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. | |
water |
1. n. A substance (of molecular formula H₂O) found at room temperature and pressure as a clear liquid; it is present naturally as rain, and found in rivers, lakes and seas; its solid form is ice and its gas | |
By the action of electricity, the water was resolved into its two parts, oxygen and hydrogen. | |
2. n. (in particular) The liquid form of this substance: liquid H₂O. | |
May I have a glass of water? | |
Your plants need more water. | |
3. n. A serving of liquid water. | |
4. n. (alchemy, philosophy) The aforementioned liquid, considered one of the Classical elements or basic elements of alchemy. | |
He showed me the river of living water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God. | |
5. n. (or in the plural) Water in a body; an area of open water. | |
The boat was found within the territorial waters. | |
These seals are a common sight in the coastal waters of Chile. | |
6. n. (poetic, archaic, or dialectal) A body of water, almost always a river. | |
7. n. A combination of water and other substance(s). | |
8. n. (sometimes ) Mineral water. | |
Perrier is the most popular water in this restaurant. | |
9. n. (often, in the plural) Spa water. | |
Many people visit Bath to take the waters. | |
10. n. (pharmacy) A solution in water of a gaseous or readily volatile substance. | |
ammonia water | |
11. n. Urine. | |
12. n. Amniotic fluid; used only in the plural in the UK but often also in the singular in North America, especially to avoid cacophony, as in this example: ( | |
Before the child is born, the pregnant woman’s water breaks. (North America) | |
Before your child is born, your water(s) will break. (North America) | |
Before the child is born, the pregnant woman’s waters break. (UK) | |
13. n. (colloquial, medicine) Fluids in the body, especially when causing swelling. | |
He suffers from water on the knee. | |
14. n. (figuratively, in the or in the singular) A state of affairs; conditions; usually with an adjective indicating an adverse condition. | |
The rough waters of change will bring about the calm after the storm. | |
15. n. (colloquial, figuratively) A person's intuition. | |
I know he'll succeed. I feel it in my waters. | |
16. n. (dated, finance) Excess valuation of securities. | |
17. n. The limpidity and lustre of a precious stone, especially a diamond. | |
a diamond of the first water is perfectly pure and transparent | |
18. n. A wavy, lustrous pattern or decoration such as is imparted to linen, silk, metals, etc. | |
19. v. To pour water into the soil surrounding (plants). | |
20. v. To wet or supply with water; to moisten; to overflow with water; to irrigate. | |
21. v. To provide (animals) with water for drinking. | |
I need to go water the cattle. | |
22. v. (intransitive) To get or take in water. | |
The ship put into port to water. | |
23. v. (transitive, colloquial) To urinate onto. | |
Nature called, so I stepped into the woods and watered a tree. | |
24. v. To dilute. | |
Can you water the whisky, please? | |
25. v. (transitive, dated, finance) To overvalue (securities), especially through deceptive accounting. | |
26. v. (intransitive) To fill with or secrete water. | |
Chopping onions makes my eyes water. | |
The smell of fried onions makes my mouth water. | |
27. v. To wet and calender, as cloth, so as to impart to it a lustrous appearance in wavy lines; to diversify with wavelike lines. | |
to water silk | |
there |
1. adv. (location) In a place or location (stated, implied or otherwise indicated) at some distance from the speaker (compare here). | |
2. adv. (figuratively) In that matter, relation, etc.; at that point, stage, etc., regarded as a distinct place. | |
He did not stop there, but continued his speech. | |
They patched up their differences, but matters did not end there. | |
3. adv. (location) To or into that place; thither. | |
4. adv. (obsolete) Where, there where, in which place. | |
5. adv. In existence or in this world; see pronoun section below. | |
6. interj. Used to offer encouragement or sympathy. | |
There, there. Everything is going to turn out all right. | |
7. interj. Used to express victory or completion. | |
There! That knot should hold. | |
8. n. That place. | |
9. n. That status; that position. | |
You get it ready; I'll take it from there. | |
10. pron. Used as an expletive subject of be in its sense of “exist”, with the semantic, usually indefinite subject being postponed or (occasionally) implied. | |
There are two apples on the table. =Two apples are on the table. | |
There is no way to do it. =No way to do it exists. | |
Is there an answer? =Does an answer exist? | |
No, there isn't. =No, one doesn't exist. | |
11. pron. Used with other intransitive verbs of existence, in the same sense, or with other intransitive verbs, adding a sense of existence. | |
If x is a positive number, then there exists =there is a positive number y less than x. | |
There remain several problems with this approach. =Several problems remain with this approach. | |
Once upon a time, in a now-forgotten kingdom, there lived a woodsman with his wife. =There was a woodsman, who lived with his wife. | |
There arose a great wind out of the east. =There was now a great wind, arising in the east. | |
12. pron. Used with other verbs, when raised. | |
There seems to be some difficulty with the papers. =It seems that there is some difficulty with the papers. | |
I expected there to be a simpler solution. =I expected that there would be a simpler solution. | |
There are beginning to be complications. =It's beginning to be the case that there are complications. | |
13. pron. (in combination with certain prepositions, no longer productive) That. | |
therefor, thereat, thereunder | |
14. pron. (colloquial) Used to replace an unknown name, principally in greetings and farewells | |
Hi there, young fellow. | |
15. contraction. misspelling of they’re | |
16. det. misspelling of their | |
Is |
1. n. plural of I | |
2. v. third-person singular present indicative of be | |
He is a doctor. He retired some time ago. | |
Should he do the task, it is vital that you follow him. | |
3. n. plural of i | |
remember to dot your is | |
be |
1. v. (intransitive, now literary) To exist; to have real existence. | |
2. v. (with there, or dialectally it, as dummy subject) To exist. | |
There is just one woman in town who can help us. (or, dialectally:) It is just one woman in town who can help us. | |
3. v. (intransitive) To occupy a place. | |
The cup is on the table. | |
4. v. (intransitive) To occur, to take place. | |
When will the meeting be? | |
5. v. (intransitive, in perfect tenses, without predicate) Elliptical form of "be here", "go to and return from" or similar. | |
The postman has been today, but my tickets have still not yet come. | |
I have been to Spain many times. | |
Moscow, huh? I've never been, but it sounds fascinating. | |
6. v. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject and object are the same. | |
Knowledge is bliss. | |
Hi, I’m Jim. | |
7. v. (transitive, copulative, mathematics) Used to indicate that the values on either side of an equation are the same. | |
3 times 5 is fifteen. | |
8. v. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject plays the role of the predicate nominal. | |
François Mitterrand was president of France from 1981 to 1995. | |
9. v. (transitive, copulative) Used to connect a noun to an adjective that describes it. | |
The sky is blue. | |
10. v. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject has the qualities described by a noun or noun phrase. | |
The sky is a deep blue today. | |
11. v. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form the passive voice. | |
The dog was drowned by the boy. | |
12. v. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form the continuous forms of various tenses. | |
The woman is walking. | |
I shall be writing to you soon. | |
We liked to chat while we were eating. | |
13. v. (archaic, auxiliary) Used to form the perfect aspect with certain intransitive verbs, most of which indicate motion. Often still used for "to go". | |
14. v. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form future tenses, especially the future periphrastic. | |
I am to leave tomorrow. | |
I would drive you, were I to obtain a car. | |
15. v. (transitive, copulative) Used to link a subject to a measurement. | |
This building is three hundred years old. | |
I am 75 kilograms. | |
He’s about 6 feet tall. | |
16. v. (transitive, copulative, with a cardinal numeral) Used to state the age of a subject in years. | |
I’m 20. (= I am 20 years old.) | |
17. v. (with a dummy subject) it Used to indicate the time of day. | |
It is almost eight. (= It is almost eight o’clock.) | |
It’s 8:30 read eight-thirty in Tokyo. | |
What time is it there? It’s night. | |
18. v. (With since) Used to indicate passage of time since the occurrence of an event. | |
It has been three years since my grandmother died. (similar to My grandmother died three years ago, but emphasizes the intervening period) | |
It had been six days since his departure, when I received a letter from him. | |
19. v. (often, impersonal, with it as a dummy subject) Used to indicate weather, air quality, or the like. | |
It is hot in Arizona, but it is not usually humid. | |
Why is it so dark in here? | |
20. v. (dynamic/lexical "be", especially in progressive tenses, conjugated non-suppletively in the present tense, see usage notes) To exist or behave in a certain way. | |
"What do we do?" "We be ourselves.". | |
Why is he being nice to me? | |
otherwise |
1. adv. (manner) Differently, in another way. | |
You may have a point, but I think otherwise. | |
2. adv. (conjunctive) In different circumstances; or else. | |
I’m not well today, otherwise I would have helped. You have to open your umbrella, otherwise you'll get wet. | |
3. adv. (conjunctive) In all other respects. | |
He lost his temper once in a while. Otherwise he behaved rationally. | |
4. adj. Other than supposed; different. | |
He said he didn’t do it, but the evidence was otherwise. | |
very |
1. adj. True, real, actual. | |
The fierce hatred of a very woman. The very blood and bone of our grammar. He tried his very best. | |
2. adj. The same; identical. | |
He proposed marriage in the same restaurant, at the very table where they first met. That's the very tool that I need. | |
3. adj. With limiting effect: mere. | |
4. adv. To a great extent or degree; extremely; exceedingly. | |
You’re drinking very slowly. | |
That dress is very you. | |
5. adv. True, truly. | |
6. adv. (with superlatives) (ngd, Used to firmly establish that nothing else surpasses in some respect.) | |
He was the very best runner there. | |
low |
1. adj. Situated close to, or even below, the ground or another normal reference plane; not high or lofty. | |
standing on low ground in a low valley, ringed by low hills a low wall a low shelf | |
2. adj. Pertaining to (or, especially of a language: spoken in) in an area which is at a lesser elevation, closer to sea level (especially near the sea), than | |
the low countries Low German | |
3. adj. (baseball, of a ball) Below the batter's knees. | |
the pitch (or: the ball) was low | |
4. adj. Of less than normal height; below the average or normal level from which elevation is measured. | |
a low bow a low tide the Mississippi is unusually low right now | |
5. adj. Not high in status, esteem or rank, dignity, or quality. (Compare vulgar). | |
low birth low rank the low officials of the bureaucracy low-quality fabric playing low tricks on them a person of low mind | |
Now that was low even for you! | |
6. adj. Humble, meek, not haughty. | |
7. adj. Disparaging; assigning little value or excellence. | |
She had a low opinion of cats. He took a low view of dogs. | |
8. adj. Being a nadir, a bottom. | |
the low point in her career | |
9. adj. Depressed in mood, dejected, sad. | |
low spirits | |
10. adj. Lacking health or vitality, strength or vivacity; feeble; weak. | |
a low pulse | |
made (or: laid) low by sickness | |
11. adj. Small, not high (in amount or quantity, value, force, energy, etc). | |
My credit union charges a low interest rate. Jogging during a whiteout, with such low temperatures and low visibility, is dangerous. The store sold bread at low prices, and milk a | |
12. adj. Having a small or comparatively smaller concentration of (a substance, which is often but not always linked by "in" when predicative). | |
diets low in vitamin A made from low-carbon steel | |
13. adj. Depleted, or nearing deletion; lacking in supply. | |
running low on cash | |
14. adj. (especially in the field of biology) Simple in complexity or development; (in several set phrases) favoring simplicity; see e.g. low church, Low Tory. | |
low protozoan animals, low cryptogamic plants, and other low organisms | |
15. adj. (in several set phrases) Being near the equator. | |
the low northern latitudes | |
16. adj. (acoustics) Grave in pitch, due to being produced by relatively slow vibrations (wave oscillations); flat. | |
The note was too low for her to sing. | |
Generally, European men have lower voices than their Indian counterparts. | |
17. adj. Quiet; soft; not loud. | |
They spoke in low voices so I would not hear what they were saying. | |
Why would you want to play heavy metal at such a low volume? | |
18. adj. (phonetics) Made with a relatively large opening between the tongue and the palate; made with (part of) the tongue positioned low in the mouth, relative to the palate. | |
19. adj. (card games) Lesser in value than other cards, denominations, suits, etc. | |
a low card | |
20. adj. (archaic) Not rich, seasoned, or nourishing; plain, simple. | |
a low diet | |
21. adj. (of an, automobile, gear, etc) Designed for a slow (or the slowest) speed. | |
low gear | |
22. n. Something that is low; a low point. | |
You have achieved a new low in behavior, Frank. | |
Economic growth has hit a new low. | |
23. n. The minimum value attained by some quantity within a specified period. | |
Unemployment has reached a ten-year low. | |
24. n. A depressed mood or situation. | |
He is in a low right now | |
25. n. (meteorology) An area of low pressure; a depression. | |
A deep low is centred over the British Isles. | |
26. n. The lowest-speed gearing of a power-transmission system, especially of an automotive vehicle. | |
Shift out of low before the car gets to eight miles per hour. | |
27. n. (card games) The lowest trump, usually the deuce; the lowest trump dealt or drawn. | |
28. n. (slang) (usually accompanied by "the") a cheap, cost-efficient, or advantageous payment or expense. | |
He got the brand new Yankees jersey for the low. | |
29. adv. Close to the ground. | |
30. adv. Of a pitch, at a lower frequency. | |
31. adv. With a low voice or sound; not loudly; gently. | |
to speak low | |
32. adv. Under the usual price; at a moderate price; cheaply. | |
He sold his wheat low. | |
33. adv. In a low mean condition; humbly; meanly. | |
34. adv. In a time approaching our own. | |
35. adv. (astronomy) In a path near the equator, so that the declination is small, or near the horizon, so that the altitude is small; said of the heavenly bodies with reference to the diurnal revolution. | |
The moon runs low, i.e. comparatively near the horizon when on or near the meridian. | |
36. v. (obsolete, transitive) To depress; to lower. | |
37. v. (obsolete) simple past tense of laugh. | |
38. v. (intransitive) To moo. | |
The cattle were lowing. | |
39. n. (UK, Scotland, dialect) A flame; fire; blaze. | |
40. v. (Scotland) To burn; to blaze. | |
41. n. (archaic, or obsolete) Barrow, mound, tumulus. | |
42. n. (Scottish dialectal, archaic) A hill. | |
43. n. cln, en, basic words, three-letter words | |
and |
1. conj. As a coordinating conjunction; expressing two elements to be taken together or in addition to each other. | |
2. conj. Used simply to connect two noun phrases, adjectives or adverbs. | |
3. conj. Simply connecting two clauses or sentences. | |
4. conj. Introducing a clause or sentence which follows on in time or consequence from the first. | |
5. conj. (obsolete) Yet; but. | |
6. conj. Used to connect certain numbers: connecting units when they precede tens (not dated); connecting tens and units to hundreds, thousands etc. (now often | |
7. conj. (now colloquial, or literary) Used to connect more than two elements together in a chain, sometimes to stress the number of elements. | |
8. conj. Connecting two identical elements, with implications of continued or infinite repetition. | |
9. conj. Introducing a parenthetical or explanatory clause. | |
10. conj. Introducing the continuation of narration from a previous understood point; also used alone as a question: ‘and so what?’. | |
11. conj. (now regional or somewhat colloquial) Used to connect two verbs where the second is dependent on the first: ‘to’. Used especially after come, | |
12. conj. Introducing a qualitative difference between things having the same name; "as well as other". | |
13. conj. Used to combine numbers in addition; plus (with singular or plural verb). | |
14. conj. Expressing a condition.: | |
15. conj. (now US dialect) If; provided that. | |
16. conj. (obsolete) As if, as though. | |
17. n. (enm, music, often informal) In rhythm, the second half of a divided beat. | |
18. n. (UK dialectal) Breath. | |
19. n. (UK dialectal) Sea smoke; steam fog. | |
20. v. (UK dialectal, intransitive) To breathe; whisper; devise; imagine. | |
ebb |
1. n. The receding movement of the tide. | |
The boats will go out on the ebb. | |
2. n. A gradual decline. | |
3. n. A low state; a state of depression. | |
4. n. A European bunting, the corn bunting (, syn. ,). | |
5. v. (intransitive) to flow back or recede | |
The tides ebbed at noon. | |
6. v. (intransitive) to fall away or decline | |
The dying man's strength ebbed away. | |
7. v. (intransitive) to fish with stakes and nets that serve to prevent the fish from getting back into the sea with the ebb | |
8. v. To cause to flow back. | |
9. adj. low, shallow | |
The water there is otherwise very low and ebb. (Holland) | |