1. A friction match. [U.S.] 2. A nickname formerly given to a member of the Democratic party. [U.S.] Note: The name was first applied, in 1834, to a portion of the Democratic party, because, at a meeting in Tammany Hall, New York, in which there was great diversity of sentiment, the chairman left his seat, and the lights were extinguished, for the purpose of dissolving th...