What is "seemly"

Usage examples of "seemly".

After much praise, in which Gryphius joined, Birken inquired cautiously, as though asking his mentor for advice, whether it was seemly to couch a child that had died in the womb in so light-footed a verse form.

The beauty of the Lady of the Keep confused his mind, and in this rich, seemly, orderly, strange Court, he felt himself to be a goatherd born and bred.

A similar false note is struck by any speaker or writer who misapprehends his position or forgets his disqualifications, by newspaper writers using language that is seemly only in one who stakes his life on his words, by preachers exceeding the license of fallibility, by moralists condemning frailty, by speculative traders deprecating frank ways of hazard, by Satan rebuking sin.

Hand in hand, in seemly innocence, naked, without shame, or underthought or afterthought, they stray about the flowery meads.

The Preface of the Author To His Sonne, Faustinus And unto the Readers of this Book THAT I to thee some joyous jests may show in gentle gloze, And frankly feed thy bended eares with passing pleasant prose : So that thou daine in seemly sort this wanton booke to view, That is set out and garnisht fine, with written phrases new.

It would not be seemly or lawful for me to refuse to send one of us with you in your need, o Hulagh, bai of Kesrith.

But who doubts that the modern prohibition of the marriage even of cousins is the more seemly regulation-not merely on account of the reason we have been urging, the multiplying of relationships, so that one person might not absorb two, which might be distributed to two persons, and so increase the number of people bound together as a family, but also because there is in human nature I know not what natural and praiseworthy shamefacedness which restrains us from desiring that connection which, though for propagation, is yet lustful and which even conjugal modesty blushes over, with any one to whom consanguinity bids us render respect?

It was not seemly for the girl Daalny to mingle with the brothers throughout the day, but she watched with tireless interest from the steps of the guesthall, as the hunters emerged from one doorway after another, from grange court to stable-yard, from the dortoir by the outer daystairs, into the cloister garth, out again by the scriptorium, across to the infirmary, and always empty-handed.

And the juster the cause thou hast to love Sophronia, the greater is the injustice with which thou complainest of Fortune (albeit thou dost it not in so many words) for giving her to me, as if thy love of her had been seemly, had she belonged to any other but me.

Have trained been with many noble feres In gentle thewes, and such like seemly leers.

So, on the morn they rode into the forest of adventures to a laund, and thereby they found a cross, and as they stood and hoved there came by them the fairest knight and the seemliest man that ever they saw, making the greatest dole that ever man made.

When they are satisfied that they have gathered all the facts that can be gathered, send word to Brother Infirmarer, and he will have the body made seemly and brought to the chapel.

And so, clad in her sorry garments of coarse romagnole, she entered the house, which, but a little before, she had quitted in her shift, and addressed her to sweep the chambers, and arrange arras and cushions in the halls, and make ready the kitchen, and set her hand to everything, as if she had been a paltry serving-wench: nor did she rest until she had brought all into such meet and seemly trim as the occasion demanded.

Kiyrstin had the lowpitched voice horses tended to like, and Deyma, after a seemly interval to make certain Kiyrstindid not consider her an easy conquest, gra ciously accepted the gifts of hand and voice, returning to Kiyrstin the ultimate compliment of using her back as a scratching post for her head.

In Central Park, a seemlier crowd prayed, sang hymns, screamed for Jesus, protested, wept.