Sub*lime" (?), a.
[Compar. Sublimer (?);
superl. Sublimest.] [L. sublimis;
sub under + (perhaps) a word akin to limen lintel, sill,
thus meaning, up to the lintel: cf. F. sublime. Cf.
Eliminate.] 1. Lifted up; high in place;
exalted aloft; uplifted; lofty.
Sublime on these a tower of steel is
reared.
Dryden.
2. Distinguished by lofty or noble traits;
eminent; -- said of persons. "The sublime Julian leader."
De Quincey.
3. Awakening or expressing the emotion of awe,
adoration, veneration, heroic resolve, etc.; dignified; grand; solemn;
stately; -- said of an impressive object in nature, of an action, of a
discourse, of a work of art, of a spectacle, etc.; as, sublime
scenery; a sublime deed.
Easy in words thy style, in sense
sublime.
Prior.
Know how sublime a thing it is
To suffer and be strong.
Longfellow.
4. Elevated by joy; elate. [Poetic]
Their hearts were jocund and sublime,
Drunk with idolatry, drunk with wine.
Milton.
5. Lofty of mien; haughty; proud.
[Poetic] "Countenance sublime and insolent."
Spenser.
His fair, large front and eye sublime
declared
Absolute rule.
Milton.
Syn. -- Exalted; lofty; noble; majestic. See
Grand.
Sub*lime", n. That which is
sublime; -- with the definite article; as: (a)
A grand or lofty style in speaking or writing; a style that
expresses lofty conceptions.
The sublime rises from the nobleness of
thoughts, the magnificence of words, or the harmonious and lively turn
of the phrase.
Addison.
(b) That which is grand in nature or art, as
distinguished from the merely beautiful.
Sub*lime", v. t. [imp. & p.
p. Sublimed (?); p. pr. & vb. n.
Subliming.] [Cf. L. sublimare, F. sublimer to
subject to sublimation. See Sublime, a., and
cf. Sublimate, v. t.] 1.
To raise on high. [Archaic]
A soul sublimed by an idea above the region of
vanity and conceit.
E. P. Whipple.
2. (Chem.) To subject to the process of
sublimation; to heat, volatilize, and condense in crystals or powder;
to distill off, and condense in solid form; hence, also, to
purify.
3. To exalt; to heighten; to improve; to
purify.
The sun . . .
Which not alone the southern wit sublimes,
But ripens spirits in cold, northern climes.
Pope.
4. To dignify; to ennoble.
An ordinary gift can not sublime a person to a
supernatural employment.
Jer. Taylor.
Sub*lime" (?), v. i. (Chem.)
To pass off in vapor, with immediate condensation; specifically,
to evaporate or volatilize from the solid state without apparent
melting; -- said of those substances, like arsenic, benzoic acid,
etc., which do not exhibit a liquid form on heating, except under
increased pressure.
Sub*lime" (?), a.
[Compar. Sublimer (?);
superl. Sublimest.] [L. sublimis;
sub under + (perhaps) a word akin to limen lintel, sill,
thus meaning, up to the lintel: cf. F. sublime. Cf.
Eliminate.] 1. Lifted up; high in place;
exalted aloft; uplifted; lofty.
Sublime on these a tower of steel is
reared.
Dryden.
2. Distinguished by lofty or noble traits;
eminent; -- said of persons. "The sublime Julian leader."
De Quincey.
3. Awakening or expressing the emotion of awe,
adoration, veneration, heroic resolve, etc.; dignified; grand; solemn;
stately; -- said of an impressive object in nature, of an action, of a
discourse, of a work of art, of a spectacle, etc.; as, sublime
scenery; a sublime deed.
Easy in words thy style, in sense
sublime.
Prior.
Know how sublime a thing it is
To suffer and be strong.
Longfellow.
4. Elevated by joy; elate. [Poetic]
Their hearts were jocund and sublime,
Drunk with idolatry, drunk with wine.
Milton.
5. Lofty of mien; haughty; proud.
[Poetic] "Countenance sublime and insolent."
Spenser.
His fair, large front and eye sublime
declared
Absolute rule.
Milton.
Syn. -- Exalted; lofty; noble; majestic. See
Grand.
Sub*lime", n. That which is
sublime; -- with the definite article; as: (a)
A grand or lofty style in speaking or writing; a style that
expresses lofty conceptions.
The sublime rises from the nobleness of
thoughts, the magnificence of words, or the harmonious and lively turn
of the phrase.
Addison.
(b) That which is grand in nature or art, as
distinguished from the merely beautiful.
Sub*lime", v. t. [imp. & p.
p. Sublimed (?); p. pr. & vb. n.
Subliming.] [Cf. L. sublimare, F. sublimer to
subject to sublimation. See Sublime, a., and
cf. Sublimate, v. t.] 1.
To raise on high. [Archaic]
A soul sublimed by an idea above the region of
vanity and conceit.
E. P. Whipple.
2. (Chem.) To subject to the process of
sublimation; to heat, volatilize, and condense in crystals or powder;
to distill off, and condense in solid form; hence, also, to
purify.
3. To exalt; to heighten; to improve; to
purify.
The sun . . .
Which not alone the southern wit sublimes,
But ripens spirits in cold, northern climes.
Pope.
4. To dignify; to ennoble.
An ordinary gift can not sublime a person to a
supernatural employment.
Jer. Taylor.
Sub*lime" (?), v. i. (Chem.)
To pass off in vapor, with immediate condensation; specifically,
to evaporate or volatilize from the solid state without apparent
melting; -- said of those substances, like arsenic, benzoic acid,
etc., which do not exhibit a liquid form on heating, except under
increased pressure.
