migratory; "a restless mobile society"; "the nomadic habits of the Bedouins"; "believed the profession of a peregrine typist would have a happy future"; "wandering tribes" [syn: mobile]
noun
1.
travelling about without any clear destination; "she followed him in his wanderings and looked after him" [syn: wandering]
Rove\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Roved; p. pr. & vb. n. Roving.] [Cf. D. rooven to rob; akin to E. reave. See Reave, Rob.]1. To practice robbery on the seas; to wander about on the seas in piracy. [Obs.] --Hakluyt. 2. Hence, to wander; to ramble; to rauge; to go, move, or pass without certain direction in any manner, by sailing, walking, riding, flying, or otherwise. For who has power to walk has power to rove. --Arbuthnot. 3. (Archery) To shoot at rovers; hence, to shoot at an angle of elevation, not at point-blank (rovers usually being beyond the point-blank range). Fair Venus' son, that with thy cruel dart At that good knight so cunningly didst rove. --Spenser. Syn: To wander; roam; range; ramble stroll.
Rov"ing\, n. 1. The operatin of forming the rove, or slightly twisted sliver or roll of wool or cotton, by means of a machine for the purpose, called a roving frame, or roving machine. 2. A roll or sliver of wool or cotton drawn out and slightly twisted; a rove. See 2d Rove, 2. Roving frame, Roving machine, a machine for drawing and twisting roves and twisting roves and winding them on bobbin for the spinning machine.
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Audio Help [roh-ving] Pronunciation Key 
