Free translatorFree translator
Synonyms, antonyms, pronunciation

  Home
English Dictionary      examples: 'day', 'get rid of', 'New York Bay'




Master   /mˈæstər/   Listen
noun
Master  n.  (Naut.) A vessel having (so many) masts; used only in compounds; as, a two-master.



Master  n.  
1.
A male person having another living being so far subject to his will, that he can, in the main, control his or its actions; formerly used with much more extensive application than now.
(a)
The employer of a servant.
(b)
The owner of a slave.
(c)
The person to whom an apprentice is articled.
(d)
A sovereign, prince, or feudal noble; a chief, or one exercising similar authority.
(e)
The head of a household.
(f)
The male head of a school or college.
(g)
A male teacher.
(h)
The director of a number of persons performing a ceremony or sharing a feast.
(i)
The owner of a docile brute, especially a dog or horse.
(j)
The controller of a familiar spirit or other supernatural being.
2.
One who uses, or controls at will, anything inanimate; as, to be master of one's time. "Master of a hundred thousand drachms." "We are masters of the sea."
3.
One who has attained great skill in the use or application of anything; as, a master of oratorical art. "Great masters of ridicule." "No care is taken to improve young men in their own language, that they may thoroughly understand and be masters of it."
4.
A title given by courtesy; sometimes written Mister, but usually abbreviated to Mr.
5.
A young gentleman; a lad, or small boy. "Where there are little masters and misses in a house, they are impediments to the diversions of the servants."
6.
(Naut.) The commander of a merchant vessel; usually called captain. Also, a commissioned officer in the navy ranking next above ensign and below lieutenant; formerly, an officer on a man-of-war who had immediate charge, under the commander, of sailing the vessel.
7.
A person holding an office of authority among the Freemasons, esp. the presiding officer; also, a person holding a similar office in other civic societies.
Little masters, certain German engravers of the 16th century, so called from the extreme smallness of their prints.
Master in chancery, an officer of courts of equity, who acts as an assistant to the chancellor or judge, by inquiring into various matters referred to him, and reporting thereon to the court.
Master of arts, one who takes the second degree at a university; also, the degree or title itself, indicated by the abbreviation M. A., or A. M.
Master of the horse, the third great officer in the British court, having the management of the royal stables, etc. In ceremonial cavalcades he rides next to the sovereign.
Master of the rolls, in England, an officer who has charge of the rolls and patents that pass the great seal, and of the records of the chancery, and acts as assistant judge of the court.
Past master,
(a)
one who has held the office of master in a lodge of Freemasons or in a society similarly organized.
(b)
a person who is unusually expert, skilled, or experienced in some art, technique, or profession; usually used with at or of.
The old masters, distinguished painters who preceded modern painters; especially, the celebrated painters of the 16th and 17th centuries.
To be master of one's self, to have entire self-control; not to be governed by passion.
To be one's own master, to be at liberty to act as one chooses without dictation from anybody. Note: Master, signifying chief, principal, masterly, superior, thoroughly skilled, etc., is often used adjectively or in compounds; as, master builder or master-builder, master chord or master-chord, master mason or master-mason, master workman or master-workman, master mechanic, master mind, master spirit, master passion, etc. "Throughout the city by the master gate."
Master joint (Geol.), a quarryman's term for the more prominent and extended joints traversing a rock mass.
Master key, a key adapted to open several locks differing somewhat from each other; figuratively, a rule or principle of general application in solving difficulties.
Master lode (Mining), the principal vein of ore.
Master mariner, an experienced and skilled seaman who is certified to be competent to command a merchant vessel.
Master sinew (Far.), a large sinew that surrounds the hough of a horse, and divides it from the bone by a hollow place, where the windgalls are usually seated.
Master singer. See Mastersinger.
Master stroke, a capital performance; a masterly achievement; a consummate action; as, a master stroke of policy.
Master tap (Mech.), a tap for forming the thread in a screw cutting die.
Master touch.
(a)
The touch or skill of a master.
(b)
Some part of a performance which exhibits very skillful work or treatment. "Some master touches of this admirable piece."
Master work, the most important work accomplished by a skilled person, as in architecture, literature, etc.; also, a work which shows the skill of a master; a masterpiece.
Master workman, a man specially skilled in any art, handicraft, or trade, or who is an overseer, foreman, or employer.



verb
Master  v. t.  (past & past part. mastered; pres. part. mastering)  
1.
To become the master of; to subject to one's will, control, or authority; to conquer; to overpower; to subdue. "Obstinacy and willful neglects must be mastered, even though it cost blows."
2.
To gain the command of, so as to understand or apply; to become an adept in; as, to master a science.
3.
To own; to posses. (Obs.) "The wealth That the world masters."



Master  v. i.  To be skillful; to excel. (Obs.)






Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48








Advanced search
     Find words:
Starting with
Ending with
Containing
Matching a pattern  

Synonyms
Antonyms
Quotes
Words linked to  

only single words



Share |





"Master" Quotes from Famous Books



... shelling, which was fairly frequent. On September 26th we were relieved on an intensely dark night by the 1st Black Watch and went back to bivouacs just off the Vendelles-Bihecourt Road, put up for us by the Battle Details, who had moved up from Poeuilly. They, together with the Transport and Quar.-Master's stores, had had none too peaceful a time during the last few days. Having moved to Vendelles they were shelled out of it almost at the moment they arrived, but eventually found a quiet resting-place for a brief space at Bernes, where, in addition to ordinary stores, ...
— The Sherwood Foresters in the Great War 1914 - 1919 - History of the 1/8th Battalion • W.C.C. Weetman

... did not ship myself as a sailor; whereby, though I might indeed have worked a little harder than ordinary, yet at the same time I had learnt the duty and office of a foremast-man; and in time might have qualified myself for a mate or lieutenant, if not for a master. But as it was always my fate to choose for the worse, so I did here; for having money in my pocket, and good clothes upon my back, I would always go on board in the habit of a gentleman; and so I neither had any business in the ship, ...
— The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe Of York, Mariner, Vol. 1 • Daniel Defoe

... Villejo, as well as Andries Martin, the master of the caravel, would have taken off his irons, but to this he would not consent. "No," said he proudly, "their majesties commanded me, by letter, to submit to whatever Bobadilla should order in their name; by their authority he ...
— Peter Parley's Tales About America and Australia • Samuel Griswold Goodrich

... haste,[FN542] a stallion which was saddled and bridled and which they intended to secure. Now for ten days they had galloped after him but none availed to catch him. When the King's son looked upon that case he uttered a loud cry and the courser, hearing the sound of his master's voice, made for him and fell to rubbing his cheeks upon his back and shoulders[FN543] until they came up with him as he was standing beside his lord. Hereat all the riders dismounted with intent ...
— Supplemental Nights, Volume 5 • Richard F. Burton

... maintained. They make all the chorus-singers study at once, on the one hand; and all the instrumentalists at once, on the other. Deplorable errors, innumerable mistakes, are thus committed—particularly in the intermediate parts—errors which the chorus-master and the conductor do not perceive. Once established, these errors degenerate into habits, and become part and parcel of ...
— The Orchestral Conductor - Theory of His Art • Hector Berlioz


More quotes...



Copyright © 2024 Free Translator.org