9
achievement
ac·coun·tant /ə'kauntənt/ n a person whose job is to
control and examine the FINANCIAL accounts of businesses or
people
CULTURAL NOTE In Britain, people often make jokes about
accountants because they are considered to be very
boring and dull.
ac·cou·tre·ments /ə'ku:trəmənts/ also -terments
/ə'ku:təmənts||-tər-/ AmE — n [P] equipment, especially
everything a soldier carries, except his clothes and weapons
Ac·cra /ə'krɑ:/ the capital city of Ghana
ac·cred·i·ta·tion /əˌkredɪ'teɪʃən/ n [U] official approval
for a person or organization
ac·cred·it·ed /ə'kredɪtɪd/ adj 1 [(to)] officially representing
one's government in a foreign country, especially as an
AMBASSADOR 2 having the power to act for an organization:
an accredited representative of the firm 3 officially recog-
nized as reaching a certain standard or quality: accredited
milk from a herd of healthy cows | an accredited university
ac·cre·tion /ə'kri:ʃən/ n [C;U(to)] fml (an) increase by natural
growth or by the gradual addition of matter on the outside:
towers and other accretions to the castle
ac·crue /ə'kru:/ v fml 1 [I;T] to become bigger or more by
addition: Interest accrues on a bank account. | You should
accrue more interest this way. 2 [I(to)] to come as a gain or
additional advantage: Great wealth will accrue to her when
she marries the duke. —cru·al n [U]
acct written abbrev. for ACCOUNT
ac·cu·mu·late /ə'kju:mjuleɪt/ v [I;T] to make or become
greater in quantity or size, especially over a long period;
collect or grow into a mass: He gradually accumulated an
impressive collection of paintings. → see GATHER (USAGE)
,—la·tion /əˌkju:mjə'leɪʃən/ n [C;U] an accumulation of
work while I was ill
ac·cu·mu·la·tive /ə'kju:mjəleɪtɪv||-leɪ-, -lə-/ adj fml CUMU-
LATIVE —ly adv
ac·cu·mu·la·tor /ə'kju:mjuleɪtər/ n 1 a part of a computer
where numbers are stored 2 BrE a set of BETS on four or
more horse races. The money won on each race is added to
the money put on the next race until all the bets have been
won or one is lost.
ac·cu·ra·cy /'ækjərəsi/ n [U] the quality of being accurate;
exactness or correctness: the accuracy of his account | to
throw darts with pinpoint accuracy
ac·cu·rate /'ækjərət/ adj exactly correct: Her report of what
happened was accurate in every detail/was an accurate reflec-
tion of the facts. | Is the station clock accurate? → opposite
INACCURATE —ly adv
ac·curs·ed /ə'kɜ:sɪd, ə'kɜ:stl -ɪr-/ also ac·curst
/ə'kɜ:stl-ɪr-/ adj 1 lit under a curse 2 making you very
angry
ac·cu·sa·tion /ˌækju'zeɪʃən/ n [C;U] (a statement) accusing
someone of doing wrong or of breaking the law: [+that] How
do you answer the accusation that your policies have caused
high unemployment? | You shouldn't make wild accusations
without any evidence.
ac·cu·sa·tive /ə'kju:zətɪv/ n tech a particular form of a
noun in certain languages, such as Latin, Greek, and German,
which shows that the noun is the DIRECT OBJECT of a verb
—accusative adj
ac·cu·sa·to·ry /ə'kju:zətɔ:rɪl-tɔ:ri/ adj especially AmE express-
ing accusation: an accusatory remark | an accusatory attitude
ac·cuse /ə'kju:z/ v [T(of)] to charge (someone) with doing
wrong or breaking the law: He was accused of murder. | Are
you accusing me of cheating? | The report accused the govern-
ment of shirking its responsibilities. —cuser n —cusingly
adv: He looked at her accusingly.
ac·cused /ə'kju:zd/ adj charged with doing something
wrong, a crime etc: The company stands accused of failing
to safeguard the public. | [also n, the+C, pl. accused] The accused
(man) was asked to give his name. | Several of the accused
were found guilty. → see Feature on page 000
ac·cus·tom /ə'kʌstəm/ v [T(to)] to make used to: to accustom
oneself to a new job
ac·cus·tomed /ə'kʌstəmd/ adj 1 [F+to] in the habit of;
used to: I'm not accustomed to getting up so early. 2 [A no
comp.] regular; usual: sitting in her accustomed place at the
head of the table
AC/DC¹ /ˌeɪ si: 'di: si:/ adj infml sexually attracted to people of
both sexes; BISEXUAL
AC/DC² an Australian HARD ROCK group that first became
popular in the 1970s and known for having a GUITAR player
who dressed as a SCHOOLBOY with short trousers. Their
ALBUMS include Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap and Highway to
Hell.
ace¹ /eɪs/ n 1 [(off)] a CARD¹ that has a single mark or spot and
usually has the highest or the lowest value → see Cultural
note at CARDS 2 infml a person of the highest skill in the
stated activity: an ace at chess 3 (in tennis and VOLLEYBALL)
a very fast and strong SERVE (=beginning shot) that the
opponent cannot hit back 4 an ace in the hole AmE infml
something that will give a person an advantage or help
when it is needed 5 within an ace of infml very close to (a
condition): within an ace of victory/death
ace² adj infml very good or very skilled; excellent: an ace skier |
Their new record is really ace.
ace³ v [T] AmE infml to do (something) very well: I think I aced
the exam, but the interview was murder.
a·cer·bic /ə'sɜ:bɪk||-ɜ:r-/ adj (of a person or manner) clever
in a rather cruel way: her acerbic wit
a·cer·bi·ty /ə'sɜ:bɪtɪl-ɜ:r-/ n [U] fml bitterness; sourness
ac·e·tate /'æsɪteɪt/ n [U] a chemical made from acetic acid
→ see also CELLULOSE
a·ce·tic /ə'sɪtɪk/ adj of, concerning, or producing VINEGAR or
acetic acid
a·ce·tic acid n [U] the acid in VINEGAR (=a bitter liquid made
from wine or beer)
a·cet·y·lene /ə'setɪli:n||-tɪ-ən, -ti-ɪn/ n [U] a gas which
burns with a very bright flame and is used in certain types of
lamp and in cutting and joining pieces of metal
ache¹ /eɪk/ v [I] 1 to have or suffer a continuous, but not
violent, pain: I ache all over. | My head aches. 2 [+for/to-v] to
have an extremely strong desire: aching for freedom | (infml)
I'm aching to tell them the news.
ache² n (often in comb.) a continuous, but not violent, pain: I've
got a bit of an ache in my back. | Take no notice of him
complaining – he's always full of little aches and pains. | a
headache | (fig.) heartache → compare PAIN
1 Aches and pains is a common phrase used to
describe slight feelings of pain that are not considered to
be serious: As you get older, you start having more aches
and pains. 2 In British English, nouns formed from -ache
such as toothache or backache are treated as
uncountable when they refer to a condition or a state:
Chocolate gives me toothache. | She suffers from
backache. If the noun means a single attack of pain, it
can be either countable or uncountable: She has a
stomachache. | She has stomachache. Headache,
however, is always a countable noun: He gets bad
headaches. In American English, words ending in -ache
are treated as countable both when they refer to a single
attack of pain and when they mean a condition: Sally has
a toothache. | He's been complaining of stomachaches
lately.
a·chieve /ə'tʃi:v/ v [T] 1 to finish successfully; succeed in
doing or reaching: He will never achieve anything/his objec-
tives if he doesn't work harder. 2 to get as the result of action
or effort; gain: The company has achieved a 100% increase in
profitability. —achievable adj
a·chieve·ment /ə'tʃi:vmənt/ n 1 [U] the successful finish-
ing or gaining of something: We felt a great sense of
achievement when we reached the top of the mountain. 2 [C]
something successfully finished or gained, especially
through skill and hard work: a remarkable achievement |
Without wishing to detract from your achievement in any way,
can I remind you that other people also worked very hard on
this book. | He has broken two world records in one day, which
is quite an achievement!