nandhakumarms/qualc-wiktionary-en huggingface dataset:
Word: dissolve Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Recorded since c. 1374 (displacing Old English toliesan) as Middle English dissolven, from Latin dissolvere (“to loosen up, break apart”) but with the sense from Anglo-Norman dissoldre (variant of Old French dissoudre), itself from dis- (“apart”) + solvere (“to loose, loosen”). By surface analysis, dis- + solve. Pronunciation: /dɪˈzɒlv/, /dɪˈzɑlv/, /dɪˈzɔlv/ 1. a form of film punctuation in which there is a gradual transition from one scene to the next Example: While most of the film is done in medium and long shots (connected with dissolves and wipes which lend a lovely period effect)
Word: disintegrate Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Recorded since 1785, from dis- + integrate. Pronunciation: /dɪsˈɪntɪɡɹeɪt/ 1. To undo the integrity of; to break into parts. Labels: transitive Example: Marlites […] are not disintegrated by exposure to the atmosphere, at least in six years. 2. To undo the integrity of; to break into parts. Labels: transitive Example: There is a Latvian gentleman named Theodore Nemor living at White Friars Mansions, Hampstead, who claims to have invented a machine of a most extraordinary character which is capable of disintegrating any object placed within its sphere of influence. 3. To fall apart; to break up into parts. Labels: intransitive Example: Hence they are eloquent, not of the present, disintegrating society and psyche, but of the unquenched source through which society is reborn. Example: But Schneider has wantonly misstaged Lucky's monologue: instead of a recitation by rote of a travestied history of Western philosophy and religion that gradually disintegrates into chaos, we get a choppy set of starts and stops, as of a jalopy that cannot get into proper gear.
Word: codec Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Syllabic abbreviation of coder decoder, probably in imitation of how modem was formed. 1. A device or program capable of performing transformations on a data stream or signal. Example: Audio and video codecs are important in making multimedia files small enough to distribute and simple to play back. 2. A media coding format. Example: H.264 and AV1 are examples of video codecs.
Word: introduce Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English introducen, from Old French introduire, from Latin intrōdūcō, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁énteros (“inner, what is inside”) and *dewk-. Pronunciation: /ˌɪntɹəˈdʒuːs/, /ˌɪntɹəˈdjuːs/, /ˌɪntɹəˈdus/, /ˌɪn(t)əɹˈdus/ 1. To cause (someone) to be acquainted (with someone else). Labels: transitive Example: Let me introduce you to my friends. Example: His unruly hair was slicked down with water, and as Jessamy introduced him to Miss Brindle his face assumed a cherubic innocence which would immediately have aroused the suspicions of anyone who knew him. 2. To make (something or someone) known, such as by formal announcement or recommendation. Labels: transitive Example: The senator plans to introduce the bill in the next session. Example: Let me introduce our guest speaker. 3. To add (something) to a system, a mixture, or a container. Labels: transitive Example: Various pollutants were introduced into the atmosphere. 4. To bring (something) into practice. Labels: transitive Example: Wheeled transport was introduced long ago. Example: In conformity with the decision of the Ministry of Interior, the Kansu-Szechwan Standard Time (same as Chungking Time) has been introduced as the standard time for all the railways.
Word: shrove Part of Speech: verb Pronunciation: /ʃɹəʊv/ 1. simple past of shrive Labels: form-of, past
Word: shrove Part of Speech: verb Pronunciation: /ʃɹəʊv/ 1. To join in the festivities of Shrovetide. Labels: obsolete 2. To make merry. Labels: broadly, obsolete Example: Servant, your counsel's excellent good, And shall be follow'd, 'twill be rarely strange To see him stated thus, as though he went A shroving through the City
Word: clucky Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From cluck + -y, because broody hens usually cluck loudly and continuously if disturbed. 1. Broody. 2. Prone to cluck. 3. Resembling or characteristic of a cluck. Example: a clucky sound
Word: kitty litter Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /ˈkɪti ˈlɪtɚ/, [ˈkʰɪɾi ˈlɪɾɚ], /ˈkɪti ˈlɪtə(ɹ)/ 1. Synonym of cat litter. Labels: uncountable, usually 2. Any similar mix, used to soak up liquid spills. Labels: broadly, informal, uncountable, usually 3. A gravel trap (a large area of gravel used to slow cars that leave the track) Labels: informal, uncountable, usually
Word: peep sight Part of Speech: noun 1. On some rifles, a type of sight where the shooter looks through a small aperture on the rear sight.
Word: greywater Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From grey + water. 1. Alternative spelling of gray water. Labels: alt-of, alternative, countable, uncountable
Word: bilby Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Gamilaraay bilbi. Pronunciation: /ˈbɪlbiː/ 1. An Australian desert marsupial of the only extant species Macrotis lagotis with distinctive large ears and approximately the size of a rabbit.
Word: discredit Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *d(w)is- Proto-Italic *dis- Latin dis- Old French des-bor. ▲ Latin dis-bor. Middle English dis- English dis- English credit English discredit From dis- + credit. Pronunciation: /dɪsˈkɹɛd.ɪt/, /dɪsˈkɹed.ɪt/ 1. To harm the good reputation of (a person). Labels: transitive Example: The candidate tried to discredit his opponent. 2. To cause (an idea or piece of evidence) to seem false or unreliable. Labels: transitive Example: The evidence would tend to discredit such a theory. Example: Many of our correspondents participated in the discussion, and the upshot was that the alleged record was discredited.
Word: discredit Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *d(w)is- Proto-Italic *dis- Latin dis- Old French des-bor. ▲ Latin dis-bor. Middle English dis- English dis- English credit English discredit From dis- + credit. Pronunciation: /dɪsˈkɹɛd.ɪt/, /dɪsˈkɹed.ɪt/ 1. Discrediting or disbelieving. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Mr. Burton disbelieves it, and has brought sufficient reasons for his discredit of so improbable a story. Example: It would have been too serious a task to verify his numerous citations in our very careful reading for the present notice; but we are bound to say that, observing his discredit of some of the passages which he quotes from a contemporary American writer, and struck ourselves with the apparent inexactness of the statements in teste extracts (pp. 579, 616, 647), we were led to compare his citations, and, to our surprise, we find them incorrect and even garbled, and in one place where he had queried (thus (?)) the fact, we were surprised to find the doubt pertained to one of his own interpolations in the extracts. 2. A person or thing that causes harm to a reputation, as of a person, family, or institution. Labels: countable Example: […] that now and then a young man of that profession did actually appear among us, who was not a discredit to his country. Example: I felt at the time that to pass it so hastily would be a discredit to Parliament, as custodian of the liberties of the people of this country. I felt, too, that it would be a discredit to the colony, and a discredit, a deep discredit, to the Government 3. The state of being discredited or disbelieved. Labels: uncountable Example: Later accounts have brought the story into discredit. 4. A degree of dishonour or disesteem; ill repute; reproach. Labels: uncountable Example: It is the duty of every Christian to be concerned for the reputation or discredit his life may bring on his profession. Example: It is to David Brill's discredit that he allowed himself — a long-time activist in the gay community and a paid staff writer for a gay liberation newspaper — to use his extensive news sources and a solid standing in the community to participate in what appears to be at this time a well-organized police entrapment of a gay man whom many are eager to indict and imprison.
Word: pork-barrelling Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From pork barrel + -ing. 1. The practice of giving favours or money to voters in connection with a candidate for a current or future election, in order to sway enough voters so that the candidate will win. Labels: uncountable 2. The practice of an elected politician giving favours or money to some or all voters in the politician's electorate, or to certain organizations, as compensation or payback for support from those voters or organizations in the past. Labels: uncountable
Word: Damascus barrel Part of Speech: noun 1. A gun barrel formed by twisting and welding strips of metal around a hard die; no longer commonly used now due to its inability to handle high cartridge pressure on modern ammunition.
Word: INMARSAT Part of Speech: name Etymology: Blend of international + marine + satellite. 1. A British satellite telecommunications company.
Word: babe in the woods Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From the ballad "The Children in the Wood". 1. A person who is innocent, naive, inexperienced, or helpless, especially with respect to an unfamiliar situation or environment. Labels: idiomatic Example: "Orde, you're all right on the river," said Newmark, with a dry little laugh, "but you're a babe in the woods at this game." Example: Taylor is aware of the perception that he is the innocent, exploitable babe in the woods of the Geelong defence.
Word: flinching Part of Speech: verb 1. present participle and gerund of flinch Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: flinching Part of Speech: noun 1. A flinching motion; a flinch.
Word: twenty-twenty Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From a method of testing vision by reading charts at a distance of 20 feet. 1. Having normal visual acuity. Labels: not-comparable Example: All I want is 20/20 vision / A total portrait with no omissions
Word: dowsing Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From dowse + -ing. 1. The practice of seeking water or other substances (usually liquid) with the aid of a forked stick or similar pointing device, as believed by some practitioners to derive from supernatural power. Labels: countable, uncountable
Word: dowsing Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From dowse + -ing. 1. present participle and gerund of dowse Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: titi Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /ˈtiːtiː/ 1. Any New World monkey of the subfamily Callicebinae, native to South America, distinguished by their long soft fur.
Word: titi Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Māori. Pronunciation: /ˈtiːtiː/ 1. Mutton bird. Labels: New-Zealand
Word: titi Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /ˈtiːtiː/ 1. A tree of the southern United States (Cliftonia monophylla) having glossy leaves and racemes of fragrant white flowers succeeded by one-seeded drupes. 2. Any tree of the related genus Cyrilla.
Word: uxoricide Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from French uxoricide or Latin uxor + English -icide. Pronunciation: /ʌkˈsɔː.ɹɪˌsaɪd/ 1. One who murders one's wife.
Word: uxoricide Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From French uxoricide or Latin uxōricīdium. Pronunciation: /ʌkˈsɔː.ɹɪˌsaɪd/ 1. The murdering of one's own wife. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Terms related to familicide include filicide (the killing of one's child or children), uxoricide (the killing of one's wife), fratricide or sororicide (the killing of one's brother or sister), avunculicide (the killing of one's uncle), and nepoticide (the killing of one's nephew). Example: In order for someone to green-light a movie of this story, they’d need to have at least background knowledge of the sexual shenanigans of Sartre and Beauvoir, and of Althusser’s uxoricide – though not necessarily a close acquaintance with their published work.
Word: filicide Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Latin fīlius (“son”), fīlia (“daughter”) + -cide. Pronunciation: /ˈfɪ.lɪ.sʌɪd/ 1. The killing of one's own child. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: it began by violating nature, and ends in filicide. (I, v) Example: Terms related to familicide include filicide (the killing of one's child or children), uxoricide (the killing of one's wife), fratricide or sororicide (the killing of one's brother or sister), avunculicide (the killing of one's uncle), and nepoticide (the killing of one's nephew). 2. A person who kills his or her own child. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Ned is running, panicked, […] running for the cold hard road and the sanctuary of the Brunch farm like a filicide caught in the act.
Word: ballpark figure Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Operating on the themes discussed at in the ballpark § Etymology. 1. An educated guess or estimation within acceptable bounds. Labels: US, idiomatic Example: No more stalling. Give me a ballpark figure of our projected losses.
Word: water witching Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From water + witching. 1. The practice of dowsing. Labels: uncountable
Word: gopuram Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Tamil கோபுரம் (kōpuram), Malayalam ഗോപുരം (gōpuraṁ), from Sanskrit गोपुर (gó-pura). 1. A monumental tower, usually ornate, at the entrance of a temple, especially in Southern India.
Word: tiki Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Māori tiki (“figurine”). Pronunciation: /ˈtiːkiː/, /ˈtɪki/ 1. A carved talisman in humanoid form, common to the cultures of the Pacific Ocean. Labels: countable 2. The characteristic style of tiki bars. Labels: attributive, often, uncountable Example: tiki culture Example: The Jungle Bird is a tiki cocktail.
Word: make much Part of Speech: verb 1. To emphasize, put much value on. Labels: usually Example: Many readers too, have made much of the signifying force of the connection between Sterne and the starling. Example: Northern made much of the scrapping of the first of the Pacers (142005), and to date 35 of its Class 142s have been scrapped, with a further 11 off-lease at Gascoigne Wood. 2. To give fond attention to; to cosset. Labels: usually Example: Usually, on such visits, the colonel made much of the dog. Today he merely glanced up abstractedly from his writing, at sight of Bruce's silken head at his side.
Word: make good Part of Speech: verb 1. To achieve substantial success in life, often in business. Labels: idiomatic, intransitive Example: Near-synonym: come good Example: America does vaguely feel a man making good as something analogous to a man being good or a man doing good. 2. To complete successfully; to fulfil (a promise). Labels: intransitive, transitive, with-on Example: He made good his threat and made good his escape by jumping from a second-story window. Example: He made good on his threat to jump from a second-story window. 3. To match the first player's bet with one's own, rather than dropping out. Example: After all the players who determine to go in have made good the bet of the player who opened the Jack Pot, and the hands have been filled […] 4. To remedy or compensate for (a defect or deficiency). Labels: intransitive, transitive, with-on Example: The company made good the damage by paying my repair costs. Example: The company made good on the damage by paying my repair costs. 5. To make (a surface) level or even. Labels: idiomatic Example: […] the only action that will be required prior to decoration will be to wash down, make good and apply a fresh paint system.
Word: periodo Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *per- Proto-Italic *per Latin perbor. Proto-Indo-European *per-der. Proto-Italic *peri- Latin per-bor. English per- Pre-Greekbor. Proto-Hellenic *wion Ancient Greek ἴον (íon) Proto-Indo-European *weyd- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *wéydos Proto-Hellenic *wéidos Ancient Greek εἶδος (eîdos) Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *-ēs Ancient Greek -ης (-ēs) Ancient Greek -ειδής (-eidḗs) Ancient Greek ἰοειδής (ioeidḗs)der. English iodo- English periodo From per- + iodo-. 1. Describing a derivative in which all hydrogen atoms have been replaced by iodine Labels: especially, in-compounds, not-comparable
Word: landlubber Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Extension (with land) of earlier lubber. Compare also landloper. Pronunciation: /ˈlænd.lʌ.bə/, /ˈlænd.lʌ.bɚ/ 1. Someone unfamiliar with the sea or seamanship, especially a novice seaman. Labels: derogatory Example: […] the making of sheathing and ship's pumps. This last rather unmarine field included more than a third of the patents before 1800, which may be one explanation for the predominance of landlubbers in early marine patenting.
Word: Iron Curtain Part of Speech: name Etymology: A specialized use of iron curtain (“(figurative) impenetrable barrier”), probably partly a calque of German eiserner Vorhang which was used in speeches in the 1940s that were translated into English. The English term appeared in telegrams from the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874–1965) to the United States President Harry S. Truman (1884–1972) in 1945, before being popularized in a speech given by Churchill at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, on March 5, 1946. Pronunciation: /ˌaɪən ˈkɜː.tən/, /ˌaɪ(ə)ɹn ˈkɜɹ.tən/ 1. The dividing line between Western Europe and the Soviet-controlled regions, especially during the Cold War (1947–1991). Labels: historical Example: We liked the plain people of Russia wherever we met them. […] We were behind the "iron curtain" at last! Example: In the east the iron curtain behind which, unseen by the eyes of the world, the work of destruction goes on, is moving steadily forward.
Word: green room Part of Speech: noun Etymology: First appears c. 1701 in the writings of Colley Cibber. 1. In a television studio, theatre or concert hall, the room where performers await their entrance. Example: There are three smaller rooms he can use as rehearsal space or dressing rooms or green rooms, according to need. 2. The inside of a tube (a cylindrical wave). Example: Never quite got covered up, but stood in the doorway to the green room with the lip feathering over my shoulders several times
Word: seafarer Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English *se-farere (suggested by se-farende, sa farinde (“sea-faring”)) equivalent to sea + farer (“traveler”) and to seafare + -er. Cognate with Middle Dutch seevarer, whence Modern Dutch zeevaarder (“seafarer”), West Frisian seefarder (“seafarer”), German Seefahrer (“seafarer”), Swedish sjöfarare (“seafarer”). Pronunciation: /ˈsiˌfɛɹɚ/, /ˈsiˌfeɹɚ/, /-fɛəɹɚ/ 1. Someone whose occupation is operating a ship or boat at sea, for either civilian or military purposes. Example: An intergovernmental panel will draw up plans to relieve seafarers who have been stuck at sea during a crisis. 2. Anyone who travels by sea. Example: Clearly the earliest Australians were seafarers who landed there tens of thousands of years ago; our quest to know more about them — did they come from Melanesia? what kind of boats did they have? were they blown out to sea by a storm? — is ongoing.
Word: guestimate Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Blend of guess + estimate. 1. Alternative spelling of guesstimate. Labels: alt-of, alternative
Word: guestimate Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Blend of guess + estimate. 1. Alternative spelling of guesstimate. Labels: alt-of, alternative
Word: chugalug Part of Speech: verb 1. To swallow (a container of beer etc.) without pausing. Labels: US, intransitive, transitive
Word: chugalug Part of Speech: adv 1. In continuous gulps Labels: not-comparable
Word: chugalug Part of Speech: noun 1. A glugging sound, especially one made by a person drinking in large gulps Labels: informal
Word: cuttlefish bone Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From cuttlefish + bone. Pronunciation: /ˌkʌtl̩fɪʃ ˈbəʊn/, /ˌkʌt(ə)lˌfɪʃ ˈboʊn/, [-ɾ(ə)l-] 1. The calcareous, oval-shaped internal shell of a cuttlefish (order Sepiida), originally used in powdered form as an antacid and for absorbing moisture or polishing objects, and now chiefly as a dietary supplement for cage birds.
Word: cage bird Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From cage + bird. 1. A bird, such as a canary or budgerigar, kept captive in a cage or aviary for domestic companionship or as a hobby.
Word: matricide Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From French matricide, from Latin mātricīda (“person who kills his own mother”) and mātricīdium (“the murder of one's mother”). By surface analysis, matri- + -cide. 1. The killing of one's mother. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Gerald was imprisoned for matricide: he strangled his mother. Example: Here the interest was the more compelling because the case of Orestes was unique—not only because matricide was an almost unknown crime, but also because the gods themselves participate in an action in which the slain mother had herself slain the father of her son. 2. A person who kills his or her mother. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Nancy was a matricide; it happened four years ago.
Word: cedi Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Ultimately from Fante Akan sedi (“cowrie shell”). Pronunciation: /ˈsiːdiː/ 1. The currency of Ghana, divided into 100 pesewas and represented by ₵. Example: A 25-year-old motorbike rider, Eric Sulley has been sentenced to a fine of 300 Ghana cedis for riding a motorbike without a helmet by the Akim Swedru Circuit Court presided by Mr Yaw Atta Sampong.
Word: rhabdo- Part of Speech: prefix Etymology: Borrowed from Ancient Greek ῥάβδος (rhábdos, “rod, wand”). 1. rod, rod-like Labels: morpheme
Word: hindsight Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From hind + sight, 19th c. Compare Latinate retrospect. Pronunciation: /ˈhaɪn(d)saɪt/ 1. Realization or understanding of the significance and nature of events after they have occurred. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: You know what they say, hindsight is twenty-twenty. Example: In hindsight, I realize that I should have studied harder for the exam. 2. The rear sight of a firearm. Labels: countable, rare, uncountable Example: Holonym: iron sights
Word: twenty-twenty hindsight Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From the term 20/20 which is used in visual testing to refer to normal visual acuity. 1. A perfect understanding of events only after they have happened. Labels: idiomatic, uncountable
Word: trigger-happy Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From trigger + happy. 1. Having a tendency or desire to shoot a firearm irresponsibly before adequately identifying the target. Example: The bystanders were indiscriminately gunned down by trigger-happy gang members. Example: Crime is increasing / Trigger happy policing / Panic is spreading / God knows where we're heading 2. Inclined to behave recklessly or violently at the slightest provocation. Labels: broadly Example: Be careful when you work near him; he's trigger-happy with that chain-saw. Example: He was so trigger-happy that he wheeled and punched me when I brushed by him in the hall.
Word: lurgy Part of Speech: noun Etymology: The noun is derived from fever-lurgy, possibly influenced by or related to lurk (“to hang out or wait”). Fever-lurgy is possibly a variant of fever lurden (“idleness regarded as a medical condition”), from fever + lurden, lurdane (“used as a general term of abuse for a person, especially one regarded as dull or idle: loafer, sluggard”). Lurden, lurdane is derived from Middle English lurdan (“coward; good-for-nothing person, fool, rascal; lazy person; low-born or ill-mannered person; unfortunate person; wicked person”), from Old French lordin, lourdin, from lourd, lourt, lorz (“clumsy, oafish; heavy”) (modern French lourd) + -in (suffix forming derogatory or diminutive nouns); and lourd from Late Latin lordus, lurdus (“clumsy; heavy slow; stupid”), probably from Latin lūridus (“sallow, wan; ghastly, horrifying”), possibly from lūror (“lividness; paleness, pallor”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)leh₃y- (“bluish”)) + -idus (suffix meaning ‘tending to’ forming adjectives). Noun sense 1.2 (“non-specific disease”) was popularized by the British radio comedy show The Goon Show (first broadcast 1951–1960), especially the episode “Lurgi Strikes Britain” (series 5, episode 7; 9 November 1954) written by the Anglo-Irish comedian Spike Milligan (1918–2002) and the English comedian Eric Sykes (1923–2012), about the outbreak of a highly dangerous and infectious and—as it turns out—fictitious disease known as “the Dreaded Lurgi” created as a scam. Another suggestion is that the word is a corruption and contraction of allergy, but this is a folk etymology as allergy has a soft g (/dʒ/) while lurgy has a hard /ɡ/ (rhyming with Fergie). The adjective is probably from an attributive use of the noun. Pronunciation: /ˈlɜːɡi/, /ˈlɜɹɡi/ 1. Chiefly preceded by the. Labels: Ireland, archaic, countable, humorous, slang, uncountable Example: Both in the lurgy and the gripes, / These cakes are useful things, / And fit to stop the small windpipes / Of little nasty kings. 2. Chiefly preceded by the. Labels: Australia, Ireland, New-Zealand, UK, broadly, countable, humorous, possibly, slang, uncountable Example: the dreaded lurgy Example: Harry. Now, you claim that if we set you up in a well-equipped laboratory, you will find the cure for almost everything. / Mike. (dramatically) Yes—including the dreaded Lurgi.
Word: lurgy Part of Speech: adj Etymology: The noun is derived from fever-lurgy, possibly influenced by or related to lurk (“to hang out or wait”). Fever-lurgy is possibly a variant of fever lurden (“idleness regarded as a medical condition”), from fever + lurden, lurdane (“used as a general term of abuse for a person, especially one regarded as dull or idle: loafer, sluggard”). Lurden, lurdane is derived from Middle English lurdan (“coward; good-for-nothing person, fool, rascal; lazy person; low-born or ill-mannered person; unfortunate person; wicked person”), from Old French lordin, lourdin, from lourd, lourt, lorz (“clumsy, oafish; heavy”) (modern French lourd) + -in (suffix forming derogatory or diminutive nouns); and lourd from Late Latin lordus, lurdus (“clumsy; heavy slow; stupid”), probably from Latin lūridus (“sallow, wan; ghastly, horrifying”), possibly from lūror (“lividness; paleness, pallor”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)leh₃y- (“bluish”)) + -idus (suffix meaning ‘tending to’ forming adjectives). Noun sense 1.2 (“non-specific disease”) was popularized by the British radio comedy show The Goon Show (first broadcast 1951–1960), especially the episode “Lurgi Strikes Britain” (series 5, episode 7; 9 November 1954) written by the Anglo-Irish comedian Spike Milligan (1918–2002) and the English comedian Eric Sykes (1923–2012), about the outbreak of a highly dangerous and infectious and—as it turns out—fictitious disease known as “the Dreaded Lurgi” created as a scam. Another suggestion is that the word is a corruption and contraction of allergy, but this is a folk etymology as allergy has a soft g (/dʒ/) while lurgy has a hard /ɡ/ (rhyming with Fergie). The adjective is probably from an attributive use of the noun. Pronunciation: /ˈlɜːɡi/, /ˈlɜɹɡi/ 1. Idle, lazy. Labels: humorous, obsolete, slang
Word: fascinate Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Borrowed from Latin fascinātus, perfect passive participle of fascinō (“to enchant, bewitch, fascinate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from fascinum (“a phallus-shaped amulet worn around the neck in Ancient Rome; witchcraft”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix), itself of obscure origin. Pronunciation: /ˈfæsɪneɪt/ 1. To evoke an intense interest or attraction in someone. Example: The flickering TV fascinated the cat. 2. To make someone hold motionless; to spellbind. Example: We were fascinated by the potter's skill. Example: Leo, too, was strangely touched. Hitherto he had been fascinated against his better judgment, something as a bird is fascinated by a snake, but now I think that all this passed away, and he realised that he really loved this strange and glorious creature, as, alas! I loved her also. 3. To be irresistibly charming or attractive to. Example: Her gait fascinates all men.
Word: rock-dumb Part of Speech: adj 1. Extremely stupid. Labels: derogatory, rare, slang Example: Nothing like a rock-dumb cartoon to speak for non-thinking people!
Word: bar fly Part of Speech: noun 1. Alternative spelling of barfly. Labels: alt-of, alternative
Word: bar star Part of Speech: noun 1. A woman who frequents bars or lounges, usually late at night. Labels: idiomatic
Word: gift of the gab Part of Speech: noun 1. The ability to talk readily, glibly, and convincingly, especially on trivial matters and small talk. Labels: idiomatic, uncountable, usually Example: "Ay, that he shall," replied Fagin, "and we'll have a big-wig, Charley: one that's got the greatest gift of the gab: to carry on his defence; and he shall make a speech for himself too, if he likes." Example: I had meant to speak for ten minutes and must now go on for forty, and, though I've been racking my brains for three hours to think of something, I simply cannot last the course. Now you've got to be a good chap and help me. You're a Free Trader and can tell our people what a wash-out Protection is in the Colonies. All you fellows have the gift of the gab.
Word: invite Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle French inviter, from Latin invītō. Displaced native English lathe Pronunciation: /ɪnˈvaɪt/ 1. To ask for the presence or participation of someone or something. Labels: transitive Example: We invited our friends round for dinner. Example: A Nimph is marryed to a Fay, Great preparations for the Day, All Rites of Nuptials they recite you, To the Brydall and inuite you. 2. To request formally. Labels: transitive Example: I invite you all to be seated. Example: I always invite criticism of my essays. 3. To encourage. Labels: transitive Example: Wearing that skimpy dress, you are bound to invite attention. Example: The refusal to maintain such a navy would invite trouble, and if trouble came would insure disaster. 4. To allure; to draw to; to tempt to come; to induce by pleasure or hope; to attract. Labels: transitive Example: to inveigle and invite th' unwary sense Example: shady groves, that easy sleep invite
Word: invite Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From the verb invite. Pronunciation: /ˈɪnvaɪt/ 1. An invitation. Labels: informal Example: An open invite has been given to all UK workers to join in common cause with the union, as more than 40,000 RMT members at Network Rail and 13 train operating companies walked out on June 21 in the first of three 24-hour strikes over pay, conditions and job security.
Word: barefaced lie Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From barefaced (“unconcealed, audacious, shameless”) + lie. 1. A falsehood told with utter confidence and without trying to conceal the fact that it is false, especially a planned or deliberate falsehood. Example: I understand that salespeople try to explain things in a positive way, but that was a barefaced lie.
Word: transit Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From French, from Latin transire (“to go across, pass in, pass through”), from trans (“over”) + ire (“to go”). Pronunciation: /ˈtɹæn.zɪt/, /ˈtɹæn.sɪt/, /ˈtɹæn.zət/, /ˈtɹæn.sət/, /ˈtɹɑːn.zɪt/ 1. The act of passing over, across, or through something. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: In France you are now […] in the transit from one form of government to another. Example: In the hollow by the park wall it appeared again, distinctly; and here it was plain the transit of the wall had been made, for the traces of the mud were evident enough upon its surface, and the mortar at top was displaced, and a little tuft of grass in the mud, left by the clodded shoesole. 2. The conveyance of people or goods from one place to another, especially on a public transportation system; the vehicles used for such conveyance. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: the transit of goods through a country 3. Any form of transport that can be used by a member of public (who usually pays a fare), as opposed to private ownership of e.g. cars; short form of public transit or mass transit Labels: Canada, US, countable, uncountable Example: I always take transit to work. 4. The passage of a celestial body or other object across the observer's meridian, or across the disk of a larger celestial body. Labels: countable, uncountable 5. The passage of a celestial body in the horoscope, e.g. through a section or in relation to a specific important point in someone's birth chart. Labels: countable, uncountable 6. A surveying instrument rather like a theodolite that measures horizontal and vertical angles. Labels: countable, uncountable 7. An imaginary line between two objects whose positions are known. When the navigator sees one object directly in front of the other, the navigator knows that his position is on the transit. Labels: countable, uncountable 8. A Ford Transit van, see Transit. Labels: Ireland, UK, countable, uncountable Example: Beufort road, Birkenhead, about 17.15 June 19 2013, white transit overtakes and swerves left into junction almost taking my front wheel.
Word: transit Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From French, from Latin transire (“to go across, pass in, pass through”), from trans (“over”) + ire (“to go”). Pronunciation: /ˈtɹæn.zɪt/, /ˈtɹæn.sɪt/, /ˈtɹæn.zət/, /ˈtɹæn.sət/, /ˈtɹɑːn.zɪt/ 1. To pass over, across or through something. 2. To convey people or goods from one place to another, especially by public transport vehicles. 3. To use public transit. Example: I always transit to work. 4. To revolve an instrument about its horizontal axis so as to reverse its direction. 5. To make a transit. Labels: intransitive 6. To carry communications traffic to and from a customer or another network on a compensation basis as opposed to peerage in which the traffic to and from another network is carried on an equivalency basis or without charge. Labels: Internet
Word: barnburner Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From barn + burner. In exaggerated use, from the hyperbolic idea of someone burning down a barn to end a rat infestation. 1. One who burns down a barn. 2. Synonym of phosphorus match, a friction match that can be struck anywhere. Labels: New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, slang 3. A sensationally exciting or successful event or person. Labels: idiomatic Example: Those deathless twin barnburners return to the Metropolitan Opera tonight. Example: It is hard to know what could convince the barnburners to change their ways. The Maga base rewards them with money and the media lavishes them with airtime.
Word: migraine Part of Speech: noun Etymology: First appears c. 1425. A respelling (following French) of the late 14th century Middle English megrim, from the 13th century Old French migraigne, from Vulgar Latin pronunciation of Latin hemicrania (“a pain in one half of the head”), from Ancient Greek ἡμικρανία (hēmikranía), from ἡμι- (hēmi-, “hemi-, half”) + κρανίον (kraníon, “the skull”) (whence also cranium), a calque of Egyptian gs-tp (“a headache”), from gs (“half”) + tp (“the head”), although the link between the Egyptian magical papyri and the Greek ἡμικρανία (hēmikranía) could be purely incidental. Cognate to megrim, hemicrania. Pronunciation: /ˈmaɪɡɹeɪn/, /ˈmiːɡɹeɪn/ 1. A severe, disabling headache, usually affecting only one side of the head, and often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, photophobia and visual disturbances. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: He had a headache so bad that he wished he was dead, but it was the sort of migraine that promised him he would continue to suffer but not die. Example: After consuming too much coffee every day for six weeks, she got severe migraines that would last up until 47 minutes after her first cup of coffee. 2. A neurological condition characterised by such headaches. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Syncope is estimated to occur in bouts of headache in approximately 5% of adult patients with migraine. Example: Migraine is characterized by recurrent unilateral, often pulsating, headaches, worsened by physical activity and associated with nausea, photophobia and phonophobia.
Word: genocide Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os Proto-Hellenic *génos Ancient Greek γένος (génos) Proto-Indo-European *kh₂eyd-der. Proto-Italic *kaidō Latin caedō Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂ Proto-Italic *-ā Latin -a Latin -cīda Proto-Indo-European *-(i)yós Proto-Italic *-ijos Proto-Italic *-ios Old Latin -ios Latin -ius Latin -ium Latin -cīdiumder. Middle French -cidebor. English -cide English genocide From the stem of Ancient Greek γένος (génos, “race, kind”) (cognate with Latin gēns (“tribe, clan”), whence genus), corresponding to geno- + -cide (“killing”). Piecewise doublet of gendercide. Compare genticide. Coined by Polish Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin in 1943 or 1944 in reference to the Armenian Genocide (then known by other names; for more information, see Terminology of the Armenian genocide on Wikipedia), massacres of Assyrians (such as the Simele massacre and Seyfo) and the Jewish Holocaust. Pronunciation: /ˈd͡ʒɛnəsaɪd/ 1. The systematic and deliberate destruction of a group of people; typically by killing substantial numbers of them, on the basis of their ethnicity, religion, nationality, or similar grounds. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: A genocide will always be followed by the denial that it ever happened. Example: For the German occupying authorities war thus appears to offer the most appropriate occasion for carrying out their policy of genocide. 2. The systematic suppression of ideas or practices on the basis of cultural or ethnic origin; culturicide. Labels: broadly, countable, uncountable Example: linguistic genocide Example: Native Americans in the twentieth century are no longer a "vanishing race" or a silent minority. They have survived centuries of cultural genocide inflicted on them by non-Native Americans— both the well-meaning and the self-seeking— […] 3. The elimination of an entire class of monsters by the player in roguelikes. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: I used genocide in my first ascension, but have been genocideless ever since. Makes the game much more interesting, but then again, if one hasn't ascended yet, it will be interesting anyway. Example: What an Extinctionist tries to do is completely eliminate as many kinds of monsters from the game as possible, either through genocide if it's available, or from just depleting all the kinds of monsters that can be produced.
Word: genocide Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os Proto-Hellenic *génos Ancient Greek γένος (génos) Proto-Indo-European *kh₂eyd-der. Proto-Italic *kaidō Latin caedō Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂ Proto-Italic *-ā Latin -a Latin -cīda Proto-Indo-European *-(i)yós Proto-Italic *-ijos Proto-Italic *-ios Old Latin -ios Latin -ius Latin -ium Latin -cīdiumder. Middle French -cidebor. English -cide English genocide From the stem of Ancient Greek γένος (génos, “race, kind”) (cognate with Latin gēns (“tribe, clan”), whence genus), corresponding to geno- + -cide (“killing”). Piecewise doublet of gendercide. Compare genticide. Coined by Polish Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin in 1943 or 1944 in reference to the Armenian Genocide (then known by other names; for more information, see Terminology of the Armenian genocide on Wikipedia), massacres of Assyrians (such as the Simele massacre and Seyfo) and the Jewish Holocaust. Pronunciation: /ˈd͡ʒɛnəsaɪd/ 1. To commit genocide (against); to eliminate (a group of people) completely. Labels: transitive Example: Even though the Soviet constitution and that of the Ukrainian SSR contain provisions guaranteeing freedom of religion and other fundamental liberties, the Soviet government genocided the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church in the 1930's […] Example: A clue appears in the Nazis finding the Gypsies dirty and disorderly (for not only Jews were genocided).
Word: homicide Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Old French homicide, from Latin homicīda (“man-slayer”) and homicīdium (“manslaughter”). Pronunciation: /ˈhɒm.ɪˌsaɪ̯d/, /ˈhɑ.məˌsaɪ̯d/, /ˈhoʊ.məˌsaɪ̯d/ 1. The killing of one person by another, whether premeditated or unintentional. Labels: countable, uncountable 2. A person who kills another. Labels: countable Example: Homicides in general and victorious warriors in particular are often obliged to perform a variety of ceremonies for the purpose of ridding them of the dangerous ghosts of their victims. 3. A victim of homicide; a person who has been unlawfully killed by someone else. Labels: US, countable, jargon Example: “She was a hippie kid. How hard would you work a case like that?” “As hard as anyone else,” said Goddard. There was an irritated note in his voice. “She was a homicide. She got what every homicide investigation gets.” Example: We don't even know the woman was a homicide. Didn't they say it was possible they both jumped? 4. The department within a police force that investigates cases of homicide. Labels: US, uncountable
Word: muxer Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Shortening. 1. A multiplexer.
Word: palatial Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Borrowed from French palatial, formed from the root of Latin palātium (“a palace”), from Palātium (“Palatine Hill”). Pronunciation: /pəˈleɪʃəl/ 1. Of or relating to a palace. 2. On a grand scale; with very rich furnishings. Example: The home where he lived was palatial. Example: But during those two years for some reason or other the house had fallen into premature and rapid decay. With a very few months an air of mustiness began to hang over the once palatial residence of the rich foreign financier.
Word: paleface Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From pale + face, a supposed calque from a Native American language. First appears in print c. 1797. 1. A white person, a person of European descent, particularly in Native American contexts. Labels: derogatory, ethnic, offensive, slur Example: Dere is Great Wicked Spirit, too... Heart grow hard. Great pleasure was to kill pale-face. Dat feeling last, Blossom, till I see you. Feel like fader to you, and don't want your scalp... Still want all udder pale-face scalp. Want Bourdon scalp much as any. Example: The hearts of the palefaces would not thrill to these superstitions of the red men, though we spoke of them in the centre of the haunted region.
Word: belie Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English belyen, beliggen, from Old English beliċġan, biliċġan (“to lie around, surround, hedge in, encompass”), from Proto-West Germanic *biliggjan, from Proto-Germanic *biligjaną (“to lie around”). Equivalent to be- (“around, by”) + lie (“to be positioned”). Pronunciation: /bɪˈlaɪ/, /bəˈlaɪ/, /biˈlaɪ/ 1. To lie around; encompass. Labels: obsolete, transitive 2. To surround; beleaguer. Labels: obsolete, transitive
Word: belie Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English belyen, beleoȝen, from Old English belēogan (“to deceive by lying, be mistaken”), from Proto-West Germanic *bileugan (“to belie”). Equivalent to be- (“about”) + lie (“to deceive”). Compare Dutch beliegen (“to lie about, tell lies”), German belügen (“to lie to someone”). Pronunciation: /bɪˈlaɪ/, /bəˈlaɪ/, /biˈlaɪ/ 1. To tell lies about. Labels: archaic, transitive Example: Thou do’ſt bely him Percy, thou doſt bely him; / He never did encounter with Glendower: 2. To give a false representation of. Labels: transitive Example: Her smooth complexion and dark hair belie her actual age. Example: Should I do ſo I ſhould bely my thoughts, / Comfort's in heauen, and we are on the earth[…] 3. To contradict, to show (something) to be false. Labels: transitive Example: Her obvious nervousness belied what she said. Example: Their trembling Hearts bely their boaſting Tongues. 4. To call a liar; to accuse of falsehood. Labels: rare, transitive Example: They haue belyed the Lord, and ſaid; It is not he, neither ſhall euill come vpon vs, neither ſhal we ſee ſwoꝛd noꝛ famine. 5. To fill with lies; to lie to. Labels: rare, transitive Example: No, ’tis Slander, / Whoſe edge is ſharper then the Sword, whoſe tongue / Out-venomes all the Wormes of Nyle, whoſe breath / Rides on the poſting windes, / and doth belye All corners of the World. Example: Three belied you, three betrayed you! One you betrayed was three times true! Lord Voryn Dagoth, Dagoth Ur, steadfast liegeman, faithful friend, bids you come and climb Red Mountain! 6. To conceal the contradictory or ironic presence of (something). Labels: transitive Example: His calm demeanor belied his inner sense of guilt. Example: The rosy outlook belies a struggle to achieve statewide eradication that has persisted since the insect first crossed the border from Mexico around 1892. 7. To show, evince or demonstrate (something) to be present, particularly something deemed contradictory or ironic. Labels: transitive Example: A host of evidence is adduced by the accused, evidence whose sometimes self-contradictory nature belies a certain desperation Example: […] a low, flat, boring building that belies its past as an IRS facility […] 8. To mimic; to counterfeit. Labels: obsolete Example: Which durſt with horſes hoofs that beat the ground / And Martial brass bely the thunders ſound. Example: The Shape of Man, and imitated beſt; / The Walk, the Words, the Gesture cou'd ſupply, / The Habit mimick, and the Mien bely[…]
Word: paintbrush Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From paint + brush. Pronunciation: /ˈpeɪntˌbɹʌʃ/ 1. A thin brush for applying paint.
Word: commotion Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱe? Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm Proto-Italic *kom Proto-Italic *kom- Proto-Indo-European *m(y)ewh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Indo-European *m(y)owh₁éyetider. Proto-Italic *moweō Proto-Italic *kommoweō? Latin commoveō Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *-Hō Proto-Indo-European *-tiHō Proto-Italic *-tiō Latin -tiō Latin commōtiōnemder. Middle French commocion English commotion From Middle French commocion, from Latin commōtiōnem, accusative singular of commōtiō, from commoveō + -tiō. Pronunciation: /kəˈməʊ.ʃən/, /kəˈmoʊ.ʃən/ 1. A state of turbulent motion. Labels: countable, uncountable 2. An agitated disturbance or a hubbub. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: It would seem as if calm were necessary to convulsion; for the tranquillity of the last few months was again to be disturbed by political commotion. Example: When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. He had him gripped firmly by the arm, since he felt it was not safe to let him loose, and he had no immediate idea what to do with him. 3. Sexual excitement. Labels: countable, euphemistic, uncountable Example: and now, glancing my eyes towards that part of his dress which cover'd the essential object of enjoyment, I plainly discover'd the swell and commotion there
Word: painter Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Inherited from Middle English peyntour, from Old French peintor, equivalent to paint + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈpeɪntə/, /ˈpeɪntɚ/ 1. An artist who paints pictures. 2. A laborer or workman who paints surfaces using a paintbrush or other means.
Word: painter Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Probably from Middle French pendeur. Pronunciation: /ˈpeɪntə/, /ˈpeɪntɚ/ 1. A chain or rope used to attach the shank of an anchor to the side of a ship when not in use. Labels: obsolete 2. A rope that is attached to the bow of a dinghy, or other small boat, and used for tying up or towing. Example: "Shove that [fat, wicker luncheon-basket] under your feet," he observed to the Mole, as he passed it down into the boat. Then he untied the painter and took the sculls again. Example: The dinghy was trailing astern at the end of its painter, and Merrion looked at it as he passed. He saw that it was a battered-looking affair of the prahm type, with a blunt snout, and like the parent ship, had recently been painted a vivid green.
Word: painter Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From a variation of panther, paralleling other Southern pronunciations for can't and aunt (see ain't for more details). Pronunciation: /ˈpeɪntə/, /ˈpeɪntɚ/ 1. A mountain lion. Labels: Southern-US Example: I have fou't most of the creatur's of the forest, such as bears, wolves, painters and catamounts, but this is the beginning with the red-skins.