Low (?), a. [Compar.
Lower (?); superl. Lowest.] [OE.
low, louh, lah, Icel. lāgr; akin to
Sw. låg, Dan. lav, D. laag, and E.
lie. See Lie to be prostrate.]
1. Occupying an inferior position or place;
not high or elevated; depressed in comparison with something else;
as, low ground; a low flight.
2. Not rising to the usual height; as, a man
of low stature; a low fence.
3. Near the horizon; as, the sun is
low at four o'clock in winter, and six in summer.
4. Sunk to the farthest ebb of the tide; as,
low tide.
5. Beneath the usual or remunerative rate or
amount, or the ordinary value; moderate; cheap; as, the low
price of corn; low wages.
6. Not loud; as, a low voice; a
low sound.
7. (Mus.) Depressed in the scale of
sounds; grave; as, a low pitch; a low note.
8. (Phon.) Made, as a vowel, with a
low position of part of the tongue in relation to the palate; as,
ă (ăm), ô (ôll). See Guide to
Pronunciation, §§ 5, 10, 11.
9. Near, or not very distant from, the
equator; as, in the low northern latitudes.
10. Numerically small; as, a low
number.
11. Wanting strength or animation; depressed;
dejected; as, low spirits; low in spirits.
12. Depressed in condition; humble in rank;
as, men of low condition; the lower classes.
Why but to keep ye low and ignorant
?
Milton.
13. Mean; vulgar; base; dishonorable; as, a
person of low mind; a low trick or stratagem.
14. Not elevated or sublime; not exalted in
thought or diction; as, a low comparison.
In comparison of these divine writers, the noblest
wits of the heathen world are low and dull.
Felton.
15. Submissive; humble. "Low
reverence." Milton.
16. Deficient in vital energy; feeble; weak;
as, a low pulse; made low by sickness.
17. Moderate; not intense; not inflammatory;
as, low heat; a low temperature; a low
fever.
18. Smaller than is reasonable or probable;
as, a low estimate.
19. Not rich, high seasoned, or nourishing;
plain; simple; as, a low diet.
☞ Low is often used in the formation of compounds
which require no special explanation; as, low-arched, low-
browed, low-crowned, low-heeled, low-lying,
low-priced, low-roofed, low-toned, low-
voiced, and the like.
Low Church. See High Church, under
High. -- Low Countries, the
Netherlands. -- Low German, Low
Latin, etc. See under German, Latin,
etc. -- Low life, humble life. --
Low milling, a process of making flour from
grain by a single grinding and by siftings. -- Low
relief. See Bas-relief. -- Low side
window (Arch.), a peculiar form of window common
in mediæval churches, and of uncertain use. Windows of this
sort are narrow, near the ground, and out of the line of the windows,
and in many different situations in the building. -- Low
spirits, despondency. -- Low
steam, steam having a low pressure. -- Low
steel, steel which contains only a small proportion of
carbon, and can not be hardened greatly by sudden cooling. --
Low Sunday, the Sunday next after Easter; --
popularly so called. -- Low tide, the
farthest ebb of the tide; the tide at its lowest point; low
water. -- Low water. (a)
The lowest point of the ebb tide; a low stage of the in a river,
lake, etc. (b) (Steam Boiler) The
condition of an insufficient quantity of water in the boiler. --
Low water alarm or indicator
(Steam Boiler), a contrivance of various forms attached to
a boiler for giving warning when the water is low. --
Low water mark, that part of the shore to which
the waters recede when the tide is the lowest. Bouvier. -
- Low wine, a liquor containing about 20
percent of alcohol, produced by the first distillation of wash; the
first run of the still; -- often in the plural.
Low, adv. 1. In a
low position or manner; not aloft; not on high; near the
ground.
2. Under the usual price; at a moderate
price; cheaply; as, he sold his wheat low.
3. In a low or mean condition; humbly;
meanly.
4. In time approaching our own.
In that part of the world which was first inhabited,
even as low down as Abraham's time, they wandered with their
flocks and herds.
Locke.
5. With a low voice or sound; not loudly;
gently; as, to speak low. Addison.
The . . . odorous wind
Breathes low between the sunset and the moon.
Tennyson.
6. With a low musical pitch or
tone.
Can sing both high and low.
Shak.
7. In subjection, poverty, or disgrace; as,
to be brought low by oppression, by want, or by vice.
Spenser.
8. (Astron.) In a path near the
equator, so that the declination is small, or near the horizon, so
that the altitude is small; -- said of the heavenly bodies with
reference to the diurnal revolution; as, the moon runs low,
that is, is comparatively near the horizon when on or near the
meridian.