I. noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English wæter; akin to Old High German wazzar water, Greek hydōr, Latin unda wave Date: before 12th century
1. the liquid that descends from the clouds as rain, forms streams, lakes, and seas, and is a major constituent of all living matter and that when pure is an odorless, tasteless, very slightly compressible liquid oxide of hydrogen H 2 O which appears bluish in thick layers, freezes at 0° C and boils at 100° C, has a maximum density at 4° C and a high specific heat, is feebly ionized to hydrogen and hydroxyl ions, and is a poor conductor of electricity and a good solvent, a natural mineral water, a particular quantity or body of water: as, a. the water occupying or flowing in a particular bed, lake , pond , a quantity or depth of water adequate for some purpose (as navigation), c. plural a band of seawater abutting on the land of a particular sovereignty and under the control of that sovereignty, the sea of a particular part of the earth, water supply , travel or transportation on water , the level of water at a particular state of the tide ; tide , liquid containing or resembling water: as, a. a pharmaceutical or cosmetic preparation made with water, a watery solution of a gaseous or readily volatile substance, a distilled fluid (as an essence), a watery fluid (as tears, urine, or sap) formed or circulating in a living body, amniotic fluid ,
6. the degree of clarity and luster of a precious stone, degree of excellence , watercolor ,
8. stock not representing assets of the issuing company and not backed by earning power, fictitious or exaggerated asset entries that give a stock an unrealistic book value,
II. verb Date: before 12th century transitive verb to moisten, sprinkle, or soak with water , to supply with water for drink , to supply water to , to treat with or as if with water,
5. to dilute by the addition of water, to add to the aggregate par value of (securities) without a corresponding addition to the assets represented by the securities, intransitive verb to form or secrete water or watery matter (as tears or saliva), to get or take water: as, to take on a supply of water , to drink water