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money
was momentarily unable to speak. 2 AmE very soon; in a
moment: We will be landing at the airport momentarily.
**mo·men·ta·ry** /'məʊməntrɪl-teri/ *adj* lasting for a very
short time: *She hesitated in momentary confusion.*
**mo·men·tous** /məʊ'mentəs, mə-/ *adj* of very great impor-
tance or seriousness, especially because of possible future
effects: *the momentous news that war had begun* | *a momen-
tous decision*
**mo·men·tum** /məʊ'mentəm, mə-/ *n* pl. **-ta** /tə/ or
**-tums** **1** [C,U] *tech* the quantity of movement in a body,
measured by multiplying its mass by its speed: *As the rock
rolled down the mountainside, it gathered momentum.*
(=moved faster and faster) **2** [U] the force gained by the
movement or development of events: *The struggle for inde-
pendence is gaining momentum every day.*
**MOMI** /'məʊmi/ *abbrev.* for the MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE
in London
**mom·ma** /'mɒmə|'mɑːmə/ *n* AmE → see MAMA, MUMMY
**mom·my** /'mɒmi|'mɑːmi/ *n* AmE *infml* for MUMMY
**Mon.** *written abbrev.* for Monday
**Mon·a·co** /'mɒnəkəʊ, mə'nɑːkəʊ|'mɑːnəkəʊ/ *a* small PRIN-
CIPALITY (=country ruled by a prince) on the Mediterranean
coast between France and Italy. It is a popular place for rich
people from other countries to go to live, because of its low
taxes. Population 32,130 (2003). Capital: Monaco-Ville. Its
main town is MONTE CARLO. People from Monaco are called
'Monégasques'. → see also KELLY, Grace
**Mon·a·ghan** /'mɒnəhæn|'mɑːn-/ *a* COUNTY in the northeast
of the Republic of Ireland
**Mo·na Li·sa, the** /ˌməʊnə 'liːzə|l-'liːsə/ *a* 16th century
painting by LEONARDO DA VINCI of a woman with a mysteri-
ous smile, also called *La Gioconda*. It is kept in the LOUVRE in
Paris, and is one of the most famous paintings in the world.
**mon·arch** /'mɒnək|'mɑːnərk, -ɑːrk/ *n* a ruler of a state,
such as a king, queen etc, who has a right to rule by birth
and does not have to be elected —**ic** /mə'nɑːkɪk|mə'nɑːr-/
—**ical** *adj*: *monarchic rule*
**mon·arch·ism** /'mɒnəkzəm|'mɑnər-/ *n* [U] *BrE* (the prin-
ciples of) monarchic government
**mon·arch·ist** /'mɒnəkɪst|'mɑːnər-/ *n* a person in favour of
the idea that kings, queens etc should rule, rather than
elected leaders: *monarchist principles*
**mon·ar·chy** /'mɒnəki|'mɑːnərki/ *n* **1** [U] (the system of)
rule by a king or queen: *He's a staunch supporter of the
monarchy.* **2** [C] a state ruled by a king or queen: *Britain is a
constitutional monarchy.* → compare REPUBLIC
**CULTURAL NOTE** The UK is a CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY.
The monarch, at present Queen Elizabeth II, is the HEAD
OF STATE (=the official ruler of the country), not only of the
UK, but also of some countries in the British
Commonwealth, including Australia, Canada, and New
Zealand. The Queen has little real power, and most of her
work consists of ceremonies. Every year, the Queen
performs the State Opening of Parliament, when she
makes a speech that says what the government plans to
do. A new law does not become official until it has had
the royal assent (=been signed by the Queen), but she
cannot refuse to agree to a law that has been decided on
by Parliament. The Queen gives titles and other HONOURS
to people who have achieved important things for the
country, but most honours go to people chosen by the
government. Some British people believe that the
monarchy is old-fashioned, unnecessary, and a waste of
money, and that Britain should become a REPUBLIC. But
many other British people like the monarchy, and feel that
it is good to have someone who is not connected with a
political party to represent the country on important
occasions. TABLOID newspapers often write stories about
the Royal Family, especially if they think that a member of
the Royal Family has been behaving badly. They do not
treat them with as much respect as newspapers in many
other countries treat their Royal Families.
**mon·as·tery** /'mɒnəstri. 'mɑːnəsteri/ *n* a building in which
MONKS live → compare CONVENT
**mo·nas·tic** /mə'næstɪk/ *adj* of or like monasteries or MONKS:
*a monastic community* | *He lives a life of monastic simplicity.*
—**ally** /kli/ *adv*
**mo·nas·ti·cism** /mə'næstɪsɪzəm/ *n* [U] the life, or way of
life, of MONKS in a monastery
**Mon·day** /'mʌndeɪ/ *n* [C,U] the day between Sunday and
Tuesday. In Britain, Monday is considered the first day of
the week, and in the US, it is considered the second day of
the week: *It was raining on Monday.* | *I found it hard to get
out of bed for work on Monday morning.* | *Sasha will arrive
Monday.* | **on Mondays** (=each Monday) *We play football on
Mondays.* | **a Monday** (=one of the Mondays in a year) *Does
Christmas fall on a Monday this year?*
**Mon·de·o** /mɒn'deɪəʊ|mɑn-/ *trademark* a type of car made
by Ford in the UK, and popular with families and business
people
**Mon·dri·an, Piet** /ˌmɒndri'ɑːn|ˌmɑːn-, piːt/ (1872-1944) *a*
Dutch painter famous for his ABSTRACT work involving only
straight lines and squares or RECTANGLES of colour
**M1** /ˌem 'wʌn/ *a* British MOTORWAY (=large, fast road) that
goes from London to Leeds in the north of England
**Mon·é·gasque** /ˌmɒnɪ'gæsk|mɑːn-/ *n* someone who
comes from Monaco —**Monégasque** *adj*
**Mon·et, Claude** /'mɒneɪ|məʊ'neɪ, klɔːd/ (1840-1926) *a*
French painter who helped to start the IMPRESSIONIST move-
ment. He is best known for his paintings of the countryside
in which he tried to show the effects of light by painting the
same picture at different times of day or in different types of
weather.
**mon·e·ta·rism** /'mʌnɪtərɪzəm|'mɑːɪ-/ *n* [U] *tech* (in ECO-
NOMICS) the belief that the best way of controlling the
ECONOMY of a country is to control the MONEY SUPPLY →
compare THATCHERISM —**rist** *n, adj*
**mon·e·ta·ry** /'mʌnɪtəri|'mɑːnɪteri/ *adj* especially *tech* of or
about money: *The monetary system of some countries used to
be based on gold.*
**mon·ey** /'mʌni/ *n* [U] **1** a means of payment, especially in
the form of metal coins or paper notes: *His father makes/*
*earns a lot of money as a pilot.* | *The repairs will cost a lot of
money.* | *If it doesn't work, the shop should give you your
money back.* (=repay its price to you) | *We enjoyed the film so
much that we felt we'd had our money's worth.* (=full value for
the price) | *'Have you got any cash?' 'No, I don't usually carry
much money on me.'* (=with me) | *Don't throw that away; I
paid good money* (=spent money that should not be wasted)
*for it.* | *I want him to put (some) money into* (= INVEST in) *my
business.* | *The school is holding a competition to raise* (=col-
lect) *money for a new hall.* | *We needn't take a taxi – don't
throw your money about/away.* (=spend it foolishly) | (*infml*)
*I've never seen anyone spend so much in one evening; he must
have money to burn/he must be rolling in money!* (=be
very rich) **2** wealth: *He made his money in property
speculation.* | *His business collapsed, and he lost all his
money.* | (*infml*) *If this old picture is really by a famous artist,
we're in the money.* (=rich) | (*infml*) *She intends to marry
money.* (=a rich man) **3** **for my money** *infml* in my opinion:
*For my money, you were by far the best actor in the
play.* **4** **(the love of) money is the root of all evil** *saying* from
the Bible the desire to have a lot of money is the cause of all
crimes **5** **made of money** *infml* very rich: *I can't afford to buy
you another car – do you think I'm made of money?* **6** **money
for jam/for old rope** *infml* especially *BrE* money obtained or
earned for very little effort **7** **money makes the world go
round** *saying* money is the most important thing in the world
because most human activity depends on it **8** **money talks**
*infml* money can be used by those who have it to influence
others **9** **put one's money where one's mouth is** *infml, often
humor* to support one's views with practical proof: *You say
you're on the side of the workers: why don't you put your
money where your mouth is and support the strike?* **10** **your
money or your life** give me your money or I will kill you — a
threat that is supposed to have been made by highwaymen
(HIGHWAYMAN) → see also MAD MONEY, MONEYS, BLOOD
MONEY, HUSH MONEY, PIN MONEY, POCKET MONEY, READY
MONEY, a (good) run for one's money (RUN), see the colour
of someone's money (SEE), throw good money after bad
(THROW¹) **11** **you pays your money and you takes your
chances/choice** used in order to say that it is impossible to