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time in the past and has continued to the time when you
are speaking. 2 When you want to say that something
happened before another event in the past, you use
before (that) or previously instead of ago: My
grandfather died five years ago; my grandmother had
already died three years before (that)/previously. (=eight
years ago).
a·gog /ə'gɒg||ə'gɑ:g/ adj [F(with)] infml full of eager excitement
and expectation: The children were all agog (with excitement)
as the actor pulled a gun from his pocket.
ag·o·nize also -nise BrE /'ægənaɪz/ v [(over)] infml to make a
long and anxious effort when considering something or
trying to make a decision: After agonizing (over it) for days
we finally made up our minds.
ag·o·nized also -nised BrE /'ægənaɪzd/ adj expressing great
pain: She let out an agonized cry.
ag·o·niz·ing also -nising BrE /'ægənaɪzɪŋ/ adj causing great
pain or anxiety: an agonizing decision/delay —ly adv
ag·o·ny /'ægəni/ n [C,U] very great pain or suffering of mind
or body: He lay in agony until the doctor arrived. | I was in an
agony of doubt/in agonies of doubt.
agony ,aunt BrE || advice columnist AmE — n a woman
who gives advice to readers in an agony column. Famous
agony aunts in Britain are Marjorie PROOPS and Claire
RAYNER, and in the US Dear Abby and Ann LANDERS.
agony ,column BrE || advice column AmE — n a part of a
newspaper, especially a TABLOID, or magazine containing
letters from readers about their personal problems, together
with advice from the newspaper or magazine
ag·o·ra·pho·bi·a /ˌægərə'fəʊbiə/ n [U] fear of open spaces
→ compare CLAUSTROPHOBIA
ag·o·ra·pho·bic /ˌægərə'fəʊbɪk/ n, adj (a person) suffering
from agoraphobia
a·grar·i·an /ə'greəriən/ adj concerning land, especially
farmland or who owns it: a campaigner for agrarian reform
a·gree /ə'gri:/ v 1 [i(with, about, on);T obj; not in progressive forms] to
have or share the same opinion, feeling, or purpose; CONCUR: I
thought it was a good idea, but she didn't agree. | I agree with
you about his latest book – it's awful. | We agreed on a price for
the car. | [+to-v] We agreed to leave at once. | [+ (that)] It is generally
agreed (=most people agree) that she is the best tennis player in
the country. | 'I think it's a bad idea.' 'I couldn't agree more.'
(=I completely agree.) → opposite DISAGREE; see REFUSE
(USAGE) 2 [i(to)] to say yes to an idea, opinion, suggestion etc,
especially after unwillingness or argument; CONSENT: I sug-
gested that we should go on holiday and she agreed at once. |
We'll never get him to agree to it. 3 [i(with)] (of facts, statements
etc) to be in accordance with each other or with something else;
CORRESPOND: The witnesses' statements just don't agree (with
each other). 4 [T] especially BrE to accept (an idea, opinion etc);
reach an agreement about: The workers have agreed the com-
pany's pay offer. | an agreed price/statement 5 agree to differ
to stop trying to persuade each other; to remain friends in
spite of having different opinions
If you have the same opinion as someone else you
agree with them. You can also agree with someone's
attitude, ideas, plans, rules etc: Most parents agree with
the way bullying is dealt with at the school. You agree
with people about/on other matters: I agree with him
on most things. If you and others decide on or arrange to
do something after discussing it, you agree on it: We
agreed on a date for the meeting. If you agree to
something, especially something such as a suggestion,
proposal, or plan, you accept it: Do you think he will
agree to my suggestions?
agree with sbdy./sthg. phr v [T no pass.] 1 [usually in negatives]
infml to suit the health of: I love prawns, but unfortunately
they don't agree with me. → opposite DISAGREE WITH 2 tech
(of an adjective, verb etc) to have the proper relationship to
(the word it belongs to in grammar), for example by being
plural if it is plural, female if it is female etc → see also
AGREE¹
a·gree·a·ble /ə'gri:əbəl/ adj 1 pleasant: agreeable weather
→ opposite DISAGREEABLE 2 [F(to)] ready to agree; willing:
Are you agreeable (to the suggestion)?
a·gree·a·bly /ə'gri:əbli/ adv pleasantly: We were agreeably
surprised by their willingness to negotiate.
a·gree·ment /ə'gri:mənt/ n 1 [U] the state of having the
same opinion, feeling, or purpose; thinking in the same
way: We are in agreement with their decision. | The two sides
were unable to reach agreement. → opposite DISAGREE-
MENT 2 [C] an arrangement or promise of action, such as
one made between people, groups, businesses, or countries:
You have broken (the terms of) our agreement by not finishing
the job in time. | The two companies entered into an agree-
ment with each other. | to sign an agreement | trade
agreements | an arms-control agreement 3 [U(with)] tech the
fact of agreeing with another word in grammar: the agree-
ment of the pronoun 'she' with the noun 'Jane' to which it
refers
ag·ri·busi·ness /'ægrɪˌbɪznəs/ n [U;C] (a company involved
in) the producing and selling of farm products, especially as
a big business: Agribusiness is pushing out the small farmer. |
the agribusiness sector of the economy
ag·ri·cul·ture /'ægrɪˌkʌltʃər/ n [U] the practice or science
of farming, especially of growing crops → compare HORTI-
CULTURE —tural /ˌægr'kʌltʃərəl/ adj: agricultural
products/machinery —tur(al)ist /ˌægrɪ'kʌltʃərəlɪst/ n
ag·ro·chem·i·cal /ˌægrəʊ'kemɪkəl/ n a chemical used in
farming, for example to help plants grow
a·gron·o·my /ə'grɒnəmi||ə'grɑ:-/ n [U] the study of the
growing of crops —agronomist n
a·ground /ə'graʊnd/ adj, adv [F] (of a ship) on or onto the
shore or bottom of a sea, lake etc (especially in the phrase run
aground)
a·gue /'eɪgju:/ n [C;U] fever with regular attacks of coldness
and shaking, especially when caused by the disease MALARIA
Ag-ui-le-ra, Chris·ti·na /ægvɪ'leər ə, krɪ'sti:nə/ (1980–) a
US POP singer, known especially for dressing and performing
in a way that is intended to be sexually exciting. Her songs
include What a Girl Wants and Dirrty.
ah /ɑ:/ interj (a cry of surprise, pity, pain, joy, dislike etc): Ah,
there you are!
a·ha /ɑ:'hɑ:/ interj (a cry of surprise, satisfaction, amused
discovery etc): Aha, so it's you hiding there!
A·hab, Captain /'eɪhæb/ a character in the book MOBY-DICK
by Herman Melville. Captain Ahab risks his life and the lives
of everyone on his ship by hunting a large dangerous white
WHALE called Moby-Dick. Ahab is completely determined to
kill the whale, but it finally sinks his ship, killing him and
most of his men.
a·head /ə'hed/ adj, adv [F;after n] 1 in front; forward: One man
went ahead (of the others) to see if the road was clear. | The
road ahead was full of sheep. 2 in or into the future: to plan
ahead/plan for the months ahead 3 ahead of a) in advance
of: The time in London is five hours ahead of the time in New
York. b) in or into a more successful position than: Our
company is well ahead of its main rivals. | The Democrats
have moved ahead of the Republicans in the latest poll. c)
higher in price, value etc than: Their pay offer was well
ahead of inflation. 4 get ahead to do well; succeed → see
also GO-AHEAD
a·hem /m'hm; spelling pronunciation ə'hem/ interj (a cough
used to attract attention, give a slight warning, express
doubts etc)
A·hern, Ber·tie /ə'hɜ:n||-ɜ:rn, 'bɜ:tɪl-ɜ:r-/ (1951–) an Irish
politician and leader of the Fianna Fail party who became
the PRIME MINISTER of the Republic of Ireland in 1997. In
1998 he and Tony Blair signed the Good Friday Agreement
that began a process aimed at bringing peace to Northern
Ireland.
a·hoy /ə'hɔɪ/ interj 1 (a cry of greeting made by sailors,
especially from one ship to another) 2 ship ahoy! (a cry
used by sailors to say that they can see a ship approaching)
AI /ˌeɪ 'a/ n [U] abbrev. for 1 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE 2
ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION
aid¹ /eɪd/ v [T(with, in)] fml to give support to; help: We were
greatly aided in our investigation by the cooperation of the
police. | He was accused of aiding and abetting the terrorists.
(=helping them in criminal activities) | computer-aided
design → see HELP (USAGE)