2 N‑UNCOUNT Civilization is the state of having an advanced level of social organization and a comfortable way of life. □ …our advanced state of civilisation.
civi|lize /s I v I la I z/ (civilizes , civilizing , civilized ) in BRIT, also use civilise VERB To civilize a person or society means to educate them and improve their way of life. □ [V n] …a comedy about a man who tries to civilise a woman–but she ends up civilising him. □ [V -ing] It exerts a civilizing influence on mankind.
civi|lized /s I v I la I zd/ in BRIT, also use civilised 1 ADJ If you describe a society as civilized , you mean that it is advanced and has sensible laws and customs. [APPROVAL ] □ I believed that in civilized countries, torture had ended long ago.
2 ADJ If you describe a person or their behaviour as civilized , you mean that they are polite and reasonable. □ I wrote to my ex-wife. She was very civilised about it.
ci v|il la w N‑UNCOUNT Civil law is the part of a country's set of laws which is concerned with the private affairs of citizens, for example marriage and property ownership, rather than with crime.
ci v|il li b|er|ties The form civil liberty is used as a modifier. N‑PLURAL A person's civil liberties are the rights they have to say, think, and do what they want as long as they respect other people's rights. □ …his commitment to human rights and civil liberties. □ …civil liberty campaigners.
Ci v|il List N‑PROPER The Civil List is money paid by the state every year to members of the British Royal Family to cover their living expenses.
ci vi|l pa rt|ner|ship (civil partnerships ) N‑VAR A civil partnership is a legal relationship between two people of the same sex that is similar to marriage. □ The two men entered into a civil partnership last year.
ci v|il ri ghts N‑PLURAL [oft N n] Civil rights are the rights that people have in a society to equal treatment and equal opportunities, whatever their race, sex, or religion. □ …the civil rights movement. □ …violations of civil rights.
ci v|il se rv|ant (civil servants ) N‑COUNT A civil servant is a person who works in the Civil Service in Britain and some other countries, or for the local, state, or federal government in the United States.
Ci v|il Se r|vice also civil service N‑SING The Civil Service of a country consists of its government departments and all the people who work in them. In many countries, the departments concerned with military and legal affairs are not part of the Civil Service. □ …a job in the Civil Service.
ci v|il wa r ◆◇◇ (civil wars ) N‑COUNT A civil war is a war which is fought between different groups of people who live in the same country. □ …the Spanish Civil War.
civ|vies /s I viz/ N‑PLURAL [oft in N ] People in the armed forces use civvies to refer to ordinary clothes that are not part of a uniform. [INFORMAL ] □ They might have been soldiers in civvies.
civ|vy street /s I vi striːt/ N‑UNCOUNT People in the armed forces use civvy street to refer to life and work which is not connected with the armed forces. [BRIT , INFORMAL ]
CJD /siː dʒe I diː / N‑UNCOUNT CJD is an incurable brain disease that affects human beings and is believed to be caused by eating beef from cows with BSE. CJD is an abbreviation for 'Creutzfeldt Jakob disease'.
cl cl is a written abbreviation for centilitre . □ …two 75cl bottles of quality wine.
clack /klæ k/ (clacks , clacking , clacked ) VERB If things clack or if you clack them, they make a short loud noise, especially when they hit each other. □ [V ] The windshield wipers clacked back and forth. □ [V n] I clacked one ski against the other and almost tripped. ● N‑SING ; N‑COUNT Clack is also a noun. □ [+ of ] …listening to the clack of her shoes on the stairs. □ Her bracelets were going clack-clack-clack, she was shaking so hard.
clad /klæ d/
1 ADJ [adv ADJ ] If you are clad in particular clothes, you are wearing them. [LITERARY ] □ [+ in ] …the figure of a woman, clad in black. □ …posters of scantily-clad women. ● COMB Clad is also a combining form. □ …the leather-clad biker.
2 ADJ A building, part of a building, or mountain that is clad with something is covered by that thing. [LITERARY ] □ [+ in/with ] The walls and floors are clad with ceramic tiles. ● COMB Clad is also a combining form. □ …the distant shapes of snow-clad mountains.
clad|ding /klæ d I ŋ/
1 N‑UNCOUNT [oft n N ] Cladding is a covering of tiles, wooden boards, or other material that is fixed to the outside of a building to protect it against bad weather or to make it look more attractive. □ …stone cladding.
2 N‑UNCOUNT Cladding is a layer of metal which is put round fuel rods in a nuclear reactor.
claim ◆◆◆ /kle I m/ (claims , claiming , claimed )
1 VERB If you say that someone claims that something is true, you mean they say that it is true but you are not sure whether or not they are telling the truth. □ [V that] He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him. □ [V to-inf] A man claiming to be a journalist threatened to reveal details about her private life. □ [V with quote] 'I had never received one single complaint against me,' claimed the humiliated doctor. □ [V n] He claims a 70 to 80 per cent success rate.
2 N‑COUNT [oft N that] A claim is something which someone says which they cannot prove and which may be false. □ He repeated his claim that the people backed his action. □ He rejected claims that he had affairs with six women.