Webster's English Dictionary

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mercury

Cross references:
  1. element                2. planet                
 
mer.cu.ry \'m*r-ky*-re-, -k(*-)re-\ n [L Mercurius, Roman god and the 
   planet] [ME mecurie, fr. ML mercurius, fr. L, the god] often attrib  cap  
   1a: a Roman god who serves as herald and messenger of the other gods and pr 
   esides over commerce, eloquence, cunning, and theft often cap, archaic  1b: 
   a bearer of messages or news or a conductor of travelers  2a: a heavy 
   silver-white univalent and bivalent poisonous metallic element  that is 
   liquid at ordinary temperatures 2b: the mercury in a thermometer or 
   barometer  cap  3: the planet nearest the sun  4: a poisonous European 
   plant (Mercurialis perennis) of the spurge fa mily