Quaternary \Qua*ter"na*ry\, a. [L. quaternarius consisting of
four each, containing four, fr. quaterni four each, fr.
quattuor four: cf. F. quaternaire. See Four.]
[1913 Webster]
1. Consisting of four; by fours, or in sets of four.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Geol.) Later than, or subsequent to, the Tertiary;
Post-tertiary; as, the Quaternary age, or Age of man.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Quaternary \Qua*ter"na*ry\, n. [L. numerus quaternarius: cf. F.
quaternaire.]
1. The number four. --Boyle.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Geol.) The Quaternary age, era, or formation. See the
Chart of Geology.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
quaternary
adj 1: consisting of or especially arranged in sets of four;
"quaternate leaves"; "a quaternary compound" [syn: quaternate]
2: coming next after the third and just before the fifth in
position or time or degree or magnitude; "the quaternary
period of geologic time extends from the end of the
tertiary period to the present" [syn: fourth, 4th]
n 1: last 2 million years [syn: Quaternary period, Age of Man]
2: the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one [syn: four,
4, IV, tetrad, quatern, quaternion, quaternity,
quartet, quadruplet, foursome, Little Joe]
WordNet (r) 2.0
41 Moby Thesaurus words for "quaternary":
Little Joe, biquadrate, biquadratic, four, four-legged,
four-part diaphony, four-rayed, foursome, foursquare, quad,
quadrangle, quadrature, quadrennium, quadric, quadrilateral,
quadrille, quadrinomial, quadrivalent, quadruped, quadruplet,
quartet, quartic, quartile, quatern, quaternion, quaternity,
quatrefoil, rectangle, square, square dance, squaring, tetractinal,
tetrad, tetragon, tetragram, tetragrammaton, tetrahedron,
tetralogy, tetraphony, tetrapody, tetravalent
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
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