English to English Dictionary

/wɒt bʊk keɪm fɜːrst ðə ˈhɒbɪt ɔːr lɔːrd əv ðə rɪŋz/ [what book came first the hobbit or lord of the rings]

[idiom] A common inquiry used to determine the publication order of J.R.R. Tolkien's two most famous fantasy works.

/wɒt ˈkɔːzɪz ˈkɛmɪkəl riˈækʃənz tuː stɒp/ [what causes chemical reactions to stop]

[noun] The set of physical and chemical factors—such as the depletion of reactants, the attainment of chemical equilibrium, or the loss of necessary activation energy—that result in the cessation of a chemical process.

/wɒt ˈtʃælɪndʒɪz dɪd məˈriː ˈkjʊəri feɪs/ [what challenges did marie curie face]

[noun] An inquiry concerning the various difficulties, systemic barriers, and hardships encountered by the pioneering physicist and chemist Marie Curie throughout her life and career.

/wɒt ˈkɒmən ˈhaʊshəʊld ˈaɪtəmz həv ˈæsɪtəʊn ɪn ðəm/ [what common household items have acetone in them]

[idiom] A search query or inquiry used to identify domestic products, such as nail polish remover, paint thinners, or certain adhesives, that contain the organic solvent acetone.

/wɒt dɪd ˈfɒksɪz ɪˈvɒlv frɒm/ [what did foxes evolve from]

[idiom] A specific inquiry regarding the evolutionary ancestry of foxes, which are traced back to small, carnivorous mammals known as Leptocyon that lived approximately 10 to 12 million years ago.

/wɒt dɪd ði ˈɒr.ə.kəl ɒv ˈtɛl.ɪ.məs ˈprɒf.ɪ.saɪ ɪn ði ˈɒd.ə.si/ [what did the oracle of telemus prophesy in the odyssey]

[noun] A specific literary inquiry concerning the prediction that Polyphemus would be blinded by a man named Odysseus.

/wɒt duː ðiː ˈæŋ.ɡəlz əv ə ˈtraɪ.æŋ.ɡəl æd ʌp tuː/ [what do the angles of a triangle add up to]

[noun] A standard geometric question asking for the sum of the interior angles of a triangle, which equals 180 degrees (or $\pi$ radians) in Euclidean geometry.

/ˈsɛn.tɔːr/ [what do you call a half man half horse]

[noun] A mythological creature having the head, arms, and torso of a human, and the lower body and legs of a horse; formally called a centaur.

/wɒt duː juː nəʊ/ [what do you know]

[interjection] An exclamation expressing surprise, mild astonishment, or realization upon discovering something unexpected.

/wɒt duː juː ˌʌndəˈstænd baɪ ðə tɜːm ˈvɛktə speɪs/ [what do you understand by the term vector space]

[idiom] A formal academic or pedagogical prompt requesting a conceptual explanation of a mathematical structure consisting of a set of objects (vectors) that can be added together and multiplied by scalars.

/wɒt dʌz ˈæn.ɪ.məl.ɪz.əm ˌrɛp.rɪˈzɛnt ɪn ˈæn.ɪ.məl fɑːm/ [what does animalism represent in animal farm]

[noun] A literary concept referring to the allegorical representation of Communism and Soviet Socialism in George Orwell's novel 'Animal Farm', illustrating how egalitarian ideals can be corrupted into totalitarianism.

/wʌt dʌz ˈɑːnɒs miːn ɪn ˈspænɪʃ/

[idiom] A common linguistic query explaining the difference between the Spanish words 'anos' (meaning 'anuses') and 'años' (meaning 'years'), highlighting a frequent spelling and pronunciation mistake made by non-native speakers.

/wɒt dʌz ɪmˈplɔɪmənt ˈaʊtlʊk miːn/ [what does employment outlook mean]

[idiom] A common inquiry used to request a definition or explanation of the term 'employment outlook,' which refers to the projected growth or decline in the number of jobs available in a specific occupation or industry over a set period.

/ˈɡʌv.ən jɔːrˈself əˈkɔːr.dɪŋ.li/ [govern yourself accordingly]

[idiom] A formal or stern instruction to adjust one's behavior, plans, or expectations in light of the information just provided.

/wɒt dʌz ɪt miːn wɛn wiː seɪ ðə kəˈpæsɪtəns əv ə kəˈpæsɪtər ɪz faɪv maɪkrəʊ færədz/ [what does it mean when we say the capacitance of a capacitor is 5 μf]

[idiom] A pedagogical inquiry used to explain that a capacitor with a 5 microfarad (μF) rating can store 5 microcoulombs of electrical charge for every volt of potential difference applied across its plates.

/wʌt ˈhæp.ənd tuː ðə ˈpiː.pəl huː hɪd æn fræŋk/ [what happened to the people who hid anne frank]

[noun] A historical query regarding the fates of the Dutch protectors (such as Miep Gies and Victor Kugler) who assisted and concealed the Frank family from the Gestapo during World War II.

/wɒt ˈhæpənd tuː ˈvɪlfɔːr ɪn ðə kaʊnt əv ˈmɒnti ˈkrɪstoʊ/ [what happened to villefort in the count of monte cristo]

[idiom] A specific inquiry regarding the narrative fate of the antagonist Gérard de Villefort, who suffers the loss of his family and descends into insanity as a result of the Count of Monte Cristo's orchestrated retribution.

/wɒt ɪf/ [what if]

[idiom] Used to introduce a hypothetical situation, a suggestion, or a concern about a possible future event.