OFFICER but has some responsibility to command others → compare COMMISSIONED OFFICER
**NCP** /en siː ˈpiː/ abbrev. for National Car Parks; a company which owns many car parks in the UK, and charges money for the number of hours a car is parked: *There's an NCP car park a bit further down the road.*
**NCT** /en siː ˈtiː/ abbrev. for NATIONAL CHILDBIRTH TRUST
**ND** written abbrev. for NORTH DAKOTA
**NE** written abbrev. for **1** northeast, northeastern: *NE Spain* **2** NEBRASKA
**NEA, the** /en iː ˈeɪ/ **1** abbrev. for the National Education Association; US organization that represents the interests of teachers and schools **2** abbrev. for NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS
**Neagh** → see LOUGH NEAGH
**Ne·an·der·thal** /niˈændətɔːl|-dər-|-tɑː/ *n* **1** a NEANDERTHAL MAN **2** a big ugly man who is extremely stupid **3** a stupid person who opposes any new idea or change, without even thinking about it; REACTIONARY
**Ne'anderthal man** *n* [U] an early type of human being who lived in Europe during the STONE AGE
**ne-a-pol-i-tan** /niːəpɒlɪtən||ˈpɑ-/ *adj* (of ice cream) having bands of different colours and tastes
**Neapolitan** *n* someone who comes from Naples, Italy —**Neapolitan** *adj*
**neap tide** /ˈniːp taɪd/ *n* a very small rise and fall of the sea at the times of the first and third quarters of the moon → compare SPRING TIDE
**near¹** /nɪəʳ/ *adj* **1** close; not at much distance away, in space, time, degree, or relationship: *the near future* | *Go and pick an apple from the nearest tree.* | *My office is quite near.* | *They live 20 miles from the nearest town.* | *He's one of my nearest relations.* (=is closely related to me) | *Tell me how much it will cost to the nearest £10/$10.* **2** [A no comp.] **a)** the closer one of two things: *the near bank of the river* → opposite **FAR** **b)** the one on the left of a pair; NEARSIDE: *the near wheel of a cart* → opposite **OFF** **3** [A] only just missed or avoided; almost (the stated thing): *a near disaster* | *The war led to a near doubling of oil prices.* (=prices were almost doubled) → see also **NEAR²** **4** one's nearest and dearest pomp or humor one's family → see also **NEARLY** →—ness *n* [U]
**USAGE:** Near and close are almost the same in meaning, but there are certain phrases in which one must be used and not the other. Notice the near future | the near distance | a near miss/disaster (not close); a close friend | close behind | a close call/shave (not near). Close cannot be used alone as a preposition.
**near²** *adv, prep* **1** [(to)] not far (from); close (to): *the tree nearest (to) the house* | *a house near the station* | *We want to find a house nearer (to) the station.* | *Move your chair a bit nearer (mine).* | *They live quite near (here).* | *Don't go too near the edge of the cliff; just near enough to see over it.* | *I came near to tears.* (=almost cried) | *Remind me again nearer (to) the time of the meeting.* | *The bus is nowhere near as fast as (=much slower than) the train.* **2** almost: *a near-perfect performance* | *The job is near impossible.* → see also **NEAR¹**
**near³** *v* [I;T] to come closer in space or time (to); APPROACH: *The work is nearing completion.* | *He got more and more nervous as the day neared.*
**near-by** /ˌnɪəʳˈbaɪ ||ˌnɪər-/ *adj, adv* near; close by: *a nearby town* | *A football match was being played nearby.*
**Near 'East, the** an old name for the MIDDLE EAST which is no longer much used —**Near Eastern** *adj*
**near 'letter quality** abbrev. **NLQ** *adj* [A] (of computer printers or **PRINTOUT**) producing or being nearly as good a quality of print as is produced by a good **TYPEWRITER**: *an inexpensive dot-matrix printer producing near letter quality results*
**near-ly** /ˈnɪəlɪ||ˈnɪərlɪ/ *adv* **1** almost; not quite or not yet completely: *He very nearly died.* | *It took nearly two weeks to get there.* | *The train was nearly full.* | *not nearly enough money* (=far too little) | *two nearly equal amounts* | *Is the job nearly finished?* | *The train was nearly full.* → see **ALMOST (USAGE)** **2** *fml rare* closely: a question which concerns me nearly
**near 'miss** *n* **1** a bomb, shot etc which does not hit exactly the right spot but comes close to it **2** an intention which fails but almost succeeds: *I got there just after you'd left – such a near miss!* → compare **NEAR THING**
**near-side** /ˈnɪəʳsaɪd||ˈnɪər-/ *adj* [A no comp.] especially *BrE* on the left-hand side, especially of an animal or of a car or road: *the nearside back light of a car* → opposite **OFFSIDE**
**near-sight-ed** /ˌnɪəʳˈsaɪtəd ||ˈnɪərsaɪtəd/ *adj* especially *AmE* for **SHORTSIGHTED** →—ly *adv* →—ness *n* [U]
**near 'thing** also **close thing** *n* [C usually sing.] *BrE infml* **1** a situation in which something dangerous or very unpleasant is only just avoided: *That was a near thing – we almost hit that car!* → see also **CLOSE CALL**, **CLOSE SHAVE**, **NARROW SQUEAK** **2** a game, election, risk taken etc which comes close to failing before it succeeds: *We won, but it was a near thing.* → compare **NEAR MISS**
**neat** /niːt/ *adj* **1** in good order; showing care in appearance; tidy: *neat handwriting* | *He keeps his office neat and tidy.* **2** liking order and good arrangement: *Cats are neat animals.* **3** simple and effective: *a neat trick/description* | *There are no neat solutions to this problem.* **4** also **straight** — (of alcoholic drinks) without ice or water or other liquid: *I like my whisky neat.* **5** *AmE infml* very good; very pleasant; fine: *The party was really neat – we had good fun.* →—ly *adv* →—ness *n* [U]
**'neath** /niːθ/ *prep poet* beneath
**Ne-bras-ka** /nɪˈbræskə/ written abbrev. **NE** a state in the central US which consists mainly of farmland, and which produces corn, wheat, cattle, and pigs. Its largest city is **Omaha**. —**Nebraskan** *n, adj*
**Neb-u-chad-nez-zar, King** /ˌnebjʊkədˈnezə ʳ||ˌnebə-/ (630-562 BC) in the Old Testament of the Bible, a king of **BABYLON** who destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BC → see also **DANIEL**
**neb-u-la** /ˈnebjʊlə/ *n* *pl.* **-lae** /liː/ or **-las** **1** a mass of gas and dust among the stars, appearing often as a bright cloud at night **2** a **GALAXY** (=mass of stars) which has this appearance →—lar *adj*
**neb-u-lous** /ˈnebjʊləs/ *adj* lacking clear form or expression; **VAGUE**: *his nebulous political ideas* →—ly *adv* →—ness *n* [U]
**NEC** /en iː ˈsiː/ *trademark* a large Japanese **ELECTRONICS** company that makes computers, telephones etc
**NEC, the** abbrev. for the National Exhibition Centre; a large modern building near Birmingham in central England, which is used for **CONFERENCES** and **EXHIBITIONS**, such as the **MOTOR SHOW**
**ne-ces-sar-ies** /ˈnesəsərɪz||-serɪz/ *n* [P] especially *BrE* things which are needed for a purpose, e.g. food and money for a journey
**Usage:** Necessaries are things which you need; necessities is a stronger word that can mean 'things which are needed in order to stay alive'. Compare a few necessaries for the journey, like socks and a toothbrush | Water is a necessity of life.
**ne-ces-sar-i-ly** /ˈnesəsərɪlɪ ||ˌnesəˈserəlɪ/ *adv* in a way that must be so; unavoidably: *Food that looks good doesn't necessarily taste good.* (=it might taste bad)
**ne-ces-sa-ry¹** /ˈnesəsərɪ||-serɪ/ *adj* [(for)] that must be had, obtained, or done; needed; **ESSENTIAL**: *Food is necessary for life.* | *Is it really necessary for me to attend the meeting?* (=must I attend?) | *It's not necessary to wear a tie.* | *This discussion can, if necessary, be continued tomorrow.* | *If we're agreed that the meeting should be next Friday, I'll leave it to you to make the necessary arrangements.* → opposite **UNNECESSARY**
**necessary²** *n* the necessary *infml or humor* what is needed, especially money: *I suppose I'd better go and do the necessary – the dishes won't wash themselves.* | *We're not going on holiday, we haven't got the necessary.*
**necessary 'evil** *n* [S] something bad or unpleasant which is the only way to get a good result: *I don't like having two jobs, but it's a necessary evil if we want to buy a car.*
**ne-ces-si-tate** /nəˈsesɪteɪt/ *v* [T] *fml* to cause a need for; make necessary: *Lack of money necessitated a change of plan.* | [v-ing] *This change would necessitate starting all over again.*
**ne-ces-si-tous** /nəˈsesɪtəs/ *adj pomp or euph* poor; **NEEDY**: *a necessitous family* →—ly *adv*
**ne-ces-si-ty** /nəˈsesɪtɪ/ *n* **1** [S;U(of, for)] the condition of