You’ve probably heard “lock” a lot lately as part of the word “lockdown.” We’ll tell you about several meanings of “lock” and also exactly what “lockdown” is and share a video with you showing how people are finding new ways to connect while socially distancing. Are you finding creative ways to get through lockdown?
A shed is a small rough structure built up for shelter or storage and also a large structure that is open at the sides. Unrelatedly, the verb to shed means ‘to pour or let fall,’ when we are talking about liquid, especially blood or tears, ‘to drop out or off naturally,’ when we are talking about hair, skin, or leaves or flowers, and ‘to give or send forth,’ when we are talking about light. If we are talking about rain or liquid, it can also mean…
A bolt is a type of screw used to hold things together, a movable side bar used to lock a door and also the part of the lock drawn back by a key. Informally, a bolt is a sudden escape. It is also a thunderbolt or a lightningbolt. As a verb, to bolt means ‘to fasten with a bolt’ and also ‘to make a sudden escape.’ In US English, in relation to politics, it means to….
You might know already that a skirt is a piece of clothing that hangs downward from the waist and is not joined between the legs, and also the part of a dress that hangs from the waist. As a slang term in US English, a woman can be called a skirt (in UK English, we would say “a bit” or “a piece” of skirt), but this would usually be considered offensive. In the plural, skirts or outskirts are…
To slide means ‘to move smoothly and in contact with a slippery surface,’ ‘to pass smoothly,’ and ‘to move without being noticed.’ To fall gradually into a certain state is also to slide and, when you let something slide, it means that you allow it to proceed naturally without interfering. As a noun, a slide is…
A sop is a piece of solid food, usually bread, used for dipping in liquid food like soups or gravies. Figuratively, anything completely soaked can be called a sop. Something of little value given to someone to keep them satisfied or quiet is also called a sop. Colloquially, a weak and foolish person is…
To droop means ‘to hang down loosely or sink,’ as from weakness, exhaustion, or because there’s no proper support. Figuratively, when we talk about spirits or morale, it means ‘to fade or flag’ and, poetically, when we talk about the sun, it means ‘to descend.’ A droop is a sagging, sinking, or hanging down…