La"bel (lā"bĕl), n. [OF.
label sort of ribbon or fringe, label in heraldry, F.
lambeau shred, strip, rag; of uncertain origin; cf. L.
labellum, dim. of labrum lip, edge, margin, G.
lappen flap, patch, rag, tatter (cf. Lap of a dress),
W. llab, llabed, label, flap, Gael. leab,
leob, slice, shred, hanging lip.] 1. A
tassel. [Obs.] Huloet. Fuller.
2. A slip of silk, paper, parchment, etc.,
affixed to anything, and indicating, usually by an inscription, the
contents, ownership, destination, etc.; as, the label of a
bottle or a package.
3. A slip of ribbon, parchment, etc.,
attached to a document to hold the appended seal; also, the
seal.
4. A writing annexed by way of addition, as a
codicil added to a will.
5. (Her.) A barrulet, or, rarely, a
bendlet, with pendants, or points, usually three, especially used as
a mark of cadency to distinguish an eldest or only son while his
father is still living.
6. A brass rule with sights, formerly used,
in connection with a circumferentor, to take altitudes.
Knight.
7. (Gothic Arch.) The name now
generally given to the projecting molding by the sides, and over the
tops, of openings in mediæval architecture. It always has a
square form, as in the illustration. Arch. Pub.
Soc.
8. In mediæval art, the representation
of a band or scroll containing an inscription.
Fairholt.