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quail

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quailed

Main Entry:: ²quail
Function:: verb
Etymology:: Middle English, from Middle Dutch quelen
Date:: 15th century

intransitive verb1 achiefly dialect : wither, decline b: to give way : falter <his courage never quailed>2: to recoil in dread or terror : cower <the strongest quail before financial ruin — Samuel Butler †1902>transitive verbarchaic : to make fearful

synonyms see recoil

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