Vocabulary: Batch 6

• to be extremely and uncritically fond of

  She dotes on her grandson.

• extremely and uncritically fond of someone; adoring

  A doting father.

1. a single person or thing of the kind under consideration

   The database returned a singleton.

2. (informal) a person who is not in a romantic relationship

   A bar for singletons.

• a noisy quarrel about something petty or trivial

  Family squabbles.

• to quarrel noisily about a trivial matter

  The children squabbled over the last cookie.

• a struggle or effort in defense of or on behalf of Islam, especially interpreted as a religious war; broadly, any crusade for a cause

  He declared a jihad.

• a proverb or short statement expressing a general truth

  The old adage 'out of sight, out of mind'.

• the action of finding the total number of something by assigning numbers one by one

  The counting of votes took most of the night.

• including; taking into account

  There are five of us, counting me.

• an unprincipled person, especially one who behaves in a morally wrong way (often used humorously or affectionately)

  He's an old reprobate, but we love him anyway.

• unprincipled; having low or dissolute morals

  His reprobate behavior finally caught up with him.

1. an evil spirit or demon; a wicked or cruel person

   He fought like a fiend possessed.

2. (informal) a person who is very enthusiastic about a specified thing

   An exercise fiend.

• extremely cruel or unpleasant; devilish

  A fiendish plot.

Contrast with ordinary shares, which carry variable, non-guaranteed dividends.

• shares which entitle the holder to a fixed dividend, whose payment takes priority over that of ordinary-share dividends

  They issued preference shares.

Contrast with preference shares, which carry a fixed dividend paid before ordinary dividends.

• shares entitling their holder to dividends that vary in amount and may even be missed, depending on the fortunes of the company

  They issued ordinary shares.

• to or toward this place

  Come hither.

• until now or until the point in time under discussion

  There is a need to replace what has hitherto been a haphazard method of payment.

• an event with a powerful and unpleasant effect; a spell or hex

  The third whammy was the cut in wages.

• to make (someone) less angry or hostile

  They attempted to placate the students with promises.

• a thorough investigation into a crime or other matter

  A police probe into the financial affairs of the company.

• to physically explore or examine (something) with an instrument; to investigate thoroughly

  The surgeon probed the wound for fragments of glass.

• a person within a group or organization, especially someone privy to information unavailable to others

  Political insiders.

• innocent of wrongdoing

  He led a blameless life.

• a person with left-wing political views

  The reforms were opposed by leftists in the party.

• holding or relating to left-wing political views

  She writes for a leftist magazine.

• the political views or policies of the left

  European leftism.

• to walk in a slow, relaxed manner, without hurry or effort

  He sauntered into the room.

• a leisurely walk

  We went for a saunter along the beach.

• the head of a high commission

  The British High Commissioner to Canada.

• wealthy

  Her family was quite well-off.

• in, relating to, or characteristic of a town or city

  The urban population.

• a person who is expert in or enthusiastic about technology, especially computing

  The techies were busy fixing the server.

• a person in charge of horses or other livestock on a ranch

  A horse wrangler.

• abnormality or impairment in the operation of a specified bodily organ or system; deviation from the norms of social behavior in a way regarded as bad

  Bowel dysfunction.

• not operating normally or properly

  A dysfunctional family.

1. a small swirling mass of something, especially snow, moved by sudden gusts of wind

   A flurry of snow fell overnight.

2. a sudden short period of commotion, activity, or excitement

   A flurry of phone calls followed the announcement.

• belief or opinion contrary to orthodox religious (especially Christian) doctrine

  He was burned for heresy.

1. to fix (an object) firmly and deeply in a surrounding mass

   He had an operation to remove a nail embedded in his chest.

2. to incorporate (a media file, code snippet, or link) into a webpage or document so it displays directly

   You can embed the YouTube video in your blog post.

1. to analyze (a string or text) into logical syntactic components, typically to test conformity to a grammar

   I asked a couple of students to parse these sentences for me.

2. (informal) to understand or make sense of (something), especially something confusing

   I honestly can't parse what she's trying to tell me.

Chiefly British informal, rhymes with 'cow'. Not to be confused with the unrelated 'row' (rhymes with 'go') meaning a line or to propel a boat.

• a noisy, acrimonious quarrel or dispute

  They had a row over money.

• to quarrel noisily

  They rowed about whose turn it was to cook.

• a line of people or things placed side by side or one behind another

  We sat in the front row.

• to propel (a boat) with oars

  He rowed the boat across the lake.

• a bundle of paper, hay, cotton, etc., tightly wrapped and bound with cords or hoops

  A bale of hay.

• a ridiculous but amusing person; a clown

  He's acting like a buffoon.

• behavior that is ridiculous but amusing

  The film is full of buffoonery.

• to combine or put together to form one substance or mass

  Mix the ingredients thoroughly.

• a mixture of different things, or a commercially prepared blend of ingredients

  Just add water to the cake mix.

• a person highly skilled in music or another artistic pursuit

  A celebrated clarinet virtuoso.

• having or showing an ability to accurately assess situations or people and turn this to one's advantage

  An astute businessman.

• of or connected with the eyes or vision

  Ocular trauma.

• the concealment of the origins of illegally obtained money

  He was charged with money laundering.

• harmful, poisonous, or very unpleasant

  Noxious fumes.

• paralysis, especially that which is accompanied by involuntary tremors

  Cerebral palsy.

• the state or condition of being equal, especially regarding status or pay

  Parity of incomes.

• deviating from what is standard, normal, or expected

  An anomalous situation.

• to collect and combine (texts, information, or sets of figures) in proper order

  They collated the data.

• to convey pollen to or deposit pollen on (a stigma, ovule, flower, or plant) and so allow fertilization

  Bees pollinate the plants.

• situated at the back or rear, especially of the body

  The posterior part of the brain.

(informal, euphemistic) = buttocks.

• (informal) a person's buttocks

  He landed squarely on his posterior.

• (of a requirement) not achieved or fulfilled

  Unmet needs.

• suitable or proper in the circumstances

  An appropriate response.

• to take (something) for one's own use, typically without the owner's permission; to devote (money or assets) to a special purpose

  The government appropriated funds for the project.

• the action of taking something for one's own use, typically without the owner's permission; a sum of money or total of assets devoted to a special purpose

  The appropriation of funds.

• to produce young; reproduce

  Species that procreate rapidly.

American spelling: diarrhea.

• a condition in which feces are discharged from the bowels frequently and in a liquid form

  He suffered from diarrhoea.

Now usually called 'Celsius' in scientific and everyday use, though 'centigrade' is still understood.

• relating to, conforming to, or having a thermometric scale on which the interval between the freezing point of water and the boiling point of water is divided into 100 degrees

  20 degrees centigrade.

• a secure position from which further progress may be made; a place where a person's foot can be lodged to support them securely, especially while climbing

  The company is trying to gain a foothold in Europe.

• covered with or characterized by grime; dirty

  Grimy hands.

• praised or boasted about, especially in an excessive way

  The much vaunted information superhighway.

• to take possession of a mortgaged property as a result of the mortgagor's failure to keep up their mortgage payments

  The bank threatened to foreclose on their mortgage.

• the action of taking possession of a mortgaged property when the mortgagor fails to keep up their mortgage payments

  Many homeowners face foreclosure.

• nearer the front, especially situated in the front of the body or nearer to the head

  The anterior chamber of the eye.

• a fine, filmy substance consisting of cobwebs spun by small spiders, seen especially in autumn; used to refer to something very light, thin, and insubstantial or delicate

  Gossamer wings.

1. to twist, move, or fiddle with (something), typically in a purposeless or nervous way

   She twiddled her hair.

2. 'Twiddle one's thumbs' (idiom) = to be idle, having nothing to do

   We sat twiddling our thumbs while we waited for the delayed flight.

• sparing in the use of words; abrupt

  A terse statement.

• to discharge (moisture or a smell) slowly and steadily; (of a person) to display (an emotion or quality) strongly and openly

  He exuded confidence.

• a subordinate used by another to do routine or unpleasant work; a person who serves merely to support or assist others

  He was a stooge for the mob.

• to convert (a text written in code, or a hidden or incorrect signal) into normal language; to succeed in understanding, interpreting, or identifying (something)

  I couldn't decipher his handwriting.

• to wet thoroughly; to soak

  I fell in the stream and was drenched.

• (of a person or their manner) childishly sulky or bad-tempered

  He was moody and petulant.

1. (often used to emphasize anger or frustration) condemned by God to suffer eternal punishment in hell

   I'll be damned if I do that.

2. (informal, as an intensifier) very; extremely

   That's a damned good idea.

• in a very poor condition as a result of disuse and neglect

  The cities were derelict.

1. a person without a home, job, or property; a vagrant

   The shelter provided meals for the neighborhood's derelicts.

2. an abandoned building, ship, or other property

   The old warehouse was a derelict by the docks.

• impossible to stop or prevent

  The inexorable march of new technology.

• to walk slowly and with heavy steps, typically from exhaustion

  I trudged up the stairs.

• a long, tiring walk

  It was a long trudge back to the car.

• primary or basic; related to or embodying the powers of nature

  Elemental fear.

• in agreement or harmony; (in geometry) identical in form

  Institutional and individual aspirations are strictly congruent.

• to produce and discharge (something, especially gas or radiation)

  Ozone-depleting substances emitted into the atmosphere.

• the production and discharge of something, especially gas or radiation

  Greenhouse gas emissions.

• the more distant part of the sea in view; (in the phrase 'in the offing') likely to happen or appear soon

  There are several changes in the offing.

• gold or silver in bulk before coining, or valued by weight

  Gold bullion.

• to bite and work (food) in the mouth with the teeth, especially to make it easier to swallow

  Chew your food well.

• (of food) needing to be chewed hard or for some time before being swallowed

  Chewy caramel.

(American, informal) to scold someone harshly.

• (informal) to reprimand someone angrily

  The coach chewed out the team after their sloppy performance.

• an addictive drug derived from coca or prepared synthetically, used as an illegal stimulant and sometimes medicinally as a local anesthetic

  Cocaine addiction.

• a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf

  A movie about a werewolf.

• a central stone at the summit of an arch, locking the whole together; the central principle or part of a policy, system, etc., on which all else depends

  Trust is the keystone of a good relationship.

• the level of the sea's surface, used in reckoning the height of geographical features such as hills and as a barometric standard

  The town is situated below sea level.

• to produce a state of hypnosis in (someone)

  The magician hypnotized the volunteer.

• a state resembling sleep in which a person has reduced awareness and heightened suggestibility, usually induced by a hypnotist

  She was placed under hypnosis to help her quit smoking.

• of or relating to hypnosis; inducing a trance-like or sleep-like state

  The rhythmic music had a hypnotic effect on the dancers.

• the edge of a piece of cloth, turned under and sewn

  The hem of her skirt had come undone.

'Hem in' = surround and restrict someone's movement.

1. to sew a hem on a piece of clothing

   She hemmed the dress herself.

2. 'hem in' = to surround and restrict the movement of someone or something

   The village was hemmed in by mountains on all sides.

Capitalized, 'Puck' is the mischievous sprite in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream - an unrelated homograph.

• a black disk made of hard rubber, the focus of play in ice hockey

  He shot the puck into the net.