[of something] used to remind some-one of a person, thing, place, or event.. an instance of remembering a past event, experience, person, or sensation; someone or some-thing that is reme
Trang 1memento and momento [m@
"mEn to] n a souvenir; something
that reminds one of someone else
or of a place that one has been to
memo ["mEm o] n a note or
announcement, especially in an
office (A shortened form of the
word memorandum Plural ends
in -s.)
memorable ["mEm @ r@ b@l] adj.
worth remembering; easy to
remember (Adv: memorably.)
memorial [m@ "mor i @l] 1 adj [of
something] used to remind
some-one of a person, thing, place, or
event (Prenominal only.) 2 n
something that is a reminder of an
event in the past or of a person no
longer living
memory ["mEm @ ri] 1 n the brain
or mind, thought of as a place
where ideas, words, images, and
past events reside (No plural.)
2 n the functioning or quality of
Q; the ability of Q to function
3 n an instance of remembering
a past event, experience, person,
or sensation; someone or
some-thing that is remembered 4 n the
part of a computer where
infor-mation is kept until it is needed
(No plural.)
→ in memory of someone
→ in recent memory
→ jog someone’smemory
→ know somethingfrom memory
men ["mEn] plural ofman
→ separate the men from the boys
menace ["mEn Is] 1 n a threat;
someone or something that
threat-ens harm, violence, or danger
2 tv to threaten someone or
something with harm, violence, or danger
mend ["mEnd] 1 tv to fix some-thing; to repair something 2 iv to
become healthy; to become well
→ on the mend
mend (one’s) fences to restore
good relations (with someone)
mend one’s ways to improve one’s
behavior
menstrual ["mEn str(u )@l] adj.
associated with menstruation
(Adv: menstrually.)
menstrual period ["mEn str(u )@l
"pIr I @d] n the time during which
a woman menstruates (Can be shortened to period.)
menstruate ["mEn stru et] iv to
experience menstruation; to have
a menstrual period
menstruation [mEn stru "e S@n] n.
the monthly process in sexually mature women who are not preg-nant in which the lining of the uterus is shed (No plural.)
mental ["mEn t@l] 1 adj of or
about the mind; done by the mind
(Adv: mentally.) 2 adj of or about
illness of the mind
mention ["mEn S@n] 1 tv to say or
write something; to tell about something briefly (The object can
be a clause with that U.) 2 tv to
refer to someone or something
3 n an instance of saying or
writ-ing somethwrit-ing as in W; a brief statement; a reference
→ not worth mentioning
mention something in passing to
mention something casually; to mention something while talking about something else
memento
356
Trang 2menu ["mEn ju] 1 n a list of food
and drink available at a restaurant
2 n a list of options or functions
available in a computer program
(Figurative on Q.)
meow [mi "aU] 1 n the sound a cat
makes 2 iv [for a cat] to make its
characteristic sound
merchandise ["m# tS@n daIs] n.
products for sale or trade; things
that are for sale (No plural
Treated as singular.)
merchant ["m# tS@nt] n someone
who buys and sells products in
order to make money; a retailer
mercury ["m# kj@ ri] 1 n a
silver-gray element that is liquid at room
temperature (No plural.) 2 n the
closest planet to the sun in our
solar system (Capitalized.)
mercy ["m# si] n kindness; pity;
compassion (No plural except
when referring to God’s mercies.)
→ throw oneselfat the mercy of the
court
→ throw oneselfon the mercy of
the court
mere ["mIr] adj only; nothing more
than (Prenominal only Adv:
merely.Comp: none; sup: merest.)
merely ["mIr li] adv this only; only
this and nothing else; just
merge ["m#dZ] 1 iv to join with
something else 2 iv to enter the
flow of traffic 3 tv to cause two
or more things to come together
and become one
merger ["m#dZ #] n an act or
pro-cess of joining two organizations
into one
merit ["mEr It] 1 n worth; value.
(No plural.) 2 n a good point; a
virtue (Usually plural.) 3 tv to
deserve something; to be worthy
of something
merry ["mEr i] adj happy; cheerful;
joyful (Adv: merrily Comp: mer-rier; sup: merriest.)
→ lead someoneon a merry chase
→ make merry
mesh ["mES] n material that is
woven in such a way that there are holes between the threads or wires (Plural only for types and instances.)
mesh together to fit together mesh with something to fit with
something
mess ["mEs] 1 n something or
someplace that is dirty or untidy
2 n a group of things that are not
in order; a situation that is not
organized; confusion 3 n [in the
military services] a meal, eaten by
a group
mess someone or something up
1 to put someone or something
into disarray; to make someone or
something dirty or untidy 2 to
interfere with someone or some-thing; to misuse or abuse someone
or something
message ["mEs IdZ] 1 n a
com-munication between two or more people; a piece of written or spo-ken information for someone
2 n the moral of a story; a lesson
that is to be learned from a story
→ get the message
messenger ["mEs @n dZ#] n
some-one who delivers messages, docu-ments, parcels, or flowers
messy ["mEs i] adj dirty or not
organized; not clean and tidy
messy
357
Trang 3(Adv: messily Comp: messier; sup:
messiest.)
met ["mEt] past tense and past
par-ticiple ofmeet
metal ["mEt @l] 1 n a solid mineral
substance that can be cast or
beaten into different shapes
(Plural only for types and
instances.) 2 adj made from Q
metallic [m@ "tAl Ik] adj associated
with metal; made of metal
meter ["mit #] 1 n the basic unit
of the measurement of length in
the metric system, equal to 39.37
inches 2 n a device that
meas-ures and displays the amount of
something that is used 3 n the
rhythms caused by accents in
poetry and music (Plural only for
types and instances.) 4 tv to
measure the flow of something
with W
method ["mET @d] n a way of doing
something; a system; a procedure
metric ["mE trIk] adj of or about
the system of measurement based
on the meter (Adv: metrically
[ Ik li].)
mice ["maIs] a plural ofmouse
microphone ["maI kr@ fon] n a
device that changes sound waves
into electrical waves so that the
sound can be broadcast, recorded,
or made louder (Can be shortened
to mike.)
microscope ["maI kr@ skop] n a
device that makes very small
objects appear much larger
midair ["mId "Er] adj in the air; not
touching the ground
→ in midair
→ keep someone or somethinghanging
in midair
→ leave someone or somethinghanging
in midair
midday 1 ["mId "de] n noon; the
middle of the day (No plural.)
2 ["mId de] adj happening in the
middle of the day; happening at noon (Prenominal only.)
middle ["mId l] 1 n a place or time
halfway between two ends or
sides; the center 2 n the area of
the waist; halfway along the body
of a human or other creature
3 adj central; at the same
dis-tance from either end; halfway between the beginning and the end (Prenominal only.)
→ play both ends (against the middle)
→ smack-dab in the middle
middle-of-the-road halfway
between two extremes, especially political extremes
midnight ["mId naIt] 1 n 12:00 at
night; twelve o’clock at night
2 adj happening at Q; beginning
at Q (Prenominal only.)
→ burn the midnight oil
Midwest ["mId "wEst] 1 n the
middle part of the United States
(No plural.) 2 the adj use of Q might ["maIt] 1 n power; strength (No plural.) 2 aux a form that
expresses possibility (See also may and could.) 3 aux a form
expressing permission (See also mayand could.)
mighty ["maIt i] adj powerful;
strong; very great (Adv: mightily Comp: mightier; sup: mightiest.)
→ act high-and-mighty met
358
Trang 4mike ["maIk] n a device for
con-verting sounds to electronic audio
signals (Short for microphone.)
mild ["maIld] 1 adj gentle or calm;
not extreme, powerful, or severe
(Adv: mildly Comp: milder; sup:
mildest.) 2 adj [of food] plain
and not spicy (Adv: mildly Comp:
milder; sup: mildest.) 3 adj light;
not severe or harsh (Adv: mildly.
Comp: milder; sup: mildest.)
mile ["maIl] n a unit of
measure-ment of length, equal to 5,280 feet
or about 1.6 kilometers
→ be a million miles away
→ go the extra mile
→ miss (something) by a mile
→ nautical mile
→ stand out a mile
→ stick out a mile
mileage ["maIl IdZ] 1 n a distance
expressed in miles (Plural only for
types and instances.) 2 n the
total number of miles that can be
traveled using one gallon of
gaso-line (No plural.)
→ get a lot of mileage out of
something
milestone in someone’s life a very
important event or point in one’s
life (From the stone at the side of
a road showing the distance to or
from a place.)
military ["mIl @ tEr i] adj having to
do with the armed forces (Adv:
militarily [mIl @ "tEr @ li].)
the military n the armed forces;
the army (Treated as singular.)
militia [m@ "lIS @] n a group of
citi-zens who are not part of the
pro-fessional army but who are trained
as soldiers
milk ["mIlk] 1 n the white liquid
made by female mammals to feed their young (Usually refers to cows’ milk used as food No plu-ral.) 2 n a white liquid from
cer-tain plants (No plural.) 3 tv to
take Q from an animal
→ cry over spilled milk
the milk of human kindness the
natural kindness and sympathy shown to others
milk someone for something to
pressure someone into giving information or money
mill ["mIl] 1 n a building
contain-ing the machinery needed to turn
grain into meal 2 n a machine or
device that crushes grains, seeds,
or coffee beans
→ been through the mill
milligram ["mIl @ grAm] n a unit of
measurement of weight; one one-thousandth (¹⁄₁₀₀₀) of a gram
millimeter ["mIl @ mit #] n a unit
of measurement of length; one one-thousandth (¹⁄₁₀₀₀) of a meter
million ["mIl j@n] 1 n the number
1,000,000 (Additional numbers
are formed as with two million, three million, four million, etc.)
2 adj 1,000,000; consisting of
1,000,000 things; having 1,000,000 things
→ be a million miles away
→ feel like a million (dollars)
→ look like a million dollars
→ one in a million
millionaire [mIl j@ "nEr] n
some-one who has $1,000,000 in assets after debt is subtracted
a millstone about one’s neck a
continual burden or handicap millstone about one’s neck
359
Trang 5mincemeat ["mIns mit] 1 n a
mixture of fruit, spices, and
some-times chopped meat, as a filling
for pies (No plural form.) 2 the
adj use of Q.
→ make mincemeat of someone
mind ["maInd] 1 n the part of
humans that thinks and has
feel-ings 2 n the center of
intelli-gence and memory; the
imagina-tion; the creative part of humans
3 tv to care for someone or
some-thing; to tend to someone or
something 4 tv to be opposed to
something; to care if someone
does something 5 iv to be
opposed [to something]; to object
→ bear someone or somethingin mind
→ boggle someone’smind
→ enter one’smind
→ get a load off one’smind
→ give someonea piece of one’smind
→ have a one-track mind
→ have the presence of mind to do
something
→ in one’smind’s eye
→ in one’sright mind
→ keep someone or somethingin mind
→ ameeting of minds
→ on one’smind
→ out of one’smind
→ put one’smind to something
→ slip one’smind
mind one’s own business to
attend only to the things that
con-cern one
mind one’s p’s and q’s 1 to mind
one’s manners; to pay attention to
small details of behavior 2 to pay
attention to small details of
behav-ior
mind you a phrase indicating that
something should be taken into
consideration
mine ["maIn] 1 n an opening into
the earth from which precious metals, minerals, or gems are recovered 2 n a source of some-thing in large amounts; someone, something, or someplace that sup-plies large amounts of something (Figurative on Q.) 3 n a bomb that is placed under the surface of the soil or water and explodes when it is touched 4 tv to remove precious metals, minerals,
or gems from the earth 5 tv to
place bombs under the surface of the soil or water at a particular location 6 pron the first-person singular possessive pronoun (Used in place of a noun.)
→ back to the salt mines
→ Your guess is as good as mine.
a mine of information someone
or something that is full of infor-mation
mineral ["mIn (@) r@l] 1 n one of
many kinds of crystallike stances dug from the earth; a sub-stance that is gotten by mining
2 n an element that plants and
animals need in order to function
properly 3 the adj use of Q minimal ["mIn @ m@l] adj smallest
possible [amount] (Adv: mini-mally.)
minimum ["mIn @ m@m] 1 n the
least amount or degree possible; the smallest amount or degree possible 2 adj minimal; smallest; lowest; least
minister ["mIn I st#] 1 n a pastor;
a preacher; the leader of a
Chris-tian church 2 n [in many
coun-tries] someone who is the head of
a government department mincemeat
360
Trang 6mink ["mINk] 1 n., irreg a small,
long, furry animal similar to the
weasel or ferret (Plural: mink or
minks.) 2 n the fur of Q (No
plural.) 3 n a coat made from W.
4 adj made from W.
minnow ["mIn o] n a kind of very
small, thin fish that lives in fresh
water
minor ["maIn #] 1 adj small in
size or amount; not serious; not
very important 2 the adj use of
Q 3 n a student’s secondary area
of study 4 n someone who is
younger than the legal age of
responsibility
mint ["mInt] 1 n a small plant with
leaves that have a fresh, strong
fla-vor, and the leaves themselves (No
plural.) 2 n a candy that is
fla-vored with Q 3 n a building
where the government makes
coins and paper money 4 adj.
tasting like Q; flavored with Q
5 adj perfect; in excellent
condi-tion 6 tv to make something,
especially coins, from metal
→ in mint condition
minus ["maIn @s] 1 prep reduced
by some amount; decreased by
some amount; made less by some
amount; with something omitted
or subtracted (Symbolized by
().) 2 adj below zero; less than
zero; [of a number] negative
(Precedes the amount Symbolized
by ().) 3 adj [of a school letter
grade] less than the full grade
(Follows the letter Symbolized by
().) 4 n a negative factor; a lack.
minute 1 ["mIn It] n a unit of the
measurement of time, equal to 60
seconds or ¹⁄₆₀ hour 2 [maI "nut]
adj very small (Adv: minutely.)
→ at the last minute
→ every minute counts
→ just a minute
minutes ["mIn Its] n a written
account of what happened at a meeting (Treated as plural, but not countable.)
miracle ["mIr @ k@l] 1 n a
remark-able event that cannot be ex-plained by the laws of nature
2 n an unexpected, lucky event.
(Figurative on Q.)
miraculous [mI "rAk j@ l@s] 1 adj.
not able to be explained by the laws of science or nature (Adv:
miraculously.) 2 adj unexpectedly
excellent (Figurative on Q Adv:
miraculously.)
mirage [mI "raZ] n an image of
something that does not really exist, especially an image of water
in the desert; something that fools one’s vision
mirror ["mIr #] 1 n a piece of
pol-ished glass, treated in a way that makes it reflect images perfectly
2 n someone or something that
shows what someone or something thinks, looks like, acts like, or is (Figurative on Q.) 3 tv to show something as though it were seen
in Q; to represent something
mirth ["m#T] n fun and laughter.
(No plural.)
miscarriage of justice a wrong or
mistaken decision, especially one made in a court of law
mischief ["mIs tSIf] 1 n playful
trouble; slightly bad tricks or
deeds (No plural.) 2 n
some-mischief
361
Trang 7one—usually a child—who is a
source of trouble or problems
→ make mischief
misconduct [mIs "kan d@kt] n bad
behavior; behavior that is not
good or moral (No plural.)
miser ["maIz #] n someone who is
very selfish and has a lot of money
miserable ["mIz @ r@ b@l] 1 adj.
unhappy; very sad; depressed
(Adv: miserably.) 2 adj
unpleas-ant; depressing (Adv: miserably.)
3 adj poor; squalid; wretched.
(Adv: miserably.)
→ make life miserable for someone
misfit ["mIs fIt] n someone who
does not seem to belong with
other people or fit a situation
misfortune [mIs "for tS@n] n bad
luck; bad fortune (Plural only for
types and instances.)
mishap ["mIs hAp] n an unlucky
event or accident; bad luck; an
unfortunate accident
misjudge [mIs "dZ^dZ] tv to make
the wrong judgment about
some-one or something
mislaid [mIs "led] past tense and
past participle ofmislay
mislay [mIs "le] tv., irreg to put
something in a location that is
later forgotten (Past tense and
past participle: mislaid.)
mismanage [mIs "mAn IdZ] tv to
manage someone or something
badly; to deal with someone or
something badly
misplace [mIs "ples] tv to put
something someplace and then
forget where it is
miss ["mIs] 1 tv to fail to hit,
catch, meet, or reach someone or
something 2 tv to fail to locate
or observe people or things that are where they are meant to be
3 tv to notice the absence of someone or something 4 tv to
feel sad about the loss, departure,
or absence of someone or some-thing 5 tv to avoid or escape something; to avoid doing
some-thing 6 tv to lack something; to
fail to acquire or experience
some-thing that is available 7 n a
fail-ure to hit, reach, catch, or do
something 8 n a polite form of
address for girls and young
women 9 n a title for a girl or
unmarried woman (Capitalized when written as a proper noun.)
miss out (on something) not to do
something because one is unaware
of the opportunity; to fail to or neglect to take part in something
miss (something) by a mile to fail
to hit something by a great dis-tance
miss the point to fail to
under-stand the point, purpose, or intent
of something
mission ["mI S@n] 1 n a journey to
a place to do an important task
2 n a specific task or duty; a
spe-cific aim or objective
→ one’smission in life
misspell [mIs "spEl] tv to spell
something wrongly
mist ["mIst] 1 n a light spray of
water or other liquid; a small cloud formed by spraying water or other liquid 2 tv to spray someone or something with water or other liq-uid; to cover something with Q or water vapor
mist over Go to mist up.
misconduct
362
Trang 8mist up and mist over [for
some-thing] to acquire a coating of mist
mistake [mI "stek] 1 n an error;
something that is wrong;
some-thing that is not correct 2 tv.,
irreg to have the wrong idea about
something (Past tense: mistook;
past participle: mistaken.)
mistake someone or something for
someone or something to think
that one thing or person is
another; to confuse one thing or
person with another
mistaken [mI "stek @n] Past
par-ticiple ofmistake
→ acase of mistaken identity
mister ["mIs t#] n a title for an
adult male; a form of address for
men (The abbreviation, Mr.,is
used in writing.)
mistook [mIs "tUk] past tense of
mistake
mistreat [mIs "trit] tv to treat
someone or something badly; to
abuse someone or something
mistrust [mIs "tr^st] 1 tv not to
trust someone or something; to
doubt someone or something
2 n lack of trust; doubts about
someone or something; distrust
(No plural.)
misty ["mIs ti] adj [of a surface]
covered with mist; [of air] filled
with mist (Adv: mistily Comp:
mistier; sup: mistiest.)
misunderstand [mIs @n d#
"stAnd] tv., irreg to understand
someone or something incorrectly
(Past tense and past participle:
mis-understood.)
misunderstood [mIs @n d# "stUd]
past tense and past participle of misunderstand.
misuse 1 [mIs "jus] n incorrect
use; improper use; using some-thing wrongly (No plural.)
2 [mIs "juz] tv to use something
the wrong way; to use something for a purpose for which it was not meant to be used
mitten ["mIt n] n a piece of
cloth-ing for one’s hand, without sepa-rate parts for each finger but with
a separate area for the thumb
mix ["mIks] 1 n a mixture; a
com-bination of different people or
things 2 n a combination of
dif-ferent foods that is ready to be
cooked or used in cooking 3 tv.
to combine or blend different things so that they form one thing
4 tv to do two things at the same time 5 iv to be friendly and
com-fortable with other people; to be with other people
→ have mixed feelings (about someone or something)
mix in (with someone or something) to mix or combine
with people or substances
mix someone or something in(to something) to combine someone
or something into something
mix someone up to confuse
some-one
mix someone up with someone to
confuse one person with another
mix something up (with something) 1 to mix or stir
some-thing with a mixing or stirring
device 2 to confuse something
with something else
mix something up (with something)
363
Trang 9mixed ["mIkst] 1 adj combined;
blended 2 adj [of the thoughts
or feelings that someone has about
someone or something]
combin-ing very different thcombin-ings, such as
liking and disliking 3 adj having
both males and females; for both
sexes
amixed bag a varied collection of
people or things
mixture ["mIks tS#] n a
combina-tion or blend of different people or
things
moan ["mon] 1 n a deep, long cry
of sadness, suffering, pain, or
grief 2 iv to make a deep, long
cry of sadness, suffering, pain, or
grief
mob ["mab] 1 n a large group of
people crowded around someone
or something 2 tv [for a large
group of people] to crowd around
someone or something
mobile 1 ["mob @l] adj able to
move easily; able to be moved
eas-ily; movable 2 ["mo bil] n a
hanging arrangement of balanced
objects that move with air
cur-rents (Refers to decorations,
works of art, or devices to
enter-tain infants.)
mock ["mak] 1 tv to make fun of
someone; to laugh at or ridicule
someone, especially by copying
how that person speaks or acts
2 tv to copy or imitate someone
or something 3 adj not real.
mockery ["mak @ ri] n something
that is a poor substitute for the
real thing or person
mockingbird ["mak IN b#d] n a
bird native to the Americas, so
called because it imitates the calls
or songs of other birds
mode ["mod] 1 n a way of doing
something; a method; a manner
2 n a feature of a verb that shows
whether it is a statement, com-mand, or wish; mood W
model ["mad l] 1 n a copy of an
object, usually made smaller than
the original 2 n someone or
something that is the perfect example of something; someone
or something that is to be copied
or imitated; a standard 3 n someone who is paid to wear and show off clothing that is available for sale 4 n someone who poses
for artists and photographers 5 n.
one style of a certain product in a
series of styles 6 adj perfect;
worthy of imitation; regarded as the perfect example (Prenominal only.) 7 adj built to a smaller scale than normal (Prenominal
only.) 8 iv to work as E or R.
9 tv [for E] to wear and show off
clothing
modem ["mod @m] n a device that
connects a computer with a tele-phone line or a television cable system so that information can be sent or received over that line
moderate 1 ["mad @ rIt] adj not
extreme; in the center; average or
medium (Adv: moderately.)
2 ["mad @ rIt] n someone whose
political or social views are not
extreme 3 ["mad @ ret] tv to
reduce something; to cause
some-thing to be less strong 4 ["mad @
ret] tv to lead a discussion; to lead
a meeting
mixed
364
Trang 10moderation [mad @ "re S@n] n.
being moderate; [doing things]
within reasonable limits (No
plural.)
modern ["mad #n] adj up-to-date;
new; of or about the present or
very recent time (Adv: modernly.)
modest ["mad Ist] 1 adj shy;
humble; not bragging about
one-self (Adv: modestly.) 2 adj not
excessive; moderate; not large
(Adv: modestly.) 3 adj decent; not
revealing too much of one’s body
(Adv: modestly.)
moist ["moIst] adj damp; a little bit
wet (Adv: moistly Comp: moister;
sup: moistest.)
moisten ["moI s@n] tv to make
something moist; to make
some-thing damp
moisture ["moIs tS#] n wetness;
water in the air; vapor (No
plural.)
molasses [m@ "lAs Iz] n a sweet,
dark, sticky liquid made in the
process of making sugar (This is
singular No plural.)
mold ["mold] 1 n a fuzzy or slimy
growth that forms on animal or
plant matter (Plural only for types
and instances.) 2 n a hollow
object that has a certain shape
(Certain liquids—such as clay,
resin, cement, rubber, etc.—are
poured into it, and when the liquid
hardens, it will have the same
shape as the mold.) 3 n
some-thing that was shaped by or made
in W 4 tv to shape something; to
form something into a certain
shape; to shape something using
W 5 iv to be covered with Q
→ cast in the same mold
mole ["mol] n a small, furry
mam-mal that lives underground, eats worms and bugs, and cannot see well
molecule ["mal @ kjul] n the
small-est part into which a chemical compound can be divided without changing its chemical composi-tion
molt ["molt] 1 tv [for an animal]
to shed feathers, skin, or fur 2 iv.
[for animals] to shed [something],
as with Q
molten ["molt n] adj melted; made
into liquid (Adv: moltenly.)
mom ["mam] n mother (Informal.
Also a term of address Capitalized when written as a proper noun.)
moment ["mo m@nt] 1 n an
instant in time; a brief period of
time 2 n a certain point in time.
→ thebig moment
→ every moment counts
→ not a moment to spare
→ on the spur of the moment
→ without a moment to spare
the moment everyone has been waiting for Go to thebig moment.
moment of truth the point at
which someone has to face the reality of a situation
momento [m@ "mEn to] Go to
memento.
momentum [mo "mEn t@m] n the
force and speed of movement or progress (No plural.)
monarch ["man ark] n a king or a
queen
Monday ["m^n de] Go to day.
Monday
365