The Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms
.pdfbelligerents in the conflict.
bellow v. 1 roar; yell, shout, blare, trumpet, howl, Colloq holler: Father was bellowing that he couldn't find his pipe. The public-address system bellowed out my name.
--n. 2 roar; yell, shout, Colloq holler: The bull gave a bellow and charged.
belong v. 1 be a member (of), be affiliated or associated or connected (with), be attached or bound (to), be a part (of): Does he
belong to the Green party? He didn't want to belong while his wife was a member. 2 have a (proper) place (in), be proper (to): Do you ever get the feeling that you don't belong here? 3 belong to. be owned by, be the property or possession of: That coat belongs to me.
belonging n. association, connection, alliance, relationship, affinity, relation: She says the Church gives her a strong sense of belonging.
belongings
n. (personal) property, effects, possessions, goods, things, chattels: He returned home to find all his belongings in the street.
beloved adj. 1 loved, cherished, adored, dear, dearest, darling, precious, treasured; admired, worshipped, revered, esteemed, idolized, respected, esteemed; valued, prized: He denied nothing to his beloved children. She was their beloved queen.
--n. 2 sweetheart, darling, dearest, love; lover, paramour, inamorata or inamorato, Colloq flame: He wrote poems to his beloved.
below adv. 1 lower down, further down, farther down: Please see the explanation given below. The department head could no longer resist the pressures from below. 2 beneath, underneath, under; downstairs, Nautical below-decks, Brit below-stairs: Can you hear someone walking about below? They put the captain in irons below. 3 on earth, here, in this world, under the sun: Man
wants but little here below.
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--prep. 4 under, underneath, beneath: Below the sea live |
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creatures we have never even seen. Barely discernible below his |
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nose was a tiny moustache. Sign your name below 'Yours truly'. 5 |
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less or lower or cheaper than: The sale price is below cost. 6 |
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deeper or further or farther down than: The current is |
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strongest about six feet below the surface. 7 under, beneath, |
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underneath: Her bright eyes peered at him from below the wide |
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hat. 8 lower or less than, under: The temperature was 20 |
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degrees below zero. 9 inferior or subordinate to, lower than: |
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He gives orders to the servants below him. 10 inferior or |
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secondary to, under, beneath, lower than: In exports, the USA |
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and UK are below Japan. 11 beneath, unworthy of, unbefitting, |
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not worth: Mugging old ladies is below contempt. |
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belt |
n. 1 sash; Literary girdle, cestus, cincture, zone: At her |
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belt she wore a dagger in a golden scabbard. 2 zone, band, |
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strip, circuit, perimeter; area, swath, tract, region, district: |
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The planners ensured that each city would be surrounded by a |
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green belt. |
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--v. 3 strike, hit, punch; beat, thrash: When he insulted her, |
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I simply belted him. 4 belt out. sing or perform stridently or |
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loudly; put over or across: Sophie Tucker was there, belting |
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out 'One of These Days'. |
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bemoan |
v. lament, mourn or grieve or weep or moan for: She bitterly |
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bemoaned the loss of her sole companion, her canary. |
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bemuse |
v. 1 confuse, muddle, mix up, addle, befuddle, perplex, |
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bewilder, puzzle, Colloq US and Canadian discombobulate: The |
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actors were thoroughly bemused by the sudden appearance of a |
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horse on stage. 2 stupefy, benumb, numb, paralyse: I found him, |
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completely bemused, with the empty bottle beside him. |
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bend |
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n. 1 curve, turn, turning, corner; bow, angle, crook, hook, |
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curvature, flexure: Go left at the bend in the road. If you put |
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a bend in a wire hanger, you can fish out the obstruction. |
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--v. 2 arch, bow, curve, crook: Soak the branch in water and it will bend easily. Stop bending my arm - it hurts! 3 bow; curtsy or curtsey; kowtow, salaam; kneel, genuflect: The cannibal bent down before a pile of skulls. 4 incline, channel, focus, direct, steer, set; fix: He bent his attention on more
important matters. She bent her steps towards the cemetery. 5 submit, bow, yield, give way, be pliant or subservient or tractable: The cabinet bends to the will of the prime minister. 6 incline, turn, deflect: As you can see, the ray is bent by
the lens.
bender Colloq n. drunk, spree, bout, revel, carousal, carouse, bacchanal; Slang binge, jag, US toot: He goes off on a bender whenever his wife leaves him.
beneath adv. 1 low or lower down, below, under, underneath: Please sign beneath if you agree the terms. 2 below, underneath,
under; underground: The flowers are above the ground, the roots beneath.
--prep. 3 under, underneath, below: Beneath that gruff exterior of his beats a heart of gold. 4 below, unworthy of, unbefitting, undeserving of, not (even) meriting, lower than: Your behaviour is beneath criticism.
benefactor
n. patron, supporter, sponsor, donor, philanthropist; backer, investor, supporter, Colloq angel: Our benefactor has made a donation that will enable the mission to carry on its work.
beneficial
adj. 1 advantageous, serviceable, useful, profitable, helpful, supportive, favourable, constructive, good: No measures could have been more beneficial to the kingdom. 2 healthful, healthy, salutary, salubrious; efficacious, effective: A certain amount of sunshine is quite beneficial.
benefit n. 1 advantage, profit, good, sake, gain, aid, help, service: It would be to their benefit to call off the strike. 2 Often, benefits. perquisite(s), emolument(s), allowance(s), extra(s), fringe benefit(s), Colloq perk(s): We offer one of the best schemes in the industry for employee benefits.
--v. 3 improve, aid, help, better, promote, further, advance, forward: Enrolling on a management course could benefit your chances for advancement. 4 profit, gain: No one has ever personally benefited a penny from these contributions.
benevolence
n. 1 charity, kindness, kindliness, humanity, humanitarianism, beneficence, charitableness, goodness, altruism, good will, unselfishness, philanthropy, generosity, magnanimity: The poor people in the village used to rely on his benevolence. 2 gift, grant, contribution, donation, beneficence: The victims of the famine were recipients of the benevolence of the British people.
benevolent
adj. charitable, well-disposed, gracious, good, kind, kindly, humane, humanitarian, well-wishing, thoughtful, considerate, sympathetic, caring, kind-hearted, warm-hearted, compassionate, benign, benignant; liberal, generous, magnanimous, open-handed; beneficial, helpful, salutary: That hypocrite has cast himself
in the role of a benevolent despot.
benighted adj. unenlightened, na‹ve, uninformed, ignorant: That poor, benighted fool believes that the doctors can cure him.
benign adj. 1 kindly, gracious, good, kind, kind-hearted, benevolent, benignant, warm, warm-hearted, cordial, genial, congenial, tender, tender-hearted, compassionate, sympathetic,
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soft-hearted: It was Grandad's benign goodwill that kept us |
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together in those hard times. 2 bland, gentle, mild, warm: A |
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benign smile lit the headmaster's face as he announced the |
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awards for scholastic achievement. 3 kind, favourable, |
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fortunate; salutary, salubrious, mild, congenial, propitious: |
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She recovered rapidly in that most benign climate. 4 non-fatal, |
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non-malignant, non-virulent, curable, harmless: Fortunately, |
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the biopsy showed that the tumour was benign. |
bent |
adj. 1 curved, deflected, bowed, crooked, distorted: He |
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complained to the waiter just because the fork was bent. 2 |
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strange, weird, peculiar, twisted, deviant, warped, wry, awry, |
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corrupt, corrupted; perverted, perverse, abnormal: You'd be |
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bent, too, if you'd been in prison for fifteen years. 3 |
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dishonest, crooked, illegal: That share deal sounds a bit bent |
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to me: I'll pass. 4 determined, intent, set, resolved, |
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resolute, decided, set: Garvey is bent on running in the |
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marathon, despite his sprained ankle. |
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--n. 5 turn, inclination, direction, disposition, |
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predisposition, tendency, bias, leaning, proclivity, propensity, |
partiality, prejudice; ability, aptitude, talent, gift: She wished to follow the bent of her own taste. He has a natural bent for music.
bequeath v. leave, make over, will, pass on, hand down or on, transmit, Law devise: Aunt Margaret has bequeathed her collection of music boxes to the museum.
bequest |
n. legacy, inheritance: A huge bequest was received by the |
hospital. |
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berate |
v. scold, chide, rate, upbraid, revile, abuse, rail at, |
excoriate, castigate, objurgate; harangue: In the square an |
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ancient virago was berating a butcher. |
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bereave |
v. deprive; strip, rob, dispossess: The accident bereaved him |
of his child. |
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berserk |
adj. amok, mad, violent, wild, crazed, frenzied, maniacal: He |
went berserk, destroying tables and chairs. |
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beseech |
v. supplicate, entreat, implore, plead (with), beg, importune, |
obsecrate: The prisoners beseeched the king to have mercy on |
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them. |
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beset |
v. encompass, surround, besiege; assail, attack, harass, harry, |
hector, bother, afflict, trouble: She was beset by all the |
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problems involved in having a job and a family. |
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beside |
prep. 1 alongside, near, next to, with, close to, hard by, |
nearby, by: A handsome young man walked up and sat down beside |
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her. 2 away from, wide of, apart from, unconnected with, off: |
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The fact that I owe you money is entirely beside the point. 3 |
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beside oneself. out of one's mind or wits, at the end of one's tether, overwrought, agitated, upset, crazy, mad: She was beside herself with grief when she heard the news.
besides adv. 1 in addition, additionally, also; further, furthermore, moreover, as well, too; to boot, on top of everything else, into the bargain: Maria is our choice for the post and, besides, she's the only qualified person available. On their anniversary he gave her a diamond ring and a sapphire brooch besides.
--prep. 2 over and above, above and beyond, in addition to, additionally to, as well as; aside from, barring, excepting, except for, excluding, exclusive of, not counting or including, beyond, apart from, other than: St Paul became acquainted with many Christians besides his converts.
besiege v. 1 lay siege to, beleaguer: For ten years Troy was besieged
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by the Greeks. 2 blockade, block, block off or up, hem in, cut |
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off; surround, crowd round: The strikers have besieged the |
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factory gates, not allowing anyone in or out. 3 importune, sue, |
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petition, assail, pressurize or US pressure, press, overwhelm, |
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inundate: The Home Office has been besieged by requests for |
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leniency in your case. |
best |
adj. 1 superlative, unexcelled, finest, pre-eminent, first, |
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superb, unsurpassed, superior, excellent, paramount, first-rate, |
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Colloq A-1, A-one: Henry VIII was the best rider, the best |
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lance, and the best archer in England. 2 kindest, most |
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beneficent, nicest: Which of your brothers is the best to you? |
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3 foremost, choicest, pre-eminent, most suitable, most |
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appropriate, most qualified, most talented, most desirable, most |
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outstanding: We want the best person to fill the job. 4 |
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largest, most, greatest: She had travelled the best part of the |
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way by ship. 5 richest, wealthiest; first-class, upper crust, |
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upper-class: He associates only with those he considers to be |
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the best people. |
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--n. 6 finest; first: The best is yet to come. 7 finery, best |
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clothes, Colloq best bib and tucker: He was all decked out in |
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his Sunday best. 8 greatest or maximum effort: He did his best |
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but it wasn't enough to win. |
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--adv. 9 most excellently, to the fullest extent, in the most |
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suitable way, most adroitly, most skilfully, most superbly, most |
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artistically: All the children performed well, but Alice |
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performed best. 10 with greatest satisfaction, most |
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successfully: He who laughs last laughs best. |
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--v. 11 win (out) over, conquer, beat, surpass, overpower, get |
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the better of, subdue, defeat, worst, vanquish, trounce, rout, |
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crush, master, outdo, overwhelm, overcome, outwit: He was |
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bested in three falls out of four. |
bestow |
v. confer; give, award, present, donate, grant: The country |
has bestowed its highest honours on her. |
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bet |
n. 1 wager, stake, risk, venture, Brit punt, Colloq Brit |
flutter: He could not afford more than a small bet. |
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--v. 2 wager, stake, gamble, risk, hazard, play, lay, put,
chance, venture, Brit punt: Every week he bet a small amount on the lottery.
betray v. 1 be or prove false or disloyal to, sell out, break faith with, let down, fail, inform on, Colloq sell down the river, Slang Brit shop: He betrayed her to the enemy. 2 reveal, disclose, divulge, impart, tell; expose, lay bare: She betrayed their hide-out to the police. He betrayed an unsuspected streak of cowardice. 3 lead astray, mislead, misguide, deceive, dupe, fool, hoodwink: He has been betrayed by his own arrogance.
betrayal n. 1 treachery, treason, disloyalty, perfidy, traitorousness, faithlessness, bad faith, breach of faith: His delivery of the country into the hands of an invader was an outright act of betrayal. 2 revelation, divulging, disclosure, divulgence: People should not be led into betrayals of their secret opinions.
better° adj. 1 superior: You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din. Can you suggest a better investment than the Channel Tunnel? I know of no better invention than the wheel. 2 more; greater, larger, bigger: I waited for her the better part of two hours. 3
wiser, safer, well-advised, more intelligent: It would be better to wait till tomorrow to tell her. 4 healthier, haler, heartier, less ill or US sick, improved; cured, recovered: You will feel better after you have eaten something.
--adv. 5 preferably, best; more wisely, more advisedly, more safely: We had better go before the trouble starts. 6 better off. a improved, happier, well-advised: You'd be better off attending a technical college. b wealthier, richer: She is better off than any of us. 7 think better of. reconsider, think twice, change one's mind: He was going to fight but thought better of it.
--n. 8 advantage, mastery, superiority, control: Don't let the
obstacle course get the better of you. 9 betters. superiors: That young imp should learn how to address his elders and betters!
--v. 10 improve, ameliorate, advance, raise, elevate: It was impossible in those days for labourers to better their condition. 11 surpass, excel, outdo, outstrip, beat, improve: She bettered her record in the 100-metre hurdles by two-tenths of a second.
betterý |
n. gambler, speculator, wagerer, gamester, Brit punter, US |
bettor, Colloq crap-shooter, sport: The betters were gathered |
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round the craps table. |
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bewail |
v. lament, mourn, bemoan, moan or mourn over, shed tears or |
whimper over, weep or cry or keen over, beat one's breast over: Instead of bewailing his condition, why doesn't he do something about it?
beware v. take heed, be careful, be wary, be cautious, be on one's guard, exercise caution, mind, watch out, look out, take care: There are shoals nearby, so beware. Beware the ides of March!
bewilder v. confuse, confound, perplex, puzzle, mystify, befuddle, baffle, bemuse: I was bewildered by differential calculus.
bewitch v. enchant, entrance, spellbind, charm, fascinate, beguile, cast a spell over, captivate, enrapture: She easily bewitches men with her sultry good looks and her husky, low voice.
2.3 bias...
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bias |
n. 1 prejudice, partiality; inclination, leaning, bent, |
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disposition, propensity, tendency, predilection, predisposition, |
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proclivity: She shows a marked bias in favour of the Irish. 2 |
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angle, slant, diagonal: Cut the fabric on the bias. 3 |
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influence, impulse, weight: If he is under any bias, it is on |
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the side of fairness. |
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--v. 4 influence, affect unduly or unfairly, sway, incline, |
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prejudice, colour, taint, predispose: Artists are seldom good |
critics of art because they have been biased.
biased |
adj. biased, prejudiced, partial; warped, distorted, jaundiced: |
I don't want to listen to your biased opinions about women's |
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rights. |
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bicker |
v. dispute, quarrel, wrangle, argue, squabble, tiff, Colloq |
spat: The couple next door are always bickering about trifling |
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matters. |
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bid |
v. 1 offer, make an offer (for), tender, proffer: We bid œ500 |
for the painting. 2 Archaic or literary ask, pray, press, |
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entreat, beg, request, suggest, invite: She bade me leave her |
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to mourn alone. 3 Formal command, demand, order, tell, enjoin, |
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dictate: Please bid him enter. Custom bade him blow his horn. |
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bidding n. 1 invitation, summons: We attended the ceremony at the |
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bidding of the vice-chancellor. 2 command, order, dictate, |
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direction, instruction, demand: The letter was sent to all |
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theatre directors at the bidding of the Arts Minister. |
big |
adj. 1 large, great, grand; huge, enormous, immense, gigantic, |
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giant, tremendous, colossal, Brobdingnagian, jumbo, Colloq Brit |
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socking or whacking big or great, US humongous: We live in a |
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big house in the country. 2 ample, hefty, huge, bulky, fat, |
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obese; large, hulking, beefy, burly, brawny, strapping, |
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gargantuan, elephantine, enormous, gigantic, immense, monstrous: |
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The sumo wrestler was one of the biggest men I'd ever seen. 3 |
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tall, grown, mature, grown-up, large: Christopher is certainly |
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big for his age. 4 important, significant, outstanding, |
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weighty, consequential, major, grave, momentous, notable, |
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noteworthy, telling: Changing careers can be one of the biggest |
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decisions of your life. 5 important, prominent, illustrious, |
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noteworthy, notable, renowned, eminent, distinguished, esteemed: |
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Mr Johnson is a big man in our town. 6 generous, magnanimous, |
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charitable, unselfish, giving: It was very big of her to take |
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on the support of the orphanage. 7 popular, famous, well-known, |
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successful: That band is very big with the kids these days. 8 |
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capital, large, upper case, majuscule: Always spell London with |
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a big L. |
--adv. 9 pompously, boastfully, conceitedly, arrogantly, pretentiously: Alfred talks big at home, but he's very modest
when he's with his friends. 10 successfully, well, oustandingly,effectively: I think your speech went over big with those opposed to the new budget.
bigoted |
adj. prejudiced, intolerant, biased, jaundiced, one-sided, |
partial: The judge was bigoted against Blacks, which accounts |
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for the unfair decision. |
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bigotry |
n. prejudice, intolerance, bias, partiality: No government |
that practises bigotry can survive long. |
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bigwig |
n. 1 boss, kingpin, king, queen, nabob, VIP, Colloq big-shot, |
big gun, big cheese, big wheel, hotshot, chief, brass hat, US |
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(chief) honcho, Mr Big: The bigwig sits here, at the head of |
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the table. 2 bigwigs. brass, brass hats: Don't let the bigwigs |
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find out what we've done. |
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bilious |
adj. ill-tempered, bad-tempered, ill-natured, peevish, testy, |
cross, petulant, tetchy, choleric, dyspeptic, angry, wrathful: The director was absolutely bilious when he heard we had lost the account.
bill° n. 1 invoice, account; tally, reckoning, tabulation, US (restaurant) check, Colloq US tab: Have you paid the telephone bill? 2 US and Canadian note, banknote, paper money, Colloq folding money: The robbers took only small bills, which they could spend easily.
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--v. 3 invoice, charge: I haven't got my cheque-book with me, |
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please could you bill me. |
billý |
n. beak, neb, nib, pecker; jaws: One of the birds had a fish |
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in its bill. |
bind |
v. 1 tie, fasten, secure, make fast, tie up: The thieves bound |
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him hand and foot. 2 constrain; hold, oblige, obligate: The |
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contract we signed is equally binding on both parties. The union |
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is bound by an agreement that expires in a month. 3 gird, |
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encircle, wreathe, wrap, cover, swathe, bandage: They were |
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binding his wounded head. 4 cement, stick, cause to adhere; |
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attach, connect: Ordinary glue will bind these pieces together. |
--n. 5 Colloq US dilemma, predicament, tight spot, (difficult)