NTC''''s Pocket Dictionary of Words and Phrases part 46 pptx

one’s hair along a line, especially when combing it into two sides. 7. iv. to divide or separate, making an opening. → take someone’s part part and parcel an essential part; something that is unavoidably included as part of something else. part of speech ["part @v "spitS] n. one of the classes or divisions of words that reflect grammatical usage, such as noun, verb, adjec- tive, etc. part someone’s hair to come very close to someone. partial to someone or something favoring or preferring someone or something. participate (in something ) [par "tIs @ pet ] to be one of a group of people or things doing or involved in something. participation [par tIs @ "pe S@n] n. joining in and doing something with other people. (No plural.) participle ["part @ sIp @l] n. either the present participle (the -ing form) or the past participle. particle ["part I k@l] 1. n. a small piece of something. 2. n. a kind of short, basic word or a part of a word—such as a conjunction, article, or preposition—that affects the meaning of another word. 3. n. a basic unit of matter, such as a proton, neutron, or elec- tron. particular [par "tIk j@ l#] 1. adj. specific; distinct [from others]. (Adv: particularly.) 2. adj. unusual; noticeable; worth notic- ing. (Adv: particularly.) 3. adj. hard to please. (Adv: particularly.) the particulars of something spe- cific details about something. partner ["part n#] 1. n. someone with whom one shares a business; one of the owners of a business. 2. n. someone who shares an activity with someone else. part-time ["part "taIm] 1. adj. for only part of the time and not full- time. 2. adv. [working] only part of the workweek; not as full-time. party ["par ti] 1. n. a social gather- ing of people; a gathering of peo- ple who are having fun. 2. n. a group of people who are together for a specific reason. 3. n. a group of people united with a common goal or with common ideas, espe- cially in politics. 4. n. a person. 5. the adj. use of Q or E. 6. iv. to celebrate; to have fun with other people. (Informal.) → life of the party → the responsible party the party line the official ideas and attitudes that are adopted by the leaders of a particular group and that the other members are expected to accept. The party’s over. a phrase said when a happy or fortunate time has come to an end. (Informal.) pass ["pAs] 1. tv. to reach someone or something and go beyond. 2. tv. to succeed in a [school] course or examination; to have a medical examination where no problems are discovered. 3. tv. to use up a period of time [doing something]; to occupy a period of time [doing something]. 4. tv. to approve or part and parcel 416 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 416 TLFeBOOK agree to something, such as a motion, law, or regulation, by means of a vote. 5. tv. to hand something over to someone; to give something to someone. 6. tv. to throw a ball to someone in a game. 7. iv. to reach and go beyond. 8. iv. to meet the require- ments for successfully completing a [school] course. 9. iv. [for a motion or law] to be approved by means of a vote. 10. iv. [for time] to progress or proceed. 11. n. a ticket or document showing that one is allowed to go somewhere. 12. n. the transfer of a ball or something similar in various sports. 13. n. a narrow road or pathway, especially through mountains. → come to pass → let something pass → mention something in passing → ships that pass in the night pass away to die. (Euphemistic.) pass on to die. (Euphemistic.) pass on (to someone or something ) to leave the person or thing being dealt with and move on to another person or thing. pass out to faint; to become unconscious. pass over ( someone or something ) 1. to skip over someone or some- thing; to fail to select someone or something. 2. to pass above some- one or something. pass someone or something up 1. to fail to select someone or something. 2. to travel past some- one or something. pass something along (to someone ) 1. to give or hand something to someone. 2. to relay some information to someone. pass something back (to someone ) to return something by hand to someone. pass something down (to someone ) and pass something on (to someone ) 1. to send some- thing down a line of people to someone. (Each person hands it to the next.) 2. to will something to someone. pass something on (to someone ) Go to pass something down (to some- one ). pass something out (to someone ) to distribute something to some- one. pass something over (to someone ) to send something to someone far- ther down in a line of people. (Each person hands it to the next.) pass the buck to pass the blame for something to someone else; to give the responsibility for some- thing to someone else. pass the hat to attempt to collect money for some charitable proj- ect. passable ["pAs @ b@l] 1. adj. able to be crossed or passed through; able to be traveled over. 2. adj. [a motion or proposition] likely to get enough votes to pass. 3. adj. only adequate; fair; okay. (Adv: passably.) passage ["pAs IdZ] 1. n. a path or hallway. 2. n. the progress or movement of time. (No plural.) 3. n. the approval of a law or motion, usually by a vote. (No plu- ral.) 4. n. a short section of a piece passage 417 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 417 TLFeBOOK of music, a speech, or a written work. passbook ["pAs bUk] n. a book for keeping track of one’s savings account in a bank. passenger ["pAs @n dZ#] n. some- one who is riding in a vehicle but is not driving it. passion ["pAS @n] 1. n. strong romantic and sexual feeling. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. a very strong interest in something. passive ["pAs Iv] 1. adj. not resist- ing; not active; letting others take charge or control a situation. (The opposite of active. Adv: passively.) 2. adj. of or about a grammatical state where the verb acts on the subject of the sentence. (The opposite of active. Adv: passively.) 3. n. a verb phrase that is W. passport ["pAs port] n. a docu- ment shaped like a small book, showing what country one is a cit- izen of. (It is needed to enter cer- tain countries.) a passport to something some- thing that allows something good to happen; something that allows entrance to something else. password ["pAs w#d] n. a secret word, phrase, or set of symbols that allows someone access to something. past ["pAst] 1. n. a time that has gone by; things that have hap- pened; history. (No plural.) 2. adj. most recent; occurring in the time just before this time. 3. adj. occur- ring or completed at some previ- ous time. 4. the adj. use of Q. 5. adv. by; toward or alongside someone or something and then beyond. 6. prep. farther [in space, time, ability, or quality] than someone or something; beyond [in space, time, ability, or quality] someone or something. → brush past someone or something → in times past → skip past someone or something past tense ["pAst "tEns] n. the tense of a verb or auxiliary verb that indicates an event or a state that has existed at a previous time. pasta ["pas t@] n. a food prepared by mixing flour, water, and some- times egg to make a dough or paste, and then shaping it into dif- ferent forms; noodles. (Plural only for types and instances.) paste ["pest] 1. n. a soft mixture that is easily spread. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. a soft mixture that causes objects to stick together. (Plural only for types and instances.) 3. tv. to cause something to stick to some- thing else with W. paste something up 1. to repair something with paste. 2. to assemble a complicated page of material by pasting the parts together. pastime ["pAs taIm] n. an activity that one enjoys; an enjoyable activity that is done to pass the time. pastor ["pAs t#] n. a minister in a Christian church. pastry ["pe stri] 1. n. rich dough that is made with flour and butter or fat and is baked. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. baked passbook 418 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 418 TLFeBOOK foods, typically sweet, usually made with Q. (Plural only for types and instances. Number is expressed with piece(s) of pastry.) 3. n. a piece or item of W; a sweet roll, small cake, or other sweet- ened, baked food, often with fruit or with a sweet coating or filling. pasture ["pAs tS#] n. a field of grass, especially one where ani- mals eat. → put someone or something out to pasture pat ["pAt] 1. n. a gentle tap, espe- cially with the palm of one’s hand. 2. tv. to touch or tap someone or something gently a few times, especially with the palm of the hand. 3. adj. perfectly, as if rehearsed or from memory. (Adv: patly.) → have something down pat patch ["pAtS] 1. n. a piece of cloth or other material used to repair a hole or a tear or to cover some- thing. 2. n. a small area of land. 3. n. a small area on a surface that is different from the area around it. patch something together (with something ) to use something to repair something hastily or tem- porarily. patch something up to repair something in a hurry; to make something temporarily serviceable again. patent ["pAt nt] 1. n. the exclusive right, registered with the govern- ment, to benefit from the owner- ship of a process or invention. 2. tv. to seek and gain Q on some- thing. path ["pAT] 1. n., irreg. a track or trail along the earth. (Plural: [ "pADz] or ["pATs].) 2. n., irreg. the route someone or something takes to achieve a result. (Figura- tive on Q.) → beat a path to someone’s door → lead someone down the garden path the path of least resistance See the line of least resistance. pathway ["pAT we] n. a path Q or W. patience ["pe S@ns] n. the quality of being patient and not becoming anxious or annoyed. (No plural.) → run out of patience → try someone’s patience patient ["pe S@nt] 1. adj. able to wait for something to happen without complaining or becoming anxious or annoyed. (Adv: patiently.) 2. n. someone who is getting medical help from a doc- tor, nurse, or hospital. patio ["pAt i o] n. a paved surface connected to one’s house where one can relax, gather with others, barbecue food, etc. (From Span- ish. Plural ends in -s.) patrol [p@ "trol] 1. tv. to watch over an area by walking or driving around. 2. iv. to watch over [an area] by walking or driving around. 3. n. people who watch over an area as in Q. → on patrol → (out) on patrol patronize ["pe tr@ naIz] 1. tv. to be a regular customer of a store, restaurant, hotel, or other busi- ness. 2. tv. to act as if one is supe- rior to someone else. patronize 419 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 419 TLFeBOOK patter ["pAt #] 1. n. a series of quick tapping sounds. (No plural.) 2. iv. [for falling rain] to make quick tapping sounds as it strikes something. pattern ["pAt #n] 1. n. a design; an arrangement of shapes and colors, especially one that is repeated. 2. n. a repeated element in a series of events. 3. n. a printed or drawn outline of the parts of a garment or something that is to be built. patty ["pAt i] n. a thin, flat disk of ground or mashed food, especially one formed of ground meat. pause ["pOz] 1. n. a brief delay; a moment in which someone or something stops talking, moving, or working. 2. iv. to stop for a moment; to stop moving or talk- ing for a moment. pave ["pev] tv. to build or cover a road, street, driveway, highway, etc., with cement, concrete, or some other hard surface. pavement ["pev m@nt] n. a flat sur- face of concrete, cement, or some other hard material covering an area, especially covering a street or sidewalk. (No plural.) → pound the pavement paw ["pO] 1. n. the foot of a clawed animal. 2. tv. to handle someone or something with hands or Q. pay ["pe] 1. tv., irreg. to give money (to someone) in exchange for a product or a service or to settle a debt. (E.g., to pay twelve dollars. Past tense and past participle: paid.) 2. tv., irreg. to give someone an amount of money in exchange for a product or service or to settle a debt. (E.g., to pay someone.) 3. tv., irreg. to settle a bill or a debt. 4. tv., irreg. [for something] to yield a certain amount of money or a certain benefit. 5. n. wages; salary; the amount of money that one earns from a job. (No plural. Treated as singular.) 6. adj. requiring money in order to be used. → rob Peter to pay Paul → There will be the devil to pay. pay a call on someone to visit someone. pay a visit to someone or some- thing Go to pay ( someone or something ) a visit. pay an arm and a leg (for some- thing ) and pay through the nose (for something ) to pay too much money for something. pay (for something ) to transfer money in exchange for a product or service. pay for something to be punished for something. pay homage to someone to praise, respect, and honor someone. pay off to yield profits; to result in benefits. pay one’s debt (to society) to serve a sentence for a crime, usu- ally in prison. pay one’s dues to have earned one’s right to something through hard work or suffering. pay one’s last respects to attend the wake or funeral of someone; to approach the coffin containing someone in a final act of respect. pay someone back 1. to return money that was borrowed from a person. 2. to get even with some- patter 420 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 420 TLFeBOOK one [for doing something]. (Figu- rative.) pay ( someone or something ) a visit and pay a visit to someone or something to visit someone or something. pay someone respect to honor someone; to have and show respect for someone. pay something down 1. to make a deposit of money on a purchase. 2. to reduce a bill by paying part of it, usually periodically. pay something in(to something ) to pay an amount of money into an account. pay something off to pay the total amount of a bill; to settle an account by paying the total sum. pay something out to unravel or unwind wire or rope as it is needed. pay something out (for someone or something ) to disburse money for something or something. pay something out (to someone ) to pay money to someone. pay something up to pay all of whatever is due; to complete all the payments on something. pay through the nose (for some- thing ) Go to pay an arm and a leg (for something ). pay to do something to be benefi- cial to do something; to be prof- itable. payday ["pe de] n. the day on which a company pays its workers. payment ["pe m@nt] 1. n. transfer- ring money [to someone]. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. an amount of money paid or to be paid; something that is paid [to someone or something]. payroll ["pe rol] n. the list of a company’s employees and their salaries. pea ["pi] 1. n. a small, round, green vegetable that grows in a pod on a vinelike plant. 2. n. the plant that Q grows on. (No singular in this sense. Number is expressed with pea plant(s).) → (as) thick as pea soup peace ["pis] 1. n. a condition where there is no war or fighting; a time when there is order and harmony. (No plural.) 2. n. silence; freedom from anxiety. (No plural.) → at peace → hold one’s peace → leave someone in peace → rest in peace peaceful ["pis fUl] 1. adj. without war or fighting; not at war; orderly. (Adv: peacefully.) 2. adj. happy and calm; free from anxi- ety. (Adv: peacefully.) peach ["pitS] 1. n. a soft, sweet, juicy, round fruit with a fuzzy skin, yellow-orange pulp, and a large pit in the middle. 2. adj. made with Q; tasting like Q. peacock ["pi kak] 1. n. a large male peafowl having a large, beautifully colored tail that fans out. 2. n. any peafowl. → (as) proud as a peacock peafowl ["pi faUl] n., irreg. a large bird from Southeast Asia, the males of which have large, showy tails. (Plural: peafowl or peafowls.) peahen ["pi hEn] n. a female peafowl. peahen 421 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 421 TLFeBOOK peak ["pik] 1. n. the top of some- thing, especially a mountain; the highest point of something. 2. n. the maximum amount of effort or accomplishment. 3. iv. to form or rise to Q. 4. iv. to reach W. peal ["pil] 1. n. the [loud], ringing sound that bells make. 2. n. a long, loud sound, such as with laughter. 3. iv. to ring loudly; to sound loudly. peal out [for bells or voices] to sound forth musically. peanut ["pi n@t] 1. n. a plant with seed pods that grow underground. 2. n. the nutmeat of Q; the nut- meat and shell of Q. peanut butter ["pi n@t b@t #] 1. n. an edible paste made from crushed peanuts. (No plural.) 2. adj. made with Q. (Hyphenated.) pear ["per] n. a yellow, brown, or green fruit that is rounded at the bottom and narrower toward the top. pearl ["p#l] n. a hard, white, round substance formed inside an oyster, usually used in jewelry. → cast ( one’s ) pearls before swine pebble ["pEb @l] n. a small stone. pecan [pI "kan] 1. n. a tall tree native to the southern United States and Mexico. 2. n. the edible part of Q; the nutmeat and shell of Q. 3. n. the wood of Q. (Plural only for types and instances.) 4. adj. made with W. 5. adj. made from E. pedal ["pEd l] 1. n. a device that controls something and is oper- ated with the feet. 2. tv. to ride a bicycle. 3. iv. to ride [a bicycle] somewhere. pedestal ["pEd @ st@l] n. a base that supports a statue, vase, column, etc. peek ["pik] 1. n. a quick, sly look; a quick look at something that one is not supposed to look at. 2. iv. to look quickly at something that one is not supposed to look at. peek in (on someone or something ) to glance quickly into a place to see someone or some- thing. peel ["pil] 1. n. the outer skin of certain fruits and vegetables. (No plural. See also peeling.) 2. tv. to remove Q. 3. tv. to remove an outer layer from something. (Fig- urative on W.) 4. iv. [for an outer layer] to come off. peel something off from something Go to peel something off ((of) some- thing ). peel something off ((of) some- thing ) and peel something off from something to remove the outside surface layer from some- thing. peeling ["pi lIN] n. a part of some- thing, especially fruits and vegeta- bles, that has been peeled off. (Often plural.) peep ["pip] 1. n. a high noise, such as that made by a baby chicken or other birds. 2. iv. to have a quick look at something, especially in secret; a peek. 3. iv. to make a noise, as with Q. → have a peep → take a peep peak 422 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 422 TLFeBOOK peer in(to something ) to stare into something; to look deep into something. peer out at someone or something to stare out at someone or some- thing. peeve ["piv] n. something that irri- tates or annoys someone. → one’s pet peeve peg ["pEg] 1. n. a thick wooden or plastic pin used to hold objects together. 2. tv. to attach some- thing to something with Q. → have someone pegged as something → a square peg in a round hole peg someone as something and have someone pegged as some- thing to think of someone in a cer- tain way. pelican ["pEl I k@n] n. a bird that lives on or near the water and that has a bill with a large scoop on the lower part. pellet ["pEl It] n. a hard, small ball of something, such as ice, wax, dirt, or metal. pelt down (on someone or some- thing ) [for something] to fall down on someone or something. pen ["pEn] 1. n. a thin writing instrument that uses ink. 2. n. a confined area where certain ani- mals are kept. 3. tv. to write some- thing, usually with Q. pen someone or something in ( someplace ) to confine someone or some creature in a pen. pen someone or something up to confine someone or something to a pen. penalty ["pEn @l ti] n. a punishment for breaking a rule or law. pencil ["pEn s@l] 1. n. a thin writing instrument with a pointed core made of a soft black material. 2. tv. to write something with Q. → in pencil pencil sharpener ["pEn s@l "Sar p@ n# ] n. a machine or device that sharpens things, usually pencils. pencil someone or something in to write something or someone’s name on a list with a pencil. (Implies that the writing is not final.) penny ["pEn i] n. a cent; ¹⁄₁₀₀ of a dollar in the United States and various other nations. → cost a pretty penny pension ["pEn S@n] n. money that is paid to a former employee, from retirement until death, or some other period of time, to replace a salary. penthouse ["pEnt haUs] n., irreg. a special apartment on the top floor of a building. (Plural: [ haU z@z ].) people ["pip @l] 1. n. persons. (No plural. Treated as a plural. Used as a plural of person.) 2. n. a specific group of Q; a race or ethnic group of Q. (Singular or plural with the same meaning.) → narrow something down (to people or things ) → split people up pep ["pEp] n. energy; vigor. (No plural.) pepper ["pEp #] 1. n. a vegetable, often green or red, that is mostly hollow and often very hot and spicy. 2. n. the dried berries of various plants, usually ground, used to season food. (Usually pepper 423 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 423 TLFeBOOK black in the United States and white in Europe. Plural only for types and instances.) 3. tv. to sprinkle W on food as a seasoning. 4. tv. [for many tiny things] to strike something lightly. peppy ["pEp i] adj. full of energy; active; excited. (Adv: peppily. Comp: peppier; sup: peppiest.) per head Go to a head. perceive [p# "siv] tv. to be aware of someone or something with one’s mind; to be aware of someone or something through one’s senses. percent [p# "sEnt] n. a one-hun- dredth part. (No plural. Usually expressed with a number ranging from 0 through 100. Also expressed as (%).) percentage [p# "sEn tIdZ] n. a part that is less than the whole amount. perch ["p#tS] 1. n. a branch or rod that a bird grasps with its feet when it is at rest. 2. n. a place to sit that is high off the floor or ground; a high ledge. (Figurative on Q.) 3. n., irreg. any one of sev- eral species of edible fish. (Plural: perch, except when referring to a number of species.) 4. iv. to sit on top of something; to stand on top of something, as does a bird. perfect 1. ["p# fIkt] adj. being the best; completely correct; without flaws. (Adv: perfectly.) 2. ["p# fIkt ] adj. exactly suitable; exactly what is needed. (Adv: perfectly.) 3. ["p# fIkt] adj. complete; total. (Adv: perfectly.) 4. ["p# fIkt] n. a grammatical construction show- ing a completed action or condi- tion; a form of the verb that shows that something was completed, is completed, or will be completed. (In English, it consists of the past participle of the verb that follows aform of have T. No plural.) 5. [p# "fEkt] tv. to make some- thing without flaws as in Q. perfection [p# "fEk S@n] 1. n. the condition of being perfect. (No plural.) 2. n. becoming perfect; making something perfect. (No plural.) → cook something to perfection perform [p# "form] 1. tv. to do something; to do an action. 2. tv. to present a play, sing a song, play a piece of music, do a dance, etc., for an audience. 3. iv. to act, sing, dance, or play music, especially in front of people. 4. iv. to function; to do what is expected or has been assigned. performance [p# "for m@ns] 1. n. a presentation of a play, a piece of music, a song, a dance, etc. 2. n. the quality of performing or func- tioning; how well someone or something performs. (Plural only for types and instances.) performer [p# "for m#] n. some- one who performs, such as an actor, a singer, a musician, a dancer. perfume 1. ["p# fjum, p# "fjum] n. a mixture of pleasant-smelling natural or artificial oils and alco- hol that is put on people’s skin. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. [p# "fjum] tv. to place a pleasant-smelling sub- stance on someone; to add a pleas- ant-smelling substance to the air in a room. peppy 424 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 424 TLFeBOOK perhaps [p# "hAps] adv. maybe; possibly; maybe yes, maybe no. period ["pIr i @d] 1. n. a punctua- tion mark (.) used at the end of a sentence or at the end of an abbre- viation. 2. n. a certain length of time, including certain times in history. 3. n. a section or part of certain games, such as basketball. 4. n. a division of the school day. 5. n. the time during the month when a woman menstruates. (Short for menstrual period.) 6. adj. [of art, architecture, crafts, or literature] having to do with a cer- tain time in history. → menstrual period perish ["pEr IS] 1. iv. to die. 2. iv. [for something] to go away or fade away. Perish the thought. Do not even consider thinking of something. (Literary.) perjury ["p# dZ@ ri] n. lying in court after one has taken an oath promising not to lie. (No plural.) perk up to be invigorated; to become more active. permanent ["p# m@ n@nt] 1. adj. intended or designed to last for- ever or for a long time; not tempo- rary. (Adv: permanently.) 2. n. a type of hair treatment where the hair is caused to stay in a particu- lar arrangement for a long time. (From permanent wave.) permission [p# "mI S@n] n. con- sent; agreement that something may be done. (No plural.) permit 1. ["p# mIt] n. an official document that allows someone to do something. 2. [p# "mIt] tv. to allow someone to do something; to let someone do something. → weather permitting permit someone out (of some- thing ) to allow someone to go out of something or someplace. persist [p# "sIst] 1. iv. to continue to do something; not to give up, even if the task is difficult or if one faces opposition. 2. iv. to con- tinue to exist. persist in doing something to con- tinue doing something. persist with something to continue the state of something; to extend an action or state. person ["p# s@n] 1. n. a human being; a man, a woman, a boy, or a girl. ( People is sometimes used as the plural.) 2. n. a grammar term, used to show the relationship of the speaker or writer to the receiver of the message. → every other person or thing → feel like a new person → in person → on one’s person personal ["p# s@n @l] 1. adj. of or about the private affairs of a par- ticular person; belonging to or used by a particular person. (Adv: personally.) 2. adj. done by a cer- tain person, instead of by someone else. (Adv: personally.) → take something personally personality [p# s@ "nAl @ ti] 1. n. aspects of one’s thinking and behavior that make one different from everyone else. 2. n. someone who is well known; a famous person. personality 425 07 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 425 TLFeBOOK . someone’s part part and parcel an essential part; something that is unavoidably included as part of something else. part of speech [" ;part @v "spitS] n. one of the classes or divisions of words. other people. (Informal.) → life of the party → the responsible party the party line the official ideas and attitudes that are adopted by the leaders of a particular group and that the other members. either the present participle (the -ing form) or the past participle. particle [" ;part I k@l] 1. n. a small piece of something. 2. n. a kind of short, basic word or a part of a word—such as