Dictionary

poise en · NOUN · etymology 1

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• poiz
• /pɔɪz/

Etymology

From Middle English poys, poyse, from Anglo-Norman pois, Middle French pois (“weight”) and Anglo-Norman poise, Middle French poise (“measure of weight”), from Latin pendere (“to weigh, ponder, think”). Doublet of peise.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) A state of balance, equilibrium or stability.
   • plants and animals, which are all made up of and nourished by water, and perhaps never return to water again, do not keep things at a poise 1692, Richard Bentley, [A Confutation of Atheism] (please specify the sermon), London: [Thomas Parkhurst; Henry Mortlock], published 1692–1693:
2. (countable, uncountable) Composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation.
3. (countable, uncountable) Mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body.
4. (countable, uncountable) A condition of hovering, or being suspended.
5. (countable, uncountable) A CGS unit of dynamic viscosity equal to one dyne-second per square centimetre.
   • Letterpress and offset gloss varnishes normally have viscosities varying from 50 to 250 poises; they must stain the paper as little as possible, have insufficient tack to cause plucking, […] 1959, E. A. Apps, Printing Ink Technology, page 415:
6. (countable, obsolete, uncountable) Weight; an amount of weight, the amount something weighs.
   • as an huge rockie clift, / Whose false foundation waues haue washt away, / With dreadfull poyse is from the mayneland rift, / […] So downe he fell […] 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I, Canto XII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:
7. (countable, uncountable) The weight, or mass of metal, used in weighing, to balance the substance weighed.
8. (countable, uncountable) That which causes a balance; a counterweight.
   • As for Hyperboles, I will neither quote Lucan, nor Statius, Men of an unbounded imagination, but who often wanted the Poyze of Judgement. 1674 (date written), John Dryden, “The Authors Apology for Heroique Poetry; and Poetique Licence”, in The State of Innocence, and Fall of Man: An Opera. […], London: […] T[homas] N[ewcomb] for Henry Herringman, […], published 1677, →OCLC, page 25:

Forms

Deriveds

poiseless · anglepoise · overpoise · decapoise · counterpoise · centipoise · equipoise · unpoise · millipoise

Relateds

avoirdupois · peso · pensive · pansy

Translations (83)

cs postoj (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · de Fassung (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · oc balança (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · ota موازنه (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · hu kiegyensúlyozottság (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · ota دنك (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · es apostura (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · oc balança (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · fr sang-froid (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · bg равновесие (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · de Poise (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · pt poise (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · fr assurance (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · tr soğukkanlılık (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · de Selbstsicherheit (That which causes a balance; a counterweight) · bg противотежест (That which causes a balance; a counterweight) · fr aisance (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · ru уравнове́шенность (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · oc ponderacion (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · ru равнове́сие (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · de Ausdruck (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · uk врівноваженість (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · es aplomo (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · mi amaru (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · hu póz (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · tr itidal (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · cs duševní rovnováha (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · hu ellensúly (That which causes a balance; a counterweight) · hu önuralom (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · bg спокойствие (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · bg поаз (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · tr hakimiyet (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · cs vyrovnanost (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · es contrapeso (That which causes a balance; a counterweight) · hu hidegvér (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · bg осанка (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · cs klid (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · it poise (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · bg уравновесеност (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · cmn 儀態 /仪态 (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · cs poise (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · hu nyugodtság (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · hu összeszedettség (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · cmn 鎮定 /镇定 (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · de Fassung (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · es elegancia (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · bg балансьор (That which causes a balance; a counterweight) · hu felfüggesztettség (a condition of hovering, or being suspended) · hu nyugalom (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · hu poise (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · cmn 平衡 (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · hu testtartás (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · es equilibrio (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · es ponderación (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · hu függőben levés (a condition of hovering, or being suspended) · hu tartás (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · hu egyensúly (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · de Gelassenheit (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · tr ılımlılık (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · es compostura (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · cs rovnováha (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · hu lebegés (a condition of hovering, or being suspended) · ota اعتدال (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · uk рівновага (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · fr poise (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · pt compostura (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · oc equilibri (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · hu higgadtság (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · de Haltung (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · de Gleichgewicht (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · fi poisi (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · sh poaz (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · hu józanság (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · cs držení těla (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · es poise (a cgs unit of dynamic viscosity) · fr aplomb (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · fi itsevarmuus (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · fi luontevuus (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · fi tasapaino (state of balance, equilibrium or stability) · fi arvokkuus (composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation) · es porte (mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body) · hu függés (a condition of hovering, or being suspended) · it stato di grazia (state of balance, equilibrium or stability)

poise en · VERB · etymology 1

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• poiz
• /pɔɪz/

Etymology

From Middle English poys, poyse, from Anglo-Norman pois, Middle French pois (“weight”) and Anglo-Norman poise, Middle French poise (“measure of weight”), from Latin pendere (“to weigh, ponder, think”). Doublet of peise.

Meanings

1. (obsolete) To hang in equilibrium; to be balanced or suspended; hence, to be in suspense or doubt.
   • The slender, graceful spars / Poise aloft in the air. 1850, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Seaside and the Fireside:
2. (obsolete) To counterpoise; to counterbalance.
   • 1699, John Dryden, Epistle to John Dryden to poise with solid sense a sprightly wit
   • one scale of reason to poise another of sensuality c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:
3. (obsolete) To be of a given weight; to weigh.
4. (obsolete) To add weight to, to weigh down.
   • Every man poiseth [translating poise] upon his fellowes sinne, and elevates his owne. 1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 2, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC:
5. (archaic) To hold (something) with or against something else in equilibrium; to balance, counterpose.
   • you saw her faire none els being by, / Her selfe poysd with her selfe in either eye. c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii]:
6. To hold (something) in equilibrium, to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used.
   • to poise the scales of a balance
   • Nor yet was earth suspended in the sky; / Nor poised, did on her own foundation lie. 1717, John Dryden, “Book I”, in Ovid’s Metamorphoses in Fifteen Books. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
   • The intention to close [Yeovil] Pen Mill was therefore abandoned and instead the economy axe was re-poised over Yeovil Junction. 1964 November, J. H. Lucking, “The Salisbury-Exeter rationalisation—first results and local reaction”, in Modern Railways, page 331:
   • I poised the crowbar in my hand, and waited.
7. To keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced.
   • The rock was poised precariously on the edge of the cliff.
8. To ascertain, as if by balancing; to weigh.
   • He cannot sincerely consider the strength, poise the weight, and discern the evidence. 1692–1717, Robert South, Twelve Sermons Preached upon Several Occasions, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London:

Forms

Deriveds

unpoised · overpoise · outpoise · counterpoise · poiser · apoise

Translations (13)

hu készenlétbe helyez (to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used) · oc balançar (to keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced) · hu egyensúlyoz (to keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced) · hu kiegyensúlyoz (to keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced) · oc pesar (to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used) · bg уравновесявам (to keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced) · oc equilibrar (to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used) · hu készenlétben tart (to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used) · oc balançar (to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used) · oc equilibrar (to keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced) · ru изготавливаться (to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used) · cs vyvážit (to keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced) · cs držet v rovnováze (to keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced)

poise en · NOUN · etymology 2

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• poiz
• /pɔɪz/

Etymology

From French physicist and physiologist Jean Léonard Marie Poiseuille.

Meanings

1. Unit of viscosity in the centimetre–gram–second system of units (CGS).

Forms