solitaire (solitar)

[F., Pope , To Lady M. W. Montagu, Aug. 18, 1716. 2. A precious stone, oftenest a diamond, set by itself, and not combined with other jewels.31. A loose necktie of black silk, resembling a ribbon, sometimes secured to the bag of the wig behind, and in front either falling loosely or secured by a brooch or similar jewel: a fashion for men in the eighteenth century. He came in a solitaire , great sleeves, je amine-powder, and a large bouquet of jonquils. Gray, Letters, I. 310. 4. A game which one person can play alone. In particular and properly - (a) A game played on a board indented with thirty-three or thirty-seven hemispherical hollows, with an equal number of balls. One ball is removed from the board, and the empty hollow thus left enables pieces to be captured. The object of the player is to take by jumping, as in checkers, all the pieces except one without moving diagonally or over more than one space at a time; or else, by similar moves, to leave certain configurations. (b) One of a great number of card games, the usual object of which is to bring the shuffled and confused cards into regular order or sequence. This sort of game is more properly called patience . 5. In ornith.: (a) An extinct didine bird, Pe zophaps solitarius. See Pezophaps. (b) A fly catching thrush of Jamaica, Myiadestes armilla tus, which leads a retired life in wooded mountainous resorts; hence, any bird of this genus. The name was originally applied to the bird of Martin i que, now known as M. gen i barb is. Town send's solitaire is a common bird of many parts of the western United States. All are fine songsters. See Myiadestes. (c) The pensive thrush, Monticola or Petrocincla solitaria. See rock - thrush.