GNU Collaborative International Dictionary of English

last match results

Found 2 definitions

1.       
   Rapid (răpˈĭd), a. [L. rapidus, fr. rapere to seize and carry off, to snatch or hurry away; perhaps akin to Gr. ἀρπάζειν: cf. F. rapide.  Cf. Harpy, Ravish.]
   
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   1. Very swift or quick; moving with celerity; fast; as, “a rapid stream; a rapid flight; a rapid motion.”
   
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   Ascend my chariot; guide the rapid wheels. Milton.
   
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   2. Advancing with haste or speed; speedy in progression; in quick sequence; as, “rapid growth; rapid improvement; rapid recurrence; rapid succession.”
   
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   3. Quick in execution; as, “a rapid penman”.
   
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2.       
   Rapid, Rapids (răpˈĭdz) , n. [Cf. F. rapide. See Rapid, a.] The part of a river where the current moves with great swiftness, but without actual waterfall or cascade; sometimes called whitewater; -- usually used in the plural; as, “the Lachine rapids in the St. Lawrence”.  For boaters on the river, it is a place that can be hazardous, with danger of capsizing or crashing into large rocks.
   
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   Row, brothers, row, the stream runs fast,
   
   The rapids are near, and the daylight's past. Moore.
   
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