pra-line /'prailiin; 'preiliin/ noun [U] a sweet substance made of nuts and boiled sugar, often used to fill chocolates MtH ( )

pram /praem/ (BrE) (NAmE 'baby carriage) noun a small vehicle on four wheels for a baby to go out in, pushed by a person on foot — picture o pushchair prana /'praina/ noun [U] (in Hindu philosophy) the force that keeps all life in existence ( ) S,

prance /prams; NAmE praens/ verb [V] 1 [+adv./prep.] to move quickly with exaggerated steps so that people will look at you ft ; ft H Jfe 'l& it M S&: The lead

singer was prancing around with the microphone. W 0 2 (of a horse 5,) to

move with high steps UIM prang /praeg/ verb [VN] (BrE, informal) to damage a vehicle in an accident fj£ ( ) Si® ► prang noun

prank /praerjk/ noun a trick that is played on sb as a joke M ftjj$l : a childish prank HMff gd

► prankster /’praeqkstafr)/ noun : Student pranksters have done considerable damage to the school buildings.

praseo dym ium /.preiziau'dimiam/ noun [u] (symb Pr) a chemical element. Praseodymium is a soft silver- white metal used in alloys and to colour glass. If prat /praet/ noun (BrE, slang) a stupid person ; IS

V; im

prate /preit/ verb [V] - (on) (about sth) (old-fashioned, disapproving) to talk too much in a stupid or boring way

#3St; ftnfc; $93

prat-fall /'praetfoil/ noun (especially NAmE) 1 an embarrassing mistake H- A M BS ; Hi 3L 2 a fall on your bottom JBJ&ft/L;

prat-tle /'praetl/ verb [V] ~ (on/away) (about sb/sth)

(old-fashioned, often disapproving) to talk a lot about unimportant things ft fit; $ 93_; she prattled on about her children all evening. MU'N f£7fn ► prat-tle noun [U]

prawn /proin/ noun (especially BrE) (NAmE usually shrimp) a shellfish with ten legs and a long tail, that can be eaten. Prawns turn pink when cooked. ; A ; 0W — picture o page R29 prawn 'cracker noun (BrE) a small piece of food made from rice flour with a prawn flavour, that is fried until it is crisp if M )_#

praxis /'praeksis/ noun [U] (philosophy W) a way of doing sth; the use of a theory or a belief in a practical way

pray /prei/ verb, adv.

■ verb 1 ~ (to sb) (for sb/sth) to speak to God, especially to give thanks or ask for help fff $jF; H W: [V] They

knelt down and prayed. fM1®t T 0 I’ll pray for

you. 0 ^t0 pray for peace 0 She

prayed to God for an end to her sufferings.

^ M W M o 0 [V (that)] We prayed (that) she would recover from her illness. ftfH 0 [V to inf]

He prayed to be forgiven, ffe % &?> o [also V speech] 2 ~ (for sth) to hope very much that sth will happen 4k Bfr ; Iff M : [V] We’re praying for good weather on

Saturday. $ Cl + ft 4k Sfr S S3 A J§ 'h Bf A ₀ 0 [V that] I prayed that nobody would notice my mistake.

[1] adv. (old use or ironic) used to mean ‘please’ when you are asking a question or telling sb to do sth ( 7 ii?J ft

31® ) if ft, if: What, pray, is the meaning of this?

if Ik]> iiUff- kMM ? 0 Pray continue, pray-er /prea(r); NAmE prer/ noun 1 [C] ~ (for sb/sth) words which you say to God giving thanks or asking for help H-'Br, ( ftftW ) : to say your prayers 0 prayers for the sick AfWAMffr# 0 He arrived at that very moment, as if in answer to her

prayer. im&M-mmr, o

Their prayers were answered and the child was found

safe and well.

,i§₀ 2 [C] a fixed form of words that you can say when you speak to God lir# A; : It was a prayer she

had learnt as a child.

— see also Lord’s Prayer 3 [U] the act or habit of praying flr$# ( ftlkr A ) : They knelt in prayer. #, CJKfeT o We believe in the power of prayer. f£fH

fS ft l$ A it ₀ 4 prayers [pi.] a religious meeting

that takes place regularly in which people say prayers 5 [C, usually sing.] a thing that you hope for very much 4k Bfr ♦; iff H: My prayer is that one day he will walk again. $Sc^J4kBfriftjii‘—AftfeMJilfr^ {$₀ ITMI not have a prayer (of doing sth) to have no chance of succeeding (in doing sth) ( ) '&WJ&53

— more at wing n.

prayer book noun a book that contains prayers, for using in religious services fjrHW ( )

’prayer meeting noun a religious meeting when people say prayers to God H £

'prayer rug (also 'prayer mat) noun a small carpet on which Muslims rest their knees when they are saying prayers )

'prayer wheel noun (in Tibetan Buddhism icffffifSt) an object that is turned as a way of saying a prayer or meditating )

.praying 'mantis (also mantis) noun a large green insect that eats other insects. The female praying mantis often eats the male.

pre- /pri:/ prefix (in verbs, nouns and adjectives fig j&zj/j is], before f£ •••mi: preheat

0 precaution 0 pre-war ^ M 0 preseason training (= before a sports season starts) —com

pare ANTE-, POST-

preach /pri:tj/ verb 1 to give a religious talk in a public place, especially in a church during a service fj? if, i# it ( X $3 Ifc ^ 4¹ W ■;)/.: [V] She preached to the

congregation about forgiveness.

M o 0 [VN] The minister preached a sermon on the parable of the lost sheep.

2 to tell people about a particular religion, way of life, system, etc. in order to persuade them to accept it Mfe, m.®, S# ( ifcA, mm ) : [VN] to

preach the word of God 0 He preached the

virtues of capitalism to us. ft ISd®

& o 0 [V] She preached about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. Mm® 7 3 [V] (disapproving) to

give sb advice on moral standards, behaviour, etc., especially in a way that they find annoying or boring i# Wi: I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to preach. tgj&P;, Self'S O You’re preaching at me again!

! iT*Tgl preach to the con verted to speak to people in support of views that they already hold |n] V, ISc^45A^A^ — more at practise preach-er /'pri:tja(r)/ noun a person, often a member of the clergy, who gives religious talks and often performs religious ceremonies, for example in a church ft it # ; {Irp : a preacher famous for her inspiring sermons A U t fft> M ^it'# 0 d lay

preacher (= who is not a priest, etc. but who has been trained to give religious talks) ftitM preachy /'priitj’i/ adj. (informal, disapproving) trying to give advice or to persuade people to accept an opinion on what is right and wrong W

pre-amble /pri'aembl; 'priiaembl/ noun [C, U] (formal) an introduction to a book or a written document; an introduction to sth you say u; -Wm; MW;

ft: The aims of the treaty are stated in its preamble. ^ M ^ m S W J¥ W 4¹ 9ft o 0 She gave him the bad news without preamble. MJFnJSLLilAkfCWMSW-UrTfifeo pre ar ranged /,pri:a'reind3d/ adj. planned or arranged in advance H23

PREDETERMINED

pre-'book verb (BrE) to arrange to have sth such as a room, table, seat, or ticket in advance Mil ( J^l's]. ^ ^ ® fit i M i ® : [V] You are advised to

pre-book, 0 [VN] Accommodation is cheaper if

you pre-book it.

pre but tal /’priibAtl/ noun [C, U] (informal) a statement saying or proving that a criticism is false or unfair