Anneal

v. Forms: 1 onælan (anælan), 2 onealen, anhelen, 4–5 anele, 5 enele, 5–7 aneal(e, 6 hanele, 7 anneile, eneal, 7– anneal. Aphet. 8 neal. [In senses 1, 2, f. AN- pref. 1 on + OE. ǽlan to set on fire, burn, bake (tiles, etc.). There seems no reason why the later senses should not have sprung directly from this, the transition being simple from the baking of tiles, fusing of minerals (both senses of OE. ǽlan, and early ME. anele), to the burning of a glaze or enamel upon the surface of pottery, glass or metals; and from this to the hardening, toughening or tempering of the surface of such substances, as in modern use. But the former of these Mätzner derives from OFr. neeler, nieler, to enamel, originally to enamel in black upon gold or silver:—med. L. nigellāre, f. nigellum, dim. of nigrum black. Although there is no OFr. a-neeler, and no ME. neele, nele, so that the formal connection of neeler and anneal is not established, it is possible that the native anele may have been viewed as the representative of Fr. neeler, and modified in sense accordingly.]

  † 1.  To set on fire, kindle, inflame. lit. and fig. Obs.

a. 1000.  O. E. Chron., 694 (Bosw.). Mid andan þǽre rihtwisnesse anæld.

a. 1000.  Sal. & Sat., 42. Þæt Pater Noster ádwæsceð déofles fýr, dryhtnes onæleð.

c. 1175.  Lamb. Hom., 97. He mid his bleade onealde eorðlichen monnan heortan. Ibid., 219. Seraphim birninde oðer anhelend.

  † 2.  To subject to the action of fire; to alter in any way with heat; as, to ‘fire’ or bake earthenware, fuse ores, vitrify or glaze a surface. Obs.

1393.  Gower, Conf., III. 96. So as the fire it hath aneled [vitrified] Lich unto slime, which is congeled.

c. 1440.  Promp. Parv., Anelyn, or enelyn metalle, or other lyke.

c. 1465.  Bk. Quintess., 7. Take þe calx of fyn gold … and putte it in a siluer spone, and anele it at þe fier.

1668.  in Phil. Trans., III. 769. If they cannot cut the Rock, they use fire to aneale it.

  3.  To burn in colors upon glass, earthenware, or metal, to enamel by encaustic process. arch.

1580.  Baret, Alv., A 382. He that doth Aneale pottes or other vessels, Inustor.

1601.  Holland, Pliny, XI. xxxvii. Some paint and die them … others vernish and anneile them.

1633.  G. Herbert, Windows, ii. in Temple, 59. When thou dost anneal in glasse thy storie.

1697.  Potter, Antiq. Greece, III. xv. Nor were they barely varnish’d over with them [colours], but very often anneal’d by Wax melted in the Fire.

  4.  To toughen anything, made brittle from the action of fire, by exposure to continuous and slowly diminished heat, or by other equivalent process.

1664.  Evelyn, Sylva, 103. They use them amongst divers Artificers … to temper, and aneal their several Works.

1749.  Phil. Trans., XLVI. 180. How comes it that the glass … when it has been nealed, it does not break?

1870.  F. L. Pope, Electr. Telegraph, ii. (1872), 21. The iron cores, as they are termed, of electro-magnets, should be annealed with great care.

1881.  Young, Ev. Man his own Mechanic, § 1439. It [steel] must therefore be ‘tempered’ or partially annealed.

  b.  loosely, To cool down from a great heat.

1859.  M. Scott, Cringle’s Log, x. 220. You have been wasted one moment by the vertical rays of the sun and the next annealed hissing hot by the salt sea spray.

  c.  transf. Applied to the action of frost. rare.

c. 1750.  Shenstone, Econ., iii. 106. From each branch, anneal’d, the works of frost Pervasive, radiant icicles depend.

  5.  fig. To toughen, temper.

1695.  Blackmore, Pr. Arth., I. 111. Had not our Mould been Æther, Pure and Fine, Labour’d with Care, anneel’d with Skill Divine.

1813.  Scott, Rokeby, I. xxxi. To press the rights of truth, The mind to strengthen and anneal.

1842.  B. Simmons, in Blackw. Mag., LII. 401.