twa ['tü] -adj
(variant of two)
- being one more than one in number
- being the second used postpositively
- section two of the instructions
- two countable individuals not specified
- a small approximate number of indicated things
- only a shot or two were fired
- the second in a set or series
- a 2-dollar bill
- something having two units or members
twad·dle ['twä-dᵊl] -n
- silly idle talk : drivel
- something insignificant or worthless : nonsense
- that idea is pure twaddle
- one that twaddles : twaddler
twaddle ['twäd-liŋ, 'twä-dᵊl-iŋ] -vb, n
- prate, babble
twain ['twān] -adj
- two
- two
- two fathoms
- two
- couple, pair
twang ['twaŋ] -n, adj
- a harsh quick ringing sound like that of a plucked banjo string
- nasal speech or resonance
- the characteristic speech of a region, locality, or group of people
- an act of plucking
- pang, twinge
- to sound with a twang
- the couch twang ed when he sat down
- to speak or sound with a nasal intonation
- to throb or twitch with pain or tension
- to cause to sound with a twang
- to utter or pronounce with a nasal twang
- to pluck the string of
- a persisting flavor, taste, or odor : tang
- suggestion, trace
twat ['twät] -n
- vulva
tway·blade ['twā-,blād] -n
- any of various orchids (genera Listeraand Liparis) often having two leaves
tweak ['twēk] -vb, n
- to pinch and pull with a sudden jerk and twist : twitch
- tweak ed a bud from the stem
- to pinch (a person or a body part) lightly or playfully
- tweak ed the baby's ear affectionately
- to make usu. small adjustments in or to
- fine-tune
- annoy, bother
- tweak ing the establishment
- to criticize esp. in a sly or sharp manner
- to poke fun at
- to injure slightly
- pull, pluck
- to make small adjustments
twee ['twē] -adj
- affectedly or excessively dainty, delicate, cute, or quaint
- such a theme might sound twee or corny -- Times Lit. Supp.
tweed ['twēd] -n
- a rough woolen fabric made usu. in twill weaves and used esp. for suits and coats
- tweed clothing
- a tweed suit
Twee·dle·dum and Twee·dle·dee [,twē-dᵊl-'dəm-ən(d)-,twē-dᵊl-'dē] -n
- two individuals or groups that are practically indistinguishable
tweedy ['twē-dē] -adj, n
- of or resembling tweed
- given to wearing tweeds
- informal or suggestive of the outdoors in taste or habits
- a tweedy, clubby world of horse shows and parties
- academic, scholarly
tween ['twēn] -prep
- between
- preteen
tween·er ['twē-nər] -n
- a player who has some but not all of the necessary characteristics for each of two or more positions (as in football or basketball)
tweet ['twēt] -n, vi
- a chirping note
tweet·er ['twē-tər] -n
- a small loudspeaker responsive only to the higher acoustic frequencies and reproducing sounds of high pitch
tweeze ['twēz] -vt
- to pluck, remove, or handle with tweezers
twee·zer ['twē-zər] -n
- tweezers
twee·zers ['twē-zərz] -n pl but sing or pl in constr
- any of various small metal instruments that are usu. held between the thumb and index finger, are used for plucking, holding, or manipulating, and consist of two legs joined at one end
Twelfth Day -n
- epiphany
Twelfth Night -n
- the evening or sometimes the eve of Epiphany
twelve ['twelv] -n, adj or n, adj, pron, pl in constr
- the twelve original disciples of Jesus
- the books of the Minor Prophets in the Jewish Scriptures
- the 12th in a set or series
- something having 12 units or members
- twelvemo
twelve·mo ['twelv-(,)mō] -n
- the size of a piece of paper cut 12 from a sheet
- a book, a page, or paper of this size
twelve·month [-,mən(t)th] -n
- year
twelvetone [-'tōn] -adj
- of, relating to, or being serial music utilizing the 12 chromatic tones
twelvetone row -n
- the 12 chromatic tones of the octave placed in a chosen fixed order and constituting with some permitted permutations and derivations the melodic and harmonic material of a serial musical piece
twen·ty ['twen-tē, 'twən-] -n, adj or n, adj, pron, pl in constr
- the numbers 20 to 29
- the years 20 to 29 in a lifetime or century
- a 20-dollar bill
twen·tyfour·mo [,twen-tē-'fȯr-(,)mō, ,twən-] -n
- the size of a piece of paper cut 24 from a sheet
- a book, a page, or paper of this size
twen·tyone [,twen-tē-'wən, ,twən-] -n, adj, pron, pl in constr
- blackjack
twen·ty·some·thing ['twen-tē-,səm(p)-thiŋ, -'twən-] -adj, n
- of, relating to, or being a person who is in his or her twenties
- a twentysomething professional
twen·tytwen·ty [-'twen-tē, -'twən-] -adj
- meeting a standard of normal visual acuity
- marked by facilely accurate discernment, judgment, or assessment
- hindsight is twentytwenty
twen·tytwo [-'tü] -n, adj, pron, pl in constr
- a .22-caliber firearm
- one firing rimfire cartridges usu. written .22
twerp ['twərp] -n
- a silly, insignificant, or contemptible person
Twi ['chwē, chə-'wē, 'twē, 'chē] -n
- a dialect of Akan
- a literary language based on the Twi dialect and used by the Akan-speaking peoples (as the Ashanti)
twi- ['twī] -prefix
- two : double : doubly : twice
twice ['twīs] -adv
- on two occasions
- two times : in doubled quantity or degree
twiceborn [-'bȯrn] -adj
- born a second time
- having undergone a definite experience of fundamental moral and spiritual renewal
- of or forming one of the three upper Hindu caste groups in which boys undergo an initiation symbolizing spiritual birth
twicelaid [-'lād] -adj
- made from the ends of rope and strands of used rope
twicetold [-'tōld] -adj
- well known from repeated telling used chiefly in the phrase a twice-told tale
twid·dle ['twi-dᵊl] -vb
- to play negligently with something : fiddle
- to turn or jounce lightly
- twiddle s round and round in the water -- J. B. S. Haldane
- to rotate lightly or idly
twiddle -n
- turn, twist
twig ['twig] -n, adj
- a small shoot or branch usu. without its leaves
- a minute branch of a nerve or artery
- notice, observe
- to understand the meaning of : comprehend
- to gain a grasp : understand
- twigged instinctively about things -- H. E. Bates
- fashion, style
twi·light ['twī-,līt] -n
- the light from the sky between full night and sunrise or between sunset and full night produced by diffusion of sunlight through the atmosphere and its dust
- a time of twilight
- an intermediate state that is not clearly defined
- lived in the twilight of neutrality -- Newsweek
- a period of decline
- the twilight of a great career
twilight glow -n
- airglow seen at twilight
Twilight of the Gods
- ragnarok
twilight zone -n
- an area just beyond ordinary legal and ethical limits
- twilight
- a world of fantasy, illusion, or unreality
twi·lit ['twī-,lit] -adj
- lighted by or as if by twilight
twill ['twil] -n
- a fabric with a twill weave
- a textile weave in which the filling threads pass over one and under two or more warp threads to give an appearance of diagonal lines
twilled ['twild] -adj
- made with a twill weave
twill·ing ['twi-liŋ] -n
- twilled fabric
- the process of making twilled fabric
twin ['twin] -n
- either of two offspring produced at a birth
- gemini
- one of two persons or things closely related to or resembling each other
- a compound crystal composed of two adjoining crystals or parts of crystals of the same kind that share a common plane of atoms
- to bring together in close association : couple
- duplicate, match
- to bring forth twins
- to grow as a twin crystal
- born with one other or as a pair at one birth
- made up of two similar, related, or connected members or parts : double
- paired in a close or necessary relationship : matching
- having or consisting of two identical units
- being one of a pair
twin bed -n
- one of a pair of matching single beds
- a twin-size bed
twin·ber·ry ['twin-,ber-ē] -n
- a western No. American honeysuckle ( Lonicera involucrata) with yellowish involucrate flowers
- partridgeberry
twin bill -n
- doubleheader
twin·born ['twin-'bȯrn] -adj
- born at the same birth
twin double -n
- a system of betting (as on horse races) in which the bettor must pick the winners of four stipulated races in order to win
twine ['twīn] -n, adj
- a strong string of two or more strands twisted together
- a twined or interlaced part or object
- an act of twining, interlacing, or embracing
- to twist together
- to form by twisting : weave
- interlace
- the girl twined her hands -- John Buchan
- to cause to encircle or enfold something
- to cause to be encircled
- to coil about a support
- to stretch or move in a sinuous manner : meander
- the river twine s through the valley
- to cause (one) to lose possession : deprive
- twined him of his nose -- J. C. Ransom
- part
- you and me must twine -- R. L. Stevenson
twin·flow·er ['twin-,flau̇(-ə)r] -n
- a prostrate subshrub ( Linnaea borealis) of the honeysuckle family that is found in cool regions of the northern hemisphere and has fragrant usu. pink flowers
twinge ['twinj] -vb
- pluck, tweak
- to affect with a sharp pain or pang
- to feel a sudden sharp local pain
- a sudden sharp stab of pain
- a moral or emotional pang
twinight ['twī-,nīt] -adj
- of, relating to, or being a baseball doubleheader in which the first game is played in the late afternoon and the second continues into the evening
twin·kle ['twiŋ-kəl] -vb, n
- to shine with a flickering or sparkling light : scintillate
- to flutter the eyelids
- to appear bright esp. with merriment
- to flutter or flit rapidly
- to cause to shine with fluctuating light
- to flicker or flirt rapidly
- twinkled the straight, red-lacquered toes -- Glenway Wescott
twinkle [-k(ə-)lē] -n, adj
- a wink of the eyelids
- the instant's duration of a wink : twinkling
- an intermittent radiance : flicker, sparkle
- a rapid flashing motion : flit
twinkling -n
- the time required for a wink : instant
- the kettle will boil in a twinkling -- Punch
twin primes -n pl
- a pair of prime numbers (as 3 and 5 or 11 and 13) differing by two
twin·set ['twin-'set] -n
- a combination of a matching pullover and cardigan worn together
twinsize ['twin-'sīz] -adj
- having dimensions of 39 by 75 inches (about 1.0 by 1.9 meters) used of a bed
twirl ['twər-(-ə)l] -vb, n
- to revolve rapidly
- to pitch in a baseball game
- to cause to rotate rapidly
- pitch
- an act of twirling
- coil, whorl
twirp ['twərp] -n
(variant of twerp)
- a silly, insignificant, or contemptible person
twist ['twist] -vb
- to unite by winding
- twist ing strands together
- to make by twisting strands together
- to mingle by interlacing
- twine, coil
- to wring or wrench so as to dislocate or distort
- sprain
- to alter the meaning of : distort, pervert
- contort
- twist ed his face into a grin
- to pull off, turn, or break by torsion
- twist the nut off the bolt
- to cause to move with a turning motion
- twist ed her chair to face the fire
- to form into a spiral shape
- to cause to take on moral, mental, or emotional deformity
- celebrity has twist ed their sense of decorum
- to make (one's way) in a winding or devious manner to a destination or objective
- to follow a winding course : snake
- to turn or change shape under torsion
- to assume a spiral shape
- squirm, writhe
- to dance the twist
- to rotate while taking a curving path or direction
- turn
- twist ed around to see behind him
- : something formed by twisting or winding: as
- a thread, yarn, or cord formed by twisting two or more strands together
- a strong tightly twisted sewing silk
- a baked piece of twisted dough
- tobacco leaves twisted into a thick roll
- a strip of citrus peel used to flavor a drink
- an act of twisting : the state of being twisted
- a dance performed with strenuous gyrations esp. of the hips
- the spin given the ball in any of various games
- a spiral turn or curve
- torque or torsional stress applied to a body (as a rod or shaft)
- torsional strain
- the angle through which a thing is twisted
- a turning off a straight course
- eccentricity, idiosyncrasy
- a distortion of meaning or sense
- an unexpected turn or development
- weird twist s of fate -- W. L. Shirer
- a clever device : trick
- questions demanding special twist s of thinking -- New Yorker
- a variant approach or method : gimmick
- a kind of twist on the old triangle theme -- Dave Fedo
- a front or back dive in which the diver twists sideways a half or full turn before entering the water
twist drill -n
- a drill having deep helical grooves extending from the point to the smooth portion of the shank
twist·ed ['twis-təd] -adj
- mentally or emotionally unsound or disturbed : sick
twist·er ['twis-tər] -n
- one that twists
- a ball with a forward and spinning motion
- a tornado, waterspout, or dust devil in which the rotatory ascending movement of a column of air is esp. apparent
twist·ing ['twis-tiŋ] -n
- the use of misrepresentation or trickery to get someone to lapse a life insurance policy and buy another usu. in another company
twist tie -n
- a tie used for closing or securing (as a plastic bag) by twisting the ends together
twit ['twit] -n
- an act of twitting : taunt
- a silly annoying person : fool
- to subject to light ridicule or reproach : rally
- to make fun of as a fault
twitch ['twich] -vb, n
- to move or pull with a sudden motion : jerk
- pull, pluck
- to move jerkily : quiver
- to undergo a brief spasmodic muscular contraction
- an act of twitching
- a short sudden pull or jerk
- a physical or mental pang
- a loop of rope or strap that is tightened over a horse's lip as a restraining device
- a brief spasmodic contraction of the muscle fibers
- a slight jerk of a body part
- quack grass
twit·ter ['twi-tər] -vb
- to utter successive chirping noises
- to talk in a chattering fashion
- giggle, titter
- to tremble with agitation : flutter
- to utter in chirps or twitters
- the robin twitter ed its morning song
- to shake rapidly back and forth : flutter
twitter ['twi-tə-rē] -n, adj
- a trembling agitation : quiver
- a small tremulous intermittent sound (as of birds)
- a light chattering
- a light silly laugh : giggle
twixt ['twikst] -prep
- between
two ['tü] -adj
- being one more than one in number
- being the second used postpositively
- section two of the instructions
- two countable individuals not specified
- a small approximate number of indicated things
- only a shot or two were fired
- the second in a set or series
- a 2-dollar bill
- something having two units or members
twobag·ger [-'ba-gər] -n
- double
twobit ['tü-'bit] -adj
- of the value of two bits
- cheap or trivial of its kind : petty, small-time
two bits -n pl but sing or pl in constr
- the value of a quarter of a dollar
- something of small worth or importance
twobyfour [,tü-bī-'fȯr] -n
- a piece of lumber approximately 2 by 4 inches as sawed and usu. 1 by 3 inches when dressed
- small or petty of its kind
- this house and its twobyfour garden -- Philip Barry
- measuring two units (as inches) by four
two cents -n
- an opinion offered on a topic under discussion
- send your two cents' worth to your senator
- a sum or object of very small value : practically nothing
- said angrily that for two cents he'd punch your nose
twocycle -adj
- having a 2-stroke cycle
twodimensional -adj, n
- of, relating to, or having two dimensions
- lacking the illusion of depth : not three-dimensional
- lacking depth of characterization
- twodimensional characters
twoedged sword ['tü-'ejd-, -'e-jəd-] -n
- double-edged sword
twofaced ['tü-'fāst] -adj, n
- double-dealing, false
- having two faces
two·fer ['tü-fər] -n
- a cheap item of merchandise
- a cigar selling at two for a nickel
- a free coupon entitling the bearer to purchase two tickets to a specified theatrical production for the price of one
- two articles available for the price of one or about the price of one
- something that satisfies two criteria or needs simultaneously
twofist·ed [-'fis-təd] -adj
- marked by vigorous often virile energy : hard-hitting
two·fold ['tü-,fōld, -'fōld] -adj, adv
- having two parts or aspects
- being twice as great or as many
twohand·ed ['tü-'han-dəd] -adj
- used with both hands
- requiring two persons
- stout, strong
- having two hands
- efficient with either hand
twoparty -adj
- characterized by two major political parties of comparable strength
two·pence ['tə-pən(t)s, US also 'tü-,pen(t)s] -n
- the sum of two British pennies
- a coin worth twopence
two·pen·ny ['təp-nē, 'tə-pə-, US also 'tü-,pe-nē] -adj
- costing or worth twopence
twophase -adj
- diphasic
twopiece ['tü-'pēs] -adj
- forming a clothing ensemble with matching top and bottom parts
- a garment (as a bathing suit) that is two-piece
twopiec·er ['tü-'pē-sər] -n
- two-piece
twoply [-'plī] -adj
- consisting of two thicknesses
- woven with two sets of warp thread and two of filling
- consisting of two strands
two's complement -n
- the negative of a binary number represented by switching all ones to zeros and all zeros to ones and then adding one to the result
twosid·ed [-'sī-dəd] -adj
- having two sides : bilateral
two·some ['tü-səm] -n
- a group of two persons or things : couple
- a golf singles match
twospot·ted spider mite ['tü-'spä-təd-] -n
- a widely distributed spider mite ( Tetranychus urticae) that feeds on soft plant parts and is a pest in greenhouses and gardens called also two-spotted mite
twostep ['tü-,step] -n, vi
- a ballroom dance in or time having a basic pattern of step-close-step
- a piece of music for the two-step
twosuit·er [-'sü-tər] -n
- a man's suitcase designed to hold two suits and accessories
twotailed ['tü-'tāl(d)] -adj
- being a statistical test for which the critical region consists of all values of the test statistic greater than a given value plus the values less than another given value
twotime ['tü-,tīm] -vt, n
- double-cross
- to betray (a spouse or lover) by secret lovemaking with another
twotoed sloth ['tü-'tōd-] -n
- any of a genus ( Choloepusof the family Megalonychidae) of sloths having two clawed digits on each forefoot, three clawed digits on each hind foot, and usu. six or seven vertebrae in the neck
twotone ['tü-'tōn] -adj
- colored in two colors or in two shades of one color
twotoned ['tü-'tōnd] -adj
- two-tone
twoway -adj
- being a cock or valve that will connect a pipe or channel with either of two others
- moving or allowing movement in either direction
- involving or allowing an exchange between two individuals or groups
- there must be good twoway communication -- Jerrold Orne
- designed for both sending and receiving messages
- involving mutual responsibility or reciprocal relationships
- political alliance is a twoway thing -- T. H. White 1986
- involving two participants
- usable in either of two manners
twoway street -n
- a situation or relationship requiring give-and-take
- marriage is a two-way street
twowheel·er [-'hwē-lər, -'wē-] -n
- a 2-wheeled vehicle (as a bicycle)
twowinged fly ['tü-'wiŋ(d)-] -n
- fly
twp -abbr
- township
TWX -abbr
- teletypewriter exchange