ether

plural ethers · alternative UK dated obsolete æther · alternative UK dated obsolete aether · alternative archaic aethyr · alternative archaic ethyr

1. The substance formerly supposed to fill the upper regions of the atmosphere above the clouds, in particular as a medium breathed by deities.
   1. broadlycountableliterarypoeticuncountableThe medium breathed by human beings; the air.

      On Wings the Birds through Æther glide, / And Fiſhes cut with Fins the Tide.

      1746 February 28, Criticus [pseudonym], “Dialogue on Women”, in [Mark Akenside], editor, The Museum: Or, The Literary and Historical Register, volume II, number XXV, London: Printed for R[obert] Dodsley […], →OCLC, page 389

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      Of the mysterious world, that come to me From the elements of Fire and Earth and Water, And the all-nourishing Ether!

      1872, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Christus: A Mystery

   2. broadlycountableliterarypoeticuncountableThe sky, the heavens; the void, nothingness.

      There’s a very real chance that, rather than crumbling into the dust and floating off into the ether, Thanos’s victims [in the film Avengers: Infinity War] were actually sucked up into the Soul Stone.

      2018 May 7, Meg Downey, “Marvel’s Comic Soul Stone could Explain the Jump from Infinity War’s Ending to Avengers 4: A Brief History of Crazy Multidimensional Power”, in Polygon, archived from the original on 24 Jun 2018

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      Take a snapshot of the conflicts around the world: Sunnis vs. Shiites, Israelis vs. Palestinians, Serbs vs. Kosovars, Indians vs. Pakistanis. They seem to be driven by religious hatred. It’s enough to make you wonder if the animosity would melt away if all religions were suddenly, somehow, to vanish into the ether. But James Carse doesn’t see them as religious conflicts at all. To him, they are battles over rival belief systems, which may or may not have religious overtones.

      2008 July 21, Steve Paulson, “Religion is Poetry”, in Salon, archived from the original on 30 Aug 2017

      In barely the blink of an eye, the perfectly healthy Judy entered a permanent vegetative state. […] What haunted me was the idea that one moment you’re gazing at your 2-year-old in her playroom and the next, you, the mother, have been whisked off into the ether forever.

      2009 December, Sandra Tsing Loh, “On Being a Bad Mother: True Confessions”, in The Atlantic, →ISSN, archived from the original on 25 Jul 2018

2. historicaluncountablenatural sciencesOften as aether and more fully as luminiferous aether: The hypothetical substance permeating space, functioning as a medium for electromagnetic waves to propagate through, and which does not exert resistance to the movement of matter; its existence is incompatible with Einstein's theory of relativity; famously found to be undetectable by the 1887 Michelson–Morley experiment.

   "The ether. The earth browses upon a circular path in the fields of space, and as it moves the ether is continually pouring through it and providing its vitality."

   1929, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, When the World Screamed

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   I ſuppose this æther pervades all groſs bodies, but yet ſo as to ſtand rarer in their pores than in free ſpaces, and ſo much the rarer, as their pores are leſs. And this I ſuppose (with others) to be the cauſe, why light incident on thoſe bodies is refracted towards the perpendicular; […] I ſuppose the rarer æther within bodies, and then denſer without them, not to be terminated in a mathematical ſuperficies, but to grow gradually into one another; […]

   1679 February 28, Thomas Birch, quoting Isaac Newton, “The Life of the Honourable Robert Boyle. [Letter from Isaac Newton to Robert Boyle.]”, in Robert Boyle, The Works of the Honourable Robert Boyle. In Five Volumes. To which is Prefixed the Life of the Author, volume I, London: Printed for A[ndrew] Millar, […], published 1744, →OCLC, page 70

   Having ſhewn how the Æther cauſes a great part of the Phænomena of Nature, it may be aſked, whence this general material Cauſe has its great Activity and Power? […] This Cauſe muſt be either Matter or Spirit, there being nothing in the Univerſe, which we know if, beſides theſe two. But this Cauſe cannot be Matter: for Matter is in own Nature inert, and has not any Activity in itſelf; and conſequently cannot communicate any Power to the Æther. And therefore the Cauſe, which gives the Æther its Activity and Power, muſt be Spirit. Spirit, which intercedes the Particles of Æther, and gives them a repulſive Power, and ordains and executes the Laws, by which Æther and Bodies act mutually on one another, muſt be preſent in all Parts of Space, where there is Æther.

   1747, Bryan Robinson, A Dissertation on the Æther of Sir Isaac Newton, London: Printed for Charles Hitch […], →OCLC; quoted in “Literary Memoirs. A Dissertation on the Æther of Sir Isaac Newton, by Bryan Robinson, M.D. London, Printed for Charles Hitch, at the Red Lion in Pater-noster-Row, 1747. Containing 140 Pages in Octavo, Exclusive of a Short Preface.”, in The Museum: Or, The Literary and Historical Register, volume III, number XXVIII, London: Printed for R[obert] Dodsley […], 11 April 1747, →OCLC, pages 59–60

   The whole matter of the univerſe may be divided into atoms and æther. […] The latter, æther, is a ſubtile elaſtic fluid, whoſe particles have a continual tendency to ſeparate or fly off every way, unleſs impreſſed by ſome body: This æther ſurrounds each atom like an atmoſphere, and preſſes equally towards the center of each.

   1770 November 1, “Investigator” [pseudonym], “Of the Causes of Attraction and Repulsion”, in Sylvanus Urban [pseudonym; Edward Cave], editor, The Gentleman’s Magazine, and Historical Chronicle, volume XL, London: Printed […], for D[avid] Henry; and sold by F[rancis] Newbery […], →OCLC, page 497, column 1

3. colloquialuncountableThe atmosphere or space as a medium for broadcasting radio and television signals; also, a notional space through which Internet and other digital communications take place; cyberspace.

   H. P. Lovecraft, At the Mountains of Madness He held some friendly chat with Pabodie over the ether, and repeated his praise of the really marvelous drills that had helped him make his discovery.

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   Now we are liberal with our innermost secrets, spraying them into the public ether with a generosity our forebears could not have imagined. Where we once sent love letters in a sealed envelope, or stuck photographs of our children in a family album, now such private material is despatched to servers and clouds operated by people we don't know and will never meet.

   2013 June 14, Jonathan Freedland, “Obama’s Once Hip Brand is Now Tainted [online version: Obama is Like Apple, Google and Facebook: A Once Hip Brand Tainted by Prism]”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 1, London, archived from the original on 26 Sep 2018, page 18

4. colloquialuncountableA particular quality created by or surrounding an object, person, or place; an atmosphere, an aura.

   The luminous æther of his life was not obſcured by any ſhade dark enough to be denominated a defect.

   1793, “[Characters.] An Account of the Late Earl of Mansfield.”, in The Annual Register, or A View of the History, Politics, and Literature, volume XXXV, London: Printed, by assignment from the executors of the late Mr. James Dodsley, for W. Otridge and Son; [et al.], →OCLC, page 274, column 2

5. uncountablechemistryDiethyl ether (C₄H₁₀O), an organic compound with a sweet odour used in the past as an anaesthetic.

   The only thing that really worried me was the ether. There is nothing in the world more helpless and irresponsible and depraved than a man in the depths of an ether binge.

   1971, Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, New York: Popular Library, →ISBN, page 4

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   But the moſt valuable Qualities of the ÆTHER are it's medicinal ones; it having been found by repeated Experience to be an excellent Remedy in moſt nervous Diſeaſes; particularly in Fits of all ſorts, whether Epileptic, Convulſive, Hyſteric, Hypochondriac, or Paralytic: […]

   1759, M[atthew] Turner, An Account of the Extraordinary Medicinal Fluid, Called Æther, [Liverpool]: Printed by John Sadler, →OCLC, page 5

   To A Gould and William T. G. Morton, of Boston, Mass., for improvement in apparatus for inhaling ether; &c., (said Gould having assigned to said Morton.) Patented Nov. 13, 1847.

   1847, editorial staff, “List of Patents”, in Scientific American, series 1, Volume 3, Issue 9, page 68

6. countablechemistryAny of a class of organic compounds containing an oxygen atom bonded to two hydrocarbon groups.

   An old man to whom a few drops of phosphoric ether had been administered experienced repeated and imperious venereal wants.

   1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page 202

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   M. Malaguti finds that dry chlorine, while acting in the dark upon oxacid æthers, always attacks, and in a uniform manner, the sulphuric æther which is the base of them. […] The action of potash on the compound chloridized æthers is also constant and uniform: the results are always chloride of potassium, acetate of potash, and an organic salt with a base of potash, the acid of which is that which existed in the compound chloridized æther.

   1838 March, “Action of Chlorine on Æthers”, in David Brewster, Richard Taylor, Richard Phillips, editors, The London and Edinburgh Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science, volume XII (3rd Series), number 74, London: Printed by R[ichard] and J[ohn] E[dward] Taylor, […], →OCLC, page 297

   When chlorine gas is passed in excess through salicylic ether (salicylae of ethyl) heated over a water-bath, a solid substance is formed which is soluble in hot alcohol, and crystallizes, on cooling, in beautiful colourless tables. This compound is bichloruretted salicylic ether, formed from salicylic ether (C₁₈H₁₀O₆) by the substitution of 2 eq. chlorine for 2 eq. hydrogen: its composition is therefore C₁₈H₈Cl₂O₆.

   1851, A[uguste André Thomas] Cahours, “[Notices of Papers Contained in the Foreign Journals.] On Anisol and Phenetol”, in Henry Watts, editor, The Quarterly Journal of the Chemical Society of London, volume III, London: Hippolyte Bailliere, […]; Paris: J. B. Baillière, […]; Madrid: Bailly Baillière, […], →OCLC, page 78

   […] I allude to the æthers formed by the union of fatty acids with different alcohols. […] With regard to the fatty æthers themselves, I prepared them generally by M. Berthelot's method, by heating the alcohol and the acid for a day at 392°F. in a tube hermetically sealed; the product was mixed with a little æther, and it was digested some time with slaked lime in the water-bath, to separate the free acid from the neutral compound.

   1858 October 15, M. Hanhart, “On Some New Æthers of Stearic and Margaric Acids”, in William Francis, editor, The Chemical Gazette, or, Journal of Practical Chemistry, in All Its Applications to Pharmacy, Arts and Manufactures, volume XVI, number CCCLXXXIV, London: Published by Taylor and Francis, […], page 384

7. uncountableStarting fluid.

present singular third person ethers · participle present ethering · participle past ethered · past ethered

1. slangtransitiveTo viciously humiliate or insult.

   The battle rapper ethered his opponent and caused him to slink away in shame.

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   HS Coach Gets Ethered By Girlfriend On FB, Resigns Amid Investigation [article title] […] On Monday, a woman living in Bowling Green, Ky., used her Facebook page to unleash one of the coldest, boyfriend-crushingest Dear John letters you'll ever read.

   2014 February 26, Tom Ley, “HS Coach Gets Ethered by Girlfriend on FB, Resigns Amid Investigation”, in Deadspin, archived from the original on 22 Oct 2018

   Cory Barker: Game of Thrones is the easiest answer for me, but MaryAnn [Sleasman] did a fine job of ethering that overrated hunk of junk, so I'm free to take a few shots at Sherlock.

   2015 August 15, “Pass the Remote: What is a Popular Show Everyone Loves but You Hate?”, in TV.com, archived from the original on 20 Dec 2018

   Best of all, [Steven] Soderbergh, a shade queen of our time!!!, slyly ethers James Cameron: […]

   2015 September 15, Kirsten Yoonsoo Kim, “Steven Soderbergh Ethers James Cameron to Promote His Brandy”, in Complex, archived from the original on 19 Sep 2015

   On Wednesday, I found myself nodding along vigorously to the latest Kanye West Twitter screed, as this particular iteration included a call for more inclusion at the Grammys and one extremely polite ethering of Macklemore.

   2016 February 25, Rohan Nadkarni, “How does Kanye West Tweet So Fast?: Some Working Theories—because these Rants are Coming at a Record Speed”, in GQ, archived from the original on 28 Feb 2016

   Synonyms: abase, abash, bring low, confuse, confound, debase, degrade, demean

present singular third person ethers · participle present ethering · participle past ethered · past ethered

1. UKalternativedialectalAlternative form of edder.

   […] and he must first ascertain its [the hedge's] length, which will give him an idea of the number of stakes and ethering rods required.

   1924, Alexander Christison Drummie, Practical Forestry from a Workman's Point of View, page 103

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   Ether and Ethers (rhyme to whether)—the operation of running a line of hazle or other flexible wands intertwiningly along the top of a hedge, to keep it more firmly within the hedge-stakes. "Mind you ether it right strong." To "bond" a hedge has the same meaning.

   1849, William Raynbird, Hugh Raynbird, On the Agriculture of Suffolk, page 291

   In the edition of 1760 of "The Complete Angler" there is a curious quotation from Bowlker, who was a great authority on fish-ponds, in which he recommends:— "When you intend to stick a pool with carp or tench, make a close ethering hedge across the head of the pool about a yard distance of the dam, and about three foot above the water, which is the best refuge for them I know of, and the only method to preserve pool-fish; […] "

   1886, Gertrude Elizabeth Blood Campbell, A Book of the Running Brook, and of Still Waters, page 122

   The labourer still sits under the lew (hleow, or "hleowð," shelter, warmth) of the hedge, which has has been ethering ("eðer," a hedge); […]

   1895, John Richard de Capel Wise, The New Forest: Its History and Its Scenery, page 193

1. businessAlternative letter-case form of Ether.

   Gas is not ether–it's a separate virtual currency with its own exchange rate against ether.

   2018, Andreas M. Antonopoulos, Gavin Wood, Mastering Ethereum: Building Smart Contracts and DApps, O'Reilly Media, →ISBN

1. Romanhuman sciencesThe god-personification of the bright, glowing upper air of heaven. He is the Roman counterpart of Aether.

alternative ether

1. businessA unit of the Ethereum digital currency, ETH.

   After more than 30 bids, the auction ended at 12:32 p.m. Eastern time, with a winning bid of 350 Ether, or about $560,000.

   2021 March 26, Kevin Roose, “Why Did Someone Pay $560,000 for a Picture of My Column?”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

1. MormonismThe ancient American prophet of Mormon theology who wrote the Book of Ether in the Book of Mormon.