Sherlock Holmes and his friend Watson were on a camping and hiking trip.
They had gone to bed and were lying there looking up at the sky. Holmes said, "Watson, look up. What do you see?"
"Well, I see thousands of stars."
"And what does that mean to you?"
"Well, I guess it means we will have another nice day tomorrow. What does it mean to you, Holmes?"
"To me, it means someone has stolen our tent."
- done without delay; prompt. speedily adv. Speediness n.
SPHERE
n. - solid figure with every point on its surface equidistant from its centre; its surface.
- ball, globe.
- a field of action, influence, etc. B social class.
- hist. Each of the revolving shells in which celestial bodies were thought to be set. [greek sphaira ball]
SPHINX
n. - (sphinx) (in greek mythology) winged monster with a woman's head and a lion's body, whose riddle oedipus guessed.
- antiq. A ancient egyptian stone figure with a lion's body and a human or animal head.
SPIDER
crab n. Crab with long thin legs.
- monkey n. Monkey with long limbs and a prehensile tail.
- n. Eight-legged arthropod of which many species spin webs esp. To capture insects as food. [old english: related to *spin]
- plant n. House plant with long narrow striped leaves.
SPIGOT
n. - small peg or plug, esp. In a cask.
- device for controlling the flow of liquid in a tap. [related to *spike2]
SPINAL
adj. Of the spine. [latin: related to *spine]
- column n. Spine.
- cord n. Cylindrical nervous structure within the spine.
SPINET
n. Hist. Small harpsichord with oblique strings. [italian spinetta]
SPIRAL
staircase n. Circular staircase round a central axis.
- —adj. - coiled in a plane or as round a cylinder or cone.
- having this shape. —n. - spiral curve or thing (spiral of smoke).
- progressive rise or fall of two or more quantities alternately because each depends on the other(s). —v. (-ll-; us -l-) 1 move in a spiral course.
- (of prices, wages, etc.) Rise or fall continuously. spirally adv. [greek speira coil]
SPIREA
n. (brit. Spiraea) shrub with clusters of small white or pink flowers. [greek: related to *spiral]
SPIRIT
gum n. Quick-drying gum for attaching false hair.
- —n. - person's essence or intelligence; soul.
- a rational or intelligent being without a material body. B ghost.
- a person's character (an unbending spirit). B attitude (took it in the wrong spirit). C type of person (is a free spirit; a kindred spirit). D prevailing tendency (spirit of the age).
- a (usu. In pl.) Strong distilled liquor, e.g. Whisky or gin. B distilled volatile liquid (wood spirit). C purified alcohol (methylated spirit).
- a courage, vivacity. B (in pl.) State of mind, mood (in high spirits; his spirits were dashed).
- essential as opposed to formal meaning (the spirit of the law). —v. (-t-) (usu. Foll. By away, off, etc.) Convey rapidly or mysteriously. in spirit inwardly. [latin spiritus: related to *spirant]
