what |
1. pron. (interrogative) Which thing, event, circumstance, etc.: (used interrogatively in asking for the specification of an identity, quantity, quality, etc.) | |
2. pron. (relative, nonstandard) That; which; who. | |
3. pron. That which; those that; the thing that. | |
He knows what he wants. | |
What goes up must come down. | |
Keep up with what your friends are doing. | |
4. pron. Whatever. | |
I will do what I can to help you. | |
5. adv. (usually followed by "with") In some manner or degree; in part; partly. See also what with | |
What with singing and joking, the time passed quickly. | |
6. adv. Such. | |
What a pity. | |
What a beautiful day! | |
7. adv. (obsolete) Why? | |
8. adv. (now rare) Used to introduce each of two coordinate phrases or concepts; both…and. | |
9. adv. (Singlish) (alt form, wat) (used to contradict an assumption) | |
10. interj. An expression of surprise or disbelief. | |
What! That’s amazing. | |
11. interj. Response that enquires what the asker desires (usually said unhappily). | |
12. interj. (UK, colloquial, dated) (clipping of what do you say)? | |
It’s a nice day, what? | |
13. interj. What did you say? I beg your pardon? | |
14. det. Which; which kind of. | |
What shirt are you going to wear? | |
What time is it? | |
What kind of car is that? | |
15. det. How much; how great (used in an exclamation). | |
What talent he has! | |
What a talent! | |
16. det. (relative) Whatever | |
Write down what things come into your mind. | |
17. n. (obsolete) Something; thing; stuff. | |
18. n. The identity of a thing, as an answer to a question of what. | |
19. n. Something that is addressed by , as opposed to a person, addressed by who. | |
kind |
1. n. A type, race or category; a group of entities that have common characteristics such that they may be grouped together. | |
What kind of a person are you? | |
This is a strange kind of tobacco. | |
2. n. A makeshift or otherwise atypical specimen. | |
The opening served as a kind of window. | |
3. n. (archaic) One's inherent nature; character, natural disposition. | |
4. n. Goods or services used as payment, as e.g. in barter. | |
5. n. Equivalent means used as response to an action. | |
I'll pay in kind for his insult. | |
6. n. (Christianity) Each of the two elements of the communion service, bread and wine. | |
7. adj. Having a benevolent, courteous, friendly, generous, gentle, liberal, sympathetic, or warm-hearted nature or disposition, marked by consideration for – and service to – others. | |
8. adj. Affectionate. | |
a kind man; a kind heart | |
9. adj. Favorable. | |
10. adj. Mild, gentle, forgiving | |
The years have been kind to Richard Gere; he ages well. | |
11. adj. Gentle; tractable; easily governed. | |
a horse kind in harness | |
12. adj. (obsolete) Characteristic of the species; belonging to one's nature; natural; native. | |
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. | |
fish |
1. n. A cold-blooded vertebrate animal that lives in water, moving with the help of fins and breathing with gills. | |
Salmon is a fish. | |
The Sun Mother created all the fishes of the world. | |
The Sun Mother created all the fish of the world. | |
We have many fish in our aquarium. | |
2. n. (archaic, or loosely) Any animal (or any vertebrate) that lives exclusively in water. | |
3. n. The flesh of the fish used as food. | |
The seafood pasta had lots of fish but not enough pasta. | |
4. n. A card game in which the object is to obtain cards in pairs or sets of four (depending on the variation), by asking the other players for cards of a particular rank. | |
5. n. (derogatory, slang) A woman. | |
6. n. (slang) An easy victim for swindling. | |
7. n. (poker slang) A bad poker player. Compare shark (a good poker player). | |
8. n. (nautical) A makeshift overlapping longitudinal brace, originally shaped roughly like a fish, used to temporarily repair or extend a spar or mast of a ship. | |
9. n. (nautical) A purchase used to fish the anchor. | |
10. n. (nautical) A torpedo. | |
11. n. (zoology) A paraphyletic grouping of the following extant taxonomic groups: | |
12. n. Class Myxini, the hagfish (no vertebra) | |
13. n. Class Petromyzontida, the lampreys (no jaw) | |
14. n. Within infraphylum Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates (also including Tetrapoda) | |
15. n. # Class Chondrichthyes, cartilaginous fish such as sharks and rays | |
16. n. # Superclass Osteichthyes, bony fish. | |
17. n. (cartomancy) The thirty-fourth Lenormand card. | |
18. n. A period of time spent fishing. | |
The fish at the lake didn't prove successful. | |
19. n. An instance of seeking something. | |
Merely two fishes for information told the whole story. | |
20. v. (intransitive) To hunt fish or other aquatic animals. | |
She went to the river to fish for trout. | |
21. v. To search (a body of water) for something other than fish. | |
They fished the surrounding lakes for the dead body. | |
22. v. (intransitive) To (attempt to) find or get hold of an object by searching among other objects. | |
Why are you fishing through my things? | |
He was fishing for the keys in his pocket. | |
23. v. (intransitive, followed by "for" or "around for") To talk to people in an attempt to get them to say something. | |
The detective visited the local pubs fishing around for more information. | |
The actors loitered at the door, fishing for compliments. | |
24. v. (intransitive, cricket) Of a batsman, to attempt to hit a ball outside off stump and miss it. | |
25. v. (nautical) To repair a spar or mast by fastening a beam or other long object (often called a fish) over the damaged part (see Noun above). | |
26. n. (obsolete) A counter, used in various games. | |
are |
1. v. second-person singular present of be | |
Mary, where are you going? | |
2. v. first-person plural present of be | |
We are not coming. | |
3. v. second-person plural present of be | |
Mary and John, are you listening? | |
4. v. third-person plural present of be | |
They are here somewhere. | |
5. v. (East Yorkshire, Midlands) present of be | |
6. n. (dialectal, or obsolete) grace, mercy | |
To bid God's are. | |
God's are is what children of God seech and seek. | |
7. n. (obsolete) honour, dignity | |
8. n. (rare) an accepted (but deprecated and rarely used) SI unit of area equal to 100 square metres, or a former unit of approximately the same extent. Symbol: a | |
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? | |
here |
1. adv. (location) In, on, or at this place. | |
2. adv. (location) To this place; used in place of the more dated hither. | |
Please come here. | |
3. adv. (abstract) In this context. | |
Derivatives can refer to anything that is derived from something else, but here they refer specifically to functions that give the slope of the tangent line to a curve. | |
4. adv. At this point in the argument or narration. | |
Here endeth the lesson. | |
5. n. (abstract) This place; this location. | |
An Alzheimer patient's here may in his mind be anywhere he called home in the time he presently re-lives. | |
6. adj. Filler after a noun or demonstrative pronoun, solely for emphasis. | |
John here is a rascal. | |
7. adj. Filler after a demonstrative pronoun but before the noun it modifies, solely for emphasis. | |
This here orange is too sour. | |
8. interj. (slang) (non-gloss, Used semi-assertively to offer something to the listener.) | |
Here, now I'm giving it to you. | |
9. interj. (UK, slang) Used for emphasis at the beginning of a sentence when expressing an opinion or want. | |
Here, I'm tired and I want a drink. | |