albatross

albatross
al|ba|tross [ˈælbətrɔs US -tro:s, -tra:s] n
[Date: 1600-1700; Origin: Probably from alcatras type of water bird (16-19 centuries), from Portuguese or Spanish alcatraz 'pelican', from Arabic al-gattas 'the diver';]
[Sense: 2; Origin: from the dead albatross that brought bad luck to the sailor who killed it in the poem The Ancient Mariner (1798) by S. T. Coleridge]
1.) a very large white sea bird
2.) an albatross (around your neck)
something that causes problems for you and prevents you from succeeding
▪ The issue has become a political albatross for the government.

Dictionary of contemporary English. 2013.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Albatross — (Ливадион,Греция) Категория отеля: 1 звездочный отель Адрес: Livadi, Ливадион, 84005, Грец …   Каталог отелей

  • Albatross — (Kaunata,Латвия) Категория отеля: Адрес: Rogs, Kaunatas pagasts, Rēzeknes novads, Kaunata …   Каталог отелей

  • Albatross — (Агиос Состис,Греция) Категория отеля: Адрес: Ayios Sostis, Агиос Состис, 84200, Греция …   Каталог отелей

  • Albatross — (Маратокампос,Греция) Категория отеля: Адрес: Marathókampos, Маратокампос, 83102, Греция …   Каталог отелей

  • albatross — [al′bə trôs΄, al′bəträs΄] n. pl. albatrosses or albatross [altered, prob. infl. by albus, white < Sp alcatraz, lit., pelican < Port, pelican, orig., bucket < Ar al qādūs, water wheel basket, scoop < Gr kados, cask, jar; prob. < Heb …   English World dictionary

  • Albatross — Al ba*tross, n. [Corrupt. fr. Pg. alcatraz cormorant, albatross, or Sp. alcatraz a pelican: cf. Pg. alcatruz, Sp. arcaduz, a bucket, fr. Ar. al q[=a]dus the bucket, fr. Gr. ka dos, a water vessel. So an Arabic term for pelican is water carrier,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • albatross — (n.) 1670s, probably from Spanish or Portuguese alcatraz pelican (16c.), perhaps derived from Arabic al ghattas sea eagle [Barnhart]; or from Port. alcatruz the bucket of a water wheel [OED], from Arabic al qadus machine for drawing water, jar… …   Etymology dictionary

  • albatross — [n] burden cross to bear, disgrace, load, millstone, misery, woe; concepts 532,690 …   New thesaurus

  • albatross — ► NOUN (pl. albatrosses) 1) a very large seabird with long narrow wings, found chiefly in the southern oceans. 2) a burden or encumbrance (in allusion to Coleridge s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner). ORIGIN alteration (influenced by Latin albus… …   English terms dictionary

  • Albatross — This article is about the bird family. For other uses, see Albatross (disambiguation). Albatross Temporal range: Oligocene–recent …   Wikipedia

  • Albatross — Albatros (englische Schreibweise Albatross) bezeichnet: Albatrosse, eine Familie von Seevögeln eine Punktwertung im Golfsport, siehe Golf (Sport)#Par den Literaturpreis der Günter Grass Stiftung einen Titel für Seeleute, die das Kap Hoorn… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”