acting |
1. adj. Temporarily assuming the duties or authority of another person when they are unable to do their job. | |
The Acting Minister must sign Executive Council documents in a Minister's absence. | |
Acting President of the United States is a temporary office in the government of the United States. | |
2. v. present participle of act | |
3. n. An intended action or deed. | |
4. n. Pretending. | |
5. n. (drama) The occupation of an actor. | |
6. n. (legal) The deeds or actions of parties are called actings to avoid confusion with the legal senses of deeds and actions. | |
act |
1. n. Something done, a deed. | |
an act of goodwill | |
2. n. (obsolete) Actuality. | |
3. n. A product of a legislative body, a statute. | |
4. n. The process of doing something. | |
He was caught in the act of stealing. | |
5. n. A formal or official record of something done. | |
6. n. A division of a theatrical performance. | |
The pivotal moment in the play was in the first scene of the second act. | |
7. n. A performer or performers in a show. | |
Which act did you prefer? The soloist or the band? | |
8. n. Any organized activity. | |
9. n. A display of behaviour. | |
10. n. A thesis maintained in public, in some English universities, by a candidate for a degree, or to show the proficiency of a student. | |
11. n. A display of behaviour meant to deceive. | |
to put on an act | |
12. v. (intransitive) To do something. | |
If you don't act soon, you will be in trouble. | |
13. v. (obsolete, transitive) To do (something); to perform. | |
14. v. (intransitive) To perform a theatrical role. | |
I started acting at the age of eleven in my local theatre. | |
15. v. Of a play: to be acted out (well or badly). | |
16. v. (intransitive) To behave in a certain way. | |
He's acting strangely - I think there's something wrong with him. | |
17. v. (copulative) To convey an appearance of being. | |
He acted unconcerned so the others wouldn't worry. | |
18. v. To do something that causes a change binding on the doer. | |
act on behalf of John | |
19. v. (intransitive, construed with on or upon) To have an effect (on). | |
High-pressure oxygen acts on the central nervous system and may cause convulsions or death. | |
Gravitational force acts on heavy bodies. | |
20. v. To play (a role). | |
He's been acting Shakespearean leads since he was twelve. | |
21. v. To feign. | |
He acted the angry parent, but was secretly amused. | |
22. v. (mathematics, intransitive, construed with on or upon, of a group) To map via a homomorphism to a group of automorphisms (of). | |
This group acts on the circle, so it can't be left-orderable! | |
23. v. (obsolete, transitive) To move to action; to actuate; to animate. | |
in |
1. prep. Used to indicate location, inclusion, or position within spatial, temporal or other limits. | |
2. prep. Contained by. | |
The dog is in the kennel. | |
3. prep. Within. | |
4. prep. Surrounded by. | |
We are in the enemy camp. Her plane is in the air. | |
5. prep. Part of; a member of. | |
One in a million. She's in band and orchestra. | |
6. prep. Pertaining to; with regard to. | |
What grade did he get in English? | |
Military letters should be formal in tone, but not stilted. | |
7. prep. At the end of a period of time. | |
They said they would call us in a week. | |
8. prep. Within a certain elapsed time | |
Are you able to finish this in three hours? The massacre resulted in over 1000 deaths in three hours. | |
9. prep. During (said of periods of time). | |
in the first week of December; Easter falls in the fourth lunar month; The country reached a high level of prosperity in his fi | |
10. prep. (grammar, phonetics, of sounds and letters) Coming at the end of a word. | |
English nouns in -ce form their plurals in -s. | |
11. prep. Into. | |
Less water gets in your boots this way. | |
12. prep. Used to indicate limit, qualification, condition, or circumstance. | |
In replacing the faucet washers, he felt he was making his contribution to the environment. | |
13. prep. Indicating an order or arrangement. | |
My fat rolls around in folds. | |
14. prep. Denoting a state of the subject. | |
He stalked away in anger. John is in a coma. | |
15. prep. Indicates, connotatively, a place-like form of someone's (or something's) personality, as his, her or its psychic and physical characteristics. | |
You've got a friend in me. He's met his match in her. | |
16. prep. Wearing (an item of clothing). | |
I glanced over at the pretty girl in the red dress. | |
17. prep. Used to indicate means, medium, format, genre, or instrumentality. | |
18. prep. (of something offered or given in an exchange) In the form of, in the denomination of. | |
Please pay me in cash — preferably in tens and twenties. | |
The deposit can be in any legal tender, even in gold. | |
Her generosity was rewarded in the success of its recipients. | |
19. prep. Used to indicate a language, script, tone, etc. of a text, speech, etc. | |
Beethoven's "Symphony No. 5" in C minor is among his most popular. | |
His speech was in French, but was simultaneously translated into eight languages. | |
When you write in cursive, it's illegible. | |
20. v. (obsolete, transitive) To enclose. | |
21. v. (obsolete, transitive) To take in; to harvest. | |
22. adv. (not comparable) Located indoors, especially at home or the office, or inside something. | |
Is Mr. Smith in? | |
23. adv. Moving to the interior of a defined space, such as a building or room. | |
Suddenly a strange man walked in. | |
24. adv. (sports) Still eligible to play, e.g. able to bat in cricket and baseball. | |
He went for the wild toss but wasn't able to stay in. | |
25. adv. (UK) Abbreviation of in aid of. | |
What's that in? | |
26. adv. After the beginning of something. | |
27. n. A position of power or a way to get it. | |
His parents got him an in with the company | |
28. n. (sport) The state of a batter/batsman who is currently batting – see innings | |
29. n. A re-entrant angle; a nook or corner. | |
30. adj. In fashion; popular. | |
Skirts are in this year. | |
31. adj. Incoming. | |
the in train | |
32. adj. (nautical, of the sails of a vessel) Furled or stowed. | |
33. adj. (legal) With privilege or possession; used to denote a holding, possession, or seisin. | |
in by descent; in by purchase; in of the seisin of her husband | |
34. adj. (cricket) Currently batting. | |
35. n. Inch. | |
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. | |
confused |
1. v. simple past tense and past participle of confuse | |
2. adj. (of a person) unable to think clearly or understand | |
3. adj. (of a person or animal) disoriented | |
4. adj. chaotic, jumbled or muddled | |
5. adj. making no sense; illogical | |
6. adj. embarrassed | |
confuse |
1. v. to puzzle, perplex, baffle, bewilder (somebody). | |
2. v. To mix up, muddle up (one thing with another); to mistake (gloss, one thing for another). | |
People who say "hola" to Italians are confusing Italian with Spanish. | |
3. v. To mix thoroughly; to confound; to disorder. | |
4. v. (transitive, dated) To make uneasy and ashamed; to embarrass. | |
5. v. (transitive, obsolete) To rout; discomfit. | |
or |
1. conj. Connects at least two alternative words, phrases, clauses, sentences, etc. each of which could make a passage true. In English, this is the "inclusive or." The "exclusive or" is formed by "either(...) | |
In Ohio, anyone under the age of 18 who wants a tattoo or body piercing needs the consent of a parent or guardian. | |
He might get cancer, or be hit by a bus, or God knows what. | |
2. conj. (logic) An operator denoting the disjunction of two propositions or truth values. There are two forms, the inclusive or and the exclusive or. | |
3. conj. Counts the elements before and after as two possibilities. | |
4. conj. Otherwise (a consequence of the condition that the previous is false). | |
It's raining! Come inside or you'll catch a cold! | |
5. conj. Connects two equivalent names. | |
The country Myanmar, or Burma | |
6. n. (logic, electronics) alternative form of OR | |
7. n. (tincture) The gold or yellow tincture on a coat of arms. | |
8. adj. (tincture) Of gold or yellow tincture on a coat of arms. | |
9. adv. (obsolete) Early (on). | |
10. adv. (obsolete) Earlier, previously. | |
11. prep. (now archaic, or dialect) Before; ere. | |
ineffectual |
1. adj. unable or insufficient to produce effect; futile | |
2. adj. worthless | |
3. adj. weak, indecisive; lacking forcefulness | |
Our group leader proved highly ineffectual, caving to every whim put forth by the other members. | |
way |
1. n. To do with a place or places.: | |
2. n. A road, a direction, a (physical or conceptual) path from one place to another. | |
Do you know the way to the airport? Come this way and I'll show you a shortcut. It's a long way from here. | |
3. n. A means to enter or leave a place. | |
We got into the cinema through the back way. | |
4. n. A roughly-defined geographical area. | |
If you're ever 'round this way, come over and visit me. | |
5. n. A method or manner of doing something; a mannerism. | |
You're going about it the wrong way. He's known for his quirky ways. I don't like the way she looks at me. | |
6. n. A state or condition | |
When I returned home, I found my house and belongings in a most terrible way. | |
7. n. Personal interaction.: | |
8. n. Possibility (usually in the phrases 'any way' and 'no way'). | |
There's no way I'm going to clean up after you. | |
9. n. Determined course; resolved mode of action or conduct. | |
My little sister always whines until she gets her way. | |
10. n. (paganism) A tradition within the modern pagan faith of Heathenry, dedication to a specific deity or craft, Way of wyrd, Way of runes, Way of Thor etc. | |
11. n. (nautical) Speed, progress, momentum. | |
12. n. A degree, an amount, a sense. | |
In a large way, crocodiles and alligators are similar. | |
13. n. (US, As the head of an interjectory clause) Acknowledges that a task has been done well, chiefly in expressions of sarcastic congratulation. | |
Way to ruin the moment, guys. | |
14. n. (plural only) The timbers of shipyard stocks that slope into the water and along which a ship or large boat is launched. | |
15. n. (plural only) The longitudinal guiding surfaces on the bed of a planer, lathe, etc. along which a table or carriage moves. | |
16. interj. (only in reply to no way) It is true. | |
17. v. (obsolete) To travel. | |
18. adv. (informal, with comparative or modified adjective) Much. | |
I'm way too tired to do that. | |
I'm a way better singer than Emma. | |
19. adv. (slang) Very. | |
I'm way tired | |
String theory is way cool, except for the math. | |
20. adv. (informal) Far. | |
I used to live way over there. | |
The farmhouse is way down the bottom of the hill. | |
21. n. The letter for the w sound in Pitman shorthand. | |
incompetent |
1. adj. Unskilled; lacking the degree of ability that would normally be expected. | |
Having an incompetent lawyer may be grounds for a retrial, but the lawyer in question probably doesn't know that. | |
2. adj. Unable to make rational decisions, insane or otherwise cognitively impaired. | |
The charged was judged incompetent to stand trial, at least until his medication started working. | |
3. adj. (medical) Of the cervix: opening too early in pregnancy, provoking the baby to be born. | |
4. n. A person who is incompetent. | |
showing |
1. v. present participle of show | |
2. n. An occasion when something is shown. | |
We went to the midnight showing of the new horror movie. | |
3. n. A result, a judgement. | |
He made a poor showing at his first time at bat. | |
show |
1. v. To display, to have somebody see (something). | |
The car's dull finish showed years of neglect. | |
All he had to show for four years of attendance at college was a framed piece of paper. | |
2. v. To bestow; to confer. | |
to show mercy; to show favour; (dialectal) show me the salt please | |
3. v. To indicate (a fact) to be true; to demonstrate. | |
4. v. To guide or escort. | |
Could you please show him on his way. He has overstayed his welcome. | |
They showed us in. | |
5. v. (intransitive) To be visible; to be seen; to appear. | |
Your bald patch is starting to show. | |
At length, his gloom showed. | |
6. v. (intransitive, informal) To put in an appearance; show up. | |
We waited for an hour, but they never showed. | |
7. v. (intransitive, informal) To have an enlarged belly and thus be recognizable as pregnant. | |
8. v. (intransitive, racing) To finish third, especially of horses or dogs. | |
In the third race: Aces Up won, paying eight dollars; Blarney Stone placed, paying three dollars; and Cinnamon showed, paying five dollars. | |
9. v. (obsolete) To have a certain appearance, such as well or ill, fit or unfit; to become or suit; to appear. | |
10. n. A play, dance, or other entertainment. | |
11. n. An exhibition of items. | |
art show; dog show | |
12. n. A demonstration. | |
show of force | |
13. n. A broadcast program/programme. | |
radio show; television show | |
14. n. A movie. | |
Let's catch a show. | |
15. n. A project or presentation. | |
Let's get on with the show. Let's get this show on the road. They went on an international road show to sell the shares to investors. It was Apple's usual do | |
16. n. Mere display or pomp with no substance. (Usually seen in the phrases "all show" and "for show".) | |
The dog sounds ferocious but it's all show. | |
17. n. Outward appearance; wileful or deceptive appearance. | |
18. n. (baseball, with "the") The major leagues. | |
He played AA ball for years, but never made it to the show. | |
19. n. (mining, obsolete) A pale blue flame at the top of a candle flame, indicating the presence of firedamp. | |
20. n. (archaic) Pretence. | |
21. n. (archaic) Sign, token, or indication. | |
22. n. (obsolete) Semblance; likeness; appearance. | |
23. n. (obsolete) Plausibility. | |
24. n. (medicine) A discharge, from the vagina, of mucus streaked with blood, occurring a short time before labor. | |
little |
1. adj. Small in size. | |
This is a little table. | |
2. adj. Insignificant, trivial. | |
It's of little importance. | |
3. adj. (offensive) (Used to belittle a person.) | |
Listen up, you little shit. | |
4. adj. Very young. | |
Did he tell you any embarrassing stories about when she was little? | |
That's the biggest little boy I've ever seen. | |
5. adj. (of a sibling) Younger. | |
This is my little sister. | |
6. adj. Used with the name of place, especially of a country, to denote a neighborhood whose residents or storekeepers are from that place. | |
7. adj. Small in amount or number, having few members. | |
little money; little herd | |
8. adj. Short in duration; brief. | |
I feel better after my little sleep. | |
9. adj. Small in extent of views or sympathies; narrow; shallow; contracted; mean; illiberal; ungenerous. | |
10. adv. Not much. | |
This is a little known fact. She spoke little and listened less. | |
11. adv. Not at all. | |
I was speaking ill of Fred; little did I know that he was right behind me, listening in. | |
12. det. Not much, only a little: only a small amount (of). | |
There is little water left. | |
We had very little to do. | |
13. pron. Not much; not a large amount. | |
Little is known about his early life. | |
14. n. (BDSM, slang) The participant in ageplay who acts out the younger role. | |
or |
1. conj. Connects at least two alternative words, phrases, clauses, sentences, etc. each of which could make a passage true. In English, this is the "inclusive or." The "exclusive or" is formed by "either(...) | |
In Ohio, anyone under the age of 18 who wants a tattoo or body piercing needs the consent of a parent or guardian. | |
He might get cancer, or be hit by a bus, or God knows what. | |
2. conj. (logic) An operator denoting the disjunction of two propositions or truth values. There are two forms, the inclusive or and the exclusive or. | |
3. conj. Counts the elements before and after as two possibilities. | |
4. conj. Otherwise (a consequence of the condition that the previous is false). | |
It's raining! Come inside or you'll catch a cold! | |
5. conj. Connects two equivalent names. | |
The country Myanmar, or Burma | |
6. n. (logic, electronics) alternative form of OR | |
7. n. (tincture) The gold or yellow tincture on a coat of arms. | |
8. adj. (tincture) Of gold or yellow tincture on a coat of arms. | |
9. adv. (obsolete) Early (on). | |
10. adv. (obsolete) Earlier, previously. | |
11. prep. (now archaic, or dialect) Before; ere. | |
No |
1. adv. (archaic) Alternative form of No. | |
2. n. Alternative form of No. | |
3. n. Alternative form of Noh: a form of classical Japanese drama. | |
4. det. Not any. | |
no one | |
There is no water left. | |
No hot dogs were sold yesterday. | |
No customer personal data will be retained unless it is rendered anonymous. | |
There was no score at the end of the first period. (The score was 0-0.) | |
5. det. Hardly any. | |
We'll be finished in no time at all. | |
6. det. Not any possibility or allowance of (doing something). | |
No smoking | |
There's no stopping her once she gets going. | |
7. det. Not (a); not properly, not really; not fully. | |
My mother's no fool. | |
Working nine to five every day is no life. | |
8. adv. (now only used with comparatives, except in Scotland) Not, not at all. | |
It is a different kind of torture, but no less gruesome. | |
I just want to find out whether she's coming or no. | |
9. part. Used to show disagreement or negation. | |
No, you are mistaken. | |
No, you may not watch television now. | |
10. part. Used to show agreement with a negative question. | |
"Don’t you like milk?" "No" (i.e., "No, I don’t like milk.") | |
11. part. (colloquial) As if to say, "No, don’t doubt this!", or to deny an imagined contradictory statement, used to show intense agreement | |
No, totally. | |
No, yeah, that's exactly right. | |
"Wow!" "Yeah, no, it was really awful!". | |
No, yeah | |
12. n. A negating expression; an answer that shows disagreement or disapproval. | |
13. n. A vote not in favor, or opposing a proposition. | |
The workers voted on whether to strike, and there were thirty "yeses" and one "no". | |
14. adv. (archaic) Alternative form of No. | |
15. n. Alternative form of No. | |
skill |
1. n. Capacity to do something well; technique, ability. Skills are usually acquired or learned, as opposed to abilities, which are often thought of as innate. | |
2. n. (obsolete) Discrimination; judgment; propriety; reason; cause. | |
3. n. (obsolete) Knowledge; understanding. | |
4. n. (obsolete) Display of art; exercise of ability; contrivance; address. | |
5. adj. (slang) great, excellent. | |
6. v. To set apart; separate. | |
7. v. (transitive, chiefly dialectal) To discern; have knowledge or understanding; to know how (to). | |
8. v. (transitive, dialectal, Scotland, North England, rare) To know; to understand. | |
9. v. (intransitive) To have knowledge or comprehension; discern. | |
10. v. (intransitive) To have personal or practical knowledge; be versed or practised; be expert or dextrous. | |
11. v. (intransitive, archaic) To make a difference; signify; matter. | |
12. v. (video games) To spend acquired points in exchange for skills. | |