Category:Mace

Mace, n. Etym: [Jav. & Malay. mas, fr. Skr. masha a bean.]

Defn: A money of account in China equal to one tenth of a tael; also, a weight of 57.98 grains. S. W. Williams.

mace Mace, n. Etym: [F. macis, L. macis, macir, Gr. makaranda the nectar or honey of a flower, a fragrant mango.] (Bot.)

Defn: A kind of spice; the aril which partly covers nutmegs. See Nutmeg.

Note: Red mace is the aril of Myristica tingens, and white mace that of M. Otoba, -- East Indian trees of the same genus with the nutmeg tree.

mace Mace, n. Etym: [OF. mace, F. masse, from (assumed) L. matea, of which the dim. mateola a kind of mallet or beetle, is found.]

1. A heavy staff or club of metal; a spiked club; -- used as weapon in war before the general use of firearms, especially in the Middle Ages, for breaking metal armor. Chaucer. Death with his mace petrific. . . smote. Milton.

2. Hence: A staff borne by, or carried before, a magistrate as an ensign of his authority. "Swayed the royal mace." Wordsworth.

3. An officer who carries a mace as an emblem of authority. Macaulay.

4. A knobbed mallet used by curriers in dressing leather to make it supple.

5. (Billiards)

Defn: A rod for playing billiards, having one end suited to resting on the table and pushed with one hand. Mace bearer, an officer who carries a mace before person in authority.