in one’s or its prime at one’s or its peak or best time.. in recent memory the period of time in which things that can be remembered happened.. in the interim between things in the meant
Trang 1in back of someone or something
behind someone or something
in bad faith without sincerity;
with bad or dishonest intent; with
duplicity
in bad taste and in poor taste
rude; vulgar; obscene
in between located in the middle
of two things
in black and white in writing or
printing; made official by being
written or printed
in bloom with many flowers; at the
peak of blooming
in blossom with many flowers; at
the peak of blooming
in broad daylight publicly visible
in the daytime
in bulk in large quantities or
amounts, rather than smaller,
more convenient quantities or
amounts
in case in the event [that]
some-thing happens; preparing for
something that may happen
in contempt (of court) showing
disrespect for a judge or
court-room procedures
in creation Go to on earth.
in custody (of someone or
thing) and in someone’s or
some-thing’s custody the condition of
being kept guarded by police
in debt having debts; having much
debt; owing money
in deep water in a dangerous or
vulnerable situation; in a serious
situation; in trouble
in denial in a state of refusing to
believe something that is true
in detail with lots of details; giving
all the details
in disguise hidden behind a
dis-guise; looking like something else
in earnest [done] with good and
honest intentions
in effect 1 in existence; applicable.
2 producing a particular effect;
effectively
in essence basically; essentially.
in existence now existing;
cur-rently and actually being
in fact truthfully; actually.
in fashion fitting in well with the
clothing that has been designed for
a particular season of a particular year
in fine feather in good humor; in
good health
in flight while flying.
in full swing in progress; operating
or running without restraint
in general referring to the entire
class being discussed, without being specific; speaking broadly of the entire range of possibilities; in most cases or situations
in good condition Go to in good shape.
in good shape and in good con-dition physically and functionally
sound and sturdy (Used for both people and things.)
in hand controlled; under control.
in heat [of animals] in a period of
sexual excitement; in estrus
in heaven in a state of absolute
bliss or happiness
in horror with intense shock or
dis-gust
in back of someone or something
286
Trang 2in ink written or signed with a pen
that uses ink
in its entirety and in their
entirety in a state of
complete-ness
in jeopardy in danger; at risk; at
hazard
in labor [of a woman] experiencing
the pains and exertion of
child-birth
in less than no time very quickly.
in many respects Go to in some
respects.
in memory of someone to
con-tinue the good memories of
some-one; in honor of a deceased
person
in midair in a point high in the air.
in mint condition in perfect
con-dition
in name only nominally; not
actual, only by terminology
in need (of something) [of
some-one or some creature] requiring
something
in neutral with the shift lever of a
vehicle in the position where the
motor is running but is not
power-ing the wheels or other movpower-ing
parts
in no mood to do something not to
feel like doing something; to wish
not to do something
in nothing flat in exactly no time
at all
in one ear and out the other [for
something to be] ignored; [for
something to be] unheard or
unheeded
in one fell swoop Go to at one
fell swoop.
in one’s birthday suit naked; nude.
in one’s blood Go to in the blood.
in one’s mind’s eye in one’s mind.
in one’s or its prime at one’s or its
peak or best time
in one’s right mind sane; rational
and sensible (Often in the nega-tive.)
in one’s second childhood being
interested in people or things that normally interest children
in one’s spare time in one’s extra
time; in the time not reserved for doing something else
in over one’s head with more
dif-ficulties than one can manage
in park [of an automobile
trans-mission] having the gears locked
so the automobile cannot move
in pencil written or signed with a
pencil
in person [with someone] actually
present in a place rather than appearing in a film, on a television screen, or through a radio broad-cast
in poor taste Go to in bad taste.
in print [for a book] to be available
for sale (Compare this with out
of print.)
in proportion and out of pro-portion showing the right or
wrong proportion relative to something else
in public in a place or way so that
other people can see or know about something
in rags in worn-out and torn
cloth-ing
in rags
287
Trang 3in reality viewing things
realisti-cally; really; actually
in receipt of something in a state
of having received something
in recent memory the period of
time in which things that can be
remembered happened
in return by way of giving
some-thing back; as a way of paying
someone back for something; as
part of an exchange
in round figures Go to in round
numbers.
in round numbers and in round
figures as an estimated number;
as a figure that has been rounded
off to the closest whole number
in ruin in a state of having been
destroyed
in season 1 currently available for
selling (Some foods and other
things are available only at certain
seasons.) 2 legally able to be
caught or hunted 3 [of a dog] in
estrus (See also in heat.)
in secret secretly.
in session [of a court, congress, or
other organization] operating or
functioning
in seventh heaven in a very happy
state
in shape [of someone] in good
physical condition
in short order very quickly.
in short supply scarce.
in sight able to be seen.
in some respects and in many
respects with regard to some or
many details (Here respects=
aspects.)
in someone’s or something’s cus-tody Go to in custody (of someone
or something).
in someone’s (own) (best) inter-ests to someone’s own advantage;
as a benefit to oneself (Compare this with in the interest(s) of some-thing.)
in someone’s prayers [of someone]
remembered and called by name when someone prays
in spite of someone or something
without regard to someone or something; even though another course had been prescribed; ignor-ing a warnignor-ing
in stock readily available, as with
goods in a store
in storage in a place where things
are stored or kept
in surgery involved in surgery.
in tandem in single file.
in tatters in torn pieces of cloth.
in terms of something relating to
something; with regard to some-thing
in the affirmative in the form of
an answer that means yes
in the air everywhere; all about.
(Also used literally.)
in the bargain in addition to what
was agreed on
in the black not in debt; in a
finan-cially profitable condition
in the blood and in one’s blood
built into one’s personality or character
in the cards in the future.
in reality
288
Trang 4in the context of something under
the circumstances in which
some-thing has happened
in the doghouse in trouble; in
(someone’s) disfavor
in the doldrums sluggish; inactive;
in low spirits
in the flesh bodily or physically
present; in person
in the forefront (of something)
Go to at the forefront (of
something).
in the gutter [for a person to be]
in a bad state, mentally and
physi-cally
in the hole in debt.
in the interest(s) of something in
order to advance or improve
something
in the interim (between things)
in the meantime; in the time
between the ending of something
and the beginning of something
else
in the know knowledgeable.
in the lap of luxury in luxurious
surroundings
in the line of duty as part of one’s
expected duties
in the long run over a long period
of time; ultimately
in the meantime the period of
time between two things; the
period of time between now and
when something is supposed to
happen
in the money wealthy; having
suc-ceeded financially
in the mood for something and in
the mood to do something
hav-ing the proper state of mind for a
particular situation or for doing something
in the mood to do something Go
to in the mood for something.
in the neighborhood of
some-thing Go to (somewhere) in the neigh-borhood of something
in the nick of time just in time; at
the last possible instant; just before it’s too late
in the nude in a state of nudity.
in the picture of (good) health
in a very healthy condition
in the pink (of condition) in very
good health; in very good condi-tion, physically or emotionally
in the prime of life in the best and
most productive period of one’s life
in the public eye publicly; visible
to all; conspicuous
in the rear located in the space or
area behind someone or some-thing
in the red in debt.
in the right on the moral or legal
side of an issue; on the right side
of an issue
in the right place at the right time in the location where
some-thing is to happen exactly when it happens (Usually about some-thing good.)
in the same boat in the same
situ-ation; having the same problem
in the same breath [stated or
said] almost at the same time; as part of the same thought or con-versation
in the twinkling of an eye very
quickly
in the twinkling of an eye
289
Trang 5in the wind about to happen.
in the world Go to on earth.
in the wrong on the wrong or
ille-gal side of an issue; guilty or in
error
in the wrong place at the wrong
time in the location where
some-thing is to happen exactly when it
happens (Usually about
some-thing bad.)
in their entirety Go to in its
entirety.
in theory according to a theory;
theoretically
in time within the proper time;
before the deadline; before the
time limit; within the allotted
time
in times past long ago; in previous
times
in top form 1 [of someone or
some creature] in very good
physi-cal condition 2 able to make
witty remarks and clever
state-ments quickly and easily
in tow being towed [by someone];
closely following; under someone’s
control
in transit while in the process of
being transported
in trouble in danger; at risk.
in tune and out of tune in or out
of a state where musical notes are
at their proper intervals so that
none are flat or sharp
in two shakes of a lamb’s tail in
a very short time; very quickly
in unison [ "ju n@ s@n] 1 acting
as one; together and at the same
time 2 [of musical notes,
instru-ments, or voices] having the same pitch
in vain futile(ly); without having
the result one wanted
inaccurate [In "Ak j@ rIt] adj not
accurate; incorrect (Adv:
inaccu-rately.)
inactive [In "Ak tIv] 1 adj not
active; not moving (Adv:
inac-tively.) 2 adj [of someone] not or
no longer working actively or being actively involved (Adv:
inactively.) 3 adj having no
effect; [of a chemical] not
react-ing (Adv: inactively.)
inadequate [In "Ad @ kwIt] adj not
adequate; not enough; not good
enough (Adv: inadequately.)
incarcerate someone in something
to imprison someone in some-thing
inch ["IntS] 1 n a unit of
measure-ment of distance, equal to ¹⁄₁₂ of a foot or approximately 2.54 cen-timeters 2 iv to move very slowly; to move a distance equal to
Q at a time
→ every inch a something
→ every inch the something
→ within an inch of one’slife
inch by inch one inch at a time;
little by little
incline 1 ["In klaIn] n a slant; a
slope; a surface that is on an angle
to flat ground 2 [In "klaIn] iv to
slant; to slope
incline toward someone or some-thing 1 to lean or slant toward someone or something 2 to favor
or “lean” toward choosing some-one or something
in the wind
290
Trang 6inclined to do something to tend to
do something; to “lean” toward
doing something
include [In "klud] 1 tv [for
some-thing] to contain something or to
have something among its parts
2 tv [for someone] to cause
someone or something to be a part
of something; to add something to
something else
include someone in (something) to
invite someone to participate in
something
income ["In k@m] n the amount of
money received as wages, interest,
or similar payments; money
received in exchange for goods or
services
income tax ["In k@m tAks] n a
fed-eral, state, or local tax on income
that has been earned
incorporate someone or something
in(to) something to plan to
include someone or something in
something; to combine someone
or something into something
incorrect [In k@ "rEkt] adj not
cor-rect; wrong; false (Adv:
incor-rectly.)
increase 1 ["In kris] n growth;
becoming larger (Plural only for
types and instances.) 2 [In "kris]
iv to become larger, faster, or
more powerful; to become larger
in number or amount 3 [In "kris]
tv to cause something to become
larger, faster, or more powerful; to
cause something to become larger
in number or amount
incubator ["IN kj@ bet #] 1 n a
container that keeps eggs warm
until they hatch 2 n a special
container or device in which babies that are born too early are kept for warmth and care
indeed [In "did] 1 adv very much so; quite 2 adv in fact; actually.
3 interj Amazing!
indent [In "dEnt] tv [in writing or
typing] to begin a line a few spaces farther from the edge or margin than the other lines, as at the beginning of a paragraph
indentation [In dEn "te S@n] 1 n a notch; a dent; a cut 2 n indenting
lines of type or writing (Plural only for types and instances.)
independence [In dI "pEn d@ns] n.
freedom from someone or some government; liberty (No plural.)
independent [In dI "pEn d@nt]
1 adj not dependent on someone
or something; not controlled by others; not ruled by other people
or countries (Adv: independently.)
2 adj not needing the support of
others; self-supporting (Adv:
independently.) 3 adj separate;
distinct from other things (Adv:
independently.) 4 n a politician or
a voter who does not belong to a political party
index ["In dEks] 1 n., irreg an
alphabetical list of topics showing where each topic can be found in the main part of a book, report, magazine, journal, etc (Plural:
indexes or indices.) 2 n., irreg a
scale where prices or amounts of certain things are compared with the prices or amounts of those same things at an earlier date
3 tv to locate important topics
and list them and their locations,
as in Q
index
291
Trang 7indicate ["In d@ ket] 1 tv to point
something out verbally; to state a
fact (The object is a clause with
that U.) 2 tv to make something
known; to draw someone’s
atten-tion to something (The object can
be a clause with that U.) 3 tv.
[for a meter, chart, signal] to show
specific information (The object
can be a clause with that U.)
indices ["In dI siz] a plural ofindex
indigestion [In d@ "dZEs tS@n] n an
upset stomach; the digestion of
food that causes pain (No plural.)
individual [In d@ "vI dZu @l] 1 n a
person; one person 2 adj
sepa-rate; single (Adv: individually.)
indoor ["In dor] adj inside a
build-ing; kept within walls and under a
roof (Prenominal only.)
indoors [In "dorz] adv in or into a
building
industry ["In d@ stri] 1 n the
pro-duction of goods; the manufacture
of products (No plural.) 2 n the
business activity concerning a
spe-cific kind of product or service
3 n hard work or labor.
inedible [In "Ed @ b@l] adj not able
to be eaten; not good for eating
(Adv: inedibly.)
inf an abbreviation ofinfinitive
form.
infant ["In f@nt] 1 n a baby; a
young child 2 the adj use of Q.
infection [In "fEk S@n] 1 n the
entrance and growth of
disease-producing organisms in the body
(Plural only for types and
instances.) 2 n a disease caused
by Q
inferior [In "fIr i #] 1 adj lower in
amount, rank, power, quality, or strength than someone or
some-thing else (Adv: inferiorly.) 2 n.
someone who has a lower-ranking job than someone else
inferno [In "f# no] 1 n a large, fierce fire (Plural ends in -s.) 2 n.
a place that is very hot (Figurative
on Q Plural ends in -s.)
infinitive form [In "fIn @ tIv "form]
n a form of a verb—preceded by to—that does not show tense,
number, or person (Abbreviated inf.here Can be shortened to
infinitive.)
inflammable [In "flAm @ b@l] adj.
able to catch fire; flammable; not fireproof (The opposite is non-flammable Adv: inf lammably This
in shows emphasis, not
negative-ness.)
inflation [In "fle S@n] 1 n the
pro-cess of putting air or gas into something; blowing something up (No plural.) 2 n an economic condition in which too much money is available for purchasing too few goods (No plural.)
influence ["In flu @ns] 1 n the
power or ability to cause certain results or to affect what happens (Plural only for types and instances.) 2 n a cause of some
behavior 3 tv to affect someone
or something
→ under the influence of something
influenza [In flu "En z@] n the flu;
an easily spread sickness caused by
a virus (No plural.)
informal [In "form @l] 1 adj not
formal, official, or final (Adv:
informally.) 2 adj [of words,
lan-indicate
292
Trang 8guage, or speech] used every day
but a little more relaxed than more
formal speech (Adv: informally.)
3 adj [of dress] not formal;
casual (Adv: informally.)
information [In f# "me S@n] n.
news; knowledge about
some-thing; facts (No plural Number is
expressed by piece(s) or bit(s) of
information.)
→ amine of information
ingredient [In "grid i @nt] n
some-thing that is part of a mixture
inhale [In "hel] 1 iv to breathe in.
2 tv to breathe something in.
inherit [In "hEr It] 1 tv to receive
the assets of a person when the
person dies 2 tv to receive a
characteristic or feature from one’s
parents or ancestors
inject [In "dZEkt] 1 tv to put a
liq-uid into a living body through a
hollow needle 2 tv to introduce a
fluid into something under
pres-sure
injection [In "dZEk S@n] n injecting
something (Plural only for types
and instances.)
injure ["In dZ#] tv to harm
some-one or something; to damage
someone or something
injury ["In dZ@ ri] n physical or
mental damage or harm; a specific
instance of damage or harm
→ add insult to injury
ink ["INk] 1 n a colored liquid used
for writing or printing (Plural
only for types and instances.) 2 n.
a liquid that is injected into the
water by an octopus—and by
some other sea animals—to
con-fuse pursuers (No plural.)
→ in ink
inn ["In] n a small hotel; a place
that offers rooms to rent for trav-elers
inner ["In #] adj on the inside;
nearer to the center; further inside
inning ["In IN] n [in baseball] a
period of playing time that ends after the two teams have received three outs each during their turns batting
innocent ["In @ s@nt] 1 adj free
from guilt or sin; not guilty (Adv:
innocently.) 2 adj harmless; not
meant to cause harm (Adv:
inno-cently.) 3 adj too trusting; not
recognizing things that are evil;
inexperienced (Adv: innocently.)
→ (as) innocent as a lamb
→ find someoneinnocent
→ play innocent
inoculate someone against
some-thing to immunize someone against a disease
input ["In pUt] 1 n addition; the
act of putting something into
something (No plural.) 2 n.
advice; opinions; ideas or
sugges-tions (Informal No plural.) 3 n.
information; data; information that is put into a computer (No plural.) 4 n an electronic signal
that is fed into a circuit 5 tv.,
irreg to put data into a computer.
(Past tense and past participle:
inputted or input.)
inquire [In "kwaI#] iv to ask
some-one about something (Also
spelled enquire.)
inquiry [In "kwaI# i] 1 n a ques-tion (Also spelled enquiry.) 2 n.
inquiry
293
Trang 9an investigation; a search for
truth; a search for an answer
theins and outs of something the
details of something (Informal.)
insane [In "sen] 1 adj crazy; not
sane (Adv: insanely.) 2 adj owing
to insanity; done because of
insan-ity (Adv: insanely.) 3 adj very
stupid; very foolish; very idiotic
(Informal Adv: insanely.)
insanity [In "sAn @ ti] n the state or
condition of being insane (No
plural.)
inscribe something on(to)
some-thing to write or engrave certain
information on something
(Emphasis is on the message that
is inscribed.)
inscribe something with something
to engrave something with a
mes-sage
insect ["In sEkt] 1 n a small
crea-ture with wings and six legs 2 n.
a bug; any creature similar to Q
inside 1 ["In "saId] n the interior
of a building or an object; the part
of an object that is within
some-thing 2 [In "saId, "In saId] adj
interior; in, of, or about Q 3 [In
"saId] adv in or into a room or
building; in or into an object
4 [In "saId, "In saId] prep within
a room or building; within an
object; within the interior; in an
interior position
→ bottle somethingup (inside
(someone))
→ get the inside track
→ know somethinginside out
insight ["In saIt] 1 n wisdom; the
ability to observe and identify
things that are important (No
plural.) 2 n a statement showing
that one has observed and identi-fied something important
insist (up)on something to demand
something
inspect [In "spEkt] tv to examine
someone or something carefully
inspection [In "spEk S@n] n study;
inspecting and reviewing (Plural only for types and instances.)
instance ["In st@ns] n an example;
a case; an occurrence
→ for instance
instant ["In st@nt] 1 n one
moment in time; a very short
amount of time 2 adj
immedi-ate; without delay (Adv: instantly.)
3 adj [of food or drink] easily
and quickly prepared
instead [In "stEd] adv in place of
something; as another choice
instead of someone or something
in place of someone or something;
as a substitute for someone or something
instill something in(to) something
to add something to a situation
instinct ["In stINkt] n an ability
someone or some creature is born with to act or respond in a partic-ular way
institution [In stI "tu S@n] 1 n an
organization that serves a special
purpose 2 n an established
tra-dition; a habit; a custom
instruct [In "str^kt] tv to teach
someone something; to educate someone about something
instruct someone to do something
to order or request someone to do something
ins and outs of something
294
Trang 10instruction [In "str^k S@n] 1 n.
education; teaching (No plural.)
2 n an order or set of orders; a
direction or set of directions
(Usually plural.)
instructor [In "str^k t#] n a
teacher; someone who instructs
people about something
instrument ["In str@ m@nt] 1 n a
thing that is used to help someone
do something; a tool; a device
2 n something that shows a
measurement 3 n an object that
produces musical notes when
played
insult [In "s^lt] 1 n an offensive
remark; a rude statement that
offends someone 2 tv to offend
someone; to say something rude or
offensive to someone
→ add insult to injury
→ hurl an insult (at someone)
insurance [In "S# @ns] 1 n a
con-tract that pays a sum of money in
the case of a loss or injury (No
plural Number is expressed with
insurance policy or insurance
poli-cies.) 2 n something that protects
against a loss or an injury (No
plural.) 3 n the business of
writ-ing and sellwrit-ing Q (No plural.)
4 the adj use of Q, W, or E.
insurance policy [In "S# @ns "pal @
si] n the document or contract
that states the protections offered
by insurance
insure [In "S#] 1 tv to purchase
insurance for someone or
some-thing (Compare this with ensure.)
2 tv [for an insurance company]
to sell insurance on someone or
something
intelligence [In "tEl I dZ@ns] 1 n.
the level of someone’s ability to learn and understand (No plural.)
2 n information about an enemy
and the enemy’s plans (No
plu-ral.) 3 n a department within a
military service that gathers W (No plural.)
intelligent [In "tEl @ dZ@nt] adj.
smart; able to learn and
under-stand things well (Adv:
intelli-gently.)
intensity [In "tEn s@ ti] n the
degree or amount of power or strength (Plural only for types and instances.)
intent on doing something
deter-mined to do something
intention [In "tEn S@n] n a
pur-pose; a plan
intercourse ["In t# kors] n
copu-lation, usually human copulation (Short for sexual intercourse.)
→ sexual intercourse
interest ["In tr@st] 1 n the
atten-tion or concern shown toward someone or something (No plu-ral.) 2 n something that causes Q; something that attracts one’s curiosity or attention as in T
3 n the money—usually a
per-centage of the amount bor-rowed—that a lender charges to someone who borrows money (No plural.) 4 n the money— usually a percentage of the amount held—that a bank or other financial institution pays for hold-ing someone’s money for a period
of time (No plural.) 5 tv to cap-ture the attention or curiosity of someone or something
→ have a keen interest in something
interest
295