<B>lyric, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a short poem expressing personal emotion. A love poem, a patriotic song, a lament, and a hymn might all be lyrics. <DD><B> 2. </B>a lyric poet. <DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>having to do with such poems. <BR> <I>Ex. a lyric poet.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>characterized by a spontaneous expression of feeling. <BR> <I>Ex. Elegies, sonnets, and odes are kinds of lyric poetry.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>of, expressed in, or suitable for song. (SYN) melodious. <DD><B> 4a. </B>tender, light in volume, and often used in the higher register. <BR> <I>Ex. Sopranos and tenors have lyric singing voices.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>(of a singer) having such a voice. <DD><B> 5. </B>of or for the lyre. <BR><I>expr. <B>lyrics,</B> </I>the words for a song, especially a popular song. <BR> <I>Ex. He wanted to use some Italian lyrics written for a Johann Strauss melody (New Yorker).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lyrical">
<B>lyrical, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>emotional; poetic; having the qualities or characteristics of lyric poetry. <BR> <I>Ex. a lyrical landscape and still-life painter. She became almost lyrical when she described the scenery.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B><B>=lyric.</B> adv. <B>lyrically.</B> noun <B>lyricalness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="lyricism">
<B>lyricism, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>lyric character or style. <BR> <I>Ex. the lyricism of Donne's songs and sonnets.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a lyric form or expression. <DD><B> 3. </B>lyric outpouring of feeling; emotionally expressed enthusiasm. </DL>
<A NAME="lyricist">
<B>lyricist, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a person who writes the words for a song, especially in a musical comedy; writer of lyrics. <BR> <I>Ex. The cards also list the song titles, the composer and lyricist (New Yorker).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a lyric poet. </DL>
<A NAME="lyricize">
<B>lyricize, </B>verb, <B>-cized,</B> <B>-cizing.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to sing lyrics. <DD><B> 2. </B>to compose lyrics. <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to treat in a lyric style. <DD><B> 2. </B>to express in an emotional way. </DL>
<A NAME="lyricodramatic">
<B>lyrico-dramatic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> combining the characteristics of lyric and dramatic poetry. </DL>
<A NAME="lyricoepic">
<B>lyrico-epic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> having the characteristics of lyric and epic poetry. </DL>
<A NAME="lyrics">
<B>lyrics, </B>noun pl.<DL COMPACT><DD> See under <B>lyric.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="lyrictenor">
<B>lyric tenor,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a light, high tenor voice. <DD><B> 2. </B>a man with such a voice. </DL>
<A NAME="lyrictheater">
<B>lyric theater,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> any form of theatrical production in which dance, music, and spoken words are combined. </DL>
<A NAME="lyriform">
<B>lyriform, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> shaped like a lyre. </DL>
<A NAME="lyrism">
<B>lyrism, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>lyricism; lyrical enthusiasm. <DD><B> 2. </B>performance on a lyre; musical performance; singing. <BR> <I>Ex. The lyrism ... had gradually assumed a rather deafening and complex character (George Eliot).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lyrist">
<B>lyrist, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a lyric poet. <BR> <I>Ex. They ... are both tolerably well acquainted with the minor Elizabethan lyrists (Listener).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a person who plays on the lyre; person who plays and sings to an accompaniment on the lyre. </DL>
<A NAME="lysate">
<B>lysate, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the product resulting from the destruction of a cell by a lysin or lysins. <BR> <I>Ex. A lysate ... may contain over a hundred thousand million bacteriophage particles (Science News Letter).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lyse">
<B>lyse, </B>verb, <B>lysed,</B> <B>lysing.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.t. </I> to bring about the dissolution of red blood cells by lysins; subject to lysis. <BR> <I>Ex. These viruses prevent bacterial growth and division, eventually lysing the cells (Science).</I> <DD><I>v.i. </I> to undergo lysis. </DL>
<A NAME="lysenkoism">
<B>Lysenkoism, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the theory of heredity maintained by Trofim D. Lysenko (born 1898), a Russian geneticist, that acquired characteristics are inheritable, not accepted by most geneticists. <BR> <I>Ex. Biology has of course been made--and is still being made--nonsensical by Lysenkoism (Alastair Mackenzie).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lysenkoist">
<B>Lysenkoist, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> a follower of Lysenko or Lysenkoism. <BR> <I>Ex. He was arraigned by the Lysenkoists because he had refused to compromise with their phoney science (New Scientist).</I> <DD><I>adj. </I> of, having to do with, or characteristic of Lysenkoism. </DL>
<A NAME="lysergicacid">
<B>lysergic acid,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a chemical produced synthetically or extracted from ergot, with properties similar to lysergic acid diethylamide. </DL>
<A NAME="lysergicaciddiethylamide">
<B>lysergic acid diethylamide,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a hallucinogenic compound of lysergic acid that produces temporary symptoms of schizophrenia. It is a derivative of an acid obtained from ergot. (Abbr:) LSD (no periods). </DL>
<A NAME="lysimeter">
<B>lysimeter, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an instrument for measuring the quantity of matter dissolved in a liquid. </DL>
<A NAME="lysin">
<B>lysin</B> (1), noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an antibody that can dissolve bacteria, red blood cells, and other cellular elements. Lysins are developed in blood serum. </DL>
<A NAME="lysin">
<B>lysin</B> (2), noun. =lysine.</DL>
<A NAME="lysine">
<B>lysine, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a basic amino acid essential for growth, formed by the hydrolysis of various proteins. </DL>
<A NAME="lysis">
<B>lysis, </B>noun, pl. <B>-ses.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the destruction of a cell by dissolution of the cell membrane, as by a lysin or a virus. <BR> <I>Ex. For some considerable distance around the mold growth, the staphylococcal colonies were undergoing lysis (being dissolved) (Marguerite Clark).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>the gradual ending of an acute disease (contrasted with <I>crisis</I>). </DL>
<A NAME="lysocline">
<B>lysocline, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a layer of water in the sea where certain chemical substances undergo dissolution. <BR> <I>Ex. When marine organisms die and sink to about 4,000 meters, they cross the "lysocline," below which calcium carbonate redissolves because of the high pressure (Scientific American).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lysogenation">
<B>lysogenation, </B>noun. =lysogenization.</DL>
<A NAME="lysogenic">
<B>lysogenic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>causing the destruction of cells by dissolution of the cell membrane. <DD><B> 2. </B>carrying a prophage within the cell. <BR> <I>Ex. a lysogenic bacterium.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lysogenization">
<B>lysogenization, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the process of lysogenizing; fusion of the genetic material of a virus with that of a host bacterium. </DL>
<A NAME="lysogenize">
<B>lysogenize, </B>transitive verb, <B>-nized,</B> <B>-nizing.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> to make lysogenic; cause (bacteria) to carry a prophage within the cell. </DL>
<A NAME="lysogeny">
<B>lysogeny, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the production of a lysin or lysins. <DD><B> 2. </B>the initiation of the process of lysis. <DD><B> 3. </B><B>=lysogenization.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="lysol">
<B>Lysol, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Trademark.) a brown, oily liquid containing cresols and soap, used as a disinfectant and antiseptic. </DL>
<A NAME="lysolecithin">
<B>lysolecithin, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a substance that is highly destructive of red blood cells, obtained by the action of snake venom on lecithin. </DL>
<A NAME="lysosomal">
<B>lysosomal, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or having to do with lysosomes. <BR> <I>Ex. The membrane serves to protect the rest of the cell from the contents of lysosomes, because uninhibited action of lysosomal enzymes causes cell death (London Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lysosome">
<B>lysosome, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a particle in the cytoplasm of most cells that contains destructive, hydrolytic enzymes. <BR> <I>Ex. The lysosomes function in many ways as the digestive system of the cell (Scientific American).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lysostaphin">
<B>lysostaphin, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an enzyme that destroys staphylococcal bacteria by disintegrating the bacterial cell wall. </DL>
<A NAME="lysozyme">
<B>lysozyme, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an enzymelike substance that is capable of destroying many kinds of bacteria. It is found in egg white, human tears, and most body fluids. <BR> <I>Ex. As early as 1922, researchers have known that the enzyme lysozyme, found in nasal secretions, has important bacteria-destroying powers (Science News Letter).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="lyssa">
<B>lyssa, </B>noun. =rabies.</DL>
<A NAME="lyssic">
<B>lyssic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> having to do with lyssa or rabies. </DL>
<A NAME="lyssophobia">
<B>lyssophobia, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an abnormal fear of rabies, which sometimes simulates its symptoms; pseudorabies. </DL>
<A NAME="lystrosaurus">
<B>Lystrosaurus, </B>noun, pl. <B>-sauri.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a small herbivorous reptile of the Triassic period whose remains were discovered in South Africa and Asia, and, recently, in Antarctica. </DL>
<A NAME="lythraceous">
<B>lythraceous, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or belonging to the loosestrife family of plants. </DL>
<A NAME="lytic">
<B>lytic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>having to do with or producing lysis. <DD><B> 2. </B>of or having to do with a lysin. </DL>
<A NAME="lytta">
<B>lytta, </B>noun, pl. <B>lyttae.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a long, worm-shaped cartilage in the tongue of dogs and other carnivorous animals. </DL>
<A NAME="lz">
<B>LZ</B> (no periods) or <B>L.Z.,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> landing zone. </DL>
