arty /ɑː r ti/ ADJ Someone who is arty seems very interested in drama, film, music, poetry, or painting. People often describe someone as arty when they want to suggest that the person is pretentious. [INFORMAL ] □ Didn't you find her a little bit too arty? □ …an arty French film.
a rty-fa rty or artsy-fartsy ADJ If you describe someone as arty-farty , you are criticizing them for being interested in artistic ideas or activities that most people do not think are interesting or worthwhile. [BRIT , INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ] □ …an artsy-fartsy pretentious film.
as
➊ CONJUNCTION AND PREPOSITION USES
➋ USED WITH OTHER PREPOSITIONS AND CONJUNCTIONS
➊ as ◆◆◆ /əz, STRONG æz/
→ Please look at categories 12 to 23 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1 CONJ If something happens as something else happens, it happens at the same time. □ Another policeman has been injured as fighting continued this morning. □ All the jury's eyes were on him as he continued. □ The play started as I got there.
2 PHRASE You use the structure as…as when you are comparing things. □ I never went through a final exam that was as difficult as that one. □ There was no obvious reason why this could not be as good a film as the original. ● PHRASE As is also a conjunction. □ Being a mother isn't as bad as I thought at first! □ I don't think he was ever as fit as he should have been.
3 PHRASE You use as…as to emphasize amounts of something. [EMPHASIS ] □ You can look forward to a significant cash return by saving from as little as £10 a month. □ She gets as many as eight thousand letters a month.
4 PREP You use as when you are indicating what someone or something is or is thought to be, or what function they have. □ He has worked as a diplomat in the U.S., Sudan and Saudi Arabia. □ The news apparently came as a complete surprise. □ I had natural ability as a footballer.
5 PREP If you do something as a child or as a teenager, for example, you do it when you are a child or a teenager. □ She loved singing as a child and started vocal training at 12.
6 CONJ You use as to say how something happens or is done, or to indicate that something happens or is done in the same way as something else. □ I'll behave toward them as I would like to be treated. □ Today, as usual, he was wearing a three-piece suit. □ The book was banned in the U.S., as were two subsequent books.
7 PREP You use as in expressions like as a result and as a consequence to indicate how two situations or events are related to each other. □ As a result of fears about home security, more people are arranging for someone to stay in their home when they're away.
8 CONJ You use as to introduce short clauses which comment on the truth of what you are saying. □ As you can see, we're still working. □ We were sitting, as I remember, in a riverside restaurant.
9 CONJ You can use as to mean 'because' when you are explaining the reason for something. □ Enjoy the first hour of the day. This is important as it sets the mood for the rest of the day.
10 PHRASE You say as it were in order to make what you are saying sound less definite. [VAGUENESS ] □ I'd understood the words, but I didn't, as it were, understand the question.
11 PHRASE You use expressions such as as it is , as it turns out , and as things stand when you are making a contrast between a possible situation and what actually happened or is the case. □ I want to work at home on a Tuesday but as it turns out sometimes it's a Wednesday or a Thursday.
12 as against → see against
13 as ever → see ever
14 as a matter of fact → see fact
15 as follows → see follow
16 as long as → see long ➌
17 as opposed to → see opposed
18 as regards → see regard
19 as soon as → see soon
20 as such → see such
21 as well → see well ➌
22 as well as → see well ➌
23 as yet → see yet
➋ as ◆◆◆ /əz, STRONG æz/
1 PHRASE You use as for and as to at the beginning of a sentence in order to introduce a slightly different subject that is still connected to the previous one. □ The city has some wonderful museums. As for hotels 'Coco Reef' is a great choice.
2 PHRASE You use as to to indicate what something refers to. □ They should make decisions as to whether the student needs more help.
3 PHRASE If you say that something will happen as of , or in British English as from , a particular date or time, you mean that it will happen from that time on. □ The border will be opened as of January the 1st. □ She is to retire as from 1 October.
4 PHRASE You use as if and as though when you are giving a possible explanation for something or saying that something appears to be the case when it is not. □ Anne shrugged, as if she didn't know.
asap /e I es e I piː / ADV [ADV after v] asap is an abbreviation for 'as soon as possible'. □ The colonel ordered, 'I want two good engines down here asap.'
as|bes|tos /æ sbe stɒs/ N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Asbestos is a grey material which does not burn and which has been used as a protection against fire or heat.