English dictionary — definitions & meanings

Ron

noun

A short form of the male given name Ronald.

rona

noun

Slang for COVID-19 or the coronavirus.

Ronald

name

A male given name of Germanic origin.

Ronan

name

A male given name of Irish origin.

Ronda

name

A feminine given name, and a town in the province of Málaga, Spain.

rondeau

noun

A fixed form of verse based on two rhyme sounds and consisting usually of 13 lines in three stanzas with the opening words of the first line of the first stanza used as an independent refrain after the second and third stanzas.

rondo

noun

A musical piece, often lively, in which a main theme keeps returning between contrasting sections.

Rong

name

A place name in Guangxi, China, and occasionally a Chinese given name.

ronin

noun

A samurai in feudal Japan who had no lord or master, often forced to survive independently.

Ronnie

noun

A casual short form of the given names Ronald or Veronica.

Ronny

name

A diminutive of the masculine given name Ronald.

ronson

noun

(military slang, historical) A nickname for the M4 Sherman tank, referencing its tendency to catch fire when hit.

roo

noun

Peace, stillness, or quiet rest (archaic or dialectal).

rood

noun

A crucifix, cross, especially in a church.

roof

noun

The structure covering the top of a building or vehicle.

roofie

noun

Slang for Rohypnol or a similar sedative used to incapacitate someone without their knowledge, typically for assault.

roofied

adj

Having been secretly drugged, typically with a sedative slipped into a drink.

roofing

noun

The materials used to cover a roof, such as tiles, shingles, or metal sheeting.

rooftop

noun

The outer surface or top of a roof, especially as a place people can stand or gather.

rook

noun

A large black European bird related to the crow, known for nesting in noisy colonies.

rooker

noun

A person who cheats or swindles others, especially in a card game or bet.

rookie

noun

Someone new to a job, sport, or team; a first-year professional or a novice.

Rooks

name

An English surname.

room

noun

A separate enclosed space within a building, with its own walls, floor, and ceiling.

room and board

noun

A place to sleep and meals provided together, usually as part of a fee or as payment for work.

roomer

noun

A person who rents a room.

roomful

noun

As much or as many as a room can hold, especially referring to a large group of people.

roomie

noun

An informal short form of "roommate."

roomlet

noun

A little room or room-like space.

roommate

noun

A person who shares a room, apartment, or house with someone else, without necessarily being related or a romantic partner.

roomy

adj

Having plenty of space; spacious.

Rooney

name

A surname of Irish origin, notably borne by footballer Wayne Rooney.

roop

verb

(dialect) To shout or cry out loudly.

Roos

name

A surname, and a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England.

Roosevelt

name

An American surname of Dutch origin, borne by the family that produced U.S. presidents Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

roost

noun

The perch or spot where a bird settles to sleep, often a branch or a bar inside a coop.

rooster

noun

An adult male chicken.

root

noun

The underground part of a plant that anchors it and draws in water and nutrients.

rootable

adj

That can be rooted.

rootage

noun

The process of forming roots.

rooted

adj

Firmly established or fixed in place, whether literally or figuratively.

rooter

noun

One who, or that which, roots; one that tears up by the roots.

rooting

noun

The process of a plant or cutting growing roots.

rooting for you

phrase

Said to tell someone that you support them and genuinely want them to succeed.

rootle

verb

to dig into the ground, with the snout.

roots

noun

A person's family background, heritage, or place of origin.

rope

noun

A thick, strong cord made by twisting together fibers, strands, or wires.

Roper

noun

Someone who makes ropes, or (especially in rodeo and ranching) someone skilled at roping cattle or horses.

Ropes

name

An English surname.

ropeway

noun

A system of cables, slung from towers, from which carriers are suspended to transport materials.

roping

noun

The activity or skill of catching or tying up an animal (typically a calf or steer) by throwing a lasso around it.

ropy

adj

Resembling rope in appearance or texture, used especially of muscles that are thick or hard to the touch.

roque

noun

A hard-surface variant of croquet played with short-handled mallets.

Rorschach

noun

Short for the Rorschach test, a psychological assessment in which people describe what they see in a series of inkblots.

rorty

adj

Boisterous, rowdy, saucy, dissipated, or risqué.

Rory

adjective

Damp with dew.

Ros

name

A diminutive of the feminine given names Rosalind or Rosamund.

Rosa

name

A feminine given name meaning "rose" in Latin and several Romance languages.

rosacea

noun

A long-term skin condition affecting mainly the face, in which the central areas become persistently flushed or red, often with visible small blood vessels and, in some people, bumps and pustules. It typically comes and goes in flare-ups and most often appears in adulthood.

Rosalee

name

A feminine given name, a respelling of Rosalie.

Rosales

name

A surname of Spanish origin, and a municipality in Pangasinan, Philippines.

Rosalia

noun

In music, a melodic pattern that repeats a short phrase at a progressively higher (or lower) pitch each time.

Rosalie

name

A feminine given name meaning "rose", from French and ultimately Latin.

Rosalind

name

A feminine given name of Germanic origin, later reinterpreted through folk etymology to mean "lovely rose".

Rosaline

name

A female given name from Latin.

rosamond

name

A female given name from the Germanic languages, variant of Rosamund.

Rosamund

name

A feminine given name of Germanic origin, later reinterpreted to mean "pure rose" or "rose of the world".

rosamunda

name

A female given name, variant of Rosamund.

Rosanna

name

A feminine given name, a blend of Rose and Anna.

Rosario

name

A surname and given name of Spanish origin meaning "rosary", and a major city in Argentina.

rosary

noun

A string of beads used, especially by Catholics, to count prayers as they are recited.

roscoe

noun

Slang for a handgun, especially a revolver.

rose

noun

A shrub or climbing plant, or its flower, prized for its fragrance and often thorny stems.

Roseanna

name

A feminine given name formed as a blend of Rose and Anna.

Roseanne

name

A feminine given name, a variant of Rosanne combining Rose and Anne.

rosebud

noun

The unopened flower bud of a rose.

rosehip

noun

The fleshy false fruit of a wild rose plant (e.g. sweetbrier, dog rose, burnet rose, etc.), containing the achenes or true fruits.

roselle

noun

Hibiscus sabdariffa, an edible flower in the hibiscus family used to make hibiscus tea.

rosemary

noun

A fragrant evergreen herb used widely in cooking and, historically, in perfume.

rosemond

name

A female given name from the Germanic languages.

rosen

adjective

Made from roses, or having the pinkish colour of roses.

Rosenberg

name

A surname of German origin meaning "rose mountain", also the name of several towns in Germany.

Rosenthal

name

A surname of German origin meaning "rose valley".

rosetta

noun

A leaf-shaped or rounded pattern created in the foam of a latte or similar coffee drink.

rosette

noun

A rose-shaped ornament or badge, often made of ribbon, given as a prize or worn as a symbol.

rosewood

noun

A dense, fragrant tropical hardwood, prized for furniture and musical instruments, that smells faintly of roses when cut.

Rosey

name

A diminutive of the feminine given name Rose, a variant spelling of Rosie.

Roshan

name

A masculine given name and surname meaning "light" or "radiance", of Persian and Sanskrit origin.

Rosie

name

A diminutive of the feminine given name Rose, also used as a formal given name.

rosin

noun

A solid form of resin, obtained from liquid resin by vaporizing its volatile components.

Rosina

name

A feminine given name of Italian origin, a pet form of Rosa.

rosish

adj

Somewhat rosy; pale pink.

Roslin

name

A surname and place name, notably a village in Scotland famous for Rosslyn Chapel.

Roslyn

name

A feminine given name, a variant spelling of Rosalind or Roslin.

Ross

noun

The rough, scaly bark on the outside of a tree trunk.

Rossi

name

An Italian surname derived from "rosso," meaning red, often referring to hair or complexion.

rossiter

name

A census-designated place in Canoe Township, Indiana County, Pennsylvania, United States, founded as a coal mining town.

Rosso

name

An Italian surname meaning "red," often used as a nickname for someone with red hair.

Rossum

name

A surname of Dutch or Czech origin, notably used in the play "R.U.R." by Karel Čapek, which introduced the word "robot."

roster

noun

A list of people assigned to a team, unit, or organization.

Rostov

name

A Russian city name, most notably Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia.

rostrum

noun

A dais, pulpit, or similar platform for a speaker, conductor, or other performer.

Roswell

name

A city in New Mexico, USA, widely known for a 1947 alleged UFO incident.

rosy

adj

Pink or reddish in colour, like a rose.

rot

verb

To decay or break down through the action of bacteria or fungi.

rota

noun

A list or rotating schedule that shares out a task among a group of people.

rotary

adj

Turning or able to turn around a central axis.

rotate

verb

To turn around a central point or axis.

rotated

adjective

Turned around a central point or axis.

rotating

adjective

Turning or spinning around a fixed axis.

rotation

noun

The action or process of turning around a centre or axis.

rotational

adj

Of, pertaining to or caused by rotation.

rotator

noun

A person or thing that rotates or causes rotation.

ROTC

noun

Reserve Officers' Training Corps: a United States programme run at colleges and universities that trains students to become commissioned military officers, usually in exchange for scholarship money and a service commitment after graduation.

rote

noun

A fixed, mechanical way of doing or repeating something, without real understanding.

Roth

name

A surname of German and Jewish origin, meaning "red," often denoting red hair or complexion.

Rothman

name

A surname of German and Jewish origin, meaning "red man."

Rothschild

noun

An extremely wealthy person (informal, from the famous banking family).

Rothstein

name

A surname of German and Jewish origin, meaning "red stone."

roti

noun

A round, unleavened flatbread cooked on a griddle, common across South Asia and the Caribbean.

rotisserie

verb

To cook meat by turning it slowly on a rotating spit.

rotor

noun

The rotating part of a motor, generator, or similar machine.

rotorcraft

noun

Any aircraft that obtains its lift from rotors (usually either a helicopter or an aerial drone with rotors).

rotted

adjective

Decayed or broken down by rot; no longer sound.

rotten

adj

Decayed and spoiled, especially of food.

rottenly

adv

In a rotten manner; poorly.

rottenstone

noun

A soft, friable limestone, used in polishes.

rotter

noun

A despicable or thoroughly unpleasant person (dated, chiefly British).

Rotterdam

name

A major port city in the Netherlands, named for a dam on the Rotte river.

rotting

noun

The process of decaying or breaking down organically.

rottingness

noun

Something which is undergoing rot or decomposition.

Rottweiler

noun

A large, powerfully built dog breed with a black coat and tan markings, originally from Germany.

rotund

adj

Having a round, spherical or curved shape; circular; orbicular.

roturier

noun

A commoner or plebeian; a person of low rank; especially, in pre-Revolutionary France, a member of the social class comprising all who were not nobles or clergy.

Rouen

noun

A large, heavyset breed of domestic duck, originally bred in France, prized for its meat and colouring rather than egg-laying.

rouge

noun

A red or pink cosmetic powder or cream used to colour the cheeks.

rough

adj

Having an uneven or bumpy surface; not smooth.

roughage

noun

Originally (archaic), garbage, rubbish, or waste; later (agriculture) the portions of a crop which are discarded, such as husks, stalks, etc.; also, agricultural waste such as weeds.

rougher

noun

A worker who does the first, coarse shaping of a material before it is finished.

roughly

adv

Approximately; not exactly.

roughneck

noun

A labourer on an oil rig or in the oilpatch, either skilled or semiskilled.

roughness

noun

The quality of having an uneven, coarse, or bumpy surface or texture.

roulette

noun

A casino gambling game where a ball spins around a numbered wheel and players bet on where it will land.

roumanian

adj

Dated spelling of Romanian.

roun

noun

A speech or conversation (especially rumoured or whispered).

round

adjective

Shaped like a circle or sphere, with no sharp corners.

round trip

noun

A journey to a place and back again to where you started.

roundabout

noun

A road junction where traffic circles around a central island instead of stopping at lights.

rounded

adjective

Curved rather than sharp or angular.

roundel

noun

Anything having a round form; a round figure; a circle.