| English > English |
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| by means of |
| 1. prep. by using (a thing) |
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| Analysis |
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| by |
| 1. prep. Near or next to. |
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| The mailbox is by the bus stop. |
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| 2. prep. At some time before (the given time), or before the end of a given time interval. |
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| Be back by ten o'clock! We will send it by the first week of July. |
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| 3. prep. Indicates the actor in a clause with its verb in the passive voice: Through the action or presence of. |
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| means |
| 1. n. plural of mean |
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| 2. n. An instrument or condition for attaining a purpose. |
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| She treated him as a means to an end. |
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| A car is a means of transport. |
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| 3. n. Resources; riches. |
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| mean |
| 1. v. To intend. |
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| 2. v. To intend, to plan (to do); to have as one's intention. |
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| I didn't mean to knock your tooth out. |
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| I mean to go to Baddeck this summer. |
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| I meant to take the car in for a smog check, but it slipped my mind. |
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| of |
| 1. prep. Expressing distance or motion. |
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| 2. prep. (now obsolete, or dialectal) From (of distance, direction), "off". |
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| 3. prep. (obsolete except in phrases) Since, from (a given time, earlier state etc.). |
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| 4. prep. From, away from (a position, number, distance etc.). |
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| There are no shops within twenty miles of the cottage. |
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