Stress \Stress\, n. [Abbrev. fr. distress; or cf. OF. estrecier
   to press, pinch, (assumed) LL. strictiare, fr. L. strictus.
   See Distress.]
   1. Distress. [Obs.]
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            Sad hersal of his heavy stress.       --Spenser.
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   2. Pressure, strain; -- used chiefly of immaterial things;
      except in mechanics; hence, urgency; importance; weight;
      significance.
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            The faculties of the mind are improved by exercise,
            yet they must not be put to a stress beyond their
            strength.                             --Locke.
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            A body may as well lay too little as too much stress
            upon a dream.                         --L'Estrange.
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   3. (Mech. & Physics) The force, or combination of forces,
      which produces a strain; force exerted in any direction or
      manner between contiguous bodies, or parts of bodies, and
      taking specific names according to its direction, or mode
      of action, as thrust or pressure, pull or tension, shear
      or tangential stress. --Rankine.
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            Stress is the mutual action between portions of
            matter.                               --Clerk
                                                  Maxwell.
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   4. (Pron.) Force of utterance expended upon words or
      syllables. Stress is in English the chief element in
      accent and is one of the most important in emphasis. See
      Guide to pronunciation, [sect][sect] 31-35.
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   5. (Scots Law) Distress; the act of distraining; also, the
      thing distrained.
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   Stress of voice, unusual exertion of the voice.

   Stress of weather, constraint imposed by continued bad
      weather; as, to be driven back to port by stress of
      weather.

   To lay stress upon, to attach great importance to; to
      emphasize. "Consider how great a stress is laid upon this
      duty." --Atterbury.

   To put stress upon, or To put to a stress, to strain.
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Weather \Weath"er\, n. [OE. weder, AS. weder; akin to OS. wedar,
   OFries. weder, D. weder, we[^e]r, G. wetter, OHG. wetar,
   Icel. ve[eth]r, Dan. veir, Sw. v[aum]der wind, air, weather,
   and perhaps to OSlav. vedro fair weather; or perhaps to Lith.
   vetra storm, Russ. vieter', vietr', wind, and E. wind. Cf.
   Wither.]
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   1. The state of the air or atmosphere with respect to heat or
      cold, wetness or dryness, calm or storm, clearness or
      cloudiness, or any other meteorological phenomena;
      meteorological condition of the atmosphere; as, warm
      weather; cold weather; wet weather; dry weather, etc.
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            Not amiss to cool a man's stomach this hot weather.
                                                  --Shak.
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            Fair weather cometh out of the north. --Job xxxvii.
                                                  22.
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   2. Vicissitude of season; meteorological change; alternation
      of the state of the air. --Bacon.
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   3. Storm; tempest.
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            What gusts of weather from that gathering cloud
            My thoughts presage!                  --Dryden.
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   4. A light rain; a shower. [Obs.] --Wyclif.
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   Stress of weather, violent winds; force of tempests.

   To make fair weather, to flatter; to give flattering
      representations. [R.]

   To make good weather, or To make bad weather (Naut.), to
      endure a gale well or ill; -- said of a vessel. --Shak.

   Under the weather, ill; also, financially embarrassed.
      [Colloq. U. S.] --Bartlett.

   Weather box. Same as Weather house, below. --Thackeray.

   Weather breeder, a fine day which is supposed to presage
      foul weather.

   Weather bureau, a popular name for the signal service. See
      Signal service, under Signal, a. [U. S.]

   Weather cloth (Naut.), a long piece of canvas of tarpaulin
      used to preserve the hammocks from injury by the weather
      when stowed in the nettings.

   Weather door. (Mining) See Trapdoor, 2.

   Weather gall. Same as Water gall, 2. [Prov. Eng.]
      --Halliwell.

   Weather house, a mechanical contrivance in the form of a
      house, which indicates changes in atmospheric conditions
      by the appearance or retirement of toy images.
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            Peace to the artist whose ingenious thought
            Devised the weather house, that useful toy!
                                                  --Cowper.
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   Weather molding, or

   Weather moulding (Arch.), a canopy or cornice over a door
      or a window, to throw off the rain.

   Weather of a windmill sail, the obliquity of the sail, or
      the angle which it makes with its plane of revolution.

   Weather report, a daily report of meteorological
      observations, and of probable changes in the weather;
      esp., one published by government authority.

   Weather spy, a stargazer; one who foretells the weather.
      [R.] --Donne.

   Weather strip (Arch.), a strip of wood, rubber, or other
      material, applied to an outer door or window so as to
      cover the joint made by it with the sill, casings, or
      threshold, in order to exclude rain, snow, cold air, etc.
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