The English language is growing, accelerated by the Internet, e-commerce, and global business.Each day, around the world, students, teachers, business people, and consumers are confronted with new words and terms.The need for an up-to-date guide to this dynamic language has never been greater.The first entirely new college dictionary to be published in three decades, the Microsoft Encarta(r) College Dictionary is compiled from a revolutionary computer database of English as it is spoken around the world.It is also the only college dictionary to go straight to the college professors who are helping the current generation of students to use English to discover what today's students really need.This College Advisory Board of university teachers of English has supplied first-hand information on the areas of language that cause their students most difficulties. The Dictionary addresses the specific issues they raise with a range of innovative features including:* Quick Encyclopedic Facts: short digests of key concepts in the arts and sciences * Literary Links: notes on major works of literature * Internet Guide: how to use the Web effectively as a tool for research * Spellchecks: warnings about spelling mistakes ignored by spellcheckers * Usage Notes covering the most common student problems with spelling,grammar, punctuation, and style * commonly misspelled words - clearly flagged as errors - entered at the place where they will be looked up by the user * comprehensive coverage of high-technology, scientific, and business terms * over 700 tables, illustrations, maps, and photos * Clear, accessible definition style and a unique Quick Definition system, with brief definitions in bold, enables the reader to quickly pick out the appropriate meaning.With these features, Microsoft(r) Encarta(r)College Dictionary provides distinct advantages over traditional dictionaries: it contains the word base and innovative features that can truly meet the higher literacy demands, online research, and up-to-the-minute needs of academic life in the third millennium.Microsoft(r) Encarta(r)College Dictionary is the reference work of choice for today--and tomorrow's-- world.

Chapter One

Aa

AA abbr 1 air-to-air 2 Alcoholics Anonymous 3 achievement age

A.A. abbr 1 antiaircraft 2 Associate of Arts

AAA abbr American Automobile Association

AAAL abbr American Academy of Arts and Letters

AAAS abbr American Association for the Advancement of Science

?? AAA serv•er n a computer file server that provides authentication, authorization, and accounting security functions

AAF abbr Army Air Forces

aah /aa/ interj EXPRESSING EMOTION used to express surprise, pleasure, satisfaction, or sympathy (informal) * vi SAY "AAH" to say "aah" (informal) [right arrow] ooh v. * n UTTERANCE OF "AAH" an exclamation of "aah" (informal) [Lengthened form of AH]

AAM abbr air-to-air missile

?? AAMOF abbr as a matter of fact (in e-mails)

?? AAMOI abbr as a matter of interest (in e-mails)

A & M abbr Agricultural and Mechanical

A & R abbr artists and repertoire

aard•vark /aard vaark/ n a burrowing mammal with a long snout, powerful claws, long tongue, and heavy tail. Native to: southern Africa. Orycteropus afer. [Late 18C. < Afrikaans, "earth pig."]

aard•wolf /aard woolf/ (plural -wolves /-vz/) n a striped nocturnal mammal related to the hyena that feeds mainly on termites. Native to: southern Africa. Proteles cristatus. [Mid-19C. < Afrikaans, "earth wolf."

Aar•hus = Århus

Aar•on /áiren/ n in the Bible, the first Jewish high priest and elder brother of Moses

Aar•on /áiren/, Hank ( b. 1934) US baseball player. Full name Henry Louis Aaron

Aar•on's beard n PLANTS = rose of Sharon n. 1 [After Aaron, who had a long beard (Psalms 133:2), because of the flower's prominent hairy stamens

Aar•on's rod n a tall smooth-stemmed plant. Flowers: yellow. Native to: Asia, Europe, North America. [After the rod bearing the name Aaron, said to have flowered (Numbers 17:8)

AARP abbr American Association of Retired Persons

A.A.S. abbr 1 American Academy of Sciences 2 Associate in Applied Sciences

AAU abbr Amateur Athletic Union

AAUP abbr American Association of University Professors

AAVE abbr African American Vernacular English

Ab n CALENDAR, JUDAISM = Av

[AB ¹ ] abbr Alberta

AB² n a human blood type of the ABO group, containing the A and B antigens

a.b. abbr at bat

A.B. abbr Bachelor of Arts

ab- prefix away from, off ?? aboral [< Latin, < Indo-European, "off, away"

a•ba /e baa, a-/ n 1 a cloth made in Syria using hair from goats or camels 2 a loose sleeveless outer garment worn by boys and men in the Middle East [Early 19C. < Arabic 'aba .

ABA abbr 1 American Basketball Association 2 ABA, A.B.A. American Bar Association 3 American Booksellers Association

ab•a•ca /àbbe káa, ábbeke/ n 1 INDUST = Manila hemp 2 a large plant from whose leaves Manila hemp is produced. Musa textilis. [Mid-18C. Via Spanish < Tagalog abaká .

ab•a•ci plural of abacus

a•back /a bák/ adv 1 with the wind blowing against the forward part of a sari or sails, so that a vessel cannot move ahead 2 backward or toward the back (archaic) [Old English on bæc "toward the back, backward"] ?? take somebody aback to surprise somebody and make him or her unsure how to react

ab•a•cus /ábbakess/ ( plural -cus•es or -ci /-si, -ki/) n 1 a mechanical device for making calculations consisting of a frame mounted with rods along which beads or balls are moved 2 a flat slab at the top of an architectural column [14C. Via Latin < Greek abakos "board strewn with dust on which to draw or write" (later "slab, table").

A•ba•dan /aabe daan, àbbe dan/, A•ba•dan city in SW Iran. Population: 40,000 (1996).

a•baft /a báft/ adv toward the rear of a ship or boat * prep to the rear of an area on a ship or boat [14C. < Old English an + be (see [BY ¹ ]) + æften "behind."

A•ba•kan /aabe kaan/ city and administrative center of the autonomous republic of Khakassa in NE Russia. Population: 158,200 (1992 est.).

ab•a•lo•ne /abba lonee/ n an edible sea mollusk that breathes through holes in its ear-shaped shell. Genus: Haliotis . [Mid-19C. Via American Spanish abulón < Shoshonean aulun .

ab•am•pare /ab ám peer/ n the centimeter-gram-second unit of electromagnetic current equal to ten amperes

a•ban•don /e banden/ v 1 vt LEAVE SOMEBODY BEHIND to leave somebody or something behind for others to look after, especially somebody or something meant to be a personal responsibility ?? pets abandoned by their owners 2 vt LEAVE A PLACE BECAUSE OF DANGER to leave a place or vehicle, especially for reasons of safety and without intending to return soon ?? Drivers caught in the snowstorm had to abandon their vehicles. 3 vt RENOUNCE to renounce or reject something previously done or used ?? The practice was abandoned long ago. 4 vt GIVE UP CONTROL OF to surrender control of something completely to somebody else ?? As troops closed in the town was abandoned to its fate. 5 vt HALT SOMETHING IN PROGRESS to stop doing something before it is completed, usually because of difficulty or danger 6 vt GIVE UP TO INSURER to surrender part of au insured property to the insurer in order to make a claim for total loss 7 vr GIVE IN TO EMOTION to give yourself over to a powerful emotion ?? He abandoned himself to his grief. * n LACK OF RESTRAINT complete lack of inhibition or self-restraint [14C. < Old French abandoner < abandon "under control" < Latin bannum "proclamation" Originally "bring under control."] --a•ban•don•ment n

a•ban•doned /e bándend/ adj 1 EMPTY left empty because of not being used or lived in anymore 2 ALONE left alone without being cared for or supported 3 UNRESTRAINED without restraint or self-control

a•base /e báyss/ ( a•based, a•bas•ing, a•bas•es ) vt to make somebody feel belittled or degraded [14C. < Old French abaissier < baissier "to lower" < Latin bassus "short of stature."] --a•base•ment n ?? abase yourself to behave in a way that lowers your sense of dignity

a•bash /a básh/ vt to make somebody feel ashamed, embarrassed, or uncomfortable [14C. < Anglo-Norman abaïss- < Old French baïr "astound."] --a•bash•ed•ly /e báshadlee/ adv --a•bash•ment n

a•bate /e bayt/ ( a•bat•ed, a•bat•ing, a•bates ) v 1 vti BECOME LESS to lessen or make something lessen gradually (formal or literary) 2 vti END to suppress or end a nuisance, act, or writ 3 vt REDUCE to lower the amount or rate of something such as a tax (formal) [13C. < Old French abatre "beat down" < Latin batt(u)ere "fight, beat."] -- a•bate•ment n

ab•a•tis /ábba tee, ábbetiss, a báttiss/ ( plural -tis /abbe teez/ or -tis•es /ábbetissez, a báttissez/) n a rampart made of felled trees placed so that their bent or sharpened branches face out toward the enemy [Mid-18C. < French < Old French abatre "beat down, fell" (see ABATE).

ab•at•toir /ábbe twaar, -twaar/ n a place where animals are slaughtered for their meat and by-products [Early 19C. < French. < abattre "fell" < Old French abatre (see ABATE).

ab•ax•i•al /ab áksee el/ adj describes the underside of a leaf or other surface that faces away from the stem. ?? adaxial

Ab•ba /ábbe/ n 1 a name used to address God in the Bible 2 a title given to bishops and patriarchs in the Syrian Orthodox and Coptic Churches [14C. Via ecclesiastical Latin and New Testament Greek < Aramaic 'abba "father."

ab•ba•cy /ábbessee/ ( plural -cies ) n the rank, jurisdiction, or term of office of an abbot or abbess [15C. < ecclesiastical Latin abbacia < abbat- (see ABBOT).

Ab•ba•do /a baado/, Claudio ( b. 1933) Italian conductor

Ab•bas /abbess/ (566?-653) Arabian merchant

Ab•bas 1 (1571-1629) shah of Persia (1588-1629). Known as Abbas the Great

Ab•ba•sid /a bássid, ábbe sìd/ n a member of a dynasty that ruled an Islamic empire from Baghdad from 750 to 1258 -- Ab•ba•sid adj

ab•ba•tial /e báysh'l/ adj relating to an abbey, abbot, or abbess [Late 17C. < French, or < medieval Latin abatialis , both < ecclesiastical Latin abbat- (see ABBOT).] <s>abbatoir</s> incorrect spelling of abattoir

ab•bé /á bay/ n an abbot or member of a religious order in a French-speaking area [Mid-16C. Via French < ecclesiastical Latin abbat- (see ABBOT).

ab•bess /ábbess/ n the nun in charge of a convent [13C. < Old French abbesse < ecclesiastical Latin abbat- (see ABBOT).

Ab•be•ville /ábbe vïl, -veel/ city in SW Louisiana. Population: 11,402 (1998 estimate).

Ab•be•vil•le•an /ab víllee en, àbbe-/ adj relating to or typical of early Lower Paleolithic culture in Europe [Mid-20C. < French Abbevillien , after the town of Abbeville in N France, where artifacts from this period were discovered.

ab•bey /abbee/ ( plural -beys ) n 1 a building or buildings occupied by monks under an abbot, or nuns under an abbess, especially the church building 2 a church that is or was used by a community of monks or nuns [13C. < Old French ab(b)eïe < ecclesiastical Latin abbat- (see ABBOT).

Ab•bey /ábbee/, Edwin Austin (1852-1911) US painter and illustrator

ab•bot /ábbet/ n the monk in charge of a monastery [Pre-

12C. Via ecclesiastical Latin abbat- , stem of abbas < Aramaic

'abba "father."] -- ab•bot•ship n

Ab•bott /ábbet/, Berenice (1898-1991) US photographer

Ab•bott, George Francis (1887-1995) US playwright, producer, and director

Ab•bott, Sir John (1821-93) Canadian politician

abbr., abbrev. abbr abbreviation

ab•bre•vi•ate /e breevee ayt/ ( -at•ed, -at•ing, -ates ) vt 1 to shorten a word by leaving out some of its letters or sounds 2 to shorten a piece of text by cutting sections or paraphrasing it [15C. < Latin abbreviat- , past participle of abbreviate "shorten" < brevis "short."] -- ab•bre•vi•a•tor n

ab•bre•vi•a•tion /e breevee áysh'n/ n 1 a shortened form of a word or phrase 2 the shortening of a word or phrase to be used to represent the full form

LANGUAGE NOTE Types of abbreviations : There are four main kinds of abbreviations: shortenings, contractions, initialisms, and acronyms. 1 Shortenings of words usually consist of the first few letters of the full form and are usually spelled with a final period when they are still regarded as abbreviations, for example, cont. = continued, etc. = et cetera. They may consist of the stressed syllable, e.g., bus or gym . In the cases when they form words in their own right, the period is omitted, for example, hippo = hippopotamus, limo = limousine. Such shortenings are often but not always informal. Some become the standard forms, and the full forms are then regarded as formal or technical, for example, bus = omnibus, taxi = taxicab, deli = delicatessen, zoo = zoological garden. Sometimes shortenings are altered to facilitate their pronunciation or spelling: bike = bicycle. 2 Contractions are abbreviated forms in which letters from the middle of the full form have been omitted, for example, Dr. = doctor, St. = saint or street. Such forms are invariably followed by a period. Another kind of contraction is the type with an apostrophe marking the omission of letters: can't = cannot, didn't = did not, you've = you have. 3 Initialisms are made up of the initial letters of words and are pronounced as separate letters: CIA (or C.I.A. ), NYC, pm (or p.m. ), U.S. (or US ). Practice varies with regard to periods, with current usage increasingly in favor of omitting them, especially when the initialism consists entirely of capital letters. 4 Acronyms are initialisms that have become words in their own right or words farmed from parts of several words. They are pronounced as words rather than as a series of letters, for example, AIDS, laser, scuba, UNESCO , and do not have periods, In many cases the acronym becomes the standard term and the full form is only used in explanatory contexts.

[ABC ¹ ] n UK 1 = ABCs npl. 1 2 = ABCs npl. s ?? as easy as ABC extremely easy

ABC² abbr 1 American Broadcasting Company 2 atomic, biological, and chemical 3 Advanced Booking Charter

ab•cou•lomb /ab koo lom, -koolom/ n the centimeter-gram-second unit of electrical charge equal to ten coulombs

ABCs npl 1 the alphabet, especially in referring to the basic aspects of reading and writing 2 the basic facts or essential parts of a subject

ABD n a doctoral candidate who has completed all requirements for a degree except the submission of a completed thesis. Full form all but dissertation

Abd al-Ha•mid /àb daal hámmid/ = Abdul Harold II

Abd Al•lah /aab daala/ (1846-99) Sudanese nationalist resistance leader

ab•di•cate /ábdi kàyt/ ( -cat•ed, -cat•ing, -cates ) v 1 vti to give up a high office formally or officially, especially the throne 2 vt to fail to fulfill a duty or responsibility ?? The company seems to have abdicated all responsibility in this matter. [Mid-16C. < Latin abdicat- , past participle of abdicare "renounce" < dicare "proclaim."] --ab•di•ca•tion /àbdi káysh'n/ n -- ab•di•ca•tor n

ab•do•men /ábbdemen/ n 1 BODY SECTION CONTAINING STOMACH the part of the body of a vertebrate that contains the stomach, intestines, and other organs 2 BELLY the surface of the body of a vertebrate around the stomach 3 REAR PART OF INSECT the elongated portion of the body of an arthropod, located behind the thorax [Mid-16C. < Latin.] -- ab•dom•i•nal /ab dómmin/ adj -- ab•dom•i•nal•ly adv

ab•du•cens nerve /àb dooss'nz-, àb dyooss'nz-/, ab•duc•ent nerve / ab dooss'nt-, ab dyooss'nt-/ n a nerve conveying impulses from the brain to the muscle that moves the eye laterally in its socket [ Abducens < modern Latin, "leading out" < present participle of abducere {see ABDUCT)

ab•duct /ab dúkt/ vt 1 to take somebody away by force or deception 2 to pull something, e.g., a muscle, away from the midpoint or midline of the body or of a limb. [right arrow] adduct v. [Early 17C. < Latin abduct- , past participle of abducere "lead out" < ducere "lead."] -- ab•duc•tion n

ab•duc•tor /ab dúkter/ n 1 somebody who takes somebody else away by force or deception 2 a muscle that pulls the body or a limb away from a midpoint or midline

Ab•dul Ha•mid II /àb dool hámmid/, Abd al-Ha•mid (1842-1918) Ottoman sultan

Ab•dul-Jab•bar /eb dool ja baar/, Kareem ( b. 1947) US basketball player. Born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr.

Ab•dul•lah II /eb dúlle/ ( b. 1962) king of Jordan (1999-)

Ab•dul•lah ibn Hu•sein /aab doo laa ìb'n hoo sáyn/ (1882-1951) king of Jordan (1921-51)

Ab•dul Rah•man /ab dool raamen/, Tunku (1903-90) Malayan politician

a•beam /e beem/ adv to or at the side of a ship, boat, or aircraft, especially at right angles to its length

a•be•ce•dar•i•an /ày bee see dáiree en/ n somebody learning the basics of literacy or a subject [Early 17C. < medieval Latin abecedarium "book containing the alphabet" < the names of the first four letters of the alphabet.

a•bed /e béd/ adv in or confined to bed (archaic)

A•bed•ne•go /e bédna go/ n in the Bible, one of Daniel's companions thrown into Nebuchadnezzar's furnace (Daniel 3:12-20)

A-bel /áyb'l/ n in the Bible, the second son of Adam and Eve, who was killed by his brother Cain (Genesis 4)

Ab•e•lard /abba laard, aaabe laar/, Peter (1079-1142) French philosopher and theologian

a•be•li•a /e beelee e/ n a widespread bush. Flowers: white, pink, purple, tubular. Native to: E Asia. Genus: Abelia. [Mid-19C. < modern Latin, after the English botanist Clarke Abel {I780-I826).

A•be•lian group /a beelyen-/ n an algebraic group in which the result of the operation is independent of the sequence of the operands, e.g., ab = ba or a+b = b+a [Mid-19C. After the Norwegian mathematician Niels Abel (1802-29).

Ab•e•na•ki /aaba naakee, àbbe nákee/ ( plural -ki or -kis ), Ab•na•ki /aab naakee, àb nákee/ ( plural -ki or -kis ) n a member of a Native North American people who once lived throughout New England and SE Canada, but who now live in Maine and S Quebec [Early 18C. Via French Abénaqui < Montagnais ouabanakionek "people of the eastern country."} --Ab•e•na•ki adj

?? ABEND /áb ènd/ n 1 ABEND, ab•end a sudden failure of a computer program. Full form abnormal end 2 used in the subject line of e-mails to warn correspondents of an imminent loss of Internet access. Full form absent by enforced Net deprivation

A•be•o•ku•ta /àybee o koola/ port in SW Nigeria. Population: 367,900 (1990 est.).

Ab•er•deen /ábbar deen, abber deen/ 1 port in W Washington. Population: 16,598 (1996). 2 city in NE South Dakota. Population: 24,865 (1998 estimate). 3 city northeast of Baltimore, Maryland. Population: 13,278 (1998 estimate). 4 port and industrial center in NE Scotland. Population: 227,430 (1996 estimate). --Ab•er•don•i•an /àbber donee en/ n, adj

Ab•er•deen An•gus ( plural Ab•er•deen An•gus or Ab•er•deen An•gus•es ) n AGRIC = [Angus ¹ ] [Mid-19C. After Aberdeenshire and Angus , counties in Scotland where the breed originated.

Ab•er•deen•shire /ábber deen sheer, àbber deer-/ Scottish administrative county. Area: 1,971 sq. mi./5,103 sq. km.

Ab•er•nath•y /ábbar nàthee/, Ralph David (1926-90) US civil rights leader

ab•er•rant /e bérrent/ adj deviating from what is normal or desirable [Mid-16C. < Latin aberrant- , present participle of aberrare (see ASERRATION),] --ab•er•rance n -- ab•er•rant-ly adv

ab•er•ra•tion /àbba ráysh'n/ n 1 DEVIATION a departure from what is normal or desirable 2 LAPSE a temporary departure from somebody's normal mental state 3 OPTICAL DEFECT a defect in a lens or mirror, causing a distorted image or one with colored edges 4 APPARENT DISPLACEMENT IN STAR'S POSITION a small periodic change in the apparent position of a star or other astronomical object, caused by the motion of the Earth around the Sun [Late 16C. < Latin aberration- < aberrare "go astray" < errare "wander, err."] --ab•er•ra•tion•al adj

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Microsoft Encarta College Dictionary by . Copyright © 2001 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

by . Copyright © 2001 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.