May

May
May May, n. [F. Mai, L. Maius; so named in honor of the goddess Maia (Gr. Mai^a), daughter of Atlas and mother of Mercury by Jupiter.] 1. The fifth month of the year, containing thirty-one days. --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]

2. The early part or springtime of life. [1913 Webster]

His May of youth, and bloom of lustihood. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

3. (Bot.) The flowers of the hawthorn; -- so called from their time of blossoming; also, the hawthorn. [1913 Webster]

The palm and may make country houses gay. --Nash. [1913 Webster]

Plumes that mocked the may. --Tennyson. [1913 Webster]

4. The merrymaking of May Day. --Tennyson. [1913 Webster]

{Italian may} (Bot.), a shrubby species of {Spir[ae]a} ({Spir[ae]a hypericifolia}) with many clusters of small white flowers along the slender branches.

{May apple} (Bot.), the fruit of an American plant ({Podophyllum peltatum}). Also, the plant itself (popularly called {mandrake}), which has two lobed leaves, and bears a single egg-shaped fruit at the forking. The root and leaves, used in medicine, are powerfully drastic.

{May beetle}, {May bug} (Zo["o]l.), any one of numerous species of large lamellicorn beetles that appear in the winged state in May. They belong to {Melolontha}, and allied genera. Called also {June beetle}.

{May Day}, the first day of May; -- celebrated in the rustic parts of England by the crowning of a May queen with a garland, and by dancing about a May pole.

{May dew}, the morning dew of the first day of May, to which magical properties were attributed.

{May flower} (Bot.), a plant that flowers in May; also, its blossom. See {Mayflower}, in the vocabulary.

{May fly} (Zo["o]l.), any species of {Ephemera}, and allied genera; -- so called because the mature flies of many species appear in May. See {Ephemeral fly}, under {Ephemeral}.

{May game}, any May-day sport.

{May lady}, the queen or lady of May, in old May games.

{May lily} (Bot.), the lily of the valley ({Convallaria majalis}).

{May pole}. See {Maypole} in the Vocabulary.

{May queen}, a girl or young woman crowned queen in the sports of May Day.

{May thorn}, the hawthorn. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • may v — May n …   English expressions

  • May'n — Concert in Anime Expo 2010 at Nokia Theater LA Live Background information Birth name May Nakabayashi Also known as …   Wikipedia

  • May J. — May J. Birth name May (Jamileh) Hashimoto Also known as May J. Born June 20, 1988 (1988 06 20) (age 23) Origin Yokohama, Japan …   Wikipedia

  • May It Be — Chanson par Enya extrait de l’album Bande originale de La Communauté de l anneau Sortie 19 février 2002 Enregistrement 2001 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • May — ist: ein Familienname, siehe May (Familienname) – dort auch zu Namensträgern eine Berner Patrizierfamilie, siehe May (Patrizierfamilie) ein US amerikanischer Film von Lucky McKee: May (Film) ein englischer weiblicher Vorname, siehe May (Vorname)… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • May'n — Nom 中林芽依 May Nakabayashi Naissance 21 octobre 1989 (1989 10 21) (22 ans) Nagoya …   Wikipédia en Français

  • May It Be — Single by Enya from the album The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Released …   Wikipedia

  • may — may, might 1. With reference to present or future possibility, may and might are both used, but with may the possibility is more open and with might it is more tentative or remote: (may) • The ACLU may have a strong case Economist, 1980 • The… …   Modern English usage

  • May 8 — << May 2011 >> Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa 1 2 3 4 5 …   Wikipedia

  • May 15 — << May 2011 >> Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa 1 2 3 4 5 …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”