point-device en · NOUN
Etymology
From Middle English poynt devise, from the Old French phrase *a point devise, with the participle taken as a noun; compare Old French a devis and Anglo-Norman en poynt devis.
Meanings
- (historical, uncountable) A form of lace worked with devices.
-
(obsolete, uncountable) Anything uncommonly precise and exact.
You are rather point-device in your accouterments, as loving yourself than seeming the lover of any other.
c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], lines 389-91:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| point-devise | alternative | lexicographic |