a. ? Obs. [ad. med.L. visīv-us, f. L. vīsus seeing, sight: see -IVE. So F. visif, -ive (15th c.), It., Sp., Pg. visivo.] Of or pertaining to sight or to the power of seeing; visual.
1. Visive faculty, power, virtue, etc.: The faculty of sight, the power of vision.
In early use virtue visive, after med.L. virtus visiva; cf. F. virtu, faculté, puissance visive (15–16th cent.).
1543. Traheron, Vigo’s Chirurg., IV. 136. Remotion of the matter conjoynt, by evaporation, and confortacyon of the vertue visive.
1576. G. Baker, trans. Gesner’s Jewell of Health, 82 b. A water … with a notable comforting of the virtue visive or seeing.
1609. Bible (Douay), Deut. xxxiv. comm. God elevated his visive powre above nature to see so farre.
1614. Jackson, Creed, III. xxix. § 5. As oft as he is disposed to exercise his visive facultie.
1653. Culpepper, Pharm. Londin., 306. Ocular Medicines are two fold, viz. such as are referred to the Visive Vertues, and such as are referred to the Eyes themselves.
1666. Spurstowe, Spir. Chym. (1668), 34. A principle, which is as necessary to goodness, as a visive power to the eye, to enable it to discern its object.
1709. Berkeley, Th. Vision, § 59. For this end chiefly the visive sense seems to have been bestowed on animals.
1733. trans. Belloste’s Hosp. Surgeon, II. 263. This man’s eye was fair and sound to all appearance, yet was it utterly deprived of the visive faculty.
1804. Something Odd, II. 54. The neat simplicity of Eloisa’s dress … struck on the visive faculty of ‘my Lord.’
1836. Blackw. Mag., XL. 337. He had thrown a new and important light on the true character of these visive sensations.
fig. 1660. S. Fisher, Rusticks Alarm, Wks. (1679), 597. He hath given an understanding,… and this all men have, the inward visive faculty.
a. 1679. T. Goodwin, Work of Holy Spirit, V. ii. Wks. 1704, V. I. 178. This new Spiritual visive Power, with which the Understanding is endowed.
1728. E. Erskine, Serm., Wks. (1791), 229/2. You bid me open my eyes, but, alas! I want a visive faculty.
1830. T. Taylor, Argts. Celsus, 31. If, closing the perceptive organs of sense, you look upward with the visive power of intellect.
a. 1838. Jamieson, Influence Spirit (1844), 82. Ignorance of such a description that it cannot receive the light; a want of the visive faculty.
b. Serving as a means by which sight or vision is made possible. Now rare or Obs.
1634. T. Johnson, trans. Parey’s Wks., I. x. 26. That [spirit] which causeth the sight, is named the Visive.
1655. Culpepper, etc., Riverius, II. Pref. In curing Diseases of the Eyes … we must alwaies mingle those things which comfort the visive spirits with other Medicines.
1657. Physical Dict., Visive-nerve, the nerve that is the instrument of the visive faculty, or of seeing.
1686. Snape, Anat. Horse, III. vii. 119. The Optick or Seeing Nerves; so called … because they carry the visive spirits to the Eyes.
1812. Cary, Dante, Parad., XXX. 49. The lightning … dashes from the blinding eyes The visive spirits dazzled and bedimm’d.
c. Visive organ, the organ of vision; the eye.
a. 1652. J. Smith, Sel. Disc., IV. iii. (1660), 79. Lucretius … believes the Idolum in his own Visive organ to be adequate to the Sun it self.
1682. Sir T. Browne, Chr. Mor., III. § 14. Let intellectual Tubes give thee a glance of things, which visive Organs reach not.
1704. Norris, Ideal World, II. iii. 110. Vision is here taken materially for that impression which is made upon the visive organs by the rays of light.
d. Having the power of vision; able to see.
1681–6. J. Scott, Chr. Life (1747), III. 641. God … impressed three Phantasms on the sensitive or visive Soul … of Abraham.
1793. T. Taylor, Orat. Julian, 22. We infer his perfective power from the whole phænomena, because he gives vision to visive natures.
2. Forming the object of vision; capable of being seen.
1598. R. Haydocke, trans. Lomazzo, II. 196. It looseth the corporal visiue form.
1647. A. Ross, Mystag. Poet., x. (1675), 249. For open and solid bodies are not fit to receive or transmit the visive species.
b. Optics. Falling upon or appearing to the eye.
1646. Sir T. Browne, Pseud. Ep., 156. This doth happen when the axis of the visive cones, diffused from the object, fall not upon the same plane.
1670. E. R., Ne Plus Ultra, 23. The visive rays.
1690. Leybourn, Curs. Math., 456 b. If the Sight-hole be … any whit large, it admitteth too many visive Rays.
3. Sent out from the eyes.
1622. Mabbe, trans. Aleman’s Guzman d’Alf., II. 283. It seeming … that the visiue beames in both … strucke home vpon our soules.
