aural
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au·ral /'ɔːrəl/ adj tech of or related to the sense of hearing:
aural skills —ly adv
USAGE In language teaching, aural is sometimes
pronounced /'aʊrəl/ to show the difference from oral
/'ɔːrəl/, especially in the phrase oral/aural. ➔ see also
ORAL (USAGE)
au·re·ole /'ɔːriəʊl/ n a bright circle of light; HALO
au re·voir /ˌəʊ rə'vwɑːr, ˌɒ-||ˌoʊ-, ˌɔː-/ interj Fr till we meet
again; goodbye. People sometimes use this expression to
someone they love when goodbye seems too final, or as a
joke when pretending to know French: 'Goodbye, darling.'
'No, not goodbye, au revoir.' | Goodbye then, or au revoir as the
French say.
au·ri·cle /'ɔːrɪkəl/ n tech 1 the outside part of the
ear 2 either of the two spaces in the top of the heart; ATRIUM
au·ric·u·lar /ɔː'rɪkjʊlər/ adj tech of or concerning the ear
au·ro·ra /ə'rɔːrə, ɔː-/ n pl. -ras or -rae /riː:/ bands or arches of
coloured light in the night sky seen either in the most
northern parts of the world (aurora borealis or northern
lights) or in the most southern parts (aurora australis or
southern lights)
Aurora 1 in Roman MYTHOLOGY, the goddess of the DAWN
(=the beginning of the day when light first appears). In
Greek mythology her name is EOS. 2 the princess in the story
SLEEPING BEAUTY
Auschwitz /'aʊʃwɪts, -vɪts/ the largest and most famous
Nazi CONCENTRATION CAMP in World War II, which was in
Poland. Over a million people, mostly Jews, died in this
camp, and when people hear the name Auschwitz they
think of the extreme cruelty and sadness that people suf-
fered there.
aus·pic·es /'ɔːspɪsɪz/ n [P] fml help, support, and favour:
This conference has been arranged under the auspices of the
United Nations.
aus·pi·cious /ɔː'spʃəs/ adj fml giving, promising, or show-
ing signs of future success: an auspicious occasion ➔ oppo-
site INAUSPICIOUS —ly adv: The year began auspiciously
with good trade figures for January.
Aus·sie /'ɒzi||'ɔːsi, 'ɑːsi/ n infml an Australian —Aussie adj:
Aussie soap operas
Aus·ten, Jane /'ɒstən||'ɔːs-/ (1775–1817) a British writer who
wrote novels about the way of life of English MIDDLE-CLASS
people of her time, including PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, SENSE
AND SENSIBILITY, and Emma. She is known for the clever and
amusing way in which she describes people's social behav-
iour, and her novels are regarded as being among the most
important works of English literature. Several of her books
have been made into successful films.
aus·tere /ɔː'stɪər, ɒ-||ːr-/ adj 1 plain and severe; without
comfort or enjoyment: The monks led an austere life in the
mountains. | an austere person/manner 2 without decora-
tion; plain: the austere grandeur of the old cathedral —ly
adv
aus·ter·i·ty /ɔː'sterɪti, ɒ-||ɒr-/ n 1 [U] the quality of being
austere 2 [C usually pl.] an austere act or manner: The group
practises religious austerities, such as fasting. 3 [U] a situa-
tion, especially one resulting from an intentional govern-
ment plan, in which there is little money for spending on
comfort and enjoyment: a period of austerity | a package of
austerity measures aimed at restoring the country's economic
health
Aus·tin¹ /'ɒstɪn||'ɔːs-/ trademark a former British car company
Austin² the capital city of the state of Texas in the US
Austin 'Reed trademark a shop in central London and some
other UK cities that sells expensive, good-quality clothes for
men and women
Aus·tra·la·sia /ˌɒstrə'leɪʒə, -ʃə||ɔː-, ɑː-/ the group of
islands in the southern Pacific Ocean, including Australia,
New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea
Aus·tra·la·sian /ˌɒstrə'leɪʒən, -ʃən||ɔː-, ˌɑː-/ adj con-
nected with Australasia —Australasian n
Australia
Darwin
Cairns
NORTHERN
TERRITORY
Alice
Springs
QUEENSLAND
WESTERN
AUSTRALIA
SOUTH
AUSTRALIA
Brisbane
Perth
Adelaide
NEW SOUTH
WALES
Sydney
Canberra
VICTORIA
Melbourne
TASMANIA
Hobart
Aus·tra·li·a /ɒ'streliə||ɔː-, ɑː-/ a large island between the
Indian Ocean and the southern Pacific Ocean, which is both a
country and a CONTINENT (=one of the seven main areas of
land on the earth) and part of the PACIFIC RIM. Population:
18,972,350 (2001). Capital: Canberra. Australia is a member
of the British COMMONWEALTH, and used to have close con-
nections with the UK because the families of many Austral-
ians originally came from Britain and Ireland. More recently
many Australian citizens came from southern Europe and east
Asia. The people who have lived in Australia since before
Europeans arrived there are called the ABORIGINAL people.
Aus'tralia Day (in Australia) a national holiday on or near
26 January each year in memory of the landing of the
British in 1788
Aus·tra·li·an /ɒ'streɪliən||ɔː-, ɑː-/ n someone who comes
from Australia —Australian adj: the Australian outback |
Australian wine
Aus,tralian ,Capital 'Territory, the an area in south
east Australia that includes the capital city Canberra and
Jervis Bay
Aus,tralian Rules 'football n [U] a game played between
two teams of 18 players on an OVAL field with an oval ball
which is passed by kicking or striking with the hand, the
object being to get points by putting the ball between a set
of four posts at either end of the field
Aus·tri·a /'ɒstriə||'ɔː-, 'ɑː/ a country in central Europe
southeast of Germany and northwest of Hungary. It is a
member of the EU. Population: 8,031,560 (2001). Capital:
Vienna.
Aus·tri·an /'ɒstriən||'ɔː-, 'ɑː-/ n someone who comes from
Austria —Austrian adj: the Austrian Alps
Austro- /'ɒstrəʊ||ɔːstroʊ, -trə/ prefix 1 Australian and: Aus-
tro-Malayan 2 Austrian and: Austro-Hungarian
au·tar·chy /'ɔːtəki||-ær-/ n [U] government of a country by
one person with unlimited power
au·tar·ky, -chy /'ɔːtəki||-ær-/ n 1 [U] the production by a
country of everything that it needs 2 [C] a country that
practises this system
au·then·tic /ɔː'θentɪk/ adj 1 known to have been made,
painted, written etc by the person who is claimed to have
done it; GENUINE: Is that an authentic Roman statue, or a
modern copy? 2 true and deserving to be believed or trusted;
dependable: an authentic testimony —ally /kli/ adv
au·then·tic·ate /ɔː'θentɪkeɪt/ v [T] to prove (something) to
be true or authentic: This painting has been authenticated as
a Rembrandt. —ation /ɔːˌθentɪ'keɪʃən/ n [U]
au·then·tic·i·ty /ˌɔːθen'tɪsɪti/ n [U] the quality of being
true or authentic: The results of these chemical tests have cast
doubt on the authenticity of this painting. (=shown that it
may not be authentic)
au·thor¹ /'ɔːθər/, au·thor·ess /'ɔːθərs/ fem. rare — n 1 the
writer of a book, newspaper article, play, poem etc: a prolific
author 2 the person who creates or begins something
especially an idea or plan: the chief author of the govern-
ment's youth training programme