from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Dwarf \Dwarf\, n.; pl. {Dwarfs}. [OE. dwergh, dwerf, dwarf, AS.
dweorg, dweorh; akin to D. dwerg, MHG. twerc, G. zwerg, Icel.
dvergr, Sw. & Dan. dverg; of unknown origin.]
1. An animal or plant which is much below the ordinary size
of its species or kind.
[1913 Webster]
2. Especially: A diminutive human being, small in stature due
to a pathological condition which causes a distortion of
the proportions of body parts to each other, such as the
limbs, torso, and head. A person of unusually small height
who has normal body proportions is usually called a
{midget}.
[PJC]
Note: During the Middle Ages dwarfs as well as fools shared
the favor of courts and the nobility.
[1913 Webster]
3. (Folklore) A small, usually misshapen person, typically a
man, who may have magical powers; mythical dwarves were
often depicted as living underground in caves.
[PJC]
Note: Dwarf is used adjectively in reference to anything much
below the usual or normal size; as, a dwarf pear tree;
dwarf honeysuckle.
[1913 Webster]
{Dwarf elder} (Bot.), danewort.
{Dwarf wall} (Arch.), a low wall, not as high as the story of
a building, often used as a garden wall or fence. --Gwilt.
[1913 Webster]
from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Elder \El"der\, n. [OE. ellern, eller, AS. ellen, cf. LG.
elloorn; perh. akin to OHG. holantar, holuntar, G. holunder;
or perh. to E. alder, n.] (Bot.)
A genus of shrubs ({Sambucus}) having broad umbels of white
flowers, and small black or red berries.
[1913 Webster]
Note: The common North American species is {Sambucus
Canadensis}; the common European species ({S. nigra})
forms a small tree. The red-berried elder is {S.
pubens}. The berries are diaphoretic and aperient. The
European elder ({Sambucus nigra}) is also called the
{elderberry}, {bourtree}, {Old World elder}, {black
elder}, and {common elder}.
[1913 Webster + WordNet 1.5]
{Box elder}. See under 1st {Box}.
{Dwarf elder}. See {Danewort}.
{Elder tree}. (Bot.) Same as {Elder}. --Shak.
{Marsh elder}, the cranberry tree {Viburnum Opulus}).
[1913 Webster]