<B>feria</B> (2), noun, pl. <B>-rias.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a local fair in Spain or Latin America, usually held in connection with a church festival or holiday. <BR> <I>Ex. ... the revelry following the feria at Seville (Time).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="feriae">
<B>feriae, </B>noun pl.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Latin.) (in ancient Rome) holidays; festival days. </DL>
<A NAME="ferial">
<B>ferial, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>having to do with a holiday. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Ecclesiastical.) having to do with weekdays not set apart as festivals. </DL>
<B>Feringi</B> or <B>Feringhee, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a European or a person of European descent in India, especially a Portuguese born in India (usually used in an unfriendly way). </DL>
<A NAME="ferity">
<B>ferity, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>wild or savage state. <DD><B> 2. </B>ferocity; savagery. </DL>
<A NAME="ferly">
<B>ferly, </B>noun, pl. <B>-lies.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Scottish.) something wonderful; marvel. <BR> <I>Ex. Where ye gaun, ye crawlin' ferly? (Robert Burns).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="fermata">
<B>fermata, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Music.) <DD><B> 1. </B>a pause or rest of indefinite length. <DD><B> 2. </B>the sign for this; hold. </DL>
<A NAME="ferment">
<B>ferment, </B>verb, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to undergo a gradual chemical change in which substances, especially bacteria or yeast, change sugar into alcohol and produce carbon dioxide. Vinegar is formed when cider ferments. <DD><B> 2. </B>to be excited; seethe with agitation or unrest. <BR> <I>Ex. His mind was fermenting with plans for the vacation.</I> <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to cause to ferment. Enzymes help ferment animal and vegetable matter. <BR> <I>Ex. Yeasts often ferment food, or make it alcoholic (John T. R. Nickerson).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to act on as a ferment. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Figurative.) to cause unrest in; excite; agitate. <BR> <I>Ex. the Christianity which fermented Europe (Emerson).</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>(Figurative.) to inflame; foment; exacerbate. <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a substance that causes others to ferment. Ferments are of two kinds: organized ferments and unorganized ferments. yeast is a ferment. Enzymes are ferments. <DD><B> 2. </B>the act or process of fermenting; fermentation. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Figurative.) excitement; agitation; unrest; tumult. <BR> <I>Ex. The school was in a ferment. Rumors of war caused ferment throughout the country.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="fermentability">
<B>fermentability, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the quality of being fermentable. </DL>
<A NAME="fermentable">
<B>fermentable, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> that can be fermented. <BR> <I>Ex. The first step in brewing beer is "malting," a procedure which partly converts barley starch into fermentable sugar (Scientific American).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="fermentation">
<B>fermentation, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the act or process of fermenting. <BR> <I>Ex. Fermentation causes milk to sour and bread to rise.</I> (SYN) effervescence. <DD><B> 2. </B>a chemical change in an organic compound caused by a ferment. <BR> <I>Ex. The fermentation of milk is necessary in the making of cheese.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>(Figurative.) excitement; agitation; unrest; ferment. (SYN) commotion. </DL>
<A NAME="fermentationtube">
<B>fermentation tube,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a tube filled with a culture medium inoculated with bacteria, in which the gases that are formed collect in a closed arm of the tube where they can be measured and tested for composition. </DL>
<A NAME="fermentative">
<B>fermentative, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>tending to cause or undergo fermentation. <DD><B> 2. </B>developed by fermentation. <BR> <I>Ex. ... with the bacteria we have to use a good microscope and examine some fermentative reactions (N. W. Pirie).</I> adv. <B>fermentatively.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="fermenter">
<B>fermenter, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a vessel in which a ferment is raised. <DD><B> 2. </B>a substance causing fermentation; ferment. </DL>
<A NAME="fermentum">
<B>fermentum, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> in the medieval church, a portion of a consecrated wafer reserved by a bishop and brought to a priest about to say Mass, as a token of Christian communion. </DL>
<A NAME="fermi">
<B>fermi, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Physics.) a unit of length, (10 to the power of minus 13) centimeters. </DL>
<A NAME="fermidiracstatistics">
<B>Fermi-Dirac statistics,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a statistical theory in quantum mechanics which holds that in the distribution of nuclear particles of a given type, only one of a set of identical particles may occupy a particular quantum-mechanical state. </DL>
<A NAME="fermion">
<B>fermion, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (in quantum mechanics) any of a class of elementary particles, including protons, neutrons, and electrons, only one of which can occupy a given state at one time. </DL>
<A NAME="fermium">
<B>fermium, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a rare, radioactive, chemical element. It is a metallic element produced artifically from plutonium or uranium. </DL>
<A NAME="fern">
<B>fern, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> any one of a group of plants that have roots, stems, and feathery leaves, but do not have flowers or seeds. The plant reproduces by means of spores, which grow in little brown clusters on the backs of the leaves. <BR> <I>Ex. Maidenhair, adder's-tongue, spleenwort, osmund, and brake are ferns.</I> adj. <B>fernlike.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="fernandino">
<B>Fernandino, </B>noun, pl. <B>-nos.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an inhabitant of Fernando Po, an island near the coast of western Africa. </DL>
<A NAME="fernbird">
<B>fernbird, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a small perching bird of New Zealand, usually placed with the warblers of the Old World. </DL>
<A NAME="fernbrake">
<B>fern brake,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a thicket of ferns. </DL>
<A NAME="ferned">
<B>ferned, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> abounding in ferns. </DL>
<A NAME="fernery">
<B>fernery, </B>noun, pl. <B>-eries.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a place where ferns grow. <DD><B> 2. </B>a container in which ferns are grown for ornament. </DL>
<A NAME="fernseed">
<B>fern seed,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the spores of ferns, formerly supposed to produce an invisible seed that had the power to make persons invisible. </DL>
<A NAME="ferntreejacaranda">
<B>fern-tree jacaranda,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a tall jacaranda, popular in the southern United States, that produces clusters of small, fernlike leaves which it sheds in early spring. In late spring, it produces large clusters of bluish-violet flowers. </DL>
<A NAME="fernwort">
<B>fernwort, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> any one of the pteridophytes. </DL>
<B>ferocity, </B>noun, pl. <B>-ties.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the quality or state of being ferocious; great cruelty; savage behavior; fierceness. <BR> <I>Ex. The wolves fought with bloodthirsty ferocity.</I> (SYN) brutality, inhumanity. <DD><B> 2. </B>a savage or cruel act. </DL>
<A NAME="ferous">
<B>-ferous,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (suffix added to nouns to form adjectives.) producing; containing; conveying, as in <I>metalliferous, odoriferous.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="ferrarese">
<B>Ferrarese, </B>adjective, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> of or having to do with the city of Ferrara in Italy, noted as the center of a school of Renaissance painting. <DD><I>noun </I> a native or inhabitant of Ferrara. </DL>
<A NAME="ferrate">
<B>ferrate, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Chemistry.) a salt of ferric acid. </DL>
<A NAME="ferredoxin">
<B>ferredoxin, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an iron-rich protein present in anaerobic bacteria and in green plants, and thought to be the agent of primary energy-transfer process, especially in photosynthesis. </DL>
<A NAME="ferreous">
<B>ferreous, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or consisting of iron; having to do with or resembling iron. </DL>
<A NAME="ferret">
<B>ferret</B> (1), noun, verb, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1a. </B>a white or yellowish-white animal related to the weasel, domesticated and used for killing rats and driving rabbits from their holes, found in Europe. It is the domesticated form of the European polecat. <DD><B> b. </B><B>=black-footed ferret.</B> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) a person who ferrets or searches out, such as a detective or investigator. <BR> <I>Ex. The Treasury ... decided to put its ferrets in to look at the whole setup (Sunday Times).</I> <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to hunt with ferrets. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) to drive from, off, or out of a place. <BR> <I>Ex. Measures were accordingly taken ... to ferret this vermin brood [buccaneers] out of the colonies (Washington Irving).</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>(Figurative.) to hunt; search out; discover. <BR> <I>Ex. It took the detectives over a year to ferret out the criminal.</I> <DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to hunt with ferrets. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) to search about; rummage. <BR> <I>Ex. to ferret among the ruins.</I> <DD><I>adj. </I> designed to search or pry with antennas and other electronic equipment. <BR> <I>Ex. a ferret ship, ferret cars, a ferret satelite. "Ferret" orbiters ... listen to each other's radio messages (Science News).</I> noun <B>ferreter.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="ferret">
<B>ferret</B> (2), noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a stout, narrow tape, used for bindings and shoestrings. </DL>
<A NAME="ferretbadger">
<B>ferret badger,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a small omnivorous mammal of southern and eastern Asia, having an elongated body and short tail. </DL>
<A NAME="ferreting">
<B>ferreting, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a stout, narrow tape; ferret. </DL>
<A NAME="ferretlike">
<B>ferretlike, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> resembling or suggesting a ferret; ferrety. </DL>
<A NAME="ferrety">
<B>ferrety, </B>adjective. =ferretlike.</DL>
<A NAME="ferriage">
<B>ferriage, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the act or business of ferrying. <DD><B> 2. </B>the charge for ferrying. </DL>
<A NAME="ferric">
<B>ferric, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>of or containing iron, especially trivalent iron. <DD><B> 2. </B>of or extracted from iron. </DL>
