thick
1442
necessary to prevent some illnesses: People who do not receive
enough thiamine in their diets should take a vitamin supplement.
thick1 /θɪk/ adj 1 a) having a large or larger than average
distance between opposite surfaces; not thin: a thick book |
thick walls | a thick layer of snow b) (of a round object)
wide in relation to length: thick wire 2 [after n] measuring in
depth, width, or from side to side: The castle walls are two
metres thick. 3 (of liquid) not watery; not flowing easily:
thick soup 4 difficult to see through; DENSE: thick mist | thick
clouds of smoke coming out of the factory chimneys 5 [F+with]
full of or covered with (especially something unpleasant):
The air was thick with smoke. | furniture thick with dust | The
whole area was thick with policemen. 6 closely packed; made
of many objects set close together: a thick forest | long thick
hair 7 a) (of an ACCENT) very noticeable: a thick Liverpool
accent b) (of speech or the voice) not clear: He spoke in a
voice thick with emotion. 8 BrE infml aching and/or unable to
think clearly: My head's rather thick this morning after all
that beer I drank last night. 9 infml (of a person) stupid; slow
to understand 10 [F] infml, especially BrE beyond what is rea-
sonable or satisfactory: It's a bit thick to expect me to work
until midnight! 11 [F (with)] infml very friendly: Jean and John
seem very thick (with each other). 12 as thick as two (short)
planks BrE slang very stupid 13 as thick as thieves infml very
friendly 14 get/give a thick ear BrE to receive or give a
blow on the ear causing it to swell as a punishment
(especially used in threats): I'll give you a thick ear if you
pull the dog's tail again! 15 thick on the ground infml,
especially BrE plentiful: Grants for the arts are not too thick on
the ground these days. 16 the thick end of BrE infml almost as
much as (an amount): The car cost me the thick end of
£10,000. → see also THICKNESS —ly adv
thick2 adv 1 so as to be thick; thickly: The flowers grew
thickest near the wall. 2 lay it on thick AmE infml to praise very
much but perhaps not very sincerely; FLATTER: He laid it on
pretty thick about her beautiful singing voice. 3 thick and
fast infml quickly and in large numbers: The election results
are coming in thick and fast.
thick3 n 1 [(the)S(of)] the part, place, time etc, of greatest
activity: in the thick of the battle/the rush hour traf-
fic 2 through thick and thin through both good and bad
times; faithfully: She stuck by (=remained with) her husband
through thick and thin.
thick·en /'θɪkən/ v [I;T] to make or become thick: The mist is
thickening. | I always thicken my soups by adding flour. → see
also the plot thickens (PLOT)
thick·en·er /'θɪkənər, 'θɪknər/ also thick·en·ing
/'θɪkənɪŋ, 'θɪknɪŋ/ n [C;U] a substance used for thickening a
liquid: gravy thickener
thick·et /'θɪkɪt/ n a thick growth of bushes and small trees:
The fox hid in the thicket where the dogs could not reach it.
thick·head·ed /ˌθɪk'hedɪd/ also thick·wit·ted
/ˌθɪk'wɪtɪd/ adj infml extremely stupid: He's so thickheaded
he can't understand the simplest instructions.
thick·ness /'θɪknəs/ n 1 [C;U] the quality or degree of being
thick: The beam has a thickness of 4 inches. | The length of
nails you need depends on the thickness of the planks. 2 [C(of)]
a LAYER: I wrapped the ice cream in three thicknesses of
newspaper to keep it cool.
thick·set /ˌθɪk'set/ adj having a broad strong body; STOCKY:
The boxing champion was short and thickset.
thick·-skinned adj sometimes derog insensitive, especially to
blame, disapproval etc; not easily offended
thief /θi:f/ n pl. thieves /θi:vz/ a person who steals, especially
without using violence: a car thief → compare BURGLAR,
ROBBER
thieve /θi:v/ v 1 [I] infml or lit to steal things; rob people; act as
a thief: Those thieving children keep stealing our
apples. 2 [T] nonstandard to steal
thiev·ing /'θi:vɪŋ/ also thiev·e·ry /'θi:vəri/ fml or lit — n [U]
stealing; THEFT
thiev·ish /'θi:vɪʃ/ adj lit of or like a thief: thievish habits —ly
adv —ness n [U]
thigh /θaɪ/ n the top part of the human leg, between the knee
and the HIP
thim·ble /'θɪmbəl/ n a small protective metal or plastic cap
put over the finger that pushes the needle during sewing
thim·ble·ful /'θɪmbəlfʊl/ n [(of)] infml a very small quantity
(of liquid)
thin1 /θɪn/ adj -nn- 1 a) having a small or smaller than
average distance between opposite surfaces; not thick: a thin
board | thin ice | thin summer clothes | Keep your voice down
or they'll hear you in the next room – the walls are paper-
thin b) (of a round object) narrow in relation to length;
fine: thin string/wire 2 having little fat on the body; not
fat: She looked thin after her illness. → see USAGE 3 often
derog (of a liquid) watery; flowing easily; weak: thin beer |
This sauce is too thin. 4 not closely packed; made of few
objects widely separated; SPARSE: Your hair's getting very
thin. | a thin audience | A thin rain began to fall. 5 easy to see
through; not DENSE: thin mist | The air on top of the moun-
tain was very thin. 6 (of a sound or note) lacking in strength
and fullness: a thin high voice 7 derog (especially of some-
thing said or written) not having the necessary qualities to
gain the intended result; unsatisfactory: a thin excuse | It was
quite an entertaining speech, but rather thin in terms of
content. | His jokes are beginning to wear thin (=become less
funny) because he's told them so often. 8 have a thin time BrE
infml to have an unpleasant, uncomfortable, or especially
unsuccessful time: He's been having rather a thin time (of it)
since his wife left him. 9 thin end of the wedge especially BrE
something which seems unimportant but will open the way
for more serious things of a similar kind: You're letting one or
two employees take days off here and there – this is just the
thin end of the wedge. 10 thin on the ground infml, especially
BrE not plentiful: Taxis seem very thin on the ground tonight –
we'll have to walk. 11 thin on top infml euph becoming BALD
(=hairless) —ly adv: Spread the butter thinly. | a thinly-
veiled/thinly-disguised threat (=clearly a threat, but not
expressed in threatening language) —ness n [U]
USAGE 1 Thin is a general word to describe people who
have little or no fat on their bodies. If someone is thin in a
pleasant way, we say they are slim or (less common)
slender: I wish I were as slim/slender as you. We could
also say lean (=thin in a strong and healthy way): a lean
muscular body. If they are too thin they are skinny (infml),
underweight, or (worst of all) emaciated: He looks very
thin/skinny/underweight after his illness. | The prisoners
were emaciated. 2 Thin can be used for things: a thin
pole but not usually for flat surfaces (especially surfaces
where a person might go) or for openings. Instead we say
narrow: a narrow road | a narrow bed | a narrow gap.
3 Fine is used to describe things that are thin when you
are giving the idea of careful, sensitive work: She drew
with a fine pen. | fine silk thread → see also FAT (USAGE)
thin2 adv so as to be thin; thinly: Don't cut the bread so thin.
thin3 v -nn- 1 [I;T (OUT)] to make or become thinner, fewer, or
less closely packed: Wait until the mist thins before we start. |
Thin the paint by adding turpentine. | The crowd began to
thin out. | His hair is thinning. 2 [T(OUT)] to pull up the
weaker ones from (a mass of young plants) so that the
stronger ones have room to grow freely → see also THINNER
thin 'air n [U] infml a state of not being seen or not existing: I
can't find that book anywhere – it's disappeared into thin air.
We can't just produce another £1000 out of thin air.
thine1 /ðain/ pron old use, bibl, or poet [possessive form of thou] yours
'For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory ...' (prayer)
thine2 determiner old use, bibl, or poet [before a vowel or h] THY: 'Drink
to me only with thine eyes.' (Ben Jonson)
thing /θɪŋ/ n 1 [C] a material object; an object that need not
or cannot be named: What's that thing you've got on your
head? | What do you use this thing for? | 'You can't leave that
thing there,' shouted the policeman. | I opened the door and the
first thing I saw was a cloud of smoke. | Have you seen my
pen? I can't find the thing/the wretched/stupid/damned thing
(=it) anywhere. (shows annoyance) | My son likes making
things out of wood. 2 [C] a separate but non-physical object
that can be thought about or talked about, such as a quality,
idea, or statement: What a nasty thing to say to your sister! | I
just said the first thing that came into my head. | One of the
things I like about her is that she's very honest. | He seems to
be more interested in things of the mind than things of the