Browse dictionary
Showing 1-20 of 80 results in 80 entries
1. A, n. View full entry OE
...The letter, and the sound it represents....
2. accomplishment, n. View full entry 1425
...The action or fact of accomplishing something; fulfilment, completion; achievement, success. Also: an instance of this....
3. acid, adj. and n. View full entry 1626
...In general use: sour, tart, sharp to the taste; tasting like vinegar....
4. action, n. View full entry a1393
...Something done or performed, a deed, an act; (in pl.) habitual or ordinary deeds, conduct....
5. adrenaline, n. View full entry 1893
...Physiol. and Med. Originally: an extract of the adrenal glands of animals, supposedly containing a mixture of cortical and medullary hormones (now disused). In later use: ...
6. alley, n.1 View full entry 1360-1
...A passage between buildings; a narrow street or lane, esp. one wide enough only for pedestrians; a back lane....
7. alpha, n. and adj. View full entry ?c1200
...(The name of) the first letter (Α, α) of the Greek alphabet, corresponding to English a....
8. Arctic, adj. and n. View full entry c1400
...Astron. Designating the celestial north pole, and the Pole Star that marks its position in the sky. Chiefly, and now only, in particular compounds, as Arctic Circle2 and...
9. automatic, adj. and n. View full entry 1599
...Of action, etc.: self-generated, spontaneous; (of a thing) self-acting; having the power of motion within itself. In later use (Physiol.): having intrinsic activity that is not dependent upon external stimuli...
10. automobile, adj. and n. View full entry 1876
...Propelled by some internal mechanism, self-moving; (esp. of a vehicle) having its own means of propulsion, as opposed to being horse-drawn, pulled by a locomotive, etc. Now rare....
11. B, n. View full entry c1000
...The second letter of the Roman alphabet, ancient and modern, corresponding, in position and power, to the Greek Beta, and Phœnician and Hebrew Beth, whence also its form...
12. Big Mac, n. View full entry 1970
...A proprietary name for: the largest in a range of hamburgers sold by McDonald's fast-food outlets; (hence allusively) the biggest or best of a number of related things....
13. blood, n. (and int.) View full entry eOE
...The red fluid flowing in the arteries, capillaries, and veins of humans and other vertebrates, carrying oxygen and nutrients to, and carbon dioxide and waste metabolites away from, the organs and tissues...
14. brain, n. View full entry eOE
...The organ contained in the skull of humans and other vertebrates, consisting of soft grey or white tissue with (esp. in mammals) a conspicuously convoluted surface. Also (as a mass noun): the...
15. bronze, n. View full entry a1721
...A brown-coloured alloy of copper and tin, sometimes also containing a little zinc and lead. Formerly included under the term brass, q.v.; the name bronze was introduced for...
16. cell, n.1 View full entry OE
...A dwelling consisting of a single chamber inhabited by a hermit or anchorite....
17. cellular, adj. and n. View full entry 1716
...Anat. and Physiol. Of a tissue or organ: containing many small cavities or spaces; having an open or porous texture; (of bone) cancellous; spec. designating adipose or...
18. dog, n.1 View full entry OE
...A domesticated carnivorous mammal, Canis familiaris (or C. lupus familiaris), which typically has a long snout, an acute sense of smell, non-retractile claws, and a barking, howling, or...
19. electric, adj. and n. View full entry a1626
...Of a (non-conducting) substance or object: possessing the property (first observed in amber) of developing static electricity when rubbed. Now hist....
20. fipenny, n. View full entry 1802
...(See quots.) fipenny bitU.S....
