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rai-son d'êt-re /,reızən 'detral-zoun-/ n Fr a reason for existing
Raj, the /ra:dʒ/ the rule of the British government in India before India became independent in 1947: life during/under the Raj
ra-jah, raja /'ra:dʒə/ n an Indian ruler → see also RANEE
Raj-neesh, Bag-wan /ra:dʒ'ni:ʃ, 'ba:gwɑ:n/ (1931-90) an Indian religious leader whose ideas came from several different Eastern religions, and who became very popular in the west in the 1970s and 1980s. He was known especially for owning 93 ROLLS ROYCE cars, and for encouraging people to have sex in groups. His followers wore orange ROBES (=long loose clothes).
rake¹ /reık/ n 1 a gardening tool consisting of a row of points at the end of a long handle, used for making the soil level, gathering up dead leaves etc 2 any similar tool, such as one used to draw together the money on the table during a game of chance
rake² v 1 [I;T] to gather, loosen, or level with a rake: He raked the garden paths. | She raked over the soil to loosen the weeds. | They raked up the dead leaves. 2 [+adv/prep] to search carefully by turning over a pile of things: I'll rake about/around among my papers and see if I can find it. 3 [T(with)] to examine or fire at (an area) in a continuous sweeping movement along its whole length: The police raked the hillside with powerful binoculars but did not see the escaped prisoner. 4 rake someone over the coals AmE for haul someone over the coals (HAUL)
rake sthg. ⇔ in phr v [T] infml to earn as income (a lot of money): He must be raking in at least £800 a week. | They're raking it in!
rake sthg. ⇔ out phr v [T] infml to find by searching: The reporter had raked out some interesting facts. | I'll try and rake out something for you to wear.
rake sthg. ⇔ up phr v [T] infml 1 to remember and talk about (something that should be forgotten): Don't rake up that old quarrel again. 2 to collect together with difficulty: Can we rake up some players for the team/enough money for the rent?
rake³ n old use a man, especially rich and of high social class, who has led a wild life with regard to drink and women
rake⁴ n [S] the angle of a slope: the rake of the stage/of a ship's funnels —rake v [I;T] the raked wings of an aircraft
'rake-off n infml a usually dishonest share of profits: The taxi-driver gets a rake-off from the hotel if he takes tourists there.
rak-ish /'reıkıʃ/ adj 1 wild and irresponsible, like (that of a RAKE; DISSOLUTE: He's led a rakish life. 2 showing a cheerful informal self-confidence; JAUNTY: She wore her cap at a rakish angle. (=sideways on her head) —ly adv —ness n [U]
Ra-leigh¹ /'rælı, 'rɔ:-/ the capital of the US state of North Carolina
Raleigh² trademark a British company which makes bicycles
Raleigh, Sir Wal-ter /'wɔ:ltə/ (?1552–1618) an English EXPLORER who made several journeys to North and South America and later wrote books about them. He is known for being the person who first brought potatoes and tobacco to Britain, and for putting his CLOAK over a PUDDLE (=a small pool of water), so that Queen Elizabeth I could walk over it without getting her feet wet.
ral-len-tan-do /,rælən'tændəʊ,ra:lən'tɑ:n-/ n, adj, adv pl. -dos (a piece of music) getting slower
ral-ly¹ /'ræli/ v 1 [I;T(to)] to come or bring together (again) for a shared purpose or effort: Her supporters rallied to her defence when she was attacked by her critics. | The general rallied his tired soldiers and they drove the enemy back. | The rail workers have rallied support for the strike from other unions. 2 [I] to return to a former good state, e.g. after illness or difficulty: He soon rallied after the shock of his father's death. | Prices on the stock market rallied this afternoon after earlier falls.
rally round phr v [I] infml (especially of a group) to come to someone's help at a time of difficulty: Her friends all rallied round when she was ill.
rally² n 1 a large especially political public meeting → compare DEMONSTRATION 2 a motor race over public roads 3 (in tennis and similar games) a long struggle to gain a point, with each player hitting the ball again and again over the net 4 an act of rallying
rally³ v [T(about, on)] old use to make fun of (a person) in a friendly way; TEASE: They rallied him about/on his strange appearance.
'rallying cry n [S] a word or phrase used to unite people in support of an idea: 'Land and Liberty' was the rallying cry of revolutionary Mexico.
'rallying point n [S(+for)] an idea, event, person etc that makes people come together to support something they believe in: a rallying point for the struggle against apartheid
ram¹ /ræm/ n 1 an adult male sheep that can be the father of young → compare EWE 2 a BATTERING RAM 3 a machine that repeatedly drops or pushes a weight onto or into something, or that uses water pressure for lifting
ram² v -mm- [T] 1 to run or drive into (something) very hard: His car rammed mine. 2 [+obj+adv/prep] to force into place with heavy pressure: I rammed down the earth round the newly planted bush. | (fig.) The terrorist attack rammed home the need for tighter security. (=forced people to recognize this need) 3 ram something down someone's throat to force an unwanted idea or plan on someone: I hate the way he rams his political views down everyone's throat.
RAM¹ /,ɑ:r ei 'em/ abbrev. for ROYAL ACADEMY OF MUSIC
RAM² /ræm/ n [U] abbrev. for random access memory; the part of a computer that stores information for a short time so that it can be used immediately, especially for running PROGRAMS. All the information in RAM is lost when the computer is turned off. RAM is measured in MEGABYTES (=Mb).
Ram-a-dan /'ræmədæn, -dɑ:n, ræmə'dɑ:n, -'dæn/ n [U] the ninth month of the Muslim year, during which Muslims must not eat or drink anything between sunrise and sunset. Because the Muslim year is LUNAR (=based on the movements of the moon), Ramadan takes place at slightly different times each year.
Ra-ma-krish-na /,rɑ:mə'krıʃnə/ (1834–86) an Indian HINDU religious man who said that all religions are of equal value because they are all different ways of understanding the same God
Ram-bert Dance Com-pa-ny, the /,rɔmbeə 'dɑ:ns ,kɔmpənilrı:m,bear 'dæns-/ also the Ballet Rambert a BALLET company based in London and known for performing modern ballet. It is named after Marie Rambert, the dancer and teacher who started the company in 1930.
ram-ble¹ /'ræmbl/ v [I] 1 [ABOUT, through, among)] to go on a ramble: They rambled through the woods. 2 [ON, about)] usually derog to talk or write at great length in a disordered wandering way: The old lady was rambling (on) about her youth. 3 (of a plant) to grow loosely in all directions: a rambling rose → see also RAMBLER
ramble² n a (long) walk for enjoyment, often in the country: We went for/on a ramble through the woods.
ram-bler /'ræmblə/ n 1 a person who rambles 2 a rose bush that rambles
'Ramblers' Associ-ation, the a British organization which supports people who want to walk for pleasure, and makes sure that public FOOTPATHS are kept open and in good repair
ram-bling /'ræmblıŋ/ adj 1 usually derog (of speech or writing) disordered and wandering: a long and very rambling letter 2 (of a house, street etc) of irregular shape and covering a large area: a rambling old house
ram-blings /'ræmblıŋz/ n [P] speech or writing that goes on for a long time and does not seem to have any clear organization or purpose: He refused to listen to their mad ramblings.
Ram-bo /'ræmbəʊ/ a character played by Sylvester STALLONE