📖 V — The English dictionary · page 2

valerian — Everyday, meaning 1: Valerian is a tall wild plant with small sweet-smelling pink or white flowers that grows by rivers and in damp places.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Valerian is also a medicine made from the root of this plant, which some people take to help them sleep.↗ Example: Pink valerian grew along the river bank.↗ · Red valerian sprouted from the old castle wall.↗ · Butterflies visit valerian flowers.↗ · Some adults take valerian to help them sleep.↗ · Our cat rolled in the valerian.↗ · The root of valerian smells very strong.↗

valet — Everyday, meaning 1: A valet is a manservant who looks after a rich man's clothes and needs.↗ It is an old-fashioned word.↗ Example: The valet brought the duke his coat.↗ · His valet laid out the silver dishes.↗ · Each morning the valet shaved his master.↗

valhalla — Everyday, meaning 1: (a name, Norse myth) Valhalla is the great hall in the old Norse (Viking) myths where the god Odin welcomed warriors who died bravely in battle.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (informal) Valhalla can mean a wonderful place of honour or a heaven for some group, like «a Valhalla for football fans».↗ Example: Vikings believed fallen warriors went to Valhalla.↗ · In Valhalla, the warriors feasted with Odin.↗ · The Valkyries chose who would go to Valhalla.↗ · We read Norse myths about Valhalla.↗ · The stadium was a Valhalla for rugby fans.↗ · The game ends with the hero entering Valhalla.↗

valiant — Everyday, meaning 1: Valiant means very brave, not afraid of danger.↗ It is a word for heroes.↗ Example: The valiant knight rode into the dark wood.↗ · A valiant girl saved her brother from the wolf.↗ · Be valiant and never give up.↗ · The valiants to the Sefer Vetzirah 1, the teit of Sefer Yetzirah 11, texts Mantua 1 and Mantua 1 1 will be found in the Hebrew edition of this work which will appear shortly.↗ (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914))↗ · And Meshelemiah had sons and brethren, valiant men, eighteen.↗ (Writings 1CH.26.9, JPS 1917)↗ · Behold, their valiant ones cry without; the ambassadors of peace weep bitterly.↗ (Prophets ISA.33.7, JPS 1917)↗ · How say ye: 'We are mighty men, and valiant men for the war'?↗ (Prophets JER.48.14, JPS 1917)↗

valiantly — Everyday, meaning 1: Valiantly means in a brave way, bravely, not giving up when in danger.↗ Example: The soldiers fought valiantly at the gate.↗ · She climbed the cliff valiantly.↗ · He stood valiantly before the giant.↗ · And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also, even his enemies, shall be a possession; while Israel doeth valiantly.↗ (Torah NUM.24.18, JPS 1917)↗ · 'Many daughters have done valiantly, but thou excellest them all.'↗ (Writings PRO.31.29, JPS 1917)↗ · Through God we shall do valiantly; for He it is that will tread down our adversaries.↗ (Writings PSA.60.14, JPS 1917)↗ · The right hand of the LORD is exalted; the right hand of the LORD doeth valiantly.↗ (Writings PSA.118.16, JPS 1917)↗

valid — Everyday, meaning 1: Valid means officially acceptable and able to be used, for example because it has not run out: «a valid ticket», «a valid passport».↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Valid means sensible and based on good reasons: «a valid point», «a valid excuse».↗ Everyday, meaning 3: In maths and science a valid test or answer follows the rules correctly: «a valid conclusion».↗ Example: Your bus ticket is valid for one day.↗ · That's a valid point.↗ · Is my passport still valid?↗ · Forgetting isn't a valid excuse.↗ · To make the test valid, change only one thing.↗ · The coupon is no longer valid.↗ · Check your answer is valid in the problem.↗

validity — Everyday, meaning 1: Validity is how true, fair or correct something is, for example an argument or a test.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (law) Validity is whether a document, ticket or rule is official and still accepted, for example a passport's validity.↗ Example: The scientist questioned the validity of the results.↗ · Check the validity of your passport before you travel.↗ · A fair test makes your experiment more valid; that is its validity.↗ · The ticket's validity ends at midnight.↗ · The judge looked at the validity of the will.↗ · The teacher asked us to judge the validity of each argument.↗

validly — Everyday, meaning 1: Validly means in a way that is valid: officially correct, accepted by the rules or the law.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Validly means in a way that is logically sound, with reasons that really lead to the conclusion.↗ Example: The votes were validly cast, so they all count.↗ · The form must be validly signed by a parent.↗ · Can you validly conclude that all cats are black from one black cat?↗ No!↗ · The test was validly done with fair rules.↗ · Only validly bought tickets are accepted.↗ · The passport was validly issued.↗

valley — Everyday, meaning 1: A valley is a low area of land between hills or mountains, often with a river running through it.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A valley can also mean a low point between two high points, like on a graph or a wave.↗ Example: Our town is in a valley between two hills.↗ · The river runs along the bottom of the valley.↗ · Glaciers carved out a U-shaped valley.↗ · From the top of the hill we could see the whole valley.↗ · Fog filled the valley in the early morning.↗ · Farmers grow crops on the flat valley floor.↗ · Death Valley is one of the hottest places on Earth.↗ · The road winds down into the valley.↗ · "There goes another avalanche," said those in the valley beneath.↗ · So we abode in the valley over against Beth-peor.↗ (Torah DEU.3.29, JPS 1917)↗ · From thence they journeyed, and pitched in the valley of Zered.↗ (Torah NUM.21.12, JPS 1917)↗ · And Isaac departed thence, and encamped in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.↗ (Torah GEN.26.17, JPS 1917)↗ · The burden concerning the Valley of Vision.↗ (Prophets ISA.22.1, JPS 1917)↗ · Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!↗ (Prophets JOL.4.14, JPS 1917)↗ · Or will he harrow the valleys after thee?↗ (Writings JOB.39.10, JPS 1917)↗

valor — Everyday, meaning 1: Valor is great bravery, especially in battle or a fight.↗ It is the American spelling of valour.↗ Example: The knight showed great valor.↗ · Her valor saved the village.↗ · Men of valor held the bridge all night.↗

valorous — Everyday, meaning 1: (formal, old) Valorous means very brave, especially in battle.↗ Example: The valorous knight rode out to fight the dragon.↗ · The soldiers were honoured for their valorous deeds.↗ · Toad sang about his own valorous adventures.↗ · She was valorous in the face of danger.↗ · The poem praises a valorous king.↗ · The little mouse made a valorous stand against the cat.↗

valour — Everyday, meaning 1: Great courage, especially in battle or danger.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (old) Worth or bravery shown in brave deeds.↗ Example: The Victoria Cross is awarded «For Valour».↗ · The knight was famous for his valour.↗ · The firefighters showed great valour in saving the family.↗ · «Discretion is the better part of valour,» said the Rat, and they ran away.↗ · Many soldiers won medals for valour in the war.↗ · Songs were sung about her valour.↗ · Adrastus now gave his troops the word of command to storm the city, and they rushed forward to the attack with great valour.↗ · And I commanded you at that time, saying: 'The LORD your God hath given you this land to possess it; ye shall pass over armed before your brethren the children of Israel, all the men of valour.↗ (Torah DEU.3.18, JPS 1917)↗ · And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these were men of valour.↗ (Prophets JDG.20.44, JPS 1917)↗ · A woman of valour who can find? for her price is far above rubies.↗ (Writings PRO.31.10, JPS 1917)↗ · Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valour for the war, seven thousand and one hundred.↗ (Writings 1CH.12.26, JPS 1917)↗

valuable — Everyday, meaning 1: Valuable means worth a lot of money.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Very useful or important: valuable advice, valuable time.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (noun, plural) Valuables are small things you own that are worth a lot, like jewellery or phones.↗ Example: Gold is valuable.↗ · Her old ring is very valuable.↗ · Thank you for your valuable help.↗ · I learned a valuable lesson.↗ · Keep your valuables in a locker.↗ · Which coin is the most valuable?↗ · Water is more valuable than gold in the desert.↗ · Inside, in the hall, valuable oil paintings were hanging on the walls.↗ · Quite recently, and since the completion of my translation, my attention has been drawn to a version by Isidor Kalisch, in which he has reproduced many of the valuable annotations of Meyer.↗ (Sefer Yetzirah, Westcott 1893)↗

valuation — Everyday, meaning 1: A valuation is an expert's decision about how much money something is worth.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Valuation can mean how much you think something or someone is worth in a general way.↗ Example: The expert gave a valuation of £500 for the old clock.↗ · The bank needed a valuation of the house.↗ · Grandma's ring had a high valuation.↗ · We had the painting valued, and the valuation surprised us.↗ · His own valuation of his skill was too high.↗ · The valuation of the company went up.↗ · And if it be a female, then thy valuation shall be thirty shekels.↗ (Torah LEV.27.4, JPS 1917)↗ · If he sanctify his field from the year of jubilee, according to thy valuation it shall stand.↗ (Torah LEV.27.17, JPS 1917)↗ · But if he will indeed redeem it, then he shall add the fifth part thereof unto thy valuation.↗ (Torah LEV.27.13, JPS 1917)↗

value — Everyday, meaning 1: Value is how much something is worth in money.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: The value of a digit is how much it is worth in a number because of its place: place value.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: The value of a letter or an expression is the number it stands for: find the value of x.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: Value means how useful or important something is.↗ Everyday, meaning 5: Values are the beliefs a person or family thinks are important, like honesty and kindness.↗ Everyday, meaning 6: To value something is to think it is important, or to say how much it is worth.↗ Example: The value of the coin is 25 cents.↗ · What is the value of the 3 in 340?↗ · The car lost half its value.↗ · Find the value of x.↗ · The 5 in 520 has a value of 500.↗ · This big pack is good value.↗ · Our school values are kindness, respect and honesty.↗ · I value my friends more than any toy.↗ · She had learned early the value of silence.↗ · And the priest shall value it, whether it be good or bad; as thou the priest valuest it, so shall it be.↗ (Torah LEV.27.12, JPS 1917)↗ · But if he be too poor for thy valuation, then he shall be set before the priest, and the priest shall value him; according to the means of him that vowed shall the priest value him.↗ (Torah LEV.27.8, JPS 1917)↗ · And when a man shall sanctify his house to be holy unto the LORD, then the priest shall value it, whether it be good or bad; as the priest shall value it, so shall it stand.↗ (Torah LEV.27.14, JPS 1917)↗ · But ye are plasterers of lies, ye are all physicians of no value.↗ (Writings JOB.13.4, JPS 1917)↗ · It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire.↗ (Writings JOB.28.16, JPS 1917)↗ · The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold.↗ (Writings JOB.28.19, JPS 1917)↗

valuest — Early Modern English, meaning 1: «valuest» means «you value», a form of «value».↗ e.g. Value is how much something is worth in money.↗ Example: And the priest shall value it, whether it be good or bad; as thou the priest valuest it, so shall it be.↗ (Torah LEV.27.12, JPS 1917)

valve — Everyday, meaning 1: A valve is a part that opens and closes to control how a liquid or gas flows through a pipe or tube.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: In the body, the heart has valves that let blood flow only one way.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: On some brass instruments like the trumpet, valves are buttons that change the note.↗ Example: The heart has four valves.↗ · Push the pump onto the valve to blow up the ball.↗ · A valve stops the blood from going backwards.↗ · The plumber closed the valve to turn off the water.↗ · The trumpet has three valves.↗ · A safety valve lets out steam if the pressure gets too high.↗

vampire — Everyday, meaning 1: In stories and legends, a vampire is a dead person who rises from the grave at night and drinks the blood of living people.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A vampire bat is a real small bat from Central and South America that feeds on the blood of animals.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (informal) A vampire can be a person or thing that drains your energy, time or money: «energy vampire».↗ Example: In the story, the vampire only came out at night.↗ · My brother dressed up as a vampire with plastic fangs for Halloween.↗ · Count Dracula is the most famous vampire.↗ · Vampire bats lick up blood from sleeping cows.↗ · Old stories say vampires are scared of garlic.↗ · Phone chargers left plugged in are «energy vampires».↗ · Vampires are not real; they are a legend.↗ · The origin of the Vampire is hidden in obscurity.↗

van — Everyday, meaning 1: A van is a vehicle bigger than a car and smaller than a truck, used for carrying people or goods.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A van with seats can carry a group, like a school team; a van with no back seats carries boxes, tools or furniture.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: «In the van» or «in the vanguard» can also mean at the front of a march or a change (rare).↗ Example: Each van holds 8 people.↗ · 3 vans carry 45 boxes.↗ · How many vans are needed for 30 children?↗ · The van drove 60 miles.↗ · The delivery van brought our new fridge.↗ · We heard the ice-cream van playing its tune.↗ · Dad hired a moving van to take our beds to the new house.↗ · The football team travelled to the match in two vans.↗ · They placed straw round the coffin, and the van drove away.↗