Ass (&?;), n. [OE. asse, AS. assa; akin to Icel. asni, W. asen, asyn, L.
asinus, dim. aselus, Gr. &?;; also to AS.
esol, OHG. esil, G. esel, Goth. asilus, Dan. æsel, Lith. asilas, Bohem. osel, Pol.
osiel. The word is prob. of Semitic origin; cf. Heb.
ath&?;n she ass. Cf. Ease.]
1. (Zoöl.) A quadruped of the genus
Equus (E. asinus),
smaller than the horse, and having a peculiarly harsh bray and long
ears. The tame or domestic ass is patient, slow, and sure-footed, and has become the type of obstinacy and stupidity. There are several species of wild asses which are swift-footed.
2. A dull, heavy,
stupid fellow; a dolt. Shak.
Asses' Bridge. [L.
pons asinorum.] The
fifth proposition of the first
book of Euclid, "The angles at the
base of an isosceles triangle are equal to
one another." [Sportive] "A schoolboy, stammering
out his Asses' Bridge." F. Harrison. --
To make an
ass of one's self, to do or say something very foolish or absurd.
Hear it pronounced