DISTEMPER


Meaning of DISTEMPER in English

I. dis-ˈtem-pər transitive verb

Etymology: Middle English distempren, from Late Latin distemperare to temper badly, from Latin dis- + temperare to temper

Date: 14th century

1. : to throw out of order

2. archaic : derange , unsettle

II. noun

Date: 1546

1. : bad humor or temper

2. : a disordered or abnormal bodily state especially of quadruped mammals: as

a. : a highly contagious virus disease especially of dogs that is caused by a paramyxovirus (species Canine distemper virus of the genus Morbillivirus ) and is marked by fever, leukopenia, and respiratory, gastrointestinal, and neurological symptoms

b. : strangles

c. : panleukopenia

3. : ailment , disorder

vice and folly are situated not in human nature…but in distemper s of intellect — George Stade

• dis·tem·per·ate -p(ə-)rət adjective

III. noun

Etymology: obsolete distemper, verb, to dilute, mix to produce distemper, from Middle English, from Anglo-French destemprer, from Latin dis- + temperare

Date: 1632

1. : a process of painting in which the pigments are mixed with an emulsion of egg yolk, with size, or with white of egg as a vehicle and which is used for painting scenery and murals

2.

a. : the paint or the prepared ground used in the distemper process

b. : a painting done in distemper

3. : any of various water-based paints

IV. transitive verb

Date: circa 1873

: to paint in or with distemper

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate English vocabulary.      Энциклопедический словарь английского языка Merriam Webster.