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Home Guard, the
hom·burg /'hɒmbɜːg||'hɑːmbɜːrg/ n a soft FELT hat for men,
with a wide piece (BRIM) standing out round the edge
home¹ /həʊm/ n 1 [C;U] a) the house, flat etc where one
lives. One's home is considered to be a safe and comfortable
place which others only enter by invitation: I left my
briefcase at home. | They have a charming home in London. |
Now that we have more furniture, the flat is beginning to feel
like home. | (fig.) Has this pan got a home? (=a place where it is
usually kept) b) a house, flat etc considered as property:
home buyers | 'Attractive modern homes for sale'
(Advertisement) | home owners | There has been an increase in
home ownership. (=in the number of people who are buying
or have bought their own homes) c) the place where one
was born or habitually lives and to which one usually has
emotional ties: Nigeria is my home, but I'm living in London
just now. | She was born in Denver, but she's made Los Angeles
her home. → see HOUSE (USAGE) 2 [C;U] the house and
family one belongs to: She came from a poor home. | a happy
home life | He didn't leave home until he was 21. 3 [the
S+of] a) a place where a plant or animal can be found living
or growing wild, especially in large numbers: India is the
home of elephants and tigers. b) the place where something
was originally discovered, made, or developed: America is
the home of baseball. 4 [C] a place for the care of a group of
people or animals of the same type, who do not live with a
family, and who usually have special needs or problems: a
children's home | an old people's home | If he gets worse we'll
have to put him in a home. → see also REST HOME 5 [U] (in
some games and sports) a place which a player must try to
reach, such as the GOAL or the finishing line of a race → see
also HOME RUN, HOME STRETCH 6 at home old-fash ready to
receive visitors: If he telephones, say I'm not at home to
visitors until ten. 7 be/feel at home to be comfortable; not
feel worried, especially because one has the right skills or
experience: She's completely at home with computers.
8 Home, James, and don't spare the horses! a phrase
used humorously when telling someone to drive you home
quickly 9 make oneself at home (often imperative) to behave
freely, sit where one likes etc, as if one were in one's own
home 10 home sweet home a phrase used when saying
how pleasant it is to be in your own home 11 there's no
place like home a phrase from an old popular song,
meaning that your own home is the nicest place to be → see
also HOME FROM HOME
home² adv 1 to or at one's home: Is he home from work yet? |
I'm going home. | I really must be getting home in a moment.
(said by a guest who is about to go home) 2 as far as possible
and/or to the right place: He struck the nail home. | (fig.) He
drove his point home with plenty of facts. 3 come home to
someone/bring something home to someone to be clearly
understood by someone/to make someone clearly under-
stand something: At last it's come home to us that they've
been tricking us all the time. 4 home and dry infml, especially
BrE having safely or successfully completed something → see
also till the cows come home (COW¹), nothing to write home
about (WRITE)
NOTE When speaking of movement towards home, use
the adverb form without to: I'm coming home. | Let's
send the children home. | Henry'll be (=come) home
before seven. When there is no movement the usual form
in British English is at home: Let's stay at home this
evening. | Is Henry at home? In American English home
is often used without the preposition: Let's stay home this
evening. | I've been home all day.
home³ adj [A] 1 of or being a home, place of origin, or base
of operations: the home office of an international firm |
What's your home address? 2 not foreign; DOMESTIC: the
home country | Are these cars made for the home market or for
export? → see also HOME OFFICE 3 prepared, done, or
intended for use in a home: home cooking | home-baked
bread | a home computer 4 played or playing at one's own
sports field, rather than that of an opponent: the home team |
home games → opposite AWAY 5 homebase especially AmE a)
HOME PLATE b) a place or situation which is like one's
home: Eventually I'll return to Scotland, which is homebase.
home⁴ v
home in on sthg. phr v [T] to aim exactly towards: (fig.) Now
that we've got all the facts, we're homing in on the right answer.
Home A'lone (1990) a US humorous film in which Macauley
CULKIN appears as a young boy who is accidentally left at
home alone when his parents go on holiday, and who has to
prevent two criminals from getting into his home and
stealing things from it
Home and A'way a Australian television SOAP OPERA
which is also popular in the UK, about the people who live
in a small town on the coast called Summer Bay → compare
NEIGHBOURS
home 'baking n [U] (cakes etc made by) baking things at
home rather than in a factory: Granny's home baking always
tastes so much better than the cakes you buy in the shops.
'home base n 1 [C] the place that someone returns to in
order to rest, learn things, or exchange information: The
band's home base is Seattle. 2 [sing.] AmE HOME PLATE
Home·base /'həʊmbeɪs/ trademark a chain of large DIY stores
(=shops selling things for decorating or repairing your
house, as well as equipment for your garden) in the UK
home·bod·y /'həʊmˌbɒdi||ˌbɑːdi/ n infml a person who
enjoys being at home. This word is usually used to describe
a woman who chooses to stay at home rather than go out to
work.
Home 'Box ,Office abbrev. HBO trademark a US CABLE
TELEVISION company that mostly shows films
home·boy /'həʊmbɔɪ/ n AmE infml 1 a person who comes
from the same town as you 2 a friend, used especially by
African-American and Hispanic men 3 a member of a GANG
(1b), used especially by other members of the gang: 'You,
home boy! Come here!'
home 'brew n [U] beer made at home —–ed adj
home·com·ing /'həʊmˌkʌmɪŋ/ n 1 an arrival home, espe-
cially after long absence 2 AmE an occasion when former
students return to a high school or college for a REUNION
(=reuniting) and usually a football game
CULTURAL NOTE Homecoming is held in the autumn, and
is celebrated by students and former students. The school
or university usually has a homecoming dance (=a social
occasion when people dance), and many people go to
parties before or after the homecoming game (=a game of
football). In high school, students vote for a homecoming
king and homecoming queen. They are usually chosen
because they are popular and attractive, and the
STEREOTYPE is that they are the best football player and a
CHEERLEADER.
homecoming 'queen fem. homecoming 'king masc. — n
the student who is voted the most popular girl or boy of the
SENIOR class at a US high school, who is later given a crown
and the title 'king' or 'queen' at a formal dance during
HOMECOMING → see also Cultural Note at HOMECOMING
Home 'Counties, the n [P] the area of SE England around
London, including the counties (COUNTY) of Hertfordshire,
Essex, Kent, Surrey, East and West Sussex, Berkshire, and
Buckinghamshire
CULTURAL NOTE People who live in the Home Counties are
typically thought of as being MIDDLE CLASS and
CONSERVATIVE and as having a comfortable life.
Home 'Depot a US company that has stores in many parts
of North America, and which sells building materials for
home improvement. The company's customers are profes-
sional builders and people who are doing DIY.
home eco'nomics n [U] DOMESTIC SCIENCE
home from 'home BrE || home away from 'home AmE
— n a place as pleasant, comfortable, welcoming etc as one's
own house
home 'front n [the] (the activities of) the people working in
their own country, while others are away at war
'home fry n pl. -fries AmE a CHIP (=long thin piece of potato)
fried with its skin still on: steak and home fries
home·girl /'həʊmgɜːl||-gɜːrl/ n slang a female HOMEY
home·grown /ˌhəʊm'grəʊn◂/ adj 1 (of plants for food) a)
grown in the home country, not abroad b) grown in one's
own garden, not bought in a shop 2 infml made or produced
in one's own country: homegrown TV programmes
Home 'Guard, the in World War II, a British military force