cstr/en-wiktionary-extracted-all huggingface dataset:
pick up the tab
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: picks up the tab
form: picking up the tab
form: picked up the tab
form: picked up the tab
Senses: examples: text: When the bill came to just 33,000 forints, I did something very out of character: I picked up the tab. It blew the budget for the day, but felt great.
ref: 2014 January 30, Seth Kugel, “Wintertime Bargains in Budapest”, in The New York Times:
text: Meanwhile, the taxpayer picked up the tab for over 50% of track and train costs at Northern, Merseyrail and the Transport for Wales rail operation.
ref: 2020 March 25, Philip Haigh, “Analysis: Where the money comes from... and where it goes”, in Rail, page 34:
glosses: To accept a bill and pay it, especially at a bar or restaurant.
Sibir
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Etymology: From Russian Сиби́рь (Sibírʹ).
Senses: examples: text: WHEN Ivan the Terrible, Tsar of Muscovy, Lord of Novgorod, and of Sibir, died some twenty years before, he left in the world two sons—an elder, Feodor and a lusty youngster Dmitri.
ref: 1926 December 8, Harold Lamb, “The White Falcon and the False Dmitri: Harold Lamb’s New Complete Novel of the Cossacks, The Wolf Master”, in Arthur Sullivant Hoffman, editor, Adventure, volume LX, number 5, New York, N.Y.: Butterick Publishing Company, →OCLC, chapter II (The Tale of Batko Andriev), page 10, column 1:
text: Catherine the Great’s rule of thirty-four years was a period of expansion. Russian exploration and colonization spread through Sibir to North America, and the Russians occupied Alaska. […] After the mysterious death of Alexander I (many people believed he hid himself in Sibir for a number of years under the name of Theodore Kuzmitch) his younger brother, Nicholas, became the Emperor of Russia.
ref: 1940 May–June, A[lexey] M[ikhailovich] Uzefovich, “Russia in the Past”, in William Bowie, editor, The Military Engineer, volume XXXII, number 183, Alexandria, Va.: Society of American Military Engineers, →ISSN, →OCLC, pages 159–160:
text: “In the summer,” Lev informed him, “Sibir can be a most beautiful place.”
ref: 2014, Dave Hutchinson, “The Man from Sibir”, in Europe in Autumn, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Solaris, →ISBN, page 283:
glosses: Synonym of Siberia.
synonyms: word: Siberia
saponify
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: saponifies
form: saponifying
form: saponified
form: saponified
Etymology: From French saponifier, from Late Latin sāpō, sāpōnem (“soap”).
Senses: glosses: To convert (a fat or oil) into soap.
glosses: To be converted into soap.
topics: chemistry
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: To hydrolyze (an ester) using an alkali.
Related terms: saponification
antisubmarine
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Etymology: From anti- + submarine.
Senses: examples: text: A depth charge is an antisubmarine weapon.
text: NATO held extensive wargames to practice antisubmarine warfare.
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: Intended for use against submarines.
antitank
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Forms: form: anti-tank
Etymology: From anti- + tank.
Senses: examples: text: A TOW missile is an antitank weapon capable of killing everyone in a tank from great distance.
topics: government
military
politics
war
synonyms: AT
glosses: Of weapons or tactics, designed for thwarting or (especially) attacking tanks or other armored fighting vehicles.
Related terms: anti-armour
anti-armor
anti-personnel
antipersonnel
armour-piercing
armor-piercing
hollow-charge
shaped-charge
tank trap
antiship
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Forms: form: anti-ship
Etymology: From anti- + ship.
Senses: examples: text: A single EXOCET antiship missile can sink a destroyer. Try not to get hit.
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: Designed to attack a naval ship.
topics: lifestyle
glosses: Pertaining to the activities of anti-shippers
Derived terms: alt: ASM, AShM
word: anti-ship missile
Related terms: anti-shipped
antishipped
anti-shipper
antishipper
anti-shipping
antishipping
antiship
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: antiships
form: antishipping
form: antishipped
form: antishipped
form: anti-ship
Etymology: From anti- + ship.
Senses: topics: lifestyle
glosses: To participate in the activities of anti-shippers
Related terms: anti-shipped
antishipped
anti-shipper
antishipper
anti-shipping
antishipping
pro-shipped
proshipped
pro-shipper
proshipper
pro-shipping
proshipping
pro-ship
proship
antimonarchical
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Forms: form: more antimonarchical
form: most antimonarchical
Etymology: From anti- + monarchical.
Senses: topics: government
politics
glosses: Opposing a particular monarchy.
examples: text: Antimonarchical sentiment threatened to sweep away the last vestige of royal prerogative.
topics: government
politics
glosses: Opposing the concept of monarchy, rule by a single person.
Derived terms: antimonarchicalness
antijamming
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Forms: form: anti-jamming
Etymology: From anti- + jamming.
Senses: examples: text: Most military radios have some antijamming capability so they can be used in spite of the enemy's efforts to render them inoperative.
glosses: Designed to prevent being jammed (communications interference).
examples: text: The new copier had an antijamming design to keep the paper from getting stuck.
glosses: Designed not to jam (become stuck).
anteorbital
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: -ɔː(ɹ)bɪtəl
Etymology: From ante- + orbital.
Senses: topics: aerospace
astronautics
business
engineering
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: Referring to the period before orbit is achieved.
topics: anatomy
medicine
sciences
glosses: Situated in front of the eyes.
astronautical
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Etymology: From astronaut + -ical.
Senses: glosses: referring to travel in outer space
Derived terms: bioastronautical
Related terms: astronaut
astronautic
astronautics
aeronautical
anti-lock
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Forms: form: antilock
Etymology: From anti- + lock.
Senses: glosses: Preventing something from becoming stuck or jammed. Especially applies to anti-lock brakes, which are designed to continue rotating for better steering control while slowing the vehicle, rather than "locking" and causing the car to skid.
Derived terms: antilock brake
epitomise
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: epitomises
form: epitomising
form: epitomised
form: epitomised
Senses: examples: text: The steam locomotive has long epitomised the romance of railways.
ref: 1961 May, B. A. Haresnape, “Design on the railway: Part Three”, in Trains Illustrated, page 299:
text: Yet Hodgson’s men played with wonderful control. Their young full-backs, Luke Shaw and Nathaniel Clyne, epitomised their composure and Fraser Forster had to make only one noteworthy save before Andy Robertson’s goal, seven minutes from the end of time, temporarily threatened a winning position.
ref: 18 November 2014, Daniel Taylor, “England and Wayne Rooney see off Scotland in their own back yard”, in The Guardian:
text: Robin van Persie hit the woodwork in the opening half and Arsenal became increasingly frustrated by their failure to score - with one extremely ambitious long-range attempt from Gael Clichy epitomising his team's desperation.
ref: 2011 January 25, Paul Fletcher, “Arsenal 3 - 0 Ipswich (agg 3 - 1)”, in BBC:
glosses: Alternative spelling of epitomize.
Derived terms: epitomisation
annular eclipse
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: annular eclipses
Senses: topics: astronomy
natural-sciences
glosses: a solar eclipse in which the thin outer disk of the sun can be seen as a ring around the moon
come through
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: comes through
form: coming through
form: came through
form: come through
Etymology: Conflation of Middle English þurȝcomyn (v. inf.), with inseparable prefix, and comen thurgh, a verb-adverb/preposition combination. Cf. German durchkommen, where the prefix is separable. Equivalent to come + through.
Senses: examples: text: I can see Mr Smith now. Please ask him to come through.
glosses: To come into a room or other space through a door or passageway.
examples: text: He came through the surgery unharmed.
glosses: To survive, to endure.
examples: text: The anger in her song really came through.
text: More information on the scandal is coming through now.
glosses: To be communicated or expressed successfully.
glosses: To provide information on something; to confess.
examples: text: The team came through in the end and won the pennant.
text: It was felt Liverpool's potent attack would provide their most severe test - and to come through against Jurgen Klopp's unbeaten side with a point will do wonders for belief and self-confidence.
ref: 2018 November 3, Phil McNulty, “Arsenal 1 - 1 Liverpool”, in BBC Sport:
glosses: To succeed; to survive and overcome struggles.
examples: text: She really came through for us when the project was in trouble.
text: He really came through with a lawyer when we were in trouble.
synonyms: deliver
antonyms: disappoint
fail
glosses: To not let somebody down, keep or fulfil one's word or promise; to deliver (something).
raw_tags: with an object preceded by the preposition for or with
examples: text: This letter came through the letterbox.
text: As our tour has shown, the state of ruination of castle sites was a key factor in their fate when the railways came through.
ref: 2022 January 12, Dr. Joseph Brennan, “Castles: ruined and redeemed by rail”, in RAIL, number 948, page 56:
glosses: Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see come, through.
long row to hoe
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: long rows to hoe
Senses: examples: text: “Don’t you suppose I know all that you’ve been through. . . ? I’ve followed you every step. . . .”
“Well, you’ve had a long row to hoe.”
ref: 1907, William Dean Howells, chapter 5, in Between the Dark and the Daylight:
text: Japan's six-year economic slump is far from over. “They have a long row to hoe for recovery,” said Richard Koss.
ref: 1997 November 29, “Dollar Nears 5-Year High Against the Yen”, in New York Times, retrieved 23 Jul 2014:
text: Labour has begun to redress the balance, but there is still a long row to hoe.
ref: 2009 April 11, Hanif Kureishi, “Margaret Thatcher: Acceptable in the 80s?”, in The Guardian, UK, retrieved 23 Jul 2014:
glosses: A difficult, arduous task or set of tasks; a lengthy, demanding project.
Synonyms: tough row to hoe
hard row to hoe
Related terms: row to hoe
tone down
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: tones down
form: toning down
form: toned down
form: toned down
Senses: examples: text: Ask them to tone down that orange and pink color scheme a bit.
text: I hope they’ll tone it down and stop arguing so much.
text: There it all lay beneath us like a map; its thousand hues toned down harmoniously by the summer haze, and 'the eye was not filled with seeing,' nor the spirit with the intoxicating sight of infinitely various life and form in perfectest repose.
ref: 1849 July, Charles Kingsley, “North Devon”, in Prose Idylls, New and Old, London: Macmillan and Co., published 1873, →OCLC, page 265:
antonyms: tone up
glosses: To relax; to make quieter or less obtrusive; to make milder.
examples: text: The best method for the purpose in hand was to employ some one of a character and position suited to get possession of their confidence, and then use it to tone down their religious strictness, and, if circumstances should favor, to disturb the ecclesiastical constitution which they had set up.
ref: 1858, John Gorham Palfrey, chapter VI, in History of New England during the Stuart Dynasty. […], volume I, Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown, and Company, →OCLC, book I, page 218:
text: “Well, I posted it, and I wouldn’t have posted it if I didn’t kind of believe it,” said Mr. Prevost, who added that he would “probably tone it down” now that his brother was the Vicar of Jesus Christ.
ref: 2025 May 13, Richard Fausset, quoting Louis Prevost, “The Pope’s Florida Brother, a MAGA Disciple, Plans to ‘Tone It Down’”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
glosses: To moderate or relax; to diminish or weaken the striking characteristics of; to soften.
topics: broadcasting
literature
media
publishing
television
glosses: To make a television program, piece of writing, etc. less offensive and so more suitable for a family audience.
Related terms: water down
weldment
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈwɛldmənt/
Forms: form: weldments
Etymology: From weld + -ment.
Senses: examples: text: Postmechanical operations include: (1) removal of excess weld metal, slag, and weld spatter, (2) rough or finish machining to dimensional requirements of the weldment, and (3) metal conditioning processes such as peening or roll planishing to reduce cracking tendencies physically and to increase weld bead strength.
ref: 1989, William Winchell, Realistic Cost Estimating for Manufacturing, page 121:
text: A welded assembly is called a weldment.
ref: 2010, Mikell P. Groover, Fundamentals of Modern Manufacturing (4th Edition), page 10:
coordinate_terms: assembly
glosses: A part created from an assembly of smaller components that are joined by welding.
Related terms: welder
welding machine
lay hands on
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: lays hands on
form: laying hands on
form: laid hands on
form: laid hands on
form: lay one's hands on
Senses: examples: text: If we can lay hands on some chicken wire and a black light, we can make some scary Halloween decorations.
text: After a long trial at which the Crown brought forward every right-wing bigot and crackpot psychiatrist they could lay hands on, The Body Politic was acquitted.
ref: 1981 February 14, Alexander Wilson, “The New Right Attacks Childhood Sexuality: A Canadian Perspective”, in Gay Community News, volume 8, number 29, page 6:
text: What luck, right when I'd laid my hands on flight coupons; had my checkbook in the black!
ref: 2008, Sean Miller, Shveta Verma, Riffing on Strings: Creative Writing Inspired by String Theory, page 111:
synonyms: get one's hands on
get hold of
glosses: To find, obtain, or procure.
glosses: To seize or assault.
glosses: Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see lay, hands.
Related terms: laying on of hands
lay on hands
overpopulate
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: overpopulates
form: overpopulating
form: overpopulated
form: overpopulated
Etymology: From over- + populate.
Senses: glosses: To fill with too many individuals; to exceed the capacity of a region to contain the population.
Related terms: overpopulation
overeager
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: rhymes: -iːɡə(ɹ)
Forms: form: more overeager
form: most overeager
Etymology: From over- + eager.
Senses: examples: text: He got a bad haircut from an overeager fellow who had just begun his career as a barber.
text: Olivia’s dress was too formal, her lipstick was too bright, her hair was freshly trimmed, she was slightly too attentive in the way she looked at Jonathan, and the combined effect was overeager.
ref: 2020, Emily St. John Mandel, The Glass Hotel, Picador (2021), page 147:
glosses: Excessively eager.
Derived terms: overeagerly
overeagerness
outpace
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: rhymes: -eɪs
Forms: form: outpaces
form: outpacing
form: outpaced
form: outpaced
Etymology: From out- + pace.
Senses: examples: text: The youngster outpaced his grandfather and ran on ahead.
text: Walters outpaced Raio Piiroja from a long ball forward and curled a powerful shot over the crossbar from a tight angle in the 33rd minute.
ref: 2011 November 11, Rory Houston, “Estonia 0-4 Republic of Ireland”, in RTE Sport:
glosses: To go faster than; to exceed the pace of.
over and out
Language: English
Part of speech: intj
Senses: qualifier: procedure word
glosses: Used in films and TV to signal the end of a conversation, especially one conducted by CB radio or the like.
bibimbap
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: bibimbaps
form: bibimbab
form: bibimbop
form: bibimpap
Etymology: Borrowed from Korean 비빔밥 (bibimbap).
Senses: examples: text: She'd made bibimbap with beansprouts, minced beef, and pre-soaked rice stir-fried in sesame oil.
ref: 2015, Han Kang, translated by Deborah Smith, The Vegetarian, Granta, published 2018, page 15:
glosses: A Korean dish of white rice topped with vegetables, beef, a whole egg, and gochujang (chili pepper paste).
Related terms: hoedeopbap
paralogism
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /pəˈɹaləd͡ʒɪzəm/
ipa: /pəˈɹæləd͡ʒɪzəm/
Forms: form: paralogisms
Etymology: Borrowed from Middle French paralogisme, from Late Latin paralogismus, from Ancient Greek παραλογισμός (paralogismós).
Senses: examples: text: Which is a Paralogism not admittible; a fallacy that dwels not in a cloud, and needs not the Sun to scatter it.
ref: 1646, Sir Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica, III.ii:
glosses: A fallacious argument or illogical conclusion, especially one committed by mistake, or believed by the speaker to be logical.
Related terms: syllogism
buffer
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbʌfə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbɐfə(ɹ)]
ipa: /ˈbʌfɚ/
ipa: /ˈbafə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbäfə(ɹ)]
rhymes: -ʌfə(ɹ)
Forms: form: buffers
Etymology: From buff + -er.
Senses: glosses: Someone or something that buffs (polishes and makes shiny).
A machine with rotary brushes, passed over a hard floor to clean it.
glosses: Someone or something that buffs (polishes and makes shiny).
A machine for polishing shoes and boots.
examples: text: Such a buffer as Donnelly, / Ereland never again will see.
ref: 1821, Pierce Egan (the Elder), Boxiana; or, Sketches of antient and modern pugilism (page 117)
glosses: A boxer.
Derived terms: buffer lass
buffer rodeo
buffer
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbʌfə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbɐfə(ɹ)]
ipa: /ˈbʌfɚ/
ipa: /ˈbafə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbäfə(ɹ)]
rhymes: -ʌfə(ɹ)
Etymology: From buff + -er.
Senses: glosses: Comparative form of buff: more buff.
buffer
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbʌfə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbɐfə(ɹ)]
ipa: /ˈbʌfɚ/
ipa: /ˈbafə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbäfə(ɹ)]
rhymes: -ʌfə(ɹ)
Forms: form: buffers
form: buffering
form: buffered
form: buffered
Etymology: Agent noun from obsolete verb buff (“make a dull sound when struck”) (mid-16c.), from Old French buffe (“blow”).
The “boatswain's mate” sense is said to be popularly explained by the mate being a “buffer”, that is intermediary, between officers and men, but various other explanations have also been proposed.
Senses: examples: text: The electronic apparatus is designed to buffer up the sorted wagons in the sidings at a speed not exceeding 4.7 m.p.h.—a particularly important provision in this yard, with its substantial traffic in whisky.
ref: 1962 October, G. Freeman Allen, “The New Look in Scotland's Northern Division—II”, in Modern Railways, page 274:
glosses: To use a buffer or buffers; to isolate or minimize the effects of one thing on another.
examples: text: Some games let you buffer jumps—if you hold the jump button mid-air, your character will jump as soon as they touch the ground.
topics: video-games
glosses: To use a buffer or buffers; to isolate or minimize the effects of one thing on another.
To queue up (an input) so that it is performed immediately once it is possible.
topics: computing
engineering
mathematics
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
sciences
glosses: To store (data) in memory temporarily while it is awaiting processing.
topics: chemistry
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: To maintain the acidity of a solution near a chosen value by adding an acid or a base.
Derived terms: bufferable
buffer up
debuffer
pause buffer
prebuffer
rebuffer
unbuffer
buffer
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbʌfə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbɐfə(ɹ)]
ipa: /ˈbʌfɚ/
ipa: /ˈbafə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbäfə(ɹ)]
rhymes: -ʌfə(ɹ)
Forms: form: buffers
Senses: examples: text: Lastly, the looking-glass reflects Boots and Brewer, and two other stuffed Buffers interposed between the rest of the company and possible accidents.
ref: 1864-1865, Charles Dickens, “Book The First, chapter 2 "The Man from Somewhere"”, in Our Mutual Friend, archived from the original on 06 Jan 2014:
text: Here, too, are Boots and Brewer, and the two other Buffers; each Buffer with a flower in his button-hole, his hair curled, and his gloves buttoned on tight, apparently come prepared, if anything had happened to the bridegroom, to be married instantly.
ref: 1864-1865, Charles Dickens, “Book The First, chapter 10 "A Marriage Contract"”, in Our Mutual Friend, archived from the original on 06 Jan 2014:
text: I can’t expect two youngsters like you to find it much fun talking to an old buffer like me.
ref: 1955, C[live] S[taples] Lewis, The Magician’s Nephew, London: The Bodley Head, →OCLC:
glosses: A good-humoured, slow-witted fellow, usually an elderly man.
Derived terms: bufferdom
buffer
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbʌfə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbɐfə(ɹ)]
ipa: /ˈbʌfɚ/
ipa: /ˈbafə(ɹ)/
ipa: [ˈbäfə(ɹ)]
rhymes: -ʌfə(ɹ)
Forms: form: buffers
Etymology: In reference to buff leather.
Senses: examples: text: Who does not remember that adorable little dog, and that last Christmas season at Olympia, when the Whimmy we had all loved had been dead a month or so, and his buffer ran disconsolately round the circus, pining […]
ref: 1934, The Sawdust Ring, page 27:
glosses: A dog.
crochet
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /kɹoʊˈʃeɪ/
ipa: /ˈkɹəʊʃeɪ/
rhymes: -eɪ
Forms: form: crochets
form: crotchet
Etymology: From French crochet, from Middle French crochet, from Old French crochet, crokét (“curved instrument, hook”), diminutive of Old French croc (“hook”), from Old Frankish *krōk (“hook”) or from Old Norse krókr (“hook, bend, bight”), both from Proto-Germanic *krōkaz (“hook”), from Proto-Indo-European *gerg- (“tracery, basket, twist”). Cognate with Middle English crōc (“crook, hook”), Middle Dutch croec, crōc (“curl”). Doublet of crocket, croquet, and crotchet. More at crook, crooked.
Senses: topics: business
manufacturing
sewing
textiles
glosses: A form of needlework that is made by looping thread with a hooked needle.
topics: biology
natural-sciences
zoology
glosses: A certain crest of enamel on the molar teeth of some rhinoceroses.
Derived terms: antecrochet
crocheter
crochet hook
crochetlike
crochetwork
double crochet
magnetic crochet
single crochet
crochet
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /kɹoʊˈʃeɪ/
ipa: /ˈkɹəʊʃeɪ/
rhymes: -eɪ
Forms: form: crochets
form: crocheting
form: crocheted
form: crocheted
form: crotchet
Etymology: From French crochet, from Middle French crochet, from Old French crochet, crokét (“curved instrument, hook”), diminutive of Old French croc (“hook”), from Old Frankish *krōk (“hook”) or from Old Norse krókr (“hook, bend, bight”), both from Proto-Germanic *krōkaz (“hook”), from Proto-Indo-European *gerg- (“tracery, basket, twist”). Cognate with Middle English crōc (“crook, hook”), Middle Dutch croec, crōc (“curl”). Doublet of crocket, croquet, and crotchet. More at crook, crooked.
Senses: glosses: To make (a piece of) needlework using a hooked needle; to make interlocking loops of thread.
favors
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈfeɪvɚz/
ipa: /ˈfeɪvəz/
Forms: form: favours
Senses: glosses: plural of favor
favors
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈfeɪvɚz/
ipa: /ˈfeɪvəz/
Forms: form: favours
Senses: glosses: third-person singular simple present indicative of favor
hypermarket
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈhaɪpə(ɹ)ˌmɑːkɪt/
ipa: /ˈhaɪpəɹˌmɑɹkɪt/
Forms: form: hypermarkets
Etymology: From hyper- + market, calque of French hypermarché.
Senses: examples: Cherry Jones as Nan Pierce (2023), 42:37 from the start, in Succession, season 2, episode 8: “I got a taste for hypermarché vin ordinaire when I was 19 years old and I have never been able to shake it.”
synonyms: supercenter
superstore
hypermart
glosses: A shop combining elements of a department store and a supermarket.
Related terms: Big box
5-star
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Senses: examples: text: This 5-star hotel in Singapore is simply superb and provides excellent customer service.
glosses: Luxurious and expensive.
Synonyms: five-star
poach
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈpoʊt͡ʃ/
rhymes: -əʊtʃ
Forms: form: poaches
form: poaching
form: poached
form: poached
Etymology: From Middle English pochen (“to poach (eggs)”), from Old French pocher "to put (egg yolks) in pockets" (i.e. in bags formed by the whites), from Old French poche (“pocket”).
Senses: examples: text: Eldridge closed the despatch-case with a snap and, rising briskly, walked down the corridor to his solitary table in the dining-car. Mulligatawny soup, poached turbot, roast leg of lamb—the usual railway dinner.
ref: 1931, Francis Beeding, “1/1”, in Death Walks in Eastrepps:
glosses: To cook (something) in simmering or very hot liquid (usually water; sometimes wine, broth, or otherwise).
examples: text: The white of an egg with spirit of wine, doth bake the egg into clots, as if it began to poach.
ref: 1627 (indicated as 1626), Francis [Bacon], “(please specify the page, or |century=I to X)”, in Sylua Syluarum: Or A Naturall Historie. In Ten Centuries. […], London: […] William Rawley […]; [p]rinted by J[ohn] H[aviland] for William Lee […], →OCLC:
glosses: To be cooked in such manner.
Coordinate terms: boil
deep fry
Derived terms: poached egg
poach up
poach
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈpoʊt͡ʃ/
rhymes: -əʊtʃ
Forms: form: poaches
Etymology: From Middle English pochen (“to poach (eggs)”), from Old French pocher "to put (egg yolks) in pockets" (i.e. in bags formed by the whites), from Old French poche (“pocket”).
Senses: examples: text: Peaches are so perfect they need very little to make them extra special—just a quick poach in basil-scented rosé wine and a few adoring strawberries.
ref: 2005, Jill Dupleix, Good Cooking: The New Basics, page 152:
glosses: The act of cooking in simmering liquid.
poach
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈpoʊt͡ʃ/
rhymes: -əʊtʃ
Forms: form: poaches
Etymology: From Old French pocher, pochier (“to trample, poach into”). Doublet of poke.
Senses: glosses: The act of taking something unfairly, as in tennis doubles where one player returns a shot that their partner was better placed to return.
boo-boo
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbuːˌbuː/
Forms: form: boo-boos
form: booboo
form: boo boo
Etymology: * Possibly from bug-a-boo, an imaginary evil goblin.
* Possibly from bubo, a swollen lymph node especially obvious in sufferers of bubonic plague.
* Possibly from the sound a baby or young toddler might make.
* Possibly borrowed from French bobo (“boo-boo”)
Senses: examples: text: Oh, gosh, golly, I made a boo-boo, and I gave it to Stephen Hawking!
ref: 2012, “The Hawking Excitation”, in The Big Bang Theory, season 5, episode 21, spoken by Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons):
synonyms: word: blooper
word: blunder
word: misstep
word: fluff
word: oopsy
word: slip
word: aberration
word: barbarism
word: bloomer
word: blooper
word: blunder
word: boner
word: boo-boo
word: break
word: clanger
word: cock-up
word: error
word: fault
word: faux pas
word: floater
word: flub
word: fluff
word: fuckup
word: gaffe
word: goof
word: howler
word: inaccuracy
word: lapse
word: lapsus
word: mess-up
word: misstep
word: mistake
word: oopsy
word: screwup
word: slip
word: slip-up
word: slipup
word: stumble
word: thinko
word: wrength
word: solecism
word: erroneity
glosses: A mistake or error.
synonyms: word: owie
word: scrape
word: bruise
word: nick
word: scratch
word: injury
word: wound
word: scath
word: scathe
word: lesion
word: dere
qualifier: by or to young children
glosses: A minor injury, such as a cut or a bruise.
examples: text: I been A-1 since day one, you niggas boo-boo
Your home boy, your block that you're from, boo-boo
Lil' hoes you went to school with, boo-boo
Baby mama and your new bitch, boo-boo
ref: 2015, “Hood Politics”, performed by Kendrick Lamar:
synonyms: word: boom-boom
word: doo-doo
word: poo
word: boo-boo
word: boom-boom
word: caca
word: cack
word: chocolate
word: chocolate hot dog
word: crap
word: crud
word: danna
word: dejection
word: dirt
word: do do
word: doo-doo
word: doody
word: dook
word: dookie
word: dooky
word: droppings
word: dump
word: dumplings
word: dung
word: Eartha
word: Eartha Kitt
word: excrement
word: faeces
word: faex
word: fecal matter
word: feces
word: flop
word: fudge
word: gong
word: guano
word: ish
word: jobby
word: log
word: merd
word: muck
word: nature
word: night soil
word: number two
word: ordure
word: poo
word: pooh
word: poop
word: poopie
word: poo-poo
word: poopy
word: pure
word: purging
word: scat
word: sharn
word: shit
word: shite
word: soil
word: stool
word: thost
word: tom tit
word: turd
word: waste
qualifier: by or to young children
glosses: Feces.
boo-boo
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbuːˌbuː/
Forms: form: boo-boos
form: boo-booing
form: boo-booed
form: boo-booed
form: booboo
form: boo boo
Etymology: * Possibly from bug-a-boo, an imaginary evil goblin.
* Possibly from bubo, a swollen lymph node especially obvious in sufferers of bubonic plague.
* Possibly from the sound a baby or young toddler might make.
* Possibly borrowed from French bobo (“boo-boo”)
Senses: examples: text: We boo-booed in giving the address of California Electric Railway Enthusiasts, and we realized it while mailing the last issue. Correct address is […]
ref: 1952, The Ferroequinologist: A Journal for Students of the Iron Horse:
text: If you do this and feel that you have boo-booed, press Shift+F5, the Go Back keyboard shortcut, to return from whence you came (that is, back to your previous edit).
ref: 1999, Dan Gookin, Word 2000 For Dummies:
glosses: To make a mistake.
examples: text: I went upstairs and Joseph, my husband, he came upstairs and found some boo boo on the floor. My little girl boo booed on herself downstairs as I was getting ready to clean her up.
ref: 1974, The Southeastern Reporter:
text: “Ya know, I don't know what is wrong with my stomach. I must have eaten something spoiled at the job. I was at a customer's home climbing a pole, and I started boo-booing on myself. I got off the pole and took some of the leaves to wipe my butt. Man, that's a horrible feeling.”
ref: 2012, Carolyn Herring-Moore, When Enough is Enough: When You’re Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired, Xlibris, →ISBN, page unknown:
text: I'm still going through so much shock. I can't go through all this. My stomach is rumbling. I have to use the restroom so bad. I was about to boo boo on myself but I remembered what the nurse told me the earlier.
ref: 2012, Reginald Killings, I Am Drama City: Trust, Love, Loyalty Is All We Know, Xlibris, →ISBN, page 34:
text: We didn't start demonizing Socialists until the 50s when everyone boo-booed they pants about communist russia.
ref: 2017, /u/thesnakeinthegarden, “Oh god. Donna Brazile opened her mouth again.”, in Reddit:
text: Imagine a little kid in a big ass button down coat sitting in a car and then just saying I boo booed on myself.
ref: 2017, /u/Dwelld, “What was the worst situation you have crapped your pants?”, in Reddit:
synonyms: word: poo
word: boo-boo
word: cack
word: choke a darkie
word: crap
word: defecate
word: do one's ease
word: ease oneself
word: do a number two
word: do one's easement
word: drite
word: drop a bomb
word: drop a chalupa
word: drop a deuce
word: drop anchor
word: drop the kids off at the pool
word: dung
raw_tags: of animals
word: exrementize
word: feceate
word: have a shit
word: move one's bowels
word: pinch a loaf
word: pinch one off
word: poo
word: pooh
word: poop
word: sharn
word: shart
word: shiss
word: shit
word: shite
word: stool
word: take a dump
word: take a shit
word: take a crap
word: take the Browns to the Super Bowl
word: uncoil
word: void one's bowels
qualifier: by or to young children
glosses: To defecate.
Related terms: na-na na-na boo-boo
bang for the buck
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: bang for one's buck
form: bang from the buck
Senses: examples: text: Do you think he would get as much bang for the buck out of a fancier, more expensive car?
text: And according to Hughes, HM Treasury is still sceptical about rail electrification. "It's not because they don't see electrification as a good thing, but I think when you look at it from the UK-wide perspective, if you have £x billion to spend on decarbonisation, you don't necessarily start with rail. Rail's not where you get the biggest bang for the buck in terms of decarbonisation."
ref: 2025 February 5, Peter Plisner, “East West Rail: progress from west to east”, in RAIL, number 1028, page 30:
glosses: Efficiency; cost-effectiveness; value.
Synonyms: bounce to the ounce
worthwhileness
pitter-patter
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈpɪt.əˈpæt.ə/
ipa: /ˈpɪt.ɚˈpæt.ɚ/
Etymology: Reduplication of patter.
Senses: examples: text: Once or twice I heard a faint pitter-patter like the feet of the dog going hither and thither on the sand far below me, and there were more bird-like sounds, but that was all.
ref: 1895–1897, H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells, “The Stillness”, in The War of the Worlds, London: William Heinemann, published 1898, →OCLC, book II (The Earth under the Martians), page 237:
text: Pitter-patter the rain falling down / Little glamor sun coming round / Take a walk when autumn comes to town
ref: 1973, Van Morrison, “Autumn Song”:
glosses: A soft, percussive sound, as of tiny feet, or of rain on a rooftop; patter.
pitter-patter
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈpɪt.əˈpæt.ə/
ipa: /ˈpɪt.ɚˈpæt.ɚ/
Forms: form: pitter-patters
form: pitter-pattering
form: pitter-pattered
form: pitter-pattered
Etymology: Reduplication of patter.
Senses: examples: text: The rain was coming down heavier now, the drops pitter-pattering on the roof of the truck.
ref: 1996, Stephen Leather, The Double Tap, BCA, page 97:
glosses: To patter; to scurry.
razzle-dazzle
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ræzəl dæzəl/
Forms: form: razzle dazzle
Etymology: Reduplication of dazzle.
Senses: examples: text: The razzmatazz of a razzle-dazzle of pairs figure skating.
text: The big musical number at the end didn't have quite the razzle-dazzle they had hoped.
text: There are some razzle-dazzle descriptions of various computer programs — including one that transports users to vividly realized virtual paradises — but there are also lots of tired complaints about “sewers of greed” and consumerism in millennial Manhattan.
ref: 2013 September 10, Michiko Kakutani, “A Calamity Tailor-Made for Internet Conspiracy Theories”, in New York Times:
text: “Looking snazzy, Mr. Sarner.” “[screams] I have a body.” “Fucking hell. Yes, we brought you back to life.” “I was floating in the eternal glow for a million years. Safe, warm.” “You need to remember what you were going to say to the board of directors to justify expensing a ping ping table.” “I've been here before.” “I've made some flashcards to help jog your memory. "Ping ping increases productivity by 50 percent." I mean, that's bullshit, but let's see if it flies.” “How did I get back on this plane of existence?” “Would you shut up? Literally no one has ever cared about what happens after you die.” “The board is here.” “I need more time, Terry. Sarner's being a baby about his resurrection.” “I traversed the black mountain. Why am I back?” “Okay, I'll just have to stall them with the old razzle-dazzle.”
ref: 2023 August 14, Dominic Dierkes, “The Ping Pong Table” (17:50 from the start), in Solar Opposites, season 4, episode 1, spoken by Terry Opposites (Thomas Middleditch):
glosses: Glitz, glamor/glamour, showiness, or pizazz.
glosses: dazzle camouflage
Derived terms: on the razzle-dazzle
razzle-dazzly
razzly-dazzly
razzle-dazzle
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ræzəl dæzəl/
Forms: form: razzle-dazzles
form: razzle-dazzling
form: razzle-dazzled
form: razzle-dazzled
form: razzle dazzle
Etymology: Reduplication of dazzle.
Senses: glosses: To confuse or overcome with glamour or showiness; to dazzle.
hem and haw
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: hems and haws
form: hemming and hawing
form: hemmed and hawed
form: hemmed and hawed
form: hem and hah
Etymology: hem + and + haw
Senses: examples: text: If you hem and haw long enough, someone else will do it first.
glosses: To discuss, deliberate, or contemplate rather than taking action or making up one's mind.
examples: text: The man at the Chief Office hemmed and hawed. 'We make it a rule,' he explained, 'to give no information concerning our clients.' 'But in this case,' I urged, 'it is the client who requests you to give the information concerning himself.' Again he hemmed and hawed.
ref: 1903, The People of the Abyss, by Jack London, Chapter 1
text: These New Yawk publishers hem and haw and say like well we’d LOVE to publish yer great friends but would it sell and I’m overloaded and this and that — everything but that they really don’t want to publish the writing; […]
ref: 1959 February 5, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, “Lawrence Ferlinghetti in San Francisco to Allen Ginsberg in New York”, in Bill Morgan, editor, I Greet You at the Beginning of a Great Career: The Selected Correspondence of Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Allen Ginsberg, 1955–1997, San Francisco, Calif.: City Lights Books, published 2015, →ISBN, page 88:
text: [Pogo:] How can you provide [someone] with scripts what tells him what to say all day long? […] / [Howland Owl:] It's a boon to humanity … How many dolts do you know who hems an' haws their way thru life? – I gives 'em talk.
ref: 1959 July 15, Walt Kelly, Pogo (comic strip), →ISBN, page 58:
synonyms: word: hacker
glosses: To mumble and procrastinate in one's speech, especially with a reply to a hard question or with voicing a decision on a topical matter; to evade a question, giving vague answers; to equivocate or temporize.
Related terms: ahem
beat around the bush
clear one's throat
pussyfoot
stall for time
step up
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: steps up
form: stepping up
form: stepped up
form: stepped up
Senses: examples: text: Near-synonym: level up
text: They will need to step up production if they are going to compete.
text: Step up your shower game!
text: As in the whole country, cadres and poor and lower-middle peasants in our Taning County, inspired by the spirit of the National Conference on Learning From Tachai in Agriculture, were greatly stimulated and high in spirits and resolved to fight hard in the movement of learning from Tachai in agriculture and building Tachai-type counties everywhere.
In the face of the excellent situation, the anti-party clique of the "gang of four,"--Wang, Chang, Chiang and Yao--stepped up their antiparty activities and strengthend their attacks on the party.
ref: 1976 November 5 [1976 November 2], “The 'Gang of Four' Sabotaged the Campaign to Learn From Tachai in Agriculture in a Vain Attempt to Restore Capitalism”, in Daily Report: People's Republic of China, volume I, number 215, Foreign Broadcast Information Service, sourced from Taiyuan Shansi Provincial Service, translation of original by Taning County CCP Committee (in Mandarin), →ISSN, →OCLC, page K 4:
text: United were made to pay for letting an eight-point lead as little as five weeks ago slip and, despite their final-day efforts, they will look back on a season where, when they needed to step up, they fell flat.
ref: 2012 May 13, Alistair Magowan, “Sunderland 0-1 Man Utd”, in BBC Sport:
coordinate_terms: upgrade
;
ramp up
glosses: To increase, augment, or advance, especially by one or more steps.
step up
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: steps up
form: stepping up
form: stepped up
form: stepped up
Etymology: Ellipsis of step up to the plate (“take one's turn at bat, take responsibility”).
Senses: examples: text: Won't anyone step up to the challenge?
text: The Gunners continued to press after the break but it was Leeds who broke the deadlock in the 54th minute. There was no doubt about the penalty either, with Denilson clumsily fouling Gradel and Snodgrass stepping up to find the bottom corner of the net.
ref: 2011 January 8, Chris Bevan, “Arsenal 1 - 1 Leeds”, in BBC:
synonyms: volunteer
offer
antonyms: step aside#Verb
step down#Verb
glosses: To assume or take responsibility.
ins and outs
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Senses: examples: text: After a few months, you will know all the ins and outs of the system thoroughly.
glosses: The details or fine points of something.
Related terms: nitty-gritty
climatological
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Forms: form: more climatological
form: most climatological
Etymology: From climatology + -ical.
Senses: glosses: Of or pertaining to climatology.
Synonyms: climatologic
Derived terms: aclimatological
bioclimatological
climatologically
dendroclimatological
hydroclimatological
nonclimatological
palaeoclimatological
paleoclimatological
cliticization
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: cliticizations
form: cliticisation
Etymology: From clitic + -ization.
Senses: topics: grammar
human-sciences
linguistics
sciences
glosses: The process, or an instance, of a word becoming a clitic.
brilliancy
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbɹɪljənsi/
Forms: form: brilliancies
form: brilliance
Etymology: From brilliant + -ancy; attested earlier than brilliance. Compare French brillance.
Senses: examples: text: […] to assist greatly in the consumption of the lamp, and to diminish the aqueous precipitations produced on the interior of the lantern glass, which has the effect of reducing more or less the brilliancy of the light.
ref: 1871, Léonce Reynaud, Memoir Upon the Light-house Illumination of the Coasts of France, page 110:
text: [H]is ideal of grandeur was a splendid façade, diffusing its brilliancy outward too, irradiating hospitality.
ref: 1876 June, Henry James, Jr., chapter III, in The American, Boston, Mass.: James R[ipley] Osgood and Company, […], published 5 May 1877, →OCLC, pages 56–57:
glosses: A shining quality; brilliance.
examples: text: His brilliancy lay in combining old concepts from far-flung fields into a new idea.
text: Surely it must have been his brilliancy that accounted for Vardon standing out as a stroke or two better than such a model of steadiness as J. H. Taylor[.]
ref: 1922, W. K., “Has the Standard of Professional Golf Improved?”, in Baily's Magazine of Sports and Pastimes, page 125:
text: 2013, Hannah Eichler, The Key to Brilliancy: How to Unlock Your Child's Genius
glosses: An act of being brilliant.
examples: text: Bobby Fischer, one of the greatest chess players who ever lived, died at the age of sixty-four from kidney failure. He had lived one year for each square on a chessboard. / THE GOOD / First of all, you should learn the term “brilliancy.” It refers to a game that is played with spectacular strategy and beauty, typically featuring unexpected moves and ingenious ideas. In other words, the game is extraordinary! At age thirteen, Bobby Fischer won a brilliancy against twenty-six-year-old Donald Byrne.
ref: 2015, Michael Hearst, Extraordinary People: A Semi-Comprehensive Guide to Some of the World's Most Fascinating Individuals, Chronicle Books, →ISBN, page 38:
topics: board-games
chess
games
glosses: A spectacular and beautiful game of chess, generally featuring sacrificial attacks and unexpected moves.
Derived terms: overbrilliancy
art gallery
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: art galleries
Senses: glosses: A room, a group of rooms, or other space where works of art are placed on display, possibly for sale.
Derived terms: art gallery problem
hydrolyze
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: hydrolyzes
form: hydrolyzing
form: hydrolyzed
form: hydrolyzed
form: hydrolyse
Senses: topics: chemistry
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: To subject to hydrolysis.
topics: chemistry
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: To undergo hydrolysis.
Derived terms: hydrolyzability
hydrolyzable
hydrolyzation
hydrolyzer
nonhydrolyzed
prehydrolyzed
unhydrolyzed
butter fingers
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: butter fingers
Senses: glosses: Alternative form of butterfingers.
dinero
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /dɪˈnɛɹ.oʊ/
Etymology: Borrowed from Spanish dinero (“money”). Doublet of denar, denarius, denier, dinar, diner, and dinheiro.
Senses: glosses: Money.
diva
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈdiː.və/
rhymes: -iːvə
Forms: form: divas
form: dive
Etymology: From Italian diva (“diva, goddess”), from Latin dīva (“goddess”), female of dīvus (“divine, divine one; notably a deified mortal”), from Old Latin deivā, from Proto-Italic *deiwā (“goddess”), feminine of *deiwos (“god”), from Proto-Indo-European *deywós (“god”).
Senses: glosses: Any female celebrity, usually a well known singer or actress.
synonyms: prima donna
glosses: A person with an inflated sense of self, who has high expectations of others, and who is extremely demanding and fussy when it comes to personal privileges.
examples: text: Who is this DIVA 💜.
glosses: A person who slays in a confident and feminine manner.
Derived terms: divadom
divaesque
diva house
diva-ish
divaism
divalike
divo
boyo
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbɔɪ.əʊ/
ipa: /ˈbɔɪ.oʊ/
rhymes: -ɔɪəʊ
Forms: form: boyos
Etymology: From boy + -o.
Senses: glosses: A boy or lad.
examples: text: “Don't be daft, boyo. First chance I get, and I'm skipping!”
ref: 1968 February 10, Mervyn Haisman, “The Web of Fear (2)”, in Doctor Who, season 5, episode 24, spoken by Driver Evans (Derek Pollitt), production code QQ:
text: “Can’t get onboard the boat,” Dai finished for me. “Bloody typical, it is, boyo.”
ref: 1980, Tristan Jones, “Down the Old Kent Road”, in Adrift, Sheridan House, Inc, published 1992, →ISBN, page 73:
text: “What brings you around, boyo?” Deane asked, offering Case a narrow bonbon wrapped in blue-and-white checked paper.
ref: 1984, William Gibson, Neuromancer (Sprawl; book 1), New York, N.Y.: Ace Books, →ISBN, page 13:
text: ‘This, er, initiator of polonium and lithium, would it be used in an anti-personnel bomb?’ he asked. ‘Oh yes, you could say so, boyo,’ replied the Welshman.
ref: 1984, Frederick Forsyth, The Fourth Protocol, London: Hutchinson, →ISBN, page 301:
text: A taff is a Welshman. Everyone in the doctors’ mess calls me taff or taffy. Mr Swain, the mortuary attendant, calls me boyo, especially during the rugby season when Wales lose badly.
ref: 1995, Peter Ho Davies, “The Ugliest House in the World”, in The Ugliest House in the World: Stories, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, published 2003, →ISBN, page 4:
text: “You’re crazy boyo!” Taffy gaped at his shipmate’s rosy cheeks, their hugh brightened by the Canadian blasts. “Now, what in the bloody hell were you doing out there boyo?”
ref: 2006, Francis Kerr Young, Hang on a Second!, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 210:
glosses: A stereotypically Welsh form of address for a man, usually younger than the speaker.
prima ballerina
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: prima ballerinas
Etymology: From Italian.
Senses: examples: text: This elaborate ballet is a little too long for a modern audience, the action is not always clear to those who do not understand the language of gesture, while the elaborate and extremely difficult movements of the prima ballerina lose part of the effect they made in the far-off days of Fanny Elssler and Lucile Grahn. When these great prime ballerine were to the fore, and Cerito and Taglioni were dancing, the various degrees of achievement in Italian ballet-dancing were well known and understood.
ref: 1911 October 28, The Illustrated London News, volume CXXXIX, number 3784, page 678:
glosses: The leading ballerina in a dance company.
Related terms: prima donna
Cotton effect
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: Cotton effects
Etymology: Named after Aimé Cotton.
Senses: topics: chemistry
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: The characteristic change in optical rotatory dispersion and/or circular dichroism in the vicinity of an absorption band of a substance.
wikipedia: Aimé Cotton