Utility \U*til"i*ty\, n. [OE. utilite, F. utilit['e], L.
     utilitas, fr. utilis useful. See Utile.]
     1. The quality or state of being useful; usefulness;
        production of good; profitableness to some valuable end;
        as, the utility of manure upon land; the utility of the
        sciences; the utility of medicines.
  
              The utility of the enterprises was, however, so
              great and obvious that all opposition proved
              useless.                              --Macaulay.
  
     2. (Polit. Econ.) Adaptation to satisfy the desires or wants;
        intrinsic value. See Note under Value, 2.
  
              Value in use is utility, and nothing else, and in
              political economy should be called by that name and
              no other.                             --F. A.
                                                    Walker.
  
     3. Happiness; the greatest good, or happiness, of the
        greatest number, -- the foundation of utilitarianism. --J.
        S. Mill.
  
     Syn: Usefulness; advantageous; benefit; profit; avail;
          service.
  
     Usage: Utility, Usefulness. Usefulness has an Anglo-Saxon
            prefix, utility is Latin; and hence the former is used
            chiefly of things in the concrete, while the latter is
            employed more in a general and abstract sense. Thus,
            we speak of the utility of an invention, and the
            usefulness of the thing invented; of the utility of an
            institution, and the usefulness of an individual. So
            beauty and utility (not usefulness) are brought into
            comparison. Still, the words are often used
            interchangeably.

  utility
       adj 1: used of beef; usable but inferior [syn: utility(a), utility-grade]
       2: capable of substituting in any of several positions on a
          team; "a utility infielder" [syn: utility(a), substitute(a)]
       n 1: a company that performs a public service; subject to
            government regulation [syn: public utility, public-service
            corporation]
       2: the quality of being of practical use [syn: usefulness]
          [ant: inutility, inutility]
       3: the service provided by a utility company; "the cost of
          utilities never decreases"
       4: (economics) a measure that is to be maximized in any
          situation involving choice
       5: (computer science) a program designed for general support of
          the processes of a computer; "a computer system provides
          utility programs to perform the tasks needed by most
          users" [syn: utility program, service program]
       6: a facility composed of one or more pieces of equipment
          connected to or part of a structure and designed to
          provide a service such as heat or electricity or water or
          sewage disposal; "the price of the house included all
          utilities"

  Plastic \Plas"tic\ (pl[a^]s"t[i^]k), a. [L. plasticus, Gr. ?,
     fr. ? to form, mold: cf. F. plastique.]
     1. Having the power to give form or fashion to a mass of
        matter; as, the plastic hand of the Creator. --Prior.
  
              See plastic Nature working to his end. --Pope.
  
     2. Capable of being molded, formed, or modeled, as clay or
        plaster; -- used also figuratively; as, the plastic mind
        of a child.
  
     3. Pertaining or appropriate to, or characteristic of,
        molding or modeling; produced by, or appearing as if
        produced by, molding or modeling; -- said of sculpture and
        the kindred arts, in distinction from painting and the
        graphic arts.
  
              Medallions . . . fraught with the plastic beauty and
              grace of the palmy days of Italian art. --J. S.
                                                    Harford.


  -plastic \-plas"tic\ (-pl[a^]s"t[i^]k). [Gr. ? fit for molding,
     plastic, fr. ? to mold, to form.]
     A combining form signifying developing, forming, growing; as,
     heteroplastic, monoplastic, polyplastic

  plastic
       adj 1: used of the imagination; "material...transformed by the
              plastic power of the imagination"--Coleridge
       2: capable of being molded or modeled (especially of earth or
          clay or other soft material); "plastic substances such as
          wax or clay" [syn: fictile, moldable]
       3: capable of being influenced or formed; "the plastic minds of
          children"; "a pliant nature" [syn: pliant]
       n : generic name for certain synthetic or semisynthetic
           materials that can be molded or extruded into objects or
           films or filaments or used for making e.g. coatings and
           adhesives

  Ware \Ware\, v. t. (Naut.)
     To wear, or veer. See Wear.

  Ware \Ware\, obs. imp. of Wear.
     Wore.

  Ware \Ware\, n. [AS. w[=a]r.] (Bot.)
     Seaweed. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]
  
     Ware goose (Zo["o]l.), the brant; -- so called because it
        feeds on ware, or seaweed. [Prov. Eng.]

  Ware \Ware\, n. [OE. ware, AS. waru; akin to D. waar, G. waare,
     Icel. & Sw. vara, Dan. vare; and probably to E. worth, a. See
     Worth, a.]
     Articles of merchandise; the sum of articles of a particular
     kind or class; style or class of manufactures; especially, in
     the plural, goods; commodities; merchandise. ``Retails his
     wares at wakes.'' --Shak. ``To chaffer with them and eke to
     sell them their ware.'' --Chaucer.
  
           It the people of the land bring ware or any victuals on
           the Sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy it of
           them on the Sabbath, or on the holy day. --Neh. x. 31.
  
     Note: Although originally and properly a collective noun, it
           admits of a plural form, when articles of merchandise
           of different kinds are meant. It is often used in
           composition; as in hardware, glassware, tinware, etc.

  Ware \Ware\, a. [OE. war, AS. w[ae]r. [root]142. See Wary.]
     A ware; taking notice; hence, wary; cautious; on one's guard.
     See Beware. [Obs.]
  
           She was ware and knew it bet [better] than he.
                                                    --Chaucer.
  
           Of whom be thou ware also.               --2. Tim. iv.
                                                    15.
  
           He is ware enough; he is wily and circumspect for
           stirring up any sedition.                --Latimer.
  
           The only good that grows of passed fear Is to be wise,
           and ware of like again.                  --Spenser.

  Ware \Ware\, n. [AS. waru caution.]
     The state of being ware or aware; heed. [Obs.] --Wyclif.

  Ware \Ware\, v. t. [As. warian.]
     To make ware; to warn; to take heed of; to beware of; to
     guard against. ``Ware that I say.'' --Chaucer.
  
           God . . . ware you for the sin of avarice. --Chaucer.
  
           Then ware a rising tempest on the main.  --Dryden.

  ware
       n : articles of the same kind or material; usually used in
           combination: silverware; software
       v : spend extravagantly; "waste not, want not" [syn: consume,
           squander, waste]

  Ware, MA (CDP, FIPS 72845)
    Location: 42.25319 N, 72.24547 W
    Population (1990): 6533 (2849 housing units)
    Area: 16.0 sq km (land), 0.4 sq km (water)
    Zip code(s): 01082

  -ware suff. [from `software'] Commonly used to form jargon terms for
     classes of software. For examples, see annoyware, careware,
     crippleware, crudware, freeware, fritterware, guiltware,
     liveware, meatware, payware, psychedelicware, shareware,
     shelfware, vaporware, wetware.

  -ware
       
          ["software"] Commonly used to form terms for classes of
          software.  For examples, see careware, crippleware,
          crudware, freeware, fritterware, guiltware,
          liveware, meatware, payware, psychedelicware,
          shareware, shelfware, vaporware, wetware.
       
          [{Jargon File]