7
accommodation
someone belongs to. Accents on radio and television
RP (=Received Pronunciation) is the accent that is
traditionally used by MIDDLE-CLASS educated people from
the South of England. In the past, almost all the
broadcasters, actors etc who featured on the BBC spoke
with this accent, and it is sometimes called 'BBC English',
but now most types of accent can be heard on radio and
television. The standard accent used in US radio and
television news broadcasts is based on accents from the
Midwest. → see also ESTUARY ENGLISH
ac-cent² /ək'sent||'æksent/ v [T] 1 to pronounce (a word or
a part of a word) with an ACCENT¹ 2 to mark (a written word)
with an ACCENT¹ 3 to direct attention to; accentuate: A red
belt accents the colour in her dress. | French herbs accent the
flavour of the meat.
ac-cen-tu-ate /ək'sentʃueɪt/ v [T] 1 to direct attention to;
EMPHASIZE: The dark frame accentuates the brightness of the
picture. 2 to pronounce with great force —ation
/əkˌsentʃu'eɪʃən/ n [C,U]
ac-cept /ək'sept/ v 1 [I,T] to take or receive (something
offered or given), especially willingly: The police aren't
allowed to accept rewards. | He asked her to marry him and
she accepted (his offer). 2 [T] to take or receive as satisfactory
or reasonable, often unwillingly: The company did not accept
the report's criticisms. | Did she accept your reasons for being
late? | He accepted her apology very graciously. | They accepted
responsibility for the accident. | The work force has reluctantly
agreed to accept a cut in pay. 3 [T] to recognize as being true
or right: For a long time she could not accept the fact of her
husband's death. | I'm sorry, but I can't accept that. | [+that] It
is generally accepted that smoking causes bad health. |
accepted principles of behaviour → see REFUSE (USAGE)
ac-cept-a-ble /ək'septəbəl/ adj 1 good enough; satisfac-
tory: This standard of work is not acceptable; do it
again. 2 that can be allowed; TOLERABLE: an acceptable level
of inflation | an acceptable risk | behaviour that is not socially
acceptable → opposite UNACCEPTABLE 3 worth receiving;
welcome: an acceptable gift —bly adv —bility
/əkˌseptə'bɪləti/ n [U]
ac-cept-ance /ək'septəns/ n [C,U] 1 the act of accepting or
being accepted 2 favour; approval: to gain acceptance for
one's ideas 3 (in business) an agreement to pay
ac-cess¹ /'ækses/ n 1 [U(to)] means of entering; way in;
entrance: The only means of access to the building is along a
muddy track. 2 [U(to)] means or right of using, reaching, or
obtaining: Students need easy access to books. | My
ex-husband has access to the children at weekends. (=is
allowed to see them then) 3 [C+of] lit or old use a sudden
attack, as of anger or a disease 4 easy/difficult of access
easy/difficult to reach
access² v [T] to obtain (stored information) from a compu-
ter's memory
Access trademark a type of CREDIT CARD in the UK which is
now known as MASTERCARD
access ,course n BrE an educational course for adults
which prepares them for study at a university or college
ac-ces-si-ble /ək'sesəbl/ adj [(to, by)] 1 easy to reach, enter,
or obtain: The island is accessible only by boat. → opposite
INACCESSIBLE 2 easy and friendly to speak to: A manager
should be accessible to his/her staff. 3 in a form that is easy
to understand: The information ought to be made more acces-
sible. —bility /əkˌsesə'bɪləti/ n [U]
ac-ces-sion /ək'seʃən/ n fml 1 [U(to)] the act of acceding
(ACCEDE) or coming to a high position: the Queen's accession
to the throne → compare SUCCESSION 2 [C;U(to)] (an) addi-
tion to a group or collection: an important new accession of
scientific books to the library 3 [C;U(to)] agreement, especially
to a demand
ac-ces-so-ry /ək'sesəri/ n 1 [usually pl.] something which is
not a necessary part of something larger but which makes it
more useful, effective etc: car accessories including the roof
rack and radio 2 [usually pl.] the bag, shoes etc, that complete
a woman's clothes; a formal word usually used to describe
fashion clothes: a black dress with matching accesso-
ries 3 [C] also accessary —law a person who is not present at
a crime but who helps someone else in doing it, either before
the crime (accessory before the fact) or afterwards (acces-
sory after the fact): an accessory to murder
'access pro,vider n a company that provides the technical
services that allow people to use the Internet, usually in
exchange for a monthly payment → compare INTERNET
SERVICE PROVIDER
'access ,road n a road which allows traffic to reach a
particular place: an access road to the farm
'access ,time n [U] tech the time taken by a computer to
find and use a piece of information in its memory; the
length of time between asking the computer for information
and getting it
ac-ci-dent /'æksɪdənt/ n 1 something, especially some-
thing unpleasant or damaging, that happens unexpectedly
or by chance: I'm afraid I had an accident in the kitchen and
broke all the glasses. | a bad/serious/fatal accident on the
motorway → see also CHAPTER OF ACCIDENTS 2 something
that happened that was not intentional and so cannot be
blamed on anyone: I didn't break it on purpose, Mum, it was
an accident! | He swears it was an accident. 3 by accident by
chance: I met her purely by accident. | The trip was a success,
but more by accident than design. (=not because of good
planning) 4 by accident of by the chance or fortune of:
wealthy by accident of birth 5 accidents will happen saying
a phrase used when there has been an accident, meaning
that it is impossible to avoid them and so not worth
worrying about them
ac-ci-den-tal /ˌæksɪ'dentl/ adj happening by chance, not
by plan or intention —ly adv: She walked past and spilled
my drink accidentally on purpose. (=she pretended that it
was an accident, but really she did it on purpose)
,accidental 'death n law one of the VERDICTS possible at a
British INQUEST trying to discover the cause of someone's
death
,accident and e'mergency abbrev. A&E n BrE the room or
department in a hospital where people go if they have an
accident or suddenly become ill → see CASUALTY
'accident-prone adj (of a person) more likely to have
accidents than most people
ac-claim¹ /ə'kleɪm/ v [T(as)] to greet with approval; publicly
recognize: The new drug has been acclaimed as the most
important discovery for years. | [+obj+n] They acclaimed him
their leader.
acclaim² n [U] strong expressions of approval and praise:
The book received considerable critical acclaim.
ac-cla-ma-tion /ˌæklə'meɪʃən/ n [C,U] fml loud expressions
of approval or welcome
ac-cli-ma-tize also -tise BrE /ə'klaɪmətaɪz/ also
ac-cli-mate /ə'klaɪmeɪt||'ækləmeɪt, ə'klaɪmət/ AmE — v
[I;T(to)] to (cause to) become used to the conditions of
weather in a new part of the world: We lived in Africa for five
years, but we never really got acclimatized (to the hot
weather). | (fig.) He can't acclimatize (himself) to working at
night. —tization /əˌklaɪmətaɪ'zeɪʃən||-tə-/ n [U]
ac-cliv-i-ty /ə'klɪvɪti/ n fml or tech an upward slope → com-
pare DECLIVITY
ac-co-lade /'ækəleɪd/ n strong praise and approval: The film
received/won accolades from all the critics.
ac-com-mo-date /ə'kɒmədeɪt||'kɑː-/ v [T] fml 1 to pro-
vide with a place in which to live or stay 2 to have enough
space for: Are there enough shelves to accommodate all our
books? 3 to make changes that take account of the wishes or
demands of: The union has made every possible effort to
accommodate the management. 4 [(to)] to change (especially
oneself) to fit new conditions 5 [(with)] to supply with
something that is needed, especially money: He asked his
uncle to accommodate him till his pay cheque arrived.
ac-com-mo-dat-ing /ə'kɒmədeɪtɪŋ||'kɑː-/ adj fml apprec
willing to help or make changes to suit new conditions;
OBLIGING —ly adv
ac-com-mo-da-tion /əˌkɒmə'deɪʃən||ˌɑːkə-/ n 1 [U] a
place to live or work in; house, flat, hotel room etc: The
travel agent fixed up/arranged our accommodation. | office
accommodation | the high cost of rented accommodation in
London 2 [C,U] fml the settling of a disagreement: efforts to
come to/reach an accommodation with the US over imports