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Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

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him.

large adj. 1 big, great, broad, stout, heavy, thickset, chunky, stocky, heavy-set, brawny, husky, sturdy, hefty, muscular, strapping, burly, solid, weighty, corpulent, fat, obese, rotund,

portly, adipose, beamy, overweight: Two large gentlemen came up and offered to help me find the door. 2 big, generous,

bountiful, charitable, eleemosynary, philanthropic, open-handed, magnanimous, munificent, unselfish, big-hearted, large-hearted, substantial, considerable, ample, beneficent, liberal; goodly, kind, good; Colloq tidy: We have to thank Mr Wilson for large donations to our Christmas fund. 3 big, huge, ample, enormous, gigantic, immense, colossal, monumental, massive, mammoth, Brobdingnagian, gargantuan, elephantine, monstrous, staggering, sizeable, substantial, wide, broad, capacious, extensive, Colloq jumbo, US humongous, ginormous: The house has a large dining room. Supertankers are the largest ships afloat.

--adv. 4 big, prominently, overwhelmingly, imposingly, eminently, pre-eminently: The problem looms large in the history of biology.

--n. 5 at large. a free, unfettered, at liberty, on the loose, unconfined, unrestrained: One of the robbers is still at large. b generally, mainly, in general, chiefly, as a whole, in a body, altogether, in the main: The people at large support reductions in taxes.

largely adv. chiefly, mainly, as a rule, by and large, generally, in general, to a great extent, mostly, in great part, in great measure, in the main, on the whole, pretty much, essentially, at bottom, basically, fundamentally: The voters are largely in favour of keeping the present government.

largesse n. largess, gifts, alms, grants, bonuses, endowments, presents, contributions, donations, hand-outs; support, subvention, aid, subsidy, charity, philanthropy, generosity, munificence, bounty, liberality, open-handedness: The church depends on the largesse of its members.

lark

n. 1 frolic, spree, escapade, caper, fling, romp, adventure,

 

revel, jape, game, antic, horseplay, shenanigans, mischief,

 

prank, practical joke: The boys say they took the horse just as

a lark.

--v. 2 Often, lark about. frolic, caper, romp, revel, play, sport, cavort, gambol, Colloq skylark: We spent a lot of time larking about after our exams.

lascivious

adj. 1 lustful, randy, lecherous, licentious, lewd, prurient, salacious, libidinous, erotic, sensual, lubricious or lubricous, ruttish, goatish, hircine, satyr-like, wanton, Cyprian, debauched, Slang horny, hot: I wouldn't let that lascivious old man near my daughter. 2 pornographic, obscene, blue, lurid, indecent, smutty, dirty, Fescennine, filthy, vile, ribald, bawdy, gross, coarse, offensive: He said that such lascivious novels should be banned and certainly not read in schools.

lash°

n. 1 whip, scourge, cat-o'-nine-tails, cat, quirt, knout,

 

bull-whip, thong; rope's end: The bosun gave him twenty of the

 

best with his lash. 2 stroke, blow, strike, slash, cut: Few

 

could stand up after five lashes with his whip.

 

--v. 3 flog, beat, thrash, switch, whip, scourge, horsewhip,

 

lambaste, flail, smite, thwack, Colloq whack: Any boy was

 

liable to be lashed for the most trivial misdemeanour. 4 lash

 

out. attack, flay, lambaste, belabour, punish; criticize,

 

berate, scold: She often lashes out at her critics quite

 

virulently.

lashý

v. fasten, tie, bind, secure, rope, fix, strap, make fast: His

 

crew lashed Odysseus to the mast as they sailed past the land of

 

the Sirens.

lass

n. girl, young woman, miss, mademoiselle, schoolgirl,

 

Old-fashioned maiden, maid, damsel, demoiselle; Scots lassie,

 

Irish colleen: He has married a young lass from Arbroath.

lasso

n. 1 lariat, rope, SW US reata or riata: The cowboy tossed the

 

lasso round the calf's neck.

 

--v. 2 rope: He lassoed steers to practise for the rodeo.

last°

adj. 1 hindmost, rearmost, aftermost; final: I was the last

 

person to board the plane. 2 latest, newest, most recent or up

to date: What was the subject of his last novel? During the last week I have seen seven films. 3 final, concluding, terminal, ultimate, terminating: The last train to London leaves at eleven. She was the last speaker of Cornish. 4 definitive, conclusive, decisive, closing: That is my last word on the subject.

--adv. 5 behind, at or in the end, in or at the rear, after: My horse always seems to come in last.

--n. 6 end, termination, finish: That was the last we ever saw of Charlie. 7 at last. finally, eventually, ultimately, at

length: At last we shall see the results of our work.

lastý v. 1 continue, endure, survive, keep on, persist, remain, stay, abide, carry on, hold out, Colloq go the distance: He wouldn't last a day in my job. 2 wear, stand up, endure, survive: This shirt has lasted through innumerable washings.

last°

n. mould, matrix, form, model, pattern: These shoes were not

made on the same last as those.

lasting

adj. permanent, enduring, durable, everlasting, long-term,

undying, eternal: She made a lasting contribution to

ophthalmology.

late

adj. 1 tardy, delayed, overdue, behindhand, dilatory,

unpunctual; belated, US past due: He was even late for his own wedding. Better late than never. Your mortgage payment is late again. 2 recent, last, new, fresh, current, up to date: Have

you got a copy of a late edition of today's newspaper? 3 deceased, departed, dead; former, past, ex-, recent, previous, preceding, old (See also 5., below.): Here is a song by the

late, great Bing Crosby. He has a meeting with Lord Pamby, late chairman of United Oxidation. 4 of late. See 5., below.

--adv. 5 recently, lately, previously, formerly, once, heretofore, in recent or former time(s), of late, latterly (See also 3., above.): They are dining tonight with Sir Keith, late of Scotland Yard. 6 till or at an advanced hour or time: I was up late last night. She married late. 7 tardily, unpunctually, belatedly: We arrived too late for the first act. 8 recently, lately: As late as a week ago they were still holding the job

 

open for her.

lately

adv. See late, 5.

latest

adj. 1 See last°, 2. 2 fashionable, current, modern, up to the

 

minute, Colloq in: She drives the latest model.

 

--n. 3 most recent or up-to-date or modern development or news

 

or example: What's the latest? Have you seen the latest in

 

scuba gear?

lather

n. 1 suds, froth, foam: He spread lather on his face and began

 

to shave. 2 sweat; dither, fuss, pother, flutter, Colloq tizzy,

 

state, flap: He got into a real lather when he missed the

 

train.

 

--v. 3 soap (up); foam, froth: The barber lathered my chin

 

thoroughly. 4 thrash, beat, belabour, maul, drub, flog, whack,

 

pummel, buffet, whip, flail, lash: If he dared to swear, his

 

father would lather him.

laud

v. praise, commend, celebrate, sing or speak or sound the

 

praises of, honour, acclaim, extol, glorify, promote, advance,

 

recommend, exalt: Bramble's paintings have been lauded by

 

leading art critics the world over.

laudable adj. praiseworthy, meritorious, creditable, admirable, outstanding, excellent, noteworthy, notable, commendable, estimable, creditable: He has made a laudable effort to keep up in his work.

laudatory adj. laudative, praiseful, eulogistic, panegyric(al), encomiastic(al), complimentary, favourable: None of the laudatory comments made in the introduction was true.

laugh v. 1 titter, giggle, snigger, snicker, chuckle, chortle, guffaw, split one's sides, Colloq break or crack up, roll on the floor, go into hysterics, roar with laughter, hoot: Whenever he wore his hat, they couldn't stop laughing. 2 Often, laugh at.

a deride, ridicule, mock (at), jeer (at), make a mockery of, poke fun (at), make fun or sport (of), make an ass or a fool (out) of, tease, taunt, pull (someone's) leg, satirize,

pasquinade or pasquil, parody, lampoon, jest (at), joke (about),

scoff (at), scorn, Colloq Brit take the mickey out of, US roast: They laughed when I sat down - I didn't know the chair was broken. Why did the other children laugh at you? b laugh away or off, spurn, dismiss, brush aside, minimize, shrug off, reject, ignore, disregard, deny, belittle, Colloq pooh-pooh: He laughed off his injury and insisted on continuing to work.

--n. 3 titter, giggle, snigger, snicker, chuckle, chortle, guffaw, horse laugh: She would do anything for a laugh.

laughter n. laughing, tittering, giggling, sniggering, snickering, chuckling, chortling, guffawing: Children's laughter filled the air.

launch v. 1 start (off), set in motion, set or get going, begin, embark upon or on, initiate, inaugurate: The council is about to launch a scheme for dockside development. The attack was launched at dawn. 2 originate, establish, organize, set up, found, open, start: Robson is talking about launching a new company. 3 shoot, fire, discharge, hurl, throw, sling, pitch, fling, catapult, send, dispatch or despatch: The enemy launched ground-to-air missiles against our planes. 4 float, set afloat: Two frigates will be launched today.

--n. 5 inauguration, start, initiation, opening: The launch of the offensive is scheduled for noon tomorrow. 6 boat, skiff, tender, motor boat, runabout, gig, dinghy: The launch will shuttle passengers between the pier and the cruise ship.

launder v. 1 wash, clean, scrub, cleanse: The chambermaid laundered three shirts for me. 2 legitimize, legitimatize, legitimate, legalize: The money from heroin was being laundered through several car dealerships.

laurels n.pl. honour(s), distinction(s), fame, awards, tributes, rewards, acclaim, acclamation, glory, renown, celebrity,

popularity, reputation; successes, accomplishments: With no new fields to conquer, he is resting on his laurels.

lavatory n. water-closet, WC, toilet, bathroom, Colloq Brit the Gents, the Ladies('), Men's (Room), rest room, privy, Chiefly military or institutional latrine; Nautical head; Brit (public) convenience, US equipment, outhouse; Colloq (little) boys' or

girls' room, powder-room, Brit loo, lav, US can; Slang Brit bog: Our new house has two upstairs bathrooms and a downstairs lavatory.

lavish adj. 1 profuse, abundant, liberal, copious, plentiful, prolific, opulent: He wore a silk tunic with lavish gold embroidery. 2 generous, liberal, open-handed, unstinting, bountiful, unsparing, unselfish, effusive, free: She showered the most lavish gifts on her children. 3 extravagant, wasteful, exaggerated, prodigal, improvident, excessive, unreasonable, immoderate, profligate, uncurbed, unrestrained, intemperate: The council was accused of lavish overspending on the civic centre.

--v. 4 squander, waste, throw away, dissipate, spend, expend, sink: We lavished a fortune on the gardens. 5 shower, bestow, thrust, heap, pour: Granny always lavished gifts on us.

law n. 1 rule, regulation, ordinance, statute, act, enactment, by-law, measure, edict, decree, order, directive, injunction,

command, commandment, canon, mandate, ukase: They have a law that forbids smoking on aeroplanes. 2 corpus juris, (legal)

code, constitution, rules and regulations, charter, Law equity: The law must be applied equally to all citizens. 3 principle, proposition, theory, theorem, formula, axiom, deduction, corollary, postulate, conclusion, inference: Not every observable phenomenon obeys the laws of physics.

lawful

adj. 1 legal, licit, legitimate, de jure, constitutional, just,

rightful, valid, proper: I am the lawful heir. 2 permissible,

allowable, justifiable, authorized, allowed, permitted: It is

not lawful to let your dog foul the footpath.

lawless

adj. 1 anarchic(al), anarchistic, chaotic, unruly, unregulated:

There was a lawless period between the revolution and the establishment of government. 2 illegal, illicit, unlawful, criminal, felonious, larcenous, dishonest, corrupt, venal, Colloq crooked: Holding a demonstration without a permit is a lawless act. 3 villainous, nefarious, wicked, sinful,

flagitious, iniquitous, treacherous: He was once a member of a lawless motor-cycle gang.

lawn

n. sward, greensward, turf, sod, green: I lay back on the lawn

and gazed at the sky.

lawyer

n. counsel, advocate, member of the bar, legal practitioner,

Brit solicitor, barrister, Queen's or King's counsel, bencher,

US attorney(-at-law), counselor(-at-law), Slang US mouthpiece:

We have turned the case over to a lawyer.

lax

adj. 1 loose, slack, casual, slipshod, easygoing, careless,

negligent, permissive, weak, indulgent, flexible, relaxed: Law

 

enforcement has always been lax in that city. 2 imprecise,

 

undefined, indefinite, non-specific, unspecific, vague,

 

shapeless, amorphous, general, broad, inexact, hit-or-miss,

 

careless, untidy, Colloq sloppy: His ideas about tactics are

 

too lax for a military man.

lay°

v. 1 place, put (down), set (down), position, deposit; spread:

 

Lay the cloth on the table, then lay the book on top of it. 2

 

set, arrange: The table was laid for four. 3 Often, lay down.

 

establish, build, construct: Before I can argue my case, I must

 

lay a firm foundation of trust. 4 stake, bet, wager, gamble,

 

hazard, risk: I'll lay ten to one that you won't be able to

 

move that crate. 5 destroy, suppress, exorcize: Did Edward

 

ever succeed in laying that ghost of a rumour that haunted his

 

career for so long? 6 present, offer, submit, set or put forth,

 

advance, bring or put forward, set out: We have laid our

 

proposal before the board. 7 charge, impute, direct, lodge,

 

prefer, aim, attribute, ascribe: There is no justification for

 

laying the blame on Leonard. 8 copulate (with), couple (with),

 

have (sexual) intercourse (with), sleep (with), lie (with), bed,

 

go to bed (with), mate (with), have sex (with), go all the way

 

(with), service, Slang screw, shack up (with), Brit roger, Taboo

 

fuck. 9 lay bare. expose, reveal, uncover, disclose, divulge,

 

bring to light, show, unveil, lift the veil from: She laid bare

 

the most intimate details of their relationship. 10 lay down.

 

stipulate, require, demand, insist on, dictate: She laid down

 

the conditions on which he could return home. 11 lay hold of.

 

seize, grab, snatch, nab, catch or get hold of, get: I have

 

been trying to lay hold of that book for weeks. 12 lay in. See

 

19 (a), below. 13 lay into. attack, assault, set about, assail,

 

lambaste, belabour: We laid into the gang and gave them a sound

 

drubbing. 14 lay it on. exaggerate, overstate, embroider:

 

Don't believe what Frank tells you - he really lays it on pretty

 

thick sometimes. 15 lay low. See 18 (c), below. 16 lay off. a

 

suspend; dismiss, discharge, fire, let go, cashier, drum out of

 

the corps, Colloq (give the) sack, (give the) axe, kick out,

 

(give the) boot, boot out, give (someone) his or her walking

 

papers: Fifty workers were laid off because business was slack.

 

b let up, quit (it), stop (it), cease, desist, leave off, leave

 

alone, Colloq knock (it) off, cut (it) out, come off (it): I

 

wish you'd lay off for a while and stop bothering me. You must

 

lay off phoning your mother twice a day. 17 lay on. a provide,

 

cater (for), supply: The company laid on quite a Christmas

 

party. b impose, charge, assess; demand, require: In addition

 

to enforcing payment of back taxes, they laid on a penalty of 20

 

per cent. 18 lay out. a design, plan, outline, sketch, arrange,

 

set up: The art department laid out the advertisements for the

 

new campaign. b advance, disburse, spend, expend, pay, give,

 

contribute, Colloq shell out, ante up, kick in with, fork out:

 

The salesmen often lay out the money for their expenses and are

 

then reimbursed. c lay low, floor, prostrate, knock down or out,

 

strike or cut down, flatten, fell, strike down, Colloq knock for

 

six, kayo or K.O.: He laid out the challenger with a blow to

 

the solar plexus. 19 lay up. a lay in, amass, accumulate, save

 

(up), hoard, preserve, store, keep, put away, put by: We laid

 

up a supply of canned goods for the winter. b hospitalize,

 

incapacitate, disable, confine to bed, keep indoors: She has

 

been laid up with a virus all week.

layý

adj. 1 secular, non-clerical, laic, non-ecclesiastical: He

 

served as a lay preacher for many years. 2 amateur,

 

non-professional, non-specialist: Members of the lay public did

 

not immediately understand the dangers of the greenhouse effect.

lay°

n. ballad, song, air, refrain, strain, melody; poem, ode,

 

lyric, rhyme, ballade: Macaulay wrote a book entitled Lays of

 

Ancient Rome .

lazy

adj. 1 indolent, slothful, dilatory, idle, shiftless, inactive,

 

listless, fain‚ant, otiose, slack, lax, lethargic: He's so lazy

 

and so rich that he pays someone just to walk his dog. 2 slow,

 

languid, easy, easygoing, sluggish, slow-moving, languorous:

 

The hot lazy summer days were whiled away fishing.

12.2 lead...

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

lead

v. 1 conduct, escort, usher, guide, show the way, pilot, steer:

 

If you lead, I'll follow. 2 cause, influence, prompt, bring,

 

incline, induce, persuade, move, dispose, convince: What led

 

you to suspect the butler? 3 head (up), direct, govern,

 

command, supervise, superintend, preside (over), take the lead,

 

take or assume command (of), manage, captain, Colloq skipper:

 

The orchestra would like you to lead. Who is going to lead the

 

men into battle? Nicole leads a weekly discussion group on

 

alcoholism. 4 come or be or go first, excel, surpass, exceed,

 

precede, be ahead (of), outstrip, distance, outrun, outdo: They

 

lead the world in the production of sugar. 5 live, experience,

 

spend, pass; while away: He is leading a life of ease on the

 

French Riviera. 6 be conducive to, create, engender, cause,

 

contribute to, result in, bring on or about, produce: Your

 

stubbornness can lead only to frustration. 7 lead astray. lead

 

on, mislead, misguide, misdirect, deceive; fool, decoy,

 

hoodwink, Colloq bamboozle: She might have been led astray by

 

that wolf in sheep's clothing. 8 lead off. start (off or in or

 

out or up), begin, commence, get going or moving, get under way,

 

initiate, inaugurate, Colloq kick off: The proceedings will

 

lead off with the national anthem. Who is going to lead off the

 

singing? 9 lead on. a See 7, above. b lure, entice, seduce,

 

beguile, inveigle, tempt: They led me on with offers of a huge

 

salary. 10 lead up to. a prepare or pave or clear (the way),

 

do the groundwork or spadework, precede: The events leading up

 

to the overthrow of the government may never be known. b

 

approach, broach, bring up, present, introduce, work up or round

 

or around to, get (up) to: I should lead up to the subject

 

delicately, if I were you.

 

--n. 11 front, vanguard, van, lead or leading position or

 

place, advance or advanced position or place: The horse that he

 

had bet on was in the lead coming down the home straight. 12

 

advantage, edge, advance, supremacy, margin, priority, primacy,

 

pre-eminence: She has the lead over all her competitors. Our

 

team had a two-point lead at half-time. 13 direction, guidance,

 

leadership, precedent, example, model, exemplar, pattern,

 

standard: We decided to follow his lead. 14 tip, clue, hint,

 

suggestion, cue, intimation; prospect, possibility, potential;

 

Colloq tip-off: Barry is following up some leads for a new job.

 

The advertisement produced some new sales leads. 15 leash,

 

tether, restraint, cord, chain: The dog fetches his lead

himself when he wants to go out. 16 protagonist, hero or heroine, leading or starring role or part, leading or lead actor or actress, leading lady or man, male or female lead, principal; prima donna, diva, prima ballerina, premiŠre danseuse, premier danseur: She has the lead in the new production of Giselle . 17 wire, cable, Brit flex: Connect this lead to the power source.

--adj. 18 leading, foremost, first; main, chief, principal, premier, paramount: The lead climber fell when the rope broke. The lead story in today's paper is about an American take-over bid for the longest-standing British car-manufacturing company.

leaden adj. 1 heavy, onerous, ponderous, dense, burdensome: Exhausted, he dragged his leaden feet to the next meeting. 2 heavy, dull, numbing, oppressive: I was happy to escape the leaden atmosphere of the theatre. 3 grey, dull, dingy, gloomy, glowering, lowering, dreary, dismal, oppressive, dark, sullen, sombre: The leaden sky seemed to forebode disaster as he fled across the moor. 4 inert, lifeless, listless, sluggish,

inanimate, inactive, lethargic, languid, languorous, torpid, spiritless, stagnant, static, dormant, soporific, sleepy: The refugees trudged along at a leaden pace.

leader n. 1 chief, head, commander, ruler, superior, director, chairman, chairwoman, chairlady, chairperson, chieftain, captain, commandant, principal, Colloq boss, bossman, kingpin, big cheese, number one, numero uno, Brit gaffer, Chiefly US Mr Big, Slang US the man: The police can identify the leader of the gang. The leader of the assembly is elected for a year. 2 bandmaster, band leader, director, US and Canadian conductor, bandleader, concert-master: The leader tapped his baton for silence.

leadership

n. direction, guidance, management, directorship, administration, supervision, command, regulation, control, operation, influence, initiative; governorship, superintendence, running: The company made huge profits under Katherine's leadership. The leadership of the country at this time was in the hands of the privileged class.

leading adj. 1 important, influential, chief, prime, cardinal,