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scaleless

 [skeyl]   Origin

scale

1   [skeyl] noun, verb, scaled, scal·ing.
noun
1.
Zoology.
a.
one of the thin, flat, horny plates forming the covering of certain animals, as snakes, lizards, and pangolins.
b.
one of the hard, bony or dentinal plates, either flat or denticulate, forming the covering of certain other animals, as fishes.
2.
any thin, platelike piece, lamina, or flake that peels off from a surface, as from the skin.
3.
Botany.
a.
Also called bud scale. a rudimentary body, usually a specialized leaf and often covered with hair, wax, or resin, enclosing an immature leaf bud.
b.
a thin, scarious or membranous part of a plant, as a bract of a catkin.
4.
scale insect.
5.
a coating or incrustation, as on the inside of a boiler, formed by the precipitation of salts from the water.
EXPAND
6.
Often, scales. Metallurgy.
a.
an oxide, especially an iron oxide, occurring in a scaly form on the surface of metal brought to a high temperature.
b.
Also called mill scale. such scale formed on iron or steel during hot-rolling.
7.
scales,
a.
a cause of blindness or ignorance, as regarding the true nature of a person, situation, etc.: You're infatuated with her now, but the scales will soon fall from your eyes.
b.
Bible. an unspecified affliction that caused Paul to become temporarily blind. Acts 9:18.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
8.
to remove the scales or scale from: to scale a fish.
9.
to remove in scales or thin layers.
10.
to cover with an incrustation or scale.
11.
to skip, as a stone over water.
12.
Dentistry. to remove (calculus) from the teeth with instruments.

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Scaleless is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
verb (used without object)
13.
to come off in scales.
14.
to shed scales.
15.
to become coated with scale, as the inside of a boiler.
Origin:
1250–1300; (noun) Middle English < Middle French escale < West Germanic *skāla; akin to scale2; (v.) late Middle English scalen to remove scales from, derivative of the noun

Related forms
scale·less, adjective
scale·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To scaleless
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

scale
"to climb," c.1380, from L. scala, from scandere "to climb" (see scan). This is also the source (perhaps via It. scala) of the noun in the musical sense (1597), and the meaning "proportion of a representation to the actual object" (1662). Scale down "reduce" is attested from 1887.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

scale 3
n.

  1. An instrument or a machine for weighing.

  2. Either of the pans, trays, or dishes of a balance.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Science Dictionary
scale 2   (skāl)  Pronunciation Key 

  1. An ordered system of numbering or indexing that is used as a reference standard in measurement, in which each number corresponds to some physical quantity. Some scales, such as temperature scales, have equal intervals; other scales, such as the Richter scale, are arranged as a geometric progression.

  2. An instrument or a machine for weighing.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary

scale definition


A system of marks set at fixed intervals, used as a standard for measurement.

Note: On a map, plan, or chart, a scale indicates the proportion between the representation and what it represents, such as the legend “One inch equals twenty miles” on a map.
Note: Temperature scales divide up the range of temperatures into equal degrees.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary

scale definition


  1. n.
    the regular union rate of pay; union wages. : We pay scale and not a penny more. I don't care who you think you are!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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