squash
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into the tiny compartment. | I squashed a few more clothes into my case and forced it shut. 3 [T] to force into silence or inactivity: I squashed him with a sarcastic remark. | to squash dissent/rumours
squash² n 1 [S] the condition of being squashed: Five people in this car is a bit of a squash, but we'll manage. 2 [U] also squash rack-ets /'-·/ fnl — a game played in a four-walled court by usually two people with RACKETS (smaller than for tennis) and a small rather soft rubber ball → compare RACQUETBALL 3 [U] BrE a sweet drink made by adding water to the juice of a CITRUS fruit: a glass of orange/lemon squash → compare CRUSH
squash³ n [C;U] especially AmE any of a group of large vegetables with hard skins, including MARROWS, GOURDS, and PUMPKINS
squash·y /'skwɒʃi ‖ 'skwɑːʃi, 'skwɔːʃi/ adj infml soft and easy to press or crush: squashy overripe tomatoes —iness n [U]
squat¹ /skwɒt  skwɑːt/ v -tt- [I] 1 [(DOWN, ON)] to sit on a surface with the knees bent and the legs drawn fully up under the body, especially balancing on the front of the feet: He squatted down beside the footprints and examined them closely. | to squat on one's haunches. 2 [(in, on)] to live in an empty building without owning it, paying rent, or getting permission → see also SQUATTER 3 [(on)] AmE to settle on public or government-owned land in the hope of owning it some day. This was especially formerly when people were first settling in the western part of the US: He and his family squatted on some land near a lake.
squat² n 1 [S] a squatting position 2 [C] BrE an empty building for squatting in
squat³ adj -tt- ungracefully short or low and thick: an ugly squat tower
squat·ter /'skwɒtə  'skwɑ-/ n · 1 a person who lives in an empty building without permission or payment of rent
CULTURAL NOTE A small number of people in the UK and the US, usually younger people in big cities, live in a squat instead of renting or buying a home. Local councils and local governments sometimes ignore the fact that squatters are in their property, especially if they plan to pull the building down in the near future. If the property is privately owned, however, the owners may take legal action against the squatters in order to force them to move out. Many squatters believe that they have a moral right to live in empty buildings when these buildings are not being used for any purpose by the owner. Other people, however, disapprove of squatters and believe that they should pay rent for their homes.
2 a settler on unowned land who does not pay rent but has legal rights over it (squatter's rights) and may sometimes become its owner
squaw /skwɔː/ n a Native American Indian wife, especially in former times
squawk¹ /skwɔːk/ v [I] 1 (especially of certain types of bird) to make a loud sharp cry: His parrot squawks all day long. 2 infml to complain loudly: They're always the first to squawk when their rights are infringed. —er n
squawk² n an act or noise of squawking: the squawks of seagulls/of taxpayers
squeak¹ /skwiːk/ v [I] 1 to make a short very high, but not loud, sound: The mouse squeaked. | These old bedsprings squeak whenever I move. | a squeaking door 2 [+adv/prep] infml to succeed, pass, or win narrowly, only just avoiding failure: Only eight could go on to the next round, and I squeaked through in eighth place. —er n
squeak² n a short very high soft sound: the squeak of a mouse | (infml) I don't want to hear another squeak out of you! (=keep quiet) → see also BUBBLE AND SQUEAK, NARROW SQUEAK
squeak·y /'skwiːki/ adj 1 that squeaks: a squeaky door/ voice 2 squeaky clean infml, especially AmE a) very clean b) humor morally pure: her squeaky clean public image
squeal¹ /skwiːl/ v [I] 1 to make a long very high sound or cry: The children squealed with delight. 2 [(on)] slang to give secret information about one's criminal friends to the police —er n
squeal² n a long very high sound or cry: There was a squeal
of tyres/brakes as the car stopped suddenly. | Squeals of delight/protest came from the children.
squeam·ish /'skwiːmɪʃ/ adj easily shocked, upset, or made to feel sick by unpleasant things: I could never be a nurse; I'm too squeamish. | It's a violent film, so don't go if you're squeamish. —ly adv —ness n [U]
squee·gee /'skwiːdʒiː/ n a tool with a straight-edged rubber blade and short handle, for removing or spreading liquid on a surface: She cleaned the windows with a squeegee. —squeegee v [T]
Squeers, Wack·ford /skwɪəz ‖ skwɪərz, 'wækfəd ‖ -ərd/ a character in the book Nicholas Nickleby (1838) by Charles Dickens. He is the head teacher of a school called Dotheboys Hall, and he treats the children there very cruelly.
squeeze¹ /'skwiːz/ v 1 [T] to press firmly together, especially from opposite sides: She squeezed the tube hard and the last of the toothpaste came out. | He squeezed her arm sympathetically. | Would you squeeze some oranges and make me a glass of juice? | He squeezed out the wet sponge. 2 [T+obj+adv/prep] to get or force out by squeezing: She squeezed the water out of the sponge/squeezed some toothpaste onto her brush. | (fig.) He managed to squeeze ten pages of text out of one small incident. | (fig.) The company is being squeezed out of this market by very aggressive competition. 3 [I+adv/prep; T+obj+adv/prep] to fit by forcing, pressing, or crowding: Is the car full or can I squeeze in? | He was so fat that he could only just squeeze through the door. | (fig.) It was a close game, but we managed to squeeze home (=win narrowly) by two points. | She tries to squeeze her feet into shoes that are too small. 4 [T+obj+adv/prep] to provide with a place/or space, especially with difficulty; find space or time for: You'll find the shop squeezed between two big office buildings. | How can you squeeze so many things into a day? | I know the doctor is extremely busy, but do you think he could squeeze me in (=see me) for two minutes? 5 [T] to cause money difficulties to, especially by means of tight controls or severe demands: Many businesses are being squeezed by high costs and reduced sales. | The latest cuts will result in the education budget being squeezed still further.
squeeze² n 1 [C] an act of pressing in from opposite sides or around: He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. 2 [C(of)] a small amount pressed out: I like my tea with a squeeze of lemon. 3 [S] infml a crowded state; SQUASH: There's room for one more, but it'll be a (tight) squeeze. 4 [C usually sing.] (especially in business) a difficult situation caused by short supplies, tight controls, or high costs: a credit squeeze 5 put the squeeze on infml to put pressure on: They're putting the squeeze on him to sign that agreement.
squeeze·box /'skwiːzbɒks ‖ -bɑːks/ n infml for ACCORDION
squeez·er /'skwiːzər/ n an apparatus that presses the juice from fruit, especially oranges and LEMONS
squelch /skweltʃ/ v 1 [I] to make, or move while making, a sound of a partly liquid substance being pressed down and drawn up, for example when stepping through mud: We squelched up the muddy lane to the farm. 2 [T] AmE to make (someone) be silent or feel unimportant, especially by saying something cruel: He squelched her showing off by making a sarcastic remark about her clothes. —squelch n [C usually sing.] the squelch of swamp water in their boots —y adj squelchy ground
squib /skwɪb/ n 1· a small toy explosive 2 a short not usually serious piece of writing, especially attacking a politician or political party → see also DAMP SQUIB
squid /skwɪd/ n pl. squid or squids a sea creature with ten arms at one end of a long soft body that is strengthened by a thin flat structure inside → see picture at OCTOPUS
squidg·y /'skwɪdʒi/ adj BrE infml soft and wet, e.g. like thick mud
squif·fy /'skwɪfi/ adj old-fash BrE infml slightly drunk
squig·gle /'skwɪgəl/ n infml a short wavy or twisting line, especially written or printed: What do these squiggles on the map mean? —gly adj: squiggly lines
squint¹ /skwɪnt/ v [I] 1 to look with almost closed eyes: The sun was so bright I had to squint. | He took careful aim, squinting down the rifle barrel. 2 [not in progressive forms] to have a SQUINT
squint² n 1 a disorder of the eye muscles causing the eyes to