<B>caracal, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a small lynx of Asia and Africa, of a reddish-brown color, having a tuft of long, black hair at the tip of each ear; Persian lynx. </DL>
<A NAME="caracara">
<B>caracara, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> any one of several vulturelike hawks found in tropical and subtropical America. Audubon's caracara is the national emblem of Mexico. </DL>
<B>caracole, </B>noun, verb, <B>-coled,</B> <B>-coling.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a half turn to the right or left, made by a horse and rider. <DD><B> 2. </B>one of the turns made by a horse in prancing on a zigzag course. <DD><I>v.i. </I> to move in a series of half turns; prance from side to side. <BR> <I>Ex. Theirs are huge and heartshaped monsters ... glossy black as the black patent leather pumps in which we once caracoled in society's exclusive cotillions (New Yorker).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="caracul">
<B>caracul, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a type of short, flat, loose, curly fur made from the skin of newborn or very young lambs of a breed of robust, fat-tailed Asian sheep. <DD><B> 2. </B>any sheep of this breed. <DD><B> 3. </B>a name sometimes applied to the skins of young goats. Also <B>karakul.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="carafe">
<B>carafe, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a glass bottle, especially an ornamental one, for holding water, wine, coffee, or the like. <BR> <I>Ex. The "snack bars" ... [of Paris] sell hot dogs and hamburgers with carafes of vin ordinaire (New York Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="caragana">
<B>caragana, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> any one of a group of leguminous trees or shrubs native to China and Siberia, having feathery pale-green foliage and yellow flowers appearing in early spring. </DL>
<A NAME="carageen">
<B>carageen, </B>noun. =carrageen.</DL>
<A NAME="caraguata">
<B>caraguata, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a plant of the pineapple family found in Paraguay and Argentina, which yields a long silky fiber used especially in making cordage and sacks. </DL>
<A NAME="caramba">
<B>caramba, </B>interjection.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Spanish.) an exclamation of dismay, anger, or surprise. </DL>
<A NAME="carambola">
<B>carambola, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the acid fruit of a small East Indian tree. <DD><B> 2. </B>the tree itself. </DL>
<A NAME="caramel">
<B>caramel, </B>noun, verb, <B>-meled,</B> <B>-meling</B> or (especially British) <B>-melled,</B> <B>-melling.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>sugar browned or burned over heat and used for coloring and flavoring food. <BR> <I>Ex. Cake frosting and custard are often flavored with caramel.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a small block of chewy candy flavored with this sugar. <DD><B> 3. </B>the color of caramel; any shade of brown. <DD><I>v.t., v.i. </I> <B>=caramelize.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="caramelise">
<B>Caramelise, </B>verb, <B>-ised,</B> <B>-ising.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Especially British.) to caramelize. </DL>
<A NAME="caramelize">
<B>caramelize, </B>verb, <B>-ized,</B> <B>-izing.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.t. </I> to melt (sugar) over heat so that it turns brown. <BR> <I>Ex. Caramelize the sugar in a heavy skillet over low heat, stirring constantly (Sunset).</I> <DD><I>v.i. </I> (of sugar) to melt and turn brown. </DL>
<B>carangoid, </B>adjective, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> of or having to do with a family of fish having spiny fins and forked tails. <BR> <I>Ex. The pompano and cavalla are carangoid fishes.</I> <DD><I>noun </I> any fish of this family. </DL>
<A NAME="carapace">
<B>carapace, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a shell or bony covering on the back or part of the back of turtles, armadillos, and crustaceans such as lobsters and crabs. <DD><B> 2a. </B>any hard outer covering. <BR> <I>Ex. ... the large, rusting carapace of a 1957 Chevrolet (New Yorker).</I> <DD><B> b. </B>(Figurative:) <BR> <I>Ex. Behind Baudelaire's carapace is a sensibility always struggling for transcendence (Saturday Review).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="carapacial">
<B>carapacial, </B>adjective. =carapacic.</DL>
<A NAME="carapacic">
<B>carapacic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or having to do with the carapace. </DL>
<A NAME="carat">
<B>carat, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a unit of weight for precious stones, equal to 0.2 gram or 200 milligrams. <DD><B> 2. </B>one 24th part of gold in an alloy. <BR> <I>Ex. A gold ring of 18 carats is 18 parts pure gold and 6 parts alloy.</I> <DD> (Abbr:) kt. Also, <B>karat.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="caratage">
<B>caratage, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> quantity or weight in carats. </DL>
<A NAME="caravan">
<B>caravan, </B>noun, verb, <B>-vaned,</B> <B>-vaning</B> or (especially British) <B>-vanned,</B> <B>-vanning.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1a. </B>a group of merchants, pilgrims, tourists, or the like, traveling together for safety through difficult or dangerous country. <BR> <I>Ex. a caravan of Arab merchants laden with spices and Oriental silks.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>any similar group of travelers. <DD><B> c. </B>the vehicles or beasts of burden used by such a group. <BR> <I>Ex. ... traveling by caravan, that is, great droves of laden camels (William Warner).</I> <DD><B> 2a. </B>a closed truck or trailer, or formerly a large, covered wagon, for moving people or goods; van. <DD><B> b. </B>(British.) a house on wheels; trailer. <BR> <I>Ex. Small auto-trailers designed for holidaying--"caravans"--went on the Canadian market (Maclean's).</I> <DD><I>v.t., v.i. </I> to travel or convey by caravan. <BR> <I>Ex. Having caravanned all over this continent, he admitted that there is an awful lot of it to love (London Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="caravaneer">
<B>caravaneer, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a person who travels with a caravan in the Orient. </DL>
<A NAME="caravaner">
<B>caravaner, </B>noun. =caravanner.</DL>
<A NAME="caravanner">
<B>caravanner, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>(British.) a person who travels by or lives in a trailer or house on wheels. <DD><B> 2. </B>a person who travels with a caravan in the East; caravaneer. </DL>
<A NAME="caravanning">
<B>caravanning, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) traveling or living in a trailer, especially while on vacation. </DL>
<A NAME="caravanpark">
<B>caravan park,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) a trailer court. </DL>
<A NAME="caravansary">
<B>caravansary, </B>noun, pl. <B>-ries.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>an inn or hotel in the Orient where caravans stop to rest, usually a large, four-sided building surrounding a spacious court. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) any large inn or hotel. </DL>
<A NAME="caravanserai">
<B>caravanserai, </B>noun. =caravansary.</DL>
<A NAME="caravel">
<B>caravel</B> or <B>caravelle, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a small, fast sailing ship of the type used by Columbus and other early navigators, with a broad bow and high stern. <DD><B> 2. </B>any one of various small sailing ships of former times. Also, <B>carvel.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="caraway">
<B>caraway, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a plant that yields fragrant, spicy seeds, used to flavor bread, rolls, or cakes. It belongs to the parsley family. <DD><B> 2. </B>its seeds. </DL>
<A NAME="carawayseeds">
<B>caraway seeds,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the seeds of the caraway. </DL>
<B>carbamyl, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the univalent radical of carbamic acid. </DL>
<A NAME="carbanion">
<B>carbanion, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an organic anion occurring as an intermediate in many reactions. </DL>
<A NAME="carbarn">
<B>carbarn, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a building for the storage and maintenance of trolley cars, buses, and railroad cars. </DL>
<A NAME="carbarsone">
<B>carbarsone, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a preparation containing arsenic, used to treat amebic dysentery. </DL>
<A NAME="carbaryl">
<B>carbaryl, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a highly toxic compound of methyl carbamate and naphthol, widely used against many types of insect pests. </DL>
<A NAME="carbazole">
<B>carbazole, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a crystalline compound derived from anthracene, used in the manufacture of certain dyes. </DL>
<A NAME="carbecue">
<B>carbecue, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a device for melting down and compacting scrap automobiles. </DL>
<A NAME="carbene">
<B>carbene, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an organic radical containing divalent carbon, such as methylene, occurring as an intermediate in certain reactions. </DL>
<A NAME="carbide">
<B>carbide, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a compound of carbon with another element, usually a metal. <DD><B> 2. </B><B>=calcium carbide.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="carbine">
<B>carbine, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a short, light, automatic or semiautomatic rifle of relatively great power but short range. <DD><B> 2. </B>a short-barreled rifle or musket formerly used in the cavalry. Also, <B>carabin,</B> <B>carabine.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="carbineer">
<B>carbineer, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a cavalry soldier armed with a carbine. Also, <B>carabineer,</B> <B>carabinier.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="carbinol">
<B>carbinol, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>methyl alcohol or methanol. <DD><B> 2. </B>an alcohol derived from it. <DD><B> 3. </B>a univalent radical . </DL>
<A NAME="carbo">
<B>carbo-,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (combining form.) the form of <B>carb-</B> before consonants, as in <I>carbohydrate.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="carbocycliccompound">
<B>carbocyclic compound,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> any one of many organic compounds in which all the atoms of the ring are carbon, such as in benzene. </DL>
<A NAME="carboholic">
<B>carboholic, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a person with a craving for sweets and starches. <BR> <I>Ex. To remedy the problem, I have devised a special diet for carboholics ... which balances the proportion of carbohydrates, protein, and fats (Neil Solomon).</I> </DL>
