- spirit
- [[t]spɪ̱rɪt[/t]]
♦♦spirits, spiriting, spirited1) N-SING Your spirit is the part of you that is not physical and that consists of your character and feelings.→ See also kindred spirit
The human spirit is virtually indestructible...
Marian retains a restless, youthful spirit, in search of new horizons.
Syn:2) N-COUNT: usu poss N A person's spirit is the non-physical part of them that is believed to remain alive after their death.His spirit has left him and all that remains is the shell of his body.
Syn:3) N-COUNT A spirit is a ghost or supernatural being.→ See also Holy SpiritIn the Middle Ages branches were hung outside country houses as a protection against evil spirits.
Syn:4) N-UNCOUNT Spirit is the courage and determination that helps people to survive in difficult times and to keep their way of life and their beliefs.She was a very brave girl and everyone who knew her admired her spirit.
5) N-UNCOUNT Spirit is the liveliness and energy that someone shows in what they do.They played with spirit.
6) N-SING The spirit in which you do something is the attitude you have when you are doing it.Their problem can only be solved in a spirit of compromise...
They approached the talks in a conciliatory spirit.
7) N-UNCOUNT: usu with supp, oft n N A particular kind of spirit is the feeling of loyalty to a group that is shared by the people who belong to the group.There is a great sense of team spirit among the British Olympic squad...
The president has appealed to the Brazilian people for patriotism and community spirit.
8) N-SING A particular kind of spirit is the set of ideas, beliefs, and aims that are held by a group of people....the real spirit of the Labour movement.
9) N-SING: the N of n The spirit of something such as a law or an agreement is the way that it was intended to be interpreted or applied.The requirement for work permits violates the spirit of the 1950 treaty.
10) N-COUNT: usu adj N You can refer to a person as a particular kind of spirit if they show a certain characteristic or if they show a lot of enthusiasm in what they are doing.I like to think of myself as a free spirit...
He was the founder and guiding spirit of New York's Shakespeare Festival.
11) N-PLURAL Your spirits are your feelings at a particular time, especially feelings of happiness or unhappiness.At supper, everyone was in high spirits...
A bit of exercise will help lift his spirits.
12) VERB If someone or something is spirited away, or if they are spirited out of somewhere, they are taken from a place quickly and secretly without anyone noticing. [WRITTEN][be V-ed away] He was spirited away and probably murdered...
[V n away] His parents had spirited him away to the country...
[be V-ed prep/adv] It is possible that he has been spirited out of the country.
13) N-PLURAL Spirits are strong alcoholic drinks such as whisky and gin.14) N-UNCOUNT Spirit or spirits is an alcoholic liquid that is used as a fuel, for cleaning things, or for other purposes. There are many kinds of spirit.→ See also , surgical spirit15) PHRASE: V inflects If you enter into the spirit of something, you take part in it in an enthusiastic way.16) PHRASE: PHR with cl If you say you are somewhere in spirit or with someone in spirit, you mean that although you are not with them, you feel as though you are with them because you are thinking about them a lot.In spirit I was with you here.
17) PHRASE: adj PHR You use in spirit when you are talking about someone's true nature.They seemed close in spirit to those first independent-minded Turkish women who took professions...
It is independent in spirit.
18) PHRASE The spirit of the age or the spirit of the times is the set of ideas, beliefs, and aims that is typical of people in a particular period in history.
English dictionary. 2008.
