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eager

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eager

 

  3  definitions  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Eager  \Ea"ger\,  a.  [OE.  egre  sharp,  sour,  eager,  OF  agre, 
  aigre,  F.  aigre,  fr  L.  acer  sharp,  sour,  spirited,  zealous; 
  akin  to  Gr  ?  highest,  extreme,  Skr.  a?ra  point;  fr  a  root 
  signifying  to  be  sharp.  Cf  {Acrid},  {Edge}.] 
  1.  Sharp;  sour;  acid.  [Obs.]  ``Like  eager  droppings  into 
  milk.''  --Shak. 
 
  2.  Sharp;  keen;  bitter;  severe.  [Obs.]  ``A  nipping  and  an 
  eager  air.''  ``Eager  words.''  --Shak. 
 
  3.  Excited  by  desire  in  the  pursuit  of  any  object;  ardent  to 
  pursue,  perform,  or  obtain;  keenly  desirous;  hotly 
  longing;  earnest;  zealous;  impetuous;  vehement;  as  the 
  hounds  were  eager  in  the  chase. 
 
  And  gazed  for  tidings  in  my  eager  eyes.  --Shak. 
 
  How  eagerly  ye  follow  my  disgraces!  --Shak. 
 
  When  to  her  eager  lips  is  brought  Her  infant's 
  thrilling  kiss.  --Keble. 
 
  A  crowd  of  eager  and  curious  schoolboys. 
  --Hawthorne. 
 
  Conceit  and  grief  an  eager  combat  fight.  --Shak. 
 
  4.  Brittle;  inflexible;  not  ductile.  [Obs.] 
 
  Gold  will  be  sometimes  so  eager,  as  artists  call  it 
  that  it  will  as  little  endure  the  hammer  as  glass 
  itself  --Locke. 
 
  Syn:  Earnest;  ardent;  vehement;  hot;  impetuous;  fervent; 
  intense;  impassioned;  zealous;  forward. 
 
  Usage:  See  {Earnest}.  --  {Eager},  {Earnest}.  Eager  marks  an 
  excited  state  of  desire  or  passion;  thus  a  child  is 
  eager  for  a  plaything,  a  hungry  man  is  eager  for  food, 
  a  covetous  man  is  eager  for  gain.  Eagerness  is  liable 
  to  frequent  abuses,  and  is  good  or  bad  as  the  case 
  may  be  It  relates  to  what  is  praiseworthy  or  the 
  contrary.  Earnest  denotes  a  permanent  state  of  mind, 
  feeling,  or  sentiment.  It  is  always  taken  in  a  good 
  sense  as  a  preacher  is  earnest  in  his  appeals  to  the 
  conscience;  an  agent  is  earnest  in  his  solicitations. 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Eager  \Ea"ger\,  n. 
  Same  as  {Eagre}. 
 
  From  WordNet  r  1.6  [wn]: 
 
  eager 
  adj  1:  having  or  showing  keen  interest  or  intense  desire  or 
  impatient  expectancy;  "eager  to  learn";  "eager  to 
  travel  abroad";  "eager  for  success";  "eager  helpers"; 
  "an  eager  look"  [ant:  {uneager}] 
  2:  marked  by  active  interest  and  enthusiasm;  "an  avid  sports 
  fan";  "a  great  walker";  "an  eager  beaver"  [syn:  {avid},  {great}, 
  {zealous}] 
  n  :  a  high  wave  (often  dangerous)  caused  by  tidal  flow  (as  by 
  colliding  tidal  currents  or  in  a  narrow  estuary)  [syn:  {tidal 
  bore},  {bore},  {eagre},  {aegir}]




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