ILE, so written by Pope for aile, a walk or alley in a church or public building. [Not in use.]

1. An ear of corn. [Not used.]

I'LEX, noun [Latin] In botany, the generic name of the Holly-tree.

Also, the Quercus ilex or great scarlet oak.

IL'IAC, adjective [Latin iliacus, from ilia, the flank, or small intestines; Gr. to wind.] Pertaining to the lower bowels, or to the ileum. The iliac passion, is a violent and dangerous kind of colic, with an inversion of the peristaltic motion of the bowels.

IL'IAD, noun [from Ilium, Ilion, Troy.] An epic poem, composed by Homer, in twenty four books. The subject of this poem is the wrath of Achilles; in describing which, the poet exhibits the miserable effects of disunion and public dissensions. Hence the phrase, Ilias malorum, an iliad of woes or calamities, a world of disasters.

ILK, adjective The same; each. This is retained in Scottish, from the Saxon elc, each.

ILL, noun

1. Bad or evil, in a general sense; contrary to good, physical or moral; applied to things; evil; wicked; wrong; iniquitous; as, his ways are ill; he sets an ill example.

2. Producing evil or misfortune; as an ill star or planet.

3. Bad; evil; unfortunate; as an ill end; an ill fate.

4. Unhealthy; insalubrious; as an ill air or climate.

5. Cross; crabbed; surly; peevish; as ill nature; ill temper.

6. Diseased; disordered; sick or indisposed; applied to persons; as, the man is ill; he has been ill a long time; he is ill of a fever.

7. Diseased; impaired; as an ill state of health.

8. Discordant; harsh; disagreeable; as an ill sound.

9. Homely; ugly; as ill looks, or an ill countenance.

10. Unfavorable; suspicious; as when we say, this affair bears an ill look or aspect.

11. Rude; unpolished; as ill breeding; ill manners.

12. Not proper; not regular or legitimate; as an ill expression in grammar.

ILL, noun Wickedness; depravity; evil.

Strong virtue, like strong nature, struggles still,

Exerts itself and then throws off the ill

1. Misfortune; calamity; evil; disease; pain; whatever annoys or impairs happiness, or prevents success.

Who can all sense of other's ills escape,

Is but a brute at beat in human shape.

ILL, adverb Not well; not rightly or perfectly.

He is ill at ease.

1. Not easily; with pain or difficulty. He is ill able to sustain the burden.

Ill bears the sex the youthful lovers' fate,

When just approaching to the nuptial state.

ILL, prefixed to participles of the present tense, and denoting evil or wrong, may be considered as a noun governed by the participle, or as making a part of a compound word; as an ill meaning man, an ill designing man, an ill boding hour; that is, a man meaning ill an hour boding ill It is more consonant, however, to the genius of our language, to treat these and similar words as compounds. In some cases, as before the participles of intransitive verbs, ill must be considered as a part of the compound, as in ill-looking. When used before the perfect participle, ill is to be considered as an adverb, or modifying word, or to be treated as a part of the compound; as in ill-bred, ill-governed, ill-fated, ill-favored, ill-formed, ill-minded. In these and all similar connections, it might be well to unite the two words in a compound by a hyphen. As ill may be prefixed to almost any participle, it is needless to attempt to collect a list of such words for insertion.

ILLAB'ILE, adjective [See Labile.] Not liable to fall or err; infallible. [Not used.]

ILLABIL'ITY, noun The quality of not being liable to err, fall or apostatize. [Not used.]

ILLAC'ERABLE, adjective [See Lacerate.] That cannot be torn or rent.

ILLAPSE, noun illaps'. [See Lapse.] A sliding in; an immission or entrance of one thing into another.

1. A falling on; a sudden attack.

ILLAQ'UEATE, verb transitive [Latin illaqueo; in and laqueo, to ensnare; laquens, a snare.] To ensnare; to entrap; to entangle; to catch. [Little used.]

ILLAQ'UEATED, participle passive Ensnared.

ILLAQUEA'TION, noun The act of ensnaring; a catching or entrapping. [Little used.]

1. A snare.

IL'LATAIVE, adjective [See Illation.] Relating to illation; that may be inferred; as an illative consequence.

1. That denotes an inference; as an illative word or particle, as then and therefore.

IL'LATAIVE, noun That which denotes illation or inference.

ILLA'TION, noun [Latin illatio; in and latio, a bearing; latus, from fero.] An inference from premises; a conclusion; deduction. [Little used.]

ILLAUD'ABLE, adjective [See Laudable.] Not laudable; not worthy of approbation or commendation; as an illaudable motive or act.

1. Worthy of censure or dispraise.

ILLAUD'ABLY, adverb In a manner unworthy of praise; without deserving praise.

ILLE'CEBROUS, adjective [Latin illecebrosus.] Alluring; full of allurement.

ILLE'GAL, adjective [See Legal.] Not legal; unlawful; contrary to law; illicit; as an illegal act; illegal trade.

ILLEGAL'ITY, noun Contrariety to law; unlawfulness; as the illegality of trespass, or of false imprisonment.

ILLE'GALIZE, verb transitive To render unlawful.

ILLE'GALLY, adverb In a manner contrary to law; unlawfully; as a man illegally imprisoned.

ILLEGIBIL'ITY, noun The quality of being illegible.

ILLEG'IBLE, adjective [See Legible.] That cannot be read; obscure or defaced so that the words cannot be known. It is a disgrace to a gentleman to write an illegible hand. The manuscripts found in the ruins of Herculaneum are mostly illegible

ILLEG'IBLY, adverb In a manner not to be read; as a letter written illegibly

ILLEGIT'IMACY, noun [See Legitimate.]

1. The state of being born out of wedlock; the state of bastardy.

2. The state of being not genuine, or of legitimate origin.

ILLEGIT'IMATE, adjective [See Legitimate.]

1. Unlawfully begotten; born out of wedlock; spurious; as an illegitimate son or daughter.

2. Unlawful; contrary to law.

3. Not genuine; not of genuine origin; as an illegitimate inference.

4. Not authorized by good usage; as an illegitimate word.

ILLEGIT'IMATE, verb transitive To render illegitimate; to prove to be born out of wedlock; to bastardize.

ILLEGIT'IMATELY, adverb Not in wedlock; without authority.

ILLELGITIMA'TION, noun The state of one not born in wedlock.

1. Want of genuineness.

ILLEV'IABLE, adjective That cannot be levied or collected.

ILL'-FACED, adjective Having an ugly face.

ILLIB'ERAL, adjective [See Liberal.] Not liberal; not free or generous.

1. Not noble; not ingenuous; not catholic; of a contracted mind. Cold in charity; in religion, illiberal

2. Not candid; uncharitable in judging.

3. Not generous; not munificent; sparing of gifts.

4. Not becoming a well bred man.

5. Not pure; not well authorized or elegant; as illiberal words in Latin.

ILLIBERAL'ITY, noun Narrowness of mind; contractedness; meanness; want of catholic opinions.

1. Parsimony; want of munificence.

ILLIB'ERALLY, adverb Ungenerously; uncandidly; uncharitably; disingenuously.

1. Parsimoniously.

ILLIC'IT, adjective [Latin illicitus; in and licitus, from liceo, to permit.]

Not permitted or allowed; prohibited; unlawful; as an illicit trade; illicit intercourse or connection.

ILLIC'ITLY, adverb Unlawfully.

ILLIC'ITNESS, noun Unlawfulness.

ILLIC'ITOUS, adjective Unlawful.

ILLI'GHTEN, verb transitive [See Light, Lighten.] To enlighten. [Not in use.]

ILLIM'ITABLE, adjective [in, not, and limit, or Latin limes.]

That cannot be limited or bounded; as the illimitable void.

ILLIM'ITABLY, adverb Without possibility of being bounded.

1. Without limits.

ILLIM'ITED, adjective [Latin limes, a limit.] Unbounded; not limited; interminable.

ILLIM'ITEDNESS, noun Boundlessness; the state of being without limits or restriction.

The absoluteness and illimitedness of his commission was much spoken of.

ILLINI'TION, noun [Latin illinitus, illinio, to anoint; in and lino, to besmear.] A thin crust of some extraneous substance formed on minerals.

It is sometimes disguised by a thin crust or illinition of black manganese.

ILLIT'ERACY, noun [from illiterate.] The state of being untaught or unlearned; want of a knowledge of letters; ignorance.

ILLIT'ERATE, adjective [Latin illiteratus; in and literatus; from litera, a letter.] Unlettered; ignorant of letters or books; untaught; unlearned; uninstructed in science; as an illiterate man, nation or tribe.

ILLIT'ERATENESS, noun Want of learning; ignorance of letters, books or science.

ILLIT'ERATURE, noun Want of learning. [Little used.]

ILL'NESS, noun [from ill.] Badness; unfavorableness; as the illness of the weather. [Not used.]

1. Disease; indisposition; malady; disorder of health; sickness. He has recovered from his illness

2. Wickedness; iniquity; wrong moral conduct.

ILLOG'ICAL, adjective [See Logical.] Ignorant or negligent of the rules of logic or correct reasoning; as an illogical disputant.

1. Contrary to the rules of logic or sound reasoning; as an illogical inference.

ILLOG'ICALLY, adverb In a manner contrary to the rules of correct reasoning.

ILLOG'ICALNESS, noun Contrariety to sound reasoning.

ILL'STARRED, adjective [ill and star.] Fated to be unfortunate.

ILL'-TRAINED, adjective Not well trained or disciplined.

ILLU'DE, verb transitive [Latin illudo; in and ludo, to play. See Ludicrous.]

To play upon by artifice; to deceive; to mock; to excite hope and disappoint it.

ILLU'DED, participle passive Deceived; mocked.

ILLU'DING, participle present tense Playing on by artifice; deceiving.

ILLU'ME

ILLU'MINANT, noun That which illuminates or affords light.

ILLU'MINANT, n. That which illuminates or affords light.

ILLU'MINATE, verb transitive [See Illume.] To enlighten; to throw light on; to supply with light. [This word is used in poetry or prose.]

1. To adorn with festal lamps or bonfires.

2. To enlighten intellectually with knowledge or grace. Hebrews 10:32.

3. To adorn with pictures, portraits and other paintings; as, to illuminate manuscripts or books, according to ancient practice.

4. To illustrate; to throw light on, as on obscure subjects.

ILLU'MINATE, adjective Enlightened.

ILLU'MINATE, noun One of a sect of heretics pretending to possess extraordinary light and knowledge.

ILLU'MINATED, participle passive Enlightened; rendered light or luminous; illustrated; adorned with pictures, as books.

ILLUMINA'TI, noun A church term anciently applied to persons who had received baptism; in which ceremony they received a lighted taper, as a symbol of the faith and grace they had received by that sacrament.

1. The name of a sect of heretics, who sprung up in Spain about the year 1575, and who afterward appeared in France. Their principal doctrine was, that by means of a sublime manner of prayer, they had attained to so perfect a state as to have no need of ordinances, sacraments and good works.

2. The name given to certain associations of men in modern Europe, who combined to overthrow the existing religious institutions, and substitute reason, by which they expected to raise men and society to perfection.

ILLU'MINATING, participle present tense Enlightening; rendering luminous or bright; illustrating; adorning with pictures.

ILLU'MINATING, noun The act, practice or art of adorning manuscripts and books by paintings.

ILLUMINA'TION, noun The act of illuminating or rendering luminous; the act of supplying with light.

1. The act of rendering a house or a town light, by placing lights at the windows, or in elevated situations, as a manifestation of joy; or the state of being thus rendered light.

2. That which gives light.

The sun--is an illumination created.

3. Brightness; splendor.

4. Infusion of intellectual light; an enlightening of the understanding by knowledge, or the mind by spiritual light.

5. The act, art or practice of adorning manuscripts and books with pictures.

6. Inspiration; the special communication of knowledge to the mind by the Supreme Being.

Hymns and psalms--are framed by meditation beforehand, or by prophetical illumination are inspired.

ILLU'MINATIVE, adjective Having the power of giving light.

ILLU'MINATOR, noun He or that which illuminates or gives light.

1. One whose occupation is to decorate manuscripts and books with pictures, portraits and drawings of any kind. This practice began among the Romans, and was continued during the middle ages. The manuscripts containing portraits, pictures and emblematic figures, form a valuable part of the riches preserved in the principal libraries in Europe.

From this word, by contraction, is formed limner.

ILLU'MINE, verb transitive [Latin illumino; in and lumino, to enlighten, from lumen, light. See Luminous.]

1. To illuminate; to enlighten; to throw or spread light on; to make light or bright.

[These words are used chiefly in poetry.]

2. To enlighten, as the mind; to cause to understand.

3. To brighten; to adorn.

The mountain's brow,

Illum'd with fluid gold--

ILLUMINEE'

ILLU'MINISM, noun The principles of the Illuminati.

ILLU'MINIZE, verb transitive To initiate into the doctrines or principles of the Illuminati.

ILLU'SION, noun s as z. [Latin illusio, from illudo, to illude.] Deceptive appearance; false show, by which a person is or may be deceived, or his expectations disappointed; mockery.

Ye soft illusions, dear deceits, arise!

ILLU'SIVE, adjective Deceiving by false show; deceitful; false.

While the fond soul,

Wrapt in gay visions of unreal bliss,

Still paints th' illusive form.

ILLU'SIVELY, adverb By means of a false show.

ILLU'SIVENESS, noun Deception; false show.

ILLU'SORY, adjective [Latin illusus, illudo.] Deceiving or tending to deceive by false appearances; fallacious. His offers were illusory

ILLUS'TRATE, verb transitive [Latin illustro; in and lustro, to illuminate. See Luster.]

1. To make clear, bright or luminous.

2. To brighten with honor; to make distinguished.

Matter to me of glory! whom their hate

Illustrates--

3. To brighten; to make glorious, or to display the glory of; as, to illustrate the perfections of God.

4. To explain or elucidate; to make clear, intelligible or obvious, what is dark or obscure; as, to illustrate a passage of Scripture by comments, or of a profane author by a gloss.

ILLUS'TRATED, participle passive Made bright or glorious.

1. Explained; elucidated; made clear to the understanding.

ILLUS'TRATING, participle present tense Making bright or glorious; rendering distinguished; elucidating.

ILLUSTRA'TION, noun The act of rendering bright or glorious.

1. Explanation; elucidation; a rendering clear what is obscure or abstruse.

ILLUS'TRATIVE, adjective Having the quality of elucidating and making clear what is obscure; as an argument or simile illustrative of the subject.

1. Having the quality of rendering glorious, or of displaying glory.

ILLUS'TRATIVELY, adverb By way of illustration or elucidation.

ILLUS'TRATOR, noun One who illustrates or makes clear.

ILLUS'TRIOUS, adjective [Latin illustris.]

1. Conspicuous; distinguished by the reputation of greatness; renowned; eminent; as an illustrious general or magistrate; an illustrious prince.

2. Conspicuous; renowned; conferring honor; as illustrious actions.

3. Glorious; as an illustrious display of the divine perfections.

4. A title of honor.

ILLUS'TRIOUSLY, adverb Conspicuously; nobly; eminently; with dignity or distinction.

1. Gloriously; in a way to manifest glory. The redemption of man displays illustriously the justice as well as the benevolence of God.

ILLUS'TRIOUSNESS, noun Eminence of character; greatness; grandeur; glory.

ILLUXU'RIOUS, adjective Not luxurious.