pierceable, perceable

[Eng. pierce; -able.] Capable of being pierced. piërçed, pa. par. & a. [PIERCE.] A. As pa. par.: (See the verb.) B. As adjective: 1. Ord . Lang.: Penetrated; entered into by force, perforated. 2. Her .: Applied to any bearing which is perforated so as to show the field under it. pi-er-is, s. [Sing. of Gr. Pierides (q. v.).] Entomology : The typical genus of the Pieridi. Antennæ long and slender, with a distinct knob at the end; wings white in the female, with a dark spot near the anal angle; larva green, or green and black striped with yellow. Two broods in a year, feeding on Cruciferæ and Resedaceæ. *pier-rie, s . [Fr. pierrerie jewels, from pierre =a stone.] Jewels, jewelry. pi-ět, pi-ốt, pỹ-ot, s. [A dim in. from pie (2), s.] A magpie. pi-ě-tişm, s. [PIETIST.] 1. The principles or practice of the Pietists. "Historically, Pietism may be described as the formularisation of the popular discontent at the arid dogmatism which the [Luther an Church's continual conflict with Geneva and Rome had made endemic in the Luther an pulpits, and it was at the same time a protest against the low state of public morals engendered by the miserable delays of the Thirty Years War."-Blunt: Dict. Sects, p. 429. 2. Extremely strict devotion or affectation of devotion. "A large proportion, probably of the recluses, soon drooped into the inanity of a trivial pietism ." -Taylor : Enthusiasm , § 8, p. 209. pi-ě-tist, s. [Fr. piétiste.] 1. Ord. Lang .: One who makes a display or affectation of strong religious feelings. "The pietist delighting in the Word of God."- Brit . Quart. Review , lvii. 177. pig 2. Church Hist. ( pl .): A party of Reformers in the Luther an Church in the seventeenth century. The leader of the movement, an Alsatian, Philip Jacob Spener (1635-1705), when pastor in Frankfort. in 1670, was in the habit of holding private gatherings in which the Scriptures were explained practically rather than dogmatically, and, this movement spreading, Spener published his Pia Desideria, in which he deplored the ince ant preaching of dogma, advocated reform in education, and formu lated the opinion that a virtuous life was of more importance than a correct creed. After Spener's death the Executive interfered, and proscribed the open profe ion of Pietism, so that its profe ors had no opportunity of forming a new sect. "The principal reforms demanded by the Pietists , to be gathered from the writings of their leaders, were these: First, that the theological schools should be reformed by the abolition of all systematic theology, philosophy, and metaphysics; and that morals, and not doctrine, should form the staple of all preaching. Secondly, that only those persons should be admitted into the Luther an ministry whose lives were samples of living piety." Blunt : Dict . Sects, p. 430. pi-ě-tist-ic, pi-ě-tist-ic-al, a . [Eng. pietist ; -ic, -ical.] Of or pertaining to the Pietists, or to those who make a display of strong religious feeling.