in several US films, called First Blood, Rambo: First Blood II etc. Rambo was a strong, very violent soldier who fought against the US's enemies, especially the COMMUNISTS. His name is often used to describe anyone who thinks fighting and violence are the only ways of settling disagreements: Several European politicians condemned America's Rambo-style approach to Saddam.
ram·bunc·tious /ræm'bʌŋkʃəs/ adj humor (of a person or behaviour) noisy, uncontrollable, and full of life; BOISTEROUS
—~ly adv ︷ness n [U]
ram·e·kin /'ræmʃkɪn, 'ræmkɪn/ n a small container in which a quantity of food large enough for one person can be baked and served
ram·ie /'ræmi/ n a plant from which a type of cloth is made:
a ramie-and-cotton blouse
ram·i·fi·ca·tion /,raemʃfə'keɪʃən/ n [usually pl.] film 1 a branch of a system that has many parts; part of a network: the ramifications of a business/of a railway system 2 any of a large number of results that follow from an action or decision; IMPLICATION: What are the ramifications of our decision to join the union?
ram·i·fy /'ræmʃfaɪ/ v [lɪt] to (cause to) branch out in all directions; form (into) a network
ramp /ræmp/ n 1 an artificial slope that connects two levels: Drive the car up the ramp. 2 BrE a place in a road that is higher or lower than the main road surface, especially a raised part built to force people to drive slowly 3 AmE for SLIP ROAD
ram·page¹ /ræm'peɪdʒ, 'ræmpeɪdʒ/ v [l(ABOUT, through)] to rush about wildly or angrily: The elephants rampaged through the forest.
ram·page² /'ræmpeɪdʒ, ræm'peɪdʒ/ n [(the) S] excited and violent behaviour: Football fans went on the rampage through the town, breaking windows and damaging cars.—pageous /ræm'peɪdʒəs/ adj
ram·pant /ˈræmpənt/ adj 1 (of crime, disease, wrong beliefs etc) widespread and impossible to control: Sickness was rampant in the area. | rampant lawlessness 2 (of a plant) growing and spreading uncontrollably 3 [after n] tech (of an animal drawn in HERALDRY) standing on the back legs with the front legs raised as if to strike: two lions rampant —ly adv
ram·part /'ræmpɑːt|-pɑːrt/ also ramparts pl. — n a wide bank of earth or a stone wall built to protect a fort or city especially in former times
Ramp•ton /ˈræmptən/ a special British hospital for people who are considered to be violent and extremely dangerous. It is not actually a prison, but its patients are guarded very strictly.
ram·rod /'ræmrodll-rɑːd/ n a stick for pushing the GUNPOWDER into an old-fashioned gun or for cleaning a small gun: He may be 82, but the old general still has a back as straight/stiff as a ramrod.
Ram·say Street /ˈræmzi strɪt/ the imaginary street in which the main characters live in the Australian television SOAP OPERA Neighbours
Ram·sey, Gordon /ˈræmzi/ (1966-) a well-known British CHEF and restaurant owner who is known for demanding a very high standard from the people who work for him and who gets very angry if they do not do what he wants. He has appeared on television programmes about cooking and has written several books.
Ramsey, Sir Alf /elf/ (1922-99) an English football player and team manager, best known as the manager of the English national team that won the WORLD CUP in 1966
ram·shack·le /'ræmfækəl/ adj (of a building or vehicle)
badly made or needing repair; falling to pieces: a ramshackle
old house
ran /ræn/ past tense of RUN
ranch /rɑːntʃ/ n 1 (in the western US and Canada) a very large farm where sheep, cattle, or horses are bred 2 AmE a farm that produces the stated thing: a fruit/chicken ranch → see also meanwhile, back at the ranch (MEANWHILE) 3 RANCH HOUSE: a 3-bed ranch with 2-car garage
'ranch, dressing n [U] a creamy white SALAD DRESSING with a slightly sweet GARLIC taste, popular in the US
rancher /ˈraɪntʃər/raɪn-/ n a person who owns or works on a ranch: a cattle rancher
'ranch house n AmE 1 a house built on one level, usually with a roof that does not slope much → see colour photo on page A41 2 a house on a ranch in which the rancher and his/her family live
ran·cid /'rænsɪd/ adj (of oily food or its taste or smell) not fresh; tasting or smelling unpleasant: rancid butter | This smells/tastes/has gone rancid. —~ity /ræn'sɪdʒti/ n [U]
ran·cour BrE ‖ -cor AmE /'ræŋkər / n [U] fml a feeling of bitter unforgiving hatred: Can we not conduct these negotiations without rancour? —corous adj —corously adv
rand /rænd/ n pl. rand the standard money unit of South Africa, divided into 100 cents
R and A, the /,ar and 'er/ abbrev. for the ROYAL AND ANCIENT, an important Scottish GOLF club
R and B /,air an 'bi/n [U] abbrev. for rhythm and blues; a type of popular music that developed from BLUES music and JAZZ and is usually played on electric instruments, especially the electric GUITAR. R and B was originally played by African-American musicians such as Chuck BERRY and it strongly influenced ROCK music in the 1960s and 1970s.
R and D /,ar ən 'diː/ n [U] abbrev. for research and development; the part of a business concerned with studying new ideas and planning new products
ran·dom¹ /'rændəm/ adj without any plan, aim, or pattern: He fired a few random shots. | a random choice | a random sample of people (=people chosen in such a way that anyone is equally likely to be chosen) —~ly adv —~ness n [U]
random² n at random in a random way; aimlessly: The people for the experiment were chosen completely at random.
,random 'access ,memory n → see RAM
Random 'House trademark one of the world's largest publishing companies (PUBLISH), based in the US and with offices in many other countries. Random House produces books of all types, but is known especially for its American dictionaries.
ran·dom·ize also ·ise BrE /'rændəmaiz/ v [T] tech to choose things in a way that is not carefully controlled or planned when doing a scientific test: a randomized drug test
R and R /,ar and 'ar/ n [U] especially AmE abbrev. for rest and relaxation; a holiday from work given to someone who has been working very hard. This phrase was originally used to mean a holiday given to people working in the US armed forces, especially during wartime, but it is now used in other situations too.
rand·y /'rændi/ adj infml especially BrE (of a person or his/her feelings) full of sexual desire —-iness n [U]
ra·nee, rani /'ra:ni, ra:'ni:/ n a female RAJAH or the wife of a RAJAH
rang /ræn/ past tense of RING
range¹ /reɪndʒ/ n 1 [S(of)] the (measurable) limits within which variable amounts or qualities are included: a country with a wide range of temperature | Several cars are available within this price range. | I'm afraid that high note is beyond my range. | a wide range of different options 2 [S(of)] the limits within which something operates, exists, or is effective; SCOPE: matters which lie outside the range of this inquiry | a medium-range weather forecast (=covering the future, but not the distant future) 3 [S;U] the distance at which one can see or hear: Shout as soon as she comes within range. 4 [S(of);U] the distance that a gun can fire: a hunting rifle with a range of 200 metres | He shot the rabbit at short/close/point-blank range. | He's still out of/beyond/in/within range (of my gun). 5 [C] an area where shooting is practised, or where MISSILES are tested; a rifle range 6 [C(of)] a connected line of mountains, hills etc: a high mountain range 7 [the] (in N America) a wide stretch of grassy land where cattle feed 8 [C(of)] a set of different objects of the same kind, especially for sale in a shop: a complete range of gardening tools 9 AmE a HOB and OVEN combined together for use in a home kitchen: a new electric range 10 [C] an old-fashioned iron fireplace for cooking, built into a chimney in a kitchen → see also FREE-RANGE
range² v 1 [I+prep; not in progressive forms] to vary between limits; reach from one limit to another: The children's ages range from 5 to 15/between 5 and 15. | a wide-ranging programme of reforms 2 [I+adv/prep, especially over;T] especially lit to wander freely: We ranged (over) the hills and valleys. | (fig.)