back *****
nom [ANAT] esquena
expr turn your back on (somebody / something)
girar l'esquena a (algú / alguna cosa)
> back down
1. desdir-se'n / retractar-se'n / abandonar (una reclamació)
Australia won't back down on its immigration policy
The Americans believe that if they put pressure on North Korea they will back down on their plans to build more nuclear missiles
The question everybody is asking is 'who will back down first, the French or the Americans?'

2. [TRANSP] fer baixar enrere (un vehicle)
> back into
1. [TRANSP] xocar amb alguna cosa fent marxa enrere
At the very beginning of my driving test I put the car in reverse by mistake and managed to back into a parked car. Needless to say, I failed!
There was a crash on the M62 last night when a lorry backed into the path of an oncoming vehicle
nota: Si es diu que un vehícle 'backed into' una cosa concreta com per exemple un cotxe, la paret d'un edifici etc., vol dir que es va xocar amb aquest, però si es diu que un vehícle 'backed into' un espai lliure com per exemple un carrer, un espai d'aparcament, etc, vol dir senzillament que es va entrar en aquest espai fent marxa enrere, no implica que es va xocar amb res.

sin. reverse into
2. [TRANSP] entrar en un espai lliure fent marxa enrere
sin. reverse into
> back up
1. donar suport a
The student insisted that the death penalty was a good way of preventing crime, but nobody took much notice of him as he always failed to provide any real evidence to back his arguments up
The protestors claimed that the government had acted illegally and should be overthrown. However, their cries fell on deaf ears as they never managed to back their statements up with any facts

2. corroborar
If you don't believe me ask Sarah. She'll back me up
The man claimed he was nowhere near the house at the time of the murder and three neighbours came forward to back him up
You're my best friend. You're supposed to back me up not drop me in it!')

sin. vouch for (someone)
3. [TRANSP] fer marxa enrere
sin. reverse
4. recular / anar enrere
5. [INFORM] fer una còpia de seguretat
If you don't regularly back up your work files you risk losing them all should your computer get hit by a virus
We strongly recommend that you back up the system every day!

> back away recular, fer-se enrere
> back off
1. recular, fer-se enrere
2. fer recular
> back out
1. fer sortir enrere (un vehicle)
2. retirar-se (sobretot d'un negoci)

bad *****
adjectiu mal / dolent
expr that's too bad
(Am) és una llàstima
Br. = that's a pity

bank ****
nom [FIN] banc riba / ribera / vora / voral
> bank upon refiar-se de

bar ****
nom
1. barra
2. bar
3. [ESPORT] travesser
sin. crossbar
4. [ESPORT] llistó
sin. crossbar
verb conj
1. prohibir
sin. ban
2. barrar
prep excepte / menys / tret de
All bar two of the recipes are for a family of four
All bar three of the survivors went on to make a full recovery

sin. except
> bar from excloure de

basic ****
adjectiu bàsic

basis ****
nom base

bat ****
nom
1. [ZOOL] rat-penat
2. (argot) bruixa
sin. witch pal / pala
verb conj batre
expr bat for the other side
(col.loq) ser homosexual
I don't think Nikki is interested in men, to be honest. I rather suspect she bats for the other side.

> bat out fer ràpidament (alguna cosa), sense gaires esforços

be *****
verb conj (was/been) ser / ésser / estar
> be after perseguir
> be around ser per aquí o per allà
> be away estar fora
> be back ser present (després d'haver tornat)
> be by (generalment en futur o condicional) arribar
> be down with (something) estar (malalt i) al llit amb
> be in ser present (a casa, a la feina...)
Is John in? I need to talk to him.

> be into (something) (col.loq) tenir interès (o entusiasme) per (alguna cosa)
> be off
1. (un aparell) ser apagat
Is the TV off? If not, can you switch it off please?

2. anar-se'n
John and Julia are off now, are you coming to say goodbye?
Right, that's it, I'm off. See you later!

3. ser passat
> be on to (something) haver descobert alguna cosa (o situació bona)
> be on to (someone) ser conscient de les malifetes o dels enganys d'un altre
> be up
1. estar despert
2. acabar-se (temps)
> be up to (something)
1. fer (alguna cosa)
What is he up to now?

2. trobar-se capaç a / ser prou bo per a
I've put Jessica in charge of the office while I'm out. Do you think she's up to it?

because ****
conj perquè

become *****
verb conj (became/become) esdevenir
> become of fer-se de

before *****
adverbi abans / anteriorment
prep
1. abans de
2. davant

begin ****
verb conj (began/begun/beginning) començar / iniciar
I've got so much work to do I don't really know where to begin
This past winter in England was really, really cold. I'm beginning to understand why a lot of English people spend the winter in Australia!
The group began the concert with one of their recent top-ten singles

sin. start

behind ****
prep darrere
nom (argot) cul
Every day Peter's wife cooks, cleans and looks after the children while he just sits on his fat behind and watches television.

best *****
adjectiu millor
nota: 'Best' és el superlatiu de l'adjectiu 'good' i l'adverbi 'well'.

better ****
verb conj millorar
adjectiu millor
nota: 'Better' és el comparatiu de l'adjectiu 'good' i l'adverbi 'well'.

beverage ****
nom (formal) beguda

bias ****
nom
1. prejudici
2. biaix

bid ****
verb conj (bid/bid/bidding)
1. licitar / fer una oferta / oferir
2. concursar (per un contracte)
3. (joc de cartes) envidar
nom
1. oferta (quantitat de diners que s'ofereix per comprar una cosa)
2. candidatura
Barcelona made a bid to host the Olympic Games - Barcelona va presentar la seva candidatura per organitzar els Jocs Olímpics
3. intent
4. (joc de cartes) envit
expr bid farewell
(formal) acomiadar-se / dir adéu

big *****
adjectiu
1. gran
nota: Els adjectius 'big' i 'large' equivalen més o menys a la paraula catalana 'gran'. Però, no sempre són sinònims. A més del fet que 'large' és més formal que 'big', i que 'big' s'utilitza habitualment per a referir-se a les persones (per ex.: 'She's a big girl', 'His friend is very big'), hi ha moltes altres diferències súbtils. Assenyalar totes aquestes diferències ultrapassa l'abast d'aquest diccionari però us donem alguns substantius que sempre van acompanyats de 'big' (big boss, big breath, big brother, big decision, big favour, big grin, big hit, big problem, big sigh, big sister, big smile, big yawn).

2. gros
> big up (Br) (argot) encomiar / enaltir alguna cosa (o algú) (potser més del que es mereix)
Podcasting went mainstream when the BBC bigged it up and Apple integrated it into iTunes.
If you ask me, there's too much hype around it. The media have bigged it up to be a lot better than it actually is.
The judges bigged him up and dissed all the other contestants.

billion *****
nom mil milions
pl. billion

bios **** (Basic Input Output System)
nom bios

biotechnology *****
nom biotecnologia
sin. biotech

bit *****
nom [INFORM] bit tros / xic / mica
expr bit by bit
poc a poc / de mica en mica

black ****
adjectiu negre
expr black and white photo
foto en blanc i negre
expr black box
[TRANSP] caixa negra
expr Black Cats
(Br) (col.loq) sobrenom de l'equip de futbol anglès Sunderland AFC
expr Black Death
Pesta Negra
expr black hole
forat negre
expr black market
mercat negre
expr Black Sea
Mar Negre
> black out desmaiar-se

blog *****
nom
1. bloc
2. blog

blogger ****
nom
1. blocaire
2. bloguista

body ****
nom
1. cos
2. cadàver
3. (before noun) corporal
4. entitat
5. (Br) [ROBA] bodi
Am. = bodysuit
expr body image
imatge corporal
expr body temperature
temperatura corporal
> body forth encarnar / personificar

book *****
nom llibre
verb conj reservar
sin. reserve
expr be booked up

1. (hostaleria) estar ple / tenir totes les habitacons ocupades
2. estar compromès (sense cap hora o dia lliure)
expr to throw the book at someone
caure el pèl a algú
He's shown no remorse at all for what he's done. I hope they throw the book at him!

expr to be a turn-up for the books
ser una sorpresa
Uzbekistan's qualification for the World Youth Championship was a turn-up for the books

> book into registrar en (un hotel)

booth ****
nom
1. cabina
2. estand
expr phone booth
cabina telefònica

bow ****
nom
1. llaç
2. arc
3. arquet
verb conj
1. inclinar-se
2. inclinar
3. baixar
expr bow and arrows
arc i fletxes
> bow out retirar-se, no participar

box ****
nom
1. caixa
2. casella
3. llotja
4. capsa
Box of matches - Capsa de llumins
5. (argot) televisor
verb conj
1. boxejar
2. embalar
> box up posar en caixes

break ****
verb conj (broke/broken)
1. trencar
If you say that once more I swear I'll break your neck!
If it isn't broken, don't try and fix it!
It seemed like Jim was always breaking the rules and getting away with it
The footballer was out for the entire season as he broke his leg during training

2. avariar
3. infringir / transgredir
nom
1. descans
2. pausa
3. ruptura
expr break a law
infringir / transgredir una llei
expr commercial break
pausa publicitària
> break away separar-se (d'un grup)
> break down
1. deixar de funcionar / avariar-se
My car broke down halfway to London
Why do freezers only ever break down just before Christmas when they're full of food??

2. fracassar
The couple couldn't pinpoint the exact moment their relationship had broken down. They had been drifting apart for years.

3. descompondre's
To be truly biodegradable, a substance should break down into carbon dioxide, water and naturally occurring minerals.

4. debilitar-se
5. posar-se a plorar
John broke down when they told him his mother had died

> break (something) down
1. descompondre
Lipases help the body break down fats and oils.

2. desmuntar
3. dividir (per analitzar)
When we break down the figures by region, the effect is even more dramatic

4. destrossar / abatre (tirar a terra el que està dret)
The police broke down the door and stormed into the house

> break in
1. entrar amb força (sobretot trencant la porta o una finestra)
Just after the betting shop closed for the night, John broke in and stole the day's takings

2. domar (un cavall salvatge)
3. interrompre
> break into
1. forçar (una porta / una finestra) i entrar en un edifici / un vehícle
John broke into the betting shop and stole the day's takings
Steven broke into his ex-girlfriend's apartment and covered her walls with graffitti.

2. [INFORM] entrar en un ordinador / sistema sense permissió
He broke into the bank's computer system

3. començar a (fer una cosa de sobte)
nota: Es pot utilitzar el verb 'to break into' amb un substantiu per a significar 'començar a fer una cosa de sobte' (per exemple: 'He broke into song', 'He broke into a run', 'He broke into a cold sweat', 'He broke into a big grin').

> break off
1. trencar separant-se
2. terminar bruscament (p.e. una relació)
3. parar de parlar (o fer alguna cosa) durant un cert temps
He broke off mid-sentence as if he had just remembered something
We worked hard all morning but at 12 we broke off for a quick lunch.

> break open
1. obrir (sobretot amb força)
The police broke open the door and stormed into the house.
Let's break open a bottle of champagne to celebrate your engagement!

2. trencar (un partit, una competició, etc.) (obtenir-hi un avantatge sobtat, important i permanent)
Gonzalez broke open the game with 10 runs in the second inning.

> break out
1. esclatar (una cosa desagradable, com ara una guerra, una plaga, etc.)
On the day war broke out towns and villages across Britain were brought to a standstill by anti-war protests

2. produir-se (un incendi / una baralla)
120 people were made homeless yesterday when a fire broke out in their neighborhood
Lesley left the party after the second fight of the evening broke out

3. escapar-se (de la presó)
The prison's governor was stunned when he learnt that an inmate had broken out by climbing down a rope made of bed sheets

> break out in quedar ple (de grans)
> break through
1. superar (una barrera, un obstacle)
2. avançar (superant un impediment)
3. sortir / erupcionar
> break up
1. separar-se (una parella) / desfer-se (un matrimoni o una relació)
Jim and Alice broke up just three months after getting married

2. acabar-se
3. dispersar-se (una gentada)
4. (Br) tancar-se per vacances
This year our school breaks up for Christmas on the 21st of December

> break (something) up
1. esmicolar / fragmentar / trencar en trossos
2. dissoldre / dispersar
Hundreds of police armed with water cannons and tear gas finally broke up the demonstration

3. acabar d'una vegada (una lluita)
4. desarticular
> break up with (someone) separar-se d'(algú)

bridge *****
nom pont

broker ****
nom agent (de negocis) / corredor (d'assegurances)

browse *****
verb conj
1. [INFORM] navegar
2. fer una ullada
> browse through
1. fer una ullada a
2. fullejar

browser ****
nom [INFORM] navegador

bud ****
nom
1. poncella
2. (Am) company / amic
Br. = mate / pal

bug *****
verb conj (Am) (col.loq) empipar
Quit bugging me!

sin. pester
nom
1. [ZOOL] insecte / bitxo
sin. insect
2. [INFORM] brossa
3. [INFORM] bug
4. petit micròfon o petita camareta que utilitzen els detectius / forces de seguretat per escoltar les converses privades
> bug off (col.loq) anar-se'n (deixant algú en pau)
> bug out (Am) (col.loq) anar-se'n / escapolir-se
> bug out on (Am) (col.loq) abandonar (algú, evitant un deure o una responsibilitat)

building *****
nom edifici

bulletin board ****
nom
1. taulell d'anuncis
2. [INFORM] BBS

bundle ****
nom feix
> bundle up
1. lligar
2. abrigar-se bé

burden ****
nom càrrega

business *****
nom
1. negoci
The (building/hotel) business - El negoci (de la construcció / del sector hoteler)
2. (col.loq) assumpte
Why should I tell him? It's none of his business!
Why can't she just keep her nose out of my business?

sin. affair negoci / empresa / companyia
adjectiu empresarial

but *****
conj
1. però
2. sinó
expr all but
pràcticament
He's all but told me that I've got the job.

button ****
nom botó
> button up cordar (del tot) els botons

buy ****
verb conj (bought/bought)
1. comprar
sin. purchase
2. (col.loq) acceptar / creure
Fergal reckons that he didn't deliberately download those pornographic pictures from the Internet and that he must have done it accidentally. Well, I'm sorry but I just don't buy that!
Daniel swore blind that he had no idea how he got lipstick on his shirt collar, but his girlfriend wasn't buying it!

sin. believe, fall for
> buy into
1. participar invertint diners a / invertir a / adquirir un interès en
2. creure
I never really bought into that whole 'God is on our side' way of thinking.
nota: (Generalment negatiu).

> buy up acaparar / comprar (tot el que hi ha disponible)
> buy back comprar (el que s'ha venut)
> buy off subornar
> buy out comprar (un negoci)

by *****
prep
1. [temps] per / per a / abans de / de / no més tard que / quan
Sadly, the party was over by the time she got there - Malauradament, la festa s'havia acabat quan ella va arribar
We had finished our meal by about 5 o'clock - Havíem acabat de menjar cap a les 5 de la tarda
Can you have my car fixed by Friday evening? - Pots tenir el meu cotxe arreglat per a divendres al vespre?
By day, the city is fairly safe but, by night, it is really quite dangerous - De (o durant el) dia, la ciutat és prou segura però, de (o durant la) nit, és veritablement força perillosa
2. [relació] per / per a
This book was written by Jasper Fforde - Aquest llibre el va escriure (o va ser escrit per) Jasper Fforde
I'm listening to Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana - Estic escoltant Smells Like Teen Spirit de Nirvana
The protest was broken up by the police - La manifestació va ser dissolta per la policia
If it's all right by you, it's all right by me - Si per a tu està bé, doncs per a mi també
3. [relació - by + pronom reflexiu] per un mateix / tot sol
He doesn't want help. He wants to do it by himself - No vol ajuda; vol fer-ho per si mateix / tot sol
Did you do that all by yourself? - Has fet tot això per tu mateix / tot sol?
4. [mitjà / agent] per / amb / per mitjà de
You can donate to our charity by mail or by phone - Podeu fer donació a la nostra institució per (mitjà de) correu o per (mitjà de) telèfon
Trade and commerce started to expand and most of this trade was by sea - Els negocis i el comerç van començar a expandir-se i molt d'aquest negoci va ser per mar
Imagine islands entirely powered by renewable energy - Imagina les illes totalment impulsades amb (o per) energies renovables
Climate-change apathy is driven by fear and resentment - L'apatia en el canvi climàtic és produïda per la por i el ressentiment
Alarmed by his behaviour, we immediately called the doctor - Alarmats pel seu comportament, de seguida vam trucar al metge
The best way to teach is by example - La millor forma d'ensenyar és amb l'exemple
5. [transport] amb
We travelled from Phoenix to Las Vegas by car - Vam viatjar des de Phoenix a Las Vegas amb cotxe
The only possible way of entering Peru by train is from Chile - L'única forma possible d'entrar al Perú amb tren és des de Xile
6. [manera] per / amb
Some people still insist on paying by cheque at the supermarket - Algunes persones encara insisteixen de pagar amb xec al supermercat
They met by chance - Es van trobar per casualitat
7. [mesura] per
I normally buy eggs by the dozen - Normalment compro els ous per dotzenes
At our local market, it is possible to buy mango(e)s by the crate - Al nostre mercat municipal es poden comprar mangos per caixes
The room is 2 metres by 3 metres - L'habitació fa 2 metres per 3 (metres)
Their team is behind by three points - El seu equip perd per tres punts
8. [augmentar / disminuir] en
UK troops in Basra are to be cut by 1,000 - Les tropes del Regne Unit a Bàssora seran retallades en 1.000 efectius
House prices are set to rise by at least 10% over the next year - Els preus dels immobles creixeran en un 10%, al menys, durant el pròxim any
The environmental treaty will cut worldwide pollution by half - El tractat mediambiental retallarà la pol·lució arreu del món en un 50% / a la meitat
9. [by + gerundi] gerundi / en (o per) + infinitiu
Please support our work by making a donation - Doneu suport a la nostra feina fent-nos una donació
Earn money by referring people to Amazon - Guanyeu diners adreçant gent a Amazon
Joseph's reply starts by pointing to the results of our last survey - La resposta d'en Josep comença tot referint-se als resultats de la nostra darrera enquesta
The cat got her tail burnt by lying too close to the fire - El gat es va encendre la cua en / per jaure massa aprop del foc
10. [segons] per
The lists of books are sorted alphabetically by author - Les llistes de llibres estan classificades alfabèticament per autor
The papers can be browsed by publication date - Els textos poden ser fullejats per data de publicació
You can search the results by town, state or zip code - Podeu cercar els resultats per ciutat, estat o codi postal
11. [moviment] per davant de / prop de
The meteor passed by the Moon two days ago - Fa dos dies el meteorit passà per davant de (o prop de) la lluna
Suddenly, three soldiers ran / walked / stumbled by our front door - De sobte tres soldats passaven caminant / corrent / entrebancant-se per davant la porta de casa nostra
nota: Observem que, pel que fa als verbs de moviment, a vegades es tradueix en català el gir 'verb + by' (p.e. walked by / ran by) pel gir 'passar + gerundi + per' (p.e. passaven caminant / corrent per).

adverbi passant un cert punt en l'espai o en el temps
They waved to us as we passed by - Ens han saludat (amb la mà) mentra passàvem

byte ****
nom octet / byte

SourceForge Conjugations by Verbix
(c) 2003 - 2007 dacco project - under the LGPL license