# dict

Words: World Almanac
Meaning:
trademark   a large book produced each year in the US, giving short accounts of the news that has happened during the year and also information on politics, history, sport, medicine, entertainment etc. Several different  publishers produce a World Almanac.//


Words: World Bank
Meaning:
the   an organization that is part of the  UN (United Nations), which lends money to poorer countries so that they can develop their farming, industry, and health and education systems. Its official name is the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.//


Words: World Council of Churches
Meaning:
the   an international Christian organization that encourages friendship and understanding among different Christian religious groups. It has more than 300 churches as members, and its main offices are in Geneva.//


Words: World Cup
Meaning:
the \n  1 the most important international competition in football ( soccer), which is held every four years in a different country. Teams representing most countries in the world first play a series of games to decide which 32 teams will play in the World Cup event itself. These teams then play against each other until there are two teams left who play in the World Cup Final. The winners receive a gold cup called the "Jules Rimet Trophy". :\n  2 a similar international competition in some other sports, such as  cricket or  rugby:


Words: World Health Organization
Meaning:
the   WHO an international organization that is part of the  UN (United Nations), which helps countries improve their people’s health by giving medicines and providing information and education about diseases,  immunization etc//


Words: world music
Meaning:
n [U]   a type of popular music which has influences from traditional music from different countries//


Words: world power
Meaning:
n [C]   a country that has a lot of power and influence in many parts of the world//    superpower//


Words: world record
Meaning:
n [C]   the fastest time, longest distance, highest level etc which anyone has ever achieved anywhere in the world, especially in a sport//  set/break/beat a world record //  --He set a new world record for the marathon.//  --the 800m world record holder //  -- world-record adj //  --a world-record time//


Words: World Series
Meaning:
the   a set of up to seven baseball games played between two teams, the winner of the American League, and the winner of the  National League.//


Words: World Service
Meaning:
the   part of the  BBC which broadcasts radio programmes, especially news, to all parts of the world. Its official name is the BBC World Service.//


Words: World Trade Center
Meaning:
the World Trade Center//  the WTC a group of buildings in Manhattan, New York City, which included two very tall  skyscrapers that were destroyed by  terrorists in 2001. Thousands of people were killed when the terrorists flew two planes directly into the buildings.//


Words: World Trade Organization
Meaning:
the   the WTO an international organization, established in 1995 and based in Geneva, that deals with the rules of trade between different nations, and encourages them to trade fairly//


Words: world view
Meaning:
world-view n [C usually singular]   someone’s opinions and attitudes relating to the world and things in general//  --the limited nineteenth-century world view//


Words: world war
Meaning:
n [C]   a war involving many of the countries of the world//  --fears of another world war//  --Churchill was prime minister during the Second World War.//  --the years after World War I//


Words: World War I
Meaning:
also the First World War   (1914-1918) a war in Europe fought between France, the UK and its  empire, Russia, and the US on one side (’the Allies’), and Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey on the other side. The war started as a result of the murder in Sarajevo of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, a member of the Austrian royal family. World War I was fought in many different areas, but for British people the strongest image is of the ’Western Front’ in Belgium and northern France, where the armies of each side lived in trenches (=long deep holes in the ground) , with an area called "no-man’s land" between them. Many of the famous battles on the Western Front ended without either side gaining much land, and the names of these battles especially the Somme, Passchendaele, and Ypres, have come to represent the way that millions of young men were killed for no very good reason. For people from Australia and New Zealand, the battle of Gallipoli, where thousands of their soldiers were killed, is remembered with great sadness.//


Words: World War II
Meaning:
also the Second World War    (1939-45) a war involving almost every major country in the world. On one side were the Allies (including the UK, France, and Poland, and after 1941 the US and the Soviet Union) and on the other side the Axis (including Germany, Japan, and Italy). The war was started by Adolf  Hitler, the  Nazi leader of Germany, who aimed to increase German power by attacking other countries and taking control of them. The war ended when Germany was defeated, and the US dropped  nuclear bombs on the Japanese cities of  Hiroshima and  Nagasaki. About 55 million people were killed in the war.//


Words: World Wide Fund for Nature
Meaning:
the   WWF an international  charity organization, formerly called the World Wildlife Fund, which supports  conservation (=protection of wild plants, animals, and natural areas of land) //


Words: world-class
Meaning:
adj   among the best in the world//  --a world-class tennis champion//  --world-class research facilities//


Words: worldly
Meaning:
adj [only before noun] \n  1  worldly goods/possessions:   literary everything you own//\n  2 relating to ordinary life rather than spiritual or religious ideas:   mundane//  --He seemed very calm and far removed from worldly concerns.//\n  3 having a lot of experience and knowledge about people and life:  → unworldly//  -- worldliness n  [U] //


Words: worldly-wise
Meaning:
adj   having a lot of experience and knowledge about life so that you are not easily shocked or deceived//  → na[hA170]ve//


Words: worldwide
Meaning:
adj, adv   everywhere in the world//  --We have offices in over 56 countries worldwide.//  --cars with a worldwide reputation for reliability//


Words: WORM
Meaning:
n [C]   write once, read many a CD on which information can be stored only once, but seen or used many times//


Words: worm
Meaning:
n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin: wyrm  ’snake, worm’]//\n  1 a long thin creature with no bones and no legs that lives in soil:    earthworm,  lugworm//\n  2 the young form of an insect, which looks like a short worm:    glow-worm,  silkworm,  woodworm//\n  3  have worms:  if a person or animal has worms, they have legless parasites (=small creatures that eat their food or their blood) in their body//    roundworm,  tapeworm//\n  4 someone who you do not like or respect:\n  5 a type of computer virus that can make copies of itself and destroy information on computers that are connected to each other:\n  6  the worm turns:   literary used to say that someone who normally obeys someone without complaining suddenly refuses to do this//    can of worms at can2 (4)//\nworm 2 v [T] \n  1  worm (your way) into/through etc sth:  to move through a small place or a crowd slowly, carefully, or with difficulty//  --He wormed his way under the fence.//\n  2  worm your way into sb’s affections/heart/confidence etc:  to gradually make someone love or trust you, especially by being dishonest//\n  3  worm your way out of (doing) sth:  to avoid doing something that you have been asked to do by making an excuse that is dishonest but clever//  --Steve wormed his way out of going to the meeting.//\n  4 to give an animal medicine in order to remove parasites that live inside it:  worm out of [worm sth out of sb] phr v//  to get information from someone who does not want to give it//


Words: wormhole
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 a hole, which may exist, that connects one part of the universe with another part far away:\n  2 a hole in a piece of wood etc made by a type of worm:


Words: wormwood
Meaning:
n [U]   [Language: Old English; Origin: wermod; influenced by  worm and  wood]//  a plant with a bitter taste//


Words: worn
Meaning:
the past participle of wear1//\nworn 2 adj \n  1 a worn object is old and damaged, especially because it has been used a lot:  --a worn patch on the carpet//  --well worn stone steps//\n  2 someone who looks worn seems tired:


Words: worn out
Meaning:
adj \n  1 very tired because you have been working hard:   exhausted//  --You must be absolutely worn out.//\n  2 too old or damaged to be used:  --a pair of old worn-out walking boots//


Words: worried
Meaning:
W3S2   adj \n  1 unhappy because you keep thinking about a problem, or about something bad that might happen:  --You look worried. What’s the matter?//  worried about//  --I’m really worried about my brother.//  worried by//  --Local people are worried by the rise in crime.//  worried (that)//  --I was worried we wouldn’t have enough money.//  --Don’t look so worried - we’ll find him.//  --By this time, I was really getting worried .//  worried expression/look/frown etc //  --Where have you been? I was worried sick  (=extremely worried) !//\n  2  you had me worried:   spoken used to say that someone made you feel anxious because you did not properly understand what they said, or did not realize that it was a joke//  --You had me worried there for a minute!//  -- worriedly adv //  ----------//  WORD FOCUS: worried //  similar words: anxious,  concerned,  apprehensive,  uneasy,  bothered,  preoccupied,  stressed (out) //  ----------//


Words: worry
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  worried present participle  worrying third person singular  worries //  ----------//\n   1 be anxious:\n   2 don’t worry:\n   3 make somebody anxious:\n   4 not to worry:\n   5 nothing to worry about:\n   6 annoy:\n   7 animal:  Phrasal verbs//   worry at something/somebody//  ----------//  [Language: Old English; Origin: wyrgan  ’to strangle’]//\n  1 BE ANXIOUS:   [I] to be anxious or unhappy about someone or something, so that you think about them a lot//  worry about//  --I worry about my daughter.//  --You’ve really got no need to worry about your weight.//  worry (that)//  --She worried that she wasn’t doing enough to help.//  worry over//  --Dad worries over the slightest thing.//  --Don’t tell Mum about this - she’s got enough to worry about  (=she already has a lot of problems or is very busy) .//\n  2  don’t worry:   spoken //  a) used when you are trying to make someone feel less anxious//  --Don’t worry, darling, Daddy’s here.//  don’t worry if//  --Don’t worry if you can’t finish all the questions.//  b) used to tell someone that they do not need to do something//  don’t worry about//  --Don’t worry about sorting them out - I’ll do it later.//  c) used to tell someone that you will definitely do something//  --Don’t you worry, I’ll make sure he does his fair share.//\n  3 MAKE SOMEBODY ANXIOUS:   [T] to make someone feel anxious about something//  --The recent changes in the Earth’s climate are beginning to worry scientists.//  --I didn’t tell Mum and Dad - I didn’t want to worry them.//  what worries me is .../the (only) thing that worries me is ... //  --The only thing that worries me is the food. I don’t want to get food poisoning.//  --Doesn’t it worry you that Sarah spends so much time away from home?//  worry yourself (=feel anxious, especially when there is no need to) //  --You’re worrying yourself unnecessarily.//\n  4  not to worry:   BrE  spoken used to say that something is not important//  --Not to worry, we can always go another time.//\n  5  nothing to worry about:   spoken used to tell someone that something is not as serious or difficult as they think//  --It’s just a check-up - nothing to worry about.//\n  6 ANNOY:   [T] to annoy someone//   bother//  --The heat didn’t seem to worry him.//\n  7 ANIMAL:   [T] if a dog worries sheep, it tries to bite or kill them//  worry at / [worry at sth/sb] phr v//\n  1 if an animal worries at a bone or piece of meat, it bites and shakes it:\n  2 if you worry at a problem, you think about it a lot in order to find a solution:\nworry 2 S3 n   plural  worries //\n  1 [C] a problem that you are anxious about or are not sure how to deal with:  sb’s main/biggest/real etc worry //  --My main worry is finding somewhere to live.//  --I had a lot of financial worries .//  be a worry to/for sb//  --Money was always a big worry for us.//\n  2 [U and C] the feeling of being anxious about something:  be frantic/sick/desperate etc with worry (=feel extremely anxious) //  --His mother was desperate with worry.//  --He’s been a constant source of worry .//  worry about//  --We had no worries about safety.//\n  3  no worries:   BrE  spoken used to agree to what someone wants and to say that it will be no problem//  --’Can you deliver on Thursday?’ ’Yeah, no worries, mate.’//


Words: worrying
Meaning:
S3   adj   something that is worrying makes you feel anxious or worried//  --The situation is extremely worrying//  --This is a worrying development for small businesses.//  --It’s been a worrying few weeks for us all.//  -- worryingly adv //  --Levels of some pollutants are worryingly high.//


Words: worse
Meaning:
adj   [Language: Old English; Origin: wiersa,  wyrsa]//\n  1 [the comparative of bad] more unpleasant, bad, or severe:    better//  worse than//  --The violence was worse than we expected.//  --The traffic is much worse after five o’clock.//  --The weather was a lot worse this year.//  --Conditions will get worse as the winter continues.//  --High inflation will make unemployment worse .//  --Don’t say anything, you’ll only make matters worse .//  --The bullying got worse and worse until finally he had to leave the school.//  -- There’s nothing worse than being robbed while you’re on holiday.//  --The school’s not perfect, but I suppose it could be worse .//\n  2 more ill than before:  --If she’s worse in the morning, I’ll call the doctor.//  --I was worried because he seemed to be getting worse rather than better.//  --The tablets seemed to make him worse .//\n  3  be none the worse for sth:  to not have been harmed by something//  --She seemed none the worse for her night out in the cold.//\n  4  worse luck:   spoken used to say that you are disappointed or annoyed by something//  --I’ve got one more year of college, worse luck!//\n  5  sb could do worse than do sth:   spoken used to say that you think that someone should do something//  --He could do worse than marry Eleanor.//\n  6  go from bad to worse:  to continue getting worse//  -- Things went from bad to worse , and in the end she lost her job.//\n  7  the worse for wear:   also the worse for drink  BrE //   informal drunk//  ----------//  GRAMMAR //  Worse  is a comparative form : The problem got worse and worse. //  !!  Do not say ’more worse’ or ’worser’. //  Worst is a superlative form : the worst film (NOT worse film) I have ever seen //  !!  Do not say ’most worst’ or ’worstest’. //  ----------//\nworse 2 n [U] \n  1 something worse:    better//  --We thought the situation was bad, but worse was to follow.//\n  2  take a turn for the worse:  to change and become worse//  --Last year his health took a turn for the worse.//\nworse 3 adv [the comparative of badly]   in a more severe or serious way than before//    better//  worse than//  --By lunch time it was raining worse than ever.//  [sentence adverb] //  --The business could become less profitable or, even worse , could close down.//  --Suppose Rose, or worse still , Peter had seen the photograph?//


Words: worse off
Meaning:
adj [not before noun] \n  1 if you are worse off, you have less money:  → better off//  --The rent increases will leave us worse off.//  worse off than//  --I don’t think we’re any worse off than a lot of other people.//\n  2 in a worse situation:  --People in rural areas are even worse off, as they have no regular bus service.//  worse off than//  --Other sports are much worse off than athletics.//


Words: worsen
Meaning:
v [I and T]   to become worse or make something worse//  → improve//  --A lot of teachers expect the situation to worsen over the next few years.//  --Interfering now could worsen the problem.//  -- worsening adj //  --We are now faced with a worsening economic recession.//


Words: worship
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  worshipped present participle  worshipping  also  worshiped  worshiping  AmE //\n  1 [I and T] to show respect and love for a god, especially by praying in a religious building:  --They all worship the same god.//  --a church where people have worshipped for hundreds of years//\n  2 [T] to admire and love someone very much:  --He absolutely worships her.//\n  3  worship the ground sb walks on:  to admire or love someone so much that you cannot see their faults//  -- worshipper n  [C] //  --She was a regular worshipper at the parish church.//    hero worship//\nworship 2 n [U]   [Language: Old English; Origin: weorthscipe  ’being worthy, respect’, from  weorth (  WORTH1) +  -scipe (  -SHIP)]//\n  1 the activity of praying or singing in a religious building in order to show respect and love for a god:  in worship//  --They bowed their heads in worship.//  worship of//  --Worship of the old gods still continues in remote areas of the country.//  --The ceremony must take place in a recognized place of worship .//  --We were invited to join in their act of worship  (=religious ceremony) .//\n  2  Your/His Worship:   BrE  formal used to talk to or about a public official such as a mayor or magistrate//


Words: worst
Meaning:
adj [the superlative of bad]   [Language: Old English; Origin: wierresta,  wyrsta]//\n  1 [only before noun] worse than anything or anyone else:    best//  --This is the worst recession for fifty years.//  --My worst fear was that we would run out of food.//  --What is the worst possible thing that can happen?//\n  2  be your own worst enemy:  to cause a lot of problems for yourself because of your own behaviour//\n  3  come off worst:  to lose a fight or argument//\nworst 2 n \n  1  the worst:  the person or thing that is worse than all others//    the best//  worst (that)//  --This year’s harvest is the worst that people can remember.//  --Last year was by far the worst  (=much worse than any other) for road accidents.//  --I think the worst is over now.//  -- The worst of it is  (=the worst part of the situation is) , I can’t tell anyone what’s happening.//  at its/his etc worst//  --You saw the garden at its worst, I’m afraid (=when it is worse than any other time) .//\n  2  the worst of sth:  most of something, or the most unpleasant or difficult part of it//  --The worst of the storm seemed to be over.//\n  3  expect/fear the worst:  to expect or fear that something will not be successful or something bad will happen//  --When it got so late and they still weren’t home, I began to fear the worst.//\n  4  get/have the worst of it:   spoken to lose a fight or argument//\n  5  at (the) worst:  if things are as bad as they can be//  --Choosing the right software can be time-consuming at best and confusing or frustrating at worst .//\n  6  do your/his/her/their worst:  used to say that someone can try to harm you but they will not be able to//  --They can do their worst now, because I’m leaving in three weeks.//\n  7  if the worst comes to the worst:   especially BrE if worst comes to worst  especially AmE //  if the situation develops in the worst possible way//  --If the worst comes to the worst, we’ll sell the car.//\nworst 3 adv [the superlative of badly] \n  1 most badly:    best//  --Aid is being sent to areas that have been worst affected by the earthquake.//  --the worst-dressed man in the office//\n  2  worst of all:  used to say what is the worst part of a situation//  --She had no office of her own and, worst of all, she didn’t even have her own computer.//


Words: worsted
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1200-1300; Origin: Worsted (now  Worstead) village in Norfolk, England]//  a type of woollen cloth//


Words: worth
Meaning:
prep   [Language: Old English; Origin: weorth  ’worthy, of a particular value’]//\n  1  be worth sth:  a) to have a value in money//  --The house must be worth quite a lot of money now.//  --One of the pictures is worth [hA124]50,000.//  --Do you know how much the ring is worth ?//  --This art collection is worth a fortune  (=worth a very large amount of money) .//  be worth nothing/not be worth anything //  --It’s a very old machine so I shouldn’t think it’s worth anything.//  b) to have money or possessions that have value//  --I’ve heard that he’s worth over $2 million.//  --The man who founded the company must be worth a fortune .//\n  2  be worth (doing) sth:  a) used to say that something is interesting, useful, or helpful//  --A lot of the small towns in the area are definitely worth visiting.//  --The film is well worth seeing.//  worth a trip/visit etc //  --The local museum is worth a visit.//  b) used to say that someone should do something because they will gain something from it//  it is worth doing sth//  --It’s worth checking the details of the contract before you sign it.//  -- It’s well worth getting there early if you want a good seat.//  be worth the time/effort/work //  --It was a great evening, and definitely worth all the hard work.//\n  3  be worth it:   informal used to say that you gain something from an action//  --It was a lot of hard work, but it was worth it .//\n  4  be not worth it:   informal used to say that you do not gain anything from an action//  --I thought about trying to talk to him about it, but decided it wasn’t worth it .//\n  5  be worth sb’s while (to do/doing sth):   spoken used to say that someone should spend time or money on something because they will gain something from it//  -- It might be worth your while to talk to the head of department.//  --Some people feel it’s not worth their while working if they can get money from the state.//\n  6  make it worth sb’s while:   spoken to offer something to someone so that they will do something for you//  --He promised to make it worth our while.//\n  7  what’s it worth (to you)?:   spoken used humorously to ask someone how they will reward you if you do something for them//\n  8  for what it’s worth:   spoken used when you are giving someone information, to say that you are not sure how useful it is//  --Here’s the list of names, for what it’s worth.//\n  9  for all you are/he is etc worth:  with as much effort as possible//  --He was pulling the rope for all he was worth.//\n  10  worth his/her salt:  doing their job well or deserving respect//  --Any player worth his salt would love to play for his country.//  ----------//  GRAMMAR //  Use worth  followed by an amount to say how much money people would pay for something :  a necklace worth $10,000 //  !! Worth is never a verb : The house is worth (NOT The house worths) over a million pounds. //  WORD CHOICE:worth, value //  Worth can be used as a noun to talk about how much money something is worth, but it is more usual to use value : The value of the property has doubled. |  The current value of the car is about [hA124]1,000. //  Worth  and  value can be used as nouns to talk about how good or useful someone or something is : He has demonstrated his worth/value to the company. //  ----------//\nworth 2 W3 n [U]   [Language: Old English; Origin: weorth]//\n  1  ten pounds’ worth/$500 worth etc of sth:  an amount of something worth ten pounds, $500 etc//  --a chance to win [hA124]2000 worth of computing equipment//  --The fire caused thousands of pounds’ worth of damage.//\n  2  ten minutes’ worth/a week’s worth etc of sth:  something that takes ten minutes, a week etc to happen, do, or use//  --We had only three days’ worth of food left.//\n  3 how good or useful something is or how important it is to people:   value//  --The new computer system has already proved its worth.//\n  4 how much money something is worth:   value//  --It is difficult to estimate the current worth of the company.//


Words: worthless
Meaning:
adj \n  1 something that is worthless has no value, importance, or use:  → valuable//  --The house was full of worthless junk.//  --The information was worthless to me.//\n  2 a worthless person has no good qualities or useful skills:  --His parents had made him feel worthless.//  -- worthlessness n  [U] //  --She struggled to overcome her feelings of worthlessness.//


Words: worthwhile
Meaning:
S3   adj   if something is worthwhile, it is important or useful, or you gain something from it//  --He wanted to do a worthwhile job.//  --We decided to give the money to a worthwhile cause  (=one that helps people) .//  it is worthwhile to do sth//  --I thought it was worthwhile to clarify the matter.//  it is worthwhile doing sth//  --It wasn’t worthwhile continuing with the project.//


Words: worthy
Meaning:
adj \n  1 [only before noun] deserving respect from people:  --Leeds United were worthy winners of the competition.//  --a worthy opponent//\n  2  be worthy of sth:  to deserve to be thought about or treated in a particular way//  --A couple of other books are worthy of mention.//  --a teacher who is worthy of respect//\n  3  be worthy of sb:   informal to be as good as something that a particular person would do//  --a goal that was worthy of any of the great footballers of the world//\n  4  I’m/We’re not worthy:   spoken used humorously to say that you consider it a great honour to be with someone because they are famous, or much more skilful at doing something than you are//\n  5  formal trying to help other people:  --The money will go to a worthy cause.//  --I’m sure his motives were worthy.//\nworthy 2   plural  worthies  n [C] //   informal someone who is important and should be respected//  --We were met by a group of local worthies.//


Words: would
Meaning:
modal v    negative short form  wouldn’t //  ----------//\n   1 past intentions/expectations:\n   2 imagined situations:\n   3 past habits:\n   4 requesting:\n   5 offering/inviting:\n   6 what somebody wants:\n   7 past purpose:\n   8 would not:\n   9 advice:\n  10 I would think/imagine/say:\n  11 typical behaviour:\n  12 would that ...:  ----------//  [Language: Old English; Origin: wolde]//\n  1 PAST INTENTIONS/EXPECTATIONS:  used to say what someone intended to do or expected to happen//  --They said they would meet us at 10.30 at the station.//  --She said she wouldn’t be coming to the library any more.//  --Arnold knew he would be tired the next day.//  --It would soon be dark.//\n  2 IMAGINED SITUATIONS:  a) used when talking about a possible situation that you imagine or want to happen//  --What would you do if you won a million pounds?//  --I’d be amazed if I got the job.//  --I wish they’d come and visit us.//  --If only he would listen to me.//  b) used when talking about something that did not happen, or a situation that cannot exist//  --Everything would be very different if your father were still alive.//  --I would have phoned you, but there wasn’t time.//  --Alex would never have found out if you hadn’t told him.//  --What would have happened if I hadn’t been here?//\n  3 PAST HABITS:  used to say that something happened often or regularly in the past//  --When we worked in the same office, we would often have coffee together.//  --On summer evenings they would sit out in the garden.//\n  4 REQUESTING:   spoken used to ask someone politely to do something//  --Would you shut the window, please?//  --Would you mind waiting outside?//  --Would someone please tell me what is going on?//\n  5 OFFERING/INVITING:   spoken used to offer something to someone or invite them somewhere politely//  --Would you like a coffee?//  --We’re going to the theatre this evening. Would you be interested in coming?//\n  6 WHAT SOMEBODY WANTS:   spoken used to say that someone wants something or wants to do something//  would like/love/prefer //  --Yes, please, I’d love a coffee.//  --My parents would like to meet you.//  --Claudia would have liked to refuse (=wanted to refuse) , but she didn’t dare.//  -- I’d hate  (=I do not want) to disappoint you.//  would rather/sooner (=used to say what someone prefers) //  --I’d rather stay in this evening, if that’s all right with you.//\n  7 PAST PURPOSE:  used after ’so that’ to show that someone was trying to make something happen or prevent something//  --We packed all the books in wooden boxes so that they wouldn’t get damaged.//\n  8  would not:  a) used to say that someone refused to do something//  --He wouldn’t give us any money.//  b) used to say that something did not happen, even though someone was trying to make it happen//  --The door wouldn’t open, no matter how hard she pushed.//\n  9 ADVICE:   spoken used when giving or asking for advice//  --I’d try to get there early if you can.//  -- I would talk to the doctor if I were you .//  --What would you do if you were in my position?//\n  10  I would think/imagine/say:   spoken used to give your opinion about something when you are not very sure about it//  --I would think you’d be happier in a different school.//  --’Will it cost a lot?’ ’I would imagine so.’//\n  11 TYPICAL BEHAVIOUR:   spoken used to say that an action is typical or expected - usually used to show disapproval//  --You would go and spoil it, wouldn’t you!//  --She insists that she did nothing wrong, but then she would say that, wouldn’t she?//\n  12  would that ...:   literary used to express a strong wish or desire//   if only//  --Would that we had seen her before she died.//


Words: would-be
Meaning:
adj   would-be actor/murderer etc//  someone who hopes to have a particular job or intends to do a particular thing//


Words: wound
Meaning:
the past tense and past participle of wind2//\nwound 2   n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin: wund]//\n  1 an injury to your body that is made by a weapon such as a knife or a bullet:  --A nurse cleaned and bandaged the wound.//  --It took several months for his wounds to heal .//  suffer/receive a wound //  --Several of the victims suffered severe stab wounds.//  head/leg etc wound //  --He was treated in hospital for head wounds.//  stab/knife/gunshot wound //  --He died of gunshot wounds.//  --The doctor said it was only a flesh wound  (=one that does not cut the skin very deeply) .//  --a gaping wound  (=one that is wide and open) on his thigh//\n  2 a feeling of emotional or mental pain that you get when someone says or does something unpleasant to you:  --It will take much longer for the mental wounds to heal .//\n  3  open old wounds:  to remind someone of unpleasant things that happened in the past//    lick your wounds at lick1 (6)//    rub salt into the wound at rub1 (6)//  ----------//  HINT //  Do not confuse with wound , the past tense and past participle of the verb wind , which has a different pronunciation //  ----------//\nwound 3 v [T] \n  1 to injure someone with a knife, gun etc:  --Gunmen killed two people and wounded six others in an attack today.//  be badly/seriously/critically etc wounded //  --Five people were killed and many others were seriously wounded in the attack.//  be mortally/fatally wounded (=be wounded so badly that you die)  see usage note  damage2 //\n  2 to make someone feel unhappy or upset:  --I was deeply wounded by his comments.//  --He made some very wounding remarks.//


Words: wounded
Meaning:
adj \n  1 injured by a weapon such as a gun or knife:  --a wounded soldier//\n  2 very upset because of something that someone has said or done:  --It was only wounded pride that stopped him from apologizing.//\n  3  the wounded:  people who have been injured, especially in a war//  --providing medical care for the wounded//


Words: Wounded Knee
Meaning:
Battle of   the last important battle between the US army and the Native Americans, which took place at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota. US soldiers killed almost 200 Sioux people, including women and children, and the battle brought an end to the  Indian Wars.//


Words: wow
Meaning:
interjection  informal   [Date: 1500-1600; Origin:  Natural sound]//  used when you think something is very impressive or surprising//  --’Wow! Look at that!’//\nwow 2 v [T]    informal to make people admire you a lot//   impress//  --The show has wowed audiences all over the country.//\nwow 3 n [singular]    informal a great success//


Words: wrangle
Meaning:
n [C]   a long and complicated argument//  wrangle over//  --a bitter wrangle over copyright//  wrangle with//  --He was involved in a long legal wrangle with his employers.//\nwrangle 2 v   [Date: 1300-1400; Origin:  Perhaps from  Low German wrangeln  ’to fight, make a disturbance’]//  [I] to argue with someone angrily for a long time//  wrangle over/about//  --They are still wrangling over ownership of the house.//  wrangle with//  --The various government departments are wrangling with each other.//


Words: Wranglers
Meaning:
trademark   a type of  jeans, made by a US company called Wrangler, which also produces other kinds of informal clothes//  --a pair of Wranglers//


Words: wrap
Meaning:
S3   v   past tense and past participle  wrapped present participle  wrapping  [T] //\n  1  also wrap up :  to put paper or cloth over something to cover it//  wrap sth in sth//  --The present was beautifully wrapped in gold paper.//  wrap sth around sb/sth//  --Ella wrapped a thick coat around her shoulders.//  --He wrapped a bandage around my injured wrist.//  --I’ve still got a few Christmas presents to wrap up.//\n  2 if you wrap your arms, legs, or fingers around something, you use them to hold it:  wrap sth around sb/sth//  --He wrapped his arms around her waist.//    wrap sb in cotton wool at cotton wool(2),  wrap sb around your little finger at finger1 (8)//  wrap up phr v//\n  1  wrap sth → up:  to put on warm clothes//  wrap up warm/well //  --Make sure you wrap up warm - it’s freezing.//  be wrapped up in sth//  --She was wrapped up in a thick winter coat.//\n  2  wrap sth → up:   informal to finish a job, meeting etc//  --We’re hoping to wrap up the negotiations this week.//\n  3  be wrapped up in sth:  to give so much of your attention to something that you do not have time for anything else//\nwrap 2 n \n  1 [C] a piece of thick cloth that a woman wears around her shoulders:    shawl//\n  2 [U] a type of thin clear plastic that is used to cover food:   clingfilm//\n  3  keep sth under wraps:  to keep something secret//  --The project has been kept under wraps for years.//\n  4 [C] a type of sandwich made with thin bread which is rolled around meat, vegetables etc:\n  5 [singular] the end of a day’s filming:  --OK everybody, it’s a wrap!//


Words: wrap-up
Meaning:
n [C]    AmE  informal a short report that repeats the main points, for example of a news broadcast//   round-up//


Words: wraparounds
Meaning:
n [plural]    sunglasses that are curved in such a way that they fit close to your face, from one ear to the other//


Words: wrapper
Meaning:
n [C]   the piece of paper or plastic that covers something when it is sold//  --old sweet wrappers//


Words: wrapping
Meaning:
n [U and C]   the cloth, paper, or plastic that is wrapped around something to protect it//  --I finally managed to get the plastic wrapping off.//


Words: wrath
Meaning:
n [U]   [Language: Old English; Origin: wr[zB024]ththo, from  wrath  ’angry’]//   formal extreme anger//  --He was scared of incurring his father’s wrath .//


Words: wreak
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  wreaked  or  wrought /r[hA350][hA359]t $ r[hA361][hA359]t///  [Language: Old English; Origin: wrecan  ’to drive out, punish’]//\n  1  wreak havoc/mayhem/destruction (on sth):  to cause a lot of damage or problems//  --These policies have wreaked havoc on the British economy.//\n  2  wreak revenge/vengeance (on sb):   formal to do something unpleasant to someone to punish them for something they have done to you//  --He promised to wreak vengeance on those who had betrayed him.//


Words: wreath
Meaning:
n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin: writha]//\n  1 a circle made from leaves or flowers that you put on the place where a person is buried:  --The prime minister laid a wreath at the war memorial.//\n  2 a circle of leaves or flowers that people use to decorate their houses at Christmas:\n  3 a circle made from leaves that a person wore on their head in the past as a sign of honour:  --a laurel wreath//


Words: wreathe
Meaning:
v  literary   [Date: 1500-1600; Origin:  Partly from  wreath; partly from  wrethen, old past participle of  writhe]//\n  1  be wreathed in sth:  to be covered in something//  --The mountains were wreathed in mist.//\n  2  be wreathed in smiles:  to be smiling and look very happy//  --His plump face was wreathed in smiles.//


Words: wreck
Meaning:
v [T]   ----------//\n   1 spoil:\n   2 damage:\n   3 destroy a ship:  ----------//\n  1 SPOIL:  to completely spoil something so that it cannot continue in a successful way//   ruin//  --Injury threatened to wreck his sporting career.//  --It was drink that wrecked their marriage.//\n  2 DAMAGE:  to damage something such as a building or vehicle so badly that it cannot be repaired//  --The car was completely wrecked in the accident.//\n  3 DESTROY A SHIP:  if a ship is wrecked, it is badly damaged and sinks//  --The ship was wrecked off the coast of Africa.//\nwreck 2 n [C]   ----------//\n   1 car/plane:\n   2 ship:\n   3 person:\n   4 accident:\n   5 place:\n   6 old car:  ----------//  [Date: 1200-1300; Language: Anglo-French; Origin: wrek, from a  Scandinavian language]//\n  1 CAR/PLANE:  a car, plane, or train that has been damaged very badly, especially in a crash//  --He was still alive when they pulled him from the wreck.//\n  2 SHIP:  a ship that has sunk//   shipwreck//  wreck of//  --Divers discovered the wreck of an old German warship.//\n  3 PERSON:   informal someone who is very nervous, tired, or unhealthy//  --He looked a complete wreck.//  nervous/emotional wreck //  --The attack had left her an emotional wreck.//\n  4 ACCIDENT:   AmE an accident involving cars or other vehicles//   crash//  car/train/plane wreck //  --My father died in a car wreck.//\n  5 PLACE:  a place that is very untidy//  --When you’re here, this place is a wreck!//\n  6 OLD CAR:   informal an old car that is in a very bad condition//


Words: wreckage
Meaning:
n [singular, U] \n  1 the parts of something such as a plane, ship, or building that are left after it has been destroyed in an accident:  --Firemen managed to pull some survivors from the wreckage.//  wreckage of//  --Accident investigators will examine the wreckage of the plane.//\n  2 the parts of someone’s relationships, hopes, or plans that remain after they have been spoiled:  wreckage of//  --She still hoped to salvage something from the wreckage of her marriage.//


Words: wrecker
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 someone who deliberately destroys something:  --She accused him of being a marriage wrecker.//\n  2  AmE a vehicle that is used to take away damaged cars after an accident:


Words: Wren
Meaning:
a member of the  WRNS//\n Sir Christopher   (1632-1723) an English architect who built many churches in London, including  Saint Paul’s Cathedral, and other buildings in the UK, such as the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford//


Words: wrench
Meaning:
v   [Language: Old English; Origin: wrencan]//\n  1 [T always + adverb/preposition] to twist and pull something roughly from the place where it is being held:  --I wrenched the packet from his grasp.//  --The door had been wrenched open.//\n  2  wrench yourself away/free:  to use your strength to pull yourself away from someone who is holding you//  --She managed to wrench herself free.//\n  3 [T] to hurt a joint in your body by twisting it:   sprain//  --I think I’ve wrenched my knee.//\nwrench 2 n   1 [C]  especially AmE a metal tool that you use for turning nuts//  British Equivalent:  spanner//\n  2 [singular] a strong feeling of sadness that you get when you leave a person or place that you love:  --Leaving New York had been a terrible wrench.//\n  3 [C usually singular] a twisting movement that pulls something violently:  --He grabbed the rope and gave it a wrench.//


Words: wrest
Meaning:
preposition]   [Language: Old English; Origin: wr[zB024]stan]//\n  1  formal to take power or influence away from someone, especially when this is difficult:  --They are fighting to wrest control of the party from the old leaders.//\n  2  literary to pull something away from someone violently:  --I managed to wrest the photograph from his grasp.//


Words: wrestle
Meaning:
v   [Language: Old English; Origin: wr[zB024]stlian, from  wr[zB024]stan;   WREST]//\n  1 [I and T] to fight someone by holding them and pulling or pushing them:  wrestle with//  --The two men wrestled with each other.//  --Police officers wrestled him to the ground .//\n  2 [I and T] to move something or try to move it when it is large, heavy, or difficult to move:  wrestle with//  --Ray continued to wrestle with the wheel.//\n  3  wrestle with sth:  to try to understand or find a solution to a difficult problem//  --I have been wrestling with this problem for quite some time.//


Words: wrestling
Meaning:
n [U]   a sport in which two people fight by holding each other and trying to make each other fall to the ground//


Words: wretch
Meaning:
n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin: wrecca  ’person driven out’]//\n  1 someone that you feel sorry for:  --He was a lonely, miserable wretch.//\n  2 someone you are annoyed with:  --Stop pulling my hair, you wretch!//


Words: wretched
Meaning:
adj   [Date: 1100-1200; Origin: wretch]//\n  1 someone who is wretched is very unhappy or ill, and you feel sorry for them:  --the poor, wretched girl//\n  2 if you feel wretched, you feel guilty and unhappy because of something bad that you have done:  --Guy felt wretched about it now.//\n  3 [only before noun] making you feel annoyed or angry:  --Where is that wretched boy?//\n  4  literary extremely bad or unpleasant:   miserable//  --I was shocked to see their wretched living conditions.//  -- wretchedly adv //  -- wretchedness n  [U] //


Words: wriggle
Meaning:
v   [Date: 1300-1400; Origin:  Probably from  Middle Low German wriggeln]//\n  1 [I] to twist your body from side to side with small quick movements:  --Stop wriggling and let me put your T-shirt on.//  wriggle under/through/into//  --He wriggled through the window.//  --The dog wriggled free and ran off.//\n  2 [T] to move a part of your body backwards and forwards with small movements:  --She took off her shoes and wriggled her toes.//  -- wriggly adj //  --a wriggly worm//  wriggle out of [wriggle out of sth] phr v//\n  1 to avoid doing something by using clever excuses:   get out of something//  --Don’t try to wriggle out of your responsibilities.//\n  2 to take off a tight piece of clothing by twisting your body from side to side:  --She wriggled out of her dress.//\nwriggle 2 n [C]   a movement in which you twist your body from side to side//


Words: Wright
Meaning:
Frank Lloyd   (1869-1959) a US  architect who most people regard as the most important US architect of the 20th century. He is famous for his use of modern materials and methods, in buildings such as the  Guggenheim Museum in New York.//\n Richard   (1908-1960) a black US writer of  novels and a  critic of American society and its treatment of black people. He is best known for Black Boy and Native Son.//


Words: Wright Brothers
Meaning:
the   two US brothers, Orville Wright (1871-1948) and Wilbur Wright (1867-1912), who built and flew the world’s first plane in 1903, at Kitty Hawk in North Carolina//


Words: wring
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  wrung /r[hA356][hA26E]/ [T] //  [Language: Old English; Origin: wringan]//\n  1 [always + adverb/preposition] to succeed in getting something from someone, but only after a lot of effort:   squeeze//  wring sth from/out of sb//  --They are always trying to wring additional funds from the government.//  --I managed to wring the information out of him.//\n  2  also wring out :  to tightly twist a wet cloth or wet clothes in order to remove water//\n  3  wring your hands:  to rub and twist your hands together because you are worried and upset//\n  4  wring sb’s hand:  to shake hands very firmly with someone//\n  5  wring sth’s neck:  to kill a small animal by twisting its neck//\n  6  I’ll wring sb’s neck:   spoken used when you are very angry with someone//  --I’ll wring her neck when I get hold of her!//\n  7  wringing wet:  extremely wet//  --This jacket’s wringing wet!//


Words: wringer
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 a machine with two parts that roll over each other and press on wet clothes to remove water:   mangle//\n  2  go through the wringer:   AmE  informal to have a lot of problems and upsetting experiences//  --She’s really been through the wringer since her husband died.//


Words: wrinkle
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1300-1400; Origin: wrinkled  ’twisted, winding’ (14-16 centuries), probably from  Old English gewrinclian  ’to wind’]//\n  1 wrinkles are lines on your face and skin that you get when you are old:  --Her face was a mass of wrinkles.//\n  2 a small untidy fold in a piece of clothing or paper:   crease//  --She walked over to the bed and smoothed out the wrinkles.//\n  3  iron out the wrinkles:  to solve the small problems in something//  -- wrinkly adj //  --her thin, wrinkly face//\nwrinkle 2 v \n  1 [I and T]  also wrinkle up :  if you wrinkle a part of your face, or if it wrinkles, small lines appear on it//  --Alex wrinkled up her nose at the smell.//  --Carter wrinkled his forehead in concentration.//  --His brow wrinkled when he saw us.//\n  2 [I] if a piece of clothing wrinkles, it gets small untidy folds in it:   crease//  --The trouble with linen is that it wrinkles so easily.//


Words: wrinkly
Meaning:
n   plural  wrinklies  [C] //   BrE  informal  not polite an offensive word for someone who is old//


Words: wrist
Meaning:
S3   n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin:]//  the part of your body where your hand joins your arm//  on/around your wrist//  --She had a gold watch on her wrist.//


Words: wristband
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 a band that some tennis players wear around their wrists:\n  2 a band with your name on it that you wear around your wrist, for example in a hospital:


Words: writ
Meaning:
n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin:]//  a document from a court that orders someone to do or not to do something//  --He issued a writ against the newspaper.//  --The company has been served with a writ for damages.//    Holy Writ//\nwrit 2 adj   [Date: 1400-1500; Origin:  Old past participle of  write]//  writ large//   literary //  a) very easy to notice//  --I could see the curiosity writ large on Rose’s face.//  b) in a very clear strong form//  --This is an example of bureaucracy writ large.//


Words: write
Meaning:
v   past tense  wrote /r[hA353][hA35E]t $ ro[hA35E]t///  past participle  written /r[hA366]tn///  ----------//\n   1 book/article/poem etc:\n   2 letter:\n   3 form words:\n   4 state something:\n   5 music/song:\n   6 computer program:\n   7 a computer records something:\n   8 cheque/document etc:\n   9 pen :\n  10 have something/be written all over your face:\n  11 have something written all over it:\n  12 nothing to write home about:\n  13 somebody wrote the book on something:\n  14 that’s all she wrote:  Phrasal verbs//   write away for something//   write back//   write something → down//   write in//   write something into something//   write off//   write somebody/something → out//   write something → up//  ----------//  [Language: Old English; Origin: writan  ’to scratch, draw, write’]//\n  1 BOOK/ARTICLE/POEM ETC:  a)  [I and T] to produce a new book, article, poem etc//  --He wrote some very famous books.//  --Who wrote ’Harry Potter’?//  --I can’t come with you - I have an essay to write.//  write about//  --O’Brien often writes about her native Ireland.//  well/badly/poorly etc written //  --The article is very well written.//  b)  [I] someone who writes earns money by writing books, plays, articles etc//  --Sean decided he wanted to write, and quit his job.//  write for//  --Maureen Dowd writes for the New York Times.//\n  2 LETTER:   [I and T] to write a letter to someone//  write to//  --I’ve written to my MP, and to the city council.//  write sb//   AmE //  --Chris hasn’t written me for a long time.//  --I wrote her several letters , but she didn’t reply.//\n  3 FORM WORDS:   [I and T] to form letters or numbers with a pen or pencil//  --Kerry could read and write when she was five.//\n  4 STATE SOMETHING:   [T] to state something in a book, letter, advertisement etc, or on a label//  write (that)//  --Isabella wrote that she was dying, and asked him to visit her for the last time.//  be written on sth//  --The price is written on the label.//\n  5 MUSIC/SONG:   [T] to write a piece of music or a song//  --Mozart wrote the music.//  --The song was originally written by Leonard Cohen.//\n  6 COMPUTER PROGRAM:   [T] to make a program for a computer to use//  --He writes software programs for financial institutions.//\n  7 A COMPUTER RECORDS SOMETHING:   [I and T] if a computer writes something, it records it on a disk or in its memory//  write to/onto//  --data that had been written to disk//\n  8 CHEQUE/DOCUMENT ETC:   also write out //   [T] to write information on a cheque, form etc//  --Wouldn’t it be easier if I just wrote a cheque for the lot?//  --The doctor wrote me a prescription for sleeping pills.//\n  9 PEN :   [I] if a pen writes, it works properly//  --Do any of these pens write?//\n  10  have sth/be written all over your face:  to show very clearly what you are feeling or thinking//  --He had guilt written all over his face.//  --I know you’re lying, Tyrell - it’s written all over your face.//\n  11  have sth written all over it:  to show a particular quality or fact very clearly//  --This awful film has ’career-killer’ written all over it for the actors involved.//\n  12  nothing to write home about:   informal not particularly good or special//  --The hotel was good, but the food was nothing to write home about.//\n  13  sb wrote the book on sth:   spoken used to say that someone knows a lot about a subject or is very good at an activity//  --Motorola wrote the book on quality control.//\n  14  that’s all she wrote:   AmE  spoken used to mean that you cannot stop what happens next in a situation, especially when it is bad//  write away for [write away for sth] phr v//  to write a letter to a company or organization asking them to send you goods or information//  --I’ve written away for their free catalog.//  write back phr v//  to reply to a letter that someone sent you, by writing a letter to them//  --I sent them a card once, but they never wrote back.//  write back to//  --I wrote back to them immediately, thanking them for their kind invitation.//  write down [write sth → down] phr v//\n  1 to write something on a piece of paper:  --This is the address. Do you want to write it down?//\n  2 to officially say that a debt no longer has to be paid, or officially accept that you cannot get back money you have spent or lost:   write off//  write in phr v//\n  1 to write a letter to an organization to give an opinion, ask for information etc:  --If you would like a copy of our fact sheet, please write in, enclosing a stamped addressed envelope.//  write in to//  --And so I wrote in to Radio Brighton.//\n  2  write sth → in:  to write a piece of information in the space provided for it on a form or document//  --Provide some space for students to write in their hobbies.//\n  3  write sb → in:   AmE to add someone’s name to the official list on your voting form, to show that you want to vote for them//  --The campaign to write in Johnson for governor failed.//    write-in//  write into [write sth into sth] phr v//  to add or include something in a contract, agreement etc//  --It was written into his contract that he had to make two records a year.//  write off phr v//\n  1 to write a letter to a company or organization asking them to send you goods or information:   send off, write away//  write off for//  --Are you going to write off for that free poster?//\n  2  write sb/sth → off:  to decide that someone or something is useless, unimportant, or a failure//   dismiss//  write somebody/something → off as//  --After six months of work, we eventually wrote the project off as a non-starter.//    write-off//\n  3  write sth → off:  to officially say that a debt no longer has to be paid, or officially accept that you cannot get back money you have spent or lost//  --The United States agreed to write off debts worth billions of dollars.//  --The Inland Revenue wrote off [hA124]900 million in unpaid taxes.//\n  4  write sth → off:  to make an official record of the amount of money that you have spent on things relating to your business, in order to reduce the amount of tax that you have to pay//  write something → off against//  --The costs of setting up a business can be written off against tax.//\n  5  write sth → off:   BrE to damage a vehicle so badly that it can never be used again//  --At thirteen he stole a car and wrote it off.//    write-off//  write out [write sb/sth → out] phr v//\n  1 to write something on paper, especially in a neat and clear way, including all the necessary details:  --The children were asked to choose their favourite poem and write it out in their best handwriting.//\n  2 to write information on a cheque or a form:  --She calmly wrote out a check for $500 and handed it to Will.//\n  3 to remove a character from a regular radio or television programme, by making him or her leave or die in the story:  write somebody/something → out of//  --It was revealed last week that Alma is being written out of the series.//  write up [write sth → up] phr v//\n  1 to write a report, article etc using notes that you made earlier:  --I have to write up my report before the meeting.//\n  2 to write something on a wall, board etc where people can see it:  --The teacher repeated the word, and then wrote it up on the blackboard.//\n  3  be written up:  if something is written up in a newspaper, magazine etc, someone describes what it is like and gives their opinion of it//  --We’re going to a Spanish restaurant that was written up in Time Out’s good food guide.//    write-up//  ----------//  WORD FOCUS: write //  quickly: jot down,  dash off //  in a way that is difficult to read: scribble,  scrawl //  write information on an official form: fill in/fill out //  write a word correctly: spell //  start to write: put pen to paper //  ----------//


Words: write-off
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1  BrE a vehicle that has been so badly damaged that it can never be used again:  --The car was a complete write-off.//\n  2 a period of time when you fail to achieve anything:  --This morning was a complete write-off.//\n  3 an official agreement that someone does not have to pay a debt:


Words: write-up
Meaning:
n [C]   a written opinion about a new book, play, or product in a newspaper, magazine etc//   review//  --The play got a really good write-up  (=it was praised) in the press.//


Words: writer
Meaning:
W2S3   n [C] \n  1 someone who writes books, stories etc, especially as a job:    author, playwright//  --a science-fiction writer//  writer on//  --a well-known writer on astrology//  writer of//  --a writer of children’s stories//\n  2 someone who has written something or who writes in a particular way:  --He’s always been a sloppy writer.//  writer of//  --the writer of the previous message on this topic//


Words: writhe
Meaning:
v [I]   [Language: Old English; Origin: writhan  ’to twist’]//  to twist your body from side to side violently, especially because you are suffering pain//  writhe in pain/agony etc //  --He lay writhing in pain.//


Words: writing
Meaning:
W3S2   n [U] \n  1 words that have been written or printed:  --What does the writing on the back say?//  --a T-shirt with Japanese writing on it//\n  2 books, poems, articles etc, especially those by a particular writer or about a particular subject:  --Some of his most powerful writing is based on his childhood experiences.//\n  3 the activity of writing books, stories etc:  --In 1991 she retired from politics and took up writing as a career.//  --a short story that stands out as a brilliant piece of writing //  --a class in creative writing  (=a subject studied at school or college, where you write your own stories, poems etc) //  travel/feminist/scientific etc writing //\n  4 the particular way that someone writes with a pen or pencil:   handwriting//  --Your writing is very neat.//\n  5 the skill of writing:  --At this age we concentrate on the children’s reading and writing skills.//\n  6  in writing:  if you get something in writing, it is official proof of an agreement, promise etc//  --Could you put that in writing , please?//\n  7  writings [plural] the books, stories etc that an important writer has written:  --Darwin’s scientific writings//\n  8  the writing is on the wall:   also see/read the writing on the wall //  used to say that it seems very likely that something will not exist much longer or someone will fail//  the writing is on the wall for//  --The writing is on the wall for old manufacturing industries.//


Words: written
Meaning:
the past participle of write//\nwritten 2 adj [only before noun] \n  1 recorded in writing:  --the development of written language.//  written agreement/reply/statement/report etc //  --Please send a cheque with written confirmation of your booking.//\n  2  written test/exam:  a test etc in which you have to write the answers//    oral//\n  3  the written word:   formal writing as a way of expressing ideas, emotions etc, as opposed to speaking//


Words: wrong
Meaning:
adj   ----------//\n   1 not correct:\n   2 be wrong (about somebody/something):\n   3 problems:\n   4 not the right one:\n   5 not morally right:\n   6 not suitable:\n   7 not working:\n   8 be the wrong way round/around:\n   9 the wrong way up:\n  10 take something the wrong way:\n  11 be in the wrong place at the wrong time:\n  12 get on the wrong side of somebody:\n  13 get on the wrong side of the law:\n  14 get off on the wrong foot:\n  15 get the wrong end of the stick:\n  16 be on the wrong track/tack:\n  17 be from the wrong side of the tracks:\n  18 be the wrong side of thirty/forty etc:\n  19 correct me if I’m wrong:\n  20 you’re not wrong:\n  21 fall/get into the wrong hands:  ----------//  [Date: 1100-1200; Language: Old Norse; Origin: rangr  ’not correct or as planned’]//\n  1 NOT CORRECT:  not correct, and not based on true facts//  → right//  --Your calculations must be wrong.//  --I think I got question 3 wrong .//  it is wrong to do sth//  --It is wrong to assume that technological advance brings a higher quality of life.//  --I wish you’d stop trying to prove me wrong  (=show that I am wrong) all the time.//\n  2  be wrong (about sb/sth):  to not be right in what you think or believe about someone or something//   mistaken//  → right//  --No, you’re wrong. Brett wouldn’t do a thing like that.//  --I was wrong about the new guy - he’s not Belgian, he’s French.//  -- That’s where you’re wrong ! We never slept together.//\n  3 PROBLEMS:  used to describe a situation where there are problems, or when someone is ill or unhappy//  there is sth wrong/sth is wrong //  --When he didn’t come back that night, I knew that something was wrong.//  wrong with//  -- What is wrong with our society? People just don’t seem to care any more.//  -- Is anything wrong? You haven’t said more than two words since you got here.//  --Dave’s got something wrong with his foot.//  --Don’t worry, there’s nothing wrong .//\n  4 NOT THE RIGHT ONE:  not the one that you intended or the one that you really want//  → right//  --The letter was delivered to the wrong address.//  --driving on the wrong side of the road//  --You’ve got the wrong man. I didn’t kill her.//  --I think we went the wrong way at that last turning.//  --There’s no-one called Julia here. You must have the wrong number  (=wrong telephone number) .//\n  5 NOT MORALLY RIGHT:  not morally right or acceptable//  → right//  it is wrong that//  --It’s wrong that people should have to sleep on the streets.//  it is wrong to do sth//  --We all accept that it is wrong to torture people.//  --We weren’t doing anything wrong !//  wrong with//  -- There’s nothing wrong with making a profit, provided you don’t cheat anyone.//\n  6 NOT SUITABLE:  not suitable for a particular purpose, situation, or person//  → right//  --It’s the wrong time of year to be planning a holiday.//  wrong for//  --Anna and I were wrong for each other in dozens of ways (=not suited for a romantic relationship with each other) .//\n  7 NOT WORKING:  if something is wrong with a vehicle or machine, it stops working properly//  wrong with//  -- There’s something wrong with the car again.//    go wrong at wrong2 (2)//\n  8  be the wrong way round/around:  a) to be in the wrong order//  --These two paragraphs are the wrong way round.//  b) if something is the wrong way round, the back is where the front should be//  --You’ve got your T-shirt on the wrong way around.//\n  9  the wrong way up:  if something is the wrong way up, the top is where the bottom should be//   upside down//  --The painting was hung the wrong way up.//\n  10  take sth the wrong way:  to be offended by a remark because you have understood it wrongly//  --I like you. Don’t take this the wrong way, now. I mean as a friend.//\n  11  be in the wrong place at the wrong time:   spoken to get involved in trouble without intending to//\n  12  get on the wrong side of sb:  to do something that gives someone a bad opinion of you, so that they do not like or respect you in the future//  --I wouldn’t like to get on the wrong side of her.//\n  13  get on the wrong side of the law:  to get into trouble with the police//\n  14  get off on the wrong foot:  to start a job, relationship etc badly by making a mistake that annoys people//\n  15  get the wrong end of the stick:   BrE  informal to understand a situation in completely the wrong way//  --Geoff had got the wrong end of the stick, and thought I was angry with him.//\n  16  be on the wrong track/tack:  to have the wrong idea about a situation so that you are unlikely to get the result you want//\n  17  be from the wrong side of the tracks:   AmE to be from a poor part of a town or a poor part of society//\n  18  be the wrong side of thirty/forty etc:   informal to be older than 30 etc//    get out of bed on the wrong side at bed1 (8)//\n  19  correct me if I’m wrong:  used as a polite way of saying that you think what you are going to say is correct//  -- Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t you say you were going to do it?//\n  20  you’re not wrong:   spoken used to agree with someone//  --’This government is ruining the country!’ ’You’re not wrong there!’//\n  21  fall/get into the wrong hands:  if something secret or dangerous falls into the wrong hands, it is discovered by someone who may use it to harm people//\nwrong 2 S2 adv \n  1 not in the correct way:  → right//  --You’ve spelt my name wrong.//  --What? Have I done it wrong ?//  --I asked him to sort those files, but he’s done it all wrong  (=in completely the wrong way) .//\n  2  go wrong:  a) to stop working properly//  -- Something’s gone wrong with my watch.//  b) to make a mistake during a process so that you do not get the right result//  --Follow these instructions and you can’t go wrong  (=you are sure to succeed) .//  c) to do something that makes a plan, relationship etc fail//  --Thinking back on the marriage, I just don’t know where we went wrong.//\n  3  get sth wrong:  to make a mistake in the way you write, judge, or understand something//  --This isn’t it. We must have got the address wrong.//  get/have it all wrong (=understand a situation in completely the wrong way) //  --No, no - you’ve got it all wrong! We’re just friends!//\n  4  don’t get me wrong:   spoken used when you think someone may understand your remarks wrongly, or be offended by them//  --Don’t get me wrong - I like Jenny.//\n  5  you can’t go wrong (with sth):   spoken used to say that a particular object will always be suitable, satisfactory, or work well//  --You can’t go wrong with a little black dress, can you?//    come out wrong at come out//\nwrong 3 n \n  1 [U] behaviour that is not morally right:  --He’s too young to know right from wrong .//  --Those who do wrong should be punished.//  sb can do no wrong (=they are perfect) //  --Nathan adored her, and she could do no wrong in his eyes.//\n  2 [C] an action, judgment, or situation that is unfair:  --The black population suffered countless wrongs at the hands of a racist regime.//  right a wrong (=bring justice to an unfair situation) //\n  3  be in the wrong:  to make a mistake or deserve the blame for something//  --Which driver was in the wrong?//\n  4  do sb wrong:  to treat someone badly and unfairly - used humorously//\n  5  two wrongs don’t make a right:   spoken used to say that if someone does something bad to you, you should not do something bad to them//\nwrong 4 v [T]    formal to treat or judge someone unfairly//  --Both sides felt that they had been wronged.//


Words: wrongfoot
Meaning:
v [T]   to surprise and embarrass someone, especially by asking a question they did not expect//  --Woo’s political skill and ability to wrongfoot the opposition//


Words: wrongful
Meaning:
adj   wrongful arrest/conviction/imprisonment/dismissal etc//  a wrongful arrest etc is unfair or illegal because the person affected by it has done nothing wrong//  --She’s threatening to sue her employers for wrongful dismissal.//  -- wrongfully adv //


Words: wrongheaded
Meaning:
adj   used to describe an idea, plan, or belief that someone has, that is based on wrong ideas that they are not willing to change//  -- wrongheadedly adv //  -- wrongheadedness n  [U] //


Words: wrongly
Meaning:
adv \n  1 not correctly or in a way that is not based on facts:  → rightly//  --Matthew was wrongly diagnosed as having a brain tumour.//  --His name had been wrongly spelt.//\n  2 in a way that is unfair or immoral:  → rightly//  --Human rights organizations maintain that the men have been wrongly convicted.//    rightly or wrongly at rightly//


Words: WRT
Meaning:
the written abbreviation of with regard to , used in email or by people communicating in chat rooms on the Internet//


Words: WRVS
Meaning:
the   the Women’s Royal Voluntary Service a British organization of women who help people who have difficulty taking care of themselves. The WRVS provides  Meals on Wheels, a service which brings meals to people who cannot cook because they are very old or very ill. The women who work for the WRVS are  volunteers (=they are not paid for their work) .//


Words: wry
Meaning:
adj [only before noun]   [Date: 1500-1600; Origin: wry  ’to twist’ (14-19 centuries), from  Old English wrigian  ’to turn’]//  a wry expression or wry humour shows that you know a situation is bad, but you also think it is slightly amusing//  --’Was it as bad as you expected?’ Travis gave a wry smile.//  -- wryly adv //


Words: wunderkind
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: German; Origin: ’wonder-child’]//  a young person who is very successful//    child prodigy//


Words: wuss
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  Perhaps from  wimp +   PUSSY2]//   spoken someone who you think is weak or lacks courage//


Words: Wuthering Heights
Meaning:
a novel by the British writer Emily  Bront[hA16C], one the the best-known books in English literature. It is a romantic and exciting story, set on the  Yorkshire Moors, about the love between the two main characters, Catherine Earnshaw and  Heathcliff.//


Words: Wycliffe
Meaning:
John   (?1328-84) an English  theologian (=someone who studies religion and religious beliefs)  who criticized the political and economic power of the Catholic Church. He also started the first complete translation of the Bible into English.//


Words: Wyeth
Meaning:
Andrew   (1917- ) a US painter whose best-known painting is ’Christina’s World’. His son Jamie Wyeth is also a painter.//


Words: Wynette
Meaning:
Tammy   (1942-98) a US  country and western singer whose songs include  D-I-V-O-R-C-E and  Stand by your Man, one of the most popular country and western songs ever made//


Words: Wyoming
Meaning:
WY a state in the  Rocky Mountains in the northwestern US. Although it covers a large area, it has the smallest population of any state in the US. It produces minerals,  beef, and wool.//


Words: WYSIWYG
Meaning:
n [U]   What You See Is What You Get a word used to mean that what you see on the computer screen is exactly what will be printed//


Words: wyvern
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1600-1700; Origin: wyver  ’viper, wyvern’ (14-17 centuries), from  Old North French wivre, from  Latin vipera;   VIPER]//  an imaginary animal that has two legs and wings and looks like a dragon//\nX 1  x/eks/ n   plural  X’s  x’s //  ----------//\n   1 letter:\n   2 number:\n   3 mathematics:\n   4 on school work:\n   5 when voting:\n   6 on a letter:\n   7 film:\n   8 unknown/secret name:\n   9 when signing your name:\n  10 X number of people/things:\n  11 X marks the spot:  ----------//\n  1 LETTER:   [U and C] the 24th letter of the English alphabet//\n  2 NUMBER:   [C] the number 10 in the system of roman numerals//\n  3 MATHEMATICS:   [U]  technical a letter used in mathematics to represent an unknown quantity or value//  --if 3x = 6, x = 2//\n  4 ON SCHOOL WORK:   [C] a mark used on school work to show that a written answer is not correct//\n  5 WHEN VOTING:   [C] a mark used to show that you have chosen something on an official piece of paper, for example when voting//\n  6 ON A LETTER:   [C] a mark used to show a kiss, especially at the end of a letter//  --Love, Cindy XXX//\n  7 FILM:   [singular, U] used in the past to describe a film that was officially approved as only suitable for people over 18//   18//    X-rated//\n  8 UNKNOWN/SECRET NAME:   [U] a letter used instead of someone’s or something’s real name because you want to keep it secret or you do not know it//  --At the trial, Ms X said that she had known the defendant for three years.//\n  9 WHEN SIGNING YOUR NAME:   [C] a mark used instead of a signature by someone who cannot write//\n  10  X number of people/things:  used to say that there are a number of people or things when the exact number is not important//\n  11  X marks the spot:  used on maps in adventure stories to show that something is buried in a particular place//\nX 2 v   X out [X  sth → out] phr v//   AmE to mark or remove a mistake in a piece of writing using an X//   cross out//


Words: X chromosome
Meaning:
n   [C] a type of chromosome that exists in pairs in female cells, and together with a Y chromosome in male cells//


Words: X-certificate
Meaning:
adj, n   an X-certificate film is one that people under 18 are not allowed to see in Britain because it contains sex or violence//    PG,  R2 ,  U1 (2)//


Words: X-Files
Meaning:
The   a popular US television  science fiction programme, also shown in the UK, whose main characters are two  FBI agents who have many exciting and frightening adventures in their attempts to solve strange mysteries involving  aliens (=creatures from other worlds)  and other  paranormal events//


Words: X-rated
Meaning:
adj   an X-rated film is one that people under 18 are not allowed to see because it includes sex or violence//


Words: Xanadu
Meaning:
an imaginary place that is very beautiful. The name comes from a place in the poem  Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor  Coleridge.//


Words: xenon
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Greek; Origin: xenos  ’strange’ (because it is rare)]//  a colourless gas that is found in very small quantities in the air. It is a chemical element: symbol Xe//


Words: xenophobia
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1900-2000; Language: Greek; Origin: xenos  ’strange’ +  phobos  ’fear’]//  strong fear or dislike of people from other countries//  -- xenophobic adj //


Words: Xenophon
Meaning:
(?430-354 BC) a Greek  historian (=someone who writes books about history)  and military leader whose best-known work, the  Anabasis, describes a long journey by a Greek army through enemy land in western Asia.//


Words: xenotransplant
Meaning:
n \n  1 [U and C] the operation of putting an organ from an animal into a person’s body:  --Doctors in Mississippi performed the world’s first heart xenotransplant.//\n  2 [C] the organ that is moved in a xenotransplant operation:  -- xenotransplant v  [T] //  -- xenotransplantation/zen[hA353][hA35E]tr[zB024]nspl[hA35A][hA359]nte[hA366][hA35D][hA368]n $ -no[hA35E]tr[zB024]nspl[zB024]n-/ n  [U] //  --health risks related to xenotransplantation//


Words: Xerox
Meaning:
n [C]    trademark a copy of a letter, document etc made using a special machine//   photocopy//  -- Xerox v  [T] //


Words: Xerox machine
Meaning:
n [C]    trademark a special electric machine used for making copies of written or printed material//   photocopier//


Words: XML
Meaning:
n [U]  technical   extensible markup language a way of writing a document on a computer so that its structure is clear, and so that it can easily be read on a different computer system//


Words: xylophone
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Greek; Origin: xylon  ’wood’ +  phone  ’voice, sound’]//  a musical instrument which consists of metal or wooden bars of different lengths that you hit with a special stick//    glockenspiel//


Words: Y
Meaning:
y/wa[hA366]/ n   plural  Y’s  y’s //  [U and C] the 25th letter of the English alphabet//    Y chromosome,  Y-fronts//


Words: y’all
Meaning:
pron  AmE  spoken   a word meaning ’all of you’, used mainly in the southern US states when speaking to more than one person//  --I’m going home now. See y’all later.//


Words: Y-fronts
Meaning:
n [plural]  BrE  trademark   men’s underwear which has a part at the front shaped like an upside down Y//


Words: yacht
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1500-1600; Origin:  Early modern  Dutch jaght, from  Middle Low German jachtschiff  ’hunting ship’]//  a large boat with a sail, used for pleasure or sport, especially one that has a place where you can sleep//    sailing boat, sailboat//


Words: yada yada yada
Meaning:
yadda yadda yadda/j[zB024]d[hA353] j[zB024]d[hA353] j[zB024]d[hA353]/ interjection  AmE  spoken   said when you do not want to give a lot of detailed information, because it is boring or because the person you are talking to already knows it//   blah, blah, blah//  --I started talking to her and - yada yada yada - it turns out she’s from New York too.//


Words: yahoo
Meaning:
interjection  spoken  informal   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From the sound of a happy shout]//  shouted when you are very happy or excited about something//\nyahoo 2   plural  yahoos  n [C] //  [Date: 1700-1800; Origin:  From the name of a race of human-like animals in Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels (1726)]//   old-fashioned someone who is rough, noisy, or rude//  --a bunch of time-wasting yahoos//


Words: Yahoo!
Meaning:
trademark   a type of  search engine (=a computer  program used for searching for information on the Internet), which also provides other information such as news, city maps, and shopping//


Words: yak
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1700-1800; Language: Tibetan; Origin: gyak]//  an animal of central Asia that looks like a cow with long hair//\nyak 2   past tense and past participle  yakked present participle  yakking  v [I] //  [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From the sound of continuous talk]//   informal to talk continuously about things that are not very serious, in a way that is annoying//


Words: Yale
Meaning:
an old and respected US university, established in 1701 in New Haven, Connecticut. Yale is one of the  Ivy League colleges.//


Words: Yale lock
Meaning:
also Yale  trademark   a type of lock often used on the main door of a house or building. Yale locks are very common in the UK and they have a special type of key.//


Words: Yalta
Meaning:
1 a port and city on the Black Sea in the Ukraine, popular with tourists:\n  2 the Yalta Conference :  a meeting held at Yalta in 1945 between  Churchill,  Roosevelt, and  Stalin, which greatly influenced the history of Europe after World War II. The three leaders discussed how to finish the war against Hitler’s Germany, and how central and eastern Europe should be divided after the war. They also agreed to set up the  United Nations.//


Words: yam
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1500-1600; Language: Portuguese; Origin: inhame and  Spanish [hA172]ame, from a  West African language]//\n  1 a tropical climbing plant grown for its root, which is eaten as a vegetable:\n  2  AmE a type of sweet potato:


Words: yammer
Meaning:
v  also yammer on  [I]   [Date: 1400-1500; Origin: yomer  ’to talk quietly, be sad’ (12-15 centuries), from  Old English geomrian]//   informal to talk continuously in a way that is annoying//  --a crowd of yammering aunts and cousins//


Words: yang
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1600-1700; Language: Chinese; Origin: ’sun, positive’]//  the male principle in Chinese philosophy which is active, light, and positive, and which combines with yin (=the female principle)  to influence everything in the world//


Words: Yangtze
Meaning:
the Yangtze//   the Chang Jiang//  the third longest river in the world, at 5,526 km or 3,434 miles long, and China’s most important river//


Words: Yank
Meaning:
n  also Yankee  [C]  BrE  informal   [Date: 1700-1800; Origin: Yankee]//  an American - often used to show disapproval//


Words: yank
Meaning:
v [I and T]    informal to suddenly pull something quickly and with force//  yank sth out/back/open etc//  --One of the men grabbed Tom’s hair and yanked his head back.//  --Nick yanked the door open.//  yank on/at//  --With both hands she yanked at the necklace.//  -- yank n  [C] //  --He gave the rope a yank .//


Words: Yankee
Meaning:
n [C]  informal   [Date: 1700-1800; Origin:  Perhaps from  Dutch Jantje  ’Johnny’, used as a word for Dutch people who came to America in the 18th century]//\n  1 a soldier who fought on the side of the Union (=the northern states) during the American Civil War:\n  2  AmE someone born in or living in the northern states of the US - sometimes used in an insulting way by people from the southern US:\n  3  BrE an American - often used to show disapproval:   Yank//\n  4  AmE someone from New England:


Words: Yankee Doodle
Meaning:
a US song which first became popular with American soldiers during the  American Revolutionary War and is now often sung by children. It begins: Yankee Doodle went to town,/Riding on a pony;/Stuck a feather in his hat,/And called it macaroni.//


Words: yap
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  yapped present participle  yapping  [I] //  [Date: 1800-1900; Origin:  From the sound]//\n  1 if a small dog yaps, it barks (=makes short loud sounds) in an excited way:\n  2  informal to talk in a noisy and annoying way:  --Some guy was yapping on his cell phone.//\nyap 2 n [C]   the sound a small dog makes when it yaps//


Words: yard
Meaning:
n [C]   ----------//\n   1 measure:\n   2 enclosed area:\n   3 garden:\n   4 back of house:  ----------//  [Sense: 1; Origin: Old English geard,  gierd  ’stick’]//  [Sense: 2-4; Origin: Old English geard  ’enclosed area’]//\n  1 MEASURE:   written abbreviation yd //  a unit for measuring length, equal to three feet or .91 metres//  --a hundred yards away//  --an area of 9000 square yards //\n  2 ENCLOSED AREA:  an enclosed area next to a building or group of buildings, used for a special purpose, activity, or business//  --a builder’s yard//  --a timber yard//  prison/school yard (=an area outside a prison or school where prisoners or students do activities outdoors) //\n  3 GARDEN:   AmE the area around a house, usually covered with grass//  British Equivalent:  garden//  front/back yard //  --The kids were playing in the back yard.//\n  4 BACK OF HOUSE:   BrE an enclosed area without grass at the back of a small house//    backyard//


Words: yard sale
Meaning:
n [C]    AmE a sale of used clothes and things from someone’s house which takes place in their yard//    garage sale//


Words: yardage
Meaning:
n  technical \n  1 [U] the number of yards that a team or player moves forward in a game of American football:\n  2 [U and C] the size of something measured in yards or square yards:  --a large yardage of sail//


Words: Yardie
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 someone from the West Indies:\n  2 a member of an organized group of West Indian criminals :


Words: yardstick
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 something that you compare another thing with, in order to judge how good or successful it is:  yardstick of//  --Profit is the most important yardstick of success for any business.//  as a yardstick//  --These subjects are used as a yardstick against which to measure the children’s progress.//\n  2 a special stick used for measuring things which is exactly one yard long:


Words: yarmulke
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Language: Yiddish; Origin: Ukrainian and  Polish jarmulka]//  a small circular cap worn by some Jewish men//


Words: yarn
Meaning:
n   [Language: Old English; Origin: gearn]//\n  1 [U] thick thread made of cotton or wool, which is used to knit things:\n  2 [C]  informal a story of adventures, travels etc, usually made more exciting and interesting by adding things that never really happened:  --The old captain would often spin  (=tell) us a yarn about life aboard ship.//


Words: yashmak
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Turkish; Origin: yasmak]//  a piece of cloth that Muslim women wear across their faces in public//


Words: yaw
Meaning:
v [I]    technical if a ship, aircraft etc yaws, it turns away from the direction it should be travelling in//  -- yaw n  [U and C] //


Words: yawn
Meaning:
v [I]   [Language: Old English; Origin: geonian]//\n  1 to open your mouth wide and breathe in deeply because you are tired or bored:  --Alan stretched and yawned.//\n  2  yawning gap/gulf/chasm (between sth):  a very large difference between two groups, things, or people//  --the yawning gap between the two parties//  --the yawning gulf between the rich and the poor//\n  3  literary to be or become wide open, especially in a frightening way:  --The pit yawned open in front of them.//  yawning gap/hole etc //  --the yawning gap between the two cliffs//\nyawn 2 n \n  1 [C] an act of yawning:  --Kay shook her head and stifled a yawn  (=tried to stop yawning) .//\n  2  a yawn:   informal someone or something that is boring//  --The party was a big yawn.//


Words: ye
Meaning:
pron  old use   [Language: Old English; Origin: ge]//  you - used especially when speaking to more than one person//  --Abandon hope all ye who enter here.//\nye 2 determiner   [Date: 1400-1500; Language: Old English; Origin: [hA221]e  ’the’]//  the - used in the names of shops and pubs to make them seem old//  --Ye Olde Antique Shoppe//


Words: yea
Meaning:
adv  old use   [Language: Old English; Origin: gea]//  yes//  → nay//\nyea 2 n [C]   a yes2//  → nay// //  (1923-) a US test pilot who in 1947 became the first person to break the sound barrier (=fly faster than the speed of sound) .//


Words: year
Meaning:
n [C]   ----------//\n   1 12 months:\n   2 january to december:\n   3 years:\n   4 all (the) year round:\n   5 year by year:\n   6 year after year/year in, year out:\n   7 period of life/history:\n   8 the school/academic year:\n   9 school/university level:\n  10 first/second etc year:\n  11 musician/player/car etc of the year:\n  12 never/not in a million years:\n  13 the year dot:\n  14 put years on somebody/take years off somebody:  ----------//  [Language: Old English; Origin: gear]//\n  1 12 MONTHS:  a period of about 365 days or 12 months, measured from any particular time//  --I arrived here two years ago.//  --We’ve known each other for over a year.//  --It’s almost a year since Sue died.//  --Jodi is 15 years old.//  --a three-year business plan//  --a four-year-old child//  be 12/21 etc years of age (=be 12/21 etc years old) //    financial year,  fiscal year,  light year,  tax year//\n  2 JANUARY TO DECEMBER:   also calendar year //  a period of 365 or 366 days divided into 12 months beginning on January 1st and ending on December 31st//  --the year that Kennedy died//  --at the end of the year//  --She goes there every year.//  --in the year 1785//  --this year’s cup final//  --The museum attracts 100,000 visitors a year.//  --in the early years of last century//    leap year,  new year//\n  3  years:  a)  informal a very long period of time//   ages//  -- It’s years since I rode a bike.//  in/for years//  --I haven’t been there for years.//  --It was the first time in years I’d seen her.//  b) age, especially old age//  a man/woman/person etc of his/her etc years //  --Gordon is very active for a man of his years.//  getting on in years (=no longer young) //\n  4  all (the) year round:  during the whole year//  --It’s warm enough to swim all year round.//    year-round//\n  5  year by year:  as each year passes//  --Business has steadily increased year by year.//\n  6  year after year/year in, year out:  every year for many years//  --Many birds return to the same spot year after year.//\n  7 PERIOD OF LIFE/HISTORY:  a particular period of time in someone’s life or in history//  sb’s childhood/early/teenage/retirement etc years //  --those who start to smoke in their teenage years//  the war/Depression/boom etc years //  --the boom years of the 1980’s//  sb’s years in/at sth//  --during his years in China//  sb’s years as sth//  --Sheila enjoyed her years as a student in Oxford.//  -- In later years he turned to writing poetry.//\n  8  the school/academic year:  the time within a period of 12 months when students are studying at a school or university//\n  9 SCHOOL/UNIVERSITY LEVEL:   especially BrE a particular level that a student stays at for one year//  --a group of year seven students//  in a year//  --He was in my year at school.//\n  10  first/second etc year:   BrE someone who is in their first etc year at school or university//  --The department offers a study skills programme for all first years.//\n  11  musician/player/car etc of the year:  the musician etc who was voted the best in a particular year//  vote/name sth ... of the year //  --The new Renault was voted car of the year.//\n  12  never/not in a million years:   spoken used to say that something is extremely unlikely//  --Never in a million years did I think we’d lose.//\n  13  the year dot:   BrE  informal a very long time ago//  --Scientists have been involved in war since the year dot .//\n  14  put years on sb/take years off sb:  to make someone look or feel older or younger//  --Tina’s divorce has put years on her.//    donkey’s years at donkey(2)//


Words: year-long
Meaning:
also  yearlong/j[hA366][hA353]l[hA361][hA26E], j[hA362][hA359]- $ j[hA366]rl[hA361][hA359][hA26E]/ adj [only before noun]   continuing for a year or all through the year//  --a year-long study of the problem//


Words: year-round
Meaning:
adj [usually before noun]   happening or continuing through the whole year//  --a year-round supply of fresh fruit//


Words: yearbook
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 a book printed once a year, with information about a particular subject or activity:  --Rothman’s Football Yearbook//\n  2  AmE a book printed once a year by a school or college, with information and pictures about what happened there in the past year:  --a high school yearbook//


Words: yearly
Meaning:
adj   happening or appearing every year or once a year//  --Salary levels are reviewed on a yearly basis.//  --a total yearly income of $78,000//  --The magazine is issued twice yearly (=two times a year) .//  3-yearly/5-yearly etc (=every three years etc) //  --a checkup at five-yearly intervals//  -- yearly adv //  --We pay the fee yearly.//


Words: yearn
Meaning:
v [I]   [Language: Old English; Origin: giernan]//   literary to have a strong desire for something, especially something that is difficult or impossible to get//   long//  yearn for//  --Hannah yearned for a child.//  yearn to be/do sth//  --Phil had yearned to be a pilot from an early age.//


Words: yearning
Meaning:
n [U and C]  literary   a strong desire for something//   longing//  yearning for//  --a yearning for travel//  yearning to do sth//  --He had a deep yearning to return to his home town.//


Words: yeast
Meaning:
n [U]   [Language: Old English; Origin: gist]//  a type of fungus used for producing alcohol in beer and wine, and for making bread rise//  -- yeasty adj //  --a yeasty taste//


Words: Yeats
Meaning:
W.B.   (1865-1939) an Irish writer of poems and plays, whose early work is often based on old Irish stories. He is one of the most important Irish writers, and he won the  Nobel Prize for Literature in 1923.//


Words: yecch
Meaning:
interjection  AmE  spoken  informal   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From the sound of vomiting]//  used to say that you think something is very unpleasant//   yuck//


Words: yell
Meaning:
v   [Language: Old English; Origin: giellan]//\n  1 [I and T]  also yell out :  to shout or say something very loudly, especially because you are frightened, angry, or excited//  --’Help me!’ she yelled hysterically.//  --I yelled out, ’Here I am!’//  --The crowd are on their feet yelling.//  yell at//  --Don’t you yell at me like that!//  yell at sb to do sth//  --They yelled at him to stop.//  yell (out) in surprise/pain etc //  --Clare yelled in pain as she fell.//  --He could hear Pete yelling at the top of his voice  (=very loudly) .//\n  2 [I]  spoken  especially AmE to ask for help:  --If you need me, just yell.//\nyell 2 n [C] \n  1 a loud shout:  let out/give a yell //  --She let out a yell when she saw me.//  a yell of surprise/delight/triumph etc //  --Dan gave a yell of delight when Larsson scored.//\n  2  AmE words or phrases that students and cheerleaders shout together to show support for their school, college etc:


Words: yellow
Meaning:
W3S2   adj   [Language: Old English; Origin: geolu]//\n  1 having the colour of butter or the middle part of an egg:  --yellow flowers//    chrome yellow,  lemon yellow at lemon2 ,  primrose yellow at primrose(2)//\n  2  not polite an offensive way of describing the skin colour of people from parts of Asia:\n  3  also yellow-bellied :   informal not brave//   cowardly//\nyellow 2 n [U and C]   the colour of butter or the middle part of an egg//  --Yellow doesn’t suit me at all.//  --The room was decorated in a variety of reds, blues, and yellows.//\nyellow 3 v [I and T]   to become yellow or make something become yellow//  --The paper had yellowed with age.//


Words: yellow card
Meaning:
n [C]   a yellow card held up by a football referee to show that a player has done something wrong//    red card//


Words: yellow line
Meaning:
n [C]   a line of yellow paint along the edge of a street in Britain which means you can only park your car for a short time or at particular times//  double yellow lines (=two lines of paint that mean you cannot park there at any time) //


Words: Yellow Pages
Meaning:
n  also  yellow pages AmE  trademark   (the) Yellow Pages//  a book that contains the telephone numbers of businesses and organizations in an area, arranged according to the type of service or goods they provide//    White Pages//


Words: Yellow River
Meaning:
the Yellow River//  a long river in northern China, famous for the terrible floods which have caused many deaths and much damage, and the yellow  silt (=loose sand and soil)  that it carries//


Words: Yellowstone National Park
Meaning:
a large  national park mostly in Wyoming, in the northwestern US, famous for its hot springs and geysers (=natural springs of hot water that rise suddenly into the air) , especially one called  Old Faithful which many tourists come to see//


Words: yelp
Meaning:
n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin: gielpan]//  a short sharp high cry which a person or an animal makes because they are excited, in pain, surprised etc//  give/let out a yelp of pain/dismay/surprise etc //  --The water was hotter than she had expected, and she gave an involuntary yelp.//  -- yelp v  [I] //  --The dog ran up and down, yelping.//


Words: Yemen
Meaning:
a country in southwest Asia, south of Saudi Arabia, which was formed in 1990 when the separate countries of North Yemen and South Yemen united. Population: 14,500,000 (1995). Capital: Sana’a.//  -- Yemeni n  adj //


Words: yen
Meaning:
n   plural  yen //  [Sense: 1-2; Date: 1800-1900; Language: Japanese; Origin: en, from  Chinese yuan;   YUAN]//  [Sense: 3; Date: 1900-2000; Language: Chinese; Origin: yan]//\n  1 [C] the standard unit of money in Japan: symbol [hA126]:\n  2  the yen:  the value of Japanese money in relation to the money of other countries//  --The dollar fell by 24 percent against the yen  (=decreased in value in relation to the yen) between 1970 and 1973.//\n  3 [singular] a strong desire:  yen for//  --a yen for foreign travel//  yen to do sth//  --She’d always had a yen to write a book.//


Words: yeoman
Meaning:
n   plural  yeomen /-m[hA353]n/ [C] //  [Date: 1200-1300; Origin:  Probably from  young man]//\n  1 an officer in the US navy who often works in an office:\n  2 a farmer in Britain in the past who owned and worked on his own land:


Words: yes
Meaning:
adv  spoken   ----------//\n   1 answer to question/statement:\n   2 answer to offer/invitation:\n   3 answer to request:\n   4 yes, but ...:\n   5 ready to listen/talk:\n   6 listening:\n   7 excited/happy:\n   8 oh yes:\n   9 emphasis:\n  10 yes, yes:\n  11 yes and no:  ----------//  [Language: Old English; Origin: gese]//\n  1 ANSWER TO QUESTION/STATEMENT:  a) used as an answer to say that something is true or that you agree//  → no//  --’Is that real gold?’ ’Yes.’//  --’It was a great show.’ ’Yes, it was.’//  b) used as an answer to a question or statement containing a negative, to say that the opposite is true//  --’Sarah isn’t very intelligent, is she?’ ’Yes, she is (=in fact, she is intelligent) !’//  --’There isn’t any cereal left.’ ’Yes, there is - it’s in the cupboard.’//\n  2 ANSWER TO OFFER/INVITATION:  used as an answer to say that you want something or want to do something//  → no//  --’Would you like a sandwich?’ ’ Yes, please .’//  --’Would you like to come with us?’ ’Yes, I’d love to.’//\n  3 ANSWER TO REQUEST:  used as an answer to say that you will do something, or that someone may do or have something//  → no//  --’Can I have a glass of water?’ ’Yes, of course.’//  --He proposed to me and I said yes .//\n  4  yes, but ...:  used to show that you agree with what someone has said, but there is another fact to consider//  --’There are still a lot of problems with Jeff’s proposal.’ ’Yes, but it’s the best one we have.’//\n  5 READY TO LISTEN/TALK:  used to show that you have heard someone or are ready to speak to someone//  --’Mike?’ ’Yes?’//  --Yes sir, how can I help you?//\n  6 LISTENING:  used to show that you are listening to someone and want them to continue//  --’And so I tried phoning him ...’ ’Yes ...’//\n  7 EXCITED/HAPPY:  used to show that you are very excited or happy about something//  --Yes! Rivaldo’s scored again!//\n  8  oh yes:  a) used to show that you do not believe what someone is saying//  --’There’s nothing going on between me and Jane. We’re just good friends.’ ’Oh yes?’//  b) used to show that you have remembered something//  --Where’s my umbrella? Oh yes - I left it in the car.//\n  9 EMPHASIS:  used to emphasize that you mean what you have just said, even though it is surprising//  --It took ten years - yes, ten whole years - to complete.//  --Yes, you heard me correctly - I said 1921.//\n  10  yes, yes:  used to show annoyance when someone is talking to you and you do not want to listen//  --’And don’t forget to lock the door!’ ’Yes, yes, OK.’//\n  11  yes and no:  used to show that there is not one clear answer to a question//  --’Were you surprised?’ ’Well, yes and no. I knew they were planning something, but I wasn’t sure what.’//    yeah//\nyes 2   plural  yeses  or  yesses  n [C] //  a vote, voter, or reply that agrees with an idea, plan, law etc//  --According to the latest opinion poll, the noes have 60%, and the yeses have 40%.//  -- yes adj //  --a yes vote//


Words: yes-man plural
Meaning:
yes-men  n [C]   someone who always agrees with and obeys their employer, leader etc in order to gain some advantage - used to show disapproval//


Words: yeshiva
Meaning:
yeshivah/j[hA353][hA35D]i[hA359]v[hA353]/ n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Hebrew; Origin: yeshibhah]//  a school for Jewish students, where they can train to become rabbis (=religious leaders) //


Words: yesterday
Meaning:
adv   [Language: Old English; Origin: giestran d[zB024]g, from  giestran  ’yesterday’ +  d[zB024]g  ’day’]//  on or during the day before today//    tomorrow//  --What did you do yesterday?//  yesterday morning/afternoon/evening //  --Anna left yesterday afternoon.//    I wasn’t born yesterday at born2 (5)//\nyesterday 2 n [U] \n  1 the day before today:    tomorrow//  --yesterday’s meeting//  --They arrived the day before yesterday .//\n  2 the recent past:  --the great champions of yesterday//\n  3  yesterday’s news:  information that is old and no longer interesting//


Words: yesteryear
Meaning:
n   [Date: 1800-1900; Origin: yesterday +  year]//  of yesteryear//   literary existing in the past//  --the steam trains of yesteryear//


Words: yet
Meaning:
adv   [Language: Old English; Origin: giet]//\n  1 :  a) used in negative statements and questions to talk about whether something that was expected has happened//  --I haven’t asked him yet (=but I will) .//  --Has Edmund arrived yet?//  --’Have you finished your homework?’ ’ Not yet .’//  b) used in negative statements and questions to talk about whether a situation has started to exist//  --’How are you going to get there?’ ’I don’t know yet.’//  --Women didn’t yet have the vote (=at that time) .//  --’Is supper ready?’ ’No, not yet .’//\n  2 used in negative sentences to say that someone should not or need not do something now, although they may have to do it later:  --You can’t give up yet!//  --Don’t go yet. I like talking to you.//\n  3 used to emphasize that something is even more than it was before or is in addition to what existed before:   still//  yet more/bigger/higher etc //  --He got a call from the factory, telling of yet more problems.//  --Inflation had risen to a yet higher level.//  -- yet another reason to be cautious//  --The meeting has been cancelled yet again  (=one more time after many others) .//\n  4  the biggest/worst etc (sth) yet:  used to say that something is the biggest, worst etc of its kind that has existed up to now//  --This could turn out to be our biggest mistake yet.//  --Nordstrom’s latest novel looks like his best yet.//\n  5  as (of) yet:  used when saying that something has not happened up to now//  --We’ve had no luck as yet.//  --on an as yet undecided date//\n  6  months/weeks/ages yet:  used to emphasize how much time will pass before something happens, or how long a situation will continue//  --’When’s your holiday?’ ’Oh, not for ages yet.’//  --It could be months yet before they know their fate.//\n  7  could/may/might yet do sth:  used to say that something is still possible in the future, in spite of the way that things seem now//  --We may win yet.//  --The plan could yet succeed.//\n  8  sb/sth has yet to do sth:   formal used to say that someone has not done something, or that something has not happened when you think it should already have been done or have happened//  --I have yet to hear Ray’s version of what happened.//  --The bank has yet to respond to our letter.//  ----------//  GRAMMAR //  In spoken English,  yet usually comes at the end of the clause : I haven’t finished my homework yet. |  We don’t know whether she’ll come yet. //  It can also come after ’don’t’, ’hasn’t’ etc, or before ’why’, ’whether’ etc : They don’t yet know the full facts.| I haven’t decided yet whether to take part in the competition. //  In writing or more formal speech,  yet can come after ’not’ : We do not yet have a solution to this problem. //  WORD CHOICE:  yet, still, already //  Yet is used to say that something has not happened or a situation has not started to exist, or to ask if something has happened : It isn’t time to go yet. |  Have you seen him yet? //  Still is used to say that an earlier situation has not changed : My parents were still asleep (NOT yet asleep). |  I still don’t understand. //  Already is used to emphasize that something has happened or a situation has started to exist : He had already published two novels.| They already knew one another. //  It is also used in questions to show surprise that something has happened sooner than expected : Have you been there already? //  ----------//\nyet 2 conj   used to introduce a fact, situation, or quality that is surprising after what you have just said//  --Kelly was a convicted criminal, yet many people admired him.//  --She does not speak our language  and yet  she seems to understand what we say.//  --a story that is strange yet true//  --an inexpensive yet effective solution to our problem//


Words: yeti
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Language: Tibetan]//  a large hairy creature like a human which some people believe lives in the Himalayan mountains//   Abominable Snowman//


Words: Yevtushenko
Meaning:
Yevgeny   (1933- ) a Russian poet, some of whose works, such as  Babi Yar, criticized Russian society and made him very unpopular with the Soviet government//


Words: yew
Meaning:
n [U and C]   [Language: Old English; Origin: iw]//  a tree with dark green leaves and red berries, or the wood of this tree//


Words: YHA
Meaning:
the   the Youth Hostels Association the British organization that runs  youth hostels in the UK, and is a member of the international organization that runs youth hostels in many other countries//


Words: yid
Meaning:
n [C]  taboo   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Yiddish; Origin: Middle High German Jude  ’Jew’]//  a very offensive word for a Jewish person. Do not use this word.//


Words: Yiddish
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Yiddish; Origin: yidish (daytsh)  ’Jewish (German)’]//  a language based on German used by older Jewish people, especially those who are from Eastern Europe//    Hebrew//


Words: yield
Meaning:
v   ----------//\n   1 result:\n   2 crops/profits:\n   3 agree unwillingly:\n   4 traffic:\n   5 move/bend/break:\n   6 give up fighting:  Phrasal verbs//   yield to something//   yield something → up//  ----------//  [Language: Old English; Origin: gieldan]//\n  1 RESULT:   [T] to produce a result, answer, or piece of information//  --Our research has only recently begun to yield important results .//\n  2 CROPS/PROFITS:   [T] to produce crops, profits etc//  --Each of these oilfields could yield billions of barrels of oil.//  --The tourist industry yielded an estimated $2.25 billion for the state last year.//  --These investments should yield a reasonable return .//  high-yielding/low-yielding //  --high-yielding crops//\n  3 AGREE UNWILLINGLY:   [I and T] to allow yourself to be forced or persuaded to do something or stop having something//  --The military has promised to yield power.//  yield to//  --The hijackers refuse to yield to demands to release the passengers.//  --Further action may be necessary if the leaders do not yield to diplomatic pressure .//  --Finally she yielded to temptation and helped herself to a large slice of cake.//\n  4 TRAFFIC:   [I]  AmE to allow other traffic on a bigger road to go first//  British Equivalent:  give way//  yield to//  --Yield to traffic on the left.//\n  5 MOVE/BEND/BREAK:   [I] to move, bend, or break because of physical force or pressure//   give//  --Ideally, the surface should yield slightly under pressure.//\n  6 GIVE UP FIGHTING:   [I]  literary to stop fighting and accept defeat//   surrender//  yield to [yield to sth] phr v//  if one thing yields to another, it is replaced by that thing//   give way to something//  --Laughter quickly yielded to amazement as the show went on.//  yield up [yield sth → up] phr v//\n  1 to show or produce something that was hidden or difficult to find, or that people did not know about:   throw up//  --New research has yielded up some surprising discoveries.//\n  2  BrE  formal to give something that belongs to you to someone else, because you are forced to:   surrender//  --He would never yield up the castle to the English.//\nyield 2 n [C]   the amount of profits, crops etc that something produces//  --The average milk yield per cow has doubled.//  high/low yield//  --Shareholders are expecting a higher yield this year.//  yield of//  --a yield of over six percent//


Words: yielding
Meaning:
adj \n  1 a surface that is yielding is soft and will move or bend when you press it:  --the yielding softness of the bed//\n  2 willing to agree with other people’s wishes:   accommodating//


Words: yin
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1600-1700; Language: Chinese; Origin: ’moon, negative’]//  the female principle in Chinese philosophy which is inactive, dark, and negative, and which combines with yang (=the male principle)  to influence everything in the world//


Words: yin and yang
Meaning:
n [U]   the ancient Chinese philosophy which is based on the idea that everything in the universe is formed and influenced by the combination of two forces called yin and yang//


Words: yippee
Meaning:
interjection   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From the sound made by an excited person]//  used when you are very pleased or excited about something//   hurray//


Words: YMCA
Meaning:
Young Men’s Christian Association an organization in many countries that provides places to stay and sports activities for young people//


Words: yo
Meaning:
interjection  informal  especially AmE   [Date: 1400-1500; Origin:  A natural form of greeting]//  used to greet someone, to get their attention, or as a reply when someone says your name//  --Yo, dude! How’s it going?//  --’Darren?’ ’Yo!’//


Words: Yo-Yo
Meaning:
n   plural  yo-yos  [C]  trademark //  [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From a  Philippine language]//  a toy made of two circular parts that goes up and down a string that you hold in your hand//


Words: yob
Meaning:
[C]  BrE   [Date: 1800-1900; Origin:  Backward spelling of  boy]//  a rude, noisy, and sometimes violent young man//   lout//  --drunken yobbos//


Words: yodel
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  yodelled present participle  yodelling  BrE //  past tense and past participle  yodeled present participle  yodeling  AmE //  [Date: 1800-1900; Language: German; Origin: jodeln]//  [I and T] to sing while changing between your natural voice and a very high voice, traditionally done in the mountains of countries such as Switzerland and Austria//  -- yodeller n  [C] //\nyodel 2 n [C]   a song or sound made by yodelling//


Words: yoga
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1700-1800; Language: Sanskrit; Origin: ’union’]//\n  1 a system of exercises that help you control your mind and body in order to relax:\n  2 a Hindu philosophy in which you learn exercises to control your mind and body in order to try to become closer to God:


Words: yoghurt
Meaning:
S3  yogurt/j[hA361]g[hA353]t $ jo[hA35E]g[hA353]rt/ n [U and C]   a thick liquid food that tastes slightly sour and is made from milk, or an amount of this food//  --a pot of strawberry yogurt//


Words: yogi
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1600-1700; Language: Sanskrit; Origin: yogin, from  yoga;   YOGA]//  someone who has a lot of knowledge about yoga, and who often teaches it to other people//


Words: Yogi Bear
Meaning:
a US television  cartoon character who has been popular since the 1960s. Yogi is a clever bear who lives in Jellystone Park and, with his friend Boo-Boo, is always trying to steal food from the tourists there.//


Words: yoke
Meaning:
n [C]   [Language: Old English; Origin: geoc]//\n  1 a wooden bar used for keeping two animals together, especially cattle, when they are pulling heavy loads:\n  2 a frame that you put across your shoulders so that you can carry two equal loads which hang from either side of it:\n  3  the yoke of sth:   literary something that restricts your freedom, making life difficult//  --the yoke of tradition//\n  4 a part of a skirt or shirt just below the waist or collar, from which the main piece of material hangs in folds:\nyoke 2 v [T] \n  1 to put a yoke on two animals:\n  2 to closely connect two ideas, people, or things:  yoke sth to sth//  --Beauty is forever yoked to youth in our culture.//


Words: yokel
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Origin:  Perhaps from  yokel  ’green woodpecker’]//  someone who comes from the countryside, seems stupid, and does not know much about modern life, ideas etc - used humorously//


Words: yolk
Meaning:
n [U and C]   eggcup, shell, white, yolk//  [Language: Old English; Origin: geoloca, from  geolu;   YELLOW1]//  the yellow part in the centre of an egg//    white//


Words: Yom Kippur
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Hebrew; Origin: ’Day of Atonement’]//  a Jewish religious holiday on which people do not eat, but pray to be forgiven for the things they have done wrong//


Words: yonder
Meaning:
old use   [Language: Old English; Origin: geon]//  over there - used to show or explain where something or someone is//  --the fresh blooms on yonder tree//


Words: yonks
Meaning:
n [U]    BrE  spoken  informal a long time//   ages//  -- It’s yonks since we had a good night out.//  --We went to Blackpool once, yonks ago .//  not do sth for yonks//  --We haven’t seen Tom and Jean for yonks.//


Words: yoo-hoo
Meaning:
interjection  informal   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  A natural shout]//  used to attract someone’s attention when they are a long way from you//


Words: yoof
Meaning:
adj [only before noun]  BrE   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin: youth]//  relating to or intended for young people - used humorously//  --a yoof magazine//\nyoof 2 n [U]  BrE   young people, considered as a group - used humorously//  --British white yoof//


Words: yore
Meaning:
n   [Language: Old English; Origin: gearu  ’long ago’, from  gear;   YEAR]//  of yore//   literary existing a long time ago//  --in days of yore //


Words: Yorick
Meaning:
a character in the play  Hamlet by William  Shakespeare. He was once the king’s  jester (=someone whose job was to entertain the King and make him laugh)  but is now dead. Hamlet finds his  skull and says "Alas! poor Yorick. I knew him, Horatio."//


Words: York
Meaning:
an ancient city in North Yorkshire in northern England. York was originally a Roman city, and it is a popular place for tourists to visit because of its old city wall and its large  cathedral, York Minster.//\n Duke of     AnDrew, Prince//


Words: Yorkshire
Meaning:
an area and former  county in northeast England, now divided into North, East, South and West Yorkshire. Yorkshire is partly very industrial, with large cities such as Leeds, Sheffield, and Bradford, and, in the past, many coal mines. It also has large areas of beautiful, wild countryside, including the  North York Moors and the  Dales.//


Words: Yorkshire Moors
Meaning:
the Yorkshire Moors//  another name for the  North York Moors, an area of high, open land in the former  county of Yorkshire //


Words: Yorkshire terrier
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Origin: Yorkshire, county in northern England]//  a type of dog that is very small and has long brown hair//


Words: Yorktown
Meaning:
a town in Virginia, US, where the last battle of the  American Revolutionary War and the final  surrender of the British to the Americans took place in 1781//


Words: Yosemite National Park
Meaning:
a national park in California, US, famous for its beautiful lakes,  waterfalls, and large  redwood trees//


Words: you
Meaning:
pron [used as subject or object]   [Language: Old English; Origin: eow, from  ge;   YE1]//\n  1 used to refer to a person or group of people when speaking or writing to them:  --Hi, Kelly. How are you?//  --You must all listen carefully.//  --I have some news for you.//  --The letter is addressed to both of you.//  --Did Robin give you the money?//  --Only you can make this decision.//  --You idiot!//  --You boys have got to learn to behave yourselves.//  --Hey, you over there! Get out of the way!//\n  2 people in general:  --You have to be 21 or over to buy alcohol in Florida.//  --You can never be sure what Emily is thinking.//


Words: you’d
Meaning:
1 the short form of ’you had’:  --If you’d been more careful, this wouldn’t have happened.//\n  2 the short form of ’you would’:  --You’d be amazed at how much she spends on clothes.//


Words: You’ll Never Walk Alone
Meaning:
a song from the  musical (= a play that uses singing and dancing to tell a story)  Carousel, by Richard  Rodgers and Oscar  Hammerstein. In the UK it is often sung at football games.//


Words: Young
Meaning:
Brigham   (1801-77) a US leader of the  Mormon religion. In  Illinois Mormons were being badly treated, and so they decided to move away. In 1847, Young led 5000 Mormons across the US to their new home in what later became the state of  Utah, where they built  Salt Lake City.//\n Cy   (1867-1955) a  baseball player who was famous for his skill as a  pitcher. Every year the  Cy Young Award is given to the best pitchers in the  American League and the  National League.//


Words: young
Meaning:
adj   comparative  younger superlative  youngest //  [Language: Old English; Origin: geong]//\n  1 a young person, plant, or animal has not lived for very long:  --a young child//  --He’s younger than me.//  --You’re too young to get married.//  --young trees//  -- When I was young  , I wanted to be a model.//  --John was a great footballer in his younger days  (=when he was younger) .//\n  2 a young country, organization, or type of science has existed for only a short time:  --At that time, America was still a young nation.//  --Psychology is a young science.//\n  3  young lady/man:   spoken used to speak to a girl or boy when you are angry with them//  --Now, you listen to me, young man!//\n  4 seeming or looking younger than you are:   youthful//  --Val is incredibly young for her age .//\n  5  young at heart:  thinking and behaving as if you were young, even though you are old//\n  6  65/82/97 etc years young:   spoken used humorously to give the age of an old person who seems or feels much younger//  --Next week, Bessie will be 84 years young.//\n  7 designed or intended for young people:  --I’m looking for something in a younger style.//  ----------//  WORD FOCUS: young //  other words meaning young: little/small used to describe young children, especially below the age of 6 //  teenage used to describe someone who is between 13 and 19 //  adolescent used to describe someone who is developing into an adult //  youthful looking young //  a young person: kid (informal) a young person //  teenager someone who is between 13 and 19 //  youth a man or boy between 15 and 25, especially one who is involved in fighting or crime //  adolescent a young person who is developing into an adult //  minor a young person who is not yet legally an adult //  the time when someone is young: childhood the time when you are a child //  youth the time when you are no longer a child but you are still young //  adolescence the time when you develop into an adult //  ----------//\nyoung 2 n \n  1  the young:  young people//  --The young are easily misled.//\n  2 [plural] a group of young animals that belong to a particular mother or type of animal:  --The lioness fought to protect her young.//


Words: younger
Meaning:
adj   sb the Younger//   old use someone famous who lived in the past and had the same name as their mother or father//    elder//  --William Pitt the Younger//


Words: your
Meaning:
determiner [possessive form of ’you’]   [Language: Old English; Origin: eower]//\n  1 used when speaking or writing to one or more people to show that something belongs to them or is connected with them:  --Could you move your car?//  --Is that your brother over there?//  --Don’t worry. It’s not your fault.//  --Be aware of your own feelings.//\n  2 of or belonging to any person:  --If you are facing north, east is on your right.//\n  3  informal used when mentioning something that is a typical example of a particular type of thing:  --It was just your basic, ordinary hotel room - nothing special.//  --Your typical 60s pop group had three guitarists and a drummer.//


Words: yours
Meaning:
pron [possessive form of ’you’] \n  1 used when speaking or writing to one or more people to refer to something that belongs to them or is connected with them:  --This is our room, and yours is just across the hall.//  --A lot of people have money problems, but yours are more serious than most people’s.//  --A cash prize of [hA124]10,000 or a new car - the choice is yours.//  sth of yours//  --Is Maria a friend of yours ?//  --That bag of yours weighs a ton.//  --I’ve read that book of yours.//\n  2  be yours for the taking/asking:  if something desirable is yours for the taking or asking, you can easily obtain it//  --If you want the job, it’s yours for the asking.//\n  3  Yours faithfully:   BrE used to end a formal letter that begins ’Dear Sir’ or ’Dear Madam’//\n  4  Yours truly/Yours:   also Yours sincerely  BrE //  Sincerely yours  AmE //  used to end a letter that begins with the title and name of the person you are writing to, for example ’Dear Mr. Graves’//\n  5  Yours truly:   informal used humorously to mean ’I’ or ’me’//  --They all went out, leaving yours truly to clear up the mess.//    up yours at up1 (30)//


Words: yourself
Meaning:
pron [reflexive form of ’you’]   plural  yourselves /-selvz///\n  1 used when talking to someone to show that they are affected by their own action:  --Look at yourself in the mirror.//  --Come and warm yourselves by the fire.//  --Have you hurt yourself?//  --Go and buy yourself an ice cream.//\n  2 :  a) used to emphasize ’you’//  --If you don’t trust me, you’d better go yourself.//  --You yourselves are the guilty ones.//  --It must be true. You told me so yourself.//  b) used after ’like’, ’as’, or ’except’ instead of ’you’, especially to make what you are saying seem more formal or important//  --Most of our customers are people like yourself.//\n  3  (all) by yourself:  a) alone//  --You can’t go home by yourself in the dark.//  b) without help from anyone//  --Do you think you can move the sofa by yourself?//\n  4  not seem/be/feel yourself:   informal to not feel or behave as you usually do, for example because you are upset or ill//  --Are you all right? You don’t seem yourself this morning.//\n  5  have sth (all) to yourself:  if you have something to yourself, you do not have to share it with anyone else//  --I’m going out, so you’ll have the place to yourself.//    do-it-yourself,  keep sth to yourself at keep to(5),  keep yourself to yourself at keep to(6)//


Words: youth
Meaning:
n   plural  youths /ju[hA359][hA171]z $ ju[hA359][hA171]z, ju[hA359][hA35F]s///  [Language: Old English; Origin: geoguth]//\n  1 [U] the period of time when someone is young, especially the period when someone is a teenager:    old age//  sth of sb’s youth//  --the dreams of his youth//  in sb’s youth//  --Many of these people had used drugs in their youth.//\n  2 [C] a teenage boy - used especially in newspapers to show disapproval:  --a gang of youths //\n  3 [U] young people in general:  the youth of sth//  -- The youth of today are the pensioners of tomorrow.//\n  4 [U] the quality or state of being young:  --Despite his youth, he had travelled alone.//  --The cream will restore youth and vitality to your skin.//


Words: youth hostel
Meaning:
n [C]   a place where people, especially young people who are travelling, can stay very cheaply for a short time//


Words: youth hostelling
Meaning:
n [U]    BrE the activity of staying in youth hostels and walking or cycling between them//  --I went youth hostelling in the Peak District.//


Words: youthful
Meaning:
adj \n  1 typical of young people, or seeming young:  youthful enthusiasm/energy/vigour //  youthful appearance/looks/complexion //  --She has managed to maintain her youthful appearance.//\n  2 young:  --The photo shows a smiling, youthful Burgos.//  -- youthfully adv //  -- youthfulness n  [U] //


Words: yowl
Meaning:
v [I]   [Date: 1100-1200; Origin:  Probably from the sound]//  if an animal or a person yowls, they make a long loud cry, especially because they are unhappy or in pain//   howl//  --A tomcat was yowling out on the lawn.//  -- yowl n  [C] //


Words: Ypres
Meaning:
a town in southern Belgium where three great battles took place in World War I. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers died in these battles, but neither side gained much advantage. British soldiers called it Wipers.//


Words: YT
Meaning:
Youth Training a British government plan which is intended to provide training for young people to help them get jobs. British citizens who are between 16 and 18 must do YT if they are not students or do not have jobs, but they receive small payments while they are training.//


Words: yuan
Meaning:
n   plural  yuan  [C] //  [Date: 1900-2000; Language: Chinese; Origin: ’round’]//  the standard unit of money in China//


Words: Yucatan
Meaning:
1 the Yucatan Peninsula :  a large  peninsula (=a long, thin area of land with sea on three sides)  in central America, between the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, which consists of Belize, North Guatemala, and part of Mexico. The  Maya people came from this area, and there are several ancient Maya buildings there.//\n  2 a Mexican state:


Words: yucca
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1500-1600; Language: Spanish; Origin: yuca, from  Taino]//  a desert plant with long pointed leaves on a thick straight stem//


Words: yuck yuk
Meaning:
interjection   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From the sound of vomiting]//   informal used to show that you think something is very unpleasant//  --Oh yuck! I hate mayonnaise.//


Words: yucky
Meaning:
adj  informal   extremely unpleasant//  --They painted the bathroom a yucky green colour.//  --The food was yucky.//


Words: Yugoslavia
Meaning:
a former country in southeast Europe, between the 1920s and early 1990s, that was made up of six  republics, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, and Montenegro//  -- YugoslavYugoslavian //   n  adj //    Federal Republic of Yugoslavia//


Words: Yukon
Meaning:
the Yukon//  a) a  territory in northwest Canada, where the  Klondike Gold Rush took place in the 1890s//  b) a river in the northwest of North America, flowing from the Yukon area, through Alaska, and into the Pacific Ocean//


Words: yule log
Meaning:
n [C] \n  1 a log (=thick piece of wood) that some people burn as a tradition on the evening before Christmas:\n  2  BrE a chocolate cake shaped like a log and eaten at Christmas:


Words: yum
Meaning:
interjection  informal   [Date: 1800-1900; Origin:  From the sound of putting the lips together]//  said when you think something tastes very good//


Words: yummy
Meaning:
adj  informal   [Date: 1800-1900; Origin: yum]//  tasting very good//  --This cake is really yummy.//  --’Treacle tart! Yummy!’ said Simon.//


Words: yuppie
Meaning:
yuppy/j[hA356]pi/ n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin: young urban professional]//  a young person with a professional job who seems to be interested only in earning a lot of money and buying expensive things//


Words: yuppify
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  yuppified present participle  yuppifying third person singular  yuppifies  [T usually passive] //  to improve the buildings in an area, or to open expensive restaurants, shops etc so that yuppies will want to live in the buildings or use the restaurants etc//  --The restaurant’s yuppified interior was done in colors like teal and mauve.//


Words: YWCA
Meaning:
Young Women’s Christian Association an organization in many countries that provides places to stay and sports activities for young people//


Words: Z
Meaning:
z/zed $ zi[hA359]/ n   plural  Z’s, z’s //\n  1 [U and C] the 26th and last letter of the English alphabet:    from A to Z at A1 (7)//\n  2  catch/get some Z’s:   AmE  informal to sleep//


Words: Za[hA170]re
Meaning:
the former name of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country in central Africa//  -- Za[hA170]rean n  adj //


Words: Zaharias
Meaning:
Mildred "Babe"   (1911-56) a US woman golfer and a gold medal winner for the javelin and 100 metres hurdles race in the 1932 Olympic Games. She was one of the greatest golfers of all-time, winning the British championship and three US Opens in the 1940s and 1950s.//


Words: Zambezi
Meaning:
the Zambezi//   the Zambesi//  a large river in south central Africa.  Victoria Falls and the  Kariba Dam are both on the Zambezi.//


Words: Zambia
Meaning:
a country in south central Africa, between Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Population: 9,770,000 (2001). Capital: Lusaka. Zambia is rich in minerals, especially copper. Its former name, when it was ruled by Britain, was Northern Rhodesia. It became independent in 1964, and is a member of the British  commonwealth.//  -- Zambian n  adj //


Words: zany
Meaning:
adj   comparative  zanier superlative  zaniest //  [Date: 1500-1600; Language: Italian; Origin: zanni type of clown, from  Giovanni  ’John’]//  crazy or unusual in a way that is amusing//  -- zany comedian Vic Reeves//


Words: Zanzibar
Meaning:
an island off the coast of East Africa which joined with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the new country of Tanzania//


Words: zap
Meaning:
v   past tense and past participle  zapped present participle  zapping  informal //  [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From the sound of a sudden sharp blow]//\n  1 [T] to quickly attack or destroy something, especially using a beam of electricity:  --Doctors have tried zapping tumors with high-voltage radiation.//  --The laser weapons are designed to zap enemy missiles.//\n  2 [I and T] to change channels on a television by using a remote control:  --Dave just sat there, zapping through all the channels.//\n  3 [T] to cook something in a microwave1(1):\n  4 [T] to send information quickly from one computer to another:  --Computers identify threats and zap the results back to US pilots in the war zone.//


Words: Zapata
Meaning:
Emiliano   (1879-1919) a Mexican  revolutionary, who led an army of native Mexicans against the government in an attempt to get back land that had been taken away from them. He was partly successful but was later murdered. The Zapata moustache (=a type of  moustache that curves down at the sides) is named after him.//


Words: Zappa
Meaning:
Frank   (1940-93) a US musician and singer who wrote many different types of music, including  classical music, but is famous for his  rock music, which was always new and different, and which criticized American society and music of the 1960s and 1970s. His group was called The Mothers of Invention.//


Words: zapper
Meaning:
n [C]  informal \n  1 a thing you use for changing channels on a television from a distance:   remote control//\n  2 a piece of electrical equipment that attracts and kills insects:


Words: zeal
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1300-1400; Language: Late Latin; Origin: zelus, from  Greek zelos]//  eagerness to do something, especially to achieve a particular religious or political aim//  religious/revolutionary/missionary etc zeal //  --He approached the job with missionary zeal.//  in your zeal to do sth//  --In their zeal to catch drug dealers, police have ignored citizens’ basic civil rights.//  zeal for//  --their zeal for privatization//


Words: zealot
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1500-1600; Language: Late Latin; Origin: zelotes, from  Greek zelos;   ZEAL]//  someone who has extremely strong beliefs, especially religious or political beliefs, and is too eager to make other people share them//  --religious zealots//  -- zealotry n  [U] //


Words: zealous
Meaning:
adj   someone who is zealous does or supports something with great energy//  --a zealous preacher//  --zealous political activists//  be zealous in (doing) sth//  --No one was more zealous than Neil in supporting the proposal.//  -- zealously adv //


Words: zebra
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1600-1700; Language: Italian; Origin: ’wild donkey’]//  an animal that looks like a horse but has black and white lines all over its body//


Words: zebra crossing
Meaning:
n [C]    BrE a place marked with black and white lines where people who are walking can cross a road safely//  American Equivalent:  crosswalk//    pelican crossing//


Words: zed
Meaning:
AmE [C]   [Date: 1400-1500; Language: French; Origin: z[hA169]de, from  Greek zeta letter name]//  a way of writing the letter ’z’ that shows how you pronounce it//


Words: zeitgeist
Meaning:
n [singular]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: German; Origin: ’spirit of the time’]//  the general spirit or feeling of a period in history, as shown by people’s ideas and beliefs at the time//


Words: Zen
Meaning:
n  also Zen Buddhism  [U]   [Date: 1700-1800; Language: Japanese; Origin: Sanskrit dhyanam  ’watching’]//  a kind of Buddhism from Japan that emphasizes meditation//


Words: zenith
Meaning:
n [C usually singular]   [Date: 1300-1400; Language: Old French; Origin: cenith, from  Arabic samt (ar-ra’s)  ’path (above the head)’]//\n  1 the most successful point in the development of something:   peak//  → nadir//  reach its zenith/be at its zenith //  --The Roman Empire reached its zenith around the year 100.//\n  2  technical the highest point that is reached by the sun or the moon in the sky:


Words: zephyr
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 900-1000; Language: Latin; Origin: zephyrus  ’west wind’, from  Greek zephyros]//   literary a soft gentle wind//


Words: zeppelin
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  Count Ferdinand von  Zeppelin (1838-1917), German soldier who invented it]//  a German airship used in World War I//


Words: Zermatt
Meaning:
a place in the Swiss  Alps where people go  skiing, and where the famous mountain the Matterhorn is//


Words: zero
Meaning:
number   plural  zeros  or  zeroes //  [Date: 1600-1700; Language: French; Origin: zero, from  Arabic sifr  ’empty, nothing’]//\n  1 the number 0:  British Equivalent:  nought//  --Make X greater than or equal to zero.//\n  2 the point between + and - on a scale for measuring something, or the lowest point on a scale that shows how much there is left of something:  --The petrol gauge was already at zero.//\n  3 a temperature of 0[hA131] on the Celsius or Fahrenheit scale:  above/below zero//  --It was five degrees below zero last night.//    absolute zero,  sub-zero//\n  4 none at all, or the lowest possible amount:  sb’s chances are zero (=they have no chance of success) //  --Mike’s chances of winning are virtually zero.//  --From 1971 to 1976 West Vancouver experienced zero population growth.//\nzero 2 v   zero in on / [zero in on sb/sth] phr v//\n  1 to direct all your attention towards a particular person or thing:   home in on//  --She immediately zeroed in on the weak point in his argument.//\n  2 to aim a gun or other weapon towards something or someone:


Words: zero tolerance
Meaning:
n [U]   a way of dealing with crime in which every person who breaks the law, even in a very small way, is punished as severely as possible//  --a policy of zero tolerance in inner-city areas//


Words: zero-sum game
Meaning:
n [singular]   a situation in which you receive as much money or advantages as you give away//  --Diplomatic negotiations often aim at a zero-sum game.//


Words: zest
Meaning:
n   [Date: 1400-1500; Language: French]//\n  1 [U] eager interest and enjoyment:  zest for//  --She had a great zest for life .//\n  2 [singular, U] the quality of being exciting and interesting:  --The danger of being caught added a certain zest to the affair.//\n  3 [U] the outer skin of an orange or lemon, used in cooking:    peel, rind//  --grated orange zest//  -- zestful adj //  -- zestfully adv //


Words: Zeus
Meaning:
in Greek  mythology, the king of the gods, and ruler of the universe. In Roman mythology his name is  Jupiter.//


Words: Zhou Enlai
Meaning:
(1898-1976) a Chinese politician who was Foreign Minister from 1949 to 1958 and Prime Minister from 1949 to 1976//


Words: Ziegfeld
Meaning:
Florenz   (1869-1932) a US theatre  producer who arranged a show every year from 1907 to 1931, called the Ziegfeld Follies. These shows contained singing, dancing, and jokes, and were famous for their beautiful dancers.//


Words: zigzag
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1700-1800; Language: French; Origin: , probably from  German zickzack]//  a pattern that looks like a line of z’s joined together//  --a zigzag path along the cliff//\nzigzag 2   past tense and past participle  zigzagged present participle  zigzagging  v [I] //  to move forward in sharp angles, first to the left and then to the right etc//  --The path zigzagged down the hillside.//


Words: zilch
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  ZERO1]//   informal nothing at all//  --’How much money is left?’ ’Zilch.’//


Words: zillion
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin: Z as the last in a series +  million]//   informal a very large number of things//  --I’ve seen that movie a zillion times.//  zillion of//  --zillions of mosquitoes//


Words: Zimbabwe
Meaning:
a country in south central Africa, south of Zambia and north of South Africa. Population: 11,365,000 (2001). Capital: Harare. Zimbabwe was formerly called Rhodesia, and was ruled by the British from 1889. In 1965 its white government announced that it was independent, but the British government regarded this as an illegal claim. Zimbabwe became officially independent, under a new mainly black government in 1980. Its main products include tobacco, cloth, and minerals.//


Words: zimmer frame
Meaning:
n [C]    trademark  BrE a metal frame that old or ill people use to help them walk//  American Equivalent:  walker//


Words: zinc
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1600-1700; Language: German; Origin: zink]//  a blue-white metal that is used to make brass and to cover and protect objects made of iron. It is a chemical element: symbol Zn//


Words: zine
Meaning:
n [C]  informal   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin: magazine]//  a small magazine, usually about popular culture, that is written by people who are not professional writers//


Words: zing
Meaning:
n [U]  informal   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  From the sound of something moving very quickly]//  the quality of being full of energy or taste//  --Lemon juice adds zing to drinks.//  -- zingy adj //\nzing 2 v [I always + adverb/preposition]    informal to move quickly, making a whistling noise//   whistle//  zing past/off//  --He could hear the bullets zinging past his head.//


Words: Zion
Meaning:
1 a name given to Israel or to an imagined land where the Jewish people could live in peace, after many centuries of not having a land of their own :\n  2  literary  heaven:\n  3 in the Old Testament of the Bible, another name for Jerusalem:


Words: Zionism
Meaning:
n [U]   support for the establishment and development of a state for the Jews in Israel//  -- Zionist n  adj  [C] //


Words: zip
Meaning:
n   zip//  [Sense: 1,2; Date: 1800-1900; Origin:  From the sound of something moving very quickly.]//  [Sense: 3; Date: 1900-2000; Origin: zip code]//\n  1 [C]  BrE two lines of small metal or plastic pieces that slide together to fasten a piece of clothing:  American Equivalent:  zipper//  --The zip on my skirt had broken.//  do up/undo a zip //  --Your zip’s undone at the back.//\n  2 [U]  informal speed, energy, or excitement:  --This car goes with a bit more zip than my last one.//  --A spoonful of mustard will give the dish some zip.//\n  3 [singular]  AmE  informal nothing at all or zero:  --We beat them 10 to zip.//  --’How much money do you have left?’ ’Zip!’//\nzip 2 v   past tense and past participle  zipped present participle  zipping //\n  1 [T] to fasten something using a zip:  --’I’ll see you tomorrow,’ said John, zipping his jacket.//  zip sth shut/open //  --Olsen zipped the bag shut.//  --He zipped open the case (=unfastened it) .//  zip sth together//  --The two sleeping bags can be zipped together to make a double.//\n  2 [I always + adverb/preposition]  informal to go somewhere or do something very quickly:   whizz, zoom//  zip through/past/along etc//  --We zipped through customs in no time.//\n  3  zip it/zip your lip:   AmE  spoken  informal used to tell someone not to say anything about something, or to tell them to be quiet//  --You’d better zip your lip or you’ll be in trouble!//  zip up phr v//  to fasten something using a zip, or to become fastened using a zip//  → unzip//  zip sth → up//  --He was zipping up a small brown suitcase.//  --The dress zipped up at the front.//  zip sb up//  --Could you zip me up (=fasten my dress) please? I can’t reach.//


Words: zip code
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin: zone improvement plan]//   AmE a number that you write at the end of an address on an envelope, package etc. The zip code shows the exact area where someone lives and helps the post office deliver the post more quickly//  British Equivalent:  postcode//


Words: zip file
Meaning:
also zipped file  n [C]  technical   a computer  file that has been made smaller so that it is easier to store and move//


Words: zipper
Meaning:
n [C]   zip//   especially  AmE two lines of small metal or plastic pieces that slide together to fasten a piece of clothing//  British Equivalent:  zip//


Words: zither
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: German; Origin: Greek kithara type of stringed instrument]//  a musical instrument from Eastern Europe that consists of a flat box with strings stretched across it. You play it by pulling the strings with your fingers or a plectrum (=small piece of plastic, metal etc) //


Words: zodiac
Meaning:
n   [Date: 1300-1400; Language: French; Origin: zodiaque, from  Greek zoidiakos  ’animal figures’]//  the zodiac//  an imaginary area through which the sun, moon, and planets appear to travel, which some people believe influences our lives//  sign of the zodiac (=one of the 12 parts that this area is divided into) //  --’Which sign of the zodiac were you born under?’ ’Leo.’//    horoscope//


Words: Zola
Meaning:
Emile   (1840-1902) a French writer of  novels who developed the style of literature called naturalism (=showing people and the world exactly as they really are)  in novels such as  Nana and  Germinal, which describe life and society in a very detailed way, and are often about crime, murder, and people who are poor. He also supported Alfred  Dreyfus, and criticized the people who had sent Dreyfus to prison, by writing the public letter  J’accuse.//


Words: zombie
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Kimbundu; Origin: nzumbi  ’spirit of a dead person’]//\n  1  informal someone who moves very slowly and does not seem to be thinking about what they are doing, especially because they are very tired:  --I walked around like a zombie for most of the day.//\n  2 a dead person whose body is made to move by magic, according to some African and Caribbean religions:


Words: zone
Meaning:
W3   n [C]   [Date: 1400-1500; Language: Latin; Origin: zona  ’belt, zone’, from  Greek zone]//  a large area that is different from other areas around it in some way//  --This is a no-parking zone.//  --San Francisco and Tokyo are both located in earthquake zones.//  danger zone (=an area where it is dangerous to go) //  battle/war zone //  --The south side of the city has virtually become a war zone.//  --The government has set up a special economic zone to promote private enterprise.//    buffer zone at buffer1 (3),  no-fly zone,  time zone//\nzone 2 v   [T usually passive]  AmE if an area of land is zoned, it is officially kept separate from other land so that it can be used for a particular purpose//  --The land is currently zoned for residential use.//  zone out phr v//  to stop paying attention because you are bored or tired, or because you have taken drugs//  --What? Oh, sorry - I was just zoning out there for a minute.//


Words: zoned
Meaning:
adj  also zoned out  [not before noun]    AmE  informal unable to think clearly and quickly, especially because you are tired or have taken drugs//


Words: zoning
Meaning:
n [U]   a system of choosing areas to be developed for particular purposes, such as houses or shops, when planning a town//


Words: zonked
Meaning:
adj  also zonked out  [not before noun]    informal very tired or suffering from the effects of drugs, so that you do not want to do anything//  --I’m really zonked.//


Words: zoo
Meaning:
n   plural  zoos  [C] //  [Date: 1800-1900; Origin: zoological garden]//  a place, usually in a city, where animals of many kinds are kept so that people can go to look at them//    wildlife park//


Words: zoology
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1600-1700; Language: Modern Latin; Origin: zoologia, from  Greek zoion  ’life form, animal’]//  the scientific study of animals and their behaviour//  -- zoological adj //  -- zoologically/-kli/ adv //


Words: zoom
Meaning:
v [I]  informal   [Date: 1800-1900; Origin:  From the sound]//\n  1 [always + adverb/preposition] to go somewhere or do something very quickly:   whizz, zip//  zoom off/around/down etc //  --Brenda jumped in the car and zoomed off.//  --The work was really easy and I was able to zoom through it in a couple of hours.//\n  2  also zoom up :  to increase suddenly and quickly//   escalate//  zoom to//  --Inflation zoomed to 123%.//  zoom in phr v//  if a camera zooms in, it makes the person or thing that you are taking a picture of seem bigger and closer//  zoom in on//  --The camera zoomed in on the child’s face.//  zoom out phr v//  if a camera zooms out, it makes the person or thing that you are taking a picture of seem smaller and further away//\nzoom 2 n [singular]    informal a sound made by a vehicle that is travelling fast//


Words: zoot suit
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  zoot probably from  suit]//  a suit that consists of wide trousers and a jacket with wide shoulders, worn especially in the 1940s and 1950s//


Words: Zoroaster
Meaning:
also Zarathustra   (?628-?551 BC) a Persian religious teacher and  prophet (=someone whom people believe has been sent by God to lead and teach them)  who started a new religion called  Zoroastrianism//


Words: Zoroastrianism
Meaning:
n [U]   an ancient religion from Persia (=modern Iran), whose followers believe that there is a continual battle between the forces of good (or light) and the forces of evil (or darkness), but that good will win in the end and humans must help this to happen. The religion is now practised by only a small number of people, most of whom are Parsees living in India.//  -- Zoroastrian adj //


Words: Zorro
Meaning:
a character in a series of old US films and television programmes who wore a black  mask, and protected people from crime//


Words: zucchini
Meaning:
n [C]   [Date: 1900-2000; Language: Italian; Origin: zucca  ’gourd’]//   AmE a long vegetable with a dark green skin//  British Equivalent:  courgette//


Words: Zulu
Meaning:
n   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Zulu; Origin: umzulu]//\n  1 [C] someone who belongs to a race of black people who live in South Africa:\n  2 [U] the language used by the Zulu people:  -- Zulu adj //


Words: Zululand
Meaning:
an area in the northeastern part of South Africa which is the original home of the Zulu people. The area is now part of the South African  province of KwaZulu Natal.//


Words: zwieback
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: German; Origin: ’twice baked’]//   AmE a type of hard dry bread, often given to babies//  British Equivalent:  rusk//


Words: zydeco
Meaning:
n [U]   [Date: 1900-2000; Origin:  Probably from  Louisiana Creole Les haricots (sont pas sale)  ’The beans (are not salted)’, the title of a dance tune]//  a type of Cajun music that is popular in southern Louisiana that combines the styles of French and Caribbean music with the blues//


Words: zygote
Meaning:
n [C]  technical   [Date: 1800-1900; Language: Greek; Origin: zygotos  ’joined together’]//  a cell that is formed when an egg is fertilized/


