familiar

FAMIL'IAR, adjective famil'yar. [Latin familiaris, familia, family, which see.] 1. Pertaining to a family; domestic. 2. Accustomed by frequent converse; well acquainted with; intimate; close; as a familiar friend or companion. 3. Affable; not formal or distant; easy in conversation. Be thou familiar but by no means vulgar. 4. Well acquainted with; knowing by frequent use. Be familiar with the scriptures. 5. Well known; learned or well understood by frequent use. Let the scriptures be familiar to us. 6. Unceremonious; free; unconstrained; easy. The emperor conversed with the gentleman in the most familiar manner. 7. Common; frequent and intimate. By familiar intercourse, strong attachments are soon formed. 8. Easy; unconstrained; not formal. His letters are written in a familiar style. He sports in loose familiar strains. 9. Intimate in an unlawful degree. A poor man found a priest familiar with his wife. FAMIL'IAR, noun 1. An intimate; a close companion; one long acquainted; one accustomed to another by free, unreserved converse. All my familiars watched for my halting. Jeremiah 20:10. 2. A demon or evil spirit supposed to attend at a call. But in general we say, a familiar spirit. 3. In the court of Inquisition, a person who assists in apprehending and imprisoning the accused.