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Surface   /sˈərfəs/   Listen
noun
Surface  n.  
1.
The exterior part of anything that has length and breadth; one of the limits that bound a solid, esp. the upper face; superficies; the outside; as, the surface of the earth; the surface of a diamond; the surface of the body. "The bright surface of this ethereous mold."
2.
Hence, outward or external appearance. "Vain and weak understandings, which penetrate no deeper than the surface."
3.
(Geom.) A magnitude that has length and breadth without thickness; superficies; as, a plane surface; a spherical surface.
4.
(Fort.) That part of the side which is terminated by the flank prolonged, and the angle of the nearest bastion.
Caustic surface, Heating surface, etc. See under Caustic, Heating, etc.
Surface condensation, Surface condenser. See under Condensation, and Condenser.
Surface gauge (Mach.), an instrument consisting of a standard having a flat base and carrying an adjustable pointer, for gauging the evenness of a surface or its height, or for marking a line parallel with a surface.
Surface grub (Zool.), the larva of the great yellow underwing moth (Triphoena pronuba). It is often destructive to the roots of grasses and other plants.
Surface plate (Mach.), a plate having an accurately dressed flat surface, used as a standard of flatness by which to test other surfaces.
Surface printing, printing from a surface in relief, as from type, in distinction from plate printing, in which the ink is contained in engraved lines.


verb
Surface  v. t.  (past & past part. surfaced; pres. part. surfacing)  
1.
To give a surface to; especially, to cause to have a smooth or plain surface; to make smooth or plain.
2.
To work over the surface or soil of, as ground, in hunting for gold.


Surface  v. i.  
1.
To rise from the depths of a liquid to the surface; as, the submarine surfaced to recharge its batteries.
2.
To become known or public; said of information.
3.
To show up, as a person who was in hiding; as, he absconded with the payroll and surfaced in Argentina.





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Surface" Quotes from Famous Books



... was quick and powerful, and the sentinel was soon dead. Then, carrying his two jars, Bartholemy climbed swiftly and noiselessly up the short ladder, came out on deck in the darkness, made a rush toward the side of the ship, and leaped overboard. For a moment he sank below the surface, but the two air-tight jars quickly rose and bore him up with them. There was a bustle on board the ship, there was some random firing of muskets in the direction of the splashing which the watch had heard, but none of the balls struck the pirate or his jars, and he soon floated ...
— Buccaneers and Pirates of Our Coasts • Frank Richard Stockton
... inches high. The leaves differ to a considerable extent in size, and are of a glaucous-green color. From the upper surface of the ribs and nerves, and also from other portions of the leaves, are developed numerous small tufts, or fascicles of leaves, which, in turn, give rise to other smaller but similar groups. The foliage thus exhibits a cock's-comb form: ...
— The Field and Garden Vegetables of America • Fearing Burr
... he noted, in this bravado, a common link of mankind, high and low, civilised and barbarian. As long as the chieftain had been sure of his skin, he flung spears and sang valiantly; but when alarm entered him, those deadly measures were replaced by a mighty show. On the surface there was vast play of battle, but inwardly quaking. And Sir George marched forward, his right hand gripping the gun hard, his lip quivering, his ...
— The Romance of a Pro-Consul - Being The Personal Life And Memoirs Of The Right Hon. Sir - George Grey, K.C.B. • James Milne
... occasional level platforms of waving grass, descend to the river's bed. These patina mountains are crowned by extensive forests, and narrow belts of jungle descend from the summit to the base, clothing the numerous ravines which furrow the mountain's side. Thus the entire surface of the mountains forms a series of rugged grasslands, so steep as to be ascended with the greatest difficulty, and the elk lie in the forests on the summits and also in the narrow belts which ...
— Eight Years' Wandering in Ceylon • Samuel White Baker
... plain, symmetrical arrangement of the hair above the large brow and features made her seem older than she was. The deep-set eyes, the quivering lips, and the thin nostrils gave life to the passive, restrained face. The passions of her life lay just beneath the surface of flesh. ...
— The Web of Life • Robert Herrick


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