dis|tant /d I stənt/
1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Distant means very far away. □ The mountains rolled away to a distant horizon. □ …the war in that distant land.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] You use distant to describe a time or event that is very far away in the future or in the past. □ There is little doubt, however, that things will improve in the not too distant future.
3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A distant relative is one who you are not closely related to. □ He's a distant relative of the mayor. ● dis|tant|ly ADV [usu ADV -ed] □ His father's distantly related to the Royal family.
4 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If you describe someone as distant , you mean that you find them cold and unfriendly. □ He found her cold, ice-like and distant.
5 ADJ If you describe someone as distant , you mean that they are not concentrating on what they are doing because they are thinking about other things. □ There was a distant look in her eyes from time to time, her thoughts elsewhere.
dis|tant|ly /d I stəntli/
1 ADV [also ADV -ed] Distantly means very far away. [LITERARY ] □ Distantly, to her right, she could make out the town of Chiffa.
2 ADV [ADV adj, ADV with v] If you are distantly aware of something or if you distantly remember it, you are aware of it or remember it, but not very strongly. □ She became distantly aware that the light had grown brighter.
3 → see also distant
dis|taste /d I ste I st/ N‑UNCOUNT If you feel distaste for someone or something, you dislike them and consider them to be unpleasant, disgusting, or immoral. □ He professed a distaste for everything related to money.
dis|taste|ful /d I ste I stfʊl/ ADJ If something is distasteful to you, you think it is unpleasant, disgusting, or immoral. □ [+ to ] He found it distasteful to be offered drinks before witnessing the execution.
dis|tem|per /d I ste mpə r /
1 N‑UNCOUNT Distemper is a dangerous and infectious disease that can be caught by animals, especially dogs.
2 N‑UNCOUNT Distemper is a kind of paint sometimes used for painting walls.
dis|tend /d I ste nd/ (distends , distending , distended ) VERB If a part of your body is distended , or if it distends , it becomes swollen and unnaturally large. [MEDICAL , FORMAL ] □ [be V -ed] Through this incision, the abdominal cavity is distended with carbon dioxide gas. □ [V ] The colon, or large intestine, distends and fills with gas. [Also V n] ● dis|tend|ed ADJ □ …an infant with a distended belly.
dis|ten|sion /d I ste nʃ ə n/ also distention N‑UNCOUNT Distension is abnormal swelling in a person's or animal's body. [MEDICAL ]
dis|til /d I st I l/ (distils , distilling , distilled ) in AM, use distill 1 VERB If a liquid such as whisky or water is distilled , it is heated until it changes into steam or vapour and then cooled until it becomes liquid again. This is usually done in order to make it pure. □ [be V -ed] The whisky had been distilled in 1926 and sat quietly maturing until 1987. □ [V n] You can't actually drink the water from the marshland. But you can distil it. ● dis|til|la|tion /d I st I le I ʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT □ Any faults in the original cider stood out sharply after distillation.
2 VERB If an oil or liquid is distilled from a plant, it is produced by a process which extracts the most essential part of the plant. To distil a plant means to produce an oil or liquid from it by this process. □ [be V -ed + from ] The oil is distilled from the berries of this small tree. □ [V n] …the art of distilling rose petals. [Also V n from n] ● dis|til|la|tion N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] …the distillation of rose petals to produce rosewater.
3 VERB If a thought or idea is distilled from previous thoughts, ideas, or experiences, it comes from them. If it is distilled into something, it becomes part of that thing. □ [be V -ed + from ] Reviews are distilled from articles previously published in the main column. □ [V n + into ] Roy distills these messages into something powerful. ● dis|til|la|tion N‑SING □ [+ of ] The material below is a distillation of his work.
dis|till|er /d I st I lə r / (distillers ) N‑COUNT A distiller is a person or a company that makes whisky or a similar strong alcoholic drink by a process of distilling.
dis|till|ery /d I st I ləri/ (distilleries ) N‑COUNT A distillery is a place where whisky or a similar strong alcoholic drink is made by a process of distilling.
dis|tinct /d I st I ŋkt/
1 ADJ If something is distinct from something else of the same type, it is different or separate from it. □ [+ from ] Engineering and technology are disciplines distinct from one another and from science. □ This book is divided into two distinct parts. ● dis|tinct|ly ADV [ADV adj] □ …a banking industry with two distinctly different sectors.
2 ADJ If something is distinct , you can hear, see, or taste it clearly. □ …to impart a distinct flavor with a minimum of cooking fat. ● dis|tinct|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ I distinctly heard the loudspeaker calling passengers for the Turin-Amsterdam flight.
3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If an idea, thought, or intention is distinct , it is clear and definite. □ Now that Tony was no longer present, there was a distinct change in her attitude. ● dis|tinct|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ I distinctly remember wishing I had not got involved.