📖 P — The English dictionary · page 45

porcelain — Everyday, meaning 1: Porcelain is a hard, white, shiny material made by baking fine clay at very high heat; also called china.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Porcelain means things made of it, like cups, plates, dolls and vases.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: Porcelain describes skin that is very pale and smooth.↗ Example: Gran keeps her porcelain teacups in a glass cabinet.↗ · Porcelain was first made in China long ago.↗ · The porcelain vase smashed on the floor.↗ · The toilet and sink are made of porcelain.↗ · She had a porcelain doll with painted cheeks.↗ · Hold it carefully — porcelain breaks easily.↗ · The walls and floors of porcelain glittered in the light of a thousand lamps.↗

porch — Everyday, meaning 1: A small covered area or room at the entrance to a house, outside the front door.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (US, Canada) A covered area along the front or side of a house where people can sit; a veranda.↗ Example: Leave your muddy boots in the porch.↗ · We sat on the porch and drank lemonade.↗ · The parcel was left on the front porch.↗ · Turn on the porch light for the visitors.↗ · Grandpa has a rocking chair on his porch.↗ · A cat was sleeping on our porch.↗ · Now one night he heard some one knocking at the porch, asking for admittance.↗ · He measured also the porch of the gate toward the house, one reed.↗ (Prophets EZK.40.8, JPS 1917)↗ · Now the temple, and the inner place, and the porches of the court, (Prophets EZK.41.15, JPS 1917)↗ · He made also a house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom Solomon had taken to wife, like unto this porch.↗ (Prophets 1KI.7.8, JPS 1917)↗

porcupine — Everyday, meaning 1: A porcupine is a large rodent covered in long sharp spines called quills, which protect it from enemies.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: There are two main groups: tree-climbing porcupines in the Americas and ground-living ones in Africa, Asia and southern Europe.↗ Example: A porcupine raises its quills when it feels scared.↗ · The dog came home with porcupine quills in its nose.↗ · Porcupines eat bark, leaves and fruit.↗ · A baby porcupine is called a porcupette.↗ · The porcupine climbed a tree to escape the fox.↗ · Porcupines cannot shoot their quills, despite the myth.↗ · My little brother's hair stuck up like a porcupine after his nap.↗ · We read a story about a porcupine who wanted a hug.↗ · A Porcupine was looking for a good home.↗

porcupines — Everyday, meaning 1: Porcupines are more than one porcupine: large rodents covered in long sharp quills that protect them from predators.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: There are New World porcupines, which climb trees in the Americas, and Old World porcupines, which live on the ground in Africa, Asia and southern Europe.↗ Example: Porcupines are covered in thousands of sharp quills.↗ · Porcupines are mostly awake at night.↗ · In winter, North American porcupines chew tree bark.↗ · Porcupines rattle their quills to warn enemies.↗ · Young porcupines are called porcupettes.↗ · Wolves usually leave porcupines alone.↗ · Porcupines are good at climbing trees.↗ · We made porcupines out of clay and cocktail sticks.↗

pore — Everyday, meaning 1: A pore is a tiny hole in skin, a leaf or a rock that lets sweat, air or water pass through.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To pore over something means to read or study it very carefully for a long time.↗ Example: Sweat comes out through tiny pores in your skin.↗ · Leaves breathe through pores on their underside.↗ · Sponges are full of pores.↗ · Water soaks into the pores of the sandstone.↗ · She pored over the treasure map all evening.↗ · Detectives pored over the old letters.↗ · We pored over the instructions before building the model.↗ · Virgilius was fond of books, and pored over them all day long.↗

pork — Everyday, meaning 1: Pork is meat that comes from a pig.↗ Example: We had roast pork for Sunday dinner.↗ · Pork comes from pigs.↗ · Make sure the pork is cooked right through.↗ · My friend doesn't eat pork.↗ · Mum bought pork sausages for the barbecue.↗ · Bacon and ham are kinds of pork.↗

porphyry — Everyday, meaning 1: Porphyry is a hard rock, usually dark red or purple with small spots, used to build fine palaces and to carve statues.↗ Example: He climbed a huge staircase made of porphyry.↗ · The castle was built out of porphyry with a golden roof.↗ · The statue stood on a base of polished porphyry.↗

porpoise — Everyday, meaning 1: A porpoise is a sea mammal like a small dolphin, with a short, round snout, a rounded head, a small triangular back fin and flat, spade-shaped teeth.↗ Example: We saw a porpoise from the ferry.↗ · Porpoises are smaller than most dolphins.↗ · A porpoise breathes through a blowhole on top of its head.↗ · Harbour porpoises live in the cold seas around Britain.↗ · The vaquita is a porpoise that is nearly extinct.↗ · Porpoises hunt fish using echoes.↗ · One would have thought that Pinocchio had turned into a porpoise playing in the sun.↗

porridge — Everyday, meaning 1: Porridge is a warm, soft food made by cooking oats (or other grain) in milk or water until thick.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: In British slang, «doing porridge» means being in prison — an old joke, not used at school.↗ Example: I eat porridge with honey and banana on cold mornings.↗ · Goldilocks tasted the porridge in all three bowls.↗ · Stir the porridge so it does not stick to the pan.↗ · Let the porridge cool a little before you eat it — it can burn your mouth.↗ · In the USA my cousin calls porridge «oatmeal».↗ · The oats soaked up the milk and the porridge became thick.↗ · Grandad adds a pinch of salt to his porridge, the Scottish way.↗ · “Somebody has been at my porridge!”↗

port — Everyday, meaning 1: A port is a town or place where ships stop to load and unload goods and people.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Port is the left side of a ship when you face the front.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: A port on a computer is a hole where you plug in a cable.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: Port is a sweet strong wine.↗ Example: 5 ships left the port.↗ · 3 ships arrived at the port.↗ · The ports are 90 km apart.↗ · How many ships are in the port now?↗ · Containers are unloaded at the busy port.↗ · The ship stayed in port during the storm.↗ · Port is left and starboard is right on a boat.↗ · Plug the cable into the USB port.↗ · At last the port was reached.↗

portable — Everyday, meaning 1: Light and small enough to be carried or moved easily: «a portable speaker».↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (noun) A portable thing, like a portable TV or computer.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (noun, Canada, US) A temporary classroom building in a school yard.↗ Example: Take the portable speaker to the beach.↗ · My phone died, so I used a portable charger.↗ · Our class has lessons in the portable behind the gym.↗ · The campsite had portable toilets.↗ · Laptops are portable computers.↗ · This heater is portable, so you can move it from room to room.↗

portal — Everyday, meaning 1: A large, grand doorway or entrance to a building.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (stories, games) A magic doorway that takes you to another world or place.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (computing) A website that is the starting point for using a service, such as a school login page.↗ Example: The cathedral's portal was carved with saints.↗ · In the game, we built a portal to another world.↗ · The wardrobe was like a portal to Narnia.↗ · Mum checked my homework on the school portal.↗ · Log in to the portal with your username and password.↗ · The stone portal was covered in ivy.↗ · Suddenly little Gerda stepped through the great portal into the palace.↗

portcullis — Everyday, meaning 1: A heavy grid of iron or wooden bars that slides down in grooves to close a castle gateway.↗ Example: The guards lowered the portcullis to keep out the enemy.↗ · The portcullis crashed down just behind the knight.↗ · We saw the old portcullis at the castle.↗ · The portcullis was raised with chains and a winch.↗ · A portcullis appears on the badge of Parliament.↗ · Arrows flew through the bars of the portcullis.↗

porte — Everyday, meaning 1: (French) «Porte» is the French word for door or gate; it sounds like «port» to an English ear and is not an English word.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (French) «Porte» is also a form of the French verb «porter», meaning «carries» or «wears», as in «il porte un chapeau» (he wears a hat).↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (history) «The Porte» or «the Sublime Porte» was the name used in Europe for the government of the Ottoman Empire.↗ Example: In French, «ferme la porte» means «close the door».↗ · Our Métro stop was called «Porte de Clichy».↗ · «Elle porte une robe rouge» means «she is wearing a red dress».↗ · The English word «portal» is related to «porte».↗ · Ambassadors sent letters to the Sublime Porte in Istanbul.↗ · In French class we labelled the door «la porte».↗

portend — Everyday, meaning 1: (formal) To be a sign or warning that something important, often bad, is going to happen: «Dark clouds portend a storm.».↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (formal) To mean or point to something in the future.↗ Example: The howling wind seemed to portend a terrible night.↗ · In old stories a comet in the sky portended war.↗ · Falling sales may portend hard times for the shop.↗ · The sudden quiet in the forest portended danger.↗ · People once believed that a red sky portended bad weather.↗ · Nobody knew what the strange letter portended.↗ · I ordered you to be put to death because I thought your dream portended the loss of my crown.↗

portent — Everyday, meaning 1: (formal) A sign or warning that something important, often bad, is going to happen.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (literary) A strange or wonderful thing that seems to carry a message.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (formal) Serious meaning or importance: «a matter of great portent».↗ Example: The villagers believed the comet was a portent of war.↗ · Dark clouds rolled in like a portent of the storm to come.↗ · In the story, a raven on the roof was taken as a portent.↗ · The first falling leaves are a portent of autumn.↗ · Ancient kings asked wise men to read the portents in the sky.↗ · Scientists explain eclipses; they are not portents of anything.↗ · The empty classroom felt like a portent of trouble.↗ · Finnian loomed on him as a portent and a terror; but he had no fear of Time.↗

porter — Everyday, meaning 1: A porter is a person whose job is to carry bags or loads, for example at a station or a hotel.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (old use) A porter is a doorkeeper who guards the gate or entrance of a building.↗ Example: The porter carried our bags to the train.↗ · The porters carried the baskets up the hill.↗ · The porter opened the great gate for the visitors.↗ · for the four chief porters were in a set office.↗ (Writings 1CH.9.26, JPS 1917)↗ · And the porters called, and they told it to the king's household within.↗ (Prophets 2KI.7.11, JPS 1917)↗ · On the four sides were the porters, toward the east, west, north, and south.↗ (Writings 1CH.9.24, JPS 1917)↗

porthole — Everyday, meaning 1: A porthole is a small round window in the side of a ship or boat.↗ Example: She peered out of the porthole at the grey sea.↗ · The grimy porthole was hard to see through.↗ · A seagull sat on the rail beside the porthole.↗

portico — Everyday, meaning 1: A portico is a roof held up by columns, forming a covered porch at the front of a grand building.↗ Example: The guests waited under the portico.↗ · Tall pillars held up the portico.↗ · The bird slept on a branch near the portico.↗

portion — Everyday, meaning 1: A portion is a part or share of something.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A portion is the amount of food served to one person.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: To portion something out is to divide it into shares and give them out.↗ Example: Eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day.↗ · The restaurant gives huge portions.↗ · A large portion of the money went to the charity.↗ · Mum portioned out the pizza so everyone got two slices.↗ · Only a small portion of the Earth's water is fresh.↗ · Can I have a child's portion, please?↗ · Divide the cake into eight equal portions.↗ · The youngest of the three sons, on the contrary, made good use of his portion.↗ · For the portion of the LORD is His people, Jacob the lot of His inheritance.↗ (Torah DEU.32.9, JPS 1917)↗ · They shall have like portions to eat, beside that which is his due according to the fathers' houses.↗ (Torah DEU.18.8, JPS 1917)↗ · Of the first of your dough ye shall give unto the LORD a portion for a gift throughout your generations.↗ (Torah NUM.15.21, JPS 1917)↗ · My portion is the LORD, I have said that I would observe Thy words.↗ (Writings PSA.119.57, JPS 1917)↗ · 'The LORD is my portion', saith my soul; 'Therefore will I hope in Him.'↗ (Writings LAM.3.24, JPS 1917)↗ · O LORD, the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup, Thou maintainest my lot.↗ (Writings PSA.16.5, JPS 1917)↗

portly — Everyday, meaning 1: (of a person, usually an older man) Rather fat, with a large round body; a polite or old-fashioned word.↗ Example: A portly gentleman sat in the armchair.↗ · The portly innkeeper laughed at the joke.↗ · Father Christmas is often shown as portly and jolly.↗ · The portly mayor puffed up the stairs.↗ · The story's portly cook loved her own cakes.↗ · His broad, portly person, hid the slender, lovely Babette; but she came forward and glanced at him with her bright, dark eyes.↗

portrait — Everyday, meaning 1: A portrait is a painting, drawing or photograph of a person, especially of the face.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A portrait is a detailed description of someone or something in words or film («a portrait of village life»).↗ Everyday, meaning 3: Portrait (layout) means a page or screen that is taller than it is wide; the opposite is landscape.↗ Example: She painted a portrait of her grandad.↗ · The Mona Lisa is a famous portrait.↗ · Draw a self-portrait using a mirror.↗ · Old portraits of kings hang in the castle.↗ · Turn the page to portrait, not landscape.↗ · The book gives a portrait of life in a mining town.↗ · A photographer took our class portrait.↗ · Could the portrait have flattered her?↗