Pall-mall
(Pall`-mall") n. [OF. palemail, It. pallamagio; palla a ball (of German origin, akin to E. ball) +
magio hammer, fr. L. malleus. See lst Ball, and Mall a beetle.] A game formerly common in England,
in which a wooden ball was driven with a mallet through an elevated hoop or ring of iron. The name
was also given to the mallet used, to the place where the game was played, and to the street, in London,
still called Pall Mall. [Written also pail-mail and pell-mell.] Sir K. Digby. Evelyn.
Pallone
(Pal*lo"ne) n. [It., a large ball, fr. palla ball. See Balloon.] An Italian game, played with a
large leather ball.
Pallor
(Pal"lor) n. [L., fr. pallere to be or look pale. See Pale, a.] Paleness; want of color; pallidity; as,
pallor of the complexion. Jer. Taylor.
Palm
(Palm) n. [OE. paume, F. paume, L. palma, Gr. akin to Skr. pani hand, and E. fumble. See
Fumble, Feel, and cf. 2d Palm.]
1. (Anat.) The inner and somewhat concave part of the hand between the bases of the fingers and the
wrist.
Clench'd her fingers till they bit the palm.
Tennyson. 2. A lineal measure equal either to the breadth of the hand or to its length from the wrist to the ends of
the fingers; a hand; — used in measuring a horse's height.
In Greece, the palm was reckoned at three inches. The Romans adopted two measures of this name,
the lesser palm of 2.91 inches, and the greater palm of 8.73 inches. At the present day, this measure
varies in the most arbitrary manner, being different in each country, and occasionally varying in the same.
Internat. Cyc.
3. (Sailmaking) A metallic disk, attached to a strap, and worn the palm of the hand, — used to push
the needle through the canvas, in sewing sails, etc.
4. (Zoöl.) The broad flattened part of an antler, as of a full-grown fallow deer; — so called as resembling
the palm of the hand with its protruding fingers.
5. (Naut.) The flat inner face of an anchor fluke.
Palm
(Palm), n. [AS. palm, L. palma; — so named fr. the leaf resembling a hand. See lst Palm, and
cf. Pam.]
1. (Bot.) Any endogenous tree of the order Palmæ or Palmaceæ; a palm tree.
Palms are perennial woody plants, often of majestic size. The trunk is usually erect and rarely branched,
and has a roughened exterior composed of the persistent bases of the leaf stalks. The leaves are borne
in a terminal crown, and are supported on stout, sheathing, often prickly, petioles. They are usually of
great size, and are either pinnately or palmately many-cleft. There are about one thousand species
known, nearly all of them growing in tropical or semitropical regions. The wood, petioles, leaves, sap,
and fruit of many species are invaluable in the arts and in domestic economy. Among the best known
are the date palm, the cocoa palm, the fan palm, the oil palm, the wax palm, the palmyra, and the various
kinds called cabbage palm and palmetto.
2. A branch or leaf of the palm, anciently borne or worn as a symbol of victory or rejoicing.
A great multitude . . . stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palme
in their hands.
Rev. vii. 9.
