See Also:

down(3) (iou)



down noun2. ME.
[Old Norse dunn, whence Low German dune, German Daune.]
Soft loose fluffy feathers, as on young birds (used in cushions, quilts, etc.). ME.
L. MacNeice Baby pigeons covered with yellow down.
Fine short soft hairs on some plants, fruits, and seeds. LME.
thistledown: see THISTLE.
(A mass of) short soft hair on the skin, spec. that which appears on a boy's face at puberty. L16.
Dryden The callow down began To shade my chin, and call me first a man. D. Lessing A tiny down on his bare forearm gleamed gold. D. Jacobson There was no down on..her cheeks or upper lip.
Any material of a soft fluffy nature. E17.
A. Reid Nitre..effloresces..on their surface, in the form of a crystalline down.
downless adjective L16.