Words starting with O

283 words from the Lexfall vocabulary, each with a definition and an example sentence.

oath A solemn promise to tell the truth, made before giving evidence.
obdurate Stubbornly refusing to change one's mind.
obeisance A gesture of deferential respect, such as a bow or curtsy.
obfuscate To deliberately make something unclear or confusing.
obiter dictum A judge's incidental remark that is not essential to the decision and carries no binding...
objection A concern or reason a prospect gives for hesitating to buy.
objective Based on measurable fact rather than personal feeling or interpretation.
objective justification The defence that a discriminatory measure is a proportionate means of achieving a...
objectivity The state of forming conclusions on evidence alone, free of bias or undue influence.
obligee The party to whom an obligation is owed.
obligor The party bound by an obligation to another.
oblique Positioned or projected at a slanting angle rather than straight on.
oblique intention Foresight that a consequence is virtually certain, though it was not the defendant's...
obloquy Strong public condemnation or abusive language directed at someone.
obs An informal term for a patient's observations, meaning their recorded vital signs.
obsequious Fawning and excessively eager to please.
observability The extent to which a system's internal state can be inferred from the data it emits.
observation The close monitoring of a patient's condition over time.
observations Routine measurements of a patient's vital signs (informally, 'obs').
obsession A persistent, intrusive and unwanted thought, image or urge that causes distress.
obsolescence The process of becoming outdated and falling out of use.
obstinate Stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion or chosen course of action.
obstreperous Noisy and difficult to control; resistant to authority.
obstruction The act of impeding the administration of justice.
obstructive Describing airway disease in which narrowing impedes the flow of air, especially on...
obtain consent To get a patient's informed agreement before a procedure.
obtund To dull or blunt a patient's level of consciousness or a physiological reflex.
obtundation A reduced level of alertness and a blunted response to stimulation, less severe than...
obtunded Having a reduced level of alertness and a dulled responsiveness to stimuli.
obtuse Annoyingly insensitive or slow to understand.
obviate To remove a need or difficulty, or to prevent something from arising.
obviousness The ground of invalidity that an invention would have been obvious to a skilled person in...
occlusal Relating to the biting or chewing surface of a back tooth.
occlusion The blockage or closing of a vessel or opening.
occult To conceal or cut off from view, especially by blocking.
occupation In therapy, any meaningful everyday activity a person needs or wants to do, from...
occupation order A court order regulating who may live in the family home and on what terms.
occupational licensing Government rules requiring a licence to practise a trade, which can restrict entry and...
occupiers' liability The liability of a person in control of premises for harm caused to visitors by the state...
odd-lot An order for fewer shares than the standard trading unit.
odontoblast A specialised cell at the periphery of the dental pulp responsible for the formation of...
odynophagia Pain experienced on swallowing.
odyssey A long, eventful journey or series of wanderings.
oedema Swelling caused by excess fluid trapped in the body's tissues.
oesophagitis Inflammation of the oesophageal lining, commonly caused by acid reflux, infection or...
oestrus The recurring period of sexual receptivity and fertility in most female mammals.
oeuvre The complete body of work produced by an artist, writer or composer.
of note A phrase used to flag a particularly relevant or noteworthy detail to the reader.
off feeds Describing an infant who is refusing or taking much less milk than usual, often an early...
off the table No longer available or open for discussion in a negotiation.
offboarding The formal process of managing an employee's departure from an organisation.
offer A clear expression of willingness to contract on stated terms, made with the intention...
offer letter A written document confirming a job offer and its main terms to a candidate.
offer no evidence The prosecution's decision to present no evidence on a charge, resulting in the...
offeree The party to whom an offer is addressed and who has the power to accept it.
offeror The party who makes an offer capable of acceptance to form a contract.
officious bystander test A test implying a term so obvious that both parties would have testily dismissed a...
offload To transfer a task, cost, or risk to another party.
offloading The redistribution or removal of pressure or load from an injured or vulnerable area.
offsetting The presentation of an asset and a liability net against each other on the face of the...
offshoring The relocation of business functions or roles to another country, usually to reduce...
OKR An objectives-and-key-results framework that pairs an ambitious goal with measurable...
old money Evoking quiet, inherited wealth - tailoring, linen, and no logos.
olfactory Relating to the sense of smell.
oligarchy A system in which power rests with a small, privileged group of people.
oligopolistic Characteristic of a market dominated by a few large firms.
oligopoly A market dominated by a small number of large sellers whose pricing decisions are...
oligopsony A market in which a small number of buyers hold sufficient power to dictate terms to many...
oliguria The production of an abnormally small volume of urine.
olive branch A gesture or offer intended to signal a wish for peace or reconciliation.
ombudsman An independent official who investigates complaints of maladministration against the...
omentum A fold of peritoneum rich in fat and vessels that hangs from the stomach and drapes over...
omission Something left out or not done that should have been included or performed.
omnichannel Delivering one seamless brand experience across every channel a customer uses.
on-cost An additional cost incurred on top of a basic wage or expense, such as employer...
on discharge A phrase marking the patient's clinical state or arrangements at the point of leaving...
on examination A phrase introducing the objective findings elicited when the clinician assessed the...
on exertion Occurring during or because of physical effort, a pattern typical of symptoms arising...
on my radar Something one is aware of and paying attention to, even if not acting on it yet.
on that note A transitional phrase used to pivot from a preceding remark to a related next step or...
on the back burner Given low priority and postponed for later attention.
on the beach Describing a consultant who is currently unstaffed on any client engagement.
on the merits Decided on the substance of the legal and factual issues rather than on a technicality.
on the same page In full agreement and sharing the same understanding of a situation.
on the table Currently being offered or available for discussion in a negotiation.
on the verge of Very close to a point at which something will happen.
on-time in full Describing an order delivered both on the promised date and with the complete quantity...
on track Progressing according to plan and expected to meet the agreed schedule or target.
onboarding The process of integrating a newly hired employee into an organisation and equipping them...
once daily Taken one time every day.
oncogene A mutated or overexpressed gene that drives malignant cellular transformation.
oncogenesis The process by which a normal cell becomes cancerous.
oncologist A physician who specialises in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
one-stop-shop mechanism The system whereby a controller engaged in cross-border processing deals principally with...
one-to-one A regular private meeting between a manager and a direct report to discuss progress and...
one-upmanship The practice of trying to outdo a counterpart to gain a psychological advantage.
onerous Imposing a burdensome or disproportionately heavy obligation on one party.
onerous contract A contract whose unavoidable costs of meeting its obligations exceed the economic...
onerous property Assets or contracts whose ongoing burdens outweigh their value, which a liquidator may...
onlay An indirect restoration that covers one or more cusps of a tooth while conserving...
onomatopoeia The formation of a word that imitates the natural sound it denotes.
onset The moment or manner in which a symptom first begins.
onset and duration When a symptom started and how long it has lasted.
ontology The branch of metaphysics concerned with the nature of being and what kinds of things...
onus The burden or obligation of proving a fact in issue.
onus probandi The burden of proof, namely the duty to establish the facts alleged.
onychocryptosis The condition in which a nail edge grows into the surrounding skin, commonly called an...
onycholysis The painless separation of a nail plate from its underlying nail bed.
onychomycosis A fungal infection of the nail that causes thickening, discolouration and crumbling.
opacification The process by which a region becomes denser and whiter on an image, often after contrast.
opacity An area on an image that appears whiter than expected because it blocks more radiation.
opalescent Showing a milky, shifting play of colours like that of an opal.
opco An operating company that runs the actual business, as distinct from its holding company.
open correspondence Letters written on an open basis that may be placed before the court, as distinct from...
open-ended question A question phrased so that the patient cannot answer with a simple yes or no and is...
open fracture A fracture in which the broken bone breaks through the skin, carrying a high risk of...
open up To begin to talk freely about feelings or problems one has been reluctant to share.
open your bowels To pass a stool, the everyday clinical phrasing clinicians use with patients about bowel...
opening offer The first proposal a party puts on the table, which sets the starting point for...
operating cadence The regular rhythm of meetings and reviews through which a leader actually runs the...
operationalise To define an abstract concept in terms of the measurable procedures used to study it.
operationalize To turn a strategy or idea into concrete, working processes.
operative Of words or a part of a deed, serving to effect the legal transaction.
operative provision A clause that actually creates rights or obligations, as distinct from background...
opex The day-to-day running costs of a business, as opposed to capital spending.
ophthalmoplegia Paralysis or weakness of one or more of the muscles that move the eye.
ophthalmoscopy The examination of the interior of the eye, particularly the retina, using an illuminated...
opioid-sparing Designed to reduce the amount of opioid needed to control pain.
opportunism A pattern of exploiting favorable circumstances for strategic gain, often without...
opportunistic Describing an organism that causes disease chiefly when host defences are impaired.
opportunistic infection An infection caused by an organism that rarely harms people with intact immunity but...
opportunity cost The value of the next best alternative forgone when a choice is made.
opposition A formal challenge lodged with a registry to prevent or annul the grant of a right.
opposition proceedings A procedure allowing third parties to challenge a patent or trade mark at the relevant...
oppression Conduct by those in control of a company that is unfairly prejudicial to minority members.
opprobrium Harsh public criticism and disgrace attached to shameful conduct.
opsonisation The coating of a cell or particle with antibody or complement to enhance its recognition...
opt-out A negotiated exemption allowing a Member State not to participate in a particular Union...
optic disc The point at the back of the eye where the optic nerve fibres leave the retina, seen as a...
optics The way a situation appears to the public, regardless of its substance.
optimal capital structure The mix of debt and equity that minimises a firm's weighted average cost of capital and...
optimise To adjust treatment to achieve the best possible clinical outcome.
option pool A block of shares reserved to grant as equity incentives to future employees, advisers...
option to tax An election to charge VAT on otherwise exempt supplies of land so that related input tax...
optionality The value of keeping future choices open rather than committing now.
opulent Ostentatiously rich and luxurious.
oracular Mysteriously prophetic or authoritative, and often deliberately obscure.
oral Taken by mouth.
oral hypoglycaemic A tablet taken by mouth to lower blood glucose in type 2 diabetes.
oral rehydration solution A balanced mixture of water, salts and sugar given by mouth to replace fluid lost through...
orchestrate To coordinate the many elements of a complex undertaking to achieve a desired effect.
ordinary resolution A decision of the members passed by a simple majority of more than fifty per cent of the...
ordinary shares Shares carrying the standard voting and dividend rights and ranking after preference...
organic growth Growth generated from a company's existing operations rather than through acquisitions.
organic reach The audience a piece of content reaches without paid promotion.
orientation A person's awareness of time, place and person, assessed to gauge mental state.
original work A work that originates from its author and involves the author's own intellectual...
originality The requirement that a work originate from its author and reflect a degree of...
origination The process by which a lender solicits, evaluates, and creates a new loan.
ornamentality The purely decorative quality of a feature, relevant to whether it can be a mark or a...
orotund Of a voice or manner of speaking, full, round and imposing, often pompously so.
orphan work A protected work whose rights-holder cannot be identified or located despite a diligent...
orthodontics The dental speciality concerned with the correction of malaligned teeth and jaws.
orthodoxy A generally accepted body of belief or practice that is rarely questioned.
orthogonal Statistically independent or mutually unrelated; at right angles in a geometric sense.
orthopaedic Relating to the branch of medicine dealing with the bones, joints and muscles.
orthopnoea Breathlessness that occurs when lying flat and is relieved by sitting up.
orthosis An externally applied device used to support, align or improve the function of a body...
orthostatic Relating to or caused by an upright posture, as in a drop in blood pressure on standing.
oscillopsia A visual illusion in which stationary objects appear to oscillate or move.
osmolality A measure of the concentration of dissolved particles in a fluid, relevant to how feeds...
osseointegration The direct structural and functional connection between living bone and the surface of a...
ossicle Any of the three small bones of the middle ear that transmit sound to the inner ear.
ossicular chain The linked series of three small middle-ear bones, the malleus, incus and stapes, that...
ossify To become rigid and resistant to change.
osteitis Inflammation of bone, notably the painful localised form that follows loss of the clot...
ostensible Stated or appearing to be true, but not necessarily so.
ostensibly Apparently, though perhaps not really so.
ostentatious Designed to impress or attract notice in a showy, vulgar way.
osteoarthritis A degenerative joint disease caused by the breakdown of cartilage and underlying bone.
osteoblast A bone-forming cell that synthesises and secretes the organic matrix which subsequently...
osteochondritis Inflammation or avascular disturbance affecting both bone and its overlying cartilage,...
osteoclast A large multinucleated cell responsible for the resorption of bone tissue.
osteocyte A mature bone cell embedded within a lacuna in the mineralised matrix that senses...
osteogenesis The formation and development of bone tissue.
osteolysis Active resorption and dissolution of bone tissue, often seen around loosened prostheses...
osteomalacia Softening of the bones due to defective mineralisation, usually from vitamin D deficiency.
osteomyelitis Infection of bone and its marrow.
osteonecrosis The death of bone tissue, notably of the jaw associated with antiresorptive drug therapy.
osteopenia A reduction in bone mineral density below normal but not yet meeting the criteria for...
osteophyte A bony outgrowth or spur that forms at the margins of a joint in response to degenerative...
osteoporosis A skeletal disorder of low bone mass and microarchitectural deterioration that increases...
osteosarcoma A malignant bone-forming tumour, most common in adolescents.
osteotomy A surgical procedure in which a bone is cut to shorten, lengthen or realign it.
ostomy A surgically created opening bringing a hollow organ to the skin surface.
ostracise To deliberately exclude someone from a group or society.
otalgia Pain felt in the ear, which may be primary or referred from another site.
otitis externa Inflammation of the skin lining the external auditory canal, often infective in origin.
otitis media Inflammation of the middle-ear cleft, which may be acute, chronic or associated with...
otitis media with effusion The presence of fluid behind an intact eardrum without the signs of acute infection.
otomycosis A fungal infection of the external auditory canal, commonly caused by Aspergillus or...
otorhinolaryngology The medical and surgical speciality concerned with disorders of the ear, nose and throat.
otorrhoea Any discharge, whether serous, mucoid or purulent, emanating from the ear.
otosclerosis An abnormal remodelling of bone in the otic capsule that fixes the stapes and causes...
otoscopy Examination of the external auditory canal and tympanic membrane using an otoscope.
ototoxic Capable of damaging the cochlear or vestibular structures of the inner ear.
ouster The wrongful dispossession or exclusion of a person from land they are entitled to occupy.
ouster clause A statutory provision purporting to exclude or limit the jurisdiction of the courts to...
out of scope Not included in the agreed boundaries of the project and therefore not covered by the...
outbound Relating to sales activity that proactively contacts prospects who have not enquired.
outcome measure A standardised tool or test used to quantify a patient's status and track change over the...
outcompete To perform better than a rival and take its business.
outflank To gain advantage over a rival by moving around its area of strength.
outlay An amount of money spent, particularly public expenditure.
outlier A data point that lies far outside the typical range and can distort summary statistics.
outmanoeuvre To defeat or gain advantage over a competitor through cleverer tactics.
outpace To grow or advance faster than one's competitors.
outpatient A patient who is treated without staying overnight.
outplacement Support given to departing employees to help them find new employment.
output gap The difference between an economy's actual output and the maximum it could sustainably...
output tax The VAT a business charges on its taxable supplies of goods and services to its customers.
outsourcing The contracting of work or services to an external provider rather than performing it...
outstanding Not yet dealt with or completed and still requiring attention.
over-the-counter Describing medicines that can be bought without a prescription.
over to you A phrase that passes responsibility or the turn to speak to another person.
overabsorption The excess arising when overhead applied to production exceeds the overhead actually...
overage Consumption billed at a premium once a customer exceeds their committed volume.
overall impression The general impression a design produces on an informed user, the touchstone for design...
overallotment An option letting underwriters sell more shares than originally offered to meet excess...
overarching Encompassing or dominating all other elements within a matter.
overbite The vertical overlap of the lower incisors by the upper incisors when the teeth are in...
overcapitalisation A situation in which a company holds more capital than its earnings can profitably...
overconfidence An unwarranted belief in the accuracy of one's own judgment or forecasts.
overdispersion The presence of greater variability in the data than a statistical model assumes.
overdraft An arrangement permitting an account holder to withdraw more than the account contains,...
overdraw To withdraw more money than an account holds.
overextended Committed to more debt or spending than one can comfortably sustain.
overfitting The modelling error of fitting noise rather than signal, so a model excels on training...
overhang A large block of shares whose potential sale depresses a stock's price.
overhaul To examine and thoroughly repair or improve a system, machine, or method.
overhead Ongoing business costs not tied to a specific product.
overheads The ongoing running costs of a business that are not directly tied to producing a...
overheat For an economy to grow so fast that it strains capacity and triggers rising inflation.
overjet The horizontal distance by which the upper incisors project in front of the lower...
overjustification The weakening of intrinsic motivation when an external reward is attached to an already...
overlay A hedging programme layered onto a portfolio to manage a specific risk without altering...
overleveraged Carrying too much debt relative to income or assets to service it safely.
overlevered Carrying more debt than the business can comfortably service.
overpayment An amount paid beyond what is owed, especially an extra sum put toward a loan.
overplay To push an advantage too far and risk losing the deal altogether.
overprovision A provision set higher than the liability ultimately proves to be.
overreach To sweep a beneficiary's equitable interest off the land and transfer it to the purchase...
overreaching The statutory process by which a purchaser takes land free of equitable interests, which...
override Management's ability to circumvent controls that would otherwise apply to everyone else.
overriding interest A property right that binds a purchaser even though it appears nowhere on the register.
overriding objective The governing principle of the Civil Procedure Rules requiring the court to deal with...
overrule To set aside an earlier decision or objection as wrong.
overrun The amount by which actual cost or time exceeds what was budgeted or scheduled.
oversee To supervise and take responsibility for the running of a task or operation.
overshoot A movement of a variable beyond its long-run equilibrium before correcting.
overshooting The tendency of an exchange rate to move further than its long-run level before settling...
oversight Supervisory monitoring of a company's management and internal controls.
overspend To spend more money than one has budgeted or can afford.
overstate To record a figure as higher than it should be.
overstatement The reporting of a figure at more than its true amount.
overstayer A person who remains in a country beyond the period permitted by their visa or leave.
overstep To exceed the limits of one's authority or role.
oversubscribe To place orders for more of a security than is available in the offering.
oversubscribed Attracting applications for more shares than are available in an offering.
oversupply An excess of a good relative to what buyers will purchase at the prevailing price.
overture An opening approach or proposal intended to start talks.
overvaluation The condition of a currency being priced above its fundamental worth.
overwhelmed Feeling unable to cope because of too much emotion or information at once.
owe a duty of care To be under a legal obligation to take reasonable care towards a particular person or...
owing A portion of a prescribed quantity that cannot be supplied immediately and is recorded as...
owned media Marketing channels a company controls directly, such as its website, blog and mailing...
owner The single person accountable for a task, risk or deliverable seeing it through.
ownership A sense of personal responsibility for a task or outcome as though it were one's own.
Oxford scale A zero-to-five grading system used to rate muscle strength, from no contraction to full...
oximetry The measurement of the oxygen saturation of the blood, usually using a probe on a finger.
oxygen saturation The percentage of haemoglobin bound with oxygen, measured non-invasively by a pulse...
oxytocic Hastening or strengthening uterine contractions, especially in childbirth.
ozaena A chronic atrophic rhinitis marked by mucosal atrophy, foul-smelling crusts and a...

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