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# Guide to the Dictionary
**Cultural Information**
Cultural Notes give you extra information about a word, especially about things British or American people typically associate with that word.
**Encyclopaedic Information**
Entries for people, places, and things contain detailed encyclopaedic information.
People with the same last name appear in the alphabetical order of their first names.
**Quotations**
Famous quotations from well-known plays, poems, speeches etc are shown and labelled *quote*.
**Cross References**
Cross references tell you about related entries, Cultural Notes, Usage Notes or pictures.
**Help with Meaning**
Definitions explain the meaning of a word in simple, clear language, using the 2000 word Longman Defining Vocabulary.
If a definition contains a word that is not in the Longman Defining Vocabulary, it is shown in SMALL CAPITAL LETTERS.
**Grammar**
The part of speech is shown first, in italic letters, followed by information about whether a word is countable, uncountable, transitive, intransitive etc. Words that have the same spelling but have different parts of speech are listed separately with different numbers.
**Help with Usage**
Usage Notes show you the correct choice of word in a particular situation.
**Cal·i·for·ni·a** /,kælə'fɔːrniəl-'fɔːrnja/ written abbrev. **CA** a state in the southwest of the US, next to the Pacific Ocean, whose main cities include San Francisco and Los Angeles. The state capital is Sacramento. Disneyland and Hollywood are in California. The area between San Francisco and San José is known informally as Silicon Valley and is a centre of the computer industry. California is known for its farming industry, especially the production of fruit and wine. It is the world's fifth largest economy. Its NICKNAME is The Golden State. —**Californian** *n, adj*
**CULTURAL NOTE** When British and American people think of California, they often think of beaches, warm sunny weather, and SURFing. The state, especially northern California, is often considered to be more LIBERAL than other states in the US, but it has also elected RIGHT-WING politicians such as Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger as GOVERNOR. In the 1960s, San Francisco was a centre of the HIPPY movement which supported LEFT-WING politics and had RADICAL ideas about changing society. At the University of California, Berkeley, there were many protests against the Vietnam War. California is known as a place where people like to follow the latest fashions in LIFESTYLE, and where people want to stay physically fit and look young.
**Camp·bell, Al·as·tair** /'kæmbəl, 'æləstə/ (1957–) a British reporter who became the Labour Party's chief PRESS SECRETARY (=person who gives important news about an organization to the press) when they were elected in 1997. He is thought of as a typical SPIN DOCTOR (=someone who tries to influence news reporting so that it is favourable to his party) and many people thought that he had too much influence on the Prime Minister and was too powerful. He RESIGNED from his job in 2003.
**Campbell, Na·o·mi** /'næəmi/ (1970–) a very famous British model who was the first black woman to appear on the cover of the fashion magazine *Vogue*. She also does work for CHARITY and for UNESCO.
**can·dle** /'kændl/ *n* **1** a usually round stick of WAX containing a length of string (WICK) which gives light when it burns **2 can't hold a/no candle to** *infml* to be not nearly as good as: *No one can hold a candle to him when it comes to playing the guitar.* **3 Out, out brief candle!** *quote* a phrase from Shakespeare's play *Macbeth* said by Macbeth when he is talking about how short and meaningless our lives are $\Rightarrow$ see also ROMAN CANDLE, **burn the candle at both ends** (BURN¹)
**cat·gut** /'kætgʌt/ *n* [U] strong cord made from the INTESTINES of animals, especially sheep, and used for the strings of musical instruments
**cause¹** /kɔːz/ *n* **1** [C(of)] **something which produces an effect; a person, thing, or event that makes something happen:** *Ice on the road was the cause of the accident.* | *In our view, the root cause/underlying cause of the crime problem (=the most important cause from which all others come) is poverty and unemployment.* | *He is the cause of all my unhappiness.*
**cause²** *v* [T] **to lead to or be the cause of:** *What caused the accident?* | *They have been charged with causing criminal damage.* | [+obj+to-v] *His illness caused him to miss the game.* | [+obj1+obj2] *This car has caused me a lot of trouble.* | *Her irresponsible behaviour has caused a great deal of anxiety to/for her family.* | *They believe inflation is caused by big wage increases.*
**USAGE NOTE** **Compare cause and make**
**Cause** can be formal or informal: *Cigarettes may cause cancer.* | *Why do you always cause so much trouble?*
**Cause** *something* **to do** *something* is formal: *The earthquake caused several buildings to collapse.* **Make** has a similar meaning, but is used more in conversation, and is used in the pattern **make** *someone* **do** *something*: *It's a sad film; it'll make you cry.*