nandhakumarms/qualc-wiktionary-en huggingface dataset:
Word: smarm Part of Speech: verb Etymology: The noun is attested since 1914, from the colloquial verb smalm, smarm (“to smear, bedaub (hair, with pomade)”), attested since 1847, of unknown origin, perhaps somehow suggestive of the action. Verbal meaning "to smear with flattery" is from 1902. Pronunciation: /smɑːm/, /smɑɹm/ 1. To fawn, to be unctuous. Labels: intransitive 2. To address in a fawning and unctuous manner. Labels: transitive Example: "If you go to her and smarm her, it will be all right." "If I do what to her?" asked Mervyn, wondering what the operation of smarming might be. "Of course you don't know," laughed Aggie; "it is a school word. You explain what it means, Isabel." "To smarm," explained Isabel, "signifies to say 'yes ma'am,' or 'yes marm,' to a governess when she is rating you. It is ah expressive word, isn't it? It means 'to conciliate by assent;' that is the best definition that I can give of it." "Excellent word," said Mervyn. "Then. I am to smarm your mamma, am I, Aggie?["] Example: He rose ... on his wife's fortune and judicious smarming of powerful people.
Word: converge Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Latin convergere, from con- (“together”) + vergere (“to bend”). Pronunciation: /kənˈvɜːd͡ʒ/ 1. (said of two or more entities) To approach each other; to get closer and closer; to become a unified whole; to come to share a similarity. Labels: intransitive Example: ideas converge Example: All of his books converge on the same outline. 2. (said of a sequence or series) To have a (finite, proper) limit. Labels: intransitive 3. (said of an iterative process) To reach a stable end point. Labels: intransitive 4. To cause to converge; to bring together. Labels: transitive Example: Microsoft Windows 98 software installer By converging real-time 2-D and 3-D graphics, digital video and audio, and the Internet, Windows 98 redefines the role of the computer as an entertainment platform.
Word: diverge Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Medieval Latin dīvergō (“bend away from, go in a different direction”), from Latin dī- + vergō (“bend”). Pronunciation: /daɪˈvɜːd͡ʒ/, /dɪˈvɜːd͡ʒ/, /dɪˈvɝd͡ʒ/, /daɪˈvɝd͡ʒ/, /dɑeˈvɜːd͡ʒ/ 1. To run apart; to separate; to tend into different directions. Labels: intransitive, literally Example: Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, / And sorry I could not travel both / […] 2. To become different; to run apart; to separate; to tend into different directions. Labels: figuratively, intransitive Example: Both stories start out the same way, but they diverge halfway through. Example: The brooding, black-clad singer bridged a stark divide that emerged in the recording industry in the 1950s, as post-Elvis pop singers diverged into two camps and audiences aligned themselves with either the sideburned rebels of rock 'n' roll or the cowboy-hatted twangsters of country music. 3. To separate, to tend into a different direction (from another line or path). Labels: intransitive, literally Example: The sidewalk runs next to the street for a few miles, then diverges from it and turns north. Example: The last 61 miles of the journey, from Kongsberg to Oslo, are through much less mountainous country. The railway curves sharply away from the Lågan^([sic]), and descends steadily, and in places steeply, past the head of Lake Fiskerumvatn to Hokksund, where the connecting line to the Bergen-Oslo Railway at Hønefoss diverges. 4. To become different, to separate (from another line or path). Labels: figuratively, intransitive Example: The software is pretty good, except for a few cases where its behavior diverges from user expectations. 5. Not to converge: to have no limit, or no finite limit. Labels: intransitive Example: The sequence x#95;n#61;n² diverges to infinity: that is, it increases without bound. Example: The sequence a#95;n#61;(-1)ⁿ diverges; it keeps oscillating between -1 and 1.
Word: diverge Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Medieval Latin dīvergō (“bend away from, go in a different direction”), from Latin dī- + vergō (“bend”). Pronunciation: /daɪˈvɜːd͡ʒ/, /dɪˈvɜːd͡ʒ/, /dɪˈvɝd͡ʒ/, /daɪˈvɝd͡ʒ/, /dɑeˈvɜːd͡ʒ/ 1. A point where a lane branches off from the main flow.
Word: contraceptive Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Coined in the 20th century from contra- + conceptive; compare the related contraception. Pronunciation: /ˈkɒn.tɹəˌsɛp.tɪv/ 1. That acts to prevent conception as a result of sexual intercourse. Example: She was careful to take her contraceptive pill at the same time every day. Example: This has led to the selection of 4-guanidinobenzoates with either acetamenophen or ethylparaben as the phenol moiety for clinical evaluation, because they are orders of magnitude more contraceptive than nonoxynol-9 and less irritating to the vagina.
Word: contraceptive Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Coined in the 20th century from contra- + conceptive; compare the related contraception. Pronunciation: /ˈkɒn.tɹəˌsɛp.tɪv/ 1. A mechanism or means by which conception as a result of sexual intercourse can be prevented or made less likely. Example: Putting a pig's bladder over one's penis before intercourse is not a good contraceptive. Example: The document covers the following family planning methods: combined oral contraceptives (COCs), combined injectable contraceptives (CICs), progestogen-only pills (POPs), depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA), norethisterone enantate (NET-EN), levonorgestrel implants, emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs), copper-bearing interuterine devices, levonorgestrel-releasing interuterine devices (LNG IUDs), fertility awareness-based methods, and sterilization.
Word: pill Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *pil-? Latin pilus? Latin pila Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Latin -ula Latin pilula, pillulabor. Middle Low German pilleder. Middle Dutch pilleder. Middle English pille English pill From Middle English pille (also pillem), a borrowing from Middle Low German pille or Middle Dutch pille (whence Dutch pil), probably from Latin pila, pilula. * (persuade or convince): Generalized from red pill. Pronunciation: /pɪl/, [pʰɪɫ] 1. A small, usually round or cylindrical object designed for easy swallowing, usually containing some sort of medication. Labels: broadly Example: Take two pills every hour in the apyrexia of intermittent fever, until eight are taken. 2. A small, usually round or cylindrical object designed for easy swallowing, usually containing some sort of medication. Labels: broadly 3. Contraceptive medication, usually in the form of a pill to be taken by a woman; an oral contraceptive pill. Labels: definite, informal, uncountable Example: Jane went on the pill when she left for college. Example: She got pregnant one month after going off the pill. 4. Something offensive, unpleasant or nauseous which must be accepted or endured. Example: "It's a sad unpalatable truth," said Mr. Pembroke, thinking that the despondency might be personal, "but one must accept it. My sister and Gerald, I am thankful to say, have accepted it, so naturally it has been a little pill." 5. A contemptible, annoying, or unpleasant person. Labels: slang Example: You see, he's egging Phyllis on to marry Wilbert Cream. [...] And when a man like that eggs, something has to give, especially when the girl's a pill like Phyllis, who always does what Daddy tells her. Example: Instead, I saw a woman in her mid-fifties, who was a real pill; while all the others had managed a decent “So pleased,” or even a plain “Hello,” Ginger just inclined her head, as if she was doing a Queen Mary imitation. 6. A comical or entertaining person. Labels: slang 7. A small piece of any substance, for example a ball of fibers formed on the surface of a textile fabric by rubbing. Example: One sleeve, threadbare and loaded with what my mother called “sweater pills,” hung halfway to the floor. 8. A baseball. Labels: slang Example: "Strike two!" bawled the umpire. I threw the pill back to Tom with a heart which drummed above the noise of the rooters along the side lines. Example: Mr. Fisher contributed to the Sox effort when he threw the pill past second baseman Rath after Felsch hit him a comebacker. 9. A bullet (projectile). Labels: slang 10. A rounded rectangle containing a brief text caption indicating the tag or category that an item belongs to.
Word: pill Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *pil-? Latin pilus? Latin pila Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Latin -ula Latin pilula, pillulabor. Middle Low German pilleder. Middle Dutch pilleder. Middle English pille English pill From Middle English pille (also pillem), a borrowing from Middle Low German pille or Middle Dutch pille (whence Dutch pil), probably from Latin pila, pilula. * (persuade or convince): Generalized from red pill. Pronunciation: /pɪl/, [pʰɪɫ] 1. Of a woven fabric surface, to form small matted balls of fiber. Labels: intransitive Example: This sweater is already pilled: it fuzzed after the very first wash. Example: During processing, inferior short fibers (which can cause pilling and itching) are removed to enhance the natural softness of the yarn and to improve its wash-and-wear performance. 2. To form into the shape of a pill. Example: Pilling is a skill rarely used by modern pharmacists. 3. To medicate with pills; to administer pills to. Labels: transitive Example: She pills herself with all sorts of herbal medicines. Example: Pilling the cat is such a nightmare. 4. To take recreational drugs in pill form. Labels: intransitive Example: Nev offered it to Layla who replied, "Thanks, but at the moment I'm pilling and it will bring me down." 5. To persuade or convince someone of something. Labels: Internet, transitive 6. To blackball (a potential club member). Labels: UK, dated, slang, transitive Example: “I pilled him because he is a liar,” said Thackeray. “He calls himself 'ill' when he isn't.”
Word: pill Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English pillen, pilen, from Old English pilian (“to peel”), from Latin pilō (“depilate”), from pilus (“hair”). Doublet of peel. Pronunciation: /pɪl/, [pʰɪɫ] 1. To peel; to remove the outer layer of hair, skin, or bark. Labels: obsolete 2. To peel; to make by removing the skin. Example: [Jacob] pilled white streaks[…]in the rods. 3. To be peeled; to peel off in flakes. 4. To pillage; to despoil or impoverish. Labels: obsolete Example: So syr Lucan departed for he was greuously wounded in many places And so as he yede he sawe and herkened by the mone lyght how that pyllars and robbers were comen in to the felde To pylle and robbe many a ful noble knyghte of brochys and bedys of many a good rynge & of many a ryche Iewel / and who that were not deed al oute Example: The Galles and thoſe pilling Briggandines, That yeerely ſaile to the Uenetian goulfe, And houer in the ſtraightes for Chriſtians wracke, Shall lie at anchor in the Iſle Aſant.
Word: pill Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English pillen, pilen, from Old English pilian (“to peel”), from Latin pilō (“depilate”), from pilus (“hair”). Doublet of peel. Pronunciation: /pɪl/, [pʰɪɫ] 1. The peel or skin. Labels: obsolete Example: Some be covered with crusts or hard pills, as the locust Example: To make Sallet of Lemon pill, or green Citron. You must have your Lemon Pill preserved very green, Rasp it into a Dish, and raise it up lightly with a Fork […]
Word: pill Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English *pill, *pyll, from Old English pyll (“a pool, pill”), from Proto-Germanic *pullijaz (“small pool, ditch, creek”), diminutive of Proto-Germanic *pullaz (“pool, stream”), from Proto-Indo-European *bl̥nos (“bog, marsh”). Cognate with Old English pull (“pool, creek”), Scots poll (“slow moving stream, creek, inlet”), Icelandic pollur (“pond, pool, puddle”). More at pool. Pronunciation: /pɪl/, [pʰɪɫ] 1. An inlet on the coast; a small tidal pool or bay. Pill can occur in the name of such an inlet. Labels: UK, regional Example: Portishead, lying west-north-west of Bristol, on the Severn, had a small port from medieval times on its pill, or inlet, and began to develop as a seaside resort early in the nineteenth century, when it was served by steam packets from Bristol. Example: For fifty years, then, five times a week, the packet steamers came and went along that superb stretch of blue water, the trains rattled down the wooded valley of the pill, and their passengers rested and refreshed themselves in thriving New Milford, where flunkeys bowed before the best hotel. Those are the days which Neyland people, especially the older ones, recall with pride.
Word: prolong Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Either a back-formation from prolongation, or from Old French prolonguer or porloignier, from Latin prōlongō, from prō + longō. Doublet of purloin. Pronunciation: /pɹəʊˈlɒŋ/, /pɹoʊˈlɔŋ/, /pɹoʊˈlɑŋ/, /pɹoʊˈlɒŋ/, /pɹəʉˈlɔŋ/ 1. To extend in space or length. Labels: transitive 2. To lengthen in time; to extend the duration of. Labels: transitive Example: Complaining prolongs one’s pain. Example: The departure was not unduly prolonged. In the road Mr. Love and the driver favoured the company with a brief chanty running. “Got it?—No, I ain't, 'old on,—Got it? Got it?—No, 'old on sir.” 3. To put off to a distant time; to postpone. Labels: transitive Example: The government shouldn't prolong deciding on this issue any further. 4. To become longer; lengthen. Labels: intransitive
Word: goblet Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English goblet (= Middle Low German gobelet, kobelet (“goblet”)), from Old French gobellet, diminutive of gobel, from or related to the verb gober (“to ingest”). Pronunciation: /ˈɡɒblət/ 1. A drinking vessel with a foot and stem. Example: sup wine from a goblet Example: No one is left to swing the battle-ax skyward. No man will ever again drink from this golden goblet!
Word: h4x0r Part of Speech: noun 1. A hacker. Labels: Internet, Leet, ironic, often
Word: splendor Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Anglo-Norman splendur, splendour, or directly from its source Latin splendor, from the verb splendeō (“to shine”). Pronunciation: /ˈsplɛndə/, /ˈsplɛndɚ/ 1. Great light, luster or brilliance. Labels: US, uncountable, usually Example: What tho’ the moon—the white moon Shed all the splendour of her noon, Her smile is chilly—and her beam, In that time of dreariness, will seem (So like you gather in your breath) A portrait taken after death. Example: Once upon a time on an uninhabited island on the shores of the Red Sea, there lived a Parsee from whose hat the rays of the sun were reflected in more-than-oriental-splendour. 2. Magnificent appearance, display or grandeur. Labels: US, uncountable, usually Example: The splendor of the Queen's coronation was without comparison. Example: The original family who had begun to build a palace to rival Nonesuch had died out before they had put up little more than the gateway, so that the actual structure which had come down to posterity retained the secret magic of a promise rather than the overpowering splendour of a great architectural achievement. 3. Great fame or glory. Labels: US, uncountable, usually
Word: black light Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From black + light, since ultraviolet light is invisible to the human eye. 1. A light bulb that emits ultraviolet light, usually used to create the illusion that anything white is glowing. Labels: countable Example: Blacklights and a mirrored disco ball Every night's another reason why I left it all 2. Ultraviolet radiation or light. Labels: slang, uncountable
Word: ultraviolet light Part of Speech: noun 1. Light in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum. Labels: uncountable 2. A light bulb that emits ultraviolet light; a black light. Labels: countable
Word: nail down Part of Speech: verb 1. to attach with nails Labels: transitive Example: Nail down the shelf, then paint it. 2. to make something (e.g. a decision or plan) firm or certain Labels: idiomatic, transitive Example: They haven't nailed down their vacation plans yet.
Word: wonderbra Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From the brand name Wonderbra, from wonder + bra. 1. Any padded enhancement brassiere. Labels: informal
Word: pin down Part of Speech: verb 1. To attach or secure with pins. Labels: transitive Example: Pin down the tablecloth, so it doesn't blow away in the breeze. Example: There are approximately 1,000 places on British Railways where wagon brakes must be pinned down before trains proceed over severe falling gradients; the trains have to be brought to a stand for the brakes to be pinned down, and subsequently have again to be stopped for the brakes to be released. 2. To identify something (e.g. a decision or plan) clearly or specifically. Labels: idiomatic, transitive Example: Something is wrong, but I can't pin it down. 3. To hold the opponent back-first so both his or her shoulders touch the mat or ground. Labels: transitive 4. To corner somebody in order to get a firm answer. Labels: idiomatic, transitive Example: Let's try to pin him down on a price.
Word: whoreson Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English horesone, hureson (also horessone, hores sone). Compare Dutch hoerenzoon, German Hurensohn (“whoreson”) and French fils de pute. By surface analysis, whore + son. Pronunciation: /ˈhɔːsən/, /ˈhɔɹ.sən/ 1. An illegitimate or misbegotten child born of unwed parents. Labels: archaic, derogatory Example: Ah, you whoreſon loggerhead, you were borne to do me ſhame. Example: Though this knave came something saucily to the world before he was sent for, yet was his mother fair, there was good sport at his making, and the whoreson must be acknowledged. 2. The son of a whore. Labels: derogatory, literally, vulgar Example: Ploughing whoreson! Example: Thou whoreson zed! Thou unnecessary letter!
Word: whoreson Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Middle English horesone, hureson (also horessone, hores sone). Compare Dutch hoerenzoon, German Hurensohn (“whoreson”) and French fils de pute. By surface analysis, whore + son. Pronunciation: /ˈhɔːsən/, /ˈhɔɹ.sən/ 1. mean; base; worthless Labels: derogatory, not-comparable, obsolete
Word: tip of the iceberg Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From the fact that floating icebergs typically have about nine-tenths of their volume below the surface of the water. Early 20th-century uses of the term are believed to have been influenced by the sinking of the R.M.S. Titanic on April 15, 1912 after it struck an iceberg. Pronunciation: /ˈtɪp‿əv ðiː ˈaɪsbɜːɡ/, /ˈtɪp‿əv ði ˈaɪsbɝɡ/ 1. A small indication of a larger possibility; the first part encountered of a problem that is much bigger than it seems. Labels: idiomatic Example: This is only the tip of the iceberg. Our time together can become much more exciting. Example: It is sufficient that the former provided the setting for implanting in the minds of the jury the notion that Sinhel had engaged in other related crimes and making that notion explicit with regard to the defendant by the "tip of the iceberg" argument. In short, the prosecutor insinuated Sinhel had been given many gifts and gratuities for an illegal purpose, probably from the defendant, beyond those for which the defendant was charged and beyond those for which proof was offered at the trial. The prejudice of a defendant of inviting conviction on facts—if they be such—dehors the record is counter to the basic concept of fairness.
Word: scratch the surface Part of Speech: verb 1. To barely begin; to see or do only a fraction of what is possible. Labels: idiomatic Example: This beginners' course only scratches the surface of the subject.
Word: nullius filius Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Medieval Latin nullius filius (“nobody's son”), from Latin nullius + filius. 1. A child of unknown parentage; an orphan. Labels: Latinate 2. The son of no one; a bastard. Example: A bastard is considered nullius filius as far as regards his right inherit. But the rule of nullius filius does not apply in other respects
Word: suave Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Middle English suave, borrowed from Latin suāvis (“sweet, pleasant”); doublet of sweet. First attested in the early 15th century. Pronunciation: /swɑːv/, /swɑv/, /sweɪv/ 1. Of a person, charming, though often in a manner that is insincere or sophisticated. Example: a man with a suave demeanor 2. Displaying smoothness and sophistication. Example: suave excellence 3. Gracious, kind.
Word: suave Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English suave, borrowed from Latin suāvis (“sweet, pleasant”); doublet of sweet. First attested in the early 15th century. Pronunciation: /swɑːv/, /swɑv/, /sweɪv/ 1. sweet-talk
Word: Blume Part of Speech: name Etymology: * As a German surname, from German Blume. * As a Swedish surname, variant of Blom. 1. A surname from German.
Word: subdue Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English subdewen, subduen, sodewen, from Old French souduire, from Latin subdūcō (“to draw away”), perhaps influenced by subdō (“to subdue, subject”). Pronunciation: /səbˈdu/, /səbˈdjuː/, /səbˈdʒuː/, /sʌb-/ 1. To overcome, quieten, or bring under control. Labels: transitive Example: And when their ſcattered armie is ſubdu’d: And you march on their ſlaughtered carkaſſes, Share equally the gold that bought their liues, And liue like Gentlmen in Perſea, […] Example: Gary Cahill, a target for Arsenal and Tottenham before the transfer window closed, put England ahead early on and Rooney was on target twice before the interval as the early hostility of the Bulgarian supporters was swiftly subdued. 2. To bring (a country) under control by force. Labels: transitive Example: In the run-up to his return to the White House next Monday, Mr. Trump has rattled the world, and America’s neighborhood in particular, with a list of objectives – buying Greenland, seizing the Panama Canal, making Canada the 51st state – that treat friendly nations as weak interlocutors and impediments to be subdued.
Word: Seil Part of Speech: name 1. An island, one of the Slate Islands, on the east side of the Firth of Lorn in Argyll and Bute council area, Scotland (OS grid ref NM71).
Word: vulva Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Learned borrowing from Latin vulva, earlier volva (“womb, female sexual organ”), probably from volvō (“to turn, wrap around”). Akin to Sanskrit उल्ब॑ (úlba) and उल्व॑ (úlva, “womb”) or English valve, valva and other descendants of the Latin term (evolve, involve, revolve). Pronunciation: /ˈvʌlvə/ 1. The external female genitalia of humans and other placental mammals, which includes the clitoris, labia, and vulval vestibule/vulvar opening. Example: The vulvae of the sow were popular as a gourmet's dish. Credited with erotic effects. Example: The wedge-shaped character was the triangle, the archaic Paleolithic sign of the vulva; the pubic triangle was at the end of the phallic stylus. 2. A protrusion on the side of a nematode.
Word: Kopf Part of Speech: name Etymology: German surname, borrowed from German Kopf (see below). Compare Koepf. 1. A surname from German.
Word: vestal virgin Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Latin; virgines Vestales referred to the priestesses in charge of the sacred fire in the temple of Vesta in Rome. 1. A virgin dedicated to the service of the goddess Vesta. Labels: literally 2. A chaste woman.
Word: Nase Part of Speech: name Etymology: Borrowed from German Nase. 1. A surname from German.
Word: verdant Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Middle French verdoyant, from Old French verb verdier, verdoier, from vert (“green”), from Vulgar Latin *virdis, from Latin viridis. Pronunciation: /ˈvɜɹ.dənt/ 1. Green in colour. 2. Abundant in verdure; lush with vegetation. Example: It was a verdant and delightful valley, watered by a rivulet ... Example: A serene sky and verdant fields filled me with ecstasy. 3. Fresh. 4. Inexperienced. Example: a verdant youth from the interior of Connecticut
Word: verdure Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Inherited from Middle English verdure, from Middle French verdure, from Old French verdure, from Late Latin *viridūra, from viridis (“green”) + -ūra (abstract noun-forming suffix). Pronunciation: /ˈvɜːd͡ʒə/, /ˈvɜːdjə/, /ˈvɝd͡ʒɚ/ 1. The greenness of lush or growing vegetation (greenery); also: the vegetation itself. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: […] now he was / The ivy which had hid my princely trunk, / And suck'd my verdure out on't. Example: The five weeks which she had now passed in Kent had made a great difference in the country, and every day was adding to the verdure of the early trees. 2. A condition of health and vigour. Labels: broadly, countable, uncountable
Word: verdure Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Inherited from Middle English verdure, from Middle French verdure, from Old French verdure, from Late Latin *viridūra, from viridis (“green”) + -ūra (abstract noun-forming suffix). Pronunciation: /ˈvɜːd͡ʒə/, /ˈvɜːdjə/, /ˈvɝd͡ʒɚ/ 1. To cover with verdure. Labels: transitive
Word: unsaid Part of Speech: verb Etymology: See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form. 1. simple past and past participle of unsay Labels: form-of, participle, past Example: Once there, she makes good use of her time, and retakes all those said letters; considering, perhaps, that what is said may be unsaid, but what is written remains in evidence against you.
Word: unsaid Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English said English unsaid From un- + said. 1. Unspoken. Labels: not-comparable Example: We discussed the terms, but the methods were left unsaid. Example: Informal techniques, if properly written, can be quite readable and comprehensible; unfortunately, it is easy to leave unsaid details that must be specified, or to misgeneralise and produce inconsistencies.
Word: engraving Part of Speech: noun Etymology: By surface analysis, engrave + -ing. 1. The practice of incising a design onto a hard surface, by cutting grooves into it. Labels: countable, uncountable 2. The art of producing an image from an engraved printing form, typically made of copper. Labels: countable, uncountable 3. A print produced from an engraving. Labels: countable Example: He looked round the poor room, at the distempered walls, and the bad engravings in meretricious frames, the crinkly paper and wax flowers on the chiffonier; and he thought of a room like Father Bryan's, with panelling, with cut glass, with tulips in silver pots, such a room as he had hoped to have for his own. Example: He stood transfixed before the unaccustomed view of London at night time, a vast panorama which reminded him […] of some wood engravings far off and magical, in a printshop in his childhood. 4. The art of drawing music notation at high quality, particularly on a computer. Labels: countable, uncountable
Word: engraving Part of Speech: verb Etymology: By surface analysis, engrave + -ing. 1. present participle and gerund of engrave Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: pet name Part of Speech: noun 1. A nickname, especially a name used by those in love with one another. Example: My boyfriend won't let me call him by his pet name, Pookie, in public. 2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see pet, name.
Word: pet peeve Part of Speech: noun 1. Something that is personally annoying; a personal dislike. Labels: colloquial, idiomatic Example: Forgetting to finish a sentence with a period is one of my pet peeves. Example: 1970s, George Carlin, stand-up routine I don’t have pet peeves; I have major, psychotic hatreds.
Word: hold one's tongue Part of Speech: verb 1. To refrain from talking about something. Labels: idiomatic Example: I don't like his political ideas, but I will hold my tongue. Example: “Hold your tongue, beadle,” said the second old gentleman, when Mr. Bumble had given vent to this compound adjective. “I beg your worship’s pardon,” said Mr. Bumble, incredulous of his having heard aright,—“did your worship speak to me?” “Yes—hold your tongue.”
Word: tremor Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English tremour (“fright”), from Anglo-Norman tremour and Old French tremor, from Latin tremor. Pronunciation: /ˈtɹɛmə/, /ˈtɹɛmɚ/, /ˈtɹɪmɚ/, /ˈtɹiːmə(ɹ)/ 1. A shake, quiver, or vibration. Example: She felt a tremor in her stomach before going on stage. 2. A shake, quiver, or vibration. Example: The optometrist has been losing patients ever since he developed tremors in his hand. 3. An earthquake. Example: Did you feel the tremor this morning?
Word: tremor Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English tremour (“fright”), from Anglo-Norman tremour and Old French tremor, from Latin tremor. Pronunciation: /ˈtɹɛmə/, /ˈtɹɛmɚ/, /ˈtɹɪmɚ/, /ˈtɹiːmə(ɹ)/ 1. To shake or quiver excessively and rapidly or involuntarily; to tremble. Example: The ground tremored under their big boots.
Word: necrophagia Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From necro- + -phagia. 1. The consumption of dead flesh or carrion. Labels: uncountable 2. The practice of feeding on (eating) corpses. Labels: uncountable
Word: tremble Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English tremblen, from Old French trembler, from Late Latin tremulāre, ultimately from Latin tremere (“quiver, shake”). Cognate with Ancient Greek τρέμω (trémō). Pronunciation: /ˈtɹɛmbl̩/ 1. To shake, quiver, or vibrate. Labels: intransitive Example: Her lip started to tremble as she burst into tears Example: The dog was trembling from being in the cold weather all day. 2. To fear; to be afraid. Labels: figuratively, intransitive Example: Thou beleeuest that there is one God, thou doest well: the deuils also beleeue, and tremble.
Word: tremble Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English tremblen, from Old French trembler, from Late Latin tremulāre, ultimately from Latin tremere (“quiver, shake”). Cognate with Ancient Greek τρέμω (trémō). Pronunciation: /ˈtɹɛmbl̩/ 1. A shake, quiver, or vibration.
Word: tremblor Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Alteration/misspelling of temblor, influenced by tremble. 1. An earthquake. Example: A mild tremblor shook California earlier this morning.
Word: lost cause Part of Speech: noun 1. A person or thing that is hopeless or futile. Labels: idiomatic Example: He has already made up his mind, and it's a lost cause to try to change it. Example: Artfully pulling the ball back to leave McCleary chasing a lost cause, Sánchez calmly made space for a shot and applied a finish that beat the despairing dives of both Federici and Michael Hector, the latter vainly attempting to recover position when it was too late.
Word: seedy Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Middle English sedy, equivalent to seed + -y. The senses with negative connotation, first attested by 1725 in slang, originally especially “poor, out of money”, probably arose from the metaphor of a flower that has gone to seed, and is no longer considered beautiful. From there the word came to be used to describe unwell or past-their-prime people, and parallelly run-down places and by extension low-income or crime-affected urban areas. Compare the figurative expressions go to seed (by 1817), etc., originally in reference to plants, “cease flowering as seeds develop”. Pronunciation: /ˈsiːdi/ 1. Literal senses: Example: Pomegranates are as seedy as any fruit you are likely to see. 2. Literal senses: 3. Literal senses: Labels: colloquial 4. Inferior in condition or quality. Labels: figuratively Example: Sleazy city / Seedy films / Breathing so heavy / Next to my neighbour / Let’s get acquainted Example: The healing power of alcohol / Only works on scrapes and nicks / And not on girls in seedy bars / Who drown themselves in it 5. Inferior in condition or quality. Labels: figuratively Example: His seedy, dirt-smudged visage caused her to look at him askance. Example: Besides the broad-brimmed hat, he was distinguished by a spotted tie, a pair of seedy check trousers rather baggy in the seat, and a cut-away coat, much too tight for him. 6. Inferior in condition or quality. Labels: figuratively Example: With her aching back and pronounced limp, she was feeling particularly seedy today. 7. Inferior in condition or quality. Labels: figuratively Example: After last night’s party we were all feeling pretty seedy.
Word: regna Part of Speech: noun 1. plural of regnum Labels: form-of, plural
Word: until one is blue in the face Part of Speech: adv Etymology: By figurative extension from the concept of being literally out of breath (from talking so much, exerting oneself so much, and so on), which may sometimes cause one's face to look wan. 1. For a hopelessly long time; used especially in respect to discussing, explaining, insisting, etc. Labels: idiomatic Example: Near-synonym: until the cows come home Example: You can explain it until you're blue in the face, but he will never understand.
Word: curriculum vitae Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Latin curriculum (“course”) + vītae, genitive of vīta (“life”). Pronunciation: /kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ/, /kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːtaɪ/, /kəˌɹɪkjələm ˈvaɪtiː/ 1. A written account of one's life comprising one's education, accomplishments, work experience, publications, etc.; especially, one used to apply for a job. Labels: UK 2. A detailed written account of one's education and experience used to seek positions in academic or educational environments, typically including academic credentials, publications, courses taught, etc. Labels: US
Word: uncommon Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English common English uncommon From un- + common. Pronunciation: /ʌnˈkɒmən/ 1. Rare; not readily found; unusual. Example: Bald eagles are an uncommon sighting in this state. Example: This is not an uncommon practice. 2. Remarkable; exceptional. Example: The diamond was of uncommon size
Word: uncommon Part of Speech: adv Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English common English uncommon From un- + common. Pronunciation: /ʌnˈkɒmən/ 1. Exceedingly, exceptionally. Labels: UK, archaic, dialectal, not-comparable Example: ‘Is Suffolk your county, sir?’ asked William. ‘Yes,’ I said, with some importance. ‘Suffolk’s my county.’ ‘I’m told the dumplings is uncommon fine down there,’ said William. Example: 'The Squire's pretty springe, considering his weight,' said Mr Macey, 'and he stamps uncommon well.'
Word: outlandish Part of Speech: noun Etymology: The adjective is derived from Middle English outlandisch, outlondish (“foreign”), from Old English ūtlendisċ (“foreign; strange, outlandish”), from Proto-West Germanic *ūtlandisk, from Proto-Germanic *ūtlandiskaz, from *ūtlandą (“(adjective) alien, foreign; relating to outlying land; (noun) foreign land; outlying land”) + *-iskaz (suffix forming adjectives from nouns with the sense ‘characteristic of; pertaining to’). *Ūtlandą is derived from *ūt- (suffix meaning ‘beyond; external to, on the outside of’) (from Proto-Indo-European *úd (“away; out, outward; upwards”)) + *landą (“area of ground, land”) (from Proto-Indo-European *lendʰ- (“heath; land”)). By surface analysis, outland + -ish. The noun is derived from the adjective. Cognates * Danish udenlandsk (“foreign, non-domestic”) * Dutch uitlands (dated) (now buitenlands (“foreign, non-domestic”)), Dutch uitlandig (“absent from the home country”) (now chiefly Suriname) * Faroese útlendskur (“foreign, non-domestic”) * German ausländisch (“foreign, non-domestic”) * Icelandic útlenskur (“foreign”) * Swedish utländsk (“foreign, non-domestic”) Pronunciation: /ˌaʊtˈlændɪʃ/, [ˌaʊ̯t-], [-ˈlɛən-], /ˌæɔtˈlændɪʃ/ 1. A foreign language. Labels: obsolete Example: [H]ovv ſoone God from Heaven had ſent His fiery tongues upon His Apoſtles; the Devill from hell preſently ſent for his fiery tongues, and put them in the mouthes of his Apoſtles, to diſgrace and ſcoffe at thoſe of God's ſending. […] [T]heſe good fellovves have been at it, and novv they can ſpeake nothing but outlandiſh: ſome little broken Greek or Latine they had, and novv out it comes. Example: Never ſtir if that Gentleman ben't the ſame that vve ſee'd at the Painting Man's, that vvas ſo zivil to Mother, only he has got a black VVig on, and ſpeaks outlandiſh.
Word: vitae Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /ˈviːteɪ/, /ˈviːtaɪ/, /ˈvaɪtiː/ 1. plural of vita Labels: form-of, plural
Word: sledge Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English slegge, from Old English sleċġ (“sledgehammer; mallet”), from Proto-Germanic *slagjǭ. Cognate with Dutch slegge (“sledge”), Swedish slägga (“sledge”), Norwegian Bokmål slegge (“sledge”), Norwegian Nynorsk sleggje (“sledge”), Icelandic sleggja (“sledge”). Pronunciation: /slɛd͡ʒ/ 1. A sledgehammer. Example: [based on information from Major Hill, Master of the Silver Mills, in 1662, describing silver mining in Cardiganshire] They dig the Oar thus; One holds a little Picque, or Punch of Iron, having a long Handle of Wood which they call a Gad; Another with a great Iron Hammer, or Sledge, drives it into the Vein. Example: Sledge hammers are only used for heavy-duty persuading when working on vehicles or machinery.
Word: sledge Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English slegge, from Old English sleċġ (“sledgehammer; mallet”), from Proto-Germanic *slagjǭ. Cognate with Dutch slegge (“sledge”), Swedish slägga (“sledge”), Norwegian Bokmål slegge (“sledge”), Norwegian Nynorsk sleggje (“sledge”), Icelandic sleggja (“sledge”). Pronunciation: /slɛd͡ʒ/ 1. To hit with a sledgehammer. Example: The rapid and violent exertion of smiths, mightily sledging the glowing iron masses of their furnaces. Example: When I inquired the reason of this wire being used in the construction of the safe, I was told it was to prevent the doors being broken by either sledging or wedging.
Word: sledge Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Dialectal Dutch sleedse, from Middle Dutch sleedse, from the root of sled. Pronunciation: /slɛd͡ʒ/ 1. A low sled drawn by animals, typically on snow, ice or grass. Example: The sledge ran far better upon the ice; I cannot say the same for the dogs. Example: The sledges of the Esquimaux are of large size, varying from six and a half to nine and even eleven feet in length, and from eighteen inches to two feet in breadth. 2. any type of sled or sleigh. Labels: UK Example: Aged wore out Coal-Horses, which after some time Wrought you will have, may serve turn for Sledge-Horses. Example: Ty'd upon the Sledge, a Papist and a Protestant in front, being two very disparate and antipathetick Companions, was a very ridiculous Science of Cruelty, even worst than Death it self (says he). 3. A card game resembling all fours and seven-up; old sledge.
Word: sledge Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Dialectal Dutch sleedse, from Middle Dutch sleedse, from the root of sled. Pronunciation: /slɛd͡ʒ/ 1. To drag or draw a sledge. Example: It should be remembered, that these explorations were nearly all made by our seamen and officers on foot, dragging sledges, on which were piled tents, provision, fuel for cooking, and raiment. This sledging was brought to perfection by Captain M'Clintock. Example: Sledging en route to Mt. Logan on the 1925 first ascent. [caption to photo of four men dragging a sledge] 2. To ride, travel with or transport in a sledge. Example: He was also to initiate me in the American pastime of sleighing, or sledging. Example: When "the great fen or moor" which washed the city walls on the north was frozen over, sliding, sledging, and skating were the sports of crowds.
Word: sledge Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Sledge (“a surname”), influenced by sledgehammer. First attested in the 1960s in Australian English. According to Ian Chappell, originated in Adelaide during the 1963/4 or 1964/5 Sheffield Shield season. A cricketer who swore in the presence of a woman was taken to be as subtle as a sledgehammer (meaning unsubtle) and was called “Percy” or “Sledge”, from singer Percy Sledge (whose song When a Man Loves a Woman was a hit at the time). Directing insults or obscenities at the opposition team then became known as sledging. Pronunciation: /slɛd͡ʒ/ 1. To verbally insult or abuse an opponent in order to distract them (considered unsportsmanlike). Labels: Australia Example: I've never been one to sledge on the field. I was normally too tired to be bothered, but the one time I did, didn't I cop it. Example: Batteries of fast bowlers softened batsmen up with short-pitched bowling, while fielders tried to disturb their concentration with a running commentary of insults commonly known as sledging.
Word: sledge Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Sledge (“a surname”), influenced by sledgehammer. First attested in the 1960s in Australian English. According to Ian Chappell, originated in Adelaide during the 1963/4 or 1964/5 Sheffield Shield season. A cricketer who swore in the presence of a woman was taken to be as subtle as a sledgehammer (meaning unsubtle) and was called “Percy” or “Sledge”, from singer Percy Sledge (whose song When a Man Loves a Woman was a hit at the time). Directing insults or obscenities at the opposition team then became known as sledging. Pronunciation: /slɛd͡ʒ/ 1. An instance of sledging. Labels: Australia Example: Now that's what I call a sledge.
Word: regex Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /ˈɹɛɡˌɛks/, /ˈɹɛd͡ʒˌɛks/ 1. Clipping of regular expression. Labels: abbreviation, alt-of, clipping Example: To continue the history course from the previous section, Perl was one of the first general-purpose programming languages to bake regexes into its core functionality.
Word: extracurricular Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁éǵʰ Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₁éǵʰs Proto-Indo-European *-teros Proto-Indo-European *h₁eǵʰsteros Proto-Italic *eksteros Latin exter Latin extrā English extra- English curricular English extracurricular From extra- + curricular. Pronunciation: /ˌɛkstɹəkəˈɹɪkjʊlə(ɹ)/ 1. Outside of the normal curriculum of an educational establishment. Labels: not-comparable Example: The students enjoy a number of extracurricular activities at weekends. 2. Similarly outside of the normal duties of a job or profession. Labels: not-comparable 3. Extramarital. Labels: informal, not-comparable
Word: extracurricular Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁éǵʰ Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₁éǵʰs Proto-Indo-European *-teros Proto-Indo-European *h₁eǵʰsteros Proto-Italic *eksteros Latin exter Latin extrā English extra- English curricular English extracurricular From extra- + curricular. Pronunciation: /ˌɛkstɹəkəˈɹɪkjʊlə(ɹ)/ 1. An activity outside the normal academic curriculum. 2. An activity beyond official duties of a job or profession. Labels: informal 3. An extramarital affair. Labels: informal
Word: educational Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Etymology tree Latin ēducātiōder. English education Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālisbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old French -elbor. ▲ Latin -ālisbor. Middle English -al English -al English educational From education + -al. Pronunciation: /ˌɛd͡ʒʊˈkeɪʃənəl/, /ˌɛdjʊˈkeɪʃənəl/, /ˌɛd͡ʒəˈkeɪʃənəl/ 1. Of, or relating to education. Example: A school is an educational establishment. 2. Instructive, or helping to educate. Example: They were shown an educational film about VD. Example: I can't see the educational value of going on a field trip to the clothes factory.
Word: educational Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree Latin ēducātiōder. English education Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālisbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old French -elbor. ▲ Latin -ālisbor. Middle English -al English -al English educational From education + -al. Pronunciation: /ˌɛd͡ʒʊˈkeɪʃənəl/, /ˌɛdjʊˈkeɪʃənəl/, /ˌɛd͡ʒəˈkeɪʃənəl/ 1. A free (or low cost) trip for travel consultants, provided by a travel operator or airline as a means of promoting their service. A fam trip 2. An educational seminar, workshop, etc. Example: Groups such as the Union of Young Communists, the Cuban Women's Federation, the Artists and Writers Union (UNEAC) and others have held internal and public educationals on the issue of homosexuality, using a recently produced video GAY CUBA.
Word: taekwondo Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Korean 태권도(跆拳道) (taegwondo). Pronunciation: /ˌtaɪkwɑnˈdoʊ/, /-ˈkwɑn-/, /ˌteɪ-/, /ˌtaɪkwɒnˈdəʊ/, /-ˈkwɒn-/ 1. A martial art from Korea, known for its elaborate kicking techniques. The sparring aspect is a recognised Olympic sport. Labels: uncountable Example: Khudadadi, originally from Afghanistan but now living and training in France, won bronze in the taekwondo women’s K44 -47kg category in Paris.
Word: tae kwon do Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Korean 태권도(跆拳道) (taegwondo). 1. Alternative spelling of taekwondo. Labels: alt-of, alternative, uncountable
Word: provocation Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English provocacioun, from Old French provocacion, from Late Latin prōvocātiō, prōvocātiōnem, from Latin prōvocō. By surface analysis, provoke + -ation. Doublet of provokatsiya. Pronunciation: /ˌpɹɑvəˈkeɪʃən/, /ˌpɹɒvəˈkeɪʃən/ 1. The act of provoking, inciting or annoying someone into doing something. Labels: countable, uncountable 2. Something that provokes; a provocative act. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: The Salzburg Festival stunned the musical world by hiring him to succeed the hallowed Herbert von Karajan, and Mr. Mortier spent the 1990s there scandalizing many of its tradition-minded, well-heeled opera patrons, the most notorious provocation being a production of Johann Strauss’s “Fledermaus” laced with cocaine and fornication and aimed at Austria’s far-right political forces. 3. The second step in OPQRST regarding the investigation of what makes the symptoms MOI or NOI improve or deteriorate. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: When it's time to check for provocation, ask the patient about what makes their chief complaint better or worse.
Word: tailspin Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From tail + spin. 1. The rapid, uncontrollable descent of an aircraft in a steep spiral. Example: The loss of the third engine threw the plane into a tailspin. 2. A severe mental or emotional collapse; emotional breakdown. Labels: figuratively Example: Just hours after leaving the institution, she suffered another tailspin. 3. Any sharp, sustained, often uncontrollable descent or decline. Labels: figuratively Example: The present stock tailspin proves bankruptcy is imminent. Example: But I was reading a statement that either you made or was part of your movie, “An Inconvenient Truth”, and it said we have just 10 years to avert a major catastrophe that could send our entire planet into a tailspin of epic destruction involving extreme weather, floods, droughts, epidemics and killer heat waves beyond anything we have ever experienced.
Word: tailspin Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From tail + spin. 1. Of an aircraft: to go into a rapid, uncontrollable descent in a steep spiral. 2. To go into a sharp, sustained, often uncontrollable descent or decline. Labels: figuratively
Word: vertiginous Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Middle French vertigineux, from Latin vertīginōsus. Pronunciation: /vɜː(ɹ)ˈtɪd͡ʒɪnəs/ 1. Having an aspect of great depth, drawing the eye to look downwards. 2. Pertaining to vertigo (in all its meanings). Example: GPT-4 didn’t give me an existential crisis. But it exacerbated the dizzy and vertiginous feeling I’ve been getting whenever I think about A.I. lately. Example: What began as a drop in support for Israel among younger Democrats has become a vertiginous, across-the-board collapse. 3. Pertaining to vertigo (in all its meanings). 4. Revolving; rotating; rotatory.
Word: musical saw Part of Speech: noun 1. A musical instrument consisting of a thin sheet of metal, or sometimes a saw, usually played with a bow.
Word: waning Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English waninge, alteration of earlier waniand, waniende, from Old English waniende, from Proto-Germanic *wanōndz, present participle of Proto-Germanic *wanōną (“to wane”), equivalent to wane + -ing. Pronunciation: /ˈweɪ.nɪŋ/ 1. present participle and gerund of wane Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present