📖 C — The English dictionary · page 13

cast — Everyday, meaning 1: To throw something, such as a fishing line or a net.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A hard cover, often of plaster, put around a broken arm or leg so it can heal.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: All the actors in a play, film or show.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: To give actors their parts.↗ e.g. "She was cast as the queen."↗ Everyday, meaning 5: To make light or shadow fall somewhere.↗ e.g. "The tree cast a long shadow."↗ Everyday, meaning 6: To make an object by pouring hot liquid metal or plaster into a mould.↗ Everyday, meaning 7: To cast a spell or a vote.↗ Everyday, meaning 8: To cast someone out means to send them away from a place or a group.↗ Example: Tom has a cast on his broken arm.↗ · We all signed her cast.↗ · The tree cast a shadow on the grass.↗ · The whole cast bowed at the end of the play.↗ · She was cast as the wolf.↗ · Dad cast his fishing line into the lake.↗ · The witch cast a spell on the prince.↗ · The statue was cast in bronze.↗ · Wolf Pack, ye have cast me out too.↗ · And the water in the bottle was spent, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.↗ (Torah GEN.21.15, JPS 1917)↗ · For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents; but Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods.↗ (Torah EXO.7.12, JPS 1917)↗ · And he cast four rings for the four ends of the grating of brass, to be holders for the staves.↗ (Torah EXO.38.5, JPS 1917)↗ · Arouse Thyself, cast not off for ever.↗ (Writings PSA.44.24, JPS 1917)↗ · LORD, why castest Thou off my soul?↗ (Writings PSA.88.15, JPS 1917)↗ · Hast not Thou, O God, cast us off?↗ (Writings PSA.60.12, JPS 1917)↗

castanets — Everyday, meaning 1: A small musical instrument of two shell-shaped pieces of hard wood (or plastic), held in the hand and clicked together to make a sharp rhythm, used especially in Spanish dancing and flamenco.↗ Example: The dancer clicked her castanets as she spun.↗ · We played castanets in the music lesson.↗ · Castanets are percussion instruments.↗ · Click, clack went the castanets.↗ · He kept the beat with a pair of castanets.↗ · Castanets are often used in Spanish music.↗ · My little sister loves the castanets in the music box.↗

caste — Everyday, meaning 1: A group in a society into which people are born, which in the past decided what work they did and whom they could marry; best known from the traditional system in India and Nepal.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Any fixed social class that is hard to move out of.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (science) A group of insects in a colony that do one kind of job, such as workers, soldiers or the queen in an ant or bee colony.↗ Example: In India, discrimination because of caste is against the law.↗ · The old caste system decided which jobs people could do.↗ · Dr B. R. Ambedkar fought hard for people treated badly because of their caste.↗ · In a beehive, the worker caste collects nectar and the queen lays eggs.↗ · Termites have a soldier caste with big jaws to guard the nest.↗ · In the story, the girl refused to accept that her caste decided her future.↗ · Many people today marry across caste lines.↗ · And Mowgli had not the faintest idea of the difference that caste makes between man and man.↗

castle — Everyday, meaning 1: A large, strong building with thick walls and towers, built long ago to protect a king, queen or lord from enemies.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A piece in chess, also called a rook.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (verb) A special chess move with the king and a rook.↗ Example: The castle has four towers and a moat.↗ · Knights guarded the castle gate.↗ · We built a sandcastle at the beach.↗ · Many old castles are in ruins now.↗ · The princess lived in a castle on a hill.↗ · In chess, the castle can move in straight lines.↗ · The castle walls were three metres thick.↗ · The ship glided past the castle.↗ · And in Shushan the castle the Jews slew and destroyed five hundred men.↗ (Writings EST.9.6, JPS 1917)↗ · And Jehoshaphat waxed great exceedingly; and he built in Judah castles and cities of store.↗ (Writings 2CH.17.12, JPS 1917)↗ · Moreover he built cities in the hill-country of Judah, and in the forest he built castles and towers.↗ (Writings 2CH.27.4, JPS 1917)↗

castor — Everyday, meaning 1: A small wheel fixed under a chair, bed, trolley or piece of furniture so it can be moved easily (also spelled "caster").↗ Everyday, meaning 2: In "castor oil": a thick, bad-tasting oil from the seeds of the castor oil plant, once given to children as a medicine.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: In "castor sugar" (UK, also "caster sugar"): very fine white sugar used in baking.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: (a name) Castor is a bright star in the Gemini constellation, named after one of the twins in Greek myths.↗ Everyday, meaning 5: Castor can also be the name of a twin hero from Greek myths, who was a famous horseman.↗ Example: The office chair rolls on five castors.↗ · One castor broke, so the trolley wobbles.↗ · In old books, children were given a spoon of castor oil.↗ · Use castor sugar to make meringues.↗ · Castor and Pollux are the brightest stars in Gemini.↗ · Castor oil comes from the seeds of the castor bean plant.↗ · They were also famous for their physical accomplishments, Castor being the most expert charioteer of his day, and Pollux the first of pugilists.↗

casual — Everyday, meaning 1: Casual clothes are relaxed, comfortable everyday clothes, not smart or formal ones.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Casual means relaxed and not seeming to care much or not making an effort: a casual wave, a casual chat.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: Casual can mean happening by chance or without a plan: a casual meeting.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: A casual job or worker is one that is not regular or permanent, done only now and then.↗ Everyday, meaning 5: (UK, slang) A «casual» can be a member of a football fan group known for wearing designer clothes; and «casual» (gaming slang) is a player who plays just for fun.↗ Everyday, meaning 6: Casual can describe a person you know only slightly, such as a casual neighbour.↗ Example: We can wear casual clothes on Friday for charity.↗ · She tried to sound casual, but she was really nervous.↗ · It was just a casual chat at the bus stop.↗ · Dad has a casual job at the market on Saturdays.↗ · He gave a casual wave as he walked past.↗ · The party is casual, so jeans are fine.↗ · I'm only a casual gamer; I play on weekends.↗ · A casual remark can still hurt someone's feelings.↗

casually — Everyday, meaning 1: In a relaxed, easy way, without seeming worried or careful.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Without thinking much or planning, as if it does not matter.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: In clothes for everyday, not smart wear.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: Now and then, not regularly or deeply (casually know someone).↗ Example: He casually strolled into the classroom ten minutes late.↗ · "Oh, I won the race," she said casually, trying not to show off.↗ · On mufti day we can dress casually instead of in uniform.↗ · Mum casually mentioned that we were getting a puppy.↗ · Don't treat safety rules casually; they protect you.↗ · I only know him casually from football.↗ · The cat lay casually on the warm windowsill.↗ · He casually tossed the ball over the fence.↗

casualty — Everyday, meaning 1: A casualty is a person who is hurt or killed in an accident, war or disaster.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (UK) Casualty is the hospital department for emergencies, also called A&E (accident and emergency); in the USA it is the ER.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: A casualty is something that is lost or harmed because of an event: «The old tree was a casualty of the storm».↗ Example: The first aider put the casualty in the recovery position.↗ · There were no casualties in the fire.↗ · We spent four hours in casualty after Sam broke his arm.↗ · The battle caused heavy casualties.↗ · The garden fence was a casualty of the storm.↗ · Stay with the casualty until help arrives.↗

cat — Everyday, meaning 1: A cat is a small furry animal that people keep as a pet; it has whiskers, claws and a long tail.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A cat is any animal of the cat family, like a lion, tiger or leopard («big cats»).↗ Example: There are 4 cats.↗ How many legs?↗ · Each cat eats 2 cans of food a day.↗ · She has 3 cats and 2 dogs.↗ · 5 cats went outside.↗ · The cat purred on my lap.↗ · Lions and tigers are big cats.↗ · It's raining cats and dogs!↗ · Our cat catches mice.↗ · Don't pull the cat's tail.↗ · He let the cat out of the bag about the surprise.↗ · As, according to the Sefer Yctzirah, it is possible to ex- press all numbers by the ten Sefirot"*), we must demonstrate liow all numbers, even those higher tiian nine, may be indi- cated by the ten strokes.↗ (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914))↗ · But wild-cats shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of ferrets; and ostriches shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there.↗ (Prophets ISA.13.21, JPS 1917)↗ · And the wild-cats shall meet with the jackals, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; yea, the night-monster shall repose there, and shall find her a place of rest.↗ (Prophets ISA.34.14, JPS 1917)↗ · Therefore the wild-cats with the jackals shall dwell there, and the ostriches shall dwell therein; and it shall be no more inhabited for ever, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.↗ (Prophets JER.50.39, JPS 1917)↗

catalogue — Everyday, meaning 1: A catalogue is a list of things, often with pictures and details, such as goods in a shop or books in a library.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A catalogue is a booklet or website showing things you can buy.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: To catalogue things means to make a careful, ordered list of them.↗ Example: We looked through the toy catalogue and circled what we wanted.↗ · Search the library catalogue to find books about sharks.↗ · Mum ordered new curtains from a catalogue.↗ · The museum has a catalogue of all its fossils.↗ · Scientists catalogue every new kind of beetle they find.↗ · Our class catalogued the shells we collected on the beach.↗ · The catalogue says the bike costs 120 dollars.↗ · It was a catalogue of mistakes from start to finish.↗ · All were checked against a later edition of the book that had been retypeset, and references to other works were additionally checked against online library catalogues.↗

catalyst — Everyday, meaning 1: (science) A substance that makes a chemical reaction go faster without being used up itself.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A person or event that makes a big change happen, or makes it happen sooner.↗ Example: Enzymes in your saliva act as catalysts to break down food.↗ · A catalyst speeds up a reaction but is not used up.↗ · In the experiment, the catalyst made the hydrogen peroxide fizz quickly.↗ · The new teacher was a catalyst for change in our school.↗ · The storm was the catalyst that made the town build a stronger sea wall.↗ · Rosa Parks's brave act became a catalyst for the bus boycott.↗ · Platinum is a catalyst in a car's exhaust system.↗

catalytic — Everyday, meaning 1: Speeding up a chemical reaction without being used up; working as a catalyst.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Causing important changes to happen.↗ Example: A catalytic converter cleans a car's exhaust gases.↗ · Enzymes are catalytic and speed up digestion.↗ · Thieves sometimes steal catalytic converters from cars.↗ · The teacher showed a catalytic reaction that made foam.↗ · Her speech played a catalytic role in changing the rules.↗

catapult — Everyday, meaning 1: A catapult is an old war machine that throws heavy stones or objects a long way.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (UK) A catapult is a Y-shaped stick with a rubber band used to shoot small stones; in the USA it is called a slingshot.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: To catapult means to throw or launch something hard and fast.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: To be catapulted into something means to be moved suddenly into a new situation, as in «catapulted to fame».↗ Example: The army used a catapult to throw stones at the castle walls.↗ · We built a lolly-stick catapult in science.↗ · He fired a pea from his catapult.↗ · The crash catapulted him out of his seat.↗ · The song catapulted the band to fame.↗ · We measured how far the catapult could throw a marshmallow.↗

cataract — Everyday, meaning 1: A cataract is a cloudy patch in the lens of the eye that makes things look blurry; it is common in older people and can be fixed by an operation.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A cataract is also a large, powerful waterfall or a stretch of rough, rushing water in a river, like the cataracts of the River Nile.↗ Example: Grandma had a cataract operation and can see clearly again.↗ · Cataracts make things look foggy.↗ · The doctor said Grandad has a cataract in his left eye.↗ · The boat could not sail past the cataract on the Nile.↗ · The cataract roared as the river fell over the rocks.↗ · Dogs can get cataracts too.↗ · After the cataract was removed, colours looked brighter.↗ · The waves of all the world seemed to whirl past them in one huge, green cataract.↗ · Deep calleth unto deep at the voice of Thy cataracts; all Thy waves and Thy billows are gone over me.↗ (Writings PSA.42.8, JPS 1917)↗

catastrophe — Everyday, meaning 1: A sudden terrible event that causes great damage or suffering, like an earthquake or flood.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (informal) Something that goes very badly wrong.↗ Example: The flood was a catastrophe for the town.↗ · Scientists warn that the dam could fail and cause a catastrophe.↗ · The volcano eruption was a catastrophe for Pompeii.↗ · Our science fair project was a total catastrophe.↗ · Quick action prevented a catastrophe.↗ · Forgetting the tickets would be a catastrophe!↗ · Such a catastrophe nearly happened to the young Englishman.↗