oblate
1: having the equatorial diameter greater than the polar diameter; being flattened at the poles [syn: {pumpkin-shaped}] [ant: {prolate}] n : a lay person dedicated to religious work or the religious l...
oblateness
1: the property possessed by a rounded shape that is flattened at the poles; "the oblateness of the planet" [syn: {ellipticity}]
oblation
1: the act of contributing to the funds of a church or charity; "oblations for aid to the poor" [syn: {offering}] 2: the act of offering the bread and wine of the Eucharist [syn: {religious offering}]
obligate
1: restricted to a particular condition of life; "an obligate anaerobe can survive only in the absence of OXYGen" [ant: {facultative}] v 1: force or compel somebody to do something; "We compel all stu...
obligated
1: caused by law or conscience to follow a certain course; "felt obligated to repay the kindness"; "was obligated to pay off the student loan" [syn: {obligated(p)}] [ant: {unobligated}]
obligation
1: the social force that binds you to your obligations and the courses of action demanded by that force; "we must instill a sense of duty in our children"; "every right implies a responsibility; every...
obligational
1: relating or constituting or qualified to create a legal or financial obligation; "obligational authority"
obligato
1: a persistent but subordinate motif [syn: {obbligato}] 2: a part of the score that must be performed without change or omission [syn: {obbligato}] [also: {obligati} (pl)]
obligatorily
1: in an obligatory manner; "this rule applies obligatorily" [ant: {optionally}] 2: in a manner that cannot be evaded; "the ministry considers that contributions to such a fund should be met from volu...
obligatory
1: morally or legally constraining or binding; "attendance is obligatory"; "an obligatory contribution" [ant: {optional}] 2: required by obligation or compulsion or convention; "he made all the obliga...
oblige
1: force or compel somebody to do something; "We compel all students to fill out this form" [syn: {compel}, {obligate}] 2: bind by an obligation; cause to be indebted; "He's held by a contract"; "I'll...
obliged
1: under a moral obligation to do something [syn: {duty-bound(p)}, {obliged(p)}]
obliger
1: someone who performs a service or does a favor [syn: {accommodator}]
obliging
1: happy to comply [syn: {complying}, {yielding}] 2: showing a cheerful willingness to do favors for others; "to close one's eyes like a complaisant husband whose wife has taken a lover"; "the obligin...
obligingly
1: in accommodation; "obligingly, he lowered his voice" [syn: {accommodatingly}]
obligingness
1: a disposition or tendency to yield to the will of others [syn: {complaisance}, {compliance}, {compliancy}, {deference}]
oblique
1: slanting or inclined in direction or course or position--neither parallel nor perpendicular nor right-angular; "the oblique rays of the winter sun"; "acute and obtuse angles are oblique angles"; "t...
oblique angle
1: an angle that is not a right angle or a multiple of a right angle [ant: {right angle}]
oblique bandage
1: a bandage in which successive turns proceed obliquely up or down a limb
oblique case
1: any grammatical case other than the nominative [syn: {oblique}] [ant: {nominative}]
oblique triangle
1: a triangle that contains no right angle [ant: {right triangle}]
obliquely
1: to, toward or at one side; "darting eyes looking sidelong out of a wizened face" [syn: {sidelong}, {sideways}] 2: at an oblique angle; "the sun shone aslant into his face" [syn: {aslant}, {athwart}...
obliqueness
1: the property of being neither parallel nor perpendicular, but at a slanting angle 2: the quality of being oblique and rambling indirectly [syn: {deviousness}]
obliquity
1: the presentation during labor of the head of the fetus at an abnormal angle [syn: {asynclitism}] 2: the quality of being deceptive [syn: {deceptiveness}]
obliterable
1: able to be obliterated completely [syn: {removable}]
obliterate
1: reduced to nothingness [syn: {blotted out}, {obliterated}] v 1: mark for deletion, rub off, or erase; "kill these lines in the President's speech" [syn: {kill}, {wipe out}] 2: make undecipherable o...
obliterated
1: reduced to nothingness [syn: {blotted out}, {obliterate}]
obliterating
1: making undecipherable or imperceptible; "obliterating mists"; "an obscurant bank of clouds" [syn: {obscurant}]
obliteration
1: destruction by annihilating something [syn: {annihilation}] 2: the complete destruction of every trace of something [syn: {eradication}]
obliterator
1: an eliminator that does away with all traces
oblivion
1: the state of being disregarded or forgotten [syn: {limbo}] 2: total forgetfulness; "he sought the great oblivion of sleep" [syn: {obliviousness}]
oblivious
1: (followed by `to' or `of') lacking conscious awareness of; "oblivious of the mounting pressures for political reform"; "oblivious to the risks she ran"; "not unmindful of the heavy responsibility" ...
obliviousness
1: total forgetfulness; "he sought the great oblivion of sleep" [syn: {oblivion}]
oblong
1: of a leaf shape; having a somewhat elongated form with approximately parallel sides 2: deviating from a square or circle or sphere by being elongated in one direction n : a plane figure that deviat...
oblong woodsia
1: a common rock-inhabiting fern of northern temperate regions having rusty-brown stipes and lanceolate pinnate fronds [syn: {rusty woodsia}, {fragrant woodsia}, {Woodsia ilvensis}]
oblongness
1: the property of being shaped like a rectangle [syn: {rectangularity}]
obloquy
1: state of disgrace resulting from public abuse [syn: {opprobrium}] 2: a malicious attack [syn: {defamation}, {calumny}, {traducement}, {hatchet job}]
obnoxious
1: causing disapproval or protest; "a vulgar and objectionable person" [syn: {objectionable}, {unpleasant}]
obnoxiously
1: in an obnoxious manner; "he said so in one of his more offensively intellectually arrogant sentences" [syn: {offensively}, {objectionably}]
obnoxiousness
1: the quality of being hateful [syn: {hatefulness}, {objectionableness}]
obnubilate
1: make less visible or unclear; "The stars are obscured by the clouds" [syn: {obscure}, {befog}, {becloud}, {haze over}, {fog}, {cloud}, {mist}] 2: make unclear, indistinct, or blurred; "Her remarks ...
oboe
1: a slender double-reed instrument; a woodwind with a conical bore and a double-reed mouthpiece [syn: {hautboy}, {hautbois}]
oboe d'amore
1: a oboe pitched a minor third lower than the ordinary oboe; used to perform baroque music
oboist
1: a musician who plays the oboe
obolus
1: a Greek unit of weight equal to one tenth of a gram [also: {oboli} (pl)]
obovate
1: of a leaf shape; egg-shaped with the narrower end at the base
obovate leaf
1: egg-shaped with the narrower end at the base
obscene
1: designed to incite to indecency or lust; "the dance often becomes flagrantly obscene"- Margaret Mead 2: offensive to the mind; "an abhorrent deed"; "the obscene massacre at Wounded Knee"; "morally ...
obscenely
1: to an obscene degree; "this man is obscenely rich" 2: in a lewd and obscene manner; "he had seen how in their dances the white men and women held one another obscenely" [syn: {lewdly}]
obscenity
1: the trait of behaving in an obscene manner [syn: {lewdness}, {bawdiness}, {salaciousness}, {salacity}] 2: an offensive or indecent word or phrase [syn: {vulgarism}, {dirty word}] 3: an obscene act
obscurant
1: making undecipherable or imperceptible; "obliterating mists"; "an obscurant bank of clouds" [syn: {obliterating}]
obscurantism
1: a policy of opposition to enlightenment or the spread of knowledge 2: a deliberate act intended to make something obscure
obscure
1: not clearly understood or expressed; "an obscure turn of phrase"; "an impulse to go off and fight certain obscure battles of his own spirit"-Anatole Broyard; "their descriptions of human behavior b...
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obscurely
1: in an obscure manner; "this work is obscurely written"
obscureness
1: the state of being humble and unimportant [syn: {humbleness}, {unimportance}] 2: the state of being indistinct or indefinite for lack of adequate illumination [syn: {obscurity}] 3: the quality of b...
obscurity
1: the quality of being unclear or abstruse and hard to understand [syn: {obscureness}, {abstruseness}, {reconditeness}] [ant: {clarity}] 2: an obscure and unimportant standing; not well known; "he wo...
obsequious
1: attempting to win favor from influential people by flattery [syn: {bootlicking}, {fawning}, {sycophantic}, {toadyish}] 2: attentive in an ingratiating or servile manner; "obsequious shop assistants...
obsequiously
1: in an obsequious manner; "she acts obsequiously toward her boss" [syn: {subserviently}, {servilely}]
obsequiousness
1: abject or cringing submissiveness [syn: {servility}, {subservience}]
observable
1: capable of being seen or noticed; "a discernible change in attitude"; "a clearly evident erasure in the manuscript"; "an observable change in behavior" [syn: {discernible}, {evident}]
observably
1: in an imperceptible manner or to an imperceptible degree; "the power of the Secretary of State in London increased gradually but imperceptibly" [syn: {imperceptibly}, {unnoticeably}] [ant: {percept...
observance
1: the act of observing; taking a patient look [syn: {observation}, {watching}] 2: a formal event performed on a special occasion; "a ceremony commemorating Pearl Harbor" [syn: {ceremony}, {ceremonial...
observant
1: paying close attention especially to details 2: quick to notice; showing quick and keen perception [syn: {observing}] 3: (of individuals) adhering strictly to laws and rules and customs; "law-abidi...
observantly
1: in an observant manner [syn: {observingly}]
observation
1: the act of making and recording a measurement 2: the act of observing; taking a patient look [syn: {observance}, {watching}] 3: facts learned by observing; "he reported his observations to the mayo...
observation tower
1: a structure commanding a wide view of its surroundings [syn: {lookout}, {lookout station}, {observatory}]
observational
1: relying on observation or experiment; "experimental results that supported the hypothesis" [syn: {experimental}, {data-based}]
observatory
1: a building designed and equipped to observe astronomical phenomena 2: a structure commanding a wide view of its surroundings [syn: {lookout}, {observation tower}, {lookout station}]
observe
1: discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of; "She detected high levels of lead in her drinking water"; "We found traces of lead in the paint" [syn: {detect}, {find}, {discover}, {noti...
observed
1: discovered or determined by scientific observation; "variation in the ascertained flux depends on a number of factors"; "the discovered behavior norms"; "discovered differences in achievement"; "no...
observed fire
1: fire for which the point of impact (the burst) can be seen by an observer; fire can be adjusted on the basis of the observations
observer
1: a person who becomes aware (of things or events) through the senses [syn: {perceiver}, {beholder}] 2: an expert who observes and comments on something [syn: {commentator}]
observing
1: quick to notice; showing quick and keen perception [syn: {observant}]
observingly
1: in an observant manner [syn: {observantly}]
obsess
1: haunt like a ghost; pursue; "Fear of illness haunts her" [syn: {haunt}, {ghost}] 2: be preoccupied with something; "She is obsessing over her weight"
obsessed
1: having or showing excessive or compulsive concern with something; "became more and more haunted by the stupid riddle"; "was absolutely obsessed with the girl"; "got no help from his wife who was pr...
obsession
1: an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions against your will [syn: {compulsion}] 2: an unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone [syn: {fixation}]
obsessional
1: characterized by or constituting an obsession; "the obsessional character of his response"; "obsessive gambling" [syn: {obsessive}]
obsessionally
1: in a compulsive manner; "he cleaned his shoes compulsively after every walk" [syn: {compulsively}, {obsessively}]
obsessive
1: characterized by or constituting an obsession; "the obsessional character of his response"; "obsessive gambling" [syn: {obsessional}]
obsessive-compulsive
1: characterized by obsessions and compulsions; "obsessive-compulsive neurosis"
obsessively
1: in a compulsive manner; "he cleaned his shoes compulsively after every walk" [syn: {compulsively}, {obsessionally}]
obsessivity
1: extreme compulsiveness [syn: {obsessiveness}]
obsidian
1: acid or granitic glass; usually dark, but transparent in thin pieces
obsolesce
1: become obsolete, fall into disuse; "This word has not obsolesced, although it is rarely used"
obsolescence
1: the process of becoming obsolete; falling into disuse or becoming out of date; "a policy of planned obsolescence"
obsolete
1: old; no longer in use or valid or fashionable; "obsolete words"; "an obsolete locomotive"; "outdated equipment"; "superannuated laws"; "out-of-date ideas" [syn: {outdated}, {out-of-date}, {superann...
obsoleteness
1: the property of being out of date and not current [syn: {superannuation}]
obstacle
1: something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted; "lack of immagination is an obstacle to one's advancement"; "the poverty of a district is an obstacle to good edu...
obstacle race
1: a race in which competitors must negotiate obstacles
obstetric
1: of or relating to or used in or practicing obstetrics; "obstetric hospital" [syn: {obstetrical}]
obstetrical
1: of or relating to or used in or practicing obstetrics; "obstetric hospital" [syn: {obstetric}]
obstetrical toad
1: European toad whose male carries the fertilized eggs wrapped around its hind legs until they hatch [syn: {midwife toad}, {Alytes obstetricans}]
obstetrician
1: a physician specializing in obstetrics [syn: {accoucheur}]
obstetrics
1: the branch of medicine dealing with childbirth and care of the mother [syn: {OB}, {tocology}, {midwifery}]
obstinacy
1: the trait of being difficult to handle or overcome [syn: {stubbornness}, {obstinance}, {mulishness}] 2: resolute adherence to your own ideas or desires [syn: {stubbornness}, {bullheadedness}, {obst...
obstinance
1: the trait of being difficult to handle or overcome [syn: {stubbornness}, {obstinacy}, {mulishness}] 2: resolute adherence to your own ideas or desires [syn: {stubbornness}, {bullheadedness}, {obsti...
obstinate
1: stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing [syn: {cussed}, {obdurate}, {unrepentant}] 2: resistant to guidance or discipline; "Mary Mary quite contrary"; "an obstinate child with a violent temper"; "a per...
obstinately
1: in a stubborn unregenerate manner; "she remained stubbornly in the same position" [syn: {stubbornly}, {pig-headedly}, {obdurately}, {mulishly}, {cussedly}]
obstipation
1: severe constipation resulting from an obstruction in the intestines
obstreperous
1: noisily and stubbornly defiant; "obstreperous boys" 2: boisterously and noisily aggressive; "kept up an obstreperous clamor"
obstreperously
1: in manner that attracts attention; "obstreperously, he demanded to get service" [syn: {loudly}, {clamorously}]
obstruct
1: hinder or prevent the progress or accomplishment of; "His brother blocked him at every turn" [syn: {blockade}, {block}, {hinder}, {stymie}, {stymy}, {embarrass}] 2: block passage through; "obstruct...
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