admit + adverb : privately, publicly; candidly, cheerfully, freely, openly, readily; grudgingly, reluctantly, ruefully, sheepishly
ad|mit|tance /ædm I t ə ns/ N‑UNCOUNT Admittance is the act of entering a place or institution or the right to enter it. □ [+ into/to ] We had not been able to gain admittance to the flat.
ad|mit|ted|ly /ædm I t I dli/ ADV You use admittedly when you are saying something which weakens the importance or force of your statement. □ It's only a theory, admittedly, but the pieces fit together.
ad|mix|ture /ædm I kstʃə r / N‑SING Admixture means the same as mixture . [FORMAL ] □ [+ of ] …an admixture of fact and fantasy.
ad|mon|ish /ædmɒ n I ʃ/ (admonishes , admonishing , admonished ) VERB If you admonish someone, you tell them very seriously that they have done something wrong. [FORMAL ] □ [V n + for ] They admonished me for taking risks with my health. □ [V n with quote] She admonished him gently, 'You should rest, not talk so much.' [Also V n, V n to-inf] ● ad|mon|ish|ment (admonishments ) N‑VAR □ Sometimes he gave them a severe admonishment.
ad|moni|tion /æ dmən I ʃ ə n/ (admonitions ) N‑VAR An admonition is a warning or criticism about someone's behaviour. [FORMAL ] □ [+ of ] She ignored the admonitions of her mother.
a d nau |seam PHRASE If someone does something ad nauseam , they do it repeatedly and over a long period of time so that it becomes annoying or boring. □ We discussed it ad nauseam.
ado /əduː / PHRASE If you do something without further ado or without more ado , you do it at once and do not discuss or delay it any longer. [OLD-FASHIONED ] □ 'And now, without further ado, let me introduce our benefactor.'
ado|be /ədoʊ bi/ N‑UNCOUNT [usu N n] Adobe is a mixture of mud and straw that is dried into bricks in the sun and used for building, especially in hot countries. □ …a few blocks of adobe houses.
ado|les|cence /æ dəle s ə ns/ N‑UNCOUNT Adolescence is the period of your life in which you develop from being a child into being an adult. □ Some people become very self-conscious in adolescence.
ado|les|cent /æ dəle s ə nt/ (adolescents ) ADJ [usu ADJ n] Adolescent is used to describe young people who are no longer children but who have not yet become adults. It also refers to their behaviour. □ It is important that an adolescent boy should have an adult in whom he can confide. ● N‑COUNT An adolescent is an adolescent boy or girl. □ Young adolescents are happiest with small groups of close friends.
adopt ◆◆◇ /ədɒ pt/ (adopts , adopting , adopted )
1 VERB If you adopt a new attitude, plan, or way of behaving, you begin to have it. □ [V n] Parliament adopted a resolution calling for the complete withdrawal of troops. [Also V n as n] ● adop|tion /ədɒ pʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] …the adoption of Japanese management practices by British manufacturing.
2 VERB If you adopt someone else's child, you take it into your own family and make it legally your son or daughter. □ [V n] There are hundreds of people desperate to adopt a child. □ [V -ed] The adopted child has the right to see his birth certificate. [Also V ] ● adopt|er (adopters ) N‑COUNT □ A social worker is appointed to interview the prospective adopters. ● adop|tion (adoptions ) N‑VAR □ They gave their babies up for adoption. SYNONYMS adopt VERB
1
take on: Don't take on more responsibilities than you can handle.
embrace: The new rules have been embraced by government watchdog organizations.
assume: He contented himself by assuming an air of superiority.
2
take in: The monastery has taken in 26 refugees.
foster: She has since gone on to find happiness by fostering more than 100 children.
adop|tive /ədɒ pt I v/
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Someone's adoptive family is the family that adopted them. □ He was brought up by adoptive parents in London.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] Someone's adoptive country or city is the one that they choose for their home, although they were not born there. □ They threatened to expel him from his adoptive country.
ador|able /ədɔː rəb ə l/ ADJ If you say that someone or something is adorable , you are emphasizing that they are very attractive and you feel great affection for them. [EMPHASIS ] □ We have three adorable children.
ado|ra|tion /æ dɔːre I ʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT Adoration is a feeling of great admiration and love for someone or something. □ He had been used to female adoration all his life.
adore /ədɔː r / (adores , adoring , adored )
1 VERB [no cont] If you adore someone, you feel great love and admiration for them. □ [V n] She adored her parents and would do anything to please them.
2 VERB [no cont] If you adore something, you like it very much. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n] My mother adores bananas and eats two a day.
ador|ing /ədɔː r I ŋ/ ADJ An adoring person is someone who loves and admires another person very much. □ She can still pull in adoring audiences. ● ador|ing|ly ADV □ …gazing adoringly at him.
adorn /ədɔː r n/ (adorns , adorning , adorned ) VERB If something adorns a place or an object, it makes it look more beautiful. □ [V n] His watercolour designs adorn a wide range of books.