poise

English

Etymology

From a combination of Anglo-Norman pois, Middle French pois (“weight”) and Anglo-Norman poise, Middle French poise (“measure of weight”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: poyz, IPA: /pɔɪz/, X-SAMPA: /pOIz/
• Rhymes: -ɔɪz

Noun

poise (uncountable)

1. (obsolete) Weight; an amount of weight, the amount something weighs.
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, I.xii:

     as an huge rockie clift, / Whose false foundation waues haue washt away, / With dreadfull poyse is from the mayneland rift, / [...] So downe he fell [...].

2. The weight, or mass of metal, used in weighing, to balance the substance weighed.
3. That which causes a balance; a counterweight.
   • Dryden

     Men of unbounded imagination often want the poise of judgment.

4. A state of balance, equilibrium or stability

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Bentley to this entry?)

5. composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation
6. mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body
7. A condition of hovering, or being suspended
8. (physics) A cgs unit of dynamic viscosity equal to one dyne-second per square centimeter.

Wikipedia

Derived terms

• centipoise

Translations

A state of balance, equilibrium or stability

• Finnish: tasapaino (fi)

Composure; freedom from embarrassment or affectation

• Finnish: itsevarmuus, arvokkuus, luontevuus

• French: l'assurance (fr) f, aisance (fr) f, le sang-froid (fr) m

mien; bearing or deportment of the head or body

A condition of hovering, or being suspended

A cgs unit of dynamic viscosity

• Finnish: poisi

• Serbo-Croatian: poaz (sh)

Verb

poise (third-person singular simple present poises, present participle poising, simple past and past participle poised)

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 air. — Longfellow.

2. (obsolete) To be of a given weight; to weigh. [14th-17th c.]
3. (obsolete) To add weight to, to weigh down. [16th-18th c.]
   • 1603, John Florio, translating Michel de Montaigne, Essays, II.2:

     Every man poiseth [transl. poise] upon his fellowes sinne, and elevates his owne.

4. (now rare) To hold (something) with or against something else in equilibrium; to balance, counterpose. [from 16th c.]
   • 1597, William Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet, I.2:

     you saw her faire none els being by, / Her selfe poysd with her selfe in either eye.

5. To hold (something) in equilibrium, to hold balanced and ready; to carry (something) ready to be used. [from 16th c.]

   I poised the crowbar in my hand, and waited.

6. To keep (something) in equilibrium; to hold suspended or balanced. [from 17th c.]

   The rock was poised precariously on the edge of the cliff.

Translations

To hold balanced and ready

• Russian: изготавливаться (ru) (izgotavlivatʹsja)

To keep in equilibrium