r%m
(SMS) room

radius

• Remote authentication dial-in user service
• Remote
• authentication
• dial-in
• user
• service
• dial

1. The length of a line segment between the center and circumference of a circle or sphere. 2. A straight line from the center to the perimeter of a circle (or from the center to the surface of a sphere). 3. A circular region whose area is indicated by the length of its radius. 4. The outer and slightly shorter of the two bones of the human forearm. 5. Support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim.
6. RADIUS (Remote authentication dial-in user service) - a server for remote user authentication and accounting.
Examples:
1) They located it within a radius of 2 miles.
2) The relationship between the radius and the circumference is r = \frac{c}{2\pi}.
3) RADIUS is currently the de-facto standard for remote authentication.
Etymology:
"Radius" means "beam of light" in Latin.



raffish

• raff
• riffraff

[RAF-ish]
1. Characterized by or suggestive of flashy vulgarity, crudeness, or rowdiness; tawdry.
2. Marked by a carefree unconventionality or disreputableness; rakish.
Examples:
1) The speaker was in his forties, an attractive-looking man with a black eye patch that gave him the raffish look of an amiable pirate. (Sidney Sheldon, "The Best Laid Plans")
2) Sometimes we would go to the Gargoyle Club,... but it was too full of raffish upper-class drunks for my taste. (John Richardson, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice")
3) We are told about Bacon's taste for raffish, lower-class lovers, his penchant for gambling and his almost complete disregard for money. (Michiko Kakutani, "Portrait of a Portraitist Of a Century's Horrors", New York Times, December 14, 1993)
4) Tristan was a raffish young rebel, a free spirit who sought every opportunity to flout convention and challenge authority.
Etymology:
"Raffish" derives from the noun "raff" (chiefly used in the compound or duplicate, "riffraff"), meaning "people of a low reputation". "Raffish" sounds like it should mean "resembling the raff". But what is "raff"? Originally, "raff" was "rubbish". That term derives from the Middle English "raf", and it was being used for trash and refuse back in the 1400s. At around the same time, English speakers were also using the word "riffraff" to mean "disreputable characters" or "rabble". The origins of "riffraff" are distinct from the "rubbish" sense of "raff"; "riffraff" derives from an Anglo-French phrase meaning "one and all". By the mid-1600s, the similarities between "raff" and "riffraff" had prompted people to start using the two words as synonyms, and "raff" gained a "rabble" sense. It was that ragtag "raff" that gave rise to the adjective "raffish" in the late 1700s.

rail

• fulminate
• inveigh
• rail in
• rail off
• railing
• rails
• revile
• track
• train
• vilify
• vituperate

1. any of numerous widely distributed small wading birds of the family Rallidae having short wings and very long toes for running on soft mud
2. horizontal bar (usually of wood)
3. short for railway
Example: He traveled by rail.
4. barrier consisting of a horizontal bar and supports
5. bar or bars of rolled steel making a track along, which vehicles can roll
6. criticize severely; revile or scold in harsh, insolent, or abusive language
Example: He railed against the Republicans' plan to cut Medicare.
7. spread negative information about
Example:
The Nazi propaganda railed the Jews.
Etymology:
Probably comes from Old French "reillier" ("to growl" or "to mutter") and ultimately from Late Latin "ragere" ("to neigh").
8. complain bitterly
9. fish with a hand-line aver the rails of a boat
Example: They are railing for fresh fish.
10. lay with rails
Example: Hundreds of miles were railed out here.
11. travel by rail or train
Example: They railed from Rome to Venice.
12. convey (goods etc.) by rails
Example: Fresh fruit are railed from Italy to Belgium.
13. separate with a railing
Example: Rail off the crowds from the Presidential palace.
14. provide or enclose with rails
Example: The yard was railed.
15. enclose with rails
Example: They rail in the old graves.
General Synonyms:
fulminate, inveigh, rail in, rail off, railing, rails, revile, track, train, vilify, vituperate


raillery

• rail
• banter

1. Good-humored banter or teasing; good-natured ridicule.
Synonym: banter.
2. An instance of good-humored teasing; a jest.
Examples:
1) Anticipating the raillery he'd be subjected to at his 50th birthday party, Dan got the jump on everyone by signing his invitations "The Old Geezer."
2) I moved from one knot of people to another, surrounded by a kind of envious respect because of Sophie's interest in me, although subjected to a certain mordant raillery from some of this witty company. (Peter Brooks, "World Elsewhere")
3) Her raillery and mockery are fun - but ultimately rather tiring, and tiresome. (Barbara Grizzuti Harrison, "Eastward Ho!" review of Shards of Memory, by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, New York Times, September 17, 1995)
Etymology:
"Raillery" is the anglicized form of the French word "raillerie," which stems from the Middle French verb "railler," meaning "to mock." "Railler", which probably comes from Old French "reillier" ("to growl" or "to mutter") and ultimately from Late Latin "ragere" ("to neigh"), also gave us our verb "rail". But "rail" and "raillery" are quite different in tone. "Rail" means "to revile or scold in harsh, insolent, or abusive language," whereas "raillery" usually suggests cutting wit that pokes fun good-naturedly.


raiment
[RAY-ment]
Clothing in general; garments (usually singular in form, with a collective sense).
Examples:
1) People want "habitations for shelter and safety, and raiment for warmth and decency." (Richard A. Epstein, "Principles for a Free Society")
2) Agog with expectation, Stella opened her package and found not the golden raiment of a queen or a princess, but the drab uniform of a cook. She wept for the rest of the day. (William Weaver, "Almost Irresistible Stella" New York Times, March 4, 1984)
3) A man in his Sunday raiment, lemon-yellow gloves even, was visible inside the window. (H.G. Wells, "The War of the Worlds")
Etymology:
"Raiment" is from Middle English "rayment" (short for "arrayment"), from "arrayen" ("to array").


rain on one's parade

• rain on your parade
• rain
• parade

To change the mood of an occasion from happy to unhappy; to create a negative atmosphere.
Examples:
1) Who rained on your parade? You were so happy ten minutes ago. 2) I don't want to rain on your parade, but I have to tell you that I just saw someone steal your car.
Etymology:
A "parade" is a festive, outdoor occasion, with marching bands and floats and cotton candy. If it rains, though, the parade is usually ruined.


rain or shine

• rain
• shine
• by all means
• all means
• means

In all weather; no matter what the weather is like (describing something scheduled).
Synonym: by all means
Example:
I know that John will be at home at 8 p.m. rain or shine.



raise the roof

• raise
• roof

To have fun and make a lot of noise.
Examples:
1) We're going to raise the roof at Stephanie's party tonight! 2) The band raised the roof with one great song after another.
Etymology: A 'roof' covers a house. Sometimes, usually at parties, you can make so much noise that it seems like the roof is going to blow right off.

raise the wind

• raise
• wind

To borrow some money.
Example: Can you raise the wind to help me (to) buy a car?

ram smth. down one's throat

• ram smth. down
• throat
• ram down
• ram

To force someone to do something that they really don't want to do; to coerce.
Example: I complained about having to work on the project, so the boss just rammed the whole thing down my throat.

ramify

• biramous
• ramage

[RAM-uh-fye]
intransitive verb
1. To split up into branches or constituent parts.
2. To send forth branches or extensions.
Example:
The bus system ramified so widely that it became possible to travel to Athens in a single day from a very large proportion of the villages of Greece... (William H. McNeill, "The Metamorphosis of Greece Since World War II")
transitive verb
3. To cause to branch.
4. To separate into divisions.
Etymology, related words, more examples:
"Ramify" has been part of English since the 15th century and is an offshoot of the Latin word for "branch," which is "ramus." English acquired several scientific words from "ramus," including "biramous" ("having two branches"). Another English word derived from "ramus" is the now obsolete "ramage," meaning "untamed" or "wild." "Ramage" originated in falconry - it was originally used of young hawks that had begun to fly from branch to branch in trees. "Ramify" started out as a scientific word, at first referring to branching parts of plants and trees and later to veins and nerves. But it soon branched out into non-scientific and even figurative uses, as in "ideas that ramify throughout society."


ramping cat

• ramping
• ramp
• cat
• rampant

A cat that is rearing up or standing on its hind legs, with its front paws raised, as though it were about to climb something; the expression refers to a cat doing something that is entirely in its nature.
Example:
At the twilight hour, if you become a Cat, you can find out a lot, so much more that they are loved and respected here. You can find their standard image, a ramping cat of all sizes and colors with it's left paw raised in salute and a coin, guit, in it's right paw, in every shop, cafe, dressmaker's and dry cleaner's. ("Notes Of Not A Stranger", http://wushu.org.ua/Articles/Article5_eng.html)
History:
It's a quotation from Shakespeare, from a speech by Hotspur in "King Henry IV", who is explaining that Glendower angers him through telling him
Of the dreamer Merlin, and his prophecies;
And of a dragon and a finless fish,
A clipt-wing'd griffin and a moulten raven,
A couching lion, and a ramping cat.
This last line is especially confusing to modern readers. We would replace "couching" by "crouching" (more specifically and accurately the technical term "couchant") and replace "ramping" by "rampant". Shakespeare's terms were from the heraldry of his time, describing the stereotyped ways in which animals were portrayed on shields.
A couching or couchant animal is crouching, but specifically lying with its body on its legs but its head erect. Shakespeare's "ramping" is thought to derive from the Old French verb "ramper" ("to creep, crawl or climb") that has also given us "rampant". In its original English usage, "rampant" was a heraldic term for an animal, usually a lion, that was shown in profile facing right, standing on one hind foot with its forefeet in the air. This was taken to be a threatening or aggressive posture, which is why "rampant" now often has the sense of something wild or unrestrained.
All the examples from that of the fish onwards are of animals that are in some way acting against their true natures. The fish is without fins, the griffin has had his wings clipped, the raven has moulted, the lion is lying down submissively and the cat is adopting a threatening posture quite alien to our usual image of a timid puss.
If there is any fear of animal abuse at your local hostelry, it's likely to be the cat that's doing it.

ranchburger

• ranch-burger

A traditional, one-story ranch-style house, particularly one in a suburban development where the surrounding houses have a similar design. Also: ranch-burger, ranch burger.
Examples:
1) You'll see examples of Ranch homes whose only charm may have been their location transformed into a wide variety of architectural expressions. In an odd twist, the very fact that many of these homes began as plain and ordinary "Ranchburgers" is exactly the reason they are great makeover candidates. (M. Caren Connolly, "Ranches: Design Ideas for Renovating, Remodeling, and Building New", Taunton Press, August, 2003)
2) Such Ox-Bow incidentals are to be expected in this "back porch country" of the Texas and Oklahoma panhandle region, now mostly hardscrabble and pocked with more characterless "prefab ranchburgers" than in its renowned oil-rich or cattle country days. (Gordon Hauptfleisch, "Hogman, Pass By", The San Diego Union-Tribune, December 15, 2002)
3) What has the ''modern'' stolen from the average house? And is it comfort that is missing? I cannot think so. What, instead, has been scorned for some time is any serious consideration of bourgeois taste. The architectural historian and critic Colin Rowe called one favorite design ''the ranchburger,'' and now such buildings get from the critics little better than bites. (William H. Gass, "Making ourselves comfortable", The New York Times, August 3, 1986)
Etymology:
The name comes from those ubiquitous ranch houses (also called "ranchers" or "ramblers") that, in neighborhoods around the country, have been replicated with the zeal of McDonald's hamburgers.


rapier
[RAY-pee-er]
1. A type of narrow-bladed sword used in the 18th century; a type of double-edged sword used in the 16th and 17th centuries.
2. A swordfish.
3. Extremely sharp or keen.
Example:
In the June 1992 issue of "Field & Stream" magazine, Dave Hughes offered the following fly-fishing advice: "In one fluid motion, lift the rod up and back, and drive it forward with a rapier thrust."
Etymology, more examples:
A rapier is a straight, two-edged sword with a narrow pointed blade, designed especially for thrusting. According to "Encyclopaedia Britannica", "the long rapier was beautifully balanced, excellent in attack, and superb for keeping an opponent at a distance." The word itself, which we borrowed in the 16th century, is from Middle French "rapiere." (It has no connection to the word "rape.") The first time that "rapier" was used as an adjective in its figurative "cutting" sense, it described a smile: "Who can bear a rapier smile? A kiss that dooms the soul to death?" ("The Lover's Lament" by Sumner Lincoln Fairfield, 1824). Wit was first described as "rapier-like" by an author in 1853, and, these days, the most common use of the adjective "rapier" is to describe wit.


rapine
[RAP-in] The act of plundering; the seizing and carrying away of another's property by force.
Examples:
1) He who has once begun to live by rapine always finds reasons for taking what is not his. (Niccolo Machiavelli, "The Prince", translated by N.H. Thomson)
2) Extortion and rapine are poor providers. (Olaudah Equiano, "Unchained Voices: an anthology of Black authors in the English-Speaking World of the 18th Century")
3) The war, proclaimed William Lloyd Garrison, was one "of aggression, of invasion, of conquest, and rapine - marked by ruffianism, perfidy, and every other feature of national depravity." (Robert W. Johannsen, "America's Forgotten War (Mexican War, 1846-1848)", The Wilson Quarterly, Spring 1996)
Etymology, related words:
"Rapine" derives from Latin "rapina", from "rapere" ("to seize and carry off, to snatch or hurry away"), which also gives us "rapid".



rapprochement
[rap-rosh-MAWN]
The establishment or state of cordial relations.
Examples:
1) Mikhail Gorbachev and his team of self-described reformers were publicly heralding a new era of rapprochement with the West. (Ken Alibek with Stephen Handelman, "Biohazard")
2) The documentary record of initial White House-level efforts to initiate rapprochement with China... remains slim. (William Burr, "The Kissinger Transcripts")
3) But I have no desire for some kissy rapprochement. (Zo? Heller, "Everything You Know")
Etymology:
"Rapprochement" comes from the French, from "rapprocher" ("to bring nearer"), from Middle French, from "re-" + "approcher" ("to approach"), from Old French "aprochier", from Late Latin "appropire", from Latin "ad-" + "propius" ("nearer"), comparative of "prope" ("near").


rapscallion

• Rascallion
• blackguard
• scoundrel
• miscreant

rascal, ne'er-do-well
Example:
"The film ["Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl"] stars Johnny Depp as the sauntering, dark-eyed rapscallion Capt. Jack Sparrow...." (Anthony Breznican, "The Associated Press", July 9, 2003)
Etymology:
The word "rascal" has been part of English since the 15th century, but on its own it apparently didn't quite capture the roguish nature of the wily knaves of yore. By the 17th century, English speakers had modified "rascal" to create "rascallion". But it seems that even that term didn't sound quite mischievous enough. By the century's end, "rascallion" had been further altered to create "rapscallion". "Rascallion" is still around as well, but it's very rare.
Synonyms:
blackguard, scoundrel, miscreant


rara avis

• rara
• avis
• rara avises
• avises
• rarae aves
• rarae
• aves

[RAIR-uh-AY-vis]
plural: rara avises [RAIR-uh-AY-vuh-suhz] or rarae aves [RAIR-ee-AY-veez]
A rare or unique person or thing.
Examples:
1) He was, after all, that rara avis, a Jewish Catholic priest with a wife and children. (Jeremy Sams, "Lorenzo the magnificent," Independent, May 16, 2000)
2) "First of all," Arthur said, "Jack is that rara avis among Ivy League radicals, a birthright member of the proletariat." (Charles McCarry, "Lucky Bastard")
3) Rara avis. You'd have to go far and wide to find someone like that, especially in these times. (Andrew Holleran, "In September, the Light Changes")
Etymology:
"Rara avis" is Latin for "rare bird."


rat pack

• rat
• pack

Etymology and meaning: Originally, this referred to a group of same-age, same-interests young Hollywood dudes that included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. (as the token Negro), and a few others. In the 1950s and the early 1960s, they acted in films together, hung out together, drank and womanized together, and in general raised hell together, but didn't get in trouble because they were famous. In the early 1980s, this term was applied to another crop of talented but spoiled young actors who were all about the same age who also acted and hung around and raised hell together.

rathskeller
[RAHT-skell-er]
A usually basement tavern or restaurant.
Example:
Many workers from the town's mills and factories liked to gather after hours at the rathskeller located underneath the banquet hall.
Etymology:
"Rathskeller" is a product of Germany, deriving from two German nouns: "Rat" (also spelled "Rath" in early Modern German), which means "council," and "Keller," which means "cellar." The etymology reflects the fact that many early rathskellers were located in the basements of "council houses," which were equivalent to town halls. (The oldest rathskeller found in Germany today is said to date from the first half of the 13th century.) The earliest known use of "rathskeller" in English dates from 1766, but the word wasn't commonly used until the 1900s. Although the German word is now spelled "Ratskeller," English writers have always preferred the spelling with the "h" - most likely to avoid any association with the word "rat."


rationale

• ratio

[rash-uh-NAL]
1. An explanation of controlling principles of opinion, belief, practice, or phenomena.
2. An underlying reason.
Synonym: basis
Example:
One rationale for year-round school is that it reduces the need to review old material forgotten over summer vacation.
Etymology; related words; more meanings, examples:
The word "rationale" appeared in the second half of the 17th century, just in time for the Age of Reason. It is based on the Latin "ratio," which means "reason," and "rationalis," which means "endowed with reason." At first, "rationale" meant "an explanation of controlling principles" ("a rationale of religious practices," for example), but soon it began to refer to the underlying reason for something (as in "the rationale for her behavior"). The latter meaning is now the most common use of the term. The English word "ratio" can also mean "underlying reason" (in fact, it had this meaning before "rationale" did), but in current use, it more often refers to the relationship (in number, quantity, or degree) between things.


razzmatazz

• razzle-dazzle
• razzle
• dazzle
• double-talk
• double
• talk
• razzamatazz

[raz-muh-TAZ]
1. A confusing or colorful often gaudy action or display.
Synonym: razzle-dazzle
2. Inflated, involved, and often deliberately ambiguous language.
Synonym: double-talk
3. Vim, zing.
Example:
It was a rally like any other, perhaps, but amidst all the flag-waving and razzmatazz, we detected a stronger than usual strain of genuine patriotic feeling.
History, alternative spelling:
Before early forms of "razzmatazz" entered English, "razzle-dazzle" appeared on the scene, and long before "razzle-dazzle" there was simply "dazzle" (from "daze"). English speakers are fond of forming new words through reduplication of a base word, usually with just a slight change of sound. Think of "okey-dokey," "fuddy-duddy," "super-duper," "roly-poly," "fiddle-faddle," and "dilly-dally." A hundred or so years ago, the spirit that prompted "razzle-dazzle" seems to have also inspired "razzmatazz" shortly afterward. The coiners of "razzmatazz" may have had "jazz" in mind. Some of the earliest turn-of-the century uses of "razzmatazz" refer to rag-time or early jazz styles. By the 40s, we'd come round to the "razzle-dazzle" sense, though we still haven't completely settled on the spelling. You might, for example, see "razzamatazz."


read between the lines

• read
• between the lines
• between
• lines
• line

When you "read between the lines", you go beyond the surface of what someone says or does so you can find out what they really mean.
Example:
"Clare keeps telling me she's too busy to go to school dances," Tanya said. "But when you read between the lines, you can tell she's afraid she won't have fun if she goes."

real estate

• real
• estate

(Amer.) Tangible items of property, such as land and buildings, as well as intangible rights in land, such as easements or the right to graze animals on someone else's land etc.
In the UK, one would use the term "real property" (see) as distinct from "personal property" which refers to all other kinds of property.

real property

• real
• property

(Brit.) Tangible items of property, such as land and buildings, as well as intangible rights in land, such as easements or the right to graze animals on someone else's land etc.
The term "real property" is used as distinct from "personal property" which refers to all other kinds of property, to describe what Americans would call "real estate" (see).

realia

• memorabilia
• juvenilia
• marginalia

[ree-AL-ee-uh, reh-yal'yuh]
Noun plural; there is no singular form for this word, because "realia" refers to a group of or classification of things.
1. (educ.) Objects, as coins, tools, etc., used by a teacher to illustrate everyday living;
objects or activities used to relate classroom teaching to the real life especially of peoples studied.
Example:
The teacher asked the exchange student from Brazil to bring in photos, food items, and other realia to share with the class.
2. (philos.) Things that are real.
History:
"Realia," a word invented in the 1930s, is still mostly used in the classroom by teachers, especially foreign language teachers, and in the library by cataloguers (realia in libraries can consist of things as bizarre as an author's hair and teeth donated posthumously), but it's seeping out. You might, for example, hear of someone putting "realia" - objects that represent present-day life - in a time capsule. "Realia" is also sometimes used philosophically to distinguish real things from the theories about them. "Realia" is one of those plural formations without a corresponding singular form. Like "memorabilia" ("memorable things" or "mementos"), "juvenilia" ("works produced in an artist's or author's youth"), and "marginalia" ("marginal notes or embellishments"), it incorporates the Latin plural ending "-ia."
Etymology: Late Latin, neuter plural of "realis" - "real".


recalcitrant

• calcaneus

[rih-KAL-suh-trunt]
1. obstinately defiant of authority or restraint
Example:
Anna's doctor ordered a week of complete bed rest, but, ever recalcitrant when it comes to doctors' orders, she was up and baking a cake after two days.
2. a) difficult to manage or operate; b) not responsive to treatment; c) resistant
Etymology:
Long before any human was dubbed "recalcitrant" in English (that first occurred, as best we know, in one of William Thackeray's works in 1843), there were stubborn mules (and horses) kicking