cstr/en-wiktionary-extracted-all huggingface dataset:
transcendental meditation
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: transcendental meditations
Senses: glosses: A form of mantra meditation introduced worldwide in 1957 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (1917–2008).
glosses: Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see transcendental, meditation.
rain buckets
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: rains buckets
form: raining buckets
form: rained buckets
form: rained buckets
Etymology: From figurative sense of pouring from buckets.
Senses: examples: text: After lunching, Caesar went out to post some cards, and as it was raining buckets, he took refuge in the arcades of the Piazza Esedra
ref: 1923, Pío Baroja, Caesar or Nothing:
text: It was still raining buckets when he stepped into his house, even though the worst seemed almost over.
ref: 2018, Andrea Camilleri, The Pyramid of Mud, Penguin Books, page 167:
glosses: To rain heavily
Synonyms: rain cats and dogs
couscous
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈkʊs.kʊs/
ipa: /ˈkuːs.kuːs/
ipa: /ˈkus.kus/
Forms: form: couscouses
form: cuscousou
form: cuscusu
Etymology: Borrowed from French couscous, from Arabic كُسْكُس (kuskus) from Northern Saharan Berber seksu or from Tuareg keskesu. First use appears c. 1593.
Senses: examples: text: Karou took the plate of couscous and vegetables.
ref: 2012, Laini Taylor, Days of Blood & Starlight, →ISBN:
glosses: A pasta of North African origin made of crushed and steamed semolina.
Derived terms: couscoussier
Israeli couscous
discourse
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈdɪs.kɔːs/
ipa: /dɪsˈkɔːs/
ipa: /ˈdɪs.kɔːɹs/
ipa: /dɪsˈkɔːɹs/
note: without the horse–hoarse merger
ipa: /ˈdɪs.koː(ɹ)s/
note: without the horse–hoarse merger
ipa: /dɪsˈkoː(ɹ)s/
rhymes: -ɪskɔː(ɹ)s
rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)s
homophone: disk horse
homophone: disc horse
Forms: form: discourses
form: discoursing
form: discoursed
form: discoursed
form: discours
Etymology: From Middle English discours, borrowed from Middle French discours (“conversation, speech”), from Latin discursus (“the act of running about”), from Latin discurrō (“run about”), from dis- (“apart”) + currō (“run”). Spelling modified by influence of Middle French cours (“course”). Doublet of discursus.
Senses: glosses: To engage in discussion or conversation; to converse.
glosses: To write or speak formally and at length.
glosses: To debate.
examples: text: While he discours'd on heaven's mysterious
The world's original, and nature's cause
ref: 1717, John Dryden [et al.], “Book 15”, in Ovid’s Metamorphoses in Fifteen Books. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
glosses: To exercise reason; to employ the mind in judging and inferring; to reason.
examples: text: Hamlet. […] Will you play upon this pipe? […] It is as easy as lying. Govern these ventages with your fingers and thumbs, give it breath with your mouth, and it will discourse most eloquent music.
ref: c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:
text: Music discoursed on that melodious instrument, a Jew's harp, keeps the elfin women away from the hunter, because the tongue of the instrument is of steel.
ref: 1911, James George Frazer, The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion, Volume II, Part II, Chapter V, p. 233:
text: Dahl's Silver Cornet Band, augmented for the occasion to the grand total of fourteen pieces, discoursed sweet—well, discoursed music; let us not be too particular as to the quality of it.
ref: 1915, Ralph Henry Barbour, chapter XXIII, in The Secret Play, New York: D. Appleton & Co., page 300:
glosses: To produce or emit (musical sounds).
Synonyms: sense: engage in discussion or conversation
word: converse
sense: engage in discussion or conversation
word: talk
Derived terms: discourser
Related terms: essay
bear hug
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: bear hugs
Senses: examples: text: Granddad scooped up the child in a big bear hug.
text: Challenger kissed us all in her emotion, before she finally threw herself into the bear-hug of her husband.
ref: 1913, Arthur Conan Doyle, “(please specify the page)”, in The Poison Belt […], London; New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC:
glosses: Any especially large, tight or enthusiastic hug, usually friendly and especially given by a male.
topics: business
glosses: A hostile takeover effort in which one firm offers to buy the other firm at a share price too high to refuse.
topics: government
hobbies
lifestyle
martial-arts
military
politics
sports
war
wrestling
glosses: A hold with the arms around the opponent.
small potatoes
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Etymology: A specialization of a sense of potato meaning a thing of little value, and a comment on the low value of a small potato in particular, appearing in its modern form in North America in the mid-19th century (see 1855 quotation).
Senses: examples: text: My paycheck is small potatoes compared to hers.
text: He no longer works for individuals, since they are small potatoes compared to his corporate clients.
text: It's small potatoes for a man-o-war to be hunting poor game, like us little fore and afters."
ref: 1855, Thomas Chandler Haliburton, “Unlocking a Woman's Heart”, in Nature and Human Nature, volume 1, page 38:
text: The queen may have outwitted Otto, but he’s small potatoes compared to a master opponent like the Lady of Driftmark.
ref: 2022 October 16, Jenna Scherer, “An enticing House Of The Dragon crowns Westeros' new ruler”, in AV Club:
glosses: One or more persons or things of relatively little consequence, importance, or value.
Synonyms: word: peanuts
raw_tags: of money
word: small beer
word: small fry
word: nobody
word: no one
small-potatoes
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: small‐potatoes
Senses: glosses: Alternative spelling of small potatoes.
bear-hug
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: bear-hugs
Senses: glosses: Alternative spelling of bear hug.
bear-hug
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: bear-hugs
form: bear-hugging
form: bear-hugged
form: bear-hugged
Senses: glosses: Alternative spelling of bearhug.
greasy spoon
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: greasy spoons
form: greasey spoon
Etymology: American English, 1920s.
Senses: examples: text: We found a good little greasy spoon down a side street.
text: I find that most gay men love to cook for others but would rather visit any greasy spoon than eat by themselves.
ref: 1985 December 14, Robert Storem, “The Dating Game”, in Gay Community News, volume 13, number 22, page 6:
text: From the highway, Phil's looked like any other greasy spoon inviting the weary traveler off the road for a little indigestion and a cup of coffee — the same red booths patched with black electrical tape and faded formica counters lined with chrome-sided stools, a glass pie pin near the cash register, and coffee served in thick white mugs.
ref: 1995, Sam DeSanto, The American Standard, East African Publishers, →ISBN, page 55:
text: Reward yourself for a week of healthful eating with breakfast at a greasy spoon. Nutritionists say an occasional cheat meal can make it easier to stick with a healthy diet.
ref: 2008 January–February, “70 Ways to Improve Every Day of the Week”, in Men's Health, volume 23, number 1, →ISSN, page 135:
coordinate_terms: caff
diner
glosses: An inexpensive diner or other informal restaurant, especially one specializing in frying or grilling.
Related terms: hash slinger
scratchpad
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: scratchpads
Etymology: From scratch + pad.
Senses: glosses: A pad of paper for preliminary notes or sketches or writings, etc.
topics: computing
engineering
mathematics
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
sciences
glosses: A piece of temporary memory to hold details of a current conversation, usually scratchpad memory.
raw_tags: in transaction processing systems
Hypernyms: pad
tzigane
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /tsɪˈɡɑːn/
rhymes: -ɑːn
Forms: form: tziganes
Etymology: From the Hungarian cigány via French tzigane, from Byzantine Greek ἀθίγγανος (athínganos, “untouchable”).
Cognate to Italian zigano, zingano and zingaro, Spanish cíngaro, German Zigeuner, Dutch zigeuner, Afrikaans sigeuner, Portuguese cigano, Romanian țigan, Polish Cygan, Czech Cikán, Serbo-Croatian cigan, Russian цыган (cygan), Turkish Çingene. Doublet of zingaro.
The other major categories of words for the Roma are cognates of Rom (words related to the Romani people's autonyms) and cognates of Gypsy (words related to Egypt); see those entries for more information.
Senses: glosses: A Hungarian Gypsy (Romani person).
Hypernyms: gipsy
Gipsy
gypsy
Gypsy
zigeuner
Zigeuner
zingaro
the end of one's rope
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: the end of one’s rope
Senses: examples: come to the end of one's rope; reach the end of one's rope; at the end of one's rope
glosses: The limit of one’s patience, when one is so frustrated or annoyed that one can no longer cope.
examples: text: come to the end of one's rope; reach the end of one's rope; at the end of one's rope
text: Have you reached the end of your rope? Are all your options closed?
ref: 2000, Mark Ellingsen, A Word That Sets Free: First Lesson Sermons for Sundays After Pentecost (Last Third) Cycle C, CSS Publishing, →ISBN, page 43:
glosses: The point at which one has run out of options or the ability to delay.
Related terms: at the end of one's tether
tyrannicide
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /taɪˈɹænɪsaɪd/
Forms: form: tyrannicides
Etymology: From French tyrannicide, from Middle French tyrannicide, from Latin tyrannicīda. Equivalent to tyrant + -cide.
Senses: hypernyms: assassination
regicide
glosses: The killing of a tyrant.
tyrannicide
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /taɪˈɹænɪsaɪd/
Forms: form: tyrannicides
Etymology: From French tyrannicide, from Middle French tyrannicide, from Latin tyrannicīdium. Equivalent to tyrant + -cide.
Senses: examples: text: Princip had even found time to learn by heart the entirety of The Mountain Wreath, Petrović-Njegos's stirring epic celebration of the selfless tyrannicide Miloš Obilić.
ref: 2012, Christopher Clark, The Sleepwalkers, Penguin, published 2013, page 51:
hypernyms: assassin
regicide
glosses: Someone who kills a tyrant.
skillet
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: enpr: skĭlʹĭt
ipa: /ˈskɪlɪt/
rhymes: -ɪlɪt
Forms: form: skillets
Etymology: From Old French escuëlette, diminutive of escuëlle (“a porringer”), (French écuelle), from Vulgar Latin scutella, diminutive of scutra, scuta (“tray, dish”). Compare scuttle (“basket”).
Senses: glosses: A large and heavy saucepan or frying pan with legs and, usually, a long handle designed for heating food in a fireplace.
examples: text: Heat some oil in a cast-iron skillet and add the onions.
text: Inside this paper plane
Note my words are Navy sealed
So here and I quote
Taboo and I are in the same boat
What's said from Pennywise
I guess we all float
Sky is the limit, I could die in a minute
Got my mind in a skillet
Suicide not a mission
See the vibe very timid
I'm timid and very sad
Translated my thoughts and feelings
I pivot into the pad
ref: 2018, “Black Balloons”, performed by Denzel Curry:
glosses: A pan for frying, generally large and heavy.
examples: text: This is an easy skillet with potatoes and bacon.
text: Can you make up a quick skillet hash?
glosses: A dish or meal cooked in such a pan.
Synonyms: sense: pan for frying
word: frying pan
Derived terms: drop like a hot skillet
homeskillet
skillet bread
skillet corn bread
skillet
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: enpr: skĭlʹĭt
ipa: /ˈskɪlɪt/
rhymes: -ɪlɪt
Forms: form: skillets
form: skilleting
form: skilleted
form: skilleted
Etymology: From Old French escuëlette, diminutive of escuëlle (“a porringer”), (French écuelle), from Vulgar Latin scutella, diminutive of scutra, scuta (“tray, dish”). Compare scuttle (“basket”).
Senses: examples: text: Now that the season has arrived in many parts of the country for the nimrods to load their trusty Thirty-Thirties and go forth in quest of the elusive deer, it seems an appropriate time to say a word about the skilleting of venison — which can be a pretty tough and dry proposition if not properly handled.
ref: 1960, The Cattleman, volume 47, page 46:
text: That said, Danton in manhood is probed and skilleted, admired and reviled in a multitude of memoirs written by contemporaries who love him, loathe him or simply stand and watch as the Danton tempest roars past.
ref: 2010, David Lawday, The Giant of the French Revolution: Danton, A Life:
glosses: To cook in a skillet.
flip the bird
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: flips the bird
form: flipping the bird
form: flipped the bird
form: flipped the bird
Senses: examples: text: I accidentally bumped into him, and he flipped me the bird.
text: He held his right hand up in front of his face and flipped the bird.
ref: 2005, Vince Flynn, Consent to Kill, page 135:
text: The vaunted Attitude era was built, in many ways, on a level of crudity never before seen in wrestling. You had guys flipping the bird, women nearly naked in the ring and guys telling each other to “suck it.”
ref: 2007, R. D. Reynolds, The Wrestlecrap Book of Lists!, page 350:
text: 2008, Vanessa Grigoriadis, Everybody Sucks, American Society of Magazine Editors (compilers), The Best American Magazine Writing 2008, page 9,
This summer, she took some time off in Maine, and before she went posted a picture of herself on Gawker in a bathing suit flipping the bird — "At least I didn't put up the ones of myself in a silver-lame bikini. That would have been a little much," she said, laughing.
synonyms: flick off
flip off
give the finger
give the bird
glosses: To make a rude or obscene gesture (at somebody); particularly, to extend the middle finger.
glosses: Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see flip, bird.
Related terms: middle finger salute
🖕
flip off
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: flips off
form: flipping off
form: flipped off
form: flipped off
Senses: examples: text: Would you believe he flipped me off over that comment?
text: He was so pissed he flipped off the policeman.
glosses: To make a rude or obscene gesture at someone.
Related terms: flick off
flip the bird
give the finger
fly off the handle
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: flies off the handle
form: flying off the handle
form: flew off the handle
form: flown off the handle
Senses: examples: text: My dad flew off the handle when he saw the F grade on my report card.
text: But he added: “Look, it happens to everybody. I’ve flown off the handle way worse than Elon Musk did in the last 24 hours.”
ref: 2025 June 7, Edward Helmore, quoting JD Vance, “Trump warns Musk of ‘very serious consequences’ if he backs Democrats”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
glosses: To become very angry or enraged; to throw a fit or go crazy.
Related terms: lose one's temper
from the ground up
Language: English
Part of speech: adv
Senses: examples: text: A bright, ambitious kid just out of technical school, learning railroading from the ground up.
ref: 2014, Maxwell Grant, The Pooltex Tangle:
glosses: From the beginning; starting with the basics, foundation, or fundamentals.
Synonyms: scratch
circumambulate
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˌsɝ.kəmˈæm.bju.leɪt/
ipa: /səː.kəmˈam.bjuː.leɪt/
Forms: form: circumambulates
form: circumambulating
form: circumambulated
form: circumambulated
Etymology: Latin circumambulatus, past participle of circumambulare (“to walk around”). Equivalent to circum- + ambulate.
Senses: examples: text: Circumambulate the city of a dreamy Sabbath afternoon.
ref: 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chapter 1:
glosses: To walk around something in a circle, especially for a ritual purpose.
Related terms: circumambulation
circumambulator
circumambulatory
square one
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Senses: examples: text: We discovered that our first idea would never work, so we were back to square one.
glosses: The place where one begins; a lack of progress.
Related terms: back to square one
keep a lid on
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: keeps a lid on
form: keeping a lid on
form: kept a lid on
form: kept a lid on
Senses: examples: text: It's supposed to be a surprise, so try to keep a lid on it, will you?
text: If he was listening to the England fans who gathered and sang non-stop late into the Moscow night behind the goal in the Spartak Stadium, it may have dawned on him that keeping a lid on expectations is likely to be a losing battle.
ref: 2018 July 3, Phil McNulty, “Colombia 1 - 1 England”, in BBC Sport:
glosses: To keep something secret.
Related terms: under wraps
staphylococcus
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: /ˌstæfələˈkɔkəs/
/ˌstæfɪləˈkɒkəs/
Forms: form: staphylococci
Etymology: Borrowed from translingual Staphylococcus. By surface analysis, staphylo- + -coccus.
Senses: examples: text: This Scottish bacteriologist accidentally discovered the antibiotic penicillin after bacteria-killing fungus formed on staphylococci cultures he had left unattended.
ref: 2012, The Onion Book of Known Knowledge, page 127:
glosses: A spherical gram-positive parasitic bacterium of the genus Staphylococcus, causing blisters, septicemia, and other infections.
Derived terms: staph
staphylococcal
staphylococcin
Related terms: coccus
under wraps
Language: English
Part of speech: prep_phrase
Senses: examples: text: They're trying to keep the new product under wraps and hidden from their competitors.
glosses: In secrecy or in hiding.
topics: hobbies
horse-racing
horseracing
horses
lifestyle
pets
racing
sports
glosses: Of a horse: restrained from performing at its best in a race, so as to mislead others regarding its potential.
Related terms: keep a lid on
transcontinental
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˌtɹænzˌkɒntɪˈnɛntəl/
ipa: /ˌtɹɑːnzˌkɒntɪˈnɛntəl/
Forms: form: trans-continental
Etymology: From trans- + continental.
Senses: examples: text: In that year [1871] British Columbia decided to become part of the Dominion of Canada, on condition that a transcontinental railway should be completed without delay.
ref: 1954 February, Trevor Holloway, “Canada's Transcontinental Routes”, in Railway Magazine, pages 127-128:
text: It is the transcontinental trains which figure most prominently in railway advertising. Both railways run two trains in each direction.
ref: 1959 November, J. N. Westwood, “The Railways of Canada”, in Trains Illustrated, page 554:
glosses: Crossing or spanning a continent.
transcontinental
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˌtɹænzˌkɒntɪˈnɛntəl/
ipa: /ˌtɹɑːnzˌkɒntɪˈnɛntəl/
Forms: form: transcontinentals
form: trans-continental
Etymology: From trans- + continental.
Senses: examples: text: Stretched across the Dominion of Canada are two parallel but dissimilar railways - the continent's only true transcontinentals north of the Rio Grande.
ref: 1959, David P. Morgan, editor, Steam's Finest Hour, Kalmbach Publishing Co.:
glosses: a transcontinental railroad.
transcribe
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /trænˈskɹaɪb/
rhymes: -aɪb
Forms: form: transcribes
form: transcribing
form: transcribed
form: transcribed
Etymology: Learned borrowing from Latin trānscrībere (“to write again in another place, transcribe, copy”).
Senses: glosses: To convert a representation of language, typically speech but also sign language, etc., to a written representation of it. The term now usually implies the conversion of speech to text by a human transcriptionist with the assistance of a computer for word processing and sometimes also for speech recognition, the process of a computer interpreting speech and converting it to text.
examples: text: The doctor made several recordings today which she will transcribe into medical reports tomorrow.
glosses: To make such a conversion from live or recorded speech to text.
topics: computing
engineering
mathematics
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
sciences
glosses: To transfer data from one recording medium to another.
topics: entertainment
lifestyle
music
glosses: To adapt a composition for a voice or instrument other than the original; to notate live or recorded music.
topics: biochemistry
biology
chemistry
microbiology
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: To cause DNA to undergo transcription.
topics: human-sciences
linguistics
sciences
glosses: To represent speech by phonetic symbols.
Derived terms: transcriber
Related terms: scribe
transcribble
transcription
translate
transliterate
parakeets
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Senses: glosses: plural of parakeet
inadvertency
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: inadvertencies
Senses: examples: text: Inadvertency, or want of attendance to the sense and intention of our prayers.
ref: 1651–1653, Jer[emy] Taylor, ΕΝΙΑΥΤΟΣ [Eniautos]. A Course of Sermons for All the Sundays of the Year. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Richard Royston […], published 1655, →OCLC:
text: It ſeems more probable that Ovid vvas either the Confident of ſome other paſſion, or that he had ſtumbled by ſome inadvertency, upon the privacies of Livia, and ſeen her in a Bath: […]
ref: 1680, John Dryden, “The Preface to Ovid’s Epistles”, in Ovid, Ovid’s Epistles, […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC:
glosses: Inadvertence; heedlessness.
tonal
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈtoʊnəl/
ipa: /ˈtəʊnəl/
rhymes: -əʊnəl
Forms: form: more tonal
form: most tonal
Etymology: From tone + -al.
Senses: glosses: Of or relating to tones or tonality.
examples: text: The lurid way the story played out felt like a tonal shift for Empire, but not necessarily a bad one—in the process of shedding its cool costume-drama attitude for grotesque family dysfunction, the episode felt for once less like a story about Prohibition and more one about a specific set of people.
ref: 2011 December 5, James Poniewozik, “Boardwalk Empire Watch: Mother, May I Sleep With Danger?”, in Time:
glosses: Of or relating to the general character, mood, or trend of something.
topics: entertainment
lifestyle
music
glosses: Employing tones that have a predictable relationship to some tonic.
topics: human-sciences
linguistics
sciences
glosses: Employing differences in pitch (tones) to distinguish differences in the meaning of otherwise similar words (words which would otherwise be homophonic).
Derived terms: nontonal
tonal center
tonal noise
Related terms: tonality
tonally
tonal
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈtoʊnəl/
ipa: /ˈtəʊnəl/
rhymes: -əʊnəl
Forms: form: tonals
form: tona
Etymology: From Nahuatl tōnalli (“day, day sign”).
Senses: examples: text: When a tonal suffers misfortune or death, the same thing happens to the person associated with it.
ref: 1989, Robert Bartley Taylor, Indians of Middle America: an introduction to the ethnology of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, page 122:
glosses: An animal companion which accompanies a person from birth to death.
raw_tags: in Mesoamerican mythology
Related terms: tonalli
nahual
chiliast
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: /ˈkɪliəst/
Forms: form: chiliasts
Etymology: From Latin chiliasta, possibly via French chiliaste, from Ancient Greek χιλιαστής (khiliastḗs), from χῑ́λιοι (khī́lioi, “thousand”) + -αστής (-astḗs, “-ast, -ist: forming agent nouns”). Equivalent to chilia- + -ast.
Senses: examples: text: ... Agreed on all sides, except the Chiliasts...
ref: 1611, William Sclater, A Key to the Key of Scripture..., page 324:
text: All Anabaptists were and are still Chiliasts, expounding literally that Kingdome of a thousand years of Revel. xx. 6 to be a temporall Kingdome.
ref: 1647, anonymous author, A Short History of the Anabaptists, page 52:
topics: Christianity
qualifier: typically derogatory
glosses: Synonym of millenarian: a person who believes the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will involve his physical rule on Earth for 1000 years.
synonyms: word: millenarian
extra: a person who believes the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will involve his physical rule on Earth for 1000 years
Coordinate terms: chiliasm
chilianism
chiliastic
chiliastical
Messene
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Etymology: From Ancient Greek Μεσσήνη (Messḗnē), from Mycenaean Greek 𐀕𐀼𐀙 (me-za-na). Doublet of Messina.
Senses: glosses: An ancient Greek city in the southwest Peloponnesus and new capital of the region of Messenia.
pavonine
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈpævəˌnaɪn/
ipa: /-nɪn/
Forms: form: more pavonine
form: most pavonine
Etymology: From Latin pāvōnīnus, from pāvō (“peacock”).
Senses: glosses: Of or pertaining to the genus Pavo or its family Pavonidae, including the peafowl.
examples: text: These rocks are a schist, and abound with the copper pyrites, which occasionally exhibits a pavonine tarnish. The schist is sometimes of a very deep gray colour, and is then the most rich in metal; sometimes also it has the green[…]
ref: 1817, Anne Plumptre, Narrative of a Residence in Ireland During the Summer of 1814, and that of 1815, page 184:
text: It resembled from a distance porphyry, while much of it had a pavonine lustre, like the argentiferous galena of the Silver States in North America. The great weight suggested one mass of metal, and part of it had evidently been[…]
ref: 1878, Sir Richard Francis Burton, The Gold-mines of Midian and the Ruined Midianite Cities: A Fortnight's Tour in North-western Arabia, page 218:
text: 362. Massive BORNITE, having a pavonine purple tarnish; with dolomite. Kenmare mine, Co. Kerry, Ireland. 363. Massive BORNITE, having a pavonine purple tarnish; with malachite and ochre.
ref: 1883, Geological Survey of India. Museum, Frederick Richard Mallet, A Descriptive Catalogue of the Collections of Minerals in the Geological Museum, Calcutta, page 42:
text: In D. kahli the blue of the wings on the upper side is deep pavonine blue, or intense cobalt, confined on the anterior wing to a broad patch above the lower margin near the lower angle, and not invading the cell;[…]
ref: 1921, American Museum of Natural History, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, page 191:
glosses: Possessing the coloring or iridescence of a peacock feather.
examples: text: ... leaving its present body would find or construct another according to its chief intrinsic qualities and forces, whether those were a leonine magnanimity of courage, a vulpine subtlety of cunning, or a pavonine strut of vanity .
ref: 1864, William Rounseville Alger, A Critical History of the Doctrine of a Future Life: With a Complete Bibliography of the Subject, page 479:
text: He had me all to himself; whilst his wife abased herself before my companion, he made up for the abasement by a truly pavonine strut and spread of his feathers. Amongst the few items of fact that floated on the torrent of his [lecture were...]
ref: 1901, John Macmillan Brown, Riallaro: The Archipelago of Exiles, page 223:
text: A list of acknowledgements can be a pavonine affair, an excuse more to flaunt than to thank. I have tried to avoid that here. But I must thank my excellent colleagues at QMUL,[…]
ref: 2021 December 14, Anthony Ossa-Richardson, A History of Ambiguity, Princeton University Press, →ISBN:
glosses: Showy, like a peacock's tail; exhibiting vanity.
pavonine
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈpævəˌnaɪn/
ipa: /-nɪn/
Etymology: From Latin pāvōnīnus, from pāvō (“peacock”).
Senses: glosses: Tarnish found on some ores and metals which resembles the tail feathers of a peacock.
glosses: Any bird from the family Pavonidae.
surpass
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /səˈpɑːs/
ipa: /sɚˈpæs/
rhymes: -ɑːs
rhymes: -æs
Forms: form: surpasses
form: surpassing
form: surpassed
form: surpassed
Etymology: From Middle French surpasser (“to pass beyond”). By surface analysis, sur- + pass. Displaced native Old English oferstīgan (literally “to climb over”).
Senses: examples: text: The former problem student surpassed his instructor's expectations and scored top marks on his examination.
text: The heavy rains threatened to surpass the capabilities of the levee, endangering the town on the other side.
text: “Two or three months more went by; the public were eagerly awaiting the arrival of this semi-exotic claimant to an English peerage, and sensations, surpassing those of the Tichbourne case, were looked forward to with palpitating interest.[…]”
ref: 1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], “The Tremarn Case”, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished as popular edition, London: Greening & Co., 1909, OCLC 11192831, quoted in The Case of Miss Elliott (ebook no. 2000141h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg of Australia, February 2020:
text: He celebrated at full-time with a beaming smile as he collected the match ball and he notched up another milestone by becoming the sixth Welshman to surpass 50 Premier League goals.
ref: 2021 May 2, Emma Sanders, “Tottenham Hotspur 4-0 Sheffield United”, in BBC Sport:
glosses: To go beyond or exceed (something) in an adjudicative or literal sense.
Synonyms: sense: to go beyond
word: exceed
word: forpass
word: transcend
sense: in a metaphoric or technical manner
word: exceed
word: excel
word: outdo
word: outstrip
word: exceed
hackers
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Senses: glosses: plural of hacker
hackers
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Senses: glosses: third-person singular simple present indicative of hacker
mischief
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈmɪst͡ʃiːf/
ipa: /ˈmɪst͡ʃɪf/
ipa: /ˈmɪst͡ʃɪf/
note: Indic
ipa: /mɪs.tʃif/
rhymes: -ɪstʃɪf
rhymes: -ɪstʃiːf
Forms: form: mischiefs
form: mischiefing
form: mischiefed
form: mischiefed
form: mischieve
Etymology: From Middle English myschefen, myscheven, from Old French meschever.
Senses: examples: text: "Not now, Smee," Hook said darkly. "He is only one, and I want to mischief all the seven. Scatter and look for them."
ref: 1911, J[ames] M[atthew] Barrie, “The Island Come True”, in Peter and Wendy, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 86:
glosses: To do a mischief to; to harm.
examples: text: And so it hath been divers times; Men mischiefing the Jews to excuse their own Wickedness: as to instance one Precedent in the time of a certain King of Portugal.
ref: 1708, John Dunton, The Phenix, page 403:
glosses: To slander.
Britannia silver
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Senses: glosses: An alloy of more than 95.84% silver, and up to 4.16% copper; in use for coin from 1697 to 1720, it was withdrawn because it was too soft.
Related terms: sterling silver
Swiss-German
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Senses: glosses: Alternative form of Swiss German.
Swiss-German
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: Swiss-Germans
Senses: glosses: Alternative form of Swiss German.
Swiss-German
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Forms: form: more Swiss-German
form: most Swiss-German
Senses: glosses: Alternative form of Swiss German.
let the cat out of the bag
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: lets the cat out of the bag
form: letting the cat out of the bag
form: let the cat out of the bag
form: let the cat out of the bag
form: let the cat out the bag
form: let the cat out
Etymology: (Mid-1700s) The inverse of the idiom pig in a poke. If a dishonest merchant tries to sell a cat as a pig and the cat comes out or is taken out of the bag, the merchant's secret is disclosed.
Senses: examples: text: It was going to be a surprise party until someone let the cat out of the bag.
text: [H]e proved himself as decent, decorous, and conscientious, as Peter was rampant, boisterous, and —— (this last epithet I choose to suppress, because it would let the cat out of the bag).
ref: 1849, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], “The Winding-up”, in Shirley. A Tale. […], volume III, London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], →OCLC, page 300:
glosses: To disclose a secret; to let a secret be known, often inadvertently.
Synonyms: sense: to let a secret be known
word: spill the beans
sense: to let a secret be known
word: talk
sense: to let a secret be known
word: tattle
sense: to let a secret be known
word: blab
sense: to let a secret be known
word: peach
sense: to let a secret be known
word: babble
sense: to let a secret be known
word: sing
Related terms: bare one's breast
buy a pup
get off one's chest
pig in a poke
turban
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈtɜːbən/
ipa: /ˈtɝbən/
rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)bən
Forms: form: turbans
form: turbant
form: tulipant
Etymology: From Middle French turbant, from Italian turbante, from Ottoman Turkish دلبند (tülbent), from Classical Persian دلبند (dulband), also the root of tulip.
Senses: examples: text: Me thinks I ſee the Turke nodding vvith his Turban, and telling me that I ſhould thanke Heaven for that diſtance vvhich is betvvixt us, els he vvould ſvvallovv me all up at one morſell; […]
ref: 1644, James Howell, England’s Teares, for the Present Wars, […], London: […] Richard Heron, →OCLC, page 4:
text: From India and the golden Cherſoneſs, / And utmoſt Indian Iſle Taprobane, / Dusk faces vvith vvhite ſilken Turbants vvreath'd: […]
ref: 1671, John Milton, “The Fourth Book”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for John Starkey […], →OCLC, page 82, lines 74–76:
text: ‘Nay, I cannot move another step,’ he howled. ‘I am old and my turban is lost. Arré! Arré!’
ref: 1893, Rudyard Kipling, “In the Rukh”, in Many Inventions, London: Macmillan and Co., page 206:
text: The case was that of a murder. It had an element of mystery about it, however, which was puzzling the authorities. A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff.
ref: 1927, F. E. Penny, chapter 4, in Pulling the Strings:
topics: business
clothing
fashion
lifestyle
manufacturing
textiles
glosses: A man's headdress made by winding a length of cloth round the head.
glosses: A woman's close-fitting hat with little or no brim.
glosses: The complete set of whorls of a spiral shell.
examples: text: Towel hair wraps come in a mixture of materials, from microfibre to polyester, while satin and silk are the go-to materials for sleep turbans.
ref: 2021 April 1, Helen Wilson-Beevers, “8 best hair towel wraps and turbans that protect and dry your locks”, in The Independent, London: Independent News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 14 Dec 2022:
text: While there are certainly other towel turbans on the market, this one has women scratching their heads in confusion and asking: 'How does it work so well?'
ref: 2021 November 17, Matilda Rudd, “REVEALED: The $43 ‘magic’ hair towel that leaves your locks shiny and shaves your drying time by 50 per cent after a shower”, in Daily Mail, London: DMG Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 18 Nov 2021:
glosses: A towel wrapped around long wet hair in a manner resembling a turban.
Derived terms: word: enturban
word: French turban
taxonomic: Ranunculus asiaticus var.
word: turban buttercup
word: turbanette
word: turbanless
word: turbanlike
taxonomic: Lilium pomponium
word: turban lily
word: turban shell
taxonomic: Turbinidae spp.
word: turban snail
word: turban squash
taxonomic: Cucurbita maxima vars.
word: turban squash
word: turban-top
word: turban-top (Helvella spp., Gyromitra esculenta
word: Turk's turban
word: yoka star turban
turban
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈtɜːbən/
ipa: /ˈtɝbən/
rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)bən
Forms: form: turbans
form: turbaning
form: turbaned
form: turbaned
Etymology: From Middle French turbant, from Italian turbante, from Ottoman Turkish دلبند (tülbent), from Classical Persian دلبند (dulband), also the root of tulip.
Senses: examples: text: While the law did not specifically target Sikhs, turbaned Sikh schoolchildren attending state schools were severely affected
ref: 2014, Paul Bramadat, Lorne Dawson, Religious Radicalization and Securitization in Canada and Beyond, page 186:
text: When we arrived to the shop the man in charge told the staff to turban our heads.
ref: 2018, Madilyn Elliott, Global Expats: A Journey in Italy:
glosses: To cover (a person's head) with a turban.
Related terms: puggry
puggree
dog cart
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈdɒɡkɑːt/
Forms: form: dog carts
form: dogcart
form: dog-cart
Senses: examples: text: hague fisherman and dog-cart. […] The fishermen convey their fish to the Hague in carts drawn by dogs (the animals are large and strong); and when they have completed their sales, return home in the empty carts drawn by their canine steeds.
ref: 1872 January, Junius Henri Browne, “Holland and the Hollanders”, in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, volume XLIV, number CCLX, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], page 176:
glosses: A cart drawn by a dog.
examples: text: “I want to speak to Ted,” moaned Mrs. Boulte, but the dog-cart rattled on, and Kurrell was left on the road, shamed, and boiling with wrath against Mrs. Boulte.
ref: 1889, Rudyard Kipling, “A Wayside Comedy”, in Under the Deodars, Boston: The Greenock Press, published 1899, page 75:
text: At the same instant an empty dog-cart, the horse cantering, the reins trailing, appeared round the curve of the road and rattled swiftly towards us.
ref: 1903 December 26, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist”, in The Return of Sherlock Holmes, New York, N.Y.: McClure, Phillips & Co., published February 1905, →OCLC:
text: While Kitto chatted to William, Jessamy looked with interest at the dog cart. It had a pair of high wooden wheels with two seats back to back above. Between the shafts the bay mare tossed her head and fidgeted on the cobbles.
ref: 1967, Barbara Sleigh, Jessamy, Sevenoaks, Kent: Bloomsbury, published 1993, →ISBN, page 57:
glosses: A two-wheeled horse-drawn carriage with two transverse seats back to back. The rear seat originally closed up to form a box for carrying dogs.
sweater
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈswɛtə/
ipa: /ˈswɛtɚ/
ipa: /-ɾɚ/
ipa: /ˈswetə/
rhymes: -ɛtə(ɹ)
Forms: form: sweaters
Etymology: From Middle English swētere, equivalent to sweat + -er.
Senses: synonyms: sweatshirt
glosses: A knitted jacket or jersey, usually of thick wool, worn by athletes before or after exercise.
examples: text: We could slip away / Wouldn't that be better? / Me with nothing to say / And you in your autumn sweater
ref: 1997, “Autumn Sweater”, in I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One, performed by Yo La Tengo:
synonyms: jumper
pullover
jersey
cardigan
wooly
glosses: A similar garment worn for warmth.
examples: text: The cardiologist who administered Alex's exercise stress test on August 21 observed during that test that Alex was a profuse sweater.
ref: 2007, John T. James, A Sea of Broken Hearts: Patient Rights in a Dangerous Profit-Driven Health Care System, →ISBN, page 29:
synonyms: perspirer
glosses: One who sweats (produces sweat).
examples: text: We learn of the cruelty of some school or child-factory from journalists; we learn it from inspectors, we learn it from doctors, we learn it even from shame-stricken schoolmasters and repentant sweaters; but we never learn it from the children; we never learn it from the victims.
ref: 1906, Chesterton, Charles Dickens, chapter 3:
glosses: One who or that which causes to sweat.
glosses: A diaphoretic remedy.
examples: text: If the piecework system had not existed there never would have been any sweatees. The men who are sweaters, I am sorry to say, are men who formerly belonged to our union.
ref: 1894, New York (State) Bureau of Mediation and Arbitration, Annual Report (volumes 7-8, page 158)
synonyms: exploiter
coordinate_terms: sweatee
glosses: An exploitative middleman who subcontracted piece work in the tailoring trade.
glosses: One who sweats coins, i.e. removes small portions by shaking them.
examples: text: Among them were the "sweaters" who formed a circle round their prisoner and pricked him with their swords until he sank exhausted to the ground, […]
ref: William Lecky, quoted in 1965, Gilbert Geis, Juvenile Gangs (page 6)
glosses: A London street ruffian in Queen Anne's time who prodded passers-by with his sword-point.
Derived terms: Bill Cosby sweater
Cosby sweater
polo-necked sweater
polo neck sweater
sweater dress
sweater-dress
sweaterdress
sweater girl
sweater meat
sweater puppies
sweater up
sweater vest
turtleneck sweater
sweater
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈswɛtə/
ipa: /ˈswɛtɚ/
ipa: /-ɾɚ/
ipa: /ˈswetə/
rhymes: -ɛtə(ɹ)
Forms: form: sweaters
form: sweatering
form: sweatered
form: sweatered
Etymology: From Middle English swētere, equivalent to sweat + -er.
Senses: glosses: To dress in a sweater.
Jesus jammies
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈdʒiːzəs ˌdʒæmiːz/
enpr: jēʹzəs jăm'ēz
ipa: /ˈdʒiːzəs ˌdʒæmiːz/
Senses: examples: text: He had the creepy Tenexed helmet of silver hair and a sort of peachy Palm Beachy resorty sport jacket and slacks. And under that, probably, Jesus jammies.
ref: 2009, Brian D'Amato, In the Courts of the Sun (The Sacrifice Game), Dutton, →ISBN, page 195:
glosses: Synonym of temple garment.
synonyms: word: temple garment
estrange
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ɪˈstɹeɪnd͡ʒ/
ipa: /əˈstɹeɪnd͡ʒ/
rhymes: -eɪndʒ
Forms: form: estranges
form: estranging
form: estranged
form: estranged
Etymology: From Old French estranger (“to treat as a stranger”), from Latin extraneus (“foreigner, stranger”) (from which also strange, stranger). Also see Spanish extraño.
Senses: examples: text: And thou thyself, Jaacob Yitzchak, dost thou mind how thou meantest to follow me and estrangedst thyself from me the more?
ref: 1945, Martin Buber, translated by Ludwig Lewisohn, For the Sake of Heaven, The Jewish Publication Society of America, page 229:
glosses: To cause to feel less close or friendly; alienate. To cease contact with (particularly of a family member or spouse, especially in form estranged).
glosses: To remove from an accustomed place or set of associations.
Synonyms: sense: cause to feel less close
word: alienate
sense: cause to feel less close
word: antagonize
sense: cause to feel less close
word: disaffect
sense: cause to feel less close
word: isolate
sense: remove from an accustomed context
word: wean
Coordinate terms: disown
Derived terms: estrangement
estranger
Related terms: strange
stranger
disclose
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /dɪsˈkləʊz/
rhymes: -əʊz
Forms: form: discloses
Etymology: From Middle English disclosen, from Middle French desclos, from Old French desclore, itself from Vulgar Latin disclaudere, from Latin dis- + claudere (“to close, shut”) or as a variant of discludo, discludere (cf. disclude). English equivalent dis- + close.
Senses: glosses: A disclosure.
try one's hand
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: tries one's hand
form: trying one's hand
form: tried one's hand
form: tried one's hand
Senses: examples: text: I thought I'd try my hand at woodworking, until I saw how much the tools cost.
glosses: To attempt a skill, craft, trade, or action, possibly for the first time.
Related terms: overplay one's hand
try one's luck
goof up
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Forms: form: goofs up
form: goofing up
form: goofed up
form: goofed up
Senses: examples: text: If I go near a skateboard, I'm sure I'm just going to goof up and fall off.
glosses: To make a mistake.
examples: text: I tried to fix it, but I think I just goofed it up some more.
glosses: To introduce problems to or damage through incompetence.
Synonyms: word: cock up
word: foul up
word: fuck up
word: screw up
word: balls up
word: bollocks up
word: bugger up cock up
word: mess up
Derived terms: goof-up
goof-up
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: goof-ups
Etymology: From goof up.
Senses: examples: text: The letter they sent was a goof-up; it was intended for someone else.
glosses: A mistake or problem.
Synonyms: word: cock-up
word: foul-up
word: fuck-up
word: mess-up
word: screw-up
dark lantern
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: dark lanterns
form: dark lanthorn
form: dark-lantern
Senses: examples: text: “Yes,” continued the valet, “and sigh his soul to the last puff unobserved, liked the dying flame in a dark lanthorn.”
ref: 1789, John Moore, Zeluco, Valancourt, published 2008, page 37:
text: Your silent matches, / Your dark-lantern seize; / Take your file and your skeleton keys!
ref: 1879, W[illiam] S[chwenck] Gilbert, Arthur Sullivan, composer, “With cat-like tread”, in The Pirates of Penzance […], Philadelphia: J.M. Stoddart & Co., published 1880, →OCLC, page 35:
text: In the meantime, Mr. Merryweather, we must put the screen over that dark lantern.
ref: 1891 [August], A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Adventure II.—The Red-Headed League.”, in Geo[rge] Newnes, editor, The Strand Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly, volume II (July to December), number [8], London: […], page 201, column 2:
text: The old monk who was the night-janitor of the monastery now appeared bearing in his hand a dark-lantern and a wattle basket with some fruit and a bowl of rice.
ref: 1983, Lawrence Durrell, Sebastian (Avignon Quintet), Faber & Faber, published 2004, page 1022:
glosses: A lantern with a panel that slides to block the light.
overspend
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: rhymes: -ɛnd
Forms: form: overspends
form: overspending
form: overspent
form: overspent
Etymology: From over- + spend.
Senses: examples: text: To get out of debt, first keep a budget and be careful not to overspend.
antonyms: underspend
glosses: To spend too much money; especially, to spend more than one earns.
Derived terms: overspender
overspenditure
overspend
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: rhymes: -ɛnd
Forms: form: overspends
Etymology: From over- + spend.
Senses: examples: text: Whether an underspend or overspend is significant depends upon the size of the budget. A £1,000 overspend on an £8,000 drugs budget is very significant, but a £1,000 overspend may not be significant on a £300,000 ward budget.
ref: 2018, David Bailey, The NHS Budget Holder's Survival Guide, CRC Press, →ISBN:
text: Electrification was not included in anticipated CP6 spending, after cost uncertainties following the Great Western Main Line overspend led to cutbacks by the Department of Transport to contain costs.
ref: 2021 October 20, Industry Insider, “The wheels turn slowly”, in RAIL, number 942, page 68:
antonyms: underspend
glosses: The amount by which someone or something is overspent.
respondent
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ɹɪˈspɒn.dənt/
ipa: /ɹɪˈspɑn.dənt/
ipa: /ɹɪˈspɔn.dənt/
Forms: form: respondents
Senses: glosses: One who responds; one who replies.
topics: law
glosses: A defendant, especially in a case instituted by a petition or in appellate and divorce proceedings.
glosses: A person replying to a questionnaire.
Related terms: correspondent
respondent
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: ipa: /ɹɪˈspɒn.dənt/
ipa: /ɹɪˈspɑn.dənt/
ipa: /ɹɪˈspɔn.dənt/
Forms: form: more respondent
form: most respondent
Senses: examples: text: wealth […]respondent […]to payment and contributions
ref: 1625, Francis [Bacon], “Of the True Greatness of Kingdoms and Estates”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC:
glosses: Disposed or expected to respond; answering; according; corresponding.