101
bear
warn airmen of heights or to guide them at an air-
port 6 especially lit someone or something that provides guid-
ance or sets a high standard to be followed
bead /bi:d/ n 1 a small ball of glass or other material with a
hole through it for threading on string or wire: She was
wearing a string of green beads round her neck. | The sheikh
sat there fingering his worry beads. (=a string of beads
which are supposed to calm you when played with) | a bead
curtain | (fig.) beads of sweat on his face 2 draw a bead (on)
to take aim (at) when shooting 3 tell/say one's beads lit or
old use to say your prayers with a ROSARY ---ed adj: a beaded
headdress | a face beaded with sweat
bead-ing /'bi:dɪŋ/ n [C;U] a long narrow patterned piece of
wood used for decorating walls, furniture etc
bea-dle /'bi:dl/ n 1 an officer who in former times helped a
priest in keeping order in church, in giving money to the
poor etc 2 (in some British universities) a uniformed officer
who may lead university processions, help to keep order etc
bead-y /'bi:di/ adj often humor (especially of an eye) small,
round, and shining, like a bead: Keep your beady eyes off
my cigarettes. (=stop looking at them as if you want to steal
them)
bea-gle /'bi:gəl/ n a smooth-haired dog (a kind of HOUND)
with short legs and large ears, sometimes used in the hunting
of HARES
Beagle, HMS the ship on which Charles DARWIN travelled
to South America, where he studied and collected many
different types of plants and animals
bea-gling /'bi:glɪŋ/ n [U] (in Britain) the sport of hunting
HARES with beagles
beak¹ /bi:k/ n 1 the hard horny mouth of a bird, a TURTLE etc
-> see picture at BIRD 2 anything pointed and sticking out
like this, such as a) a person's hooked nose b) the pointed
front end of an ancient warship
beak² n BrE old-fash slang 1 a judge in a lower court of law;
MAGISTRATE 2 a schoolmaster
bea-ker /'bi:kə/ n 1 BrE a drinking cup with a wide mouth
and usually no handle 2 a small glass cup shaped for
pouring, as used in a chemical LABORATORY 3 [(of)] also
bea-ker-ful /-ful/ the amount that a beaker will hold: a
beaker of coffee
,be-all and 'end-all n [the+(of)] the most important thing;
the whole purpose of something
beam¹ /bi:m/ n 1 a large long heavy piece of wood, espe-
cially used as part of the structure of a building 2 the bar
from which scales for weighing hang -> see also broad in
the beam (BROAD¹)
beam² n 1 a line of light shining out from some bright
object: the bright beam of the car's headlights | a moonbeam |
a laser beam 2 radio waves sent out along a narrow path in
one direction only, often to guide aircraft 3 a bright look or
smile: 'How nice to see you!' she said, with a beam of wel-
come. 4 BrE off beam infml incorrect; mistaken: We tried to
guess the price, but we were way off beam. (=a long way from
the true figure)
beam³ v 1 [I] (of the sun or other shining objects) to send
out light (and heat) 2 [I;T] to smile brightly and happily: He
beamed (a cheerful welcome) as he opened the
door. 3 [T+obj+adv/prep] to send out (radio or television signals)
in a certain direction, using special equipment: The news was
beamed to Africa by satellite. 4 Beam me up, Scotty a phrase
used in the television SCIENCE FICTION series STAR TREK as a
command to make someone disappear and then reappear in
the spacecraft. The phrase is often used humorously now
when someone wants to escape quickly from a difficult or
embarrassing situation. -> see also STAR TREK
beam-'ends /'l. ./ n BrE on one's beam-ends slang (of a
person or a business) almost without any money left: We're
on our beam-ends!
Bea-mer, Beemer /'bi:mə/ n especially AmE infml a name for
any car made by BMW: That's his white Beamer convertible
over there.
bean /bi:n/ n 1 a seed of any of various upright climbing
plants, especially one that can be used as food. In Britain and
the US, beans are often eaten by people who are VEGETARIANS
(=eat no meat) or people interested in eating healthy foods.
-> see also BAKED BEANS 2 a plant that produces beans 3 a
POD containing beans, which grows on a bean plant and is
used when young as food: green beans | runner beans -> see
also BROAD BEAN, FRENCH BEAN 4 a seed of certain other
plants, from which food or drink can be made: coffee
beans 5 especially BrE [usually in negatives] infml the smallest possi-
ble amount of money: I haven't a bean, so I can't pay you. |
It's not worth a bean. 6 full of beans infml full of life and
eagerness 7 not know beans AmE infml to know nothing
(about a subject): He doesn't know beans about geogra-
phy. 8 old bean BrE old-fash slang (used to address a friend):
Have a look at this, old bean! -> see also spill the beans
(SPILL¹)
Bean -> see MR BEAN
bean-bag /'bi:nbæg/ n 1 a sewn cloth bag filled with beans,
used as a child's toy 2 a very large CUSHION filled with small
pieces of POLYSTYRENE used as a piece of furniture for sitting
on
'bean ,counter n infml derog someone whose job is to exam-
ine the cost of doing something, and who is concerned only
with making a profit: Since the bean counters took over the
radio station, it's become a boring place to work.
'bean curd n [U] TOFU
bea-nie /'bi:ni/ n AmE a small round soft hat that fits close to
your head
Bea-no, The /'bi:nəʊ/ a popular British COMIC for children,
which has funny stories and jokes, and is sold every week.
Well-known characters from The Beano include DENNIS THE
MENACE and the BASH STREET KIDS.
bean-pole /'bi:npəʊl/ n humor a person who is very tall and
very thin
bean-sprout /'bi:nspraʊt/ n a bean which has grown a small
SHOOT eaten in SALADS, Chinese food etc
bean-stalk /'bi:nstɔ:k/ n the stem of a bean plant
Bean-town /'bi:ntaʊn/ AmE infml a name for the US city of
Boston
bears
grizzly bear
koala bear
polar bear
bear¹ /beə/ n 1 (pl. bears or bear) a usually large heavy
animal with thick rough fur, that eats flesh and also fruit and
insects: a brown bear | a polar bear 2 a person who sells
business shares or goods in expectation of a fall in prices ->
compare BULL¹ 3 a rough bad-mannered bad-tempered
man 4 a bear with a sore head a person who is very
bad-tempered and does not seem to want the company of
other people -> see also GREAT BEAR, TEDDY BEAR
bear² v bore /bɔ:/, borne /bɔ:n||bɔ:rn/ 1 [T+obj+adv/prep] fml
or lit to carry from one place to another; carry away; CONVEY:
The sound of music was borne on the wind. | He came bearing
gifts for all the family. 2 [T] to support (a weight or load);
hold up: I doubt if that chair will bear your weight. | a
load-bearing wall | (fig.) The captain of the ship bears a heavy
responsibility. 3 [T] to have or show (a mark or
characteristic): He was attacked by a shark years ago, and his
leg still bears the scars. | This letter bears no signature. | What