Ring \Ring\, n. [AS. hring, hrinc; akin to Fries. hring, D. & G.
ring, OHG. ring, hring, Icel. hringr, DAn. & SW. ring; cf.
Russ. krug'. Cf. {Harangue}, {Rank} a row,{Rink}.]
A circle, or a circular line, or anything in the form of a
circular line or hoop.
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2. Specifically, a circular ornament of gold or other
precious material worn on the finger, or attached to the
ear, the nose, or some other part of the person; as, a
wedding ring.
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Upon his thumb he had of gold a ring. --Chaucer.
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The dearest ring in Venice will I give you. --Shak.
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3. A circular area in which races are or run or other sports
are performed; an arena.
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Place me, O, place me in the dusty ring,
Where youthful charioteers contend for glory. --E.
Smith.
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4. An inclosed space in which pugilists fight; hence,
figuratively, prize fighting. "The road was an
institution, the ring was an institution." --Thackeray.
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5. A circular group of persons.
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And hears the Muses in a ring
Aye round about Jove's alter sing. --Milton.
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6. (Geom.)
(a) The plane figure included between the circumferences
of two concentric circles.
(b) The solid generated by the revolution of a circle, or
other figure, about an exterior straight line (as an
axis) lying in the same plane as the circle or other
figure.
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7. (Astron. & Navigation) An instrument, formerly used for
taking the sun's altitude, consisting of a brass ring
suspended by a swivel, with a hole at one side through
which a solar ray entering indicated the altitude on the
graduated inner surface opposite.
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8. (Bot.) An elastic band partly or wholly encircling the
spore cases of ferns. See Illust. of {Sporangium}.
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9. A clique; an exclusive combination of persons for a
selfish purpose, as to control the market, distribute
offices, obtain contracts, etc.
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The ruling ring at Constantinople. --E. A.
Freeman.
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{Ring armor}, armor composed of rings of metal. See {Ring mail}, below, and {Chain mail}, under {Chain}.
{Ring blackbird} (Zool.), the ring ousel.
{Ring canal} (Zool.), the circular water tube which surrounds
the esophagus of echinoderms.
{Ring dotterel}, or {Ringed dotterel}. (Zool.) See
{Dotterel}, and Illust. of {Pressiroster}.
{Ring dropper}, a sharper who pretends to have found a ring
(dropped by himself), and tries to induce another to buy
it as valuable, it being worthless.
{Ring fence}. See under {Fence}.
{Ring finger}, the third finger of the left hand, or the next
the little finger, on which the ring is placed in
marriage.
{Ring formula} (Chem.), a graphic formula in the shape of a
closed ring, as in the case of benzene, pyridine, etc. See
Illust. under {Benzene}.
{Ring mail}, a kind of mail made of small steel rings sewed
upon a garment of leather or of cloth.
{Ring micrometer}. (Astron.) See {Circular micrometer}, under
{Micrometer}.
{Saturns rings}. See {Saturn}.
{Ring ousel}. (Zool.) See {Ousel}.
{Ring parrot} (Zool.), any one of several species of Old
World parrakeets having a red ring around the neck,
especially {Palaeornis torquatus}, common in India, and
{Palaeornis Alexandri} of {Java}.
{Ring plover}. (Zool.)
(a) The ringed dotterel.
(b) Any one of several small American plovers having a
dark ring around the neck, as the semipalmated plover
({Aegialitis semipalmata}).
{Ring snake} (Zool.), a small harmless American snake
({Diadophis punctatus}) having a white ring around the
neck. The back is ash-colored, or sage green, the belly of
an orange red.
{Ring stopper}. (Naut.) See under {Stopper}.
{Ring thrush} (Zool.), the ring ousel.
{The prize ring}, the ring in which prize fighters contend;
prize fighters, collectively.
{The ring}.
(a) The body of sporting men who bet on horse races.
[Eng.]
(b) The prize ring.
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