(Informal.) 2. to scold or punish someone severely. make mischief to cause trouble. make off with someone or some- thing to leave and take away some- one or something. make oneself at home to make oneself comfortable as if one were in one’s own home. make oneself clear to give a clear explanation or clear orders. make oneself heard to speak loudly so that one will be heard above the noise. make (out) after someone or something to run after someone or something; to start out after some- one or something. make (out) for someone or some- thing to run toward someone, something, or someplace. make out (with someone or some- thing ) to manage satisfactorily with someone or something. make over someone or something to pay a lot of attention to some- one or something. make overtures to give hints about something; to present or suggest ideas. make reservations Go to make a reservation. make short work of someone or something and make fast work of someone or something to finish with someone or something quickly. make someone or something over to convert someone or something into a new or different person or thing. make someone or something tick to cause someone or something to run or function. (Originally the kind of thing that would be said about a clock or a watch.) make someone the scapegoat for something to make someone take the blame for something. make someone up to put makeup on someone, including oneself. make someone’s bed Go to make a bed. make someone’s blood boil to make someone very angry. make someone’s blood run cold to shock or horrify someone. make someone’s hair stand on end to cause someone to be very frightened. make someone’s head spin Go to make someone’s head swim. make someone’s head swim and make someone’s head spin 1. to make someone dizzy or disori- ented. 2. to confuse or overwhelm someone. make someone’s mouth water to make someone hungry (for some- thing); to cause someone to sali- vate. make something from scratch to make something by starting with the basic ingredients. make something off (of) someone or something to make money from someone or something. make something out to see, read, or hear something well enough to understand it. make something up 1. to invent a story or tale; to fabricate some- make mischief 346 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 346 TLFeBOOK thing, such as a story or a lie. 2. to redo something; to do something that one has failed to do in the past. make something up out of whole cloth to create a story or a lie from no facts at all. make something worth someone’s while to make something prof- itable enough for someone to do. make the feathers fly Go to make the fur fly. make the fur fly and make the feathers fly to cause a fight or an argument. make the grade to be satisfactory; to be what is expected. make up for lost time to do much of something; to do something fast. make up something to form or constitute something; to be a part of something. make up (with someone ) to rec- oncile with someone; to end a dis- agreement (with someone). make use of someone or some- thing to use or utilize someone or something. makeup ["mek @p] 1. n. substances applied to the face to improve its appearance. (No plural. Treated as singular.) 2. n. the contents of something; the parts or substances that form something. (No plural. Treated as singular.) 3. the adj. use of Q. male ["mel] 1. adj. of or about men or boys; of or about animals of the sex that is, at maturity, capable of causing a female to become preg- nant. 2. adj. [of an electrical or electronic connector] having short metal rods to be inserted into or between electrical contacts. 3. n. a human or animal that is Q. malice ["mAl Is] n. the desire to harm someone or something; the desire to do something evil. (No plural.) mall ["mOl] 1. n. a large building with many stores inside; a shop- ping center. 2. n. a wide, formal walkway, usually lined with trees. mallet ["mAl @t] n. a tool shaped like a hammer with a large head. mammal ["mAm @l] n. one of a large class of warm-blooded ani- mals whose females are able to produce milk to feed their young. man ["mAn] 1. n., irreg. an adult male person. (Plural: men.) 2. n. the human race; all people. (No plural. Treated as singular.) 3. n., irreg. a strong and brave human male. 4. tv. to provide a business or organization with one’s services or labor. → be a marked man → ladies’ man → odd man out → young man a man about town a fashionable man who leads a sophisticated life. the man in the street the ordinary person. manage ["mAn IdZ] tv. to be in charge of someone or something; to guide someone or something. manage to do something to be able to do something, even though there are problems. manage to do something 347 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 347 TLFeBOOK manager ["mAn I dZ#] n. someone who manages or controls someone or something. maniac ["men i Ak] 1. n. someone who has a dangerous, sometimes violent, mental illness. 2. n. some- one who is wild, foolish, and too eager. (Figurative on Q.) mankind ["mAn "kaInd] n. the human race; all people. (No plu- ral. Treated as singular.) manna from heaven unexpected help or comfort; an unanticipated benefit or advantage. manner ["mAn #] n. a method; a style; a way of doing something; a way of being. mannerism ["mAn @ rIz @m] n. a gesture or movement of a certain person; a habit or trait of a certain person. manners n. the elements of proper and polite behavior. mansion ["mAn S@n] n. a very large house; a large, elegant house. mantel ["mAn t@l] n. the frame around a fireplace, and especially the shelf above the fireplace. mantle ["mAn t@l] n. something that completely covers or weighs down someone or something, such as a heavy coat. man-to-man and woman-to- woman speaking frankly and directly, one person to another. manual ["mAn j(u )@l] 1. n. a book that explains how to do or use something; an instruction book; a book of information about some- thing. 2. adj. of or about the hand or hands. (Adv: manually.) manufacture [mAn j@ "fAk tS#] 1. n. the science and business of making products in factories or industry. (No plural.) 2. tv. to make something in large amounts in a factory or by using machines. manufacturer [mAn j@ "fAk tS# #] n. a person, business, or company that manufactures products. manuscript ["mAn j@ skrIpt] 1. n. a book or text that is written by hand. 2. n. the original copy of a book or article that is sent to a publisher. many ["mEn i] 1. adj., irreg. numer- ous; of a large number. (See also more and most for the comparative and superlative. Many is used with things that can be counted. Com- pare this with much.) 2. pron. a large number of people; a large number of people or things already referred to. → have too many irons in the fire → how many → in many respects map ["mAp] 1. n. a drawing that shows certain features of the earth’s surface; a sketch or draw- ing that shows locations or the relations between things or places. 2. tv. to draw Q. map something out to plot some- thing out carefully, usually on paper. marble ["mar b@l] 1. n. a kind of stone that can be cut, shaped, and polished. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. a small, solid ball of colored glass, used in mar- bles. 3. adj. made of Q. manager 348 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 348 TLFeBOOK marbles n. a game that involves directing one marble W into a group of them. march ["martS] 1. iv. to walk in rigid steps, in the manner of a sol- dier. 2. iv. to walk someplace with a certain goal in mind; to walk someplace for a certain reason. 3. tv. to force someone to move or walk. 4. n. an act of walking in a line, like soldiers. 5. n. a demon- stration or protest where people are walking with signs or chant- ing. 6. n. music that has a strong beat and is used in parades or while soldiers march as in Q. 7. Go to month. (Capitalized.) → (as) mad as a March hare → steal a march (on someone ) march on [for time] to continue. march to a different drummer to believe in a different set of prin- ciples; to be unconventional in one’s values. margarine ["mar dZ@ rIn] n. a food made from animal or vegetable fats, used in place of butter; a spread for bread. (Plural only for types and instances.) margin ["mar dZIn] 1. n. the space between the edge of a text and the edge of the page. 2. n. an extra amount; the amount that is more than what is needed. marine [m@ "rin] 1. adj. of or about salt water and the creatures that live in salt water. 2. adj. of, about, from, or concerning the sea. 3. adj. of or about ships and shipping on the sea. 4. n. someone who is a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, a branch of the United States mili- tary services that serves on land and sea and in the air. mark ["mark] 1. n. a spot; a stain; a dent; something that spoils a clear or clean surface. 2. n. a line or fig- ure made by a pencil, crayon, pen, or other writing device. 3. n. something that is a sign of some- thing; something that stands for something else. 4. iv. to draw or make Q. 5. tv. to put a spot on something; to stain something; to spoil an otherwise clear or clean surface with Q. 6. tv. to indicate something; to show something; to symbolize or represent something; to stand for something. → be a marked man → leave one’s mark on someone → punctuation mark → question mark → quotation marks → toe the mark → wide of the mark mark something down 1. to reduce the price of something. 2. to write something down on paper. mark something up 1. to make marks all over something. 2. to raise the price of something. 3. to raise the wholesale price of an item to the retail level. market ["mar kIt] 1. n. a place or building where people gather to buy and sell things. 2. n. the busi- ness, building, or system through which company shares are traded. (Short for stock market.) 3. n. an area or a country where a product is needed or used; a certain group of people for which a product is needed or by which a product is used. 4. n. the demand for a cer- tain product. 5. tv. to advertise a market 349 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 349 TLFeBOOK product; to promote a product; to make a plan for selling a product. → a drug on the market → on the market → stock market marketplace ["mar kIt ples] 1. n. a place, usually outside, where things are bought and sold. 2. n. trade; buying and selling. (No plu- ral.) markup ["mark @p] n. a price increase; the amount a price is raised. marriage ["mEr IdZ] 1. n. the reli- gious or legal union of a husband and a wife. 2. n. the ceremony that joins a man and a woman in Q; a wedding. marry ["mEr i] 1. iv. to unite with someone in a marriage. 2. tv. to unite two people in a marriage; to perform a wedding ceremony. 3. tv. to take someone as a hus- band or a wife. → get married marsh ["marS] n. a low area of land sometimes covered with water. marshmallow ["marS mEl o] n. a soft, spongy candy made from sugar. (Originally made from the roots of a flower called the marsh mallow.) marvel ["mar v@l] n. someone or something that is amazing or sur- prising. masculine ["mAs kj@ lIn] 1. adj. having features usually associated with a male; manly. (Adv: mascu- linely.) 2. adj. a grammar term describing a certain class of nouns, some of which refer to males. (See also gender.) mash ["mAS] tv. to crush some- thing until it is a soft paste; to beat something into a pulp or paste. mash something up to crush some- thing into a paste or pieces. mask ["mAsk] 1. n. a covering that disguises the face. 2. n. a covering that protects the face, eyes, nose, or mouth. 3. tv. to conceal some- thing; to hide something; to put W on someone or something. mass ["mAs] 1. n. an amount of something with no specific shape; a lump; a heap. 2. n. the scientific term for the amount of matter that makes up an object. (No plural.) 3. adj. suitable for many people or things; involving many people or things. (Prenominal only.) 4. n. a Christian church service with communion. (Capitalized.) massive ["mAs Iv] adj. very large; enormous; powerful. (Adv: mas- sively.) mast ["mAst] n. [on a ship] an upright beam or pole to which sails are attached. → at half-mast master ["mAst #] 1. n. a person who has authority over people, animals, or things; a man who has authority over people, animals, or things. 2. n. someone who is very skilled at something. 3. n. an orig- inal page or document that copies are made from. 4. the adj. use of Q, W, or E. (Prenominal only.) 5. adj. primary; main; chief; con- trolling everything else. (Prenomi- nal only.) 6. adj. of professional standing or quality. (Prenominal only.) 7. tv. to become skilled in something; to learn how to do marketplace 350 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 350 TLFeBOOK something well; to gain control of an ability. mat ["mAt] 1. n. a piece of material for covering part of a floor, espe- cially in front of a door. 2. n. a piece of thick, padded material used to cushion falls in certain sports. 3. n. a tangled mass of hair, weeds, strings, or other things. match ["mAtS] 1. n. a sporting event; a competition. 2. n. some- one or something that is the equal of or just like someone or some- thing else; two people or things that are equal or alike. 3. n. a thin stick with a chemical substance on one end, which, when struck against a hard surface, creates fire. 4. tv. [for something] to be exactly like something else; to fit some- thing exactly; to go with some- thing well. 5. iv. to be exactly alike; to go together well; to fit together well. → meet one’s match → strike a match → whole shooting match match up [for people or things] to match, be equal, or complemen- tary. mate ["met] 1. n. the sexual partner of a living creature. 2. n. a spouse; a husband or a wife. 3. n. one of a pair. 4. n. a friend or colleague; a person who shares someplace or activity with someone. 5. iv. to have sex; to breed. (Used prima- rily of animals.) 6. tv. to bring a male and female animal together so that breeding will result. material [m@ "tIr i @l] 1. n. a sub- stance that an object is made of; a substance that can be used to make things. 2. n. cloth; fabric. (No plural.) 3. n. information, knowledge, experience, or imagi- nation used to develop a story, movie, book, program, etc. (No plural.) 4. adj. of or about the physical world. (Adv: materially.) 5. adj. of importance or relevance. (Adv: materially.) maternal [m@ "t# n@l] 1. adj. of or about mothers or motherhood. (Adv: maternally.) 2. adj. related through the mother’s side of the family. (Adv: maternally.) math ["mAT] 1. n. mathematics. (No plural. Treated as singular.) 2. the adj. use of Q. mathematic [mAT @ "mAt Ik] adj. having the exactness or precision of mathematics. (See also mathe- matics. ) mathematics [mAT @ "mAt Iks] n. the science that studies the prop- erties and relationships of num- bers and shapes. (Treated as singular.) matter ["mAt #] 1. n. anything that takes up space. (No plural.) 2. n. a certain kind of substance. (No plural.) 3. n. a concern; an issue; an affair. 4. iv. to be important; to have meaning. → the crux of the matter → get to the heart of the matter → gray matter → no laughing matter → subject matter a matter of life and death a mat- ter of great urgency; an issue that will decide between living and dying. (Usually an exaggeration. Sometimes humorous.) matter of life and death 351 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 351 TLFeBOOK a matter of opinion the issue of how good or bad someone or something is. mattress ["mA trIs] n. a large, rec- tangular pad that is used to sleep on. mature [m@ "tSUr] 1. adj. [of some- one] adult or fully grown; [of fruit or vegetables] ripe or ready to eat. (Adv: maturely.) 2. adj. character- istic of an adult; sensible; respon- sible. (Adv: maturely.) 3. tv. to cause someone or something to become Q or W. 4. iv. to become Q. 5. iv. [for a bond] to reach full value; [for a payment] to be due. maturity [m@ "tSUr @ ti] 1. n. the state of being mature or devel- oped; the degree to which some- one or something is mature. (No plural.) 2. n. human wisdom; adult thinking. (No plural.) 3. n. the date when an amount of money becomes due and must be paid. maximum ["mAk s@ m@m] 1. n. the highest amount or degree possible; the upper limit or boundary. 2. adj. greatest; highest; most. may ["me] 1. aux. be allowed to do something; have permission to do something. (Often can is used in place of may, even though, in stan- dard English, can refers to ability, and may refers to permission. See also might.) 2. aux. be possible. (See also might.) 3. aux. a form used to extend a wish or express a hope; let it be that 4. Go to month. (Capitalized.) → come what may maybe ["me bi] adv. perhaps; possi- bly yes, possibly no. mayonnaise [me @ "nez] n. a creamy sauce for salads and sand- wiches; a sauce made from eggs, oil, and vinegar. (No plural.) mayor ["me #] n. the elected leader of a city, town, or village. maze ["mez] 1. n. a network of connected passages, arranged so that it is hard to get from one place to another because most of the paths are blocked. 2. n. some- thing that is as confusing as Q. (Figurative on Q.) me ["mi] 1. pron. the objective form of I, the first-person singular pro- noun. (Used after prepositions and transitive verbs and as an indi- rect object. 2. pron. a first-person singular form. (Used after a short- ened form of be to refer to the speaker or writer. Usually, either “It’s me” or the more formal “It is I.” Rarely, if ever, “It’s I” or “It is me.”) meadow ["mEd o] n. an area of grass-covered land; an area of land where cows, sheep, or goats can eat. meal ["mil] 1. n. a regular occasion where food is eaten, especially breakfast, lunch, or dinner. 2. n. the food that is eaten at Q. 3. n. crushed grain; flour. (Plural only for types and instances.) → square meal mealy-mouthed not frank or direct. (Informal.) mean ["min] 1. adj. cruel; not kind; selfish. (Adv: meanly. Comp: meaner; sup: meanest.) 2. adj. average. (Prenominal only.) 3. n. an average; the average of a group of numbers. 4. tv., irreg. [for lan- matter of opinion 352 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 352 TLFeBOOK guage] to represent, indicate, or express something; [for someone] to indicate, express, or intend something by words or actions. (Past tense and past participle: meant.) 5. tv., irreg. [for some- thing] to indicate or signal some- thing. 6. iv., irreg. to intend to do something. mean (for someone ) to do some- thing to intend (for someone) to do something. meaning ["min IN] n. the sense of a word, statement, or symbol; what a word, statement, or symbol means. means ["minz] n. one’s [financial] ability to accomplish something. → beyond one’s means → live beyond one’s means → live within one’s means meant ["mEnt] past tense and past participle of mean. meant to be destined to exist or happen. meant to be something destined or fated to be something. meantime ["min taIm] the period of time between two things; the period of time between now and when something is supposed to happen. → in the meantime measles ["mi z@lz] n. an easily spread disease common in chil- dren, characterized by fever and red spots on the skin. (Treated as singular or plural, but not counta- ble. Often preceded by the.) measure ["mE Z#] 1. n. a unit in a system that determines the amount of something. 2. n. one of the series of groups of musical notes that makes up a piece of music. 3. n. the extent, amount, or quantity of something. 4. n. a course of action; a plan. 5. n. a law; a proposed law; a resolution. 6. tv. to determine the size, extent, amount, degree, etc., of some- thing. 7. iv. to be a certain size, extent, amount, degree, etc. → made to measure measure something off 1. to deter- mine the length of something. 2. to distribute something in measured portions. measure up (to someone or some- thing ) to compare well to someone or something. measurement ["mE Z# m@nt] 1. n. a system of measuring. (No plu- ral.) 2. n. the process of measur- ing. (No plural.) 3. n. the size, length, weight, or amount of something, as determined by measuring. meat ["mit] 1. n. the flesh of ani- mals used as food. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. the main idea or content of some- thing. (Figurative on Q. No plu- ral.) meatloaf ["mit lof] 1. n. a dish of chopped meat shaped like a loaf of bread and baked. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. a unit or loaf of Q. medal ["mEd l] n. a small piece of metal—usually flat and having a design or words on it—that is given to someone as an honor. medallion [m@ "dAl j@n] 1. n. a large medal. 2. n. a large design or decorative element; a decorative medallion 353 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 353 TLFeBOOK element resembling a large coin or medal. meddle in something ["mEd l ] to interfere in someone’s business; to involve oneself in someone’s busi- ness when one is not wanted. meddle with something ["mEd l ] to play with and interfere with something. media ["mid i @] 1. n. the Latin plu- ral of medium Q. (Although it is a Latin plural, media can be treated as singular or plural in English. Not countable.) 2. n. the Latin plural of medium W. (Often treated as singular. Not counta- ble.) 3. n. the Latin plural of medium E. (Often treated as sin- gular. Not countable.) mediator ["mid i et #] n. someone who helps negotiate the settlement of a disagreement. medical ["mEd @ k@l] adj. of or about medicine or the study and practice of medicine. (Adv: med- ically [ Ik li].) medicate ["mEd @ ket] tv. to put medicine on or in someone or something; to treat someone or something with medicine or drugs. medication [mEd @ "ke S@n] 1. n. the use or application of medicine. (No plural.) 2. n. a kind of medi- cine; a dose of medicine. medicine ["mEd @ s@n] 1. n. the sci- ence and study of preventing, identifying, and curing diseases in the body. (No plural.) 2. n. some- thing that is used to treat a disease, especially something that is taken by the mouth or injected into the body. (Plural only for types and instances.) → a dose of one’s own medicine → take one’s medicine medieval [mid i "i v@l] adj. of or about the Middle Ages in Europe, from about a.d. 500 to 1450. (Adv: medievally.) mediocre [mi di "o k#] adj. only average; halfway between good and bad; just acceptable. medium ["mid i @m] 1. n., irreg. a channel or pathway for sending information—such as newspapers, radio, television, print advertising, etc. (The Latin plural is media, and the English plural is mediums.) 2. n., irreg. a substance in which organisms such as bacteria can be grown and kept alive. (Rarely used in the singular. Plural: media.) 3. n., irreg. the [different kinds of] materials used by an artist. (The Latin plural is media, and the English plural is mediums.) 4. n. the middle size of an object for sale that comes in different sizes. (Plural: mediums.) → hit a happy medium → strike a happy medium meek ["mik] adj. letting others do as they want; not protesting. (Adv: meekly. Comp: meeker; sup: meek- est.) meet ["mit] 1. tv., irreg. to come together with someone either by chance or on purpose; to encounter someone. (Past tense and past participle: met.) 2. tv., irreg. [for something] to touch someone or something; to come into contact with someone or something. 3. tv., irreg. to be meddle in something 354 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 354 TLFeBOOK introduced to someone. 4. iv., irreg. to come together; to join; to connect; to make contact; to touch. meet one’s death and meet one’s end to die. meet one’s end Go to meet one’s death. meet one’s match to encounter one’s equal. meet someone halfway to com- promise with someone. meeting ["mit IN] 1. n. a group of people who have come together for a specific reason. 2. n. an instance of people coming together, perhaps by accident. → call a meeting to order a meeting of minds the establish- ment of agreement; complete agreement. megabyte ["mEg @ baIt] n. a unit consisting of about one million bytes. (The abbreviation is MB, and the word can be shortened to meg.) mellow ["mEl o] 1. adj. [of colors, sounds, textures, or tastes that are] soft, deep, relaxing, or muted. (Adv: mellowly. Comp: mellower; sup: mellowest.) 2. adj. relaxed and quiet. (Informal. Figurative on Q. Adv: mellowly. Comp: mellower; sup: mellowest.) 3. tv. to cause someone or a group to become W. 4. iv. to become W. melody ["mEl @ di] n. the series of notes that make up the tune of a song; a song; a tune. melon ["mEl @n] 1. n. one of a fam- ily of large round or oval fruits with thick rinds and juicy, edible insides. 2. n. the edible part of Q; Q used as food. (No plural. Num- ber is expressed with piece(s) or slice(s) of melon.) melt ["mElt] 1. iv. [for a solid] to become liquid; to turn into a liq- uid. 2. tv. to cause something solid to become liquid; to cause some- thing solid to turn into a liquid. 3. tv. to cause something to disap- pear or fade. (Figurative on W.) 4. n. an instance of turning into a liquid as in Q. → look as if butter wouldn’t melt in one’s mouth melt down 1. [for something fro- zen] to melt. 2. [for a nuclear reactor] to become hot enough to melt through its container. melt in one’s mouth to taste very good; [for food] to be very rich and satisfying. melt into something to melt and change into a different physical state. melt something down to cause something frozen to become a liq- uid; to cause something solid to melt. melt something into something to cause something to change its physical state through melting. member ["mEm b#] n. someone who belongs to a group or an organization. membership ["mEm b# SIp] 1. n. the connection between one per- son and an organization to which the person belongs. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. all of the members of a group or organization. (No plural.) membership 355 06 7/23/03 8:49 AM Page 355 TLFeBOOK . like a loaf of bread and baked. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. a unit or loaf of Q. medal ["mEd l] n. a small piece of metal—usually flat and having a design or words on it—that. way of doing something; a way of being. mannerism ["mAn @ rIz @m] n. a gesture or movement of a certain person; a habit or trait of a certain person. manners n. the elements of proper and. someone who is a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, a branch of the United States mili- tary services that serves on land and sea and in the air. mark ["mark] 1. n. a spot; a stain; a dent;