WordWeight : Weighing the Words

Pronunciation : Ar*ray"
Part of Speech : n.
Etymology : [OE. arai, arrai, OF. arrai, arrei, arroi, order, arrangement, dress, F. arroi; a (L. ad) + OF. rai, rei, roi, order, arrangement, fr. G. or Scand.; cf. Goth. raidjan, garaidjan, to arrange, MHG. gereiten, Icel. reithi rigging, harness; akin to E. ready.
Definition : 1. Order; a regular and imposing arrangement; disposition in regular lines; hence, order of battle; as, drawn up in battle array. Wedged together in the closest array. Gibbon.

2. The whole body of persons thus placed in order; an orderly collection; hence, a body of soldiers. A gallant array of nobles and cavaliers. Prescott.

3. An imposing series of things. Their long array of sapphire and of gold. Byron.

4. Dress; garments disposed in order upon the person; rich or beautiful apparel. Dryden.

5. (Law) (a) A ranking or setting forth in order, by the proper officer, of a jury as impaneled in a cause. (b) The panel itself. (c) The whole body of jurors summoned to attend the court. To challenge the array (Law), to except to the whole panel. Cowell. Tomlins. Blount. -- Commission of array (Eng. Hist.), a commission given by the prince to officers in every county, to muster and array the inhabitants, or see them in a condition for war. Blackstone.


Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913

Pronunciation : Ar*ray"
Part of Speech : v. t. [imp. & p. p. Arrayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Arraying.]
Etymology : [OE. araien, arraien, fr. OE. arraier, arreier, arreer, arroier, fr. arrai. See Array, n.]
Definition : 1. To place or dispose in order, as troops for battle; to marshal. By torch and trumpet fast arrayed, Each horseman drew his battle blade. Campbell. These doubts will be arrayed before their minds. Farrar.

2. To deck or dress; to adorn with dress; to cloth to envelop; -- applied esp. to dress of a splendid kind. Pharaoh . . . arrayed him in vestures of fine linen. Gen. xli. In gelid caves with horrid gloom arrayed. Trumbull.

3. (Law)

Defn: To set in order, as a jury, for the trial of a cause; that is, to call them man by man. Blackstone. To array a panel, to set forth in order the men that are impaneled. Cowell. Tomlins.

Syn. -- To draw up; arrange; dispose; set in order.


Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913