▪ I. searce, n. ? Obs.
(sɜːs)
Forms: [? 4 sace], 5 saarce, sars, sarsse, sarche, 5–7 sarce, 6 cearse, 6–8 serce, searse, 7 sarse, serse, 7–8 sierce, 7–9 search, 5–9 searce.
[ME. saarce, a. (with unexplained insertion of r) OF. saas (mod.F. sas) = Pr. sedas, Sp. cedazo, It. staccio (Neapolitan setaccio):—pop.L. *sætāceus (pannus), lit. (cloth) made of bristles, f. L. sæta bristle.]
A sieve or strainer. (In the first quot. the word may be AF.)
| [1329–30 Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 17, 1 sace, 4d.] c 1440 Promp. Parv. 441/2 Saarce, instrument. 1459 Inv. Sir J. Fastolf's Goods in Paston Lett. I. 490 Item,..j. sars of brasse. Item,..j. sarche of tre. 1546 Langley tr. Pol. Verg. de Invent. iii. i. 65 Siues and sarces of heare. 1578 Banister Hist. Man i. 10 The couer..Galen likeneth to a searse, as though it were full of holes. 1594 Good Huswife's Handmaide 52 When it [the flour] is baken, it will be full of clods, and therefore ye must searse it through a search. 1624 Quarles Job Militant med. iv. 17 My Mem'ry's like a Searce of Lawne (alas) It Keepes things grosse, and lets the purer passe. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. v. xii. 66 Sift it through a fine Sieve, or a Search. 1674 Ray Coll. Words, Prepar. Tin 122 The fine [tin] is lewed in a fine sierce. 1719 De Foe Crusoe i. (Globe) 124 My next Difficulty was to make a Sieve, or Search, to dress my Meal. 1780 Mackenzie Mirror No. 93 §9 His brain, poor man! was like a gauze searce, it admitted nothing of any magnitude. 1839 Ure Dict. Arts 262 Adding the fish-glue dissolved in a great deal of water, and passed through a searce [printed searee]. 1844 N. Paterson Manse Garden 147 Put all the earth through a search or riddle, of which the wires are one inch apart. |
| fig. 1603 Florio Montaigne ii. xii. (1632) 296 Yet will our selfe overweening sift his divinitie through our searce. 1655 Fuller Ch. Hist. vi. 279 Whereas other Orders of Monks and Fryers were after their first institution sifted (as I may say) thorough many other searches. 1662 W. Gurnall Chr. in Arm. iii. verse 18. i. xvii. 330 His Mediation is the fine searse through which our prayers are boulted. |
b. Comb., as † searce-net; † searce-wise adv.
| 1526 Grete Herball ccccxxxv. (1529) Z iij, Take veray small powdre therof and passe it through a sarcenet. 1601 Holland Pliny xi. xxiv. I. 323 The long yarne in her web wrought serce-wise. |
▪ II. searce, v. ? Obs.
(sɜːs)
Forms: 5 saarce, sarge, serge, (sayeres ?), 5–6 sarse, 5–7 sarce, 6 searsse, cerse, cerce, serche, 6–7 serse, serce, seirce, 6–8 sierse, 7–8 sierce, 5–9 searce, 6–9 searse, search (see also E.D.D.).
[f. searce n.; cf. F. sasser.]
trans. To sift through a searce.
| c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 183 Grynde all þese & sarce hem. c 1430 Two Cookery-bks. 20 Take Appelys an sethe hem, an Serge [Ashmole MS. Sarge] hem þorwe a Sefe in-to a potte. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. xi. 414 Bete al this smal, and sarce hit smothe at al. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 441/2 Saarcyn, colo. 1543 Traheron Vigo's Chirurg. ii. ii. 15 Take of the cromes of breade well cerced a pounde. 1545 T. Raynalde Byrth Mankynde 84 Strewe vpon it y⊇ powder.. beaten very smal & searched through sylke. 1575 Turberv. Faulconrie 301 Beate it into pouder and serce it through a fine cloth. 1675 H. Woolley Gentlew. Comp. 118 Grate a penny loaf, and seirce it through a Cullender. 1719 De Foe Crusoe i. (Globe) 124 Fine thin Canvas, or Stuff, to search the Meal through. 1741 Compl. Fam.-Piece i. ii. 187 Searce some fine Sugar over them. 1747 H. Glasse Cookery 141 Take two Pounds of Flour, a Pound of Sugar finely search'd, mix them together. 1799 G. Smith Laboratory I. 8 Be very careful..that..all these ingredients be well mixed together and searsed through a fine sieve. |
b. transf. and fig.
| c 1535 Nisbet N.T., Rom. Prol. (S.T.S.) III. 315 The mare grundly it is searssit, the preciouser thingis ar founde in it. 1591 Sylvester Du Bartas i. iii. 147 The dry Earth, having these waters (first) Through the wide sieve of her void entrails sierst. 1623 Webster Devil's Law-Case ii. i. C 4 b, You haue Potecaries..will put foure or fiue coxcombs into a sieue..; theyle searse them through like Ginny Pepper. 1644 Digby Nat. Soul v. §3. 395 When we haue sifted and searsed the essence of any notion whatsoeuer. 1831 Scott Ct. Rob. x, His eye was of that piercing kind which seems designed to search and winnow the frivolous from the edifying part of human discussion. |
Hence searced ppl. a., ˈsearcing vbl. n.
| 1544 T. Phaer Regim. Lyfe (1546) Cc iv b, Than take pouder of stauisacre serced and myngle all togyther. 1599 B. Jonson Cynthia's Rev. v. iv, Tut, it is the sorting,..and the searcing, and the decocting, that makes the fumigation, and the suffumigation. 1662 Merrett tr. Neri's Art of Glass v. 14 Good and well sersed Tarso. 1688 Holme Armoury iii. 337/2 The Searce, or Searcer..is a fine Sieve with a Leather cover..to keep the Dant..that nothing be lost of it in the Searceing. 1707 Sloane Jamaica I. Introd. 18 The searc'd and dry Farina is spread in the Sun to dry further. |