autumnal
76
become ripe: I go on holiday in the autumn. | a cold autumn | last autumn | autumn colours (=brown, orange, gold etc)
au·tum·nal /ɔ:'tʌmnəl/ adj of, like, or in autumn —ly adv
au·tumn 'statement n an official printed statement produced for parliament by the British Government every year, usually in November, about the future of the ECONOMY and the Government's spending plans for the next three years
aux·il·i·ar·y¹ /ɔ:g'zɪlɪərɪ, ɔ:k-ɪlɔ:g'zɪlɪərɪ, -'zɪləri/ adj providing (additional) help or support, especially with lower rank or of less importance: auxiliary nursing staff | an auxiliary petrol tank
auxiliary² n 1 fml or tech a helper; ASSISTANT 2 [usually pl.] a member of a group of foreign soldiers in the service of a country at war 3 an auxiliary verb
aux,iliary 'verb n tech a verb that is used with another verb to show differences such as tense, person, and VOICE. In English the auxiliary verbs are be, do and have (as in I am running, I didn't go, they have gone) and all the MODALS
av written abbrev. for AVERAGE
AV abbrev. for AUDIO-VISUAL
a·vail¹ /ə'veɪl/ n [U] good result; advantage; use: We tried and tried, but it was all to no avail.
avail² v 1 [I usually in questions and negatives] lit to be of use or advantage: It avails nothing to cry. 2 [I] avail oneself of to make good or profitable use of: I availed myself of this opportunity to improve my English.
a·vail·a·ble /ə'veɪləbəl/ adj {(to)} able to be had, obtained, used, seen etc: I'm sorry, sir, those shoes are not available in your size. | Every available ambulance was rushed to the scene of the accident. | Details of the competition are available from our head office. | Is the new timetable available yet? | We want to make our products available to a wider market. | We tried to find out the Senator's opinion on this matter, but he was not available for comment. → opposite UNAVAILABLE —bly adv —bility /əˌveɪləˈbɪləti/ n [U] limited availability
av·a·lanche /'ævəlɑ:ntʃ||-læntʃ/ n a large mass of snow and ice crashing down the side of a mountain: He was swept away in an avalanche. | (fig.) We received an avalanche of inquiries.
Av·a·lon, Aval·lon /'ævəlɒn||-lɑ:n/ according to old stories about King ARTHUR, a holy island, which some people believe is near Glastonbury in southwest England, where Arthur was buried. → see also ARTHURIAN LEGEND
av·ant·garde /ˌævɒŋ 'ɡɑ:d; ilˌævɑːŋ 'ɡɑːrd; ˌɑv-/ n [(the)s+sing./ pl. v) the writers, painters, musicians etc whose work is based on the newest ideas and methods: a member of the avant-garde —avant-garde adj: an avant-garde novelist
av·a·rice /'ævərɪs/ n [U] fml extreme eagerness and desire to get or keep wealth; GREED —ricious /ˌævə'rɪʃəs; ˈævəˈrɪʃəs/, adj —riciously adv
av·a·tar /ˌævə'tɑ:r/ n 1 the appearance of a Hindu god, especially Vishnu, in human or animal form: Krishna was an avatar of the god Vishnu. 2 a person who represents (an idea etc) completely; EMBODIMENT
Ave written abbrev. for AVENUE: 109 Lexington Ave
Ave·bu·ry /'eɪvbərɪ||-berɪ/ a village in Wiltshire, in southern England, where there is a group of ancient STANDING STONES.
a·venge /ə'vendʒ/ v [T] especially lit 1 to get satisfaction for (something bad done to oneself, one's family etc) by punishing the person who did it: They avenged his death by burning the village. 2 [(on)] to punish someone for something bad done to (oneself, one's family etc): He swore to avenge his brother. | They avenged themselves on their enemy. → compare VENGEANCE —avenger n
A·ven·gers, The /ə'vendʒəz||-ərz/ a British television programme from the 1960s, whose two main characters are an Englishman from a high social class called John Steed and an attractive woman called Emma Peel, who fight criminals and try to stop crime. Steed is known for always being very well-dressed, with a BOWLER hat and UMBRELLA, while Mrs Peel is known for wearing tight leather clothes and boots.
av·e·nue /'ævənju:||-nu:/ n [C] 1 written abbrev. Ave. a broad street in a town, sometimes having trees on each side: Fifth Avenue 2 a road or way between two rows of trees, especially one that leads to a house 3 a means of reaching a desired result: They explored every avenue (=tried every method) but could not find a solution.
a·ver /ə'vɜ:r/ v -rr- [T+obj/that] fml to state forcefully; declare
av·er·age¹ /'ævərɪdʒ/ n 1 [C] the amount calculated by adding together several quantities and then dividing by the number of quantities: The average of 3, 8, and 10 is 7. | Wages for industrial workers have increased by an average of 7%. 2 [C;U] a level or standard regarded as usual or ordinary: His school work is well above/below average. | We receive 20 letters a day on average. | a higher than average attendance
average² adj 1 [A no comp.] calculated by making an average of a number of quantities: What is the average rainfall for July? | Average earnings in the country are about $500 a month. 2 of the usual or ordinary kind: There was nothing special about the film – it was only average. | the average man in the street | of average height/intelligence
average³ v 1 [L] to be as an average: Our mail averages 20 letters a day. 2 [T no pass.] to do, get, or have as an average or usual quantity: I average eight hours' work a day. 3 [T(out)] to calculate the average of (figures)
average out phr v [I(at, to)] infml to come to an average or ordinary level or standard, especially after being higher or lower: Months of high and low sales average out over the year. | The weekly profits averaged out at 20%.
a·verse /ə'vɜ:s||-ɜ:rs/ adj [F+to] fml or humor not liking; opposed: I don't smoke cigarettes, but I'm not averse to (having) the occasional cigar.
a·ver·sion /ə'vɜ:ʃən||ə'vɜ:rən/ n 1 [S;U(to)] a feeling of strong dislike or unwillingness: She has an aversion to cats/to doing the housework. 2 [C] a person or thing that causes this feeling: Housework is my pet aversion.
a'version ˌtherapy n [U] the treatment of a bad habit or behaviour pattern (e.g. ALCOHOLISM) by its association with unpleasant sensations
a·vert /ə'vɜ:t||-ɜ:rt/ v [T] 1 to prevent (something unpleasant) from happening: An accident was averted by his quick thinking. 2 [(from)] fml to turn away (one's eyes, thoughts etc): She averted her eyes/her gaze from the terrible sight.
a·vi·an flu /ˌeɪviən 'flu:/ also ˌavian influ'en za n [U] an infectious disease that spreads very quickly among birds and can sometimes kill them. There is a small risk that people can catch the disease. In 2004, millions of chickens in Asia, especially in Vietnam and Thailand, caught the disease and some people died. Many birds were killed to stop the disease from spreading.
a·vi·a·ry /'eɪviəri||'eɪvierɪ/ n a large cage or enclosed space for keeping birds in
a·vi·a·tion /ˌeɪvi'eɪʃən||-er-, ˌæv-/ n [U] 1 the science or practice of flying in aircraft 2 the aircraft industry
a·vi·a·tor /'eɪviətər||ˈeɪvɪ-, ˈæv-/ n old use the pilot of an aircraft
av·id /'ævɪd/ adj. {(for)} extremely eager or keen: an avid reader | avid for success —ly adv —ity /ə'vɪdəti/ n [U].
Av·ie·more /ˌævi'mɔ:r/ a town in northern Scotland, known as a popular place for skiing (SKI) and other winter sports.
a·vi·on·ics /ˌeɪvi'ɒnɪks||-ˈɑːn-/ n [U] tech the electronic equipment used in aircraft and the science of developing it
A·vis /'eɪvɪs/ trademark an international car RENTAL company
av·o·ca·do /ˌævə'kɑ:dəʊ/ also ˌavocado 'pear n pl. -dos or -does a green or purple-black tropical fruit with a large stone and smooth oily flesh, usually eaten as the first part of a meal: avocado vinaigrette
av·o·ca·tion /ˌævə'keɪʃən/ n fml something done for pleasure; a HOBBY
a·void /ə'vɔɪd/ v [T] 1 to keep away from or keep out of the way of, especially on purpose: I swerved to the side of the road to avoid the other car. | To avoid the city centre, turn right here. | These drugs are very dangerous; I'd avoid them like the plague (=never go near them) if I were you. 2 to prevent (something) from happening, or stop oneself from doing (something): I swerved to the side of the road to avoid collision. | Nuclear war is to be avoided at all costs. | [T+v-ing] He tried to avoid answering my questions. —able adj
a·void·ance /ə'vɔɪdəns/ n [U] the act of avoiding: avoidance of danger | a scheme for tax avoidance (=avoiding the payment of tax, but by legal means)