uncial

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. adj. Of or relating to a style of writing characterized by somewhat rounded capital letters and found especially in Greek and Latin manuscripts of the fourth to the eighth century A.D.
2. n. A style of writing characterized by somewhat rounded capital letters. It provided the model from which most of the capital letters in the modern Latin alphabet are derived.
3. n. A capital letter written in this style.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. Of or pertaining to an ounce. In paleography, noting that variety of majuscule character, or writing, usually found in the earlier manuscripts, as opposed to the later minuscule, or cursive. Uncial characters are distinguished from capitals (that is, capital letters similar to the simplest form of those still in use) by relatively greater roundness, inclination, and inequality in height. In Greek paleography the distinction of capital and uncial is unimportant. In Latin manuscripts the difference is strongly marked, several of the uncial letters approaching in form more or less our present lower-case letters (a, δd, εεe, f, h, l, m, q, u). Uncial manuscripts as old as the fourth century are still extant. This style of writing continued till the eighth or ninth century, the transition to minuscule being called semiuncial writing. The term uncial was originally a misapplication of St. Jerome's expression litteræ unciales, “inch-high” (large, handsome) letters. See majuscule.
2. n. An uncial letter; also, uncial letters collectively; uncial writing.
3. n. A manuscript written in uncials.

Wiktionary

1. adj. rare Of, or relating to an ounce, or an inch, especially to letters printed an inch high.
2. adj. Of, or relating to a majuscule style of writing with unjoined, rounded letters, originally used in the 4th–9th centuries.
3. n. A style of writing using uncial letters.
4. n. A letter in this style.
5. n. A manuscript in this style.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. adj. Of, pertaining to, or designating, a certain style of letters used in ancient manuscripts, esp. in Greek and Latin manuscripts. The letters are somewhat rounded, and the upstrokes and downstrokes usually have a slight inclination. These letters were used as early as the 1st century b. c., and were seldom used after the 10th century a. d., being superseded by the cursive style.
2. n. An uncial letter.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a style of orthography characterized by somewhat rounded capital letters; found especially in Greek and Latin manuscripts of the 4th to 8th centuries
2. adj. relating to or written in majuscule letters (which resemble modern capitals)