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1 greatest possible majority
Дипломатический термин: максимальное большинствоУниверсальный англо-русский словарь > greatest possible majority
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2 greatest possible majority
Англо-русский дипломатический словарь > greatest possible majority
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3 greatest possible majority
English-russian dctionary of diplomacy > greatest possible majority
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4 majority
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5 большинство большинств·о
majority, the generality, pluralityполучить большинство (голосов) — to carry / to gain / to obtain / to receive majority
пользоваться поддержкой большинства — to command / to master a majority
абсолютное большинство — absolute / clear / overwhelming majority
должностное большинство (большинство, составленное из людей, являющихся членами законодательного органа в силу занимаемого ими должностного положения) — official majority
достаточное (для проведения мероприятия) большинство (голосов) — working majority
быть избранным / принятым значительным большинством (голосов) — to be elected / accepted by a large majority
квалифицированное / специально установленное большинство — qualified majority
незначительное большинство — bare / marginal / narrow / small majority
незначительным большинством (голосов) — by a small / margin-al / narrow / bare majority
огромное большинство — bloated majority разг.
располагать парламентским большинством — to command / to have a parliamentary majority
подавляющее большинство — overwhelming / overall / plum-ping majority
прочное / решающее большинство в парламенте — decisive parliamentary majority
требуемое большинство — requested / requisite majority
большинство избирателей — majority / generality of voters
большинство присутствующих и участвующих в голосовании членов — majority of the members present and voting
правила принятия решений большинством (голосов), принцип большинства — majority rule
решение, принятое большинством (голосов) — majority decision, decision of the majority
Russian-english dctionary of diplomacy > большинство большинств·о
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6 максимальное большинство
Diplomatic term: greatest possible majorityУниверсальный русско-английский словарь > максимальное большинство
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7 maggiore
1. adj bigger( più vecchio) oldermusic majoril maggiore the biggestfiglio the oldestartista the greatestazionista the major, the largestla maggior parte del tempo/di noi most of the time/of us, the majority of the time/of usandare per la maggiore be a crowd pleaser2. m military major* * *maggiore agg.compar.1 (in senso astratto) greater; (più grosso) larger, bigger; (più ampio) wider; (più alto) higher, taller; (più lungo) longer: una quantità maggiore, a greater quantity; una somma maggiore, a bigger (o larger) amount; con maggior cura, with greater care; occorre uno spazio maggiore, a larger (o bigger o wider) space is needed; il costo risultò molto maggiore del preventivo, the cost turned out to be much higher than the estimate; l'affluenza alle urne è stata maggiore nel nord che nel sud, the turnout at the polls was higher in the north than in the south; una distanza maggiore, a longer distance; il lato maggiore dell'edificio è ornato da colonne, the longer side of the building is decorated with columns // otto è maggiore di cinque, eight is more than five // per maggiori dettagli, for further details // onde evitare danni maggiori, to avoid greater (o heavier) damage // avere maggiori probabilità di riuscita, to stand a better chance of success // dare maggiore importanza a qlco., to give more importance to sthg. // a maggior ragione, all the more reason // per causa di forza maggiore, for reasons beyond one's control; (dir.) act of God // altare maggiore, high (o main) altar // Lago Maggiore, Lake Maggiore // San Domenico Maggiore, St. Dominic the Greater // (eccl.) ordini maggiori, higher orders // (astr.) Orsa Maggiore, the Great Bear2 (più importante) major, more important: le opere maggiori del Leopardi, Leopardi's major works; i personaggi maggiori del romanzo, the major characters in the novel; arti maggiori, major arts; astri maggiori, major stars3 (più anziano) older; (di fratelli o figli) elder: Carlo è maggiore di Mario, Charles is older than Mario; lei è maggiore di me di 2 anni, she is 2 years older than me; mio figlio maggiore, my elder son; chi dei due è il maggiore?, which one is the elder? // raggiungere la maggiore età, to come of age // Scipione il Maggiore, Scipio the Elder◆ agg.superl.rel.1 (in senso astratto) the greatest; (il più grosso) the largest, the biggest; (il più ampio) the widest; (il più alto) the highest, the tallest; (il più lungo) the longest: Dante è il maggiore poeta italiano, Dante is the greatest Italian poet; uno dei maggiori filosofi dell'antichità, one of the greatest philosophers of ancient times; i maggiori esponenti del Romanticismo, the greatest exponents of Romanticism; il suo maggiore difetto è la pigrizia, laziness is his greatest failing; superare le maggiori difficoltà, to overcome the greatest difficulties; trattare con la maggior cura possibile, to handle with the greatest possible care; vendere al prezzo maggiore, to sell at the highest price; il maggiore offerente, the highest bidder; il programma televisivo con il maggiore indice di ascolto, the TV programme with the highest audience ratings; il Po è il maggiore fiume italiano, the Po is the longest river in Italy // la maggior parte, most; (la maggioranza) the majority: la maggior parte degli italiani va in vacanza in agosto, most Italians go on holiday in August; la maggior parte dei presenti votò contro la proposta, most of those presents voted against the proposal; i turisti erano per la maggior parte tedeschi, most of the tourists were German; la maggior parte della gente crede che..., most people think that...; passa la maggior parte del suo tempo in ufficio, he spends most of his time at the office; la maggior parte di noi la pensava diversamente, most of us thought differently; Rotterdam è uno dei maggiori porti del mondo, Rotterdam is one of the busiest ports in the world // la cattedrale ha subito i danni maggiori, the worst (o heaviest) damage was to the cathedral // andare per la maggiore, to be very popular (o to be in)2 (il più importante) major, main, leading: i nostri maggiori concorrenti sono i giapponesi, our major (o main) competitors are the Japanese; Milano e Torino sono i maggiori centri industriali d'Italia, Milan and Turin are Italy's major (o main) industrial centres; i maggiori rappresentanti del partito, the party's leading representatives; uno dei maggiori stilisti, one of the leading designers; il Canada è il maggior produttore di grano nel mondo, Canada is the world's leading wheat producer3 (il più anziano) oldest; (di fratelli o figli) the eldest: Giorgio è il maggiore dei fratelli, George is the eldest brother; il maggiore dei miei figli, il mio figlio maggiore, my eldest son; chi è il maggiore dei tre?, which of the three is the eldest? ∙ Come si nota dagli esempi, questo agg. è espresso in ingl. in modi diversi a seconda del significato assunto dall'agg. positivo grande // (econ.) i soci maggiori di una società, the senior partners of a company; i maggiori azionisti di un'impresa, the main shareholders of an enterprise; i maggiori dirigenti di un'azienda, the chief executives of a company.1 (chi è più anziano d'età) the oldest; (di fratelli o figli) the eldest: il maggiore dei tre fratelli lavora negli Stati Uniti, the eldest of the three brothers works in the United States2 (chi è di grado superiore) senior3 (dir.) → maggiorenne4 (mil.) major: maggiore generale, major general.* * *[mad'dʒore]1. agg comp di grande1) (più grande) bigger, larger, (di quantità) greatercon maggiore entusiasmo — with more o greater enthusiasm
2) (più importante) more important, (di notevole rilevanza) major3) (più anziano: sorella, fratello) elder, older4)sergente maggiore — sergeant majorStato Maggiore Mil — general staff
5) Mus major2. agg superl di grande(vedi grande), biggest, largest; greatest; most important; eldest, oldestla maggior parte della gente — most people, the majority (of people)
andare per la maggiore — (cantante, attore ecc) to be very popular, be "in"
3. sm/f1) (grado) Mil major, Aer squadron leader2) (d'età: tra due) older, elder, (tra più di due) oldest, eldest* * *[mad'dʒore] 1.1) (più grande) (comparativo) bigger, greater (di than); (superlativo) biggest, greatest (di of, in)per -i informazioni... — for further information...
x è maggiore o uguale a y — mat. x is greater than or equal to y
2) (più lungo) (comparativo) longer (di than); (superlativo) longest (di of)il maggior produttore di vino del mondo — the world's largest o leading wine producer
sergente maggiore — staff o master AE sergeant
5) mus. major6) (di età) (comparativo) older; (superlativo) oldest; (tra due persone) older; (tra due consanguinei) elder; (tra più consanguinei) eldestmio fratello maggiore — my elder brother; (con più di due fratelli) my eldest brother
maggiore età — majority, legal o voting age
raggiungere la maggiore età — to come of age, to reach one's majority
la maggior parte di... — most (of)...
come la maggior parte di voi sa... — as most of you know...
2.per la maggior parte — for the most part, mostly, mainly
sostantivo maschile e sostantivo femminile (il più anziano) oldest; (tra due consanguinei) elder; (tra più consanguinei) eldest3.sostantivo maschile mil. major••* * *maggiore/mad'dʒore/1 (più grande) (comparativo) bigger, greater (di than); (superlativo) biggest, greatest (di of, in); una somma maggiore del previsto a larger sum than expected; per -i informazioni... for further information...; x è maggiore o uguale a y mat. x is greater than or equal to y2 (più lungo) (comparativo) longer (di than); (superlativo) longest (di of); il lato maggiore di un poligono the longest side of a polygon3 (più importante) il maggior produttore di vino del mondo the world's largest o leading wine producer; i -i poeti italiani the greatest Italian poets5 mus. major; re maggiore D major6 (di età) (comparativo) older; (superlativo) oldest; (tra due persone) older; (tra due consanguinei) elder; (tra più consanguinei) eldest; mio fratello maggiore my elder brother; (con più di due fratelli) my eldest brother; maggiore età majority, legal o voting age; raggiungere la maggiore età to come of age, to reach one's majority7 maggior parte la maggior parte di... most (of)...; la maggior parte delle persone most people; come la maggior parte di voi sa... as most of you know...; per la maggior parte for the most part, mostly, mainlyII m. e f.III sostantivo m.⇒ 12 mil. majorandare per la maggiore to be trendy; per cause di forza maggiore due to circumstances beyond our control; a maggior ragione all the more reason. -
8 flest
* * *adj most;[ de fleste] most,F the majority of ( fx in most (el. the majority of) cases; most(el. the majority) of them returned),(= de fleste mennesker) most people, the majority of people;[ de er de fleste] they are in the majority;[ de flest mulige] as many as possible; the greatest possible number;[ som folk er flest], se folk. -
9 mayor
adj.1 bigger.2 grown-up (adulto).cuando sea mayor when I grow upser mayor de edad to be an adult3 older (no joven).una mujer mayor an older womanser muy mayor to be very old4 main (principal) (plaza, calle, palo).5 major, main, chief, leading.f. & m.1 major (military).2 head.* * *► adjetivo3 (de edad) mature, elderly4 (adulto) grown-up■ ya eres mayor, así que defiéndete tú solo you are old enough to stand up for yourself now5 (principal) main6 MÚSICA major1 MILITAR major1 (adultos) grown-ups, adults; (antepasados) ancestors► nombre masculino,nombre femenino el/la mayor1 (entre varios) the oldest; (entre hermanos, hijos) the eldest, the oldest\al por mayor wholesalehacerse mayor to grow upno ir/pasar a mayores not to come to anything, not to be anything seriousser mayor de edad to be of agecalle mayor high street, US main street* * *1. noun mf. 2. adj.1) main, major2) bigger, biggest3) larger, largest4) greater, greatest5) elder, oldest•* * *1. ADJ1) [comparativo]a) (=más grande)necesitamos una habitación mayor — we need a bigger o larger room
un mayor número de visitantes — a larger o greater number of visitors, more visitors
son temas de mayor importancia — they are more important issues, they are issues of greater importance
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la mayor parte de los ciudadanos — most citizens•
ser mayor que algo, mi casa es mayor que la suya — my house is bigger o larger than hisb) (=de más edad) olderes mi hermana mayor — she's my older o elder sister
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mayor que algn — older than sbvivió con un hombre muchos años mayor que ella — she lived with a man many years her senior, she lived with a man who was several years older than her
2) [superlativo]a) (=más grande)esta es la mayor iglesia del mundo — this is the biggest o largest church in the world
su mayor problema — his biggest o greatest problem
su mayor enemigo — his biggest o greatest enemy
viven en la mayor miseria — they live in the greatest o utmost poverty
hacer algo con el mayor cuidado — to do sth with the greatest o utmost care
b) (=de más edad) oldestmi hijo (el) mayor — my oldest o eldest son
3) (=principal) [plaza, mástil] main; [altar, misa] highcolegio 1), libro 2)calle mayor — high street, main street (EEUU)
4) (=adulto) grown-up, adultlas personas mayores — grown-ups, adults
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hacerse mayor — to grow up5) (=de edad avanzada) old, elderly6) (=jefe) head antes de s7) (Mús) major2. SMF1) (=adulto) grown-up, adultlos mayores se fueron a una fiesta — the grown-ups o adults went to a party
mayor de edad — adult, person who is legally of age
2) (=anciano)¡más respeto con los mayores! — be more respectful to your elders (and betters)!
3) LAm (Mil) major3.SM•
al por mayor — wholesalerepartir golpes al por mayor — to throw punches left, right and centre
* * *I1)a) ( comparativo de grande)un número mayor que 40 — a number bigger o greater than 40
b) ( superlativo de grande)tienen el mayor número de accidentes — they have the greatest o highest number of accidents
su mayor preocupación — her greatest o biggest worry
a la mayor brevedad posible — (Corresp) as soon as possible o (frml) at your earliest convenience
la mayor parte de los estudiantes — most students, the majority of students
2) ( en edad)a) ( comparativo) older¿tienes hermanos mayores? — do you have any older o elder brothers or sisters?
b) ( superlativo)es la mayor de las dos — she is the older o elder of the two
mi hijo mayor — my eldest o oldest son
c) ( anciano) elderlyd) ( adulto)hay que respetar a las personas mayores — you should treat adults o (colloq) grown-ups with respect
ser mayor de edad — (Der) to be of age
soy mayor de edad y haré lo que quiera — I'm over 18 (o 21 etc) and I'll do as I please
sin mayores contratiempos — without any serious o major hitches
no pasar or llegar a mayores: tuvo un novio, pero el asunto no pasó a mayores she had a boyfriend, but it didn't come to anything; afortunadamente la cosa no llegó a mayores — fortunately it was nothing serious
4) ( en nombres) ( principal) mainCalle Mayor — Main Street ( in US), High Street ( in UK)
5) (Mús) major6) (Com)IImasculino y femenino1) ( adulto) adult, grown-up (colloq)mis/tus mayores — my/your elders
2) mayor masculino (AmL) (Mil) major* * *I1)a) ( comparativo de grande)un número mayor que 40 — a number bigger o greater than 40
b) ( superlativo de grande)tienen el mayor número de accidentes — they have the greatest o highest number of accidents
su mayor preocupación — her greatest o biggest worry
a la mayor brevedad posible — (Corresp) as soon as possible o (frml) at your earliest convenience
la mayor parte de los estudiantes — most students, the majority of students
2) ( en edad)a) ( comparativo) older¿tienes hermanos mayores? — do you have any older o elder brothers or sisters?
b) ( superlativo)es la mayor de las dos — she is the older o elder of the two
mi hijo mayor — my eldest o oldest son
c) ( anciano) elderlyd) ( adulto)hay que respetar a las personas mayores — you should treat adults o (colloq) grown-ups with respect
ser mayor de edad — (Der) to be of age
soy mayor de edad y haré lo que quiera — I'm over 18 (o 21 etc) and I'll do as I please
sin mayores contratiempos — without any serious o major hitches
no pasar or llegar a mayores: tuvo un novio, pero el asunto no pasó a mayores she had a boyfriend, but it didn't come to anything; afortunadamente la cosa no llegó a mayores — fortunately it was nothing serious
4) ( en nombres) ( principal) mainCalle Mayor — Main Street ( in US), High Street ( in UK)
5) (Mús) major6) (Com)IImasculino y femenino1) ( adulto) adult, grown-up (colloq)mis/tus mayores — my/your elders
2) mayor masculino (AmL) (Mil) major* * *mayor11 = senior, elderly, eldest.Nota: Referido a edad.Ex: If we instruct it to ponder this question more leisurely, it will quickly try the user's patience with digressions concerning the less illustrious senior MOZART, LEOPOLD.
Ex: To the general public 'the female librarian is still angular, elderly, acidulous and terrifying', to use Geoffrey Langley's words, 'and a male librarian is impossible under any hypothesis'.Ex: When her eldest son developed a glaucoma she became aware of the lack of suitable books.* apto para mayores de 13 años o menores acompañados = PG-13.* asistencia social para los mayores = elderly care, elder care [eldercare].* centro de día para mayores = day centre for the elderly.* cuidado de los mayores = kinkeeping.* cuidados de los mayores = elderly care, elder care [eldercare].* cuidados para personas mayores = elderly care, elder care [eldercare].* familiar que cuida de los mayores = kinkeeper.* gente mayor = elderly people.* hombre mayor = elderly man.* mayor de 25 años = mature adult.* mayores, los = elderly, the.* muy mayor = over the hill.* pesonas mayores = elderly people.* ser mayor = be older.mayor22 = largest, greater, heightened, increased.Ex: Together they constitute the world's largest data base.
Ex: The likelihood of data transmission errors is greater, however, and it is not recommended for constant use.Ex: The heightened level of community awareness has led some local authorities to take the initiative and to become information disseminators in their own right.Ex: Information networks are critical tools to ensure the exchange, transfer, and use of information which will facilitate the increased quality and quantity of agricultural production.* admitir un número de reservas mayor a las plazas existentes = overbook.* alcanzar mayores cotas = rise to + greater heights.* al por mayor = in bulk.* cada vez en mayor grado = ever-increasing.* cada vez mayor = escalating, ever-growing, ever-increasing, expanded, growing, increasing, mounting, rising, spiralling [spiraling, -USA], deepening, rapidly growing, expanding, constantly rising, swelling, ever larger [ever-larger], galloping, steadily rising, steadily growing, mushrooming, ever greater, rapidly expanding, ever-widening, burgeoning, heightening.* cada vez mucho mayor = fast-increasing, exploding.* calle mayor, la = main street, the.* causa de fuerza mayor = act of God.* colegio mayor = residence hall, dormitory [dorm, -abbr.], student residence.* comprar al por mayor = buy + in bulk.* con el mayor cuidado = with utmost care.* con el mayor secreto = a veil of secrecy.* con mayor detalle = in greater detail.* con mayor profundidad = in most detail, in more detail.* con un mayor nivel educativo = better educated [better-educated].* dar mayor importancia a = give + pride of place to.* demasiado mayor en relación con Algo = overage.* demasiado mayor para su curso = overage for grade.* de mayor edad = senior.* de mayor o menor importancia = great and small.* desajuste cada vez mayor entre... y = widening of the gap beween.... and, widening gap between... and.* descuento por compra al por mayor = bulk deal, bulk rate, bulk rate discount.* diferencia cada vez mayor entre... y = widening of the gap beween.... and, widening gap between... and.* distanciamiento cada vez mayor entre... y, = widening gap between... and, widening of the gap beween.... and.* durante la mayor parte de = for much of.* durante la mayor parte del año = for the best part of the year.* en caso de fuerza mayor = in the event of circumstances beyond + Posesivo + control.* en el mayor secreto = a veil of secrecy.* en la mayor parte de = in the majority of.* en mayor grado = to a greater degree, a fortiori, to a greater extent, to a larger degree, to a larger extent.* en mayor medida = to a greater extent, to a greater degree, a fortiori, to a larger degree, to a larger extent.* en mayor o menor grado = to a greater or lesser degree.* en mayor o menor medida = to a greater or lesser extent.* en su mayor parte = largely, mostly, for the most part.* en un número cada vez mayor = in increasing numbers.* fuerza mayor = force majeure.* hora de mayor demanda = peak time.* importancia cada vez mayor = growing importance, growing significance.* interés cada vez mayor = growing interest.* jefe del estado mayor = Chief of Staff.* la mayor parte de = the majority of, the main bulk of, the lion's share of.* la mayor parte de las veces = more often than not.* la proporción mayor de = the lion's share of.* libro de mayor venta = bestseller [best seller/best-seller].* material de tamaño mayor de lo normal = outsize material.* mayor + Nombre = longer + Nombre.* mayor rendimiento = efficiencies of scale.* mucho mayor = far greater, far larger, very much greater.* obtener el mayor rendimiento posible = maximise + opportunities.* para mayor información sobre = for details of.* para mayor información véase + Nombre = see + Nombre + for further details.* para mayor inri = to cap it all (off), on top of everything else, on top of everything else, but to make things worse, but to make matters worse.* período de mayor demanda = peak time.* precio al por mayor = block rate, wholesale price, bulk rate.* precio especial por compra al por mayor = bulk deal.* preocupación cada vez mayor (por) = growing concern (about).* problema cada vez mayor = growing problem.* problemas cada vez mayores = mounting problems.* programación televisiva de mayor audiencia = prime time television.* programa de mayor audiencia = prime time programme, prime time show.* sacar el mayor partido al dinero de uno = get + the most for + Posesivo + money.* sacar mayor partido a = squeeze + more life out of.* sacar mayor provecho = stretch + further.* separación cada vez mayor entre... y = widening gap between... and.* ser el que con mayor frecuencia = be (the) most likely to.* símbolo de mayor-que (>) = greater-than sign (>), greater-than symbol (>), right angled bracket (>).* suministro al por mayor = bulk supply.* tonto de marca mayor = prize idiot.* una mayor variedad de = a wider canvas of.* una necesidad cada vez mayor = a growing need.* un conjunto cada vez mayor de = a growing body of.* un grupo cada vez mayor de = a growing body of.* un número cada vez mayor = growing numbers.* un número cada vez mayor de = a growing number of, a growing body of.* vender al por mayor = sell + in bulk, wholesale.* venta al por mayor = wholesaling, wholesale.* * *Apueden volar a mayor altura they can fly at a greater heightestas tablas le dan mayor amplitud a la falda these pleats make the skirt fullerun material de mayor flexibilidad a more flexible materialen otros países el índice de mortalidad infantil es aún mayor in other countries the infant mortality rate is even higheresto podría reportar beneficios aún mayores this could bring even greater benefitsmayor QUE algo:una superficie cuatro veces mayor que la de nuestro país a surface area four times greater than that of our countrycualquier número mayor que 40 any number above 40 o greater than 40 o higher than 40X > Z ( Mat) (read as: equis es mayor que zeta) X > Z (léase: x is greater than z)el mayor país de América Latina the biggest country in Latin Americael mayor número de accidentes de Europa the greatest o highest number of accidents in Europeésa ha sido siempre su mayor preocupación that has always been her greatest worryle ruego lo envíe a la mayor brevedad posible ( Corresp) please send it as soon as possible o ( frml) at your earliest conveniencela mayor parte de los argentinos most Argentinians, the majority of Argentinians1 (comparativo) older¿tienes hermanos mayores? do you have any older o elder brothers or sisters?mayor QUE algn older THAN sbsoy dos meses mayor que tú I am two months older than you2(superlativo): ¿quién de los dos es el mayor? who is the older o elder of the two?éste es mi hijo mayor this is my eldest o oldest sonel mayor de todos los residentes the oldest of all the residents3 (viejo) elderlyya es muy mayor y no puede valerse sola she's very old o ( colloq) she's getting on and she can't manage on her own4(adulto): no se les habla así a las personas mayores you shouldn't talk to adults o grown-ups like thatcuando sea mayor quiero ser bombero when I grow up I want to be a firemanvamos, que ya eres mayorcito para estar haciendo esas cosas come on, you're a bit old to be doing things like thatcuando sea mayor de edad ( Der) when he reaches the age of majoritysoy mayor de edad y haré lo que quiera I'm over 18 ( o 21 etc) and I'll do as I pleaseC ( en frases negativas)(grande): no creo que esto requiera mayores explicaciones I don't think this needs much in the way of explanationno tengo mayor interés en el tema I'm not particularly interested in o I don't have any great interest in the subjectla noticia no me produjo mayor inquietud the news did not worry me particularly o undulyse llevó a cabo sin mayores contratiempos it was carried out without any serious o major hitchesno pasar or llegar a mayores: tuvo un pretendiente, pero la cosa no pasó a mayores she had a boyfriend, but it didn't come to anything o but nothing came of ithubo una pelea pero no llegó a mayores there was a fight but it was nothing seriousE ( Mús) majorF ( Com):(al) por mayor wholesale[ S ] venta sólo (al) por mayor wholesale onlylos compran (al) por mayor they buy them wholesalehubo problemas (al) por mayor there were innumerable problemsA1(adulto): no te metas en las conversaciones de los mayores don't interrupt when the adults o grown-ups are talkingcada niño debe ir acompañado de un mayor each child must be accompanied by an adultmis/tus mayores my/your eldersCompuesto:masculine and feminine person who is legally of age o who has reached the age of majorityB* * *
mayor adjetivo
1a) ( comparativo de
‹ beneficio› greater;
a mayor escala on a larger scale;
un número mayor que 40 a number greater than 40b) ( superlativo de◊ grande): el mayor número de accidentes the greatest o highest number of accidents;
su mayor preocupación her greatest o biggest worry;
a la mayor brevedad posible as soon as possible;
la mayor parte de los estudiantes most students, the majority of students
2 ( en edad)
mayor que algn older than sbb) ( superlativo):◊ es la mayor de las dos she is the older o elder of the two;
mi hijo mayor my eldest o oldest son
d) ( adulto):
cuando sea mayor when I grow up;
ser mayor de edad (Der) to be of age;
soy mayor de edad y haré lo que quiera I'm over 18 (o 21 etc) and I'll do as I please
3 ( en nombres) ( principal) main;
4 (Mús) major
5 (Com):
■ sustantivo masculino y femenino ( adulto) adult, grown-up (colloq);
mis/tus mayores my/your elders;
mayor de edad person who is legally of age
mayor
I adjetivo
1 (comparativo de tamaño) larger, bigger: necesitas una talla mayor, you need a larger size
(superlativo) largest, biggest: ésa es la mayor, that is the biggest one
2 (comparativo de grado) greater: su capacidad es mayor que la mía, his capacity is greater than mine
la ciudad no tiene mayor atractivo, the town isn't particularly appealing
(superlativo) greatest: ésa es la mayor tontería que he oído nunca, that is the most absurd thing I've ever heard
3 (comparativo de edad) older: es mayor que tu madre, she is older than your mother
(superlativo) oldest
el mayor de los tres, the oldest one 4 está muy mayor, (crecido, maduro) he's quite grown-up
(anciano) he looks old
ser mayor de edad, to be of age
(maduro) old: es un hombre mayor, he's an old man
eres mayor para entenderlo, you are old enough to understand it
5 (principal) major, main: tu mayor responsabilidad es su educación, the thing that's most important to you is her education; la calle mayor, the main street
6 Mús major
7 Com al por mayor, wholesale
II sustantivo masculino
1 Mil major 2 mayores, (adultos) grownups, adults
(ancianos) elders
♦ Locuciones: al por mayor, wholesale
ir/pasar a mayores, to become serious: discutió con su marido, pero el asunto no pasó a mayores, she had an argument with her husband but they soon forgot about it
' mayor' also found in these entries:
Spanish:
abundar
- adicta
- adicto
- afán
- alcalde
- alcaldía
- almacén
- amable
- brevedad
- burgomaestre
- calle
- caza
- colegio
- confluencia
- desarrollar
- edad
- engrandecer
- escaparate
- estado
- Excemo.
- Excmo.
- fuerza
- gruesa
- grueso
- hacer
- hacerse
- inri
- obra
- osa
- palo
- persona
- plana
- polemizar
- predilección
- re
- safari
- salir
- sol
- teniente
- vender
- venta
- abuelo
- ama
- anhelo
- atractivo
- audiencia
- cazar
- ciudad
- compás
- de
English:
act
- address
- adult
- big
- bomb
- bulk
- capacity
- cash-and-carry
- claw back
- densely
- dipper
- dormitory
- elaborate
- elder
- eldest
- few
- frisky
- grow up
- growing
- high street
- hill
- inquest
- lion
- little
- main
- major
- mayor
- mostly
- much
- nominee
- often
- old
- outflow
- outweigh
- over
- part
- perpendicular
- residence
- senior
- sergeant major
- spur
- staff
- trade price
- utmost
- wholesale
- wholesale trade
- wholesaler
- worship
- abject
- cash
* * *♦ adj1. [comparativo] [en tamaño] bigger ( que than); [en edad] older ( que than); [en importancia] greater ( que than); [en número] higher ( que than);este puente es mayor que el otro this bridge is bigger than the other one;mi hermana mayor my older sister;es ocho años mayor que yo she's eight years older than me;un mayor número de víctimas a higher number of victims;una mayor tasa de inflación a higher rate of inflation;en mayor o menor grado to a greater or lesser extent;no creo que tenga mayor interés I don't think it's particularly interesting;no te preocupes, no tiene mayor importancia don't worry, it's not (all) that important;subsidios para parados mayores de cuarenta y cinco años benefits for unemployed people (of) over forty-five;la mayor parte de most of, the majority of;la mayor parte de los británicos piensa que… most British people o the majority of British people think that…;Matmayor que greater than2. [superlativo][en edad] the oldest…; [en importancia] the greatest…; [en número] the highest…;el/la mayor… [en tamaño] the biggest…;la mayor de las islas the biggest island, the biggest of the islands;la mayor crisis que se recuerda the biggest crisis in living memory;el mayor de todos nosotros/de la clase the oldest of all of us/in the class;el mayor de los dos hermanos the older of the two brothers;vive en la mayor de las pobrezas he lives in the most abject poverty3. [más] further, more;para mayor información solicite nuestro catálogo for further o more details, send for our catalogue4. [adulto] grown-up;cuando sea mayor when I grow up;hacerse mayor to grow up;ser mayor de edad to be an adult5. [no joven] older;[anciano] elderly;una mujer ya mayor an older woman;ser muy mayor to be very old;hay que escuchar a las personas mayores you should listen to older people;la gente mayor, las personas mayores [los ancianos] the elderly6. [principal] major, main;la plaza mayor the main square;la calle mayor the main street;el palo mayor the main mast7. Mús major;en do mayor in C majorun almacén de venta al por mayor a wholesaler's♦ nmfel/la mayor [hijo, hermano] the eldest;mayores [adultos] grown-ups;[antepasados] ancestors, forefathers;es una película/revista para mayores it's an adult movie o Br film/magazine;respeta a tus mayores you should respect your elders;♦ nmMil major* * *I adjmayor que greater than, larger than;ser mayor de edad be an adult;ser (muy) mayor be (very) elderly;mayor que older than2 sup:biggest; en importancia the greatest;los mayores the adults;la mayor parte the majority3 MÚS tono, modomajor;4 COM:al por mayor wholesaleII m MIL major:ir opasar a mayores get serious* * *mayor adj3) : grown-up, mature4) : main, major5)mayor de edad : of (legal) age6)al por mayor orpor mayor : wholesalemayor nmf1) : major (in the military)2) : adult* * *mayor1 adj1. (que tiene más edad) older2. (más grande) bigger3. (él de más edad) oldest4. (anciano) old / elderly5. (adulto) grown up6. (principal) mainmayor2 n1. (que tiene más años) oldest¿cuántos años tiene el mayor? how old is the oldest?2. (adulto) grown upde mayor when I grow up / when you grow up etc. -
10 grande
adj.1 big, large.este traje me está o me queda grande this suit is too big for meun gran artista a great artistel gran favorito the firm favoriteuna gran figura a big nameuna gran parte de mi trabajo implica… a large part of my job involves…una gran responsabilidad a heavy responsibilitya lo grande in a big way, in stylegrandes almacenes department storeGran Bretaña Great Britainel Gran Cañón the Grand Canyongran danés great Danegran éxito smash (hit) (disco, libro)los Grandes Lagos the Great Lakesla Gran Muralla (China) the Great Wall (of China)el gran público the general public2 old (de edad). (Mexican Spanish, River Plate)3 fantastic(informal). ( River Plate)4 magnus, Mag, magnum.5 grand, formidable, majestical, stately.m.grandee (noble).* * *► adjetivo1 (tamaño) large, big2 (fuerte, intenso) great3 (mayor) grown-up, old, big1 (de elevada jerarquía) great\a lo grande on a grand scale, in a big wayestar grande una cosa a alguien to be too big on somebodypasarlo en grande familiar to have a great timevivir a lo grande figurado to live in style* * *adj.1) big2) large3) great* * *1. ADJ( antes de sm sing gran)1) [de tamaño] big, large; [de estatura] big, tall; [número, velocidad] high, greatviven en una casa muy grande — they live in a very big o large house
¿cómo es de grande? — how big o large is it?, what size is it?
en cantidades más grandes — in larger o greater quantities
grandísimo — enormous, huge
un esfuerzo grandísimo — an enormous effort, a huge effort
¡grandísimo tunante! — you old rogue!
hacer algo a lo grande — to do sth in style, make a splash doing sth *
2) (=importante) [artista, hazaña] great; [empresa] bighay una diferencia no muy grande — there is not a very big o great difference
3) (=mucho, muy) greatse estrenó con gran éxito — it was a great success, it went off very well
4) [en edad](=mayor)ya eres grande, Raúl — you are a big boy now, Raúl
¿qué piensas hacer cuando seas grande? — what do you want to do when you grow up?
5)¡qué grande! — Arg * how funny!
2. SMF1) (=personaje importante)2) LAm (=adulto) adult3. SF1) Arg [de lotería] first prize, big prize2) And ** (=cárcel) clink **, jail* * *I1)a) ( en dimensiones) large, big; <boca/nariz> bigb) ( en demasía) too bigme queda or me está grande — it's too big for me
quedarle grande a alguien — puesto/responsabilidad to be too much for somebody
2) ( alto) tall3) (Geog)4) ( en edad)los más grandes pueden ir solos — the older o bigger ones can go on their own
5) (delante del n)a) (notable, excelente) greatun gran hombre/vino — a great man/wine
b) ( poderoso) big6)a) (en intensidad, grado) greatme llevé un susto más grande...! — I got such a fright!
una temporada de gran éxito — a very o a highly successful season
b) ( uso enfático)7)la gran parte or mayoría de los votantes — the great o vast majority of the voters
b) ( elevado)a gran velocidad — at high o great speed
en grande: lo pasamos en grande — we had a great time (colloq)
•IImasculino, femenino1) (de la industria, el comercio) big o leading name2)a) ( mayor)quiero ir con los grandes — I want to go with the big boys/girls
b) ( adulto)•* * *= vast [vaster -comp., vastest -sup.], big [bigger -comp., biggest -sup.], bulky, considerable, deep [deeper -comp., deepest -sup.], extensive, great [greater -comp., greatest -sup.], heavy [heavier -comp., heaviest -sup.], high [higher -comp., highest -sup.], huge, large [larger -comp., largest -sup.], large scale [large-scale], tremendous, wide [wider -comp., widest -sup.], goodly [goodlier -comp., goodliest -sup.], abysmal, heavyweight [heavy weight], broad [broader -comp., broadest -sup.], of the highest order.Ex. If you add to this other access points, such as collections housed in old people's homes or day centres, prisons, hospitals, youth clubs, playgroups etc the coverage is vast.Ex. Fiction is a big item for children and also just for ordinary public library users.Ex. Like all enumerative schedules, the LC schedules are bulky, extending to some 8000 pages.Ex. The need to become familiar with different command languages for different hosts is a considerable barrier to effective retrieval.Ex. The world's largest processing department's plans and policies are always of deep interest.Ex. The minutely detailed classification is of the type appropriate to an extensive collection.Ex. Clearly, great variations can be expected between different indexing languages for different databases.Ex. In fact, the area was well served by a very good neighbourhood advice centre which had a heavy workload of advice and information-giving.Ex. Lower specificity will be associated with lower precision but high recall.Ex. A user searching for Smith's 'History as Argument' who was not sure under which subject it would be entered, would have to prowl through a huge number of cards in a card catalog to find the entry under SMITH.Ex. Serial searching for a string of characters is usually performed on a small subset of a large file.Ex. It is in the development of such large-scale services that problems are seen most acutely.Ex. There has been tremendous growth in libraries since then, but, fundamentally, it has been possible to build on the foundation that nineteenth-century heroes constructed.Ex. The method is sufficiently flexible to allow for wide modifications.Ex. However, we must not forget the book which the critics acclaim and which also sells in goodly numbers.Ex. The major problem encountered in encouraging young adults to use public libraries is the abysmal lack of specialist young adult librarians = El principal problema que se encuentra para es incentivar a los jóvenes a usar las bibliotecas públicas es la enorme falta de bibliotecarios especialistas en temas relacionados con los adolescentes.Ex. Heavyweight information technology firms such as IBM are appearing in the market and challenging traditional players.Ex. In 'upper town' streets are broad, quiet, and tree-shaded; the homes are tall and heavy and look like battleships, each anchored in its private sea of grass.Ex. I've got to tell you, and I do say this affectionately, but we're talking about a geek of the highest order.----* a grandes rasgos = broadly, rough draft.* a gran escala = large scale [large-scale], massive, on a wide scale, high-volume, wide-scale, on a broad scale, in a big way, on a grand scale.* a gran velocidad = at great speed.* a lo grande = in a big way, big time, grandly, on a grand scale.* armar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons.* a un gran coste = at (a) great expense.* avanzar con gran dificultad = grind on.* bastante grande = largish.* calabacín grande = marrow, marrow squash.* causar una gran sensación = make + a splash.* causar un gran alboroto = make + a splash.* causar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons, make + a splash.* celebrar a lo grande = make + a song and dance about.* con gran capacidad = capacious.* con gran colorido = brightly coloured.* con gran densidad de población = densely populated.* con gran dificultad = with great difficulty.* con gran esplendor = grandly.* con gran iluminación = brightly illuminated.* con gran motivación = highly-motivated.* con gran sentimiento = earnestly.* conseguir en gran medida + Infinitivo = go + a long way (towards/to/in) + Gerundio.* contribuir en gran medida a + Infinitivo = go + a long way (towards/to/in) + Gerundio, go far in + Gerundio, go far towards + Gerundio.* con una gran cultura = well-read.* con una gran diferencia = by a huge margin.* con una gran tradición = long-standing.* con un gran número de lectores = widely-read.* con un gran suspiro = with a deep sigh.* convertirse en un gran problema = grow to + a crisis.* correr un gran riesgo = play (for) + high stakes.* crear con gran destreza = craft.* dar un gran paso adelante = reach + milestone.* de gran ahorro energético = energy-saving.* de gran belleza = scenic.* de gran calibre = high-calibre.* de gran calidad = high-quality, high-grade [high grade], high-calibre.* de gran capacidad = large-capacity, high capacity.* de gran colorido = brightly coloured.* de gran corazón = big-hearted.* de gran efecto = wide-reaching.* de gran éxito comercial = high selling.* de gran formato = oversized.* de gran impacto = high impact [high-impact].* de gran influencia = seminal.* de gran lucidez = clear-sighted.* de gran lujo = top-class.* de gran potencia = high-powered.* de gran repercusión = far-reaching, wide-reaching, far-ranging.* de gran talento = talented.* de gran valor = highly valued, highly valuable.* de gran valor histórico = of great historical value.* de gran venta = high selling.* demasiado grande = oversized.* describir a grandes rasgos = paint + a broad picture.* desplazarse grandes distancias = travel + long distances.* ejercer una gran influencia en = play + a strong hand in.* el gran hermano = big brother.* el todo es más grande que la suma de sus partes = the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.* empresa de grandes derroches = high roller.* en gran cantidad = prodigiously.* en grandes cantidades = en masse, in good number, in bulk.* en grandes números = in record numbers, in record numbers.* en gran formato = oversize, oversized.* en gran medida = by and large, extensively, greatly, heavily, largely, to a considerable extent, to a high degree, to a large extent, tremendously, vastly, very much, to a great extent, in no small way, to any great degree, in many ways, in large part, in large measure, in no small measure, to a large degree, to a great degree.* en gran número = numerously.* en gran parte = largely, in large part, in large measure, for the most part, to a great extent, to a great degree.* en un gran aprieto = in dire straits.* en un gran apuro = in dire straits.* esperar una (gran) sorpresa = be in for a (big) surprise.* expresión típica de Gran Bretaña = Briticism.* extra grande = extra-large.* gestión de grandes extensiones para la cría de ganado = range management.* gran altura = high altitude.* gran aumento = heavy increase.* gran bebedor = heavy drinker.* gran belleza = scenic beauty.* Gran Bretaña = Britain, Great Britain.* gran calidad = high standard.* gran cantidad de = large crop of, mass of.* gran categoría = high standard.* gran cosa = big deal.* gran danés = Great Dane.* Gran Depresión, la = Depression, the, Great Depression, the.* grandes almacenes = department store.* grandes cantidades de = storerooms of, huge numbers of, huge numbers of, great numbers of.* grandes escritores, los = great imaginative writers, the.* grandes robles nacen de pequeñas bellotas = great oaks from little acorns grow.* grandes sumas de dinero = vast sums of money.* grande superficie = shopping mall, shopping complex, shopping centre.* grandes y pequeños = great and small.* grande y tenebroso = cavernous.* gran ducado = grand-duchy.* gran espectáculo = extravaganza.* gran extensión de tierra dedicada a la cría de animales de pasto = rangeland.* gran grupo = constellation.* gran mentira = big fat lie.* gran nivel = high standard.* gran número de = great numbers of.* gran pantalla de televisión = large-screen television.* gran parte = much.* gran parte de = much of.* gran peso = heavy weight.* gran placer = great pleasure.* gran potencia = great power.* gran salto adelante = giant leap, great leap forward.* gran tiburón blanco = great white shark.* gran titular = headline banner.* hacer grandes esfuerzos por = take + (great) pains to.* hacer grandes progresos = make + great strides.* hacer un gran esfuerzo = go out of + Posesivo + way to + Infinitivo.* hacer un gran negocio = make + a killing.* IGE (Integración a Gran Escala) = LSI (Large Scale Integration).* influir en gran medida = become + a force.* jaula grande para pájaros = aviary.* jugador de grandes apuestas = high roller.* la Gran Manzana = the Big Apple.* la gran mayoría de = the vast majority of, the bulk of.* levantar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons.* llevarse una (gran) sorpresa = be in for a (big) surprise.* lo suficientemente grande = large enough, big enough.* más grande = greater.* muy grande = big time.* Nombre + a gran escala = broad scale + Nombre.* no ser gran cosa = not add up to much, add up to + nothing.* no ser una gran pérdida = be no great loss.* no significar gran cosa = not add up to much.* no suponer gran cosa = not add up to much.* no valer gran cosa = be no great shakes.* pago único y bien grande = fat lump sum.* para + Posesivo + gran sorpresa = much to + Posesivo + surprise.* pasarlo a lo grande = have + a ball, have + a whale of a time.* pasarlo en grande = have + a ball, have + a whale of a time.* pasárselo en grande = enjoy + every minute of, love + every minute of it.* Pedro el Grande = Peter the Great.* pensar a lo grande = think + big.* Pie Grande = Bigfoot, Sasquatch.* por un gran margen = by a huge margin.* producir con gran destreza = craft.* provocar un gran alboroto = make + a splash.* provocar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons.* que le presta gran importancia a la cultura = culture-conscious.* recorrer grandes distancias = travel + long distances.* revista que tiene una gran demanda popular = mass-market journal.* ser de gran ayuda para = be a boon to.* ser de gran beneficio para = be of great benefit to.* ser una gran ayuda = be a tower of strength.* ser un gran alivio = be a welcome relief.* ser un gran apoyo = be a tower of strength.* ser un gran avance = be half the battle.* ser un gran paso adelante = be half the battle.* taza grande = mug.* tener en gran estima = have + a very high regard for.* tener gran éxito = hit + a home run, hit it out of + the park, knock it out of + the park.* tener gran importancia = be of high significance.* tener gran repercusión = be far reaching.* tener una gran tradición = have + a long ancestry.* tener un gran impacto = have + a big impact.* tomar un gran riesgo = play (for) + high stakes.* una gran cantidad de = a good deal of, a great deal of, a large degree of, a mass of, a plethora of, a supply of, a vast amount of, a city of, a wealth of, a sea of, a cascade of, an army of, a good many, a huge number of, a great number of, a multitude of, scores of, a host of, a vast corpus of, a whole host of.* una gran cantidad y variedad de = a wealth and breadth of.* una gran diversidad de = a wide range of, a broad variety of, a wide variety of, a broad range of.* una gran experiencia = a wealth of experience.* una gran extensión de = a sea of.* una gran gama de = a wide range of, a rich tapestry of, a wide band of, a broad variety of, a wide variety of, a broad range of, a whole gamut of.* una gran mayoría de = a large proportion of.* una gran parte de = a broad population of, a lion's share of.* una gran pérdida = a great loss.* una gran proporción de = a large proportion of.* una gran variedad de = a wide range of, a multiplicity of, a rich tapestry of, a plurality of, a broad variety of, a broad range of, a whole gamut of.* un gran espectro de = a wide band of.* un gran número de = a good deal of, a great deal of, a plethora of, a wide range of, a full roster of, a fair number of, a great number of, a broad variety of, a wide variety of, a broad range of, a vast corpus of.* un gran repertorio de = an arsenal of, an armoury of [armory].* un gran volumen de = a vast corpus of.* venirle Algo grande a Alguien = get + too big for + Posesivo + breeches.* WAN (red de gran alcance) = WAN (wide area network).* * *I1)a) ( en dimensiones) large, big; <boca/nariz> bigb) ( en demasía) too bigme queda or me está grande — it's too big for me
quedarle grande a alguien — puesto/responsabilidad to be too much for somebody
2) ( alto) tall3) (Geog)4) ( en edad)los más grandes pueden ir solos — the older o bigger ones can go on their own
5) (delante del n)a) (notable, excelente) greatun gran hombre/vino — a great man/wine
b) ( poderoso) big6)a) (en intensidad, grado) greatme llevé un susto más grande...! — I got such a fright!
una temporada de gran éxito — a very o a highly successful season
b) ( uso enfático)7)la gran parte or mayoría de los votantes — the great o vast majority of the voters
b) ( elevado)a gran velocidad — at high o great speed
en grande: lo pasamos en grande — we had a great time (colloq)
•IImasculino, femenino1) (de la industria, el comercio) big o leading name2)a) ( mayor)quiero ir con los grandes — I want to go with the big boys/girls
b) ( adulto)•* * *= vast [vaster -comp., vastest -sup.], big [bigger -comp., biggest -sup.], bulky, considerable, deep [deeper -comp., deepest -sup.], extensive, great [greater -comp., greatest -sup.], heavy [heavier -comp., heaviest -sup.], high [higher -comp., highest -sup.], huge, large [larger -comp., largest -sup.], large scale [large-scale], tremendous, wide [wider -comp., widest -sup.], goodly [goodlier -comp., goodliest -sup.], abysmal, heavyweight [heavy weight], broad [broader -comp., broadest -sup.], of the highest order.Ex: If you add to this other access points, such as collections housed in old people's homes or day centres, prisons, hospitals, youth clubs, playgroups etc the coverage is vast.
Ex: Fiction is a big item for children and also just for ordinary public library users.Ex: Like all enumerative schedules, the LC schedules are bulky, extending to some 8000 pages.Ex: The need to become familiar with different command languages for different hosts is a considerable barrier to effective retrieval.Ex: The world's largest processing department's plans and policies are always of deep interest.Ex: The minutely detailed classification is of the type appropriate to an extensive collection.Ex: Clearly, great variations can be expected between different indexing languages for different databases.Ex: In fact, the area was well served by a very good neighbourhood advice centre which had a heavy workload of advice and information-giving.Ex: Lower specificity will be associated with lower precision but high recall.Ex: A user searching for Smith's 'History as Argument' who was not sure under which subject it would be entered, would have to prowl through a huge number of cards in a card catalog to find the entry under SMITH.Ex: Serial searching for a string of characters is usually performed on a small subset of a large file.Ex: It is in the development of such large-scale services that problems are seen most acutely.Ex: There has been tremendous growth in libraries since then, but, fundamentally, it has been possible to build on the foundation that nineteenth-century heroes constructed.Ex: The method is sufficiently flexible to allow for wide modifications.Ex: However, we must not forget the book which the critics acclaim and which also sells in goodly numbers.Ex: The major problem encountered in encouraging young adults to use public libraries is the abysmal lack of specialist young adult librarians = El principal problema que se encuentra para es incentivar a los jóvenes a usar las bibliotecas públicas es la enorme falta de bibliotecarios especialistas en temas relacionados con los adolescentes.Ex: Heavyweight information technology firms such as IBM are appearing in the market and challenging traditional players.Ex: In 'upper town' streets are broad, quiet, and tree-shaded; the homes are tall and heavy and look like battleships, each anchored in its private sea of grass.Ex: I've got to tell you, and I do say this affectionately, but we're talking about a geek of the highest order.* a grandes rasgos = broadly, rough draft.* a gran escala = large scale [large-scale], massive, on a wide scale, high-volume, wide-scale, on a broad scale, in a big way, on a grand scale.* a gran velocidad = at great speed.* a lo grande = in a big way, big time, grandly, on a grand scale.* armar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons.* a un gran coste = at (a) great expense.* avanzar con gran dificultad = grind on.* bastante grande = largish.* calabacín grande = marrow, marrow squash.* causar una gran sensación = make + a splash.* causar un gran alboroto = make + a splash.* causar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons, make + a splash.* celebrar a lo grande = make + a song and dance about.* con gran capacidad = capacious.* con gran colorido = brightly coloured.* con gran densidad de población = densely populated.* con gran dificultad = with great difficulty.* con gran esplendor = grandly.* con gran iluminación = brightly illuminated.* con gran motivación = highly-motivated.* con gran sentimiento = earnestly.* conseguir en gran medida + Infinitivo = go + a long way (towards/to/in) + Gerundio.* contribuir en gran medida a + Infinitivo = go + a long way (towards/to/in) + Gerundio, go far in + Gerundio, go far towards + Gerundio.* con una gran cultura = well-read.* con una gran diferencia = by a huge margin.* con una gran tradición = long-standing.* con un gran número de lectores = widely-read.* con un gran suspiro = with a deep sigh.* convertirse en un gran problema = grow to + a crisis.* correr un gran riesgo = play (for) + high stakes.* crear con gran destreza = craft.* dar un gran paso adelante = reach + milestone.* de gran ahorro energético = energy-saving.* de gran belleza = scenic.* de gran calibre = high-calibre.* de gran calidad = high-quality, high-grade [high grade], high-calibre.* de gran capacidad = large-capacity, high capacity.* de gran colorido = brightly coloured.* de gran corazón = big-hearted.* de gran efecto = wide-reaching.* de gran éxito comercial = high selling.* de gran formato = oversized.* de gran impacto = high impact [high-impact].* de gran influencia = seminal.* de gran lucidez = clear-sighted.* de gran lujo = top-class.* de gran potencia = high-powered.* de gran repercusión = far-reaching, wide-reaching, far-ranging.* de gran talento = talented.* de gran valor = highly valued, highly valuable.* de gran valor histórico = of great historical value.* de gran venta = high selling.* demasiado grande = oversized.* describir a grandes rasgos = paint + a broad picture.* desplazarse grandes distancias = travel + long distances.* ejercer una gran influencia en = play + a strong hand in.* el gran hermano = big brother.* el todo es más grande que la suma de sus partes = the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.* empresa de grandes derroches = high roller.* en gran cantidad = prodigiously.* en grandes cantidades = en masse, in good number, in bulk.* en grandes números = in record numbers, in record numbers.* en gran formato = oversize, oversized.* en gran medida = by and large, extensively, greatly, heavily, largely, to a considerable extent, to a high degree, to a large extent, tremendously, vastly, very much, to a great extent, in no small way, to any great degree, in many ways, in large part, in large measure, in no small measure, to a large degree, to a great degree.* en gran número = numerously.* en gran parte = largely, in large part, in large measure, for the most part, to a great extent, to a great degree.* en un gran aprieto = in dire straits.* en un gran apuro = in dire straits.* esperar una (gran) sorpresa = be in for a (big) surprise.* expresión típica de Gran Bretaña = Briticism.* extra grande = extra-large.* gestión de grandes extensiones para la cría de ganado = range management.* gran altura = high altitude.* gran aumento = heavy increase.* gran bebedor = heavy drinker.* gran belleza = scenic beauty.* Gran Bretaña = Britain, Great Britain.* gran calidad = high standard.* gran cantidad de = large crop of, mass of.* gran categoría = high standard.* gran cosa = big deal.* gran danés = Great Dane.* Gran Depresión, la = Depression, the, Great Depression, the.* grandes almacenes = department store.* grandes cantidades de = storerooms of, huge numbers of, huge numbers of, great numbers of.* grandes escritores, los = great imaginative writers, the.* grandes robles nacen de pequeñas bellotas = great oaks from little acorns grow.* grandes sumas de dinero = vast sums of money.* grande superficie = shopping mall, shopping complex, shopping centre.* grandes y pequeños = great and small.* grande y tenebroso = cavernous.* gran ducado = grand-duchy.* gran espectáculo = extravaganza.* gran extensión de tierra dedicada a la cría de animales de pasto = rangeland.* gran grupo = constellation.* gran mentira = big fat lie.* gran nivel = high standard.* gran número de = great numbers of.* gran pantalla de televisión = large-screen television.* gran parte = much.* gran parte de = much of.* gran peso = heavy weight.* gran placer = great pleasure.* gran potencia = great power.* gran salto adelante = giant leap, great leap forward.* gran tiburón blanco = great white shark.* gran titular = headline banner.* hacer grandes esfuerzos por = take + (great) pains to.* hacer grandes progresos = make + great strides.* hacer un gran esfuerzo = go out of + Posesivo + way to + Infinitivo.* hacer un gran negocio = make + a killing.* IGE (Integración a Gran Escala) = LSI (Large Scale Integration).* influir en gran medida = become + a force.* jaula grande para pájaros = aviary.* jugador de grandes apuestas = high roller.* la Gran Manzana = the Big Apple.* la gran mayoría de = the vast majority of, the bulk of.* levantar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons.* llevarse una (gran) sorpresa = be in for a (big) surprise.* lo suficientemente grande = large enough, big enough.* más grande = greater.* muy grande = big time.* Nombre + a gran escala = broad scale + Nombre.* no ser gran cosa = not add up to much, add up to + nothing.* no ser una gran pérdida = be no great loss.* no significar gran cosa = not add up to much.* no suponer gran cosa = not add up to much.* no valer gran cosa = be no great shakes.* pago único y bien grande = fat lump sum.* para + Posesivo + gran sorpresa = much to + Posesivo + surprise.* pasarlo a lo grande = have + a ball, have + a whale of a time.* pasarlo en grande = have + a ball, have + a whale of a time.* pasárselo en grande = enjoy + every minute of, love + every minute of it.* Pedro el Grande = Peter the Great.* pensar a lo grande = think + big.* Pie Grande = Bigfoot, Sasquatch.* por un gran margen = by a huge margin.* producir con gran destreza = craft.* provocar un gran alboroto = make + a splash.* provocar un gran revuelo = set + the cat among the pigeons, put + the cat among the pigeons.* que le presta gran importancia a la cultura = culture-conscious.* recorrer grandes distancias = travel + long distances.* revista que tiene una gran demanda popular = mass-market journal.* ser de gran ayuda para = be a boon to.* ser de gran beneficio para = be of great benefit to.* ser una gran ayuda = be a tower of strength.* ser un gran alivio = be a welcome relief.* ser un gran apoyo = be a tower of strength.* ser un gran avance = be half the battle.* ser un gran paso adelante = be half the battle.* taza grande = mug.* tener en gran estima = have + a very high regard for.* tener gran éxito = hit + a home run, hit it out of + the park, knock it out of + the park.* tener gran importancia = be of high significance.* tener gran repercusión = be far reaching.* tener una gran tradición = have + a long ancestry.* tener un gran impacto = have + a big impact.* tomar un gran riesgo = play (for) + high stakes.* una gran cantidad de = a good deal of, a great deal of, a large degree of, a mass of, a plethora of, a supply of, a vast amount of, a city of, a wealth of, a sea of, a cascade of, an army of, a good many, a huge number of, a great number of, a multitude of, scores of, a host of, a vast corpus of, a whole host of.* una gran cantidad y variedad de = a wealth and breadth of.* una gran diversidad de = a wide range of, a broad variety of, a wide variety of, a broad range of.* una gran experiencia = a wealth of experience.* una gran extensión de = a sea of.* una gran gama de = a wide range of, a rich tapestry of, a wide band of, a broad variety of, a wide variety of, a broad range of, a whole gamut of.* una gran mayoría de = a large proportion of.* una gran parte de = a broad population of, a lion's share of.* una gran pérdida = a great loss.* una gran proporción de = a large proportion of.* una gran variedad de = a wide range of, a multiplicity of, a rich tapestry of, a plurality of, a broad variety of, a broad range of, a whole gamut of.* un gran espectro de = a wide band of.* un gran número de = a good deal of, a great deal of, a plethora of, a wide range of, a full roster of, a fair number of, a great number of, a broad variety of, a wide variety of, a broad range of, a vast corpus of.* un gran repertorio de = an arsenal of, an armoury of [armory].* un gran volumen de = a vast corpus of.* venirle Algo grande a Alguien = get + too big for + Posesivo + breeches.* WAN (red de gran alcance) = WAN (wide area network).* * *A1 (en dimensiones) large, bigse mudaron a una casa más grande they moved to a larger o bigger housesus grandes ojos negros her big dark eyesun tipo grande, ancho de hombros a big, broad-shouldered guytiene la boca/nariz grande she has a big mouth/noseabra la boca más grande open wider2 (en demasía) too big¿esto será grande para Daniel? do you think this is too big for Daniel?estos zapatos me quedan or me están grandes these shoes are too big for mequedarle or ( Esp) venirle grande a algn «puesto/responsabilidad» to be too much for sbB (alto) tall¡qué grande está Andrés! isn't Andrés tall!, hasn't Andrés gotten* tall!C ( Geog):el Gran Buenos Aires/Bilbao Greater Buenos Aires/BilbaoD1( esp AmL) ‹niño/chico› (en edad): los más grandes pueden ir solos the older o bigger ones can go on their ownya eres grande y puedes comer solito you're a big boy now and you can feed yourselfcuando sea grande quiero ser bailarina when I grow up I want to be a ballet dancermis hijos ya son grandes my children are all grown up now2está saliendo con un tipo grande she's going out with an older guyE ( delante del n)1 (notable, excelente) greatun gran hombre/artista/vino a great man/artist/winela gran dama del teatro the grande dame of the theater2 (poderoso) biglos grandes bancos/industriales the big banks/industrialistslos grandes señores feudales the great feudal lordsa lo grande in style3(en importancia): son grandes amigos they're great friendsgrandes fumadores heavy smokersF ( fam)(increíble): ¡qué cosa más grande! ¡ya te he dicho 20 veces que no lo sé! this is unbelievable! I've told you 20 times already that I don't know!¿no es grande que ahora me echen la culpa a mí? ( iró); and now they blame me; great, isn't it? ( iro)G1 (en intensidad, grado) greatme causó una gran pena it caused me great sadnessme has dado una gran alegría you have made me very happycomió con gran apetito she ate hungrily o heartilyun día de gran calor a very hot daylos grandes fríos del 47 the great o big freeze of '47me llevé un susto más grande … I got such a frightpara mi gran vergüenza to my great embarrassmentse produjo una gran explosión there was a powerful explosiones un gran honor para mí it is a great honor* for meha sido una temporada de gran éxito it has been a very o a highly successful seasonno corre gran prisa it is not very urgentlas paredes tienen gran necesidad de una mano de pintura the walls are very much in need of a coat of paint2(uso enfático): eso es una gran verdad that is absolutely o very trueeres un grandísimo sinvergüenza you're a real swine ( colloq)ésa es la mentira más grande que he oído that's the biggest lie I've ever heardH1 (en número) ‹familia› large, big; ‹clase› bigla gran mayoría de los votantes the great o vast majority of the votersdedican gran parte de su tiempo a la investigación they devote much of o a great deal of their time to researchesto se debe en gran parte a que … this is largely due to the fact that …2(elevado): a gran velocidad at high o great speedvolar a gran altura to fly at a great heightun edificio de gran altura a very tall buildingun gran número de personas a large number of peopleobjetos de gran valor objects of great valueen grande: lo pasamos or nos divertimos en grande we had a great time ( colloq)Compuestos:masculine wide-angle lensel gran capital big businessmasculine Great Danela Gran Depresión the Great Depression( Astron): la gran explosión the Big Bangla Gran Guerra the Great Warmasculine Big Brotherel gran hermano te observa or te vigila Big Brother is watching youmasculine Grand Mastermasculine grand mastermasculine international grand masterfeminine grand operamasculine Grand Prixel gran público the general publicel gran simpático the sympathetic nervous systemmpl department storemasculine, feminineA (de la industria, el comercio) big o leading name, leading playeruno de los tres grandes de la industria automovilística one of the big three names o one of the big three in the car industryB ( esp AmL)1(mayor): quiero ir con los grandes I want to go with the big boys/girlsla grande ya está casada their eldest (daughter) is already married2 (adulto) grown-upCompuesto:(Spanish) grandee o nobleman( RPl)la grande the big prize, the jackpotsacarse la grande (literal) to win the big prize o the jackpotse sacó la grande con ese marido she hit the jackpot with that husband* * *
grande adjetivo◊ gran is used before singular nouns
1
unos grande almacenes a department store
‹ clase› big;
la gran parte or mayoría the great majority
2
◊ ¡qué grande está Andrés! isn't Andrés tall!b) ( en edad):
ya son grandes they are all grown up now
3 (Geog):
4 ( delante del n)
a lo grande in style
5
‹ explosión› powerful;◊ ¡me llevé un susto más grande … ! I got such a fright!;
una temporada de gran éxito a very o a highly successful season;
son grandes amigos they're great friends;
eso es una gran verdad that is absolutely true;
¡qué mentira más grande! that's a complete lie!b) ( elevado):◊ a gran velocidad at high o great speed;
volar a gran altura to fly at a great height;
un gran número de personas a large number of people;
objetos de gran valor objects of great value;
en grande: lo pasamos en grande we had a great time (colloq)
■ sustantivo masculino, femeninoa) ( mayor):
b) ( adulto):
grande adjetivo
1 (tamaño) big, large
grandes almacenes, department stores
2 (cantidad) large
3 fig (fuerte, intenso) great: es un gran músico, he is a great musician
♦ Locuciones: a lo grande, in style
figurado pasarlo en grande, to have a great time
' grande' also found in these entries:
Spanish:
abarcar
- alfombra
- ampliar
- ampliación
- armatoste
- así
- bastante
- bestial
- bloque
- buena
- bueno
- cabezón
- cabezona
- cabezudo
- cajón
- calabacín
- campeonato
- cantidad
- canto
- ciudad
- colosal
- consideración
- fenomenal
- formidable
- gran
- hermosa
- hermoso
- incalculable
- ingeniosa
- ingenioso
- mía
- mío
- monstruosa
- monstruoso
- monumental
- nuestra
- nuestro
- pila
- puerta
- quedar
- señor
- suficientemente
- suma
- sumo
- terraza
- tirada
- tremenda
- tremendo
- venir
- bailar
English:
abnormally
- above
- ample
- army
- awful
- bag
- baggy
- bay
- big
- boat
- border
- box
- breaker
- brush
- bulk
- carve
- cauldron
- cushion
- deposit
- enough
- extend
- grand
- great
- grow
- hers
- in
- integrate
- large
- lion
- manufacturer
- marrow
- mighty
- mine
- outrank
- overgrown
- paving stone
- place
- roller
- set on
- set upon
- slight
- spanking
- style
- tablespoonful
- tea urn
- temptation
- terrific
- time
- to
- tub
* * *♦ adj1. [de tamaño] big, large;el gran Buenos Aires/Santiago greater Buenos Aires/Santiago, the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires/Santiago;Figel cargo le viene grande he's not up to the job;Fampagó con un billete de los grandes he paid with a large notegrandes almacenes department store; Fot gran angular wide-angle lens;la Gran Barrera de Coral the Great Barrier Reef;Gran Bretaña Great Britain;el Gran Cañón (del Colorado) the Grand Canyon;gran danés Great Dane;Hist la Gran Depresión the Great Depression;gran ducado grand duchy;la Gran Explosión the Big Bang;la Gran Guerra the Great War;los Grandes Lagos the Great Lakes;gran maestro [en ajedrez] grand master;Hist Gran Mogol Mogul;la Gran Muralla (China) the Great Wall (of China);Dep Gran Premio Grand Prix; Hist el Gran Salto Adelante the Great Leap Forward;gran simio antropoide great ape;gran slam [en tenis] grand slam;Esp Com gran superficie hypermarket2. [de altura] tall;¡qué grande está tu hermano! your brother's really grown!3. [en importancia] great;una gran mujer a great woman;los grandes bancos the major banks;la gran mayoría está a favor del proyecto the great o overwhelming majority are in favour of the project;el éxito se debe en gran parte a su esfuerzo the success is largely due to her efforts, the success is in no small measure due to her efforts4. [en intensidad] great;es un gran mentiroso he's a real liar;¡qué alegría más grande! what joy!me dijeron que todavía no soy grande como para salir solo they told me I'm not big enough to go out on my own yetsiempre se llevó bien con gente más grande he always got on well with older peopleayer le hice un favor y hoy me vuelve la espalda, ¡grande! great! I did him a favour and now he doesn't want to know!9. CompFamhacer algo a lo grande to do sth in a big way o in style;vivir a lo grande to live in style;pasarlo en grande to have a great time♦ nm1. [noble] grandeeGrande de España = one of highest-ranking members of Spanish nobility2. [persona, entidad importante]uno de los grandes del sector one of the major players in the sector;los tres grandes de la liga the big three in the league;uno de los grandes de la literatura mexicana one of the big names in Mexican literature♦ nfRP [en lotería] first prize, jackpot;se sacó la grande con ese trabajo [tuvo buena suerte] she hit the jackpot with that job;con esa nuera que tiene le tocó la grande [tuvo mala suerte] you've got to feel sorry for her having a daughter-in-law like that♦ interjRP Fam [fantástico] great!* * *I adj1 big, large;me viene grande the jacket is too big for me;el cargo le viene grande the job is too much for him2:a lo grande in style;pasarlo en grande have a great timeII m/f1 L.Am. ( adulto) grown-up, adult;grandes y pequeños young and old2 ( mayor) eldest* * *1) : large, bigun libro grande: a big book2) alto: tall3) notable: greatun gran autor: a great writercon gran placer: with great pleasure5) : old, grown-uphijos grandes: grown children* * *grande adj¿es muy grande el jardín? is the garden very big?2. (número, cantidad) large3. (importante) great -
11 Historical Portugal
Before Romans described western Iberia or Hispania as "Lusitania," ancient Iberians inhabited the land. Phoenician and Greek trading settlements grew up in the Tagus estuary area and nearby coasts. Beginning around 202 BCE, Romans invaded what is today southern Portugal. With Rome's defeat of Carthage, Romans proceeded to conquer and rule the western region north of the Tagus, which they named Roman "Lusitania." In the fourth century CE, as Rome's rule weakened, the area experienced yet another invasion—Germanic tribes, principally the Suevi, who eventually were Christianized. During the sixth century CE, the Suevi kingdom was superseded by yet another Germanic tribe—the Christian Visigoths.A major turning point in Portugal's history came in 711, as Muslim armies from North Africa, consisting of both Arab and Berber elements, invaded the Iberian Peninsula from across the Straits of Gibraltar. They entered what is now Portugal in 714, and proceeded to conquer most of the country except for the far north. For the next half a millennium, Islam and Muslim presence in Portugal left a significant mark upon the politics, government, language, and culture of the country.Islam, Reconquest, and Portugal Created, 714-1140The long frontier struggle between Muslim invaders and Christian communities in the north of the Iberian peninsula was called the Reconquista (Reconquest). It was during this struggle that the first dynasty of Portuguese kings (Burgundian) emerged and the independent monarchy of Portugal was established. Christian forces moved south from what is now the extreme north of Portugal and gradually defeated Muslim forces, besieging and capturing towns under Muslim sway. In the ninth century, as Christian forces slowly made their way southward, Christian elements were dominant only in the area between Minho province and the Douro River; this region became known as "territorium Portu-calense."In the 11th century, the advance of the Reconquest quickened as local Christian armies were reinforced by crusading knights from what is now France and England. Christian forces took Montemor (1034), at the Mondego River; Lamego (1058); Viseu (1058); and Coimbra (1064). In 1095, the king of Castile and Léon granted the country of "Portu-cale," what became northern Portugal, to a Burgundian count who had emigrated from France. This was the foundation of Portugal. In 1139, a descendant of this count, Afonso Henriques, proclaimed himself "King of Portugal." He was Portugal's first monarch, the "Founder," and the first of the Burgundian dynasty, which ruled until 1385.The emergence of Portugal in the 12th century as a separate monarchy in Iberia occurred before the Christian Reconquest of the peninsula. In the 1140s, the pope in Rome recognized Afonso Henriques as king of Portugal. In 1147, after a long, bloody siege, Muslim-occupied Lisbon fell to Afonso Henriques's army. Lisbon was the greatest prize of the 500-year war. Assisting this effort were English crusaders on their way to the Holy Land; the first bishop of Lisbon was an Englishman. When the Portuguese captured Faro and Silves in the Algarve province in 1248-50, the Reconquest of the extreme western portion of the Iberian peninsula was complete—significantly, more than two centuries before the Spanish crown completed the Reconquest of the eastern portion by capturing Granada in 1492.Consolidation and Independence of Burgundian Portugal, 1140-1385Two main themes of Portugal's early existence as a monarchy are the consolidation of control over the realm and the defeat of a Castil-ian threat from the east to its independence. At the end of this period came the birth of a new royal dynasty (Aviz), which prepared to carry the Christian Reconquest beyond continental Portugal across the straits of Gibraltar to North Africa. There was a variety of motives behind these developments. Portugal's independent existence was imperiled by threats from neighboring Iberian kingdoms to the north and east. Politics were dominated not only by efforts against the Muslims inPortugal (until 1250) and in nearby southern Spain (until 1492), but also by internecine warfare among the kingdoms of Castile, Léon, Aragon, and Portugal. A final comeback of Muslim forces was defeated at the battle of Salado (1340) by allied Castilian and Portuguese forces. In the emerging Kingdom of Portugal, the monarch gradually gained power over and neutralized the nobility and the Church.The historic and commonplace Portuguese saying "From Spain, neither a good wind nor a good marriage" was literally played out in diplomacy and war in the late 14th-century struggles for mastery in the peninsula. Larger, more populous Castile was pitted against smaller Portugal. Castile's Juan I intended to force a union between Castile and Portugal during this era of confusion and conflict. In late 1383, Portugal's King Fernando, the last king of the Burgundian dynasty, suddenly died prematurely at age 38, and the Master of Aviz, Portugal's most powerful nobleman, took up the cause of independence and resistance against Castile's invasion. The Master of Aviz, who became King João I of Portugal, was able to obtain foreign assistance. With the aid of English archers, Joao's armies defeated the Castilians in the crucial battle of Aljubarrota, on 14 August 1385, a victory that assured the independence of the Portuguese monarchy from its Castilian nemesis for several centuries.Aviz Dynasty and Portugal's First Overseas Empire, 1385-1580The results of the victory at Aljubarrota, much celebrated in Portugal's art and monuments, and the rise of the Aviz dynasty also helped to establish a new merchant class in Lisbon and Oporto, Portugal's second city. This group supported King João I's program of carrying the Reconquest to North Africa, since it was interested in expanding Portugal's foreign commerce and tapping into Muslim trade routes and resources in Africa. With the Reconquest against the Muslims completed in Portugal and the threat from Castile thwarted for the moment, the Aviz dynasty launched an era of overseas conquest, exploration, and trade. These efforts dominated Portugal's 15th and 16th centuries.The overseas empire and age of Discoveries began with Portugal's bold conquest in 1415 of the Moroccan city of Ceuta. One royal member of the 1415 expedition was young, 21-year-old Prince Henry, later known in history as "Prince Henry the Navigator." His part in the capture of Ceuta won Henry his knighthood and began Portugal's "Marvelous Century," during which the small kingdom was counted as a European and world power of consequence. Henry was the son of King João I and his English queen, Philippa of Lancaster, but he did not inherit the throne. Instead, he spent most of his life and his fortune, and that of the wealthy military Order of Christ, on various imperial ventures and on voyages of exploration down the African coast and into the Atlantic. While mythology has surrounded Henry's controversial role in the Discoveries, and this role has been exaggerated, there is no doubt that he played a vital part in the initiation of Portugal's first overseas empire and in encouraging exploration. He was naturally curious, had a sense of mission for Portugal, and was a strong leader. He also had wealth to expend; at least a third of the African voyages of the time were under his sponsorship. If Prince Henry himself knew little science, significant scientific advances in navigation were made in his day.What were Portugal's motives for this new imperial effort? The well-worn historical cliche of "God, Glory, and Gold" can only partly explain the motivation of a small kingdom with few natural resources and barely 1 million people, which was greatly outnumbered by the other powers it confronted. Among Portuguese objectives were the desire to exploit known North African trade routes and resources (gold, wheat, leather, weaponry, and other goods that were scarce in Iberia); the need to outflank the Muslim world in the Mediterranean by sailing around Africa, attacking Muslims en route; and the wish to ally with Christian kingdoms beyond Africa. This enterprise also involved a strategy of breaking the Venetian spice monopoly by trading directly with the East by means of discovering and exploiting a sea route around Africa to Asia. Besides the commercial motives, Portugal nurtured a strong crusading sense of Christian mission, and various classes in the kingdom saw an opportunity for fame and gain.By the time of Prince Henry's death in 1460, Portugal had gained control of the Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeiras, begun to colonize the Cape Verde Islands, failed to conquer the Canary Islands from Castile, captured various cities on Morocco's coast, and explored as far as Senegal, West Africa, down the African coast. By 1488, Bar-tolomeu Dias had rounded the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa and thereby discovered the way to the Indian Ocean.Portugal's largely coastal African empire and later its fragile Asian empire brought unexpected wealth but were purchased at a high price. Costs included wars of conquest and defense against rival powers, manning the far-flung navel and trade fleets and scattered castle-fortresses, and staffing its small but fierce armies, all of which entailed a loss of skills and population to maintain a scattered empire. Always short of capital, the monarchy became indebted to bankers. There were many defeats beginning in the 16th century at the hands of the larger imperial European monarchies (Spain, France, England, and Holland) and many attacks on Portugal and its strung-out empire. Typically, there was also the conflict that arose when a tenuously held world empire that rarely if ever paid its way demanded finance and manpower Portugal itself lacked.The first 80 years of the glorious imperial era, the golden age of Portugal's imperial power and world influence, was an African phase. During 1415-88, Portuguese navigators and explorers in small ships, some of them caravelas (caravels), explored the treacherous, disease-ridden coasts of Africa from Morocco to South Africa beyond the Cape of Good Hope. By the 1470s, the Portuguese had reached the Gulf of Guinea and, in the early 1480s, what is now Angola. Bartolomeu Dias's extraordinary voyage of 1487-88 to South Africa's coast and the edge of the Indian Ocean convinced Portugal that the best route to Asia's spices and Christians lay south, around the tip of southern Africa. Between 1488 and 1495, there was a hiatus caused in part by domestic conflict in Portugal, discussion of resources available for further conquests beyond Africa in Asia, and serious questions as to Portugal's capacity to reach beyond Africa. In 1495, King Manuel and his council decided to strike for Asia, whatever the consequences. In 1497-99, Vasco da Gama, under royal orders, made the epic two-year voyage that discovered the sea route to western India (Asia), outflanked Islam and Venice, and began Portugal's Asian empire. Within 50 years, Portugal had discovered and begun the exploitation of its largest colony, Brazil, and set up forts and trading posts from the Middle East (Aden and Ormuz), India (Calicut, Goa, etc.), Malacca, and Indonesia to Macau in China.By the 1550s, parts of its largely coastal, maritime trading post empire from Morocco to the Moluccas were under siege from various hostile forces, including Muslims, Christians, and Hindi. Although Moroccan forces expelled the Portuguese from the major coastal cities by 1550, the rival European monarchies of Castile (Spain), England, France, and later Holland began to seize portions of her undermanned, outgunned maritime empire.In 1580, Phillip II of Spain, whose mother was a Portuguese princess and who had a strong claim to the Portuguese throne, invaded Portugal, claimed the throne, and assumed control over the realm and, by extension, its African, Asian, and American empires. Phillip II filled the power vacuum that appeared in Portugal following the loss of most of Portugal's army and its young, headstrong King Sebastião in a disastrous war in Morocco. Sebastiao's death in battle (1578) and the lack of a natural heir to succeed him, as well as the weak leadership of the cardinal who briefly assumed control in Lisbon, led to a crisis that Spain's strong monarch exploited. As a result, Portugal lost its independence to Spain for a period of 60 years.Portugal under Spanish Rule, 1580-1640Despite the disastrous nature of Portugal's experience under Spanish rule, "The Babylonian Captivity" gave birth to modern Portuguese nationalism, its second overseas empire, and its modern alliance system with England. Although Spain allowed Portugal's weakened empire some autonomy, Spanish rule in Portugal became increasingly burdensome and unacceptable. Spain's ambitious imperial efforts in Europe and overseas had an impact on the Portuguese as Spain made greater and greater demands on its smaller neighbor for manpower and money. Portugal's culture underwent a controversial Castilianization, while its empire became hostage to Spain's fortunes. New rival powers England, France, and Holland attacked and took parts of Spain's empire and at the same time attacked Portugal's empire, as well as the mother country.Portugal's empire bore the consequences of being attacked by Spain's bitter enemies in what was a form of world war. Portuguese losses were heavy. By 1640, Portugal had lost most of its Moroccan cities as well as Ceylon, the Moluccas, and sections of India. With this, Portugal's Asian empire was gravely weakened. Only Goa, Damão, Diu, Bombay, Timor, and Macau remained and, in Brazil, Dutch forces occupied the northeast.On 1 December 1640, long commemorated as a national holiday, Portuguese rebels led by the duke of Braganza overthrew Spanish domination and took advantage of Spanish weakness following a more serious rebellion in Catalonia. Portugal regained independence from Spain, but at a price: dependence on foreign assistance to maintain its independence in the form of the renewal of the alliance with England.Restoration and Second Empire, 1640-1822Foreign affairs and empire dominated the restoration era and aftermath, and Portugal again briefly enjoyed greater European power and prestige. The Anglo-Portuguese Alliance was renewed and strengthened in treaties of 1642, 1654, and 1661, and Portugal's independence from Spain was underwritten by English pledges and armed assistance. In a Luso-Spanish treaty of 1668, Spain recognized Portugal's independence. Portugal's alliance with England was a marriage of convenience and necessity between two monarchies with important religious, cultural, and social differences. In return for legal, diplomatic, and trade privileges, as well as the use during war and peace of Portugal's great Lisbon harbor and colonial ports for England's navy, England pledged to protect Portugal and its scattered empire from any attack. The previously cited 17th-century alliance treaties were renewed later in the Treaty of Windsor, signed in London in 1899. On at least 10 different occasions after 1640, and during the next two centuries, England was central in helping prevent or repel foreign invasions of its ally, Portugal.Portugal's second empire (1640-1822) was largely Brazil-oriented. Portuguese colonization, exploitation of wealth, and emigration focused on Portuguese America, and imperial revenues came chiefly from Brazil. Between 1670 and 1740, Portugal's royalty and nobility grew wealthier on funds derived from Brazilian gold, diamonds, sugar, tobacco, and other crops, an enterprise supported by the Atlantic slave trade and the supply of African slave labor from West Africa and Angola. Visitors today can see where much of that wealth was invested: Portugal's rich legacy of monumental architecture. Meanwhile, the African slave trade took a toll in Angola and West Africa.In continental Portugal, absolutist monarchy dominated politics and government, and there was a struggle for position and power between the monarchy and other institutions, such as the Church and nobility. King José I's chief minister, usually known in history as the marquis of Pombal (ruled 1750-77), sharply suppressed the nobility and theChurch (including the Inquisition, now a weak institution) and expelled the Jesuits. Pombal also made an effort to reduce economic dependence on England, Portugal's oldest ally. But his successes did not last much beyond his disputed time in office.Beginning in the late 18th century, the European-wide impact of the French Revolution and the rise of Napoleon placed Portugal in a vulnerable position. With the monarchy ineffectively led by an insane queen (Maria I) and her indecisive regent son (João VI), Portugal again became the focus of foreign ambition and aggression. With England unable to provide decisive assistance in time, France—with Spain's consent—invaded Portugal in 1807. As Napoleon's army under General Junot entered Lisbon meeting no resistance, Portugal's royal family fled on a British fleet to Brazil, where it remained in exile until 1821. In the meantime, Portugal's overseas empire was again under threat. There was a power vacuum as the monarch was absent, foreign armies were present, and new political notions of liberalism and constitutional monarchy were exciting various groups of citizens.Again England came to the rescue, this time in the form of the armies of the duke of Wellington. Three successive French invasions of Portugal were defeated and expelled, and Wellington succeeded in carrying the war against Napoleon across the Portuguese frontier into Spain. The presence of the English army, the new French-born liberal ideas, and the political vacuum combined to create revolutionary conditions. The French invasions and the peninsular wars, where Portuguese armed forces played a key role, marked the beginning of a new era in politics.Liberalism and Constitutional Monarchy, 1822-1910During 1807-22, foreign invasions, war, and civil strife over conflicting political ideas gravely damaged Portugal's commerce, economy, and novice industry. The next terrible blow was the loss of Brazil in 1822, the jewel in the imperial crown. Portugal's very independence seemed to be at risk. In vain, Portugal sought to resist Brazilian independence by force, but in 1825 it formally acknowledged Brazilian independence by treaty.Portugal's slow recovery from the destructive French invasions and the "war of independence" was complicated by civil strife over the form of constitutional monarchy that best suited Portugal. After struggles over these issues between 1820 and 1834, Portugal settled somewhat uncertainly into a moderate constitutional monarchy whose constitution (Charter of 1826) lent it strong political powers to exert a moderating influence between the executive and legislative branches of the government. It also featured a new upper middle class based on land ownership and commerce; a Catholic Church that, although still important, lived with reduced privileges and property; a largely African (third) empire to which Lisbon and Oporto devoted increasing spiritual and material resources, starting with the liberal imperial plans of 1836 and 1851, and continuing with the work of institutions like the Lisbon Society of Geography (established 1875); and a mass of rural peasants whose bonds to the land weakened after 1850 and who began to immigrate in increasing numbers to Brazil and North America.Chronic military intervention in national politics began in 19th-century Portugal. Such intervention, usually commencing with coups or pronunciamentos (military revolts), was a shortcut to the spoils of political office and could reflect popular discontent as well as the power of personalities. An early example of this was the 1817 golpe (coup) attempt of General Gomes Freire against British military rule in Portugal before the return of King João VI from Brazil. Except for a more stable period from 1851 to 1880, military intervention in politics, or the threat thereof, became a feature of the constitutional monarchy's political life, and it continued into the First Republic and the subsequent Estado Novo.Beginning with the Regeneration period (1851-80), Portugal experienced greater political stability and economic progress. Military intervention in politics virtually ceased; industrialization and construction of railroads, roads, and bridges proceeded; two political parties (Regenerators and Historicals) worked out a system of rotation in power; and leading intellectuals sparked a cultural revival in several fields. In 19th-century literature, there was a new golden age led by such figures as Alexandre Herculano (historian), Eça de Queirós (novelist), Almeida Garrett (playwright and essayist), Antero de Quental (poet), and Joaquim Oliveira Martins (historian and social scientist). In its third overseas empire, Portugal attempted to replace the slave trade and slavery with legitimate economic activities; to reform the administration; and to expand Portuguese holdings beyond coastal footholds deep into the African hinterlands in West, West Central, and East Africa. After 1841, to some extent, and especially after 1870, colonial affairs, combined with intense nationalism, pressures for economic profit in Africa, sentiment for national revival, and the drift of European affairs would make or break Lisbon governments.Beginning with the political crisis that arose out of the "English Ultimatum" affair of January 1890, the monarchy became discredtted and identified with the poorly functioning government, political parties splintered, and republicanism found more supporters. Portugal participated in the "Scramble for Africa," expanding its African holdings, but failed to annex territory connecting Angola and Mozambique. A growing foreign debt and state bankruptcy as of the early 1890s damaged the constitutional monarchy's reputation, despite the efforts of King Carlos in diplomacy, the renewal of the alliance in the Windsor Treaty of 1899, and the successful if bloody colonial wars in the empire (1880-97). Republicanism proclaimed that Portugal's weak economy and poor society were due to two historic institutions: the monarchy and the Catholic Church. A republic, its stalwarts claimed, would bring greater individual liberty; efficient, if more decentralized government; and a stronger colonial program while stripping the Church of its role in both society and education.As the monarchy lost support and republicans became more aggressive, violence increased in politics. King Carlos I and his heir Luís were murdered in Lisbon by anarchist-republicans on 1 February 1908. Following a military and civil insurrection and fighting between monarchist and republican forces, on 5 October 1910, King Manuel II fled Portugal and a republic was proclaimed.First Parliamentary Republic, 1910-26Portugal's first attempt at republican government was the most unstable, turbulent parliamentary republic in the history of 20th-century Western Europe. During a little under 16 years of the republic, there were 45 governments, a number of legislatures that did not complete normal terms, military coups, and only one president who completed his four-year term in office. Portuguese society was poorly prepared for this political experiment. Among the deadly legacies of the monarchy were a huge public debt; a largely rural, apolitical, and illiterate peasant population; conflict over the causes of the country's misfortunes; and lack of experience with a pluralist, democratic system.The republic had some talented leadership but lacked popular, institutional, and economic support. The 1911 republican constitution established only a limited democracy, as only a small portion of the adult male citizenry was eligible to vote. In a country where the majority was Catholic, the republic passed harshly anticlerical laws, and its institutions and supporters persecuted both the Church and its adherents. During its brief disjointed life, the First Republic drafted important reform plans in economic, social, and educational affairs; actively promoted development in the empire; and pursued a liberal, generous foreign policy. Following British requests for Portugal's assistance in World War I, Portugal entered the war on the Allied side in March 1916 and sent armies to Flanders and Portuguese Africa. Portugal's intervention in that conflict, however, was too costly in many respects, and the ultimate failure of the republic in part may be ascribed to Portugal's World War I activities.Unfortunately for the republic, its time coincided with new threats to Portugal's African possessions: World War I, social and political demands from various classes that could not be reconciled, excessive military intervention in politics, and, in particular, the worst economic and financial crisis Portugal had experienced since the 16th and 17th centuries. After the original Portuguese Republican Party (PRP, also known as the "Democrats") splintered into three warring groups in 1912, no true multiparty system emerged. The Democrats, except for only one or two elections, held an iron monopoly of electoral power, and political corruption became a major issue. As extreme right-wing dictatorships elsewhere in Europe began to take power in Italy (1922), neighboring Spain (1923), and Greece (1925), what scant popular support remained for the republic collapsed. Backed by a right-wing coalition of landowners from Alentejo, clergy, Coimbra University faculty and students, Catholic organizations, and big business, career military officers led by General Gomes da Costa executed a coup on 28 May 1926, turned out the last republican government, and established a military government.The Estado Novo (New State), 1926-74During the military phase (1926-32) of the Estado Novo, professional military officers, largely from the army, governed and administered Portugal and held key cabinet posts, but soon discovered that the military possessed no magic formula that could readily solve the problems inherited from the First Republic. Especially during the years 1926-31, the military dictatorship, even with its political repression of republican activities and institutions (military censorship of the press, political police action, and closure of the republic's rowdy parliament), was characterized by similar weaknesses: personalism and factionalism; military coups and political instability, including civil strife and loss of life; state debt and bankruptcy; and a weak economy. "Barracks parliamentarism" was not an acceptable alternative even to the "Nightmare Republic."Led by General Óscar Carmona, who had replaced and sent into exile General Gomes da Costa, the military dictatorship turned to a civilian expert in finance and economics to break the budget impasse and bring coherence to the disorganized system. Appointed minister of finance on 27 April 1928, the Coimbra University Law School professor of economics Antônio de Oliveira Salazar (1889-1970) first reformed finance, helped balance the budget, and then turned to other concerns as he garnered extraordinary governing powers. In 1930, he was appointed interim head of another key ministry (Colonies) and within a few years had become, in effect, a civilian dictator who, with the military hierarchy's support, provided the government with coherence, a program, and a set of policies.For nearly 40 years after he was appointed the first civilian prime minister in 1932, Salazar's personality dominated the government. Unlike extreme right-wing dictators elsewhere in Europe, Salazar was directly appointed by the army but was never endorsed by a popular political party, street militia, or voter base. The scholarly, reclusive former Coimbra University professor built up what became known after 1932 as the Estado Novo ("New State"), which at the time of its overthrow by another military coup in 1974, was the longest surviving authoritarian regime in Western Europe. The system of Salazar and the largely academic and technocratic ruling group he gathered in his cabinets was based on the central bureaucracy of the state, which was supported by the president of the republic—always a senior career military officer, General Óscar Carmona (1928-51), General Craveiro Lopes (1951-58), and Admiral Américo Tómaz (1958-74)—and the complicity of various institutions. These included a rubber-stamp legislature called the National Assembly (1935-74) and a political police known under various names: PVDE (1932-45), PIDE (1945-69),and DGS (1969-74). Other defenders of the Estado Novo security were paramilitary organizations such as the National Republican Guard (GNR); the Portuguese Legion (PL); and the Portuguese Youth [Movement]. In addition to censorship of the media, theater, and books, there was political repression and a deliberate policy of depoliticization. All political parties except for the approved movement of regime loyalists, the União Nacional or (National Union), were banned.The most vigorous and more popular period of the New State was 1932-44, when the basic structures were established. Never monolithic or entirely the work of one person (Salazar), the New State was constructed with the assistance of several dozen top associates who were mainly academics from law schools, some technocrats with specialized skills, and a handful of trusted career military officers. The 1933 Constitution declared Portugal to be a "unitary, corporative Republic," and pressures to restore the monarchy were resisted. Although some of the regime's followers were fascists and pseudofascists, many more were conservative Catholics, integralists, nationalists, and monarchists of different varieties, and even some reactionary republicans. If the New State was authoritarian, it was not totalitarian and, unlike fascism in Benito Mussolini's Italy or Adolf Hitler's Germany, it usually employed the minimum of violence necessary to defeat what remained a largely fractious, incoherent opposition.With the tumultuous Second Republic and the subsequent civil war in nearby Spain, the regime felt threatened and reinforced its defenses. During what Salazar rightly perceived as a time of foreign policy crisis for Portugal (1936-45), he assumed control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From there, he pursued four basic foreign policy objectives: supporting the Nationalist rebels of General Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) and concluding defense treaties with a triumphant Franco; ensuring that General Franco in an exhausted Spain did not enter World War II on the Axis side; maintaining Portuguese neutrality in World War II with a post-1942 tilt toward the Allies, including granting Britain and the United States use of bases in the Azores Islands; and preserving and protecting Portugal's Atlantic Islands and its extensive, if poor, overseas empire in Africa and Asia.During the middle years of the New State (1944-58), many key Salazar associates in government either died or resigned, and there was greater social unrest in the form of unprecedented strikes and clandestine Communist activities, intensified opposition, and new threatening international pressures on Portugal's overseas empire. During the earlier phase of the Cold War (1947-60), Portugal became a steadfast, if weak, member of the US-dominated North Atlantic Treaty Organization alliance and, in 1955, with American support, Portugal joined the United Nations (UN). Colonial affairs remained a central concern of the regime. As of 1939, Portugal was the third largest colonial power in the world and possessed territories in tropical Africa (Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, and São Tomé and Príncipe Islands) and the remnants of its 16th-century empire in Asia (Goa, Damão, Diu, East Timor, and Macau). Beginning in the early 1950s, following the independence of India in 1947, Portugal resisted Indian pressures to decolonize Portuguese India and used police forces to discourage internal opposition in its Asian and African colonies.The later years of the New State (1958-68) witnessed the aging of the increasingly isolated but feared Salazar and new threats both at home and overseas. Although the regime easily overcame the brief oppositionist threat from rival presidential candidate General Humberto Delgado in the spring of 1958, new developments in the African and Asian empires imperiled the authoritarian system. In February 1961, oppositionists hijacked the Portuguese ocean liner Santa Maria and, in following weeks, African insurgents in northern Angola, although they failed to expel the Portuguese, gained worldwide media attention, discredited the New State, and began the 13-year colonial war. After thwarting a dissident military coup against his continued leadership, Salazar and his ruling group mobilized military repression in Angola and attempted to develop the African colonies at a faster pace in order to ensure Portuguese control. Meanwhile, the other European colonial powers (Britain, France, Belgium, and Spain) rapidly granted political independence to their African territories.At the time of Salazar's removal from power in September 1968, following a stroke, Portugal's efforts to maintain control over its colonies appeared to be successful. President Americo Tomás appointed Dr. Marcello Caetano as Salazar's successor as prime minister. While maintaining the New State's basic structures, and continuing the regime's essential colonial policy, Caetano attempted wider reforms in colonial administration and some devolution of power from Lisbon, as well as more freedom of expression in Lisbon. Still, a great deal of the budget was devoted to supporting the wars against the insurgencies in Africa. Meanwhile in Asia, Portuguese India had fallen when the Indian army invaded in December 1961. The loss of Goa was a psychological blow to the leadership of the New State, and of the Asian empire only East Timor and Macau remained.The Caetano years (1968-74) were but a hiatus between the waning Salazar era and a new regime. There was greater political freedom and rapid economic growth (5-6 percent annually to late 1973), but Caetano's government was unable to reform the old system thoroughly and refused to consider new methods either at home or in the empire. In the end, regime change came from junior officers of the professional military who organized the Armed Forces Movement (MFA) against the Caetano government. It was this group of several hundred officers, mainly in the army and navy, which engineered a largely bloodless coup in Lisbon on 25 April 1974. Their unexpected action brought down the 48-year-old New State and made possible the eventual establishment and consolidation of democratic governance in Portugal, as well as a reorientation of the country away from the Atlantic toward Europe.Revolution of Carnations, 1974-76Following successful military operations of the Armed Forces Movement against the Caetano government, Portugal experienced what became known as the "Revolution of Carnations." It so happened that during the rainy week of the military golpe, Lisbon flower shops were featuring carnations, and the revolutionaries and their supporters adopted the red carnation as the common symbol of the event, as well as of the new freedom from dictatorship. The MFA, whose leaders at first were mostly little-known majors and captains, proclaimed a three-fold program of change for the new Portugal: democracy; decolonization of the overseas empire, after ending the colonial wars; and developing a backward economy in the spirit of opportunity and equality. During the first 24 months after the coup, there was civil strife, some anarchy, and a power struggle. With the passing of the Estado Novo, public euphoria burst forth as the new provisional military government proclaimed the freedoms of speech, press, and assembly, and abolished censorship, the political police, the Portuguese Legion, Portuguese Youth, and other New State organizations, including the National Union. Scores of political parties were born and joined the senior political party, the Portuguese Community Party (PCP), and the Socialist Party (PS), founded shortly before the coup.Portugal's Revolution of Carnations went through several phases. There was an attempt to take control by radical leftists, including the PCP and its allies. This was thwarted by moderate officers in the army, as well as by the efforts of two political parties: the PS and the Social Democrats (PPD, later PSD). The first phase was from April to September 1974. Provisional president General Antonio Spínola, whose 1974 book Portugal and the Future had helped prepare public opinion for the coup, met irresistible leftist pressures. After Spinola's efforts to avoid rapid decolonization of the African empire failed, he resigned in September 1974. During the second phase, from September 1974 to March 1975, radical military officers gained control, but a coup attempt by General Spínola and his supporters in Lisbon in March 1975 failed and Spínola fled to Spain.In the third phase of the Revolution, March-November 1975, a strong leftist reaction followed. Farm workers occupied and "nationalized" 1.1 million hectares of farmland in the Alentejo province, and radical military officers in the provisional government ordered the nationalization of Portuguese banks (foreign banks were exempted), utilities, and major industries, or about 60 percent of the economic system. There were power struggles among various political parties — a total of 50 emerged—and in the streets there was civil strife among labor, military, and law enforcement groups. A constituent assembly, elected on 25 April 1975, in Portugal's first free elections since 1926, drafted a democratic constitution. The Council of the Revolution (CR), briefly a revolutionary military watchdog committee, was entrenched as part of the government under the constitution, until a later revision. During the chaotic year of 1975, about 30 persons were killed in political frays while unstable provisional governments came and went. On 25 November 1975, moderate military forces led by Colonel Ramalho Eanes, who later was twice elected president of the republic (1976 and 1981), defeated radical, leftist military groups' revolutionary conspiracies.In the meantime, Portugal's scattered overseas empire experienced a precipitous and unprepared decolonization. One by one, the former colonies were granted and accepted independence—Guinea-Bissau (September 1974), Cape Verde Islands (July 1975), and Mozambique (July 1975). Portugal offered to turn over Macau to the People's Republic of China, but the offer was refused then and later negotiations led to the establishment of a formal decolonization or hand-over date of 1999. But in two former colonies, the process of decolonization had tragic results.In Angola, decolonization negotiations were greatly complicated by the fact that there were three rival nationalist movements in a struggle for power. The January 1975 Alvor Agreement signed by Portugal and these three parties was not effectively implemented. A bloody civil war broke out in Angola in the spring of 1975 and, when Portuguese armed forces withdrew and declared that Angola was independent on 11 November 1975, the bloodshed only increased. Meanwhile, most of the white Portuguese settlers from Angola and Mozambique fled during the course of 1975. Together with African refugees, more than 600,000 of these retornados ("returned ones") went by ship and air to Portugal and thousands more to Namibia, South Africa, Brazil, Canada, and the United States.The second major decolonization disaster was in Portugal's colony of East Timor in the Indonesian archipelago. Portugal's capacity to supervise and control a peaceful transition to independence in this isolated, neglected colony was limited by the strength of giant Indonesia, distance from Lisbon, and Portugal's revolutionary disorder and inability to defend Timor. In early December 1975, before Portugal granted formal independence and as one party, FRETILIN, unilaterally declared East Timor's independence, Indonesia's armed forces invaded, conquered, and annexed East Timor. Indonesian occupation encountered East Timorese resistance, and a heavy loss of life followed. The East Timor question remained a contentious international issue in the UN, as well as in Lisbon and Jakarta, for more than 20 years following Indonesia's invasion and annexation of the former colony of Portugal. Major changes occurred, beginning in 1998, after Indonesia underwent a political revolution and allowed a referendum in East Timor to decide that territory's political future in August 1999. Most East Timorese chose independence, but Indonesian forces resisted that verdict untilUN intervention in September 1999. Following UN rule for several years, East Timor attained full independence on 20 May 2002.Consolidation of Democracy, 1976-2000After several free elections and record voter turnouts between 25 April 1975 and June 1976, civil war was averted and Portugal's second democratic republic began to stabilize. The MFA was dissolved, the military were returned to the barracks, and increasingly elected civilians took over the government of the country. The 1976 Constitution was revised several times beginning in 1982 and 1989, in order to reempha-size the principle of free enterprise in the economy while much of the large, nationalized sector was privatized. In June 1976, General Ram-alho Eanes was elected the first constitutional president of the republic (five-year term), and he appointed socialist leader Dr. Mário Soares as prime minister of the first constitutional government.From 1976 to 1985, Portugal's new system featured a weak economy and finances, labor unrest, and administrative and political instability. The difficult consolidation of democratic governance was eased in part by the strong currency and gold reserves inherited from the Estado Novo, but Lisbon seemed unable to cope with high unemployment, new debt, the complex impact of the refugees from Africa, world recession, and the agitation of political parties. Four major parties emerged from the maelstrom of 1974-75, except for the Communist Party, all newly founded. They were, from left to right, the Communists (PCP); the Socialists (PS), who managed to dominate governments and the legislature but not win a majority in the Assembly of the Republic; the Social Democrats (PSD); and the Christian Democrats (CDS). During this period, the annual growth rate was low (l-2 percent), and the nationalized sector of the economy stagnated.Enhanced economic growth, greater political stability, and more effective central government as of 1985, and especially 1987, were due to several developments. In 1977, Portugal applied for membership in the European Economic Community (EEC), now the European Union (EU) since 1993. In January 1986, with Spain, Portugal was granted membership, and economic and financial progress in the intervening years has been significantly influenced by the comparatively large investment, loans, technology, advice, and other assistance from the EEC. Low unemployment, high annual growth rates (5 percent), and moderate inflation have also been induced by the new political and administrative stability in Lisbon. Led by Prime Minister Cavaco Silva, an economist who was trained abroad, the PSD's strong organization, management, and electoral support since 1985 have assisted in encouraging economic recovery and development. In 1985, the PSD turned the PS out of office and won the general election, although they did not have an absolute majority of assembly seats. In 1986, Mário Soares was elected president of the republic, the first civilian to hold that office since the First Republic. In the elections of 1987 and 1991, however, the PSD was returned to power with clear majorities of over 50 percent of the vote.Although the PSD received 50.4 percent of the vote in the 1991 parliamentary elections and held a 42-seat majority in the Assembly of the Republic, the party began to lose public support following media revelations regarding corruption and complaints about Prime Minister Cavaco Silva's perceived arrogant leadership style. President Mário Soares voiced criticism of the PSD's seemingly untouchable majority and described a "tyranny of the majority." Economic growth slowed down. In the parliamentary elections of 1995 and the presidential election of 1996, the PSD's dominance ended for the time being. Prime Minister Antônio Guterres came to office when the PS won the October 1995 elections, and in the subsequent presidential contest, in January 1996, socialist Jorge Sampaio, the former mayor of Lisbon, was elected president of the republic, thus defeating Cavaco Silva's bid. Young and popular, Guterres moved the PS toward the center of the political spectrum. Under Guterres, the PS won the October 1999 parliamentary elections. The PS defeated the PSD but did not manage to win a clear, working majority of seats, and this made the PS dependent upon alliances with smaller parties, including the PCP.In the local elections in December 2001, the PSD's criticism of PS's heavy public spending allowed the PSD to take control of the key cities of Lisbon, Oporto, and Coimbra. Guterres resigned, and parliamentary elections were brought forward from 2004 to March 2002. The PSD won a narrow victory with 40 percent of the votes, and Jose Durão Barroso became prime minister. Having failed to win a majority of the seats in parliament forced the PSD to govern in coalition with the right-wing Popular Party (PP) led by Paulo Portas. Durão Barroso set about reducing government spending by cutting the budgets of local authorities, freezing civil service hiring, and reviving the economy by accelerating privatization of state-owned enterprises. These measures provoked a 24-hour strike by public-sector workers. Durão Barroso reacted with vows to press ahead with budget-cutting measures and imposed a wage freeze on all employees earning more than €1,000, which affected more than one-half of Portugal's work force.In June 2004, Durão Barroso was invited by Romano Prodi to succeed him as president of the European Commission. Durão Barroso accepted and resigned the prime ministership in July. Pedro Santana Lopes, the leader of the PSD, became prime minister. Already unpopular at the time of Durão Barroso's resignation, the PSD-led government became increasingly unpopular under Santana Lopes. A month-long delay in the start of the school year and confusion over his plan to cut taxes and raise public-sector salaries, eroded confidence even more. By November, Santana Lopes's government was so unpopular that President Jorge Sampaio was obliged to dissolve parliament and hold new elections, two years ahead of schedule.Parliamentary elections were held on 20 February 2005. The PS, which had promised the electorate disciplined and transparent governance, educational reform, the alleviation of poverty, and a boost in employment, won 45 percent of the vote and the majority of the seats in parliament. The leader of the PS, José Sôcrates became prime minister on 12 March 2005. In the regularly scheduled presidential elections held on 6 January 2006, the former leader of the PSD and prime minister, Aníbal Cavaco Silva, won a narrow victory and became president on 9 March 2006. With a mass protest, public teachers' strike, and street demonstrations in March 2008, Portugal's media, educational, and social systems experienced more severe pressures. With the spreading global recession beginning in September 2008, Portugal's economic and financial systems became more troubled.Owing to its geographic location on the southwestern most edge of continental Europe, Portugal has been historically in but not of Europe. Almost from the beginning of its existence in the 12th century as an independent monarchy, Portugal turned its back on Europe and oriented itself toward the Atlantic Ocean. After carving out a Christian kingdom on the western portion of the Iberian peninsula, Portuguese kings gradually built and maintained a vast seaborne global empire that became central to the way Portugal understood its individuality as a nation-state. While the creation of this empire allows Portugal to claim an unusual number of "firsts" or distinctions in world and Western history, it also retarded Portugal's economic, social, and political development. It can be reasonably argued that the Revolution of 25 April 1974 was the most decisive event in Portugal's long history because it finally ended Portugal's oceanic mission and view of itself as an imperial power. After the 1974 Revolution, Portugal turned away from its global mission and vigorously reoriented itself toward Europe. Contemporary Portugal is now both in and of Europe.The turn toward Europe began immediately after 25 April 1974. Portugal granted independence to its African colonies in 1975. It was admitted to the European Council and took the first steps toward accession to the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1976. On 28 March 1977, the Portuguese government officially applied for EEC membership. Because of Portugal's economic and social backwardness, which would require vast sums of EEC money to overcome, negotiations for membership were long and difficult. Finally, a treaty of accession was signed on 12 June 1985. Portugal officially joined the EEC (the European Union [EU] since 1993) on 1 January 1986. Since becoming a full-fledged member of the EU, Portugal has been steadily overcoming the economic and social underdevelopment caused by its imperial past and is becoming more like the rest of Europe.Membership in the EU has speeded up the structural transformation of Portugal's economy, which actually began during the Estado Novo. Investments made by the Estado Novo in Portugal's economy began to shift employment out of the agricultural sector, which, in 1950, accounted for 50 percent of Portugal's economically active population. Today, only 10 percent of the economically active population is employed in the agricultural sector (the highest among EU member states); 30 percent in the industrial sector (also the highest among EU member states); and 60 percent in the service sector (the lowest among EU member states). The economically active population numbers about 5,000,000 employed, 56 percent of whom are women. Women workers are the majority of the workforce in the agricultural and service sectors (the highest among the EU member states). The expansion of the service sector has been primarily in health care and education. Portugal has had the lowest unemployment rates among EU member states, with the overall rate never being more than 10 percent of the active population. Since joining the EU, the number of employers increased from 2.6 percent to 5.8 percent of the active population; self-employed from 16 to 19 percent; and employees from 65 to 70 percent. Twenty-six percent of the employers are women. Unemployment tends to hit younger workers in industry and transportation, women employed in domestic service, workers on short-term contracts, and poorly educated workers. Salaried workers earn only 63 percent of the EU average, and hourly workers only one-third to one-half of that earned by their EU counterparts. Despite having had the second highest growth of gross national product (GNP) per inhabitant (after Ireland) among EU member states, the above data suggest that while much has been accomplished in terms of modernizing the Portuguese economy, much remains to be done to bring Portugal's economy up to the level of the "average" EU member state.Membership in the EU has also speeded up changes in Portuguese society. Over the last 30 years, coastalization and urbanization have intensified. Fully 50 percent of Portuguese live in the coastal urban conurbations of Lisbon, Oporto, Braga, Aveiro, Coimbra, Viseu, Évora, and Faro. The Portuguese population is one of the oldest among EU member states (17.3 percent are 65 years of age or older) thanks to a considerable increase in life expectancy at birth (77.87 years for the total population, 74.6 years for men, 81.36 years for women) and one of the lowest birthrates (10.59 births/1,000) in Europe. Family size averages 2.8 persons per household, with the strict nuclear family (one or two generations) in which both parents work being typical. Common law marriages, cohabitating couples, and single-parent households are more and more common. The divorce rate has also increased. "Youth Culture" has developed. The young have their own meeting places, leisure-time activities, and nightlife (bars, clubs, and discos).All Portuguese citizens, whether they have contributed or not, have a right to an old-age pension, invalidity benefits, widowed persons' pension, as well as payments for disabilities, children, unemployment, and large families. There is a national minimum wage (€385 per month), which is low by EU standards. The rapid aging of Portugal's population has changed the ratio of contributors to pensioners to 1.7, the lowest in the EU. This has created deficits in Portugal's social security fund.The adult literacy rate is about 92 percent. Illiteracy is still found among the elderly. Although universal compulsory education up to grade 9 was achieved in 1980, only 21.2 percent of the population aged 25-64 had undergone secondary education, compared to an EU average of 65.7 percent. Portugal's higher education system currently consists of 14 state universities and 14 private universities, 15 state polytechnic institutions, one Catholic university, and one military academy. All in all, Portugal spends a greater percentage of its state budget on education than most EU member states. Despite this high level of expenditure, the troubled Portuguese education system does not perform well. Early leaving and repetition rates are among the highest among EU member states.After the Revolution of 25 April 1974, Portugal created a National Health Service, which today consists of 221 hospitals and 512 medical centers employing 33,751 doctors and 41,799 nurses. Like its education system, Portugal's medical system is inefficient. There are long waiting lists for appointments with specialists and for surgical procedures.Structural changes in Portugal's economy and society mean that social life in Portugal is not too different from that in other EU member states. A mass consumption society has been created. Televisions, telephones, refrigerators, cars, music equipment, mobile phones, and personal computers are commonplace. Sixty percent of Portuguese households possess at least one automobile, and 65 percent of Portuguese own their own home. Portuguese citizens are more aware of their legal rights than ever before. This has resulted in a trebling of the number of legal proceeding since 1960 and an eight-fold increase in the number of lawyers. In general, Portuguese society has become more permissive and secular; the Catholic Church and the armed forces are much less influential than in the past. Portugal's population is also much more culturally, religiously, and ethnically diverse, a consequence of the coming to Portugal of hundreds of thousands of immigrants, mainly from former African colonies.Portuguese are becoming more cosmopolitan and sophisticated through the impact of world media, the Internet, and the World Wide Web. A prime case in point came in the summer and early fall of 1999, with the extraordinary events in East Timor and the massive Portuguese popular responses. An internationally monitored referendum in East Timor, Portugal's former colony in the Indonesian archipelago and under Indonesian occupation from late 1975 to summer 1999, resulted in a vote of 78.5 percent for rejecting integration with Indonesia and for independence. When Indonesian prointegration gangs, aided by the Indonesian military, responded to the referendum with widespread brutality and threatened to reverse the verdict of the referendum, there was a spontaneous popular outpouring of protest in the cities and towns of Portugal. An avalanche of Portuguese e-mail fell on leaders and groups in the UN and in certain countries around the world as Portugal's diplomats, perhaps to compensate for the weak initial response to Indonesian armed aggression in 1975, called for the protection of East Timor as an independent state and for UN intervention to thwart Indonesian action. Using global communications networks, the Portuguese were able to mobilize UN and world public opinion against Indonesian actions and aided the eventual independence of East Timor on 20 May 2002.From the Revolution of 25 April 1974 until the 1990s, Portugal had a large number of political parties, one of the largest Communist parties in western Europe, frequent elections, and endemic cabinet instability. Since the 1990s, the number of political parties has been dramatically reduced and cabinet stability increased. Gradually, the Portuguese electorate has concentrated around two larger parties, the right-of-center Social Democrats (PSD) and the left-of-center Socialist (PS). In the 1980s, these two parties together garnered 65 percent of the vote and 70 percent of the seats in parliament. In 2005, these percentages had risen to 74 percent and 85 percent, respectively. In effect, Portugal is currently a two-party dominant system in which the two largest parties — PS and PSD—alternate in and out of power, not unlike the rotation of the two main political parties (the Regenerators and the Historicals) during the last decades (1850s to 1880s) of the liberal constitutional monarchy. As Portugal's democracy has consolidated, turnout rates for the eligible electorate have declined. In the 1970s, turnout was 85 percent. In Portugal's most recent parliamentary election (2005), turnout had fallen to 65 percent of the eligible electorate.Portugal has benefited greatly from membership in the EU, and whatever doubts remain about the price paid for membership, no Portuguese government in the near future can afford to sever this connection. The vast majority of Portuguese citizens see membership in the EU as a "good thing" and strongly believe that Portugal has benefited from membership. Only the Communist Party opposed membership because it reduces national sovereignty, serves the interests of capitalists not workers, and suffers from a democratic deficit. Despite the high level of support for the EU, Portuguese voters are increasingly not voting in elections for the European Parliament, however. Turnout for European Parliament elections fell from 40 percent of the eligible electorate in the 1999 elections to 38 percent in the 2004 elections.In sum, Portugal's turn toward Europe has done much to overcome its backwardness. However, despite the economic, social, and political progress made since 1986, Portugal has a long way to go before it can claim to be on a par with the level found even in Spain, much less the rest of western Europe. As Portugal struggles to move from underde-velopment, especially in the rural areas away from the coast, it must keep in mind the perils of too rapid modern development, which could damage two of its most precious assets: its scenery and environment. The growth and future prosperity of the economy will depend on the degree to which the government and the private sector will remain stewards of clean air, soil, water, and other finite resources on which the tourism industry depends and on which Portugal's world image as a unique place to visit rests. Currently, Portugal is investing heavily in renewable energy from solar, wind, and wave power in order to account for about 50 percent of its electricity needs by 2010. Portugal opened the world's largest solar power plant and the world's first commercial wave power farm in 2006.An American documentary film on Portugal produced in the 1970s described this little country as having "a Past in Search of a Future." In the years after the Revolution of 25 April 1974, it could be said that Portugal is now living in "a Present in Search of a Future." Increasingly, that future lies in Europe as an active and productive member of the EU. -
12 grand
grand, e [gʀɑ̃, gʀɑ̃d]1. adjectivea. ( = de haute taille) tall• quand il sera grand [enfant] when he grows up• tu es grand/grande maintenant you're a big boy/girl nowd. (en nombre, en quantité) [vitesse, poids, valeur, puissance] great ; [nombre, quantité] large ; [famille] large, bige. ( = intense) [bruit, cri] loud ; [froid, chaleur] intense ; [vent] strong ; [danger, plaisir, pauvreté] greatf. ( = riche, puissant) [pays, firme, banquier, industriel] leadingg. ( = important) great ; [ville, travail] big• je t'annonce une grande nouvelle ! I've got some great news!h. ( = principal) main• la grande difficulté consiste à... the main difficulty lies in...i. (intensif) [travailleur, collectionneur, ami, rêveur] great ; [buveur, fumeur] heavy ; [mangeur] bigj. ( = remarquable) greatk. ( = de gala) [réception, dîner] grandl. ( = noble) [âme] noble ; [pensée, principe] loftym. ( = exagéré) faire de grandes phrases to voice high-flown sentimentsn. ( = beaucoup de) cela te fera (le plus) grand bien it'll do you the world of good• grand bien vous fasse ! much good may it do you!2. adverb3. masculine nouna. ( = élève) senior boyb. (terme d'affection) viens, mon grand come here, sonc. ( = personne puissante) les grands de ce monde men in high places4. feminine nouna. ( = élève) senior girl5. compounds━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━The grandes écoles are competitive-entrance higher education establishments where engineering, business administration and other subjects are taught to a very high standard. The most prestigious include « l'École Polytechnique » (engineering), the three « Écoles normales supérieures » (arts and sciences), « l'ÉNA » (the civil service college), and « HEC » (business administration).Pupils prepare for entrance to the grandes écoles after their « baccalauréat » in two years of « classes préparatoires ». → CLASSES PRÉPARATOIRES CONCOURS ÉCOLE NATIONALE D'ADMINISTRATION* * *
1.
grande gʀɑ̃, gʀɑ̃d adjectif1) ( de dimensions importantes) ( en hauteur) tall; (en longueur, durée) long; ( en largeur) wide; (en étendue, volume) big2) (nombreux, abondant) large, biglaver à grande eau — to wash [something] in plenty of running water [légumes]; to wash [something] down [sol]
3) ( à un degré élevé) [rêveur, collectionneur, ami] great; [tricheur, joueur] big; [buveur, fumeur] heavy4) ( important) [découverte, expédition, nouvelle] great; [date] important; [rôle] major; [problème, décision] bigla grande majorité — the great ou vast majority
5) ( principal) main6) ( de premier plan) [société, marque] leading7) (brillant, remarquable) [peintre, vin, cause] great; [cœur, âme] nobleLouis le Grand — Louis the Great; esprit
les grandes classes — École the senior forms GB, the upper classes US
9) ( qualifiant une mesure) [hauteur, longueur, distance, valeur] great; [pointure, quantité, étendue] large; [vitesse] high10) (extrême, fort) [bonté, amitié, danger, intérêt] great; [bruit] loud; [froid] severe; [chaleur] intense; [vent] strong, high; [tempête] big, violentà grands cris — loudly; cas, remède
11) ( de rang social élevé) [famille, nom] great12) ( grandiose) [réception, projet] grand13) ( emphatique) [mot] big; [phrase] high-soundinget voilà, tout de suite les grands mots — there you go, straight off the deep end
2.
3.
adverbe wideouvrir grand ses oreilles — fig to prick up one's ears
4.
nom masculinles cinq grands — Politique the Big Five
5.
en grand locution adverbialePhrasal Verbs:* * *ɡʀɑ̃, ɡʀɑ̃d grand, -e1. adj1) (= de haute taille) tallIl est grand pour son âge. — He's tall for his age.
2) (= aîné)C'est sa grande sœur. — She's his big sister.
3) (= adulte)Il est assez grand pour... — He's old enough to...
4) (= gros, vaste, large) big, large5) (importance, stature) greatC'est un grand ami à moi. — He's a great friend of mine.
les grandes lignes CHEMINS DE FER — the main lines
6) (ampleur, degré)les grands blessés; Les grands blessés ont été emmenés à l'hôpital en hélicoptère. — The severely injured were taken to hospital by helicopter.
7) (intensif)Ça te fera beaucoup de bien d'être au grand air. — It'll be very good for you to be out in the open air.
2. adv3. nm/f1) (= élève, enfant) big boy, big girlIl est chez les grands maintenant. — He's in the senior school now.
C'est une grande, elle peut y aller seule. — She's a big girl now, she can go on her own.
2) (= personnage)4. nm* * *A adj1 ( de dimensions importantes) ( en hauteur) [personne, arbre, tour, cierge] tall; (en longueur, durée) [bras, enjambée, promenade, voyage] long; ( en largeur) [angle, marge] wide; (en étendue, volume) [lac, ville, salle, trou, édifice, paquet] large, big; [tas, feu] big; ( démesuré) [pied, nez, bouche] big; un homme (très) grand a (very) tall man; un grand homme brun, un homme grand et brun a tall dark man; plus grand que nature larger than life; ouvrir de grands yeux to open one's eyes wide;2 (nombreux, abondant) [famille, foule] large, big; [fortune] large; grande braderie big sale; pas grand monde not many people; faire de grandes dépenses to spend a lot of money; il fait grand jour it's broad daylight; laver à grande eau to wash [sth] in plenty of running water [légumes]; to wash [sth] down [sol]; à grand renfort de publicité with much publicity;3 ( à un degré élevé) [rêveur, collectionneur, travailleur, ami, ennemi, pécheur] great; [tricheur, joueur, lâcheur, idiot] big; [buveur, fumeur] heavy; grand amateur de ballet great ballet lover; c'est un grand timide he's very shy; les grands malades very sick people; c'est un grand cardiaque he has a serious heart condition;4 ( important) [découverte, migration, expédition, événement, nouvelle, honneur] great; [date] important; [rôle] major; [problème, décision] big; ( principal) main; c'est un grand jour pour elle it's a big day for her; une grande partie de la maison a large part of the house; une grande partie des habitants many of the inhabitants; la grande majorité the great ou vast majority; ⇒ scène;5 ( principal) main; le grand escalier the main staircase; le grand problème/obstacle the main ou major problem/obstacle; les grands axes routiers the main ou trunk GB roads; les grands points du discours the main points of the speech; les grandes lignes d'une politique the broad lines of a policy;6 ( de premier plan) Écon, Pol [pays, société, industriel, marque] leading; les grandes industries the big industries;7 (brillant, remarquable) [peintre, œuvre, civilisation, vin, cause] great; [cœur, âme] noble; c'est un grand homme he's a great man; les grands écrivains great authors; un grand nom de la musique a great musician; un grand monsieur du théâtre a great gentleman of the stage; Louis/Pierre le Grand Louis/Peter the Great; les grands noms du cinéma/de la littérature indienne the big names of the cinema/of Indian literature; de grande classe [produit] high-class; [exploit] admirable; ⇒ esprit;8 ( âgé) [frère, sœur] elder; [élève] senior GB, older; ( adulte) grown-up; mon grand frère my elder brother; les grandes classes Scol the senior forms GB, the upper classes US; quand il sera grand when he grows up; mes enfants sont grands my children are quite old; une grande fille comme toi! a big girl like you!; 12 ans! tu es assez grand pour te débrouiller 12 years old! you're old enough to cope;9 ( qualifiant une mesure) [hauteur, longueur, distance, poids, valeur, âge] great; [dimensions, taille, pointure, quantité, nombre, étendue] large; [vitesse] high; [kilomètre, mois, heure] good; il est grand temps que tu partes it's high time you were off ou you went;10 (intense, extrême, fort) [bonté, lâcheté, pauvreté, amitié, chagrin, faim, danger, différence, intérêt] great; [bruit] great, loud; [froid] severe; [chaleur] intense; [vent] strong, high; [tempête] big, violent; avec grand plaisir with great ou much pleasure; dans le plus grand secret in great secrecy; d'une grande bêtise/timidité very ou extremely stupid/shy; à ma grande honte/surprise much to my shame/surprise; sans grand espoir/enthousiasme without much hope/enthusiasm; sans grande importance not very important; il n'y a pas grand mal à cela/à faire there isn't much harm in that/in doing; avoir grand faim/soif to be very hungry/thirsty; avoir grand besoin de to be badly in need of; ça te ferait le plus grand bien it would do you a world of good; à grands cris loudly; ⇒ cas, remède;11 ( de rang social élevé) [famille, nom] great; grande dame great lady; la grande bourgeoisie the upper middle class;12 ( grandiose) [réception] grand; grands projets grand designs; avoir grande allure, avoir grand air to look very impressive;13 ( emphatique) [mot] big; [phrase] high-sounding; un grand merci a big thank you; faire de grands gestes to wave one's arms about; et voilà, tout de suite les grands mots there you go, straight off the deep end.B nm,f1 ( enfant) big boy/girl; Scol senior GB ou older pupil; il a fait ça tout seul comme un grand he did it all by himself like a big boy; il fait le ménage comme un grand he does the housework like a grown-up; pour les grands et les petits for old and young alike;C adv wide; ouvrir grand la bouche to open one's mouth wide; ouvrir tout grand les bras to throw one's arms open; les fenêtres sont grand(es) ouvertes the windows are wide open; ouvrir la porte toute grande to open the door wide; ouvrir grand ses oreilles fig to prick up one's ears; ouvrir tout grand son cœur fig to open one's heart; les bottes chaussent grand the boots are large-fitting; leurs vêtements taillent grand their clothes are cut on the large side; voir grand fig to think big.D nm ( pays) big power; ( entreprise) leader, big name; les grands de ce monde the great and the good; Pol the world's leaders; les cinq grands Pol the Big Five; les grands de l'automobile the top car manufacturers; c'est un grand de la publicité he's big in advertising.E en grand loc adv [ouvrir] wide, completely; faire de l'élevage en grand to breed animals on a large scale; quand ils reçoivent, ils font les choses en grand when they entertain they do things on the grand scale or they really go to town○.grand argentier Hist royal treasurer; hum keeper of the nation's purse, Finance minister; le grand art alchemy; grand banditisme organized crime; grand bassin ( de piscine) main pool; Anat upper pelvis; grand cacatois main royal sail; grand caniche standard poodle; le grand capital Écon big money, big investors pl; grand commis de l'État top civil servant; grand coq de bruyère capercaillie; grand corbeau raven; grand couturier couturier; grand débutant absolute beginner; grand duc Zool eagle owl; grand écart Danse, Sport splits (sg); faire le grand écart to do the splits; le grand écran the big screen; grand électeur ( en France) elector who votes in the elections for the French Senate; ( aux États-Unis) presidential elector; grand ensemble high-density housing complex; la vie dans les grands ensembles high-rise living; grand d'Espagne Spanish grandee; grand foc outer jib; grand frais Météo moderate gale; grand hunier main topsail; grand hunier fixe lower main topsail; grand hunier volant upper main topsail; grand invalide civil, GIC civilian who is registered severely disabled; grand invalide de guerre, GIG Prot Soc ex-serviceman who is registered severely disabled; le grand large Naut the high seas (pl); grand magasin Comm department store; grand maître ( aux échecs) grand master; grand maître de l'ordre des Templiers Hist Grand Master of the Knights Templar; grand mât Naut mainmast; le grand monde high society; le Grand Nord Géog the Far North; Grand Œuvre Great Work; grand officier de la Légion d'Honneur high-ranking officer of the Legion of HonourGB; le Grand Orient the Grand Lodge of France; grand panda giant panda; Grand Pardon Day of Atonement; grand patron Méd senior consultant GB, head doctor US; grand perroquet Naut main topgallant sail; grand prêtre Relig, fig high priest; grand prix Courses Aut, Sport grand prix; le grand public the general public; Comm produit grand public consumer product; grand quart Naut six-hour watch; Grand quartier général, GQG Mil General Headquarters, GHQ; grand quotidien Presse big national daily; grand roque Jeux ( aux échecs) castling long; le Grand Siècle Hist the 17th century (in France); grand teint colourfastGB; grand tétras capercaillie; grand tourisme Courses Aut, Aut GT, gran turismo; le Grand Turc the Sultan; grand veneur Chasse master of the hounds; grande Armée Hist Grande Armée (Napoleon's army); grande Baie Australienne Géog Great Australian Bight; la grande banlieue the outer suburbs (pl); Grande Barrière (de Corail) Géog Great Barrier Reef; la grande bleue the sea; la grande cuisine Culin haute cuisine; grande distribution Écon volume retailing; grand école higher education institution; la Grande Guerre Hist the First World War; grande gueule○ loud mouth○; grande hune Naut maintop; la grande muette the army; la grande muraille de Chine Géog the Great Wall of China; grande personne grown-up, adult; la grande presse Presse the popular dailies (pl); grande puissance Pol superpower; grande roue ( de foire) big wheel GB, Ferris wheel US; grande série Comm mass production; fabriqué en grande série mass-produced; grande surface Comm supermarket; grandes eaux fountains; fig ( pleurs) waterworks; dès qu'on la gronde, ce sont les grandes eaux the minute you tell her off, she turns on the waterworks; grandes lignes Rail main train routes; grandes marées spring tides; grandes ondes Radio long wave (sg); Grandes Plaines Géog Great Plains; les grands blessés the seriously injured; grands corps de l'État Admin senior branches of the civil service; grands espaces Écol open spaces; grands fauves Zool big cats; grands fonds Naut ocean depths; les grands froids the cold of winter; Grands Lacs Géog Great Lakes; grands singes Zool great apes; ⇒ école, voyage.ⓘ Grande école A prestigious third-level institution where admission is usually by competitive entrance examination or concours. Places are much sought after as they are widely considered to guarantee more promising career prospects than the standard university institutions. Many grandes écoles specialize in particular disciplines or fields of study, e.g. ENA, Sciences Po, etc.( féminin grande) [grɑ̃, grɑ̃d] (devant nom masculin commençant par voyelle ou h muet [grɑ̃t]) adjectifA.[ASPECT QUANTITATIF]grand A/B/C capital A/B/Cune grande tour a high ou tall towerun grand fleuve a long ou big riveravoir de grands pieds to have big ou large feetmarcher à grands pas to walk with great ou long strides3. [d'un certain âge - être humain] big[aîné - frère, sœur] big4. [qui dure longtemps] long5. [intense, considérable] greatpendant les grandes chaleurs in high summer, in ou at the height of summerun grand incendie a major ou great firela grande majorité de the great ou vast majority ofils plongent à une grande profondeur they dive very deep ou to a great depth7. [entier]elle m'a fait attendre une grande heure/semaine she made me wait a good hour/a good week9. GÉOGRAPHIE10. ZOOLOGIEB.[ASPECT QUALITATIF]les grands problèmes de notre temps the main ou major ou key issues of our timece sont de grands amis they're great ou very good friendsles grands blessés/brûlés/invalides the seriously wounded/burned/disabled3. [puissant, influent - banque] top ; [ - industriel] top, leading, major ; [ - propriétaire, famille] important ; [ - personnage] great4. [dans une hiérarchie]les grands dignitaires du régime the leading ou important dignitaries of the regime5. [noble]avoir grand air ou grande allure to carry oneself well, to be imposing6. [généralementéreux]il a un grand cœur he's big-hearted, he has a big heart7. [exagéré] biggrands mots high-sounding words, high-flown language8. [fameux, reconnu] greatun grand journaliste a great ou top journalistil ne descend que dans les grands hôtels he only stays in the best hotels ou the most luxurious hotelsle grand film de la soirée tonight's big ou feature filmles grandes dates de l'histoire de France the great ou most significant dates in French history9. HISTOIRE10. [omnipotent, suprême] greatC.[EN INTENSIF]sans grand enthousiasme/intérêt without much enthusiasm/interestsa grande fierté, c'est son jardin he's very proud of ou he takes great pride in his gardenun grand merci à ta sœur lots of thanks to ou a big thank you to your sistercette cuisine a grand besoin d'être nettoyée this kitchen really needs ou is in dire need of a cleantoute la famille au grand complet the whole family, every single member of the familyjamais, au grand jamais je n'accepterai never in a million years will I acceptà sa grande surprise much to his surprise, to his great surprise————————, grande [grɑ̃, grɑ̃d] (devant nom masculin commençant par voyelle ou h muet [grɑ̃t]) nom masculin, nom féminin1. [enfant - d'un certain âge][en appellatif]merci mon grand! thanks, son!allons, ma grande, ne pleure pas! come on now, love, don't cry!comme un grand: je me débrouillerai tout seul, comme un grand/toute seule, comme une grande I'll manage on my own, like a big boy/a big girl[en appellatif]alors, ma grande, tu as pu te reposer un peu? well dear, did you manage to get some rest?[personne de grande taille]pour la photo, les grands se mettront derrière for the photo, tall people ou the taller people will stand at the back————————adverbe1. [vêtement]2. (locution)3. [largement]4. ART————————nom masculin1. PHILOSOPHIE → link=infiniment infiniment2. [entrepreneur, industriel]les grands de l'automobile the major ou leading car manufacturers————————grands nom masculin plurielÉCONOMIE & POLITIQUEles grands [les puissants] the rich (and powerful)les grands de ce monde the people in (positions of) power ou in high places————————en grand locution adverbiale[complètement] on a large scaleil faut aérer la maison en grand the house needs a thorough ou good airinggrande école nom féminingrand ensemble nom masculingrande surface nom fémininThe grandes écoles are relatively small and highly respected higher education establishments. Admission is usually only possible after two years of intensive preparatory studies and a competitive entrance examination. Most have close links with industry. The grandes écoles include l'École des hautes études commerciales or HEC (management and business), l'École polytechnique or l'X (engineering) and l'École normale supérieure (teacher training). -
13 mayor
meə, ]( American) 'meiər((especially in England, Ireland and the United States) the chief public official of a city, town or borough.) alcalde- mayoress- lord mayor
mayor n alcalde / alcaldesa
mayor adjetivo 1a) ( comparativo de‹ beneficio› greater; a mayor escala on a larger scale; un número mayor que 40 a number greater than 40b) ( superlativo de◊ grande): el mayor número de accidentes the greatest o highest number of accidents;su mayor preocupación her greatest o biggest worry; a la mayor brevedad posible as soon as possible; la mayor parte de los estudiantes most students, the majority of students 2 ( en edad) mayor que algn older than sbb) ( superlativo):◊ es la mayor de las dos she is the older o elder of the two;mi hijo mayor my eldest o oldest sond) ( adulto):cuando sea mayor when I grow up; ser mayor de edad (Der) to be of age; soy mayor de edad y haré lo que quiera I'm over 18 (o 21 etc) and I'll do as I please 3 ( en nombres) ( principal) main; 4 (Mús) major 5 (Com): ■ sustantivo masculino y femenino ( adulto) adult, grown-up (colloq); mis/tus mayores my/your elders; mayor de edad person who is legally of age
mayor
I adjetivo
1 (comparativo de tamaño) larger, bigger: necesitas una talla mayor, you need a larger size (superlativo) largest, biggest: ésa es la mayor, that is the biggest one
2 (comparativo de grado) greater: su capacidad es mayor que la mía, his capacity is greater than mine
la ciudad no tiene mayor atractivo, the town isn't particularly appealing (superlativo) greatest: ésa es la mayor tontería que he oído nunca, that is the most absurd thing I've ever heard
3 (comparativo de edad) older: es mayor que tu madre, she is older than your mother (superlativo) oldest
el mayor de los tres, the oldest one 4 está muy mayor, (crecido, maduro) he's quite grown-up (anciano) he looks old
ser mayor de edad, to be of age (maduro) old: es un hombre mayor, he's an old man
eres mayor para entenderlo, you are old enough to understand it
5 (principal) major, main: tu mayor responsabilidad es su educación, the thing that's most important to you is her education; la calle mayor, the main street
6 Mús major
7 Com al por mayor, wholesale
II sustantivo masculino
1 Mil major 2 mayores, (adultos) grownups, adults (ancianos) elders Locuciones: al por mayor, wholesale
ir/pasar a mayores, to become serious: discutió con su marido, pero el asunto no pasó a mayores, she had an argument with her husband but they soon forgot about it ' mayor' also found in these entries: Spanish: abundar - adicta - adicto - afán - alcalde - alcaldía - almacén - amable - brevedad - burgomaestre - calle - caza - colegio - confluencia - desarrollar - edad - engrandecer - escaparate - estado - Excemo. - Excmo. - fuerza - gruesa - grueso - hacer - hacerse - inri - obra - osa - palo - persona - plana - polemizar - predilección - re - safari - salir - sol - teniente - vender - venta - abuelo - ama - anhelo - atractivo - audiencia - cazar - ciudad - compás - de English: act - address - adult - big - bomb - bulk - capacity - cash-and-carry - claw back - densely - dipper - dormitory - elaborate - elder - eldest - few - frisky - grow up - growing - high street - hill - inquest - lion - little - main - major - mayor - mostly - much - nominee - often - old - outflow - outweigh - over - part - perpendicular - residence - senior - sergeant major - spur - staff - trade price - utmost - wholesale - wholesale trade - wholesaler - worship - abject - cashtr[meəSMALLr/SMALL]\SMALLIDIOMATIC EXPRESSION/SMALLlady mayor alcaldesamayor ['meɪər, 'mɛr] n: alcalde m, -desa fn.• alcalde (Gobierno) s.m.'meɪər, meə(r)noun alcalde, -desa m,f, intendente mf (municipal) (RPl)[mɛǝ(r)]N alcalde m, alcaldesa f, intendente mf (S. Cone, Mex), regente mf (Mex)* * *['meɪər, meə(r)]noun alcalde, -desa m,f, intendente mf (municipal) (RPl) -
14 best
A n1 (most enjoyable, pleasant) the best le/la meilleur/-e m/f ; it's the best of the stories cette histoire, c'est la meilleure ; the North will have the best of the weather c'est le nord du pays qui profitera du beau temps ; I think we've had the best of the day je pense que le beau temps est fini pour aujourd'hui ; to look the best être le mieux ; to sound the best avoir le meilleur son, sonner le mieux ; to taste the best être le/la meilleur/-e ; to smell the best avoir la meilleure odeur ;2 (of the highest quality, standard) the best le/la meilleur/-e m/f ; the best there is le meilleur qui soit ; the best of its kind le meilleur du genre ; it's not her best (of book, play) ce n'est pas le/la meilleur/-e qu'elle ait écrit/-e ; only the best is good enough for me/my son pour moi/mon fils je veux ce qu'il y a de mieux ; only the best is good enough for him seul le meilleur peut lui convenir ;3 ( most competent) the best le/la meilleur/-e m/f ; she's one of the best c'est l'une des meilleures ; to be the best at être le/la meilleur/-e en [subject, game] ; who's the best at drawing/swimming? qui dessine/nage le mieux? ;4 (most appropriate, desirable or valid) the best le/la meilleur/-e m/f ; it's the best I've got c'est le meilleur que j'aie ; it's for the best ( recommending course of action) c'est la meilleure solution ; ( of something done) c'est tant mieux ; to do sth for the best faire qch pour le mieux ; it's not the best of times to do ce n'est pas le meilleur moment pour faire ;5 ( most favourable) the best le mieux ; the best we can hope for/say le mieux qu'on puisse espérer/dire ; at best au mieux ; I find it difficult to do at the best of times j'ai déjà du mal à le faire ; he's a difficult man at the best of times déjà en temps ordinaire il est difficile à vivre ; to make the best of sth s'accommoder de qch ;6 (peak, height) to be at its best [wine, cheese] être parfait ; [city, view, landscape] être le/la plus beau/belle ; this is modern art at its best c'est ce que l'art moderne peut produire de mieux ; to be at one's best (physically, in mood) être au mieux de sa forme ; to be at one's best writing poetry/playing villains exceller dans la poésie/dans les rôles de méchants ; this is Eliot at her best c'est Eliot dans ce qu'elle a fait de meilleur ; it was not in the best of taste ce n'était pas du meilleur goût ; the best of friends les meilleurs amis du monde ;7 ( greatest personal effort) to do one' s best to do faire de son mieux or faire (tout) son possible pour faire ; is that the best you can/the car can do? c'est le mieux que tu puisses/que la voiture puisse faire? ; to get the best out of obtenir le meilleur de [pupil, worker], tirer le meilleur parti de [gadget] ;8 (virtues, qualities) to bring out the best in sb [crisis, suffering] inciter qn à donner le meilleur de lui-même ;9 ( most advantageous or pleasing part) the best of it is gen le mieux, c'est que ; ( most amusing) le plus beau, c'est que ; to get the best of avoir la part du lion dans [deal, bargain] ; gagner dans [arrangement] ;10 ( good clothes) to keep sth for best garder or réserver qch pour les grandes occasions ; ⇒ Sunday best ;11 ( good wishes) ( on an occasion) meilleurs vœux mpl ; ( friendly greeting) amitiés fpl ; give her my best transmets-lui mes meilleurs vœux or amitiés ; all the best! ( good luck) bonne chance! ; ( cheers) à ta santé! ; all the best, Ellie ( in letter) amitiés, Ellie ; wishing you all the best on your retirement meilleurs vœux de bonheur pour votre retraite ;12 ( winning majority) best of three/five au meilleur des trois/cinq ; to play (the) best of three jouer au meilleur des trois ; it's the best of five c'est au meilleur des cinq.1 ( most excellent or pleasing) meilleur ; the best book I've ever read/written le meilleur livre que j'aie jamais lu/écrit ; the best idea she's had all day la meilleure idée qu'elle ait eue de la journée ; the best hotel in town le meilleur hôtel de la ville ; the best thing about sth/about doing ce qu'il y a de mieux dans qch/lorsqu'on fait ; one of the best things about sth/about doing l'un des plus grands avantages de qch/lorsqu'on fait ; to look best être le mieux ; to sound best avoir le meilleur son, sonner le mieux ; to taste best être le/la meilleur/-e ; to smell best avoir la meilleure odeur ; this wine is best served chilled ce vin est parfait si on le sert frais ; she looks best in black c'est en noir qu'elle est le mieux ; she speaks the best French c'est elle qui parle le mieux français ; she said it in her best French elle l'a dit dans son meilleur français ; in your best handwriting dans ta plus belle écriture ; my best dress ma plus belle robe ; my best sheets mes plus beaux draps ; ‘best before end May’ ‘à consommer de préférence avant fin mai’ ;2 ( most competent) [teacher, poet] meilleur ; the award for best actor le prix du meilleur acteur ; who is the best swimmer? qui nage le mieux? ; to be best at être le/la meilleur/-e en [subject, sport] ; être le/la meilleur/-e à [instrument] ; to be best at cooking cuisiner le mieux ; the best mother you could wish for la meilleure mère dont on puisse rêver ; may the best man win! que le meilleur gagne! ;3 ( most appropriate or suitable) [tool, example, way, time, idea] meilleur ; these ones are best for cutting paper pour couper du papier ceux-ci sont le mieux ; they're best for cutting paper, not fabric c'est pour couper du papier et non pas du tissu qu'ils conviennent le mieux ; it is best for older children cela convient mieux aux enfants plus âgés ; the best person for the job la personne qui convient le mieux pour ce travail ; the best thing to do la meilleure chose à faire ; the best thing would be to do, it would be best to do le mieux serait de faire ; it would be best if he did le mieux serait qu'il fasse ;4 ( most beneficial) [exercise, food] meilleur ; to consider what is best for sb réfléchir à ce qui est le mieux pour qn.C adv ( superlative of well) le mieux ; to behave/fit/hear best se comporter/aller/entendre le mieux ; the best fed/qualified/organized le mieux nourri/qualifié/organisé ; the best organized person la personne la mieux organisée ; the best prepared/equipped/loved le plus préparé/équipé/aimé ; the best loved woman la femme la plus aimée ; to like sth best aimer qch le mieux or le plus ; to like sth best of all aimer qch mieux or plus que tout ; best of all mieux que tout ; he works best on his own c'est seul qu'il travaille le mieux ; to do best réussir le mieux ; who did best? qui a le mieux réussi? ; to do sth as best one can faire qch de son mieux ; you'd best do ○ tu ferais mieux de faire ; such advice is best ignored/followed il vaut mieux ignorer/suivre de tels conseils ; you know best c'est toi le meilleur juge.D vtr (defeat, outdo) ( in argument) avoir le dessus sur [person] ; (in contest, struggle) battre, vaincre [opponent] ; to be bested in an argument avoir le dessous dans une discussion.to do sth with the best of them faire qch avec tout un chacun ; it happens to the best of us (mishap, failure) ça arrive à tout le monde ; ( death) c'est notre lot à tous. -
15 best
best [best]meilleur ⇒ 1 (a) mieux ⇒ 2 le meilleur ⇒ 3 (a), 3 (b) le mieux ⇒ 3 (b) au mieux ⇒ 5 pour le mieux ⇒ 6∎ some of our best scientists will be there certains de nos meilleurs chercheurs seront présents;∎ it's one of the best films I've ever seen c'est un des meilleurs films que j'aie jamais vus;∎ she's my best friend c'est ma meilleure amie;∎ may the best man win que le meilleur gagne;∎ she gave him the best years of her life elle lui a sacrifié les plus belles années de sa vie;∎ I'm doing what is best for the family je fais ce qu'il y a de mieux pour la famille;∎ she knows what's best for her elle sait ce qui lui va ou convient le mieux;∎ I only want what's best for you je ne veux que ce qu'il y a de mieux pour toi;∎ do as you think best faites pour le mieux;∎ they think it best not to answer ils croient qu'il vaut mieux ne pas répondre;∎ it's best not to smoke at all il est préférable de ne pas fumer du tout;∎ what's the best thing to do? quelle est la meilleure chose à faire?;∎ the best thing (to do) is to keep quiet le mieux, c'est de ne rien dire;∎ it would be best to…, the best plan would be to… le mieux serait de…;∎ the best thing about it is that it's free/is that she didn't even realize le mieux, c'est que c'est gratuit/c'est qu'elle ne s'en est même pas rendu compte;∎ best of all le meilleur de tout;∎ Commerce best before 2002 (on packaging) à consommer de préférence avant 2002(b) (reserved for special occasions) plus beau (belle);∎ she put out her best dishes elle a sorti sa plus belle vaisselle;∎ she was dressed in her best clothes elle portait ses plus beaux vêtements∎ the best part of la plus grande partie de;∎ she spent the best part of the day working elle a passé le plus clair de la journée à travailler;∎ I waited for the best part of an hour j'ai attendu près d'une heure ou presque une heure2 adverb(superl of well) mieux;∎ he does it best c'est lui qui le fait le mieux;∎ Tuesday would suit me best le mieux pour moi serait mardi;∎ the best-kept garden in the village le jardin le mieux entretenu du village;∎ the best-preserved Renaissance theatre in Italy le théâtre Renaissance le mieux conservé d'Italie;∎ the best-looking women les femmes les plus jolies;∎ which film did you like best? quel est le film que vous avez préféré?;∎ I liked the Fellini best c'est le Fellini que j'ai préféré;∎ you know best c'est vous (qui êtes) le mieux placé pour en juger;∎ he's best able to decide il est le plus à même de décider;∎ do as you think best faites comme bon vous semble(ra);∎ I comforted her as best I could je l'ai consolée de mon mieux ou du mieux que j'ai pu;∎ you had best apologize to her vous feriez mieux de lui présenter vos excuses;∎ these things are best left to the police il vaut mieux laisser à la police le soin de s'occuper de ces choses-là3 noun(a) (most outstanding person, thing, part etc) le (la) meilleur(e) m,f;∎ it/she is the best there is c'est le meilleur/la meilleure qui soit;∎ he wants her to have the best il veut qu'elle ait ce qu'il y a de mieux, il veut ce qu'il y a de mieux pour elle;∎ your parents only want the best for you tes parents ne veulent que ce qu'il y a de mieux pour toi∎ only the best will do ne fera l'affaire que ce qu'il y a de meilleur;∎ the best of it is the paid holidays le mieux ou ce qu'il y a de vraiment bien, ce sont les congés payés;∎ the best of it is that… le plus beau de l'affaire, c'est que…;∎ the best you can say about him is that… le mieux qu'on puisse dire à son sujet c'est que…;∎ she can stand comparison with the best of them on peut la comparer avec les meilleurs d'entre eux/les meilleures d'entre elles;∎ even the best of us can make mistakes tout le monde peut se tromper;∎ to get or to have the best of the bargain avoir la part belle;∎ to get the best of sb in an argument l'emporter sur qn dans une discussion;∎ she wants the best of both worlds elle veut tout avoir(b) (greatest, highest degree) le mieux, le meilleur;∎ they're the best of friends ce sont les meilleurs amis du monde;∎ to the best of my knowledge/recollection autant que je sache/je me souvienne;∎ the best of luck! bonne chance!;∎ (even) at the best of times même dans les meilleurs moments;∎ she's not the calmest of people, (even) at the best of times ce n'est pas quelqu'un de très calme de toute façon;∎ it's journalism at its best c'est du journalisme de haut niveau;∎ the garden is at its best in spring c'est au printemps que le jardin est le plus beau;∎ he was at his best last night il était en pleine forme hier soir;∎ I'm not at my best in the morning je ne suis pas en forme le matin;∎ this is Shakespeare at his best voilà du meilleur Shakespeare;∎ I am in the best of health je me porte à merveille, je suis en excellente santé;∎ to do one's best faire de son mieux ou tout son possible;∎ do your best! faites de votre mieux!, faites pour le mieux!;∎ do your best to finish on time faites de votre mieux pour finir à temps;∎ it was the best we could do nous ne pouvions pas faire mieux;∎ to get the best out of sb/sth tirer un maximum de qn/qch;∎ to bring out the best in people faire ressortir les bons côtés des gens;∎ to look one's best (gen) être resplendissant;∎ she looks her best with short hair les cheveux courts l'avantagent;∎ we'll have to make the best of the situation il faudra nous accommoder de la situation (du mieux que nous pouvons);∎ to make the best of a bad bargain or job faire contre mauvaise fortune bon cœur∎ they were (dressed) in their (Sunday) best ils étaient endimanchés ou portaient leurs habits du dimanche;∎ I keep it for best (of dress, suit etc) je le garde pour des occasions spéciales∎ (I wish you) all the best (je vous souhaite) bonne chance;∎ give your wife my best mes amitiés à votre femme∎ we played the best of three (games) le jeu consistait à gagner ou il fallait gagner deux parties sur trois;∎ let's make it the best of five le premier qui remporte trois jeux ou parties sur cinq a gagnéau mieux;∎ this is, at best, a temporary solution c'est, au mieux, une solution temporaire;∎ his performance has been at best mediocre ses résultats ont été, au mieux, médiocrespour le mieux;∎ it's all for the best c'est pour le mieux;∎ he meant it for the best il avait les meilleures intentions du monde;∎ we must hope for the best il faut être optimiste►► Television & Cinema best boy aide-électricien m;best man garçon m d'honneurⓘ BEST MAN Dans les pays anglo-saxons, le garçon d'honneur présente l'alliance au marié et prononce un discours lors de la réception de mariage.
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