22.03.2013 Views

The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms INTRO ...

The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms INTRO ...

The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms INTRO ...

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

over the coals, put or call on or on to the carpet: <strong>The</strong>y were<br />

castigated in the press for their extravagant lifestyle.<br />

castle n. 1 fortress, stronghold, citadel: <strong>The</strong> king moved to Windsor<br />

Castle during the winter. 2 mansion, palace, manor-house, hall,<br />

chƒteau: Mr Mooney lives alone in his castle and has nothing to<br />

do with his neighbours.<br />

casual adj. 1 accidental, chance, random, fortuitous, unexpected,<br />

unforeseen, unpremeditated, unplanned, unforeseeable,<br />

unpredictable, serendipitous: It was only a casual remark, but<br />

it was taken very seriously. We interviewed casual passers-by.<br />

2 uncertain, unsure, haphazard, occasional, random, irregular,<br />

unsystematic, sporadic, erratic: <strong>The</strong> budget includes provision<br />

for both certain and casual revenues. 3 indifferent,<br />

nonchalant, <strong>of</strong>fhand, insouciant, apathetic, cool, unconcerned,<br />

uninterested, pococurante, dispassionate, blas‚, relaxed,<br />

lackadaisical: He may seem casual, but he is genuinely<br />

concerned about the patients. 4 informal; lounge: Dinner dress<br />

is not required: you may come in casual clothes. 5 <strong>of</strong>fhand,<br />

happy-go-lucky, natural, easy, easygoing, devil-may-care,<br />

unconcerned, relaxed, d‚gag‚, unconstrained: Phil is quite<br />

casual about losing money at roulette.<br />

casualty n. 1 disaster, catastrophe, calamity, accident, mischance,<br />

misadventure, mishap: <strong>The</strong> company insures against casualties at<br />

sea. 2 a victim, fatality, Colloq statistic: I'm afraid that<br />

Jeff was a casualty <strong>of</strong> last year's cut in personnel. She was<br />

only one <strong>of</strong> thousands <strong>of</strong> casualties <strong>of</strong> the earthquake. b<br />

Usually, casualties. Chiefly military wounded, injured,<br />

missing, missing in action, dead, fatalities, US MIA(s), body<br />

count: <strong>The</strong> casualties were mounting.<br />

catastrophe<br />

n. 1 disaster, calamity, cataclysm: <strong>The</strong> eruption <strong>of</strong> Vesuvius<br />

was one <strong>of</strong> the major catastrophes in recorded history. 2<br />

misfortune, bad luck, shock, blow, tragedy, disaster; mishap,<br />

mischance, misadventure, accident, fiasco, failure: Cook<br />

reported a catastrophe with the layer cake.<br />

catch v. 1 capture, seize, apprehend, take or get (hold <strong>of</strong>), grab,<br />

grip, grasp, take captive, hold, arrest, take prisoner, Colloq<br />

nab, pinch, collar, Brit nick: <strong>The</strong> police caught him when he

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!