资料来源 : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
{To pay one's duty}, to render homage, as to a sovereign or
other superior.
{To pay out} (Naut.), to pass out; hence, to slacken; to
allow to run out; as, to pay out more cable. See under
{Cable}.
{To pay the piper}, to bear the cost, expense, or trouble.
[Colloq.]
Piper \Pip"er\, n.
1. (Mus.) One who plays on a pipe, or the like, esp. on a
bagpipe. ``The hereditary piper and his sons.''
--Macaulay.
2. (Zo["o]l.)
(a) A common European gurnard ({Trigla lyra}), having a
large head, with prominent nasal projection, and with
large, sharp, opercular spines.
(b) A sea urchin ({Goniocidaris hystrix}) having very long
spines, native of both the American and European
coasts.
{To pay the piper}, to bear the cost, expense, or trouble.