Beacon

Beacon

Beacon city (1990 pop. 13,243), Dutchess co., SE N.Y., on the E bank of the Hudson River; settled 1663, inc. in 1913 when Fishkill Landing and Matteawan villages were united. Beacon's textile, printing, and other industries have declined, but the opening of Dia:Beacon, the world's largest museum of contemporary art, has stimulated a revival of the city. The Newburgh-Beacon Bridge connects the city with Newburgh on the west bank. An incline railway ascends Mt. Beacon, site of a monument to Revolutionary soldiers who built signal fires to warn of the coming of the British.

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"Beacon." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Beacon." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Beacon.html

"Beacon." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Beacon.html

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beacon

beacon.
1. Normally a stake surmounted by a distinctive topmark erected over a shoal or sandbank. In many coastal estuaries without important shipping the low water level is marked by local beacons, often withies.

2. A prominent erection on shore that indicates a safe line of approach to a harbour or a safe passage clear of an obstruction. With the widespread use of GPS, sea traffic has tended to sail closer inshore by night so that there is an increasing demand for lit beacons. For radar beacons see racon; ramark.

See also EPIRB; radio beacon.

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"beacon." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"beacon." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-beacon.html

"beacon." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-beacon.html

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beacon

bea·con / ˈbēkən/ • n. a fire or light set up in a high or prominent position as a warning, signal, or celebration: a chain of beacons carried the news fig. the prospect of a new government was a beacon of hope for millions. ∎  a light or other visible object serving as a signal, warning, or guide, esp. at sea or on an airfield. ∎  a radio transmitter whose signal helps to fix the position of a ship, aircraft, or spacecraft.

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"beacon." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"beacon." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-beacon.html

"beacon." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-beacon.html

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beacon

beacon the maintenance of a chain of beacons as a warning signal was one of the means of national defence against a possible Spanish invasion in late 16th-century England. From this, beacon came to mean a conspicuous hill suitable for the site of a signal fire (frequently occurring in place-names, as Brecon Beacons, Dunkery Beacon).

Recorded from Old English (in form bēacn) meaning ‘sign, portent’, the word is of West Germanic origin and is related to beckon.


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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "beacon." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "beacon." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-beacon.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "beacon." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-beacon.html

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beacon

beacon n.
1. a fire or light set up in a high or prominent position as a warning, signal, or celebration.

2. a light or other visible object serving as a signal, warning, or guide, especially at sea or on an airfield.

3. a radio transmitter whose signal helps to fix the position of a ship, aircraft, or spacecraft.

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"beacon." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"beacon." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-beacon.html

"beacon." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-beacon.html

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Beacon

Beacon

Journal presenting the teachings of Alice A. Bailey (1880-1949), former Theosophist who founded her own Arcane School. Address: Lucis Publishing Co., 113 University Pl., 11th Fl., Box 722, Cooper Sta., New York, NY 10017.

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"Beacon." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Beacon." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3403800565.html

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Beacon

Beacon, Australia, USA USA (New York): a city that takes its name from the fires that were lit atop Mt Beacon to warn George Washington of British military movements during the War of Independence (1775–83).

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JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Beacon." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Beacon." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Beacon.html

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Beacon." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Beacon.html

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beacon

beacon †sign, standard OE.; signal-fire, lighthouse XIV. OE. bēacn = OS. bōkan, OHG. bouhhan :- WGmc. *baukna (Cf. BECKON), of unkn. orig.

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T. F. HOAD. "beacon." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "beacon." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-beacon.html

T. F. HOAD. "beacon." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-beacon.html

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beacon

beaconblacken, bracken, slacken •Sri Lankan •Alaskan, Gascon, Madagascan, Nebraskan •Aachen, darken, hearken, kraken, Marcan, Petrarchan •Interlaken •beckon, Deccan, pekan, reckon •Mencken •awaken, bacon, betaken, forsaken, Jamaican, mistaken, partaken, shaken, taken, waken •godforsaken •archdeacon, beacon, Costa Rican, deacon, Dominican, Mohican, Mozambican, Puerto Rican, weaken •quicken, sicken, stricken, thicken, Wiccan •silken •Incan, Lincoln •brisken, Franciscan •barbican • Rubicon • Gallican •Anglican •Helicon, pelican •basilican, Millikan, silicon •publican • pantechnicon • Copernican •African • American • hurricane •lexicon, Mexican •Corsican • Vatican • liken •Brocken, Moroccan •falcon, Lorcan, Majorcan, Minorcan •Balcon, Balkan •gyrfalcon •awoken, bespoken, betoken, broken, foretoken, oaken, outspoken, plain-spoken, ryokan, spoken, token, woken •heartbroken •Lucan, toucan •Saarbrücken • Buchan • Vulcan •drunken, Duncan, shrunken, sunken •Etruscan, molluscan (US molluskan), Tuscan •Ardnamurchan • lochan

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"beacon." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"beacon." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-beacon.html

"beacon." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-beacon.html

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