1490
Photo stat™ /'fautastaet; NAmE
'fou-/
noun
a
photocopy or a machine that produces them
( )
photo syn thesis /.fautau'smOasis; NAmE
.foutou-/
noun
[U]
(biology
£)
the process by which green plants turn carbon
dioxide and water into food using energy obtained from light from the
sun photo-syn-thesize (BrE
also
-ise) /.fautau'smeasaiz; NAmE
.foutou-/
verb
[VN] (biology
£)
(of plants ft $}) to make food by means
of photosynthesis
mm); j&ffititm
photo trop ism /.fautau'traupizam; NAmE
.foutou'trou-/
noun
[U]
(biology
4.)
the action of a plant turning towards or away from light ( ttIE) fp]A;14
►
photo trop ic /-'trnpik; NAmE
-'traipik/
oaf/', phrasal /'freizl/ ad/. of or
connected with a phrase Miff
waii
.phrasal 'verb noun {grammar
ig-ji)
a verb combined with an adverb or a preposition, or sometimes both, to give a
new meaning, for example go in for, win over
and
see
to Mift^flial;
^jiliM phrase 0-w /freiz/ noun, verb
■ noun 1 {grammar ig ?£) a group of words without a finite verb, especially one that forms
part of a sentence, ‘the green car’ and ‘on Friday morning’ are phrases. Min;
is]fS. — see also noun
phrase 2 a group of words which have a particular meaning when used
together J⇔ ^iH; fjj| ; W /pj: a memorable phrase ^ o She was, in her own
favourite
phrase, ‘a woman without a
past’.
Kift, o —see also
catchphrase o note at word 3 (music ff) a short series of
notes that form a unit within a longer passage in a piece of music ^'oj; ffiTTCl see coin v.,
turn n. uverb 1 [VN] ~ sth (as sth) to say
or write sth in a particular way ( H5I,
Hi®: a
carefully phrased remark HS^il'R^iSin o I agree with what he
says, but I’d have phrased it differently. fifeiM, 0 Her order was
phrased as a suggestion.
2 [V, VN] to divide a piece of
music into small groups of notes; to play or sing these in a particular way,
especially in an effective way #-4 A (
'phrase book noun
a
book containing lists of common expressions translated into another language,
especially for people visiting a foreign country # iff ¥■
m, £#¥*»( )
phraseology /,freizi'Dlad3i; NAmE
-'a:la-/
noun
[U]
(formal)
the
particular way in which words and phrases are arranged when saying or writing
sth jf 51; il is]
phrasing /'freizir)/ noun [U] 1 the words used to express sth j# 5$; 41 iff: The
phrasing of the report is ambiguous. "To
2 (music #) the
way in which a musician
or singer divides a piece of music into phrases by pausing in suitable places
phreak-ing /'friikirj/ noun [U] (informal, especially NAmE) the act of getting
into a communications system illegally, usually in order to make telephone
calls without paying H&^Ailfi
►
phreak-er noun
phren ology /fra'nnlad3i; NAmE
-'nail-/
noun
[U]
the study of the shape of the human head, which some people think is a guide to
a person’s character fi ^
►
phren olo gist /fra'nDlad3ist; NAmE
-'nail-/ noun
phwoah (also phwoor, phwoar) /'fwoia/
exclamation
{BrE, informal) used when you find sth
or sb very impressive and attractive, especially in a sexual way
phylum /'failam/ noun {pi. phyla /-la/) (biology 4) a group into which
animals, plants, etc. are divided, smaller than a kingdom and larger than a class
( 4 I ) l'l — compare genus
phys ic al 0-w /'ftzikl/ adj., noun
m adj.
►
THE BODY 1 [usually before noun] connected with a
person’s body rather than
their mind ; $] ;
: physical fitness o physical appearance
A IS 0 The ordeal has
affected both her mental and physical health. IF 7 Hit„ o He tends
to avoid all physical
contact, fife {$ |5| 4 M — feU # f*
&ftk.
►
REAL THINGS % $1 2 [only before noun] connected with
things that actually exist
or are present and can be seen, felt, etc. rather than things that only exist
in a person’s mind 1; ffJ&tf):
the physical
world/universe/environment I
4 W / if R o the physical
properties (= the colour, weight, shape, etc.) of copper
►
NATURE/SCIENCE
j|gj #§ ; # 3 [only before noun]
according to the laws of nature # o'
£} I1] : It is a physical
impossibility to be in two
places at once. IfjBt^fdiMitfe* i
4 [only before noun] connected with the scientific study of
forces such as heat, light, sound, etc. and how they affect objects physical laws
►
SEX 14 5 involving sex 14$:(K!; $j] : physical love 14
^ o They are having a
physical relationship. fifefll A If 14
►
PERSON A 6 (informal) (of a person A)
liking to touch
other people a lot MMRflfe
AfifJ; W: She’s
not very physical.
►
VIOLENT 0 f] 7 (informal) violent (used to
avoid saying this in a direct way) f<£ A ; 41H b ;
Are you
going to cooperate or do we have to get physical? ffjsjiA'
noun (also .physical
exami'nation) a medical examination of a person’s body,
for example, to check that they are fit enough to do a particular job f* ; f*f£
.physical edu'cation noun = PE .physical
ge'ography noun [U] 1 the scientific study of the natural
features on the surface of the earth, for example mountains and rivers g
^itfeiS^ 2 the way in which the natural features of a place are arranged ijfe££
#4E; MkM; fife ^: the physical geography
of
phys ic al ity /.fizi'kaelati/ noun [U] {formal) the quality of being physical rather
than emotional or spiritual A
1*14
physical ly /fizikii/ adv.
1 in a way that is connected with a person’s body
rather than their mind JH*±; 1^1 f*±: mentally and
physically handicapped # E' R 0 physically and
emotionally exhausted I felt physically
sick
before the exam. 0 I don’t find
him physically
attractive. A1 % fife % IS Jlife 0
0 They were physically
prevented from entering the building. 2 according to the laws
of nature or what is
probable
feiy; HAA: It’s physically
impossible to finish by the end of the week.
.physical ‘science noun [u] (also the .physical
'sciences [pi.]) the areas of science concerned with studying
natural forces and things that are not alive, for example physics and chemistry
i #/2S!4^
—
compare life
sciences
.physical 'therapist noun (US) = physiotherapist .physical therapy noun (US) = physiotherapy
.physical training noun = PT(l)
physician /fi'zijn/ noun (formal, especially NAmE) a doctor,
especially one who is a specialist in general medicine and not surgery Eijfp; ( ) rt#E4
—
compare surgeon iiijij This word is now old-
fashioned in BrE. Doctor or GP is used instead.
doctor ^GP0
physi cist /'fizisist/ noun a scientist who studies physics a
nuclear physicist
physics 0"W /'fiziks/ noun [U] the scientific study of forces
such as heat, light, sound,