lime1

[lahym] /laɪm/
noun
1.
Also called burnt lime, calcium oxide, caustic lime, calx, quicklime. a white or grayish-white, odorless, lumpy, very slightly water-soluble solid, CaO, that when combined with water forms calcium hydroxide (slaked lime) obtained from calcium carbonate, limestone, or oyster shells: used chiefly in mortars, plasters, and cements, in bleaching powder, and in the manufacture of steel, paper, glass, and various chemicals of calcium.
2.
a calcium compound for improving crops grown in soils deficient in lime.
3.
birdlime.
verb (used with object), limed, liming.
4.
to treat (soil) with lime or compounds of calcium.
5.
to smear (twigs, branches, etc.) with birdlime.
6.
to catch with or as if with birdlime.
7.
to paint or cover (a surface) with a composition of lime and water; whitewash:
The government buildings were freshly limed.
Origin
before 900; Middle English, Old English līm; cognate with Dutch lijm, German Leim, Old Norse līm glue, Latin līmus slime; akin to loam
Related forms
limeless, adjective
limelike, adjective
unlimed, adjective

lime2

[lahym] /laɪm/
noun
1.
the small, greenish-yellow, acid fruit of a citrus tree, Citrus aurantifolia, allied to the lemon.
2.
the tree that bears this fruit.
3.
greenish yellow.
adjective
4.
of the color lime.
5.
of or made with limes.
Origin
1615-25; < Spanish lima < Arabic līmah, līm citrus fruit < Persian līmū(n); cf. lemon
Related forms
limeless, adjective
limelike, adjective

lime3

[lahym] /laɪm/
noun
1.
the European linden, Tilia europaea.
Origin
1615-25; unexplained variant of obsolete line, lind, Middle English, Old English lind. See linden

lime4

[lahym] /laɪm/
noun, Informal.
1.
limelight.
Origin
shortened form
Examples from the web for lime
  • The walls are painted playful colors of lime, tangerine, and blueberry.
  • But no, you were all enjoying the lime light that rarely falls on us science nerds.
  • Tin-roof sundaes, cinnamon cokes in paper fountain cups, lime phosphates.
  • Families weave in and out of round mud and thatch huts connected by dirt paths and lined by lime-green leafed coca bushes.
  • Chlorinated lime is a white powder used for bleaching or disinfecting.
  • Here is the same water with a substance which heats nearly as much as the lime does, but see how differently.
  • Lotions of chloride of lime and use of nail-brush before admission to lying-in wards.
  • After breakfast they have water to wash themselves, while their apartments are perfumed with frankincense and lime juice.
  • If clouds should appear in the sky while he is at work, he takes lime in the hollow of his hand and blows it towards them.
  • There's one for every color scheme, from amber to plum to lime green.
British Dictionary definitions for lime

lime1

/laɪm/
noun
1.
short for quicklime, birdlime, slaked lime
2.
(agriculture) any of certain calcium compounds, esp calcium hydroxide, spread as a dressing on lime-deficient land
verb (transitive)
3.
to spread (twigs, etc) with birdlime
4.
to spread a calcium compound upon (land) to improve plant growth
5.
to catch (animals, esp birds) with or as if with birdlime
6.
to whitewash or cover (a wall, ceiling, etc) with a mixture of lime and water (limewash)
Word Origin
Old English līm; related to Icelandic līm glue, Latin līmus slime

lime2

/laɪm/
noun
1.
a small Asian citrus tree, Citrus aurantifolia, with stiff sharp spines and small round or oval greenish fruits
2.
  1. the fruit of this tree, having acid fleshy pulp rich in vitamin C
  2. (as modifier): lime juice
adjective
3.
having the flavour of lime fruit
Word Origin
C17: from French, from Provençal, from Arabic līmah

lime3

/laɪm/
noun
1.
any linden tree, such as Tilia europaea, planted in many varieties for ornament
Word Origin
C17: changed from obsolete line, from Old English lindlinden

lime4

/laɪm/
verb
1.
(intransitive) (Caribbean, slang) (of young people) to sit or stand around on the pavement
Word Origin
of unknown origin
Word Origin and History for lime
n.

"chalky mineral used in making mortar," from Old English lim "sticky substance, birdlime, mortar, cement, gluten," from Proto-Germanic *leimaz (cf. Old Saxon, Old Norse, Danish lim, Dutch lijm, German Leim "birdlime"), from PIE root *(s)lei- "slime, slimy, sticky" (cf. Latin limus "slime, mud, mire," linere "to smear;" see slime (n.)). Lime is made by putting limestone or shells in a red heat, which burns off the carbonic acid and leaves a brittle white solid which dissolves easily in water. Hence lime-kiln (late 13c.), lime-burner (early 14c.). As a verb, c.1200, from the noun.

greenish-yellow citrus fruit, 1630s, probably via Spanish lima, from Arabic limah "citrus fruit," from Persian limun "lemon" (see lemon (n.1)). Related: Limeade (1892), with ending as in lemonade.

"linden tree," 1620s, earlier line (c.1500), from Middle English lynde (early 14c.), from Old English lind "lime tree" (see linden). Klein suggests the change of -n- to -m- probably began in compounds whose second element began in a labial (e.g. line-bark, line-bast). An ornamental European tree unrelated to the tree that produces the citrus fruit.

lime in Medicine

lime 1 (līm)
n.

  1. A spiny evergreen shrub or tree (Citrus aurantifolia) native to Asia and having leathery leaves, fragrant white flowers, and edible fruit.

  2. The egg-shaped fruit of this plant, having a green rind and acid juice used as flavoring.

lime 2
n.

  1. Any of various mineral and industrial forms of calcium oxide differing chiefly in water content and percentage of constituents such as silica, alumina, and iron.

  2. See calcium oxide.

lime in Science
lime
  (līm)   
A white, lumpy, caustic powder made of calcium oxide sometimes mixed with other chemicals. It is made industrially by heating limestone, bones, or shells. Lime is used as an industrial alkali, in waste treatment, and in making glass, paper, steel, insecticides, and building plaster. It is also added to soil to lower its acidity.
Related Abbreviations for lime

LIME

laser induced microwave emissions
lime in the Bible

The Hebrew word so rendered means "boiling" or "effervescing." From Isa. 33:12 it appears that lime was made in a kiln lighted by thorn-bushes. In Amos 2:1 it is recorded that the king of Moab "burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime." The same Hebrew word is used in Deut. 27:2-4, and is there rendered "plaster." Limestone is the chief constituent of the mountains of Syria.