name: …a man named John T. Benson.
ter|mi|nal /tɜː r m I n ə l/ (terminals )
1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A terminal illness or disease causes death, often slowly, and cannot be cured. □ …terminal cancer. □ His illness was terminal. ● ter|mi|nal|ly ADV [ADV adj] □ The patient is terminally ill.
2 N‑COUNT A terminal is a place where vehicles, passengers, or goods begin or end a journey. □ Plans are underway for a third terminal at the airport.
3 N‑COUNT A computer terminal is a piece of equipment consisting of a keyboard and a screen that is used for putting information into a computer or getting information from it. [COMPUTING ] □ Carl sits at a computer terminal 40 hours a week.
4 N‑COUNT On a piece of electrical equipment, a terminal is one of the points where electricity enters or leaves it. □ [+ of ] …the positive terminal of the battery.
ter|mi|nate /tɜː r m I ne I t/ (terminates , terminating , terminated )
1 VERB When you terminate something or when it terminates , it ends completely. [FORMAL ] □ [V n] Her next remark abruptly terminated the conversation. □ [V ] His contract terminates at the end of the season. ● ter|mi|na|tion /tɜː r m I ne I ʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] …a dispute which led to the abrupt termination of trade.
2 VERB To terminate a pregnancy means to end it. [MEDICAL ] □ [V n] After a lot of agonizing, she decided to terminate the pregnancy. ● ter|mi|na|tion (terminations ) N‑VAR □ [+ of ] You should also have a medical check-up after the termination of a pregnancy.
3 VERB When a train or bus terminates somewhere, it ends its journey there. [FORMAL ] □ [V prep/adv] This train will terminate at Taunton.
ter|mi|ni /tɜː r m I na I / Termini is a plural of terminus .
ter|mi|nol|ogy /tɜː r m I nɒ lədʒi/ (terminologies ) N‑VAR The terminology of a subject is the set of special words and expressions used in connection with it. □ …gastritis, which in medical terminology means an inflammation of the stomach.
ter|mi|nus /tɜː r m I nəs/ (termini ) N‑COUNT On a bus or train route, the terminus is the last stop, where the bus or train turns round or starts a journey in the opposite direction.
ter|mite /tɜː r ma I t/ (termites ) N‑COUNT Termites are small white insects which live in hot countries in homes made of earth. Termites do a lot of damage by eating wood.
te rm pa|per (term papers ) N‑COUNT A term paper is an essay or report which a student writes on a subject that he or she has studied during a term at a school, college, or university. [AM ]
te rms of re f|er|ence N‑PLURAL Terms of reference are the instructions given to someone when they are asked to consider or investigate a particular subject, telling them what they must deal with and what they can ignore. [FORMAL ] □ [+ of ] The government has announced the terms of reference for its proposed committee of inquiry.
tern /tɜː r n/ (terns ) N‑COUNT A tern is a small black and white seabird with long wings and a forked tail.
ter|race /te r I s/ (terraces )
1 N‑COUNT A terrace is a row of similar houses joined together by their side walls. [BRIT ] □ [+ of ] …a terrace of stylish Victorian houses. □ …3 Queensborough Terrace.
2 N‑COUNT A terrace is a flat area of stone or grass next to a building where people can sit.
3 N‑COUNT [usu pl] Terraces are a series of flat areas built like steps on the side of a hill so that crops can be grown there. □ [+ of ] …massive terraces of maize and millet carved into the mountainside like giant steps.
4 N‑PLURAL The terraces at a football ground are wide steps that people can stand on when they are watching a game. [BRIT ]
ter|raced /te r I st/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] A terraced slope or side of a hill has flat areas like steps cut into it, where crops or other plants can be grown.
te r|raced hou se (terraced houses ) N‑COUNT A terraced house or a terrace house is one of a row of similar houses joined together by their side walls. [BRIT ] in AM, use row house
ter|rac|ing /te rəs I ŋ/ N‑UNCOUNT Terracing is a sloping piece of land that has had flat areas like steps built on it, for example so that people can grow crops there.
terra|cotta /te rəkɒ tə/ also terra-cotta
1 N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Terracotta is a brownish-red clay that has been baked and is used for making things such as flower pots, small statues, and tiles. □ …plants in terracotta pots.
2 COLOUR Terracotta is used to describe things that are brownish-red in colour. □ …the soft tones of blue, cream and terracotta.
ter|ra fir|ma /te rə fɜː r mə/ N‑UNCOUNT If you describe the ground as terra firma , you mean that it feels safe in contrast to being in the air or at sea. □ …his relief on finding himself once more on terra firma.
ter|rain /təre I n/ (terrains ) N‑VAR Terrain is used to refer to an area of land or a type of land when you are considering its physical features. □ The terrain changed quickly from arable land to desert.
ter|ra|pin /te rəp I n/ (terrapins ) N‑COUNT A terrapin is a reptile which has a thick shell covering its body and which lives partly in water and partly on land.
ter|res|trial /t I re striəl/
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Terrestrial means relating to the planet Earth rather than to some other part of the universe. □ …terrestrial life forms.