Part 297

Shak.

It was by dint of passing strength That he moved the massy stone at length.

Sir W. Scott.

Dint, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dinted; p. pr. & vb. n. Dinting.] To make a mark or cavity on or in, by a blow or by pressure; to dent. Donne. Tennyson.

Di*nu`mer*a"tion (?), n. [L. dinumeratio; di- = dis- + numerare to count, fr. numerus number.] Enumeration. [Obs.] Bullokar.

Di*oc"e*san (?; 277), a. [LL. dioecesanus: cf. F. diocésain.] Of or pertaining to a diocese; as, diocesan missions.

Di*oc"e*san, n. 1. A bishop, viewed in relation to his diocese; as, the diocesan of New York.

2. pl. The clergy or the people of a diocese. Strype.

Di"o*cese (?), n.; pl. Dioceses (#). [OE. diocise, OF. diocise, F. diocése, L. dioecesis, fr. Gr. &?; housekeeping, administration, a province, a diocese, fr. &?; to keep house, manage; dia` through + &?; to manage a household, &?; a house. See Economy.] (Eccl.) The circuit or extent of a bishop's jurisdiction; the district in which a bishop exercises his ecclesiastical authority. [Frequently, but improperly, spelt diocess.]

Di`o*ce"se*ner (?), n. One who belongs to a diocese. [Obs.] Bacon.

Di"o*don (?), n. [Gr. di- = di`s- twice + 'odoy`s, 'odo`ntos, a tooth: cf. F. diodon.] 1. (Zoöl.) A genus of spinose, plectognath fishes, having the teeth of each jaw united into a single beaklike plate. They are able to inflate the body by taking in air or water, and, hence, are called globefishes, swellfishes, etc. Called also porcupine fishes, and sea hedgehogs.

2. (Zoöl.) A genus of whales.

Di"o*dont (?), a. (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the genus Diodon. -- n. A fish of the genus Diodon, or an allied genus.

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||Di*œ"ci*a (d*"sh*), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. di = di`s twice + o'i^kos a house.] 1. (Bot.) A Linnæan class of plants having the stamens and pistils on different plants.

2. (Zoöl.) A subclass of gastropod mollusks in which the sexes are separate. It includes most of the large marine species, like the conchs, cones, and cowries.

{ Di*œ"cian (?), Di*œ"cious (?), } a. (Biol.) Having the sexes in two separate individuals; -- applied to plants in which the female flowers occur on one individual and the male flowers on another of the same species, and to animals in which the ovum is produced by one individual and the sperm cell by another; -- opposed to monœcious.

Di*œ"cious*ly, adv. (Biol.) In a diœcious manner.

Diœciously hermaphrodite (Bot.), having flowers structurally perfect, but practically diœcious, -- those on one plant producing no pollen, and those on another no ovules.

Di*œ"cious*ness, n. (Biol.) The state or quality of being diœcious.

Di*œ"cism (?), n. (Biol.) The condition of being diœcious.

Di*og"e*nes (?), n. A Greek Cynic philosopher (412?-323 B. C.) who lived much in Athens and was distinguished for contempt of the common aims and conditions of life, and for sharp, caustic sayings.

Diogenes' crab (Zoöl.), a species of terrestrial hermit crabs (Cenobita Diogenes), abundant in the West Indies and often destructive to crops. -- Diogenes' tub, the tub which the philosopher Diogenes is said to have carried about with him as his house, in which he lived.

Di*oi"cous (?), a. See Diœcious.

||Di*om`e*de"a (?), n. [NL.] (Zoöl.) A genus of large sea birds, including the albatross. See Albatross.

||Di`o*næ"a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a name of Aphrodite.] (Bot.) An insectivorous plant. See Venus's flytrap.

Di`o*ny"sian (?), a. Relating to Dionysius, a monk of the 6th century; as, the Dionysian, or Christian, era.

Dionysian period, a period of 532 years, depending on the cycle of the sun, or 28 years, and the cycle of the moon, or 19 years; -- sometimes called the Greek paschal cycle, or Victorian period.