F                                                               484
F,f
F, f /ef/ pl. F's, f's n 1 [C,U] the sixth letter of the English alphabet 2 [C,U] the fourth note in the musical SCALE of C MAJOR, or the musical KEY based on this note 3 a mark given to a student's work to show that it is not good enough: I got an F in chemistry. -> see also F-WORD
f also f. AmE 1 abbrev. for forte; used in music to show that a part should be played or sung loudly 2 abbrev. for female
F 1 abbrev. for Fahrenheit: Water boils at 212° F. 2 abbrev. for female 3 abbrev. for false
fa /fa:/ n [S] the fourth note in the SOL-FA musical SCALE
FA, the /,ef 'eɪ/ abbrev. for the Football Association; the organization that is in charge of professional and AMATEUR football in England and Wales. The most important competition that it organises is the FA CUP -> see also FOOTBALL LEAGUE
FAA, the /,ef eɪ ˈeɪ/ abbrev. for FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION
fab /fæb/ adj old-fash infml extremely good; FABULOUS
Fab trademark a type of DETERGENT for washing clothes, sold in the US
Fab·er·gé egg /ˌfæbəʒeɪ ˈeɡɪl fæbərˌʒeɪ-/ n one of the golden eggs decorated with jewels which were made by Peter Carl Fabergé for the Russian royal family in the late 19th century. These eggs are now very valuable.
Fa·bi·an /ˈfeɪbiən/ adj [A] connected with, or based on, the ideas of a British political group that has SOCIALIST² ideas and aims — Fabian n [C]
fa·ble /ˈfeɪbəl/ n 1 [C] a short story that teaches a lesson (a MORAL) or truth, especially a story in which animals or objects speak. Some of the best known fables were written by AESOP. 2 [C] a story about great people who never actually lived; LEGEND; MYTH 3 [U] such stories considered as a group: The course is about fable and legend in modern literature. 4 [C] a false story or account
fa·bled /ˈfeɪbəld/ adj usually apprec 1 spoken of or famous in fables; LEGENDARY 2 very famous
fab·ric /ˈfæbrɪk/ n 1 [C,U] (a) cloth made by threads woven together in any of various ways 2 [(the) S] the walls, roof etc of a building; structure: The cost of repairing the fabric of the church was very high. | (fig.) The whole fabric of society (=all of it and everything that holds it together) was changed by the war
fab·ri·cate /ˈfæbrɪkeɪt/ v [T] to make or invent in order to deceive: It turned out that he had fabricated the whole story. —cation /ˌfæbrɪˈkeɪʃən/ n [C,U] The whole story was a complete fabrication. (=a lie)
'fabric con,ditioner also conditioner || 'fabric ,softener AmE — n a liquid added to water when washing clothes to make the clothes softer
fab·u·lous /ˈfæbjʊləs/ adj 1 extremely good or pleasant; excellent: It was a fabulous party! 2 fml nearly unbelievable: She possesses fabulous wealth. 3 [no comp.] existing or told about in FABLES: The dragon is a fabulous creature.
fab·u·lous·ly /ˈfæbjʊləsli/ adv extremely (rich, great etc): fabulously wealthy
fa·cade, façade /fəˈsɑːd, fæ-/ n 1 the front of a building, especially of a grand building -> compare ELEVATION 2 an appearance, especially one that is false: She managed to put up a facade of bravery.
face¹ /feɪs/ n 1 [C] the front part of the head from the chin to the forehead and hair: a nice/round/spotty face | She had/wore a surprised expression on her face. | I was so ashamed that I couldn't look her in the face. (=look directly at her) | (fig.) Poverty is the unacceptable face of capitalism. -> see picture at HEAD 2 [C] a look or expression on the face: a happy face | When he was told he couldn't go to the zoo he pulled a long face. (=looked sad) | Although she didn't feel very confident, she put on a brave face and accepted the challenge. | The children
sat at the window making/pulling faces (=rude or funny expressions) at the passers-by. 3 [C(θ)] the front, outer, or most important surface of something: They climbed the north face of the mountain. | The face of the building is covered with climbing plants. | the face of a clock/watch | They seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth. (=completely) 4 [C] the surface of a rock, either on or below the ground, from which coal, gold, diamonds etc are dug: The miners work at the coal face for seven hours each day. 5 [U] a state of being respected by others: He was afraid of failure because he didn't want to lose face with his colleagues. | England saved (their) face by getting a goal in the last minute to draw the match. -> see also FACE-SAVING 6 [U] especially BrE self-confidence or daring, especially which is disrespectful or rude: I don't know how you can have the face to see her after all the lies you've told. 7 [C] a TYPEFACE 8 face to face (with) or into the direct presence (of): I've talked to him on the telephone but I've never actually met him face to face. | She came face to face with poverty for the first time. 9 in the face of in spite of; against: In the face of great hardship, she managed to keep her sense of humour. 10 on the face of it judging by what one can see; APPARENTLY 11 put a good/bold/brave face on something to behave or make it appear as if things are better than they really are 12 set one's face against to oppose strongly 13 to someone's face in someone's presence; openly: He wouldn't be so rude to her face. 14 -faced /feɪst/ having a face or expression of the stated type: red-faced | sad-faced 15 (Is this) the face that launched a thousand ships(?) quote a phrase from a play by Christopher Marlowe describing the beauty of Helen of Troy 16 keep a straight face to be able to continue to look serious even though you want to laugh: Jan struggled to keep a straight face as our mother gave us a long talk on how to behave towards young men. | I can't stand up there and read this garbage with a straight face!
face² v 1 [I+adv/prep; T] to have or turn the face or front towards (something) or in a certain direction: She turned to face the newcomer and introduced herself. | The house faces the park. | The building faces north/towards the north. | a sunny south-facing garden | A diagram appears on the facing (=opposite) page. 2 [T] a) to be in a position in which one must deal with (a problem or unpleasant situation): Manufacturing industry faces a grim future if the government pursues its present policies. b) to accept or deal with (a problem or unpleasant situation), firmly and without trying to avoid it: We'll have to face (the) facts – we simply can't afford a holiday this year. | He couldn't face his boss after making such a fool of himself at the meeting. 3 [T] to need consideration or action by: The main difficulty that faces us today is of supplying food to those in need. 4 [T(with) often pass.] to cover or partly cover (especially the front part of) with a different material: The front of the brick house was faced with stone. 5 face the music infml to meet and deal with the unpleasant results of one's actions: He knew he'd never get away with it so he decided to face the music and give himself up to the police.
face sthg./sbdy. <-> out phr v [T] to oppose or deal with bravely: Everyone admired the way she faced out the opposition in the debate. -> compare OUTFACE
face up to sthg. phr v [T] to be brave enough to accept or deal with: You must learn to face up to your responsibilities.
face sbdy. with sthg./sbdy. phr v [T] to force to meet or deal with; bring face to face with: When we faced her with all the evidence, she admitted the crime.
'face card n AmE for COURT CARD
face-cloth /ˈfeɪsklθ(-klɔθ)/ also 'face ,flannel BrE washcloth AmE — n a FLANNEL used to wash especially the face, hands etc
'face cream n [C,U] (a) thick cream spread on the face, usually by women, to clean or soften it, or protect it from dryness
face·less /ˈfeɪsləs/ adj usually derog without any clear character or ordinary human feelings: Our life is controlled by faceless bureaucrats.
'face-lift n a medical operation to make the face look younger by tightening the skin; (fig.) This room needs a face-lift. Why don't you put up some new wallpaper?
'face-off n AmE 1 (in ICE HOCKEY) a way of starting play by dropping the PUCK between two players of opposin,