10 PHRASE You can use the calm before the storm to refer to a quiet period in which there is little or no activity, before a period in which there is a lot of trouble or intense activity.
▸ calm down
1 PHRASAL VERB If you calm down , or if someone calms you down , you become less angry, upset, or excited. □ [V P ] Calm down for a minute and listen to me. □ [V n P ] He needs to calm himself down and find a balance. [Also V P n]
2 PHRASAL VERB If things calm down , or someone or something calms things down , the amount of activity, trouble, or panic is reduced. □ [V P ] We will go back to normal when things calm down. □ [V n P ] Neil Howorth, director of the academy, tried to calm things down. COLLOCATIONS calm NOUN 3
adjective + calm : eerie, preternatural, uneasy; relative; unruffled, Zen-like
verb + calm : maintain, restore
calm|ly /kɑː mli/
1 ADV [ADV with v] You can use calmly to emphasize that someone is behaving in a very controlled or ordinary way in a frightening or unusual situation. [WRITTEN , EMPHASIS ] □ The gunmen calmly walked away and escaped in a waiting car.
2 → see also calm
Cal|or gas /kæ lə r gæs/ N‑UNCOUNT Calor gas is gas in liquid form which is sold in special containers so that people can use it in places which are not connected to the gas supply, such as tents or caravans. [TRADEMARK ]
ca|lor|ic /kəlɔː r I k/ ADJ [ADJ n] Caloric means relating to calories. □ …a daily caloric intake of from 400 to 1200 calories.
calo|rie /kæ ləri/ (calories )
1 N‑COUNT Calories are units used to measure the energy value of food. People who are on diets try to eat food that does not contain many calories. □ A cafe latte does have quite a lot of calories. □ …calorie controlled diets.
2 → see also -calorie
-calorie /-kæ ləri/ COMB [usu ADJ n] -calorie is used after adjectives such as low or high to indicate that food contains a small or a large number of calories. □ …low-calorie margarine. □ …reduced-calorie mayonnaise.
calo|rif|ic /kæ lər I f I k/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] The calorific value of something, or its calorific content, is the number of calories it contains. [TECHNICAL ] □ …food with a high calorific value.
cal|um|ny /kæ ləmni/ (calumnies ) N‑VAR Calumny or a calumny is an untrue statement made about someone in order to reduce other people's respect and admiration for them. [FORMAL ] □ He was the victim of calumny.
calve /kɑː v, [AM ] kæ v/ (calves , calving , calved )
1 VERB When a cow calves , it gives birth to a calf. □ [V ] When his cows calve each year he keeps one or two calves for his family.
2 VERB Some other female animals, including elephants and whales, are said to calve when they give birth to their young. □ [V ] The whales migrate some 6,000 miles to breed and calve in the warm lagoons.
3 Calves is the plural of calf .
Cal|vin|ist /kæ lv I n I st/ (Calvinists )
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Calvinist means belonging or relating to a strict Protestant church started by John Calvin. □ …the Calvinist work ethic.
2 N‑COUNT A Calvinist is a member of the Calvinist church.
ca|lyp|so /kəl I psoʊ/ (calypsos ) N‑COUNT A calypso is a song about a current subject, sung in a style which originally comes from the West Indies.
ca|ma|ra|derie /kæ mərɑː dəri, [AM ] kɑː m-/ N‑UNCOUNT Camaraderie is a feeling of trust and friendship among a group of people who have usually known each other for a long time or gone through some kind of experience together. □ [+ of ] …the loyalty and camaraderie of the wartime Army.
cam|ber /kæ mbə r / (cambers ) N‑COUNT A camber is a gradual downward slope from the centre of a road to each side of it.
cam|cord|er /kæ mkɔː r də r / (camcorders ) N‑COUNT A camcorder is a portable video camera which records both pictures and sound.
came /ke I m/ Came is the past tense of come .
cam|el /kæ m ə l/ (camels )
1 N‑COUNT A camel is a large animal that lives in deserts and is used for carrying goods and people. Camels have long necks and one or two lumps on their backs called humps.
2 the straw that broke the camel's back → see straw
ca mel-hair The spellings camel hair , and in American English camel's hair , are also used. ADJ [ADJ n] A camel-hair coat is made of a kind of soft, thick woollen cloth, usually creamy-brown in colour.
ca|mel|lia /kəmiː liə/ (camellias ) N‑COUNT A camellia is a large bush that has shiny leaves and large white, pink, or red flowers similar to a rose.
Cam|em|bert /kæ mɒmbeə r / (Camemberts ) N‑VAR Camembert is a type of cheese that comes from Northern France. It is soft and creamy with a white skin.
cameo /kæ mioʊ/ (cameos )
1 N‑COUNT A cameo is a short description or piece of acting which expresses cleverly and neatly the nature of a situation, event, or person's character. □ He played a cameo role, that of a young cancer patient in hospital.
2 N‑COUNT A cameo is a piece of jewellery, usually oval in shape, consisting of a raised stone figure or design fixed on to a flat stone of another colour. □ …a cameo brooch.