| |
| gadfly |
n. fly that stings horses and cattle |
| gaffe |
n. social blunder; indiscreet act or remark |
| gainsay |
v. (arch ) (usu in negative sentences or questions ) contradict (sb/sth); deny (sth) |
| gait |
n. manner of walking or running |
| galaxy |
n. any of the large systems of stars in outer space |
| gale |
n. very strong wind storm (at sea) 8 |
| gall |
n. bitter liquid secreted by the liver; bile |
| galleon |
n. large Spanish sailing-ship used from the 15th to the 17th century 1517 |
| galley |
n. long flat ship, usu rowed by slaves or criminals; ancient Greek or Roman warship ; |
| gallows |
n. wooden framework on which criminals are put to death by hanging |
| galvanic |
adj. producing an electric current by chemical action |
| galvanize |
to stimulate or excite as if by an electric shock |
| gambit |
n. opening movein chess in which a player sacrifices a piece in order to win an advantage later |
| gambol |
v. (US also -l-) jump or skip about playfully |
| gamely |
adv: fight, struggle, etc gamely, ie bravely but perhaps unsuccessfully , |
| gamut |
n. the gamut complete range or scale |
| gangrene |
n. decay and death of body tissue when the blood supply has been stopped |
| gape |
v. ~ (often derog ) stare with an open mouth, usu in surprise |
| garbled |
adj. confusedor misleading |
| gargantuan |
adj. enormous; gigantic |
| gargoyle |
n. stone or metal spout in the form of a grotesque human or animal figure, for carrying rain-water away from the roof of a church, etc |
| garish |
adj. unpleasantly bright; over-coloured or over-decorated, esp in a vulgar way |
| garner |
v. ~ sth ~ sth (in/up) (fml ) collect sth in and (usu) store it |
| garnish |
v. ~ sth decorate (food for the table) with small additional amounts of food |
| garrulity |
garrulousness ns talkativeness |
| garrulous |
adj. talking too much, esp about unimportant things |
| gastronomy |
n. art and science of choosing, cooking and eating good food |
| gauche |
adj. socially awkward or clumsy |
| gaudy |
adj. (derog ) too bright and showy, esp in a vulgar way |
| gaunt |
adj. made exceptionally thin by hunger or illness; haggard |
| gavel |
n. small hammer used by an auctioneer or chairman as a signal for order or attention |
| gawk |
v. ~ (infml ) stare impolitely or stupidly; gawp |
| gazette |
n. official journal with public notices and lists of government, military, legal and university appointments |
| genealogy |
n. study of family history, showing who the ancestors of particular people were and how they were related to each other |
| generality |
n. general statement, esp one that is vague or indefinite |
| generate |
v. cause to exist or occur; produce |
| generic |
adj. shared by or including a whole group or class; not specific |
| genesis |
n. (fml) beginning; starting-point; origin |
| geniality |
n. quality of being genial |
| genre |
n. particular style or kind, esp of works of art or literature grouped according to their form or subject matter |
| genteel |
adj. polite or refined in an affected or exaggerated way |
| gentility |
n. genteel manners and behaviour; social superiority |
| gentle |
adj. mild; kind; careful; not rough, violent or severe |
| gentry |
n. people of good social position next below the nobility |
| genuflect |
v. bend the knee, esp in worship , |
| genus |
n. (biology ) group of animals or plants within a family(4), often itself subdivided into several species(1) |
| geriatrics |
n. branch of medicine dealing with the diseases and care of old people |
| germ |
n. portion of a living organism capable of becoming a new organism; embryo of a seed ; |
| germane |
adj. ~ (fml ) relevant |
| germinal |
adj. in the earliest stage of development |
| germinate |
v. start growing |
| gerontocracy |
government ruled by old people |
| gerontology |
n. scientific study of old age and the process of growing old |
| gerrymander |
v. arrange the boundaries of or divide (an area) for voting in order to give unfair advantages to one party in an election |
| gestate |
evolve; as in pre-natal growth |
| gesticulation |
n. gesticulating |
| ghastly |
adj. causing horror or fear |
| gibberish |
n. meaningless sounds; unintelligible talk; nonsense |
| gibe |
v. ~ (at sb/sth) jeer at or mock sb/sth; make fun of sb/sth |
| giddy |
adj. having the feeling that everything is turning round and that one is going to fall |
| gild |
v. cover with gold-leaf(3) or gold-coloured paint |
| gingerly |
adv. with great care and caution to avoid causing harm or making a noise |
| girth |
n. distance round sth of approximately cylindrical shape |
| gist |
n. the gist main point or general meaning |
| glacial |
adj. of the Ice Age |
| glamor |
[ glamour: ] charm and allure; fascination |
| glare |
n. strong unpleasant dazzling light |
| glaring |
adj. dazzling |
| glaze |
v. fit sheets or panes of glass into |
| gleam |
n. brief appearance of light |
| glean |
v. gather |
| glib |
adj. (derog ) speaking or spoken fluently and without hesitation, but not sincerely or trustworthily |
| glimmer |
v. send out a weak unsteady light |
| glitter |
v. ~ shine brightly with little sharp flashes of light; sparkle |
| gloat |
v. ~ express or feel selfish delight at one's own success or good fortune or sb else's failure |
| gloss |
n. brightness or shine on a smooth surface |
| glossary |
n. list of technical or special words explaining their meanings |
| glossy |
adj. smooth and shiny |
| glow |
v. send out light and heat withoutflame |
| glower |
v. ~ look in an angry or a threatening way |
| glut |
v. ~ sth (with sth) supply sth with much more than is needed |
| glutinous |
adj. of or like gluten; sticky |
| glutton |
n. person who eats too much |
| gnarl |
any knotty protuberance or swelling on a tree |
| gnarled |
adj. twisted and rough; covered with knobs |
| gnome |
dwarf; underground spirit |
| goad |
n. pointed stick for making cattle, etc move on |
| gobble |
v. ~ sth eat sth fast, noisily and greedily (leaving nothing behind) |
| gorge |
n. narrow steep-sided valley, usu with a stream or river |
| gory |
adj. (esp rhet ) covered with gore1 |
| gossamer |
n. fine silky substance of webs made by small spiders, floating in calm air or spread over grass, etc |
| gouge |
n. tool with a sharp semicircular edge for cutting grooves in wood |
| gourmand |
n. lover of food; glutton ; |
| gourmet |
n. person who enjoys and is expert in the choice of fine food, wines, etc |
| gracious |
adj. ~ (of persons and behaviour) kind, polite and generous (esp to sb who is socially inferior) |
| gradation |
n. gradual change from one thing to another |
| graduate |
n. ~ person who holds a degree (esp the first or bachelor's) from a university or polytechnic |
| graduated |
[ graduate: ] n. a person who has been awarded a first degree from a university or college |
| granary |
n. building where grain is stored |
| grandeur |
n. greatness; magnificence; impressiveness |
| grandiloquent |
adj. using or being a pompous style of speech, full of words which ordinary people do not understand |
| grandiose |
adj. planned on a large scale; (intended to seem) imposing |
| granulate |
v. form into grains or have a granular surface or texture |
| graphic |
adj. of visual symbols |
| graphite |
n. soft black substance used in making lead pencils, in lubrication, and for slowing down neutrons in atomic reactors |
| grapple |
v. ~ seize (an opponent) firmly and try to fight |
| grate |
n. fireplace |
| gratify |
v. (fml ) give pleasure or satisfaction to (sb) |
| gratis |
adv. without payment; free |
| gratuitous |
adj. done, given or acting unnecessarily, purposely and without good reason |
| gratuity |
n. money given to sb who has done one a service; tip ; |
| gravity |
n. force that attracts objects in space towards each other, and on the earth pulls them towards the centre of the planet, so that things fall to the ground when dropped |
| graze |
v. ~ (of cattle, sheep, etc) eat growing grass |
| gregarious |
adj. liking to be with other people |
| grievance |
n. ~ real or imagined cause for complaint or protest (used esp with the vs shown) |
| grill |
n. device on a cooker that directs heat downwards for cooking meat, toasting bread, etc |
| grim |
adj. very serious and unsmiling in appearance |
| grimace |
n. ugly twisted expression (on the face), expressing pain, disgust, etc or intended to cause laughter |
| grisly |
adj. causing horror or terror; ghastly |
| groom |
n. person in charge of horses |
| groove |
n. long narrow cut or depression in the surface of hard material |
| gross |
n. (esp commerce ) twelve dozen |
| grotesque |
adj. strangely distorted so as to arouse fear or laughter; fantastic |
| grotto |
n. cave, esp one made artificially as a garden shelter |
| grouch |
v. ~ (derog ) complain |
| grouse |
n. small dark bird of northern hilly areas, shot for sport and food |
| grovel |
v. (derog ) ~ (to/before sb) lie or crawl with the face downwards in a show of humility or fear |
| growl |
v. ~ (of animals or thunder) make a low threatening sound |
| grudge |
v. ~ sth feel resentful about sth; do or give sth very unwillingly |
| grudging |
adj. unwilling; reluctant |
| gruel |
n. simple dish made of oatmeal, etc boiled in milk or water |
| grueling |
exhausting |
| gruesome |
adj. filling one with horror or disgust; frightful |
| gruff |
adj. rough; surly |
| grumble |
v. ~ (about/at/over sth) complain or protest in a bad-tempered way |
| grunt |
v. (of animals, esp pigs) make a low rough sound from deep in the throat , |
| guffaw |
v. give a noisy laugh |
| guile |
n. deceit; cunning |
| guileless |
without deceit |
| guise |
n. style of dress |
| gull |
n. any of several types of large long-winged sea-bird with usu white and grey or black feathers . |
| gullible |
adj. willing to believe anything or anyone; easily deceived |
| gush |
v. ~ (from sth) flow or pour out suddenly in great quantities |
| gust |
n. sudden violent rush of wind |
| gustatory |
affecting the sense of taste |
| gusto |
n. enthusiastic vigour in doing sth |
| gusty |
adj. with wind blowing in gusts |
| guy |
n. rope or chain used to keep sth steady or secured, eg to hold a tent in place |
| gyroscope |
n. device containing a wheel which, when its spins fast, always maintains the same orientation regardless of any movement of the supporting structure, often used in ships' stabilizers |
