atilt (a-tilf), balanced lightly. Atlantic Monthly, a magazine first published in 1857, with Lowell as editor. attain (a-tan'), reach; accomplish. attaint (a-tant'), corrupt; disgrace. attenuated (a-ten'u-at'ed), thinned, slender. attitude (at'i-tud), position; feeling. attribute (a-trib'ut), give; refer. attribute (at'ri-but), characteristic; quality. audacity (o-das'i-ti), boldness. audible (o'di-b'l), capable of being heard. auditor (o'di-ter), a hearer. august (o-gust'), majestic; solemn. auroral (o-ro'ral), pertaining to the dawn, rosy. austere (es-ter'), severe. austerity (os-ter'i-ti), severity; severe simplicity. authentic (o-then'tik), true; genuine. autocrat (e'to-krat), an absolute ruler. avail (a-val'), help; be of use. Ave Maria (a'va ma-re'a), Hail Mary, first words of a Roman Catholic prayer to the Virgin Mary. The words are those of the Angel Gabriel, hence the prayer is called the Angelus. avenge (a-venj'), punish in order to execute justice. aversion (a-vur'shun), dislike. avert (a-vurt'), turn aside. awry (a-ri'), turned or twisted: crooked. aye and anon (a and a-non'), continually. Azores (a-zorz'), a group of islands in the Atlantic belonging to Portugal, and 800 miles west of it. azure (azh'ur), the clear blue color of the sky. Baal (ba'al), the supreme god o! the Assyrians, Babylonish jargon (bab'ilo'nish), unintelligible language. See story of the "tower of Babel." Gen. XI. bacchanal (bak'a-nal), a carouser; a follower of Bacchus, the god of wine. Bacchantes (ba-kan'tez), priestesses of Bacchus, the god of wine. bairn (barn), Scottish name for a child. Balaklava (ba'la-kla'va), a city in the Crimea on the Black Sea. baldric (bol'drik), a broad belt worn over the shoulder and under the opposite arm. ballad (bal'ad), a short poem telling a story. balm (bam), anything that soothes pain. balm in Gilead (bam in gil'e-ad), a biblical expression meaning comfort or healing, balmy (bam'i), mild; soothing; fragrant. bandit (ban'dit), an outlaw. baneful (ban'fool), injurious. Bannockburn (ban'uk-burn), a battlefield in Scotland upon which Robert Bruce defeated the English. Baptiste Le-blanc (ba'tesf le blan'), bar (bar), the legal profession. bard (bard), a poet. barge (barj), a boat. barometer (ba-rom'e-ter), an instrument for determining the weight or pressure of the atmosphere. barouche (ba-robsh'), four-wheeled carriage, with a falling top, and two double seats on the inside. barrack (bar'ak), a building for soldiers, especially when in garrison, barrier (bar'i-er), an obstruction or limit. bask (bask), warm; lie comfortably, baste (bast), drip fat on meat in roasting. battery (bat'er-i), two or more pieces of artillery in the field. bayonet (ba'e-net), a dagger fitted on the muzzle of a musket. bayou (bi'oo), an inlet from a gulf, lake, or large river.