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on(2) (iou)



on adverb, adjective, noun, & verb.
[Old English on, an, from (the same root as) the preposition.]
A. adverb.
In or into the position of being in contact with, supported by, or attached to something, or of covering something; esp. (of clothing etc.) on the body. OE.
Disraeli I will doff my travelling cap and on with the monk's cowl. T. Hardy A coat was laid on and polished. E. Bowen Marda..began screwing on the lids of her little pots. R. Lehmann My red silk dressing-gown on, tied tightly. J. Wilson Change the sheets..although they were clean on yesterday.
In a particular direction; towards something specified or understood; onward, forward, (in space, time, or condition); further forward, in advance. OE.
C. Kingsley But no; he must on for honour's sake. T. Hardy Sunset passed and dusk drew on. D. H. Lawrence The boy was small and frail at first, but he came on quickly. M. Sinclair I saw you stampeding on in front of me. D. H. Lawrence The year drew on, in the hedges the berries shone red. E. Bowen Roses were on..into their second blooming.
b. The worse for drink. slang. E19.
c. Chiefly Cricket. In advance of the opposing side. L19.
d. (Of betting odds) in favour of a particular horse etc. winning. Opp. against. E20.
With continued movement or action. OE.
J. Conrad 'They see,' he went on, 'that..this..island won't turn turtle.' G. Greene I'll be walking on..or it will be breakfast time. I. Murdoch We just went on arguing, neither of us would stop.
In or into action or operation; functioning; so as to be activated; in progress; spec. (of a person) on the stage, on the field, on duty, etc.; (of an event) arranged, going to happen, (of a film, show, etc.) to be shown or performed; (of food etc.) on the stove etc., cooking; (of an electrical etc. appliance) switched on. M16.
R. H. Froude At last it came on to rain. E. Coxhead 'I left the potatoes on,' she muttered. J. Gill I've nearly done, just putting the rice on. E. Bowen Emmeline strolled..into the bathroom and turned her bath on. D. Abse My father switched on the wireless. C. Potok My father worked..with the desk lamp on. Scottish Daily Express With Miller on for Parlane, Rangers continued to push forward. R. Frame The hunt is on for the missing envoy. K. Moore They're enemy outpoststhere's a war on.
b. Having agreed to a wager, bargain, etc. Chiefly in you are on, you're on: the bet or bargain is agreed. colloq. E19.
J. Seymour 'Let you have the..cottages..for ten pounds a year.' 'You're on,' I said.
c. In favour of or willing to take part in something. colloq. L19.
P. G. Wodehouse This jamboree is..Monday week. The question is, Are we on?
d. In a state of knowledge or awareness regarding something. Cf. ON TO preposition 2. US slang. L19.
e. Acceptable, allowable, possible, likely. Usu. in neg. contexts. colloq. M20.
E. North Marriage is not really on these days.
f. Of an item of food: on the menu, available. colloq. M20.
g. Addicted to or regularly taking a drug or drugs; under the influence of drugs. US slang. M20.
Directed towards or in a line with something. E19.
J. A. Froude The ship lay rolling in the sea broadside on to the waves.
Phrases: on and on on continually or at tedious length. on and off intermittently, at intervals, now and then.
b. adjective. (Freq. with hyphen: cf. ON-.)
Cricket. Designating or pertaining to that side of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) away from which the batsman's feet are pointed, esp. that part in front of the batsman's wicket. M19.
Corresponding to or designating the state (of an electrical etc. device) of being operative. L19.
Physiology. Of, pertaining to, or exhibiting the electrical activity occurring briefly in some optic nerve fibres on commencement of illumination of the retina. E20.
Comb.: on-ramp N. Amer. (a) a sloping one-way road leading on to a highway; (b) Computing a means of gaining access to a network, esp. the Internet; on-verse [translating German Anvers] the first half-line of a line of Old English verse.
C. noun. Cricket. The on side. M19.
D. verb intrans. Pa. t. & pple on'd, onned, pres. pple onning. Foll. by with: place or put on. dial. M19.
? The adverb is also used idiomatically with many verbs.