Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language [antikvár]

FOREWORD The lexicographical stiifT of ll'fts/c/ 's New World Dictionaries wit out in thin Modom Desk Edition to compile a reference work tliat would he, as its title sug^ests, an up-to-date vohinie containing much information in brief form. My carefully selecting entry words and meanings from the fuller College lOdition and Concise lOdition of Webster's Neio World Dictionary, the staff has succeeded in preparing a reference tool that will enable the user to find (luickly and easily the answers to most of the questions about words and language usage that he might put to it. This dictionary will adequately serve the needs of those who do not require the extended word stock and more elaborate apparatus of the parent editions, but it will also serve as a most useful portable auxiliary volume for those who already own one of the larger dictionaries. Among the more than 70,000 vocabulary entries in this dictionary will be found all the common terms of basic vocabulary. In addition, there are included here a considerable number of speciaUzed terms in the arts and sciences, chosen on the basis of their frequent appearance in newspapers, magazines, and popular books of fiction and nonfiction. An indication of the up-to-the-minute attention that was devoted to the selection of the vocabulary is the inclusion of such new, topical terms as astronaut, cosmonaut, hertz, luau, psychedelic, sit-in, and video tape, and of recently acquired meanings for older terms, such as escalóle, format, live, and satellite. A selection of proper names has also been entered in a single alphabetical Usting with the general vocabulary. The geographical entries include all autonomous countries, with area and latest reUable population figures, major cities of the world, all cities of the United States with over 100,000 population according to the 1960 census, all fifty States and the capitals of all States, and the most important bodies of water, mountains, and the like. Biographical listings for a number of important persons and entries for well-known characters in literature and mythology are also included. In the single alphabetical listing of the text proper will be found, too, the most common abbreviations in general use. The liberal inclusion of prefixes, suffixes, and combining forms will enable the reader to determine the meanings of thousands of additional words that are in themselves too specialized for entry in this work. To keep this edition as compact as possible, common derivatives, such as nouns ending in -ness, -er, or -tion, adjectives ending in -like or -less, and adverbs ending in -ly, have been run in at the end of the entry for the base word. Such derivatives are divided into syllables and repronounced where necessary, and any irregular plurals, principal parts, and comparisons that may exist for these forms are also given. The definitions in this dictionary have been kept as brief as is consistent with accuracy and clarity. All important distinct meanings have been dealt with individually, and all parts of speech are clearly identified. Illustrative phrases have been added to many definitions to help illuminate the meanings. Idiomatic expressions, those phrases that mean more than the sums of their individual words, have been entered in considerable number following the key word of the phrase. Levels of usage are carefully noted, and where controversy exists about the acceptability of a usage, this fact has been noted as well. The pronunciations recorded here are those of General American, the speech of the great majority of the inhabitants of the United States. Variant pronunciations, often in shortened form, have been included, as space has allowed. A detailed explanation of the pronunciation key and system will be found on pages vii-ix. The pronunciation key in briefer form has been printed on every right-hand page as a further convenience i