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<HTML> <HEAD><TITLE>DICTIONARY: ainhum - air-break switch</TITLE></HEAD> <BODY BGCOLOR="#ffffff"> <A HREF="a.dic">A</A> <A HREF="b.dic">B</A> <A HREF="c.dic">C</A> <A HREF="d.dic">D</A> <A HREF="e.dic">E</A> <A HREF="f.dic">F</A> <A HREF="g.dic">G</A> <A HREF="h.dic">H</A> <A HREF="i.dic">I</A> <A HREF="j.dic">J</A> <A HREF="k.dic">K</A> <A HREF="l.dic">L</A> <A HREF="m.dic">M</A> <A HREF="n.dic">N</A> <A HREF="o.dic">O</A> <A HREF="p.dic">P</A> <A HREF="q.dic">Q</A> <A HREF="r.dic">R</A> <A HREF="s.dic">S</A> <A HREF="t.dic">T</A> <A HREF="u.dic">U</A> <A HREF="v.dic">V</A> <A HREF="w.dic">W</A> <A HREF="x.dic">X</A> <A HREF="y.dic">Y</A> <A HREF="z.dic">Z</A> <A NAME="ainhum"> ainhum, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Medicine.) a painful constriction of the toe by a fibrous ring, afflicting people especially in tropical climates. In extreme cases, the toe falls off. </DL> <A NAME="aino"> Aino, noun, pl. -nos. =Ainu.</DL> <A NAME="aint"> ain't,<DL COMPACT><DD> (Substandard or Dialect.) <DD> 1. am not; is not. <DD> 2. are not. <DD> 3. have not; has not. </DL> <A NAME="ainu"> Ainu, noun, pl. -nu or -nus.<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. a member of an aboriginal, light-skinned people in northern Japan, now becoming extinct. Ex. The Ainu survive in northern Japan in much the same relation to the Japanese as the Indians occupy to the whites in the United States, except that the contact has been longer and the Ainu are fewer (A. L. Kroeber). <DD> 2. their language. It is as yet unclassified but unrelated to Japanese. Also, Aino. </DL> <A NAME="air"> air (1), noun, verb, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD>noun 1. the mixture of gases that surrounds the earth; atmosphere. Air consists chiefly of nitrogen and oxygen, along with carbon dioxide, argon, hydrogen, and small quantities of neon, helium, and other inert gases. It is odorless, tasteless, and invisible. We breathe air, and it directly or indirectly supports every form of life on earth. <DD> 2. the space overhead; sky. Ex. Birds fly in the air. <DD> 3. air in motion; a light wind; breeze. Ex. a hot summer day without a breath of air. <DD> 4. fresh air. Ex. He opened the window to let some air into the overheated room. <DD> 5a. a simple melody or tune. Ex. an old Scottish air, a traditional air. <DD> b. a piece of music designed to be played or sung as a solo. Ex. D'Indy's Symphony on a French Mountain Air, a traditional air. <DD> c. the leading part of a piece of music that predominates and gives character to it. In part music it is usually the soprano. <DD> 6. (Figurative.) public mention. Ex. He gave air to his opinions. (SYN) publicity. <DD> 7. the general character or appearance of anything. Ex. An air of mystery surrounds the deserted house. (SYN) aura. <DD> 8. way; look; manner; bearing. Ex. The famous man had an air of importance. (SYN) mien. <DD> 9. the medium through which radio waves travel; airways. Ex. to fill the air with advertising. <DD> 10. (Informal.) the personnel and equipment comprised by an air force. Ex. French tactical air flies 1,000 sorties in six days (Newsweek). <DD> 11. (Philately.) an airmail stamp. <DD> 12. (Obsolete.) breathe. <DD>v.t. 1a. to put out in the air. Ex. to air a blanket. It is good to air your clothes often. <DD> b. to let fresh air through. Ex. Open the windows and air the room. (SYN) ventilate. <DD> c. (British.) to warm and remove all dampness from. Ex. Air the sheets before you put them on the bed. <DD> 2. (Figurative.) to make known; express publicly. Ex. Do not air your troubles too often. (SYN) expose, display. <DD> 3. to take on a stroll. Ex. to air the dog. <DD> 4. (Informal.) to broadcast by radio or television, or both. Ex. The game was aired to all parts of the country. <DD>v.i. to take the air; take a walk or ride. <DD>adj. 1. having to do with aviation; done by means of aircraft. Ex. air photography. <DD> 2. of or having to do with aircraft. Ex. air safety, an air armada. (SYN) aerial. expr. airs, unnatural or affected manners. Ex. Your friends will laugh if you put on airs. expr. clear the air, to remove emotional tensions, misunderstanding, mistrust, or the like. Ex. His explicit declaration in reply to Mr. Parnell's speech ... has cleared the air (Manchester Examiner). expr. get the air, (U.S. Slang.) <DD> a. to be discharged from a job. Ex. She took off from work so often that she finally got the air. <DD> b. to be rejected as a suitor. Ex. After he got the air, he moped in a lovesick trance for weeks. expr. give the air, (U.S. Slang.) to dismiss, especially contemptuously. Ex. Jim gives the air too freely to opinions he doesn't happen to agree with. expr. in the air, <DD> a. going around; being spread. Ex. Wild rumors were in the air. <DD> b. (Figurative.) uncertain; unsettled. Ex. Plans for the picnic are still in the air since we can't decide where to go. expr. off the air, <DD> a. not engaged in broadcasting. Ex. This station is off the air from midnight to six in the morning. <DD> b. not being broadcast. Ex. We used to watch that show, but it's off the air now. expr. on the air, <DD> a. broadcasting. Ex. The station has been on the air since 1960. <DD> b. being broadcast. Ex. Is that radio show still on the air? expr. out of thin air, <DD> a. out of nothing visible or concrete. Ex. The problem ... involved the task of establishing out of thin air a program (Bulletin of Atomic Scientists). <DD> b. out of nowhere. Ex. The little man appeared out of thin air (London Times). expr. take air, (British.) to spread about among people; become known. Ex. The story has taken air among all the neighbors. expr. take the air, <DD> a. to go outdoors; take a walk or ride. Ex. On such a nice day, one should get out and take the air. <DD> b. (U.S.) to start broadcasting. Ex. The new radio station will take the air next week. expr. up in the air, <DD> a. uncertain; unsettled. Ex. The date of the wedding is still up in the air. <DD> b. (Informal.) very angry or excited. Ex. The driver was up in the air about his parking ticket. expr. walk (or tread) on air, to be very gay or pleased. Ex. The boys are walking on air because their team won the game. ... treading on air at the way he'd handled the deal (S. J. Perelman). </DL> <A NAME="air"> air (2), adverb, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Scottish.) early; soon. </DL> <A NAME="airacademy"> Air Academy,<DL COMPACT><DD> (U.S.) the Air Force Academy. </DL> <A NAME="airage"> air age,<DL COMPACT><DD> the era of human history marked by the use of aircraft in war and as a means of public transport. The preliminaries began well before 1910 but effective and general use came only about 1939. </DL> <A NAME="airalert"> air alert,<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. a state of readiness for defense against enemy aircraft, when aircraft get into the air ready for immediate response to orders. <DD> 2. the signal to get aircraft into the air for such defense. </DL> <A NAME="airarm"> air arm, =air force.</DL> <A NAME="airatomic"> air-atomic, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> based on or involving the use of atomic bombs carried by aircraft or of missiles armed with atomic warheads. Ex. air-atomic defense. </DL> <A NAME="airattack"> air attack,<DL COMPACT><DD> an attack by aircraft. </DL> <A NAME="airbag"> airbag, noun, or air bag,<DL COMPACT><DD> a safety device consisting of a plastic bag that inflates in front of a passenger in an automobile collision to keep him from being thrown forward. </DL> <A NAME="airbase"> air base,<DL COMPACT><DD> a headquarters and airfield for military aircraft. </DL> <A NAME="airbattery"> air battery,<DL COMPACT><DD> a battery that uses zinc or another metal as the fuel and pressurized air as the oxidizing agent. </DL> <A NAME="airbearing"> air bearing,<DL COMPACT><DD> a bearing using the pressure of thin jets of air to support weights, eliminate friction, etc. </DL> <A NAME="airbed"> air bed,<DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) an air mattress. </DL> <A NAME="airbladder"> air bladder,<DL COMPACT><DD> a sac in most fishes and various animals and plants that is filled with air. The air bladder of a fish is also called the swim bladder and adjusts the specific gravity of the fish to the water pressure at varying depths. </DL> <A NAME="airblast"> air blast,<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. a stream of air, especially one produced by mechanical means. <DD> 2. the shock caused by a very fast movement of air or of an object through the air, such as that of a missile reentering the earth's atmosphere. <DD> 3. the downward or outward pressure wave set up by an atomic explosion in the air. </DL> <A NAME="airboat"> airboat, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a small flat-bottomed boat driven by an airplane propeller mounted on the boat and revolving in the air, used for travel in large swamps and flooded areas. Ex. Skim through the Everglades in an airboat (New Yorker). </DL> <A NAME="airborne"> airborne, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> 1a. supported by the air; off the ground. Ex. Within 15 minutes the bombers can be airborne. The kite was finally airborne. <DD> b. carried in aircraft. Ex. airborne troops. <DD> c. having its aircraft in the air. Ex. an airborne patrol. <DD> 2. carried by air. Ex. airborne seeds, airborne contamination from industrial pollution. </DL> <A NAME="airbound"> airbound, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> stopped up by an accumulation of air, as a pipe. </DL> <A NAME="airbrake"> air brake,<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. a brake or system of brakes operated by forcing compressed air against a piston or pistons. <DD> 2. =speed brake. </DL> <A NAME="airbrasive"> airbrasive, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> that cleans, smooths, or cuts by the action of abrasive particles propelled at high speeds by compressed air from a nozzle. Ex. an airbrasive drill. </DL> <A NAME="airbreakswitch"> air-break switch,<DL COMPACT><DD> a switch in which an electric circuit is interrupted in the air. </DL> <A HREF="airbreat.dic">NEXT</A>