con|vent /kɒ nv ə nt/ (convents ) N‑COUNT A convent is a building in which a community of nuns live.
con|ven|tion ◆◇◇ /kənve nʃ ə n/ (conventions )
1 N‑VAR A convention is a way of behaving that is considered to be correct or polite by most people in a society. □ It's just a social convention that men don't wear skirts. □ Despite her wish to defy convention, she had become pregnant and married at 21.
2 N‑COUNT In art, literature, or the theatre, a convention is a traditional method or style. □ [+ of ] …the stylistic conventions of Egyptian art.
3 N‑COUNT [oft n N ] A convention is an official agreement between countries or groups of people. □ [+ on ] …the U.N. convention on climate change. □ …the Geneva convention.
4 N‑COUNT A convention is a large meeting of an organization or political group. □ [+ of ] …the annual convention of the Society of Professional Journalists. □ …the Republican convention.
con|ven|tion|al ◆◇◇ /kənve nʃən ə l/
1 ADJ Someone who is conventional has behaviour or opinions that are ordinary and normal. □ …a respectable married woman with conventional opinions. ● con|ven|tion|al|ly ADV [usu ADV with v] □ People still wore their hair short and dressed conventionally.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A conventional method or product is one that is usually used or that has been in use for a long time. □ …the risks and drawbacks of conventional family planning methods. □ This new memory stick holds twice as much information as a conventional pen drive. ● con|ven|tion|al|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ The farmer was fined for passing off conventionally-produced food as organic.
3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Conventional weapons and wars do not involve nuclear explosives. □ We must reduce the danger of war by controlling nuclear, chemical and conventional arms.
4 conventional wisdom → see wisdom SYNONYMS conventional ADJ 1
traditionaclass="underline" …traditional parents, who believed in laying down the law for their children.
conservative: People tend to be more conservative as they get older.
respectable: He came from a perfectly respectable middle-class family.
con|ven|tion|eer /kənve nʃən I ə r / (conventioneers ) N‑COUNT [usu pl] Conventioneers are people who are attending a convention. [AM ]
co n|vent school (convent schools ) N‑COUNT A convent school is a school where many of the teachers are nuns.
con|verge /kənvɜː r dʒ/ (converges , converging , converged )
1 VERB If people or vehicles converge on a place, they move towards it from different directions. □ [V + on ] Competitors from more than a hundred countries have converged on Sheffield for the Games.
2 VERB If roads or lines converge , they meet or join at a particular place. [FORMAL ] □ [V ] As they flow south, the five rivers converge.
3 VERB If different ideas or societies converge , they stop being different and become similar to each other. □ [V ] Film tastes on the two sides of the Atlantic seem to have converged. □ [V + with ] The views of householders converged and created a new consensus.
con|ver|gence /kənvɜː r dʒ ə ns/ (convergences ) N‑VAR The convergence of different ideas, groups, or societies is the process by which they stop being different and become more similar. [FORMAL ] □ …the need to move towards greater economic convergence.
con|ver|sant /kənvɜː r s ə nt/ ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If you are conversant with something, you are familiar with it and able to deal with it. [FORMAL ] □ [+ with ] Those in business are not, on the whole, conversant with basic scientific principles.
con|ver|sa|tion ◆◇◇ /kɒ nvə r se I ʃ ə n/ (conversations )
1 N‑COUNT If you have a conversation with someone, you talk with them, usually in an informal situation. □ [+ with ] He's a talkative guy, and I struck up a conversation with him. □ I waited for her to finish a telephone conversation.
2 PHRASE If you say that people are in conversation , you mean that they are talking together. □ [+ with ] When I arrived I found her in conversation with Mrs Williams.
3 PHRASE If you make conversation , you talk to someone in order to be polite and not because you really want to. □ He had been trying to make conversation.
con|ver|sa|tion|al /kɒ nvə r se I ʃən ə l/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] Conversational means relating to, or similar to, casual and informal talk. □ His father wanted him to learn conversational German.
con|ver|sa|tion|al|ist /kɒ nvə r se I ʃənəl I st/ (conversationalists ) N‑COUNT [usu adj N ] A good conversationalist is someone who talks about interesting things when they have conversations. □ Joan is a brilliant conversationalist.
con|verse (converses , conversing , conversed ) The verb is pronounced /kənvɜː r s/. The noun is pronounced /kɒ nvɜː r s/. 1 VERB If you converse with someone, you talk to them. You can also say that two people converse . [FORMAL ] □ [V + with ] Luke sat directly behind the pilot and conversed with him. □ [V ] They were conversing in German, their only common language.
2 N‑SING The converse of a statement is its opposite or reverse. [FORMAL ] □ Your job is critical to where and how you live – and the converse is also true.