Safire, William
1220
special taste to food, especially rice 2 an orange-yellow
colour: a Buddhist monk's saffron robes
Saf·ire, William /'sæfɪər/ (1929-) a US writer and COLUMN-
IST who usually writes about the English language, but who
also writes articles expressing CONSERVATIVE opinions
sag¹ /sæg/ v -gg- [I] 1 to sink, settle, or bend downwards,
especially away from the usual or correct position: The
branch sagged under the weight of the apples. | the old man's
sagging cheeks | (fig.) My spirits sagged (=I became less happy)
when I saw the amount of work I had to do. 2 to fall in value,
amount, or level, especially for a short time: the sagging
demand for gas during the summer months. 3 (of a book,
performance etc) to become uninteresting during part of the
length: The book sagged a bit in the middle.
sag² n 1 [S;U(in)] (a) downward bending or sinking: We need to
do something about the sag in the ceiling. 2 fall in value,
amount, or level: a sag in the price of oil.
SAG /sæg/ abbrev. for Screen Actors' Guild; a TRADE UNION in the
US for actors and actresses who perform in films for the
cinema or television → compare AFTRA, EQUITY
sa·ga /'sa:gə/ n pl. -gas 1 any of the stories written from the
12th to the 14th century about the Vikings of Norway and
Iceland 2 a long story about a particular place, time in
history, group of people etc: This new novel is an absorbing
family saga. 3 derog (a detailed account of) a set of usually
not very interesting events happening over a long period: She
told me the saga of all her operations.
sa·ga·cious /sə'geɪʃəs/ adj fml or lit having or showing deep
understanding and good judgment; wise —ly adv
sa·ga·ci·ty /sə'gæsəti/ n [U] fml or lit good judgment and
understanding; wisdom
Sa·gan, Carl /'seɪgæn, ka:rl|kɑ:rl/ (1934-97) a US ASTRONO-
MER (=a scientist who studies the stars), who was especially
interested in discovering whether there were living creatures
in other parts of the universe. He made a popular series of
television programmes about the universe, called Cosmos.
sage¹ /seɪdʒ/ adj especially lit wise, especially as a result of long
thinking and experience: I was grateful for the old man's sage
advice. —ly adv: He nodded sagely.
sage² n [often pl.] especially lit someone, especially an old man or
historical person, well known for their wisdom and long
experience
sage³ n [U] a plant with grey-green leaves which are used in
cooking to give a special taste to food: sage and onion
stuffing
sage·brush /'seɪdʒbrʌʃ/ n [U] a short bushy plant very
common on the dry plains of the western US
sag·gy /'sægi/ adj usually derog that sinks or drops downwards,
especially having lost its original firmness: a saggy mattress |
saggy cheeks/breasts
Sa·git·tar·i·us /ˌsædʒɪ'teəriəs/ n 1 [U] the ninth sign of
the ZODIAC, represented by an animal that is half horse and
half human, which some people believe affects the character
and life of people born between November 23 and December
21 2 also Sagittarian [C] someone who was born between
November 23 and December 21 —Sagittarian adj
sa·go /'seɪgə/ n [U] a white food substance (STARCH) made
from the stems of certain PALM trees and used in the form of
grains or powder for making sweet dishes with milk
sa·gua·ro /sə'gwɑ:rəʊ/ n a large desert plant which has
arms branching off the main body. It grows mainly in the
southwestern US and parts of Mexico.
Sa·ha·ra, the /sə'hɑ:rə|l-'hæ-/ also the Sa·ha·ra 'Desert
the world's largest desert which covers a very large area of
North Africa. Some scientists believe that the desert is
gradually becoming bigger.
sahib /'sɑ:bɪl'sa:-ɪb/ n IndE & PakE (usually cap.) (used in India in
former times as a title of respect for a European man): Good
morning, sahib. | The colonel sahib is not in his office. →
compare MEMSAHIB
said¹ /sed/ past tense & participle of SAY
said² adj [(the) A] law the particular (person, thing etc) spoken
of before: John James Smith is charged with stealing. The
said John Smith was seen leaving the shop at the times stated.
Sai·gon /ˌsaɪ'gn|l-'gan/ the former name of Ho Chi Minh
City in southern Vietnam. It was the capital of South Vietnam
when the country was divided in two, and it was badly
damaged during the VIETNAM WAR.
sail¹ /seɪl/ n 1 [C;U] a piece of strong cloth, such as NYLON or
CANVAS, fixed in position on a ship to move it through the
water by the force of the wind: We hoisted/lowered the sails. |
a ship in full sail (=with all its sails spread) 2 [S] a short
trip, usually for pleasure, in a boat with sails: Let's go for a
sail this afternoon. 3 [C] any of the broad wind-catching
blades of a WINDMILL 4 set sail to begin a journey by ship or
change course at sea: We set sail for home. 5 under sail
being driven by sails and wind
sail² v 1 [+adv/prep; T] to travel on water or across (a body of
water) in a ship or boat (not only one with sails): The great
ships sailed past. | We sailed (across) the Atlantic in five days.
→ see BOAT (USAGE) 2 [T] to direct or command (a ship or
boat) on water: Do you know how to sail this boat? | The
captain sailed his ship through the narrow channel. 3 [+adv/
prep] to begin a journey across water: We sail with the tide. |
Our ship sails tomorrow for New York. 4 [+adv/prep] to move
proudly, smoothly, or easily: The actress sailed into the room
in her flowing dress. | He simply sailed through the difficult
exam. (=passed it easily) 5 sail under false colours to
express feelings or opinions in favour of something which
one really opposes → see also (sail) close to the wind
(CLOSE)
sail into sthg./sbdy. phr v [T] to attack forcefully: She sailed
into her critics.
sail·board /'seɪlbɔ:d|l-bɔ:rd/ n a flat floating board with a
sail fixed to it which is used by one person standing up in the
sport of WIND-SURFING
sail·cloth /'seɪlklɒθ|-klɔ:θ/ n [U] a type of heavy CANVAS
cloth used mainly for making sails for boats or ships
sail·ing /'seɪlɪŋ/ n 1 [U] the skill of directing the course of a
ship 2 [U] the sport of riding in or directing a small boat
with sails 3 [C] an occasion of a ship leaving a port: When is
the next sailing to Ostend? → see also PLAIN SAILING
'sailing boat also sail·boat /'seɪlbəʊt/ AmE — n a boat
driven by one or more sails, especially a small boat used for
racing and pleasure trips → see also YACHT
'sailing ship n a large ship which gets its power only from
the action of the wind on its sails, having either no motor or
only a small one for helping it in making certain move-
ments
sail·or /'seɪlə/ n 1 a person with a job on a ship, especially
one who is not a ship's officer 2 a member of a navy →
compare SOLDIER 3 a traveller on the water: I'm afraid I'm
not a very good sailor. (=I get sick when I travel on the
water) 4 a person who regularly goes SAILING 5 all the nice
girls love a sailor the title of an old popular song, some-
times mentioned by people who are praising sailors 6 home
is the sailor, home from the sea quote a phrase from a poem
by Robert Louis Stevenson, sometimes used humorously
CULTURAL NOTE The STEREOTYPE of a sailor is a man who
has a strong desire for sex when he returns to land, and
people sometimes joke that sailors have a different
woman waiting for them in every port that they visit.
'sailor suit n a usually blue and white suit, especially for a
child, copied from a sailor's uniform, and worn especially
formerly
sail·plane /'seɪlplen/ n a GLIDER (=plane with no engine) for
long flights which rises in upward movements of air
Sains·bu·ry's /'seɪnzbərɪz|l-berɪz/ trademark a British SUPER-
MARKET (=very large store that sells mainly food, but also
clothes, things for the home etc)
'Sainsbury Wing, the a new part that was added to the
NATIONAL GALLERY in London in 1991
saint /seɪnt/ n 1 a person who is officially recognized after
death by (a branch of) the Christian church as being
specially holy and worthy of formal honour in the church:
Joan of Arc was made a saint in 1920. | You need the patience
of a saint for this job. (=you need to be very patient) 2 infml
a very good and completely unselfish person: I don't know
how she puts up with that terrible husband of hers; she's a
real saint. —hood n [U]