Index of Word Meanings
1.
bullwhip
/ˈbʊlwɪp/
North American
noun
noun: bullwhip; plural noun: bullwhips; noun: bull-whip; plural noun: bull-whips
a whip with a long heavy lash.
verb
verb: bullwhip; 3rd person present: bullwhips; past tense: bullwhipped; past participle: bullwhipped; gerund or present participle: bullwhipping; verb: bull-whip; 3rd person present: bull-whips; past tense: bull-whipped; past participle: bull-whipped; gerund or present participle: bull-whipping
strike or thrash with a bullwhip.
"he was suspected of bullwhipping a fellow to death"
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2.
vis-à-vis
/ˌviːzɑːˈviː,French vizavi/
preposition
preposition: vis-à-vis
in relation to; with regard to.
"many agencies now have a unit to deal with women's needs vis-à-vis employment"
as compared with; as opposed to.
"the advantage for US exports is the value of the dollar vis-à-vis other currencies"
adverbarchaic
adverb: vis-à-vis
in a position facing a specified or implied subject.
"he was there vis-à-vis with Miss Arundel"
noun
noun: vis-à-vis; plural noun: vis-à-vis
1.
a person or group occupying a corresponding position to that of another in a different sphere; a counterpart.
"his admiration for the US armed services extends to their vis-à-vis, the Russian military"
2.
a face-to-face meeting.
"the dreaded vis-à-vis with his boss"
Origin
mid 18th century: French, literally ‘face to face’, from Old French vis ‘face’.
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3.
rumbling
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noun
plural noun: rumblings
a continuous deep, resonant sound.
"the rumbling of wheels in the distance"
an early indication or rumour of dissatisfaction or incipient change.
"there are growing rumblings of discontent"
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4.
snafu
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informal•North American
noun
noun: snafu; plural noun: snafus
a confused or chaotic state; a mess.
"an enormous amount of my time was devoted to untangling snafus"
adjective
adjective: snafu
in utter confusion or chaos.
"our refrigeration plant is snafu"
verb
verb: snafu; 3rd person present: snafus; past tense: snafued; past participle: snafued; gerund or present participle: snafuing
throw (a situation) into chaos.
"you ignored his orders and snafued everything"
Origin
1940s: acronym from situation normal: all fouled (or fucked ) up .
SNAFU is an acronym that is widely used to stand for the sarcastic expression Situation normal: all fucked up. It is a well-known example of military acronym slang. It is sometimes bowdlerized to "all fouled up" or similar. It means that the situation is bad, but that this is a normal state of affairs.
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5.
loom1
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noun
plural noun: looms
an apparatus for making fabric by weaving yarn or thread.
Origin
Old English gelōma ‘tool’, shortened to lome in Middle English.
loom2
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verb
3rd person present: looms
appear as a vague form, especially one that is large or threatening.
"vehicles loomed out of the darkness"
h
Similar:
emerge
appear
become visible
come into view
take shape
materialize
reveal itself
appear indistinctly
come to light
take on a threatening shape
(of an event regarded as threatening) seem about to happen.
"there is a crisis looming"
h
Similar:
be imminent
be on the horizon
impend
be impending
be close
be ominously close
threaten
be threatening
menace
brew
be just around the corner
Origin
mid 16th century: probably from Low German or Dutch; compare with East Frisian lōmen ‘move slowly’, Middle High German lüemen ‘be weary’.
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6.
farcical
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adjective
adjective: farcical
relating to or resembling farce, especially because of absurd or ridiculous aspects.
"he considered the whole idea farcical"
h
Similar:
ridiculous
preposterous
ludicrous
absurd
laughable
risible
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7.
prowess
distinguished bravery
: distinguished bravery. especially : military valor and skill. : extraordinary ability.17-Nov-2022
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8.
chiding
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adjective
adjective: chiding
full of rebuke; critical.
"a chiding rebuttal"
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9.
dolt
stupid person
/ (dəʊlt) / noun. a slow-witted or stupid person.
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10.
rampant
/ˈramp(ə)nt/
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adjective
adjective: rampant
1.
(especially of something unwelcome) flourishing or spreading unchecked.
"political violence was rampant"
h
Similar:
uncontrolled
unrestrained
unchecked
unbridled
widespread
pandemic
epidemic
pervasive
out of control
out of hand
rife
spreading like wildfire
h
Opposite:
controlled
under control
unrestrained in action or performance.
"rampant sex"
h
Similar:
vehement
strong
violent
forceful
raging
wild
intense
fanatical
passionate
h
Opposite:
mild
(of a plant) lush in growth; luxuriant.
"a rich soil soon becomes home to rampant weeds"
h
Similar:
luxuriant
exuberant
lush
rank
rich
riotous
profuse
lavish
vigorous
productive
jungly
2.
Heraldry
(of an animal) represented standing on one hind foot with its forefeet in the air (typically in profile, facing the dexter side, with right hind foot and tail raised).
"two gold lions rampant"
h
Similar:
upright
standing (up)
erect
rearing
vertical
perpendicular
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11.
yearning
/ˈjəːnɪŋ/
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noun
noun: yearning; plural noun: yearnings
a feeling of intense longing for something.
"he felt a yearning for the mountains"
h
Similar:
longing
pining
craving
desire
want
wish
hankering
urge
need
hunger
hungering
thirst
appetite
greed
lust
ache
burning
fancy
inclination
eagerness
fervour
yen
itch
cacoethes
adjective
adjective: yearning
involving or expressing yearning.
"a yearning hope"
yearn
/jəːn/
Learn to pronounce
verb
gerund or present participle: yearning
have an intense feeling of longing for something, typically something that one has lost or been separated from.
"she yearned for a glimpse of him"
h
Similar:
long
pine
crave
desire
want
want badly
wish
have/feel a longing
covet
lust
pant
hunger
thirst
ache
be aching
itch
be itching
hanker after
dream of
fancy
have one's heart set on
be bent on
eat one's heart out over
have a yen
yen
be dying
be athirst for
be desirous
suspire for
archaic
be filled with compassion or warm feeling.
"no fellow spirit yearned towards her"
Origin
Old English giernan, from a Germanic base meaning ‘eager’.
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12.
bugle1
/ˈbjuːɡ(ə)l/
See definitions in:
all
instrument
plant
fashion
noun
noun: bugle; plural noun: bugles; noun: bugle-horn; plural noun: bugle-horns
a brass instrument like a small trumpet, typically without valves or keys and used for military signals.
"the bugle sounded the charge"
verb
verb: bugle; 3rd person present: bugles; past tense: bugled; past participle: bugled; gerund or present participle: bugling
sound a bugle.
sound (a note or call) on a bugle.
"he bugled a warning"
Origin
Middle English: via Old French from Latin buculus, diminutive of bos ‘ox’. The early English sense was ‘wild ox’, hence the compound bugle-horn, denoting the horn of an ox used to give signals, originally in hunting.
bugle2
/ˈbjuːɡ(ə)l/
noun: bugle; plural noun: bugles; noun: bugleweed; plural noun: bugleweeds
a creeping Eurasian plant of the mint family, with blue flowers held on upright stems.
Origin
Middle English: from late Latin bugula .
bugle3
/ˈbjuːɡ(ə)l/
noun: bugle; plural noun: bugles
an ornamental tube-shaped glass or plastic bead sewn on to clothing.
Origin
late 16th century: of unknown origin.
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13.
enmesh
/ɪnˈmɛʃ,ɛnˈmɛʃ/
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verb
past tense: enmeshed; past participle: enmeshed
cause to become entangled in something.
"whales enmeshed in drift nets"
h
Similar:
entangle
ensnare
snare
trap
entrap
ensnarl
embroil
involve
catch up
mix up
bog down
mire
trammel
involve (someone) in a difficult situation from which it is hard to escape.
"he is enmeshed in an adulterous affair"
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14.
quintuplet
/ˈkwɪntjʊˌplɪt,kwɪnˈtjuːplɪt/
Learn to pronounce
noun
plural noun: quintuplets
1.
each of five children born at one birth.
2.
Music
a group of five notes to be performed in the time of three or four.
Origin
late 19th century: from quintuple, on the pattern of words such as triplet .
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15.
chump
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noun
noun: chump; plural noun: chumps
1.
informal
a foolish or easily deceived person.
"I was left feeling a bit of a chump"
2.
British
the thick end of something, especially a loin of lamb or mutton.
Phrases
off one's chump — mad.
"I was beginning to think he'd gone off his chump"
Origin
early 18th century (in the sense ‘thick lump of wood’): probably a blend of chunk1 and lump1 or stump.
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16.
shorthand
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noun
noun: shorthand; plural noun: shorthands; noun: short-hand; plural noun: short-hands
a method of rapid writing by means of abbreviations and symbols, used especially for taking dictation. The major systems of shorthand currently in use are those devised in 1837 by Sir Isaac Pitman and (in the US) in 1888 by John R. Gregg (1867–1948).
"he took notes in shorthand"
a short and simple way of expressing or referring to something.
"poetry for him is simply a shorthand for literature that has aesthetic value"
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17.
misconstrue
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verb
verb: misconstrue; 3rd person present: misconstrues; past tense: misconstrued; past participle: misconstrued; gerund or present participle: misconstruing
interpret (a person's words or actions) wrongly.
"my advice was deliberately misconstrued"
Similar:
misunderstand
misinterpret
put a wrong interpretation on
misconceive
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18.
fender bender
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nouninformal•North American
noun: fender bender; plural noun: fender benders
a minor collision between motor vehicles.
"he was involved in a fender bender while driving without a license"
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19.
bricks and mortar
phrase of brick
buildings, typically housing.
"untold acres are being buried under bricks and mortar"
a house considered in terms of its value as an investment.
"a simple re-mortgage can release the value tied up in your bricks and mortar"
used to denote a business that operates conventionally rather than (or as well as) over the internet.
"the bricks-and-mortar banks"
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20.
sordid
adjective: sordid
1.
involving immoral or dishonourable actions and motives; arousing moral distaste and contempt.
"the story paints a sordid picture of bribes and scams"
h
Similar:
sleazy
seedy
seamy
unsavoury
shoddy
vile
foul
tawdry
louche
cheap
base
low
low-minded
debased
degenerate
corrupt
dishonest
dishonourable
disreputable
despicable
discreditable
contemptible
ignominious
ignoble
shameful
wretched
abhorrent
abominable
disgusting
sleazoid
h
Opposite:
high-minded
respectable
2.
dirty or squalid.
"the overcrowded housing conditions were sordid and degrading"
Similar:
dirty
filthy
mucky
grimy
muddy
grubby
shabby
messy
soiled
stained
smeared
smeary
scummy
slimy
sticky
sooty
dusty
unclean
foul
squalid
flea-bitten
slummy
cruddy
grungy
yucky
icky
crummy
scuzzy
manky
gungy
grotty
bogging
scungy
besmirched
Opposite:
immaculate
Origin
late Middle English (as a medical term in the sense ‘purulent’): from French sordide or Latin sordidus, from sordere ‘be dirty’. The current senses date from the early 17th century.
Tip
Similar-sounding words
sordid is sometimes confused with sorted
