| a2 |
When you are talking about some particular thing of a group or kind but it's not important which one of that group it is, you use "a" before the word. If you say "I saw a friend of mine," you know which friend you saw, but it's not important right now which friend it is. You are just introducing the idea of this person or thing into the conversation. [1/3 definitions] |
| absolutely |
When something is absolutely right, it is exactly right. If something is absolutely beautiful, "beautiful" is the exact word to describe this thing, and there is nothing about this thing that isn't beautiful. [1/2 definitions] |
| abuse |
When you abuse something, you use it in a way that is wrong or bad. If people abuse pills, for example, they take them in a different way from how the doctor tells them to take them. This can be dangerous. [1/4 definitions] |
| account |
Sometimes when you want to do something on your computer on the internet, the website asks you to make an account. You do this by choosing a name for yourself and a password. The name you choose is called your "user name." When you make an account, the website remembers who you are every time you go to it and put in your user name and your password. [1/5 definitions] |
| A.D. |
A.D. is an abbreviation of the Latin words "anno domini." The abbreviation A.D. is used in dates when people are talking about things in history that happened after Jesus Christ was born. The year that Jesus Christ was born is called "1 A.D." The year after that is called "2 A.D." Jesus Christ is considered both God and man in the religion of Christianity, and he is an important figure in the history of the world. The calendar that most people use nowadays was created by Christians. That's why the year of Christ's birth was chosen as a way to divide older times from newer times. This calendar is not the first or only calendar that people in the world have created, but most people nowadays use this particular calendar. Instead of "A.D.," though, people often use "C.E." nowadays, which stands for "Common Era" or "Christian Era." |
| address |
this information written or printed on things that are mailed. [1/6 definitions] |
| adjective |
An adjective is a word that describes a person, place, animal, or thing. In the sentence "It was a hard test," the word "hard" is an adjective. This word describes the test. Some more adjectives to describe a test might be "easy," "simple," "long," and "important." |
| adverb |
An adverb is a certain kind of word in a sentence. When a word is an adverb, it often describes how or when or where we do things. Words like "tomorrow," "here," "there," "slowly," and "usually" are adverbs. Adverbs also go in front of other adverbs or adjectives to describe those words. If we say "This is very good cake," "good" is an adjective that tells us about the cake, and "very" is an adverb that tells us how good the cake is. |
| advertise |
When you advertise for something, it means you are looking for a certain thing and you put up a notice somewhere, like in a newspaper or online list. In the notice, you tell people you are looking for this thing. Sometimes people advertise for things they want to buy from other people. Sometimes they advertise for a certain kind of person who they can pay to do some work for them. Let's say you want to buy a good but cheap bicycle, you could advertise for one in the newspaper. If somebody has one they want to sell, they will answer your notice. [1/3 definitions] |
| aerobics |
When people talk about aerobics, they are talking about ways of doing exercise that make the heart and lungs work a little bit hard. This working of the heart and lungs helps the body use oxygen better. Running, swimming, biking, and dancing are some forms of aerobics. |
| affirmative action |
a policy to make sure certain groups of people are given a fair chance for jobs and education. In particular, this policy is for minority groups and women who were not given these opportunities in the past. Regulations made by the U.S. government support affirmative action. |
| after all |
used to remind the listener of an important fact or to ask the listener to consider this fact. [1/2 definitions] |
| agate |
a playing marble that is made of or looks like this stone. [1/2 definitions] |
| ageism |
the act of having a bad opinion of, or not treating in a fair way, a person or group of people based on age. This kind of discrimination is often against older people. |
| agitation |
Agitation is a kind of tool that some people use to cause change, usually in a place where people work or in society in general. Agitation is the stirring up of strong feelings in people with the purpose of making them upset about their treatment or condition and wanting change. Sometimes this leads to protests or even violent behavior. [1/3 definitions] |
| agreement |
an understanding between people or groups that states what kind of action is to be taken and what each person's responsibility will be. The document that describes this understanding is also called an agreement. [1/4 definitions] |
| airline |
a system of transportation that allows people to fly from one place to another, or a business that owns and operates the equipment to do this. |
| ally |
An ally is someone who will help you achieve some goal, usually because they agree with this goal and they want to help you reach it. They want the same thing as you do. They are on the same side as you. An ally is sometimes a friend, but an ally may just be someone who will cooperate with you in trying to do something. |
| almond |
the hard oval seed of this tree that is like a nut and eaten as food. [1/3 definitions] |
| already |
by this or that time. [1/3 definitions] |
| analysis |
Analysis is careful and detailed study of something in order to understand it or to understand how it works, or it's a report or explanation of the results of this kind of study. [1/2 definitions] |