| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
ward (wɔːd) ![]() | |
| —n | |
| 1. | (in many countries) a district into which a city, town, parish, or other area is divided for administration, election of representatives, etc |
| 2. | a room in a hospital, esp one for patients requiring similar kinds of care: a maternity ward |
| 3. | one of the divisions of a prison |
| 4. | an open space enclosed within the walls of a castle |
| 5. | law |
| a. Also called: ward of court a person, esp a minor or one legally incapable of managing his own affairs, placed under the control or protection of a guardian or of a court | |
| b. guardianship, as of a minor or legally incompetent person | |
| 6. | the state of being under guard or in custody |
| 7. | a person who is under the protection or in the custody of another |
| 8. | a means of protection |
| 9. | a. an internal ridge or bar in a lock that prevents an incorrectly cut key from turning |
| b. a corresponding groove cut in a key | |
| 10. | a less common word for warden |
| —vb | |
| 11. | archaic (tr) to guard or protect |
| [Old English weard protector; related to Old High German wart, Old Saxon ward, Old Norse vorthr. See | |
| 'wardless | |
| —adj | |
ward (wôrd)
n.
A room in a hospital usually holding six or more patients.
A division in a hospital for the care of a particular group of patients.
a prison (Gen. 40:3, 4); a watch-station (Isa. 21:8); a guard (Neh. 13:30).