| quartzite |
a metamorphic rock that consists of quartz and hardened sandstone. |
| quartz lamp |
a mercury-vapor lamp, enclosed within transparent quartz, that emits ultraviolet rays when an electric current is passed through it. |
| quasar |
any of numerous astronomical objects that emit powerful radio waves and have red shifts associated with great distance from earth; quasi-stellar radio source. |
| quash1 |
to subdue or suppress forcefully and decisively. |
| quash2 |
to declare to be of no effect, esp. in a legal proceeding; set aside; annul. |
| quasi- |
to some extent; somewhat. |
| quasi-stellar radio source |
see "quasar." |
| quassia |
a scarlet-flowered tropical American tree, the wood of which is used in making furniture. [2 definitions] |
| quaternary |
consisting of four, or grouped in fours. [4 definitions] |
| quatrain |
a group of four lines of verse, esp. one in which every other line rhymes. |
| quatrefoil |
a four-lobed leaf or flower, esp. in art. [2 definitions] |
| quattrocento |
the fifteenth century in Italian art and literature. |
| quaver |
to tremble or shake, as from exhaustion or illness. [6 definitions] |
| quay |
a pier, wharf, or other structure built along a shore for landing, loading, and unloading boats or ships. |
| qubit |
a fundamental unit of information in quantum computing that is equivalent to the binary bit used in traditional computing; quantum bit. Whereas the binary bit can only exist in two states (0 or 1), the qubit can exist in three states (0, 1, or 0 and 1 simultaneously). |
| queasy |
feeling nausea. [3 definitions] |
| Quebec |
an eastern Canadian province on the U.S. border between New Brunswick and Ontario. |
| Quebecois |
a French-speaking native of Quebec, or a descendant thereof. |
| Quechua |
a member of a South American Indian people once dominant in the former Inca empire. [2 definitions] |
| queen |
a female ruler or monarch. [5 definitions] |
| Queen Anne's lace |
a common weed related to the carrot that bears large, lacy umbels of tiny white flowers. |