Part 11
{ Saut, Saute (?) }, n. An assault. [Obs.]
||Sau`te" (?), p. p. of Sauter. C. Owen.
||Sau`ter" (?), v. t. [F., properly, to jump.] To fry lightly and ||quickly, as meat, by turning or tossing it over frequently in a hot ||pan greased with a little fat.
Sau"ter (?), n. Psalter. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.
Sau`te*relle (?), n. [F.] An instrument used by masons and others to trace and form angles.
Sau`terne" (?), n. [F.] A white wine made in the district of Sauterne, France.
Sau"trie (?), n. Psaltery. [Obs.] Chaucer.
||Sau`ve*garde" (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) The monitor.
Sav"a*ble (?), a. [From Save. Cf. Salvable.] Capable of, or admitting of, being saved.
In the person prayed for there ought to be the great disposition of being in a savable condition.
Jer. Taylor.
Sav"a*ble*ness, n. Capability of being saved.
Sa*va"ci*oun` (?), n. Salvation. [Obs.]
Sav"age (?; 48), a. [F. sauvage, OF. salvage, fr. L. silvaticus belonging to a wood, wild, fr. silva a wood. See Silvan, and cf. Sylvatic.] 1. Of or pertaining to the forest; remote from human abodes and cultivation; in a state of nature; wild; as, a savage wilderness.
2. Wild; untamed; uncultivated; as, savage beasts.
Cornels, and savage berries of the wood.
Dryden.
3. Uncivilized; untaught; unpolished; rude; as, savage life; savage manners.
What nation, since the commencement of the Christian era, ever rose from savage to civilized without Christianity?
E. D. Griffin.
4. Characterized by cruelty; barbarous; fierce; ferocious; inhuman; brutal; as, a savage spirit.
Syn. -- Ferocious; wild; uncultivated; untamed; untaught; uncivilized; unpolished; rude; brutish; brutal; heathenish; barbarous; cruel; inhuman; fierce; pitiless; merciless; unmerciful; atrocious. See Ferocious.
Sav"age, n. 1. A human being in his native state of rudeness; one who is untaught, uncivilized, or without cultivation of mind or manners.
2. A man of extreme, unfeeling, brutal cruelty; a barbarian.
Sav"age (?; 48), v. t. To make savage. [R.]
Its bloodhounds, savaged by a cross of wolf.
Southey.
Sav"age*ly, adv. In a savage manner.
Sav"age*ness, n. The state or quality of being savage.
Wolves and bears, they say, Casting their savageness aside have done Like offices of pity.
Shak.
Sav"age*ry (?; 277), n. [F. sauvagerie.] 1. The state of being savage; savageness; savagism.
A like work of primeval savagery.
C. Kingsley.
2. An act of cruelty; barbarity.
The wildest savagery, the vilest stroke, That ever wall-eyed wrath or staring rage Presented to the tears of soft remorse.
Shak.
3. Wild growth, as of plants. Shak.
Sav"a*gism (?), n. The state of being savage; the state of rude, uncivilized men, or of men in their native wildness and rudeness.
Sav`a*nil"la (?), n. (Zoöl.) The tarpum. [Local, U.S.]
Sa*van"na (?), n. [Of American Indian origin; cf. Sp. sabana, F. savane.] A tract of level land covered with the vegetable growth usually found in a damp soil and warm climate, -- as grass or reeds, -- but destitute of trees. [Spelt also savannah.]
Savannahs are clear pieces of land without woods.
Dampier.
Savanna flower (Bot.), a West Indian name for several climbing apocyneous plants of the genus Echites. -- Savanna sparrow (Zoöl.), an American sparrow (Ammodramus sandwichensis or Passerculus savanna) of which several varieties are found on grassy plains from Alaska to the Eastern United States. -- Savanna wattle (Bot.), a name of two West Indian trees of the genus Citharexylum.
||Sa`vant" (?), n.; pl. Savants (F. &?;; E. &?;). [F., fr. savoir to ||know, L. sapere. See Sage, a.] A man of learning; one versed in ||literature or science; a person eminent for acquirements.
Save (?), n. [See Sage the herb.] The herb sage, or salvia. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Save (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Saved (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Saving.] [OE. saven, sauven, salven, OF. salver, sauver, F. sauver, L. salvare, fr. salvus saved, safe. See Safe, a.] 1. To make safe; to procure the safety of; to preserve from injury, destruction, or evil of any kind; to rescue from impending danger; as, to save a house from the flames.
God save all this fair company.
Chaucer.
He cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Matt. xiv. 30.
Thou hast . . . quitted all to save A world from utter loss.
Milton.
2. (Theol.) Specifically, to deliver from sin and its penalty; to rescue from a state of condemnation and spiritual death, and bring into a state of spiritual life.
Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
1 Tim. i. 15.
3. To keep from being spent or lost; to secure from waste or expenditure; to lay up; to reserve.
Now save a nation, and now save a groat.
Pope.
4. To rescue from something undesirable or hurtful; to prevent from doing something; to spare.
I'll save you That labor, sir. All's now done.
Shak.
5. To hinder from doing, suffering, or happening; to obviate the necessity of; to prevent; to spare.
Will you not speak to save a lady's blush?
Dryden.
6. To hold possession or use of; to escape loss of.
Just saving the tide, and putting in a stock of merit.
Swift.
To save appearances, to preserve a decent outside; to avoid exposure of a discreditable state of things.
Syn. -- To preserve; rescue; deliver; protect; spare; reserve; prevent.
Save, v. i. To avoid unnecessary expense or expenditure; to prevent waste; to be economical.
Brass ordnance saveth in the quantity of the material.
Bacon.
Save, prep. or conj. [F. sauf, properly adj., safe. See Safe, a.] Except; excepting; not including; leaving out; deducting; reserving; saving.
Five times received I forty stripes save one.
2 Cor. xi. 24.
Syn. -- See Except.
Save, conj. Except; unless.
Save"a*ble (?), a. See Savable.
Save"-all` (?), n. [Save + all.] Anything which saves fragments, or prevents waste or loss. Specifically: (a) A device in a candlestick to hold the ends of candles, so that they be burned. (b) (Naut.) A small sail sometimes set under the foot of another sail, to catch the wind that would pass under it. Totten.
(c) A trough to prevent waste in a paper-making machine.
Sav"e*loy (?), n. [F. cervelas, It. cervellata, fr. cervello brain, L. cerebellum, dim. of cerebrum brain. See Cerebral.] A kind of dried sausage. McElrath.
Save"ly (?), adv. Safely. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Save"ment (?), n. The act of saving. [Obs.]
Sav"er (?), n. One who saves.
{ Sav"in, Sav"ine (?) }, n. [OE. saveine, AS. safinæ, savine, L. sabina herba. Cf. Sabine.] [Written also sabine.] (Bot.) (a) A coniferous shrub (Juniperus Sabina) of Western Asia, occasionally found also in the northern parts of the United States and in British America. It is a compact bush, with dark-colored foliage, and produces small berries having a glaucous bloom. Its bitter, acrid tops are sometimes used in medicine for gout, amenorrhœa, etc. (b) The North American red cedar (Juniperus Virginiana.)
Sav"ing (?), a. 1. Preserving; rescuing.
He is the saving strength of his anointed.
Ps. xxviii. 8.
2. Avoiding unnecessary expense or waste; frugal; not lavish or wasteful; economical; as, a saving cook.
3. Bringing back in returns or in receipts the sum expended; incurring no loss, though not gainful; as, a saving bargain; the ship has made a saving voyage.
4. Making reservation or exception; as, a saving clause.
Saving is often used with a noun to form a compound adjective; as, labor-saving, life-saving, etc.
Sav"ing (sv"ng), prep. or conj.; but properly a participle. With the exception of; except; excepting; also, without disrespect to. "Saving your reverence." Shak. "Saving your presence." Burns.
None of us put off our clothes, saving that every one put them off for washing.
Neh. iv. 23.
And in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
Rev. ii. 17.
Sav"ing, n. 1. Something kept from being expended or lost; that which is saved or laid up; as, the savings of years of economy.
2. Exception; reservation.
Contend not with those that are too strong for us, but still with a saving to honesty.
L'Estrange.
Savings bank, a bank in which savings or earnings are deposited and put at interest.
Sav"ing*ly, adv. 1. In a saving manner; with frugality or parsimony.
2. So as to be finally saved from eternal death.
Savingly born of water and the Spirit.
Waterland.
Sav"ing*ness, n. 1. The quality of being saving; carefulness not to expend money uselessly; frugality; parsimony. Mrs. H. H. Jackson.
2. Tendency to promote salvation. Johnson.
Sav"ior (sv"yr), n. [OE. saveour, OF. salveor, F. sauveur, fr. L. salvator, fr. salvare to save. See Save, v.] [Written also saviour.] 1. One who saves, preserves, or delivers from destruction or danger.
2. Specifically: The (or our, your, etc.) Savior, he who brings salvation to men; Jesus Christ, the Redeemer.
Sav"ior*ess, n. A female savior. [Written also saviouress.] [R.] Bp. Hall.
Sa"vor (?), n. [OE. savour, savor, savur, OF. savor, savour, F. saveur, fr. L. sapor, fr. sapere to taste, savor. See Sage, a., and cf. Sapid, Insipid, Sapor.] [Written also savour.] 1. That property of a thing which affects the organs of taste or smell; taste and odor; flavor; relish; scent; as, the savor of an orange or a rose; an ill savor.
I smell sweet savors and I feel soft things.
Shak.
2. Hence, specific flavor or quality; characteristic property; distinctive temper, tinge, taint, and the like.
Why is not my life a continual joy, and the savor of heaven perpetually upon my spirit?
Baxter.
3. Sense of smell; power to scent, or trace by scent. [R.] "Beyond my savor." Herbert.
4. Pleasure; delight; attractiveness. [Obs.]
She shall no savor have therein but lite.
Chaucer.
Syn. -- Taste; flavor; relish; odor; scent; smell.
Sa"vor, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Savored (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Savoring.] [Cf. OF. savorer, F. savourer. See Savor, n.] [Written also savour.] 1. To have a particular smell or taste; -- with of.
2. To partake of the quality or nature; to indicate the presence or influence; to smack; -- with of.
This savors not much of distraction.
Shak.
I have rejected everything that savors of party.
Addison.
3. To use the sense of taste. [Obs.]
By sight, hearing, smelling, tasting or savoring, and feeling.
Chaucer.
Sa"vor, v. t. 1. To perceive by the smell or the taste; hence, to perceive; to note. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
2. To have the flavor or quality of; to indicate the presence of. [R.]
That cuts us off from hope, and savors only Rancor and pride, impatience and despite.
Milton.
3. To taste or smell with pleasure; to delight in; to relish; to like; to favor. [R.] Shak.
Sa"vor*i*ly (?), adv. In a savory manner.
Sa"vor*i*ness, n. The quality of being savory.
Sa"vor*less, a. Having no savor; destitute of smell or of taste; insipid.
Sa"vor*ly, a. Savory. [Obs.]
Sa"vor*ly, adv. In a savory manner. [Obs.] Barrow.
Sa"vor*ous (-s), a. [Cf. F. savoureux, OF. saveros, L. saporosus. Cf. Saporous, and see Savor, n.] Having a savor; savory. [Obs.] Rom. of R.
Sa"vor*y (-), a. [From Savor.] Pleasing to the organs of taste or smell. [Written also savoury.]
The chewing flocks Had ta'en their supper on the savory herb.
Milton.
Sa"vo*ry (s"v*r), n. [F. savorée; cf. It. santoreggia, satureja, L. satureia,] (Bot.) An aromatic labiate plant (Satureia hortensis), much used in cooking; -- also called summer savory. [Written also savoury.]
Sa*voy" (?), n. [F. chou de Savoie cabbage of Savoy.] (Bot.) A variety of the common cabbage (Brassica oleracea major), having curled leaves, -- much cultivated for winter use.
Sav`oy*ard" (?), n. [F.] A native or inhabitant of Savoy.
Saw (s), imp. of See.
Saw, n. [OE. sawe, AS. sagu; akin to secgan to say. See Say, v. t. and cf. Saga.]
1. Something said; speech; discourse. [Obs.] "To hearken all his sawe." Chaucer.
2. A saying; a proverb; a maxim.
His champions are the prophets and apostles, His weapons holy saws of sacred writ.
Shak.
3. Dictate; command; decree. [Obs.]
[Love] rules the creatures by his powerful saw.
Spenser.
Saw, n. [OE. sawe, AS. sage; akin to D. zaag, G. säge, OHG. sega, saga, Dan. sav, Sw. såg, Icel. sög, L. secare to cut, securis ax, secula sickle. Cf. Scythe, Sickle, Section, Sedge.] An instrument for cutting or dividing substances, as wood, iron, etc., consisting of a thin blade, or plate, of steel, with a series of sharp teeth on the edge, which remove successive portions of the material by cutting and tearing.
Saw is frequently used adjectively, or as the first part of a compound.
Band saw, Crosscut saw, etc. See under Band, Crosscut, etc. -- Circular saw, a disk of steel with saw teeth upon its periphery, and revolved on an arbor. -- Saw bench, a bench or table with a flat top for for sawing, especially with a circular saw which projects above the table. -- Saw file, a three-cornered file, such as is used for sharpening saw teeth. -- Saw frame, the frame or sash in a sawmill, in which the saw, or gang of saws, is held. -- Saw gate, a saw frame. -- Saw gin, the form of cotton gin invented by Eli Whitney, in which the cotton fibers are drawn, by the teeth of a set of revolving circular saws, through a wire grating which is too fine for the seeds to pass. -- Saw grass (Bot.), any one of certain cyperaceous plants having the edges of the leaves set with minute sharp teeth, especially the Cladium Mariscus of Europe, and the Cladium effusum of the Southern United States. Cf. Razor grass, under Razor. -- Saw log, a log of suitable size for sawing into lumber. -- Saw mandrel, a mandrel on which a circular saw is fastened for running. -- Saw pit, a pit over which timbor is sawed by two men, one standing below the timber and the other above. Mortimer. -- Saw sharpener (Zoöl.), the great titmouse; -- so named from its harsh call note. [Prov. Eng.] -- Saw whetter (Zoöl.), the marsh titmouse (Parus palustris); -- so named from its call note. [Prov. Eng.] -- Scroll saw, a ribbon of steel with saw teeth upon one edge, stretched in a frame and adapted for sawing curved outlines; also, a machine in which such a saw is worked by foot or power.
Saw (?), v. t. [imp. Sawed (?); p. p. Sawed or Sawn (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Sawing.] 1. To cut with a saw; to separate with a saw; as, to saw timber or marble.
2. To form by cutting with a saw; as, to saw boards or planks, that is, to saw logs or timber into boards or planks; to saw shingles; to saw out a panel.
3. Also used figuratively; as, to saw the air.
Saw, v. i. 1. To use a saw; to practice sawing; as, a man saws well.
2. To cut, as a saw; as, the saw or mill saws fast.
3. To be cut with a saw; as, the timber saws smoothly.
Sa*war"ra nut` (?). See Souari nut.
Saw"bel`ly (?), n. The alewife. [Local, U.S.]
Saw"bill` (?), n. The merganser. [Prov. Eng.]
Saw"bones` (?), n. A nickname for a surgeon.
Saw"buck` (?), n. A sawhorse.
Saw"ce*flem (?), a. See Sauseflem. [Obs.]
Saw"der (?), n. A corrupt spelling and pronunciation of solder.
Soft sawder, seductive praise; flattery; blarney. [Slang]
Saw"dust` (?), n. Dust or small fragments of wood (or of stone, etc.) made by the cutting of a saw.
Saw"er` (?), n. One who saws; a sawyer.
Saw"fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of elasmobranch fishes of the genus Pristis. They have a sharklike form, but are more nearly allied to the rays. The flattened and much elongated snout has a row of stout toothlike structures inserted along each edge, forming a sawlike organ with which it mutilates or kills its prey.
Saw"fly` (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of hymenopterous insects belonging to the family Tenthredinidæ. The female usually has an ovipositor containing a pair of sawlike organs with which she makes incisions in the leaves or stems of plants in which to lay the eggs. The larvæ resemble those of Lepidoptera.
Saw"horse` (?), n. A kind of rack, shaped like a double St. Andrew's cross, on which sticks of wood are laid for sawing by hand; -- called also buck, and sawbuck.
Saw"mill` (?), n. A mill for sawing, especially one for sawing timber or lumber.
Saw"neb` (?), n. A merganser. [Prov. Eng.]
Saw" pal*met"to. See under Palmetto.
Saw"-set` (?), n. An instrument used to set or turn the teeth of a saw a little sidewise, that they may make a kerf somewhat wider than the thickness of the blade, to prevent friction; -- called also saw-wrest.
Saw"tooth` (?), n. (Zoöl.) An arctic seal (Lobodon carcinophaga), having the molars serrated; -- called also crab-eating seal.
Saw"-toothed" (?), a. Having a tooth or teeth like those of a saw; serrate.
Saw"try (?), n. A psaltery. [Obs.] Dryden.
Saw"-whet` (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small North American owl (Nyctale Acadica), destitute of ear tufts and having feathered toes; -- called also Acadian owl.
Saw"-wort` (?), n. (Bot.) Any plant of the composite genus Serratula; -- so named from the serrated leaves of most of the species.
Saw"-wrest` (?), n. See Saw- set.
Saw"yer (?), n. [Saw + - yer, as in lawyer. Cf. Sawer.] 1. One whose occupation is to saw timber into planks or boards, or to saw wood for fuel; a sawer.
2. A tree which has fallen into a stream so that its branches project above the surface, rising and falling with a rocking or swaying motion in the current. [U.S.]
3. (Zoöl.) The bowfin. [Local, U.S.]
Sax (?), n. [AS. seax a knife.] A kind of chopping instrument for trimming the edges of roofing slates.
Sax"a*tile (?), a. [L. saxatilis, fr. saxum a rock: cf. F. saxatile.] Of or pertaining to rocks; living among rocks; as, a saxatile plant.
Sax"horn` (?), n. (Mus.) A name given to a numerous family of brass wind instruments with valves, invented by Antoine Joseph Adolphe Sax (known as Adolphe Sax), of Belgium and Paris, and much used in military bands and in orchestras.
Sax`i*ca"va (?), n.; pl. E. saxicavas (#), L. Saxicavæ (#). [NL. See Saxicavous.] (Zoöl.) Any species of marine bivalve shells of the genus Saxicava. Some of the species are noted for their power of boring holes in limestone and similar rocks.
Sax`i*ca"vid (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the saxicavas. -- n. A saxicava.
Sax`i*ca"vous (?), a. [L. saxum rock + cavare to make hollow, fr. cavus hollow: cf. F. saxicave.] (Zoöl.) Boring, or hollowing out, rocks; -- said of certain mollusks which live in holes which they burrow in rocks. See Illust. of Lithodomus.
Sax*ic"o*line (?), a. [L. saxum a rock + colere to inhabit.] (Zoöl.) Stone- inhabiting; pertaining to, or having the characteristics of, the stonechats.
Sax*ic"o*lous (?), a. [See Saxicoline.] (Bot.) Growing on rocks.
||Sax*if"ra*ga (?), n. [L., saxifrage. See Saxifrage.] (Bot.) A genus ||of exogenous polypetalous plants, embracing about one hundred and ||eighty species. See Saxifrage.
Sax`i*fra*ga"ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to a natural order of plants (Saxifragaceæ) of which saxifrage is the type. The order includes also the alum root, the hydrangeas, the mock orange, currants and gooseberries, and many other plants.
Sax*if"ra*gant (?), a. [See Saxifrage.] Breaking or destroying stones; saxifragous. [R.] -- n. That which breaks or destroys stones. [R.]
Sax"i*frage (?; 48), n. [L. saxifraga, from saxifragus stone-breaking; saxum rock + frangere to break: cf. F. saxifrage. See Fracture, and cf. Sassafras, Saxon.] (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Saxifraga, mostly perennial herbs growing in crevices of rocks in mountainous regions.
Burnet saxifrage, a European umbelliferous plant (Pimpinella Saxifraga). -- Golden saxifrage, a low half-succulent herb (Chrysosplenium oppositifolium) growing in rivulets in Europe; also, C. Americanum, common in the United States. See also under Golden. -- Meadow saxifrage, or Pepper saxifrage. See under Meadow.
Sax*if"ra*gous (?), a. [L. saxifragus: cf. F. saxifrage. See Saxifrage.] Dissolving stone, especially dissolving stone in the bladder.
Sax"on (sks"n or -'n), n. [L. Saxo, pl. Saxones, from the Saxon national name; cf. AS. pl. Seaxe, Seaxan, fr. seax a knife, a short sword, a dagger (akin to OHG. sahs, and perhaps to L. saxum rock, stone, knives being originally made of stone); and cf. G. Sachse, pl. Sachsen. Cf. Saxifrage.] 1. (a) One of a nation or people who formerly dwelt in the northern part of Germany, and who, with other Teutonic tribes, invaded and conquered England in the fifth and sixth centuries. (b) Also used in the sense of Anglo- Saxon. (c) A native or inhabitant of modern Saxony.
2. The language of the Saxons; Anglo- Saxon.
Old Saxon, the Saxon of the continent of Europe in the old form of the language, as shown particularly in the "Heliand", a metrical narration of the gospel history preserved in manuscripts of the 9th century.
Sax"on, a. Of or pertaining to the Saxons, their country, or their language. (b) Anglo-Saxon. (c) Of or pertaining to Saxony or its inhabitants.
Saxon blue (Dyeing), a deep blue liquid used in dyeing, and obtained by dissolving indigo in concentrated sulphuric acid. Brande & C. -- Saxon green (Dyeing), a green color produced by dyeing with yellow upon a ground of Saxon blue.
Sax*on"ic (?), a. Relating to the Saxons or Anglo- Saxons.
Sax"on*ism (?), n. An idiom of the Saxon or Anglo-Saxon language. T. Warton.
Sax"on*ist, n. One versed in the Saxon language.
Sax"on*ite (?), n. (Min.) See Mountain soap, under Mountain.
Sax"o*phone (?), n. [A.A.J. Sax, the inventor (see Saxhorn) + Gr. &?; tone.] (Mus.) A wind instrument of brass, containing a reed, and partaking of the qualities both of a brass instrument and of a clarinet.
Sax"-tu`ba (?), n. [See Saxhorn, and Tube.] (Mus.) A powerful instrument of brass, curved somewhat like the Roman buccina, or tuba.
Say (s), obs. imp. of See. Saw. Chaucer.
Say (s), n. [Aphetic form of assay.] 1. Trial by sample; assay; sample; specimen; smack. [Obs.]
If those principal works of God . . . be but certain tastes and says, as it were, of that final benefit.
Hooker.
Thy tongue some say of breeding breathes.
Shak.
2. Tried quality; temper; proof. [Obs.]
He found a sword of better say.
Spenser.
3. Essay; trial; attempt. [Obs.]
To give a say at, to attempt. B. Jonson.
Say, v. t. To try; to assay. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
Say, n. [OE. saie, F. saie, fr. L. saga, equiv. to sagum, sagus, a coarse woolen mantle; cf. Gr. sa`gos. See Sagum.] 1. A kind of silk or satin. [Obs.]
Thou say, thou serge, nay, thou buckram lord!
Shak.
2. A delicate kind of serge, or woolen cloth. [Obs.]
His garment neither was of silk nor say.
Spenser.
Say, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Said (sd), contracted from sayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Saying.] [OE. seggen, seyen, siggen, sayen, sayn, AS. secgan; akin to OS. seggian, D. zeggen, LG. seggen, OHG. sagn, G. sagen, Icel. segja, Sw. säga, Dan. sige, Lith. sakyti; cf. OL. insece tell, relate, Gr. 'e`nnepe (for 'en-sepe), 'e`spete. Cf. Saga, Saw a saying.] 1. To utter or express in words; to tell; to speak; to declare; as, he said many wise things.
Arise, and say how thou camest here.
Shak.
2. To repeat; to rehearse; to recite; to pronounce; as, to say a lesson.
Of my instruction hast thou nothing bated In what thou hadst to say?
Shak.
After which shall be said or sung the following hymn.
Bk. of Com. Prayer.
3. To announce as a decision or opinion; to state positively; to assert; hence, to form an opinion upon; to be sure about; to be determined in mind as to.
But what it is, hard is to say.
Milton.