[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

compurgation \com`purga"tion\, n. l. compurgatio, fr.
   compurgare to purify wholly; com- + purgare to make pure. see
   purge, v. t.
   1. law the act or practice of justifying or confirming a
      man's veracity by the oath of others; -- called also
      wager of law. see purgation; also wager of law,
      under wager.
      1913 webster

   2. exculpation by testimony to one's veracity or innocence.
      1913 webster

            he was privileged from his childhood from suspicion
            of incontinency and needed no compurgation. --bp.
                                                  hacket.
      1913 webster
see also:
wager of law purgation wager of law wager 

[2] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

law \law\ ladd, n. oe. lawe, laghe, as. lagu, from the root
   of e. lie: akin to os. lag, icel. l"og, sw. lag, dan. lov;
   cf. l. lex, e. legal. a law is that which is laid, set, or
   fixed; like statute, fr. l. statuere to make to stand. see
   lie to be prostrate.
   1. in general, a rule of being or of conduct, established by
      an authority able to enforce its will; a controlling
      regulation; the mode or order according to which an agent
      or a power acts.
      1913 webster

   note: a law may be universal or particular, written or
         unwritten, published or secret. from the nature of the
         highest laws a degree of permanency or stability is
         always implied; but the power which makes a law, or a
         superior power, may annul or change it.
         1913 webster

               these are the statutes and judgments and laws,
               which the lord made.               --lev. xxvi.
                                                  46.
         1913 webster

               the law of thy god, and the law of the king.
                                                  --ezra vii.
                                                  26.
         1913 webster

               as if they would confine the interminable . . .
               who made our laws to bind us, not himself.
                                                  --milton.
         1913 webster

               his mind his kingdom, and his will his law.
                                                  --cowper.
         1913 webster

   2. in morals: the will of god as the rule for the disposition
      and conduct of all responsible beings toward him and
      toward each other; a rule of living, conformable to
      righteousness; the rule of action as obligatory on the
      conscience or moral nature.
      1913 webster

   3. the jewish or mosaic code, and that part of scripture
      where it is written, in distinction from the gospel;
      hence, also, the old testament. specifically: the first
      five books of the bible, called also torah, pentatech,
      or law of moses.
      1913 webster +pjc

            what things soever the law saith, it saith to them
            who are under the law . . . but now the
            righteousness of god without the law is manifested,
            being witnessed by the law and the prophets. --rom.
                                                  iii. 19, 21.
      1913 webster

   4. in human government:
      a an organic rule, as a constitution or charter,
          establishing and defining the conditions of the
          existence of a state or other organized community.
      b any edict, decree, order, ordinance, statute,
          resolution, judicial, decision, usage, etc., or
          recognized, and enforced, by the controlling
          authority.
          1913 webster

   5. in philosophy and physics: a rule of being, operation, or
      change, so certain and constant that it is conceived of as
      imposed by the will of god or by some controlling
      authority; as, the law of gravitation; the laws of motion;
      the law heredity; the laws of thought; the laws of cause
      and effect; law of self-preservation.
      1913 webster

   6. in mathematics: the rule according to which anything, as
      the change of value of a variable, or the value of the
      terms of a series, proceeds; mode or order of sequence.
      1913 webster

   7. in arts, works, games, etc.: the rules of construction, or
      of procedure, conforming to the conditions of success; a
      principle, maxim; or usage; as, the laws of poetry, of
      architecture, of courtesy, or of whist.
      1913 webster

   8. collectively, the whole body of rules relating to one
      subject, or emanating from one source; -- including
      usually the writings pertaining to them, and judicial
      proceedings under them; as, divine law; english law; roman
      law; the law of real property; insurance law.
      1913 webster

   9. legal science; jurisprudence; the principles of equity;
      applied justice.
      1913 webster

            reason is the life of the law; nay, the common law
            itself is nothing else but reason.    --coke.
      1913 webster

            law is beneficence acting by rule.    --burke.
      1913 webster

            and sovereign law, that state's collected will
            o'er thrones and globes elate,
            sits empress, crowning good, repressing ill. --sir
                                                  w. jones.
      1913 webster

   10. trial by the laws of the land; judicial remedy;
       litigation; as, to go law.
       1913 webster

             when every case in law is right.     --shak.
       1913 webster

             he found law dear and left it cheap. --brougham.
       1913 webster

   11. an oath, as in the presence of a court. obs. see wager
       of law, under wager.
       1913 webster

   avogadro's law chem., a fundamental conception, according
      to which, under similar conditions of temperature and
      pressure, all gases and vapors contain in the same volume
      the same number of ultimate molecules; -- so named after
      avogadro, an italian scientist. sometimes called
      amp`ere's law.

   bode's law astron., an approximative empirical expression
      of the distances of the planets from the sun, as follows:
      -- mer. ven. earth. mars. aste. jup. sat. uran. nep. 4 4 4
      4 4 4 4 4 4 0 3 6 12 24 48 96 192 384 -- -- -- -- -- -- --
      --- --- 4 7 10 16 28 52 100 196 388 5.9 7.3 10 15.2 27.4
      52 95.4 192 300 where each distance line third is the
      sum of 4 and a multiple of 3 by the series 0, 1, 2, 4, 8,
      etc., the true distances being given in the lower line.

   boyle's law physics, an expression of the fact, that when
      an elastic fluid is subjected to compression, and kept at
      a constant temperature, the product of the pressure and
      volume is a constant quantity, i. e., the volume is
      inversely proportioned to the pressure; -- known also as
      mariotte's law, and the law of boyle and mariotte.

   brehon laws. see under brehon.

   canon law, the body of ecclesiastical law adopted in the
      christian church, certain portions of which for example,
      the law of marriage as existing before the council of
      tent were brought to america by the english colonists as
      part of the common law of the land. --wharton.

   civil law, a term used by writers to designate roman law,
      with modifications thereof which have been made in the
      different countries into which that law has been
      introduced. the civil law, instead of the common law,
      prevails in the state of louisiana. --wharton.

   commercial law. see law merchant below.

   common law. see under common.

   criminal law, that branch of jurisprudence which relates to
      crimes.

   ecclesiastical law. see under ecclesiastical.

   grimm's law philol., a statement propounded by the
      german philologist jacob grimm of certain regular changes
      which the primitive indo-european mute consonants,
      so-called most plainly seen in sanskrit and, with some
      changes, in greek and latin, have undergone in the
      teutonic languages. examples: skr. bh=at.r, l. frater,
      e. brother, g. bruder; l. tres, e. three, g. drei, skr.
      go, e. cow, g. kuh; skr. dh=a to put, gr. ti-qe`-nai, e.
      do, ohg, tuon, g. thun. see also lautverschiebung.

   kepler's laws astron., three important laws or
      expressions of the order of the planetary motions,
      discovered by john kepler. they are these: 1 the orbit
      of a planet with respect to the sun is an ellipse, the sun
      being in one of the foci. 2 the areas swept over by a
      vector drawn from the sun to a planet are proportioned to
      the times of describing them. 3 the squares of the times
      of revolution of two planets are in the ratio of the cubes
      of their mean distances.

   law binding, a plain style of leather binding, used for law
      books; -- called also law calf.

   law book, a book containing, or treating of, laws.

   law calf. see law binding above.

   law day.
       a formerly, a day of holding court, esp. a court-leet.
       b the day named in a mortgage for the payment of the
           money to secure which it was given. u. s.

   law french, the dialect of norman, which was used in
      judicial proceedings and law books in england from the
      days of william the conqueror to the thirty-sixth year of
      edward iii.

   law language, the language used in legal writings and
      forms.

   law latin. see under latin.

   law lords, peers in the british parliament who have held
      high judicial office, or have been noted in the legal
      profession.

   law merchant, or commercial law, a system of rules by
      which trade and commerce are regulated; -- deduced from
      the custom of merchants, and regulated by judicial
      decisions, as also by enactments of legislatures.

   law of charles physics, the law that the volume of a
      given mass of gas increases or decreases, by a definite
      fraction of its value for a given rise or fall of
      temperature; -- sometimes less correctly styled gay
      lussac's law, or dalton's law.

   law of nations. see international law, under
      international.

   law of nature.
       a a broad generalization expressive of the constant
           action, or effect, of natural conditions; as, death
           is a law of nature; self-defense is a law of nature.
           see law, 4.
       b a term denoting the standard, or system, of morality
           deducible from a study of the nature and natural
           relations of human beings independent of supernatural
           revelation or of municipal and social usages.

   law of the land, due process of law; the general law of the
      land.

   laws of honor. see under honor.

   laws of motion physics, three laws defined by sir isaac
      newton: 1 every body perseveres in its state of rest or
      of moving uniformly in a straight line, except so far as
      it is made to change that state by external force. 2
      change of motion is proportional to the impressed force,
      and takes place in the direction in which the force is
      impressed. 3 reaction is always equal and opposite to
      action, that is to say, the actions of two bodies upon
      each other are always equal and in opposite directions.

   marine law, or maritime law, the law of the sea; a branch
      of the law merchant relating to the affairs of the sea,
      such as seamen, ships, shipping, navigation, and the like.
      --bouvier.

   mariotte's law. see boyle's law above.

   martial law.see under martial.

   military law, a branch of the general municipal law,
      consisting of rules ordained for the government of the
      military force of a state in peace and war, and
      administered in courts martial. --kent. --warren's
      blackstone.

   moral law, the law of duty as regards what is right and
      wrong in the sight of god; specifically, the ten
      commandments given by moses. see law, 2.

   mosaic law, or ceremonial law. script. see law, 3.

   municipal law, or positive law, a rule prescribed by the
      supreme power of a state, declaring some right, enforcing
      some duty, or prohibiting some act; -- distinguished from
      international law and constitutional law. see law,
      1.

   periodic law. chem. see under periodic.

   roman law, the system of principles and laws found in the
      codes and treatises of the lawmakers and jurists of
      ancient rome, and incorporated more or less into the laws
      of the several european countries and colonies founded by
      them. see civil law above.

   statute law, the law as stated in statutes or positive
      enactments of the legislative body.

   sumptuary law. see under sumptuary.

   to go to law, to seek a settlement of any matter by
      bringing it before the courts of law; to sue or prosecute
      some one.

   to take the law of, or to have the law of, to bring the
      law to bear upon; as, to take the law of one's neighbor.
      --addison.

   wager of law. see under wager.

   syn: justice; equity.

   usage: law, statute, common law, regulation, edict,
          decree. law is generic, and, when used with
          reference to, or in connection with, the other words
          here considered, denotes whatever is commanded by one
          who has a right to require obedience. a statute is a
          particular law drawn out in form, and distinctly
          enacted and proclaimed. common law is a rule of action
          founded on long usage and the decisions of courts of
          justice. a regulation is a limited and often,
          temporary law, intended to secure some particular end
          or object. an edict is a command or law issued by a
          sovereign, and is peculiar to a despotic government. a
          decree is a permanent order either of a court or of
          the executive government. see justice.
          1913 webster
see also:
lie gospel torah pentatech law of moses wager of law 
wager avogadro's law amp`ere's law bode's law boyle's law 
mariotte's law law of boyle and mariotte brehon laws brehon canon law 
civil law common law commercial law law merchant common law 
common criminal law ecclesiastical law ecclesiastical grimm's law 
lautverschiebung kepler's laws law binding law calf law book 
law calf law day law french law language law latin 
latin law lords law of charles gay lussac's law dalton's law 
law of nations international law international law of nature law 
law of the land laws of honor honor laws of motion marine law 
maritime law martial law martial military law moral law 
mosaic law ceremonial law municipal law positive law international law 
constitutional law periodic law periodic roman law statute law 
sumptuary law sumptuary to go to law to take the law of to have the law of 
wager of law statute regulation edict decree 
justice 

[3] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

wager \wa"ger\ w=a"j~er, n. oe. wager, wajour, of.
   wagiere, or wageure, f. gageure. see wage, v. t.
   1913 webster
   1. something deposited, laid, or hazarded on the event of a
      contest or an unsettled question; a bet; a stake; a
      pledge.
      1913 webster

            besides these plates for horse races, the wagers may
            be as the persons please.             --sir w.
                                                  temple.
      1913 webster

            if any atheist can stake his soul for a wager
            against such an inexhaustible disproportion, let him
            never hereafter accuse others of credulity.
                                                  --bentley.
      1913 webster

   2. law a contract by which two parties or more agree that a
      certain sum of money, or other thing, shall be paid or
      delivered to one of them, on the happening or not
      happening of an uncertain event. --bouvier.
      1913 webster

   note: at common law a wager is considered as a legal contract
         which the courts must enforce unless it be on a subject
         contrary to public policy, or immoral, or tending to
         the detriment of the public, or affecting the interest,
         feelings, or character of a third person. in many of
         the united states an action can not be sustained upon
         any wager or bet. --chitty. --bouvier.
         1913 webster

   3. that on which bets are laid; the subject of a bet.
      1913 webster

   wager of battel, or wager of battle o. eng. law, the
      giving of gage, or pledge, for trying a cause by single
      combat, formerly allowed in military, criminal, and civil
      causes. in writs of right, where the trial was by
      champions, the tenant produced his champion, who, by
      throwing down his glove as a gage, thus waged, or
      stipulated, battle with the champion of the demandant,
      who, by taking up the glove, accepted the challenge. the
      wager of battel, which has been long in disuse, was
      abolished in england in 1819, by a statute passed in
      consequence of a defendant's having waged his battle in a
      case which arose about that period. see battel.

   wager of law law, the giving of gage, or sureties, by a
      defendant in an action of debt, that at a certain day
      assigned he would take a law, or oath, in open court, that
      he did not owe the debt, and at the same time bring with
      him eleven neighbors called compurgators, who should
      avow upon their oaths that they believed in their
      consciences that he spoke the truth.

   wager policy. insurance law see under policy.

   wagering contract or gambling contract. a contract which
      is of the nature of wager. contracts of this nature
      include various common forms of valid commercial
      contracts, as contracts of insurance, contracts dealing in
      futures, options, etc. other wagering contracts and bets
      are now generally made illegal by statute against betting
      and gambling, and wagering has in many cases been made a
      criminal offence. webster 1913 suppl.
      1913 webster
see also:
wage wager of battel wager of battle battel wager of law wager policy 
policy wagering contract gambling contract 

[4] : Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856)

wager of law, eng. law. when an action of debt is brought against a man upon 
a simple contract, and the defendant pleads nil debit, and concludes his 
plea with this formula, "and this he is ready to defend against him the said 
a b and his suit, as the court of our lord the king here shall consider," 
c., he is said to wage his law. he is then required to swear he owes the 
plaintiff nothing, and bring eleven compurgators who will swear they believe 
him. this mode of trial, is trial by wager of law. 
     2. the wager of law could only be had in actions of debt on simple 
contract, and actions of detinue; in consequence of this right of the 
defendant, now actions on simple contracts are brought in assumpsit, and 
instead of bridging detinue, trover has been substituted. 
     3. if ever wager of law had any existence in the united states, it is 
now completely abolished. 8 wheat. 642. vide steph. on plead. 124, 250, and 
notes, xxxix.; co. entr. 119; mod. entr. 179; lilly's entr. 467; 3 ch it. 
pl. 497; 13 vin. ab. 58; bac. ab. h.t.; dane's ab. index, h.t. for the 
origin of this form of trial, vide steph. on pl. notes xxxix; co. litt. 294, 
5 3 bl. com. 341. 

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