construction |
1. n. The process of constructing. | |
Construction is underway on the new bridge. | |
2. n. Anything that has been constructed. | |
The engineer marvelled at his construction. | |
3. n. The trade of building structures. | |
He had worked in construction all his life. | |
4. n. A building, model or some other structure. | |
The office was a construction of steel and glass. | |
5. n. (arts) A (usually non-representational) structure, such as a collage etc. | |
"Construction in string and clockwork" took first prize. | |
6. n. The manner in which something is built. | |
A thing of simple construction. | |
7. n. (grammar) A group of words arranged to form a meaningful phrase. | |
8. n. The act or result of construing the meaning of something. | |
American conservatives tend to favor strict construction of the Constitution. | |
9. n. The meaning or interpretation of a text, action etc.; the way something is viewed by an observer or onlooker. | |
10. n. (geometry) A geometric figure of arcs and line segments that is drawable with a straightedge and compass. | |
a |
1. art. One; any indefinite example of; used to denote a singular item of a group. | |
There was a man here looking for you yesterday. | |
2. art. Used in conjunction with the adjectives score, dozen, hundred, thousand, and million, as a function word. | |
I've seen it happen a hundred times. | |
3. art. One certain or particular; any single.Brown, Lesley, (2003) | |
We've received an interesting letter from a Mrs. Miggins of London. | |
4. art. The same; one. | |
We are of a mind on matters of morals. | |
5. art. Any, every; used before a noun which has become modified to limit its scope; also used with a negative to indicate not a single one.Lindberg, Christine A. (2007) | |
A man who dies intestate leaves his children troubles and difficulties. | |
He fell all that way, and hasn't a bump on his head? | |
6. art. Used before plural nouns modified by few, good many, couple, great many, etc. | |
7. art. Someone or something like; similar to; Used before a proper noun to create an example out of it. | |
The center of the village was becoming a Times Square. | |
8. prep. (archaic) To do with position or direction; In, on, at, by, towards, onto. | |
Stand a tiptoe. | |
9. prep. To do with separation; In, into. | |
Torn a pieces. | |
10. prep. To do with time; Each, per, in, on, by. | |
I brush my teeth twice a day. | |
11. prep. (obsolete) To do with method; In, with. | |
12. prep. (obsolete) To do with role or capacity; In. | |
A God’s name. | |
13. prep. To do with status; In. | |
King James Bible (II Chronicles 2:18) | |
To set the people a worke. | |
14. prep. (archaic) To do with process, with a passive verb; In the course of, experiencing. | |
1964, Bob Dylan, The Times They Are a-Changin’ | |
The times, they are a-changin'. | |
15. prep. (archaic) To do with an action, an active verb; Engaged in. | |
1611, King James Bible, Hebrews 11-21 | |
Jacob, when he was a dying | |
16. prep. (archaic) To do with an action/movement; To, into. | |
17. v. (archaic, or slang) Have. | |
I'd a come, if you'd a asked. | |
18. pron. (obsolete, outside, England, and Scotland dialects) He. | |
19. interj. A meaningless syllable; ah. | |
20. prep. (archaic, slang) Of. | |
The name of John a Gaunt. | |
21. adv. (chiefly Scotland) All. | |
22. adj. (chiefly Scotland) All. | |
joint |
1. adj. Done by two or more people or organisations working together. | |
The play was a joint production between the two companies. | |
2. n. The point where two components of a structure join, but are still able to rotate. | |
This rod is free to swing at the joint with the platform. | |
3. n. The point where two components of a structure join rigidly. | |
The water is leaking out of the joint between the two pipes. | |
4. n. (anatomy) Any part of the body where two bones join, in most cases allowing that part of the body to be bent or straightened. | |
5. n. The means of securing together the meeting surfaces of components of a structure. | |
The dovetail joint, while more difficult to make, is also quite strong. | |
6. n. A cut of meat. | |
Set the joint in a roasting tin and roast for the calculated cooking time. | |
7. n. The part or space included between two joints, knots, nodes, or articulations. | |
a joint of cane or of a grass stem; a joint of the leg | |
8. n. (geology) A fracture in which the strata are not offset; a geologic joint. | |
9. n. (chiefly US slang) A place of business, particularly in the food service or hospitality industries. | |
It was the kind of joint you wouldn't want your boss to see you in. | |
10. n. (slang) prison | |
I'm just trying to stay out of the joint. | |
11. n. (slang) A marijuana cigarette. | |
After locking the door and closing the shades, they lit the joint. | |
12. v. To unite by a joint or joints; to fit together; to prepare so as to fit together | |
to joint boards, a jointing plane | |
13. v. To join; to connect; to unite; to combine. | |
14. v. To provide with a joint or joints; to articulate. | |
15. v. To separate the joints; of; to divide at the joint or joints; to disjoint; to cut up into joints, as meat. | |
16. v. (intransitive) To fit as if by joints; to coalesce as joints do. | |
the stones joint, neatly. | |
formed |
1. v. simple past tense and past participle of form | |
form |
1. n. To do with shape.: | |
2. n. The shape or visible structure of a thing or person. | |
3. n. A thing that gives shape to other things as in a mold. | |
4. n. (dated) A long bench with no back. | |
5. n. (fine arts) The boundary line of a material object. In painting, more generally, the human body. | |
6. n. (crystallography) The combination of planes included under a general crystallographic symbol. It is not necessarily a closed solid. | |
7. n. (social) To do with structure or procedure. | |
8. n. An order of doing things, as in religious ritual. | |
9. n. Established method of expression or practice; fixed way of proceeding; conventional or stated scheme; formula. | |
10. n. Constitution; mode of construction, organization, etc.; system. | |
a republican form of government | |
11. n. Show without substance; empty, outside appearance; vain, trivial, or conventional ceremony; conventionality; formality. | |
a matter of mere form | |
12. n. (archaic) A class or rank in society. | |
13. n. (UK) A criminal record; loosely, past history (in a given area). | |
14. n. (education) A class or year of school pupils (often preceded by an ordinal number to specify the year, as in sixth form). | |
15. n. A blank document or template to be filled in by the user. | |
To apply for the position, complete the application form. | |
16. n. Level of performance. | |
The team's form has been poor this year. | |
The orchestra was on top form this evening. | |
17. n. (grammar) A grouping of words which maintain grammatical context in different usages; the particular shape or structure of a word or part of speech. | |
participial forms; verb forms | |
18. n. The den or home of a hare. | |
19. n. (computing, programming) A window or dialogue box. | |
20. n. (taxonomy) An infraspecific rank. | |
21. n. (printing, dated) The type or other matter from which an impression is to be taken, arranged and secured in a chase. | |
22. n. (geometry) A quantic. | |
23. n. (sports) A specific way of performing a movement. | |
24. v. To assume (a certain shape or visible structure). | |
When you kids form a straight line I'll hand out the lollies. | |
25. v. To give (a shape or visible structure) to a thing or person. | |
Roll out the dough to form a thin sheet. | |
26. v. (intransitive) To take shape. | |
When icicles start to form on the eaves you know the roads will be icy. | |
27. v. To put together or bring into being; assemble. | |
The socialists did not have enough MPs to form a government. | |
Paul McCartney and John Lennon formed The Beatles in Liverpool in 1960. | |
28. v. (transitive, linguistics) To create (a word) by inflection or derivation. | |
By adding "-ness", you can form a noun from an adjective. | |
29. v. To constitute, to compose, to make up. | |
Teenagers form the bulk of extreme traffic offenders. | |
30. v. To mould or model by instruction or discipline. | |
Singing in a choir helps to form a child's sociality. | |
31. v. To provide (a hare) with a form. | |
32. v. (electrical, historical, transitive) To treat (plates) to prepare them for introduction into a storage battery, causing one plate to be composed more or less of spongy lead, and the other of lead pero | |
by |
1. prep. Near or next to. | |
The mailbox is by the bus stop. | |
2. prep. At some time before (the given time), or before the end of a given time interval. | |
Be back by ten o'clock! We will send it by the first week of July. | |
3. prep. Indicates the actor in a clause with its verb in the passive voice: Through the action or presence of. | |
The matter was decided by the chairman. The boat was swamped by the water. He was protected by his body armour. | |
4. prep. Indicates the creator of a work: Existing through the authorship etc. of. | |
There are many well-known plays by William Shakespeare | |
5. prep. Indicates the cause of a condition or event: Through the action of, caused by, responsibility for; by dint of. | |
6. prep. Indicates a means: Involving/using the means of. | |
I avoided the guards by moving only when they weren't looking. | |
7. prep. Indicates a source of light used as illumination. | |
The electricity was cut off, so we had to read by candlelight. | |
8. prep. Indicates an authority, rule, or permission followed. | |
I sorted the items by category. By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. | |
9. prep. Indicates the amount of some progression: With a change of. | |
Our stock is up by ten percent. | |
10. prep. In the formulae X by X and by Xs, indicates a steady progression, one X after another. | |
We went through the book page by page. We crawled forward by inches. | |
11. prep. Indicates a referenced source: According to. | |
He cheated by his own admission. | |
12. prep. Indicates an oath: With the authority of. | |
By Jove! I think she's got it! By all that is holy, I'll put an end to this. | |
13. prep. Used to separate dimensions when describing the size of something. | |
It is easy to invert a 2-by-2 matrix. The room was about 4 foot by 6 foot. The bricks used to build the wall measured 10 by 20 by 30 cm. | |
14. prep. (horse breeding) Designates a horse's male parent (sire); cf. out of. | |
She's a lovely little filly, by Big Lad, out of Damsel in Distress. | |
15. adv. Along a path which runs by the speaker. | |
I watched as it passed by. | |
16. adv. In the vicinity, near. | |
There was a shepherd close by. | |
The shop is hard by the High Street. | |
17. adv. To or at a place, as a residence or place of business. | |
I'll stop by on my way home from work. | |
We're right near the lifeguard station. Come by before you leave. | |
18. adv. Aside, away. | |
The women spent much time after harvest putting jams by for winter and spring. | |
19. adj. Out of the way, subsidiary. | |
20. n. (card games) A pass | |
21. interj. alternative spelling of bye | |
mating |
1. adj. Fitting into or onto a corresponding part, as a matched plug and socket. | |
2. n. (zoology) Pairing of organisms for copulation. | |
3. n. (zoology) Sexual union; copulation. | |
4. v. present participle of mate | |
mate |
1. n. A fellow, comrade, colleague, partner or someone with whom something is shared, e.g. shipmate, classmate. | |
2. n. (especially of a non-human animal) A breeding partner. | |
3. n. (colloquial, British, Australia, New Zealand) A friend, usually of the same sex. | |
I'm going to the pub with a few mates. | |
He's my best mate. | |
4. n. (colloquial, British, Australia, New Zealand) a colloquial "sir"; an informal and friendly term of address to a stranger, usually male, of similar age | |
Excuse me, mate, have you got the time? | |
5. n. (nautical) In naval ranks, a non-commissioned officer or his subordinate (e.g. Boatswain's Mate, Gunner's Mate, Sailmaker's Mate, etc). | |
6. n. (nautical) A ship's officer, subordinate to the master on a commercial ship. | |
7. n. (nautical) A first mate. | |
8. n. A technical assistant in certain trades (e.g. gasfitter's mate, plumber's mate); sometimes an apprentice. | |
9. n. The other member of a matched pair of objects. | |
I found one of the socks I wanted to wear, but I couldn't find its mate. | |
10. n. A suitable companion; a match; an equal. | |
11. v. (intransitive) To match, fit together without space between. | |
The pieces of the puzzle mate perfectly. | |
12. v. (intransitive) To copulate. | |
13. v. (intransitive) To pair in order to raise offspring | |
14. v. To arrange in matched pairs. | |
15. v. To introduce (animals) together for the purpose of breeding. | |
16. v. (transitive, of an animal) To copulate with. | |
17. v. To marry; to match (a person). | |
18. v. To match oneself against; to oppose as equal; to compete with. | |
19. v. To fit (objects) together without space between. | |
20. v. (transitive, aerospace) To move (a space shuttle orbiter) onto the back of an aircraft that can carry it. | |
21. n. (chess) Short for checkmate. | |
22. v. (intransitive) To win a game of chess by putting the opponent in checkmate | |
23. v. To confuse; to confound. | |
24. n. alternative spelling of maté, an aromatic tea-like drink prepared from the holly yerba maté. | |
25. n. The abovementioned plant; the leaves and shoots used for the tea | |
two |
1. num. (cardinal) A numerical value equal to 2; this many dots (••). Ordinal: second. | |
2. num. Describing a set or group with two elements. | |
3. n. The digit/figure 2. | |
The number 2202 contains three twos. | |
4. n. (US, informal) A two-dollar bill. | |
5. n. A child aged two. | |
This toy is suitable for the twos and threes. | |
6. n. The playing cards featuring two pips. | |
separate |
1. adj. Apart from (the rest); not connected to or attached to (anything else). | |
This chair can be disassembled into five separate pieces. | |
2. adj. (followed by “from”) Not together (with); not united (to). | |
I try to keep my personal life separate from work. | |
3. v. To divide (a thing) into separate parts. | |
Separate the articles from the headings. | |
4. v. To disunite something from one thing; To disconnect. | |
5. v. To cause (things or people) to be separate. | |
If the kids get too noisy, separate them for a few minutes. | |
6. v. (intransitive) To divide itself into separate pieces or substances. | |
The sauce will separate if you don't keep stirring. | |
7. v. (obsolete) To set apart; to select from among others, as for a special use or service. | |
8. n. (usually in the plural) Anything that is sold by itself, especially an article of clothing. | |
sections |
1. n. plural of section | |
2. v. third-person singular present indicative of section | |
section |
1. n. A cutting; a part cut out from the rest of something. | |
2. n. A part, piece, subdivision of anything. | |
3. n. (music) A group of instruments in an orchestra. | |
The horn section is the group of symphonic musicians who play the French horn. | |
4. n. A part of a document. | |
5. n. An act or instance of cutting. | |
6. n. A cross-section (image that shows an object as if cut along a plane). | |
7. n. (aviation) A cross-section perpendicular the longitudinal axis of an aircraft in flight. | |
8. n. (surgery) An incision or the act of making an incision. | |
9. n. (surgery, specifically, colloquial) (short for, Caesarean section) | |
10. n. (sciences) A thin slice of material prepared as a specimen for research. | |
11. n. (botany) A taxonomic rank below the genus (and subgenus if present), but above the species. | |
12. n. (zoology) An informal taxonomic rank below the order ranks and above the family ranks. | |
13. n. (military) A group of 10-15 soldiers led by a non-commissioned officer and forming part of a platoon. | |
14. n. (category theory) A right inverse. | |
15. n. (NZ) A piece of residential land; a plot. | |
16. n. (Canadian) A one-mile square area of land, defined by a government survey. | |
17. n. (geology) A sequence of rock layers. | |
18. v. To cut, divide or separate into pieces. | |
19. v. (British) To commit (a person, to a hospital, with or without their consent), as for mental health reasons. So called after various sections of legal acts regarding mental health. | |
20. v. (medical) To perform a cesarean section on (someone). | |
of |
1. prep. Expressing distance or motion. | |
2. prep. (now obsolete, or dialectal) From (of distance, direction), "off". | |
3. prep. (obsolete except in phrases) Since, from (a given time, earlier state etc.). | |
4. prep. From, away from (a position, number, distance etc.). | |
There are no shops within twenty miles of the cottage. | |
5. prep. (North America, Scotland, Ireland) Before (the hour); to. | |
What's the time? / Nearly a quarter of three. | |
6. prep. Expressing separation. | |
7. prep. (Indicating removal, absence or separation, with the action indicated by a transitive verb and the quality or substance by a grammatical object.) | |
Finally she was relieved of the burden of caring for her sick husband. | |
8. prep. (Indicating removal, absence or separation, with resulting state indicated by an adjective.) | |
He seemed devoid of human feelings. | |
9. prep. (obsolete) (Indicating removal, absence or separation, construed with an intransitive verb.) | |
10. prep. Expressing origin. | |
11. prep. (Indicating an ancestral source or origin of descent.) | |
The word is believed to be of Japanese origin. | |
12. prep. (Indicating a (non-physical) source of action or emotion; introducing a cause, instigation); from, out of, as an expression of. | |
The invention was born of necessity. | |
13. prep. (following an intransitive verb) (Indicates the source or cause of the verb.) | |
It is said that she died of a broken heart. | |
14. prep. (following an adjective) (Indicates the subject or cause of the adjective.) | |
I am tired of all this nonsense. | |
15. prep. Expressing agency. | |
16. prep. (following a passive verb) (Indicates the agent (for most verbs, now usually expressed with by).) | |
I am not particularly enamoured of this idea. | |
17. prep. (Used to introduce the "subjective genitive"; following a noun to form the head of a postmodifying noun phrase) (see also 'Possession' senses below). | |
The contract can be terminated at any time with the agreement of both parties. | |
18. prep. (following an adjective) (Used to indicate the agent of something described by the adjective.) | |
It was very brave of you to speak out like that. | |
19. prep. Expressing composition, substance. | |
20. prep. (after a verb expressing construction, making etc.) (Used to indicate the material or substance used.) | |
Many 'corks' are now actually made of plastic. | |
21. prep. (directly following a noun) (Used to indicate the material of the just-mentioned object.) | |
She wore a dress of silk. | |
22. prep. (Indicating the composition of a given collective or quantitative noun.) | |
What a lot of nonsense! | |
23. prep. (Used to link a given class of things with a specific example of that class.) | |
Welcome to the historic town of Harwich. | |
24. prep. (Links two nouns in near-apposition, with the first qualifying the second); "which is also". | |
I'm not driving this wreck of a car. | |
25. prep. Introducing subject matter. | |
26. prep. (Links an intransitive verb, or a transitive verb and its subject (especially verbs to do with thinking, feeling, expressing etc.), with its subject-ma | |
I'm always thinking of you. | |
27. prep. (following a noun (now chiefly nouns of knowledge, communication etc.)) (Introduces its subject matter); about, concerning. | |
He told us the story of his journey to India. | |
28. prep. (following an adjective) (Introduces its subject matter.) | |
This behaviour is typical of teenagers. | |
29. prep. Having partitive effect. | |
30. prep. (following a number or other quantitive word) (Introduces the whole for which is indicated only the specified part or segment); "from among". | |
Most of these apples are rotten. | |
31. prep. (following a noun) (Indicates a given part.) | |
32. prep. (now archaic, literary, with preceding partitive word assumed, or as a predicate after to be) Some, an amount of, one of. | |
On the whole, they seem to be of the decent sort. | |
33. prep. (Links to a genitive noun or possessive pronoun, with partitive effect (though now often merged with possessive senses, below).) | |
He is a friend of mine. | |
34. prep. Expressing possession. | |
35. prep. Belonging to, existing in, or taking place in a given location, place or time. Compare "origin" senses, above. | |
He was perhaps the most famous scientist of the twentieth century. | |
36. prep. Belonging to (a place) through having title, ownership or control over it. | |
The owner of the nightclub was arrested. | |
37. prep. Belonging to (someone or something) as something they possess or have as a characteristic; (the "possessive genitive". (With abstract nouns, this inter | |
Keep the handle of the saucepan away from the flames. | |
38. prep. Forming the "objective genitive". | |
39. prep. (Follows an agent noun, verbal noun or noun of action.) | |
She had a profound distrust of the police. | |
40. prep. Expressing qualities or characteristics. | |
41. prep. (now archaic, or literary) (Links an adjective with a noun or noun phrase to form a quasi-adverbial qualifier); in respect to, as regards. | |
My companion seemed affable and easy of manner. | |
42. prep. (Indicates a quality or characteristic); "characterized by". | |
Pooh was said to be a bear of very little brain. | |
43. prep. (Indicates quantity, age, price, etc.) | |
We have been paying interest at a rate of 10%. | |
44. prep. (US, informal considered incorrect by some) (Used to link singular indefinite nouns (preceded by the indefinite article) and attributive adjectives mod | |
It's not that big of a deal. | |
45. prep. Expressing a point in time. | |
46. prep. (chiefly regional) During the course of (a set period of time, day of the week etc.), now specifically with implied repetition or regularity. | |
Of an evening, we would often go for a stroll along the river. | |
47. prep. (UK dialectal, chiefly in negative constructions) For (a given length of time). | |
I've not tekken her out of a goodly long while. | |
48. prep. (after a noun) (Indicates duration of a state, activity etc.) | |
After a delay of three hours, the plane finally took off. | |
materials |
1. n. plural of material | |
2. v. third-person singular present indicative of material | |
material |
1. adj. Having to do with matter; consisting of matter. | |
This compound has a number of interesting material properties. | |
2. adj. Worldly, as opposed to spiritual. | |
Don't let material concerns get in the way of living a happy life. | |
3. adj. (law, accounting) Significant. | |
You've made several material contributions to this project. | |
This is the most material fact in this lawsuit. | |
4. n. Matter which may be shaped or manipulated, particularly in making something. | |
Asphalt, composed of oil and sand, is a widely used material for roads. | |
5. n. Text written for a specific purpose. | |
We were a warm-up act at the time; we didn't have enough original material to headline. | |
6. n. A sample or specimens for study. | |
7. n. Cloth to be made into a garment. Fabric. | |
You'll need about a yard of material to make this. | |
8. n. The people collectively who are qualified for a certain position or activity. | |
John Doe is a great governor, and I also believe he is presidential material. | |
He is not the only one. I believe we have lots of presidential material in various public offices. | |
9. n. Related data of various kinds, especially if collected as the basis for a document or book. | |
10. n. The substance that something is made or composed of. | |
11. v. (obsolete, transitive) To form from matter; to materialize. | |