STEEPING

Etymology 1

Verb

steeping

present participle of steep

Noun

steeping (countable and uncountable, plural steepings)

An instance of something being steeped; a wetting.

Etymology 2

From the name of Stephen de Fulbourn, who served as bishop of Waterford, archbishop of Tuam, and treasurer and justiciar of Ireland in the 1270s and 1280s.

Noun

steeping (plural steepings)

(historical, numismatics) A 13th-century coin circulated in Ireland as a debased sterling silver penny, outlawed under King Edward I.

Synonyms

• Bishop's money, scalding, stalding

Source: Wiktionary

STEEP

Steep (step), a.

Definition: Bright; glittering; fiery. [Obs.] His eyen steep, and rolling in his head. Chaucer.

Steep, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Steeped (stept); p. pr. & vb. n. Steeping.] Etym: [OE. stepen, probably fr. Icel. steypa to cause to stoop, cast down, pour out, to cast metals, causative of stupa to stoop; cf. Sw. stöpa to cast, to steep, Dan. stöbe, D. & G. stippen to steep, to dip. Cf. Stoop, v. t.]

Definition: To soak in a liquid; to macerate; to extract the essence of by soaking; as, to soften seed by steeping it in water. Often used figuratively. Let fancy still my sense in Lethe steep. Shak. In refreshing dew to steep The little, trembling flowers. Wordsworth. The learned of the nation were steeped in Latin. Earle.

Steep, v. i.

Definition: To undergo the process of soaking in a liquid; as, the tea is steeping. [Colloq.]

Steep, n.

1. Something steeped, or used in steeping; a fertilizing liquid to hasten the germination of seeds.

2. A rennet bag. [Prov. Eng.]

Steep, a. [Comper. Steeper; superl. Steepest.] Etym: [OE. steep, step, AS. steáp; akin to Icel. steyp steep, and stupa to stoop, Sw. stupa to fall, to tilt; cf. OFries. stap high. Cf. Stoop, v. i., Steep, v. t., Steeple.]

1. Making a large angle with the plane of the horizon; ascending or descending rapidly with respect to a horizontal line or a level; precipitous; as, a steep hill or mountain; a steep roof; a steep ascent; a steep declivity; a steep barometric gradient.

2. Difficult of access; not easy reached; lofty; elevated; high. [Obs.] Chapman.

3. Excessive; as, a steep price. [Slang]

Steep, n.

Definition: A precipitous place, hill, mountain, rock, or ascent; any elevated object sloping with a large angle to the plane of the horizon; a precipice. Dryden. We had on each side naked rocks and mountains broken into a thousand irregular steeps and precipices. Addison. Bare steeps, where desolation stalks. Wordsworth.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition