portal
    n 1: a grand and imposing entrance (often extended
         metaphorically); "the portals of the cathedral"; "the
         portals of heaven"; "the portals of success"
    2: a site that the owner positions as an entrance to other sites
       on the internet; "a portal typically has search engines and
       free email and chat rooms etc." [syn: portal site,
       portal]
    3: a short vein that carries blood into the liver [syn: portal
       vein, hepatic portal vein, portal, vena portae]

Portal \Por"tal\, a. (Anat.)
   Of or pertaining to a porta, especially the porta of the
   liver; as, the portal vein, which enters the liver at the
   porta, and divides into capillaries after the manner of an
   artery.
   [1913 Webster]

   Note: Portal is applied to other veins which break up into
         capillaries; as, the renal portal veins in the frog.
         [1913 Webster]

Portal \Por"tal\, n. [OF. portal, F. portail, LL. portale, fr.
   L. porta a gate. See Port a gate.]
   1. A door or gate; hence, a way of entrance or exit,
      especially one that is grand and imposing.
      [1913 Webster]

            Thick with sparkling orient gems
            The portal shone.                     --Milton.
      [1913 Webster]

            From out the fiery portal of the east. --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. (Arch.)
      (a) The lesser gate, where there are two of different
          dimensions.
      (b) Formerly, a small square corner in a room separated
          from the rest of the apartment by wainscoting, forming
          a short passage to another apartment.
      (c) By analogy with the French portail, used by recent
          writers for the whole architectural composition which
          surrounds and includes the doorways and porches of a
          church.
          [1913 Webster]

   3. (Bridge Building) The space, at one end, between opposite
      trusses when these are terminated by inclined braces.
      [1913 Webster]

   4. A prayer book or breviary; a portass. [Obs.]
      [1913 Webster]

   Portal bracing (Bridge Building), a combination of struts
      and ties which lie in the plane of the inclined braces at
      a portal, serving to transfer wind pressure from the upper
      parts of the trusses to an abutment or pier of the bridge.
      [1913 Webster]

PORTAL

   Process-Oriented Real-Time Algorithmic Language.

   ["PORTAL - A Pascal-based Real-Time Programming Language",
   R. Schild in Algorithmic Languages, J.W. deBakker et al eds,
   N-H 1981].

portal

    A website that aims to be an entry point
   to the web, typically offering a search engine
   and/or links to useful pages, and possibly news or other
   services.  These services are usually provided for free in the
   hope that users will make the site their default home page
   or at least visit it often.  Popular examples are Yahoo and
   MSN.  Most portals on the Internet exist to generate
   advertising income for their owners, others may be focused on
   a specific group of users and may be part of an intranet or
   extranet.  Some may just concentrate on one particular
   subject, say technology or medicine, and are known as a
   vertical portals.

   (2001-07-07)

Portal, ND -- U.S. city in North Dakota
   Population (2000):    131
   Housing Units (2000): 98
   Land area (2000):     0.562735 sq. miles (1.457478 sq. km)
   Water area (2000):    0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km)
   Total area (2000):    0.562735 sq. miles (1.457478 sq. km)
   FIPS code:            63740
   Located within:       North Dakota (ND), FIPS 38
   Location:             48.995629 N, 102.550430 W
   ZIP Codes (1990):     58772
   Note: some ZIP codes may be omitted esp. for suburbs.
   Headwords:
    Portal, ND
    Portal

Portal, GA -- U.S. town in Georgia
   Population (2000):    597
   Housing Units (2000): 254
   Land area (2000):     1.740192 sq. miles (4.507077 sq. km)
   Water area (2000):    0.034770 sq. miles (0.090053 sq. km)
   Total area (2000):    1.774962 sq. miles (4.597130 sq. km)
   FIPS code:            62216
   Located within:       Georgia (GA), FIPS 13
   Location:             32.537275 N, 81.931738 W
   ZIP Codes (1990):     30450
   Note: some ZIP codes may be omitted esp. for suburbs.
   Headwords:
    Portal, GA
    Portal