6 even though → see even ➊
thought ◆◆◆ /θɔː t/ (thoughts )
1 Thought is the past tense and past participle of think .
2 N‑COUNT [N that] A thought is an idea that you have in your mind. □ [+ of ] The thought of Nick made her throat tighten. □ He pushed the thought from his mind. □ I've just had a thought.
3 N‑PLURAL [usu poss N ] A person's thoughts are their mind, or all the ideas in their mind when they are concentrating on one particular thing. □ I jumped to my feet so my thoughts wouldn't start to wander. □ If he wasn't there physically, he was always in her thoughts.
4 N‑PLURAL [oft poss N ] A person's thoughts are their opinions on a particular subject. □ [+ on ] Many of you have written to us to express your thoughts on the conflict. □ [+ on ] Mr Goodman, do you have any thoughts on that? [Also + about ]
5 N‑UNCOUNT Thought is the activity of thinking, especially deeply, carefully, or logically. □ Alice had been so deep in thought that she had walked past her car without even seeing it. □ He had given some thought to what she had told him.
6 N‑COUNT A thought is an intention, hope, or reason for doing something. □ Sarah's first thought was to run back and get Max. □ [+ of ] They had no thought of surrender.
7 N‑SING [oft adj N ] A thought is an act of kindness or an offer of help; used especially when you are thanking someone, or expressing admiration of someone. □ 'Would you like to move into the ward?'—'A kind thought, but no, thank you.'
8 N‑UNCOUNT Thought is the group of ideas and beliefs which belongs, for example, to a particular religion, philosophy, science, or political party. □ Aristotle's scientific theories dominated Western thought for fifteen hundred years.
9 → see also second thought
thought|ful /θɔː tfʊl/
1 ADJ If you are thoughtful , you are quiet and serious because you are thinking about something. □ Nancy, who had been thoughtful for some time, suddenly spoke. ● thought|ful|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ Daniel nodded thoughtfully.
2 ADJ If you describe someone as thoughtful , you approve of them because they remember what other people want, need, or feel, and try not to upset them. [APPROVAL ] □ …a thoughtful and caring man. □ [+ of ] Thank you. That's very thoughtful of you. ● thought|ful|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ …the bouquet of flowers he had thoughtfully purchased for the celebrations. ● thought|ful|ness N‑UNCOUNT □ I can't tell you how much I appreciate your thoughtfulness.
3 ADJ If you describe something such as a book, film, or speech as thoughtful , you mean that it is serious and well thought out. □ …a thoughtful and scholarly book. ● thought|ful|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ …these thoughtfully designed machines.
thought|less /θɔː tləs/ ADJ If you describe someone as thoughtless , you are critical of them because they forget or ignore other people's wants, needs, or feelings. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ [+ of ] It was thoughtless of her to mention it. ● thought|less|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ They thoughtlessly planned a picnic without him.
thou ght-provo king ADJ If something such as a book or a film is thought-provoking , it contains interesting ideas that make people think seriously. □ This is an entertaining yet thought-provoking film.
thou|sand ◆◆◆ /θaʊ z ə nd/ (thousands ) The plural form is thousand after a number, or after a word or expression referring to a number, such as 'several' or 'a few'. 1 NUM A thousand or one thousand is the number 1,000. □ …five thousand acres. □ Visitors can expect to pay about a thousand pounds a day.
2 QUANT If you refer to thousands of things or people, you are emphasizing that there are very many of them. [EMPHASIS ] □ [+ of ] Thousands of refugees are packed into over-crowded towns and villages. ● PRON You can also use thousands as a pronoun. □ Hundreds have been killed in the fighting and thousands made homeless.
3 a thousand and one → see one
thou|sandth /θaʊ z ə nθ/ (thousandths )
1 ORD The thousandth item in a series is the one that you count as number one thousand. □ The magazine has just published its six thousandth edition. ● ORD If you say that something has happened for the thousandth time, you are emphasizing that it has happened again and that it has already happened a great many times. [EMPHASIS ] □ The phone rings for the thousandth time.
2 FRACTION A thousandth is one of a thousand equal parts of something. □ …a dust particle weighing only a thousandth of a gram.
thrall /θrɔː l/ N‑UNCOUNT If you say that someone is in thrall to a person or thing, you mean that they are completely in their power or are greatly influenced by them. [FORMAL ] □ [+ to ] He is not in thrall to the media. □ [+ of ] Tomorrow's children will be even more in the thrall of the silicon chip.
thrash /θræ ʃ/ (thrashes , thrashing , thrashed )
1 VERB If one player or team thrashes another in a game or contest, they defeat them easily or by a large score. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n amount] The team thrashed their opponents 5-nil. [Also V n]
2 VERB If you thrash someone, you hit them several times as a punishment. □ [V n] The school has dismissed the teacher, who is said to have thrashed pupils with sticks.
3 VERB If someone thrashes about , or thrashes their arms or legs about , they move in a wild or violent way, often hitting against something. You can also say that someone's arms or legs thrash about . □ [V adv/prep] Many of the crew died a terrible death as they thrashed about in shark-infested waters. □ [V n adv/prep] Jimmy collapsed on the floor, thrashing his legs about like an injured racehorse.