Discourse, subst. 1) conversation: in their --s after supper, Lucr. Arg. Tit. II, 1, 70 “now no d., except it be of love,” Gentl. II, 4, 140. Ado III, 1, 5. R2 II, 3, 6. R3 V, 3, 99. Rom. III, 5, 53. Hml. III, 4, 118 “(hold).” Oth. III, 1, 55. Cymb. III, 6, 91. “your honesty should admit no d. to your beauty,” Hml. III, 1, 108.
2) that which one says or tells, speech, saying, tale: “a kind of excellent dumb d.” Tp. III, 3, 39. “which I'll waste with such d. . . .,” V, 303. “I dare be bold with our d. to make your grace to smile,” Gentl. V, 4, 163. “are my --s dull?” Err. II, 1, 91. Ado I, 1, 288. “it is an epilogue or d., to make plain some obscure precedence,” LLL III, 82. Mids. IV, 1, 183. H6B I, 1, 104. H6C III, 3, 88. R3 III, 7, 19. Cor. IV, 5, 209. Tit. V, 1, 26. Oth. I, 3, 150. Followed by of: “leave off d. of disability,” Gentl. II, 4, 109 (== speak no more of etc.). “surprise her with d. of my dear faith,” Tw. I, 4, 25. “list his d. of war,” H5 I, 1, 43.
3) the art and manner of speaking and conversing: “my thoughts and my d. as madmen's are,” Sonn. 147, 11. “hear sweet d., converse with noblemen,” Gentl. I, 3, 31. “how likes she my d.?” V, 2, 15. “of excellent breeding, admirable d.” Wiv. II, 2, 235. “to affect speech and d.” Meas. I, 1, 4. “voluble and sharp d.” Err. II, 1, 92. “a wench of excellent d.” III, 1, 109. “of such enchanting presence and d.” III, 2, 166. “of good d.” Ado II, 3, 35. “so sweet and voluble is his d.” LLL II, 76. “his d. peremptory,” V, 1, 11. “d. will grow commendable in none only but parrots,” Merch. III, 5, 50. “beauty, good shape, d.” Troil. I, 2, 275. “put your d. into some frame,” Hml. III, 2, 320.
4) reasoning, thought, reflection: “when she will play with reason and d.” Meas. I, 2, 190. “yet doth this accident and flood of fortune so far exceed all instance, all d.” Tw. IV, 3, 12. “imagined worth holds in his blood such swoln and hot d.” Troil. II, 3, 183. “is your blood so madly hot that no d. of reason can qualify the same?” II, 2, 116. “O madness of d., that cause sets up with and against itself,” V, 2, 142. “a beast that wants d. of reason,” Hml. I, 2, 150. “he that made us with such large d., looking before and after,” IV, 4, 36. “either in d. of thought or actual deed,” Oth. IV, 2, 153 (Qq d. or thought).
Shakespeare Lexicon. Alexander Schmidt. Berlin. Georg Reimer. 1902.
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