NTC''''s Pocket Dictionary of Words and Phrases part 66 pptx

sweet tooth ["swit tuT] n. a liking for candy, chocolate, or other sweet foods. (Always singular.) sweeten ["swit n] tv. to cause something to become sweet; to add sugar to something. sweets n. candy; pieces of some- thing made with sugar or honey. (Treated as plural.) swell ["swEl] 1. iv., irreg. to grow larger; to grow fuller; to rise or grow past the regular amount. (Past tense: swelled; past partici- ple: swelled or swollen.) 2. iv., irreg. to increase in size, amount, or intensity. 3. tv., irreg. to cause someone or something to grow larger or fuller; to increase some- thing in size, amount, or intensity. 4. n. the rise and fall of waves. swell up to enlarge; to inflate; to bulge out. swelter ["swEl t#] iv. to suffer in very hot weather. swept ["swEpt] past tense and past participle of sweep. swift ["swIft] adj. rapid; quick; moving or passing fast. (Adv: swiftly. Comp: swifter; sup: swiftest.) swim ["swIm] 1. iv., irreg. [for someone] to travel through water by moving arms and legs; [for an animal] to travel through water by moving paws, legs, fins, tail, etc. (Past tense: swam; past participle: swum.) 2. iv., irreg. [for some- thing] to seem to spin or revolve, owing to one’s illness or the loss of one’s ability to properly perceive. 3. n. an instance of traveling through the water by moving one’s arms and legs. → be swimming in something → make someone’s head swim → sink or swim → swimming pool swim against the current Go to swim against the tide. swim against the tide and swim against the current to do the opposite of everyone else; to go against the trend. swimming pool ["swIm IN "pUl] n. a container or tank that holds water for people to swim or play in. (Can be shortened to pool.) swimsuit ["swIm sut] n. a piece of clothing worn for sunning or swimming; the clothing worn by someone who swims. swindle ["swIn d@l] 1. tv. to cheat someone, especially to cheat someone out of money. 2. n. cheating; cheating people out of their money. swine ["swaIn] 1. n., irreg. a hog or a pig. (Plural: swine.) 2. n., irreg. someone who is disgusting, unpleasant, or contemptible. (Fig- urative on Q.) → cast ( one’s ) pearls before swine swing ["swIN] 1. tv., irreg. to move something in a sweeping or curved pattern. (Past tense and past par- ticiple: swung.) 2. tv., irreg. to move something in a sweeping or circular movement. 3. iv., irreg. to move in a sweeping or curved pat- tern. 4. iv., irreg. to move while hanging from a fixed point. 5. iv., irreg. to turn suddenly or quickly. 6. iv., irreg. to play on I; to move one’s body through the air on a I. sweet tooth 616 08 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 616 TLFeBOOK 7. n. a change; a variation. 8. n. a seat that hangs on ropes or chains, which moves people, usually chil- dren, back and forth. → get into the swing of things → in full swing swish something off ((of) some- one or something ) to brush some- thing off someone or something. switch ["swItS] 1. n. a lever that turns electricity on and off. 2. n. a change from one thing to another. 3. n. a thin, flexible stick that is cut from a tree. 4. tv. to change something; to swap or exchange things. → asleep at the switch switch back (to something ) 1. to return to using or doing some- thing. 2. [for a road] to reverse upon itself. switch off 1. [for something] to turn itself off. 2. [for someone] to stop paying attention. (Figura- tive.) switch someone or something off to cause someone or something to be quiet or stop doing something. switch something back (to some- thing ) to return something to the way it was. switch something on to cause something electrical to start func- tioning or operating by using a switch. switch something on and switch something off to close or open an electric circuit; to turn something on or off. switchboard ["swItS bord] n. a control panel that an operator uses to connect telephone calls to the proper person. swollen ["swol @n] 1. Past partici- ple of swell. 2. adj. puffed up; having gotten bigger; growing in size. (Adv: swollenly.) swoop ["swup] n. a dive through the air. → at one fell swoop → in one fell swoop swoop down (up)on someone or something to dive or plunge down- ward on someone or something. (Both literal and figurative uses.) sword ["sord] n. a heavy metal weapon with a long, usually sharp blade attached to a handle. → cross swords (with someone ) swore ["swor] past tense of swear. sworn ["sworn] Past participle of swear. swum ["sw^m] past participle of swim. swung ["sw^N] past tense and past participle of swing. syllable ["sIl @ b@l] n. an uninter- rupted segment of speech consist- ing of a vowel possibly with consonants on one or both sides. symbol ["sIm b@l] 1. n. something that represents something else; something that stands for some- thing else. 2. n. a letter, number, or shape that represents a quan- tity, chemical element, mathemat- ical operation, or other function. symmetry ["sIm @ tri] n. the arrangement of the opposite sides of something so that they look exactly alike. (No plural.) symmetry 617 08 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 617 TLFeBOOK sympathy ["sIm p@ Ti] n. kind feel- ings for someone having problems and sorrows. → one’s deepest sympathy symphony ["sIm f@ ni] n. a long piece of music written for an orchestra. symptom ["sImp t@m] n. a sign, feeling, or problem that is evi- dence of the existence of some- thing, especially of an illness. synagogue and synagog ["sIn @ gag ] n. a building for worship in the Jewish religion. synonym ["sI n@ nIm] n. a word that has the same or almost the same meaning as another word. syphon ["saI f@n] Go to siphon. syringe [s@ "rIndZ] n. a device from which liquids are pushed out or into which liquids are pulled, usu- ally through a long, thin needle. syrup ["sIr @p] n. a thick, sweet liq- uid eaten as food or used to deliver medication. (Plural only for types and instances.) system ["sIs t@m] 1. n. a group of things that work together to form a network; a group of things arranged in a particular way that function as one thing. 2. n. a method of arrangement; a plan. systematic [sIs t@ "mAt Ik] adj. organized and structured; based on a system or plan. (Adv: system- atically [ Ik li].) sympathy 618 08 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 618 TLFeBOOK tab ["tAb] 1. n. a small flap that sticks out from the edge of a sheet of paper, cardboard, or something similar. 2. n. a bill that is pre- sented to a customer for payment. → pick up the tab table ["teb @l] 1. n. an item of fur- niture whose top is a raised, flat surface supported by legs. 2. n. a chart of numbers, facts, or data presented in columns or rows. → clear the table → lay one’s cards on the table → put one’s cards on the table → set the table → under the table table a motion to postpone the discussion of something during a meeting. table of contents ["teb @l @v "kan tEnts ] n. a list at the beginning of a book, showing what is in the book and the page number of each part. tablecloth ["teb @l klOT] n. a piece of fabric that covers the top of a table and hangs over the sides, for decoration or protection of the table’s surface. tablet ["tAb l@t] 1. n. a pad of paper; blank sheets of paper that are bound together along the top or side. 2. n. a pill; a small, hard piece of medicine, drugs, or vita- mins that a person swallows. tack ["tAk] 1. n. a small, thin nail with a large head. (See also thumb- tack .) 2. n. a course of action that is different from an earlier one; an attempt to do something after ear- lier attempts have not worked. 3. n. the direction that a ship trav- els as the result of the wind and the way that its sails are arranged. → get down to brass tacks tackle ["tAk @l] 1. tv. to run after, dive onto, and throw a person to the ground, especially in the game of football. 2. tv. to undertake a duty or a problem; to start work- ing on something difficult. (Figu- rative on Q.) 3. n. equipment used for fishing. (No plural.) tact ["tAkt] n. the ability to deal with people without offending them. (No plural.) tactful ["tAkt fUl] adj. showing or having tact. (Adv: tactfully.) tactic ["tAk tIk] n. a skillful way of doing something in order to reach a goal. (Often plural.) tag ["tAg] 1. n. a small label that has information about the object that it is attached to. 2. n. a game in which a players run around try- ing to touch someone else, who then runs to touch another person. (No plural.) 3. tv. to put Q on something or some creature. 4. tv. to touch someone, especially in W. tag along to go along with or fol- low someone, often when unin- vited or unwanted. (Informal.) tail ["tel] 1. n. the part of an animal that hangs off from its back, as an extension of the spine. 2. n. the rear part of something; the last part of something. (Figurative on Q.) → can’t make heads or tails (out) of someone or something → have one’s tail between one’s legs 619 T 09 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 619 Copyright 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc . Click Here for Terms of Use. TLFeBOOK → in two shakes of a lamb’s tail → one’s tail is between one’s legs the tail wagging the dog [a situa- tion in which] a small part [is] controlling the whole thing. tailor ["te l#] 1. n. someone who makes or repairs clothes. 2. tv. to make or repair an item of clothing so that it fits a certain person. tailspin n. a sudden spinning or period of confusion. → go into a tailspin take ["tek] 1. tv., irreg. to get or obtain something by one’s own action. (Past tense: took; past par- ticiple: taken.) 2. tv., irreg. to accept something that is offered. 3. tv., irreg. to capture something; to win something. 4. tv., irreg. to eat or swallow something, such as medicine. 5. tv., irreg. to use something on a regular basis; to require something as a habit. 6. tv., irreg. to transport someone or something somewhere. 7. tv., irreg. to use a form of transporta- tion, especially public transporta- tion. 8. tv., irreg. to lead someone or something; to guide someone or something. 9. tv., irreg. to record something; to make a picture with a camera. 10. tv., irreg. to interpret something in a certain way. 11. tv., irreg. to observe the measurement of something. 12. tv., irreg. to suf- fer something; to endure some- thing; to accept something. 13. tv., irreg. to use up time; to consume time; to require that an amount of time be spent [doing something]. → as a duck takes to water → more than one can take → sit up and take notice → That takes care of that. take a backseat (to someone ) to give control to someone. take a course (in something ) to enroll in a course and do the required work. take a leaf out of someone’s book to behave or to do some- thing in the way that someone else would. (A leaf is a page.) take a load off one’s feet Go to get a load off one’s feet. take a look for someone or some- thing and have a look for some- one or something to make a visual search for someone or something; to look for someone or something. take a nap to sleep for a period of time during the day. take a nosedive Go to go into a nosedive. take a peep Go to have a peep. take a secret to one’s grave Go to carry a secret to the grave. take a shot at something Go to give something a shot. take a vacation to go somewhere for a vacation; to stop work to have a vacation. take advantage of someone to use someone unfairly for one’s own benefit. take advantage of something to make good use of something; to benefit from something; to benefit from an opportunity. take an oath to make an oath; to promise something as with an oath. take attendance to make a record of persons attending something. tail wagging the dog 620 09 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 620 TLFeBOOK take care of someone or something 1. to deal with someone or some- thing; to handle or manage some- one or something. 2. to provide care for someone or something. take cold Go to catch cold. take forty winks to take a nap; to go to sleep. take heed ["tek "hid] to be careful; to take care and watch for danger. take inventory to make an inven- tory list. take it or leave it to accept some- thing the way it is or not have it at all. take off 1. to take flight. 2. [for someone] to leave. (Colloquial.) 3. to become active and exciting. (Colloquial.) take off from something to take flight from something or some- place. take one’s cue from someone to use someone else’s behavior or reactions as a guide to one’s own. take one’s death (of cold) Go to catch one’s death (of cold). take one’s medicine to accept the punishment that one deserves. (Also used literally.) take out a loan to get a loan of money, especially from a bank. take out after someone or some- thing to set out chasing or running after someone or something. take over (from someone ) to assume the role or job of someone else. take pride in something to do something with pride; to have pride for or about something. take shape [for something, such as plans, writing, ideas, arguments, etc.] to become organized and specific. take someone by surprise to star- tle someone; to surprise someone with something unexpected. take someone hostage to kidnap or seize someone to be a hostage. take someone in 1. to give some- one shelter. 2. to deceive someone. take someone or something at face value to accept someone or some- thing as actually being the way the person or thing appears to be. take someone or something away to remove someone or something. take someone or something by storm to overwhelm someone or something; to attract a great deal of attention from someone or something. take someone or something for granted to accept someone or something—without gratitude. take someone or something off ( something ) to remove someone or something from the surface of something else. take someone or something on to agree to deal with someone or something; to begin to handle someone or something. take someone or something out (of something ) to carry, lead, or guide someone or something out of something or someplace. take someone under one’s wing(s) to take over the responsi- bility of caring for a person. take someone under one’s wing(s) 621 09 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 621 TLFeBOOK take someone’s breath away to overwhelm someone with beauty or grandeur. take someone’s part to take some- one’s side in an argument; to sup- port someone in an argument. take someone’s pulse to measure the frequency of the beats of the heart. take something apart to break something to pieces. take something down (in some- thing ) to write something down in something, such as a notebook. take something in 1. to reduce the size of a garment. 2. to bring something or a creature into shel- ter. 3. to view and study some- thing; to attend something involving viewing. 4. to receive money as payment or proceeds. 5. to receive something into the mind, usually visually. take something in stride to accept something as natural or expected. take something lying down to endure something unpleasant without fighting back. take something off to remove something, such as an article of clothing. take something on faith to accept or believe something on the basis of little or no evidence. take something on the chin to experience and endure a direct blow or assault. take something over 1. to assume responsibility for a task. 2. to acquire all of an asset or a prob- lem. take something personally to interpret a remark as if it were mean or critical about oneself. take something up 1. [for someone or a group] to decide to discuss a particular topic. 2. to raise some- thing, such as the height of a hem. 3. to continue with something after an interruption. 4. to begin something; to start to acquire a skill in something. take something with a grain of salt Go to take something with a pinch of salt. take something with a pinch of salt and take something with a grain of salt to listen to a story or an explanation with consider- able doubt. take the bitter with the sweet to accept the bad things along with the good things. take the bull by the horns to meet a challenge directly. take the law into one’s own hands to attempt to administer the law oneself; to act as a judge and jury for someone who has done something wrong. take (the) roll Go to call (the) roll. take the stand to go to and sit in the witness chair on the witness stand in a courtroom in prepara- tion to testify. take the words (right) out of one’s mouth [for someone else] to say what one was about to say oneself. take to one’s heels to run away. take someone’s breath away 622 09 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 622 TLFeBOOK take too much on to accept too many tasks; to accept a task that is too big a burden for one. take up one’s abode somewhere to settle down and live some- where. (Literary.) taken ["tek @n] past participle of take. takeoff ["tek Of] n. [an airplane’s] leaving the ground and flying. tale ["tel] 1. n. a story. 2. n. a lie. → tall tale → tell its own tale → tell tales out of school talent ["tAl @nt] 1. n. a special skill; a natural ability. 2. n. people who have a special skill or a natural ability, especially singers or actors; people employed or seeking employment in the entertainment industry. (No plural. Treated as singular.) talk ["tOk] 1. iv. to communicate by speaking; to speak; to say words. 2. iv. to speak with someone; to have a conversation with someone. 3. n. the production of words; speech. (No plural.) 4. n. a con- versation; a chat with someone. 5. n. a speech; a lecture. 6. n. gos- sip; rumors. (No plural.) → like to hear oneself talk → Money talks. → small talk talk a blue streak to say a lot and talk very rapidly. talk around something to talk, but avoid talking directly about the subject. talk back (to someone ) to chal- lenge verbally a parent, an older person, or one’s superior. talk in circles to talk in a confus- ing or roundabout manner. talk of the town the subject of gossip; someone or something that everyone is talking about. talk oneself out to talk until one can talk no more. talk shop to talk about business matters at a social event (where business talk is not welcome). talk show ["tOk "So] 1. n. a radio or television program devoted to conversation and opinion by dif- ferent people. 2. the adj. use of Q. (Hyphenated.) talk someone into something to convince someone to do some- thing through discussion. talk something out to settle some- thing by discussion. talk something up to promote or advertise something by saying good things about it to as many people as possible. talk through one’s hat to talk non- sense; to brag and boast. talk until one is blue in the face to talk until one is exhausted. talks n. conversations held for the purpose of negotiating something. tall ["tOl] 1. adj. great in height; of a greater height than average; not short. (E.g., the tree is tall; the tall tree. Comp: taller; sup: tallest.) 2. adj. extending a certain distance upward; reaching a certain dis- tance above the ground. (E.g., the tree is 30 feet tall. Comp: taller; sup: tallest.) tall 623 09 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 623 TLFeBOOK tall story and tall tale a story that is difficult or impossible to believe; a lie. tall tale Go to tall story. tally ["tAl i] n. a score; a mark used to keep track of the number of something being counted; the number of points or votes some- one or something has received. tally something (up) to count the number of votes or points that someone or something has received. tally (with an amount ) [for an amount] to match another amount; [for two amounts] to be equal. tame ["tem] 1. adj. not in a natural, wild state; living with people; being gentle rather than fierce. (Adv: tamely. Comp: tamer; sup: tamest.) 2. adj. not shocking; not wild; not exciting; dull. (Figurative on Q. Adv: tamely. Comp: tamer; sup: tamest.) tan ["tAn] 1. iv. [especially of peo- ple with fair skin] to permit one’s skin to darken by being outdoors in sunlight or by exposing oneself to artificial sunlight. 2. tv. to change the skin of an animal into leather by soaking it in a special chemical. 3. n. darkness of the skin from exposure to sunlight as in Q. 4. n. a light brown color. 5. adj. light brown in color. (Comp: tanner; sup: tannest.) tandem ["tAn d@m] adj. [of two or more people or things] in sequence, one behind another. (Adv: tandemly.) → in tandem tangent ["tAn dZ@nt] n. a line that touches a circle at only one point. → go off on a tangent tangerine [tAn dZ@ "rin] 1. n. a small, orange citrus fruit; a kind of orange whose peel is easy to remove. 2. the adj. use of Q. tangle ["tAN g@l] 1. n. a twisted clump of hair, string, chain, rope, limbs, etc. 2. n. an argument; a disagreement. 3. iv. [for strands] to become twisted together. 4. tv. to twist strands together; to snarl something. tank ["tANk] 1. n. a container for storing air or liquid. (See also fish tank .) 2. n. a large vehicle, used by the military, that moves on heavy belts wrapped around a set of wheels. tantrum ["tAn tr@m] n. a bad dis- play of temper and emotion. (Short for temper tantrum.) → temper tantrum tap ["tAp] 1. n. a slight pressure or a very light blow made by some- thing. 2. n. a device that controls the flow of a gas or a liquid from a pipe or a barrel; a faucet. 3. tv. to touch someone or something gen- tly a number of times, especially with the tip of one’s finger. 4. tv. to cut something open so that liq- uid will flow out; to pierce some- thing, such as a barrel, so that liquid will flow out. tape ["tep] 1. n. a paper or plastic strip with one side that is sticky, used to stick something to some- thing else. (Plural only for types and instances.) 2. n. a magnetic strip of plastic onto which sound or images can be recorded. (No tall story 624 09 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 624 TLFeBOOK plural.) 3. n. a reel or cassette of W; something recorded on a reel or cassette of W. 4. tv. to stick something to something else with Q; to seal something with Q. 5. tv. to fix something that is torn by placing Q over the tear. 6. tv. to record sound or images onto W. 7. iv. to make a sound or video recording; to record. → red tape taper off to slacken off gradually; to cease something gradually; to reduce gradually. tar ["tar] 1. n. a black substance similar to very thick oil, used to preserve or waterproof objects. (No plural.) 2. tv. to cover some- thing with Q; to preserve or waterproof something with Q. tardy ["tar di] adj. late; not prompt; not on time. (Adv: tardily. Comp: tardier; sup: tardiest.) target ["tar g@t] 1. n. someone or something that someone tries to hit or shoot when using a weapon. 2. n. someone who is ridiculed, blamed, or made fun of. (Figura- tive on Q.) 3. n. a goal that one would like to reach; an aim. (Figu- rative on Q.) 4. tv. to establish something as a goal. 5. tv. to focus on someone, something, or some- place; to give something, someone, or someplace the greatest amount of thought or effort. → on target → sitting target tariff ["tEr If] 1. n. a tax that a gov- ernment charges on products entering or leaving a country. 2. n. the cost of a service, such as the service provided by a utility. tarred with the same brush hav- ing the same faults or bad points as someone else. task ["tAsk] n. a duty; an errand; a responsibility; a chore; an item of work that someone must do, espe- cially a difficult one. task force ["tAsk fors] n. a group of people who are given a certain task, such as a military group that has a certain mission. taste ["test] 1. n. the ability to sense or experience sweetness, saltiness, bitterness, or sourness with one’s tongue. (No plural.) 2. n. a particular flavor as experi- enced through Q. 3. n. a small sample of food or drink. 4. n. the quality of one’s choice or selection in beauty, fashion, or art; the abil- ity to judge what is suitable or fit- ting. (Plural only for types and instances.) 5. tv. to sense or expe- rience flavor with one’s tongue. 6. tv. to put something in one’s mouth or on one’s tongue so that one can know its flavor; to eat a very small amount of something so one can know its flavor. 7. tv. to experience something for a short while. 8. iv. [for a food] to have a particular flavor. → have a taste for something → in bad taste → in poor taste → leave a bad taste in someone’s mouth a taste of something 1. a taste E taken in order to sample some- thing. 2. a limited experience of something; a sample. tasteless ["test l@s] 1. adj. having no taste W; having no flavor; bland. (Adv: tastelessly.) 2. adj. tasteless 625 09 7/23/03 8:50 AM Page 625 TLFeBOOK . Past participle of swear. swum ["sw^m] past participle of swim. swung ["sw^N] past tense and past participle of swing. syllable ["sIl @ b@l] n. an uninter- rupted segment of speech. someone, often when unin- vited or unwanted. (Informal.) tail ["tel] 1. n. the part of an animal that hangs off from its back, as an extension of the spine. 2. n. the rear part of something;. piece of fabric that covers the top of a table and hangs over the sides, for decoration or protection of the table’s surface. tablet ["tAb l@t] 1. n. a pad of paper; blank sheets of paper