devotion
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de·vo·tion /dɪˈvəʊʃən/ n [U(to)] 1 great fondness or loy-
alty 2 the act of devoting or the condition of being devoted
to something 3 attention to religion; devoutness (DEVOUT) →
see also DEVOTIONS
de·vo·tion·al /dɪˈvəʊʃənəl/ adj about or used in religious
devotions: devotional literature
de·vo·tions /dɪˈvəʊʃənz/ n [P] religious acts, especially
prayers
de·vour /dɪˈvaʊər/ v [T] 1 to eat hungrily and in large
quantities, so that nothing remains: The lion devoured the
deer. | (fig.) She devoured the new book. 2 [usually pass.] (of a
feeling) to possess (a person); completely take up the atten-
tion of: He was devoured by hatred/jealousy.
de·vout /dɪˈvaʊt/ adj 1 (of people) seriously concerned with
religion; PIOUS: a devout Hindu/Catholic 2 [A] felt very
deeply; sincere: It is my devout hope that he will never come
back. —ly adv —ness n [U]
dew /djuːduː/ n [U] the small drops of water which form on
cold surfaces during the night
dew·drop /ˈdjuːdrɒp‖ˈduːdrɑːp/ n a drop of dew, or some-
thing that looks like one
Dew·ey dec·i·mal sys·tem, the /ˌdjuːi ˈdesɪməl
ˌsɪstəm‖ˌduːi-/ also the Dewey Decimal
Classification a system used by libraries for putting
books into groups according to their subject. General subjects
(for example, English literature) are given a number, and then
particular parts of this subject (for example, Jane AUSTEN'S
novels) are each given a more specific number using DECI-
MAL numbers. The system was invented by Melvil Dewey
(1851-1931), a US LIBRARIAN.
dew·lap /ˈdjuːlæp‖ˈduː-/ n a hanging fold of loose skin
under the throat of a cow, dog etc
dew·pond /ˈdjuːpɒnd‖ˈduːpɑnd/ n especially BrE a small hol-
low, usually man-made, in which dew collects
dew·y /ˈdjui‖ˈduːi/ adj wet with, or as if with, dew —ily adv
—iness n [U]
dewy-eyed adj 1 having eyes that are slightly wet with
tears 2 too willing to believe and trust because of inexperi-
ence
dex·ter·i·ty /dekˈsterɪti/ n [U] apprec quick cleverness and
skill, especially in the use of the hands: the dexterity with
which he plays the piano
dex·ter·ous /ˈdekstərəs/ also dex·trous /ˈdekstrəs/ adj
apprec having dexterity; ADROIT: She untied the knots with
dexterous fingers. —ly adv
dex·trose /ˈdekstrəʊz, -strəʊs/ n [U] a form of sugar (GLU-
COSE) found in many sweet fruits
DFEE /ˌdiː ef iː ˈiː/ abbrev. for Department for Education and
Employment, a former British government department
DFES /ˌdiː ef iː ˈes/ abbrev. for Department for Education and
Skills, a British government department
DFID/ˌdiː ef aɪ ˈdiː/ abbrev. for Department for International
Development, a government department in Britain
DfT /ˌdiː ef ˈtiː/ abbrev. for Department for Transport UK, a
government department in Britain
DFW /ˌdiː ef ˈdʌbəljuː/ abbrev. for Dallas-Fort Worth Inter-
national Airport; a very large US airport for the cities of
DALLAS and FORT WORTH in Texas
DG /ˌdiː ˈdʒiː/ abbrev. for DIRECTOR-GENERAL
dh /ˌdiː ˈeɪtʃ/ n abbrev. for DESIGNATED HITTER
Dhak·a /ˈdækə/ the capital and the most important indus-
trial city of Bangladesh. Its name used to be spelled Dacca.
dho·ti /ˈdəʊti/ n a garment worn on the lower part of the
body by some Hindu men, consisting of a cloth that goes
round the waist and between the legs
dhow /daʊ/ n an Arab ship with one large sail, used for trade
round the coasts
DHSS /ˌdiː eɪtʃ es ˈes/ abbrev. for Department of Health and
Social Security, a former British government department
Di /daɪ/ (used in newspapers) an informal name for DIANA,
PRINCESS OF WALES
DI /ˌdiː ˈaɪ/ n [C] abbrev. for Detective Inspector; a middle rank
in the British police
di·a·be·tes /ˌdaɪəˈbiːtiːz, -tɪs/ n [U] a disease in which there
is too much sugar in the blood. Some people with diabetes
have to INJECT a substance called INSULIN every day. Others
may be able to control it by eating the correct foods.
Without insulin, the sufferer may go into a COMA and die.
di·a·bet·ic /ˌdaɪəˈbetɪk/ adj, n (typical of or suitable for) a
person suffering from diabetes: She's diabetic/She's a
diabetic. | diabetic jam (=made for diabetics)
di·a·bol·i·cal /ˌdaɪəˈbɒlɪkəl ‖-ˈbɑː-/ also di·a·bol·ic
/ˌdaɪəˈbɒlɪk‹‖-ˈbɑː-/ rare — adj 1 very cruel and evil: What a
diabolical plan! 2 infml, especially BrE extremely unpleasant or
of very low quality: His French/Her cooking is diabolical. |
I've been waiting for this train for 45 minutes. It's really
diabolical! —ly /-kli/ adv
di·a·crit·ic /ˌdaɪəˈkrɪtɪk/ n a mark placed over, under, or
through, a letter, to show a sound value different from that
of the same letter without the mark, frequently used in
some languages, e.g. in Arabic —al adj: diacritical marks
di·a·dem /ˈdaɪədēm/ n lit a crown of jewels, flowers etc: her
royal diadem
di·ae·re·sis, di·e- /daɪˈɪərɪsɪs, -ˈe-‖-ˈe-/ n pl. -ses /-siːz/ a
sign (¨) placed over the second of two vowels to show that it
is pronounced separately from the first → compare UMLAUT
Di·a·ge·o /ˌdiːædʒiːəʊ/ trademark a large international company
dealing especially in alcoholic drinks, which was formed in
1997 when GUINNESS joined with GRAND METROPOLITAN
Di·ag·hi·lev, Ser·gei /ˌdiːægɪˈlev, sɜːˈgeɪ ‖sɜːrˈɡeɪ/ (1872-
1929) a Russian producer of BALLETS who started his own
ballet company in France, the Ballets Russes, and made
Russian ballet known in western Europe and North America.
He produced several ballets with the Russian COMPOSER,
STRAVINSKY.
di·ag·nose /ˈdaɪəgnəʊz‖-nəs/ v [T(as)] to discover the
nature of (a disease or fault) by making a careful examina-
tion: The doctor diagnosed my illness (as a rare bone
disease). | to diagnose the fault in an engine
di·ag·no·sis /ˌdaɪəgnəʊsɪs/ n pl. -ses /siːz/ [C;U(of)] (a
judgment which is the result of) the act of diagnosing:
Diagnosis is one of the most important parts of the doctor's
work. | The two doctors made/gave different diagnoses of my
disease. | What was the doctor's diagnosis? → compare PROG-
NOSIS
di·ag·nos·tic /ˌdaɪəgˈnɒstɪk ‖-ˈnɑː-/ adj of or for diagnos-
ing: a diagnostic test
di·ag·o·nal /daɪˈægənəl/ adj 1 (of a straight line) joining
two opposite corners of a square or other four-sided flat
figure: Draw a diagonal line to divide the square into two
triangles. 2 (of a line) following a sloping direction: a cloth
with a diagonal pattern —diagonal n: The two diagonals of
a square cross in the centre. —ly adv: The path goes diago-
nally across the field.
di·a·gram /ˈdaɪəgræm/ n a plan or figure drawn to explain a
machine, idea etc; drawing which shows how something
works rather than what it actually looks like: a diagram of a
railway system | The book uses simple diagrams to explain the
rules of chess. —matic /ˌdaɪgrəˈmætɪk/ adj: a diagram-
matic representation of a molecule —matically /-kli/ adv
dial¹/daɪəl/ n 1 the face of an instrument, such as a clock,
showing measurements by means of a pointer and figures →
see also SUNDIAL 2 a wheel on a telephone with numbered
holes for the fingers, which is moved round when one makes
a telephone call. This type of telephone is now rarely found in
Britain and the US, as now PUSH-BUTTON telephones are
mostly used.
dial² v -ll- BrE ‖ -l- AmE [I;T] to make a telephone call (to) by
using a dial or similar apparatus, e.g. the set of PUSH BUTTONS
on a modern telephone: How do I dial Paris? | Put in the
money before dialling. → see TELEPHONE (USAGE)
Dial trademark a type of soap used for washing the body and
face, sold in the US
di·a·lect /ˈdaɪəlekt/ n [C;U] a variety of a language, spoken
in one part of a country, which is different in some words or
grammar from other forms of the same language: Kurdish