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east¹ /iːst/ abbrev. E n (often cap.) 1 [the;U] the direction from which the sun rises; the direction which is on the right of a person facing north: A strange light appeared in the east. | It's a few kilometres to the east of London. | I'm lost – which way is east? 2 [the] the eastern part of a country: The rain will spread later to the east. 3 east is east and west is west, and never the twain shall meet quote a phrase from a poem by Rudyard Kipling. People sometimes say it when they want to say that people from Europe and people from Asia will never understand each other completely.
east² abbrev. E adj [(often cap.)] 1 in the east or facing the east: The church's east window has beautifully coloured glass. | She lives in East Africa. 2 (of a wind) coming from the east: a cold east wind ➔ see NORTH² (USAGE)
east³ abbrev. E adv (often cap.) 1 towards the east: The room faces east, so we get the morning sun. | The plane flew east. | Cleveland is (a long way) east of Chicago. 2 back east AmE infml to or in the EAST
East n 1 the East: a) old-fash the countries in Asia, especially China and Japan: The martial arts originated in the East. b) the countries in the eastern part of Europe, especially the ones that had Communist governments: American relations with the East were at their worst in the late 1950s. c) AmE the part of the US east of the Mississippi River, especially the states north of Washington DC: She was born in the East, but now lives in Seattle. | back East He was born in Minneapolis but he went to college back East. 2 East-West relations/ trade etc old-fash political relations etc between countries in eastern Europe and those in other parts of Europe and in North America ➔ compare FAR EAST, MIDDLE EAST, NEAR EAST
East An·gli·a /iːst ˈæŋgliə/ a large area of eastern England, between the WASH and the THAMES, including Norfolk, Suffolk, and parts of Essex and Cambridgeshire. The countryside is mostly rather flat, and a lot of wheat, flowers, and vegetables are grown there. The University of East Anglia is at Norwich. —East Anglian adj
east-bound /ˈiːstband/ adj travelling or leading towards the east: an eastbound train | the eastbound side of the motorway
East 'Coast, the the eastern US states, especially the northeastern area from Washington, D.C. to the border with Canada
CULTURAL NOTE People usually think about the large cities of New York, Philadelphia, and Boston as being the most important places on the East Coast, and states such as Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire as being the areas on the East Coast that have the most traditional way of life. The STEREOTYPE of someone from the East Coast is a man or woman who thinks that he or she is more educated and more interested in art, literature, music etc than people who live in other parts of the US.
East 'End, the the eastern part of central London, north of the River Thames ➔ see also COCKNEY —Eastender n
CULTURAL NOTE People often think about the East End of London as a traditionally WORKING-CLASS area where people called COCKNEYS live. It is also known for its street markets, including Petticoat Lane and Brick Lane. The East End was badly damaged by bombs during World War II and in the 1950s many people moved out of the area to NEW TOWNS such as Milton Keynes. But since the 1980s, many businesses and MIDDLE-CLASS people have moved into parts of the East End, especially Docklands, so the character of the area has changed. House prices have greatly increased and many old buildings have been replaced by new ones.
East-End·ers /iːstˈendəz‖-ərz/ trademark a popular British SOAP OPERA on television, which is about the WORKING-CLASS people who live in ALBERT SQUARE in the East End of London. It is known for dealing with common social problems in a realistic way.
Eas·ter /ˈiːstər/ n [C;U] 1 Easter Sunday a special day in the Christian religion in March or April when Christians remember the death of Jesus and celebrate his return to life 2 the period just before and after Easter Sunday, including Good Friday and Easter Monday which are public holidays in the UK: the Easter holidays ➔ see Feature on page A17
CULTURAL NOTE People think of Easter in connection with spring and new life. On GOOD FRIDAY Christians remember the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, and two days later, on EASTER SUNDAY, they celebrate the time when they believe Christ became alive again. Many Christians go to church on Easter Sunday, even if they do not go to church regularly. There are many Easter traditions in both the US and the UK. People paint eggs in bright colours for Easter, and often hide these eggs or small chocolate eggs for children to find. Young children believe that the eggs were hidden by the EASTER BUNNY. Sometimes children roll the coloured Easter eggs down a hill to see which ones will break. In the US some people also give EASTER BASKETS full of chocolate eggs or other sweets as presents, especially to children. In the UK, people give chocolate EASTER EGGS as presents, especially to children. In the past, people often got new clothes for Easter, and women wore special hats called EASTER BONNETS.
'Easter basket n a basket of sweets, usually small chocolate eggs, a chocolate Easter Bunny, or JELLY BEANS, which parents leave in the house for their child to find on Easter morning, especially in the US. The basket is supposed to have been left for the child by the Easter bunny. ➔ see colour photo on page A18
Easter 'bonnet n old-fash a BONNET (=type of women's hat) worn at Easter
CULTURAL NOTE Traditionally, women used to buy a new hat to wear in church on Easter Day: I see you've got your Easter bonnet on then.
Easter 'bunny, the in the US, the imaginary rabbit who is believed by children to deliver their EASTER BASKETS and hide their EASTER EGGS on Easter morning. Children in the UK also know about the Easter bunny, but do not connect him with Easter baskets.
'Easter egg n [C;U] 1 BrE a chocolate egg which sometimes has sweets inside it, and which is given as a present at Easter 2 AmE a hard-boiled egg that has been painted and decorated, usually by a child. The child's parents then hide the egg, and on Easter morning the child searches for it, believing that it has been hidden by the Easter bunny.
'Easter Island a small island in the Pacific Ocean, which belongs to Chile. Many tourists go to Easter Island to see the several hundred stone heads, some of which are 20 metres tall, which were made over a thousand years ago.
eas·ter·ly¹ /ˈiːstəli‖-ərli/ adj 1 towards or in the east: We set off in an easterly direction. 2 (of a wind) coming from the east: a light easterly breeze
easterly² n a wind coming from the east; used mainly in television and radio programmes, newspaper articles etc about the weather
Easter 'Monday the day after Easter Day, which is a public holiday in the UK ➔ see Cultural Note at EASTER
east·ern /ˈiːstən‖-ərn/ abbrev. E adj (often cap.) 1 of or belonging to the east part of the world or of a country: Eastern regions will have heavy rain today. | an interest in Eastern religions (=from India, China etc) ➔ see NORTH (USAGE) 2 full of Eastern promise a phrase used in advertisements for Fry's Turkish Delight chocolate and now sometimes used in a joking way to describe something desirable and unusual from eastern countries
Eastern bloc, the the former SOVIET UNION and all the countries of Eastern Europe that used to be under its control or influence
Eastern 'Conference, the a group of professional BASKETBALL teams from the eastern part of the US, which play against one another. Together with the WESTERN CONFERENCE, a similar group from the western US, these teams form the NBA (=National Basketball Association).
Eastern 'Daylight Time, abbrev. EDT the time used in the summer months in the Eastern Time Zone of the US
East·ern·er /ˈiːstənər‖tər-/ n [C] AmE someone who lives in or comes from the eastern US