fortune cookie 542
from illness all her life. | {fml} Fortune smiled on their enterprise. (=everything went well for it) 3 [C usually pl.] whatever happens by chance, good or bad: Through all his changing fortunes he never lost courage. | The fortunes of war bring death to many, while others escape unharmed. → see also SOLDIER OF FORTUNE 4 [C] what will happen to a person in the future: That old gipsy woman tells fortunes. (=claims to tell people about their futures by examining their hands, studying a pack of cards, a glass ball etc) | I had my fortune told last week. → see also seek one's fortune (SEEK)
'fortune ,cookie n a BISCUIT which contains a piece of paper telling what is going to happen in the future or a humorous statement. They are typically provided at the end of a meal in Chinese restaurants.
Fortune 500, the /ˌfɔːtʃən ˈfaɪv hʌndrəd‖ˌfɔːr-/ the 500 largest companies in the US, which are named in a yearly list in Fortune magazine: She's a vice-president of a Fortune 500 company.
'fortune ,hunter n usually derog a person who tries to marry someone for their money → see also GOLD DIGGER
'fortune-,teller n a person who claims to be able to tell people what will happen to them in the future → compare PALMIST
CULTURAL NOTE The STEREOTYPE of a fortune teller is of a woman wearing a colourful SCARF on her head and large EARRINGS. She looks into a CRYSTAL BALL to see what is going to happen in the future and she asks people for money by asking them to 'cross my palm with silver'.
Fort 'Worth a city in the northeast of the US state of Texas, near Dallas. It is a centre for farming, the oil industry, and the aircraft-building industry. The airport which it shares with Dallas, Dallas-Fort Worth, is one of the largest in the world.
for·ty /ˈfɔːti‖ˈfɔːrti/ determiner, n, pron 1 (the number) 40 → see TABLE 1 2 life begins at forty saying you can begin to enjoy life at the age of forty
,forty-'five infml 1 also .45, Colt 45 trademark a small gun held in the hand (PISTOL). The inside of its barrel is 0.45 of an INCH wide. 2 also 45 a small record, usually with only one song on each side, that is played by causing it to turn round 45 times every minute → compare SEVENTY-EIGHT
Forty-five, the another name for the JACOBITE RISING of 1745, when the Scottish prince, Bonnie Prince Charlie, led an attempt to bring back the Stuart family of Britain. It failed when his army was defeated at the Battle of CULLODEN.
,forty-'niner n a person who took part in the GOLD RUSH to California in 1849
,Forty-'Second ,Street, 42nd Street 1 a street in New York City, where there are many theatres 2 a successful MUSICAL (=a show that uses singing and dancing to tell a story) that has been performed on stage and made into a film
,Forty 'Thieves, the → see ALI BABA
,forty 'winks n [P] infml a short sleep in the daytime: Mum always has forty winks after lunch.
for·um /ˈfɔːrəm/ n 1 (in ancient Rome) an open place used for public business 2 a) [(for)] a place where public matters may be talked over and argued about: The letters page of this newspaper is a forum for public argument. b) a meeting for such a purpose: They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.
for·ward¹ /ˈfɔːwəd‖ˈfɔːrwərd/ also forwards adv 1 towards the front, the end, or the future: The soldiers crept forward under cover of darkness. | to bend/step/edge/ fall forward | They never met again from that day forward. | to put the clock forward (=so that it shows a later time) | Their plans are going forward satisfactorily. → see LOOK forward to 2 towards an earlier time: We'll bring the date of the meeting forward from the 20th to the 18th. 3 into a noticeable position: The lawyer brought forward some new evidence. | to push oneself forward → compare BACKWARDS
forward² adj 1 [A no comp.] at or directed towards the front, the end, or the future: a forward movement | the forward part of the train | forward planning 2 [often negative] advanced or early in development: We aren't very far forward with our plans yet. 3 too confident; too sure of oneself: That young lady is rather forward; she's introducing herself to all the guests. → compare BACKWARD
forward³ v [T] 1 [(to)] to send forward or pass on (letters, parcels etc) to a new address: When we moved, we asked the people who took our old house to forward all our mail to our new address. | The man who left yesterday didn't leave a forwarding address so I don't know where to send this letter that's come for him. 2 [(to)] fml to send: We will forward the goods when we receive your cheque. | [+obj(i)+obj(d)] We are forwarding you a copy of our latest catalogue under separate cover. 3 fml to help advance the development of: We are doing all we can to forward the progress of the talks.
for·ward⁴ /ˈfɔrəd, ˈfɔːwəd‖ˈfɔːrərd, ˈfɔːrwərd/ adv naut in or towards the front part of a ship: We moved the cargo forward of the mast. → compare AFT
for·ward⁵ /ˈfɔːwəd‖ˈfɔːrwərd/ n 1 (in sports such as football) one of the attacking players in a team → compare BACK¹, CENTRE¹ 2 in BASKETBALL, one of two players on a team who usually play nearest the basket
'forward-,looking adj apprec planning for or concerned with the future; PROGRESSIVE: a dynamic forward-looking little company
for·ward·ly /ˈfɔːwədli‖ˈfɔːrwərdli/ adv in a FORWARD manner
'forward ,market also futures market n a market in which contracts are made to buy and sell products at a future date at an agreed price
for·ward·ness /ˈfɔːwədnəs‖ˈfɔːrwərd-/ n [U] the state or quality of being FORWARD
for·wards /ˈfɔːwədz‖ˈfɔːrwərdz/ adv FORWARD
'forward slash n BrE a line (/) used in writing, to separate words, numbers, or letters
for·went, fore- /fɔːˈwent‖fɔːr-/ past tense of FORGO
Fos·bu·ry flop /ˌfɒzbəri ˈflɒp‖ˌfɑzbəri ˈflɑːp/ n (in sport) a TECHNIQUE of high jumping (HIGH JUMP) by bending the back and jumping over the bar backwards
Fosse Way, the /ˌfɒs ˈweɪ‖fɑːs-/ a road between Lincoln in eastern England and Exeter in southwest England, built in ancient times by the Romans
fos·sil¹ /ˈfɒsəl‖ˈfɑ-/ n 1 a hardened part or print of an animal or plant that died many thousands of years ago, that has been preserved in rock, ice etc: to go fossil hunting | The ginkgo tree is a living fossil (=a plant or animal that has remained unchanged for many thousands of years) 2 humor or derog an (old) person with unchanging ideas or habits (especially in the phrase old fossil) → see also LIVING FOSSIL
fossil² adj [A] 1 being or in the condition of a fossil: a fossil seashell 2 made of substances that were living things many thousands of years ago: Coal is a fossil fuel.
fos·sil·ize also -ise BrE /ˈfɒsəlaɪz‖ˈfɑː-/ v [I;T] to (cause to) become a fossil: animal remains fossilized in the rocks of the valley | (fig.) fossilized ideas (=fixed ideas which do not change or develop) —ization /ˌfɒsəlaɪˈzeɪʃən‖ˌfɑsələ-/ n [U]
fos·ter /ˈfɒstə‖ˈfɔː-, ˈfɑː-/ v [T] 1 to take (someone else's child) into one's family for a certain period only, and without taking on the full legal responsibilities of the parent: We fostered the little girl for several months while her mother was in hospital. → compare ADOPT 2 fml to help (feelings or ideas) to grow or develop: We hope these meetings will help foster friendly relations between our two countries. | The captain did his best to foster a sense of unity among the new recruits.
CULTURAL NOTE Children are fostered when their parents cannot take care of them, usually because the parents are ill, because the children behave very badly, or because the parents do not take care of their children properly or hurt them. Foster parents are given some money to help them take care of a child, but they have no legal rights to keep the child, who may at some time return to his or her parents.