Washington, George
1552
George Washington
Washington, George (1732-99) the first President of the US, from 1789 to 1797. Washington was a respected officer in the British army before he became commander of the COLONIAL armies during the AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR. After the war he became the leader of the CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION and influenced the states to officially accept the new CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. He was elected President of the US twice, but he refused to be president for a third time.
CULTURAL NOTE Most people in the US know important historical facts about George Washington, such as that he was an important military leader in the AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR against Britain; that he and his army suffered an extremely cold winter in VALLEY FORGE; and that he became the first President of the US. Most children in the US are told a story about Washington that shows he was an honest person. According to the story, when Washington was a boy, he chopped down a CHERRY tree with an AXE. Washington's father saw the tree, became angry, and asked Washington what had happened. Washington then replied 'I cannot tell a lie' and admitted that he had cut down the tree. He is often called 'the father of our country' and many tourists visit MOUNT VERNON, the home where he and his wife Martha lived in Virginia. His picture is on every US one-dollar BILL and every US QUARTER, and his birthday is celebrated every year on February 22nd as a public holiday called PRESIDENT'S DAY.
Washington 'Monument, the a tall OBELISK (=stone structure) on the MALL (=park area) in Washington, D.C., which was built to show respect and admiration for George WASHINGTON, the first president of the US
Washington 'Post, The a serious US newspaper produced in Washington, D.C., and sold all over the country. Two of its reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, had an important part in finding out information about the WATERGATE affair in the early 1970s.
Washington 'State also Washington written abbrev. WA a state in the northwestern US. Its largest cities are Seattle and Tacoma. It is known for its forests and its rainy weather → compare WASHINGTON, D.C.
washing-'up n [U] BrE infml 1 the washing of dishes, plates etc, after a meal: I'll do the washing-up. 2 the dishes, plates etc, that are waiting to be washed → see also WASH UP (WASH¹)
washing-'up bowl n BrE a plastic bowl in a sink in which the washing-up is done
washing-'up liquid BrE || dishwashing liquid AmE — n [U] a soap in liquid form put into hot water and used to wash dishes, knives, forks, spoons etc
wash-load /'wɒʃləʊd||'wɔːʃ-, 'wɑːʃ-/ n the amount of clothing one can put in a washing machine considered together: I did one washload in the morning and another in the afternoon.
wash-out /'wɒʃaʊt||'wɔːʃ-, 'wɑːʃ-/ n infml a failure: That plan of yours was a complete washout. → see also WASH OUT (WASH¹)
wash-rag /'wɒʃræg||'wɔːʃ-, 'wɑːʃ-/ n AmE FACECLOTH
wash-room /'wɒʃruːm, -ruːm||'wɔːʃ-, 'wɑːʃ-/ n AmE euph for TOILET → see TOILET (USAGE)
wash-stand /'wɒʃstænd||'wɔːʃ-, 'wɑːʃ-/ n a table in a bedroom, holding things needed for washing the face and hands, especially in former times
was·n't /'wɒznt||'wɑː-/ short for was not: It wasn't my fault!
bee
hornet
wasp
wasp /wɒsp||wɑːsp, wɔːsp/ n a fierce stinging yellow and black insect similar to the bee → see also HORNET
WASP, Wasp /wɒsp||wɑːsp, wɔːsp/ n especially AmE abbrev. for White Anglo-Saxon Protestant; an American whose family was originally from northern Europe, especially considered as a member of the class which has controlling influence or power in society —Waspish, Waspy adj
wasp·ish /'wɒspɪʃ||'wɑː-, 'wɔː-/ adj sharply bad-tempered and cruel: a nasty waspish remark —ly adv —ness n [U]
was·sup /wɒ'sʌp||wɑː-/ another spelling of WHASSUP
wast /wəst; strong wɒst||wæst; strong wɑːst/ v thou wast old use or poet (when talking to one person) you were
wast·age /'weɪstɪdʒ/ n [S;U] 1 loss or destruction of something, especially wasteful loss of something valuable 2 a reduction in numbers because of leaving, dying etc: We expect to lose over 50 people from our work force every year by natural wastage.
waste¹ /weɪst/ n 1 [S;U(of)] loss, wrong use, or lack of full use: It's a waste of John's talents to use him for such an easy job. | Don't let all this good food go to waste! (=be wasted) | It's a waste of time (=useless) trying to talk to her when she's in this mood. | I think betting is a complete waste of money. 2 [U] used, damaged, or unwanted matter: A lot of poisonous waste from the chemical works goes into the river. | Bodily waste is excreted in the form of faeces and urine. → compare REFUSE; see also NUCLEAR WASTE, WASTE DISPOSAL 3 [C] also wastes pl.— especially lit an unused or useless stretch of land; a wide empty lonely stretch of water or land: No crops will grow on these stony wastes. | the icy wastes of Antarctica → see also WASTELAND
waste² v [T] 1 [(on)] to use wrongly, not use, or use too much of: Don't waste your money on silly things; save it. | Don't waste electricity; turn off the lights when you go out. 2 (especially of a disease) to cause (the body) to lose flesh, muscle, strength etc, gradually: the poor wasted bodies of the concentration camp victims | a wasting disease such as tuberculosis → see also WASTE AWAY 3 waste one's breath infml to have no effect with what one says: Don't waste your breath trying to persuade them: they'll never listen. 4 waste not, want not saying careful use of things one has, while one has them, will mean that one will never be hungry or in need (usually said when the speaker is about to take or use something that another person has left behind or thrown away) 5 sb is a waste of space BrE spoken used in order to say that you do not like someone at all, or think they are bad at their job: 'Look at Dave showing off to those girls.' 'Yeah, what a waste of space.' | Robson is a complete waste of space – he doesn't know anything about computer graphics.
waste away phr v [I] (especially of a person or a part of the body) to gradually become thinner and weaker → see also WASTE³
waste³ adj [A] 1 got rid of as worthless, damaged, or of no use: waste material 2 used for holding or carrying away what is worthless or no longer wanted: waste pipes 3 (especially of an area of land) empty; ruined or destroyed → see also WASTE, lay waste (LAY)
waste-bas-ket /'weɪstbɑːskɪt||-,bæ-/ a WASTEPAPER BASKET