amber

t. [From the substantive. In Fr. ambrer.] To scent with amber. "Be sure The wines be lusty, high, and full of spirit, And amber'd all. Beaum. & Flet. Cust. of the Country , iil. L ăm'-bered, pa . par . & a. [AMBER, V.] ăm-běr-grease, ăm-běr-gris, * ăm'běr-grēese, ăm-bră greş-i-a, s. [Eng. amber, and Fr. gris. In Fr. ambre -gris; Sp. & Port. ambar - gris ; Ital. am bra grig i a . Lit. = grey amber.] [AMBER.] A light, fatty, in flammable substance, opaque in lustre, ashy in colour, with variegations like marble, and giving forth a pleasant odour when heated. It is found in ma es swimming on the sen in certain latitudes, or cast on the adjacent coasts, or buried in the sand. It is a morbid secretion found in the stomach, or more probably in the gall-ducts, of the great-headed Cachalot, or Spermaceti Whale ( Physeter macro cephalus). In this country it is now used solely in perfumery, having the property of adding to the strength of other perfumes. "Bermudas where hugh lemons grow; Where shining pearl, coral, and many a pound, On the rich shore, of ambergria is found?" Waller: Battle of the Summer Islands, 8. ăm-bi-, pref. [Lat. = Gr. ἀμφί- (amphi-).] Round about, around, on both sides. [AMPHI-.] ăm-bi-děx-těr, *ăm-bo-děx-ter, a. & 8. [In Fr. ambidextre ; Sp. and Port. ambidextro; Ital. am bid estro = using both hands equally. From Lat. ambo both ; dexter , adj. = to, or on the right side.] + L. As adj .: Using either hand with equal facility. "How does Melpy like this? I think I have vext her: Little did she know, I was ambidexter. Sheridan to Swift. II. As substantive: 1. One who can use either of his hands with equal facility. "Rodiginus, undertaking to give a reason of am bidexters, and left-handed men, deliver eth a third opinion.- Browne . 2. Ludicrously : A person who, when political or other parties are in conflict, is almost equally ready to take either side. "The rest are hypocrites, ambo dexters, outsides."Burton: Anat. of Melancholy To the Reader , p. 36. 3. Law : A juror or embraceor, who accepts money from both sides for giving his voice in their favour. Thy poore client's gold Makes thee to be an ambodezter bold." Gamage: Epigrams, Ep . to a Lawyer, E. 71.