borough
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bo·rough /'bʌrəl -rəʊ/ n (sometimes cap.) a town, or a division
of a large town, with some powers of local government: the
Borough of Brooklyn
,borough 'council n especially BrE the organization responsi-
ble for local government in a borough
bor·row /'bɒrəʊ ‖ 'bɑː-, 'bɔː-/ v [I;T(from)] 1 to take or receive
(something) from another person, usually with that person's
permission, and with the understanding that it will be
returned after a certain time: He borrowed a car from a friend
for a few days. | Can I borrow your pen? | They borrowed
heavily from the bank to start their new business. | She could
not pay back all the money she had borrowed. → compare
LEND, LOAN² 2 to take or copy (especially ideas, words etc)
and use them as one's own: English has borrowed (words)
from many languages. 3 borrow trouble AmE infml to worry
unnecessarily → see also live on borrowed time (LIVE¹)
bor·row·er /'bɒrəʊə ‖ 'bɑː-, 'bɔː-/ n 1 a person who bor-
rows (something) 2 neither a borrower nor a lender be
quote a phrase from the play Hamlet by Shakespeare
bor·row·ing /'bɒrəʊɪŋ ‖ 'bɑː-, 'bɔː-/ n a word or phrase
which has been borrowed by one language from another:
English has many borrowings from French. → see also
LOANWORD
'borrowing ,powers n [P] the amount of money a com-
pany is allowed by its own regulations to borrow
borscht, borscht /bɔːʃt ‖ bɔːrʃt/ also borsch
/bɔːʃ  bɔːr/ n [U] a BEETROOT soup often served with sour
cream
bor·stal /'bɔːstl ‖ 'bɔːr-/ n [C;U] BrE (often cap.) in the past, a
prison school for young criminals between the ages of 16 and
21. Now young criminals are sent to a YOUNG OFFENDERS'
INSTITUTION: He was sent to borstal for stealing.
Bosch, Hie·ron·y·mus /bɒʃ  bɑː, ˌhaɪˈrɒnɪməs ‖ -ˈrɑ-/
(?1460–1516) a Flemish painter known especially for his reli-
gious paintings and his pictures of Hell in his most famous
work The Garden of Earthly Delights. His paintings are full of
small details and show strange and unnatural creatures and
situations.
bosh /bɒʃ ‖ bɑːʃ/ n, interj [U] infml, especially BrE foolish talk;
nonsense
Bos·ni·a /'bɒzniə ‖ 'bɑːz-/ the northern REGION of Bosnia and
Herzegovina, a country that used to be part of Yugoslavia. →
see also BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
,Bosnia and ,Herzego'vina also Bosnia-Herzegovina
a country in eastern Europe between Serbia and Montenegro
to the east and Croatia to the North and Southeast. It was
formerly a part of Yugoslavia, but it joined with Herzegovina
in 1992 to form a new country. The 1995 Dayton Peace
Agreement ended the 1992–95 CIVIL WAR between the Mus-
lims, Croats, and Serbs, and divided the country into the
Muslim/Croat Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and
the Bosnian Serb republic (called the Republica Srpska). Each
of these has its own president and government, but they are
controlled by a central Bosnian government. Its official title
is the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Population:
3,989,018 (2003). Capital: Sarajevo.
,Bosnian 'War, the (1992–95) a war in Bosnia-Herzegovina,
where the three different groups of people living in this area
– Serbs, Croats, and Bosnian Muslims – fought each other to
gain land. The war is known for the practice of 'ethnic
cleansing', when thousands of people, mainly Bosnian Mus-
lims, were forced to leave the towns where they lived and
some of them were killed.
bos·om /'bʊzəm/ n [C usually sing.] especially lit 1 the front of the
human chest, especially the female breasts, or the part of a
garment covering this: She held the child to her bosom. | She
carried the letter in the bosom of her dress. 2 this part
considered as the centre of feelings: Her bosom was torn by
sorrow. | a bosom friend/buddy (=a very close friend) | He
spent his last years in the bosom of (=living in a close
relationship with) his family. → compare BREAST¹
bos·om·y /'bʊzəmi/ adj infml having large breasts: a bosomy
actress → compare BUXOM
Bos·por·us, the /'bɒspərəs ‖ 'bɑːs-/ also the
Bos·pho·rus /'bɒsfərəs, -fərəs ‖ 'bɑːs-/ the narrow sea
between the European and Asian parts of Turkey, connecting
the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara
boss¹ /bɒs ‖ bɔːs/ n infml 1 a person who is in charge of
workers; an employer or manager: He asked the boss/his boss
for more money. | Who's (the) boss here? (=who's in charge?).
(fig.) You can't let the children just do what they like – you've got
to show them who's boss! → see FATHER¹ (USAGE) 2 especially
AmE, usually derog a political party chief, especially one who
controls a local party organization
boss² v [T(ABOUT, AROUND)] infml to give orders (to), especially in
an unpleasant way: Tom likes to boss younger children about
boss³ adj slang excellent or fashionable: a boss suit | a boss car
boss⁴ n a round decoration which stands out from the
surface of something, e.g. on a shield or the inside of a
church roof
boss⁵ make a boss shot (at) BrE old-fash slang to make a first,
probably not very good, attempt (at)
bos·sa no·va /ˌbɒsə ˈnɒvə  ˌbɑːs-/ n [the] a dance which
came from Brazil and is like the SAMBA
'boss-eyed adj BrE slang for CROSS-EYED
boss·y /'bɒsi ‖ 'bɔːsi/ adj infml too fond of giving orders:
bossy person/manner | She's an old bossy-boots. (=is very
bossy) —iness n [U]
Bos·ton /'bɒstən ‖ 'bɔːs-/ a city in Massachusetts on the
Atlantic coast, the most important city in New England, and
one of the oldest cities in the US. It is often thought of as
being less noisy and more relaxed than other American cities
and is known for its old brick buildings. In Boston and the
surrounding area, there are many famous colleges and univer-
sities, including HARVARD and MIT.
,Boston 'Globe, The a US newspaper sold especially in
New England
,Boston 'Massacre, the one of the events that started the
AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR. In 1770 a group of Boston
citizens, who were angry because the British army was in the
town, threatened a British soldier. Other soldiers fired the
guns into the crowd, killing five people.
,Boston 'Pops, the an ORCHESTRA (=large group of musi-
cians) from Boston, known for its performances and record-
ings of well-known pieces of CLASSICAL music and famous tunes
from films and MUSICALS. For many years, its CONDUCTOR
was Arthur Fiedler. Most of the musicians in the Boston
Pops are members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
,Boston 'Red Sox, the a Major League Baseball team based
in Boston, Massachusetts. Their home STADIUM is Fenway
Park, and they have won American League PENNANTS ten
times and the World Series CHAMPIONSHIPS five times.
Famous players such as Babe Ruth, Carl Yastrzemski, and Cy
Young have played for the team.
,Boston 'Strangler, the Albert DeSalvo (1931–73) a man
who raped and strangled 13 women aged between 19 and 84
in Boston, US, between June 1962 and January 1964. He was
never actually charged with the murders, but was sentenced
to life imprisonment in 1967 for other sex offences and
robberies.
,Boston 'Symphony ,Orchestra, the a US ORCHESTRA
(=a large group of musicians) based in Boston, Massachusetts
,Boston 'Tea ,Party, the a protest in Boston in 1773
against the British tax on tea, when tea was thrown from
British ships into the water. This is often considered to be the
event that started the AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
bo·sun /'bəʊsən/ n a BOATSWAIN
Bos·well, James /'bɒzwəl ‖ 'bɑːz-/ (1740–95) a Scottish law-
yer and writer, famous for his book about the life of Samuel
JOHNSON
Bos·worth Field /ˌbɒzwəθ ˈfiːld ‖ ˌbɑzwərθ-/ the place
where the final battle of the Wars of the Roses was fought in
1485, where Richard III was defeated by Henry Tudor → see
also WARS OF THE ROSES
bot /bɒt ‖ bɑːt/ n tech a computer PROGRAM that performs the
same operation many times, one after the other, for example
one that searches for information on the Internet as part of
a SEARCH ENGINE
bo·tan·i·cal /bə'tænɪkəl/ adj [A] of or related to plants or
botany: a beautiful botanical garden with plants from all
over the world | botanical drugs (=obtained from plants)
—ly /kli/ adv