mariner, an experienced and skilled seaman who is
        certified to be competent to command a merchant vessel.
  
     Master sinew (Far.), a large sinew that surrounds the hough
        of a horse, and divides it from the bone by a hollow
        place, where the windgalls are usually seated.
  
     Master singer. See Mastersinger.
  
     Master stroke, a capital performance; a masterly
        achievement; a consummate action; as, a master stroke of
        policy.
  
     Master tap (Mech.), a tap for forming the thread in a screw
        cutting die.
  
     Master touch.
        (a) The touch or skill of a master. --Pope.
        (b) Some part of a performance which exhibits very
            skillful work or treatment. ``Some master touches of
            this admirable piece.'' --Tatler.
  
     Master work, the most important work accomplished by a
        skilled person, as in architecture, literature, etc.;
        also, a work which shows the skill of a master; a
        masterpiece.
  
     Master workman, a man specially skilled in any art,
        handicraft, or trade, or who is an overseer, foreman, or
        employer.

From English-Hungarian FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.2.1 :   [ freedict:eng-hun ]

  to be one`s own master /təbi wˈɒn ˈɛs ˈəʊn mˈastə/
  maga ura

Questions or comments about this site? Contact dictionary@catflap.org
Access Stats