dim glow of the fire in the grate §&&0 This light is too dim to read by.    #77 45 o

►                PLACE at Jj 2 where you cannot see well because there

is not much light 7 BJf % W; itt$ H$$ ftj; W B§ Wl: a dim room/street       / fijit

►                SHAPE 3 that you cannot see well because there is

not much light 7#TO; M;   UP)M:

the dim outline of a house in the moonlight 41

0 I could see a dim shape in the doorway. $&gi|NW#%ri d#7AtA

►                EYES lilt 4 not able to see well #7?# W;     ;

His eyesight is getting dim. fft

►                MEMORIES iBtZ 5 that you cannot remember or imagine

clearly 7    HT71 vague : dim memories

fK IS $J iB tZ. 0 She had a dim recollection of the visit.

I'b] c 0 (humorous) in the dim and

distant past

►                PERSON A 6 (informal, especially BrE) not intelligent

M3S67 He’s very dim.

►                SITUATION ii <£ 7 not giving any reason to have hope;

not good   7 7 M. 1$ : Her future career

prospects look dim. jfe (tfj By |tlf       Bn ^ 0

► dim-ness noun [U] : It took a while for his eyes to adjust to the dimness. ftIIIS7 it 45 7&1F Btr&iJi&Ao —see also dimly IR71 take a dim view of sb/sth to disapprove of sb/sth; to not have a good opinion of sb/sth # - j#7$fj£ ( j£ff& ) #•••'&

ft : She took a dim view of my suggestion.

mverb ( mm-)

►                LIGHT 1 if a light dims or if you dim it, it becomes or you make it less bright (

B#:   [V] The lights in the theatre dimmed as the curtain

rose. Jgj*rtW.*r*llt7'F3(Eo [alsoVN]

►                FEELING/QUALITY  & g; 2 if a feeling or quality

dims, or if sth dims it, it becomes less strong ( M S§, . ^ M A it # :        [v] Her passion for dancing

never dimmed over the years.    —

|[7$L [also VN]

dime /daim/ noun a coin of the US and Canada worth ten cents ( US.   ) +4H8GfT5,’     Iffl a

dime a dozen (NAmE) = two/ten a penny at penny

'dime novel noun (NAmE, old-fashioned) a cheap popular novel, usually an exciting adventure or romantic story —^&7iJ&, KMfrififS/J'ift ( i%/lM$Lgj

dimensions R7

di men sion /daTmenJn; di-/ noun 1 a measurement in space, for example the height, width or length of sth “h (      ) ; R7: We measured the dimen­

sions of the kitchen. 4£Ci$Jlt7)IfJ^I$A70 0 computer design tools that work in three dimensions ifX^r —see also fourth dimension 2 [usually pi.] the size and extent of a situation $£ fK;' H Jt; ; H : a problem of considerable dimensions —

|b] ® 3 an aspect, or way of looking at or thinking about sth A®: [PI] ffi: Her job added a new dimension

toh<riife.mttxft%mMmmmmT&to.to'&o o the

social dimension of unemployment Aik$j4tzH4Mffi -dimensional /dai'menjanl; di-/ combining form (in adjectives j&l J$i W ia|) having the number of dimen­sions mentioned • • •     : a multi-dimensional model

£ fg S9 —see also three-dimensional, two- dimensional

'dime store noun (old-fashioned, NAmE) = five-and-

DIME

i min ish /di'mmiJV verb 1 to become or to make sth become smaller, weaker, etc. M 7;  ( ^ ) $g $ ,

M     HU) decrease :      [V] The world’s resources

are rapidly diminishing.    o His

influence has diminished with time. Hi If B41 a] E$ It #, [ft ^   B7 #P AA II 7 o 0 Our efforts were producing

diminishing returns (= we achieved less although we spent more time or money). RdAHrSA,

[also VN] 2 [VN] to make sb/sth seem less important than they really are jgfg; ftfg HU) belittle:

I don’t wish to diminish the importance of their contribu­tion.

di,minished responsibility noun [u] (BrE, law W) a state in which a person who is accused of a crime is not considered to be responsible for their actions, because they are mentally ill ( BUff A# )  : He was

found not guilty of murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility, fife A » W iJf 7 H Ji S7 If ft A# ffl ® & 7

mmmzo

di-minu-endo/di.mmju'endau; NAmE-dou/ noun {pi. -os) [C, U] (music ft) a gradual decrease in how loudly a piece of music is played or sung  033 crescendo

dim in ution /.dmu'njuijn; NAmE -'nuijn/ noun ~ (of/in sth) (formal) 1 [U] the act of reducing sth or of being reduced ^7;    the diminution of political

power IS: fit 6<j fij M 2 [C, usually sing.] a reduction; an amount reduced 7 ; M 7;   7 M  a

diminution in population growth A P di minu tive /dTmmjatrv/ adj., noun m adj. (formaf) very small M 7 W; # 7 W; it 7 67 She was a diminutive figure beside her husband. M [W] A A ft

fe(5ll##A.

« noun 1 a word or an ending of a word that shows that sb/sth is small, for example piglet (= a young pig), kitchenette (= a small kitchen) fa 7 iS], ft 7 is] ( f(P piglet /Jn ^ , kitchenette 7 ffl ) 2 a short informal form of a word, especially a name ( Q if],

‘Nick’ is a common diminutive of ‘Nicholas’. * Nick Jt Nicholas dimly /'dimli/ adv. not very brightly or clearly Bf

a dimly lit room ft ft0 I was dimly aware (= only just aware) of the sound of a car in the distance, h H H &off # Sfthr m. b I did remember, but only dimly. flc&iJi&iBf#, R>liE7A

ii7»,

dim mer switch (also dim-mer) noun 1 a switch that allows you to make an electric light brighter or less bright ittfl;       2 (NAmE) = dip

SWITCH

dimple

dimple/'dimpl/ verb, noun

m verb [V] to make a hollow place appear on each of your cheeks, especially by smiling WM ^ mnoun 1 a small hollow place in the skin, especially in the cheek or chin ^; %jaH : She had a dimple which appeared when she smiled. M — ^ tb M o 2 any small hollow place in a surface $5 [HI; 7 CH; 7bi: a pane of glass with a dimple pattern

► dimpled /’dimpld/ adj.: a dimpled chin dim sum /.dim ‘sAm/ (also dim sim /.dim 'sim/) noun [u] (from Chinese) a Chinese dish or meal consisting of small pieces of food wrapped in sheets of dough 7' ( 7S#o”p )