pa ck ani|mal (pack animals ) N‑COUNT A pack animal is an animal such as a horse or donkey that is used to carry things on journeys.
packed /pæ kt/
1 ADJ A place that is packed is very crowded. □ From 3.30 until 7pm, the shop is packed. □ [+ with ] The streets were packed with men, women and children.
2 ADJ [v-link ADJ with n] Something that is packed with things contains a very large number of them. □ [+ with ] The Encyclopedia is packed with clear illustrations and over 250 recipes.
pa cked lu nch (packed lunches ) N‑COUNT A packed lunch is food, for example sandwiches, which you take to work, to school, or on a trip and eat as your lunch. [BRIT ] in AM, use box lunch
pa cked ou t ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If a place is packed out , it is very full of people. [BRIT , INFORMAL ] □ There are 350 cinemas in Paris and most are packed out. in AM, use packed
pack|er /pæ kə r / (packers ) N‑COUNT A packer is a worker whose job is to pack things into containers. □ Norma Jones worked as a packer in a local chemical factory.
pack|et /pæ k I t/ (packets )
1 N‑COUNT A packet is a small container in which a quantity of something is sold. Packets are either small boxes made of thin cardboard, or bags or envelopes made of paper or plastic. [mainly BRIT ] □ Cook the rice according to instructions on the packet. □ …a crisp packet. ● N‑COUNT A packet of something is an amount of it contained in a packet. □ [+ of ] Use half a packet of noodles per person. [in AM, usually use pack , package ]
2 N‑COUNT A packet is a small flat parcel. [mainly BRIT ] □ [+ of ] …a packet of photographs.
3 N‑SING You can refer to a lot of money as a packet . [BRIT , INFORMAL ] □ It'll cost you a packet. in AM, use bundle 4 → see also pay packet , wage packet
pa ck|et swi tch|ing also packet-switching N‑UNCOUNT Packet switching is a method of sending computer data on phone lines which automatically divides the data into short pieces in order to send it and puts it together again when it is received. [COMPUTING ]
pa ck ice N‑UNCOUNT Pack ice is an area of ice that is floating on the sea. It is made up of pieces of ice that have been pushed together.
pack|ing /pæ k I ŋ/
1 N‑UNCOUNT Packing is the paper, plastic, or other material which is put round things that are being sent somewhere.
2 → see also pack
pa ck|ing box (packing boxes ) N‑COUNT A packing box is the same as a packing case . [mainly AM ]
pa ck|ing case (packing cases ) N‑COUNT A packing case is a large wooden box in which things are put so that they can be stored or taken somewhere. [mainly BRIT ] in AM, usually use packing box
pa ck|ing house (packing houses ) N‑COUNT A packing house is a company that processes and packs food, especially meat, to be sold. [AM ]
pact ◆◇◇ /pæ kt/ (pacts ) N‑COUNT A pact is a formal agreement between two or more people, organizations, or governments to do a particular thing or to help each other. □ [+ with ] Stalin signed a non-aggression pact with Nazi Germany in 1939. SYNONYMS pact NOUN
agreement: The two countries signed an agreement to jointly launch satellites.
deaclass="underline" The two sides tried and failed to come to a deal.
treaty: …the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Community.
protococlass="underline" …the Montreal Protocol to phase out use and production of CFCs.
pacy /pe I si/ (pacier , paciest ) also pacey
1 ADJ You use pacy to describe someone, especially a sports player, who has the ability to move very quickly. [BRIT ] □ …United's pacey new striker.
2 ADJ If you describe a story or a film as pacy , you mean that it is exciting because the events happen very quickly one after another. [BRIT ] □ Set in contemporary Dublin, this pacy thriller features kidnapping, mayhem and murder.
pad /pæ d/ (pads , padding , padded )
1 N‑COUNT A pad is a fairly thick, flat piece of a material such as cloth or rubber. Pads are used, for example, to clean things, to protect things, or to change their shape. □ [+ of ] He withdrew the needle and placed a pad of cotton-wool over the spot. □ …a scouring pad.
2 N‑COUNT A pad of paper is a number of pieces of paper which are fixed together along the top or the side, so that each piece can be torn off when it has been used. □ [+ of ] She wrote on a pad of paper. □ Have a pad and pencil ready and jot down some of your thoughts.
3 VERB When someone pads somewhere, they walk there with steps that are fairly quick, light, and quiet. □ [V prep/adv] Freddy speaks very quietly and pads around in soft velvet slippers. □ [V n] I often bumped into him as he padded the corridors.
4 N‑COUNT A pad is a platform or an area of flat, hard ground where helicopters take off and land or rockets are launched. □ …a little round helicopter pad. □ …a landing pad on the back of the ship.
5 → see also launch pad
6 N‑COUNT [usu pl] The pads of a person's fingers and toes or of an animal's feet are the soft, fleshy parts of them. □ [+ of ] Tap your cheeks all over with the pads of your fingers.
7 VERB If you pad something, you put something soft in it or over it in order to make it less hard, to protect it, or to give it a different shape. □ [V n + with ] Pad the back of a car seat with a pillow. □ [V n] I can tell you I always padded my bras. ● pad|ded ADJ □ …a padded jacket. □ [+ with ] …back-rests padded with camel's wool.