Hypertext Webster Gateway: "pairing"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Pairing \Pair"ing\, n. [See {Pair}, v. i.]
1. The act or process of uniting or arranging in pairs or
couples.
2. See {To pair off}, under {Pair}, v. i.
{Pairyng time}, the time when birds or other animals pair.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Pair \Pair\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Paired}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Pairing}.]
1. To be joined in paris; to couple; to mate, as for
breeding.
2. To suit; to fit, as a counterpart.
My heart was made to fit and pair with thine.
--Rowe.
3. Same as {To pair off}. See phrase below.
{To pair off}, to separate from a company in pairs or
couples; specif. (Parliamentary Cant), to agree with one
of the opposite party or opinion to abstain from voting on
specified questions or issues. See {Pair}, n., 6.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
pairing
n 1: the act of pairing a male and female for reproductive
purposes; "the casual couplings of adolescents"; "the
mating of some species occurs only in the spring" [syn:
{coupling}, {mating}, {conjugation}, {union}, {sexual
union}]
2: the act of grouping things or people in pairs
Additional Hypertext Webster Gateway Lookup
Gateway by dict@stokkie.net
stock only wrote the gateway and does not have any control over the contents;
see the Webster Gateway FAQ,
and also the Back-end/database links and credits.