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Europe or the US and which is different in style from Western
POP MUSIC. World music includes SALSA, REGGAE, and many
types of African music.
,world 'power n a nation which has great power and
influence, and whose trade, politics etc, have an effect on
many other parts of the world
,World 'Series, the a set of up to seven BASEBALL games
played every year in the US or Canada between two profes-
sional teams, the winner of the American League and the
winner of the National League. The winner of the World
Series is considered to be the best team in the Major
Leagues.
,World 'Service, the part of the BBC, based in Bush House
in central London, which broadcasts radio programmes, espe-
cially news, to all parts of the world. Its official name is the
BBC World Service.
world-shak-ing /'w3:ld,ʃekɪ||'w3:rld-/ adj EARTHSHAT-
TERING
,World 'Trade ,Center, the a group of buildings in
Manhattan, New York City, which included two very tall
SKYSCRAPERS, also known as the Twin Towers, that were the
tallest in the world when they were built in the 1970s. In
1993 TERRORISTS killed six people with a bomb they had left
there. On 11 September 2001, terrorists flew two planes
filled with passengers into the Twin Towers which caused
them to fall down. Almost 3000 people were killed, includ-
ing everyone on the planes and many FIREFIGHTERS and
police officers who were trying to save people in the build-
ings. It is believed that the terrorist organization al-Qaeda
was responsible for the attack. The World Trade Center is
being replaced by new office buildings and a MEMORIAL.
,World 'Trade Organi,zation, the abbrev. WTO an inter-
national organization, established in 1995 and based in
Geneva, that deals with the rules of trade between different
nations, and encourages them to trade fairly
,world 'view, world-view n [usually S] someone's opinions
and attitudes relating to the world and things in general: the
limited nineteenth-century world view
,world 'war n a war involving many countries in different
parts of the world, especially the 1914-18 and 1939-45 wars
→ see also FIRST WORLD WAR, SECOND WORLD WAR
World War I /,w3:ld 'wɔː 'wn||,w3:rld 'wɔːr-/ also the
First World War (1914-1918) a war in Europe fought
between France, the UK and its EMPIRE, Russia, and the US
on one side (known together as 'the Allies'), and Germany,
Austria-Hungary, and Turkey on the other side. The war
started as a result of the murder in Sarajevo of the Archduke
Franz Ferdinand, a member of the Austrian royal family. →
see also OWEN, Wilfred, LOST GENERATION; see photo on
page A37
CULTURAL NOTE When the First World War started, it was
not expected to continue for very long. Some British
politicians used the phrase 'it will all be over by
Christmas'. In fact, it continued for four years and at least
10 million people were killed. The war was fought in many
different areas, but for British people the strongest image
is of the 'Western Front' in Belgium and northern France.
The armies of each side on the Western Front lived in
TRENCHES (=long, deep holes in the ground), with an area
called 'no-man's land' between them. Many of the famous
battles on the Western Front ended without either side
gaining much land. The names of these battles, especially
the Somme, Passchendaele, and Ypres, have come to
represent the way that millions of young men were killed
for no very good reason. For people from Australia and
New Zealand, the battle of Gallipoli, where thousands of
their soldiers were killed, is remembered with great
sadness. Chemical weapons World War I is also
remembered for the use of CHEMICAL WEAPONS such as
CHLORINE gas and MUSTARD GAS. After World War I,
many countries signed an agreement that chemical
weapons would not be used in wars in the future.
Remembering the dead In the UK, people remember
the dead of World War I and World War II on
Remembrance Day, which is held on 11 November, the
day of the ARMISTICE (=the agreement to stop fighting) at
the end of World War I in 1918. There is a special
ceremony at the CENOTAPH in London, and people wear a
red paper POPPY (=a type of flower) to show their respect
for those killed in the wars. In the US, there are no special
ceremonies, but 11 November is a holiday called
Veterans Day, when people remember the soldiers killed
in fighting all the wars the US has been involved in.
World War II /,w3:ld 'wɔː 'tu:||,w3:rld 'wɔːr-/ also the
Second World War (1939-45) a war involving almost
every major country in the world. On one side were the
Allies (including the UK, France, and Poland, and after 1941
the US and the Soviet Union) and on the other side the Axis
(including Germany, Japan, and Italy). The war was started
by Adolf HITLER, the NAZI leader of Germany, who aimed to
increase German power by attacking other countries and
taking control of them. The war ended when Germany was
defeated, and the US dropped NUCLEAR bombs on the
Japanese cities of HIROSHIMA and NAGASAKI. About 55 million
people were killed in the war. → see also BATTLE of BRITAIN,
BLITZ, CHURCHILL, Winston, D-DAY, DUNKIRK, PEARL HARBOR;
see photo on page A37
CULTURAL NOTE Despite the fact that many people were
killed, British people often think of the war years with
pride, because it was a time when people helped and
supported each other, and worked together to defeat the
enemy. People who were not soldiers did special jobs,
often jobs that they enjoyed, such as working on farms.
During the war, many things were not available to be
bought in shops, such as goods from abroad and fresh
foods. The government introduced a system called
RATIONING, which limited the amount of food, petrol,
clothes etc that people could have. When British people
think of the Second World War, they also think of the
BLITZ, when German planes dropped bombs on British
cities, especially London, and many buildings were
destroyed. People built AIR RAID SHELTERS (=places under
the ground where they were safe from bombs) in their
gardens or went to Underground stations or other places
to be safe from the bombs. In the US, ordinary people
were not affected by the war as much as people were in
the UK. The only direct attack on the US was by the
Japanese at PEARL HARBOR, which led the US to enter
the war. American people tend to think of the war in
connection to the HOLOCAUST, when millions of Jewish
people and other people were killed by the NAZIS in
CONCENTRATION CAMPS.
,world-'weary adj tired of life: world-weary cynicism
—iness n [U]
world-wide /,w3:ld'waɪd• ||,w3:r-/ adj, adv in or over all the
world: French cheeses are famous worldwide. | cars with a
worldwide reputation for reliability
,World Wide ,Fund for 'Nature, the abbrev. WWF an
international CHARITY organization, formerly called the
World Wildlife Fund, which supports CONSERVATION (=pro-
tection of wild plants, animals, and natural areas of land)
,World Wide 'Web, the abbrev. WWW also the Web the
system for making information available, anywhere in the
world, to computer users who are connected to the INTERNET.
Users can surf the Web or surf the Net (=search for informa-
tion by going from one information page to another) by
using a computer PROGRAM called a BROWSER. → see also
HTML
worm¹ /w3:m||w3:rm/ n 1 a small thin creature with no
bones or limbs, like a round tube of flesh, especially an
EARTHWORM: I accidentally cut a worm in half with my
spade. | Many birds eat worms. | This dog has worms.
(=which live inside the body) → see also GLOW-WORM,
HOOKWORM, SILKWORM, SLOWWORM, TAPEWORM, WOOD-
WORM 2 derog a weak and worthless, cowardly etc person:
You miserable worm! 3 tech the curving line round a
SCREW 4 even a worm will turn BrE saying even the most
quiet and humble person will refuse to allow himself or
herself to be treated badly beyond a certain point → see also
can of worms (CAN)
worm² v [T] 1 [+obj+adv/prep, especially into] a) to move gradu-
ally by twisting or effort: We wormed our way through the
crack in the wall. b) derog to make (oneself) accepted,
gradually and perhaps by dishonest means: He wormed