Definitions & Meanings - English Dictionary

♦♦♦ a / ə, STRONG eɪ / or an / ən , STRONG æn / A or an is the indefinite article. It is used at the beginning of noun groups which refer to only one person or thing. The form an is used in front of words that begin with vowel sounds. 1 [DET] DET sing-n You use a or an when you are referring to someone or something for the first time or when people may not know which particular person or thing you are talking about. A waiter entered with a tray... He started eating an apple... Today you've got a new teacher taking you... I manage a hotel. 2 [DET] DET sing-n You use a or an when you are referring to any person or thing of a particular type and do not want to be specific. I suggest you leave it to an expert... Bring a sleeping bag... I was waiting for a bus. 3 [DET] DET n-uncount with supp You use a or an in front of an uncount noun when that noun follows an adjective, or when the noun is followed by words that describe it more fully. Ther...

aback / əb'æk / [PHRASE] usu v-link PHR, oft PHR by n If you are taken aback by something, you are surprised or shocked by it and you cannot respond at once. Roland was taken aback by our strength of feeling...

aba|cus / 'æbəkəs / (abacuses) [N-COUNT] An abacus is a frame used for counting. It has rods with sliding beads on them.

aba|lo|ne / æbəl'oʊni / (abalones) [N-VAR] Abalone is a shellfish that you can eat and that has a shiny substance called mother-of-pearl inside its shell.

♦ aban|don / əb'ændən / (abandons abandoning abandoned) 1 [VERB] V n, V-ed If you abandon a place, thing, or person, you leave the place, thing, or person permanently or for a long time, especially when you should not do so. He claimed that his parents had abandoned him... The road is strewn with abandoned vehicles. 2 [VERB] V n If you abandon an activity or piece of work, you stop doing it before it is finished. The authorities have abandoned any attempt to distribute food... = give up ≠ continue 3 [VERB] V n If you abandon an idea or way of thinking, you stop having that idea or thinking in that way. Logic had prevailed and he had abandoned the idea. = give up 4 [N-UNCOUNT] usu with N If you say that someone does something with abandon , you mean that they behave in a wild, uncontrolled way and do not think or care about how they should behave. He has spent money with gay abandon... 5 see also abandoned 6 [PHRASE] v inflects If p...

♦ aban|doned / əb'ændənd / [ADJ] usu ADJ n An abandoned place or building is no longer used or occupied. All that digging had left a network of abandoned mines and tunnels.

aban|don|ment / əb'ændənmənt / 1 [N-UNCOUNT] oft N of n The abandonment of a place, thing, or person is the act of leaving it permanently or for a long time, especially when you should not do so. ...memories of her father's complete abandonment of her. 2 [N-UNCOUNT] oft N of n The abandonment of a piece of work or activity is the act of stopping doing it before it is finished. Constant rain forced the abandonment of the next day's competitions. 3 [N-UNCOUNT] oft N of n The abandonment of an idea or way of thinking is the act of stopping having the idea or of stopping thinking in that way.