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fortune
British writer best known for his novels Howard's End, A
Passage to India, A Room With a View, and Maurice, all of
which have been made into films
for-swear /fɔ:'sweə||'fɔ:r-/ v -swore /'swɔ:/, -sworn
/'swɔ:n||'swɔ:rn/ [T] fml to make a solemn promise to give
up or to stop doing (something): The priests of some reli-
gions must forswear possessions and marriage. | [+v-ing] He
forswore drinking.
For·syth, Bruce /'fɔ:saɪθ||'fɔ:r-/ (1928-) a British COMEDIAN
and presenter of GAME SHOWS (=television programmes
where people play games or answer questions to win prizes),
who is known especially for presenting The Generation Game
in the 1970s and for saying 'Nice to see you, to see you,
nice!'
For·syth, Fred·er·ick /fɔ:'saɪθ||fɔ:r-, 'fredərɪk/ (1938-) a
British writer of THRILLERS (=exciting stories about crimes
and murders) including The Day of the Jackal and The Dogs of
War, both of which were made into films
for-sy-thi-a /fɔ:'saɪθiə||'fɔ:r-/ n [U] a bush that produces
bright yellow flowers before its leaves appear
fort /fɔ:t||fɔ:rt/ n a strongly made building or set of buildings
used for defence at some important place; castle → see also
hold the fort (HOLD¹)
for·te¹ /'fɔ:teɪ||fɔ:rt/ n [C usually sing.] a strong point in a
person's character or abilities: Games are his forte; he plays
cricket and football unusually well.
for·te² /'fɔ:teɪ||'fɔ:r-/ n, adj, adv (a piece of music) played
loudly → compare PIANO²
For-te-an Times, the /ˌfɔ:tɪən 'taɪmz||ˌfɔ:r-/ trademark a
British magazine that gives news reports about strange and
unusual events such as GHOSTS or space vehicles from other
PLANETS
forth /fɔ:θ||fɔ:rθ/ adv especially bibl or lit 1 (after a verb) out;
forward: He went forth into the desert to pray. 2 on onto the
future: From that day forth, the lovers were never parted. →
see also BRING FORTH, and so forth (AND)
Forth, the a river in southern central Scotland which flows
into the FIRTH of Forth and the North Sea
Forth 'Bridge, the 1 a famous metal railway bridge built
in 1889 over the Firth of Forth in Scotland, which is
considered to be a fine example of 19th century engineer-
ing. People sometimes say that a job is 'like painting the
Forth Bridge' when they mean that it seems to never end,
because the metal bridge takes a long time to paint, and
when the job is finished it has to start again. 2 a road bridge
built in 1964 over the Firth of Forth. It is one of the longest
SUSPENSION BRIDGES in the world.
forth-com-ing /fɔ:θ'kʌmɪŋ, ||ˌfɔ:rθ-/ adj 1 [no comp.] hap-
pening or appearing in the near future: On the noticeboard
there was a list of forthcoming events at school. 2 [F no comp.;
usually in negatives] ready; supplied; offered when needed: When
she was asked why she was late, no answer was forthcom-
ing. 3 [usually in negatives] infml ready to be helpful and friendly:
I asked several villagers the way to the river; but none of them
was very forthcoming.
forth-right /'fɔ:θraɪt||'fɔ:rθ-/ adj (too) direct in manner and
speech; expressing one's thoughts and feelings plainly; FRANK:
She made the point in her usual forthright manner. —ness n
[U]
forth-with /fɔ:θ'wɪð, -wɪθ||fɔ:rθ-/ adv fml at once; without
delay
for·ties /'fɔ:tɪz||'fɔ:r-/ n 1 [the] also '40s the 1940s (=the
years from 1940 to 1949): The forties were dominated by the
Second World War. 2 in his/her/their forties aged from 40 to
49: She remarried in her early forties. 3 [the] the numbers
from 40 to 49, especially when used to measure temperature
CULTURAL NOTE When people in the UK think of the forties,
they think of WORLD WAR II when many British men went
abroad to fight, and when German planes attacked British
cities by dropping bombs. They also think of rationing
(RATION) (=the system for controlling the supply of food,
clothes etc, which meant that people were given a fixed
amount each week), and the fact that people did not have
much food, and many types of product were impossible to
get. In the US ordinary people were less affected by World
War II than people in the UK, and there was only one
direct attack on the US, at PEARL HARBOR. During the war,
British society began to change. People think of the forties
as a time when people from different social classes worked
together, and supported and helped each other. Women
began doing jobs that had previously been done by men,
such as working on farms and in factories, and this made
them more independent than they had been before the
war. In the forties, women wore SUITS with skirts, and
small hats. Their hair was collar length, smooth and shiny,
and curled under at the end. Popular music of the time
included JAZZ and BIG BAND music, and wartime songs
sung by people such as Vera LYNN in the UK. → see also
Cultural Note at WORLD WAR II
for·ti·eth /'fɔ:tiəθ||'fɔ:r-/ determiner, n, pron, adv 40th → see
TABLE 1
for·ti·fi·ca·tion /ˌfɔ:tɪfɪ'keɪʃən||ˌfɔ:r-/ n 1 [C usually pl.]
towers, walls, gun positions etc set up as a means of
defence 2 [U] the act or science of fortifying
for·ti·fy /'fɔ:tɪfaɪ||'fɔ:r-/ v [T] 1 to build forts on; strengthen
against possible attack: a fortified city | They fortified the
coastal areas. 2 to make stronger, more effective etc: This
breakfast cereal is fortified with vitamins. | Sherry is a forti-
fied wine. (=a wine with strong alcohol added) —fiable adj
—fier n
for·ti·tude /'fɔ:tɪtju:d||'fɔ:rtɪtu:d/ n [U] firm and lasting
courage in bearing trouble, pain etc without complaining:
She bore her illness with great fortitude.
Fort 'Knox a military building in the US state of Kentucky
which holds the government's store of gold. People often
use the name 'Fort Knox' when talking about a place that is
extremely well guarded or impossible to enter without
permission: His house is like Fort Knox.
Fort Mc-Hen-ry /ˌfɔ:t mæk'henrɪ||ˌfɔ:rt/ a FORT in the
HARBOUR of Baltimore, Maryland. During the War of 1812,
Francis Scott Key saw the American flag flying there after a
battle, and this made him write the American national song,
'The Star-Spangled Banner'.
fort-night /'fɔ:tənɪt||'fɔ:rt-/ n [C usually sing.] BrE two weeks:
I'm going away for a fortnight's holiday. | I see them about
once a fortnight. (=once every two weeks) | He's coming in a
fortnight's time. (=two weeks from today) | Her birthday is
Tuesday fortnight. (=two weeks later than next Tuesday)
fort-night·ly /'fɔ:tənɪtli||'fɔ:rt-/ adj, adv BrE (happening,
appearing etc) every fortnight or once a fortnight: a fort-
nightly visit | She is paid fortnightly.
Fort·num and Ma-son /ˌfɔ:tnəm ənd 'meɪsən||ˌfɔ:rt-/
trademark a famous department store in PICCADILLY in London
which is known especially for its fine-quality and expensive
food products, and is thought of as being a fashionable
place for people to go for AFTERNOON TEA
FOR-TRAN /'fɔ:træn||'fɔ:r-/ n [U] a HIGH-LEVEL computer
language, mainly for scientific use
for·tress /'fɔ:trɪs||'fɔ:r-/ n a large FORT; place strengthened
for defence: The army stormed the fortress and occupied it. | a
fortress town
for·tu·i·tous /fɔ:'tju:ɪtəs||fɔ:r'tu:-/ adj 1 fml happening by
chance; accidental: Our meeting was quite fortuitous. 2 non-
standard fortunate; lucky —ly adv —ness n [U]
for·tu·nate /'fɔ:tʃənət||'fɔ:r-/ adj having or bringing a good
condition or situation; lucky: He's fortunate to have/in hav-
ing a good job. | It was fortunate for her that her husband
arrived at that moment. | He came at a very fortunate time. |
She's fortunate enough to have very good health. → opposite
UNFORTUNATE
for·tu·nate·ly /'fɔ:tʃənətli||'fɔ:r-/ adv by good chance; luck-
ily: I was late in getting to the station, but fortunately for me,
the train was late too. | Fortunately, the fire was discovered
soon after it had started. → opposite UNFORTUNATELY
for·tune /'fɔ:tʃən||'fɔ:r-/ n 1 [C] a great amount of money,
possessions etc: He dreamed of making a/his fortune. | She
won a fortune in a lottery. | This family made their fortune
in/from computers. | That diamond necklace she was wearing
must be worth a fortune. | (infml) I seem to have spent an
absolute fortune on food this week! → see also SMALL FOR-
TUNE 2 [U] chance, especially as an important influence on a
person's life; fate: She had the (great) good fortune to be free