▪ I. seal, n.1
(siːl)
Forms: α. 1 seolh, 4 ? selȝ; Sc. 5 selghe, 5–6 selcht, 5–7 selche, 5–8 selch, 6 saylch, selk, 9 sealgh. β. (1 siol-, seol-), 3–6 sele, 4–7 seel, 5 sel, ceel, cele, zele, seylle, 5–6 seele, seyle, sealle, 5–7 seale, 6 seall, seayle, seayll, 7 siele, seil, sayle, 7– seal. See also soile.
[OE. sī̆ol-, sē̆ol-, declensional form of seolh (whence the α forms above, which are mainly Scottish) = OHG. selah, MLG. sêl, MDu. seel, sael (-hont), zele, ON. sel-r (Sw. sjel, säl, Da. sæl):—OTeut. selho-z.]
1. A member of the family Phocidæ, sub-order Pinnipedia, of aquatic carnivorous mammals, with limbs developed into flippers and adapted for swimming, and having an elongated body covered with thick fur or bristles and terminated by a short tail; spec. the Common Seal, Phoca vitulina, an inhabitant of all waters of the temperate and frigid zones. Also applied (chiefly with defining word: see 2) to amphibious mammals of other families closely resembling the Common Seal in appearance.
| α c 1000 Sax. Leechd. III. 34 Ðas onsænde seolh ofer sæs hrygc. 1383 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 434 Coopertus cum pelle de sely [? = selȝ]. c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. iii. i. 48 Þe carl was fat as any selche [v.r. selghe]. 1502 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. II. 342 Item to ane man brocht ane quyk selch fra Pittinweme to Faukland to the King, xiiij s. 1549 Compl. Scot. vi. 60 The selcht, quhilk sum men callis the see volue. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 57 Sey calues or saylches. 1789 D. Davidson Seasons 17 Gib's now gane for the Western seas, Whare selchs an' pellucks whamble. 1821 Scott Pirate v, What the devil mean you by..levelling your gun at folk's heads as you would at a sealgh's? |
| β c 893 K. ælfred Oros. i. i. 18 On þæm sciprapum, þe beoð of hwæles hyde ᵹeworht, & of seoles. c 1050 Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 408/37 Focus, seol. c 1300 Havelok 755 He tok þe sele. 1409 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 53 In di. ceel de Tes, 4s. 1416 Ibid. 54 In 3 quarters unius zele et plays de Tese, 8s. 6d. c 1460 J. Russell Bk. Nurture 823 in Babees Bk., The baly of þe fresche samon, els purpose, or seele. c 1552 Leland Itin. (1769) VII. 119 Seles when they cast theyr Calves they cum to Lond. 1579 Hake Newes out of Powles iv. (1872) D iij, Straunge kindes of fysh at second course... As Porpesse, Seale and Salmond good. 1667 Milton P.L. xi. 831 An Iland salt and bare, The haunt of Seales and Orcs. 1743 Bulkeley & Cummins Voy. S. Seas 159 To carry a Line to haul some of the Seal aboard. 1815 Scott Ld. of Isles iv. x, Staffa..Where..the shy seal had quiet home. |
2. With defining word,
e.g. eared,
elephant,
fur,
hair,
harp,
hooded,
leonine,
leporine,
monk,
pied,
ribbon,
ringed,
rough,
ursine seal, etc. (see these words); also
bottle-nosed seal,
Phoca leonina;
crab-eating seal,
Labodon carcinophaga;
floe,
small-ringed seal = spotted seal;
great seal,
Phoca barbata (Pennant);
Greenland,
heart seal = harp seal;
marbled seal,
Calocephalus discolor.
| 1781 Pennant Quadrupeds II. 525 Hooded Seal. Ibid., Harp Seal... Our Fishers call this the Harp or Heart Seal. Ibid. 531 Bottle-nose Seal. 1841 Penny Cycl. XXI. 160/2 In the eye of the Greenland Seal..the cornea was thin and yielding. 1842 C. H. Smith Introd. Mammalia 258 Stenorhincus Leptonyx, or Small Nailed Seal, from the South Seas. 1879 E. P. Wright Anim. Life 124 The Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus) is met with around the north and west coasts of Scotland. 1886 Encycl. Brit. XXI. 581/1 The small ringed seal or ‘floe-rat’ of the sealers (Phoca hispida). Ibid. 582/2 The floe or spotted seal. |
3. Short for
sealskin.
| 1886 Beck Draper's Dict., Seal (fur). This valuable fur is sought annually on the shores of Spitzbergen. 1886 Leeds Mercury 29 Dec. 4/4 An active demand for seals and plushes. |
4. attrib. and
Comb.:
a. simple attributive, as
seal-blubber,
seal-bone,
seal leather,
seal-oil; in sense 3,
seal-coat.
| 1873 Routledge's Young Gentl. Mag. Jan. 115/2 Such luxuries as *seal-blubber. |
| 1616 Shetland Witch Trial in Dalyell Darker Superst. Scot. (1834) 384 The ‘*selch bone’ with which Barbara stirred her milk to divine the product. |
| 1901 Munsey's Mag. XXV. 351/1 The desire of a woman for a *seal coat. |
| 1882 J. Paton in Encycl. Brit. XIV. 388/1 *Seal leather is generally finished on the grain side as ‘levant’ seal with a large coarse grain. |
| 1732 in Calendar State Papers, Amer. & W. Indies (1939) 227 Value of *seal oil made last winter, {pstlg}2478 10s. 1839 Ure Dict. Arts 248, 1/8 of a gallon of good seal oil, weighs 6010 gr. 1973 L. Russell Everday Life Colonial Canada xii. 155 Until the 1860s, seal oil was an important lamp fuel in the eastern colonies, and was also used in food and as a lubricant. |
b. ‘Connected with the catching of a seal’, as
seal-club,
seal-lance,
seal-pike,
seal-ship,
seal-shot,
seal-trap.
| 1820 Scoresby Acc. Arctic Reg. I. 512 A blow with a ‘*seal-club’..on the nose, immediately stuns it. |
| 1895 Kipling 2nd Jungle Bk. 161 Kotuko looked over the deer-sinew fastenings of his harpoon and his *seal-lance. |
| 1908 Daily Chron. 29 Apr. 5/5 Both the Walrus and the Panther were among the oldest of the fleet of *seal-ships. 1842 *Seal-shot [see sealing vbl. n.2 b]. |
| 1876 C. H. Davis Polaris Exped. viii. 219 Hans set some *seal-traps, without success. |
c. similative, as
seal-brown,
seal-like adjs.| 1874 Carr Judith Gwynne vii, The boy shambled over in a seal-like manner. 1881 [see fawn n.1 3]. 1884 Western Daily Press 28 Nov. 7/4 Entire costumes are made of this attractive fabric..in colour a lovely seal-brown. 1963 B. Vesey-Fitzgerald Cat Owner's Encycl. 36 The body should be a solid colour of rich dark seal-brown shading. |
d. objective, as
seal-fisher,
seal-fishery,
seal-hunt,
seal-hunter,
seal-spearing.
| 1820 Scoresby Acc. Arctic Reg. I. 513 The *seal-fishers have to pursue them over the ice. |
| 1785 J. Knox View Brit. Emp. I. 351 The greatest *seal fishery is on the coast of Labrador. |
| 1886 Encycl. Brit. XXI. 582/2 On the western shore of the White Sea the *seal-hunt is less productive than on the eastern. |
| 1781 Pennant Quadrupeds II. 524 Our Newfoundland *Seal-hunters. |
| 1895 Kipling 2nd Jungle Bk. 172 The men used to sing it after *seal-spearing. |
5. Special combinations:
seal calf, the young of the seal;
seal-cloth (see
quot.);
† seal-fish = sense 1;
seal-fur, the skin of the Hair-seal (
Otaria) used as a material for garments;
seal-grain, a preparation of seal leather used in ornamental work;
seal-hole, a hole in ice kept open by seals coming to it for air and getting out of the water through it;
seal-plush, a fabric made to imitate seal-skin;
seal rookery = rookery 2 b;
seal-vat, part of the apparatus used in the production of seal-oil.
| c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 566 Þer com a *cele calf and it toke. |
| 1881 Wardle Handbk. Wild Silks India 37 The manufacture, first accomplished in 1880 in England, of the fabric known as ‘*Seal cloth’, which consists of a Tusser silk plush woven into a cotton back. |
| c 1420 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 57 In j *Selfysh empt. per Celerarium, 3s. 4d. 1661 J. Childrey Brit. Baconica 160 Certain rocks, about which the Seal-fishes meet together. |
| 1894 ‘J. S. Winter’ Red Coats 121 The pitmen could afford to buy costly *seal-fur coats for their spouses. |
| 1906 Westm. Gaz. 5 Dec. 10/2 A new series of white *seal-grain tablet calendars. |
| 1895 Kipling 2nd Jungle Bk. 169 The new *seal-holes are not two days' distant. 1974 R. Adams Shardik iii. 22 He crouched and watched, vigilant as an Eskimo at a seal-hole. |
| 1896 Westm. Gaz. 24 Sept. 3/2 An abomination of former times, a fabric known as ‘*seal plush’. |
| 1901 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 9 Oct. 8/3 That the contention..that the seal herds in the Behring Sea are decreasing is not being borne out by fact, is shown by recent advices from the *seal rookeries in the Pribyloffs. 1974 G. Jenkins Bridge of Magpies iii. 46 Possession [Island] was as inviting as a seal rookery—and as smelly. |
| 1853 S. G. Archibald in Ure Dict. Arts II. 590 The *seal-vat consists of what are termed the crib and pan. |
▪ II. seal, n.2 (
siːl)
Forms: 3–5
sel,
seel, 3, 5
ceel, 3–6
sele, 3–4, 6
seile, 3, 5–6
seil, 4
sehel,
cel,
ceale, 4–5
sell,
cele,
seeal, 4–6
seele,
seell,
sealle,
selle, 4–7
seale, 5
seaul,
sill, 5–6
seyl, 5–7
seill, 5, 7
seall, 6
ceall,
seyalle,
Sc. sayll, 3–
seal.
[a. OF. seel (mod.F. sceau) = Pr. selh-s, Sp. sello (also in learned form sigilo), Pg. sello (also sigillo), It. suggello (also sigillo):—L. sigillum (in classical Latin only in plural), small picture, engraved figure, seal, dim. of signum: see sign n. The Latin word was at various periods adopted into several
Teut. langs.:
Goth. sigljō neut.,
MHG. sigel masc. (
mod.G.
siegel neut.),
MLG.,
MDu. segel (
LG. segel,
Du. zegel neut.),
Sw. sigill neut.,
Da. segl,
Icel. sigli neut. A compound form of the same meaning occurs in
OE. inseᵹel (see
inseil n.)
= OHG. insigili. The
OE. siᵹ(e)l brooch (
cf. OHG. sigilla ‘lunula’),
siᵹ(e)le neut., necklace (
= ON. sigli) are, in spite of the difference of sense,
prob. connected with some early
Teut. adopted form of L.
sigillum.]
1. a. A device (
e.g. a heraldic or emblematic design, a letter, word, or sentence) impressed on a piece of wax or other plastic material adhering or attached by cords or parchment slips to a document as evidence of authenticity or attestation; also, the piece of wax, etc. bearing this impressed device.
In modern (legal) practice the seal is often represented by a coloured wafer following the signature of each of the parties.
Leaden seals were used by the Popes, the Eastern Emperors, and certain other high dignitaries.
| 1258 Charter of Hen. III (Bodl. MS.) in Phil. Soc. Trans. 1880–1, 174* We senden ȝew þis writ open, sened wiþ vre seel. c 1290 Beket 627 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 124 Þe oþere bischopus al-so On þis chartre heore seles sette. c 1386 Chaucer Pard. Prol. 9 And thanne my bulles shewe I alle and some Our lige lordes seel on my patente. 1428 E.E. Wills (1882) 79 On this my present testament I haue put my seal. 1497 Certificate in Surtees Misc. (1890) 51 In witnes herof,..we have put our seaulx. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems xliii. 40 With expeditioun And full conditioun, Thair seilis ar to pendit. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. iv. i. 139 Till thou canst raile the seale from off my bond Thou but offend'st thy Lungs to speake so loud. 1644 Evelyn Diary 21 Apr., The University is..divided now..into that of four nations,..who have each their respective protectors, severall officers, Treasurers, Consuls, Seales. 1728 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Bull, Golden Bull..on the backside of it there are several knots of black and yellow silk; to which hangs a bull, or seal of gold. 1819–22 Shelley Chas. I, ii. 196 Let there be No seal on it, except my kingly word And honour as I am a gentleman. 1845 S. Austin Ranke's Hist. Ref. v. ii. III. 49 As a proof, he subjoined Friedemann's letter and seal. |
b. fig. A token or symbol of a covenant; something that authenticates or confirms; a final addition which completes and secures.
In allusion to 1
Cor. ix. 2, some of the Evangelical divines of the 19th c. were accustomed to speak of a preacher or a pastor as having ‘many seals to his ministry’ (
i.e. persons converted through his preaching). The expression was often quoted derisively as an example of sectarian jargon.
| c 1230 [see seal v.1 2]. 1526 Tindale 1 Cor. ix. 2 For the seale off myne Apostleshippe are ye in the lorde. 1590 Shakes. Mids. N. iii. ii. 144 O let me kisse This Princesse of pure white, this seale of blisse. 1594 Nashe Unfort. Trav. Wks. 1904 II. 325 To sweare and forsweare, and commit Iulian-like violence on the highest seales of religion. 1615 Bedwell Moham. Impost. iii. §105 Iohn..was the last of the Prophets, & the seale of them all. 1667 Milton P.L. ix. 1043 There they thir fill of Love and Loves disport Took largely, of thir mutual guilt the Seale, The solace of thir sin. 1775 Sheridan Rivals v. i, The solemn engagement..puts the seal of duty to an act of love. 1853 Conybeare Church Parties, Ess. Eccl. & Social (1855) 92 note, A preacher is said in this [the Recordite] phraseology to be ‘owned’ when he makes many converts, and his converts are called his ‘seals’. 1863 Maclaren in Macm. Mag. Feb. 277 Let no one under⁓value this source of information: it gives the seal to all experimental knowledge. |
c. Phrases. (
a)
† to set to (one's) seal [
to is here
adv., not
prep.]: to affix one's seal;
fig. to avouch one's conviction
that (
obs.).
to set one's seal: to affix one's seal
to a document;
fig. to express one's assent
to. (
b)
under (one's) seal: in a document attested by one's seal.
| (a) a 1300 Cursor M. 6889 And ilk waand þat þai þere bare He sperd wit-in þer santuare, And wrat þe nam, and sett to sele, Þat man suld oþer nan bitele. c 1400 Brut ii. 560 Which appoyntement truly to be kept þe kyng and the said Ambassatoures sette-to þaire seales. c 1450 Mirk's Festial 41 And for Thomas wold not sette to hys sele of þe curset lawe..he was dampned as a traytour. 1534 Tindale John iii. 33 He that hath receaved hys testimonye hath set to his seale that God is true. [So 1611; Revised Version 1881 hath set his seal to this, that God is true.] 1659 H. More Immort. Soul ii. i. (1713) 58 To this Truth Mr. Hobbs sets his seal with all willingness imaginable, or rather eagerness. |
| (b) 1451 Rolls of Parlt. V. 215/1 Without the assent and wille of the said [4 persons named] by writing under their seales. 1536 Cal. Anc. Rec. Dublin (1889) 497 Under owre setye selle. 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, ii. iv. 222 By particular consent [I] proceeded Vnder your hands and Seales. |
d. † farthing seal, ?
= quarter seal.
fisher's seal or
fisherman's seal (see
fisher1 7).
† secret seal,
secre seal,
seal manual: see those
adjs. † seal of (or at) arms, the impression of a signet engraved with the heraldic bearing of the owner.
| 1399 Rolls of Parlt. III. 437/2 Null Drap..ne soleit ensealez estre de nul Seal appelle le Ferthyng Seal. a 1400–50 Alexander 2802 To þe þat salutis I send þe sele of myn armes. 1478 in W. G. D. Fletcher Shropsh. Grants of Arms (1909) 12 In wyttnesse wherof I the said King of Armes to these presentes have sette my seall of armes and signed wt my hand. 1596 Nashe Saffron-Walden Wks. 1905 III. 68 A little epitomizd Bradfords Meditations, no broader volum'd than a Seale at Armes or a blacke melancholy veluet patch. 1623 St. Papers, Col. 1622–4, 203 The Company's seal-at-arms is so great, they can make no use thereof, having none but hard wax. |
† e. A letter or other document bearing a seal; a promissory note. Also, a promise attested by one's seal.
Obs.| c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 66 Ȝe to spende at rome many ȝeris & daies, to paie for selis or bullis, to plede for benefices. c 1470 Henry Wallace x. 606, I am so boundyn with wytnes to be leill, For all Ingland I wald nocht fals my seill. 1632 Massinger Maid of Hon. v. ii, I have a seale, or two to witnesse, yet..I'll never sue you. |
† f. A stamp, usually in lead, fastened to a piece of material as a guarantee of quality or quantity.
| 1480 in Cely Papers (1900) 55 He schawll fynd clossyd in hys lettyr the sayll of ij sarpelers wholl. 1518 Coventry Leet-bk. 657 Then to sett vpon hit the Olyvaunt in lede, and of the Bak of the seall the lengh of the Cloth. |
† g. A baker's stamped mark on bread.
Obs.| a 1400 Old Vsages Winchester in Eng. Gilds (1870) 355 And þat euerych bakere habbe hys seal y-knowe vpon hys loff. |
h. The impression of one's signet placed upon an article as evidence of a claim to possession;
fig. a mark of ownership.
| 1782 F. Burney Cecilia x. v, [He] informed her she might put her seal upon whatever she meant hereafter to claim. 1821 Shelley Hellas 703 Her citizens, imperial spirits, Rule the present from the past, On all this world of men inherits Their seal is set. 1848 Dickens Dombey xlvii, The haughty and indignant passions that now claimed her for their own, and set their seal upon her brow. |
i. transf. An impressed mark serving as visible evidence of something.
| 1592 Greene Upst. Courtier Wks. (Grosart) XI. 253 A fat knaue with a foggie face, wherein a cup of old sack hath set a seale. 1593 Lodge William Longbeard A 4 b, The good woman..espieng the seales of his shame shadowed in his blushing browes, tooke hold of his gowne sleeue, praieng him to staie a little while. 1603 Shakes. Meas. for M. iv. i. 6 But my kisses bring againe, bring againe, Seales of loue, but seal'd in vaine, seal'd in vaine. 1620 Westward for Smelts (Percy Soc.) 45 Thou hast the seales on thy face, which those creatures (called whores) doe give. 1770 Langhorne Plutarch (1879) I. 66/2 His [Lycurgus'] tomb was struck with lightning; a seal of divinity which no other man..has had, except Euripides. 1849 Ruskin Sev. Lamps v. §1. 136 Sea sands are made beautiful by their bearing the seal of the motion of the waters. |
j. An impression left by the foot of an animal in soft ground or mud,
esp. that of the otter.
| 1686 R. Blome Gentl. Recr. ii. 100 The Mark or Seal of an Otter. 1735 Somerville Chase iv. 397 Ah on that yielding Sag-bed, see, once more His Seal I view. 1875 G. C. Davies Rambles Sch. Field-club xxxvi. 271 One man had been down to the river side, to see if he could discover the ‘seal’, or track of an otter. |
2. a. A piece of wax or some other plastic or adhesive substance (originally, and still frequently, one bearing the impression of a signet:
cf. sense 1), fixed on a folded letter or document, or on a closed door or receptacle of any kind, in such a way that an opening cannot be effected without breaking it.
† flying seal: see
flying ppl. a. 3 c.
| a 1272 Luue Ron 194 in O.E. Misc. 99 Þis rym mayde ich þe sende open and wiþ-vte sel. a 1300 Cursor M. 16907 Þai did þair seles þar-apon, ar þai þeþen went. 13.. K. Alis. 6666 (Bodl. MS.), He braak þe seal & þe lettre seie. 1382 Wyclif Rev. v. 1 And I siȝe in the riȝthalf of the sittinge vpon the troone, a book..seelid with seuen seelis. 1591 Shakes. Two Gent. iii. i. 139 What Letter is this same?.. Ile be so bold to breake the seale for once. 1710 Swift Jrnl. to Stella 10 Nov., I forgot to leave a gap in the last line but one for the seal, like a puppy. 1859 Tennyson Elaine 1264 But Arthur spied the letter in her hand, Stoopt, took, brake seal, and read it. 1861 Paley æschylus, Agamem. 592 note (ed. 2) 370, διαϕθείρειν σηµαντήρια is to spoil or tamper with the seals affixed to the doors and store-houses in the absence of the lord. |
b. fig. That which ‘seals a person's lips’, an obligation to silence, a vow of secrecy;
esp. the seal of confession or the confessional. Also (often with allusion to the ‘seven seals’ of
Rev. v. and vi.), that which prevents the understanding of Holy Scripture or some other book.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 27444 Or for it es als vnder sel O scrift him sceud al to consail. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 301 Put blessed lorde the seale and locke of scylence to my mouth. 1632 Massinger Emp. East iii. ii, What now I must deliuer Vnder the deepest seale of secrecy. 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables xxi. 23 A Thing that's done in Hugger-mugger, under a Seal of Secrecy and Concealment. 1781 Cowper Conversation 544 They..wanting him to loose the sacred seal, Found him as prompt as their desire was true To spread the new-born glories in their view. 1831 S. Lover Leg. & Stor. Irel. Ser. i. 73 ‘'Twas under the seal of confession’, said I, ‘that you disclosed the deadly secret, and under that seal my lips must have been for ever closed.’ 1897 ‘A. Hope’ Phroso vii. (1905) 126 The secret was out through Constantine's fault, not hers, and the seal was removed from her lips. |
c. Hermes' seal,
Hermetic seal (see
Hermes 3 a,
hermetic a. 2 b).
| 1569 J. Sandford tr. Agrippa's Van. Artes 158 b, The foolish misteries..of the seale of Hermes,..& of infinite like trifles. |
d. seal of relics [
med.L.
sigillum altaris], a stone cemented above the aperture in which relics are placed at the consecration of an altar. (The use in
quot. 1843 is
prob. an error.)
| 1843 Ecclesiologist Sept. III. 6 A stone Altar may be provided two ways. Either make it a plain solid mass of masonry, the slab (technically called seal or table) of black granite or marble.., or [etc.]. 1897 Catholic Dict. (ed. 5) 238/1 The consecration endures till the altar-stone is broken or the seal of relics broken. |
3. a. An engraved stamp of metal or other hard material used to make an impression upon wax, etc. affixed as a ‘seal’ (in sense 1 or 2).
Cf. signet.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 557 Als prient of seel in wax es thrist, Þer in he has his licam fest. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 103 As þe tendre wex makeþ no preynte in þe seel, bot þe seel makeþ a preynt in tendere wex. 1463 Bury Wills (Camden) 15 A dowbill seel with two prentys. 1518 Coventry Leet-bk. 657 The sealles [for marking cloth] to be put in a Cofre with ij keys. 1591 Lambarde Archeion (1635) 56 And then, thus have you the Chancellor furnished with the Seale of Grace, and Seale of Common Iustice. 1600 J. Pory tr. Leo's Africa iii. 160 Neere vnto the mint stande the gold-smiths shops, whose Consul or gouernour keepes the seale and stamps of the coine. 1770 Langhorne Plutarch (1851) I. 454/1 This seal he always wore and constantly sealed his letters with it. 1864 Boutell Her. Hist. & Pop. xxiv. 398 In taking these impressions, two dies or matrices..were employed; these were severally called the Seal and Counter-Seal. 1879 A. S. Murray in Encycl. Brit. X. 137/2 The favourite shapes [of gems] in Assyria were the cylinder pierced lengthways, and sometimes fitted with a swivel so as to be used as a seal [etc.]. |
| fig. c 1386 Chaucer Wife's Prol. 604 Gat tothed I was and that bicam me weel, I hadde the prente of seint Venus seel [Cambr. MS. seynt peterys sel]. 1670 Dryden Tempest iv. 53 He has a melting heart, and soft to all the Seals Of kindness; I will undertake for his compassion. |
b. As a mark or sign of office. Chiefly
the seals, as the symbol of the position of Lord Chancellor or of Secretary of State.
| c 1480 Henryson Mor. Fab. (S.T.S.) 1699 Syne cummis Uer quhen winter is away, The Secretar of Somer with his Seill. 1667 Chas. II in Ellis Orig. Lett. Ser. ii. IV. 316 As my purpose was also to say something to you concerning my taking the Seals from the Chancellor. 1710 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) VI. 571 A patent is passing the seales to create the marques of Kent a duke. 1775 Brit. Chronol. I. 3 Apr. 1704, The earl of Nottingham not being satisfied with the Queen's measures, resigned the seals as secretary of state. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iv. I. 447 Sunderland..was suffered to retain his seals. 1870 Stanhope Hist. Eng. 1701–13, i. 6 The King sent to him the Earl of Jersey, with a peremptory order to return the Seals. |
† c. The keeper of the seal of a court. (
Cf. 4 b.)
| 1658 Fanshaw Pract. Exch. Crt. 102 The Seale of the Court. Is the Officer that keepeth the Seale of the Court all terme time under every Chanceller. |
d. A device or inscription engraved on a seal.
| 1609 Bible (Douay) Ecclus. xlv. 14 A crowne of gold upon his miter graven with a seale of holines. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit. i. (1637) 244 He used the Helme of a ship for a seale in his ring. 1818 Byron Juan i. cxcviii, The seal a sunflower; ‘Elle vous suit partout.’ 1851 Tennyson E. Morris 105 She sent a note, the seal an Elle vous suit. |
e. under the cold seal: see
quot.| 1832 M. Bacon's Abridgm. Law (ed. 7) IV. 610 marg. note, Sometimes new magistrates are added under the cold seal, as it is termed; that is, their names are indorsed on the old commission, and the seal is pro formâ, applied again to the same wax. |
f. A trinket, containing either an engraved stone for sealing letters, or a flat stone or piece of coloured glass in imitation of this, formerly often worn as an ornamental appendage to a watch-guard. Hence applied in plural to the bunch of trinkets of this and other shapes worn in this manner.
| 1837 Dickens Pickw. x, A gold watch-chain, and seals, depended from his fob. 1848 Thackeray Bk. Snobs xxxiv, A large plethoric man, with a bunch of seals in a large bow-windowed light waistcoat... His seals jingle as he walks. |
† g. burning seal (
Sc.): an iron for branding casks.
Obs.| 1692 in Extracts Rec. Convent. Burghs Scot. (1880) IV. 153 Each royall burrow that makes casks for export they are to keep ane burning sale,..and befor they be loadned the maker of the saids casks is..to call the visitor appoynted by the said toune whoe is to try the samen, and if sufficient to put the publict sale vpon them. |
4. a. Great Seal. The seal (in sense 3) used for the authentication of documents of the highest importance issued in the name of the sovereign or (in a republic) of the highest executive authority; also, the impression of this on wax. Formerly also
broad seal.
When England, Scotland, and Ireland were separate kingdoms, each had its own Great Seal, the custodian of which was normally the Lord High Chancellor; in England the Lord Keeper (of the Great Seal) was formerly sometimes a different person from the Chancellor, but under Q. Elizabeth the offices were united. Since the Union England and Scotland have only one Great Seal, of which the Chancellor has the custody; Ireland on the contrary has its own Great Seal, in the hands of the Irish Lord Chancellor. The Great Seal of the United States is kept by the Secretary of State.
| c 1400 Mandeville (1839) viii. 82, I hadde Lettres of the Soudan, with his grete Seel; and comounly other Men have but his Signett. 1432 Rolls of Parlt. IV. 418/2 Lettres Patentes of proteccion under his grete Seall. 1473 Paston Lett. III. 99 Item, the Kynge hathe sent ffor hys Great Seall. 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, iii. ii. 347 For your stubborne answer About the giuing backe the Greate Seale to vs, The King shall know it, and (no doubt) shal thanke you. 1685 Baxter Paraphr. N.T. Mark xiv. 22 As the King maketh a piece of Wax to become his Great Seal, by which he conveyeth Land, Liberty and Life. 1726 Swift Gulliver i. iii, The Man Mountain shall not depart from our Dominions without our Licence under our great Seal. 1886 J. H. Middleton in Encycl. Brit. XXI. 587/2 The great seal of the Commonwealth is a marvel of ugliness. |
† b. ellipt. The custodian of the Great Seal, the Lord High Chancellor or Lord Keeper.
Obs.| 1621 H. Elsing Debates Ho. Lords (Camden) 15 Shall the Greate Seale come to the barr? First sende to him and heare his answere, before he be sent for to come to the barr. 1641 in Fasti Aberd. (Spalding Cl.) 153 And his majestie wills and declaires, that thir presentis sall be a sufficient warrand..to the great seill and to his majestie's heigh chancellar for appending of the said seill, without passing of any uther seills or registeris. |
† 5. a. An assembly for the purpose of witnessing the affixing of the Great Seal to documents; a sealing by the Chancellor or the Commissioners having the custody of the Great Seal.
b. The place at which documents are sealed by the Chancellor.
Obs. [After F.
sceau, ‘l'action de sceller, le temps et le lieu où l'on scelle’ (Littré).]
| a. 1660 Pepys Diary 20 Aug., Here I staid, and saw my Lord Chancellor come into his Great Hall, where wonderful how much company there was to expect him at a Seale. 1686 Evelyn Diary 5 May, There being a Seale it was fear'd that we should be requir'd to passe a doquett dispensing with Dr. Obadiah Walker. 1705 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) V. 602 This day the lord keeper held a public seal in the Middle Temple hall. |
| b. 1672 Essex Papers (1890) I. 43 By a Clause there I am forbid to intermedle in y⊇ passing of any Charters to Corporacions, w{supc}{suph} for y⊇ present stops that of Dundalke, for w{supc}{suph} I had granted a Warr{supt}, and it now stays at y⊇ Seale til I can receive some directions from y{supr} Lop. |
† 6. = button 2 c.
Obs.| 1611 Cotgr. s.v. Bosse, The first putting out of a deeres head formerly cast; which our wood-men call, if it bee a red deeres, the burle, or seale. |
7. techn. (transferred use of 2.)
a. = dip-pipe (
dip n. 11).
b. The quantity of water or tar left in the dip-pipe for preventing the escape of gas.
c. A small quantity of water left in a trap to prevent the escape of foul air from a sewer or drain.
d. gen. Any means of preventing the passage of gas or liquid into or out of something,
esp. at a place where two surfaces meet.
| 1853 S. Hughes Gas-works 197 When the whole of the gas-holder was out of the water and hanging in air (with the exception of the water seal). 1875 Knight Dict. Mech., Seal 2. (Gas-works) a water-trap joint, as in gas-works, where the gas is drawn or forced beneath a plate, whose lower edge is beneath the level of the water in the tar-well. 1877 W. Richards Manuf. Coal Gas 172 In estimating the capacity of a tank and its corresponding holder, due allowance must be made for the height of the dip or seal. Ibid. 210 An argument raised against telescopic gasholders is the liability of the water forming the lute, or seal, to freeze. a 1884 Knight Dict. Mech. Suppl., Seal, an automatic valve closing a pipe. 1884 Waring in Century Mag. Dec. 263/1 The depth of seal is the distance from the surface of the water in the bowl to the top of the intake. 1889 ― Sewerage 282 This trap lost one inch of its seal in five trials out of ten. 1938 J. Strong Mod. Physical Lab. Practice iv. 152 A method of making a vacuum-tight seal between metal and porcelain. 1970 K. Ball Fiat 600, 600D Autobook x. 118/2 The seal..is compressed on the forward stroke to prevent leakage past the plunger. 1974 Encycl. Brit. Macropædia XIII. 857/2 Metal-can closures operate by..vacuum seals (which rely on atmospheric pressure on the lid). |
8. attrib. and
Comb.:
a. objective, as
† seal-cutter,
seal-cutting,
seal-engraver,
seal-engraving,
seal-keeper (also
fig.).
| 1624 Fletcher Rule a Wife iv. i, Brick me into that wall there for a chimney peece, And say I was one oth Cæsars, done by a *seale-cutter. |
| 1847 Lindsay Chr. Art I. p. ccix. note, A complete classification should include artists in wood⁓carving, in cisellatura or goldsmiths' work, in medal-casting, gem and *seal-cutting. |
| 1786 J. Wedgwood Let. 24 June (1965) 295 The material..is..nearly as hard as agate... It will bear to be cut..at the *seal-engraver's lathe. 1842 Francis Dict. Arts, etc., Seal engraver's lathe. |
| 1948 D. Diringer Alphabet 73 From E.M.I. (thirtieth century B.C.) onwards, *seal-engraving was practised. |
| 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 119 *Seale keepers [orig. sigilliferi], Notaries, and such other lyke. 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair xv, Why should he not declare him⁓self..seal-keeper of that young woman's conscience? |
b. Special combinations:
seal-bag, the case in which the official seals were formerly kept (
Cent. Dict. 1891);
seal-cup, in gas-works, the receptacle for tar or water in a seal or dip-pipe:
seal-cylinder = cylinder n. 4 a;
† seal-day (
Guernsey), a date fixed for the meeting of a State Council at which official papers received the seal;
seal-flower, the plant
Dicentra spectabilis (Miller
Plant-n. 1884);
seal-lock, a lock fitted with a ‘seal’ (often a small square of glass) which must be broken before the lock can be opened;
seal-master, an official whose duty was to affix a seal to textile fabrics as a guarantee of the standard of excellence, etc.;
† seal-office = sense 5 b, also
allusively;
seal-pipe, in gas-works,
= dip-pipe;
seal-press, a machine for embossing a device upon paper or other soft material (Knight
Dict. Mech. 1875);
seal-ring, a finger ring bearing a seal (
cf. signet n. 1);
seal-stamp = seal-press;
seal-stone, a precious stone bearing an engraved device;
seal-top a., (of a spoon) having the handle finished with a seal (also
ellipt. as
n.);
† seal-wax = sealing wax;
† seal-work, ornamentation resembling that of a seal;
seal-wort, (
a)
Sagina procumbens; (
b)
= Solomon's seal (
Polygonatum).
| 1872 W. C. Holmes & Co. Manag. Gas Works 108 Care should be taken to keep the *seal-cups of telescopic gas⁓holders..free from ice. 1874 Knight Dict. Mech. s.v. Dip-pipe, The seal-cup is charged with tar. |
| 1871 P. Smith Anc. Hist. East xvi. §10 (1881) 339 fig., *Seal-cylinder on metal axis. |
| 1682 Warburton Hist. Guernsey (1822) 93 At the next *seal-day..it may be sealed. |
| 1871 Patent No. 1440 Chronol. Index 325 *Seal-lock manufacturer. |
| 1905 Rec. Cloth Manuf. New Mills (S.H.S.) Introd. 75 No cloth could be sold unless it was sealed by the official *seal-master. |
| c 1614 Beaum. & Fl. Wit at Sev. Weap. i. i, Here's first my hand, now't goes to the *Seale Office. [Kisses her.]. 1819 Taunton Rep Cases Comm. Pleas VII. 182 Until which hour, by the rule of Court, the seal-office ought not to be shut. |
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech., *Seal-pipe (Gas), a pipe whose inlet or exit is beneath the surface of the water in a hydraulic main to prevent reflux of gas. |
| 1608 Middleton Five Gallants ii. iii, My grandfather's *seal-ring. 1866 J. Ayre Treas. Bible Knowl. (1870) 804/2 According to Jewish writers the Hebrew women used seal rings. |
| 1851 Mayne Reid Scalp Hunters xxvi, The brass *seal-stamp of the merchant's clerk. |
| 1774 Hill Theophr. Hist. Stones 42 Hence the Word *Seal Stone, σϕραγίς or σϕραγίδιον, became with them a common Word for what we call Gem. 1900 E. Clodd Story of Alphabet iii. 51 Seal-stones engraved with signs which are..designed to convey information about their owners. |
| 1898 Daily News 11 July 10/5 A 16th century *seal-top spoon. 1905 Circle May 35/1 An Elizabethan spoon, mark St. Catherine's wheel, {pstlg}50; a ‘seal-top’, of the same reign, engraved L.C.F.M., {pstlg}48. |
| c 1714 Arbuthnot, etc. Mem. M. Scribl. i. xiv. (1741) 51 He saw his Monkey exceedingly busy in picking the *Seal-wax by little bits from a Letter. 1768 Sterne Sent. Journ. (1778) I. 146 (The Letter), La Fleur..fetch'd sand and seal-wax. |
| 1648 Herrick Hesper., Temple 63 A thin Subtile, and ductile Codlin's skin; Which o're the board is smoothly spred, With little *Seale-work Damasked. |
| 1837 Baxter Brit. Phænog. Bot. III. 199 Sagina procumbens..*Seal-wort. 1863 Prior Plant-n., Seal-wort,..the Solomon's seal. |
▸
seal of approval n. a sanction or endorsement, sometimes formally awarded but usually without this implication; an indication of satisfaction or acceptance.
| 1833 Amer. Q. Observer Oct. 297 Tried by the standard of wholesome moral influence, how few are the works of polite literature, which are entitled to the seal of approval! 1891 Old & New Test. Student 12 273 God..set his seal of approval on the devout deed. 1937 C. S. Wyand Econ. Consumption x. 273 This product..carried the seal of approval of the Good Housekeeping magazine's investigating bureau. 1967 Harper's Mag. Nov. 62/2 Pops lightly brushed my open palm in a half-slap, the jive set's seal of approval. 1972 Daily Tel. 12 June 2/6 It will be illegal for shops to sell crash helmets which do not have the BSI's ‘kitemark’ seal of approval. 2002 Outlook (New Delhi) 23 Sept. 12/1 The home ministry's favourite project..of issuing national I-cards to all citizens of the country received the prime minister's seal of approval on August 15. |
▪ III. seal, n.3 Obs. exc. dial. Also 5
sele, 6
seale,
Sc. seill.
[f. seal v.2] = sale n.3 Also
attrib.| c 1440 Promp. Parv. 452/1 Sele, horsys harneys, arquillus. 1530 Palsgr. 269/1 Seale horse harnesse. 1597 in Spalding Club Misc. (1841) I. 179 Scho tuik tua oxin, and band in on seill. 1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm I. 135 Cattle are bound to the stake in various ways. One way is with an iron chain, commonly called a binder or seal. Ibid. 136 The seal⁓stake is placed in an inclined position to allow its top to be fastened to the wall. |
▪ IV. seal, n.4 Obs. exc. dial. Also 6, 8–9
sale, 7
seale, 9
Sc. sealh.
[See sallow n.] 1. A willow. In Spenser: Willow twigs.
| 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal., Dec. 81 Who to entrappe the fish in winding sale Was better seene, or hurtful beastes to hont? Ibid. Gloss., Sale or Salow, a kind of woodde like Wyllow. 1682 Quarter Sess. Rec. 11 July in N. Riding Rec. Soc. VII. 57 For cutting and carrying away twenty seales. 1795 Trans. Soc. Arts XIII. 157 Seals, Black Cherry Trees, Balm of Gilead Trees. 1882 J. Lucas Stud. Nidderdale 116 In Sykes Moss, most of the buried trees are sealhs, oaks, and birches. |
2. A plantation of willow trees.
| 1794 Donaldson Agric. Northampt. 34 The forest under⁓wood, through the whole sale, or part which is cut, does not in general bring above 4l. |
▪ V. seal, n.5 Obs. exc. dial. Also 9 (
dial.)
sale.
[Perh. repr. OE. sæl, sęle house.] (See
quot. 1756.)
| 1756 C. Lucas Ess. Waters II. 35 The houses in which the salt works are carried on..are also called Seals. 1882 Mrs. Chamberlain W. Worc. Gloss., Sales, or Seals, salt⁓works. (Droitwich.) |
▪ VI. seal, v.1 (
siːl)
Forms: 3, 5–7
seale, 3
seil, 3–6
sele, 4–6
seele, 6
seel, (4
ceel, 4–5
cele), 5
Sc. seyll,
sell, 6
Sc. seil(l, 6
seall, 5–
seal.
[a. OF. seeler, seieler (mod.F. sceller), f. seel, seiel: see seal n.2] I. To attest by a seal.
1. a. trans. To place a seal upon (a document) as evidence of genuineness, or as a mark of authoritative ratification or approval.
In legal use often coupled with
sign or
deliver; now chiefly in the full phrase ‘signed, sealed, and delivered’, indicating the complete execution of a deed.
| 1338 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 29 Of him haf þei chartre seled with his seale. a 1400 Old Usages Winchester in Eng. Gilds (1870) 359 Myd wham men seleþ þe chartres of ffeffement of þe town. 1477 Earl Rivers (Caxton) Dictes 11 Whan thou shalt commaunde eny lettres to thy klerke to be made, signe nor seale them not til thou haue ouer⁓seen thaim. 1592 West 1st Pt. Symbol. §104 To do, suffer & make seale & deliuer al such assurances..as shal be deuised.. by the said R. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. i. iii. 146 Goe with me to a Notarie, seale me there Your single bond. 1653 Evelyn Diary 21 Jan., I went to London and there seal'd some of the writings of my purchase of Sayes Court. 1700 J. Tyrrell Hist. Eng. II. 763 The King's Charter which was formerly Sealed with Wax,..was now Sealed with Gold. 1719 De Foe Crusoe ii. (Globe) 465 They only desired one general Writing under my Hand for the whole, which I caused to be drawn up and sign'd and seal'd to them. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed. 2) IV. 138 The deed was sealed and delivered, but no livery of seisin was given. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xx. IV. 427 The Privy Council..ordered the Charter to be sealed. |
| absol. c 1470 Henry Wallace x. 1148 The Bruce and he completyt furth thar bandis; Syn that samyn nycht thai sellyt with thar handis. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. II. 337 Thir to confirme, the King ilk ane seilis, and euerie ane than seilit, conforme to the Queines pleisure. 1685 Evelyn Diary 24 Dec., Attended by three of the Clearks of the Signet, we met and seal'd. 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables ix. 9 Wherefore Friendships, Charities, and Kindnesses, should be well Weigh'd and Examin'd,..before we Sign and Seal. 1818 Scott Rob Roy ix, How does Farmer Rutledge?.. I hope you found him able to sign, seal, and deliver? 1825 T. Hook Sayings Ser. ii. Sutherl. (Colburn) 65 To-morrow, Sutherland, we will sign and seal. |
b. fig. To authenticate or attest solemnly by some act compared to the affixing of a seal.
| a 1600 Satir. Poems Reform. xix. 68 This commoun weil he luifit sa tenderlie,..His lufe to it he schew maist faithfullie, And with his blude he seillit it up at last. 1593 Shakes. 3 Hen. VI, v. vii. 29 The duty that I owe vnto your Maiesty, I Seale vpon the lips of this sweet Babe. 1655 Sir E. Nicholas in N. Papers (Camden) II. 275 Hee is resolued to credit nothing contrary to y⊇ relation hee hath receiued, which though y⊇ informer should seale with ten thousand sacraments will one day to his shame appeare notoriously false. 1761 Gray Williams 6 The first in blood his infant honour seal'd. |
c. To conclude, ratify, render binding (an agreement, etc.) by affixing the seals of the parties to the instrument. Also
fig., to ratify or clinch (a bargain) by some ceremonial act.
| c 1470 Henry Wallace viii. 1567 Thai seyllyt the pes with out langar delay. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 105 Hereof were obligations made and sealed in the later ende of November. 1589 Greene Menaphon (Arb.) 89 They plighted faith and troth, and Carmela..sealed it with a kisse. 1617 Moryson Itin. iii. 88 When they sell houses or lands, they bring a tun of beere or vessell of wine into the streete, and seale the bargaine by drinking with their neighbours. 1719 Young Busiris iii. i, Before the rising sun my lord arrives, To seal our vows. 1807 Crabbe Par. Reg. iii. 968 Brides..and bridegrooms..By love or law compell'd their vows to seal. 1836 Thirlwall Greece xiii. II. 164 Peace was concluded, and sealed by a marriage. |
d. To grant (a charter, etc.) under one's seal;
† fig. to give (testimony, a promise, etc.) in an authoritative manner or with solemn pledges of good faith.
| a 1625 Fletcher Custom of Country v. i, My hospitable word..Did I not Seale still to thee? 1628 Coke On Litt. §534 And as to the disseisee who sealed the same Deed, this shall enure but by way of confirmation. 1641 Hinde J. Bruen xxxi. 97 The University in his youth, and the countrey in his riper age, may, and will seale him a worthy testimony for a Gentleman. 1660 Pepys Diary 17 Mar., This day..I did seal my will to her [my wife], whereby I did give her all that I have in the world. |
e. To impose (an obligation, a penalty)
on a person in a binding manner.
| 1622 Massinger & Dekker Virg. Mart. v. ii, Who for the same cause in my presence seald His holy anger on his daughters hearts. 1633 Ford Broken H. iii. iv, You have seal'd ioy close to my soule. 1870 C. J. Vaughan Earnest Words 110 A man who can speak thus..seems..to have sealed upon himself that which God never meant him for—a life of hardness and a death of despair! |
f. fig. Of a thing or act: To attest or ratify as a seal does; to be a ‘seal’ of.
| 1648 Herrick Hesper., Panegerick 128 No Planke from Hallowed Altar..do's seale A curse to Thee or Thine. 1654 Z. Coke Logick 178 Extream Unction is a Sacrament: therefore, it sealeth spiritual graces. 1720 Pope Iliad xvii. 246 Then with his sable Brow he gave the Nod, That seals his Word. 1888 Lane Illust. Notes Eng. Ch. Hist. II. xxviii. 233 Those whose profession of Christianity had been sealed by the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. |
g. To decide irrevocably (the fate of a person or thing); to complete and place beyond dispute or reversal (a victory, defeat, etc.).
| 1810 Shelley Marg. Nicholson Fragm. 9 Fate, envious Fate, has sealed my wayward destiny. 1817 ― Revolt of Islam iv. xxv, Why pause the victor swords to seal his over⁓throw? 1834 Pringle Afr. Sk. v. 197 A gun was levelled,..to seal the fate of this brave and generous officer. 1837 Disraeli Venetia iii. vii, Tomorrow would seal his triumph. 1867 Smiles Huguenots Eng. v. (1880) 82 The massacre of Saint Bartholomew..sealed the fate of Mary Stuart. |
2. a. To mark by a seal as reserved for a particular destination. Chiefly
fig.,
esp. in certain uses of New Testament origin: To designate, set apart, assign
to another person or bind
together, by an inviolable token or pledge.
| a 1225 St. Marher. 4 He hit wat ful wel þe haueð iseilet to him me seolf. c 1230 Hali Meid. (MS. Bodl.) 14/128 Ant tu..þet art iloten to him with meiðhades merke, ne brec þu nawt þet seil þet seileð inc to gederes. c 1374 Chaucer Troylus iv. 293 Syn ye Cryseyde and me han fully brought In-to your grace and boþe our hertes seled, How may ye suffre allas it be repeled? 1526 Tindale Rev. vii. 3 [The angel] cryed..saying: hurt not the erth..tyll I have sealed [Wycl. 1382 til we signe, 1388 til we marken] the seruauntes of oure god in their foreheddes. 1596 Spenser State Irel. Wks. (Globe) 646, I doe not blame the christening of them, for to be sealed with the marke of the Lambe..I hold it a good and gracious woorke. 1630 Shirley Grateful Serv. iii. i, Hath some wound, Or other dire mis-fortune, seal'd him for The grave. 1827 Pollok Course T. x, Have not all my money, all my love, Been sealed and stamped with signature of heaven? 1865 Seeley Ecce Homo iv. (ed. 8) 32 God, who had sealed that [Abraham's] family for himself. |
b. In allusions to
Rev. vii. 5–8.
In the original passage the verb is not really construed with
of, as in the imitative use.
| [1535 Coverdale Rev. vii. 5–8 Of the trybe of Iuda were sealed xij. M... Of the trybe of Beniamin were sealed xij. thousande. [Similarly 1611.]] a 1637 B. Jonson Underwoods lxv. (title) An Epistle, answering to one that asked to be Sealed of the Tribe of Ben. 1906 Macm. Mag. Apr. 441 He was a king among us [sc. fishermen],—if two long seasons..may entitle the writer of this modest tribute to account himself sealed of the tribe. |
c. Among the Mormons, to set apart (a woman) by a solemn ceremony
to a man as one of his ‘spiritual wives’.
| 1857 J. Hyde Mormonism 84 (Bartlett 1860) People, according to Mormon technology, are married for time, but sealed for eternity. |
3. To impress a seal upon (weights or measures) to indicate that their correctness has been tested by municipal or other lawful authority. Also, to place an official stamp on (merchandise,
e.g. pieces of cloth) to certify that it is of standard measure or quality.
| 1467 Coventry Leet-bk. 334 The mesuris to be delyueryd by the comyn seriant to delyuer hem selyd with-owt money⁓takyng therfor. 1518 Ibid. 657 A Sealer to be ordeyned & sworne to stryke the Cloth & seale hit & wrete hit & fynde leed & to haue a peny for his labor. 1615 R. Brathwait Strappado 6 Those Who are appointed by their charge to know, Whether thy pots be sealed yea or no. 1862 Sala Seven Sons III. 4, I wonder they did not ask to see..the cat-o'-nine-tails, sealed with the seal of the visiting justice. |
† 4. a. intr. (
Cf. 1
absol.) To set one's seal (
to a document). Also
spec. to set one's seal to or execute a promissory note; to become security
for a person. Also
to seal under.
Obs.| 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. ccxiii. 263 At the request of the kyng of Englande, the frenche kyng..confyrmed and sealed to the gyfte of syr John Chandos, he to possede and to haue the same landes, as his true heritage for euer. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. i. ii. 89 He borrowed a boxe of the eare of the Englishman, and swore he would pay him againe when he was able: I thinke the Frenchman became his suretie, and seald vnder for another. Ibid. i. iii. 172 Yes Shylocke, I will seal vnto this bond. 1632 Massinger City Madam i. ii, At the Academie of valour... Where they are taught the ways, Though they refuse to seal for a Duellist, How to decline a challenge. 1633 Marmion Fine Comp. iii. iv. F 1 b, Hee is either trudging now vnto a broaker, Or to invite some new heire to a breakefast, To seale for the commodity. |
† b. fig. To assent, lend one's support or authority
to a statement or proposal.
Obs.| 1579 W. Wilkinson Confut. Fam. Love 10 It is sufficient..that if they lauish out any vntruth, that I be pardoned for not sealyng vnto it. 1607 Chapman Bussy D'Ambois iii. i. 34 Gui. I seale to that. 1665 Needham Med. Medicinae 353 And pray you, who is ignorant of this truth? Not an old woman in all the Town but will seal to it. 1683 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) I. 282, 85 were for sealing to the regulation required by his majestie, and 103 against it. |
† c. fig. ? To make peace.
Obs.| 1596 Nashe Saffron Walden N 2, I haue not yet seald and shakt hands with him for making two such false Prophets of Saturne & Iupiter. |
II. To fasten with or as with a seal.
5. a. trans. To fasten (a folded letter or other document) with melted wax or some other plastic material and impress a seal upon this, so that opening is impossible unless the seal is broken.
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 388 Ase a king þet..sende his sondesmen biforen..mid lettres isealed. [Cf. below: ase lettres iopened.] a 1400 Arthur 272 Þis lettre was celyd fast, Y-take the Messagerez on hast. c 1450 Merlin xxxi. 619 He drough oute the letter of kynge Rion that was seled with x seles roiall. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 105 b, They wryte an aunswere to the Emperour..and delivered the same sealed to the intercessours. 1616 R. Cocks Diary (Hakl. Soc.) I. 113, I sealed up my packet letters for England. 1710 Swift Jrnl. to Stella 10 Nov., I will seal my letter early. c 1808 Porter Russia & Swed. (1813) I. ii. 14 [Nelson] desired Colonel Stewart to send some one below for a light, that he might seal his despatch. 1841 Thackeray Gt. Hoggarty Diam. iii, This letter, sealed with his lordship's own crown. |
b. Said of the signet itself.
| 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair xxxv, The very seal that sealed it had been robbed from George's dead body as it lay on the field of battle. |
c. To stamp the wax fastening (a letter)
with something substituted for a seal.
| 1718 Free-thinker No. 108. 24 In breaking open the Second Letter, I observed it was sealed with a Thimble. |
d. To fasten up (a letter, a parcel) with sealing-wax, a wafer, gum, or the like.
| 1818 Scott Hrt. Midl. xxviii, She sealed her letters carefully, and put them into the post-office with her own hand. 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair liii, This letter, sealed with a wafer, was despatched by one of the messengers. |
6. a. To place a seal upon the opening of (a door, a chest, etc.) for security. Also with
up.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 17348 Þai..did to sper þe dors fast, Locked bath wit-vte and in And seild wit þair seiles tuin. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. i. 8 And notwythstondynge that his sepulcre or graue was seelyd and syned & kept with knightes yet the thyrde day he rose in his humanite. 1592 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. v. ii. 11 The Searchers of the Towne..Seal'd vp the doores, and would not let vs forth. 1865 Dickens Mut. Fr. i. viii, Then Mrs. Boffin and me seal up his box..and..I come down here in search of a lawyer to advise. 1891 C. Roberts Adrift America 56 When the train is composed mainly of empty cars, the doors are often open, and never sealed... But when they are full the little end doors are usually bolted, and the side doors sealed with a little leaden button or tag. It is an indictable offence to break these. |
b. In figurative phrases,
esp. to seal (a person's) lips, to bind or constrain to silence or secrecy;
to seal (a person's) eyes or ears, to render blind or deaf, also to restrain from looking or listening. Also with
up.
In
to seal the eyes, this verb is not always distinguishable from the figurative use of
seel v.
| 1633 Marmion Fine Comp. ii. ii. E 4 b, I would seale my eares, Deafe as the sea, to shiprack't marriners. 1700 Dryden Sigism. & Guisc. 214 Sleep did his office soon, and sealed his sight. 1782 F. Burney Cecilia i. viii, I make it quite a principle to seal up my lips the moment I perceive him. 1814 Byron Lara ii. xxii, And seal'd is now each lip that could have told. 1864 Browning J. Lee's Wife iv. iii, Seal my sense up for your sake? 1888 Sat. Rev. 4 Feb. 140/1 The two Ruthvens' mouths were thus sealed for ever. |
7. a. To place in a receptacle secured by a seal.
| c 1420 Brut 355 Þay waged batayle & cast doun her gloues; & þanne þey were take vp and seled, and the day & þe place of batayle assygned at Couyntre. 1530 Palsgr. 708/2, I have sent him all his writynges sealed in a bagge. a 1547 in J. R. Boyle Hedon (1875) App. 81 Thover plus of money..shalbe bagged and seallyde with xij{supt}{suph} sealis. |
b. Chess.
to seal a move. Of a player in a match or tournament: To place in a sealed envelope a statement of the move he intends to make when the game is resumed after an adjournment.
| 1891 Daily News 16 Jan. 2/4 [This] move was sealed by Mr. Gunsberg at the adjournment. It is worthy of note that so far Mr. Steinitz has not sealed a move. |
8. a. To close (a vessel, an aperture, etc.) securely by placing a coating of wax, cement, or lead, over the orifice, or, in wider sense, by any kind of fastening that must be broken before access can be obtained.
to seal hermetically: see the
adv.| 1661 in T. Birch Hist. Roy. Soc. (1756) I. 54 The spirit of wine must be the highest rectified. It will do better in a bolt-head sealed up hermetically. 1683 K. Digby Chymical Secrets 32 Then Seal it Hermetically. 1853 S. Hughes Gas-works 195 The cylinder..may be described as a cylinder inverted over a cistern of water, both the inlet and outlet pipes having their orifices above the surface of the water, so that the gas is hermetically sealed up within the holder, and can only escape through the outlet-pipe. 1877 W. Richards Manuf. Coal Gas 210 No ill effects are experienced—at least, so long as the holder remains sealed. |
b. Surg. To close up (a wound) with a covering that is not to be removed until healing has taken place.
| 1862 Med. Times & Gaz. 6 Dec. 601/2 July 1.—The ulcer was sealed. 4th.—Unsealed, and found to be diminished in circumference half-an-inch; re-sealed. 1863 Lancet 8 Aug. 177/2. 1879 St. George's Hosp. Rep. IX. 659 Another method of practice handed down from very ancient times..is to seal up the wound. |
c. To render (a surface of wood, etc.) impervious by the application of a special coating.
| 1940 H. T. Davey Wood Finishing xvii. 202 When dealing with inlays it is best to seal them with shellac before attempting to spray. 1958 Listener 18 Dec. 1055/2 If you still want a glossy finish, you must seal the hard⁓board first, and the easiest way of doing that is to apply a thin coat of plastic emulsion paint. 1977 Reader's Digest Bk. Do-It-Yourself Skills & Techniques iv. 140/3 Some porous timbers may require two light coats, but do not apply any more than is needed to seal the surface. |
d. To prevent access to and egress from (an area or space); to close (entrances) for this purpose. Usu. with
off.
| 1931 Industr. & Engin. Chem. (Analytical Ed.) 15 Oct. 349/2 The tube is immersed in liquid air, and when the gasoline is frozen, the area B is sealed off. 1946 A. Vagts Landing Operations iv. lix. 775 The Germans..concluded that they must try to seal off the Cotentin at its base. 1948 Sci. News VII. 44 For the moment, treated areas are being ‘sealed’ by the total removal of all bush within a two-miles belt, and a watch is being kept to see what happens to the small remaining fly population. 1974 ‘M. Innes’ Mysterious Commission xi. 99 This cellarage had..been boarded over and sealed off from the studio. 1981 E. Clark Send in Lions v. 53 The search..began immediately. Air and sea ports were sealed. |
9. a. To fasten
on or
down with wax or cement.
| 1665 Hooke Microgr. 38 When I have thus filled it, I can very easily in the..flame of a Lamp seal and joyn on the head of it. 1739 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. to C'tess Pomfret 10 Oct. (1893) II. 47 A gnat had saluted one of my eyes so roughly that it was for two days absolutely sealed down. 1769 Bancroft Guiana 219 The glass is then to be filled with rum, and the cork sealed down, to prevent its exhalation. |
b. fig. To fasten, fix immoveably.
| a 1661 Fuller Worthies, M'sex (1662) ii. 189 Otherwise the hot Sun arising, sealeth (to use the Husbandmans Phrase) the Mildew upon the Straw. 1849 M. Arnold Forsaken Merman 82 But, ah, she gave me never a look, For her eyes were sealed to the holy book. |
c. intr. To apply wax, etc. in fastening.
| 1894 S. R. Bottone Electr. Instr. 191 He then immediately seals all round the cork..with good red sealing wax. |
10. Building.
trans. To secure in position in a wall by means of mortar, cement, etc. [So F.
sceller.]
| 1662 J. Davies tr. Olearius' Voy. Ambass. 242 Thence we were brought to the Kitchin... The great Cauldrons were all set in a row, and seal'd within the Wall. |
11. transf. To enclose, shut
up within impenetrable barriers. Also, to confine so as to prevent access or egress, and with
off.
| 1667 Milton P.L. v. 966 If from this houre Within these hallowd limits thou appeer, Back to th' infernal pit I drag thee chaind, And Seale thee so, as henceforth not to scorne The facil gates of hell too slightly barrd. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. lv, Shall men..Who loved, who suffer'd countless ills, Who battled for the True, the Just, Be blown about the desert dust, Or seal'd within the iron hills? 1853 Kane Grinnell Exp. xxi. (1856) 162 In case we should lose our vessels or become sealed up in permanent ice. 1926 R. W. Lawson tr. Hevesy & Paneth's Man. Radioactivity i. 2 If we seal off 1·3138 gm. RACl2..in an evacuated tube. 1940 W. Faulkner Hamlet ii. i. 140 We sealed it up in a asbestos matchbox. 1946 A. Vagts Landing Operations iv. lix. 774 The choice facing Rundstedt and Rommel was between an attempt to throw the Allies back into the sea.., or sealing them off in the Cotentin. |
† III. 12. a. trans. To impress (a mark)
upon.
b. intr. To make marks like those on a seal.
Obs.| a. a 1225 St. Marher. 5 He haueð his merke on me iseilet. a 1585 Montgomerie Flyting 100 The castell ȝee weir well seiled on ȝour shoulder. |
| b. 1567 J. Maplet Gr. Forest 20 b, That which is grauen or by any wyse sealed vppon. |
▪ VII. seal, v.2 dial. (
siːl)
[Specific use of OE. sǽlan to bind with a rope, f. sál rope (= OS. sêl, Du. zeel, OHG. sâl, mod.G. seil, ON. seil). Cf. Sw. sela to harness.] trans. ‘To bind or fasten (cattle) in their stalls’ (E.D.D.).
| 1633 in J. Webster's Displ. Witchcraft (1677) 348 His Father bad him go and fetch home two Kine to seal. 1729 P. Walkden Diary (1866) 61 Seeing her like for calving before morning, we brought her up and sealed her. a 1843 Southey Comm.-pl. Bk. (1851) IV. 552 As the wife of E. Fearnley was sealing up the cows [etc.]. |
▪ VIII. seal, v.3 (
siːl)
[f. seal n.1] intr. To hunt for seals.
| 1828 P. Cunningham N.S. Wales (ed. 3) II. 66 Now we have four vessels constantly whaling; six sealing. 1891 Times 27 Jan. 7/1 The claims of the Victoria sealers for compensation in consequence of their not being permitted to seal in the Behring sea. |