<B>latency, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> latent condition or quality. <BR> <I>Ex. the latency of disease-producing germs.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="latencyperiod">
<B>latency period,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Psychoanalysis.) a period between early childhood and puberty when heterosexual drives are apparently inactive or sublimated. </DL>
<A NAME="latene">
<B>La Tene,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> of or having to do with the culture of the late Iron Age in Europe. <BR> <I>Ex. His felling ax was ... the first major modification in form of this ancient tool since its prototypes were made in the Basque iron lands during La Tene time, nearly 3,000 years ago (Scientific American).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="latensification">
<B>latensification, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Photography.) the act or process of latensifying. </DL>
<A NAME="latensify">
<B>latensify, </B>transitive verb, <B>-fied,</B> <B>-fying.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Photography.) to intensify (a latent image) by means of a chemical solution or vapor or with actinic light. </DL>
<A NAME="latent">
<B>latent, </B>adjective, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>present but not active; hidden; concealed. <BR> <I>Ex. latent hostility, latent ability. The power of a grain of wheat to grow into a plant remains latent if it is not planted.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>present only in the undeveloped stage of an infection; not yet manifest. <BR> <I>Ex. a test to reveal latent tuberculosis.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>(Botany.) dormant or undeveloped. <BR> <I>Ex. Buds are latent when they are not externally visible until stimulated to grow.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>(Psychology.) forming part of the mental content or personality but not apparent in overt acts. <DD><I>noun </I> a fingerprint not readily visible to the eye. <BR> <I>Ex. The police had to take many ... latents which were found at the scene of the crime (Erle Stanley Gardner).</I> adv. <B>latently.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="latentheat">
<B>latent heat,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Physics.) the heat required to change a solid to a liquid or a vapor, or to change a liquid to a vapor, without a change of temperature. It is also the heat released in the reverse processes. </DL>
<A NAME="latentimage">
<B>latent image,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an image produced on the chemical emulsion of photographic film by the effect of light, visible only when the film has been developed. </DL>
<A NAME="latentperiod">
<B>latent period,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>(Medicine.) incubation period; the period that elapses between the original infection and the time when a disease can be diagnosed. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Physiology.) the time elapsing between a stimulus and the response to it. </DL>
<A NAME="later">
<B>later, </B>adjective, adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>a comparative of <B>late.</B> <DD><B> 2. </B>more late; more recent. <BR> <I>Ex. the later border songs of his own country (R. H. Hutton).</I> <DD><I>adv. </I> <B>1. </B>late in a greater degree. <BR> <I>Ex. to stay later than usual.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>at a later time or period; subsequently; afterward. <BR> <I>Ex. It can be done later.</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>later on,</B> </I>afterward. <BR> <I>Ex. He's busy now, but he'll be free later on.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="later">
<B>-later,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (combining form.) one who worships ______; one who is devoted to ______. <BR> <I>Ex. Idolater = one who worships idols.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="laterad">
<B>laterad, </B>adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Anatomy.) toward the side. </DL>
<A NAME="lateral">
<B>lateral, </B>adjective, noun, verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>of the side; at the side; from the side; toward the side. <BR> <I>Ex. lateral roots. A lateral fin of a fish grows from its side. A lateral branch of a family is a branch not in the direct line of descent. A river is fed by lateral streams.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Phonetics.) articulated so that the breath passes out on one or both sides of the tongue, as in pronouncing the English <I>l.</I> <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a lateral part or outgrowth. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Phonetics.) a lateral sound, such as <I>l.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>(Mining.) <DD><B> a. </B>a drift other than the main drift. <DD><B> b. </B>a connecting tunnel between main haulage ways. <DD><B> 4. </B><B>=lateral pass.</B> <DD><I>v.i. </I> (in football) to throw a lateral pass. <BR> <I>Ex. So Gifford lateraled to Center Greg Larson, who looked at the ball and lateraled to Y. A. Tittle (Time).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lateralchain">
<B>lateral chain,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Chemistry.) side chain (def. 1). </DL>
<A NAME="lateralfissure">
<B>lateral fissure,</B> <B>=fissure of Sylvius.</B></DL>
<A NAME="laterality">
<B>laterality, </B>noun, pl. <B>-ties.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the quality of having distinct sides. <DD><B> 2. </B>the preference of one side to the other. <BR> <I>Ex. Crossed laterality [is] a condition in which the dominant hand and eye are on opposite sides (London Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lateralline">
<B>lateral line,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the row of connected sensory pores on the heads and sides of fishes, cyclostomes, and certain amphibians by which they detect change in water pressure or current. </DL>
<A NAME="laterally">
<B>laterally, </B>adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>in a lateral direction; at the side; sideways. <DD><B> 2. </B>from a lateral branch. </DL>
<A NAME="lateralmoraine">
<B>lateral moraine,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> stripes of dirty ice and loose rock along the edge of a glacier. </DL>
<A NAME="lateralpass">
<B>lateral pass,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a pass thrown in football from one player to another in a direction either parallel to or backward toward one's goal line. </DL>
<A NAME="lateralthinking">
<B>lateral thinking,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a method of solving problems by approaching them indirectly from various angles instead of dwelling on any one aspect at length. <BR> <I>Ex. As the name implies, lateral thinking is thinking sideways: not developing a pattern but restructuring a pattern (Edward de Bono).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lateran">
<B>Lateran, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>the church of Saint John Lateran, the cathedral church in Rome. The Lateran is the official church of the pope. <DD><B> 2. </B>the palace next to it, once the residence of the popes and now a museum. <DD><I>adj. </I> of or having to do with one of the five general church councils held in the official church of the pope, Church of Saint John Lateran, in Rome. </DL>
<A NAME="laterarecta">
<B>latera recta,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> plural of <B>latus rectum.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="laterborn">
<B>later-born, </B>adjective, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> born after the first offspring; younger. <DD><I>noun </I> any child born after the first-born child. <BR> <I>Ex. The performance of later-borns was significantly better than that of first-borns or only-borns (New York Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="laterite">
<B>laterite, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a reddish soil rich in iron or aluminum and formed under tropical conditions by the decomposition of rock, common in parts of India, southwestern Asia, Africa, and elsewhere. </DL>
<A NAME="lateritic">
<B>lateritic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or containing laterite. <BR> <I>Ex. lateritic ore.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lateritious">
<B>lateritious, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>having to do with or resembling bricks. <DD><B> 2. </B>of the red color characteristic of bricks. </DL>
<A NAME="laterizable">
<B>laterizable, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> capable of being laterized. <BR> <I>Ex. Certain tropical soils ... are laterizable; that is, they may be irreversibly converted to rock as a result of the deprivation of organic matter (New Yorker).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="laterization">
<B>laterization, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the process by which laterite is formed. </DL>
<A NAME="laterize">
<B>laterize, </B>transitive verb, <B>-ized,</B> <B>-izing.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> to change into laterite; make lateritic or rocklike. </DL>
<A NAME="latescence">
<B>latescence, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> latescent condition or quality. </DL>
<A NAME="latescent">
<B>latescent, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> becoming latent, hidden, or obscure. </DL>
<A NAME="latest">
<B>latest, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the superlative of <B>late.</B> <DD><B> 2. </B>most late; most recent. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Archaic) or (Poetic.) last; final. <BR><I>expr. <B>at the latest,</B> </I>no later than (the time specified). <BR> <I>Ex. I'll see you next week at the latest.</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>the latest,</B> </I>(Informal.) the most up-to-date thing; the newest style, design, or other popular interest. <BR> <I>Ex. The latest the dear girls hereabouts are singing, ... is, "Will he love you as today?" (Kansas Times and Star).</I> </DL>
<B>latex, </B>noun, pl. <B>latices</B> or <B>latexes,</B> verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a milky fluid found in milkweeds, poppies, and plants yielding rubber. Some kinds of latex harden on exposure to the air and are the source of rubber, chicle, and other products. <DD><B> 2. </B>an emulsion of synthetic rubber or plastic suspended in water, used mainly in paints. <DD><I>v.t. </I> to add latex to. <BR> <I>Ex. ... latexed sisal pads (Wall Street Journal).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lath">
<B>lath, </B>noun, pl. <B>laths,</B> verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>one of the thin, narrow strips of wood placed over the framework of a wall, ceiling, or roof, formerly used to support plaster or to make a lattice. <DD><B> 2. </B>a wire cloth or sheet metal with holes in it, used in place of laths. <DD><B> 3. </B>a lining or support made of laths. The walls of older frame houses were built with lath and plaster. <DD><B> 4. </B>any thin, narrow, flat piece of wood. <DD><I>v.t. </I> to cover or line (a wall, ceiling, or roof) with laths. </DL>
<A NAME="lathe">
<B>lathe, </B>noun, verb. <B>lathed,</B> <B>lathing.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a machine for holding pieces of wood, metal, or plastic, and turning them rapidly against a cutting tool used to shape them. <DD><B> 2. </B>the movable swing frame in a loom, consisting of the shuttles, reed, picking apparatus, etc. <DD><I>v.t. </I> to shape or cut (wood, metal, or plastic) on a lathe. </DL>
