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. | |
recent |
1. adj. Having happened a short while ago. | |
2. adj. Up-to-date; not old-fashioned or dated. | |
3. adj. Having done something a short while ago that distinguishes them as what they are called. | |
The cause has several hundred recent donors. | |
I met three recent graduates at the conference. | |
4. adj. (sciences) Particularly in geology, palaeontology, and astronomy: having occurred a relatively short time ago, but still potentially thousands or even millions of years ago. | |
5. adj. (geology, astronomy, capitalised as "Recent") Of the Holocene, particularly pre-21st century.Oxford English Dictionary, 3rd ed. quotes "P. Gibbard & T. van Kolfschoten in F. Gradstein et al. Geol. Tim | |
years |
1. n. plural of year. | |
2. n. (colloquial, hyperbole) A very long time. | |
It took years for the bus to come. | |
year |
1. n. A solar year, the time it takes the Earth to complete one revolution of the Sun (between 365.24 and 365.26 days depending on the point of reference). | |
we moved to this town a year ago; I quit smoking exactly one year ago | |
2. n. (by extension) The time it takes for any astronomical object (such as a planet, dwarf planet, small Solar System body, or comet) in direct orbit around a star (such as the Sun) to make one revolution | |
Mars goes around the sun once in a Martian year, or 1.88 Earth years. | |
3. n. A period between set dates that mark a year, from January 1 to December 31 by the Gregorian calendar, from Tishiri 1 to Elul 29 by the Jewish calendar, and from Muharram 1 to Dhu al-Hijjah 29 or 30 by | |
A normal year has 365 full days, but there are 366 days in a leap year. | |
I was born in the year 1950. | |
This Chinese year is the year of the Rooster. | |
4. n. A scheduled part of a calendar year spent in a specific activity. | |
During this school year I have to get up at 6:30 to catch the bus. | |
5. n. (sciences) A Julian year, exactly 365.25 days, represented by "a". | |
6. n. A level or grade in school or college. | |
Every second-year student must select an area of specialization. | |
The exams in year 12 at high school are the most difficult. | |
7. n. The proportion of a creature's lifespan equivalent to one year of an average human lifespan (see also dog year). | |
Geneticists have created baker's yeast that can live to 800 in yeast years. | |
the |
1. art. Definite grammatical article that implies necessarily that an entity it articulates is presupposed; something already mentioned, or completely specified later in that same sentence, or assumed already | |
I’m reading the book. (Compare I’m reading a book.) | |
The street in front of your house. (Compare A street in Paris.) | |
The men and women watched the man give the birdseed to the bird. | |
2. art. Used before a noun modified by a restrictive relative clause, indicating that the noun refers to a single referent defined by the relative clause. | |
The street that runs through my hometown. | |
3. art. Used before an object considered to be unique, or of which there is only one at a time. | |
No one knows how many galaxies there are in the universe. | |
God save the Queen! | |
4. art. Used before a superlative or an ordinal number modifying a noun, to indicate that the noun refers to a single item. | |
That was the best apple pie ever. | |
5. art. Added to a superlative or an ordinal number to make it into a substantive. | |
That apple pie was the best. | |
6. art. Introducing a singular term to be taken generically: preceding a name of something standing for a whole class. | |
7. art. Used before an adjective, indicating all things (especially persons) described by that adjective. | |
Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, comfort the afflicted, and afflict the comfortable. | |
8. art. Used to indicate a certain example of (a noun) which is usually of most concern or most common or familiar. | |
No one in the whole country had seen it before. | |
I don't think I'll get to it until the morning. | |
9. art. Used before a body part (especially of someone previously mentioned), as an alternative to a possessive pronoun. | |
A stone hit him on the head. (= “A stone hit him on his head.”) | |
10. art. When stressed, indicates that it describes an object which is considered to be best or exclusively worthy of attention. | |
That is the hospital to go to for heart surgery. | |
11. adv. 1=With a comparative ormore and a verb phrase, establishes a parallel with one or more other such comparatives. | |
The hotter the better. | |
The more I think about it, the weaker it looks. | |
The more money donated, the more books purchased, and the more happy children. | |
It looks weaker and weaker, the more I think about it. | |
12. adv. 1=With a comparative, and often withfor it, indicates a result more like said comparative. This can be negated withnone. | |
It was a difficult time, but I’m the wiser for it. | |
It was a difficult time, and I’m none the wiser for it. | |
I'm much the wiser for having had a difficult time like that. | |
prime |
1. adj. First in importance, degree, or rank. | |
Our prime concern here is to keep the community safe. | |
2. adj. First in time, order, or sequence. | |
Both the English and French governments established prime meridians in their capitals. | |
3. adj. First in excellence, quality, or value. | |
This is a prime location for a bookstore. | |
4. adj. (mathematics, lay) Having exactly two integral factors: itself and unity (1 in the case of integers). | |
Thirteen is a prime number. | |
5. adj. (mathematics, technical) Such that if it divides a product, it divides one of the multiplicands. | |
6. adj. (mathematics) Having its complement closed under multiplication: said only of ideals. | |
7. adj. Marked or distinguished by the prime symbol. | |
8. adj. Early; blooming; being in the first stage. | |
9. adj. (obsolete) Lecherous; lustful; lewd. | |
10. n. (historical) The first hour of daylight; the first canonical hour. | |
11. n. (Christianity) The religious service appointed to this hour. | |
12. n. (obsolete) The early morning generally. | |
13. n. (now rare) The earliest stage of something. | |
14. n. The most active, thriving, or successful stage or period. | |
15. n. The chief or best individual or part. | |
16. n. (music) The first note or tone of a musical scale. | |
17. n. (fencing) The first defensive position, with the sword hand held at head height, and the tip of the sword at head height. | |
18. n. (algebra, number theory) A prime element of a mathematical structure, particularly a prime number. | |
3 is a prime. | |
19. n. (card games) A four-card hand containing one card of each suit in the game of primero; the opposite of a flush in poker. | |
20. n. (backgammon) Six consecutive blocks, which prevent the opponent's pieces from passing. | |
I'm threatening to build a prime here. | |
21. n. The symbol ′ used to indicate feet, minutes, derivation and other measures and mathematical operations. | |
22. n. (chemistry, obsolete) Any number expressing the combining weight or equivalent of any particular element; so called because these numbers were respectively reduced to their lowest relative terms on th | |
23. n. An inch, as composed of twelve seconds in the duodecimal system. | |
24. n. (obsolete) The priming in a flintlock. | |
25. n. (film) Contraction of prime lens, a film lens | |
26. n. (chief or best individual or part) choice, prize, quality, select | |
27. n. (algebra: prime element of a mathematical structure) prime number (when an integer) | |
28. v. To prepare a mechanism for its main work. | |
You'll have to press this button twice to prime the fuel pump. | |
29. v. To apply a coat of primer paint to. | |
I need to prime these handrails before we can apply the finish coat. | |
30. v. (obsolete, intransitive) To be renewed. | |
31. v. (intransitive) To serve as priming for the charge of a gun. | |
32. v. (intransitive, of a steam boiler) To work so that foaming occurs from too violent ebullition, which causes water to become mixed with, and be carried along with, the steam that is formed. | |
33. v. To apply priming to (a musket or cannon); to apply a primer to (a metallic cartridge). | |
34. v. To prepare; to make ready; to instruct beforehand; to coach. | |
to prime a witness | |
The boys are primed for mischief. | |
35. v. (dialect) To trim or prune. | |
to prime trees | |
36. v. (math) To mark with a prime mark. | |
37. n. (cycling) An intermediate sprint within a race, usually offering a prize and/or points. | |
minister |
1. n. A person who is trained to preach, to perform religious ceremonies and to afford pastoral care at a Protestant church. | |
The minister said a prayer on behalf of the entire congregation. | |
2. n. A politician who heads a ministry (national or regional government department for public service). | |
He was newly appointed to be Minister of the Interior. | |
3. n. At a diplomacy, the rank of diplomat directly below ambassador. | |
4. n. A servant; a subordinate; an officer or assistant of inferior rank; hence, an agent, an instrument. | |
5. v. To attend to (the needs of); to tend; to take care (of); to give aid; to give service. | |
A newspaper headline: Couple leaves business world to minister to inner-city children | |
6. v. to function as a clergyman or as the officiant in church worship | |
7. v. (transitive, archaic) To afford, to give, to supply. | |
has |
1. v. third-person singular present indicative of have | |
have |
Additional archaic forms are second-person singular present tense hast, third-person singular present tense hath, present participle haveing, and second-person singular past tense hadst. | |
1. v. To possess, own, hold. | |
I have a house and a car. | |
Look what I have here — a frog I found on the street! | |
2. v. To be related in some way to (with the object identifying the relationship). | |
I have two sisters. | |
I have a lot of work to do. | |
3. v. To partake of a particular substance (especially a food or drink) or action. | |
I have breakfast at six o'clock. | |
Can I have a look at that? | |
I'm going to have some pizza and a beer right now. | |
4. v. To be scheduled to attend or participate in. | |
What class do you have right now? I have English. | |
Fred won't be able to come to the party; he has a meeting that day. | |
5. v. (auxiliary verb, taking a past participle) (Used in forming the perfect aspect and the past perfect aspect.) | |
I have already eaten today. | |
I had already eaten. | |
6. v. (auxiliary verb, taking a to-infinitive) See have to. | |
I have to go. | |
7. v. To give birth to. | |
The couple always wanted to have children. | |
My wife is having the baby right now! | |
My mother had me when she was 25. | |
8. v. To engage in sexual intercourse with. | |
He's always bragging about how many women he's had. | |
9. v. To accept as a romantic partner. | |
Despite my protestations of love, she would not have me. | |
10. v. (transitive with bare infinitive) To cause to, by a command, request or invitation. | |
They had me feed their dog while they were out of town. | |
11. v. (transitive with adjective or adjective-phrase complement) To cause to be. | |
He had him arrested for trespassing. | |
The lecture's ending had the entire audience in tears. | |
12. v. (transitive with bare infinitive) To be affected by an occurrence. (Used in supplying a topic that is not a verb argument.) | |
The hospital had several patients contract pneumonia last week. | |
I've had three people today tell me my hair looks nice. | |
13. v. (transitive with adjective or adjective-phrase complement) To depict as being. | |
Their stories differed; he said he'd been at work when the incident occurred, but her statement had him at home that entire evening. | |
14. v. (Used as interrogative auxiliary verb with a following pronoun to form tag questions. (For further discussion, see "Usage notes" below.)) | |
We haven't eaten dinner yet, have we? | |
Your wife hasn't been reading that nonsense, has she? | |
(UK usage) He has some money, hasn't he? | |
15. v. (UK, slang) To defeat in a fight; take. | |
I could have him! | |
I'm gonna have you! | |
16. v. (dated) To be able to speak a language. | |
I have no German. | |
17. v. To feel or be (especially painfully) aware of. | |
Dan certainly has arms today, probably from scraping paint off four columns the day before. | |
18. v. To be afflicted with, suffer from. | |
He had a cold last week. | |
19. v. To experience, go through, undergo. | |
We had a hard year last year, with the locust swarms and all that. | |
He had surgery on his hip yesterday. | |
I'm having the time of my life! | |
20. v. To trick, to deceive. | |
You had me alright! I never would have thought that was just a joke. | |
21. v. (transitive, often with present participle) To allow; to tolerate. | |
The child screamed incessantly for his mother to buy him a toy, but she wasn't having any of it. | |
I asked my dad if I could go to the concert this Thursday, but he wouldn't have it since it's a school night. | |
22. v. (transitive, often used in the negative) To believe, buy, be taken in by. | |
I made up an excuse as to why I was out so late, but my wife wasn't having any of it. | |
23. v. To host someone; to take in as a guest. | |
Thank you for having me! | |
24. v. To get a reading, measurement, or result from an instrument or calculation. | |
What do you have for problem two? | |
I have two contacts on my scope. | |
25. v. (transitive, of a jury) To consider a court proceeding that has been completed; to begin deliberations on a case. | |
We'll schedule closing arguments for Thursday, and the jury will have the case by that afternoon. | |
26. n. A wealthy or privileged person. | |
27. n. (uncommon) One who has some (contextually specified) thing. | |
28. n. (AU, NZ, informal) A fraud or deception; something misleading. | |
They advertise it as a great deal, but I think it's a bit of a have. | |
become |
1. v. (intransitive, obsolete) To arrive, come (to a place). | |
2. v. (copulative) To come about; happen; come into being; arise. | |
What became of him after he was let go? | |
It hath becomen so that many a man had to sterve. | |
3. v. (copulative) begin to be; turn into. | |
She became a doctor when she was 25. | |
The weather will become cold after the sun goes down. | |
4. v. To be proper for; to beseem. | |
5. v. Of an adornment, piece of clothing etc.: to look attractive on (someone). | |
That dress really becomes you. | |
increasingly |
1. adv. increasing in amount or intensity | |
autocratic |
1. adj. Of or pertaining to autocracy or to an autocrat; absolute; holding independent and arbitrary powers of government. | |
In recent years, the prime minister has become increasingly autocratic. | |
2. adj. Of or pertaining to the manner of an autocrat. | |
Despite his lack of actual authority, his autocratic demeanour annoyed many of his colleagues. | |