nandhakumarms/qualc-wiktionary-en huggingface dataset:
Word: plushy Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From plush + -y. Pronunciation: /ˈplʌʃi/ 1. Like plush; soft and shaggy. 2. Plush; sumptuous. Example: one saw and felt a vanished Broadway, plains covered with cattle and cowboys, jungles and native villages, and a great shining city of hansom-cabs, political intrigue and plushy champagne-suppers, as if one were walking through them oneself in the company of a superb raconteur and inspired liar.
Word: pluton Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Back-formation from Plutonic. 1. A body of igneous rock formed beneath the surface of the earth by consolidation of magma
Word: plyer Part of Speech: noun 1. A kind of balance used in raising and letting down a drawbridge. It consists of timbers joined in the form of a Saint Andrew's cross. 2. Alternative spelling of plier. Labels: alt-of, alternative
Word: podded Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From pod + -ed. 1. having pods (of a particular kind) Labels: not-comparable Example: edible-podded peas
Word: podded Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From pod + -ed. 1. simple past and past participle of pod Labels: form-of, participle, past
Word: poi Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Hawaiian poi. Pronunciation: /pɔɪ/ 1. The traditional staple food of Hawaii, made by baking and pounding the kalo (or taro) root, and reducing it to a thin paste, which is allowed to ferment. Labels: Hawaii, uncountable Example: It was a far cry from the traditional Hawaiian feast, which always included the beloved poi, a purplish paste made from pounded taro root […]. 2. A creamy Samoan dessert of ripe bananas mashed with coconut cream. Labels: uncountable
Word: poi Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Māori poi. Pronunciation: /pɔɪ/ 1. A small ball made of leaves and fibres, attached to a string. Labels: New-Zealand, countable, uncountable Example: Warriors formerly used poi actions to maintain wrist flexibility, but poi have developed as a women's dance. Classic poi dances and songs are reputed to have been those of the people of the Taranaki, Rotorua, and Whanganui tribal areas, but poi are now performed everywhere in Aotearoa. Example: A couple of days later Trico announced that, if I were to travel with them, it was imperative that I learn some form of malabares, or circus skill. The available options were poi, staff or juggling. ‘Poi’, the form of malabares that Sandra played, are two balls at the end of chains which are spun in patterns around the body. When the balls are replaced by wicks soaked in gasoline and set alight, the poi ‘spin fire’. 2. A traditional dance performed by Maori women involving the rhythmic swinging of such a ball. Labels: New-Zealand, countable, uncountable
Word: poi Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /pɔɪ/ 1. Alternative form of poee (“Goan flatbread”). Labels: alt-of, alternative, uncountable
Word: pois Part of Speech: noun 1. plural of poi Labels: form-of, plural
Word: poiser Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From poise + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈpɔɪzə(ɹ)/ 1. One who poises or balances something. Example: To the only rewarder and most just poiser of virtuous merits, the most honourably renowned Nobody, bounteous Maecenas of Poetry and Lord Protector of oppressed innocence, […] 2. The balancer of dipterous insects.
Word: pol Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Clipping of politician. Pronunciation: /pɑl/, /pɒl/ 1. A politician. Labels: informal Example: Journalists and pols were cozier then. President Kennedy sipped 1945 Lafite-Rothschild at the Alsops' Georgetown home, and the Alsops dined at the White House. Example: The knights-errant of politics could "tsk, tsk" all they wanted, but most experienced pols recognized that patronage was the lifeblood of their profession.
Word: poler Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From pole + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈpəʊlə(ɹ)/ 1. One who propels a boat using a pole. 2. A horse harnessed alongside the shaft or pole of a vehicle.
Word: poler Part of Speech: noun Etymology: See poller. Pronunciation: /ˈpəʊlə(ɹ)/ 1. An extortioner. Labels: obsolete Example: the Poler and Exacter of Fees
Word: poling Part of Speech: verb 1. present participle and gerund of pole Labels: form-of, gerund, participle, present
Word: poling Part of Speech: noun 1. The act of supporting or of propelling by means of a pole or poles. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: the poling of beans Example: the poling of a boat 2. The operation of dispersing wormcasts over the walks with poles. Labels: countable, uncountable 3. One of the poles or planks used in upholding the side earth in excavating a tunnel, ditch, etc. Labels: countable, uncountable
Word: poller Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From poll + -er. 1. one who polls or lops trees 2. one who cuts hair; a barber 3. one who votes 4. one who registers voters or conducts a poll 5. a task or process that periodically checks for a condition being satisfied, such as the availability of new data
Word: pomade Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From French pommade, from Italian pomata (“ointment, pomade”), from pomo (“apple”) + -ata (“-ade, -ate: forming nouns”), from Latin pōmum (“fruit, apple”). Doublet of pomatum, pomate, and pomace. Early pomades tended to be various kinds of fat mixed with apples for a more pleasing scent. Pronunciation: /pəˈmeɪd/, /poʊˈmeɪd/, /pəˈmɑːd/ 1. A greasy or waxy substance that is used to style hair, making it look slick and shiny. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: So saying, Lady Mandeville turned to the toilette, and mercilessly tied up in her handkerchief the various brushes, combs, oils, pomade, and rouge, with which the table was profusely covered. Example: The rain beat my hair, run down my face and into my mouth so that I can taste the coconut oil pomade from my hair. 2. Synonym of ointment, particularly thick waxy ointments scented with fruit used to beautify the skin or hair. Labels: countable, historical, obsolete, uncountable Example: With this excellent Pomade you may Anoint your Face at night, and waſh it off the next day in the morning with Rain-water. 3. Synonym of cider, a soft or hard drink made from apples. Labels: countable, obsolete, uncountable
Word: pomade Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From French pommade, from Italian pomata (“ointment, pomade”), from pomo (“apple”) + -ata (“-ade, -ate: forming nouns”), from Latin pōmum (“fruit, apple”). Doublet of pomatum, pomate, and pomace. Early pomades tended to be various kinds of fat mixed with apples for a more pleasing scent. Pronunciation: /pəˈmeɪd/, /poʊˈmeɪd/, /pəˈmɑːd/ 1. To apply pomade to style hair. Labels: transitive Example: He pomaded his hair until it looked like a piece of shiny plastic. 2. Synonym of anoint, to apply ointment. Labels: historical, obsolete, transitive
Word: pomp Part of Speech: noun Etymology: The noun is derived from Middle English pomp, pompe, from Old French pompe, from Latin pompa (“pomp”), from Ancient Greek πομπή (pompḗ, “a sending, a solemn procession, pomp”), from πέμπω (pémpō, “to send”). The verb is derived from Middle English pompen, from pomp, pompe (see above). Pronunciation: /ˈpɒmp/, /ˈpɑːmp/ 1. Show of magnificence; parade; display; power. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: 'Tis a gross visible errour, which Tertullian teaches in his Book of Idolatry cap. 18. That all the marks of Dignity and Power, and all the ornaments annexed to Office, are forbid Christians, and that Jesus Christ hath plac'd all these things amongst the pomps of the Devil, since he himself appeared in a condition so far from all pomp and splendour. Example: The deafening claps of thunder and the dazzling flashes of lightning which lit up the ghastly scene testified that the artillery of heaven had lent its supernatural pomp to the already gruesome spectacle. 2. A procession distinguished by ostentation and splendor; a pageant. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: […] a more beautiful expression of joy and thanksgiving than could have been exhibited by all the pomps of a Roman triumph.
Word: pomp Part of Speech: verb Etymology: The noun is derived from Middle English pomp, pompe, from Old French pompe, from Latin pompa (“pomp”), from Ancient Greek πομπή (pompḗ, “a sending, a solemn procession, pomp”), from πέμπω (pémpō, “to send”). The verb is derived from Middle English pompen, from pomp, pompe (see above). Pronunciation: /ˈpɒmp/, /ˈpɑːmp/ 1. To make a pompous display. Labels: obsolete Example: pomp'd for those hard trifles
Word: pomp Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English pompen. Possibly an alteration of pampen (English pamp), from Middle Low German pampen (“to pamper oneself, live luxuriously”), from Old Saxon *pampōn, from Proto-Germanic *pampōną (“to swell”), from Proto-Indo-European *bamb- (“round object”). Pronunciation: /ˈpɒmp/, /ˈpɑːmp/ 1. To pamper. Labels: obsolete, transitive
Word: ponce Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Uncertain, but probably an aphetic form of French alphonse (“kept man”), from the male given name Alphonse. Also sometimes connected to pounce or French pensionnaire (“pensioner, person living without working”). Pronunciation: /pɒns/ 1. A man living off another's earnings, especially a woman's. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang 2. A man living off another's earnings, especially a woman's. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang 3. Synonym of poof: an effeminate gay man; any similarly effeminate man. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang Example: Thanks Don, see you Don, off to sunny Spain now Don, fuck off Don. Lying in your pool like a fat blob laughing at me, you think I'm gonna have that? You really think I'm gonna have that, ya ponce.
Word: ponce Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Uncertain, but probably an aphetic form of French alphonse (“kept man”), from the male given name Alphonse. Also sometimes connected to pounce or French pensionnaire (“pensioner, person living without working”). Pronunciation: /pɒns/ 1. To act as a pimp. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang 2. To try to get rid of or sell something. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, broadly, derogatory, slang 3. To borrow (something) from somebody without returning it. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang 4. To cadge. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang 5. To behave in a posh or effeminate manner. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang Example: The interior was warm and dim, cluttered with flying brass pigs and poncing felt mannequins.
Word: ponce Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from French panse (“belly”). 1. The stomach of a pig, especially when stuffed as chaudin (a Louisianan food). Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, Louisiana, UK, derogatory, slang Example: STUFFED "PONCE" 1 small hog ponce 3 lbs . ground pork 1 large bell pepper, chopped 1 large onion head chopped […] Example: […] before Escoffier and the five mother sauces, even before Brillat-Savarin, French Acadian cooks in South Louisiana kitchens prepared ponce.
Word: poplin Part of Speech: noun Etymology: An alteration (taken as related to Pope) of French papeline, a distortion of Poperinge, a town in Flanders which was a centre for textile production. Pronunciation: /ˈpɒplɪn/ 1. A fabric of many varieties, usually made of silk and worsted; used especially for women's dresses. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Actress Pat Ast, who used to model for Halston, says she disguises her 220 pounds by wearing loose cotton knit or khaki poplin vests, night and day, always in solid colors.
Word: popper Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English poppere, equivalent to pop + -er (suffix forming agent noun). Etymology 1 sense 8 ("capsule of amyl nitrite") is derived from the popping sound when the capsule is broken open; from which etymology 1 sense 9 also derives. Pronunciation: /ˈpɒp.ə/, /ˈpɑ.pɚ/, [ˈpɑ.pɹ̩], /ˈpɒp.ɚ/, [ˈpɒp.ɹ̩] 1. One who or that which pops. Labels: countable, uncountable 2. A short piece of twisted string tied to the end of a whip that creates the distinctive sound when the whip is thrown or cracked. Labels: countable, uncountable 3. A floating lure designed to splash when the fishing line is twitched. Labels: countable, uncountable 4. Either of a pair of interlocking discs commonly used in place of buttons to fasten clothing, a snap fastener. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: “Finished the last one at three this morning, apart from bits and bobs and poppers. Quite frankly, I'm dead!” 5. A device that pops kernels of corn to produce popcorn. Labels: countable, uncountable 6. A stuffed and usually breaded jalapeño. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: You mix habs into the cheese before stuffing your poppers […] Example: “Where to, you crazy kids?” “Buffalo Wild Wings. It's all you can eat jalapeno poppers night.” 7. A looner (balloon fetishist) who prefers to burst balloons. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Looners (as they call themselves) can generally be divided into two categories, regardless of whether they prefer their balloon play with a partner or alone: poppers and non-poppers. 8. A capsule of amyl nitrite, a recreational drug used during sex. Labels: countable, informal Example: If a person inhales a popper on the brink — the very brink — of climax, then the orgasm is much more powerful. Example: Against all this was the counter-rhythm of the hip-flask and the drugs, that steady resorting at every pause for breath, to the swig of the secret drinker; or, high in his excitement, the burst of a popper and then the sucking sound of Cullen inhaling. 9. Amyl nitrate. Labels: informal, uncountable Example: Ryan knelt up in bed with his knees against Kick's side. "You okay?" Ryan asked. / "Too much popper," he said. “Maybe I have jet lag. Example: Maybe he has some popper—that's a gay drug, right? Nicholas Nugent should at least have some popper . . . Art, leaning into the gaggle. Nicholas Nugent, shaking his pretty head. No popper. Do you think it's possible to popper yourself gay? 10. A dagger. Labels: countable, obsolete, uncountable
Word: popper Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Genericized trademark of Popper (“a brand name”), an Australian juice brand owned by Queensland United Foods. First attested in 1978. Pronunciation: /ˈpɒp.ə/, /ˈpɑ.pɚ/, [ˈpɑ.pɹ̩], /ˈpɒp.ɚ/, [ˈpɒp.ɹ̩] 1. Synonym of juice box. Labels: Australia Example: Again buy your own food - for lunch you get some tomato, some Jambon Fume (proscuitto) and a baguette along with some poppers and your^([sic]) have a feast.
Word: posit Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Latin positus, perfect participle of pōnō (“put, place”). Noun sense 3 (type of number format) was coined by American computer scientist and businessman John Gustafson in 2017. Pronunciation: /ˈpɒzɪt/, /ˈpɑzɪt/, /ˈpɔzɪt/, /ˈpɒzət/, [ˈpɔ̟zət] 1. Something that is posited; a postulate. 2. Abbreviation of position. Labels: abbreviation, alt-of 3. A number format representing a real number consisting of a sign bit, a variable-size "regime" part (which modifies the exponent), up to two exponent bits, and a fraction part, proposed as a more efficient alternative to IEEE 754 floats in AI applications. Example: With their new hardware implementation, which was synthesized in a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), the Complutense team was able to compare computations done using 32-bit floats and 32-bit posits side by side.
Word: posit Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Borrowed from Latin positus, perfect participle of pōnō (“put, place”). Noun sense 3 (type of number format) was coined by American computer scientist and businessman John Gustafson in 2017. Pronunciation: /ˈpɒzɪt/, /ˈpɑzɪt/, /ˈpɔzɪt/, /ˈpɒzət/, [ˈpɔ̟zət] 1. To assume the existence of; to postulate. Example: some who posit both this cause and besides this the source of movement, which we have got from some as single and from other as twofold. 2. To propose for consideration or study; to suggest. Example: Ray's natural theology posited that God was responsible for the near-perfect match between an animal and its environment and encouraged readers to seek evidence for God through the study of nature. 3. To put (something somewhere) firmly; to place or position. Example: Among many Indians, however, an exonormative view, which even today posits British English as the target model, appears to be firmly in place.
Word: posy Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Syncopic form of poesy (“poetry”). Pronunciation: /ˈpəʊzi/, /ˈpoʊzi/ 1. A flower; a small bouquet; a nosegay. Example: And I will make thee beds of roses, / And a thousand fragrant posies; Example: 'Twas early June, the new grass was flourishing everywheres, the posies in the yard—peonies and such—in full bloom, the sun was shining, and the water of the bay was blue, with light green streaks where the shoal showed. 2. A verse of poetry, especially a motto or an inscription on a ring. Labels: archaic Example: Is this a Prologue, or the Poeſie of a Ring?
Word: precis Part of Speech: noun 1. Alternative spelling of précis. Labels: alt-of, alternative
Word: precis Part of Speech: verb 1. Alternative form of précis. Labels: alt-of, alternative
Word: preen Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English pren, from Old English prēon, from Proto-Germanic *preunaz (compare Icelandic prjónn (“pin, knitting-needle”), Danish pryne (“needle, eel-spear”)), of uncertain origin, but perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *brewn- (“protrusion, tip, edge”) (compare Lithuanian briaunà (“edge”), Albanian brez (“belt, girdle”)). Cognate with German Pfriem. The verb is from Middle English prenen, from pren (“a preen”), akin to German pfriemen. Pronunciation: /pɹiːn/ 1. A forked tool used by clothiers for dressing cloth. 2. A pin. Labels: dialectal Example: She never seemed to want for siller; the house was as bright as a new preen, the yaird better delved than the manse garden; […] 3. A bodkin; brooch. Labels: dialectal
Word: preen Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English pren, from Old English prēon, from Proto-Germanic *preunaz (compare Icelandic prjónn (“pin, knitting-needle”), Danish pryne (“needle, eel-spear”)), of uncertain origin, but perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *brewn- (“protrusion, tip, edge”) (compare Lithuanian briaunà (“edge”), Albanian brez (“belt, girdle”)). Cognate with German Pfriem. The verb is from Middle English prenen, from pren (“a preen”), akin to German pfriemen. Pronunciation: /pɹiːn/ 1. To pin; fasten. Labels: transitive
Word: preen Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Variant of prune (by influence of preen above). Attested in Chaucer (c. 1395) in the variants preyneth, prayneth, proyneth, prunyht, pruneth, from Old French proignier (“to trim the feathers with the beak”). Pronunciation: /pɹiːn/ 1. To groom; to trim or dress the feathers with the beak. Labels: ambitransitive 2. To spend time making oneself attractive and admiring one's appearance, e.g. in front of a mirror. Labels: intransitive, reflexive Example: Mr Kernan halted and preened himself before the sloping mirror of Peter Kennedy, hairdresser. Stylish coat, beyond a doubt. Scott of Dawson street. Well worth the half sovereign I gave Neary for it. 3. To show off, posture, or smarm. Labels: intransitive Example: His preening self-satisfaction, chest thrown forward as he settles into a chair in his mansion... Example: Impressed by their looks and their dancing, but not their singing, Mr. Farian called them Milli Vanilli and recorded an album of lightweight, preening dance-pop under their name, using uncredited studio musicians. 4. To flatter. Labels: transitive Example: In Miller's view the play is expressive of a peculiarly Renaissance vision of the harmonious marriage within the orderly society: 'its spirit derives from Elizabethan Puritanism's view of the household as an orderly place in whichc the marriage is consecrated not in the church but in the orderly procedures of domesticity ; in which obedience is required , not in order to preen the male pride of the father, but to restore order in a fallen world ' Example: New York nurtured and preened the most sophisticated audiences in the nation. 5. To comb; to make orderly. Labels: transitive Example: My two roommates are engineers who preen the diesels. Example: Preen the deer hair rearward around the hook shank, and take 3 tight thread wraps to secure it. 6. To trim up, as trees. Labels: transitive Example: Adjusting his spectacles on the bridge of his nose, he gently preened the bush with his pruners. Example: He'd imagined he could see the whole world from there, whilst the people below tended to their window boxes and preened the rose bushes, making this idyllic village pretty for the tourists. 7. To improve the appearance of; groom; prettify. Labels: broadly, transitive Example: He brushed and preened the marquis, front and back. “Lucky we are, Your Grace, no gashes that I see. But the beard is in a woeful state —” Example: Clearly this is not heritage tourism development. Instead it recommends how to preen the city for the uncritical gaze of a kind of tourist who willingly accepts low-grade commercialized leisure.
Word: prexy Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From earlier prex + -y. Pronunciation: /ˈpɹɛksi/ 1. A president, especially of a college or university. Labels: slang Example: Irving Green, prexy of Mercury Records, described the development and perfection of stereo as “a man-sized job.” Example: Stanford University's new president, angered by what he calls a "journalistic atrocity," wants student financial support withdrawn from the Stanford Daily.
Word: preyer Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From prey + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈpɹeɪ.(j)ə(ɹ)/ 1. One who, or that which, preys
Word: prig Part of Speech: noun Etymology: UK 16th century. Of unknown origin. Earlier noun senses ("tinker" and "thief"), as hyponyms of "undesirable person", may have informed later senses ("conceited person"). Pronunciation: /pɹɪɡ/ 1. A deliberately superior person; a person who demonstrates an exaggerated conformity or propriety, especially in an irritatingly arrogant or smug manner. Example: What spruce prig is that? Example: I have always had a regard for dunces; — those of my own school-days were amongst the pleasantest of the fellows, and have turned out by no means the dullest in life; whereas many a youth who could turn off Latin hexameters by the yard, and construe Greek quite glibly, is no better than a feeble prig now, with not a pennyworth more brains than were in his head before his beard grew. 2. A conceited dandy; a fop. Labels: archaic Example: A rap now at the door made all resound, / And in two bouncing blowings did rebound, / With two flash-men, a dandy, and a prig', / With whom they had been running of the rig. Example: The manner of the scholar had nearly disappeared; still more the manner of the drawing-room young man. A prig would have said that he had lost his culture, and a prude that he had become coarse. 3. A tinker. Labels: Ireland, UK, archaic Example: These droncken Tynckers, called also Prygges. 4. A petty thief or pickpocket. Labels: Ireland, UK, archaic Example: Out upon him! Prig, for my life, prig! He haunts / wakes, fairs, and bear-baitings. Example: Oh, why didn't he rob some rich old gentleman of all his walables, and go out as a gentleman, and not like a common prig, without no honour nor glory!
Word: prig Part of Speech: verb Etymology: UK 16th century. Of unknown origin. Earlier noun senses ("tinker" and "thief"), as hyponyms of "undesirable person", may have informed later senses ("conceited person"). Pronunciation: /pɹɪɡ/ 1. To filch or steal. Labels: archaic, slang Example: to prig a handkerchief Example: Now, this Trailer he bestrides the horse which he priggeth, and saddles and bridles him as orderly as if he were his own, and then carieth him far from the place of his breed, and ther sels him. 2. To ride. 3. To copulate. Labels: obsolete Example: Wapping thou I know does love, / Else the ruffin cly the mort; / From thy stampers then remove, / Thy drawers, and let's prig in sport.
Word: primp Part of Speech: verb Etymology: 16th century, a variant of prim. Pronunciation: /pɹɪmp/ 1. To spend time improving one's appearance, often in front of a mirror. Labels: intransitive Example: "Then I promise I'll let you take your bath and primp all day for your date." 2. To dress in an affected manner. Labels: transitive Example: Tonight, Moses was the center of attraction, attended to by a dozen Green Berets who prepped and primped him like a stage crew fluttering about a Hollywood star.
Word: prim Part of Speech: adj Etymology: Of uncertain origin. In the verb sense, first appeared in Thomas D'Urfey's A Fool's Preferment in the year 1688. In the noun sense, first appeared in A New Dictionary of the Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew in the year 1699, meaning "prig." Now obsolete. In the adjective sense, first appeared in Sir Richard Steele's The Funeral in the year 1702, meaning "consciously or affectedly strict or precise; stiffly formal and respectable." Oxford English Dictionary proposed a relation with primp and prink. Chiefly Scottish and U.S. Pronunciation: /pɹɪm/, [pʰɹ̠̊ɪm] 1. Of a person, their manner or appearance: Formal and precise; stiffly decorous. Example: Philemon was in great Surprize,⁠ And hardly could believe his Eyes, Amaz’d to ſee her look ſo prim; And ſhe admir’d as much at him. Example: God damn it, what does she want of me, this sad, beautiful bridgeplayer of the Fifth Floor, with her air of lost love and her prim carnality? 2. Prudish; straight-laced. Labels: broadly Example: He took great joy in the knight's two daughters. The younger was the more beautiful, but so prim she hardly spoke to Goldmund. 3. Of things: Neat; trim. Example: prim regularity
Word: prim Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Of uncertain origin. In the verb sense, first appeared in Thomas D'Urfey's A Fool's Preferment in the year 1688. In the noun sense, first appeared in A New Dictionary of the Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew in the year 1699, meaning "prig." Now obsolete. In the adjective sense, first appeared in Sir Richard Steele's The Funeral in the year 1702, meaning "consciously or affectedly strict or precise; stiffly formal and respectable." Oxford English Dictionary proposed a relation with primp and prink. Chiefly Scottish and U.S. Pronunciation: /pɹɪm/, [pʰɹ̠̊ɪm] 1. To make one's expression prim. Labels: archaic, intransitive 2. To give a prim or demure expression to (one's face, mouth, or (rare) lips). Labels: archaic, transitive 3. To dress (one) up affectedly or demurely. Labels: archaic, transitive
Word: prim Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Of uncertain origin. In the verb sense, first appeared in Thomas D'Urfey's A Fool's Preferment in the year 1688. In the noun sense, first appeared in A New Dictionary of the Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew in the year 1699, meaning "prig." Now obsolete. In the adjective sense, first appeared in Sir Richard Steele's The Funeral in the year 1702, meaning "consciously or affectedly strict or precise; stiffly formal and respectable." Oxford English Dictionary proposed a relation with primp and prink. Chiefly Scottish and U.S. Pronunciation: /pɹɪm/, [pʰɹ̠̊ɪm] 1. A prim person. Labels: archaic, obsolete
Word: prim Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Unknown; see privet. Pronunciation: /pɹɪm/, [pʰɹ̠̊ɪm] 1. privet Labels: archaic
Word: prizer Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From prize + -er. 1. One who places a high value on something. 2. One who estimates or sets the value of a thing; an appraiser. Example: But value dwells not in particular will; / It holds his estimate and dignity / As well wherein 'tis precious of itself / As in the prizer. 3. One who contends for a prize; a prizefighter; a challenger. Labels: obsolete Example: Why would you be so fond to overcome / The bonny prizer of the humorous Duke? Example: Appeareth no man yet to answer the prizer?
Word: propyl Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Etymology tree French propionique Proto-Indo-European *swel-der.? Ancient Greek ῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)der. French -yle French propyl-der. English propyl From the chemical prefix propyl-, from propylic or directly from earlier French propylique, from prop(ionique) + -yle + -ique, where -yle, as in French méthylène, is from ὕλη (húlē, “wood, substance”). Pronunciation: /ˈpɹoʊpəl/ 1. Either of two isomeric univalent hydrocarbon radicals, C₃H₇, formally derived from propane by the loss of a hydrogen atom.
Word: proser Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From prose + -er. 1. One who writes prose. Labels: obsolete 2. One who talks or writes tediously.
Word: prow Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle French proue, proe, from Ligurian prua, proa, from Latin prōra, from Ancient Greek πρῷρα (prōîra). Pronunciation: /pɹaʊ/, /pɹoʊ/ 1. The front part of a vessel. Example: The floating vessel swum / Uplifted, and secure with beaked prow / rode tilting o'er the waves. Example: We were already rather close in; but I ordered the U-33's prow turned inshore and we crept slowly along, constantly dipping up the water and tasting it to assure ourselves that we didn't get outside the fresh-water current. 2. A vessel.
Word: prow Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From Middle English prow, from Old French prou, from Late Latin prode; more at proud. Pronunciation: /pɹaʊ/, /pɹoʊ/ 1. Brave, valiant, gallant. Labels: archaic Example: For they be two the prowest knights on ground, / And oft approu’d in many hard assay […]
Word: prow Part of Speech: noun Pronunciation: /pɹaʊ/, /pɹoʊ/ 1. Alternative form of proa. Labels: alt-of, alternative
Word: prower Part of Speech: adj 1. comparative form of prow: more prow Labels: comparative, form-of
Word: puddly Part of Speech: adj Etymology: From puddle + -y. Pronunciation: /ˈpʌd.l̩.i/ 1. Consisting of, or resembling, puddles; muddy; foul.
Word: pueblo Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from Spanish pueblo, from Latin populus. Doublet of people. Pronunciation: /ˈpwɛ.bləʊ/, /ˈpwɛ.bloʊ/ 1. A community in Spain or Spanish America, especially one of Pueblo Indians living in a stone or adobe multi-storey building. Example: The Spaniards took over whole pueblos, and the indians^([sic]) were taxed, enslaved, and tortured. Example: ‘And their flats and houses?’ Jane pointed to a custer of executive villas in the pueblo style.
Word: puffin Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English poffin, poffoun, puffon, equivalent to puff + -ing, or perhaps ultimately from Middle Cornish (compare Breton poc'han (“puffin”)). Pronunciation: /ˈpʌfɪn/ 1. The young of the Manx shearwater (Puffinus puffinus), especially eaten as food. Labels: obsolete 2. The Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica) or (by extension) any of the other various small seabirds of the genera Fratercula and Lunda that are black and white with a brightly-coloured beak. Example: Naturally the Chickies and the Gooverooskies and the Epatkas—the Burgomaster Gulls and the Kittiwakes and the Puffins, who are always looking for a chance to be rude—took up the cry, and—so Limmershin told me—for nearly five minutes you could not have heard a gun fired on Walrus Islet. 3. Any of various African and Asian pierid butterflies of the genus Appias. Some species of this genus are also known as albatrosses. 4. A puffball. Labels: obsolete
Word: pug Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Acronym of pickup group. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. Alternative letter-case form of PuG (“a group of players who are unknown to each other, grouped together to work toward a short-term goal such as completing a dungeon or a raid”). Labels: Internet, alt-of
Word: pug Part of Speech: noun Etymology: The noun is borrowed from Hindi पग (pag, “step; (less common) foot; leg”), from Old Hindi पगु (pagu), from Sanskrit पद्ग (padga), from पद् (pad, “step; foot”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ped- (“to step; to walk; to fall; to stumble”)) + ग (ga, stem at the ends of compounds denoting going or moving) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- (“to step”)). The verb is derived from the noun. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. The footprint or pawprint of an animal; a pugmark. Example: [T]here were the broad, deep puggs of a tiger, up and down the nullah, in the dry sand, near the water's edge, of all ages, from the week, perhaps, up to the unmistakeable fresh puggs of last night. Example: The goat has a square pug with blunt points to his toes, which are always held apart. The sheep's pug is more like that of the boar, being longer than the goat's. […] The boar's pug is distinguished from that of the sow by being much wider in the heel, and having the toes more open, and the rudimentary toes marking the ground more widely apart.
Word: pug Part of Speech: verb Etymology: The noun is borrowed from Hindi पग (pag, “step; (less common) foot; leg”), from Old Hindi पगु (pagu), from Sanskrit पद्ग (padga), from पद् (pad, “step; foot”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ped- (“to step; to walk; to fall; to stumble”)) + ग (ga, stem at the ends of compounds denoting going or moving) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- (“to step”)). The verb is derived from the noun. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. To track (an animal) by following pawprints; also (by extension) to track (a person) by following footprints. Labels: British, India, obsolete, rare, transitive Example: Wishing to track a good boar that had got away through some thick cover, we called up the headman of the beat (a man lent to us by a friend) and asked him if he could pug. He was a havildar (sergeant) of police. He replied, 'That is my regular business, sahib; of course I can pug. My work is pugging criminals.'
Word: pug Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Clipping of pugilist. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. Clipping of pugilist (“one who fights with their fists, especially a professional prize fighter; a boxer”). Labels: abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal Example: Anyhow I found myself facin' the pug, seein' bright red, and inclined to fight a dozen. I didn't last for more than one round—my game leg cramped me, I suppose. I got one or two on his ugly face, and then I suppose I took a knock-out. Example: He [Maxie Rosenbloom] never trained for his characters either: with his slurred speech and disfigured mug he usually portrayed a punch-drunk ex-pug or comic tough guy, roles in which he was a natural.
Word: pug Part of Speech: verb Etymology: The origin of the verb is uncertain; it is possibly: * related to southern Dutch puggen (“to hit hard”), German pucken (“to beat, thump”), possibly ultimately imitative; or * related to poke (verb). It is also uncertain whether the various senses are derived from the same source. The origin of the noun is also uncertain; it is probably related to the verb. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. To hit or punch (someone or something); also, to poke (someone or something). Labels: rare, transitive Example: Agosh! I long to try a bout / With zom o' Burdett's rabble rout; / I'd quickly pug their guts: / I'd gee mun zich a lammin [i.e., violent] lick, / I'd make mun of elections zick; / I'd gee mun all the butts. 2. To fill or stop up (a space) with pug (noun etymology 5, noun sense 1), clay, sawdust, or other material by tamping; (specifically) to fill in (the space between joists of a floor, a partition, etc.) with some material to deaden sound, make fireproof, etc. Labels: transitive Example: Forbid it Venus! From the venal Fair / Snatch every charm, to Hay convert her Locks; / Pug up her nose, and pug-like make her stare; / And pit her pimpled visage with small-pox. 3. To mix and work (wet clay) until flexible, soft, and free from air pockets and suitable for making bricks, pottery, etc. Labels: transitive Example: to pug clay ready for shaping 4. Of cattle, etc.: to trample (the ground, a place, etc.) until it becomes muddy and soft; to poach. Labels: Australia, New-Zealand, archaic, transitive 5. To pack or tamp (something) into a small space. Labels: England, also, archaic, figuratively, regional, transitive 6. To pack or tamp into a small space. Labels: England, also, archaic, figuratively, intransitive, regional
Word: pug Part of Speech: noun Etymology: The origin of the verb is uncertain; it is possibly: * related to southern Dutch puggen (“to hit hard”), German pucken (“to beat, thump”), possibly ultimately imitative; or * related to poke (verb). It is also uncertain whether the various senses are derived from the same source. The origin of the noun is also uncertain; it is probably related to the verb. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. Clay, soil, or other material which has been mixed and worked until flexible, soft, and free from air pockets and thus suitable for making bricks, pottery, etc.; also, any other material with a similar consistency or function, especially (Australia) auriferous (“gold-bearing”) clay. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: A brickfield certainly is not the place for girls and young women to work in; […] the work they have too, at least those who are pug-bearers, often causes indecency; they have to stoop down to the ground to pick the pug up from the bottom of the mill; at all events, they ought to have their clothes tied around them, indeed, the respectable young women usually have. I do not think there is any ill-treatment of the children as there used to be; they often get a bit of pug thrown at them, but they are not hit about with the hand or the "slice." Example: The walls of the house were built of "pug," which means simply well-pounded mud, and has the disadvantage of refusing to adhere firmly to the frames of doors and casements, so that the banging of either, in windy weather, is apt to bring large pieces of the material crumbling down, and the house never looks tidy. 2. Ellipsis of pug mill (“kind of mill for grinding, mixing, and working clay”). Labels: abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable
Word: pug Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Origin unknown; etymology 6 sense 1.2 (“to spoil (something) by touching too much”) is possibly influenced by pug (verb, noun) (see etymology 5) or puggy. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. To pull or tug (something). Labels: England, Scotland, Wales, Western, transitive Example: George pugg'd clover in the forenoon. Example: Nae thing was prosperin’ there and thrivin’, / But tirlin’ roofs and rafter-rivin’, / And pullin’ down and puggin’; […] 2. To spoil (something) by touching too much. Labels: England, Scotland, Wales, Western, obsolete, transitive Example: ["B]e sure not to wet it up too much; make it into twelve doughboys" (dumplings). / "I'm so heavy-handed," Jane remarked at this point, "I always spoil that sort of cookery." / "Tell about heavy-handed!" cried Betsy; "I'll answer for it, I'll soon put you in the way of being light-handed! You only want to learn to handle things without pugging and pawing them about too much." 3. Followed by at: to pull or tug. Labels: England, Scotland, Wales, Western, intransitive
Word: pug Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Late Middle English pugge (“husk of grain”); further etymology unknown, possibly related to pug (verb) (see etymology 5). However, the latter is only attested much later. Pronunciation: /pʌɡ/, /pɐɡ/, /pʊɡ/ 1. The residue left after pressing apples for cider; pomace. Labels: England, Scotland, UK, Wales, Western, archaic, countable, regional, uncountable 2. Often in the plural: the husks and other refuse removed from grain by winnowing; chaff. Labels: England, Scotland, UK, Wales, Western, countable, obsolete, regional, uncountable Example: Radiſh ſeed vvould vvillingly be ſovvne in a looſe or light ground, and natherleſſe moiſt enough: it cannot abide danke mucke, but contenteth it ſelfe vvith rotten chaffe or pugs, and ſuch like plaine mullock. Example: The pugg, i.e. the refuſe corne left at winnowinge.
Word: punner Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From pun + -er. 1. A punster.
Word: punter Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From punt (“a kind of boat”) + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈpʌn.tə/, [ˈpʰʌn.tə], /ˈpɐ̞n.tə/, [ˈpʰɐ̞n.tə] ~ [ˈpʰɐ̞n.tɐ̝], /ˈpɐ̞n̆.ə/ 1. One who rows or poles a punt or pontoon.
Word: punter Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From punt (“to dropkick, especially in sports”) + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈpʌn.tə/, [ˈpʰʌn.tə], /ˈpɐ̞n.tə/, [ˈpʰɐ̞n.tə] ~ [ˈpʰɐ̞n.tɐ̝], /ˈpɐ̞n̆.ə/ 1. One who punts a football. 2. A program used to forcibly disconnect another user from a chat room. Labels: Internet Example: Punters generate hundreds of information inquiries to a legitimate user's client, such as invitations to chat. […] The user is punted from the channel, and must rejoin to gain access.
Word: punter Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From punt (“a point in faro, gambling, a gamble”) + -er. Pronunciation: /ˈpʌn.tə/, [ˈpʰʌn.tə], /ˈpɐ̞n.tə/, [ˈpʰɐ̞n.tə] ~ [ˈpʰɐ̞n.tɐ̝], /ˈpɐ̞n̆.ə/ 1. One who bets against the bank. 2. One who gambles or bets. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, slang Example: […] and having only peeped into a play-room at Baden-Baden when he hung on Dobbin's arm, and where, of course, he was not permitted to gamble, came eagerly to this part of the entertainment and hankered round the tables where the croupiers and the punters were at work. Example: By Savernake the train was 4½min early; we then had the thrill of sweeping through Newbury at 95 m.p.h.—and one wonders if any of the punters on the neighbouring racecourse had any eyes for our flying cavalcade as we swept by, for it was a race day—[…]. 3. A customer of a commercial establishment, frequently of a pub or (alternatively) of a prostitute. Labels: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, slang Example: I was doing the Jonathan Lowrie death tour with half a dozen or so punters. Example: She's working the streets like she does every night Pulling in punters left and right 4. A beginner or unskilled climber. 5. The person who keeps score in basset or ombre. 6. A person who trades with a gang but is not a gang member. Labels: Scotland Example: He had stolen 'trannies' (transistor radios) and hub caps from cars outside the main hotels in Glasgow, turning the collection into money through dealing with a 'punter' at Charing Cross.
Word: pupate Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Etymology tree English pupa Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂tos Proto-Italic *-ātos Latin -ātuslbor. English -ate English pupate From pupa + -ate (verb-forming suffix). 1. To become a pupa. Example: But first. Attend me, as I pupate!
Word: purine Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Borrowed from German Purin. Pronunciation: /ˈpjʊəɹiːn/ 1. Any of a class of organic heterocyclic compounds, composed of fused pyrimidine and imidazole rings, that constitute one of the two groups of organic nitrogenous bases (the other being the pyrimidines) and are components of nucleic acids. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: 1982, Ray A. Field, Mechanically Deboned Red Meat, C. O. Chichester, George Franklin Stewart, Advances in Food Research, Volume 27, page 67, Clifford et al. (1976) investigated the metabolism of individual purines and found that adenine, and to a lesser extent hypoxanthine, had pronounced effects on blood uric acid levels. The purine content of foods, in particular adenine, would therefore be of immense nutritional significance. Example: For example, for purine-pyrimidine and for pyrimidine-purine base steps the presence of purines on opposite strands in successive base pairs sterically restricts the conformations that these base pairs can adopt relative to each other.
Word: purl Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Unknown; apparently related to Scots and dialect pirl (“twist, ripple, whirl, spin”), and possibly to Older Scots pyrl ("thrust or poke at"). Compare Venetan pirlo, an embellishment where the woven threads are twisted together. May be unrelated to purfle, though the meanings are similar. Pronunciation: /pɜːl/, [pʰəːɫ], /pɝl/, [pʰɝɫ] 1. A particular stitch in knitting in which the working yarn is pulled through an existing stitch from front to back. 2. The edge of lace trimmed with loops. 3. An embroidered and puckered border; a hem or fringe, often of gold or silver twist; also, a pleat or fold, as of a band. Example: A triumphant chariot made of carnation velvet, enriched with purl and pearl.
Word: purl Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Unknown; apparently related to Scots and dialect pirl (“twist, ripple, whirl, spin”), and possibly to Older Scots pyrl ("thrust or poke at"). Compare Venetan pirlo, an embellishment where the woven threads are twisted together. May be unrelated to purfle, though the meanings are similar. Pronunciation: /pɜːl/, [pʰəːɫ], /pɝl/, [pʰɝɫ] 1. To decorate with fringe or embroidered edge Example: Needlework purled with gold. 2. To use or create a purl stitch or stitches. Example: Knit one, purl two. Example: Stockinette fabric is created by knitting the right-side rows and purling the wrong-side rows.
Word: purl Part of Speech: noun Etymology: from Middle English pirle (“whirligig”), Middle Italian pirla (“whipping top”). Pronunciation: /pɜːl/, [pʰəːɫ], /pɝl/, [pʰɝɫ] 1. a heavy or headlong fall; an upset.
Word: purl Part of Speech: verb Etymology: from Middle English pirle (“whirligig”), Middle Italian pirla (“whipping top”). Pronunciation: /pɜːl/, [pʰəːɫ], /pɝl/, [pʰɝɫ] 1. To upset, to spin, capsize, fall heavily, fall headlong. Labels: archaic Example: The huntsman was purled from his horse.
Word: purl Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Old Norse purla (“to babble”), possibly ultimately from an imitative Germanic base related to Dutch polder, Norwegian puldra (“to gush”) and pulla (“to bubble”), Old English polr (“marsh”). Pronunciation: /pɜːl/, [pʰəːɫ], /pɝl/, [pʰɝɫ] 1. To flow with a murmuring sound in swirls and eddies. Labels: intransitive Example: Swift o'er the rolling pebbles, down the hills, / Louder and louder purl the falling rills. Example: There is a water-break formed by a small terrace of rock in mid-stream, and purling with a hollow, delicious monotone—an island of pebbles is above, with here and there smaller ones near the "forks." 2. To rise in circles, ripples, or undulations; to curl; to mantle. Example: thin winding breath which purled up to the sky
Word: purl Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Old Norse purla (“to babble”), possibly ultimately from an imitative Germanic base related to Dutch polder, Norwegian puldra (“to gush”) and pulla (“to bubble”), Old English polr (“marsh”). Pronunciation: /pɜːl/, [pʰəːɫ], /pɝl/, [pʰɝɫ] 1. A circle made by the motion of a fluid; an eddy; a ripple. Labels: UK, dialectal Example: Caiſters ſiluer Lake, / […] / VVhoſe ſtreame an eaſie breath doth ſeeme to blovve; / VVhich on the ſparkling grauell runns in purles, / As though the vvaues had been of ſiluer curles. Example: Whatsoever had a beginning, can also have an ending; and it shall die, unless it be daily watered with the purls flowing from the fountain of life, and refreshed with the dew of heaven, and the wells of God: […] 2. A gentle murmuring sound, such as that produced by the running of a liquid among obstructions. Labels: UK, dialectal Example: the purl of a brook
Word: purl Part of Speech: noun Etymology: Possibly from the pearl-like appearance caused by bubbles on the surface of the liquid. Pronunciation: /pɜːl/, [pʰəːɫ], /pɝl/, [pʰɝɫ] 1. Ale or beer spiced with wormwood or other bitter herbs, regarded as a tonic. Labels: UK, archaic, dialectal, uncountable Example: A double mug of purle. 2. Hot beer mixed with gin, sugar, and spices. Labels: UK, archaic, dialectal, uncountable Example: Drank a glass of purl to recover appetite. Example: Drinking hot purl, and smoking pipes.
Word: purvey Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English purveyen, from Anglo-Norman purveer, purveir et al., Old French porveeir, porveoir, from Latin prōvidēre (“to provide”). Doublet of provide; compare prudent. Pronunciation: /pəˈveɪ/, /pəːˈveɪ/, /pɚˈveɪ/ 1. To prepare in advance (for or to do something); to plan, make provision. Labels: intransitive, obsolete Example: A sayd the kynge / syn ye knowe of your aduenture puruey for hit / and put awey by your craftes that mysauenture / Nay said Merlyn it wylle not be / soo he departed from the kynge 2. To furnish or provide. Labels: transitive Example: Giue no ods to your foes, but do puruay / Your selfe of sword before that bloudy day: Example: Those who sell their own products are distinguished from purveyors, who purvey what others produce. 3. To procure; to get. Labels: transitive Example: I mean to purvey me a wife after the fashion of the children of Benjamin.