673 honestly
(SPIN) at home, especially in former times 2 simple and
ordinary in a way that is admired: homespun philosophy
home·stead¹ /'həʊmsted, -stɪd/ n 1 a house and its sur-
rounding land, especially a farm with its buildings 2 espe-
cially AmE a piece of land given by the state (especially in
former times) on condition that the owner farms it
homestead² v [I;T] AmE to settle on (land) for a fixed period
of time as a way of getting ownership of it: My parents
homesteaded some land in Alaska. —er n: homesteaders of
the American West
home 'stretch n [the] 1 also home 'straight BrE — the last
part of a race 2 the last part of an activity or journey
home·town /ˌhəʊm'taʊn/ n the town where one was born
and/or spent one's childhood
home 'truth n [often pl.] a fact about someone which is
unpleasant for them to know, but true: She told him a few
home truths about his selfishness.
home·ward /'həʊmwɜːd-wərd/ adj [A] going towards
home: the homeward journey → opposite OUTWARD
home·wards /'həʊmwɜːdz||-wərdz/ || usually homeward
AmE — adv towards home
home·work /'həʊmwɜːk||-wɜːrk/ n [U] 1 studies which
must be done at home by students to help them to learn
and prepare for what is studied at school 2 preparation
done before taking part in an important activity: The MP's
speech showed she'd done her homework well. → compare
HOUSEWORK
home·work·ing /'həʊmˌwɜːkɪŋ||-wɜːr-/ n [U] working for
a company from one's home instead of travelling to the
company's offices every day
hom·ey, homy /'həʊmi/ adj AmE infml pleasant, like home →
compare HOMELY
homey² n AmE slang a friend or someone who comes from your
area or GANG
hom·i·cid·al /ˌhɒmɪ'saɪdl̩ || ˌhɑː-/ adj (of a person or charac-
ter) likely to murder: a homicidal maniac
hom·i·cide /'hɒmɪsaɪd||'hɑː-/ n fm or law 1 [C;U] (an act of)
murder 2 [C] a murderer
hom·i·ly /'hɒmɪli||'hɑː-/ n 1 usually derog a talk, especially a
long one, which gives advice on how to behave: another of
my mother's little homilies on what not to do at parties 2 a
SERMON
hom·ing /'həʊmɪŋ/ adj [A] 1 of or having the ability, which
is found in certain birds and animals, to find one's way
home: a homing pigeon | the homing instinct 2 (of certain
machines, especially weapons) having the ability to guide
themselves onto the place they are aimed at: a missile
equipped with a homing device
'homing pigeon n a CARRIER PIGEON
hom·i·ny /'hɒmɪni||'hɑː-/ n [U] a sort of American corn,
especially when boiled → compare GRITS
ho·mo /'həʊməʊ/ adj a Latin word used with other Latin
words to describe different kinds of human or human-like
animals: Our species is called Homo sapiens.
ho·moe·o·path /'həʊmɪəˌpæθ/ n a HOMEOPATH
ho·moe·op·a·thy /ˌhəmɪ'ɒpəθi||-'ɑːp-/ n [U] HOMEOPATHY
ho·mo·ge·ne·ous /ˌhəmə'dʒiːniəs/ - also
ho·mog·e·nous /hə'mɒdʒənəs||-'mɑː-/ adj formed of
parts of the same kind; the same all through → compare
HETEROGENEOUS —ly adv —ity /ˌhəʊmədʒə'niːsɪti/ n [U]
ho·mo·ge·nize also -nise BrE /hə'mɒdʒənaɪz||-'mɑː-/ v [T]
to make (the parts of a whole, especially a mixture) become
evenly spread through the whole: homogenized milk (=in
which there is no cream, because the fat is broken up all
through the liquid)
hom·o·graph /'hɒməɡrɑːf, 'həʊ-||'hɑːməɡræf, 'hɑʊ-/ n a
word that has the same spelling as another, but is different
in meaning, origin, grammar, or pronunciation: The noun
'record' and the verb 'record' are homographs (of each other).
hom·o·nym /'hɒmənɪm, 'həʊ-||'hɑː-, 'hɑʊ-/ n a word that
has both the same sound and spelling as another, but is
different in meaning or origin: The noun 'bear' and the verb
'bear' are homonyms (of each other).
ho·mo·pho·bi·a /ˌhəmə'fəʊbiə, ˌhɒ-||ˌhɑʊ-/ n [U] fear or
hatred of homosexuality, expressed as violence against or
unfairness in dealing with homosexuals and matters that
concern them: homophobia in the media —bic adj: a homo-
phobic attack
hom·o·phone /'hɒməfəʊm, 'həʊ-||'hɑː-, 'hɑʊ-/ n a word
that sounds the same as another but is different in spelling,
meaning, and origin: 'Knew' and 'new' are homophones (of
each other).
Ho·mo sa·pi·ens /ˌhəməʊ 'sæpiənz||-'særiənz/ n [U] the
scientific name for the type of human being that exists now
ho·mo·sex·u·al /ˌhəʊmə'sekʃjuəl, ˌhɒ-||ˌhɑʊ-/ n a person,
especially a man, who is sexually attracted to people of the
same sex. A woman who is sexually attracted to other women
is usually called a LESBIAN. → compare GAY, BISEXUAL, HET-
EROSEXUAL —homosexual adj —homosexuality
/ˌhəʊməsekʃu'ælɪti, ˌhɒ-||ˌhɑʊ-/ n [U]
CULTURAL NOTE Until the 1960s, it was illegal in the UK for
men to have sex with other men, and people were
sometimes seriously punished for this. It is now legal in the
UK for people over 18 who have agreed to have sex,
although it is still illegal in the Isle of Man (=a small British
island). In the US, some states still have laws against
homosexual sex, but in most states these laws are never
actually used. Although homosexuality is no longer a
crime, many people still regard it as wrong or
unacceptable, and because of this some homosexuals,
especially well-known people, are unwilling to 'come out'
(=tell people that they are homosexual). There is still quite
a lot of DISCRIMINATION against homosexuals (=they are
treated unfairly), and people disagree about whether
homosexual couples should have the same rights as
married people or be allowed to ADOPT children. People
who dislike homosexuals sometimes call them offensive
names, but homosexuals themselves prefer the word 'gay'
to describe homosexual people. Homosexuals in the
army in the UK homosexuals are not allowed to serve in
the army, navy etc, but in the US they are allowed to serve
if they do not tell anyone that they are homosexual. The
US government calls this policy 'don't ask, don't tell',
meaning that the army does not ask about people's
sexuality, and people serving in the army do not mention it.
hom·y /'həʊmi/ adj AmE infml HOMEY
hon /hʌn/ AmE infml for HONEY: 'Hi, hon, I'm home.'
Hon /ɒn'lɜːn/ abbrev. for 1 HONOURABLE, used in the titles of
British NOBLES and Members of Parliament: the Hon Arthur
Cobbett 2 HONORARY, used in official job titles: Hon Sec
(=honorary secretary)
hon·cho /'hɒntʃɒʊ||'hɑːn-/ n AmE infml the person in charge;
the BOSS: 'Who's the head honcho here?'
Hon·da /'hɒndə||'hɑːn-/ trademark a type of car or MOTORCY-
CLE made by the Japanese company Honda
Hon·du·ras /hɒn'djʊərəs||hɑːn'djʊrəs -'dʊər-/ a country
in Central America between Guatemala and Nicaragua.
Population: 6,669,789 (2003). Capital: Tegucigalpa.
—Honduran n, adj
hone /həʊn/ v [T] to sharpen (knives, swords etc): (fig.) a finely
honed wit
Hon·e·cker, Er·ich /'hɒnəkə||'hɑː-, 'erɪk, -ɪx/ (1912–94) an
East German politician who was the HEAD OF STATE from
1976 to 1989, when the Berlin Wall was destroyed
hon·est /'ɒnɪst||'ɑːn-/ adj 1 (of a person) trustworthy; not
likely to lie, cheat, or steal: an honest politician/employee →
opposite DISHONEST 2 (of actions, appearance etc) typical of
an honest person: an honest face | honest dealings 3 open
and direct; not hiding facts; FRANK: To be quite honest with
you, I don't think you will pass. | Give me your honest
opinion. 4 make an honest living to earn one's pay fairly,
without cheating, breaking the law etc 5 make an honest
woman of now usually humor to marry (a woman) after having a
sexual relationship with her 6 turn an honest penny BrE to
gain money by fair means
hon·est·ly /'ɒnɪstli||'ɑːn-/ adv 1 in an honest way 2 a)
really; speaking truthfully: I can't honestly say it matters to
me. | I didn't tell anyone, honestly I didn't. | Quite honestly, I
don't think his work is very good. b) (used for expressing
strong feeling, usually mixed with disapproval): Honestly!
What a stupid thing to do!