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LEAD n. 1. Chem. a heavy,
comparatively soft, malleable bluish-grey metal, sometimes found native,
but usu. combined as sulphide, in galena. Symbol: Pb; at wt: 207.19; at
no.: 82; sp. gr.: 11. 34 at 20" C. 2. Something made of this metal
or one of its alloys. 3. A plummet or mass of lead suspended by a line,
as for taking soundings. 4. Heave the lead, Naut. to take a sounding
with a lead. 5. Swing the lead, to be idle when there is work to be
done. 6. Put lead in one's pencil, (of a male) to increase sexual
capacity. 7. Bullets; shot. 8. Black lead or graphite. 9. A small stick
of it as used in pencils. 10. Also, leading. Prim. a thin strip of metal
or brass, less than type high, for increasing the space between lines.
11. Frames of lead in which panes are fixed, as in windows of stained
glass. 12. (pI.) Sheets or strips of lead used for covering roofs. 13.
See red lead, white lead. -v. t. 14. To cover, line, weight, treat, or
impregnate with lead or one of its compounds. 15. Prim. to insert lead
between the lines of type. 16. To fix (window glass) in position with
leads. -adj. 17. Containing or made of lead. 18. Go down like a lead
balloon, to
fail dismally; fail to elicit the
desired response. [ME lede, OE lead, c. D lood, G Lot plummet].
(Macquarie Dictionary 1982)
PLUMB, n, Ball of lead, esp.
attached to mason's plumb-line (string for testing perpendicularity of
wall etc) ... ad) (fig) downright, sheer, as plumb nonsense
adv *(sl.) quite utterly, (plumb
crazy, clean mad). [ME; f. OF plumb f. L plumbum lead] (Concise Oxford
Dictionary 1964)
PLUMBAGO n. Black lead, graphite, a
form of carbon used for pencils etc & mixed with clay for making
crucibles; leadwort, plant with greyish-blue flowers. Hence plumbaginous
a. [L, gen. -ginis, f. plumbum lead]
(Concise Oxford Dictionary 1964)
Q. The Elite Maintenance Service's
carpet cleaning system is the only one we know of that actually removes
all the lead particles from carpets, soft furnishings and drapery (under
tests by the SA Department of Environment & Planning). Does anyone
know of any other effective system?
Q. Does anyone know how the plumbago
plant (also called
leadwort) got its name? Is it just the blue-grey colour of the flowers -
or was the plant once used to treat lead poisoning?
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