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frequently_asked_questions_files/Oxford Thesaurus.pdf

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meaning n. 1 sense, import, content, signification, denotation,<br />

message, substance, gist: The meaning of the word 'lucid' is<br />

clear. 2 purport, implication, drift, spirit, connotation,<br />

significance, intention: You understand my meaning, so I need<br />

not explain. 3 interpretation, explanation: What is the<br />

meaning of my dream about being attacked by my philodendron?<br />

meaningful<br />

adj. 1 significant, important, consequential, serious, sober,<br />

deep, substantial, pithy, substantive, telling, weighty, valid,<br />

relevant: Tired of casual encounters, he was ready for a<br />

meaningful relationship. 2 suggestive, pregnant, tell-tale,<br />

pointed, sententious, significant, expressive, eloquent: She<br />

gave him a meaningful look.<br />

meaningless<br />

adj. 1 empty, hollow, vacuous, unsubstantial, absurd, silly,<br />

foolish, fatuous, asinine, ridiculous, preposterous,<br />

nonsensical: He gave some meaningless excuse for having<br />

forgotten the appointment. This gibberish is entirely<br />

meaningless to me. 2 ineffective, ineffectual, inefficacious,<br />

bootless, unavailing, to no avail, trivial, nugatory, trifling,<br />

puny, paltry, worthless, not worth anything or a straw or a rap,<br />

valueless, inconsequential, unimportant, of no moment,<br />

insubstantial, vain, pointless, senseless, purposeless,<br />

undirected, irrelevant, insignificant: Considering the enemy<br />

forces, anything we could do would be meaningless.<br />

means n. See mean°, 4, above.<br />

meantime n., adv. See meanwhile, below.<br />

meanwhile n. 1 interim, meantime, interval: In the meanwhile, you could<br />

study for the exam.<br />

--adv. 2 in the meanwhile, meantime, in the meantime, in the<br />

interim, for the moment, temporarily, for now, for the time<br />

being, during the interval, in the intervening time: Ruth was<br />

watching TV; meanwhile George was washing up.<br />

measly adj. sparse, scant, scanty, meagre, paltry, pathetic, skimpy,<br />

puny, piddling, miserly, niggardly, miserable, beggarly, stingy,

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