A porter in a British hotel comes upon an American tourist impatiently jabbing at the button for the lift.
"Sir, the lift will be here in a moment."
"Lift? Lift?" replies the American. "Oh, you mean the elevator."
"No sir, here we call it a lift."
"Well, as it was invented in the United States, it’s called an elevator."
"Yes sir, but as the language was invented here, it’s called a lift."
—n. - a flower, esp. Cultivated. B state of flowering (in bloom).
- one's prime (in full bloom).
- a healthy glow of the complexion. B fine powder on fresh fruit and leaves. —v. - bear flowers; be in flower.
- be in one's prime; flourish. [old norse]
BLOWN
past part. Of *blow1.
BLOWY
adj. (-ier, -iest) windy.
BLUES
n.pl. - (prec. By the) bout of depression.
- a (prec. By the; often treated as sing.) Melancholic music of black american origin, usu. In a twelve-bar sequence. B (pl. Same) (as sing.) Piece of such music (played a blues).
BLUFF
—v. Pretend strength, confidence, etc. —n. Act of bluffing. call a person's bluff challenge a person to prove a claim. [dutch bluffen brag]
- —adj. - blunt, frank, hearty.
- vertical or steep and broad in front. —n. Steep cliff or headland. [origin unknown]
BLUNT
—adj. - not sharp or pointed.
- direct, outspoken. —v. Make blunt or less sharp. bluntly adv. (in sense 2 of adj.). Bluntness n. [probably scandinavian]
BLURB
n. Promotional description, esp. Of a book. [coined by g. Burgess 1907]
BLURT
v. (usu. Foll. By out) utter abruptly, thoughtlessly, or tactlessly. [imitative]
BLUSH
—v. - a become pink in the face from embarrassment or shame. B (of the face) redden thus.
- feel embarrassed or ashamed.
- redden. —n. - act of blushing.
- pink tinge. [old english]
BOARD
—n. - a flat thin piece of sawn timber, usu. Long and narrow. B material resembling this, of compressed fibres. C thin slab of wood etc. D thick stiff card used in bookbinding.
- provision of regular meals, usu. With accommodation, for payment.
- directors of a company; official administrative body.
- (in pl.) Stage of a theatre.
- side of a ship. —v. - go on board (a ship, train, etc.).
- receive, or provide with, meals and usu. Lodging.
- (usu. Foll. By up) cover with boards; seal or close. go by the board be neglected or discarded. On board on or on to a ship, aircraft, oil rig, etc. Take on board consider, take notice of; accept. [old english]
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