nandhakumarms/qualc-wiktionary-en huggingface dataset:
Word: firing Part of Speech: noun Etymology: By surface analysis, fire + -ing. Pronunciation: /ˈfaɪ.əɹ.ɪŋ/, /ˈfaɪ.ɚ.ɪŋ/ 1. The process of applying heat or fire, especially to clay, etc., to produce pottery. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: After the pots have been glazed, they go back into the kiln for a second firing. 2. The fuel for a fire. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: No more dams I’ll make for fish; Nor fetch in firing At requiring […] Example: Downstairs there was a kitchen common to all lodgers, with free firing and a supply of cooking-pots, tea-basins, and toasting-forks. 3. The act of adding fuel to a fire. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: One driver told him that a fireman who did not know the route might easily go "over the side" between Corby and Harringworth, unless warned beforehand of the reverse curves; he himself, in his firing days, used to try so to plan his firing that it was unnecessary to add any more coal while passing over this stretch at speed. Example: The doors are at the right level for firing, which normally is down one side of the firebox at a time, unlike our own practice, which is to fire each side of the firebox with alternate shovelfuls. 4. The discharge of a gun or other weapon. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: […] they fir’d several Times, making other Signals for the Boat. At last, when all their Signals and Firings prov’d fruitless, and they found the Boat did not stir, we saw them by the Help of my Glasses, hoist another Boat out, and row towards the Shore […] Example: He heard the firing and as he walked he felt it in the pit of his stomach as though it echoed on his own diaphragm. 5. The dismissal of someone from a job due to poor work performance. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Even the most seasoned analysts of British politics were struck by the brutality of Ms. May’s hirings and firings. 6. Cauterization. Labels: countable, uncountable
Word: firing Part of Speech: verb Etymology: By surface analysis, fire + -ing. Pronunciation: /ˈfaɪ.əɹ.ɪŋ/, /ˈfaɪ.ɚ.ɪŋ/ 1. present participle and gerund of fire Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: indicator Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Late Latin indicātor (“one who points out”), from Latin indicō (“point out”). By surface analysis, indicate + -or; see indicate. Pronunciation: /ˈɪn.dɪˌkeɪ.tə(ɹ)/ 1. A pointer or index that indicates something. Example: The visual indicators are a decided improvement, and have reduced the telephoning by the staff in the signalbox. Example: These old indicators [at Earl's Court station] show the destination of the next train by the appearance of an illuminated arrow next to the station name. The arrow may indicate that a train is going to Wimbledon, but it gives no clue as to when. Now, however, the indicators are supplemented by dot matrix panels that not only say where but also when. Why aren't the old ones removed? Because they, like the whole station, are Grade II listed. 2. A meter or gauge. 3. The needle or dial on such a meter. 4. Any of many substances, such as litmus, used to indicate the concentration of a substance, or the degree of a reaction. 5. A plant or animal whose presence is indicative of some specific environment. 6. A measure, such as unemployment rate, which can be used to predict economic trends. 7. A turn signal; each of the flashing lights on each side of a vehicle which indicate a turn is being made to left or right, or a lane change etc. Labels: Australia, Ireland, New-Zealand, South-Africa, UK 8. A bird, the honeyguide. 9. A codeword that marks the use of a specific cryptic device. Example: 'Wild' is an anagram indicator showing that the letters of 'danger' have to be rearranged. Example: We surrounded the strike, Snowy (5) Snowy is the definition in this clue. Ignore the punctuation and capital letter of Snowy! Surrounded is the container indicator.
Word: melodic Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Borrowed from French mélodique. By surface analysis, melody + -ic. Pronunciation: /mɪˈlɒd.ɪk/, /məˈlɑ.ɾɪk/ 1. Of, relating to, or having melody. Example: Debussy's melody is fractional, fragmentary. But at the core all his music is melodic and melody is its main motive force. 2. Melodious, tuneful.
Word: mummy's boy Part of Speech: noun 1. Alternative spelling of mama's boy. Labels: UK, alt-of, alternative
Word: bite wing Part of Speech: noun 1. A holder for X-ray film, in which the film is held in place by a small tab on which the patient bites.
Word: sick building syndrome Part of Speech: noun 1. The adverse environmental conditions in a building that pose a health risk to its occupants, such as inadequate ventilation or inadequate cleaning. Labels: uncountable 2. The symptoms experienced by people who work there. Labels: uncountable
Word: SIMM Part of Speech: noun 1. initialism of Single in-line memory module Labels: abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Word: single currency Part of Speech: noun 1. The unified currency proposed for all EU states, in which it became the Euro.
Word: hang out to dry Part of Speech: verb 1. To abandon someone who is in need or in danger, especially a colleague or one dependent. Labels: idiomatic, transitive Example: I'll take advantage while / You hang me out to dry Example: Without supplemental health insurance, we would have been hung out to dry. 2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see hang, out, dry.
Word: Katrina Part of Speech: name Pronunciation: /kəˈtɹiː.nə/, /kəˈtɹi.nə/ 1. A female given name from Ancient Greek, variant of Catherine; variant form Katrine. 2. The 11th tropical storm of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which caused catastrophic damage to Louisiana, Mississippi and parts of Alabama. Example: “It’s disaster capitalism,” the Aleph said. “All the profiteering that went down post-Katrina. It was in 2005. You’re probably too young to remember that hurricane.” 3. A large-scale disaster, especially one with negative political consequences. Labels: US, metonymically Example: Is coronavirus Donald Trump’s Katrina?
Word: indeclinable Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From French indéclinable, from Middle French, from Latin indeclinabilis. Equivalent to in- + declinable. Pronunciation: /ˌɪndɪˈklɑjnəb(ə)l/ 1. That one cannot decline; unavoidable. Labels: not-comparable Example: He'd planned to work a double shift Friday night, but Gladys Silverman's indeclinable invitation threw a hefty wrench into David's plans. 2. Not grammatically declinable; having no inflections. Labels: not-comparable
Word: indeclinable Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From French indéclinable, from Middle French, from Latin indeclinabilis. Equivalent to in- + declinable. Pronunciation: /ˌɪndɪˈklɑjnəb(ə)l/ 1. A word that is not grammatically inflected.
Word: tricolpate Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *tréyes Proto-Indo-European *tri- Proto-Italic *tri- Latin tri-der. English tri- English colpus Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂tos Proto-Italic *-ātos Latin -ātuslbor. English -ate English colpate English tricolpate From tri- + colpate. 1. Having three grooves, or colpi, on each grain. Labels: not-comparable Example: The pollen grains are tricolpate to tricolporoidate. Example: Tricolpate pollen, the signature of eudicots, first appears ca. 110 million years ago.
Word: tricolpate Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *tréyes Proto-Indo-European *tri- Proto-Italic *tri- Latin tri-der. English tri- English colpus Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂tos Proto-Italic *-ātos Latin -ātuslbor. English -ate English colpate English tricolpate From tri- + colpate. 1. A plant with tricolpate (three-grooved) pollen, including any dicot.
Word: tricolpates Part of Speech: noun 1. plural of tricolpate Labels: form-of, plural
Word: submariner Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From submarine + -er. Pronunciation: /sʌbˈmæɹɪnə/, /sʌbˈmæɹɪnɚ/, /sʌbməˈɹiːnɚ/ 1. A member of the crew of a submarine. 2. A pitcher that throws with an underhand motion. Labels: US Example: Jones was a submariner and could often confuse a batter with his unorthodox delivery.
Word: filo Part of Speech: noun 1. Alternative spelling of phyllo. Labels: alt-of, alternative, countable, uncountable
Word: slam dancing Part of Speech: noun 1. Synonym of slam dance. Labels: uncountable
Word: slam dancing Part of Speech: verb 1. present participle and gerund of slam dance Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: sleazebag Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From sleaze + bag. Pronunciation: /ˈslizˌbæɡ/ 1. A morally reprehensible, disreputable, or sleazy person. Labels: slang
Word: sleaze factor Part of Speech: noun 1. The sleazy or sordid aspect of a political situation. 2. The corrupt or tainted element of a political party or administration.
Word: haro Part of Speech: intj Etymology: See harrow or haro. The claim has been made that the word is from Old French haro, harou, from two words, "Ha" and "Rollo", referring to Duke Rollo of Normandy; his name became well known as a cry for justice and was later shortened to "Haro." -"The Little Duke", Charlotte Young, 1955 1. An exclamation of distress; alas. Labels: obsolete 2. A call for help, a demand for protection against harm, or for assistance to arrest an adversary.
Word: horo Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Japanese 母衣(ほろ) (horo, “cloak”). 1. A large cloak worn by Japanese warriors to protect against arrows. Labels: historical
Word: sleep mode Part of Speech: noun 1. the state of a computer system in which the drives and interfaces are switched off, and the only task running is monitoring external activity, particularly awaiting a keypress which restores the system to its active state from the random access memory. Labels: uncountable, usually
Word: Linnaean nomenclature Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Introduced deliberately (c. 2000) by proponents of the PhyloCode as a pejorative term, to suggest age and obsolescence: a nomenclature due to be supplemented or replaced by nomenclature governed by the PhyloCode. 1. The current taxonomic nomenclature in biology, as governed by the ICBN, ICZN and ICNB, and which accepts the work by Linnaeus as a starting point (except for specified groups and ranks). Labels: uncountable
Word: phylogenetic Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From phylo- + genetic, from German phylogenetisch, coined by Ernst Haeckel in 1866, from Phylogenese + -isch. Pronunciation: /ˌfaɪ.loʊ.d͡ʒəˈnɛt.ɪk/ 1. Of, or relating to phylogeny or phylogenetics. Labels: not-comparable Example: To each of these subdivisions of the phylum thus differentiated the name race may appropriately be restricted, and the sum of the peculiarities of each race may be termed race-characters. This is the phylogenetic side of anthropology, and its nomenclature should be kept clearly separate from that of the ethnological side. 2. Of, or relating to the evolutionary development of organisms. Labels: not-comparable
Word: Linnaean Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Linnaeus + -an. After Carolus Linnaeus (1707–1778), Swedish naturalist who helped to standardize biological nomenclature. Pronunciation: /lɪˈneɪ.ən/, /lɪˈniː.ən/ 1. Of or relating to Carolus Linnaeus, Swedish naturalist, either personally or in a wider sense, to the era influenced by him. Labels: not-comparable 2. Of or relating to the binomial nomenclature originated by him Labels: not-comparable Example: Nowhere was the victory of Linnaeanism more complete than in Britain. When William Hudson's Flora Anglica, organized in the Linnaean manner, appeared in 1762, it displaced all previous floras. 3. Relating to the nomenclature Codes that have their starting point in a work by Linnaeus or are derived from such a Code. This includes the idea of a ranked taxonomy, which was not initiated by Linnaeus. Labels: not-comparable
Word: smoke and mirrors Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From techniques traditionally used by stage magicians. 1. A deceptive, fraudulent, or unconvincing explanation or description. Labels: figuratively Example: Budget process? It's more like a magic show. It's wink and blink and smoke and mirrors and pulling rabbits out of hats, but almost all that ever comes up are designs to hide increases for the special interests. Example: On revenue raising issues, Mr Harris reveals what a master of smoke and mirrors Bob Carr really is.
Word: councilor Part of Speech: noun 1. US standard spelling of councillor. Labels: US, alt-of, standard
Word: snowboard Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From snow + board. Pronunciation: /ˈsnəʊˌbɔːd/, /ˈsnoʊˌbɔɹd/ 1. A board, somewhat like a broad ski, or a very long skateboard with no wheels, used in the sport of snowboarding.
Word: snowboard Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From snow + board. Pronunciation: /ˈsnəʊˌbɔːd/, /ˈsnoʊˌbɔɹd/ 1. To ride a snowboard.
Word: snowboarding Part of Speech: noun 1. The sport of sliding downhill on a snowboard. Labels: uncountable Example: For quotations using this term, see Citations:snowboarding.
Word: snowboarding Part of Speech: verb 1. present participle and gerund of snowboard Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: catatonic Part of Speech: adj Pronunciation: /kæ.təˈtɑn.ɪk/, /kæ.təˈtɒn.ɪk/ 1. Of, relating to, or suffering from catatonia; having a tendency to remain in a rigid state of stupor for long periods which give way to short periods of extreme agitation. Example: However, he was looking a lot more catatonic and depressed before and sometimes we find that on the anti-depressants you remove the depression and uncover the paranoid stuff and we may have to give him larger quantities of tranquilizers just to tone this down. Example: It was plausible that Cara became more catatonic in order to avoid a painful and overwhelming confrontation with terrifying but repressed memories of child abuse. 2. Motionless and unresponsive, as from shock; withdrawn. Labels: figuratively Example: He made Yossarian think of cripples and of cold and hungry men and women, and of all the dumb, passive, devout mothers with catatonic eyes nursing infants outdoors that same night with chilled animal udders bared insensibly to that same raw rain. Example: Further and further he would withdraw from the world, becoming more and more catatonic — withdrawing completely from his hateful world to the only real and secure comfort he had ever known, the womb.
Word: catatonic Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /kæ.təˈtɑn.ɪk/, /kæ.təˈtɒn.ɪk/ 1. A patient in a state of catatonia. Example: An inspection of Table IV shows that the catatonics have the lowest mean reversal score of all the groups. Example: I thought of children released from school; I thought of spring-awakenings after winter-sleeps; I thought of the Sleeping Beauty; and I also thought, with some foreboding, of catatonics, suddenly frenzied.
Word: disapprobation Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Latin dis- Old French des-bor. Latin dis-bor. Middle English dis- English dis- English approbation English disapprobation From dis- + approbation. Pronunciation: /dɪsˌæpɹəˈbeɪʃən/ 1. An act or expression of condemnation or disapproval, especially on moral grounds. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Though a gentle Sigh which ſtole from the Boſom of Nancy, ſeemed to argue ſome ſecret Diſapprobation of theſe Sentiments, ſhe did not dare openly to oppoſe them. Example: Elizabeth would wonder, and probably would blame her; and though her resolution was not to be shaken, her feelings must be hurt by such disapprobation.
Word: Republic of Turkey Part of Speech: name Etymology: Calque of Turkish Türkiye Cumhuriyeti. 1. Former official name of Turkey: a country in West Asia and Southeastern Europe.
Word: discretion Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English discrecioun, from Old French discretion, from Late Latin discrētiō, from Latin discerno. Equivalent to discreet + -ion. Pronunciation: /dɪˈskɹɛʃən/ 1. The quality of being discreet. Labels: uncountable, usually Example: Bob showed great discretion despite his knowledge of the affair. 2. The ability to make wise choices or decisions. Labels: uncountable, usually Example: With regard to a woman, at nine years of age, she was, if married, considered entitled to her dower; at twelve, she may consent to marriage; at fourteen, she is at years of discretion, and may choose a guardian; […] 3. The freedom to make one's own judgements. Labels: uncountable, usually Example: I leave that to your discretion. 4. The freedom to make one's own judgements. Labels: uncountable, usually Example: The police came and searched us at their discretion because we were shouting at each other's faces.
Word: catatonia Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From international scientific vocabulary, from German Katatonie, from New Latin catatonia, from a Greek word meaning to stretch tight. By surface analysis, cata- + tone + -ia. Pronunciation: /ˌkætəˈtoʊniə/ 1. A severe psychiatric condition, often associated with schizophrenia, characterized by a tendency to remain in a rigid state of stupor for long periods which give way to short periods of extreme agitation. Labels: uncountable, usually 2. A frozen, unresponsive state, as of electronic equipment. Labels: informal, uncountable, usually Example: “Relay that!” Thwaite shouted. Somewhere on the bridge a hand closed over a relay and dropped the AIDs into an electronic catatonia.
Word: theoretical physics Part of Speech: noun 1. The description of natural phenomena in mathematical form, especially in order to derive the fundamental laws of nature and to derive conclusions from these laws. Labels: uncountable
Word: sound bite Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /ˈsaʊndbaɪt/ 1. An extract from a speech or interview used as edited into a news or other broadcast; an interview clip, especially seen as particularly expressive or pithy. Example: The dumbing down of America is most evident in the slow decay of substantive content in the enormously influential media, the 30-second sound bites (now down to 10 seconds or less), lowest common denominator programming, credulous presentations on pseudo-science and superstition, but especially a kind of celebration of ignorance. 2. A one-liner deliberately produced for this purpose; a statement specifically intended to be punchy and memorable. Labels: derogatory, often Example: The ground offensive against Iraq ended after 100 hours, partly out of concern that American troops not occupy an Arab capital, partly because Arab allies feared the disintegration of Iraq and partly because a “100-hour war” made a good sound bite. Example: President Obama disdains sound bites, and he does not have Bill Clinton’s talent for reducing the abstruse to aperçus. 3. Synonym of sound clip.
Word: soundbite Part of Speech: noun 1. Alternative spelling of sound bite. Labels: alt-of, alternative Example: "This is the latest example of neglect and indifference shown by the Government, which offers little more than meaningless soundbites and broken promises. [...]."
Word: one-liner Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ís? Proto-Indo-European *h₁óynos Proto-Germanic *ainaz Proto-West Germanic *ain Old English ān Middle English on English one English line Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusnom. Latin -āriusbor. Proto-Germanic *-ārijaz Proto-West Germanic *-ārī Old English -ere Middle English -ere English -er English one-liner From one + line + -er. 1. A short joke, especially one of a single sentence. Example: witty one-liners Example: ALMOST without exception, Moore’s narrators have comic yet dark stories to tell: they fire off crisp, De Vriesian one-liners and then, when you least expect it, sneak in wrenching revelations. 2. A short remark intended as a sound bite. 3. A command or small program consisting of a single line of input. 4. A chat feature on a bulletin board system or web page where users can post a single line of text at a time.
Word: breadwinner Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From bread + winner, where to win = to earn. Compare West Frisian breawinning (“livelihood”, literally “bread-winning”), Dutch broodwinning (“livelihood”). Pronunciation: /ˈbɹɛdˌwɪnɚ/ 1. The primary income-earner in a household. Example: At one side lay the little town of Hollingford, into a street of which Mr. Gibson's front door opened; and delicate columns, and little puffs of smoke were already beginning to rise from many a cottage chimney where some housewife was already up, and preparing breakfast for the bread-winner of the family. Example: The female breadwinners who are making more than their working husbands are in a whole different income bracket; their median household income is $80,000. The role of men is evolving even in the three-quarters of dual-parent families in which fathers are the primary breadwinners. […] Those fathers reported that being a breadwinner was less important to them than providing their children with love and emotional support, being present and involved in their child’s life, or being a good mentor and role model.
Word: breviate Part of Speech: noun Etymology: First attested in 1581; borrowed from Latin breviātum, from the perfect passive participle of breviō (“shorten, abridge”), see -ate (noun-forming suffix). 1. A short account, brief statement; a summary, abridgement or precis 2. A brief missive or dispatch; a note. 3. A lawyer's brief.
Word: breviate Part of Speech: verb Etymology: First attested in the beginning of the 16ᵗʰ century; either borrowed from Latin breviātus, the perfect passive participle of breviō (“shorten, abridge”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)) or apheretic form of abbreviate. 1. To abbreviate, shorten. Labels: obsolete 2. To abstract for counsel's instruction, to brief Labels: obsolete
Word: breviate Part of Speech: adj Etymology: First attested in the beginning of the 16ᵗʰ century; either borrowed from Latin breviātus, the perfect passive participle of breviō (“shorten, abridge”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)) or apheretic form of abbreviate. 1. Abbreviated, short. Labels: obsolete
Word: party political broadcast Part of Speech: noun 1. a short radio or television broadcast made by a political party Labels: UK
Word: sovereigntist Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree English sovereignty Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Hellenic *-tās Ancient Greek -τής (-tḗs) Ancient Greek -ῐστής (-ĭstḗs)bor. Latin -istader. Old French -istebor. Middle English -ist English -ist English sovereigntist From sovereignty + -ist. 1. A supporter of sovereignism (in any sense thereof). Example: Near-synonym: souverainist (often synonymous) 2. A supporter of sovereignism (in any sense thereof). Labels: Canada
Word: spazz out Part of Speech: verb 1. To lose one's physical or emotional control. Labels: intransitive, slang Example: “If you'd adjust your schedule and not try to do everything for everybody, you wouldn't ‘spazz out',” he told her. Example: Oh, there are a few control freaks out there who might spazz out: "We are the aggressor and enjoy control," says one employee benefits manager.
Word: Special K Part of Speech: name Etymology: Initial of Kellogg Company. The drug was nicknamed humorously after the cereal because its name begins with the letter k, as also with the slang sense of vitamin K. 1. A breakfast cereal made primarily from rice and wheat. Example: He seemed better this morning; he had eaten two donuts and a bowl of Special K for breakfast.
Word: Special K Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Initial of Kellogg Company. The drug was nicknamed humorously after the cereal because its name begins with the letter k, as also with the slang sense of vitamin K. 1. Ketamine, used as a hallucinogen. Labels: slang, uncountable Example: Yeah, it's called the euphoric blockbuster and it's supposed to make Special K look weak. Example: Ketamine, a powerful anesthetic that acts on an entirely different neurotransmitter system (and which has been ingested in rave clubs as Special K) was recently the subject of a glowing study by the National Institute of Mental Health.
Word: ketamine Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Blend of ketone + amine. First use appears c. 1966. Pronunciation: /ˈkɛt.ə.mɪn/, /ˈkiː.tə.miːn/, /ˈkɛt.əˌmin/, /ˈki.təˌmin/ 1. A synthetic compound used as a dissociative anesthetic and analgesic drug and also recreationally as a hallucinogen. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: He was riding high that night, with a brick of Wage's ketamine on its way to Yokohama and the money already in his pocket. Example: The chatbot instructed him to give up sleeping pills and an anti-anxiety medication, and to increase his intake of ketamine, a dissociative anesthetic, which ChatGPT described as a “temporary pattern liberator.”
Word: freelance Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From free + lance. Coined by Walter Scott (1771–1832) in Ivanhoe (1819; see quotation) to describe a medieval mercenary warrior or "free-lance" (indicating that the lance is not sworn to any lord's services). It changed to a figurative noun around the 1860s and was recognized as a verb in 1903 by authorities such as the Oxford English Dictionary. In modern times the term has morphed into an adjective, a verb, and an adverb, as well as the derivative noun freelancer. Pronunciation: /ˈfɹiːlɑːns/, /ˈfɹiˌlæns/ 1. Someone who sells their services to clients without a long-term employment contract. Example: The objector, one Millworthy, a free-lance of journalism, was not to be so easily silenced. Example: The person you are revising (the revisee) is a colleague at your own rank, or another freelance. 2. A medieval mercenary. Labels: historical Example: I—I offered Richard the service of my Free Lances, and he refused them—I will lead them to Hull, seize on shipping, and embark for Flanders; […] Trust me, Estoteville alone has strength enough to drive all thy Free Lances into the Humber.
Word: freelance Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From free + lance. Coined by Walter Scott (1771–1832) in Ivanhoe (1819; see quotation) to describe a medieval mercenary warrior or "free-lance" (indicating that the lance is not sworn to any lord's services). It changed to a figurative noun around the 1860s and was recognized as a verb in 1903 by authorities such as the Oxford English Dictionary. In modern times the term has morphed into an adjective, a verb, and an adverb, as well as the derivative noun freelancer. Pronunciation: /ˈfɹiːlɑːns/, /ˈfɹiˌlæns/ 1. Of or relating to a freelance; without a long-term employment contract. Example: He was a freelance writer for several magazines. Example: Both work -- Jenny as a freelance writer from home, Marc full-time-plus as a civil engineer with a long commute. Jenny also takes care of their four sons, ages 20 months to 9 years, and homeschools the two oldest.
Word: freelance Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From free + lance. Coined by Walter Scott (1771–1832) in Ivanhoe (1819; see quotation) to describe a medieval mercenary warrior or "free-lance" (indicating that the lance is not sworn to any lord's services). It changed to a figurative noun around the 1860s and was recognized as a verb in 1903 by authorities such as the Oxford English Dictionary. In modern times the term has morphed into an adjective, a verb, and an adverb, as well as the derivative noun freelancer. Pronunciation: /ˈfɹiːlɑːns/, /ˈfɹiˌlæns/ 1. To work as a freelance. Labels: intransitive 2. To produce or sell services as a freelance. Labels: transitive
Word: speed bump Part of Speech: noun 1. A traffic calming measure, consisting of a transverse ridge in the road, to limit the speed of vehicles. 2. An obstacle or difficulty; roadblock; snag. Labels: figuratively 3. Any technical measure taken by an electronic financial exchange to deliberately delay orders by microseconds or milliseconds.
Word: speed camera Part of Speech: noun 1. A roadside camera, triggered by a speeding vehicle, that takes a photograph of the offending vehicle and records its speed.
Word: fisticuffs Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /ˈfɪs.tɪ.kʌfs/, /ˈfɪs.tɪˌkəfs/ 1. plural of fisticuff Labels: form-of, plural, plural-only 2. An impromptu fight with the fists, usually between only two people. Labels: informal, plural, plural-only Example: So he obſerves that all ſimple Governments are apt to ſome evil that is peculiar and conſequential to their Nature, as he inſtanceth in a Kingdom changed into Monarchy abſolute, by which he means that which we now call Tyranny; Ariſtocracy into Oligarchy, and Democracy into Beſtial Chirocracy, when the Seditious of people prevail more by Fiſticuffs than reaſon: […] Example: People who share a cell in the Basti[l]le […] if they do not immediately fall to fisticuffs, will find some possible ground of compromise. 3. Bare-knuckled boxing, a form of boxing done without boxing gloves or similar padding. Labels: dated, plural, plural-only Example: In his college days of athletic exercises, Mr. Crisparkle had known professors of the Noble Art of fisticuffs, […]
Word: dictatorial Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree English dictator Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālisder. Old French -ialder. Middle English -ial English -ial English dictatorial From dictator + -ial. Pronunciation: [dɪktəˈtɔːɹɪəɫ] 1. of or pertaining to a dictator 2. in the manner of a dictator, usually with callous disregard for others. Example: "It was chiefly on account of his father," replied the Doctor, addressing the General, "that Philimore persevered in so rigidly keeping the secret of his attachment, having been once told by him, in the language of worldly dictatorial authority, that he would sooner follow him to the grave than that he should see him marry without fortune[…]
Word: Squarial Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Blend of square + aerial. Pronunciation: /ˈskwɛəɹi.əl/, /ˈskwɛɹi.əl/ 1. A flat, diamond-shaped aerial (antenna) for receiving satellite television signals; it became obsolete in the 1990s. Labels: UK
Word: stage diving Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From stage + diving. 1. The practice of jumping from the stage in a rock concert to be caught and carried aloft by the crowd. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Soon metalheads would invade the narrow pit between the stage and seats, often climbing over rows of seats, to start a long series of walls of death, stage divings, crowdsurfing […]
Word: stage diving Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From stage + diving. 1. present participle and gerund of stage dive Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: shrapnel Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Shrapnel. Named after British army officer Henry Shrapnel (1761–1842) who invented an anti-personnel shell that transported a large number of bullets to the target before releasing them, at a far greater distance than rifles could fire the bullets individually. The surname is likely a metathesized form of Charbonnel, a diminutive of Old French charbon (“charcoal”) in reference to hair color, complexion, or the like. Pronunciation: /ˈʃɹæpnəl/ 1. An anti-personnel artillery shell used in World War I which carries a large number of individual bullets or balls close to the target and then ejects them to allow them to continue along the shell's trajectory and strike the target individually. Labels: historical, uncountable, usually 2. The bullets or balls from the aforementioned type of artillery shell. Labels: historical, uncountable, usually 3. Any shot, fragments, or debris thrown out by an exploding shell, bomb, or landmine. Labels: uncountable, usually 4. Debris. Labels: broadly, figuratively, uncountable, usually Example: The dog ate my sandwich, and there was shrapnel all over the place from him tearing open the bag. 5. Loose change. Labels: figuratively, slang, uncountable, usually Example: I was waiting in the queue, looking at the board / Wondering whether to have a burger or chips / Or what the shrapnel in my back pocket could afford
Word: silken Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Middle English silken, selken, seolkene, from Old English seolcen, from seolc (“silk”) + -en, from an unattested early Proto-West Germanic borrowing from Latin sēricum, from Ancient Greek σηρικός (sērikós, “silken”), from σήρ (sḗr, “silkworm”) + -ικός (-ikós, “-ic”). Equivalent to silk + -en (“made of”). Cognate with Scots selkin, silkin (“silken”), Icelandic silki (“silken”). Pronunciation: /ˈsɪlkən/ 1. Made of silk. Labels: not-comparable Example: a silken veil 2. Synonym of silky, like silk, silklike, particularly Labels: not-comparable Example: [L]ove is not to be bought, in any ſenſe of the vvords, its ſilken vvings are inſtantly ſhrivelled up vvhen any thing beſide a return in kind is ſought. Example: […] in spite of the buzz in the next room, Edith had rolled herself up into a soft ball of muslin and ribbon, and silken curls, and gone off into a peaceful little after-dinner nap. 3. Synonym of silky, like silk, silklike, particularly Labels: not-comparable Example: […] an admired silken-mannered gentleman in society, a tolerable polecat at home […] 4. Synonym of silky, like silk, silklike, particularly Labels: figuratively, not-comparable Example: Taffeta phrases, silken terms precise, / Three-piled hyperboles, spruce affectation, / Figures pedantical; these summer-flies / Have blown me full of maggot ostentation: Example: Come then youth, Beauty, and Blood, all ye soft powers, / Whose silken flatteryes swell a few fond houres. 5. Dressed in silk. Labels: not-comparable Example: [S]hall a beardless boy, / A cocker’d silken wanton, brave our fields […]? Example: Yet though he cannot skip forth now to greet / Every fine silken painted foole we meet, / He then to him with amorous smiles allures,
Word: silken Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English silken, selken, seolkene, from Old English seolcen, from seolc (“silk”) + -en, from an unattested early Proto-West Germanic borrowing from Latin sēricum, from Ancient Greek σηρικός (sērikós, “silken”), from σήρ (sḗr, “silkworm”) + -ικός (-ikós, “-ic”). Equivalent to silk + -en (“made of”). Cognate with Scots selkin, silkin (“silken”), Icelandic silki (“silken”). Pronunciation: /ˈsɪlkən/ 1. To render silken or silklike. Labels: transitive Example: silkening body lotion Example: Or, if your sheep are of Silurian breed, Nightly to house them dry on fern or straw, Silk’ning their fleeces.
Word: statementing Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From statement (noun) + -ing. 1. formal official assessment of a child as having special needs. Labels: UK, uncountable
Word: statementing Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Indo-European *stéh₂-tu-s ~ *sth₂-téw-s Proto-Italic *status Latin statuslbor. Old French estatbor. Middle English stat English state Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥tom Proto-Italic *-mentom Latin -mentum Old French -mentbor. Middle English -ment English -ment English statement English -ing English statementing From statement (verb) + -ing. 1. present participle and gerund of statement Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: steampunk Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From steam + -punk, by analogy with cyberpunk, coined by science-fiction writer Kevin Wayne Jeter (born 1950) in a 1987 letter to the magazine Locus in response to a review of his book Infernal Devices published the same year (see the quotation below). Pronunciation: /ˈstiːm.pʌŋk/ 1. A subgenre of science fiction that depicts advanced technology combined with Victorian style and aesthetics, such as steam-powered machines and vehicles, visible gears and screws and people dressed in 19th-century attires. Labels: uncountable Example: There's railroad trains, a lot of steam-driven stuff, but that's about it. More ‘steam punk’, I suppose. Example: It is also the vision of steampunk, a subculture that is the aesthetic expression of a time-traveling fantasy world, one that embraces music, film, design and now fashion, all inspired by the extravagantly inventive age of dirigibles and steam locomotives, brass diving bells and jar-shaped protosubmarines. 2. A writer of steampunk fiction. Labels: countable Example: Personally, I think Victorian fantasies are going to be the next big thing, as long as we can come up with a fitting collective term for Powers, [James] Blaylock and myself. Something based on the appropriate technology of the era; like steam-punks, perhaps... 3. A person cosplaying as a steampunk character. Labels: countable Example: It wound up being an overwhelmingly positive experience that made me appreciate the steampunks around me even more. Example: It is extremely rare that you speak to someone who says "I want to be an ...." This would suggest that for the vast majority of steampunks their choice of outfit (at least intitially) is less a conscious attempt at portrayal and more of a spontaneous and potentially subconscious growth of an idea.
Word: steampunk Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From steam + -punk, by analogy with cyberpunk, coined by science-fiction writer Kevin Wayne Jeter (born 1950) in a 1987 letter to the magazine Locus in response to a review of his book Infernal Devices published the same year (see the quotation below). Pronunciation: /ˈstiːm.pʌŋk/ 1. To depict in a steampunk manner. Labels: transitive Example: [Director Paul W.S.] Anderson's answer to the question of what to update in this film seems to be: steampunk everything. Hence the elaborate airship contraptions and weapons, all made in wood and iron and powered by choo-choo engines. What seems to be missing is the why. When far-fetched techno-bits and bobs are put into a story, these items must have a meaning and purpose. Here, the gadgets are throwaway items used for their visual effect, then discarded. Example: There is also a strong draw on literature and film for ideas. Some steampunks will take a favorite character, such as Boba Fett, Alice, Dorothy, Professor Snape, or Sherlock Holmes, and “steampunk” him or her out by adding elements of leather (or faux leather), gears, clock parts, electricity, motors, and so on.
Word: chanced Part of Speech: verb Pronunciation: /ˈt͡ʃænst/, /ˈt͡ʃɑːnst/, /ˈt͡ʃeənst/ 1. simple past and past participle of chance Labels: form-of, participle, past Example: He chanced upon the definition when leafing through the dictionary.
Word: step aerobics Part of Speech: noun 1. a form of aerobics involving repeated stepping up onto, and down from a block or platform Labels: uncountable
Word: aerobics Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ews- Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewsér Proto-Hellenic *auhḗr Ancient Greek ἀήρ (aḗr) Proto-Indo-European *gʷeyh₃-der. Ancient Greek βίος (bíos) French aérobie Proto-Indo-European *-ikos Proto-Italic *-ikos Latin -icuslbor. Old French -iquebor. Middle English -ik English -ic English aerobic English -s English aerobics From aerobic + -s. Pronunciation: /əˈɹəʊbɪks/, /əˈɹoʊbɪks/ 1. A form of exercise, designed to enhance one's cardiovascular fitness, normally performed to music. Labels: uncountable
Word: earner Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree English earn Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusnom. Latin -āriusbor. Proto-Germanic *-ārijaz Proto-West Germanic *-ārī Old English -ere Middle English -ere English -er English earner From earn + -er. 1. One who earns money. Example: Teachers are not simply wage earners who teach students, but revolutionaries bringing up the future builders of socialism. For this reason, we are working hard to help teachers acquire advanced science and technology and to revolutionize and working-classize them. Example: A remaining downside with potentially big unintended consequences is the legislated proposal doesn’t yet adjust the spouse income test, excluding many couples where one earner loses their job and leading to a perverse and undesirable "benefit cliff". 2. A profitable product or scheme; something that brings in good money. Labels: Australia, UK Example: Those Japanese radios were a nice little earner: we sold all of them by lunchtime. Example: Substantial income from new video markets made Shaker Run New Zealand's top earner at Cannes, closely followed by The Quiet Earth.
Word: stonking Part of Speech: adj 1. impressively large; exciting Labels: Australia, UK, slang Example: For instance he might see a White-eared Honeyeater, a not uncommon bird in the heathy areas at Bunyip, but in his excitement to call it, something in his brain scrambled and came out as: `White-cheeked Honeyeater!' White-cheeked Honeyeater is an absolute stonking crippler in Victoria, but Stu was not actually trying to string a rarity, he'd just got such a flood of new information swirling around his brain that sometimes it got jumbled up.
Word: stonking Part of Speech: verb 1. present participle and gerund of stonk Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: streamer Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English stremer, stremere, equivalent to stream + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈstɹiːmɚ/ 1. A long, narrow flag, or piece of material used or seen as a decoration. Example: Brave Rupert from afar appears, / Whose waving streamers the glad general knows. Example: A second squire held aloft his master's lance, from the extremity of which fluttered a small banderole, or streamer, bearing a cross of the same form with that embroidered upon his cloak. 2. Strips of paper or other material used as confetti. Example: […] from a cancan to a gothic tableau featuring mock-beheaded women at the windows of the Conciergerie with red streamers that looked like macabre spurting blood. 3. A newspaper headline that runs along the top of a page. 4. A data storage system, mainly used to produce backups, in which large quantities of data are transferred to a continuously moving tape; a tape drive. 5. Any mechanism for streaming data. Example: However, integration of a bandwidth estimation algorithm into an adaptive video streamer is not an easy task. Firstly, bandwidth estimation requires sending extra burst packets that brings a considerable overhead into the system. 6. A subscription service that streams content to an audience. Labels: Internet Example: For starters, the business models for American broadcasters like NBC and streamers like Netflix (or Hulu, or Amazon) are drastically different. Example: So where HBO used to boast that it was “not TV,” modern streamers send the message, “We’ll give you a whole lot of TV.” 7. A person who streams activities on their computer (especially video gaming) to a live online audience. Labels: Internet Example: Most streamers are on Twitch Example: There was perhaps no group of creators more prepared for the horrors of 2020 than streamers. Sitting in front of their cameras, often alone, talking for hours to the camera is what they do, and many are excellent at it. 8. In fly fishing, a variety of wet fly designed to mimic a minnow. Example: Kuster meanwhile nymphed the middle of the Snag. When I joined him, I threw my streamer between the main channel's flow and the skinnier side-channel flow, […] 9. One who searches for stream tin. 10. A stream or column of light shooting upward from the horizon, constituting one of the forms of the aurora borealis. Example: While overhead the North's dumb streamers shoot. Example: The moon was indeed at the full, and the northern streamers were shining brilliantly. 11. A pupil belonging to a particular stream (division by perceived ability). Labels: UK, in-compounds Example: Since he also demonstrated that the A-streamers in his sample showed enhancement of measured intelligence over their primary school careers while the B-streamers showed deterioration, it can be seen what a far-reaching effect such decisions may have had upon child performance.
Word: SDLP Part of Speech: name 1. Initialism of Social Democratic and Labour Party. Labels: Northern-Ireland, abbreviation, alt-of, initialism Example: "We know we can't bring those people back," said former deputy first minister Mark Durkan of the SDLP.
Word: ITA Part of Speech: name 1. Initialism of Independent Television Authority. Labels: abbreviation, alt-of, historical, initialism 2. Initialism of Initial Teaching Alphabet. Labels: abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Word: ITA Part of Speech: phrase 1. Initialism of I totally agree. Labels: Internet, abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Word: vocational school Part of Speech: noun 1. A school that provides training in specific skills required for different industries.
Word: inconceivable Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From in- + conceivable. Pronunciation: /ɪn.kənˈsiː.və.bl̩/ 1. Unable to be conceived or imagined; unbelievable. Example: While the world altered dramatically during the course of her reign, the monarchy did too, though rather more imperceptibly: the walkabouts that increasingly characterised royal appearances, the pop concerts at Buckingham Palace, the throwing open of the royal palaces to visitors – even the paying of income tax, and royal podcasts – would have been inconceivable as innovations at the time Elizabeth came to the throne.
Word: stressed out Part of Speech: verb 1. simple past and past participle of stress out Labels: form-of, participle, past
Word: stressed out Part of Speech: adj 1. Very stressed psychologically or physically. Labels: informal 2. Exhausted or debilitated by stress.
Word: UCAS Part of Speech: name Etymology: Abbreviation. Pronunciation: /ˈjuːkæs/ 1. Acronym of Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. Labels: UK, abbreviation, acronym, alt-of
Word: UCAS Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Abbreviation. Pronunciation: /ˈjuːkæs/ 1. Initialism of uncrewed combat aerial system, unmanned combat aerial system, uncrewed combat aircraft system, or, unmanned combat aircraft system Labels: abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Word: superbug Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úp Proto-Indo-European *-er Proto-Indo-European *upér Proto-Italic *super Latin super Latin super-lbor. English super- English bug English superbug From super- + bug. 1. A strain of bacteria that is resistant to many antibiotics (e.g., MDR, XDR). Labels: informal Example: But now we’re seeing increasing numbers of superbugs that survive antibiotics. One of the best-known [is] MRSA, a kind of staph infection [that] kills about 18,000 Americans annually. That’s more than die of AIDS. 2. Any pathogen resistant to many, even all, of the biocides or other agents used to treat similar pathogens. Labels: informal 3. An invasive insect, Bemisia tabaci, that is a major pest of vegetable crops, both directly and as a virus vector. Labels: US
Word: superunleaded Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úp Proto-Indo-European *-er Proto-Indo-European *upér Proto-Italic *super Latin super Latin super-lbor. English super- English unleaded English superunleaded From super- + unleaded. 1. of unleaded petrol, that has a higher than normal octane number due to the addition of aromatic hydrocarbons Labels: not-comparable
Word: sussed Part of Speech: verb 1. simple past and past participle of suss Labels: form-of, participle, past 2. simple past and past participle of sus Labels: form-of, participle, past
Word: sussed Part of Speech: adj 1. Sorted, organised; figured out, understood. Labels: not-comparable, slang Example: Chippenham's hardly the romantic capitol of the world m′boy, but I see exactly what you′re saying, though I think you′ve got it more sussed than all us. Example: ‘You mean you were still on dial-up?’ He laughed. ‘For someone who does what you do, I can′t believe you′re not more sussed.’ 2. Well-informed; in the know, savvy. Labels: not-comparable, slang Example: Patric′s one of the most sussed beings in the industry, but the schizophrenia that comes from being unable to reconcile a love of music with a desire to make lots of bucks seems to have affected everyone. Example: […] for example J-17′s February issue carried an informative quiz, ‘Are you sussed about sex?’