virgate

¹ American  

[vur-git, -geyt] / ˈvɜr gɪt, -geɪt /

adjective

1. shaped like a rod or wand; long, slender, and straight.

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virgate ² American  

[vur-git, -geyt] / ˈvɜr gɪt, -geɪt /

noun

1. an early English measure of land of varying extent, usually considered equivalent to a quarter of a hide, or about 30 acres (12 hectares).

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virgate ¹ British  

/ -ɡeɪt, ˈvɜːɡɪt /

adjective

1. long, straight, and thin; rod-shaped

   virgate stems

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virgate ² British  

/ -ɡeɪt, ˈvɜːɡɪt /

noun

1. an obsolete measure of land area, usually taken as equivalent to 30 acres

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Etymology

Origin of virgate¹

1815–25; < Latin virgātus; see virga, -ate ¹

Origin of virgate²

1645–55; < Medieval Latin virgāta ( terrae ) measure (of land), feminine of Latin virgātus pertaining to a rod; see virgate ¹; translation Old English gierd landes yard-measure of land

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

virgate

Thus the possible gradations are not so many or so gentle as in our own time, but are in the main the half plough-land, the virgate, and the oxgang.

From Villainage in England Essays in English Mediaeval History by Vinogradoff, Paul

We find six free tenants with a virgate apiece, one with half a virgate, three with a virgate and a half, and three jointly possessed of two virgates.

From Villainage in England Essays in English Mediaeval History by Vinogradoff, Paul

P. spathulato-flabelliform, rigid, coriaceous, concentrically sulcate, radiately rugose, dingy brick-red; g. crowded, paler than p., edge brownish; s. expanding into pileus, apex virgate; sp.

From European Fungus Flora: Agaricaceae by Massee, George

We have seen that in Ravenston, Bedfordshire, the villain service is valued at eight shillings per virgate, and that the free assessment amounts only to four shillings.

From Villainage in England Essays in English Mediaeval History by Vinogradoff, Paul

Seashore 13 Panicle virgate or thyrsoid; leaves nearly entire 14–17 Heads very small in a short broad panicle; leaves nearly entire 18–20 Heads racemosely paniculate; leaves ample, the lower serrate 21–28 § 1.

From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Gray, Asa