Set 14

suddenly |ˈsʌd(əә)nli|
adverb
quickly and unexpectedly: George II died suddenly | suddenly I heard
a loud scream.
suddenly

adverb
she suddenly began to laugh: immediately, instantaneously, instantly,
in an instant, straight away, all of a sudden, at once, all at once,
promptly, abruptly, in a trice, swiftly; unexpectedly, without
warning, without notice, on the spur of the moment; informal
straight off, out of the blue, in a flash, like a shot, before you
can say Jack Robinson, before you can say knife, in two shakes
(of a lamb's tail). ANTONYMS gradually.


breakneck |ˈbreɪknɛk|
adjective
dangerously or extremely fast: he drove at breakneck speed.

breakneck
adjective
the breakneck pace of technological change: extremely fast, high-speed,
lightning, whirlwind, rapid, speedy; dangerously fast, reckless,
dangerous, excessive, precipitate, headlong.

PHRASES
at breakneck speed dangerously fast, at full speed, at full tilt,
at full pelt, flat out, as fast as one's legs can carry one;
Frenchventre à terre; informal hell for leather, at a lick, like the
wind, like a bat out of hell, like a bomb, like greased lightning;

crossing |ˈkrɒsɪŋ|
noun
1 a place where roads or railway lines cross. a stream of cars was
waiting for the railway crossing barriers to be opened.
2 a place at which one may safely cross something, especially a
street. we were thirty yards from the crossing when a man stepped off the
pavement. a border crossing.

3 [ mass noun ] the action of crossing something: the crossing of
the Pennines.
• a journey across water in a ship: a short ferry crossing.
4 Architecture the intersection of a church nave and the
transepts. the cathedral has a lantern tower over the crossing.

cross |krɒs|
noun
1 a mark, object, or figure formed by two short intersecting
lines or pieces (+ or ×):

types of cross
place a cross against the preferred choice.

• a cross (×) used to show that something is incorrect or
unsatisfactory. the class sat quiet, waiting anxiously for the verdict—a
tick or a large cross.
2 an upright post with a transverse bar, as used in antiquity for
crucifixion.
• (the Cross)the cross on which Christ was crucified. the
sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.
• a cross as an emblem of Christianity: she wore a cross around her
neck.
• short for sign of the cross (see sign).
• a staff surmounted by a cross carried in religious processions
and on ceremonial occasions before an archbishop.
3 something unavoidable that has to be endured: she's just a cross
we have to bear.
4 a cross-shaped decoration awarded for personal valour or
indicating rank in some orders of knighthood: the Military Cross.
5 (the Cross)the constellation Crux. Also called Southern
Cross.
6 an animal or plant resulting from cross-breeding; a hybrid: a
Galloway and shorthorn cross.
• (a cross between) a mixture or compromise of two things:
the system is a cross between a monorail and a conventional railway.

7 Soccer a pass of the ball across the field towards the centre
close to one's opponents' goal. Beckham's low cross was turned into
the net by Cole.
8 Boxing a blow given with a crosswise movement of the fist: a
right cross.

verb [ with obj. ]
1 go or extend across or to the other side of (an area, stretch of
water, etc.): she has crossed the Atlantic twice | two paths crossed the
field | figurative : a shadow of apprehension crossed her face | [ no
obj. ] : we crossed over the bridge.
• go across or climb over (an obstacle or boundary): he attempted
to cross the border into Jordan | [ no obj. ] : we crossed over a stile.
• [ no obj. ] (cross over) (especially of an artist or an artistic
style or work) begin to appeal to a different audience, especially
a wider one: a talented animator who crossed over to live action.
2 [ no obj. ] pass in an opposite or different direction; intersect:
the two lines cross at 90°.
• [ with obj. ] cause to intersect or lie crosswise: cross the cables in
opposing directions | Michele sat back and crossed her arms.
• (of a letter) be dispatched before receipt of another from the
person being written to: our letters crossed.

3 draw a line or lines across; mark with a cross: voters should ask
one question before they cross today's ballot paper.
• Brit.mark or annotate (a cheque), typically by drawing a pair
of parallel lines across it, to indicate that it must be paid into a
named bank account. (as adj. crossed) : a crossed cheque.
• (cross someone/thing off) delete a name or item on a list
as being no longer required or involved: Liz crossed off the days on
the calendar.
• (cross something out/through) delete an incorrect or
inapplicable word or phrase by drawing a line through it. cross
out any portions which do not apply.

DERIVATIVES
crosser noun,
crossly adverb,
crossness noun

ORIGIN late Old English (in the sense ‘monument in the form
of a cross’): from Old Norse kross, from Old Irish cros, from
Latin crux .
crossing

noun
1 they came to a halt at a busy road crossing: junction, crossroads,
intersection, interchange; motorway junction, railway junction,
level crossing.
2 the driver failed to notice a child on the crossing: pedestrian crossing,
street crossing, pelican crossing, zebra crossing; informal the
green man.
3 the Mauretania held the Blue Riband for the fastest Atlantic crossing:
traversal, traverse, passage, voyage, journey; cruise, sail.
cross

noun
1 his grave is marked by a bronze cross: crucifix, rood.
2 his wife's illness is a great cross to bear: burden, trouble, worry,
trial, tribulation, affliction, curse, bane, hardship; vicissitude,
misfortune, adversity; millstone, albatross; misery, woe, pain,
sorrow, suffering, torment; thorn in one's flesh, thorn in one's

side; informal hassle, stress, headache;
ANTONYMS blessing.
3 the animal is a cross between a yak and a cow: hybrid,
hybridization, cross-breed, mixed breed, half-breed, half
blood, mixture, amalgam, blend, combination, composite,
conglomerate; mongrel, cur.

verb
1 I warn you not to cross the moors at night: travel across, go across,
cut across, make one's way across, traverse, range over, tramp
over, wander over; negotiate, navigate, cover.
2 the lake was crossed by a fine stone bridge: span, bridge, arch, ford;
go across, extend across, stretch across, pass over, arch over,
vault over.
3 they reached the point where the two roads cross: intersect, meet, join,
connect, criss-cross, interweave, intertwine.
4 if anybody crossed him he'd raise hell: oppose, resist, defy, thwart,
frustrate, foil, obstruct, impede, hinder, hamper, block, check,
deny, contradict, argue with, quarrel with; stand up to, take a
stand against, take issue with, put up a fight against, set one's
face against, fly in the face of; formal gainsay; rare controvert.
ANTONYMS support.

PHRASES
cross something out he crossed out several sentences: delete, strike
out, strike through, ink out, score out, scratch out, block out,
blank out, edit out, blue-pencil, cancel, eliminate, obliterate;
technical dele.
adjective
he was exhausted, but he never got cross: angry, annoyed, irate,
irritated, in a bad mood, peeved, vexed, upset, irked, piqued,
out of humour, put out, displeased, galled, resentful; irritable,
short-tempered, bad-tempered, hot-tempered, ill-humoured,
surly, churlish, disagreeable, irascible, touchy, snappy, snappish,
impatient, peevish, petulant, fractious, crotchety, grouchy,
grumpy, querulous, cantankerous, testy, tetchy, crabby, captious,
splenetic, choleric, dyspeptic, waspish; informal mad, hopping
mad, wild, livid, as cross as two sticks, apoplectic, aerated, hot
under the collar, riled, on the warpath, up in arms, foaming at
the mouth, steamed up, in a lather, in a paddy, fit to be tied;
Brit. informal shirty, stroppy, narky, ratty, eggy, not best pleased;

ANTONYMS pleased; good-humoured.

prefer |prɪˈfəәː|
verb (prefers, preferring, preferred) [ with obj. ]
1 like (one thing or person) better than another or others; tend
to choose: I prefer Venice to Rome | [ with infinitive ] : I would
prefer to discuss the matter in private | [ with clause ] : Val would
presumably prefer that you didn't get arrested.
2 formal submit (a charge or a piece of information) for
consideration: the police will prefer charges.


ORIGIN late Middle English: from Old French preferer,
from Latin praeferre, from prae ‘before’ + ferre ‘to bear,
carry’.

prefer
verb
1 I prefer white wine to red | those who prefer to travel by rail: like
better, would rather (have), would sooner (have), favour, be
more partial to, lean/incline towards, think preferable; choose,
select, pick, opt for, go for, vote for, plump for, single out, elect,
wish, desire, want; informal fancy.
2 formal do you want to prefer charges? bring, press, file, lodge,
tender, present, place, lay, submit, put forward, proffer, offer,
propose.

ankle |ˈaŋk(əә)l|
noun
the joint connecting the foot with the leg. Jennie fell downstairs,
breaking her ankle. [ as modifier ] : an ankle injury.
• the narrow part of the leg between the ankle joint and the
calf: her slim ankles | the men are ankle-deep in mud.
verb [ no obj. ]
1 [ with adverbial of direction ] US informal walk: we can ankle
off to a new locale.
• [ with obj. ] leave: he ankled the series to do a movie.
2 (usu. as nounankling) flex the ankles while cycling in order
to increase pedalling efficiency. changing my pedalling style from
toeing to ankling.
DERIVATIVES
ankled adjective
ORIGIN Old English ancleow, of Germanic origin; superseded
in Middle English by forms from Old Norse; related to Dutch
enkel and German Enkel, from an Indo-European root
shared by angle 1 .

sprain |spreɪn|
verb [ with obj. ]
wrench or twist the ligaments of (an ankle, wrist, or other joint)
violently so as to cause pain and swelling but not dislocation: he
left in a wheelchair after spraining an ankle.

noun
the result of spraining a joint. a compress for treating sprains and
bruises.
ORIGIN early 17th cent.: of unknown origin.

sprain
verb
he sprained his left ankle in a tackle during Saturday's game: wrench,
twist, turn, strain, crick; pull, stretch, tear; injure, hurt,
damage; Brit. informal rick.

noun
a severe ankle sprain: wrench, strain, rick, crick; pull, tear, injury.
so 1 |səәʊ|

adverb
1 [ as submodifier ] to such a great extent: the words tumbled out
so fast that I could barely hear them | don't look so worried | I'm not
so foolish as to say that.
• extremely; very much (used for emphasis): she looked so pretty | I
do love it so.
• informal used to emphasize a clause or negative statement:
that's so not fair | you are so going to regret this.

• informal used with a gesture to indicate size: the bird was about
so long.
2 [ as submodifier ] [ with negative ] to the same extent (used
in comparisons): he isn't so bad as you'd think | help without which
he would not have done so well.
3 referring back to something previously mentioned:
• that is the case: ‘Has somebody called an ambulance?’ ‘I believe so’ |
if she notices, she never says so.
• the truth: I hear that you're a writer—is that so?
• similarly; and also: times have changed and so have I.
• expressing agreement: ‘There's another one.’ ‘So there is.’.
• Irishused for emphasis in a formula added at the end of a
statement: your old man was the salt of the earth, so he was.
• informal used to emphatically contradict a negative
statement: it is so
4 in the way described or demonstrated; thus: hold your arms so |
so it was that he was still a bachelor.

conjunction
1 and for this reason; therefore: it was still painful so I went to see a
specialist | you know I'm telling the truth, so don't interrupt.
• (so that) with the result that: it was overgrown with brambles, so
that I had difficulty making any progress.

2 (so that) with the aim that; in order that: they whisper to each
other so that no one else can hear.
3 and then; as the next step: and so to the final.
4 introducing a question: so, what did you do today?
• introducing a question following on from what was said
previously: so what did he do about it?
• (also so what?) informal why should that be considered
significant?: ‘He came into the shop this morning.’ ‘So?’ | so what if
he failed?
5 introducing a statement which is followed by a defensive
comment: so I'm a policeman—what's wrong with that?
6 introducing a concluding statement: so that's that.
7 in the same way; correspondingly: just as bad money drives out
good, so does bad art drive out the good.

PHRASES
and so on (or forth)and similar things; et cetera: these savouries
include cheeses, cold meats, and so on.
just so much chiefly derogatory emphasizing a large amount
of something: it's just so much ideological cant.
not so much —— as —— not —— but rather ——: the novel
was not so much unfinished as unfinishable.

only so much a limited amount: there is only so much you can do
to protect yourself.
or so see or 1 .
so as to do something in order to do something: she had put
her hair up so as to look older.
so be it an expression of acceptance or resignation.
so far see far.
so far so good see far.
so long 1 informal goodbye till we meet again. 2 S. Africanin
the meanwhile.[translation of Afrikaans solank .]
so long as see long 1 .
so many (or much)indicating a particular but unspecified
quantity: so many hours at such-and-such a speed.
so much as [ with negative ] even: he sat down without so much as
a word to anyone.
so much for 1 indicating that one has finished talking about
something: So much for the melodic line. We now turn our attention to
the accompaniment. 2 suggesting that something has not been
successful or useful: so much for that idea
so much so that to such an extent that: I was fascinated by the
company, so much so that I wrote a book about it.

so to speak (or say)used to highlight the fact that one is
describing something in an unusual or metaphorical way:
delving into the body's secrets, I looked death in the face, so to speak.
ORIGIN Old English swā, of Germanic origin; related to
Dutch zo and German so .

so-called
adjective
many so-called critics are in fact told what to write: inappropriately
named; supposed, alleged, presumed, ostensible, reputed,
pretended, feigned, artificial, synthetic, counterfeit; nominal, in
title/name only, titular; self-styled, self-titled, professed, would-
be, self-appointed; Frenchsoi-disant; rare self-named.

excellent |ˈɛks(əә)l(əә)nt|
adjective
extremely good; outstanding: the lorry was in excellent condition |
their results are excellent.
exclamation
used to indicate approval or pleasure: ‘What a lovely idea
Excellent’.

DERIVATIVES
excellently adverb
ORIGIN late Middle English (in the general sense
‘outstanding’ in either a good or bad way): from Old French,
from Latin excellent- ‘being pre-eminent’, from excellere
(see excel). The current appreciatory sense dates from the
early 17th cent.

excellent
adjective
the wine was good and the meal excellent: very good, superb,
outstanding, magnificent, of high quality, of the highest quality,
of the highest standard, exceptional, marvellous, wonderful,
sublime, perfect, eminent, pre-eminent, matchless, peerless,
supreme, first-rate, first-class, superior, superlative, splendid,
admirable, worthy, sterling, fine; informal super, A1, ace, great,
terrific, tremendous, fantastic, fab,
supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, top-notch, tip-top, class,
awesome, magic, wicked, cool, out of this world, too good to
be true, mind-blowing; Brit. informal brilliant, brill, smashing,
champion, bosting; Austral. informal beaut, bonzer; Brit.
informal, dated spiffing, ripping, topping, top-hole, wizard,

capital; ANTONYMS poor, inferior.

terrible |ˈtɛrɪb(əә)l|
adjective
1 extremely bad or serious: a terrible crime | the terrible conditions in
which the ordinary people lived.
• extremely unpleasant or disagreeable: the weather was terrible.
very unskilful: despite passing my driving test first time, I'm a terrible
driver | I was terrible at basketball.
• [ attrib. ] informal used to emphasize the extent of something
unpleasant or bad: what a terrible mess.
• very unwell or troubled: I was sick all night and felt terrible for two
days.
2 causing or likely to cause terror; sinister: the stranger gave a
terrible smile.

PHRASES
terrible twos informal a period in a child's social
development (typically around the age of two years) which is
associated with very defiant or unruly behaviour.
DERIVATIVES
terribleness noun

ORIGIN late Middle English (in the sense ‘causing terror’): via
French from Latin terribilis, from terrere ‘frighten’.

terrible
adjective
1 a terrible crime | he suffered terrible head injuries: dreadful, awful,
appalling, horrific, horrifying, horrible, horrendous, atrocious,
abominable, abhorrent, frightful, fearful, shocking, hideous,
ghastly, grim, dire, hateful, unspeakable, gruesome, monstrous,
sickening, heinous, vile; serious, grave, acute, desperate,
grievous, distressing, lamentable; rare egregious. ANTONYMS
minor, negligible, insignificant.
2 there was a terrible smell in the room: nasty, disgusting, very
unpleasant, awful, dreadful, ghastly, horrid, horrible, vile, foul,
abominable, frightful, loathsome, revolting, repulsive, odious,
sickening, nauseating, nauseous, repellent, repugnant,
horrendous, hideous, appalling, offensive, objectionable,
obnoxious; noxious, evil-smelling, foul-smelling, smelly,
stinking, rank, rancid, fetid, malodorous, acrid; informal
gruesome, putrid, diabolical, yucky, sick-making, God-awful,
gross, from hell, icky, stinky; Brit. informal beastly, grotty,
whiffy, pongy, niffy; N. Amer. informal hellacious, lousy,

skanky, funky; Austral. informal on the nose; literary noisome,
mephitic; archaic disgustful, loathly; rare miasmal, olid.
ANTONYMS nice, delightful, lovely, pleasant.
3 Blake was in terrible pain: severe, extreme, intense, excruciating,
agonizing, unbearable, intolerable, unendurable, insufferable.
ANTONYMS slight.
4 that's a terrible thing to say about anyone: unkind, nasty,
unpleasant, foul, obnoxious, vile, contemptible, despicable,
wretched, shabby; spiteful, mean, malicious, poisonous, mean-
spirited, cruel, hateful, hurtful; unfair, uncharitable, uncalled
for, below the belt, unacceptable, unwarranted; informal dirty,
filthy, dirty rotten, low-down, beastly, off; Brit. informal out of
order; vulgar slang shitty. ANTONYMS kind, nice.
5 I'm terrible at maths | Tom was a terrible father: very bad, dreadful,
awful, frightful, atrocious, hopeless, poor, inadequate, inferior,
unsatisfactory, laughable, substandard; informal crummy,
pathetic, pitiful, useless, lousy, appalling, abysmal, dire; Brit.
informal duff, chronic, poxy, rubbish, pants, a load of pants; N.
Amer. vulgar slang chickenshit. ANTONYMS brilliant.
6 informal you're a terrible flirt | the place was in a terrible mess:
incorrigible, outrageous, great, extreme; real, awful, dreadful,

frightful, shocking; informal impossible, fearful; Brit. informal
right, proper. ANTONYMS a bit of a.
7 I feel terrible—I've been in bed all day: ill, unwell, poorly, bad,
indisposed, sick, queasy, nauseous, nauseated, peaky, liverish,
out of sorts, green about the gills; faint, dizzy, giddy, light-
headed; Brit. off, off colour; informal under the weather,
rough, lousy, awful, dreadful, crummy; Brit. informal grotty,
ropy; Scottish informal wabbit, peely-wally; Austral./NZ
informal crook; vulgar slang crappy; dated queer, seedy; rare
peaked, peakish. ANTONYMS well.
8 he still feels terrible about what he did to John: guilty, conscience-
stricken, remorseful, guilt-ridden, ashamed, chastened,
contrite, sorry, full of regret, regretful, repentant, penitent,
shamefaced, self-reproachful, apologetic. ANTONYMS
untroubled, easy in one's mind.

splendid |ˈsplɛndɪd|
adjective
magnificent; very impressive: a splendid view of Windsor Castle |
his robes were splendid.
• informal excellent; very good: a splendid fellow | [ as
exclamation ] : ‘Is your family well? Splendid’.

PHRASES
splendid isolation used to emphasize the isolation of a
person or thing: the stone stands in splendid isolation near the
moorland road.[late 19th cent.: first applied to the period of
1890–1907 when Britain pursued a policy of diplomatic and
commercial non-involvement.]
DERIVATIVES
splendidly adverb [ as submodifier ] : a splendidly ornate style,
splendidness noun
ORIGIN early 17th cent.: from French splendide or Latin
splendidus, from splendere ‘shine, be bright’.

splendid
adjective
1 a splendid palazzo on the Grand Canal | their splendid costumes:
magnificent, sumptuous, grand, impressive, imposing, superb,
spectacular, resplendent, opulent, luxurious, palatial, deluxe,
rich, fine, costly, expensive, lavish, ornate, gorgeous, glorious,
dazzling, elegant, handsome, beautiful; stately, majestic, kingly,
princely, regal, noble, proud; informal plush, plushy, posh,
swanky, ritzy, splendiferous; Brit. informal swish; N. Amer.
informal swank; literary brave; rare splendacious, splendorous,

magnolious, palatian. ANTONYMS modest, unimpressive,
ordinary.
2 an MP with a splendid reputation: distinguished, glorious,
glittering, illustrious, remarkable, outstanding, exceptional,
celebrated, renowned, famous, impressive, notable, noted,
eminent, noble, lofty, venerable, exemplary. ANTONYMS
undistinguished.
3 informal we had a splendid holiday: excellent, wonderful,
marvellous, magnificent, superb, glorious, sublime, lovely,
delightful, first-class, first-rate; informal super, great, smashing,
amazing, fantastic, terrific, tremendous, phenomenal,
sensational, incredible, heavenly, stellar, gorgeous, dreamy,
grand, fabulous, fab, fabby, fantabulous,
supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, awesome, magic, ace, cool,
mean, bad, wicked, mega, crucial, mind-blowing, far out, A1,
sound, out of this world, marvy, spanking; Brit. informal
brilliant, brill, bosting;
ANTONYMS dreadful, awful, horrible.

trouble |ˈtrʌb(əә)l|
noun [ mass noun ]
1 difficulty or problems: I had trouble finding somewhere to park |
friends should support each other when they are in trouble | the
government's policies ran into trouble | [ count noun ] : our
troubles are just beginning.
• the malfunction of something such as a machine or a part of
the body: their helicopter developed engine trouble.
• effort or exertion made to do something, especially when
inconvenient: I wouldn't want to put you to any trouble | he's gone to
a lot of trouble to help you.
• a cause of worry or inconvenience: the kid had been no trouble
up to now.
• a particular aspect of something regarded as unsatisfactory or
as a source of difficulty: that's the trouble with capitalism.
• a situation in which one is liable to incur punishment or
blame: he's been in trouble with the police.


2 public unrest or disorder: there was crowd trouble before and during
the match.
• (the Troubles)any of various periods of civil war or unrest
in Ireland, especially in 1919–23 and (in Northern Ireland)
since 1968.

verb [ with obj. ]
cause distress or anxiety to: he was not troubled by doubts.
• [ no obj. ] (trouble about/over/with) be distressed or
anxious about: she was too concerned with her own feelings to trouble
about Clare's.
• cause (someone) pain: my legs started to trouble me.
• cause (someone) inconvenience (typically used as a polite way
of asking someone to do something): sorry to trouble you | could I
trouble you for a receipt?
• [ no obj., with infinitive ] make the effort required to do
something: oh, don't trouble to answer.
PHRASES
ask for trouble informal act in a way that is likely to incur
problems or difficulties: hitching a lift is asking for trouble.

look for trouble informal behave in a way that is likely to
provoke an argument or fight: youths take a cocktail of drink and
drugs before going out to look for trouble.
trouble and strife Brit. rhyming slang wife.
a trouble shared is a trouble halved proverb talking to
someone else about one's problems helps to alleviate them.

DERIVATIVES
troubler noun
ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French truble (noun),
trubler (verb), based on Latin turbidus (see turbid) .

trouble
noun
1 it's the least you can do after all the trouble you've caused: problems,
difficulty, issues, bother, inconvenience, worry, anxiety, distress,
concern, disquiet, unease, irritation, vexation, annoyance,
stress, agitation, harassment, unpleasantness; informal hassle.
2 she ought not to be spilling out her troubles to you: problem,
misfortune, difficulty, issue, trial, tribulation, trauma, adversity,
hardship, burden, distress, pain, suffering, affliction, torment,
woe, grief, unhappiness, sadness, heartache, misery; archaic
travails.

3 he's gone to a lot of trouble to help you: bother, inconvenience, fuss,
effort, exertion, work, labour; pains, care, attention, thought;
informal hassle.
4 I wouldn't want to be a trouble to her: nuisance, bother,
inconvenience, irritation, irritant, problem, trial, pest, cause of
annoyance, source of difficulty, thorn in someone's flesh/side;
informal headache, pain in the neck, pain, pain in the backside,
drag, bore; N. Amer. informal pain in the butt, burr in/under
someone's saddle, nudnik; Brit. vulgar slang pain in the arse.
5 you're too gullible, that's your trouble: shortcoming, weakness, weak
point, failing, fault, imperfection, defect, blemish; problem,
difficulty.
6 he had a history of heart trouble: disease, illness, sickness, ailment,
complaint, problem; disorder, disability.
7 the crash was apparently due to engine trouble: malfunction,
dysfunction, failure, breakdown, fault.
8 there was crowd trouble before the match: disturbance, disorder,
unrest, bother, fighting, scuffling, conflict, tumult, commotion,
turbulence, uproar, ructions, fracas, rumpus, brouhaha, furore,
breach of the peace; Law , dated affray; informal to-do, hoo-
ha, hullabaloo; Brit. informal kerfuffle. ANTONYMS order,
peace.

PHRASES
in trouble by 1995, the firm was in trouble: in difficulty, in
difficulties, having problems, in a mess, in a bad way, in a
predicament, in dire/desperate straits, heading for disaster,
heading for the rocks, with one's back against the wall; informal
in shtook, in a tight corner/spot, in a fix, in a hole, in hot
water, up the creek (without a paddle), in a jam, in a pickle, in
the soup, screwed, up against it;
verb
1 this matter had been troubling her for some time: worry, bother, cause
concern to, concern, disturb, upset, make anxious, make
uncomfortable, make uneasy, agitate, distress, grieve, alarm,
perturb, annoy, irritate, vex, irk, torment, plague, nag, niggle,
gnaw at, prey on someone's mind, weigh/lie heavy on
someone's mind, oppress, weigh down, burden, afflict; perplex,
puzzle; informal bug.
2 lately he has been troubled by bouts of ill health: be afflicted
with/by, be bedevilled by, be beset with/by, be dogged by, be
incapacitated with, be racked with, be cursed with; suffer from;
informal be a martyr to;
3 there is nothing you need trouble about: be anxious, be distressed, be
concerned, concern oneself, worry, upset oneself, fret, agonize.
4 don't trouble to see me out: bother, take the trouble/time, go to
the trouble, make the effort, exert oneself, go out of one's way.
5 I'm sorry to trouble you: inconvenience, cause inconvenience to,
bother, impose on, create difficulties for, disturb, put out,
disoblige; informal hassle; rare discommode.


proud |praʊd|
adjective
1 feeling deep pleasure or satisfaction as a result of one's own
achievements, qualities, or possessions or those of someone
with whom one is closely associated: a proud grandma of three boys
| she got nine passes and he was so proud of her.
• (of an event, achievement, etc.) causing someone to feel
proud: we have a proud history of innovation.
2 having or showing a high or excessively high opinion of
oneself or one's importance: he was a proud, arrogant man.
• conscious of one's own dignity: I was too proud to go home.
• imposing; splendid: bulrushes emerge tall and proud from the middle
of the pond.
3 [ predic. ] Brit.slightly projecting from a surface: balls standing
proud of the fabric.
• denoting flesh that has grown round a healing wound with
excessive granulation of the tissues.
PHRASES
do someone proud informal act in a way that gives someone
cause to feel pleased or satisfied: they did themselves proud in a game
which sent the fans home happy. • treat someone very well, typically
by lavishly feeding or entertaining them.
DERIVATIVES
proudly adverb,

proudness noun
ORIGIN late Old English prūt, prūd‘having a high opinion of
one's own worth’, from Old French prud ‘valiant’, based on
Latin prodesse ‘be of value’. The phrase proud flesh dates back
to late Middle English, but the sense ‘slightly projecting’ is first
recorded in English dialect of the 19th cent.

proud
adjective
1 Moira was a delight to her proud parents | we are very proud of our
herb garden: pleased (with), glad (about/at), happy (about/at/
with), delighted (about/at/with), joyful (at), overjoyed (at/over),
thrilled (at/about/by/with), well pleased (with), satisfied (with),
gratified (at), content (at), appreciative (of). ANTONYMS
ashamed.
2 it's a proud day for all of our workers: pleasing, gratifying,
satisfying, fulfilling, rewarding, cheering, heart-warming;
happy, good, memorable, notable, red-letter, glorious, splendid,
wonderful, marvellous. ANTONYMS shameful.
3 they were poor but proud: self-respecting, dignified, noble, worthy;
independent. ANTONYMS humble.

4 he is too proud to admit to being in the wrong: arrogant, conceited,
vain, self-important, full of oneself, narcissistic, egotistical,
puffed up, jumped-up, boastful, smug, complacent, disdainful,
condescending, pretentious, scornful, supercilious, snobbish,
imperious, pompous, overbearing, bumptious, lordly,
presumptuous, overweening, haughty, high and mighty, high-
handed; informal cocky, big-headed, swollen-headed, too big
for one's boots, stuck-up, uppity, snooty, toffee-nosed,
highfalutin; informal, dated too big for one's breeches; literary
vainglorious; rare hubristic. ANTONYMS modest, humble.
5 she took a final look down the proud granite staircase: magnificent,
splendid, resplendent, grand, noble, stately, imposing, dignified,
distinguished, august, illustrious, striking, impressive, majestic,
glorious, sumptuous, marvellous, awe-inspiring, awesome,
monumental, palatial, statuesque, heroic; superb, regal, royal,
kingly, queenly, princely, imperial. ANTONYMS unimpressive.
6 fill the holes slightly proud to allow for sanding smooth: projecting,
sticking out/up, jutting, jutting out, protruding, prominent,
raised, convex, elevated. ANTONYMS concave; flush.
upset

verb |ʌpˈsɛt| (upsets, upsetting; past and past
participleupset) [ with obj. ]
1 make (someone) unhappy, disappointed, or worried: the
accusation upset her | (as adj.upsetting) : a painful and upsetting
divorce.
2 knock (something) over: he upset a tureen of soup.
3 cause disorder in; disrupt: the dam will upset the ecological balance.
• disturb the digestion of (a person's stomach). the motion of the
boat would upset his stomach.
4 (often as nounupsetting) shorten and thicken the end or
edge of (a metal bar, wheel rim, or other object), especially by
hammering or pressure when heated.

noun |ˈʌpsɛt|
1 an unexpected result or situation: the greatest upset in boxing
history.
2 [ mass noun ] the state of being unhappy, disappointed, or
worried: a legal dispute will cause worry and upset.
3 a disturbance of a person's digestive system: a stomach upset.

adjective
1 |ʌpˈsɛt| unhappy, disappointed, or worried: she looked pale and
upset.

2 |ˈʌpsɛt| (of a person's stomach) having disturbed digestion,
especially because of something eaten.
DERIVATIVES
upsetter |-ˈsɛtəә| noun,
upsettingly |-ˈsɛtɪŋli| adverb

unacceptable
adjective
four boys have been suspended for unacceptable behaviour: intolerable,
insufferable, unsatisfactory, impermissible, inadmissible,
inappropriate, unsuitable, undesirable, unreasonable,
objectionable, insupportable; offensive, obnoxious,
disagreeable, disgraceful, deplorable, terrible, distasteful,
displeasing, improper, unseemly, beyond the pale, bad, poor;

informal not on, a bit much, out of order, out, not quite the
done thing, too much; ANTONYMS acceptable,
satisfactory.
disagreement |dɪsəәˈɡriːməәnt|
noun [ mass noun ]
lack of consensus or approval: there was some disagreement about the
details | [ count noun ] : disagreements between parents and
adolescents.
• lack of consistency or correspondence: disagreement between the
results of the two assessments.
disagreement
noun
1 at the conference there was disagreement over possible solutions: dissent,
lack of agreement, difference of opinion, dispute; variance,
controversy, disaccord, discord, contention, divisions.
ANTONYMS consensus, agreement.
2 a heated disagreement over politics: argument, debate, quarrel,
wrangle, squabble, altercation, dispute, disputation, war of

words, contretemps, misunderstanding; discord, strife, conflict;
bickering, sparring, contention, dissension, disharmony;
informal falling-out, tiff, barney, set-to, shouting/slanging
match, spat, ding-dong; Brit. informal row; Brit.
informal,Football afters; Scottish informal rammy.
3 there was disagreement between the results of the two assessments:
difference, dissimilarity, variation, variance, discrepancy,
disparity, dissimilitude, unlikeness; incompatibility, incongruity,
contradiction, conflict, clash, contrast; divergence, deviation,
nonconformity. ANTONYMS agreement, correspondence.
discord
noun |ˈdɪskɔːd| [ mass noun ]
1 disagreement between people: a prosperous family who showed no
signs of discord.
• lack of agreement or harmony between things: the discord
between indigenous and Western cultures.
2 Music lack of harmony between notes sounding together: the
music faded in discord.


• [ count noun ] any interval except unison, an octave, a perfect
fifth or fourth, a major or minor third and sixth, or their
octaves.
• [ count noun ] a single note dissonant with another.
verb |dɪsˈkɔːd| [ no obj. ] archaic
(of people) disagree: we discorded commonly on two points.
• (of things) be different: the party's views were apt to discord
with those of the leading members of the government.
ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French descord (noun),
descorder (verb), from Latin discordare, from discors
‘discordant’, from dis- (expressing negation, reversal) + cor,
cord- ‘heart’.
discord
noun
1 stress resulting from financial difficulties or family discord: strife,
conflict, friction, hostility; disagreement, lack of agreement,
dissension, dispute, difference of opinion, discordance, disunity,
division, incompatibility, variance; antagonism, antipathy,
enmity, opposition, bad feeling, ill feeling, bad blood,
argument, quarrelling, squabbling, bickering, wrangling,
feuding, contention, clashing, falling-out, war, vendetta;

 ANTONYMS agreement, accord,
harmony.
2 the music faded in discord: dissonance, discordance, lack of
harmony, disharmony, cacophony, jarring, jangling.
ANTONYMS harmony.
agreement |əәˈgriːm(əә)nt|
noun [ mass noun ]
harmony or accordance in opinion or feeling: the governments
failed to reach agreement | the two officers nodded in agreement.
• [ count noun ] a negotiated and typically legally binding
arrangement between parties as to a course of action: a trade
agreement | a verbal agreement to sell.
• the absence of incompatibility between two things;
consistency: agreement between experimental observations and theory.
• Grammar the condition of having the same number, gender,
case, and/or person as another word.
ORIGIN late Middle English: from Old French, from agreer
‘make agreeable to’ (see agree) .

agreement
noun
1 all heads nodded in agreement: accord, concurrence, consensus,
harmony, accordance, unity, unison, concord, like-mindedness,
rapport, sympathy; assent, acceptance, consent, acquiescence,
endorsement, confirmation. ANTONYMS disagreement.
2 the defence minister signed an agreement on military cooperation:
contract, compact, treaty, covenant, pact, accord, deal,
bargain, settlement, concordat, protocol, entente,
arrangement, understanding, pledge, promise, bond.
3 there is some agreement between my view and that of the author:
correspondence, consistency, compatibility, conformity,
coincidence, harmony, concord, accord, accordance, congruity;
similarity, resemblance, likeness, identity, uniformity,
relationship, association, similitude. ANTONYMS discord.
dissent |dɪˈsɛnt|
noun [ mass noun ]
the holding or expression of opinions at variance with those
commonly or officially held: there was no dissent from this view.

• (also Dissent)refusal to accept the doctrines of an established
or orthodox Church; nonconformity. rural communities with a long
tradition of Dissent.
• (in sport) the offence of expressing disagreement with the
referee's decision: he was sent off for dissent.
• [ count noun ] USa statement by a judge giving reasons as to
why he or she disagrees with a decision made by the other
judges in a court case. he wasted no time in cranking out nine majority
opinions, as well as three dissents.
verb [ no obj. ]
hold or express opinions that are at variance with those
commonly or officially held: two members dissented from the
majority | (as adj.dissenting) : there were a couple of dissenting
voices.
• disagree with the doctrine of an established or orthodox
Church.
ORIGIN late Middle English: from Latin dissentire ‘differ in
sentiment’.
dissent
verb

we do not dissent from the points that have been made: differ,
demur, diverge; disagree with, fail to agree with, express
disagreement with, be at variance/odds with, argue with, take
issue with; decline/refuse to support, not ratify, protest against,
object to, dispute, challenge, quibble over; reject, repudiate,
renounce, abjure. ANTONYMS assent, agree, accept.
noun
there were murmurs of dissent from the opposition benches:
disagreement, lack of agreement, difference of opinion,
argument, dispute, demur; disapproval, objection, protest,
opposition, defiance, insubordination; conflict, friction, strife;
arguing, quarrelling, wrangling, bickering. ANTONYMS
agreement, acceptance.

mild |mʌɪld|
adjective
1 not severe, serious, or harsh: mild criticism | mild flu-like
symptoms.
• (of weather) moderately warm, especially less cold than
expected: mild winters.
• (of a feeling) not intense or extreme: she looked at him in mild
surprise.
• (of a medicine or cosmetic) acting gently. a mild sedative.
• (of food, drink, or tobacco) not sharp, hot, or strong in
flavour: a mild Italian cheese.
2 gentle and not easily provoked: she was implacable, despite her
mild exterior.
DERIVATIVES
mildish adjective
ORIGIN Old English milde (originally in the sense ‘gracious,
not severe in command’), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch
and German mild, from an Indo-European root shared by
Latin mollis and Greek malthakos ‘soft’.
mild
adjective
1 he continued in the same mild tone of voice: gentle, tender, soft, soft-
hearted, tender-hearted, sensitive, sympathetic, warm, warm-
hearted, unassuming, conciliatory, placid, meek, modest,
docile, calm, tranquil, serene, peaceful, peaceable, pacific,
good-natured, amiable, affable, genial, easy, easy-going,
mellow. ANTONYMS harsh.
2 a mild punishment: lenient, clement, light; compassionate,
pitying, forgiving, merciful, forbearing, humane. ANTONYMS
cruel, harsh.

3 he was eyeing her with mild interest: slight, faint, vague, minimal,
half-hearted, paltry, meagre, superficial, nominal, token, feeble,
indifferent, imperceptible. ANTONYMS strong.
4 mild weather: warm, balmy, equable, temperate, gentle, soft,
moderate, favourable, clement. ANTONYMS severe, cold.
5 a mild curry: bland, insipid, flavourless, tasteless, savourless,
spiceless; thin, watery, watered down. ANTONYMS spicy.
despair |dɪˈspɛː|
noun [ mass noun ]
the complete loss or absence of hope: a voice full of self-hatred and
despair | in despair, I hit the bottle.
verb [ no obj. ]
lose or be without hope: we should not despair | she despaired of
finding a good restaurant nearby.
PHRASES
be the despair of cause to lose hope: such students can be the
despair of conscientious teachers.
ORIGIN Middle English: the noun via Anglo-Norman French
from Old French desespeir; the verb from Old French
desperer, from Latin desperare, from de- ‘down from’ +
sperare ‘to hope’.

despair
noun
many parents feel pain and despair about their teenage children:
hopelessness, desperation, distress, anguish, pain, unhappiness;
dejection, depression, despondency, disconsolateness, gloom,
melancholy, melancholia, misery, wretchedness;
disheartenment, discouragement, resignedness, forlornness,
defeatism, pessimism. ANTONYMS hope; joy.
PHRASES
be the despair of my handwriting was the despair of my teachers:
be the bane of, be the scourge of, be a burden on, be a trial to,
be a thorn in the flesh/side of, be a bother to, be the ruin of, be
the death of.
verb
don't despair if you didn't win this time: lose hope, give up hope,
abandon hope, give up, lose heart, be discouraged, be
despondent, be demoralized, resign oneself, throw in the
towel/sponge, quit, surrender; be pessimistic, look on the black
side; archaic despond.
condemn |kəәnˈdɛm|
verb [ with obj. ]

1 express complete disapproval of; censure: most leaders roundly
condemned the attack | the plan was condemned by campaigners.
2 sentence (someone) to a particular punishment, especially
death: the rebels had been condemned to death | (as
adj.condemned) : the condemned men.
• (of circumstances) force (someone) to endure or accept
something unpleasant: the physical ailments that condemned him
to a lonely childhood.
• prove or show to be guilty or unsatisfactory: she could see in his
eyes that her stumble had condemned her.
3 officially declare (something) to be unfit for use: the pool has
been condemned as a health hazard.
DERIVATIVES
condemnable |-ˈdɛmnəәb(əә)l| adjective
ORIGIN Middle English (in sense 2): from Old French
condemner, from Latin condemnare, from con- (expressing
intensive force) + damnare ‘inflict loss on’ (see damn) .
condemn
verb
1 he condemned such players for dragging the name of football through the
dirt: censure, criticize, castigate, attack, denounce, deplore,

decry, revile, inveigh against, blame, chastise, berate, upbraid,
reprimand, rebuke, reprove, reprehend, take to task, find fault
with, give someone/something a bad press; deprecate,
disparage; informal slam, hammer, lay into, cane, blast; Brit.
informal slate, slag off, have a go at; archaic slash, reprobate;
rare excoriate, vituperate, arraign, objurgate, anathematize.
ANTONYMS praise, commend.
2 the rebels had been condemned to death: sentence, pass sentence on;
convict, find guilty. ANTONYMS acquit.
3 the pool has been condemned as a health hazard: declare unfit,
declare unsafe; denounce, criticize.
4 she could see in his eyes that her mistake had condemned her:
incriminate, prove to be guilty, prove one's guilt, implicate;
archaic inculpate.
5 the physical ailments that condemned him to a lonely childhood:
doom, destine, damn, foredoom, foreordain, mark someone
out for; consign, assign; rare predoom.
aqua 1 |ˈakwəә|
noun [ mass noun ]

a light bluish-green colour; aquamarine. houses of yellow and
aqua. [ as modifier ] : aqua blue.
ORIGIN 1930s: abbreviation of aquamarine.
aquatic
adjective
aquatic plants: water; sea, marine, maritime, saltwater, seawater,
oceanic; freshwater, river, fluvial; rare pelagic, thalassic.
alone |əәˈləәʊn|
adjective& adverb
1 having no one else present; on one's own: [ as predic. adj. ] :
she was alone that evening | [ as adv. ] : he lives alone.
• without others' help or participation; single-handed: [ as
adv. ] : team members are more effective than individuals working alone |
[ as predic. adj. ] : they were not alone in dissenting from the advice.
• [ as adj. ] isolated and lonely: she was terribly alone and exposed.
2 [ as adv. ] indicating that something is confined to the
specified subject or recipient: he is answerable to Parliament alone |
it was a smile for him alone.

• used to emphasize that only one factor out of several is being
considered and that the whole is greater or more extreme: there
were fifteen churches in the town centre alone.
PHRASES
go it alone informal act by oneself without assistance. they lack
the knowledge and confidence to go it alone.
leave someone/thing alone 1 abandon or desert someone
or something: she was frightened because he had left her alone. 2 (also
let someone/thing alone or leave/let well alone)stop
disturbing, interfering with, or trying to improve someone or
something: if you see him on his way to school, just leave him alone |
she wished he would let her alone | take my advice and leave well alone.
DERIVATIVES
aloneness noun
ORIGIN Middle English: from all + one.
individual |ɪndɪˈvɪdjʊ(əә)l|
adjective
1 [ attrib. ] single; separate: individual tiny flowers.
2 of or for a particular person: the individual needs of the children.
• designed for use by one person: a casserole served in individual
portions.

• characteristic of a particular person or thing: she was surprised
at how individual the others' bodies were.
• having a striking or unusual character; original: she creates her
own, highly individual landscapes.
noun
a single human being as distinct from a group: boat trips for
parties and individuals.
• a single member of a class: they live in a group or as individuals,
depending on the species.
• [ with adj. ] informal a person of a specified kind: the most
selfish, egotistical individual I have ever met.
• a distinctive or original person.
ORIGIN late Middle English (in the sense ‘indivisible’): from
medieval Latin individualis, from Latin individuus, from
in- ‘not’ + dividuus ‘divisible’ (from dividere ‘to divide’).
individual
adjective
1 exhibitions devoted to individual artists: single, separate, discrete,
independent; sole, lone, solitary, isolated.

2 he had his own individual style of music: characteristic, distinctive,
distinct, typical, particular, peculiar, personal, personalized,
special; rare especial. ANTONYMS collective.
3 he has a chic and highly individual apartment: original, unique,
exclusive, singular, idiosyncratic, different, unusual, off-centre,
novel, unorthodox, atypical, out of the ordinary. ANTONYMS
ordinary.
noun
1 Peter was a rather stuffy individual: person, human being, human,
being, mortal, soul, creature, thing; man, gentleman, boy,
woman, lady, girl; figure, personage; informal character, type,
sort, beggar, cookie, customer, guy, devil, bunny, bastard; Brit.
informal bod, geezer, gent, punter; informal, dated body, dog;
Brit. informal, dated cove; Brit. vulgar slang sod, bugger;
archaic wight.
2 she enjoyed the freedom of being an individual: individualist, free
spirit, nonconformist, original, eccentric, character, bohemian,
maverick, rare bird, rarity; loner, lone wolf, outsider; Latinrara
avis; Brit. informal one-off, oner.
singular |ˈsɪŋgjʊləә|

adjective
1 Grammar (of a word or form) denoting or referring to just
one person or thing. the third person singular form of the verb.
• single; unique: she always thought of herself as singular, as his only
daughter.
2 exceptionally good or great; remarkable: he had the singular good
fortune not to die in the trenches.
• strange or eccentric in some respect: no explanation accompanied
this rather singular statement.
3 Mathematics (of a square matrix) having a zero
determinant.
4 Physics & Mathematics relating to or of the nature of
singularity.
nounGrammar
a singular word or form.
• (the singular) the singular number: a word in the singular.
ORIGIN Middle English (in the sense ‘solitary, single’, also
‘beyond the average’): from Old French singuler, from Latin
singularis, from singulus (see single) .
singular
adjective

1 the success of the appeal demonstrates the gallery's singular capacity to
attract sponsors: remarkable, extraordinary, exceptional,
outstanding, striking, signal, eminent, especial, particular,
notable, noteworthy, conspicuous, distinctive, impressive; rare,
unique, unparalleled, unprecedented, superior, superlative,
amazing, astonishing, phenomenal, astounding, sensational,
spectacular; informal tremendous, awesome, fantastic,
fabulous, terrific, stupendous, unreal. ANTONYMS ordinary,
run-of-the-mill.
2 Lydia wondered why Betty was behaving in so singular a fashion:
strange, unusual, odd, peculiar, funny, curious, extraordinary,
bizarre, eccentric, weird, queer, outlandish, offbeat,
unexpected, unfamiliar, abnormal, aberrant, atypical,
unconventional, out of the ordinary, off-centre, incongruous,
unnatural, anomalous, untypical, puzzling, mystifying,
mysterious, perplexing, baffling, unaccountable; Frenchoutré;
N. Amer. informal off the wall. ANTONYMS normal,
unsurprising.
solitary |ˈsɒlɪt(əә)ri|
adjective

1 done or existing alone: I live a pretty solitary life | tigers are
essentially solitary.
• (of a place) secluded or isolated: solitary farmsteads.
• (of a bird, mammal, or insect) living alone or in pairs,
especially in contrast to related social forms: a solitary wasp.
• (of a flower or other part) borne singly. each spider-like bloom is
solitary.
2 [ attrib. ] [ often with negative ] single; only: we have not a
solitary shred of evidence to go on.
noun (pl.solitaries)
1 a recluse or hermit. he had something of the solitary about him.
2 informal short for solitary confinement.
DERIVATIVES
solitarily adverb,
solitariness noun
ORIGIN Middle English: from Latin solitarius, from solus
‘alone’.
solitary
adjective
1 I live a pretty solitary life: lonely, companionless,
unaccompanied, by oneself/itself, on one's/its own, (all) alone,

friendless; antisocial, unsociable, withdrawn, reclusive,
cloistered, introverted, hermitic;
ANTONYMS sociable.
2 solitary farmsteads were sparingly dotted about: isolated, remote, out
of the way, outlying, off the beaten track, in the depths of ...,
hard to find, lonely, in the back of beyond, in the hinterlands,
off the map, in the middle of nowhere, godforsaken, obscure,
inaccessible, cut-off, tucked away, unreachable; faraway, far-
flung; secluded, hidden, concealed, private, unfrequented,
unvisited, undisturbed, sequestered, desolate; N. Amer. in the
backwoods, lonesome; S. African in the backveld, in the
platteland; Austral./NZ in the backblocks, in the booay;
informal unget-at-able, in the sticks; N. Amer. informal
jerkwater, in the tall timbers, in the boondocks; Austral./NZ
informal Barcoo, beyond the black stump; literary lone;
archaic unapproachable. ANTONYMS accessible, busy.
3 we have not a solitary shred of evidence to go on: single, lone, sole,
unique, only, one, individual; odd.
noun

at school he remained a solitary: loner, lone wolf, introvert, recluse,
hermit; in Japanhikikomori; rare eremite, anchorite, anchoress,
stylite, cenobite.

group |gruːp|
noun [ treated as sing. or pl. ]
1 a number of people or things that are located, gathered, or
classed together: a group of boys approached | the bulbs should be
planted in groups.
• a number of people that work together or share certain
beliefs: I now belong to my local drama group.
• a commercial organization consisting of several companies
under common ownership: the largest newspaper group in the UK.
• a number of musicians who play popular music together. I've
always been a fan of the guitarists in the group.
• Military a division of an air force, usually consisting of two or
more stations.
2 Chemistry a set of elements occupying a column in the
periodic table and having broadly similar properties arising
from their similar electronic structure.

• a combination of atoms having a recognizable identity in a
number of compounds. a methyl group.
3 Mathematics a set of elements, together with an associative
binary operation, which contains an inverse for each element
and an identity element.
4 Linguistics (in systemic grammar) a level of structure
between clause and word, broadly corresponding to phrase in
other grammars.
verb [ with obj. and adverbial ]
put in a group or groups: three chairs were grouped around a table.
• put into categories; classify: molluscs are grouped into seven different
classes.
• [ no obj., with adverbial ] form a group or groups: growers
began to group together to form cooperatives.
DERIVATIVES
groupage noun
ORIGIN late 17th cent.: from French groupe, from Italian
gruppo, of Germanic origin; related to crop.

group
noun

1 she sorted the coins into groups: category, class, classification,
grouping, set, lot, batch, bracket, type, sort, kind, variety,
family, species, genus, breed, style; grade, grading, rank, status.
2 a group of passengers awaited their plane: crowd, band, company,
party, body, gathering, congregation, assembly, collection,
cluster, flock, pack, troop, gang, batch; informal bunch.
3 a coup attempt was mounted by a group within the parliament: faction,
division, section, clique, coterie, circle, set, ring, camp, bloc,
caucus, cabal, junta, fringe movement, splinter group, minority
group.
4 the women's group meets in the early afternoon: association, club,
society, league, guild, circle, union, consortium, cooperative,
partnership, syndicate; rare consociation.
5 a small group of islands: cluster, knot, collection, mass, clump,
bunch.
verb
1 patients were grouped according to their symptoms: categorize,
classify, class, sort, bracket, pigeonhole, grade, rate, rank;
designate, label, tag, brand; file, catalogue, list, tabulate, index,
assign.

2 she grouped the flowers beautifully in a small alcove: assemble,
collect, gather together, mass, amass, cluster, clump, bunch;
arrange, organize, marshal, range, line up, dispose.
3 the two parties grouped together for negotiating purposes: unite,
join up, join together, team up, join forces, pool resources, club
together, get together, come together, gather; collaborate, work
together, pull together, cooperate; link, ally, associate,
fraternize, form an alliance, affiliate, federate; amalgamate,
combine, merge, integrate, consolidate. ANTONYMS split up.
complicate |ˈkɒmplɪkeɪt|
verb [ with obj. ]
make (something) more complicated: increased choice will
complicate matters for the consumer | (as adj.complicating) : a
complicating factor.
• Medicine introduce complications in (an existing condition):
smoking may complicate pregnancy | (as adj.complicating) : patients
with complicating biliary calculi.
ORIGIN early 17th cent. (in the sense ‘combine, entangle,
intertwine’): from Latin complicat- ‘folded together’, from
the verb complicare, from com- ‘together’ + plicare ‘to
fold’.

complicate
verb
involvement with Adam could only complicate her life: make (more)
difficult, make complex, make complicated, mix up; confuse,
muddle, entangle, embroil; informal mess up, snarl up, screw
up; archaic perplex, embarrass; rare ravel. ANTONYMS
simplify.
free |friː|
adjective (freer |ˈfriːəә| , freest |ˈfriːɪst| )
1 able to act or be done as one wishes; not under the control of
another: I have no ambitions other than to have a happy life and be free
| a free choice.
• [ with infinitive ] able or permitted to take a specified action:
you are free to leave.
• (of a state or its citizens or institutions) subject neither to
foreign domination nor to despotic government: a free press.
• historical not a slave. the poor among the free men joined the slaves
against the rich.
• [ in names ] denoting an ethnic or political group actively
opposing an occupying or invading force, in particular the
groups that continued resisting the Germans in the Second
World War after the fall of their countries. the Free Dutch, Free
Polish, and Free Norwegian fleets. See also Free French.
2 [ often as complement ] not or no longer confined or
imprisoned: the researchers set the birds free.
• not physically obstructed or fixed: he tried to kick his legs free.

• Physics (of power or energy) disengaged or available. See
also free energy.
• Physics & Chemistry not bound in an atom, a molecule, or a
compound: the atmosphere of that time contained virtually no free
oxygen. See also free radical.
• Linguistics denoting a linguistic form that can be used in
isolation.
3 not subject to engagements or obligations: she spent her free time
shopping.
• (of a facility or piece of equipment) not occupied or in use:
the bathroom was free.
4 (free of/from) not subject to or affected by (something
undesirable): our salsas are free of preservatives.
5 given or available without charge: free health care.
6 using or expending something without restraint; lavish: she
was always free with her money.
• frank or unrestrained in speech, expression, or action: he was
free in his talk of revolution.
• archaic overfamiliar or forward.
7 (of literature or music) not observing the normal conventions
of style or form.
• (of a translation) conveying only the broad sense; not literal.

8 Sailing (of the wind) blowing from a favourable direction to
the side or aft of a vessel.
adverb
1 without cost or payment: ladies were admitted free.
2 Sailing with the sheets eased. I kept her off the wind and sailing
free until I had all square forward.
verb (frees, freeing, freed) [ with obj. ]
1 release from confinement or slavery: they were freed from jail.
• release from physical obstruction or restraint: I had to tug hard
and at last freed him | she struggled to free herself from the tenacious
mud.
2 remove something undesirable or restrictive from: his
inheritance freed him from financial constraints | free your body of
excess tension.
3 make available for a particular purpose: we are freeing
management time for alternative work.
PHRASES
for free informal without cost or payment. these professionals were
giving their time for free.
free and easy informal and relaxed: enjoy the free and easy
lifestyle.
free, gratis, and for nothing humorous without charge.

a free hand freedom to act completely at one's own
discretion. Congress had given him a free hand to take care of the
situation.
free on board (or rail)(abbrev.: f.o.b. or f.o.r.)including or
assuming delivery without charge to a ship (or railway wagon).
(a) free rein see rein.
a free ride used in reference to a situation in which someone
benefits without having to make a fair contribution: it is time for
the scientific community to stop giving alternative medicine a free ride.
the free world the non-communist countries of the world, as
formerly opposed to the Soviet bloc.
it's a free country said when justifying a course of action. it's
a free country, a man can buy lunch for a pretty girl.
make free with treat without proper respect: he'll have
something to say about your making free with his belongings.
DERIVATIVES
freeness noun
ORIGIN Old English frēo (adjective), frēon (verb), of Germanic
origin; related to Dutch vrij and German frei, from an Indo-
European root meaning ‘to love’, shared by friend.
-free |friː|
combining form

free of or from: smoke-free | tax-free.
free
adjective
1 elementary education should be free: without charge, free of charge,
for nothing, complimentary, gratis, gratuitous, at no cost;
informal for free, on the house. ANTONYMS paid for;
expensive.
2 she was free of any pressures: unencumbered by, unaffected by,
clear of, without, devoid of, lacking in; exempt from, not liable
to, safe from, immune to, relieved of, released from, excused of,
exempted from; rid of; informal sans, minus. ANTONYMS
encumbered by.
3 he will be free at the weekend: unoccupied, not at work, not
working, not busy, not tied up, between appointments, off duty,
off work, off, on holiday, on leave; idle, at leisure, with time on
one's hands, with time to spare; available, contactable.
ANTONYMS occupied; unavailable.
4 he found a free seat on the bus: vacant, empty, available, spare,
unoccupied, untaken, unfilled, unused, not in use; uninhabited,
tenantless; informal up for grabs. ANTONYMS occupied,
engaged, taken.

5 a citizen of a proud free nation: independent, self-governing, self-
governed, self-ruling, self-legislating, self-determining, self-
directing, non-aligned, sovereign, autonomous, autarkic,
democratic, emancipated, enfranchised; self-sufficient;
historical manumitted. ANTONYMS dependent.
6 a known child killer is still free: on the loose, at liberty, at large;
loose, unconfined, unbound, untied, unchained, untethered,
unshackled, unfettered, unrestrained, unsecured.
ANTONYMS captive.
7 people are free to choose where they wish to live: able to, in a
position to, capable of; allowed, permitted, unrestricted.
ANTONYMS unable.
8 the free flow of water between adjoining tanks: unobstructed,
unimpeded, unrestricted, unhampered, unlimited, clear, open,
unblocked. ANTONYMS obstructed.
9 she caught the free end of the rope: unattached, unfastened,
unsecured, unhitched, untied, uncoupled, not fixed, detached,
loose. ANTONYMS attached.
10 she was always free with her money: generous, lavish, liberal,
open-handed, unstinting, giving, munificent, bountiful,
bounteous, charitable, extravagant, prodigal. ANTONYMS
mean.

11 he was known for his free and hearty manner: easy-going, free and
easy, tolerant, liberal, permissive, indulgent, relaxed, casual,
informal, unceremonious, unforced, natural, open, frank,
spontaneous, uninhibited, artless, ingenuous; good-humoured,
affable, friendly; informal laid-back, unflappable.
ANTONYMS strained; formal.
12 the children were rather too free with us: impudent, impertinent,
disrespectful; familiar, overfamiliar, over-free, presumptuous,
forward, bold, assertive; informal cheeky, cocky, pushy.
ANTONYMS polite.
PHRASES
free and easy the restaurant has a free and easy atmosphere: easy-
going, relaxed, casual, informal, unceremonious, unforced,
natural, open, spontaneous, uninhibited, friendly; breezy, airy,
jaunty, carefree; informal laid-back, upbeat. ANTONYMS
formal.
a free hand he was allowed a free hand in appointing new staff: free
rein, freedom, licence, latitude, leeway, scope, flexibility; liberty,
independence; Frenchcarte blanche.
free spirit you're too much of a free spirit for him: individualist,
individual, nonconformist, unorthodox person, unconventional

person, original, eccentric, bohemian, maverick, rare bird,
rarity; lone wolf, outsider; Latinrara avis.
make free with he was unhappy about her making free with his
belongings: help oneself to, take, take possession of, take over,
hijack, appropriate, ‘borrow’, steal; use without asking, treat
without respect; informal walk off with;
verb
1 the government freed all political prisoners: release, liberate,
discharge, emancipate, set free, let go, set at liberty, set loose, let
loose, turn loose, deliver; untie, unchain, unfetter, unshackle,
unmanacle, uncage, unleash; spare, pardon, reprieve, clear;
informal let off, let off the hook; literary disenthral; historical
manumit. ANTONYMS confine, lock up.
2 earthquake victims had to be freed by firefighters: extricate, extract,
disentangle, disentwine, disengage, disencumber, loosen,
release, remove, get out, pull out, pull free, get loose, get free;
rescue, set free. ANTONYMS trap.
3 they wish to be freed from all legal ties: exempt, make exempt,
except, excuse, absolve; relieve of, absolve of, unburden of,
disburden of; strip of;

pull |pʊl|
verb [ with obj. ]
1 [ usu. with adverbial ] exert force on (someone or something)
so as to cause movement towards oneself: he pulled her down on to
the couch | [ with obj. and complement ] : I pulled the door shut
behind me | figurative : they are pulled in incompatible directions by
external factors and their own beliefs | [ no obj. ] : the little boy pulled
at her skirt.
• (of an animal or vehicle) be attached to the front and be the
source of forward movement of (a vehicle): the carriage was pulled
by four horses.
• [ no obj. ] (of an engine) exert propulsive force; deliver
power: the engine warmed up quickly and pulled well.
• [ with obj. and adverbial ] remove or extract (something) by
grasping and exerting force on it: she pulled a handkerchief out of
her pocket | he pulled on his boots | I pulled up some onions.
• [ with adverbial of direction ] (pull oneself) move in a
specified direction with effort, especially by taking hold of
something and exerting force: he pulled himself into the saddle.
• damage (a muscle, ligament, etc.) by abnormal strain. he pulled
a calf muscle in the first half of the game and had to be replaced.

2 [ no obj., with adverbial ] move steadily in a specified
direction or manner: the bus was about to pull away | the boy pulled
ahead and disappeared round the corner.
• [ no obj., with adverbial of direction ] move one's body in a
specified direction, especially against resistance: she tried to pull
away from him.
3 attract (someone) as a customer; cause to show interest in
something: anyone can enter the show if they have a good act and the
ability to pull a crowd | tourist attractions which pull in millions of
foreign visitors.
• Brit. informal succeed in attracting sexually: I used my sense of
humour to pull girls.
• informal carry out or achieve (something clever or
duplicitous): the magazine pulled its trick of producing the right issue at
the right time.

4 informal cancel or withdraw (an entertainment or
advertisement): the gig was pulled at the first sign of difficulty.

5 Cricket play (the ball) round to the leg side from the off.
• Golf & Baseball strike (the ball) in the direction of one's
follow-through so that it travels to the left (or, with a left-
handed player, the right).
6 [ no obj. ] American Football (of a lineman) withdraw from
and cross behind the line of scrimmage to block opposing
players and clear the way for a runner. he may be their best ever
lineman—he can run and pull with the best.
7 print (a proof).
8 Computing retrieve (an item of data) from the top of a stack.
noun
1 an act of pulling something: give the hair a quick pull and it comes
out by the roots.
• a handle to hold while pulling. the car didn't have external door
handles, just pulls inside.

• a deep draught of a drink. he unscrewed the cap from the flask and
took another pull.
• an act of inhaling while smoking a pipe, cigarette, or cigar: he
took a pull on his cheroot.
• [ in sing. ] Brit.an act of moving steadily or with effort: a pull
for ten minutes brought me to the summit.
• an injury to a muscle or ligament caused by abnormal strain:
he was ruled out of the game with a hamstring pull.
2 [ in sing. ] a force drawing someone or something in a
particular direction: the pull of the water tore her away | figurative :
the pull of her home town was a strong one.
• [ count noun ] something exerting an influence or attraction:
one of the pulls of urban life is the opportunity of finding employment.
• [ mass noun ] ability to exercise influence: the team might be
seeded because of their pull within soccer's international body.

PHRASES

like pulling teeth informal used to convey that something is
extremely difficult to do: it had been like pulling teeth to extract these
two small items from Moore.
pull a boner see boner.
pull a face (or faces) see face.
pull a fast one see fast 1 .
pull one's head in Austral./NZ informal mind one's own
business. he got mad and told her to pull her head in.
pull someone's leg deceive someone playfully; tease
someone. getting married—are you pulling my leg?
pull the other one (it's got bells on)Brit. informal used to
express a suspicion that one is being deceived or teased: Your
boat was sunk by a swordfish? Pull the other one
pull out all the stops see stop.
pull the plug informal prevent something from happening or
continuing: the company pulled the plug on the deal.
pull (one's) punches [ usu. with negative ] be less forceful,
severe, or violent than one could be: a smooth-tongued critic who
doesn't pull his punches.
pull rank see rank 1 .
pull one's socks up see sock.

pull strings make use of one's influence and contacts to gain
an advantage unofficially or unfairly. he tried to pull strings with
people he knew to avoid being called up.
pull the strings be in control of events or of other people's
actions. it's uncomfortable to know that someone else is pulling the strings.
pull together cooperate in a task or undertaking. employees and
managers began to pull together as a team.
pull oneself together recover control of one's emotions.
you've got to pull yourself together and find a job.
pull someone/thing to pieces see piece.
pull one's weight do one's fair share of work. he must pull his
weight or leave.
pull wires US another way of saying pull strings above.
pull the wool over someone's eyes see wool.
PHRASAL VERBS
pull back (or pull someone/thing back) 1 retreat or cause
troops to retreat from an area: the pact called on the rival forces to
pull back and allow a neutral force to take control. • (pull back)
withdraw from an undertaking: the party pulled back from its only
positive policy. 2 Sport improve or restore a team's position by
scoring a goal: he pulled back a goal three minutes before half time |
Rovers pulled back to 4–3 with a goal two minutes from time.

pull something down 1 demolish a building. the house was
pulled down and the site redeveloped. 2 informal earn a sum of
money: he was pulling down sixty grand a year.
pull in Brit. 1 (of a vehicle) move to the side of or off the
road: he pulled in at the kerb. 2 (of a bus or train) arrive to take
passengers. he was ready and waiting half an hour before the express
pulled in.
pull someone/thing in 1 succeed in securing or obtaining
something: the party pulled in 10 per cent of the vote. • informal earn
a sum of money: you could pull in £100,000. 2 informal arrest
someone: I'd pull him in for questioning. 3 use reins to check a
horse.
pull something off informal succeed in achieving or winning
something difficult: he pulled off a brilliant first round win.
pull out 1 withdraw from an undertaking: he was forced to pull
out of the championship because of an injury. • retreat or cause to
retreat from an area: the army pulled out, leaving the city in ruins |
(pull someone out) : the CIA had pulled its operatives out of
Tripoli. 2 (of a bus or train) leave with its passengers. the train
pulled out of the station at 2.05. 3 (of a vehicle) move out from
the side of the road, or from its normal position in order to
overtake: as he turned the corner a police car pulled out in front of him.

pull over (of a vehicle) move to the side of or off the road. I
decided to pull over on to the hard shoulder.
pull someone over (of the police) cause a driver to pull off
the road: he was pulled over for speeding.
pull round chiefly Brit.recover from an illness. he was beginning
to pull round after his operation.
pull through (or pull someone/thing through)get through
an illness or other dangerous or difficult situation: the illness is
difficult to overcome, but we hope she'll pull through.
pull up 1 (of a vehicle) come to a halt: he pulled up outside the
cottage. 2 increase the altitude of an aircraft.
pull someone up cause someone to stop or pause; check: the
shock of his words pulled her up short. • Brit.reprimand
someone. she never failed to pull us up and tell us to stop.
DERIVATIVES
puller noun
ORIGIN Old English pullian‘pluck, snatch’; origin uncertain;
the sense has developed from expressing a short sharp action to
one of sustained force.

extricate |ˈɛkstrɪkeɪt|
verb [ with obj. ]

free (someone or something) from a constraint or difficulty: he
was trying to extricate himself from official duties.
DERIVATIVES
extricable adjective,
extrication |-ˈkeɪʃ(əә)n| noun
ORIGIN early 17th cent. (in the sense ‘unravel, untangle’):
from Latin extricat- ‘unravelled’, from the verb extricare,
from ex- ‘out’ + tricae ‘perplexities’.

awkward |ˈɔːkwəәd|
adjective
1 causing difficulty; hard to do or deal with: some awkward
questions | the wheelbarrow can be awkward to manoeuvre.
• deliberately unreasonable or uncooperative: you're being damned
awkward
2 causing or feeling uneasy embarrassment or inconvenience:
he had put her in a very awkward position | she felt awkward alone with
him.
3 not smooth or graceful; ungainly: Luther's awkward movements
impeded his progress.
• uncomfortable or abnormal: make sure the baby isn't sleeping in an
awkward position.
DERIVATIVES
awkwardly adverb
ORIGIN late Middle English (in the sense ‘the wrong way
round, upside down’): from dialect awk‘backwards, perverse,
clumsy’ (from Old Norse afugr ‘turned the wrong way’) + -
ward.
awkward
adjective

1 one of the most awkward jobs is painting a ceiling: difficult, tricky;
Brit. informal fiddly. ANTONYMS easy, straightforward.
2 the box was heavy and awkward to carry: cumbersome, unwieldy,
unhandy; informal a devil; vulgar slang a bugger, a bastard;
rare cumbrous, lumbersome.
3 I'm sorry to call at such an awkward time: inconvenient, difficult,
inappropriate, inopportune, unfortunate; archaic
unseasonable. ANTONYMS convenient.
4 he had put her in a very awkward position: embarrassing,
uncomfortable, unpleasant, delicate, ticklish, tricky, sensitive,
problematic, problematical, troublesome, perplexing, thorny,
vexatious; humiliating, compromising; informal sticky, dicey,
hairy, cringeworthy, cringe-making; Brit. informal dodgy; N.
Amer. informal gnarly.
5 she felt awkward alone with him: embarrassed, self-conscious,
uncomfortable, ill at ease, uneasy, tense, nervous, edgy,
unrelaxed, strained; rare unquiet. ANTONYMS relaxed, at
ease.
6 he was long-legged and rather awkward | his awkward movements:
clumsy, ungainly, uncoordinated, maladroit, graceless,
ungraceful, inept, inelegant, unskilful, unhandy, gauche, gawky,

gangling, blundering, lumbering, cloddish; wooden, stiff;
coltish; informal clodhopping, ham-fisted, ham-handed, with
two left feet, cack-handed; Brit. informal all thumbs, all fingers
and thumbs; archaic lubberly. ANTONYMS graceful, adroit.
7 Brit. you're being damned awkward: unreasonable, uncooperative,
unhelpful, difficult, annoying, obstructive, unaccommodating,
refractory, disobliging, contrary, perverse, tiresome,
exasperating, trying; stubborn, obstinate; Scottish thrawn;
informal cussed, pesky; Brit. informal bloody-minded, bolshie;
 ANTONYMS amenable, cooperative.
lazy |ˈleɪzi|
adjective (lazier, laziest)
1 unwilling to work or use energy: he was too lazy to cook.
• characterized by lack of effort or activity: they were enjoying a
really lazy holiday.
• showing a lack of care: lazy writing.
• (of a river) slow-moving. a lazy lowland river.

DERIVATIVES
lazily adverb
ORIGIN mid 16th cent.: perhaps related to Low German
lasich ‘languid, idle’.

lazy
adjective
idle, indolent, slothful, work-shy, shiftless, loafing, inactive,
inert, sluggish, lethargic, languorous, listless, torpid, enervated,
slow-moving, slow, heavy, dull, plodding; remiss, negligent,
slack, lax, lackadaisical, impassive, good-for-nothing, do-
nothing; leisurely; informal bone idle; French archaic fainéant;
rare otiose. ANTONYMS active, industrious, energetic.
CHOOSE THE RIGHT WORD
lazy, idle, indolent
People described as any of these words are reluctant to
expend any energy or go to any trouble over work they
have to do.
■ Lazy is the most general word (he's too lazy to mow
the lawn). Of the three words, only lazy can also be used
to describe something done without much effort (lazy
speaking leads to lazy writing). Uncritically, it can be
used of a time when little effort is expended (what better
way to liven up these lazy summer days) or, figuratively,
of inanimate objects (the Neapolitan Riviera extends in a
lazy curve around the coast).

■ Idle can be more strongly critical than lazy (you're an
idle scrounger) but is normally used in more formal
contexts. Care is sometimes needed to avoid confusion
with the sense ‘out of work’, as in 10.3 per cent of the
workforce is now idle.
■ Indolent is rarer, and more formal still (their leaders
and functionaries have been indolent, self-serving, or
downright corrupt). It can sometimes indicate slow, even
graceful movements (she moved across the room with
an indolent, hip-swaying saunter).
These notes show fine distinctions in meaning between
closely related synonyms to help you find the best word.

unruly |ʌnˈruːli|
adjective (unrulier, unruliest)
disorderly and disruptive and not amenable to discipline or
control: a group of unruly children | figurative : Kate tried to control
her unruly emotions.
DERIVATIVES
unruliness noun

ORIGIN late Middle English: from un- 1 ‘not’ + archaic
ruly‘amenable to discipline or order’ (from rule) .

unruly
adjective
she was scolding some unruly children: disorderly, rowdy, wild,
unmanageable, uncontrollable, disobedient, disruptive,
attention-seeking, undisciplined, troublemaking, rebellious,
mutinous, anarchic, chaotic, lawless, insubordinate, defiant,
wayward, wilful, headstrong, irrepressible, unrestrained,
obstreperous, difficult, intractable, out of hand, refractory,
recalcitrant; boisterous, lively, loud, noisy, rollicking, romping,
rumbustious, reckless, heedless; archaic contumacious.
ANTONYMS disciplined, obedient.
WORD TOOLKIT
unruly rebellious defiant
child
students
passengers
mob
fans
customers spirit
nature
teenager
stage
colonies
slaves stance
look
message
tone
gesture
voice

Word Toolkits illustrate the difference between close
synonyms by means of words typically used with them.

sullen |ˈsʌləәn|
adjective
bad-tempered and sulky: a sullen pout.
• (of the sky) full of dark clouds: a sullen sunless sky.
noun (the sullens) archaic
a sulky or depressed mood.
DERIVATIVES
sullenly adverb,
sullenness |-əәnnɪs| noun
ORIGIN Middle English (in the senses ‘solitary, averse to
company’, and ‘unusual’): from Anglo-Norman French sulein,
from sol ‘sole’.

sullen
adjective
a bunch of sullen, spoilt brats: surly, sulky, pouting, sour, morose,
resentful, glum, moody, gloomy, joyless, frowning, glowering,
grumpy, touchy, peevish, indignant, embittered; bad-tempered,
ill-tempered, cross, angry, testy; unresponsive,
uncommunicative, unsociable, uncivil, unmannerly, unfriendly;
informal stroppy. ANTONYMS cheerful, sociable.

obstreperous |əәbˈstrɛp(əә)rəәs|
adjective
noisy and difficult to control: the boy is cocky and obstreperous.
DERIVATIVES
obstreperously adverb,
obstreperousness noun
ORIGIN late 16th cent. (in the sense ‘clamorous, vociferous’):
from Latin obstreperus (from obstrepere, from ob- ‘against’
+ strepere ‘make a noise’) + -ous.

believable |bɪˈliːvəәbl|
adjective
able to be believed; credible: she felt that Dawn's story was not quite
believable.
• (of a fictional character or situation) convincing or realistic. a
drama that lacks believable characters.
DERIVATIVES
believability |-ˌliːvəәˈbɪlɪti| noun,
believably adverb
believable
adjective
Dawn's story was not quite believable: credible, plausible, likely,
convincing, creditable, probable, possible, feasible, tenable,
acceptable, reasonable, sound, rational, logical, within the
bounds of possibility, able to hold water, with a ring of truth;
conceivable, imaginable, thinkable. ANTONYMS
unbelievable.
charming |ˈtʃɑːmɪŋ|
adjective
very pleasant or attractive: a charming country cottage.
• (of a person or their manner) very polite, friendly, and
likeable: he was a charming, affectionate colleague.

exclamation
used as an ironic expression of displeasure or disapproval: ‘I
hate men.’ ‘Charming’ he said.
DERIVATIVES
charmingly adverb

charm |tʃɑːm|
noun
1 [ mass noun ] the power or quality of delighting, attracting,
or fascinating others: he was captivated by her youthful charm.
• [ count noun ] (usu. charms) an attractive or alluring
characteristic or feature: the hidden charms of the city.
2 a small ornament worn on a necklace or bracelet. the trinkets
were charms from his wife's bracelet.
3 an object, act, or saying believed to have magic power. the
charm begins with ritual instructions.
• an object kept or worn to ward off evil and bring good luck: a
good luck charm.
4 [ mass noun ] Physics one of six flavours of quark.
verb [ with obj. ]
1 delight greatly: the books have charmed children the world over.
• use one's ability to please and attract in order to influence
(someone): he charmed her into going out.

2 control or achieve by or as if by magic: a gesticulating figure
endeavouring to charm a cobra | [ with adverbial ] : she will charm
your warts away.
PHRASES
turn on the charm use one's ability to please in a calculated
way so as to influence someone or to obtain something. he would
have to turn on the charm to talk her round.
work like a charm be completely successful or effective. the
new sales approach worked like a charm.

ORIGIN Middle English (in the senses ‘incantation or magic
spell’ and ‘to use spells’): from Old French charme (noun),
charmer (verb), from Latin carmen ‘song, verse,
incantation’.

charming
adjective
he stayed with a French family and their charming daughter: delightful,
pleasing, pleasant, agreeable, likeable, endearing, lovely,
lovable, adorable, cute, sweet, appealing, attractive, good-
looking, prepossessing; striking, alluring, delectable, ravishing,
winning, winsome, fetching, captivating, engaging, enchanting,
entrancing, fascinating, bewitching, beguiling, spellbinding,

hypnotizing, mesmerizing, seductive, desirable, tempting,
inviting, irresistible; informal dreamy, heavenly, divine,
gorgeous, smashing, easy on the eye, as nice as pie; N. Amer.
informal babelicious, bodacious; dated taking; literary
beauteous; archaic fair, comely. ANTONYMS repulsive.
charm
noun
1 people were captivated by her charm | she was resistant to his charms:
attractiveness, beauty, glamour, prettiness, loveliness; appeal,
allure, desirability, seductiveness, magnetism, sexual
magnetism, animal magnetism, charisma; wiles,
blandishments, enticement;
 ANTONYMS unattractiveness.
2 these traditional stories retain a lot of charm: appeal, pull, draw,
drawing power, attraction, allure, fascination, captivation,
pleasingnessdelightfulness.
3 they seek supernatural assistance through magical charms: spell,
incantation, conjuration, rune, magic formula, magic word,
abracadabra, jinx; sorcery, magic, witchcraft, wizardry;

4 he took the charms from his wife's bracelet: ornament, trinket,
bauble; archaic bijou.
5 he always carries a lucky charm: talisman, fetish, amulet, mascot,
totem, idol, juju; archaic periapt; rare phylactery.
verb
1 he charmed thousands with his singing: delight, please, win, win
over, appeal to, attract, captivate, allure, lure, draw, dazzle,
fascinate, bewitch, beguile, enchant, enthral, enrapture,
enamour, seduce, ravish, hypnotize, mesmerize, spellbind,
transfix, rivet, grip; rare rapture. ANTONYMS repel.
2 he charmed his mother into letting him have his own way: coax,
cajole, wheedle; woo; informal sweet-talk, soft-soap;

serious |ˈsɪəәrɪəәs|
adjective
1 demanding or characterized by careful consideration or
application: marriage is a serious matter | we give serious consideration
to safety recommendations.
• solemn or thoughtful in character or manner: her face grew
serious.

• (of music, literature, or other art forms) requiring or meriting
deep reflection: he bridges the gap between serious and popular music.
2 acting or speaking sincerely and in earnest, rather than in a
joking or half-hearted manner: actors who are serious about their
work.
3 significant or worrying because of possible danger or risk;
not slight or negligible: she escaped serious injury.
4 [ attrib. ] informal substantial in terms of size, number, or
quality: he suddenly had serious money to spend.
ORIGIN late Middle English: from Old French serieux or
late Latin seriosus, from Latin serius ‘earnest, serious’.

serious
adjective
1 he had a serious expression on his face | Prudence was a thin, pale,
serious young woman: solemn, earnest, grave, sober, sombre,
unsmiling, poker-faced, stern, grim, dour, humourless, stony-
faced; thoughtful, preoccupied, deep in thought, pensive,
meditative, ruminative, contemplative, introspective; staid,
sedate, studious, bookish. ANTONYMS light-hearted,
cheerful, jovial.

2 we have some serious decisions to make: important, significant,
consequential, of consequence, momentous, of moment, key,
grave, weighty, far-reaching, major; urgent, pressing, crucial,
critical, vital, life-and-death, high-priority; no joke, no laughing
matter. ANTONYMS trivial, unimportant.
3 the president should give serious consideration to this advice: careful,
detailed, in-depth, deep, profound, meaningful. ANTONYMS
superficial.
4 a serious play about Art and Life: intellectual, highbrow,
heavyweight, deep, profound, literary, learned, scholarly,
cultured; classical; informal heavy. ANTONYMS light,
lowbrow, populist.
5 four of the victims received serious injuries | he appealed for emergency
foreign aid to combat the serious shortages of foodstuff and medicines:
severe, grave, bad, critical, acute, alarming, worrying, grievous,
dreadful, terrible, dire, extreme, dangerous, perilous,
precarious; archaic or humorous parlous. ANTONYMS
minor, negligible.
6 is the government serious about developing decent employment
opportunities for women? in earnest, earnest, sincere,
wholehearted, genuine, meaning what one says; committed,

firm, resolute, resolved, determined. ANTONYMS
uncommitted, half-hearted, flippant.
7 informal she spends serious sums of money. See considerable.
worthy |ˈwəәːði|
adjective (worthier, worthiest)
1 having or showing the qualities that deserve the specified
action or regard: these issues are worthy of further consideration.
• deserving effort, attention, or respect: generous donations to
worthy causes.
• good enough; suitable: no composer was considered worthy of the
name until he had written an opera.
2 characterized by good intent but lacking in humour or
imagination: worthy but tedious advice.
noun (pl.worthies) often humorous
a person notable or important in a particular sphere: schools
governed by local worthies.
DERIVATIVES
worthily adverb,
worthiness noun
ORIGIN Middle English: from worth + -y 1 .
-worthy |ˈwəәːði|

combining form
deserving of a specified thing: newsworthy.
• suitable or fit for a specified thing: roadworthy.
ORIGIN from worthy.
worthy
adjective
Samuel was a worthy and responsible citizen | a worthy cause: virtuous,
good, moral, ethical, principled, high-principled, high-minded,
right-thinking, noble, upright, upstanding, righteous, solid,
decent, law-abiding, honest, honourable, respectable,
respected, venerable, reputable, trustworthy, trusty, trusted,
reliable, dependable, conscientious, irreproachable, blameless,
unimpeachable, exemplary, admirable, praiseworthy, laudable,
commendable, estimable, deserving, meritorious, creditable,
sterling; informal squeaky clean; archaic of good report; rare
applaudable. ANTONYMS disreputable, unworthy.
PHRASES
be worthy of he believes everyone has ideas that are worthy of
attention: deserve, be deserving of, merit, warrant, rate, justify,
earn, be entitled to, have a right to, have a claim to/on, be

qualified for, qualify for. ANTONYMS be unworthy of, be
undeserving of.
noun
the candidate gained the support of some significant local worthies:
dignitary, notable, notability, celebrity, personage, famous
person, important person, person of note, luminary, public
figure, official, pillar of society, grandee, panjandrum, leading
light, name, big name, somebody, someone; informal VIP, top
brass, Mr Big, big Daddy, big shot, bigwig, big cheese, big fish,
big gun, big noise, celeb, biggie, heavy, hotshot; Brit. informal
Lady Muck, Lord Muck, nob; N. Amer. informal big wheel,
kahuna, big kahuna, macher, high muckamuck, high muckety-
muck. ANTONYMS nobody.
blow 1 |bləәʊ|
verb (pastblew |bluː| ; past participleblown |bləәʊn| )
1 [ no obj. ] (of wind) move creating an air current: a cold breeze
was blowing in off the sea.
• [ with obj. and adverbial of direction ] (of wind) cause
(something) to move; propel: a gust of wind blew a cloud of smoke
into his face | the spire was blown down during a gale.

• [ no obj., with adverbial of direction ] be carried, driven, or
moved by the wind or an air current: it was so windy that the tent
nearly blew away | cotton curtains blowing in the breeze.
• N. Amer. informal leave: I'd better blow.
2 [ no obj. ] (of a person) expel air through pursed lips: Willie
took a deep breath, and blew | he blew on his tea to cool it.
• [ with obj. ] use one's breath to propel (something): he blew
cigar smoke in her face.
• breathe hard; pant: Uncle Albert was soon puffing and blowing.
• (as adj.blown) out of breath; panting: an exhausted, blown horse.
• [ with obj. ] force air through the mouth into (an instrument)
in order to make a sound: the umpire blew his whistle.
• (of an instrument) make a sound when air is forced into it:
police whistles blew.
• [ with obj. ] sound (the horn of a vehicle). angry motorists blew
their horns.
• informal play jazz or rock music in an unrestrained style. it
took him maybe five choruses to warm up, but then he could really blow.
• [ with obj. ] force air through a tube into (molten glass) in
order to create an artefact. factory showrooms where you can see glass
being blown and painted.

• [ with obj. ] remove the contents of (an egg) by forcing air
through it. teaching children to blow an egg by placing holes in either end
with a pin.
• (of a whale) eject air and vapour through the blowhole.
3 [ with obj. and adverbial of direction ] (of an explosion or
explosive device) displace violently or send flying: the blast had
blown the windows out of the van.
• [ no obj. ] (of a vehicle tyre) burst suddenly while the vehicle
is in motion. a rear tyre had blown.
• burst or cause to burst due to pressure or overheating: [ no
obj. ] : the engines sounded as if their exhausts had blown.
• (with reference to an electric circuit) burn out through
overloading: [ no obj. ] : the fuse had blown | [ with obj. ] : the
floodlights blew a fuse.
4 [ with obj. ] informal spend recklessly: they blew £100,000 in
just eighteen months.
5 [ with obj. ] informal completely bungle (an opportunity): he'd
been given a second chance and he'd blown it | they blew a 4–2 lead.
• expose (a stratagem): a man whose cover was blown.
6 (past participleblowed) [ with obj. ] Brit. informal damn: [ as
imperative ] : ‘Well, blow me’, he said, ‘I never knew that.’ | [ with
clause ] : I'm blowed if I want to see him again.

7 [ with obj. ] vulgar slang perform fellatio on (a man).
8 [ with obj. ] (of flies) lay eggs in or on (something).
noun
1 [ in sing. ] a strong wind: we're in for a bit of a blow.
• an act of getting some fresh air: I'll go down to the sea and get a
blow before supper.
2 an act of blowing an instrument: a number of blows on the
whistle.
• informal a spell of playing jazz or rock music.
• an act of blowing one's nose: give your nose a good blow.
• (in steel-making) an act of sending an air or oxygen blast
through molten metal in a converter.
3 [ mass noun ] informal cannabis or cocaine.
PHRASES
be blown off course (of a project) be disrupted by some
circumstance. short-term prospects can be blown off course by inflation.
be blown out of the water be shown to lack all credibility.
the idea that inflation would not affect jobs was naive and has now been
blown out of the water.
blow someone's brains out informal kill someone with a
shot in the head. her third husband had blown his brains out.
blow chunks N. Amer. informal vomit.

blow cold on regard unfavourably: however, they are now blowing
cold on the issue.
blow the doors off N. Amer. informal be considerably better
or more successful than: a package that blows the doors off anything
on the market.
blow a fuse (or gasket) informal lose one's temper. it was only
a suggestion—there's no need to blow a fuse.
blow hot and cold alternate inconsistently between two
moods, attitudes, or courses of action. he had behaved badly,
stringing her along, blowing hot and cold.
blow someone a kiss kiss the tips of one's fingers then blow
across them towards someone as a gesture of affection. she
plunged into a waiting cab and blew Graham a kiss.
blow someone's mind informal impress or otherwise affect
someone very strongly: the sound of a twelve-string guitar just blew
my mind.
blow one's nose clear one's nose of mucus by blowing
through it into a handkerchief. he's wiping his eyes and blowing his
nose into a huge silk handkerchief.
blow off steam see let off steam at steam.

blow something to bits (or pieces or smithereens)use
bombs or other explosives to destroy something, typically a
building, completely: the commandos blew the base to smithereens.
blow one's top (or chiefly N. Amer.lid or stack) informal
lose one's temper. he is volatile and likely to blow his top if his
demands aren't met.
blow up in one's face (of an action, project, or situation) go
drastically wrong with damaging effects to oneself. he never knew
when a casual remark to a stranger might blow up in his face.
blow with the wind be incapable of maintaining a consistent
course of action. ‘You lack consistency’, said Bunny. ‘You blow with the
wind.’.

knot 1 |nɒt|
noun
1 a fastening made by looping a piece of string, rope, or
something similar on itself and tightening it:
knots
tie a knot at the end of the cord | figurative : a complicated knot of
racial politics and pride.
• a particular method of making a knot: you need to master two
knots, the clove hitch and the sheet bend.

• an ornamental ribbon.
2 a tangled mass in something such as hair or wool.
3 a knob, protuberance, or node in a stem, branch, or root.
• a hard mass formed in a tree trunk at the intersection with a
branch, resulting in a round cross-grained piece in timber
when cut through.
• a hard lump of tissue in the body.
4 an unpleasant feeling of tightness or tension in a part of the
body: her stomach was in knots as she unlocked the door.
5 a small tightly packed group of people: a knot of spectators
was gathering.
6 a unit of speed equivalent to one nautical mile per hour, used
especially of ships, aircraft, or winds.
• chiefly historical a length marked by knots on a log line, as a
measure of speed. some days the vessel logged 12 knots.
verb (knots, knotting, knotted) [ with obj. ]
1 fasten with a knot: the scarves were knotted loosely around their
throats | (as adj.knotted) : a knotted rope.
• make (a carpet or other decorative item) with knots.
2 make (something, especially hair) tangled: (as adj.knotted) :
he brushed through his knotted hair.
3 cause (a muscle) to become tense and hard.

• [ no obj. ] (of the stomach) tighten as a result of nervousness
or tension.
PHRASES
at a rate of knots Brit. informal very fast.
get knotted Brit. informal used to express contemptuous
rejection of someone.
tie someone (up) in knots informal make someone
completely confused. journalists tied themselves in knots
trying to define the word.
tie the knot informal get married.
DERIVATIVES
knotless adjective,
knotter noun
ORIGIN Old English cnotta, of West Germanic origin; related
to Dutch knot .
knot 2 |nɒt|
noun (pl.same or knots)
a small, relatively short-billed sandpiper, with a reddish-brown
or blackish breast in the breeding season.

●Genus Calidris, family Scolopacidae: two species, in
particular the red knot (C. canutus), which breeds in the Arctic
and winters in the southern hemisphere.
ORIGIN late Middle English: of unknown origin.
knot
noun
1 tie a small knot in the yarn: tie, twist, loop, bow, splice, splicing,
join, link, fastening, bond, intertwinement, interlacement,
ligature, joint, connection; tangle, entanglement.
2 a knot in the wood: nodule, gnarl, knurl, node, lump, knob,
swelling, growth, gall, protuberance, bump; archaic knar.
3 there was a knot of people around Catherine: cluster, group, band,
huddle, bunch, circle, ring, set, collection; party, gathering,
company, crowd, throng, swarm, host, flock, gang, assemblage,
mob, pack.
4 a pretty garden with knots of lavender: clump, tuft, cluster, bunch,
tuffet, tussock, bush.
verb
their scarves were knotted round their throats: tie, make/tie a knot in,
make a bow in, loop, lace; fasten, secure, bind, make fast, tie
up, do up, lash, tether. ANTONYMS untie.

pleased |pliːzd|
adjective
feeling or showing pleasure and satisfaction, especially at an
event or a situation: both girls were pleased with their new
hairstyles | he seemed really pleased that she was there | a pleased
smile.
• [ with infinitive ] willing or glad to do something: we will be
pleased to provide an independent appraisal.
• (pleased with oneself) proud of one's achievements,
especially excessively so; self-satisfied. as he led the way, he looked
very pleased with himself.
PHRASES
(as) pleased as Punch see punch 4 .

not best pleased Brit. informal annoyed or irritated: the
government-backed organizations were not best pleased by the criticism.
pleased to meet you said on being introduced to someone:
‘This is my wife.’ ‘Pleased to meet you.’.
DERIVATIVES
pleasedly adverb
please |pliːz|
verb [ with obj. ]
1 cause to feel happy and satisfied: he arranged a fishing trip to
please his son | [ with obj. and infinitive ] : it pleased him to be
seen with someone in the news.
• [ no obj. ] give satisfaction: she was quiet and eager to please.
• satisfy aesthetically. he was wearing a buttonhole that did not quite
please the eye.
2 (please oneself) take only one's own wishes into
consideration in deciding how to act or proceed: this is the first
time in ages that I can just please myself.
• [ no obj. ] wish or desire to do something: feel free to wander
around as you please.
• (it pleases, pleased, etc., someone to do something)
dated it is someone's choice to do something: instead of attending
the meeting, it pleased him to go off hunting.

adverb
used in polite requests or questions: please address letters to the
Editor | what type of fish is this, please?
• used to add urgency and emotion to a request: please, please
come home
• used to agree politely to a request: ‘May I ring you at home?’
‘Please do.’.
• used in polite or emphatic acceptance of an offer: ‘Would you
like a drink?’ ‘Yes, please.’.
• used to ask someone to stop doing something of which the
speaker disapproves: Rita, please—people are looking.
• used to express incredulity or irritation: Oh please, is that meant
to be a serious argument? .
PHRASES
as —— as you please informal used to emphasize the
manner in which someone does something, especially when
this is seen as surprising: she walked forward as calm as you please.
if you please 1 used in polite requests: follow me, if you please. 2
used to express indignation at something perceived as
unreasonable: she wants me to make fifty cakes in time for the festival, if
you please

please yourself used to express indifference, especially when
someone does not cooperate or behave as expected: ‘I can
manage on my own.’ ‘Please yourself.’.
ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French plaisir ‘to
please’, from Latin placere .
pleased
adjective
Edward seemed really pleased to see me: happy, glad, delighted,
gratified, grateful, thankful, content, contented, satisfied, well
pleased, thrilled, elated, as pleased as Punch, overjoyed, cock-
a-hoop, like a dog with two tails, like a child with a new toy;
informal over the moon, tickled pink, on cloud nine/seven;
Brit. informal chuffed;  ANTONYMS unhappy, dissatisfied.
PHRASES
pleased with oneself I was rather pleased with myself, and was
really trying to keep that smug look off my face: self-satisfied, smug,
complacent, self-congratulatory, superior, puffed up, self-
approving, well pleased, proud of oneself; informal goody-
goody; Brit. informal like the cat that's got the cream, I'm-all-

right-Jack; N. Amer. informal wisenheimer; N. Amer. vulgar
slang shit-eating.
please
verb
1 he'd do anything to please her: make happy, give pleasure to, make
someone pleased/glad/content, make someone feel good,
delight, charm, amuse, divert, entertain, be agreeable to,
gladden, cheer up; satisfy, gratify, humour, oblige, content, suit;
informal tickle pink. ANTONYMS displease, annoy.
2 guests are urged to do as they please: like, want, wish, desire, see/
think fit, choose, be inclined, will, prefer, opt.
adverb
let me know as soon as possible, please | please sit down: if you please,
if you wouldn't mind, if you would be so good; kindly, have the
goodness to, pray; archaic prithee.
credible |ˈkrɛdɪb(əә)l|
adjective
able to be believed; convincing: few people found his story credible |
a credible witness.
• capable of persuading people that something will happen or
be successful: a credible threat.

DERIVATIVES
credibly adverb
ORIGIN late Middle English: from Latin credibilis, from
credere ‘believe’.
usage: Confusion often arises between the words credible and
creditable. Credible chiefly means ‘able to be believed;
convincing’ ( few people found his story credible), while creditable
means ‘deserving acknowledgement and praise but not
necessarily outstanding’ ( a very creditable 2–4 defeat).
credible
adjective
1 very few people found his story credible: believable, plausible, able
to hold water, within the bounds of possibility, reasonable,
sound, compelling, persuasive; rare suasive, assuasive,
verisimilar, colourable, cogitable. ANTONYMS unbelievable.
2 the existing lists did not form a credible basis for free and fair elections:
acceptable, trustworthy, reliable, dependable, sure, good, valid;
feasible, viable, tenable, sustainable, maintainable.
ANTONYMS untrustworthy.

immaculate |ɪˈmakjʊləәt|
adjective
1 perfectly clean, neat, or tidy: an immaculate white suit.
• free from flaws or mistakes; perfect: an immaculate safety record.
• Theology (in the Roman Catholic Church) free from sin.
2 Botany & Zoology uniformly coloured without spots or
other marks.
DERIVATIVES
immaculacy noun,
immaculately adverb,
immaculateness noun
ORIGIN late Middle English (in the sense ‘free from moral
stain’): from Latin immaculatus, from in- ‘not’ +
maculatus ‘stained’ (from macula ‘spot’).
immaculate
adjective
1 an immaculate white shirt: clean, spotless, pristine, unsoiled,
unstained, unsullied, speckless, ultra-clean; whiter than white,
snowy-white, lily-white; shining, shiny, gleaming; neat, tidy,

neat and tidy, spick and span, neat as a new pin; informal
squeaky clean, as clean as a whistle. ANTONYMS dirty,
grubby.
2 a guitar in immaculate condition: perfect, pristine, mint, as good
as new; flawless, faultless, without blemish, unblemished,
unimpaired, unspoilt, undamaged, unmarred; excellent,
impeccable, prime, peak; informal tip-top, A1. ANTONYMS
bad; damaged.
3 that wouldn't look good on his otherwise immaculate record:
unblemished, spotless, pure, impeccable, unsullied, undefiled,
untarnished, stainless; innocent, virtuous, incorrupt, guiltless,
sinless; informal squeaky clean, as pure as the driven snow.
ANTONYMS blameworthy.
possession |pəәˈzɛʃ(əә)n|
noun
1 [ mass noun ] the state of having, owning, or controlling
something: she had taken possession of the sofa | the book came
into my possession | he remains in full possession of his
sanity.
• Law visible power or control over something, as distinct from
lawful ownership; holding or occupancy as distinct from

ownership: the landlord wishes to gain possession of the
accommodation.
• informal the state of possessing an illegal drug: they're charged
with possession.
• (in soccer, rugby, and other ball games) temporary control of
the ball by a player or team: the ball hit a defender and Brown's
quick reaction put him in possession.
2 (usu. possessions) something that is owned or possessed: I
had no money or possessions | that photograph was Bert's most precious
possession.
• a territory or country controlled or governed by another:
France's former colonial possessions.
3 [ mass noun ] the state of being controlled by a demon or
spirit: they said prayers to protect the people inside the hall from demonic
possession.
• the state of being completely dominated by an idea or
emotion: fear took possession of my soul.
DERIVATIVES
possessionless adjective
ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French, from Latin
possessio(n-), from the verb possidere (see possess) .

possession
noun
1 the estate came into the possession of the Heslerton family: ownership,
proprietorship, control, hands, keeping, care, custody, charge,
hold, title, guardianship.
2 an attempt to drive the tenant out of her possession of the premises:
occupancy, tenure, occupation, holding, tenancy.
3 that photograph was Bert's most precious possession: asset, thing,
article, item owned, chattel.
4 (possessions) he loaded Francesca and all her possessions into his
car: belongings, things, property, worldly goods, goods, personal
effects, effects, stuff, assets, accoutrements, paraphernalia,
impedimenta, bits and pieces, luggage, baggage, bags and
baggage, chattels, movables, valuables; Law goods and chattels;
informal gear, junk, dunnage, traps; Brit. informal clobber; S.
African informal trek; vulgar slang shit, crap.
5 France's former colonial possessions: colony, dependency, territory,
holding, dominion, protectorate.
PHRASES

take possession of seize, appropriate, impound, expropriate,
sequestrate, sequester, confiscate; take, get, acquire, obtain,
secure, procure, possess oneself of, get hold of, get one's hands
on, help oneself to; occupy, conquer, capture, commandeer,
requisition; Law distrain, attach, disseize; Scottish Law poind;
informal get one's mitts on.
footnote |ˈfʊtnəәʊt|
noun
an additional piece of information printed at the bottom of a
page.
• a thing that is additional or less important: this incident seemed
destined to become a mere footnote in history.
verb [ with obj. ]
add a footnote or footnotes to (a piece of writing).
footnote |ˈfʊtnəәʊt|
noun
an additional piece of information printed at the bottom of a
page.

• a thing that is additional or less important: this incident seemed
destined to become a mere footnote in history.
verb [ with obj. ]
add a footnote or footnotes to (a piece of writing).
review |rɪˈvjuː|
noun
1 a formal assessment of something with the intention of
instituting change if necessary: a comprehensive review of UK
defence policy | [ mass noun ] : all areas of the company will come
under review.
• Law a reconsideration of a judgement, sentence, etc. by a
higher court or authority: a review of her sentence | [ mass
noun ] : his case comes up for review in January. Compare with
judicial review.
• a report on or evaluation of a subject or past events: the
Director General's end-of-year review.
2 a critical appraisal of a book, play, film, etc. published in a
newspaper or magazine. she released her debut solo album to rave
reviews.

• [ often in names ] a periodical publication with critical
articles on culture and current events. the New Left Review.
3 a ceremonial display and formal inspection of military or
naval forces, typically by a sovereign or commander-in-chief. he
conducted a final review of his troops and spoke of his pride in having
served in the US army.
4 a facility for playing a tape recording during a fast wind or
rewind, so that it can be stopped at a particular point. cue and
review, which plays the tape backwards or forwards at high speed.
verb [ with obj. ]
1 assess (something) formally with the intention of instituting
change if necessary: the Home Secretary was called on to review
Britain's gun laws.
• Law submit (a sentence, case, etc.) for reconsideration by a
higher court or authority: the Attorney General asked the court to
review the sentence.
• survey or evaluate (a subject or past events): in the next chapter
we review a number of recent empirical studies.
2 write a critical appraisal of (a book, play, film, etc.) for
publication in a newspaper or magazine: I reviewed his first novel.

3 (of a sovereign, commander-in-chief, etc.) make a ceremonial
and formal inspection of (military or naval forces). the Queen
reviewed her brightly arrayed troops.
4 view or inspect again: all slides were then reviewed by one
pathologist.
DERIVATIVES
reviewable adjective,
reviewal noun
ORIGIN late Middle English (as a noun denoting a formal
inspection of military or naval forces): from obsolete French
reveue, from revoir ‘see again’.
review
noun
1 the Council is to undertake a review of its property portfolio: analysis,
evaluation, assessment, appraisal, examination, investigation,
scrutiny, enquiry, exploration, probe, inspection, study, audit;
rare anatomization.
2 the rent is due for review: reconsideration, re-examination,
reassessment, re-evaluation, reappraisal, moderation, rethink,

another look, a fresh look; change, alteration, modification,
revision.
3 he began to write reviews of local stage plays: criticism, critique,
write-up, notice, assessment, evaluation, judgement, rating,
commentary; piece, article, column; Brit. informal crit.
4 a recent scientific review contained the following article: journal,
periodical, magazine, organ, publication, proceedings, annual,
quarterly, monthly.
5 the authority's latest annual review of the local economy: survey,
report, study, account, record, description, exposition,
statement, delineation, overview, rundown, breakdown, overall
picture; Frenchcompte rendu, procès-verbal; Law summing-
up; Military , informal sitrep.
6 in a traditional military review, the visiting leader inspects the soldiers up
close: inspection, parade, display, demonstration, field day,
tattoo, array, muster, procession; Brit. march past.
verb
1 I shall first review the empirical evidence: survey, study, research,
consider, take stock of, analyse, audit, examine, scrutinize,
enquire into, make enquiries into, explore, look into, probe,
investigate, conduct investigations into, inspect, assess,
appraise, size up; Law sum up; rare anatomize.

2 the referee reviewed the decision he'd made: reconsider, re-examine,
reassess, re-evaluate, reappraise, moderate, rethink, think over,
take another look at, take a fresh look at, look at in a different
light, have another think about; change, alter, modify, revise.
ANTONYMS stick by.
3 once in bed, he reviewed the day: remember, recall, recollect,
reflect on, think through, go over in one's mind, cast one's
mind back to, think back on, look back on; hark back to, call to
mind, summon up, evoke.
4 the Commander-in-Chief reviewed his troops: inspect, view,
scrutinize; parade, muster, march past.
5 John Daly reviewed the novel for the Times: comment on, discuss,
evaluate, assess, appraise, judge, weigh up, rate, write up,
critique, criticize.

excerpt
noun |ˈɛksəәːpt|
a short extract from a film, broadcast, or piece of music or
writing. she read out excerpts from an article in the Times.
verb |ɪkˈsəәːpt, ɛk-| [ with obj. ]
take (a short extract) from a text: the notes are excerpted from his
forthcoming biography.
• take an excerpt or excerpts from (a text): a book excerpted in this
week's Time magazine.
DERIVATIVES
excerptible |-ˈsəәːptɪb(əә)l| adjective,
excerption |-ˈsəәːpʃ(əә)n| noun
ORIGIN mid 16th cent. (as a verb): from Latin excerpt-
‘plucked out’, from the verb excerpere, from ex- ‘out of’ +
carpere ‘to pluck’.
excerpt
noun
he read an excerpt from his book: extract, part, section, piece,
portion, fragment, snippet, clip, bit, selection, reading; citation,
quotation, quote, line, paragraph, passage, scene, verse, stanza,
canto; N. Amer. cite; rare pericope.

preface |ˈprɛfəәs|
noun
an introduction to a book, typically stating its subject, scope, or
aims.
• a preliminary explanation. it was an abrupt question, made without
even the preface of a greeting.
• Christian Church the introduction to the central part of the
Eucharist, historically forming the first part of the canon or
prayer of consecration. In the Western Church it comes
between the Sursum Corda and the Sanctus and varies with
the season.
verb [ with obj. ]
provide (a book) with a preface: the book is prefaced by a quotation
from William Faulkner.
• (preface something with/by) introduce or begin (a speech
or event) with or by doing something: it is important to preface the
debate with a general comment.
ORIGIN late Middle English: via Old French from medieval
Latin praefatia, alteration of Latin praefatio(n-)‘words
spoken beforehand’, from the verb praefari, from prae
‘before’ + fari ‘speak’.

preface
noun
Sartre's famous preface to de Beauvoir's first novel: introduction,
foreword, preamble, prologue, prelude, preliminary/prefatory/
opening remarks; front matter, forward matter; informal
prelims, intro; rare proem, exordium, prolegomenon,
prolusion, prodrome.
verb
the catalogue is prefaced by a memoir of the artist: precede, introduce,
prefix, begin, open, start, launch, lead up to, lead into; rare
prologue, premise.
adviser |əәdˈvʌɪzəә| (also advisor)
noun
a person who gives advice in a particular field: the military
adviser to the President.
usage: The spellings adviser and advisor are both correct.
Adviser is more common, but advisor is also widely used,

especially in North America. Adviser may be seen as less
formal, while advisor often suggests an official position.
adviser
noun
he is the president's personal adviser: counsellor, mentor, guide,
consultant, consultee, confidant, confidante, guide, right hand
man, right hand woman, aide, helper; instructor, coach,
trainer, teacher, tutor, guru; Italianconsigliere; informal main
man; N. Amer. informal Dutch uncle.
assistance |əәˈsɪst(əә)ns|
noun [ mass noun ]
the action of helping someone by sharing work: the work was
completed with the assistance of carpenters.
• the provision of money, resources, or information to help
someone: schemes offering financial assistance to employers | she
will be glad to give advice and assistance.
PHRASES
be of assistance be of practical use or help: the guide will be
of assistance to development groups.

come to someone's assistance act to help someone. the
speaker was hoping for someone to come to his assistance.
ORIGIN late Middle English: from Old French, or from
medieval Latin assistentia, from Latin assistere (see assist) .
assistance
noun
they said that they could manage and did not need assistance: help, aid,
abettance, support, backing, succour, encouragement,
reinforcement, relief, intervention, cooperation, collaboration;
a helping hand, a hand, a good turn, a favour, a kindness;
ministrations, offices, services; informal a break, a leg up; rare
easement. ANTONYMS hindrance.
advocate
noun |ˈadvəәkəәt|
1 a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular
cause or policy: he was an untiring advocate of economic reform.
2 a person who puts a case on someone else's behalf: care
managers can become advocates for their clients.
• a professional pleader in a court of justice. solicitors may act as
advocates in Crown Courts.
• Scottish and South African term for barrister.

verb |ˈadvəәkeɪt| [ with obj. ]
publicly recommend or support: voters supported candidates who
advocated an Assembly.
DERIVATIVES
advocateship noun,
advocation noun
ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French avocat, from
Latin advocatus, past participle (used as a noun) of advocare
‘call (to one's aid)’, from ad- ‘to’ + vocare ‘to call’.
advocate
noun
1 she was a powerful advocate of children's rights: champion,
upholder, supporter, backer, promoter, proponent, exponent,
protector, patron; spokesman for, spokeswoman for,
spokesperson for, speaker for, campaigner for, fighter for, battler
for, crusader for; missionary, reformer, pioneer, pleader,
propagandist, apostle, apologist; N. Amer. booster; informal
plugger. ANTONYMS critic.
2 Scottish Law he studied law and became an advocate at twenty-one:
barrister, lawyer, counsel, counsellor, professional pleader, legal

practitioner; N. Amer. attorney; N. Amer. & Irish counsellor-
at-law; informal brief.
verb
heart disease specialists advocate a diet low in cholesterol: recommend,
prescribe, commend, advise, favour, approve of, support, back,
uphold, subscribe to, champion, campaign on behalf of, stand
up for, speak for, argue for, plead for, press for, lobby for, urge,
promote, espouse, endorse, sanction, vouch for; informal plug,
push. ANTONYMS reject.
volunteer |ˌvɒləәnˈtɪəә|
noun
1 a person who freely offers to take part in an enterprise or
undertake a task. a call for volunteers to act as foster-parents.
• a person who freely enrols for military service rather than
being conscripted, especially a member of a force formed by
voluntary enrolment and distinct from the regular army.
• a plant that has not been deliberately planted.
2 a person who works for an organization without being paid.
the railway is operated solely by volunteers.
• Law a person to whom a voluntary conveyance or disposition
is made.

verb
1 [ no obj. ] freely offer to do something: 140 employees
volunteered for redundancy | [ with infinitive ] : I rashly volunteered to
be a contestant.
• [ with obj. ] offer (help) freely: he volunteered his services as a driver
for the convoy.
• [ reporting verb ] say or suggest something without being
asked: [ with obj. ] : it never paid to volunteer information | [ with
direct speech ] : ‘Her name's Louise,’ Christina volunteered.
• [ with obj. ] commit (someone) to a particular undertaking,
typically without consulting them: he was volunteered for parachute
training by friends.
2 [ no obj. ] work for an organization without being paid. (as
noun volunteering) : volunteering is an easy way to get involved in
practical conservation.
ORIGIN late 16th cent. (as a noun, with military reference):
from French volontaire ‘voluntary’. The change in the
ending was due to association with -eer.

herbivore |ˈhəәːbɪvɔː|
noun

an animal that feeds on plants. [ as modifier ] : predatory
carnivores and their herbivore prey.
DERIVATIVES
herbivorous |-ˈbɪv(əә)rəәs| adjective
ORIGIN mid 19th cent.: from Latin herba ‘herb’ + -vore (see
-vorous) .
vegetarian |vɛdʒɪˈtɛːrɪəәn|
noun
a person who does not eat meat or fish, and sometimes other
animal products, especially for moral, religious, or health
reasons.
adjective
relating to vegetarians or vegetarianism: a vegetarian restaurant.
DERIVATIVES
vegetarianism noun
ORIGIN mid 19th cent.: formed irregularly from vegetable
+ -arian.
barbarian |bɑːˈbɛːrɪəәn|
noun

(in ancient times) a member of a people not belonging to one
of the great civilizations (Greek, Roman, Christian). the city was
besieged by the barbarians.
• an uncultured or brutish person. you arrogant barbarian
adjective
relating to ancient barbarians: barbarian invasions.
• uncultured; brutish.
DERIVATIVES
barbarianism noun
ORIGIN Middle English (as an adjective used in a derogatory
way to denote a person with different speech and customs):
from Old French barbarien, from barbare, or from Latin
barbarus (see barbarous) .
barbarian
noun
the city was besieged by barbarians: savage, brute, beast, wild man/
woman, troglodyte; ruffian, lout, thug, vandal, hoodlum,
hooligan, rowdy; boor, oaf, ignoramus, philistine, vulgarian,
yahoo; informal clod, clodhopper, roughneck; Brit. informal
yobbo, yob, lager lout, oik; Austral./NZ informal hoon.
adjective

the barbarian hordes: savage, uncivilized, barbaric, barbarous,
primitive, heathen, wild, brutish, Neanderthal; thuggish,
loutish, uncouth, coarse, rough, boorish, oafish, vulgar, gross,
philistine, uneducated, uncultured, uncultivated, benighted,
unsophisticated, unrefined, unpolished, ill-bred, ill-mannered;
informal yobbish; archaic rude. ANTONYMS civilized.
vegetarian |vɛdʒɪˈtɛːrɪəәn|
noun
a person who does not eat meat or fish, and sometimes other
animal products, especially for moral, religious, or health
reasons.
adjective
relating to vegetarians or vegetarianism: a vegetarian restaurant.
DERIVATIVES
vegetarianism noun
ORIGIN mid 19th cent.: formed irregularly from vegetable
+ -arian.
vegetation
noun
plants, plant life, flora; greenery, foliage; rare herbage, verdure.

WORD LINKS
herbicide substance used to kill vegetation
Word Links sections supply words that are related to the
headword but do not normally appear in a thesaurus
because they are not actual synonyms.
attack |əәˈtak|
verb [ with obj. ]
1 take aggressive military action against (a place or enemy
forces) with weapons or armed force: in February the Germans
attacked Verdun | [ no obj. ] : the terrorists did not attack again until
March.
• act against (someone or something) aggressively in an attempt
to injure or kill: a doctor was attacked by two youths.
• (of a disease, chemical, or insect) act harmfully on: HIV is
thought to attack certain cells in the brain.
2 criticize or oppose fiercely and publicly: he attacked the
government's defence policy.
3 begin to deal with (a problem or task) in a determined and
vigorous way: a plan of action to attack unemployment.
4 [ no obj. ] (in sport) make a forceful attempt to score a goal
or point or otherwise gain an advantage against an opposing

team or player: Crystal Palace attacked swiftly down the left | (as
adj.attacking) : Leeds showed some good attacking play.
• [ with obj. ] Chess move into or be in a position to capture
(an opponent's piece or pawn). the white queen attacks the black rook.
noun
1 an aggressive and violent act against a person or place: he was
killed in an attack on a checkpoint | three classrooms were gutted in the
arson attack | the north-western suburbs came under attack in the
latest fighting.
• [ mass noun ] destructive action by a disease, chemical, or
insect: the tissue is open to attack by fungus.
• a determined attempt to tackle a problem or task: an attack
on inflation.
• [ mass noun ] forceful and decisive style in performing music
or another art: the sheer attack of Hendrix's playing.
2 an instance of fierce public criticism or opposition: he launched
a stinging attack on the Prime Minister.
3 a sudden short bout of an illness or stress: an attack of nausea |
an asthma attack.
4 (in sport) an aggressive attempt to score a goal or point or
otherwise gain an advantage. a Cardiff attack broke down inside
Llanelli's 22. [ mass noun ] : United hardly did a thing in attack.

• Brit.the players in a team who are in the position of trying to
score a goal or win points: Baxter was recalled to the attack.
• Chess a threat to capture an opponent's piece or pawn. the
move opens up an attack from the black bishop against White's knight.
ORIGIN early 17th cent.: from French attaque (noun),
attaquer (verb), from Italian attacco ‘an attack’, attaccare
‘join battle’, based on an element of Germanic origin (see
attach) .
attack
verb
1 Christopher had been brutally attacked: assault, beat, beat up,
batter, thrash, pound, pummel, assail, set upon, fall upon, set
about, strike at, let fly at, tear into, lash out at; ambush, mug,
pounce on; informal jump, paste, do over, work over, knock
about/around, rough up, lay into, lace into, sail into, pitch into,
get stuck into, beat the living daylights out of, let someone have
it; Brit. informal have a go at, duff someone up; N. Amer.
informal beat up on, light into.
2 by eight o'clock the French had still not attacked: begin an assault,
charge, pounce, strike, begin hostilities, ambush; bombard,

shell, blitz, strafe, fire on/at; rush, storm. ANTONYMS
defend.
3 the clergy have consistently attacked government policies: criticize,
censure, condemn, castigate, chastise, lambaste, pillory, savage,
find fault with, fulminate against, abuse; berate, reprove,
rebuke, reprimand, admonish, remonstrate with, reproach,
take to task, haul over the coals, impugn, harangue, blame,
revile, vilify, give someone a bad press; informal knock, slam,
take to pieces, pull apart, crucify, bash, hammer, lay into, tear
into, sail into, roast, give someone a roasting, cane, blast, bawl
out, dress down, rap over the knuckles, have a go at, give
someone hell; Brit. informal carpet, slate, slag off, rubbish,
monster, rollick, give someone a rollicking, give someone a
rocket, tear someone off a strip, tear a strip off someone; N.
Amer. informal chew out, ream out, pummel, cut up; Austral./
NZ informal bag; Brit. vulgar slang bollock, give someone a
bollocking; dated rate; archaic slash; rare excoriate, objurgate,
reprehend. ANTONYMS praise.
4 they have started to attack the problem of threatened species: attend to,
address, see to, deal with, grapple with, confront, direct one's
attention to, focus on, concentrate on, apply oneself to; buckle
down to, get to work on, go to work on, set to work on, set

about, get started on, undertake, embark on; informal get stuck
into, get cracking on, get weaving on, have a crack at, have a
go at, have a shot at, have a stab at.
5 the virus attacks the liver, heart, and lungs: affect, have an effect on,
strike, strike at, take hold of, infect; damage, injure.
ANTONYMS protect.
noun
1 they were killed in an attack on their home: assault, onslaught,
offensive, strike, blitz, raid, sortie, sally, storming, charge, rush,
drive, push, thrust, invasion, incursion, inroad; act of
aggression; historical razzia; archaic onset.
2 she wrote a ferociously hostile attack on him: criticism, censure,
rebuke, admonition, admonishment, reprimand, reproval;
condemnation, denunciation, revilement; invective, vilification;
tirade, diatribe, rant, polemic, broadside, harangue, verbal
onslaught, stricture; informal knocking, telling-off, dressing-
down, rap over the knuckles, earful, roasting, rollicking, caning;
Brit. informal rocket, wigging, slating, ticking-off, carpeting,
bashing, blast; Brit. vulgar slang bollocking; dated rating; rare
philippic. ANTONYMS commendation, defence.

3 she had suffered an acute asthmatic attack: fit, seizure, spasm,
convulsion, paroxysm, outburst, flare-up; bout, spell, dose; rare
access.
salvo |ˈsalvəәʊ|
noun (pl.salvos or salvoes)
a simultaneous discharge of artillery or other guns in a battle. a
deafening salvo of shots rang out. another salvo crashed nearer to the
German positions.
• a number of weapons released from one or more aircraft in
quick succession.
• a sudden, vigorous, or aggressive act or series of acts: the
pardons provoked a salvo of accusations.
ORIGIN late 16th cent. (earlier as salve): from French
salve,Italian salva ‘salutation’.
Salvo |ˈsalvəәʊ|
noun (pl.Salvos) Austral. informal
a member of the Salvation Army.
ORIGIN late 19th cent.: abbreviation of salvation.
fusillade |ˌfjuːzɪˈleɪd, -ˈlɑːd|
noun

a series of shots fired or missiles thrown all at the same time or
in quick succession: marchers had to dodge a fusillade of missiles.
verb [ with obj. ] archaic
fire a fusillade at (a place or person). the Mahdi's adherents
fusilladed his palace at Khartoum.
ORIGIN early 19th cent.: from French, from fusiller ‘to
shoot’, from fusil (see fusil 1 ) .
fusillade
noun
a fusillade of missiles: salvo, volley, barrage, bombardment,
cannonade, battery, burst, blast, hail, shower, rain, stream,
broadside, blitz, discharge.
volley |ˈvɒli|
noun (pl.volleys)
1 a number of bullets, arrows, or other projectiles discharged at
one time: the infantry let off a couple of volleys.
• a series of utterances directed at someone in quick succession:
he unleashed a volley of angry questions.
2 (in sport, especially tennis or soccer) a strike or kick of the
ball made before it touches the ground. a forehand volley.

verb (volleys, volleying, volleyed) [ with obj. ]
1 (in sport, especially tennis or soccer) strike or kick (the ball)
before it touches the ground: she volleyed the ball home | [ no
obj. ] : he took his chance well, volleying into the top corner from 25
yards.
2 utter or discharge in quick succession: the dog was volleying joyful
barks.
DERIVATIVES
volleyer noun
ORIGIN late 16th cent.: from French volée, based on Latin
volare ‘to fly’.
volley
noun
he fired off a volley of shots from his semi-automatic rifle: barrage,
cannonade, battery, blast, bombardment, broadside, salvo,
fusillade; storm, hail, shower, cascade, rain, stream, deluge,
torrent, avalanche, blitz; wall/curtain/barrier of fire.
narcissism |ˈnɑːsɪsɪz(əә)m, nɑːˈsɪs-|
noun [ mass noun ]

excessive interest in or admiration of oneself and one's physical
appearance.
• Psychology extreme selfishness, with a grandiose view of
one's own talents and a craving for admiration, as
characterizing a personality type.
• Psychoanalysis self-centredness arising from failure to
distinguish the self from external objects, either in very young
babies or as a feature of mental disorder.
DERIVATIVES
narcissist noun
ORIGIN early 19th cent.: via Latin from the Greek name
Narkissos (see Narcissus) + -ism.
masochism |ˈmasəәkɪz(əә)m|
noun [ mass noun ]
the tendency to derive sexual gratification from one's own pain
or humiliation. with things such as bondage and masochism, it's all
right if you both go for it.
• (in general use) the enjoyment of an activity that appears to
be painful or tedious: there's plenty to do when the weather turns
moorland walks into exercises in masochism.
DERIVATIVES
masochist noun,

masochistic |-ˈkɪstɪk| adjective,
masochistically |-ˈkɪstɪk(əә)li| adverb
ORIGIN late 19th cent.: named after Leopold von Sacher-
Masoch (1835–95), the Austrian novelist who described it, + -
ism.
egoism |ˈɛgəәʊɪz(əә)m, ˈiː-|
noun [ mass noun ]
1 another term for egotism.
2 Philosophy an ethical theory that treats self-interest as the
foundation of morality.
DERIVATIVES
egoist noun,
egoistic |-ˈɪstɪk| adjective,
egoistical |-ˈɪstɪk(əә)l| adjective,
egoistically |-ˈɪstɪk(əә)li| adverb
ORIGIN late 18th cent.: from French égoïsme and modern
Latin egoismus, from Latin ego ‘I’.
usage: The words egoism and egotism are frequently treated
as interchangeable, but there are distinctions which are worth
noting. Egotism, the more commonly used term, means ‘the
fact of being excessively conceited or absorbed in oneself ’.

Strictly speaking, egoism is a term used in Ethics to mean ‘a
theory that treats self-interest as the foundation of moral
behaviour’, although this sense is not dominant today; around
90 per cent of the citations for egoism in the Oxford English
Corpus are for the meaning ‘excessive conceit’.
egotist, egoist
noun
boxing is a sport that breeds egotists and exhibitionists: self-seeker,
egocentric, egomaniac, self admirer, narcissist; boaster, brag,
bragger, braggart, show-off; informal blowhard, swank, big-
head; N. Amer. informal showboat; Austral./NZ informal skite;
Brit. informal, dated swankpot. ANTONYMS altruist.
eccentric |ɪkˈsɛntrɪk, ɛk-|
adjective
1 (of a person or their behaviour) unconventional and slightly
strange: he noted her eccentric appearance.
2 technical not placed centrally or not having its axis or other
part placed centrally: a servo driving an eccentric cam.
• (of a circle) not centred on the same point as another.
• (of an orbit) not circular.

noun
1 a person of unconventional and slightly strange views or
behaviour: he's seen as a local eccentric.
2 a disc or wheel mounted eccentrically on a revolving shaft in
order to transform rotation into backward-and-forward
motion, e.g. a cam in an internal-combustion engine.
DERIVATIVES
eccentrically adverb
ORIGIN late Middle English (as a noun denoting a circle or
orbit not having the earth precisely at its centre): via late Latin
from Greek ekkentros, from ek ‘out of’ + kentron ‘centre’.
eccentric
adjective
they were worried by his eccentric behaviour: unconventional,
uncommon, abnormal, irregular, aberrant, anomalous, odd,
queer, strange, peculiar, weird, bizarre, off-centre, outlandish,
freakish, extraordinary; idiosyncratic, quirky, singular,
nonconformist, capricious, whimsical; Frenchoutré, avant
garde; informal way out, far out, offbeat, dotty, nutty, screwy,
freaky, oddball, wacky, cranky, off the wall, madcap, zany; Brit.

informal rum; N. Amer. informal kooky, wacko, bizarro, in left
field. ANTONYMS ordinary; conventional.
noun
like all princes he was something of an eccentric: oddity, odd fellow,
unorthodox person, character, individualist, individual, free
spirit, misfit; informal oddball, queer fish, weirdo, weirdie,
freak, nut, nutter, nutcase, case, head case, crank, crackpot,
loony, loon; Brit. informal one-off, odd bod; N. Amer. informal
wacko, wack, screwball, kook; Austral./NZ informal dingbat.
WORD TOOLKIT
eccentric quirky bizarre
millionaire
inventor
loner
recluse
aristocrat
genius
uncle
spinster comedy
humour
mannerism
charm
lyric
sensibility
melody
styling twist
coincidence
ritual
antics
spectacle
juxtaposition
incident
behaviour
Word Toolkits illustrate the difference between close
synonyms by means of words typically used with them.

epitome |ɪˈpɪtəәmi, ɛ-|
noun
1 (the epitome of) a person or thing that is a perfect example
of a particular quality or type: she looked the epitome of elegance and
good taste.
2 a summary of a written work; an abstract.
• archaic a thing representing something else in miniature.
DERIVATIVES
epitomic adjective,
epitomist noun
ORIGIN early 16th cent.: via Latin from Greek epitomē,
from epitemnein ‘abridge’, from epi ‘in addition’ +
temnein ‘to cut’.
epitome
noun
1 he was the epitome of conservative respectability: personification,
embodiment, incarnation, paragon; essence, quintessence,
archetype, paradigm, typification, type; exemplar, definitive
example, prototype; representation, model, soul, example,
byword, classic example/case; acme, ultimate, zenith, height;
rare avatar.

2 an epitome of a larger work: summary, abstract, synopsis, precis,
résumé, outline, digest, recapitulation, summation,
compendium, potted version; abridgement, abbreviation,
condensation; N. Amer. wrap-up; archaic argument, summa;
rare conspectus. ANTONYMS complete version, full text.
copyright |ˈkɒpɪrʌɪt|
noun [ mass noun ]
the exclusive and assignable legal right, given to the originator
for a fixed number of years, to print, publish, perform, film, or
record literary, artistic, or musical material: he issued a writ for
breach of copyright | making an unauthorized copy would infringe
copyright | [ count noun ] : works whose copyrights had lapsed.
• [ count noun ] a particular literary, artistic, or musical work
that is covered by copyright.
adjective
protected by copyright: permission to reproduce photographs and other
copyright material.
verb [ with obj. ]
secure copyright for (material): (as adj.copyrighted) :
copyrighted music downloaded illegally from the Internet.
DERIVATIVES

copyrightable adjective
manifesto |manɪˈfɛstəәʊ|
noun (pl.manifestos)
a public declaration of policy and aims, especially one issued
before an election by a political party or candidate. he may fudge
key issues in the Labour manifesto. a manifesto for gay liberation. [ as
modifier ] : manifesto commitments.
ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from Italian, from manifestare,
from Latin, ‘make public’, from manifestus ‘obvious’ (see
manifest 1 ) .
manifesto
noun
policy statement, platform, programme, declaration,
proclamation, pronouncement, announcement, publication,
notification; in Spanish-speaking countriespronunciamento.
criterion |krʌɪˈtɪəәrɪəәn|
noun (pl.criteria |-rɪəә| )

a principle or standard by which something may be judged or
decided: they award a green label to products that meet certain
environmental criteria.
DERIVATIVES
criterial adjective
ORIGIN early 17th cent.: from Greek kritērion ‘means of
judging’, from kritēs (see critic) .
usage: Strictly speaking, the singular form (following the
original Greek) is criterion and the plural form is criteria. It
is a common mistake to use criteria as if it were a singular, as
in a further criteria needs to be considered.
criterion
noun
academic ability is not the sole criterion for allocating funds: basis, point
of reference, standard, norm, yardstick, benchmark,
touchstone, test, formula, measure, gauge, scale, barometer,
indicator, litmus test; specification, guide, guideline, guiding
principle, principle, rule, law, canon, convention.
manifesto |manɪˈfɛstəәʊ|

noun (pl.manifestos)
a public declaration of policy and aims, especially one issued
before an election by a political party or candidate. he may fudge
key issues in the Labour manifesto. a manifesto for gay liberation. [ as
modifier ] : manifesto commitments.
ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from Italian, from manifestare,
from Latin, ‘make public’, from manifestus ‘obvious’ (see
manifest 1 ) .
manifesto
noun
policy statement, platform, programme, declaration,
proclamation, pronouncement, announcement, publication,
notification; in Spanish-speaking countriespronunciamento.
acronym |ˈakrəәnɪm|
noun
an abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words
and pronounced as a word (e.g. ASCII, NASA). Compare with
initialism.
ORIGIN 1940s: from Greek akron ‘end, tip’ + -onym.

acrostic |əәˈkrɒstɪk|
noun
a poem, word puzzle, or other composition in which certain
letters in each line form a word or words.
ORIGIN late 16th cent.: from French acrostiche, from Greek
akrostikhis, from akron ‘end’ + stikhos ‘row, line of
verse’. The change in the ending was due to association with -
ic.
homophone |ˈhɒməәfəәʊn, ˈhəәʊm-|
noun
each of two or more words having the same pronunciation but
different meanings, origins, or spelling (e.g. new and knew) .
• each of a set of symbols denoting the same sound or group
of sounds.
palindrome |ˈpalɪndrəәʊm|
noun
a word, phrase, or sequence that reads the same backwards as
forwards, e.g. madam or nurses run.

DERIVATIVES
palindromic |-ˈdrɒmɪk| adjective,
palindromist noun
ORIGIN early 17th cent.: from Greek palindromos
‘running back again’, from palin ‘again’ + drom- (from
dramein ‘to run’).