WOXEN
Verb
woxen
(obsolete) past participle of wax
• Geoffrey Chaucer, The Clerk's Tale, Part II.
Source: Wiktionary
Wox"en, obs.
Definition: p. p. of Wax. Chaucer.
WAX
Wax, v. i. [imp. Waxed; p. p. Waxed, and Obs. or Poetic Waxen (; p.
pr. & vb. n. Waxing.] Etym: [AS. weaxan; akin to OFries. waxa, D.
wassen, OS. & OHG. wahsan, G. wachsen, Icel. vaxa, Sw. växa, Dan.
voxe, Goth. wahsjan, Gr. waksh, uksh, to grow. Waist.]
1. To increase in size; to grow bigger; to become larger or fuller; -
- opposed to wane.
The waxing and the waning of the moon. Hakewill.
Truth's treasures . . . never shall wax ne wane. P. Plowman.
2. To pass from one state to another; to become; to grow; as, to wax
strong; to wax warmer or colder; to wax feeble; to wax old; to wax
worse and worse.
Your clothes are not waxen old upon you. Deut. xxix. 5.
Where young Adonis oft reposes, Waxing well of his deep wound.
Milton.
Waxing kernels (Med.), small tumors formed by the enlargement of the
lymphatic glands, especially in the groins of children; -- popularly
so called, because supposed to be caused by growth of the body.
Dunglison.
Wax, n. Etym: [AS. weax; akin to OFries. wax, D. was, G. wachs, OHG.
wahs, Icel. & Sw. vax, Dan. vox, Lith. vaszkas, Russ. vosk'.]
1. A fatty, solid substance, produced by bees, and employed by them
in the construction of their comb; -- usually called beeswax. It is
first excreted, from a row of pouches along their sides, in the form
of scales, which, being masticated and mixed with saliva, become
whitened and tenacious. Its natural color is pale or dull yellow.
Note: Beeswax consists essentially of cerotic acid (constituting the
more soluble part) and of myricyl palmitate (constituting the less
soluble part).
2. Hence, any substance resembling beeswax in consistency or
appearance. Specifically: --(a) (Physiol.)
Definition: Cerumen, or earwax. See Cerumen.
(b) A waxlike composition used for uniting surfaces, for excluding
air, and for other purposes; as, sealing wax, grafting wax, etching
wax, etc.
(c) A waxlike composition used by shoemakers for rubbing their
thread.
(d) (Zoöl.) A substance similar to beeswax, secreted by several
species of scale insects, as the Chinese wax. See Wax insect, below.
(e) (Bot.) A waxlike product secreted by certain plants. See
Vegetable wax, under Vegetable. (f) (Min.)
Definition: A substance, somewhat resembling wax, found in connection with
certain deposits of rock salt and coal; -- called also mineral wax,
and ozocerite.
(g) Thick sirup made by boiling down the sap of the sugar maple, and
then cooling. [Local U.S.] Japanese wax, a waxlike substance made in
Japan from the berries of certain species of Rhus, esp. R.
succedanea.
– Mineral wax. (Min.) See Wax, 2 (f), above.
– Wax cloth. See Waxed cloth, under Waxed.
– Wax end. See Waxed end, under Waxed.
– Wax flower, a flower made of, or resembling, wax.
– Wax insect (Zoöl.), any one of several species of scale insects
belonging to the family Coccidæ, which secrete from their bodies a
waxlike substance, especially the Chinese wax insect (Coccus
Sinensis) from which a large amount of the commercial Chinese wax is
obtained. Called also pela.
– Wax light, a candle or taper of wax.
– Wax moth (Zoöl.), a pyralid moth (Galleria cereana) whose larvæ
feed upon honeycomb, and construct silken galleries among the
fragments. The moth has dusky gray wings streaked with brown near the
outer edge. The larva is yellowish white with brownish dots. Called
also bee moth.
– Wax myrtle. (Bot.) See Bayberry.
– Wax painting, a kind of painting practiced by the ancients, under
the name of encaustic. The pigments were ground with wax, and
diluted. After being applied, the wax was melted with hot irons and
the color thus fixed.
– Wax palm. (Bot.) (a) A species of palm (Ceroxylon Andicola)
native of the Andes, the stem of which is covered with a secretion,
consisting of two thirds resin and one third wax, which, when melted
with a third of fat, makes excellent candles. (b) A Brazilian tree
(Copernicia cerifera) the young leaves of which are covered with a
useful waxy secretion.
– Wax paper, paper prepared with a coating of white wax and other
ingredients.
– Wax plant (Bot.), a name given to several plants, as: (a) The
Indian pipe (see under Indian). (b) The Hoya carnosa, a climbing
plant with polished, fleshy leaves. (c) Certain species of Begonia
with similar foliage.
– Wax tree (Bot.) (a) A tree or shrub (Ligustrum lucidum) of China,
on which certain insects make a thick deposit of a substance
resembling white wax. (b) A kind of sumac (Rhus succedanea) of Japan,
the berries of which yield a sort of wax. (c) A rubiaceous tree
(Elæagia utilis) of New Grenada, called by the inhabitants "arbol del
cera." -- Wax yellow, a dull yellow, resembling the natural color of
beeswax.
Wax, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Waxed; p. pr. & vb. n. Waxing.]
Definition: To smear or rub with wax; to treat with wax; as, to wax a
thread or a table. Waxed cloth, cloth covered with a coating of wax,
used as a cover, of tables and for other purposes; -- called also wax
cloth.
– Waxed end, a thread pointed with a bristle and covered with
shoemaker's wax, used in sewing leather, as for boots, shoes, and the
like; -- called also wax end. Brockett.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition