Definitions

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Relating to or inducing tears; -- especially of chemical substances.
  • noun (Antiq.) A “tear-bottle;” a narrow-necked vessel found in sepulchers of the ancient Romans; -- so called from a former notion that the tears of the deceased person's friends were collected in it. Called also lachrymal or lacrymal.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Pertaining to or causing tears.
  • noun A vase intended to hold tears, formerly used by archaeologists to designate certain urns found in Roman burials.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective relating to or prompting tears

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin type *lacrimatorius, from lacrimare.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word lachrymatory.

Examples

  • The self-heating process of linseed oil on cotton, the investigators said, releases large quantities of a choking, white, "lachrymatory" (tear-making) smoke.

    Wolf House Burning: Page IV 2004

  • In addition to high explosive he now began to send over for the first time "lachrymatory" gas shells, having a sweet smell and doing little harm except to make our eyes water.

    The Sherwood Foresters in the Great War 1914 - 1919 History of the 1/8th Battalion W. C. C. Weetman

  • It puts forward the idea that Earth is a globular allium and "pain and fear" are the lachrymatory agents that provoke all the tears.

    Readers recommend songs about vegetables: The results Rob Fitzpatrick 2010

  • The entire lab stank from chemicals in unvented storage cabinets, and became lachrymatory when reactions using excess ethyl bromoacetate had to be worked up outside the hood.

    Roger Y. Tsien - Autobiography 2009

  • I feel the lachrymatory reflex begin and a counter-reflex pops in, that choked up feeling that says, No, not now.

    Crybaby James Killus 2008

  • I feel the lachrymatory reflex begin and a counter-reflex pops in, that choked up feeling that says, No, not now.

    Archive 2008-02-01 James Killus 2008

  • Such a lachrymatory farewell from someone who will certainly not be missed.

    Frist Passes on the ’08 Season - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com 2006

  • Your uncle is great in the lachrymatory line, Clive Newcome.

    The Newcomes 2006

  • Some are merely lachrymatory or "tear" shells; the gas affecting the eyes in such a manner as to produce constant "weeping" and consequent inability to see clearly.

    The Emma Gees Herbert Wes McBride

  • Opening my door, I encountered the not unpleasant smell of lachrymatory gas.

    Pushed and the Return Push George Herbert Fosdike Nichols

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • (Antiq.) A ``tear-bottle;'' a narrow-necked vessel found in sepulchers of the ancient Romans; -- so called from a former notion that the tears of the deceased person's friends were collected in it.

    May 31, 2007