1231
scabbard
,sawn-off 'shotgun BrE || ,sawed-off 'shotgun AmE — n
a SHOTGUN with a short barrel, often carried as a weapon by
criminals
Saw-yer, Tom /'sɔːjə/ the main character in the book The
Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) by Mark TWAIN, who is a
brave and clever boy, but often gets into difficult or danger-
ous situations. In one story Tom is given the job of white-
washing (WHITEWASH) a fence (=painting it white), but he
tricks his friends into doing the work for him, by making
them think that he is really enjoying the job. His best friend
is Huckleberry FINN.
sax-i-frage /'sæksɪfreɪdʒ/ n [U] a small plant with bright
flowers, growing especially in rocky places
Sax-on /'sæksən/ n a member of a German tribe that moved
across NW Europe from Roman times. In the 5th and 6th
centuries, Saxons attacked areas of south and east England,
and established villages there → see also ANGLO-SAXON
—Saxon adj: a Saxon church
sax-o-phone /'sæksəfəʊn/ also sax /sæks/ infml — n a metal
musical instrument of the WOODWIND family, with a single
REED, used mostly in JAZZ, military, and dance music
—phonist /-fəʊnɪst||'sæksəfoʊnɪst/ n
say¹ /seɪ/ v said /sed/, 3rd person sing. present tense says /sez/
1 [T(to)] a) to pronounce (a sound, word etc): 'What did you
say?' 'I said, 'You're standing on my toe!'' | She stood on my
foot and didn't even say sorry. | You children must learn to say
'please' and 'thank you'. 1 (fig.) So I said to myself (=thought)
'I wonder what she means'. b) to pronounce (a formal set of
words) aloud: Have you said your prayers? 2 [I only in negatives
and questions;T] to express (a thought, intention, opinion,
question etc) in words: Don't believe anything he says. | 'Why
did she leave?' 'I don't know – she didn't say.' | [+(that)] He says
he's thirsty. | He said (that) he would like another drink. | It
says in the instructions that you should mix it carefully first. |
[+WH-] Did she say how she got here? | 'Do you think it will
rain?' 'I should say so/not.' (=I think it will/will not.) |
'What's he going to do now?' 'I'd rather not say.' (=I don't
want to tell anyone.) /'Who can say?' (=I don't know.) 3 [T
often pass.] to give as a general opinion; claim: Well, you know
what they say – blood's thicker than water. (=this is a common
saying or PROVERB) | [+(that)] They say (=it is many people's
opinion that) there's going to be an election soon. | It's said
that he's the richest man in the world. | [+obj+to-v; pass.] He's
said to be the richest man in the world. 4 [T] to show;
INDICATE: What does your watch say? | The fact that she gave
the money back says a lot about her honesty. (=proves she is
honest) | [+(that)] She was smiling but her eyes said she was
unhappy. 5 [T usually imperative] to suppose; suggest; ASSUME:
Would you take an offer of, say (=for example), £500 for your
car? | Can you come to dinner? Say, 7.30? | [+(that)] (Let's) say
(that) your plan fails; then what do we do? 6 [T+to-v; obj; not in
progressive forms] infml to direct or instruct someone: She said to
meet her at the station. | It says on the bottle to take a spoonful
every four hours. 7 do as I say, not as I do a phrase used in
criticizing people who order others to act in a particular
way, but do not themselves act in this way: The boss is so
strict about us all keeping to the correct working hours, but he
always leaves half an hour early – it's do as I say, not as I
do. 8 go without saying to be clear; not need stating: It goes
without saying that our plans depend on the weather. 9 hav-
ing said that in spite of what has just been said; NEVERTHE-
LESS: She didn't do a very good job, but having said that, I
don't think I could have done any better. 10 I say BrE old-fash
a) (used for calling someone's attention): I say, can you see
anything up there? b) old-fash (a rather weak expression of
interest, anger etc): 'My husband is ill today.' 'I say! I'm sorry
to hear that.' 11 not to say and almost; or perhaps even: He
sounded annoyed, not to say furious. | It would be foolish, not
to say mad, to sell your car. 12 say fairer (than that) BrE infml
to make a more generous statement or offer: I'll give you £20
for it; I can't say fairer than that. 13 say for oneself/for
something to offer as an excuse or as something in favour
or defence: You're late again! What have you got to say for
yourself? | It was a strange idea, with very little to be said for
it. 14 Say no more! infml Your/The meaning is very clear!: 'I
saw him leaving her flat at 6.30 in the morning.' 'Say no
more!' 15 say no (to) infml to refuse an offer (of): I wouldn't
say no to another drink. (=I'd like one) 16 say someone nay
it or old use to forbid someone: If he wants to smoke in his own
house, who can say him nay? 17 say the word infml to give
one's approval or a signal for something to be done or
started 18 say what you like infml even though you may not
agree: Say what you like, I thought it was a marvellous
film. 19 say when (usually imperative) infml to tell someone when
to stop, especially when they are pouring a drink. The
answer to 'say when' is 'When', but it is also acceptable to
say 'Stop', 'That's enough, thank you,' etc 20 that is to
say a) also i.e. abbrev. — expressed another (more exact)
way: Let's go back to the original plan, that is to say you go
ahead by plane and I'll follow by car with the equipment. b)
or at least: He's coming; that's to say he promised to. 21 to
say nothing of without even considering; not to mention
(MENTION): Three people were badly hurt, to say nothing of the
damage to the building. 22 What do you say? infml You'll
agree, won't you?: Let's go into business together; what do you
say? | What do you say we go into business/to going into
business together? 23 when all is said and done it must be
remembered that: When all's said and done, he's only a little
kid still; don't expect too much too soon. 24 you can say that
again infml (used for expressing strong agreement): 'It's hot
today.' 'You can say that again!' (=yes, it's extremely
hot) 25 You don't say (so)! infml (an expression of slight
surprise, often used in a SARCASTIC way) 26 You said it!
infml a) I did not want to say that, but I agree with you: 'It's
wrong again, but then I was never any good at maths.' 'You
said it!' b) especially AmE You're right; I agree: 'Let's go home.'
'You said it! I'm tired.' → see also can't say boo to a goose
(BOO), say uncle (UNCLE)
Compare say, tell, and inform. Say is nearly
always transitive and cannot have a person as its object:
He said 'I'm tired'. | He said that he was tired. | He said
a few words then sat down. Tell is nearly always transitive
and can have one object: He told a funny story. | He told
us about his adventures. or two objects, one of which
must be a person: He told us a funny story. Inform (fml)
is always transitive and its object is always a person: He
informed us that he was tired. Of these words, only say
can be used with the actual words spoken: He said
'Open the door' and only tell can be used with
commands: He told me to open the door. → see also
SPEAK (USAGE), TALK (USAGE)
say² n [S;U(in)] 1 (a) power or right of (sharing in) acting or
deciding: The workpeople had no say in how their factory was
run. | Haven't I got any say in where I sleep tonight? 2 have/
make one's say infml to have/use the chance to say something,
especially to express one's opinion in a determined way: He
always has to have his say, even if he knows nothing about the
subject.
say³ interj AmE infml (used for expressing surprise or a sudden
idea): Say, haven't I seen you before somewhere?
Say-ers, Dor-o-thy L. /'seɪəz||-ərz, 'dorəθi||'dɔ:-/ (1893-
1957) a British writer known for her DETECTIVE NOVELS
(=books about crime and murder) in which the main charac-
ters are Lord Peter WIMSEY and Harriet Vane
say-ing /'seɪ-ɪŋ/ n a well-known wise statement: 'There's no
smoke without fire', as the saying goes. (=that is what
people often say)
'say-so n [(on)S(of)] infml 1 a personal statement without proof:
Why should I believe it just on your say-so? (=because you
have said it) 2 permission: I was allowed to come home from
hospital on the doctor's say-so.
S-bend /'es bend/ n BrE 1 a bend in a road in the shape of an
'S' that can be dangerous to drivers; S-CURVE AmE 2 part of a
waste pipe in the shape of an 'S' that keeps bad smells out of
a building
SC written abbrev. for SOUTH CAROLINA
scab /skæb/ n 1 [C] a hard mass mainly of dried blood
which forms on the skin over a cut or wound while it is
getting better 2 [U] a) any of various diseases causing hard
spots on plants b) scabies in animals 3 [C] derog slang a
worker who works while others in the same workplace are on
STRIKE; BLACKLEG → compare STRIKEBREAKER
scab-bard /'skæbədl-ərd/ n a usually leather or metal tube,
for hanging from a belt, enclosing the blade of a sword, knife
etc; SHEATH