O.b-O-      1374 |

obnoxious behaviour ift A (ft ff A 0 a thoroughly obnox­ious little man pTBM^lft^ft o obnoxious odours (ft^5|c ► ob nox ious ly adv.

o.b.o. abbr. {NAmE) or best offer (used in small ad­vertisements to show that sth may be sold at a lower price than the price that has been asked) nJitift: $800 o.b.o. * 800 A ( AiS#!* ) —see also o.n.o. oboe /'aubau; NAmE 'oubou/ noun a musical instrument of the woodwind group. It is shaped like a pipe and has a double reed at the top that you blow into. If — picture o page R8

obo ist /'aobauist; NAmE 'oubouist/ noun a person who plays the oboe

O-Bon /au 'bDn; NAmE ou 'ba:n/ noun [U] = Bon ob-scene /ab'siin/ adj. 1 connected with sex in a way that most people find offensive yH#(ft; $1(ft; Tyfa (ft: obscene gesturesAanguage/books yif^lft^jS / iff If / ^ i o an obscene phone call (= in which sb says obscene things) &'j§          2 extremely large in size

or amount in a way that most people find unacceptable and offensive (          ) A®ftA#J,  5X3

outrageous : He earns an obscene amount of money. ft$; 7 ^A^S$|0 0 It’s obscene to spend so much on

food when millions are starving. ^       (ft A&ifl.®

i$Ht,  %AHJIA3*tW(fto ► obscenely

adv.: to behave obscenely         0 obscenely rich H

obscen ity /ab'senati/ noun (pi -ies) 1 [u] obscene language or behaviour yl # (ft iff W; T $t (ft ff A: The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity.

# A 7 M M ^ ift o 0 the laws on obscenity ^ it'M$> ft] m i2 [C, usually pi.] an obscene word or act T ^        j ft ) : She screamed a string of

obscenities at the judge. ftft|fft/g[i^J&S]7-- 3£ ^ (ft

obscurant ism /.nbskju'raentizam; NAmE a:b‘skjur-/ noun [U] (formal) the practice of deliberately preventing sb from understanding or discovering sth     M

WMM ► obscurantist adj. ob-scure /ab'skjua(r); NAmE ab'skjur/ adj., verb u adj. 1 not well known A Eft ; A A £n (ft PTJ71 unknown: an obscure German poet — 7 £ 7 M ££ ft (ft iSf A O He was born around 1650 but his origins remain obscure. ft £ A 1650 ft fnfj , ft. Jf tft 7 ft 0 2 difficult to understand (ft; Jfe IM Jlfl# (ft: I found her lecture very obscure.         0

For some obscure reason, he failed to turn up.

^ $ ft $£ 7 bn $] H ffi o ► ob scure-ly adv.: They were making her feel obscurely worried (= for reasons that were difficult to understand). ftft it ft A ^ A ft ®.

[1] verb [VN] to make it difficult to see, hear or understand sth       {$fit; ft#!?: The view was obscured by

fog. # ft ip: fell lift 0 0 We mustn’t let these minor details obscure the main issue. fiHH 7it $ 17|r] IS If it ± If

ft] Ho

ob scur ity /ab'skjuarati; NAmE -‘skjur-/ noun {pi. -ies) 1 [U] the state in which sb/sth is not well known or has been forgotten fA A ft]; A£ : The actress was only 17 when she was plucked from obscurity and made a star.  17

^ o ❖ He spent most of his life working in obscurity, ft 7imAls](ftXftft£317Aft£o 2 [U, C, usually pi.] the quality of being difficult to understand; something that is difficult to understand H ffl; 0$ yfR; 'tl (ft ^: The course teaches students to avoid ambiguity and obscurity of expression. 3i H il® if ft 3S fe ^ 3* ±        11

^ W Pf, AiS7yfo 0 a speech full of obscurities — If Bi yS fit (ft 'M ® 3 [U] (literary) the state of being dark; DARKNESS #Bf; HBf

ob se quies /’Dbsakwiz; NAmE 'a:b-/ noun [pi.] {formal) funeral ceremonies Wll: state obsequies Hip obsequious /ab'siikwias/ adj. (formal, disapproving) trying too hard to please sb, especially sb who is important i§#g(ft; B£q#i3>£ft 5X1 servile: an obse­quious manner ifc #jf (ft & IS! ► ob-se-quious-ly adv.:

smiling obsequiously ill #1 ft $![ =£ U ob-se-qui-ous-ness noun [U]

ob serv able /ab’z3:vabl; NAmE -'Z3:rv-/ adj. that can be seen or noticed fg 1r # 3\    ^ 3\ : observable

differences njlM^EstfiJEftH# 0 Similar trends are observ­able in mainland Europe.

g!j0 ► ob-servably /ab'Z3:vabli; NAmE -'Z3:rv-/ adv. observance /ab'z3:v0ns; NAmE -'Z3:rv-/ noun 1 [u, sing.] the practice of obeying a law, celebrating a festival or behaving according to a particular custom (   & W >

) 31*7,        ( 7 0  observance of

the law A '& 0 a strict observance of the Sabbath MXM.

0                   pna non-observance 2 [C, usually pi.] an

act performed as part of a religious or traditional cere­mony ^0 ) religious observances

ob-ser-vant /0b'z3:vant; NAmE -'Z3:rv-/ adj. 1 good at noticing things around you # A$1 ^(ft;

B771 sharp-eyed : Observant walkers may see red deer along this stretch of the road.

— Sft it # l!j f5s ^ D o How very observant of you! iff M # A !     2 (formal) careful to obey religious laws and

customs ilMAMflWSlft observation On /iDbza'veijn; NAmE ,a:bzar'v-/ noun

1                   [U, C] the act of watching sb/sth carefully for a period

of time, especially to learn sth         H'UJ; US®: Most

information was collected by direct observation of the animals’ behaviour.

tTAitfClIPJlfto 0 results based on scientific observations tS}^f4^®'/W]#AEftAn:^: 0 We managed to escape obser­vation {= we were not seen). ISd i£3® AF 7 Ail ] ^ y± M o o The suspect is being kept under observation (= watched closely by the police).  o

She has outstanding powers of observation (= the ability to notice things around her). M^IIAEftM^Ao

0                   an observation post/tower (= a place from where sb,

especially an enemy, can be watched) EH /ig 2 [C] ~ (about/on sth) a comment, especially based on sth you have seen, heard or read (          0fl4L #f

i^Mf^lft ) H7?l remark: He began by making a few general observations about the report.   A)fl3i

711^^7       o She has some inter­

esting observations on possible future developments, ftk

o note at

STATEMENT

.observation car noun a coach/car on a train with large windows, designed to give passengers a good view of the passing landscape   S,          ( A

WAW )

ob-ser-va-tory /ab’z3:v0tri; NAmE ab'zairvatoiri/ noun {pi. -ies) a special building from which scientists watch the stars, the weather, etc. AAA^J'JM; ob-Serve /ab'z3:v; NAmE ab'z3:rv/ verb (not used in the progressive tenses 7^73847 Eft) (formal)

1                   to see or notice sb/sth #fi]; ft M M^ 3\: [VN] Have you observed any changes lately? S 3ir ft ft 3\ ft /n

it 'Sk 7 ? 0 All the characters in the novel are closely observed (= seem like people in real life).        (ft A#l

Aft® #1 ft ft o O [VN inf] The police observed a man enter the bank, ffftt          A^3ft 7 M. o

[VN -ing] They observed him entering the bank. ,ftkA®$lfTo 0 [V that] She observed that all the chairs were already occupied.         o

[VN to inf] He was observed to follow her closely. ^ AHfE] ftistio Ena This pattern is only used in the passive.          >=> note at comment,

notice 2 to watch sb/sth carefully, especially to learn more about them          ft®; i£® 5X1 monitor:

[VN] I felt he was observing everything I did. ftft^IrlSMlft^—0 The patients were observed over a period of several months. 3£^?ftAtt®^7$frA] / A0 o [V wh] They observed how the parts of the machine fitted together, life fll ® # 7 ® 7 ft ^ 31

® 0 o [V] He observes keenly, but says little, ft, ® ^ Wl o- note at look 3 (formal) to make a remark ®  ; ft i£ HX1 comment : [V that] She

observed that it was getting late, ft® A'feB^70 [also V