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mile
mile / mīl/ • n. (also statute mile) a unit of linear measure equal to 5,280 feet, or 1,760 yards (approx. 1.609 kilometers). ∎ hist. (also Roman mile) a Roman measure of 1,000 paces (approx. 1,620 yards). ∎ (usu. miles) inf. a very long way or a very great amount: vistas that stretch for miles. ∎ a race extending over a mile. • adv. (miles) inf. by a great amount or a long way: the second tape is miles better. PHRASES: be miles away inf. be lost in thought and consequently unaware of what is happening around one. go the extra mile be especially assiduous in one's attempt to achieve something. a mile a minute inf. very quickly: he talks a mile a minute. miles from anywhere inf. in a very isolated place. see (or tell or spot) something a mile off inf. recognize something very easily: the first-year campers can be spotted a mile off. stand (or stick) out a mile inf. be very obvious or incongruous. |
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"mile." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mile." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-mile.html "mile." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-mile.html |
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mile
mile a unit of linear measure equal to 1,760 yards (approximately 1.609 kilometres); originally, a Roman measure of 1,000 paces (approximately 1,620 yards).
Recorded from Old English (in the form mīl) the word is based on Latin mil(l)ia, plural of mille ‘thousand’; the original Roman unit of distance was mille passus ‘a thousand paces’. be miles away be lost in thought and unaware of what is happening around one. the mile-high club used humorously in reference to having sex on an aircraft. See also after dinner rest a while, after supper walk a mile, go the extra mile, a miss is as good as a mile, Square Mile at square. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "mile." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "mile." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-mile.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "mile." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-mile.html |
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mile
mile In Roman measurement, 1,618 yards. Jesus instructed disciples to go the ‘second mile’ (Matt. 5: 41) in the Sermon on the Mount. Jews were obliged to carry Roman soldiers' equipment for distances up to 1 mile; so Jesus' command is an illustration of the behaviour of selfless love in face of the coming of the kingdom.
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W. R. F. BROWNING. "mile." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. W. R. F. BROWNING. "mile." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O94-mile.html W. R. F. BROWNING. "mile." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O94-mile.html |
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mile
mile Roman measure of 1, 000 paces (mille passus or passuum) estimated at 1, 618 yards; unit of measure derived from this, viz. 1, 760 yards in English-speaking countries. OE. mīl fem. = MDu. mīle (Du. mijl). OHG. mīl(l)a (G. meile):- WGmc. *mīlja — L. mīl(l)ia, pl. of mīl(l)e thousand.
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T. F. HOAD. "mile." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "mile." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-mile.html T. F. HOAD. "mile." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-mile.html |
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mile
mile see English units of measurement . |
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"mile." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mile." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-mile.html "mile." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-mile.html |
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mile
mile •aisle, Argyle, awhile, beguile, bile, Carlisle, Carlyle, compile, De Stijl, ensile, file, guile, I'll, interfile, isle, Kabyle, kyle, lisle, Lyle, Mikhail, mile, Nile, pile, rank-and-file, resile, rile, Ryle, Sieg Heil, smile, spile, stile, style, tile, vile, Weil, while, wile, worthwhile
•labile, stabile
•immobile, mobile
•nubile • aedile • crocodile • cinephile
•profile • audiophile • bibliophile
•Francophile • Anglophile
•technophile • necrophile
•Russophile
•paedophile (US pedophile)
•agile, fragile
•chamomile
•penile, senile
•juvenile • stockpile • isopropyl
•woodpile • sterile • febrile • virile
•puerile • facile • decile • flexile
•extensile, prehensile, tensile
•fissile, missile
•domicile • docile • reconcile
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"mile." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mile." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-mile.html "mile." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-mile.html |
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