lime¹ / līm/ • n. (also quick·lime) a white caustic alkaline substance consisting of calcium oxide, obtained by heating limestone. ∎  (also slaked lime) a white alkaline substance consisting of calcium hydroxide, made by adding water to quicklime. ∎  (in general use) any of a number of calcium compounds, esp. calcium hydroxide, used as an additive to soil or water. ∎ archaic birdlime.• v. [tr.] 1. treat (soil or water) with lime to reduce acidity and improve fertility or oxygen levels. ∎  [often as adj.] (limed) give (wood) a bleached appearance by treating it with lime: limed oak dining furniture.2. archaic catch (a bird) with birdlime.DERIVATIVES: lim·y / ˈlīmē/ adj. (lim·i·er, lim·i·est) .lime² • n. 1. a rounded citrus fruit similar to a lemon but greener, smaller, and with a distinctive acid flavor. 2. (also lime tree) the evergreen citrus tree (Citrus aurantifolia) that produces this fruit, widely cultivated in warm climates. 3. a bright light green color like that of a lime.lime³ (also lime tree) • n. another term for linden, esp. the European linden.

lime. When limestone is burned it produces quicklime (calcium oxide), which, when slaked with water, becomes calcium hydroxide. Limeis the chief ingredient of mortar, plaster,stucco, etc.

Bibliography

W. Papworth (1852)

lime1 birdlime; mortar, cement; calcium oxide. OE. līm, corr. to MDu., OHG. līm (Du. lijm, G. leim), ON. lím; f. Gmc. *līm-, var. of *laim- LOAM, ult. rel. to L. līmus.
Hence vb. XIII.

lime Compounds, mostly of calcium carbonates but also other basic (alkaline) substances, used to correct soil acidity and occasionally as a fertilizer to supply magnesium.