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A SENTENCE DICTIONARY ERIC NEAL

A SENTENCE

DICTIONARY

Careful investigations have shown that children understand many words more easily by seeing them used in appropriate sentences than by trying to understand their synonyms listed in a dictionary. The 10,000 words in A Sentence Dictionary are therefore used in sentences skilfully written to make them interesting to students. A special feature is the use of a symbol to separate the meanings of a word, or its uses as different parts of speech.

A Sentence DICTIONARY

Compiled by ERIC

N EAL

By arrangement

with

HULTON EDUCATIONAL PUBLICATIONS 1991

© 1965: Hulton Educational First published

Publications

1965

First Indian edition 1979 Reprinted 1986, 1988, 1991 Published by

i 5 Bankim Chattcrjce Street: Calcutta 700 073 13S South Malaka > Allahabad 211 001 Ghaswala T o w e r : P.G. Solanki Path : Bombay 400007 7/16 Ansari Road : Daryaganj: New Delhi 110 002.

By arrangement with Hulton Educational Publications Ltd.

This edition is not for export.

Printed by Swapna Printing Works Pvt. Ltd. 52 Raja Rammohan Roy Sarani Calcutta 700 009

PREFACE

The selection of the 10,000+ words in this dictionary is based on investigations into the words most used by children between tjie ages of 9 and 13 in their school work. The words include the names of days, months, important cities and countries, numbers, fractions and abbreviations. Many common words such as dog, cat, boy, it, etc., are not included since it is unlikely that a child capable of using a dictionary would have any need to look them up. Some simple words are included because of some special feature, e.g. a secondary meaning, or spelling that is not obvious from the pronunciation. Words derived from those in the dictionary are not included if they merely require the application of a simple spelling rule such as the addition of -ed or ing. Exceptions have been made, however, for words known to be common sources of error. All words, including derivations, are listed alphabetically, since not all users of a dictionary of this kind can be expected to know, for example, that to find the spelling of bought one has to look up buy. The author is a teacher who has been dealing with pupils' written work in a variety of subjects for many years and has carried out a number of investigations into children's vocabularies and their spelling difficulties. Also he has observed how often children look up a word in their school dictionary and then have to ask the teacher what the explanation means. Tests made with girls and boys in the junior half of a Secondary School showed that children understand many words better by seeing them used in appropriate sentences, than by looking up the meanings in a dictionary. One

cannot presume that a word has been made clear to a child when all that has been given is a synonym that is even less well known to him than the original word. Where, however, a .synonym simpler than a word is available, this will usually be the best means of explaining the word. AH too often a child is perfectly capable of understanding the meaning of a word, but is baffled by the explanation. In such circumstances, a sentence will be a better way of making the meaning clear. A sentence is also better than a definition for a word where the meaning is known but there are doubts about its spelling. It is hoped that teacheas will find that the sentences also provide useful material for a variety of English exercises. To many children, the guides to pronunciation in dictionaries are incomprehensible if they are phonetic, or confusing if they look like simplified spellings. As all the words in this dictionary are those constantly heard or used by the children, guides to pronunciation would be superfluous. Pronunciations are therefore indicated only in special cases, e.g. where they are necessary to explain a difff rence in meaning. The symbol • is used to separate the different meanings of a word. It also serves to separate uses of a word as different parts of speech, for merely labelling a word noun, verb, or adj., etc., is unlikely to help the child for whom this dictionary is intended. IMPORTANT NOTE The mark • shows that a word has another meaning, or that it can be used as a different part of speecK.

abandon

1

absolute

abode T h e place in which anyone lives is his abode. abolish do away with, e.g. Many schoolboys would like to abolish abandon At the shout, 'Abandon homework, ship !' all the sailors j u m p e d overabolition doing away with, e.g. board. M a n y schoolgirls would b e in abashed T o be abashed is to feel favour of the abolition of homeshy and ashamed, work. abbess t h e chief n u n in a n abominable very unpleasant abbey. and hateful, abbey a n ancient church once aborigines T h e people who first used by monks. lived in a country are called the aborigines. abound T o say that rivers abound in fish means that they are full of fish. about A t about sunset • yog can see bats flying about. above We saw the moon in the sky above us. abbey abrasion a sore place caused by scraping off the skin, abbot the head of the monks in an abbey, abreast Two abreast is two side abbreviation T h e abbreviation for by side. mister is M r . abroad When we go abroad to abdomen the lower part of the France or Italy, we need a passbody, between the chest and the port. thighs. Young children call a pain abrupt His going was so abrupt in the abdomen a tummy-ache, that we had no time to say goodabide to stay or dwell, bye. ability T o have ability is to b e abscess a large and painful sore, able to do something, abscond T h e prisoners tried to ablaze T h e dry old house was abscond during the night, but they ablaze from top to bottom before were soon caught, the firemen could arrive, absence being absent, able After his accident J o h n was absent not present, e.g. He was able to walk only with crutches, absent from school because he was abnormal not normal, e.g. There ill. was a n abnormal amount of rain absolute An absolute ruler is iA last summer, complete command of his country. aboard W h e n all the passengers • An absolute victory means that were aboard, the ship set sail. all resistance was crushed.

A

absolutely

2

absolutely completely, absorb H e w a u h e d the olottingpaper absorb the ink from ..e blot, abstain M a n y people abstain from m e a t on Fridays and eat fish instead. abstract An (distract noun nanies something which cannot be seen o r touched, e.g. ambition, absurd silly or ridiculous, abundance plentiful supply, abundant As the explorers had a n abundant water supply, they could drink as much as they liked. abase Abuse, when it rhymes with 'juice', means insulting language; • when it rhymes with news', it means to use wrongly, abusive T o be abusive is t o say insulting things, abyss a deep crack or hole in t h e earth, acacia T h e acacia tree is grown in England chiefly because its feathery leaves are so decorative.

acacia academy a place where students go to study, accede T h e boys did not expect the headmaster to accede to their request, b u t they asked him just the same, accelerate J o h n ' s new car can

accommodation accelerate from 10 m.p.h. t o 60 m.p.h. in a few seconds, acceleration T h e car's acceleration is so good that it can increase its speed from 10 m.p.h. t o 60 m.p.h. in a few seconds. accelerator If you want a car to accelerate, you press your foot on a pedal called the accelerator. accent Ivan speaks English with a Russian accent (pron. Ak-sent). • (pron. ak-s&it) T h e dash over cint means that you accht that part of the word. accept I am always pleased t o accept presents, especially on my birthday, access We were refused access to the house by the policeman who stood at the door, accessary someone who helps to d o something—usually something criminal, accessible T h e cave was not accessible because it was so high u p the cliff face, accessory a n additional piece of equipment. accidei a n unexpected or unintentional happening, acciden. ally As I reached for the butter, I accidentally knocked over a tea-cup. acclimatized VisitorsfromIndia find our weather very cold until they become acclimatized. accommodate T h e landlady could not accommodate us because all her rooms were booked, accommodation We h a d to seek accommodation in a hotel because our friends had no spare beds in their house.

3 t h a t we could scarcely open the accompaniment Jane sang door. while J o h n played t h e piano accompaniment for her. accumulator a large battery in accompanist While J a n e sang, which electricity is stored, J o h n , her accompanist, played the accuracy H e threw the dart with great accuracy into the bull's-eye, piano. b u t showed less accuracy in adding accompany ' I f I sing, will you u p t h e score, accompany m e on the piano?' • ' I accurate exactly correct, would rather accompany you home,' accusation Fred said that J i m replied J o h n , had stolen his purse, but J i m accomplice someone who helps denied the accusation. in doing something wrong, accuse You must not accuse J i m accomplish t ofinishdoing some- of the crime unless you know that thing. he did it. accomplished A n accomplished accustomed J a n e was not accustomed to being shouted a t ; person is one who is especially people h a d always spoken quiedy clever at something, to her a t home, accomplishment To have passed the examination with so ace t h e playing-card that is highest in value, having on it many distinctions was a great only one spade, heart, diamond accomplishment. or club. • An outstanding sportsaccording According to J o h n we m a n is called an ace. • I n tennis have a holiday tomorrow, b u t an ace is a first service that beats according to Peter we haven't, the opponent. accordion An accordion is like a small organ, p u m p e d b y the player squeezing it between his hands. accost T o accost someone means to go u p t o him and start a conversation, account T o m ' s story did n o t accordion ac* agree with Fred's account of the incident. acetylene a gas which gives a very hot flame when burnt with accountant When the accountant oxygen, checked the office books, he found aeke a continuous pain, an error of 5op in the total, achieve T o achieve something is t o accumulate Dust will soon begin to accumulate o n furniture left succeed in doing or completing it. unused. achievement A n important undertaking which has been sucaccumulation There was such cessfully done o r completed can an accumulation of newspapers when we returned from holiday, be called a n achievement.

*

J

4

add

add Acids a r e sour substances, m a n y of which are poisonous, acidity sourness o r bitterness, acknowledge T o acknowledge something is t o admit having received it, or • to admit that it is true. acknowledgement, acknowledgment I shall not know that you have received my letter if you do not send m e a n acknowledgement. • T h e queen waved in acknowledgement of the crowd's cheers, acorn T h e fruit of the oak tree is a little nut, called an acorn.

IJ5

acorn

acrobat

acquaintance I d o n o t know George very well; h e is not a friend, only an acquaintance. acquire If you did not steal the watch, you had better explain how you did acquire it. acquisition A n acquisition is something that one has obtained, acquit T h e judge will acquit a prisoner if there is n o evidence against him. acre an area about the size of a school football pitch. 2-5 acres = 1 hectare, acreage T h e amount of fertilizer required depends upon the acreage of the field; you need 254 kg. per acre, acrobat T h e acrobat turned a series of backward somersaults.

adder across I t is dangerous t o r u n across a road without looking, act I n the first act of the play, • H e n r y had to act the part of a duke. action A n action is something done or a movement made, active Uncle J o h n took no active p a r t i n the game, b u t sat a n d shouted advice to the players, activity I ' m bored with sitting still; I ' d like some activity such as dancing or playing table tennis, actor H e n r y was the actor who h a d to pretend t o be a duke i n the play, actress Julia was the actress who h a d to pretend to be a n old lady in the play, actual Her actual age was 50, b u t she always said she was only 30. actually H e called himself M r . Jones, b u t actually h e was Lord Gedny. acute An acute angle is less than a right angle. • An acute person is quick to notice things, adapt W e hadn't a proper hutch for our rabbit so we had to adapt an orange-box for the purpose, add If you add two and three, the total is five, ladder a small poisonous snake.

adder

addition

5

adult

addition ' T w o a n d three a r e admiral T h e officer of highest rank in the navy is an admiral. five' is an addition sum. address M y address is where I admire George stopped to admire live, i.e. the number of the house the new car. 'Isn't she a beauty!' and the n a m e of the street, town, he exclaimed. and country, etc. admission After being forced adenoids growths at the back of into the admission that we were not the nose and throat, which someplayers, • w e had t o pay for times make breathing difficult, admission to the cricket ground. adept Anyone who is especially admit I admit that I broke into expert a t something could b e the house through a window, • described as adept. a n d then opened the front door adequate T h e water supply was to admit my friends. adequate for our needs, so while no admonish t o give warning a n d one went thirsty, we had none to advice, especially t o someone spare. who has done something wrong adhere stick fast - to a thing, a or foolish. person, or an opinion, ado She m a d e such an ado about adhesive Glue is a n adhesive. • the spider t h a t we thought she was being attacked by wild beasts. Adhesive tape is sticky, adieu good-bye or farewell, adolescence t h e period in life adjacent next to. T h e fox between childhood and manhood squeezed through o u r garden or womanhood. fence into the adjacent field a n d adolescent Another word for escaped. adolescent is teenager. adjective a word added t o the adopt A married couple will n a m e of something in order t o sometimes adopt someone else's describe i t , e.g. 'new' in 'new baby a n d bring it u p as their bicycle'. own. adjoin W h e n two houses adjoin, adorable Sheila thought t h e they usually share the same middle p u p p y so adorable that she had- to wall. pick it u p and cuddle it. adjust Billy's bicycle brakes were not working properly, so he had adore Sheila cuddled the puppy in her arms. ' I adore puppies,' she to adjust them. said. administer You c a n administer punishment with a cane, administer adorn T o adorn something, you decorate it or add beauty in some medicine in a spoon, • and adother way. minister a theatre by managing its affairs. adrift T h e anchor rope snapped a n d soon the boat was adrift and admirable I t was such an admirat the mercy of wind and waves. able idea that we all agreed adult grown up. enthusiastically.

6

advance

afloat

i

advance T o advance is to go forw a r d , • o r t o move something forward. advantage A n advantage of being tall is that you c a n see over other people's heads, advent Trees bursting into leaf a if- ,t sign of t h e advent of spring. • T h e C h u r c h calls the period before ( In istmas Advent. adventure A n adventure story is one a b o u t exciting events, adventurous T o m w a s a n adventurous boy w h o always liked doing something exciting, adverb A n adverb adds t o t h e meaning of a verb, a n adjective, CM another adverb, e.g. 'bravely' in ' H e fought bravely.' advertise A good way of letting urople know that you have a car liii sale is to advertise in the newspa|«*r. advertisement T h e television film was followed by an advertisement for a washing powder, advice M y advice is, 'Never borrow money from your schoolfriends.' advisable I t is advisable never to borrow money from your schoolfrirnds. advise I advise you not to borrow money from your school-friends, advocate T o advocate something is lo r e c o m m e n d it, o r to speak in favour of it. aerial R a d i o a n d television broadcasts a r e picked u p by t h e aerial of t h e receiving set. aerodrome As a train stops at a station, so a n aircraft lands a t a n aerodrome.

aeroplane A n aeroplane travels above t h e clouds.

often

aeroplane afar W e could see afar t h e snowcovered tips of the mountains, low on t h e horizon, affable T h e m a n h a d been quite affable, b u t when we mentioned money h e suddenly b e c a m e angry, affair ' W h y did you g o t o see h e r ? ' asked J o a n . ' T h a t ' s m y affair,' snapped Jill, affect I d r o p p e d t h e b a t o n i n the relay race, b u t this did not affect t h e result, for we would h a v e lost anyway, affected A girl is said t o b e affected w h e n d i e puts on airs a n d behaves unnaturally, affection F a r from showing affection ibr her chick, the old h e n constantly pecked t h e poor little thing. afflicted T h e u n f o r t u n a t e m a n was afflicted with a horrible disease, affliction Deafness is a very serious affliction. afford I cannot afford t o b u y a w a t c h because I spent so m u c h money on m y s u m m e r holiday, affront a n insult. • T o affront someone is to insult h i m . afloat T h e flood water rose till all t h e boxes in the grocer's ( h o p were afloat.

afoot

7

afoot Hearing the commotion, a policeman came to see what was afoot. afraid People who are afraid of heights may feel no such fear in an aircraft. Africa a large continent, halfway between the North Pole and the South Pole. African Things from Africa are described as African. • Africans are people whose home is Africa, aft a t o r near t h e stern (i.e. back) of a ship, after Will you walk home with me after the p a r t y ? afternoon W e worked until midday and then played games all the afternoon. afterwards You m a y borrow my football boots for the match if you promise to clean them afterwards. again I first saw the strange bird on Sunday a n d saw it again on Tuesday, against ' I refuse to play against that team,' said Fred, • a n d rested his bat against a tree, age A t t h e age of 10 years we learnt a b o u t • the Bronze Age people, who lived 3,000 years ago. aged G r a n d a d has aged (grown old) since we last saw him. • T h e winner was a boy aged 5 years. • (pron. a-jed). Uncle has to look after his aged (old) mother, agency t h e means b y which something is done; • the place in which a n agent works, agent Insurance companies employ agents to collect payments for them. T h e owners of newspapers

agree have newsagents to sell the papers for them, aggravate to make worse, e.g. T h a t b a n g o n t h e head will aggravate your head-ache, aggression t h e starting of a quarrel or an attack, aggressive acting in a manner likely to start a quarrel or a fight, aggressor T h e one who starts a quarrel, a fight, or a war, is t h e aggressor. aggrieved T h e aggrieved passenger shouted and swore t h a t he would report his complaint to the inspector, aghast Susan was aghast a t t h e thought that she had been the cause of such a terrible accident, agile T h e small boy, agile as a monkey, clambered u p the tree in a moment, agitate Workers agitate for better conditions b y making speeches, organizing processions, etc. agitated M a r y was n o longer hysterical but still very agitated a n d far from being calm, aglow T h e fire had died down, b u t the logs were still aglow with friendly warmth, ago T h e R o m a n Empire came to a n end a long time ago. agog T h e children were all agog to see the important visitor, agonizing T h e pain was so agonizing that he could not bear it. agony T h e injured m a n screamed in agony as the rescuers tried t o pull him from his wrecked car. agree W h e n twopeople have d i e same opinion o r thoughts about something, they agree about it.

agreeable agreeable There is nothing so agreeable as a hot bath when you are tired, agreed I thought it was time to go home, and Dick agreed with me (i.e. he thought so too), agriculture the growing of crops on farms, aground T h e ship ran aground and tugs had to be used to pull her bade into deep water, ahead People who always look behind will be unable to see the dangers that lie ahead. aid help. • T o aid someone is to help him. ailment an illness, aim H e took careful aim a n d threw the dart straight into the bull's-eye. aimlessly H e wandered aimlessly round the streets, neither knowing nor caring where he was going, air a song; • also the n a m e given to the mixture of gases that we breathe. airborne An aircraft is airborne when it has risen off the ground, aircraft Aircraft are aeroplanes. An aircraft is an aeroplane, airport T h e aircraft left London Airport this morning, airtight An airtight tin or j a r is one that air cannot get into (or out o f ) . aisle (pron. I'll). T h e gangway between the seats in a church is called the aisle. ajar T h e door was ajar and a light push swung it wide open, aldn like or related to. alarm A fire alarm makes a loud noise to warn people of the danger

8

Algeria from fire. • An alarm clock tells people when it is time to get up. alas We had looked forward to a lovely week by the sea, b u t alas, it rained every day. Albania a small country t o the east of the Adriatic Sea. Albanian a citizen of Albania. • Things from Albania a r e described as Albanian. albatross a large sea-bird, very beautiful in flight.

albatross

alcove

album a book especially m a d e for keeping collections of photographs, stamps, autographs, etc. alcohol I t is the alcohol in drink which makes people drunk, alcove Hollowed out of one wall , of the room was a n alcove, big enough to contain some shelves, alderman someone on a town council elected from among the more experienced councillors. Aldermen are next in importance to the mayor. ale a kind of beer, alert T h e sentries were o n t h e alert, so they were not surprised by the enemy attack, algebra Calculations in algebra require letters as well as figures, e.g.: 3** + 2xy = 8 z . Algeria a country i n north Africa.

9

Algerian

Algerian People or things of Algeria are described as Algerian. Algiers the chief city of Algeria, alias Fred Smith, alias Harry Green, alias James Forsythe, etc., always invented a new false name for each new crime he committed, alibi a claim by an accused person that h e was somewhere else when the crime of which h e is accused was committed, alien a foreigner, alight We saw him alight from the train. • Uncle puffed at his pipe to make sure that it was alight. alike T h e twins were as alike as two peas in a pod. alive A large reward was offered for t h e capture of the outlaw, dead or alive. allay W e tried to allay her fears by assuring her that George was safe and with friends, allegation a statement which has not been proved, allege So you allege that you are late because you lost your way to school! A most unlikely story ! alley a narrow street or passage, alliance a uniting of friends or allies. alligator a n American reptile, like a crocodile.

alligator

along allocate As it was John's j o b to allocate the seats, everyone was expected to sit where J o h n told him. > allotment ' Uncle's garden is next to his house, but the allotment on which he grows his fruit a n d vegetables is some distance away, allow W e do not allow smoking in schools, allowed People are not allowed to smoke in this theatre. alloy Bronze is not a single metal; it is an alloy of copper and tin. all right It is quite allright;you have nothing to worry about. ally T o unite for some special purpose is to ally. almanac If I require such information as the date, or time of sunrise, I look at an aim/mac. almighty God is often described as almighty, which means' allpowerful. almond Almond nuts grow o n almond trees, which look very like peach trees. almost Start putting on your coat; for it is almost time for us to goalms money or gifts given t o needy people. aloft T h e sailors were u p aloft in the 1 igging, while far below them the waves swept over the bows of the ship. alone All the others went, leaving J a c k alone. along W e walked along t h e promenade.

aloof

10

ambush

aloof Susan stood aloof; she d i d altogether I f you go 4 miles, 2 n o t feel like j o i n i n g in t h e f u n a n d miles a n d 6 miles, t h a t is 13 miles games t h a t h e r friends w e r e altogether. enjoying, aluminium a m e t a l which does aloud Y o u o u g h t n o t t o talk n o t rust a n d which is light i n aloud d u r i n g t h e service in church, weight a n d in colour, alphabet O u r alphabet begins always I t is always cold a t t h e w i t h t h e letters A, B, C. N o r t h Pole, Alps Holidaymakers ski o n t h e amass I wonder h o w a m a n can amass such great riches in s o short Alps in Switzerland, a time without being dishonest, already I was going to ask you t o wash u p t h e cups a n d saucers, amateur A n amateur does a j o b o r plays a g a m e j u s t f o r t h e b u t I see you h a v e already d o n e it. pleasure it gives h i m a n d not i n also W h e n you go for a d a y by o r d e r to earn money, t h e sea y o u should take your swimming trunks a n d also a amaze to surprise very m u c h , ambassador A n ambassador lives ' mackintosh. in a foreign country a s his o w n altar A n altar is a flat-topped country's official representative stone, table, etc., on which offerthere. ings a r e m a d e t o God. T h e r e is amber a yellowish colour, seen o n e a t t h e east e n d of most in traffic lights, churches, alter I f you d o n o t like t h e ambiguous having two m e a n ings, e.g. Y o u see this nail ? W h e n arrangements we have made, we I n o d m y head, you hit it w i t h t h e will alter t h e m for you. alternate T w o things a r e said to hammer, alternate (pron. 41-ter-nate) w h e n ambition I t is m y ambition to b e they continue t o come i n t u r n , a great scientist w h e n I grow u p . like d a y a n d night. • If you p u t ambitious Fred is n o t ambitious; pictures o n alternate (pron. h e neither knows n o r cares w h a t a l - t t r - n a t e ) pages of a book, each h e w a n t s to d o when h e grows u p . p a g e of pictures is followed by a amble I like to walk briskly, n o t p a g e w i t h o u t pictures, amble along at this slow pace, alternative one o r t h e other of ambulance T h e injured boy was t w o things, taken to hospital in a n ambulance. although T h e boys went skating although they knew t h a t t h e ice was thin. altitude T h e aircraft was a t a n altitude of 5,000 metres when it began to descend, anchor alto T h e m e n with the highest voices sing alto; other m e n sing ambush W e m a d e a n ambush in t h e woods a n d surprised t h e girls tenor or bass.

amen when we j u m p e d out on them. • 'We will ambush you next time,' they declared, amen T h e last word of many hymns a n d prayers is Amenr which means, 'so be it', amends J a n e was very late home but she m a d e amends by getting u p first the next morning, amenities I n the town where I live, we have no such amenities as libraries, parks or swimmingbaths. America U.S.A. is short for the United States of America. American a citizen of America. • Things belonging to America are American. amiable As my father was feeling so amiable, I took the opportunity to ask him for the money I wanted. amicable friendly, e.g. We did not quarrel; it was a perfectly amicable conversation, amicably T h e quarrel was forgotten and the boys played amicably together, amid, amidst in the middle of. amiss Hearing the complaints, an official came along to see what was amiss (i.e. what was t h e matter). ammonia T h e strong-smelling gas which makes your eyes water when you sniff smelling-salts is ammonia. ammunition T h e soldiers h a d no ammunition for their guns, so they could not fire, amok T o run amok is to rush madly about, in a wild urge to injure people (also spelt amuck).

11

anchor

among, amongst I saw Susan among (amongst) the crowds at the horse show, amount If I add u p all the items, they will amount to £ 5 . • This is a greater amount than you can pay. amp Amp (short for ampere) is the unit in which electric current is measured, e.g. This battery supplies a current of half an amp. amphibian a n animal, such as the frog, which lives both on land and in water, amphibious T h e frog is an amphibious animal, equally a t home in water or on land, ample We have ample food for the picnic, so you need not bring any. amplify If the radio is not loud enough you can amplify the sound by turning a knob, amputate T o amputate a leg or a r m is to cut it off from the body, amuck T o run amuck is to rush madly about, in a wild urge t o injure people (also spelt amok). amuse T h e children h a d games, books and toys to amuse them during the holidays, anaesthetic I hope the dentist will give me an anaesthetic so that I shall not feel the pain of his drill, anatomy I n anatomy lessons we cut u p such creaturcs as frogs to find out how their bodies a r e m a d e up. ancestor T h e ancestor of whom I am proudest is m y greatgrandfather, anchor When a captain wants to anchor his ship, • h e drops a n anchor which hooks into the seabed.

ancborage

12

answer

anchorage T h e b a y d i d n o t animated An animated discussion provide a good anchorage for ships is one that is lively. • Animated as there was insufficient shelter drawings move as if the characfrom storms, ters were alive. ancient T h e Ancient Britons lived Ankara t h e capital city of in Britain before t h e R o m a n s Turkey. came. ankle T h e joint between the foot anemone (pron. a-nem-on-ee) a a n d t h e leg is called the ankle. spring flower, found in woodlands. annex a n extra p a r t a d d e d to a building. • T o annex land, estates, A etc., is to take possession of them, annihilate T o annihilate something means to blot it completely out of existence, anniversary T h e 25th anniversary of a wedding is known as a Silver W e d d i n g , when couples celebrate anemone ankle twenty-five years of m a r r i e d life, announce Afte^j assembly, t h e angel H y m n 225 begins, ' Y e headmaster will minourwe t h e names holy angels bright, W h o wait a t of t h e boys who have been elected God's right h a n d . ' prefects. angelic A voice, a face, or a disposition is described as angelic announcer A television announcer when it is considered t o b e like has to speak clearly as well as that of a n angel, look pleasant, anger J o e showed his anger b y annoy to worry, irritate or tease, banging his fist on the table, annoyance T o Mother's annoyangle a corner, o r t h e space ance, the dog p u t his dirty paws on v between t w o lines where they h e r new coat. meet. • T o angle is to try to catch flnnnal An annual event is one fish with a hook a n d bait which occurs once each year. • angler A n angler is a fisherman A plant is a n annual if it lives w h o uses a rod, hook a n d bait, only one year. • A book is a n angry I f you tease the animal, annual if new issues are printed h e m a y become angry a n d bite each year, you. anoint to p u t on oil or ointment, especially in a religious ceremony, anguish a very severe pain o r anonymous As t h e gift w a s very deep anxiety, anonymous, we did not know w h o m angular A n object is described we h a d to t h a n k for it. as angular if it has sharp corners or another I f you don't like this angles. book, try another one. animal W h i c h animal d o you like best, a dog, a cat, or a horse? answer I cannot answer your

13

answerable question. • I d o not know t h e answer to your question, answerable T h e boys know that if they d a m a g e the books they will b e answerable to the headmaster, ant a tiny insect. Antarctic the region of the South Pole. • An Antarctic explorer is one who explores this region, antelope an African animal very like a deer-

antelope

anvil

anthem T h e church choir sang an anthem in place of the first hymn. anthology a collection of selected short poems or pieces of prose. anthracite a hard, shiny, smokeless coal. anticipate A good footballer will anticipate a pass and so be in the correct position for receiving the ball when it comes. anticipation Mother prepared two large plates of bread and butter in anticipation of the return of the hungry boys. antics Fred was trying to dance a war-dance, but we thought by his antics that a bee had got inside his shirt. anticyclone a n area of high pressure, in which the weather is usually dry 4nd settled.

apart

antidote T h e baby did not die after swallowing the poison because the doctor was able to give him the correct antidote immediately. antique I like antique furniture better than much of the modern stuff. • T h e dingy-looking chair was valuable because it was a n antique. antiquity Carol-singing is a custom of great antiquity, going back a t least a thousand years, antiseptic W e p u t antiseptic cream on the wound to prevent it from becoming poisoned, antlers A stag has horns with many branches, called antlers. anvil A blacksmith beats the hot iron into shape o n a speciaMfm a d e block of iron called a n anvil. anxiety a feeling of concern and worry. anxious J o h n was so anxious to m a k e a good impression that he p u t on his best suit and even had a special haircut for the occasion, anybody Is there anybody a t home? anyhow We tried all the doors a n d t h e windows, but we could not get into the house anyhow. anyone Is there anyone at home ? anything I ought to write him a letter, b u t I can't think of anything t o say. J o e will d o anythaig t h a t you ask him. anywhere 'Where shall I p u t this book?' 'It doesn't matter; put it anywhere.' apart I keep these books apart from the rest because they are my school prizes.

14

apartments apartments lodgings, especially those in seaside boarding-houses, ape a tailless monkey. • T o ape someone is to imitate h i m a s a monkey might do.

application

apparently T h e car was apparently u n d a m a g e d , b u t w h e n w e tried t o drive away, we realized t h a t a wheel was loose, appeal Classical music does not appeal to F r e d ; he prefers ' p o p ' . • T h e headmaster m a d e a n appeal to t h e boys to help the blind, appear W h e n we saw t h e m a n appear f r o m behind t h e h u t , w e hid, • lest we should appear t o be spying on him. a

appearance Sally made an appearance on television. • Y o u will never see J i m dirty o r u n t i d y ; h e apiece U n c l e disposed of t h e takes a pride in his appearance. two pounds b y giving the four appease T o appease is to d o someboys 50p apiece. thing intended t o soothe someapologize If you have been r u d e one w h o is angry. y o u should at least apologize to the appendix A small a d d i t i o n t o a person you have offended. book is called t h e appendix. • A apology I owe you a n apology for small off-shoot from t h e intestine m y rudeness last night, is also called t h e appendix. apostles T h e twelve apostles were appetite W h e n I a m ill I h a v e the twelve disciples w h o m Jesus n o appetite for food. • M y brother sent o u t to preach the Gospel, has a n enormous appetite for apostrophe (pron. a-p6ss-trodetective stories. fee) a c o m m a p u t above a w o r d to applaud However m u c h you lik,e show possession, o r t o show that t h e song you should not applaud letters have been left out, e.g. before the singer h a s finished it. Fred's toe, a n d c a n ' t (meaning apple Eve pulled a n apple from cannot). t h e tree and ate it. appalling T h e results of t h e explosion were appalling', there appliance M y first pocket-knife included a n appliance for removing were injured people lying all over stones from horses' hoofs, t h e street, apparatus T h e apparatus b r o u g h t applicant Every applicant for the j o b h a d t o fill i n a form a n d by the p h o t o g r a p h e r included a a t t e n d a n interview, c a m e r a , a n exposure meter a n d a application All applicants for flash. t h e j o b must fill i n a n application apparent T h e car h a d suffered form. • T h e m a k e r s recommend n o apparent d a m a g e , b u t as soon as w e tried t o drive away, w e t h e application of t h r e e coats of paint. realized t h a t a wheel was loose. ape

apple

apply apply T h e conditions apply to all children u n d e r 14 • w h o apply for m e m b e r s h i p of t h e club, appoint W h e n does t h e headmaster appoint next term's prefects?

architect

15

aquarium I n o u r classroom w e h a v e a n aquarium containing water plants a n d several little fish.

appointment I h a v e a n appointment with t h e dentist a t 3 p . m . today. appreciate J o h n has a keen sense aquarium of h u m o u r ; h e can appreciate a good joke. • I must write and tell arable L a n d that is suited to t h e Auntie h o w m u c h I appreciate the growing o f crops is called arable gift she sent m e . land. apprehend t o u n d e r s t a n d . • T o arc p a r t o f a curve. • A n are apprehend a thief is to arrest him. l a m p produces a very bright light apprentice someone w h o is by m a k i n g electricity j u m p across learning a t r a d e b y working at it. a gap. approach W e could not approach arcade A n arcade is m a d e b y t h e b u r n i n g house because of the covering over t h e passage between intense heat. two rows of shops, appropriate O u rfishmongerh a sarch a curved structure that a most appropriate n a m e ; it is supports d i e roof of a church, etc. I. Salmon, • Arch also means chief, e.g. in approval D a d indicated his aporcAbishop, arcAcriminal. proval with a n o d of the head, archbishop T h e Archbishop of approve If you d o not approve of C a n t e r b u r y is the chief bishop of t h e plan, y o u must vote against it. the C h u r c h of England, approximate A n approximate a n - archer T h e archer fired his arrows swer is o n e t h a t is not absolutely with such power t h a t h e broke his accurate. bow. apricot A n apricot is a fruit quite like a p e a c h o r a plum, b u t orange-coloured. April t h e fourth m o n t h of the year. apron O u r b u t c h e r wears a white apron t o protect t h e front of his clothes. apt G r a n d a d is quite willing t o do t h e shopping, but unfortunately h e is apt to forget what h e "has t o b u y .

apricot

arcfccr

architect T h e arckiUct w h o d e signed St. Paul's Cathedral was Sir Christopher W r e n .

architecture

16

architecture Norman architecture can be recognized by heavy semicircular arches in churches, etc. Arctic t h e region around the North Pole. • An Arctic explorer is one who explores the North Polar area. area T h e area of a room 3 m long and 4 m wide is 12 m 2 . arena the centre part of a circus ring or stadium where the performance takes place. Argentina, Argentine a large country in South America. argue A good sportsman does not argue with the referee; he accepts every decision, argument After a long argument the boys agreed to J a n e ' s proposal, arise Should any trouble arise, you a r e t o let m e know i m mediately. aristocrat a person of -noble birth. arithmetic I like arithmetic lessons only when I get all my sums right, ark a large wooden ship in which Noah and his animals were saved from the Flood.

ark arm We will arm our soldiers with swords and pistols. • T h e cricketer could not bowl because he had hurt his arm.

arrival armada T h e Spanish Armada was the most powerful fleet of warships that had ever sailed against England, armful J a n e grabbed a n armful of blankets and staggered along to the bedroom, armfuls J a n e took four armfuls of blankets from the cupboard, armour I n olden times, knights wore steel armour to protect themselves against t h e swords a n d arrows of their enemies, arms weapons, such as guns o r swords; • also the two limbs of the body to which the hands a r e attached, army Join the army and fight for your country ! arose When the alarm sounded, J a n e arose and staggered towards the door, still half asleep, around All around the house were beautiful lawns and gardens, arouse It is not easy to arouse J o h n when he is asleep, arrange We will arrange to meet you a t the station. • T h e books will look tidier if you arrange them in order of size, arrangements Jill m a d e all the arrangements for the outing, so it was a great success, arrest W e saw t h e policeman arrest the thief and take him away to the police-station, arresting We saw a policeman arresting a thief. • O n c e a n avalanche has started to move down a mountain, there is little hope of arresting its progress, arrival We waited on the platform for the arrival of the train bringing our friends.

17

arrive

assassin

arrive O u r train leaves L o n d o n ascent T h e ascent of t h e m o u n t a i n a t 8 a . m . , so w e expect t o arrive was difficult so it was evening before they reached t h e top. at Dover before 10. arrogant J o h n is so arrogant that ash T h e bark of t h e ask tree is a silvery-grey colour. • T h e ash h e thinks h e is better t h a n everyfrom his cigarette d r o p p e d into one else. m y tea. arrow T h e I n d i a n fitted a n arrow to his bow a n d took aim a t t h e ashamed J a n e was so ashamed of buffalo. herself for being r u d e that she h i d in h e r room until she t h o u g h t t h e incident h a d been forgotten, ashore As soon as t h e ship's gangways were in place, t h e passengers hurried ashore, eager to arrow be on land again, arterial A n arterial road is a n aside Pushing aside the people in his way, Dick plunged into the i m p o r t a n t m a i n road. blazing building, artery a blood vessel through which blood is p u m p e d from the ask I will ask some questions a n d you m u s t write down the answers. heart. artful T h e fox is so artful t h a t h e often outwits t h e people hunting him. article T h e r e was not a single article i n o u r lost property cupboard. • I always read the leading article in o u r daily paper. artificial A person w h o seems drowned m a y b e brought t o life by artificial respiration. T h e captain h a d a n artificial leg, made' of wood. artillery

big guns a n d cannon.

artist T h e picture was painted by a famous artist.

askew T h e wind has blown your h a t askew; p u t it straight again, asleep W e always know w h e n G r a n d f a t h e r is asleep, for h e snores very loudly, aspect a particular view of something. aspen T h e leaves of t h e aspen tree t r e m b l e in t h e slightest breeze. asphalt a mixture of pitch a n d sand, p u t on roads a n d paths t o give t h e m a smooth, h a r d surface. aspire I d o not aspire t o b e a space explorer, b u t I would like a n air t r i p r o u n d the world.

asbestos T h e mineral asbestos consists of fibres t h a t will not b u r n , aspirin a small, white tablet so it is useful for weaving fire- , t h a t some people take w h e n they wish to cure a headache. proof materials. ascend W e saw him ascend t h e assassin H e was killed b y a n assassin w h o h a d mixed with t h e stairs on his way to the flat above crowds of admirers. us.

assault

18

assault T o assault someone is to attack him violently by actions or by words, e.g. J o e was the victim of an assault; hence his black eye. assemble T h e children were told to assemble in the school hall a t 4 p.m. assembly We have our morning service in the assembly hall. • T h e morning assembly at our school is at 9 o'clock, assent A bill passed by Parliament does not become law until the Queen has given her assent (i.e. her approval), assert You must assert yourself or they will continue to bully you. • Although no one believed him, J i m continued to assert that h e had found gold, a s s e s s We could not accurately assess the amount of damage done by the fire, but it was certainly over £ i , o o o . assist Betty was asked to assist the conjuror by holding his top hat.

astronomer assumption We will order tea for twelve people on the assumption that all twelve will come, assurance T h e headmaster gave his assurance that no one would be punished for speaking the truth. a s s u r e d Billy would not j u m p into the water though we assured him that it was only one metre deep. aster a common garden flower, like a very large a n d colourful daisy.

•Mar

asterisk t h e sign * used by printers to mark a special word, •stern at the rear of a ship. assistance Seeing t h e police- asthma a disease which causes a man in trouble, the boys rushed to person to have difficulty in b r e a t h ' his assistance and the thieves were mg. soon handcuffed, assistant T h e conjurer's assistant astonish to surprise very much, e.g. I t will astonish you to hear held histoph a tforhim. what I paidforthis ring. association Three examples are: astray We lost our way because T h e Football Association, the Autowe were led astray by a misprint mobile Association and our O l d on the map. Boys' Association. a person who tells assortment a mixture of differ- astrologer fortunes by means of the stars, ent kinds - especially of sweets or astrology the art of connecting chocolates. fortune-telling with the positions assume I t is unwise to assume of the stars. that your friend will enjoy a .practical joke; he might be angry a s t i o n o i u c i a scientist whose instead. special study is the stars.

astronomy astronomy the scientific study of stars, planets and their satellites. astute No one is likely to outwit T o m ; he is such an astute boy. asylum a place of refuge or shelter. • Mental homes used to be called asylums. Athenian A citizen of Athens is called an Athenian. Athens the capital city of Greece, athlete This great athlete has oroken world records for both running and jumping, athletic J o h n was not an athletic boy; he was better at reading than running. O u r school won the athletic sports because we have so many good runners, atlas My school atlas contains maps of all the countries in the world. atmosphere T h e atmosphere usually means the air round the earth, • but we also talk of the atmosphere in a room, atom An atom was thought to be the tiniest possible particle of matter; but atoms can now. be split. • ' W e h a d n ' t a n atom of food' means that we hadn't the tiniest bit of food, atomic Atomic, bombs, atomic power-stations, ships, etc., all get their power by the splitting of atoms. atrocious Billy's writing was bad enough, but Fred's was atrocious. attach You a r e supposed to attach a rope to the anchor before throwing it overboard! attached The sailor attached a rope to the anchor and threw it overboard.

19 attack We made our attack on the enemy as soon as it was light, attempt We shall attempt to break the record for the relay race. • T h e attempt will be made tomorrow. attend I shall attend evening classes when I leave school. • Nurses attend to sick people, attendance Brown is sure to win the prize for the best attendance; he is never absent., attendant As the duke appeared, one attendant stepped forward t o open the door, while another took his hat and coat, attention Pay attention, children 1 • The soldiers stood at attention. attentive The pupils were most attentive and didn't miss a single word of the lesson, attic a room in the roof of a house. attire to dress or clothe. • Clothing is sometimes called attire. attitude T h e priest stood with his head bowed' in an attitude of prayer. • You have the wrong attitude to your school work, attract Fred will do anything to attract attention. The i » l « m a n banged a d r u m to attract a crowd. attraction Seeing the crowd, we pushed t o the front t o find o u t what the attraction was. attractive Sally is a most attractive girl; all the boys fall in love with her. auction At a n auction goods are •old to the person who bids the highest price, auctioneer a person who sells goods b y auction, audible loud enough to be heard.

audience

20

audience A t the e n d of t h e concert the audience applauded loudly. audition Before employing a performer, the B.B.C. gives him a n audition in order to hear what he can do. August the eighth month of the year. aunt M y aunt Mary is m y mother's sister, aurora the spectacular area of coloured light in the sky above the earth's poles. Australia a large island on the opposite side of the globe from Britain. Australian someone whose home is Australia. • T h e kangaroo is an Australian animal. Austria a country in the centre of Europe; its capital city is Vienna. Austrian Mozart was a famous Austrian composer, author T h e author of the book 'Oliver Twist' was Charles Dickens, authority Policemen have authority to arrest lawbreakers. • Fathers should assert their authority a n d not let children do as they like. autograph Autograph albums are books in which people collect signatures, automatic A thing is described as automatic if it acts by itself without h u m a n aid. automobile a motor-car or lorry, autumn the season that comes between summer and winter, available at hand and ready for use. avalanche An avalanche crashed

aware down t h e mountainside a n d covered a whole village with snow and rocks, avenge to pay back someone for an evil he has done to another, avenue a road or street, b u t especially one lined with trees, average ordinary, not outstanding, e.g. T o m is an average player. • T h e average mark Of a class is found by adding all the marks together, a n d dividing by t h e number of pupils in the class, aversion I have a n aversion to getting my feet wet so I wear rubber boots whenever it rains, avert T h e sight was so terrifying that the boys had to avert their gaze. aviary a special place in which to keep birds.

aviary aviation the art of flying, avoid J i m swerved t o avoid the cat and fell off his bicycle, await We finished our exams last week a n d we now await t h e results. awake M y baby sister pulls open Daddy's eyes to see if he is awake. award I shall award a prize of £ 5 for the best essay, aware conscious, knowing about, e.g. I am aware of the danger.

awash T h e deck of a ship is awash when water is just lapping over it. away T h e grocer is giving away balloons today. • Go away\ awe fear, reverence or wonder, or a mixture of these feelings, e.g. J o a n gazed in awe a t the judge, awful J a n e felt awful when she realized that she had been the cause of her friend Susan getting into trouble, awhile You must wait here awhile a n d rest before continuing your journey. awkward An awkward person is one who is clumsy. • A thing is awkward if it is of unsuitable size or shape for its purpose, awoke T h e noise of breaking glass awoke the sleeper, awry crooked or out of place, axe H e felled t h e tree with a dozen blows of his axe.

axe

bacteria

21

awash

axle

axis T h e axis of the earth is an imaginary line which goes from the North Pole to the South Pole, axle T h e rod on which a wheel revolves is called the axle. azure blue, e.g. the azure sky of a summer day.

babble meaningless chatter. • A brook is said to babble when the water makes a noise as it flows, babe A baby is sometimes called a babe. babies Mothers wheel their babies to the baby show in their prams, baboon large African monkey.

baboon

backbone

baby Mother was nursing h e r baby, m A baby lion is called a cub. bachelor a man who is n o t married. back Always carry a red light on the back of your bicycle. • Give m e back the book I lent you. • If he does not believe you, I will back you up. backbone T h e bone that runs right from the top of your back to the bottom is called the backbone. backwards D a d p u t t h e c a r into reverse by mistake, so it went backwards instead of forwards, bacon cured meat from the back and sides of pigs. We love eggs a n d bacon. bacteria extremely tiny living things, some of which cause illnesses.

22

badge badge T h e r e is a badge e m broidered on the pocket of your school blazer. badger a n English wild a n i m a l which hunts a t night. • T o badger is to worry or tease.

badfer badly Jeff wrote t h e exercise s o badly t h a t he h a d to d o it again, baffle T o baffle someone is t o deceive o r bewilder h i m c o m pletely. baggage A porter carried o u r baggage to the train, bail t h e money paid t o o b t a i n the release of a n accused person f r o m p r i s o n ; • one of t w o small bars p u t o n the t o p of cricket stumps. bailiff A bailiff m a y b e a l a w officer • or a landowner's agent, bait W h e n I go fishing I use a w o r m o n m y hook for bait. bake Bakers bake b r e a d in h u g e ovens. baker T h e baker makes b r e a d a n d cakes which h e sells in his shop, bakery T h e baker makes his b r e a d a n d cakes in t h e bakery. balance T h e d a n c e r could baldnce on one toe. • A balance is a weighing machine. - balcony a n u p p e r floor i n a theatre o r cinema. • A p l a t f o r m

outside a n upper door or window of a n y building is called a balcony. bald A bald m a n has n o hair on his head. bale a large bundle. • T o bait (or bail) o u t a b o a t is t o t h r o w o u t water with cans, etc. • A n a i r m a n is said to bale o u t w h e n h e j u m p s by p a r a c h u t e , balk t o hinder o r t h w a r t . • A balk is a roughly s q u a r e d l u m p of timber (also spelt baulk). ballad a simple song o r a poem t h a t tells a story, ballast W h e n a ship h a s n o cargo it m a y be necessary to put heavy material, called ballast, i n the hold to steady it. ballet a stage p e r f o r m a n c e consisting of music a n d d a n c i n g only, balloon Bob blew up t h e balloon until it burst, bamboo T h e stems of t h e tropical grass called bamboo a r e thick enough to b e used as sticks, ban t o forbid, e.g. W e will ban all smoking in o u r club. • W e h a v e p u t a ban on smoking, banana T h e banana is a curious f r u i t ; it hangs i n t h e shop in b u n d l e s lilje thick, yellow fingers, band T h e r e is a n elastic band r o u n d m y diary. • T h e band played while we d a n c e d . • W e were set u p o n by a band of robbers, bandage T h e nurse w r a p p e d a bandage round the w o u n d . • D o you know how t o bandage a n injured a r m ? bandit This bandit is one of the g a n g t h a t r o b b e d t h e travellers, bang T h e tyre burst w i t h a bang like the noise of a g u n .

bangle

23

bangle M y sister wears a gold bangle on her arm. banish W h e n a king banished people they had to go and live elsewhere. • T o banish a thought is to dismiss it from your mind, banisters Banisters are put beside stairways for people to hold, not so that small boys can slide down them.

banjo

barometer

banjo a musical instrument played like a guitar but shaped like a frying pan. bank We stand on the river bank to fish. • W e keep our money in a bank for safety, banknotes I have three banknotes; two of them are notes and one is a £ 5 note, banner T h e two boys carried poles between which was a banner bearing the words, 'Down with School'.

barrel barber Men and boys go to a barber when they require a haircut. bard A bard was a wandering poet a n d musician, bare A person is said to be bare if he has no clothes on. • A cupboard is bare if it is empty - like Mother Hubbard's. barefaced shameless o r impudent, barely only just, bargain I bought a coat for only 50p a t the sales; it was a real bargain. barge a flat-bottomed boat, used for carrying goods on canals and rivers. baritone a man singer whose voice is higher than a bass but lower than a tenor, bark T h e bark is the outer covering of a tree. • Dogs bark loudly when they are excited, barley Barley looks like wheat with hairs growing from the ends of the grains, barn A fanner stores his crops in a bam.

barnacle a very small shell-fish which fixes itself firmly to rocks, ships' bottoms, etc. banquet At the mayor's banquet barometer Weather forecasters there were so many good things to measure the air pressure with a eat that some of the guests felt ill barometer. afterwards, baptism a religious ceremony in baron a nobleman entitled to be addressed as 'Lord', which a person is sprinkled with barracks a special building in water, or immersed in water, baptize T o baptize the baby, the which soldiers live, priest will sprinkle water on its barrel Beer is stored in a head. specially-made wooden t u b called a barrel. a / T h e metal tube of a barbarian an uncivilized person, gun is called the barrel. usually of a backward race.

barren barren Land unable to produce crops is described as barren. A woman unable to have children is described as barren. barricade a barrier across a road. barrier a fence for keeping people from moving forward, barrow T h e man was wheeling a barrow piled high with fruit.

24

bay bassoon A bassoon is a musical instrument which produces very low notes when it is blown, batch A number of things together, or treated as a set, may be called a batch, e.g. Mother took a batch of mince pies out of the oven, bath Mother had to bath t h e baby in the sink • because the bath in t h e • bath-room was broken.

bathe Some people like to bathe in the sea; others prefer to sunbathe on the beach, baton Orchestra conductors beat time with a short stick called a baton. • The stick passed on in a relay race is called a baton. batsman T h e cricket match ended with a batsman hitting the barrow bassoon ball into the crowd, barter T o barter is to exchange batter to hit again and again. goods for other goods, not for • Batter is flour, milk, egg, etc., money. beaten u p into a paste. • This base T h e base of anything is the paste when cooked is called part on which it stands. • A base batter pudding. action is one that is cowardly or battery My torch gives a poor mean. light because it needs a new basement A floor below t h e battery. • A group of big guns is ground level of a building is called a battery. called the basement. bash to hit hard so as to smash battle William t h e Conqueror won the Battle of Hastings in in. 1066. • We watched the swimmer bashful shy. battle against the waves, b a s i n We cook puddings in a pudding basin. • We wash in a battleship The largest and most powerful type of warship was the wash-basin. • A river basin is battleship. the area drained by a river. bask to lie and enjoy the warmth baulk to hinder or thwart. • A baulk is a roughly squared beam of a fire or of the sun. of wood (also spelt balk). basket My dad hates carrying bawl to shout loudly, the shopping basket. bass (pron. base) the lowest part bay a wide inlet filled by the sea; • also an evergreen bush. • A in a piece of music; • (pron. bass) a kind of fish. bay window curves outwards from

25

beehive

a house. • Dogs bark; hounds beautiful lovely to look at. Helen of Troy was so beautiful t h a t m e n a n d wolves are said to bay. fought a war over her. bazaar a n eastern m a r k e t ; • a fete or fair in which the stalls are beauty ' T h e Sleeping Beaut? is set out i n t h e fancy style of an - a story a b o u t a beautiful princess who slept for a h u n d r e d years, eastern market, beach W h a t I like best about the beaver a fur-covered animal which lives in water a n d on land. seaside is playing in the sand on t h e beach. beacon a signal fire, or light, beads J a n e likes to wear a long string of beads round her neck, beak T h e bird flew off with a w o r m in its beak. beaker I take a plastic beaker to drink from when w e go o n a beak beaver picnic. beam H i e roof was supported by became After eating a l l those a great oak beam over a foot thick. rich cakes the children became ill. • T h e beam of light from the car's because T h e children were ill h e a d l a m p could b e seen for miles, because they h a d eaten too much, bean T h e r e a r e m a n y kinds of beckon She couldn't h e a r m e so beans, including the runner bean, I h a d to beckon her with my finger b r o a d bean, kidney bean and coffee to come closer, bean; b u t b a k e d beans are what I become Y o u will become ill if you like best, eat too m u c h , bear T h e polar bear has a thick becoming Jill is becoming very white f u r coat. • I cannot bear the beautiful as she grows u p . pain. • Never bear a grudge, bearable I h a d t o p u t my sore bedlam T h e r e was bedlam in t h e room w h e n t h e teacher w e n t out, finger into w a t e r so hot t h a t it was means t h a t there was u p r o a r , hardly bearable. noise a n d disorder, beard N o o n e would recognize F a t h e r Christmas if h e took off bedraggled (pron. be-drag-'ld) wet a n d limp, his big white beard. beast a four-footed animal. • bee T h e bee lives i n a hive a n d makes honey, ' Y o u beast!' is w h a t you might say to a b r u t a l m a n , o r to anyone beech a tree which is often found in English woods, w h o m you dislike, beef T h e flesh of cattle is called beastly nasty. beef. beat t o h i t repeatedly. • J i m beat T o m by a yard and won the race. • A policeman's round is called his beat.

beehive Bees a r e kept i n a beehive, which is where they m a k e their honey.

bceUne beeline T o make a beeline for a place means to go straight there, by the shortest route, been W h e r e have you been? • I have been looking for you. beer a drink made from malt, hops, etc.

26

Belgrade

behalf O n behalf of all the boys in 3A, I would like to thank M r . Green for his kindness, behave Remember t h a t we have visitors here this evening, so you must behave especially well, behaviour We have visitors here this evening, so I expect your beet T h e r e a r e t w o kinds of behaviour to be better than usual. . beetroot: red beet which is used in behead T o behead a m a n is to cut salad*, and white beet, from which off his head, sugar is made, beheld saw, e.g. O n turning the beetle A beetle is an insect whose corner, we beheld a sight that m a d e upper wings have become hard us rub our eyes, wing-cases, covering the delicate behind T u r n round a n d look wings with which it flies, behind you. • We r a n ahead and befall h a p p e n ; e.g. Whatever left the others far behind, m While may befall, you may rely on me to skating T o m fell backwards on to help you. his behind. before Look carefully before you behindhand We were behindhand cross the road, with the payments o n the telebeforehand I t is n o use your vision set, so a man came a n d took telling m e of the danger after the it away. accident h a s happened; you behold see, take notice o r look should have told m e beforehand. upon. befriend Everyone has a friend beige material m a d e of undyed except J i m m y ; I hope someone wool. • T h e colour called beige is will befriend him. the colour of undyed wool. began I t began to r u n , so we all being ' Behave like a h u m a n being. • You are being unkind t o the put on o u r macintoshes, animal. beggar A beggar in t h e street asked for money from passers-by. Belfast a big city in Northern begin Lessons begin at g a.m. and Ireland, famous for shipbuilding, belfry W e climbed u p t o t h e end at 4 p.m. beginner As we went to t h e belfry to see the huge bells hanging baths, J a n e said, ' I a m only a there. beginner; I cannot swim at all yet.' Belgian a citizen of Belgium. • beginning T h e place to start a We travelled in a Belgian aircraft. book is at the beginning, that is, on Belgium a small country on the the first page, North Sea coast between Holland began J i m had begun the sum and France. correctly, but he didn't know how Belgrade the capital city of Jugoto finish it. slavia.

belief

27

belief It is my belief that the m a n is a Frenchman, as he speaks with a strange accent. believe T o believe something is to accept it as true, believing I t is said that seeing is believing, but I do not believe all I see. belittle Whatever we do, Mary tries to belittle the achievement by saying that it was easy, or that anyone could have done it. bell Nobody remembered to ring the school bell so we were all late home. bellow A punch on the nose would make George bellow like a bull with pain and fury, bellows T h e blacksmith uses a bellows to blow air into his furnace, belly the front of the body between the chest a n d legs, belong Does this purse belong t o you? belongings Take all your belongings with you when you go; I do not want any of your possessions left here. beloved darling, or dearly loved, below From t h e tower, t h e people in the street below looked like ants. • J a n e is in the form below mine, belt A scout carries all kinds of equipment attached t o the belt round his waist, bench A bench is a long seat, • or the table a t which a carpenter works. bend T h e car took the bend in the road too fast and crashed. • The blacksmith tried to bend the iron bar into a ring.

berry beneath below, under, or underneath. benefactor a person who does good to others, e.g. M r . Jones is the benefactor who gave the money for the building of our hospital, beneficial I knew that the treatment had been beneficial for I felt better after it. benefit a gain or an advantage. • T o benefit is to gain by something. • A benefit (cricket) match is one from which t h e profits go to a particular player, bent T h e crash bent the frame of my cycle so badly that I could not straighten it.

bequeath If you make a will leaving property to someone when you die, you are said to bequeath the property to him. bereaved A person is saidto have been bereaved when h e has been left sad and lonely as a result of the death of a relative o r close friend. beret (pron. beh-ray) a small, round, flat h a t .

bellows

beret

Berlin Before the war Berlin was the capital of a united Germany, berry a small fruit, such as a blackifrry, a gooseberry or a raspberry.

berth

28

berth a sleeping place, especially in a ship. • T o berth a ship is to moor it in a suitable place, • often called a berth. beseech to ask earnestly for something, beset I am beset with worries, beside J a n e t hurried along with little Fred beside her, holding her hand. besides Besides Eric and George, there will b e Freda, Sally and Jane, making five altogether, besiege T o besiege a city a n attacking army had to surround it. best T h e best runner in the class is J o h n . • A t a wedding, t h e bridegroom's special companion is called the best man. betray T o betray one's friends is to reveal things about them to an enemy. better This is good chocolate, but that is better. • I have been ill in bed but I am now better and able to get up. between T h e pirate gripped the knife between his teeth. • Divide this money between the two of you. • I will meet you between 8 and 9 o'clock. beverage At this caf6 you can buy any kind of beverage, including tea, coffee, lemonade a n d minerals. beware A notice on t h e gate saying, 'Beware of the dog,' warns visitors that the dog may bite them. bewilder T o bewilder anyone is to confuse, puzzle or mislead him. bewitch I n fairy stories, to bewitch anyone is to put a spell on

bilious him. • Nowadays, to bewitch means to charm or delight, beyond This was beyond a joke so no one was amused. • T h e sun sets beyond the distant hills. Bible t h e great religious book which tells the stories of Jesus and the ancient Hebrew prophets, biblical to do with the Bible, biceps a special kind of muscle; there is one in your upper arm.

biceps

bicycle

bicycle You ought not to ride your buycle on the road until you have passed a test, bid to say, e.g. to bid good-bye, to bid good night; • to offer a price, e.g. At the sale Dad bid £1 for an old lamp, bide to wait or endure. 'I'll bide my time' means 'I'll await the best opportunity', bier a stand o n which a coffin can be carried to the grave, bigger A horse is a big animal, but the camel is a bigger one. biggest T h e horse, camel and elephant are all big animals, but the biggest of the three is t h e elephant, bilberry a small bush that grows on heaths; its fruit is a small blue berry called a bilberry. I t is also called blaeberry a n d whortleberry. bilious After feeling bilious all the evening, Sally finally had to rush out of the room to be sick.

bill bQl T h e bird held a worm in its bill, m W e received a bill from the shopkeeper for t h e six tins of fruit he h a d sent us. billiards a game played with ivory balls on a table covered in green cloth, billion I n Britain, a billion is a million millions (1,000,000,000,000). In t h e U.S.A., a billion is a thousand millions, billy-goat male g o a t

29

blacking

b i r d T h e bird that flew off the nest was a robin. Birmingham a large manufacturing town in the English Midlands. birth T h e birth of a baby is often called a happy event, birthday O n m y next birthday I shall be 14 years old. • Will you come to m y birthday p a r t y ? biscuit a small, Bat cake, usually h a r d a n d dry. bin W e put our rubbish i n the bisect t o c u t into t w o equal parts. dust bin, our coal in the coal bin bishop a clergyman of high rank. and our flour in theflourbin. • I n chess, a bishop is a piece bind t o fasten with a b a n d o r cord. • T o bind a book youfixits shaped like a bishop s head-dress, bite This is tasty. H a v e a bite of pages between the covers. it. • D o not be afraid of the dog; Unocal*** Binoculars, also called it will not bite you. • This itchy field-glasses or opera-glasses, conspot is an insect bite. sist of two little telescopes, one for each eye, t o help people t o see Utter I prefer bitter m a r m a l a d e to the sweet kind, distant objects clearly, biography A written account by bitterly I t was so bitterly cold that o u r fingers were frozen. • someone of another person's life, Susan wept bitterly as if her heart biology I n biology lessons w e were broken, learn about living things - plants black T h e floor was as black as a n d animalscoal. • At funerals m a n y people biplane a n aircraft with t w o wear black. planes (i.e. wings) on each side blackberry a fruit consisting of instead of the usual one. a mass of tiny soft black berries, each with a seed in the middle. • A blackberry bush o r bramble is usually very tough a n d prickly, blackbird M y favourite songbird is the blackbird. b i plane blackguard (pron. bla-gard) someone whose behaviour a n d b i r c h a tree with smooth bark language are low a n d vulgar, and thin branches ; i o r a bundle of blacking T h e black polish used birch twigs used for flogging wrongwhen cleaning shoes is called doers. • T o birch is to flog with a blacking. birch.

30

blindfold

blacklead used in pencils and for blacking stoves. ^ f b i M l l T o blackmail anyone is to extract money from him by threatening to tell a secret about him to somebody else, blacksmith O u r village blacksmith h a s few horses to shoe nowadays, so he makes iron gates instead. bladder a bag made of thin skin, rubber, etc., e.g. There is an air bladder inside t h e football. T h e bladder in the h u m a n body holds the waste water until it is passed out. blade T h e big blade on my knife is very sharp. • You are meant to hit the ball with the blade of the bat, not with the handle, blame T o blame someone is to accuse him of being responsible for doing wrong. • Don't put the blame on me; I didn't break the window. blancmange (pron. bla-monj) A blancmange sets like a jelly, but is like coloured custard, blank T h e paper was quite blank; nothing had been written on if. blanket I have a blanket on my bed to keep me warm, blaring T h e radio was blaring so loudly that we could not even understand what was being said, blast T h e blast of air from t h e explosion knocked us flat, blaze A fire is said to blaze when it burns with a bright flame. • T o blaze a trail is to mark a p a t h by chipping the bark of-trees. blazer O u r school blazer is a blue and yellow jacket with the school badge on the pocket.

bleach If you want dark hair to become light, you bleach it. bleak T h e island was a bleak place, cold, bare and wind-swept.

fchctlwil

bleat to make a noise like a sheep, goat or calf. . bled T h e wound bled for a time but very litde blood was lost. bleed T h e m a n m a y bleed t o death if you do not stop the flow of blood. blemish T h e only blemish on the beautiful carpet was an ink stain, blend to mix together, e.g. A tobacconist may blend different kinds of tobacco, a tea merchant may blend different kinds of tea and an artist may blend different colours. bless Good-bye and may God bless you. blew T h e wind blew very hard. T h e draught blew out the candle. blight a disease that affects plants. • T o blight a thing is t o make it diseased. blind Samson was blind because, the Philistines had put out his eyes. blindfold In this game we blindfold the players by tying a scarf round their eyes.

blazer

blink blink to o p e n a n d close t h e eyes quickly. bliss perfect happiness, blister a b u b b l e of skin containing a colourless liquid, a n d caused b y a b u r n , a tight shoe, etc., e.g. After t h a t long walk I h a d a blister o n my toe. blithe a w o r d used chiefly b y poets, m e a n i n g ' h a p p y ' , blithely happily or gaily, blizzard a blinding snowstorm with strong, icy winds, bloater a herring which h a s been salted a n d smoked. blob a d r o p or spot, e.g. a blob of ink or paint, block A g r o u p of buildings m a y be called a block. • T o block means to p u t a n obstacle in the way. • T h e l u m p of wood o n which people h a d to place their heads in order t o b e beheaded was called the block. blockade T o blockade an enemy is t o prevent supplies reaching him.

31

blonder bloom a flower. • T o bloom is to c o m e i n t o flower, blossom A tree grows its blossom before t h e fruit, a T o blossom is t o c o m e into flower. Mot A d r o p of ink fell from m y p e n a n d m a d e a blot on m y book. • Blot u p t h e i n k w i t h this blotting-paper, blotter a p a d containing blottingpaper.

blouse Every girl i n o u r school wears a blue skirt a n d a white blouse. blow T h i s strong wind will blow y o u r hat, off. • J i m swung his axe a n d with the first blow c u t t h e rope. blue T h e sky is blue. • A person m a y b e said t o b e blue if he is miserable, bluebell M y favourite woodland spring flower is t h e bluebell.

blockhead A stupid person is sometimes called a blockhead. blond having fair hair a n d skin, bluebell bluebottle e.g. T h e boy has a blond complexion. M y d a d is a blond m a n . bluebottle a n unpleasant fat fly blonde A fair-haired woman is w h i c h lays eggs on meat called a blonde. bluff to deceive people by blood T h e blood from m y c u t a p p e a r i n g t o b e very confident; finger m a d e a red patch on my • such deceit is called bluff, m A clean handkerchief, bluff person is one w h o is blunt a n d bloodshed the shedding of blood, hearty. fighting. blunder a stupid mistake. • T o bloodthirsty A bloodthirsty perblunder is to m a k e a stupid mistake. son is one w h o is eager for the • T o blunder can also m e a n to move shedding of blood. blindly or to stumble.

blunt

32

blunt Y o u cannot c u t m e a t with a blunt knife. I cannot d r a w a thin line because m y pencil is blunt. blur t o smudge o r m a k e i n distinct. blurred A n object is said t o look blurred w h e n you cannot see it distinctly. blurt T o blurt o u t a r e m a r k is t o c o m e o u t with it suddenly a n d thoughtlessly. blush People w h o b e c o m e r e d in t h e face t h r o u g h s h a m e o r e m barrassment a r e said to blush. boar T h e m a l e pig is called a boar.

boar

bomber m e n t you should see a doctor. • T h e crane lifted the engine bodily (i.e. t h e whole thing) off t h e rails, body W h e n 1 h a d measles m y whole body was covered with little spots. • 'At last t h e people in a body to t h e t o w n hall c a m e flocking.' bog T h e m a n sank into a bog a n d was soon waist-deep in black m u d . bogey, bogy a child's n a m e for t h e devil o r for some imaginary goblin w h o m h e fears, boll You must let t h e w a t e r boil before making the tea. boiler container in which things a r e boiled, o r i n which s t e a m is m a d e for steam engines, etc. • T h e h o t w a t e r for all t h e radiators a n d wash-basins in t h e building comes from a boiler in t h e basement, boisterous rough, wild a n d noisy. R u g b y is a boisterous game, bold D r a k e was a bold seatnan w h o feared n o one. • P r i n t i t in bold letters which a r e easily read, boldness All a d m i r e d Drake's boldness i n sailing into a n e n e m y h a r b o u r to attack their ships, bolster I like a bolster u n d e r my pillow t o m a k e it higher. • T o bolster anything u p is t o give it support or assistance, bolt A horse is said to bolt w h e n it rushes off out of control. • T h e steel plates were fastened together w i t h a n u t a n d bolt. bomb A n atomic bomb does fearful d a m a g e when it explodes. • T o bomb something is t o d r o p b o m b s on it. bomber a n aircraft m a d e t o carry and d r o p bombs.

1

bobbin

board a . plank of w o o d ; • a committee. • T o board a ship, train or bus is to go on it. • T o board a person is t o supply h i m with daily meals. boast T o m loved to boast a b o u t his father's expensive car, h i s uncle's motor-boat, h i s sister's good looks a n d his own cleverness. boat W e stepped into t h e little boat a n d rowed r o u n d t h e lake. bobbin T h e t h r e a d was w o u n d on a bobbin before being p u t in the sewing-machine. bodice t h e p a r t of a w o m a n ' s dress above d i e waist. bodily If you have a n y bodily ail-

bond bond something t h a t b i n d s ; • a legal document, bone O u r bodies consist of a framework of bone, covered with flesh. • T o bone meat is to take o u t t h e bone. bonfire O n November the 5 t h we light a n enormous bonfire which burns all night.

33

bother

booth A booth is a light, temporary structure, such as a stall a t a fair or a place in which to vote, booty T h e pirates buried t h e booty which they had c a p t u r e d , on T r e a s u r e Island, border T h e Cheviot Hills a r e on the border between E n g l a n d a n d Scotland, bore Bore a hole in this plank. • Will it bore you to hear the story a g a i n ? • A small-feore rifle has a n a r r o w barrel. • H e bore t h e pain bravely. bored S a m bored a hole in t h e plank. • W e were so bored t h a t we c o u l d n ' t help yawning, bonfire boomerang boring T h e lesson was so boring t h a t w e couldn't help yawning. • bonnet a h a t tied o n with ribS a m is still boring that hole in t h e bons, e.g. a baby's bonnet o r a plank. Salvation A r m y bonnet, a T h e covering over t h e engine of a car is born Christ was bom on t h e first Christmas D a y . called t h e bonnet. bonny S u c h a bonny baby would borne I could not have borne the pain as bravely as J o a n did. take a prize in any baby-show, town which is bonus A t Christmas all t h e borough a governed by a council or sends a workers a r e given a bonus of £ 5 in m e m b e r to Parliament. addition to their wages, book T h e book I had from the borrow M a y I borrow a 5p piece library w a s called "Treasure from you a n d repay it t o m o r r o w ? bosom a word used, chiefly b y Island'. poets, to m e a n 'breast'; as in ' T h e boom a sudden increase in trade. father clasped t h e b o y t o his' • T h e sound of 'boom' describes bosom.' the noise of a distant explosion, p T o boom is t o make a deep boss t h e person who is in charge; sound. • (slang) to order people a b o u t , boomerang a n Australian wea- botany I n o u r botany lessons w e learn a b o u t plants, seeds a n d pon, consisting of a curved piece of wood, which returns t o t h e flowers. person w h o throws it. both I k n o w both J a c k a n d Jill, boot W e p u t t h e luggage into the bother D o n o t bother m e with boot of t h e car. • J a c k took off his u n i m p o r t a n t things when I a m boot because it was hurting his busy. • I never mind looking foot. after J i l l ; she is no bother.

))

battle

34

braces

bow [when it rhymes w i t h 'cow'] to bend the body o r h e a d forward. • T h e front p a r t of a ship is called the bow. bowels p a r t of t h e b o d y consisting of yards of tubing inside t h e BIT brace abdomen, bowl a basin; • a big, heavy, wooden ball used in playing t h e g a m e of bowls. • T o bowl in b r a c e and bit cricket is t o t h r o w t h e ball smoothly towards the stumps, bottom W e turned it upside- bowls a g a m e in which heavy d o w n a n d saw a n a m e o n t h e wooden balls are rolled towards a bottom, a T h e r e is a p o n d a t the smaller white ball. D r a k e played bottom of t h e garden, bowls while awaiting t h e A r m a d a , box H e gave h e r a box of chocobough J a c k was climbing t h e lates. • She gave h i m a box on the tree when a big bough broke off ear. • T h e boxer did not box fairly. a n d h e fell to the ground, • T h e r e is a shrub called box. bought I went to the shop and boxer someone specially trained bought a slab of chocolate for 2op. t o fight with his fists, boulder a large, r o u n d e d stone, brace a support, e.g. t o hold bounce I f you d r o p a r u b b e r teeth in place. • A brace is the ball it will bounce u p again, tool which holds t h e b i t with bound W e bound u p t h e c u t with which a caipenter drills holes. • a b a n d a g e . • M o t h e r is bound t o A brace of pheasants is t w o find o u t . • W e are bound for t h e pheasants, seaside. • A m o u n t a i n goat will bracelet M y a u n t wears a beautibound f r o m rock to rock, ful gold bracelet on h e r wrist. boundary T h i s wall marks t h e boundary of t h e school grounds. • T h e b a t s m a n hit a boundary right into t h e crowd. bouquet T h e bride carried a lovely bouquet of roses a n d c a r n a tions. bout A t t h e boxing t o u r n a m e n t t h e first bout was between Basher Brown a n d Slogger White, bow [when it rhymes with 'low'] bouquet bracelet a w e a p o n for shooting arrows • o r t h e stick with which a violin is braces Some boys use braces to played. • T h e ribbon was tied in hold u p their trousers; T o m uses 4 bow. a belt.

bottle T h e doctor gave m e a bottle of medicine. • W e saw t h e factory where they bottle t h e milk t h a t we drink.

35

bracken bracken tall fern t h a t grows o n heathland. bracket T h e shelf was supported by a bracket which was screwed to t h e wall. • E a c h of the following t h r e e figures is i n brackets ( i ) , [2], {31. bradawl A bradawl looks like a small, s h a r p screwdriver a n d is used to m a k e holes in wood.

bradawl

bracket

brag t o boast. braid t o interweave or plait h a i r , t h r e a d , etc. ; • a cord o r b a n d m a d e b y weaving o r plaiting, braille a system of printing i n raised dots, which blind people c a n r e a d b y touch, brain Inside y o u r h e a d is y o u r brain, w i t h which you think, brakes T h e car could not stop soon e n o u g h because its brakes were faulty, bramble T h e bramble, o r blackberry, is usually a prickly bush, b u t its f r u i t is delicious, bran Bran consists of t h e husks from grain. branch W e c u t t h e broken branch off t h e tree. • T h e r e is a branch of W o o l w o r t h ' s i n almost every town. brand a t r a d e m a r k . • Y o u brand c a t t l e b y stamping d i e m with a h o t iron. • T h e brand m a r k on

breakfast goods o r cattle is m a d e w i t h a hot iron. brandish T o brandish a sword is to w a v e it a b o u t before beginning a fight. brandy a strong d r i n k m a d e f r o m wine. T h e sick m a n was given brandy to revive h i m . brass a n alloy of c o p p e r a n d zinc. • A brass i n s t r u m e n t is a trumpet, horn, trombone or tuba., brave O n l y a brave m a n would d a r e t o travel u n a r m e d i n t h a t d a n g e r o u s country, bravery I a d m i r e t h e bravery of a m a n w h o -would d a r e t o travel unarmed in that dangerous country. brawl a noisy q u a r r e l . • T o brawl is t o quarrel noisily, bray T h e donkey b e g a n t o bray, 'Ee-orr! Ee-orr!' brazen m a d e of brass • o r sounding like brass. • A brazen person is o n e w h o is shameless. • T o 'brazen it out* is to bluff one's w a y o u t of a situation, t h o u g h in t h e wrong, bnuder a bucket-shaped iron basket for holding a fire. Brazil a large country i n S o u t h America, bread T h e boys eat three loaves of bread each day.

breadth T h e length of t h e carpet was 6 m a n d its breadth, 4 m . break I f you d r o p t h e glass i t will break into pieces. • A t o u r school t h e m o r n i n g break lasts for only ten minutes, breaker A b i g wave which breaks into foam on t h e b e a c h is called a breaker. breakfast T h e first m e a l of the d a y is breakfast.

breast

36

breast A b a b y sucks milk f r o m his m o t h e r ' s breast. • J a m e s always h a s a white handkerchief in t h e breast pocket of his jacket, breath I was out of breath w h e n I arrived a t school, because I h a d r u n all t h e way. breathe W h e n . we breathe w e d r a w air into our lungs. _ breathing' T h e animal was still breathing, so we knew it was stiH alive. breed W h a t breed of dog is t h a t ? A p o o d l e ? • If you w a n t t e b u y a p u p p y , go to someone who. breeds dogs. -• breeze T h e breeze 'was .so gentle t h a t i t d i d n ' t even move t h e leaves o n t h e trees, brew W e brew t e a by pouring boiling w a t e r on to tea-leaves in a teapot, a n d then leaving it for a few minutes, brewery Beer is brewed, or prep a r e d in a brewery. . bribe I n r e t u r n for a bribe of £ 5 , t h e g u a r d let t h e prisoner go. • If you bribe the g u a r d with a £ 5 n o t e h e will-Jet the prisoner go. brick A house brick is a b o u t 230mm long a n d m a d e of b a k e d clay. • T h a t brick wall contains thousands of bricks, bridal M y m o t h e r kept h e r bridal veil f o r m a n y years after h e r wedding, bride7 T h e w o m a n being m a r r i e d is called t h e bride. bridegroom T h e m a n b e i n g m a r r i e d is called t h e bridegroom. bridge T h e r o a d goes over t h e river on a bridge. • W e shall bridge d i e river here. • Bridge is a card-game like whist. • You'll

brisk find t h e captain of t h e ship o n the bridge. ' bridle T h e bridle is t h e p a r t of a horse's harness t h a t goes o n his head.

bridle brief I haven't t i m e t o h e a r a long story, so b e brief. I have only come for a brief s t a y ; I m u s t go back tomorrow, brigade a large g r o u p of soldier*. • T o n y belongs t o t h e Boys' Brigade. brigand A brigand held u p t h e travellers a t pistol-point a n d robbed them, bright T h e light was so bright that we could not look a t it. • S u e isn't very bright7 s h e doesn't understand things as well as other children do. brilliant T h e flash of t h e explosion was the most brilliant light t h a t I have ever seen; it almost blinded me. brim I couldn't get another d r o p in t h e glass; it was full t o t h e brim, m H e pulled t h e brim of his h a t down over his eyes, brine salt water, bring Bring m e m y horse. • David h a d n o m o t h e r so h i s father paid a nurse t o bring h i m up. > brink T h e boys stood shivering on t h e brink of t h e river, hesitating to dive into t h e icy w a t e r below them. brisk active a n d full of life. H e went f o r a brisk walk before breakfast.

bristle bristle Hair is said to bristle when it stands upright. • A person may bristle when he is angry, bristles the stiff hairs on a pig's back. Short, stiff hairs on other animals or on man are also called bristles. Britain Great Britain consists of England, Scotland, and Wales. British T h e British people live in Britain. M y nationality is British. I a m British. Briton A British person is called a Briton. • T h e Ancient Britons lived in Britain long ago. brittle Egg-shells a r e so brittle that the slightest tap will break them. broad T h e river was too broad for us to swim across. • We expect to see bats in the evening, not in broad daylight, broadcast Radio and television programmes a r e broadcast from London. • T o sow seeds broadcast means not to plant them in rows, but to scatter them about, broccoli, brocoli a green vegetable like a cauliflower, broke T h e glass broke when I dropped it. • A person who has spent all his money is said to be bioke. broken You have broken the glass. • Pick u p the pieces of broken glass. • You have broken your promise, so it will be difficult for m e ever to believe you again, bronze a n alloy of copper and tin; • the colour bronze. brooch Aunt Mary had a lovely gold brooch pinned to her blouse, brood I love to see a hen with

37

Bucharest her brood of ch.cks. • A person is said to brood over a problem when he ponders on it very earnestly. brook a small stream. broom For sweeping aflooryou need a broom. • Broom is a wild bush which has yellow flowers. broth thin soup. brother M y father's other son is my brother. brought I have brought my sister to see you. brow T h e forehead is sometimes called the brow, as in ' H e wiped the sweat off his brow.' m T h e brow of a hill is the top. brown I like brown bread better t h a n white. bruise This dark patch o n my leg is the bruise I received when the cricket ball hit me. • If you drop an apple you will bruise it. brunt full force, e.g. T h e brunt of the attack fell on J a c k , so the other defenders had little to do. brush I paint with a brush. • I brush m y coat t o remove dust from it. Brussels t h e capital city of Belgium. brutal A brutal person is one who is cruel or savage. , brute a savage beast; • also a person who is cruel or savage. bubble A soap bubble is m a d e by blowing air into soapy water. • W a t e r can be seen to bubble when it boils. buccaneer a pirate. Bucharest the capital Roumania.

city of

back

38

back T h e male of a deer, rabbit, etc. is called a buck. • 'Buck u p ! ' means ' H u r r y up!' or 'Cheer up!' • A horse is said to buck when it leaps upwards. bucket J a c k and Jill went u p the hill and fetched a bucket of water, buckle I cannot fasten my belt because the buckle has broken. • I saw my bicycle wheel buckle as it hit the lamp-post, bud T h e little green bud on the tree will soon open into leaves or flowers. Budapest t h e capital city of Hungary, budge We pulled with all our might, but the rock would not budge one inch from its place, budgerigar A budgerigar looks like a pretty little parrot, buffalo a kind of ox much used for farm work in the East, buffers Buffers are fitted t o the ends of railway engines a n d coaches to lessen t h e force of collisions, bug a small blood-sucking insect which has an unpleasant smell, bugle A bugle is like a small trumpet without valves, build We build houses with bricks. • J o h n has the same sturdy build as T o m though he is not as strong as T o m . building T h e men were building a block of flats. • T h a t new building is a block of flats, built T h e house was built in ten weeks. bulb A daffodil grew from one bulb and a hyacinth from t h e other. • T h e electric light bulb broke and left us in darkness.

bumble-bee Bulgaria a country to the north of Greece and Turkey. Bulgarian A native of Bulgaria is called a Bulgarian. • I knew that I was in Bulgaria when I saw the Bulgarian flag, bulge We knew that he had our ball because we could see t h e bulge in his pocket, bulky T h e parcel was so bulky that we could not get it in through the doorway, bull T h e male of cattle is called a bull. • There are also bull elephants, bull whales, etc. bulldozer a powerful tractor which pushes before it a broad steel plate to level land and remove obstacles, bullet T h e bullet fired from the rifle went clean through the door, bulletin I always listen to t h e news bulletin on the radio, bullock a kind of male of the catde family especially produced to provide us with meat, bull's-eye T h e centre of a target is called the bull's-eye. bully someone w h o ill-treats weaker people. • T o bully is to illtreat weaker people, bulrush a tall reed which grows beside rivers, bumble-bee A large furry bee, called a bumble-bee, buzzed round the room.

bull-ink

bumble-be®

39

bump

bump I received this bump o n t h e h e a d by walking into a l a m p post. • If you walk into a l a m p post you will bump your head, bumper A c a r h a s a springy bumper front a n d back to take t h e shock of a collision, bun I like a bun for tea. O n G o o d Fridays I h a v e a hot cross bun. I h a v e also h a d a Chelsea bun, a c r e a m bun a n d a coconut bun. bunch W h e n J a n e was in hospital, w e took h e r a bunch of flowers a n d a bunch of grapes. • I t is d a n g e r o u s f o r cyclists t o bunch together, bundle T h e t r a m p carried his belongings i n a n untidy bundle w r a p p e d in a n old sheet, bungalow a house with only a g r o u n d floor, bungle T o bungle a j o b is t o d o it b a d l y a n d clumsily, bunk a shelf-like bed i n a ship. • T o talk bunk is to talk nonsense. • T o d o a bunk is t o r u n away (slang). buoy (pron. boy) T h e edge of the sand-bank i s . marked b y a brightly-coloured buoy floating in t h e water.

burglar A burglar b r o k e i n t o the house a n d stole M o t h e r ' s imitation jewellery. burial After t h e f u n e r a l service in c h u r c h c a m e t h e burial in the cemetery, burly A burly m a n is o n e w h o is big a n d strong a n d r a t h e r fat. burn Burn this letter o n t h e fire. • T h a t bum o n h e r h a n d was caused b y a h o t cinder. • I n Scotland, a small stream is called a burn. burrow Animals like foxes a n d r a b b i t s burrow into t h e .ground. • T h e y b u r r o w into t h e g r o u n d t o m a k e a hole called their burrow. burst T h e balloon burst with a p o p w h e n Dick pricked it, • a n d J e a n burst into tears. f bury I t was the.custom of pirates t o bury their treasure i n t h e ground. bus (short for) omnibus. • I t is a fivepenny fciw-ride to school, bush D a d planted a gooseberry bush in the garden, bushel a measure of corn, etc., equal to 8 gallons ( = 36-32 litres), busily Mother was busily cutting sandwiches (i.e. she was working h a r d at t h e job). business M y business is selling c a r s ; yours is studying a t school. • ' M i n d y o u r o w n business' m e a n s ' D o n o t interest yourself i n m y affairs.'

buoy

bush

burden T h e porter was glad t o lower t h e h e a v y burden from his b a c k a n d rest awhile. • I will not burden you with m y troubles.

bast a model of someone's head and shoulders. • A woman's bust is her bosom. busy I am too bury to talk to you now; come back later when I have nothing to do.

botcher

40

calamity

batcher W e b u y o u r m e a t from t h e butcher. • T o butcher people is to slaughter t h e m cruelly, butler T h e chief servant i n a cabbage W e e a t cabbage m o r e household is called the butler; his , often t h a n any other green vegetable. special d u t y is to see to t h e wines, etc. cabin a room in a s h i p ; • a little hut. butt a b a r r e l , e.g. a water-butt. batter Butter is m a d e by shaking cabinet a piece of f u r n i t u r e conu p c r e a m in a churn. I like j a m taining drawers a n d shelves, on m y b r e a d a n d butter. cable a strong thick r o p e ; • a buttercup T h e yellow buttercup wire rope; • a wire covered with a n d t h e white daisy b o t h grow insulating material a n d intended wild in English meadows. ' for conducting electricity, cackle A hen will often cackle when she has laid a n egg. cactus a prickly p l a n t t h a t grows in deserts, cad A boy w h o tells tales a b o u t his friends is a cad. caddy M a n y people keep their tea in a small box or tin, called a buttercup butterfly caddy. cadet a young m a n training for butterfly T h e ugly caterpillar the army, navy, a i r force, or will eventually t u r n into a beautiful police force. butterfly a n d fly away, cadge T o cadge something is t o button 'Button u p your c o a t ! ' • get it by begging. ' I cannot because t h e button has caf£ (pron. caff-ay) a place come off.' • I f you press t h a t where people can b u y aild conbutton a bell will ring, sume food a n d d r i n k , buttress a structure built t o cafeteria A cafe in which t h e support or strengthen a wall. customers collect their own food buy G o t o the shop a n d buy a a n d drink is called a cafeteria. fivepenny packet of sweets, cage It is cruel to imprison a wild buzz the noise m a d e by a bee. • bird in a cage. T o buzz is to m a k e a h u m m i n g Cairo the chief city of Egypt, noise. • ' B u z z off!' means ' G o cake W e always h a v e cake for tea away!' (slang), on Sundays. • I lost t h e cake of buzzer T h e . noise of the electric soap in the b a t h , buzzer indicates that t h e doctor calamity a very serious and u n is ready for the next patient. pleasant event.

41

calculate calculate T o calculate the area of a r o o m you multiply the length by t h e b r e a d t h , calendar W h e n I want to know t h e date, I look at a calendar. calf A cow's b a b y is called a calf, m T h e muscle on the back of a person's leg is called the calf. call Y o u c a n call out, b u t no one will h e a r you. • Call for m e in the car a t 8 o'clock. • T h e r e is a p h o n e call for you. • W e call t h e b a b y Pat. called W h e n I called a t m y friend's house, • h e called out, 'Just coming', caller anyone who pays a call or visit. calling G o a t once; your m o t h e r is calling you. • You should become a clergyman only if you have a calling for such work, callous A callous person is one w h o c a n b e cruel o r witness cruelty, a n d n o t care, calm T h e sea was as calm a n d smooth as a duck pond. • In spite of t h e d a n g e r , J o h n did not panic, b u t r e m a i n e d calm. calves m o r e t h a n one calf, camel a n a n i m a l that has one or two large h u m p s on its back, camera M y new camera takes very good photographs.

cactus

camera

candle camouflage T o camouflage something is to disguise it so t h a t it looks like its surroundings, camp W e will p u t u p o u r tents a n d camp here for t h e night. • O u r school camp consists of tents a n d huts in a m e a d o w by the sea. campaign t h e p a r t of a w a r which takes place in a single area or for p a r t of the time, e.g. Julius Caesar's campaign in Britain. Canada the northern p a r t of the American continent. Canadian I like Canadian cheese, Canadian butter a n d • every Canadian that I have met. canal T h e P a n a m a canal was d u g so t h a t ships might sail straight from t h e Atlantic t o t h e Pacific O c e a n through central America, canary In the cage was a pretty yellow song-bird called a canary. cancel I f you cancel a football m a t c h you a r r a n g e for it n o t to b e played. • I f you cancel i n arithmetic, you cross o u t figures like this: U

h

X jf 2

cancer Cancer is a disease. • The T r o p i c of Cancer is 23 north of the equator, candid D o n ' t just say what you think will please m e ; b e candid and tell m e w h a t you really think of my idea. candidate A t t h e last election, M o t h e r voted f o r t h e L a b o u r candidate a n d Father votedfort h e Conservative candidate. candle T h e b a b y blew o u t t h e candle too h a r d a n d sent t h e h o t wax o n to her b i r t h d a y cake.

42

cane

capsule

i

cane a thick stick. • T h e headmaster will cane those w h o disobey. • Sugar is extracted from sugar-can*. caned T h e b o y was caned f o r being disobedient, caning T h e boy was given a caning for being disobedient, canned W e have b r o u g h t canned soup, canned meat a n d canned fruit b u t n o can-opener. • Fruit is canned by being cooked and sealed into tins. cannibal T h e cannibal cooked a n d ate t h e policeman sent t o arrest him. cannon T h e gunners fired a cannon-ball m from the cannon, m All ten cannon were fired a t once. ( T h e word ' g u n ' is used nowadays in place of cannon). cannot I ' m sorry I cannot come t o d a y ; please ask m e some other time. canoe W e get very wet paddling our canoe on the rough water of the river.

can't cannot. I can't come to school today because I have, a cold, canteen T h e canteen a t school provides lunches for 300 children each day. canter A horse is said to canter when it goes along a t a n easy gallop. canvas Tents a n d sails are m a d e of a tough cloth called canvas. canvass Before an election people come t o o u r houses to canvass for votes for the various candidates, canyon a very d e e p a n d steepsided river valley, capable I would n o t have thought J a n e capable of such a nasty trick. • George is a capable b o y ; he'll tackle almost a n y j o b and do it well, capacity This j u g has a capacity of half a litre. T h e sports ground has a capacity of 20,000 people, cape a kind of overcoat without sleeves; • l a n d j u t t i n g out into the sea, e.g. Cape H o r n . Cape Town a p o r t a t t h e southern tip of Africa.

capital London is t h e capital of England. • Capital p u n i s h m e n t is punishment b y d e a t h . • T H I S SENTENCE I S I N CAPITAL LETTERS, capsize A sudden gust of wind canoe capstan caused the yacht to capsize and the canon a * clergyman w h o h a s m e n aboard were flung into t h e water. special duties connected with a capstan a giant reel which is cathedral, turned by m e n o r by machinery canopy I n addition to the hood in order to wind in ropes on ships, for keeping off the rain, the p r a m etc. h a d a pretty fringed canopy for keeping the sun off the baby's capsule A capsule containing a dose of cod-liver oil looks like a face.

captain

43

carriage

cardigan a knitted woollen waistcoat or jacket, cardinal a n i m p o r t a n t official of t h e C h u r c h , e.g. Cardinal Wolsey. captain T h e m a n in charge of an aircraft o r a ship is the captain. care T a k e care o f your n e w watch. • I d o n ' t care w h a t you do. J i m is o u r school captain a n d • T h e poor child was a n o r p h a n captain of the football t e a m . w h o h a d n o one to care for her. captivate to charm and delight. career T o career along is t o g o captive N o captive has ever esfast or wildly. • A person's career caped f r o m this prison. is his w a y of earning a living, such as teaching or engineering, captivity After five years in capcareful Be careful w h e n crossing tivity t h e prisoner was set free. roads. capture T h e hunters set out t o careless M a n y accidents a j e capture wild animals for the zoo. caused by careless drivers, caramel a toffee-like sweet. caress a friendly touch or a kiss. carat t h e measure of the purity • T o caress a person or animal is of gold, pure gold being 24 to pet or stroke him. c a r a t . A io-caro(-gold article is caretaker T h e caretaker looks i J t h s gold. after t h e school building, caravan W e live in a caravan cargo T h e ship carried a cargo of iron ore. which we tow behind our car. • I n eastern countries a caravan is a carnation a red or white g a r d e n c o m p a n y of traders, travelling flower with a strong p e r f u m e , together for safety. carnival a festival in which there m a y b e music and d a n c i n g in t h e street a n d a • carnival queen, carol T h e carol singers sang • m y favourite carol, ' T h e holly a n d t h e ivy.' caravan carpenter T h e carpenter w a s sawing wood t o m a k e doors for carcase, carcass After killing t h e n e w house, t h e antelopfe, t h e Hon left t h e carcase to b e devoured by vultures. carpet I love to step o u t of bed on t o a w a r m , woolly carpet, m card T h e playing card missing G r o u n d covered with a carpet of from this pack is t h e t e n of flowers is said to b e carpeted with hearts. • I sent you a b i r t h d a y flowers. card a n d a Christmas card. carriage Every c o m p a r t m e n t of cardboard Shoes a r e often t h e railway carriage was full of packed in cardboard boxes. passengers. • Carriage is also t h e Cardiff a n i m p o r t a n t town in cost of carrying something by rail or r o a d . S o u t h Wales. a transparent pill. • T h e first space m a n travelled in a capsule m o u n t e d on t h e tip of a rocket.

44 carrot a n orange-red root vegetable. A donkey loves a carrot.

carrot

cask

castor oil cask a wooden barrel, casket a small box, often beautifully decorated, in which jewels, love letters, etc., may be kept, casserole a n earthenware o r oven-glass dish and lid, in which food can be cooked in an oven and brought on to the table, cassock A choirboy wears a black cassock under his white surplice.

carry Please carry m y bag for me. • These pipes carry water to cast T h e rainwater pipes a r e the town, m a d e of cast iron. • T h e cast of carrying Mother is carrying the the play lined u p on the front of shopping; Father is carrying the the stage. baby. cart T h e horse pulled a cart castaway someone who has been shipwrecked on a desert island, loaded with potatoes. • I n P.E. like Robinson Crusoe, lessons we turn cartwheels. • W e have to cart all those boxes to the caste I n India people of t h e lowest caste were sometimes called shed. untouchables. T h e y did the dirtiest carton O u r breakfast cornflakes work. T h e highest caste were the are packed in a cardboard carton. Brahmins, who were the priests, cartoon A newspaper cartoon is an amusing drawing, usually castle T h e baron lived in a strong castle so as to be safe from about some event in the news. . attack. • A castle is a chess piece cartridge T h e gamekeeper put that looks like a castle. a cartridge in his gun a n d fired. • T h e stiff white paper on which we draw is called cartridge paper, carve A t t h e dinner-table, Father's j o b is to carve the meat, carving Father carves the meat with a carving knife, case I carry m y books in a leather case. • Take your mac. in castle case it rains. • T h e j u r y who tried the case found the prisoner castor Castor sugar consists of guilty. very fine grains. • T h e small wheels on the legs of chairs, beds, cash money. • T o cash a cheque etc., are called castors (also spelt is to obtain money in return for it. cashier T h e person w h o h a s caster). charge of the money in a bank or castor oil Castor oil is a nasty a shop, etc. is called the cashier. medicine; it makes me feel sick.

casual

45

cauliflower

casual u n p l a n n e d o r accidental. caterpillar T h e ugly green caterpillar will eventually t u r n into a A casual labourer is o n e w h o beautiful butterfly. hasn't a steady job, b u t works when there is work for him. casualty W h e n t h e aircraft crashed, the only casualty was a m a n who had broken his a n k l e ; t h e other passengers walked a w a y uninjured, caterpillar catkins catalogue a complete list of goods, books, etc., usually in cathedral a bishop's headalphabetical order. • T o catalogue q u a r t e r s a n d the chief c h u r c h of goods, etc., is to make such a list, its district. catapult A boy makes a catapult catholic wide, including all m e n from a forked stick and a piece of or all things; hence Catholic C h u r c h elastic. • A powerful catapult is which includes all Christians used to catapult aircraft into t h e everywhere. T h e h e a d of t h e air from a carrier. R o m a n Catholic C h u r c h is t h e Pope. catkins t h e flowers of hazel o r willow trees, which a r e soft a n d fluffy a n d a p p e a r .early in t h e spring. cattle T h e herd of cattle included several cows, a bull a n d some bullocks. catapult caught T h e p a p e r caught fire. • catarrh Simon was always T h e policeman caught t h e thief. • J i m caught t h e ball. • J a n e caught having t o blow his nose because cold. he suffered from catarrh. catastrophe (pron. cat-ass-tro- cauldron W e boiled t h e soup in fee) a disastrous end to something, a g r e a t cauldron h u n g over t h e c a m p fire. catch H o w d o y o u catch fish? • Catch this ball. • T h a t p a p e r is too wettocatchfire. mWet feet m a y m a k e you catch cold. • You'll catch it if your d a d hears a b o u t this, category I f we divide the boys in o u r f o r m into workers, sportsm e n a n d talkers, most of us would cauldron cauliflower be in t h e third category. cater T h e restaurant m a n a g e r cauliflower a vegetable like a told us h e did not cater for school c a b b a g e with a big white centre parties, so h e wouldn't serve us. called t h e flower.

cause cause T h e cause of t h e fire was a cigarette-end. • A cigarette-end m a y cause a forest fire, causeway a road raised a b o v e low or wet g r o u n d , caution Caution: D a n g e r o u s hill. W e h a d t o walk with caution on t h a t dangerous, icy slope. • I must caution you against swimming in this r o u g h sea. cautious M y m o t h e r is a cautious motorist; s h e never does anydangerous driving, cavalier a horseman, especially one of those w h o fought for K i n g Charles I against Parliament, cavalry horse soldiers, cave a hollow in a hillside, or in t h e ground. • A cowman was o n e w h o lived in a cave, cavern a n u n d e r g r o u n d hollow, cavity T h e dentist f o u n d a cavity in m y back tooth a n d p u t some filling in it. cease Cease this noise a t o n c e 1 T h e b a t d e ended with t h e o r d e r , 'Cease fire.' ceaseless W e did n o t sleep a l l night because of t h e ceaseless r o a r of the traffic passing t h e house, cedar a n evergreen tree which has cones like those of a p i n e tree.

cedar 'cello ceiling T h e electric light h a n g s from t h e ceiling above you.

46

centime

celebrate W e h a d a p a r t y t o celebrate M o t h e r ' s silver wedding, celebration T h e p a r t y was in celebration of M o t h e r ' s silver wedding. • W e held t h e celebration in t h e church hall, celebrity a well-known person, celery a plant whose crisp white stalks a r e eaten as salad or vegetable, celestial A celestial object is something in the sky, e.g. a planet, cell T h e prisoner was locked in a cell. • M y torch battery is m a d e u p of three cells. cellar U n d e r o u r house is a cellar in which the coal was kept, 'cello (pron. chello) short for violoncello, a n instrument like a very large violin. Celsius T e m p e r a t u r e s are measured in degrees Celsius, e.g. water boils at ioo°C. cement fine powder which is mixed with sand, etc.', t o make concrete. • A n y soft substance used for sticking things together is a cement. B TO cement is to join, cemetery Auntie goes to t h e cemetery each week to p u t flowers o n Uncle's grave, census W h e n there is a census, the names of all the people in the country are written on forms so that w e m a y find out how m a n y people there are. cent a h u n d r e d t h p a r t of a dollar, an American coin, centenary O u r school was founded in x88o, so our centenary will be celebrated in 1980. Centigrade T h e boiling-point of water is 100° Centigrade, which is n o w called 100° Celsius (ioo°C,). centime a h u n d r e d t h p a r t of a franc, a French coin.

centimetre

47

centimetre a hundredth p a r t of a metre; iomm. centipede a tiny creature that lives in the soil a n d has very many legs.

challenge states where and when you were born.

certify This swimming certificate is to certify that I can swim one h u n d r e d metres, chafe T h a t -rough collar will chafe your neck and m a k e it sore, chaff to tease someone goodhumouredly; • such teasing is called chaff. • Chaff is also chopped h a y or straw or husks off grain, chaffinch a bird about the size of a sparrow, b u t m u c h prettier in appearance and in voice, centipede chaffinch chain T h e anchor was a t t a c h e d to a chain. m Chain u p that d o g ; central T h e central station is in he's dangerous. t h e middle of the town. • A building is said to have central heating when it has radiators all heated chair Baby sits in a high chair, t h e invalid in a bath chair, t h e holifrom one boiler, centre T h e bull's-eye is in t h e day m a k e r in a deck chair a n d g r a n d a d in a n easy chair. centre of t h e target, centurion a R o m a n officer i n chairman T h e person in charge of a meeting, conference, etc., is charge of a h u n d r e d soldiers, called t h e chairman. centnry a h u n d r e d runs a t chalet (pron. shall-ay) A Swiss cricket o r • a h u n d r e d years of wooden house is called a chalet. • time. A seaside h u t built in similar cereal F o r o u r breakfast cereal style is also called a chalet. w e h a v e wheat, corn o r rice. Barley, oats a n d r y e a r e ' also cereals. ceremony T h e wedding ceremony took place in St. J o h n ' s Church, certain I f you poke your finger into t h e fire, you a r e certain to get chalet burnt. certainly If you poke your finger chalk a white rock, c o m m o n in into t h e fire, you'll certainly g e t English hills. • Blackboard chalk burnt. is a chemical substance, specially certainty I t is a certainty t h a t m a d e for writing on blackboards, challenge you'll get your finger b u r n t if you challenge W e shall K i n g ' s School to a chess m a t c h . • poke it into t h e fire, W e h e a r d the sentry's challenge-. certificate Your birth certificate is ' W h o goes there?' a large sheet of paper which

48 champion T h e champion racing driver is the one w h o has won most races. • T h e dog t h a t wins most prizes a t t h e show is t h e champion. championship If o u r t e a m wins t h e final m a t c h , we shall have won t h e Schools' Football L e a g u e championship. chance opportunity, e.g. I f you get a chance to go a b r o a d , take it. • A g a m e of chance is one t h a t does not depend o n skill, e.g. Snakes a n d Ladders. chancel In church, the congregation sit in the nave, while t h e choir a n d clergy occupy t h e chancel. chancellor T h e Chancellor of the Exchequer is the minister of t h e government who has charge of the country's finances. change T h e shopkeeper gave m e 5P change, m I ' m tired of j a m for t e a ; let's h a v e paste for a change. • Change your clothes before you go out. changeable T h e weather w a s very changeable, sometimes wet, sometimes sunny. changing W e cannot decide where to go because people keep changing their minds. • Dick is changing out of his wet clothes. channel Channel swimmers t r y to swim from E n g l a n d to F r a n c e • across the English Channel. chant t o sing; • a short tune which is repeated for each verse of a psalm. chaos (pron. kay-oss) complete confusion, e.g. T h e r e was chaos in t h e town after the h u r r i c a n e h a d struck.

chariot chap These icy winds chap m y h a n d s so t h a t they a r e a mass of sore cracks. • Y o u r brother is a jolly good chap (slang). chapel T h e residents of a royal palace, or college, etc., often h a v e their own. chapel in which t o worship. chaplain a clergyman attached to a private chapel, or t o a ship, regiment, prison, etc. chapter M y sister always reads t h e last chapter of a book first. character N o one would trust Sam, for h e h a d a b a d character. • S a m was a b a d character, m Fagin is a character in t h e Dickens novel, 'Oliver Twist'.

charade (pron. sha-rahd) a p a r t y g a m e in w h i i h people have to guess a word f r o m acted clues. charcoal a black substance m a d e by partly b u r n i n g wood, bone, etc. W e sometimes d r a w with sticks of charcoal. charge H o w m u c h does h e charge for a d r i n k ? • W h o is incharge of this child ? • T h e cavalry m a d e a charge a t t h e enemy. chariot I n L o n d o n there is a statue of Q u e e n Boadicea riding in h e r chariot. • T h e R o m a n s loved chariot racing, t h o u g h it was dangerous t o b o t h horses a n d m e n .

chariot

charity

49

charity A m o n g his gifts to charity were £ 5 0 to t h e blind a n d £ 5 0 to a hospital, charm Simon wore a lucky charm on a chain r o u n d his neck. • M a r y h a d such charm t h a t everyo n e loved her. charming Everyone loved M a r y ; she was such a charming girl, chart T h e captain's chart showed the exact position of Treasure Island. charter a document giving special rights to someone, e.g. the charter that gives a town t h e right to become a borough, chase M y dog loves to chase cats, chasing M y d o g loves chasing cats. • chasm T h e explorers were stopped b y a great chasm in the ground, too deep and steep t o climb down a n d too wide to j u m p , chat I stayed with the gardener and h a d a friendly chat a b o u t the weeds a n d the weather, chatter Stop your useless chatter and listen to what Roy is saying. • Betty is an awful chatter-box - she never stops talking, chauffeur (pron. sho-fer) a m a n paid to drive a car. c h e a p These apples were very cheap, only 5p a pound, cheat T h a t m a n is a cheat; h e deliberately gave m e too little change. • Dishonest people cheat at cards. check Check your bicycle brakes before you ride. • A check is a squared pattern, on material usually. cheek Uncle T o m kissed M a r y on the cheek. • You've got a cheek

cherry to ask for your ball back after i t has broken m y window, cheeky T h a t cheeky boy actually asked for his ball back after it h a d broken my window, cheer W e gave t h e w i n n e r a cheer as h e crossed t h e finishing line. • D o n ' t b e sad; cheer u p ! cheerful Billy was a cheerful lad who h a d a smile a n d a joke for everyone, cheerfully Sally cheerfully set a b o u t t h e washing up, h u m m i n g a little t u n e as she did so. cheese I love bread a n d cheese. I like Cheshire cheese and C h e d d a r cheese best. We bait the mouset r a p with cheese. chef (pron. sheff) T h e m a n who is head cook in a restaurant, hotel, etc., is called t h e chef. chemical a substance m a d e or used by chemists, chemist a m a n who sells medicines, pills, ointments, etc. A n other kind of chemist works in a laboratory doing experiments with metals, liquids, gases, etc. chemistry I n chemistry lessons we d o experiments t o discover w h a t happens when various substances a r e mixed together, heated, etc. cheque If you take this cheque to t h e b a n k , they will p a y you the a m o u n t , of money written on it. cherry a small stone fruit which grows in clusters.

cherry

cherub

50

cherub a n innocent a n d b e a u t i ful child, sometimes w i t h wings, as painted by some artists.

cherub

chicken

chess a g a m e like a battle, p l a y e d . o n a squared b o a r d a n d using pieces called knights, castles, kings, queens, etc. chest M y h e a r t a n d lungs a r e in m y chest. • T h e miser kept h i s m o n e y i n a n old oak chest. chestnut A chestnut tree produces sweet b r o w n n u t s i n a prickly case. • A horse-chestnut tree has similar-looking nuts, called conkers. chew I f I chew a toffee i t m a y pull t h e filling o u t of m y tooth, chicken T h e chicken laid n o eggs, so w e killed i t a n d h a d i t for o u r S u n d a y dinner, chief T h e chief m e a l of t h e d a y is dinner. • T h e R e d I n d i a n chief h a d a feathered head-dress, chiefly T h e audience consisted chiefly of children, b u t t h e r e were a few parents present as well, chieftain h e a d m a n , usually of a n uncivilized tribe, chilblain a very itchy r e d swelling o n t h e h a n d o r foot, caused b y cold w e a t h e r , child T h e child was h u r r y i n g t o school.

chirp childish Childish behaviour is t h a t expected f r o m a child, children All children a r e expected to a t t e n d a school, chill I knew I h a d a chill because I was sneezing a n d shivering. • I like the sun to take t h e chill off the water before I b a t h e , chilly I felt cold after t h e b a t h e because the w a t e r was too chilly. chime W e lay a w a k e a n d h e a r d t h e clock bells chime every h o u r a n d half-hour t h r o u g h o u t t h e night. chimney T h e smoke w o u l d n ' t go u p the chimney because of a bird's nest there, chimpanzee a n African a p e t h a t looks r a t h e r like a m a n . chin F a t h e r Christmas's chin is h i d d e n by his big b e a r d , china M o t h e r ' s best t e a cups a r e m a d e of beautiful thin china. China a huge, thickly populated country in east Asia. Chinese T h e Chinese a r e t h e people of C h i n a . • I went t o a Chinese r e s t a u r a n t in L o n d o n , chink T h r o u g h a chink i n t h e Shutters, t h e prisoner could see a n a r r o w strip of t h e street outside. • W e h e a r d t h e chink of money, chip A chip is a small piece. • T o chip is t o b r e a k off a small piece, chipped A small piece h a d been chipped off t h e o r n a m e n t . • I like chipped potatoes w i t h m y fried fish. chips W e h a v e fish a n d chips for dinner o n Fridays, chirp T h e birds sit i n t h e trees a n d chirp gaily b u t untunefully.

51

chisel chisel I n t h e woodwork lesson we were t a u g h t how to cut with a chisel.

chisel chivalrous A chivalrous m a n is one w h o is gentlemanly, honourable a n d courteous, especially t o ladies. chivalry (pron. shiv-al-ry) w a s t h e whole system of knighthood in t h e M i d d l e Ages, involving duties to C h u r c h , king, t h e weak, etc. chloroform T h e v a p o u r from chloroform puts people to sleep, chocolate I shall eat m y b a r of chocolate a t break, choice Choose a book a n d when you've m a d e your choice, let m e see i t . • W e p u t a l l t h e choice a p p l e s o n one sidefort h e hospital, a n d a t e t h e poorer ones ourselves, choir (pron. kwire) J i m m y sings in t h e c h u r c h choir. choke A fishbone stuck in J a n e t ' s t h r o a t a n d m a d e h e r choke, m I n a u t u m n , leaves get into t h e drains a n d choke t h e m , choose H e r e a r e all t h e books; come a n d choose t h e one you would like. chop L u m b o j a c k s chop d o w n trees w i t h axes. • I love a pork chop for dinner. chord (pron. kord) A g r o u p of notes sounding together harmoniously is called a chord.

chrysanthemum chorus Susan sang t h e verse a n d t h e rest of us joined with her i n singing t h e chorus. chose S a n d r a went to the library yesterday a n d chose a book a b o u t ponies. chosen I was told I could h a v e whichever book I liked, so I h a v e chosen this one. christen T o christen someone is to baptize him- • But 'to christen' m a y simply m e a n 'to n a m e ' , e.g. T h e girls christened her C y n ; h e r real n a m e is Cynthia. Christian A Christian is someone w h o believes in the religion of Christ. • J o a n Smith's Christian n a m e is J o a n . Christianity T h e Christian religion is called Christianity. Christmas I love t o receive Christmas presents f r o m F a t h e r Christmas on Christmas D a y . . chromium ' T h e bumpers o n o u r new car are so shiny because they a r e covered with a metal called chromium. chrysalis T h e chrysalis into which a caterpillar changes seems h a r d a n d lifeless, b u t a butterfly will come from it.

chrysalis

chrysanthemum

chrysanthemum a beautiful a u t u m n flower like a n enormous d o u b l e daisy.

chubby chubby

52 round-faced and plump.

chuckle W e dared not laugh aloud, but we enjoyed a quiet chuckle to ourselves. chum

a boy's special friend.

c h u n k A chunk of bread means a thick lump. People also talk of a chunk of wood or a chunk of cheese, etc. church A place where Christians worship. churn Cream is made into butter by being shaken about in a churn. • T o churn something is to stir it u p vigorously. chute I love to slide down the chute into the water a t the swimming baths. chutney Have some of this chutney with your m e a t ; we m a d e it ourselves from tomatoes, apples, sugar, spices and vinegar. cider a popular drink m a d e from apples. cigar a roll of tobacco leaves prepared for smoking.

cigar cigarette Many people have stopped cigarette smoking because it can cause serious illness. cinder Mother left the cake in the oven all day and it was burnt to a cinder. cinema We went to a cinema and saw an exciting film about cowboys and Indians.

civil

circle This o is a circle. • T h e space-craft will circle t h e moon twice. • In a theatre, the circle is the tier between the gallery and the floor. circuit T h e rocket did one circuit of the earth and returned to base. • A short circuit in the electric motor put the train out of action, circular A wheel is cimtlar in shape. • We all knew about the fair because a printed circular about it had been sent to every house. circulate T h e pumping of the heart makes t h e blood ciradate round the body, circulation Tight clothing interferes with the circulation of the blood. • T h e School Magazine has a circulation of 500 copies, circumference T h e circumference of a circle is the distance round it. circumstances W h e n Jill arrived with Jimmy, it was tea time, so under the circumstances, we had to ask them both to tea. circus We went t o the circus t o see the clowns and the performing animals, cistern Water is stored in a big iron cistern in the roof of the house, cities London, Paris and York are all large cities. citizen A citizen of London is called a Londonercity A city is a specially important town, such as London, Paris or York. civic having to d o with a city or citizens, e.g. It's my civic duty to vote at borough elections, civil not connected with t h e armed forces. • A civil war is one

53

cleanliness

between people of t h e same country • A civil answer is a polite one. civilian someone who is not in t h e a r m y , navy or air force, civility politeness, civilization A n atomic w a r could destroy all our cities, colleges, factories, etc., a n d this would m e a n t h e e n d of o u r civilization. civilize I t was necessary to civilize the savages for they were warlike and ignorant, claim M a b e l stepped forward t o claim the prize she h a d won. clamber O u r h a n d s a n d feet were bruised a n d torn through having t o clamber u p the cliff to safety.

clarinet a wood-wind musical instrument in which t h e s o u n d is p r o d u c e d by t h e vibration of a single reed.

civilian

clammy A clammy hand is cool and damp, clamour T h e r e was such a clamour f r o m the angry crowd t h a t the speaker could not make himself heard, clamp a kind of portable vice, for holding things together, clan a Scottish tribe, a l l descended from the same m a n . Examples a r e : the MacDonalds, the Campbells, etc. clang T h e bell sounded with a loud clang. • D o n ' t clang the bell or you'll wake t h e baby, clap Ask the audience not to clap until the end of t h e performance. • "We were awakened by a loud clap of t h u n d e r . clapped A t t h e end of the concert we all clapped o u r h a n d s until they were sore, clapping A t t h e end of t h e concert t h e clapping went on for a long time.

damp

clarinet

clash Y o u can't wear o r a n g e with p u r p l e ; the colours clash. • T h e music ended with a clash (banging against each other) of cymbals. clasp Jill's necklace fell off because t h e clasp h a d broken. • To clasp is t o hold firmly, class T h e r e are thirty children in m y class a t school, classical J a z z a n d p o p music a r e very different from t h e classical music of Bach, classify T o classify things is to a r r a n g e t h e m into groups or kinds. clatter I could hear b y t h e clatter of plates t h a t someone h a d started the washing up. clause p a r t of a sentence; • one of the parts of a legal agreement, claw T h a t scratch was m a d e by t h e claws of my cat. • T h e c a t might claw t h e dog's eyes, clay a stiff, sticky kind of e a r t h used in modelling and for m a k i n g pottery, bricks, etc. d e a n If your h a n d s a r e n o t clean, go a n d wash them. • T h e prisoner got clean away and was never seen again. cleanliness is being clean, e.g. schoolboys a r e n o t usually n o t e d for their cleanliness.

cleanse

54

cleanse m a k e clean: used when a m o r e impressive w o r d t h a n 'clean' is required, clear T h e w a t e r was so clear that we could see t h e sea b o t t o m . • I t is clear t o m e t h a t w e ' r e lost. • T h e road a h e a d w a s clear of traffic. clearance T h e r e was a clearance of only 150 m m between the top of the bus a n d the underside of the bridge. • O u r plane awaited a clearance of the fog. clearly W h e n the mist blew away we could see the wreck clearly. • T h e m e n advanced with smiles a n d outstretched h a n d s ; clearly they were friends.

cloak street a n d t h e n coming o u t again behind t h e m , cleverness W h e n y o u n g J o h n m a d e a television set which worked, all t h e family a d m i r e d his cleverness. click T h e r e was a click as t h e key turned in t h e lock, client Lawyers, private detectives, bankers, etc., call a person they work for their client. cKflf W e looked over t h e edge of the cliff a n d saw t h e sea far below us.

climate T h e climate of t h e Congo is hot a n d wet, b u t t h e English climate is cooler a n d drier, climax T h e climax of a story is cleft H e cleft t h e post from t o p to the most exciting p a r t i n which bottom with a blow of his axe. • the outcome is decided, W e hid the p a p e r in a cleft in t h e climb T o climb a m o u n t a i n you tree-trunk, have to use y o u r h a n d s a n d feet, clench T o clench your teeth is t o shut t h e m tightly together. • climber someone w h o climbs. • A p l a n t which climbs u p a supYou clench y o u r fist i n order t o port is called a climber. p u n c h someone, clergy T h e clergy present a t t h e clinch T o clinch a n a r g u m e n t or a bargain is to settle i t finally. • . wedding included t h e Bishop, the Clinch is also a n o t h e r way of vicar, the c u r a t e a n d t h e Rev. M r . Bates, spelling clench, w h i c h means t o clergyman T h e clergyman I know shut together tightly, best is o u r vicar, t h e Rev. J . cling Limpets cling t o rocks so Jones. tightly t h a t you c a n n o t get t h e m off. W e shall get separated in t h e clerical A clerk is a m a n w h o crowd if you d o n ' t cling t o m y does clerical work. • A clergyman arm. wears a clerical collar, which fastens a t t h e back, clinic W e go t o t h e school clinic clerk (pron. d a r k ) a m a n w h o to have cuts a n d bruises treated, works in a n office w r i t i n g letters, clip T h e pages were held tokeeping accounts, etc. gether with a paper-clip. • T o clever I a m not clever e n o u g h to clip is to cut with scissors, come first in t h e class. cloak A cloak is like a n overcoat without sleeves. • T o cloak somecleverly J o e cleverly eluded thA thing is to conceal o r hide it. bandits by dodging d o w n a side-

55

coarse

clout She gave the boy a clout on the head which hurt her knuckles, clover a field flower which has three little round leaves to each leaf-stalk, clown T h e clown is in the circus to make everyone laugh, club Betty belongs to the swimming club. B Father plays golf with agolfc/ui.Bln cards the ace olclubs clog If you clou ^ e drain t h e looks like a black clover-leaf, water will not be able to run away, clue T h e clue which led t h e clogs wooden shoes. detectives to the solution of the mystery was an old bus ticket, clump We hid behind a clump of bushes. • We heard M a c in his heavy boots clump across the floor, clumsiness Dick is noted for his clumsiness; h e spills or drops almost everything he touches, clumsy Eric is too clumsy to make clogs clown a dancer; h e would trample on close ' T o close' (rhymes with his partner's feet or push her over, 'nose') means 'to shut'. • Close cluster You boys a r e not to (rhymes with 'dose' [of medicine]) cluster round the notice-board and means 'near' or 'stuffy', e.g. We are block the corridor. • T h e r e is a close to my house. • It is close in this large cluster of daffodils in t h e room. garden. dot A clot of blood formed in the clutch A drowning m a n will wound and stopped the bleeding, clutch at anything near enough to support him. • T h e bird was cloth Coats are made of woollen cloth. • Put on the tablecloth; it is sitting on a clutch of eggs. • Most cars have a clutch pedal, dinner-time, clothe (pron. to rhyme with 'loathe' coach Travelling by road is much pleasanter in a motor coach than [hate]) They clothe t h e beauty it used to be in a stage coach. • T h e queen in a beautiful gold dress guard travels in the last coach of and put a crown on her head, the train. • Most football teams clothes T h e boys couldn't dress have a coach who directs their after their swim because someone training. • T h e trainer is there to had hidden their clothes. coach the team, clothing I cannot dress until I coal We burn coal on the fire. • find my clothing. M y uncle was a coal miner, cloud T h e rain is falling from coarse rough in texture. • Coarse that big grey cloud overhead. language is vulgar or rough talk.

clock We were all late for school because the school clock was ten minutes fast, clockwise A thing is said to go round clockwise when it revolves in the same direction as the hands of a clock. clockwork A clockwork motor is one worked by a spring.

cout

56

coinage

coast W e went down to t h e cocoa I like cocoa better than tea coast for a day by the sea. • A or coffee because i f tastes like mufguaid saw the wreck and sent chocolate. ^ for help. coconut a big, brown hairy nut coaster a vessel which does not containing a milky liquid. go overseas/ but trades u p and cocoon T h e larva of a silkworm down the cdast. spins a cocoon of silky thread coat Put on your coat\ it's rainround itself for protection. ing. • I must put a coat of paint on that door, cod a large sea fish. coax Mother has to coax the baby to drink milk-because he doesn't code T h e message was in a secret codt so that the enemy could not like it. read it. cobbler someone w h o mends coffee I drink coffee at breakfast. shoes. • Coffee is made from coffee beans cobra a poisonous snake, which have been roasted a n d cobweb The spider made a big ground into tiny pieces. cobweb across the corner of- my room. coffin The body of a dead person is p u t in a coffin before being buried.

cobweb

cockle

cog A cog wheel has • little projections round its edge called cogs; these fit into another cog wheel, so one wheel turns t h e other.

cock The hen bird lays the eggs; the cock bird crows, cockerel a young male chicken, cockle We found lots of cockle shells on the beach, • but none contained a cockle. cockney a Londoner, cog wheels coil cockpit T h e fighter pilot sat in coil A coil of rope is a length the cockpit of his aircraft awaiting arranged in rings, one on top of the signal to take off. the other. • T o coil rope is to cockroach a large black beede arrange it in a coil. which lives in houses and comes coin A penny is a copper coin; a out at night to. feed, cock-sure J i m had been so cock- tenpence piece is a silver coin. sure about winning the race that coinage In some countries metal he looked a complete fool when coinage is being replaced by paper John beat him by yards. money.

coincidence

57

combine

coincidence I was ..at the Post colon two little dots, like this (:). Office posting a letter t o Betty, • T h e colon is the end piece of the when b y a strange coincidence I intestine, met Betty posting a letter to me. colonel (pron. k£r-nel) ' T h e coke a smokeless fuel, m a d e from officer in charge of a regiment of coal. soldiers is the colonel. colander W e strain t h e vege- -colonial A colonial is a person from one of the colonies. • T h e tables through a colander. Colonial Office is the government cold If you k^ep sneezing and department concerned with t h e have a running nose, you probably colonies. have a cold. • I t was so cold that there was ice on the pond, colonist A settler in a colony is coldness We were having such called a colonist. fun bathing that we didn't notice colony Australia became a the coldness of the water, British colony through British collapse If the walls of the trench people settling there, collapse, the men digging it will be colossal St. Peter's church is a buried. colossal building, bigger even than collar Your collar is too tight St. Paul's Cathedral, round yovir heck. • You collar the colour R e d is the colour of blood; thief and hold on to him until the the colour of the sky is blue. • T a k e police arrive, your paints and colour this picture, collect (pron. col-lict) You are to colt a young male horse; • also collect a penny from each boy. • an inexperienced person, (pron. c61-lect) a short prayer. coUected W e collected all o u r column O n e column in the newspaper was headed, 'Big fire in belongings and set off for home, School'. • A long, upright cylincollection We passed round a der, usually of stone, is called a hat for the collection and collected column. 4p. • Come and see my stamp collection. comb You ought to comb your h a i r ; it is very untidy. • I need a college I hope that when I leave comb so that I can tidy my hair, school, I shall be able to continue combat a contest, a struggle or a my education at college. collide If two cars collide, t h e fight. drivers are likely to be seriously combination a ' combining of hurt. things together, e.g. my brotner collie a large, long-haired Scottish has a motorcycle a n d sidecar sheep-dog. combination. colliery a coal mine, combine T h e two old schools are collision As a result of t h e to combine t o form one big new collision between the two cars, both school. • A combine (harvester) drivers had to b e taken to the both cuts the corn and extracts hospital. the grain from it.

combustion

58

communicate

combustion b u r n i n g . T h e i n -commandment T h e Bible lists ternal combustion engine is so ten commandments. ,The sixth comcalled because petrol is b u r n t mandment is: ' T h o u shalt not kill.' inside it. commemorate to r e m e m b e r and d o h o n o u r t o a person o r come Come h e r e ! I h a v e come event ih a special ceremony, h o m e from sfchool. comedian Next o n t h e p r o -commence (to begin, g r a m m e was a comedian, w h o commend T o commend someone m a d e us all laugh, is to speak well of h i m . comedy a stage play intended to comment T h e only comment D a d amuse a n d usually with a h a p p y m a d e after t h e accident was, ending. ' T h a n k God you weren't killed.' comet A comet looks like a star commentary T h e broadcast comwith a tail. mentary o n t h e football match described every m o v e m e n t in the game. commentator someone who broadcasts a c o m m e n t a r y , commercial having t o do with buying a n d selling goods, e.g. Commercial television o r • a commercial in a T V . show, comet commit W e should punish people who commit crimes. • I comfort T o comfort a n y o n e is t o could not find out f r o m J i m whether cheer him u p when h e is sad. • If he wants to come or n o t ; he would a house is cold a n d cheerless, not commit himself, there is said to b e n o comfort in it. committee J i m is a m e m b e r of comfortable If I a m not comthe school R o a d Safety Committee. fortable in bed, I cannot sleep. • J i m ' s d a d is on the factory strike These shoes a r e not comfdrtable: committee. they're too small, common usual, o r often m e t comic a f u n n y magazine. A with. • A common is a publiclycomic song is one t h a t is m e a n t to owned piece of ground. • 3 be funny, is a common factor of 6, 9 a n d coming I shall b e coming h o m e 12. to tea. • T h e coming week is a n commonwealth T h e British i m p o r t a n t one. E m p i r e is n o w k n o w n as t h e comma a p u n c t u a t i o n m a r k , like British Commonwealth of Nations, this (,)—but I must n o t e n d m y commotion a noisy disturbance sentence with it. —in a crowd, for example, command A royal command m u s t communicate W h e n I wish t o b e obeyed. • I command you t o communicate with you, I will teleleave this house. • A n officer is in phone, write a letter o r perhaps command of soldiers. come a n d talk to you.

communications

59

c o m m u n i c a t i o n s T h e r e was no compel T o compel is to use force, news from t h e island because e.g. I will n o t g o unless you communications had been c u t b y compel me. the severe storms, compensation a gift o f money, c o m m u n i t y a g r o u p of people or something done t o m a k e u p with similar interests, • who meet, for an injury inflicted on someone, e.g. a t the Community Centre, compete Alan could n o t compete c o m p a n i o n Your companion is in the race because h e h a d twiited the person (or animal) you a r e his ankle. with. • A lady's companion is a competent A competent person is w o m a n who is paid to live with one w h o is properly qualified a n d her. able to d o a job. c o m p a n y I don't like being competition M y sister w o n a alone; stay a n d keep m e company. prize in a beauty competition at the • D a d h a d a letter from t h e seaside last year, Insurance Company a b o u t t h e competitor one w h o takes p a r t d a m a g e t o the car. in a competition, c o m p a r a t i v e l y O u r school is complain A neighbour called to comparatively small when comcomplain a b o u t t h e noise we were pared with a skyscraper, making. J o e h a d t o work while c o m p a r e If you compare your b a g we were a t t h e p a r t y , b u t he with J e a n ' s , you will see that hers didn't complain (grumble), is a little bigger a n d darker in complaint J a n e has a serious colour. complaint, so we've called in the c o m p a r i s o n I n comparison with doctor. • W e h a d a complaint from th;it oil tanker, the car ferry is a t h e neighbours a b o u t t h e noise tiny boat, we made, c o m p a r t m e n t T h e train h a d complete W e were o n e player only one empty carriage a n d the short, so o u r opponents had to eight of us filled one compartment of give us a m a n to complete o u r team, it. completely T h e e n e m y army c o m p a s s A compass needle always was completely destroyed; n o t even points north, so travellers use one one soldier escaped, when they need to know in which complexion the colour and condirection they are going. dition of a person's skin, especially the skin o n the face, complicated T h e s e instruction* a r e too complicated for us to follow; m a k e t h e m simpler, compliment T h e headmaster stopped t o compliment Bob on his compasses compass success in t h e examination, compasses W e use compasses for component p a r t of a machine or some other device. drawing circles.

A

compose

60

compose I wish I could compose music like Beethoven's, composer Handel was a famous composer of music. Benjamin Britten is a famous modern composer. composition 'Messiah' is a (musical) composition by Handel. • For our English homework we have to write a composition entitled 'Holidays', compound This cough mixture is a compound of honey, glycerine and orange juice, comprehensive A comprehensive school caters for children of all grades of ability, compress (pron. com-pr6ss) to squeeze together. • A compress (pron. com-press) is a p a d put on bruises or severe cuts, compulsory School attendance is compulsory for children (i.e. children a r e forced t o attend school). comrade T h e soldier stayed with his wounded comrade. U Some people, especially Russians, call a m a n Comrade instead of M r . conceal T h e spy tried t o conceal the message inside his tie. concede T o concede victory to one's opponents is to admit that they have won. conceit T h e worst thing about Alan is his conceit; he is so sure that he can do everything better than anyone else, conceited Alan is so conceited that he is convinced that h e can d o everything better t h a n anyone else. concentrate If you concentrate on your work, you will not notice other things.

concern That's m y concern, so I'll do as I like about it. • Do not concern yourself with my affairs; mind your own business, concert At our school concert there was singing, dancing, and music by the orchestra, concession something permitted, e.g. As a special concession, you may stay a t the party till midnight, conclude W e will conclude o u r concert with t h e National Anthem. • I conclude from your remarks that you do not like our dog. conclusion After considering the matter, Dad came to t h e conclusion that David was to blame. • At the conclusion of the concert, we sang the National Anthem, conclusive T h e result of t h e election was n o t conclusive, for Ted received the same number of votes as Ann. concrete a mixture of cement, sand, stones and water which sets hard. concussion injury to the head caused by a heavy fall or a hard knock. condemn If the j u r y find t h e prisoner guilty, the j u d g e will condemn him to a year's imprisonment, condense T h e story you have written is too long; can you condense it to half that length ? condescend T o condescend is to behave as if granting a favour, e.g. Laura is so proud that she will not condescend to speak to us. condition You m a y go on condition that you are home by ten o'clock. • Your cycle is in such a bad condition that you must not ride it.

61

conduct

conduct (pron, cdn-duct) behaviour; • (pron. con-ddct) t o lead. conductor I asked the bus conductor for a fivepenny ticket. • T h e conductor of a n orchestra stands in front of it. • Qopper wire is used in electrical a p p a r a t u s becausecopper is a good conductor of electricity.

cone

pine cone

cone A church steeple is cane shaped, i.e. it has a circular base a n d a pointed top. • A pine cone is the fruit of a pine tree, confectioner a persorf whose business is making or selling sweets or cakes, confectionery sweets a n d cakes, conference An organization calls a conference so that its members m a y come together- t o discuss matters that interest them, confess I confess t h a t I like noisy parties. Some people g o t o a priest to confess their sins, confession I have to m a k e a confession; it was I w h o broke your window. confetti At a wedding we t h r o w bits of coloured paper, called confetti, a t t h e bride a n d bridegroom. confide Y o u can safely confide in J a n e ; she can b e relied u p o n t o keep a n y secret.

congregate confidence I have n o confidence in this c a r ; it has broken down twice already. confident absolutely sure, e.g. I a m confident t h a t D a d will help us. confidentially I f you a r e told something confidentially, y o u a r e expected n o t t o pass o n t h e information to a n y o n e else, confirm Unless someone can confirm J i m ' s story t h a t we have a holiday tomorrow, I shall g o t o school,as usuali confirmation' I cannot believe J i m ' s story without some confirmation of i t • A t a Confirmation Service, t h e bishop a d m i t s people to full m e m b e r s h i p of t h e C h u r c h , confiscate A thing is confiscated if it is taken a w a y a s a p u n i s h ' ment, e.g. I shall confiscate your ball if you play with i t in school, confuse ' I always confuse Australia with Austria. W h i c h is w h i c h ? • If you give people t o o m a n y instructions a t once, you confuse them. confusion I n the confusion following t h e fire a l a r m , boys p u t o n each other's clothes, congestion O n Bank Holiday, t h e congestion o n t h e road was such that vehicles h a r d l y moved a t all. congratulate W e would like to congratulate P a t o n winning, t h e Sports T r o p h y , congratulations W e offered o u r congratulations t o P a t o n winning t h e Sports T r o p h y , congregate People b e g a n t o congregate r o u n d t h e speaker in such crowds t h a t t h e traffic was stopped.

congregation congregation T h e congregation in c h u r c h stood for the singing of a hymn. congress T h e p a r l i a m e n t of the United States is called Congress. conjunction a word, such as ' a n d ' , which is used to join two words or two groups of words, conjurer, conjuror T h e conjurer entertained t h e children by producing a r a b b i t out of a h a t .

62

consist conscience A person has a guilty conscience when h e feels u n h a p p y as a result of doing something wrong. conscientious A conscientious person is one w h o works as h a r d as he can, even when no one else is likely to know a b o u t it.

conscious J a c k was p u t to sleep for t h e operation a n d was n o t conscious again for hours. • W e were conscious of someone else in the room with us. consent Before J a c k can m a r r y Jill h e has to have her father's consent. • Will you consent to your d a u g h t e r ' s m a r r i a g e to m e ? conker consequence Betty was sick as a consequence of eating t o o m a n y c r e a m buns, conker a horse-chestnut. Boys play conkers with a conker dried and consequently as a result, conservative A conservative pert h r e a d e d on a string, connect. W e must h a v e a wire son is one w h o prefers to keep to connect t h e battery t o t h e bell. things as they are. • M a n y famous Connect t h e hose t o t h e t a p a n d British politicians belonged to t h e t u r n on t h e water, Conservative Party, connection Some people say t h e consider Before you decide, conm o o n shows w h e n we m a y expect sider carefully w h a t m a y h a p p e n . • r a i n ; others c a n see n o connection I d o not consider that Jones would between t h e m o o n a n d o u r m a k e a good prefect, weather. considerable T h e house was not c h e a p ; we paid a considerable sum conquer t o win a victory over. of money for it. William the Conqueror set out to conquer t h e English. M a n is now considerate A considerate m a n is trying t o conquer the dangers of one w h o takes account of t h e pollution, wishes a n d feelings of others, conqueror William I , who con- consideration Before punishing q u e r e d t h e English a t the Battle t h e boy y o u should take into of Hastings, became known as consideration his good work for t h e William t h e Conqueror. school orchestra, conquest T h e N o r m a n victory consist T h e mess on the baby's over t h e English a t the Battle of plate seemed t o consist of fruit, Hastings is known as t h e N o r m a n custard, j a m , cake a n d fish paste. Conquest or just ' T h e Conquest'.

63

contents

consistency T h e consistency of t h e mixture must be j u s t right, neither too stiff nor too watery, consolation W h e n you h a v e just missed a bus, it is a great consolation to discover that it wasn't t h e bus you needed, console Nothing w e could d o would console J a n e t ; she just cried a n d cried, consonant Every letter of t h e a l p h a b e t is a consonant except the five vowels a, e, i, o, u . conspicuous Jones's house is very conspicuous because it is the only one in t h e neighbourhood t h a t is painted yellow, conspiracy G u y Fawkes w a s executed for his p a r t in a conspiracy to blow u p t h e British Houses of Parliament, constable A police constable is sometimes called simply constable.

consult I shall h a v e to consult m y father before I can say whether or not I m a y come o n holiday with you.

consistency

constellation constantly I constantly chase t h a t cat off our garden, b u t it always comes back again, constellation T h e Pole Star is near a constellation which forms the shape of a plough, consternation W e were just pitching o u r tents, w h e n t o o u r consternation we s&w a n angry bull charging towards us. construct to make.

consume It d i d n ' t take the h u n gry boys long to consume the loaf of bread. • Fire can consume whole forests. consumer A producer is someone w h o makes something; a consumer is someone w h o buys it, e.g. M y d a d is a consumer of electricity, contact Billy ,has measles a n d if you have been in contact with h i m you m a y have caught it. • You can contact m e on the telephone, contagious A contagious disease is one caught through contact with someone w h o has t h e disease, contain T h e box was m e a n t t o contain pills. • J o e could contain his anger no longer a n d h e hit out with his fists, container Goods a r e loaded on to container-ships already packed in huge containers (boxes), contemplate T o contemplate anything is t o study it with eye o r m i n d ; • so, to contemplate m a y be to look thoughtfiilly or to consider carefully, contemporary Nelson was a contemporary of H a y d n (i.e. they lived a t t h e same time). • Often used nowadays to m e a n presentday, o r m o d e r n , e.g. contemporary designs, furniture, etc. contempt I show contempt for something because I despise it. contemptuous showing contempt, e.g. She dismissed his advice with a contemptuous toss of h e r head, content H a r r y was content to lie in the sun while the others bathed, contents T h e contents of anything, e.g. a jug, are whatever is in it.

contest

64

conversation

contest T h e English Civil War contrast There was a striking was a contest between King Charles contrast between the two girls, one and Parliament, of them tall, fair and slender, the contestant O n e contestant in the other short, p l u m p and dark, English Civil W a r was King contribute We would like everyCharles and the other was Parliaone to contribute 5p to the Famine ment. Relief Fund, Everyone gave continent The continent of Asia contribution fivepence as a contribution to the lies to the east of the continent of Europe. Famine Relief' Fund, if unexpected continually We never have any contrive Even visitors arrive, Mother can always peace because the baby is concontrive something tasty for dinner, tinually screaming, continue I shall continue shouting control Fred lost control of his cycle on the hill and ran into a until you let me out of this room, continuous going on all the tree. time. controversy argument, e.g. There was much controversy before contours outlines, especially the the family would agree to m y lines on a m a p which show the suggestion. shape and height of high ground. convalescence After recovering from his illness Dad needed a period of convalescence before returning to work, convalescent A convalescent is a person recovering from an illness. • A convalescent home is a resider.ee for people recovering their health, convenience 'At your convenience' means 'At a time that suits you'. • contract (pron. con-tract) a busiA public convenience is a lavatory ness agreement. • (pron. con-tract) for the use of the public, become smaller, e.g. Most things convenient It is not convenient for expand when they are heated and you to see D a d now because he is contract again on cooling, having a bath, contractor someone who agrees to do certain work, e.g. a building convent a place where nuns live and attend to their religious contractor, a haulage contractor. duties. contradict These newspapers contradict each other; one says the converge Lines which come to a minister is to retire, and the other point from different directions are says he isn't, said to converge. contrary T h e book is not a dull conversation W e h a d a long story; o n the contrary, it is a n conversation, talking late into the exciting adventure in space. night.

conversion

65

conversion the changing of one thing into another, e.g. pounds into pence, sinners into saints, coal gas foes to burn North Sea gas. convert (pron. con-v&t) to change, e.g. pence into pounds, heathen into Christians, etc. • (pron. con-vert) a person who has been converted to a new religion (or political faith, etc.). convey to carry, convict (pron. c6n-vict) T h e convict escaped from prison. • (pron. con-vict) To convict someone is to prove him guilty, convince We had to look under the beds and in every room of the house to convince Martha that there were no burglars about, convoy a group of ships travelling together for safety in wartime. • T o convoy ships is to act as guard-ship to a convoy, cook Mary is such a bad cook that • she cannot even cook a n

corn

operation of his mechanics a n d other assistants. cope Can you cope with all this work? • Many clergymen wear a cope when they walk round the church in procession. Copenhagen the capital city of Denmark. copper Two p, one p , and J p pieces are called coppers; • they contain copper, a reddish metal. • Grandma boils the washing and the Christmas pudding in her copper. copy I t is dishonest to copy your neighbour's answers. • This is not the original picture, but just a copy of it. copying You should make n o mistakes when just copying from the blackboard.

coral a hard, usually pink, rock formed in tropical seas. cord thin rope or thick string. eggcordial a strongly - flavoured cookery I n cookery lessons girls drink. • A cordial welcome is one learn how to cook, that is sincere and friendly. cool It was a cool day, neither hot cordon There was a cordon of nor cold. • Amid all the excitepolicemen round the building so ment Fred remained cool a n d that no one could escape from it. calm. • Let that hot soup cool corduroy a thick tough cloth before you taste it. with a ridged, velvety surface. coolly While the others rushed away in terror, the sergeant coolly core I n the middle of the apple picked u p the bomb, walked to a is a tough, uneatable part called water tank and dropped it in. the core. coolness After such a hot day cork Pull the cork out of the we ' enjoyed the coolness of the bottle. • We have a cork bath mat. evening breeze, corn Corn includes such grains as co-operate T o co-operate is t o wheat, barley and oats. • In the work together, U.S.A. com is maize. • The tight co-operation A driver cannot shoe caused a painful corn on my toe. win a motor race without the co-

corner corner place where walls, sides or edges meet, e.g. corner of a street, room o r page. • If you comer a rat, he m a yflyat you. cornet a brass instrument very like a trumpet. • An ice-cream comet is a cone-shaped biscuit containing ice-cream.

66

coster, costermonger

correct I f a sum is correct it is marked with a tick (v/). • If we get sums wrong we have to correct them. correction After our books have been marked we have to write out our corrections. correspond You correspond with someone when the two of you write letters to each other. • Your story does not correspond with the tale Pat told me. correspondence I h a d lots of correspondence this morning, four letters and nine cards, corridor a passage from which doors open into rooms, especially in a train or a large building, cornflour Cornflour is m a d e by corrode Rain a n d chemicals in grinding maize, the air had caused the metal to cornflower a pretty blue flower corrode so that it crumbled to pieces in my hand, which grows a m o n g corn, coronation A t t h e Queen's corrugated Corrugated iron, like corrugated cardboard, has a crinkled coronation in Westminster Abbey, surface. a crown was placed on her head, undercoroner If the reason for some- corset a tight-fitting garment, worn to support t h e one's death is n o t known, a coroner holds an inquest, which is body. an inquiry into t h e cause of cosmetics used, chiefly by girls a n d w o m e n , t o beautify themselves death. - powder, lipstick, skin-cream, corporal Corporal punishment is etc. caning, birching, etc. • An army cost What is the cost of a visit to corporal has charge of a small the circus? • I t will cost you 25P number of m e n ; h e wears two to go to the circus, stripes on his sleeve, coster, costermonger a trader corporation A town o r city is who sells his goods from a barrow governed by its mayor a n d corpora- , in the street. tion. T h e B.B.C. means the British Broadcasting Corporation. corps (pron. kor) a body of soldiers. • T h e chorus in a ballet is known as t h e corps de ballet, corpse (pron. korps) a dead body. coctarmongcr

costly

67

costly I can afford quite a n expensive bracelet, but not one as costly as this. costume Joyce has a new bathing costume, m Mother has a new costume to w e a r ' at m y sister's wedding. cosy Put the cosy on the tea-pot to keep it warm. • It was so warm and cosy in bed that Simon didn't want to get out. cot

The baby sleeps in a cot.

cot Cottage My aunt lives in a pretty thatched cottage in the country. • A cottage loaf is like a little bread roll baked on top of a big one. cotton A girl wearing a pretty cotton dress • bought a reel of cotton • and a packet of cotton-wool. couch Mary was not well so she was lying on the couch in the living room. cough Cover your mouth when you cough. • John had a bad cough which kept everyone in the house awake. could I could run as fast as you if I wished. couldn't could not. I couldn't lift the box so Dad picked i t u p for me. council A borough council consists of people who- have been elected to direct the affairs of the borough.

councillor A member of a council is called a councillor. counsel to advise, e.g. I would counsel you to say nothing about the affair. • Counselforthe Defence made a speech defending t h e prisoner, counsellor an adviser, count My little sister can-count u p to t e n . a T h e tide of a foreign nobleman, e.g. t h e Count o t Monte Cristo. c o u n t e r T h e shopkeeper put my groceries o n t h e counter. • I n counter-attack, counter-clockwise, etc., counter means 'against' or 'in return'. c o u n t e r p a n e the top covering of a bed. countess the wife of a count or an earl. counties T h e eastern counties of England include Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, countless There were countless numbers of locusts passing overhead like a great dark cloud, countries England a n d France are two of the countries of Europe, country England is a small country, Brazil is a very large country. county Yorkshire is a huge county. • A county is governed by its couttfr council, couple two of something, coupling T h e train split into two because the coupling between the carriages broke, coupon a ticket torn from a package, magazine, etc. which can b e exchanged for goods or money. courage The explorer showed

courageous

68

crackling

elephants, whales, etc., are also great courage i n tackling t h e lion called cows. which was m a u l i n g his comrade, courageous Tackling t h a t angry c o w a r d Eric is such a coward that at the first sign of d a n g e r h e runs lion was a courageous action, away. course O f course I shall come t o your party. • T h e race course is c o w a r d i c e t h e opposite of oval in shape. • I d i d n ' t like the bravery. last course of the meal, c o w a r d l y T o run away at t h e court Sir W a l t e r Raleigh was first sign of d a n g e r is a cowardly well known a t the court of Q u e e n action. Elizabeth I . • T h e prisoner was c o w s l i p T h e cowslip is a pretty brought into court for his trial, yellow wild flower having lots of courteous A courteous person is small flowers on one stalk. one w h o is polite and considerate c o x s w a i n (cox for short) t h e in the way he speaks or behaves, person responsible for steering a courtesy W e show courtesy to boat. people by being polite a n d conc o y A girl who is coy is shy o r siderate to them, modest. courtier someone who is constandy in a t t e n d a n c e a t a royal c r a b a shell-fish with ten legs a n d court. two strong nippers. • A crabapple is a small, very sour wild cousin Cousin Sally is Aunt M a b e l ' s d a u g h t e r . Any son or apple. d a u g h t e r of one of my parents' brothers o r sisters will b e m y cousin. cove a small bay. Lulworth Cove is near W e y m o u t h , covenant an agreement, I cover Cover t h e table with a cloth. • If we cover the entrance to the cave with bracken, no one will find it. crab cracker covered T h e y covered the body with a sheet, covet t o want passionately crack T h e plate you dropped didn't break, b u t there's a crack in something belonging to someone it. • Crack m e a n u t , please. • T h e r e else. T h e i o t h c o m m a n d m e n t was a loud crack as the ice broke, begins: ' T h o u shalt not covet. . .'. covetous A covetous person is cracker At the p a r t y I pulled a cracker with F a t h e r Christmas, someone w h o is desperately anxious to h a v e something belong- crackling T h e r e was a crackling sound as t h e dry sticks began to ing t o someone else, blaze. • T h e crisp brown skin on cow t h e female of the ox family; roasted pork is called crackling. she provides milk for us. Female

cradle

69

creator

cradle Mother put the baby in poured from the crater of the volcano. its cradle and rocked it to sleep, craft A strange craft sailed into crave T o crave something is to the harbour and dropped anchor. long for it very much, • In craft lessons we make things crawl Most babies learn to crawl with our hands, before learning t o walk. • My craftsman someone w h o h a s fastest swimming stroke is t h e crawl. special skill in a craft such as carving, cabinet-making, etc. crayon a coloured pencil, crafty sly and cunning, craze T h e latest craze among girls is to have pictures painted on crag a steep and rugged rock. their nails, crazy My sister is crazy about pop singers. • I helped Dad to lay the crazy paving along the garden path. creak We heard the door creak and knew that someone had come into the room, crag crane cream We'll skim the cream off the milk and have it with our cram T h e greedy boy tried to fruit. • Things are described as cram a whole cake into his mouth. cream when they are the colour of T h e bag seems full, but I could cream, i.e. yellowish, perhaps cram in one more article, cramp a sudden and very pain- crease A crease is made if you fold a piece of paper and press ful tightening of a muscle; • a along the fold. • Similarly, you metal device for pressing things crease clothes if you press folds together. into them, crane used for lifting heavy create Do not create a disturbance loads; • a bird with long legs, in the classroom. • Experts create neck and beak. • We had to crane new dress styles for ladies every our necks to see over the crowd, season. crank a bent rod, like the startcreation T h e Bible story of T h e ing handle of a car. • Dad had to Creation describes h o w plants, crank the car to start it. • A crank animals and m a n were created, is an odd person. creator T h e Creator is God, who cranny Though we searched in made everything. • T h e creator every nook and cranny, we couldn't find the lost 5P piece, crash We saw the aircraft crash and burst into flames. • Winnie dropped the tray of cups and saucers with a crash. crate a big wooden packing case, crater Smoke, flames and lava crater

creature

70

of this new ladies' fashion is a Frenchman, creature T h e explorers didn't know whether the strange creature was human or animal, credit I t isn't fair; Pat does the work and J a n e gets the credit for it. • You wouldn't credit it, but Tim says he's seen a man from. Mars. credulous Only a credulous person would believe such a n unlikely story about flying saucers, creed a set of beliefs, e.g. The Creed is a statement of the beliefs of a Christian, creek a narrow inlet on a seacoast. creep No one wall see us if we creep along with our bodies close to the ground, creeper a plant such as ivy, that creeps along the ground or u p a wall. creeping After creeping as close as possible, the cat suddenly leapt on the mouse, cremate T o burn. When their captain dies, they will cremate his body and scatter the ashes over the sea. crematorium ' a place where bodies are solemnly burnt, creosote a dark oily, liquid obtained from tar. • T o creosote woo4 is to paint it with creosote to preserve it. crept T h e boys crept along-with their bodies close to the grbund.

cripple

hoping to get near without being noticed. crescent A new moon is crescentshaped. cress We use two kinds of cress in salads, watercress and garden cress. crest T h e bird has a creit of red feathers on his head. • . When I bathe in the sea, I loVe being carried along on the crest of a wave. crestfallen Robin was so crestJallerf when nolx>dy arrived for his party that he began to Cry. crevice a narrow crack or> gap, usually in a rock, crew T h e crew are paid to do all the work on a ship, crib T h e baby was put to bed in his crib. • You are supposed to work out the answers for yourself and not crib them from Joan, cricket W e won t h e cricket match by 10 runs. • A cricket is an insect like a grasshopper or a locust. cried Ellen cried when she hurt herself. • The beggar cried out to the passers-by, 'Please take pity on the blind 1' crime a wrong deed such as ; stealing* which is punishable by law. crupijpal The cn'minafoesponsible for all the bank robberies was at - last arrested, u crimson Pink is light red, scarlet is bright red and tprimson is dark red. cringe , toshrink backfromsomeone, in fear. i i hifcli T o crinkle or wrinkle t o fold or bend into uneven ridgep. cripple For a month after the

crippled

71

accident J i m was a cripple a n d couldn't walk without crutches, crippled T h e old lady was s o crippled with r h e u m a t i s m t h a t she couldn't walk, crisis t h e turning-point in a n illness; • a m o m e n t of special d a n g e r in politics, etc. crisp I like my cornflakes crisp a n d h a r d , not soft and squashy. • Let's h a v e a packet of potato crisps with o u r lunch, critic anyone w h o finds fault; • also a person whose j o b it is to say what is good a n d bad in a book, a play, or a concert, etc. critical A critical person is one who finds fault. • A n invalid's condition is described as critical when it is a t danger point, criticism Your criticism of m y work shows how I can do better next time, criticize You have a cheek t o criticize Betty's painting, when you yourself cannot paint at all. croak T h e croak of a frog is not

crucifix crook a hooked stick, especially t h a t used b y a shepherd or a bishop. • Crook is also a slang w o r d for a criminal, crooked not straight, croon to sing softly. A mother m a y be said to croon to her baby. P o p singers croon sentimental songs. crop W e h a d a good crop of apples from the tree in o u r g a r d e n this year, cross A cross is shaped like this: + . • Be careful how you cross t h e road. • J i m m y m a d e m e so cross that I hit him. crotchet the musical note t h a t looks like a black oval on a stick.

crotchet crow a musical sound, crochet t o knit with a single crouch T h e travellers saw t h e hooked needle, lion crouch down in t h e grass crockery W e packed all t h e ready to spring, crockery, including plates, cups, crow I woke u p a t cock-crow. • saucers, basins a n d jugs, T h a t big black bird is a crow, m crocodile T h e travellers mistook Now t h a t w e have won the cup, the crocodile for a floating log until we have something to crow about, he opened his enormous m o u t h , crowd T h e r e w a s a crowd of crocus O n e of the first flowers to 30,000 people a t t h e football a p p e a r in the garden each spring m a t c h . • W e c a n ' t all crowd into is the crocus. that little room, crown A t t h e coronation, t h e archbishop p u t a crown o n t h e queen's h e a d . • W e saw t h e archbishop crown the queen, crucifix a model of Jesus o n the crow. crocus crook

crucifixion

72

crystal

crucifixion killing by nailing to a crumble Crumble some bread for cross, e.g. the crucifixion of Jesus, the birds. • T h e ancient beams crucify To crucify someone is to will crumble to fragments as soon p u t him to d e a t h by fastening as you touch them, him to a cross, crumbling T h e ancient woodcrude A crude d r a w i n g or carving work was crumbling to pieces as the is one that is roughly m a d e . • workmen tried to move it. Crude oil is oil just as it comes crumple Jennifer wouldn't sit from t h e g r o u n d , before it is down because she didn't want to refined. crumple her new dress, cruel I t is cruel to keep a dog on crunch You should hear our dog crunch u p a bone ! a short chain, to cut horses' tails or crusade K i n g Richard the Lion to p u t wild birds in cages, H e a r t went on a crusade to drive cruelly As we pushed our way the M o h a m m e d a n s o u t of the. through t h e bushes, t h e thorns Holy Land, tore our legs cruelly. cruelty t h e causing of needless crush D o n ' t crush the primroses as you walk across the grass. • pain, or having no pity. Cruelty to T h e r e was such a crush in t h e children o r animals is a crime in room that no one could move, Britain. cruet a special holder for t h e crust I love the crisp crust on new bread. litde pots of salt, p e p p e r a n d crutch T h e lame m a n hacj a mustard, used at meal times. crutch to support him when h e walked.

cruiser

crutch

crystal

cruise a tour by ship. • A car, cry All babies can cry, even if they can make no other noise. • ship or aircraft is said t o cruise W e h e a r d the sentry cry, ' H a l t ! ' when travelling at a speed which it can easily keep u p for a long crying Betty is crying because she time. has toothache. cruiser a fast warship. crystal a piece of mineral, clear a n d shiny like ice a n d with crumb T h e birds pecked away surfaces which are evenly shaped a t the b r e a d till not a crumb was a n d smooth. left.

73

cab cub T h e baby of a fox or a bear is called a cub. u A Wolf-Cuft is a junior Boy Scout, cube a block of something, having six equal square surfaces. Please get me a n ice-cube out of the fridge.

cube

cubicle

care the growing of crops. • You should cultivate the h a b i t of listening t o w h a t you are told, culture ' I a m learning a b o u t the culture of tomatoes' means that I a m learning how to grow tomatoes successfully.

cucumber

cubic cube-shaped. • A con- cumbersome T h e a r m o u r was so cumbersome that David could not tainer 2m x 3m x 4m has a vplume move a b o u t with it on. of 24 cubic metres (m 3 ). canning T h e fox is so cunning cubicle A t the swimming baths t h a t often he outwits the hounds we each have a separate cubicle in trying to catch him. which to undress. cap I would like a cup of tea, cuckoo the bird t h a t sings,' Cuckplease. oo, cuck-oo*. cupboard P u t t h e books back cucumber a long, green, juicy into t h e cupboard a n d shut t h e vegetable, which is cut into t h i n doors. slices a n d eaten as salad. curable If you have a curable disease, you can be m a d e well again. cuddle If I pick up the b a b y in my arms a n d give h i m a cuddle, h e • curate T h e curate assists the vicar stops crying. • M y brother likes or parish priest in his church to sit a n d cuddle his girl-friend. duties. cue I n the school play, my cue for curator T h e curator is the person coming on to the stage was t h e who is in charge of a museum, remark, 'But here is cousin Bob.' picture gallery, etc. c u f f I put my h a n d so far into curb I f you d o n ' t learn t o curb the water that I wet m y shirtyour temper, you m a y do somecuff. m T h e angry m a n gave Willy thing you'll regret. a cuff on the head, which hurt. cardie Milk is said to curdle when culprit Some one has broken m y window. W h o is t h e culprit? cultivate

t o p r e p a r e g r o u n d for

it turns sour a n d l u m p y . cure T h e doctor's j o b is t o cure people w h o a r e ill. • T o cure

curio bacon, herrings, etc., the meat is treated with salt and smoked or dried. curio a n object that is curious and unusual. cariosity Maureen's curiosity was aroused by the mysterious parcel so t h a t she couldn't rest until she had opened it. curious Maureen was so curious to know what was in the mysterious parcel that she couldn't rest till she had opened it. carl I wish my hair would curl like Rosemary's. • W h e n Mary's hair was cut off, we kept one curl as a souvenir, early Bill's hair is straight, but Ian's is curly.

74

cyclone

cushion After riding his bicycle ,all day, Dick was glad of a cushion to sit on because it was soft. custard We always have custard with out pudding or stewed fruit. custody If a policeman takes a m a n into custody he arrests him. • W h e n Uncle went' abroad, D a d had the custody of his children. custom something that is usually done, e.g. I t is our custom to give a party for t h e school leavers each Christmas. customer T h e customer paid the shopkeeper with a pound note. cutlass Seamen used to fight with a short curved sword called a cutlass.

currant There's only one currant m in this currant bun. • We have a blackcurrant bush in our garden. current T h e swimmer was carried along by the strong current in the river. • T h e electric current was cut off, so we h a d n o lights, cutlass cutlat corse T o curse someone is t o wish him harm. • T o curse is to use cutlery knives, forks, spoons, etc., used for preparing or eating food, bad language. e.g. W e can't e a t o u r dinner curt short and rather impolite, properly because we have no cutlery. e.g. I sent him a curt note. She cutlet a chop from a neck of gave me a curt answer, mutton. curtail ' I shall have to curtail my holiday' means that I shall have cutting T h e railway ran through a cutting with high banks on each to cut my holiday short, side. • Father is cutting the gnus. enrtain Draw the curtain so that people cannot see us through the cycle Will you cycle to school window. At the end of the play today? • My cycle (or bicycle) is broken, so I shall have to walk. the stage curtain is lowered, curtsey, curtsy T h e ladies had cyclone a big mass of low presto learn how to curtsey to the queen, sure a i r , which brings stormy curve a smooth bend. weather to the areas it passes over.

cygnet

dairy

75

cygnet a young swan.

cygnet

D

cylinder

cylinder A cylinder is the shape of a roller. A tin of fruit is a cylinder. cymbals musical instruments like brass plates, which a r e usually sounded b y being clashed t o gether.

dabble T o dabble in something is to take only a slight p a r t in it, e.g. U n c l e J o e used t o dabble i n politics. dachshund (pron. daks-hoont) a dog with a long body a n d short legs. Dachshund is G e r m a n for badger-dog. daffodil a yellow, trumpetshaped spring flower, which grows from a b u l b .

f x daffodil cymbals

cypress

cypress a dark evergreen tree, which is usually tall a n d grows to a point. cyst (pron. sist) a small, h a r d , painless l u m p which forms u n d e r the skin. Cscch (pron. chek) a citizen of Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia is a country in t h e middle of Europe, whose neighbours include Germany, Poland, H u n g a r y a n d Austria.

dagger

dagger T h e prisoner stabbed t h e g u a r d with a dagger. d a h l i a a g a r d e n flower, usually like a large a n d colourful double daisy. daily every day, e.g. W e milk the cows twice daily, • M y father reads t h e daily p a p e r a t breakfast each morning, daintily M a r y picked h e r way daintily t h r o u g h t h e m u d so as not to dirty her new shoes, dainty T o encourage the invalid to e a t w e offered h e r a dainty morsel of chicken, dairy place where milk is stored, a n d c r e a m a n d b u t t e r produced. • Dairy p r o d u c e is milk, cream, butter a n d cheese. • A shop that sells dairy p r o d u c e is called a demy.

dais

76

darn

dais a ' l o w platform, Danes T h e people of D e n m a r k daisy small white flower with a are called Danes. yellow centre, c o m m o n in fields. danger Danger: R o a d Repairs. T h e firemen were in danger from Children love t o pick daisies m the flames a n d from the falling and link them together into building. daisy chains, dale a valley. dangerous You m a y get h u r t if dalmatian a large, spotted dog. you get too n e a r t h e tiger; he's a dam a wall or barrier which dangerous animal. stops the flow of a stream. • T o dangle I t must b e exciting to dam a stream is to hold back its dangle o n cords u n d e r n e a t h a waters by p u t t i n g a d a m across it. p a r a c h u t e , high in the sky. damage T h e only damage to our Danish (pron. Dane-ish). T h e car was a bent b u m p e r . • H o w language spoken b y t h e Danes did you damage your c a r ? is called Danish. • Danish butter, damages T h e j u d g e ordered the Danish bacon, etc., come from motorist to p a y £ 1 , 0 0 0 damages Denmark, to t h e cyclist w h o m h e h a d dare I dare not j u m p into t h e injured. river because I cannot swim. • I dare you to ask the headmaster dame 'Dame' used to m e a n ' i a d y ' ; for a holiday, nowadays it is a title given to ladies w h o m t h e British wish to daring bold, e.g. A daring workm a n walked along a narrow steel honour, e.g. Dame Ethel Smyth, girder high above t h e street, the musician, damn T o damn anyone is to wish dark W h e n it is dark we switch h i m ill. on t h e light. • Dark brown is almost black, damp Although the grass wasn't wet, it was too damp for M o t h e r darken W e can darken a room by covering the windows with blinds to sit on. or shutters, damsel a y o u n g girl, damson a small p l u m which is darkness T h e boys, unable to see in t h e darkness, walked right very dark in colour, into the fishpond, dance D a d likes to dance a waltz, b u t we children would r a t h e r jive. darling M y brother calls his girl• D a d ' s favourite dance is t h e friend ' M y darling'. darn I f you h a v e a hole in your waltz. sock, dam it neatly, so that • the dancing I would love dancing t o darn doesn't show. jazz music if only I knew t h e right steps. • J o h n goes t o dancing lessons to learn h o w t o dance, dandelion a field plant with jagged leaves a n d a yellow flower. • A dandelion clock is t h e ball of soft, feathery m a t e r i a l r o u n d dandelion seeds.

dandelion

darn

dart

77

deal

dazed After falling o n his head, R o y staggered a b o u t i n a dazed condition, n o t q u i t e knowing w h a t h e was d o i n g or saying, dazzle W h e n t h e headlights of an a p p r o a c h i n g car dazzle a motorist, h e c a n n o t see w h e r e h e is going, dazzling I cannot see because t h e light is dazzling m e . • T h e prince dart was e n c h a n t e d b y t h e dazzling dash W e m a d e a dash through b e a u t y of t h e princess, the rain to the bus shelter. • W e deacon a clergyman lower in h a d t o dash or w e should h a v e r a n k t h a n a priest. • I n some missed the bus. • A dash is a line churches, a deacon is not a clergylike this: —. m a n , b u t a c h u r c h official, dashing d a r i n g a n d gay, e.g. dead J u l i u s Caesar is dead; h e Joyce fell in love with a dashing was m u r d e r e d . D a d cut the dead young soldier, branches o u t of t h e tree, date a fruit with a long-shaped deaden T h e doctor gave t h e stone. • Dates grow on date-palms. patient medicine t o deaden t h e • I f you w a n t t o know the date, pain. Cars are fitted with silencers look at a calendar, to deaden t h e noise of their exhausts, daub T o daub a n y t h i n g is to coat deadlock T h e r e is said to b e a it thickly o r badly. W h y d o you deadlock in talks, etc., w h e n n o daub that wall with m u d ? progress is being m a d e towards daughter A girl is t h e daughter of agreement, h e r p a r e n t s ; a boy is their son. deadly able to cause d e a t h , e.g. daunted discouraged, e.g. O u r •Deadly nightshade is a poisonous t e a m were n o t daunted b y t h e plant. injury t o their best player, a n d deaf Deaf people cannot hear. went on to win t h e m a t c h . deafen T o deafen someone is t o dawdle As w e dawdle along t o m a k e h i m unable to hear. school, all t h e other children walk deafened W e could n o t h e a r past us. w h a t was said because w e were dawn W e got o u t of b e d at dawn deafened by the noise of t h e airto see t h e sun rise. craft. daybreak when t h e sun begins deafness G r a n d a d cannot hear to rise. w h a t you say because h e suffers from deafness. daylight Coloiirs d p n o t look t h e same u n d e r artificial light as they deal M o t h e r does not deal with

dart M a k i n g a sudden dart, t h e bird grabbed t h e w o r m . • T o m t h r e w the dart • into the dartboard.

do in daylight.

daytime Bats sleep in t h e daytime a n d come o u t to h u n t for food a t night.

that grocer. • Y o u deal t h e cards. • Deal is a piece of fir o r pine wood. • W e h a d a good deal of trouble w i t h t h e car.

dealer

78

dealer a shopkeeper or trader; • the player who deals the cards, dean the clergyman next in rank below a bishop, dear the opposite of cheap. • We begin letters: 'Dear Mother', 'Dear Jean', 'Dear Sir', etc. • We all love Aunt P a t ; she is a dear. dearly J o h n paid dearly for taking Joe's bicycle, for he fell off it and broke his leg. • We all love Aunt Pat dearly. dearth shortage. T h e dearth of potatoes caused a famine in Ireland. death O n t h e death of King David, his son Solomon came to the throne, deathly T h e injured man was so deathly pale that we knew that he hadn't long to live. T h e roar of the explosion was followed by a deathly silence, debate a n organized argument or discussion. • T o debate is to argue. debris (pron. day-bree) scattered pieces, e.g. T h e explosion in the factory flung debris all over the nearby houses, debt (pron. det) I owe Dad a debt o f £ i , which I shall repay as soon as I have the money, debtor (pron. det-or) Dad has two debtors-, one debtor owes him and the other owes more than he can pay. decamp T h e gypsies who were living in the park had to decamp hurriedly when the police arrived, decay to go b a d or rot, e.g. Your teeth are more likely to decay if you don't clean them. Leaves which

deciduous

fall to the ground decay and become part of the soil, deceased T h e widow wept as she spoke of her deceased husband. • T h e deceased had died of old age. deceit tying or dishonesty, deceitful I t was deceitful of the beggar to pretend to be blind when he wasn't, deceive to mislead o r cheat. Susan put a bolster down the bed to deceive us into thinking that she was still in it. December the last month of the year. decency modesty. • Jack had the decency to apologize for his rudeness. decent respectable. • I n slang, 'decent' means 'kind' or 'satisfactory', e.g He's a decent chap. It's a decent book, deception Carol was guilty of deception in telling her teacher that she had been ill, when she had spent the day at the zoo. deceptive T h e wild cat's likeness to a household pet is very deceptive, for he is actually a very savage little creature, decide You must decide which of the two things you wish to do, for you cannot do both, decided definite, e.g. There is a decided flavour of salt in sea water. • Jack decided to play cricket rather than go to the dance. decidedly definitely, e.g. When we went bathing during the winter, the water was decidedly cold, deciduous A deciduous tree is one like the oak, chestnut and apple, whose leaves fall off each autumn.

decimal

79

decimal T h e decimal system is a m e t h o d of reckoning based on tens. A decimal point is a dot which separates tenths from whole n u m bers, e.g. 4-6. decipher T o decipher a cS8e, or a piece of bad handwriting, is to find its meaning, decision After m u c h thought, we have come to the decision not to have a party, b u t t o go to the theatre instead, decisive W e won the m a t c h by one goal t o nil, the decisive goal being scored by Jones, deck T h e ship's passengers c a m e u p on deck to see t h e aircraft overhead. • At Christmas time we deck the house with holly a n d p a p e r chains.

deer

decrease If you decrease speed, you go slower. • If you n o w weigh less t h a n you used to, there has been a decrease in your weight, decree a n official order, e.g. ' T h e r e went o u t a decree from Caesar Augustus t h a t all t h e world should be taxed.' decrepit A decrepit person is one who is feeble t h r o u g h age o r illness.

dedicate T o dedicate something is to devote it to a special purpose in a solemn ceremony, e.g. T h e bishop c a m e to dedicate the new church. deduce As the boys were a t the coach station with their swimming things, I deduced that they were going to t h e seaside, deduct I shall deduct t h e money declaration something which is you owe m e f r o m y o u r pocket stated firmly, e.g. t h e Declaration money, so you will receive less of Independence of the American than usual, colonists. deduction T h e deduction from declare T o declare is t o state o r your pocket money is t o pay for announce, e.g. I declare this ship the window you broke. • After well a n d truly launched. T h e considering t h e clues t h e detective cricket captain declared the innings m a d e the deduction t h a t t h e criminal closed. was a lame Italian, decline to refuse, e.g. I decline to deed Boy scouts a r e expected t o tell you. • a weakening, e.g. a do a good deed each day. decline in someone's health, o r in deep If you cannot swim you had the nation's prosperity, better not j u m p into deep water, decompose to decay or rot. deer T h e deer in t h e p a r k have decorate A t festival times w e large, b r a n c h i n g antlers. decorate our church with flowers, decorations O u r Christmas decorations usually consist of holly, balloons, p a p e r chains a n d mistletoe. decoy one w h o attracts others into a trap. • T o decoy is to t r a p , usually in a net. decorations deer

deface deface T o deface a building, m o n u m e n t , etc., is t o spoil its appearance, e.g. b y writing o r drawing on it.

80

delegation

deflect Horatius m a n a g e d to deflect t h e blbw so t h a t t h e sword missed him. deformed A person is said to be deformed if h e is misshapen in any defeat to beat. • A defeat is the way, Kg. a hunchback, opposite of a victory, deformity being deformed, defective M y bicycle chain came defraud T h e coalman used to apart because of a defective link defraud his customers by charging in it. for ten bags of coal when h e h a d defence A shield was a defence against arrows; it is n o defence delivered only nine, d e f y T o defy is to refuse t o obey. against bullets. If you have stolen • Defy used to m e a n 'to challenge something, it is no defence to say to a fight', e.g. Goliath defied the that you found it. armies of Israel, defenceless Without his sword and shield Sir Giles was defenceless degree T h e t e m p e r a t u r e rose one a n d at the mercy of his enemies, degree ( i ° ) centigrade. • T h a t defend T h e soldiers were there angle is one degree (i°) too big. A right angle is ninety degrees (90°). to defend the city against attack, defensive People on the defensive do not attack, b u t they resist any attacks m a d e against them, defiance open a n d deliberate disobedience, defiant A person is being defiant when h e is openly disobedient and rebellious, degree deficient I f there is not enough lime in soil, it is deficient in lime. deign T o deign is to condescend. A mentally deficient person cannot T h e boy shouted something a t think o r understand as well as Diana, b u t she did not deign t o other people, answer, define T o define anything you explain it or make clear its exact dejected sad, depressed, delay I f we delay J e a n , she will meaning, be late. • This delay has m a d e m e definite Dad's orders were quite late. definite; there can b e n o doubt about what h e wants us to do. delegate someone w h o represents definitely T h a t is definitely the a g r o u p of people at a conference, boy we w a n t ; I know him by the etc. m T o delegate power o r auscar on his nose, thority is to h a n d it over, definition I n this dictionary, the delegation a g r o u p of delegates, definition of 'defiance' is 'open and e.g. T h e British delegation h a s deliberate disobedience.' arrived f o r a meeting of t h e U n i t e d Nations.

Delhi Delhi the capital city of India, deliberate That was no accident, but a deliberate attempt to knock Jim off his bicycle.

81

demon delta Delta (A) is the Greek letter D. • A river mouth made u p of many outlets is called a delta because it is shaped like A (delta).

deliberately on purpose, e.g. I t was not an accident, for I saw the boy deliberately push J i m off his bicycle. delicacy A delicacy is something especially tasty to eat, e.g. Strawberries and cream are a delicacy. delta delicate A delicate child is one deluge very heavy rain. • By who easily or frequently becomes 'The Deluge' we mean Noah's ill. • A delicate colour is one that is flood. not too bright or strong, delicious The ice cream was so delusion a false belief, especially a false belief caused by illness, e.g. delicious that we ate a lot of it. The patient was under the delusion delight We should have been that t h e doctor was trying to pleased with a day's holiday, but, poison her. to our delight, we were given a demand These apples are b a d ; I week. demand the return of the money I delightful charming, very pleaspaid for them. • 'Where have you ing, e.g. Aunt Beth is a delightful put your book?' demanded t h e person. It was a delightful concert, teacher. delinquent someone who hasdemocracy a form of governdone wrong. Juvenile delinquents ment in which people are governed are boys or girls who have broken by politicians whom they have the law. freely elected, delirious A person is said to be democratic A democratic person or government is one that is in delirious when illness causes him to favour of democracy, become wildly excited or temdemolish T h e builders are going porarily mad. deliver T h e postman's j o b is t o to demolish those old houses a n a build new ones in their place, deliver letters, deliverance rescue or saving, demon a devil or an evil spirit. e.g. The sailors knelt and thanked God for their deliverance from the storm. delivered The postman delivered the letters earlier than usual, delivery Postmen are responsible for the delivery of letters t o our demon houses.

demonstrate

82

depression

table, you will have to go to the shop's furniture department. departure W e watched the departure of the train from the station. depend You may depend on J i m ; if he says he will do a thing, h e does it. dependable Jim is a dependable lad; if he says he will do a thing, he does it. dependant a person kept by someone else, e.g. M y dad has demure A demure girl is one who three dependants-, my mother, my is quiet and shys sister and me. den the place where a wild depict I n her painting, Pat has animal makes a habit of lying; • tried to depict a sailing ship in a a place where thieves, etc., gather; rough sea. • a small room. deport T o deport someone is to denial I n spite of t h e man's send h i m o u t of the country. denial, we were sure that he had M a n y countries deport foreigners committed the crime. who break their laws, Denmark a European country deportment Jennifer's upright just north of Germany, posture a n d dignified manner won denote T o denote the actual words for her the school deportment prize, said by someone, we use inverted depose You depose a king, or any commas, Like this: " " . other official, by taking his j o b dense T h e fog was so dense that away from him. we could see only a yard ahead, deposit You may deposit your dent T h e boy threw a stone bags in the cloakroom. It is better which m a d e a dent in the side of to deposit your money in a bank our car. than to keep it at home, dental We go to the dental clinic depot (pron. dip-oh) a storewhen our teeth need attention, house. dentist O u r dentist does not hurt depress t o press down, e.g. when he pulls out teeth, W h e n you depress a key of a n deny I t is useless for you to deny organ, a note is sounded, that you broke.the window, for we depressed Since her baby died, saw you do it. Auntie has been so depressed that depart O u r train is d u e to depart she cries a t the least thing, m>m London a t 10 o'clock, and depression a hollow (e.g. in the ground); • a n area of low arrive in Dover about noon, pressure, which causes rain. department If you require a

demonstrate As Mother didn't know how to work the new washing machine, a m a n called to demonstrate it to her. demonstration Mother didn't know how to use the new washing machine, so a m a n came to give her a demonstration. demoralize T o demoralize people is to destroy their courage. T h e killing of Goliath so demoralized the Philistine army that it turned and fled.

deprive deprive I n order to punish the boys we will deprive them of their amusements for a week, depth T h e depth of water a t the deep end of the swimming b a t h is twice the depth at the shallow end. deputation I t was not possible for the whole school to go and see the headmaster, so we sent a deputation of four boys to tell him what we wanted, deputize When the headmaster is away the senior master has to deputize for him. deputy If the headmaster is absent, his duties are taken over by his deputy. derelict A derelict car, ship, etc., is one (usually a wreck) that has been left somewhere because its owner no longer wants it. derrick a crane for lifting things; • t h e framework constructed over an oil-well, descant While we are singing a hymn, the choirboys sometimes sing a higher tune, called a descant. descend Billy does not descend by the stairs; h e slides down t h e handrail, descendant Everyone is a descendant of his parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. descent We watched the descent of the parachute all the way from the aircraft to the ground. describe I would describe the man as young, tall and thin, very dark and remarkably good-looking, description T o give a description of a person is to say what he looks like desert T o desert (pron. de-zert) someone is to go away and leave

83

desk him. • A desert (pron. dfa-ert) is waste land, where nothing grows, deserted T h e l a m b h a d been deserted by its mother so we took it home a n d fed it from a bottle, deserter a soldier who runs away from his companions, desertion A m a n who goes away and leaves his wife is guilty of desertion. deserts T h e bully got his deserts when the smaller boy punched him on the nose, deserve I n view of your b a d behaviour, you d o not deserve a birthday party, design a plan, a scheme or a drawing. designed T h e badge o n o u r school blazer was designed by the art master, desirable A desirable house, friend, etc., is one worth wishing for. desire T o desire something is to wish for it very much, desirous ' S h e was desirous of meeting the duke' means that she wanted very much t o meet the duke. desist If you don't desist from teasing that cat, it will probably scratch you. desk I keep my dictionary in my school desk.

desolate

84

deter

desolate T h e South Pole is a destroy An atom bomb would desolate place, dreary a n d u n - destroy a city. • We would rather inhabited, have a vet destroy our dog than let despair hopelessness. • T o des- it live in pain, pair is to lose all hope, destroyer a fast warship, despatch I will despatch the par- destruction T h e destruction of the cel t o you by post (also spelt city was so complete that not one dispatch). house was left standing, desperado a ruffian who will destructive Pamela was a desstop at nothing to get what h e tructive child; she broke or pulled wants. to pieccs almost everything she was given, desperate without hope, e.g. As the tide rose in the cave the boys detach unfasten and remove. • became desperate. A desperate man A detached house is one not joined will stop at nothing to get what he to another one. wants. detachable something that can desperately T h e boys worked be unfastened and removed, e.g. desperately, bailing water from the This mac. has a detachable hood, rapidly sinking boat, detailed A detailed account is one desperation I n desperation t h e that does not leave anything out. boys frantically bailed water from details full particulars, e.g. I the sinking boat, don't want to know the details ; just despicable To steal money from tell me who won the game, a blind beggar is a despicable act detain keep (waiting), e.g. As which would disgust any decent you are in a hurry I will not detain person. you for more than a few minutes, despise to look down upon, e.g. detect I t was not difficult to You should never despise a person detect t h e guilty boy, for his merely because he is poor or unpockets bulged with the stolen educated, apples. despite Despite his injured foot, detection A fat boy cannot avoid David walked all the way home, detection by hiding behind a thin despondent After getting t h e tree. sum wrong for t h e fifth time, detective After studying t h e Wendy became despondent a n d clues, the detective was able to say burst into tears, who had committed the crime, dessert After dinner we had raw detention Children who arrive apples and oranges for dessert. late have to stay in school a t destination Your destination is 4 o'clock for an hour's detention. the place you are going to. destiny A man's destiny is what deter (pron. de-t6r) hinder, discourage, e.g. T h e barbed wire on fate has i n store for him, e.g. top of the wall was to deter boysHitler believed it was his destiny to from climbing over it. rule all Europe.

detergent

85

diagonally

detergent a cleaning substance, devil Satan, who tempts people such as soap. to do wrong things; or any evil person or evil spirit, deteriorate to become worse, determination firmness. T h e devise to plan, e.g. W e will devise a way of escaping from this boys showed such determination prison. that there was no point in trying to make them change their minds, devote to give, e.g. You devote too determine to find out, e.g. much of your time to games and neglect your work, Experts conducted an inquiry in order to determine the cause of the devoted very loving or loyal, e.g. Mrs. Jones had a devoted husband; explosion, determined I a m determined to he would do anything for her. get home tonight, so if there are devotion T h e dog h a d such devotion to its master t h a t it would not no trains or buses, I shall walk, leave him, even when he was dead, deterrent a means of discouraging people from doing devour to eat greedily, e.g. Let's watch the lion devour that joint of something, e.g. T h e teacher's cane meat. • W e watched the flames was a deterrent to naughty boys, detest T o detest something is to devour the entire building, devout very religious, e.g. M y dislike it very much indeed, father is a devout m a n . detestable Dudley is a detestable dew Often, early o n afines u m boy; no one can bear him. mer morning, the grass is wet with detour T h e journey was longer dew. than usual because we had to make a detour t o avoid road dexterity skill, cleverness with the hands, e.g. We all admired repairs. the dexterity of die conjurer in detrimental harmful, e.g. Lime controlling six hoops at once, in the soil is detrimental to some diagonal the Jinejoining opposite plants. corners of a square, a rectangle, devastate T o devastate a country etc. is to destroy all t h e buildings, crops, etc. develop to grow o r make progress. • T o develop the film from a camera is to treat it so that the pictures can be seen, development A person who asks 'What's t h e latest development?' wants to know what stage some event has now reached, device an emblem on a shield; • a plan; • a scheme; • a tool, e.g. diagonally A line was drawn M y pocket-knife has a device for rediagonally across the room, from moving stones from horses' hooves. corner to corner.

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diagram

dignity

dictator a ruler w h o has power over all his c o u n t r y m e n , as Hitler h a d in G e r m a n y , dictionary This dictionary tells you the meanings of 10,000 words, die to stop living, e.g. T h e plant will die if you d o n ' t water it. diesel T h e diesel engines used in buses, lorries and trains, b u r n oil, not petrol, diet W h e n I was ill, I was put on a diet of milk and fish, because all other foods m a d e m e sick, differ T h e twins differ only in dial dice that one has a spot on his cheek and the other hasn't, dialect T h e Yorkshire dialect is the special way t h e people of difference T h e difference between Yorkshire speak. Similarly, t h e the twins is that one has a brown people of L o n d o n , Somerset, etc. spot on his face a n d the other k have their own distinctive dialect. hasn't. dialogue talk, conversation, e.g. different not the same, e.g. M y Everyone w a s listening to t h e pen is different from yours, dialogue between P u n c h and J u d y , difficult hard to do, e.g. T h a t diameter T h e diameter of a circle sum is too difficult for me. is the distance from one side to the difficulty M y difficulty in arithother, t h r o u g h the middle, metic is that I cannot a d d u p diamond T h e diamond sparkling correctly, in Mother's ring c a m e from a mine digest D o n o t give t h e b a b y in South Africa, m e a t to eat, because h e cannot diary a record of the events of digest it. * each d a y ; • a book in which the digestible food, such as milk, events of each d a y are recorded, which the body can easily m a k e dice A dice is a cube with its six use of, is said to be digestible. surfaces n u m b e r e d i to 6. W e use digestion If you h a v e a good dice in playing such games as digestion you e a n e a t a n y food Snakes a n d Ladders, L u d o , etc. without ill effects, b u t if you have dictate T o dictate is to say or read a weak digestion you m a y have something aloud for someone else pains after eating, to write down. • T o dictate t o digit a n y one of the figures from someone can also m e a n to give o to 9 ; • a finger or toe. him orders, dictation I n dictation lessons we dignified noble, stately, e.g. T h e have to write d o w n ' w h a t e v e r the duchess was a dignified old lady, teacher reads out to us. dignity I t is beneath the dignity

diagram a drawing m a d e to illustrate or explain something, dial t h e face of a n instrument such as a clock or a speedometer. • I n order to talk to anyone on the phone, you have to dial his number.

3E

dike

87

director

of a senior boy t o play infants' dinky (slang) attractive, neat a n d games. pretty. dike (also spelt dyke) a b a n k dinner W e e a t o u r dinner a t built to keep back flood w a t e r ; • midday. a narrow water channel, or ditch, dint By dint of (by means of) dilapidated Buildings, furniture, courage a n d h a r d work the buried clothing, etc., a r e said t o b e miners were rescued, dilapidated when they are falling to diphtheria a dangerous disease pieces. of the throat, dilemma a difficulty in choosing diploma D a d was so pleased between two things, with the diploma that I received diligent hard-working, e.g. a for passing m y exam that he had diligent boy. it framed, dilute m a d e weak by t h e addition diplomat a person who repreof water, e.g. dilute acid. • You sents his country in a foreign dilute orange squash by putting a country. spoonful of it in a glass of water, diplomatic taking care (like a dimension A line has one dimension-. length; a page h a s t w o diplomat) not to give offence, e.g. Ask your guests to go home now, dimensions-, length a n d b r e a d t h ; a b u t be diplomatic about it. box has three dimensions-, length, dire terrible a n d disastrous, breadth a n d height, diminish T o diminish is t o be- direct C a n you please direct me to t h e post office? • Come b y come less, e.g. T h e a m o u n t of the direct route, not by a ' r o u n d water in t h e p o n d will diminish as a b o u t way. the dry season continues, dimly I n t h e half-light of dawn direction I n which direction is n o r t h ? • T h e directions which tell the boys could dimly see the outyou how t o assemble the model, line of a n animal, are printed on the box. dimple a little hollow in a perdirectly 'I'll come directly' means son's chin or cheek, dine t o have dinner, e.g. W e 'I'll come a t once.' • 'I'll come have our school dinner a t middirectly you call' means 'I'll come day, b u t when we are on holiday as soon as you call.' we dine in t h e evening, director a m a n a g e r , or the m a n dinghy (pron. ding-gy) a small responsible f o r t h e running of boat, often carried o n a bigger some organization or business. boat, or towed b e h i n d it. dingy (pron. din-jee) unattractive a n d dirty-looking, e.g. Mother said the curtains looked dingy, so she bought new ones. •Wiling W e always g o into t h e dining room to h a v e o u r dinner. dinghy

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directory directory Y o u c a n find o u r telephone n u m b e r i n t h e London telephone directory. • dirk A Scottish H i g h l a n d e r often carries a little dagger, called a dirk, in t h e top of his stocking.

dirk

disc

discharge d i s a p p o i n t I a m sorry t o disappoint you, b u t y o u will n o t receive a prize after all; your n a m e was printed in the prize list by mistake.

disappointed Betty's n a m e was on the prize list, so she was very disappointed when she didn't receive a prize after all. disappointment I t was a great disappointment to my parents when I failed the examination, disapproval T h e crowd expressed their disapproval of t h e referee by booing, disapprove D a d is sure to disapprove of M u m ' s new h a t ; h e dislikes anything new. disarm I f you w a n t to disarm a g u n m a n , try to knock the gun out of his h a n d with a stick, disarmament I t was hoped that at t h e disarmament conference, nations would agree to get rid of all their weapons of war. disaster T h e loss of 100 lives in the aircraft crash was a great disaster

dirt W a s h t h a t dirt off your h a n d s before y o u have your dinner. dirty If your h a n d s are dirty, you must wash t h e m before you have a meal. disable T o disable a person o r thing is to m a k e h i m or it unable to work properly, e.g. O n e b o m b can disable a ship, disadvantage A disadvantage of being tall is that you frequently b u m p your h e a d as y o u g o disband W e h a d to disband our through doorways, Boys' Club because o u r clubdisagree T o disagree is to hold a room was pulled down and we h a d different opinion or to quarrel, no place in which to meet, disagreeable ' unpleasant, e.g. disbelieve not to believe, This medicine has a disagreeable disc A disc is anything circular taste, so I h a t e taking it. W e n d y and thin, such as a gramophone is a disagreeable girl; she quarrels record or a coin. with everyone, discharge T o discharge a gun, disappear W e saw t h e aircraft fire it. • T o discharge a ship, unload disappear b e h i n d a thick cloud.

As the letters 'dis' before a word may merely give it the opposite meaning, many such words are not included here.

disciple