PEL'ICAN, n. Low L. pelicanus.
1. A fowl of the genus Pelicanus. It is larger than the swan, and remarkable for its enormous bill, to the lower edges of the under chop of which is attached a pouch or bag, capable of being distended so as to hold many quarts of water. In this bag the fowl deposits the fish is takes for food.
2. A chimical glass vessel or alembic with a tubulated capital, from which two opposite and crooked beaks pass out and enter again at the belly of the cucurbit. It is designed for continued distillation and cohobation the volatile parts of the substance distilling, rising into the capital and returning through the beaks into the cucurbit.
The King James Bible has stood its ground for nearly 400 years. However, during that time the English language has changed, and with it the meanings of some words it used. Here are more than 6,500 words whose definitions have changed since 1611.Wikipedia
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