A man speaks frantically into the phone, "My wife is pregnant, and her contractions are only two minutes apart!"
"Is this her first child?" the doctor queries.
"No, you idiot!" the man shouts. "This is her husband!"
—n. - instrument for writing or drawing, usu. A thin rod of graphite etc. Enclosed in a wooden cylinder or metal case.
- (attrib.) Resembling a pencil in shape (pencil skirt). —v. (-ll-; us -l-) 1 write, draw, or mark with a pencil.
- (usu. Foll. By in) write, note, or arrange provisionally. [latin penicillum paintbrush]
PENNON
n. - long narrow flag, triangular or swallow-tailed.
- long pointed streamer on a ship. [latin penna feather]
PENPAL
n. Colloq. = *pen-friend.
PENURY
n. (pl. -ies) 1 destitution; poverty.
- lack; scarcity. [latin]
PEOPLE
—n.pl. Except in sense 2. - persons in general or of a specified kind (people don't like rudeness; famous people).
- persons composing a community, tribe, race, nation, etc. (a warlike people; peoples of the commonwealth).
- (the people) a the mass of people in a country etc. Not having special rank or position. B these as an electorate.
- parents or other relatives (my people disapprove).
- a subjects, armed followers, etc. B congregation of a parish priest etc. —v. (-ling) (usu. Foll. By with) 1 fill with people, animals, etc.; populate.
- (esp. As peopled adj.) Inhabit. [latin populus]
PEPPER
—n. - hot aromatic condiment from the dried berries of certain plants.
- anything pungent.
- a capsicum plant, grown as a vegetable. B its fruit. —v. - sprinkle or treat with or as if with pepper.
- pelt with missiles. [sanskrit pippali]
PEPSIN
n. Enzyme contained in the gastric juice. [greek pepsis digestion]
PEPTIC
adj. Concerning or promoting digestion. [greek peptikos able to digest]
- ulcer n. Ulcer in the stomach or duodenum.
PERIOD
—n. - length or portion of time.
- distinct portion of history, a person's life, etc.
- time forming part of a geological era.
- interval between recurrences of an astronomical or other phenomenon.
- time allowed for a lesson in school.
- occurrence of menstruation (often attrib.: period pains).
- complete sentence, esp. One consisting of several clauses.
- esp. Us a = *full stop 1. B colloq. Used at the end of a statement to indicate finality (i'm not going, period). —adj. Characteristic of some past period (period furniture). [greek hodos way]
PERISH
v. - be destroyed; suffer death or ruin.
- a (esp. Of rubber) lose its normal qualities; deteriorate, rot. B cause to rot or deteriorate.
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