Saw \Saw\, n. [OE. sawe, AS. sage; akin to D. zaag, G. s[aum]ge,
OHG. sega, saga, Dan. sav, Sw. s[*a]g, Icel. s["o]g, L.
secare to cut, securis ax, secula sickle. Cf. Scythe,
Sickle, Section, Sedge.]
An instrument for cutting or dividing substances, as wood,
iron, etc., consisting of a thin blade, or plate, of steel,
with a series of sharp teeth on the edge, which remove
successive portions of the material by cutting and tearing.
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Note: Saw is frequently used adjectively, or as the first
part of a compound.
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Band saw, Crosscut saw, etc. See under Band,
Crosscut, etc.
Circular saw, a disk of steel with saw teeth upon its
periphery, and revolved on an arbor.
Saw bench, a bench or table with a flat top for for sawing,
especially with a circular saw which projects above the
table.
Saw file, a three-cornered file, such as is used for
sharpening saw teeth.
Saw frame, the frame or sash in a sawmill, in which the
saw, or gang of saws, is held.
Saw gate, a saw frame.
Saw gin, the form of cotton gin invented by Eli Whitney, in
which the cotton fibers are drawn, by the teeth of a set
of revolving circular saws, through a wire grating which
is too fine for the seeds to pass.
Saw grass (Bot.), any one of certain cyperaceous plants
having the edges of the leaves set with minute sharp
teeth, especially the Cladium Mariscus of Europe, and
the Cladium effusum of the Southern United States. Cf.
Razor grass, under Razor.
Saw log, a log of suitable size for sawing into lumber.
Saw mandrel, a mandrel on which a circular saw is fastened
for running.
Saw pit, a pit over which timbor is sawed by two men, one
standing below the timber and the other above. --Mortimer.
Saw sharpener (Zool.), the great titmouse; -- so named from
its harsh call note. [Prov. Eng.]
Saw whetter (Zool.), the marsh titmouse (Parus
palustris); -- so named from its call note. [Prov. Eng.]
Scroll saw, a ribbon of steel with saw teeth upon one edge,
stretched in a frame and adapted for sawing curved
outlines; also, a machine in which such a saw is worked by
foot or power.
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Circular \Cir"cu*lar\, a. [L. circularis, fr. circulus circle:
cf. F. circulaire. See Circle.]
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1. In the form of, or bounded by, a circle; round.
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2. repeating itself; ending in itself; reverting to the point
of beginning; hence, illogical; inconclusive; as, circular
reasoning.
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3. Adhering to a fixed circle of legends; cyclic; hence,
mean; inferior. See Cyclic poets, under Cyclic.
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Had Virgil been a circular poet, and closely adhered
to history, how could the Romans have had Dido?
--Dennis.
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4. Addressed to a circle, or to a number of persons having a
common interest; circulated, or intended for circulation;
as, a circular letter.
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A proclamation of Henry III., . . . doubtless
circular throughout England. --Hallam.
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5. Perfect; complete. [Obs.]
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A man so absolute and circular
In all those wished-for rarities that may take
A virgin captive. --Massinger.
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Circular are, any portion of the circumference of a circle.
Circular cubics (Math.), curves of the third order which
are imagined to pass through the two circular points at
infinity.
Circular functions. (Math.) See under Function.
Circular instruments, mathematical instruments employed for
measuring angles, in which the graduation extends round
the whole circumference of a circle, or 360[deg].
Circular lines, straight lines pertaining to the circle, as
sines, tangents, secants, etc.
Circular note or Circular letter.
(a) (Com.) See under Credit.
(b) (Diplomacy) A letter addressed in identical terms to a
number of persons.
Circular numbers (Arith.), those whose powers terminate in
the same digits as the roots themselves; as 5 and 6, whose
squares are 25 and 36. --Bailey. --Barlow.
Circular points at infinity (Geom.), two imaginary points
at infinite distance through which every circle in the
plane is, in the theory of curves, imagined to pass.
Circular polarization. (Min.) See under Polarization.
Circular sailing or Globular sailing (Naut.), the method
of sailing by the arc of a great circle.
Circular saw. See under Saw.
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