Part 197

Cher"ish (ch&ebreve;r"&ibreve;sh), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Cherished (- &ibreve;sht); p. pr. & vb. n. Cherising.] [F. chÚrir, fr. cher dear, fr. L. carus. See Caress, Finish.] 1. To treat with tenderness and affection; to nurture with care; to protect and aid.

We were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children. 1 Thess. ii. 7.

2. To hold dear; to embrace with interest; to indulge; to encourage; to foster; to promote; as, to cherish religious principle.

To cherish virtue and humanity. Burke.

Syn. -- To nourish; foster; nurse; nurture; entertain; encourage; comfort; protect; support; See Nurture.

Cher"ish*er (ch&ebreve;r"&ibreve;sh*&etilde;r), n. One who cherishes.

The cherisher of my flesh and blood. Shak.

Cher"ish*ment (?), n. Encouragement; comfort. [Obs.]

Rich bounty and dear cherishment. Spenser.

Cher"mes (?), n. See Kermes.

Cher"o*gril (?), n. [L. choerogryllus, Gr. &?;; &?; a young swine + &?; a pig.] (Zo÷l.) See Cony.

Cher`o*kees" (?), n. pl.; sing. Cherokee. (Ethnol.) An Appalachian tribe of Indians, formerly inhabiting the region about the head waters of the Tennessee River. They are now mostly settled in the Indian Territory, and have become one of the most civilized of the Indian Tribes.

Che*root" (ch&esl;*r&oomac;t"; 277), n. [Tamil shuru&tsdot;&tsdot;u, prop., a roll.] A kind of cigar, originally brought from Manila, in the Philippine Islands; now often made of inferior or adulterated tobacco.

Cher"ry (ch&ebreve;r"r&ybreve;), n. [OE. chery, for cherys, fr. F. cerise (cf. AS. cyrs cherry), fr. LL. ceresia, fr. L. cerasus Cherry tree, Gr. keraso`s, perh. fr. ke`ras horn, from the hardness of the wood.] 1. (Bot.) A tree or shrub of the genus Prunus (Which also includes the plum) bearing a fleshy drupe with a bony stone; (a) The common garden cherry (Prunus Cerasus), of which several hundred varieties are cultivated for the fruit, some of which are, the begarreau, blackheart, black Tartarian, oxheart, morelle or morello, May-duke (corrupted from MÚdoc in France). (b) The wild cherry; as, Prunus serotina (wild black cherry), valued for its timber; P. Virginiana (choke cherry), an American shrub which bears astringent fruit; P. avium and P. Padus, European trees (bird cherry).

2. The fruit of the cherry tree, a drupe of various colors and flavors.

3. The timber of the cherry tree, esp. of the black cherry, used in cabinetmaking, etc.

4. A peculiar shade of red, like that of a cherry.

Barbadoes cherry. See under Barbadoes. -- Cherry bird (Zo÷l.), an American bird; the cedar bird; -- so called from its fondness for cherries. -- Cherry bounce, cherry brandy and sugar. -- Cherry brandy, brandy in which cherries have been steeped. -- Cherry laurel (Bot.), an evergreen shrub (Prunus Lauro- cerasus) common in shrubberies, the poisonous leaves of which have a flavor like that of bitter almonds. -- Cherry pepper (Bot.), a species of Capsicum (C. cerasiforme), with small, scarlet, intensely piquant cherry-shaped fruit. -- Cherry pit. (a) A child's play, in which cherries are thrown into a hole. Shak. (b) A cherry stone. -- Cherry rum, rum in which cherries have been steeped. -- Cherry sucker (Zo÷l.), the European spotted flycatcher (Musicapa grisola); -- called also cherry chopper cherry snipe. -- Cherry tree, a tree that bears cherries. -- Ground cherry, Winter cherry, See Alkekengi.

Cher"ry (ch&ebreve;r"r&ybreve;), a. Like a red cherry in color; ruddy; blooming; as, a cherry lip; cherry cheeks.

Cher"so*nese (k&etilde;r"s&osl;*nēs), n. [Gr. cherso`nhsos; che`rsos land + nh`sos island.] A peninsula; a tract of land nearly surrounded by water, but united to a larger tract by a neck of land or isthmus; as, the Cimbric Chersonese, or Jutland; the Tauric Chersonese, or Crimea.

Chert (ch&etilde;rt), n. [Ir. ceart stone, perh. akin to E. crag.] (Min.) An impure, massive, flintlike quartz or hornstone, of a dull color.

Chert"y (?), a. Like chert; containing chert; flinty.

Cher"ub (?), n.; pl. Cherubs (#); but the Hebrew plural Cherubim (#) is also used. [Heb. kerūb.] 1. A mysterious composite being, the winged footstool and chariot of the Almighty, described in Ezekiel i. and x.

I knew that they were the cherubim. Ezek. x. 20.

He rode upon a cherub and did fly. Ps. xviii. 10.

2. A symbolical winged figure of unknown form used in connection with the mercy seat of the Jewish Ark and Temple. Ez. xxv. 18.

3. One of a order of angels, variously represented in art. In European painting the cherubim have been shown as blue, to denote knowledge, as distinguished from the seraphim (see Seraph), and in later art the children's heads with wings are generally called cherubs.

4. A beautiful child; -- so called because artists have represented cherubs as beautiful children.