English Dictionary — Definitions & Meanings

silicosis

noun

A lung disease caused by breathing in dust from crystalline silica.

silk

noun

A fine, soft fiber produced by silkworms, or fabric woven from it.

silken

adjective

Made of silk, or soft and smooth like silk.

silklike

adj

Another word for silky; feeling or looking like silk.

silkworm

noun

A caterpillar of any of various moths that spin cocoons of silk, especially Bombyx mori, which gives most of the silk made for sale.

silky

adjective

Smooth and soft to the touch, like silk.

sill

noun

The horizontal ledge at the base of a window or door frame.

Silla

name

The name of an ancient Korean kingdom that unified the Korean peninsula in the seventh century.

silliness

noun

Foolish, playful, or frivolous behavior.

silly

adjective

Foolish or lacking good sense; done or said in a way that invites laughter.

silo

noun

A tall tower or pit used to store grain, animal feed, or other bulk material.

silphium

noun

An ancient plant, now believed to be extinct, once used by the Greeks and Romans for cooking and birth control.

silt

noun

Fine particles of soil or mud carried and deposited by moving water.

silva

noun

(formal) The trees of a particular forest or region, considered collectively.

silvana

noun

A Filipino dessert, a frozen cookie made from a layer of buttercream sandwiched between two cashew-meringue wafers coated with cookie crumbs.

silvanus

name

A god associated with forests.

silver

noun

A shiny, whitish precious metal (symbol Ag) used in jewellery, coins, and electronics.

silver lining

noun

A hopeful or beneficial aspect of an otherwise bad situation.

silverfish

noun

A silverfish is a small, wingless insect with silvery scales, of the species Lepisma saccharinum, belonging to the bristletail group.

Silverman

name

A family name.

silvern

adj

Made from silver, or looking like it.

silverside

noun

Any of several small, shiny-scaled fish belonging to the Atherinidae and Atherinopsidae families.

silversmith

noun

A silversmith is a person who makes objects out of silver, typically larger items than jewellery.

silvertip

noun

A grizzly bear.

silverware

noun

Cutlery — knives, forks, and spoons — whether or not actually made of silver.

silvery

adjective

Resembling silver in colour; shiny and pale grey.

Silvia

name

A feminine given name of Latin origin, meaning "of the forest," a variant of Sylvia.

silviculture

noun

The practice of growing and managing forests for the goods or benefits they provide.

Silvio

name

A masculine given name of Latin origin, meaning "of the forest," notably borne by Italian politician Silvio Berlusconi.

silyne

noun

(chemistry) A molecule in which a silicon atom is part of a triple bond.

Sim

noun

(informal) A simulation, especially a computer game that simulates real-world activities.

sima

noun

(geology) The dense layer of the Earth's crust rich in silicon and magnesium that lies beneath the continents and forms the ocean floor.

Simba

name

A masculine name of Swahili origin, meaning "lion," famous as the protagonist of Disney's The Lion King.

Simcoe

name

A surname notably borne by John Graves Simcoe, first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, and the name of a lake and region in Ontario.

Simeon

name

A masculine given name of Hebrew origin, meaning "one who hears," borne by one of the twelve sons of Jacob in the Bible.

simi

pronoun

Used in some varieties of English (influenced by Chinese "what") to mean "what" or "what kind of."

simian

adjective

Relating to or resembling apes or monkeys.

similar

adjective

Sharing enough features with something else to be alike, though not identical.

similarity

noun

The quality of being alike; a shared feature between two or more things.

similarly

adverb

In a like manner; in much the same way.

simile

noun

A figure of speech that compares two unlike things using a linking word such as 'like' or 'as', in order to make a description more vivid.

similitude

noun

Likeness or resemblance between two things.

simious

adj

Like a monkey in appearance or manner.

simmer

verb

To cook gently in liquid just below boiling point.

simmering

adjective

Cooking gently just below boiling point.

simmerstat

noun

An electrical control device that turns a heating element such as a stove, hotplate or grill on and off in a user-selectable duty cycle: for example, five of every 20 seconds.

simmonds

name

An English surname derived patronymically from the given name Simon.

Simmons

name

An English surname derived from the given name Simon, meaning "son of Simon."

Simms

name

An English surname, a shortened form of Simmons, meaning "son of Simon."

Simo

name

A masculine given name used in Finland and elsewhere, a form of Simon.

simoleon

noun

(informal) An imaginary or joking name for a unit of money.

Simon

name

A male given name, originally from Hebrew, borne by several figures in the New Testament including the Apostle Peter.

Simona

name

A female given name, a Latinized or Italian form of Simone.

Simone

name

A female given name of French origin, the feminine form of Simon.

Simons

name

An English and Dutch surname meaning "son of Simon."

simony

noun

The practice of buying or selling sacred or spiritual items, for instance church positions, pardons or blessed objects.

simp

noun

A person, usually a man, mocked for showing excessive attention, flattery or generosity towards someone they are attracted to, especially when the feeling is not returned.

simpatico

adj

Possessing a temperament that suits others well, or qualities that are pleasing.

simper

verb

To smile in a silly, shallow, self-aware, coy, fawning or smug way.

simple

adj

Easy to understand or do; not complicated.

simpleness

noun

The quality of being simple.

simpler

adj

Comparative form of simple: easier, plainer, or less complicated.

simpleton

noun

A person who lacks common sense or shows poor judgement; a foolish person.

simplex

adj

Made up of one single part rather than several combined ones.

simplicity

noun

The quality of being simple, uncomplicated, or easy to understand.

simplification

noun

The process of making something simpler, or the simpler version that results.

simplified

adj

Made easier to understand by removing complexity or detail.

simplify

verb

To make something simpler, easier to understand, or easier to do.

simplism

noun

The habit of treating something as simpler than it actually is by ignoring its complications.

simplistic

adj

Treating a complicated issue as if it were much simpler than it really is, in a way that misses important details.

simplistically

adv

In a manner that is simplistic.

simply

adv

In a simple, plain, or uncomplicated way.

Simpson

name

An English surname meaning "son of Simon," widely known from the animated television series The Simpsons.

Simran

name

A unisex first name of Punjabi origin.

Sims

name

A surname derived from the given name Sim, a short form of Simon.

simson

name

A patronymic surname meaning "son of Sim", and a variant of Simpson.

simulacrum

noun

A tangible image or likeness of a god, person, or object.

simulate

verb

To imitate or reproduce the appearance, behaviour, or conditions of something, often for testing or training purposes.

simulated

adj

Made to look or behave like something real, without actually being it; artificial.

simulation

noun

A model or reproduction of a real system or situation, used to study or predict how it behaves.

simulator

noun

A machine or program that recreates a real environment or experience, often used for training.

simultaneous

adj

Happening or done at exactly the same time as something else.

simultaneously

adv

At the same moment; occurring together in time.

sin

noun

In religious terms, an act that breaks a moral or divine law.

sinaean

adj

Another word for Chinese.

Sinai

name

A peninsula in Egypt that forms the only part of the country located in Asia.

Sinaloa

name

A state on the Pacific coast of northwestern Mexico.

Sinan

name

A masculine given name of Turkish and Arabic origin, notably borne by the great Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan.

Sinatra

name

An Italian surname, famously borne by American singer and actor Frank Sinatra.

Sinbad

name

A legendary sailor and adventurer from the tales of One Thousand and One Nights.

since

prep

From a particular point in the past up until now.

sincere

adj

Genuinely felt or meant; free of pretence or deceit.

sincerely

adv

In a genuine, heartfelt manner.

sincerity

noun

The quality of being genuine and honest in what one says or feels.

Sinclair

name

A Scottish surname, originally the name of a clan, now also used as a given name.

sindh

name

A populated province in southeastern Pakistan, notably the region in which the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation flourished. Capital: Karachi.

sindhi

adj

Relating to Sindh, or to its language or its people.

Sindhu

name

A feminine Indian given name and the historical Sanskrit name for the Indus River.

sindon

noun

A fine, thin linen cloth, similar to muslin or cambric.

sindy

name

A female forename that is a variant of Cindy.

sine

noun

In trigonometry, a function of an angle giving the ratio of the length of the opposite side to the hypotenuse in a right triangle.

Sinead

name

A female given name of Irish origin.

sinecure

noun

(informal) A job that pays well but needs little or no real effort.

sinesian

adj

Meaning Chinese, or having qualities typical of Chinese people or culture.

sinew

noun

A tendon, or a cord like a tendon, in the body.

sinewy

adj

Physically tough, with strong sinews.

sinful

adj

Guilty of, or characterized by, sin; morally wrong.

sinfulness

noun

The quality of being wicked or full of sin.

sing

verb

To produce musical sounds with the voice, especially by following a tune.

singalong

noun

An informal get-together where people sing songs together.

Singapore

name

An island and city-state in Southeast Asia, located off the southernmost tip of the Malay Peninsula; a former British crown colony and state of Malaysia (1963-1965). Official name: Republic of Singapore.

singe

verb

To burn something slightly, especially so as to scorch the surface without fully burning it.

singer

noun

A person who sings, especially as a profession or skill.

Singh

name

A common South Asian surname, especially among Sikhs and in parts of northern India.

singing

noun

The act of making musical sounds with the voice.

single

adj

Being just one, on its own, without anything else alongside it.

singlefold

adj

Made of just one layer or fold, not divided further.

singleness

noun

The quality of being just one, not more than one.

singles

noun

A match played between two individual opponents rather than teams, as in tennis.

singlet

noun

A single item on its own, not belonging to a larger group.

singleton

noun

The only card of its suit in a card player's hand.

singly

adv

Alone, with no one else present.

singsong

noun

An informal gathering where people sing together, often casually.

singular

adj

Remarkably unusual or exceptional; standing out from the ordinary.

Singularity

noun

A hypothetical future point when artificial intelligence surpasses human intelligence and triggers runaway technological change.

singularly

adv

In a strange or unusual way.

singultus

noun

A sudden attack of gasping, uneven breathing.

Sinha

name

A South Asian surname meaning "lion", used across several Indian languages.

sinic

adj

Showing the influence of Chinese culture.

sinim

name

A place mentioned in the Bible.

sinister

adj

Suggesting evil intent or hidden danger.

sink

verb

To go down below the surface of water or another liquid, or to cause something to do so.

sinker

noun

A weight attached to a fishing line to make it sink.

sinkhole

noun

A hole in the ground formed when water dissolves underlying rock, causing the surface to collapse.

sinless

adj

Free from sin; having never sinned.

sinlessness

noun

The state of never having sinned or done wrong.

sinner

noun

A person who commits sins, or who lives in a morally wrong way.

sinning

noun

The act of committing sin.

sinseh

noun

A doctor who practises traditional Chinese medicine.

sinter

noun

An alluvial sediment deposited by a mineral spring.

sinuous

adj

Bending and curving repeatedly, like a winding path.

sinus

noun

One of the air-filled cavities in the skull, especially around the nose, that connect to the nasal passages.

sinusitis

noun

Sinusitis is the inflammation of one or more of the sinuses in the skull around the nose.

Siobhan

name

A female given name of Irish origin, an anglicised form of Siobhán.

Sion

name

A Welsh masculine given name, a form of John, and also a variant spelling of Zion.

Sioux

name

A group of Native American peoples of the Great Plains, or a member of these peoples.

sip

noun

A small amount of a drink taken into the mouth at one time.

siphon

noun

A bent tube that uses pressure and gravity to move liquid from one container to a lower one.

siphoning

noun

The act of drawing off liquid or resources using a siphon or siphon-like method.

sipping

noun

The act of drinking something slowly in small amounts.