| 释义 |
N|ɛn|
the fourteenth letter of the modern, and thirteenth of the ancient Roman alphabet, represents historically the Greek nū and the Semitic nun. The earlier Greek forms were {egnu1} and {egnu2}, corresponding to the Phœnician 𐤍. The sound usually denoted by the letter is a voiced nasal consonant with front closure (the point of the tongue touching the teeth or the fore part of the palate). It is, however, also capable of being used as a sonant or vowel, here denoted by |(ə)n|, as in bidden |ˈbɪd(ə)n|, bitten |ˈbɪt(ə)n|, slacken |ˈslæk(ə)n|. With one or other of these values the letter is very frequent in English, and is silent only in a few cases at the end of syllables after l and m, as kiln, damn, condemn, contemn, limn, hymn, solemn, column.
Before the sounds |g| and |k| the letter n is also employed in English to denote a nasal with back tongue-closure, in this dictionary distinguished as |ŋ|, as in finger |ˈfɪŋgə(r)|, think |θɪŋk|. When not followed by these sounds, this back-nasal is expressed by the digraph ng, as in hang |hæŋ|, sing, song. (On the difference in pronunciation between finger and singer, etc., see the note to the letter G.)
In Scottish texts of the 15–16th centuries the change of Latin and French gn to ng is frequently represented in the spelling of such words as sing sign, ring, reng reign, and ngn is common between vowels, as resingnit resigned, mangnitude, etc.
2. In OE. n is very frequent as the terminal letter of inflectional syllables, as in the -an of the infinitive and the oblique cases of weak nouns. In southern texts this n is always retained, but in the north it appears to have been generally dropped by the middle of the 10th century. In ME. the retention or dropping of the letter varied in the different midland and southern dialects. On the other hand, the -en of strong past pples., which became -ë in southern dialects, was retained in the north as in modern English.
In inflectional syllables (as in reading, writing, etc.) -ng has in many dialects been reduced to n, and this pronunciation (usually called ‘dropping one's g's’) may sometimes be heard even from educated speakers.
3. In ME. the n of the indefinite article an is frequently transferred to a following word beginning with a vowel (while a converse process has given such forms as adder, apron, and auger). The forms thus produced occasionally alliterate with words properly beginning with n, and in one or two cases (as newt and nickname) have finally established themselves in the language. The following are examples of the practice from ME. and early modern texts.
c1220Bestiary 503 in O.E. Misc. 16 Tu wuldes seien..ðat it were a neilond. a1400–50Alexander 1066 Alexander..him a narawe hent. c1420Anturs Arth. 349 (Irel. MS.) This is a nayre and a knyȝt. c1420Avow. Arth. xv, As he neghet bi a noke. c1420J. Page Siege Rouen (Camden) 18 A negge at ixd. a nappyle at xd. 1448Paston Lett. I. 74 On..smot hym on the hede with a nege [= edge] tole. 1519Knaresborough Wills (Surtees) I. 8 To Richard Hardestie ..a nox. 1532in Marsden Sel. Pleas Crt. Adm. (Selden) 37 It shall be lefull for the said master to take in a nable lodysman. 1573Tusser Husb. (1878) 36 An ax and a nads. 1609MS. Acc. St. John's Hosp., Canterb., For sending a letter to Lonndon and the retorning of a nanser.
b. A similar transference also takes place with the n of myn, mine, and þīn, thyn, thine. (See also own a. 1 ε, nain, naunt, neam, nuncle.)
c1320Sir Tristr. 921 Mark, mi nem, to se. Ibid. 2150 Mark, þi nem. Ibid. 2135 Sweet ysonde, þi nare! 13..Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 2467 Þerfore I eþe þe..to com to þy naunt. a1400–50Alexander 1356 (D), I vndertake it..tyre is þi nawne. c1420Sir Amadace (Camden) liii, I haue a doȝtur, that my nayre ho isse. 1439E.E. Wills (1882) 118 My Noych with my Baleys. c1530Redforde Wit & Science (1848) 21 Foorth shal I bete thy narse, now. 1545Test. Ebor. VI. 225, I give to my nawnte..the graie horse.
c. More rarely the n is derived from the old dative of the def. article: see ale 2 and nonce1.
a1330Rowland & V. 389 At þe nende of þritti niȝt. Ibid. 581 When it com to þe neue.
B. I. 1. The letter used to represent the sound.
c1000ælfric Gram. (Z.) 6 Semivocales syndon seofan, f, l, m, n, r, s, x. 1530Palsgr. Introd. p. xix, M, N, and R..never lese theyr sounde,..excepte only N, whan he commeth in the thyrde parson plurell of verbes after E. c1620A. Hume Brit. Tongue 12 The top of the tongue stryking on the inward teeth formes d, l, n, r, s, t, and z. 1668Wilkins Real Char. iii. xii. 367 The reason why this Letter N, and L, and R, are for the most part, both in Greek and Latin immutable. 1710Steele & Addison Tatler No. 260 ⁋5 Which would..pronounce the Letters M. or N. and in short, do all the Functions of a Genuine and Natural Nose. 1727–38Chambers Cycl. N, In the French the n is frequently a mere nasal vowel. 1841Latham Eng. Lang. 108 Of the Liquids it may be predicated..that n is allied to the Series t. 1886T. L. Kington-Oliphant New English I. 257 The n is prefixed, as in neke name for eke name.
b. In Printing used as a unit of measurement (freq. en: cf. em); also n-quadrat.
1683Moxon Mech. Exerc., Printing xiii. ⁋1 Some [types] are n thick; that is to say, n Quadrat thick, viz. half so thick as the Body is high. 1824J. Johnson Typogr. II. 65 The use of the n-quadrat in spacing must be guided by circumstances. Ibid. 138 We always indent an m and an n, or even two m's. 1892Academy 3 Sept. 199/3, 49,000 American ems (equal to 98,000 English ens).
c. Used with reference to its shape.
1897Allbutt's Syst. Med. III. 810 The loops being..made to assume the outline of the letter N. Ibid., In one case where N-like bends were produced. 1899J. G. Millais Breath fr. Veldt 55 The birds alighting in the background are represented in their usual N-shaped formation.
2. Used to indicate that the name of a person is to be inserted by the reader or speaker. † Also put instead of a particular day.
c1000Oratio Poetica 1 in Be Domes Dæᵹe 36 Thænne gemiltsað þe N...ðeoda þrym-Cyningc. 14..Eng. Fragm. Med. Service-Bks. 6, I. N. take the N. to myn wedded wyf. c1440Myrc Festial 260 Such a day N. ȝe schull haue Seynt Lukes day. 1552Bk. Com. Prayer, Priv. Baptism, Yf thou be not baptysed already, N, I baptyse thee in the name of the Father [etc.]. 1574Reg. Privy Council Scot. II. 402, I, N, now electit Provest (or Baillie) of the Burgh.
3. Used as a distinguishing letter, to denote one of a series of things, a point in a diagram, etc.
1677Moxon Mech. Exerc. 28 Fasten these staples as at NN to the Main-plate. 1733Tull Horse-Hoeing Husb. xxi. (Dubl.) 301 The Plow-Tail consists of the Beam N; the Coulter O [etc.]. 1797Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XI. 723/1 At N is a dove-tailed piece of brass. 1873Skeat Piers Plowman Pref. p. xlvii, I had intended to collate it, denoting it by the letter N. 1884Pall Mall G. 14 Aug. 10/1 The two policemen connected with the N division.
4. a. In Math. used to indicate an indefinite number. to the nth (power), to any required power; hence fig. to any extent, to the utmost. Also used in place of bi-, di-, tri-, etc., in words (e.g. n-ary).
1852Smedley L. Arundel xxiii, Minerva was great upon the occasion; starched to the nth. 1873G. Salmon Treat. Higher Plane Curves (ed. 2) p. xi, Number of points which determine a n-ic. 1885Pall Mall G. 21 Mar. 1/2 It is the nth power of man. 1897Edin. Rev. July 4 The Neapolitan..is an Italian to the nth degree. 1903B. Russell Princ. Math. xxxvii. 310 Even an n-dimensional series of such terms..is still denumerable. 1924Galsworthy White Monkey ix. 193 For the nth time it inspired in him a certain liking and confidence. 1940W. V. Quine Math. Logic 42 The truth table for an n-ary mode of composition appears as in Table 3. Ibid. 225 A range of n-argument functionality..is itself an n-adic relation. 1940W. de la Mare Pleasures & Speculations 223 Its children's children to the n-th generation. 1954I. M. Copi Symbolic Logic ix. 306 A dyadic or triadic or n-adic relation. 1956F. Pohl Alternating Currents (1966) 85 Spaceships ran from point to point in n-dimensional hyperspace. 1963Dict. U.S. Mil. Terms (U.S. Dept. Defense) 156 Nth country,..the next country of a series to acquire nuclear powers. 1964E. Bach Introd. Transformational Gram. vii. 154 Relations..are accordingly named dyadic, triadic, (or, for n terms, n-adic) or binary, ternary, and so on. Ibid. 155 A relation is the set of ordered pairs (triples, n-tuples) for which it holds. 1965Patterson & Rutherford Elem. Abstract Algebra v. 156 A vector space, namely the set..of all ordered n-tuples a = [α1,..,αn] of elements from a field F. 1972H. B. Enderton Mathematical Introd. Logic i. 50 An n-ary connective symbol combines with n wffs to produce a new wff. 1974Observer (Colour Suppl.) 1 Sept. 10/1 (Advt.), This is where the standby duty crews wait, in full flying clothing, ready for the off. N-number of aircrew will always be there—24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
b. In Physics and Chem. n represents the principal quantum number of an electronic orbit in an atom, which determines the energy of the orbit (to the first order) and can take the values 1, 2, 3,{ddd}(corresponding to increasing energy). In molecular spectroscopy n was introduced to denote the vibrational quantum number of a diatomic molecule (now usu. replaced by v), and later (as N) the total angular momentum, apart from spin, of diatomic and polyatomic molecules (see also quot. 19621).
[1914N. Bohr in Phil. Mag. XXVII. 507 According to Balmer, Rydberg, and Ritz the frequency of the lines in the line-spectrum of an element can be expressed by the formula v = fr(n1) - fs(n2), where n1 and n2 are whole numbers and f1, f2,{ddd}a series of functions of n, which can be expressed by fr(n) = (K/n2)ϕr(n), where K is a universal constant and ϕ a function which for large values of n approaches the value unity. ] Ibid. 508 We shall assume that this spectrum is emitted by a system possessing a series of stationary states in which, corresponding to the nth state, the energy, omitting the arbitrary constant, is given by λn = - hK/n2.Ibid. 509 For n = 1, corresponding to the normal state of the atom, we get [etc.]. 1920Sci. Abstr. A. XXIII. 423 If the nuclei are related in a quasi-elastic manner to the equilibrium positions, then the energy values for a diatomic non-rotating molecule are the same as for a Planck oscillator, namely: E = nhω, where n denotes the quantum number for the atomic oscillation. 1922A. D. Udden tr. Bohr's Theory of Spectra iii. i. 67 This quantum number which will always be denoted by n will therefore be called the ‘principal quantum number’. 1926E. C. Kemble et al. in Bull. Nat. Res. Council No. 57. 5 Some discrepancies in minor details of notation will be found from chapter to chapter in this report. The following major items, however, have been followed consistently:..Vibrational quantum number for diatomic molecule: n. 1951D. Bohm Quantum Theory xv. 348 n = the principal quantum number..defined as one plus the total number of nodal surfaces in the wave function. 1953Jrnl. Optical Soc. Amer. XLIII. 425/1 [Report of Sub-committee of the Joint Commission for Spectroscopy.] Notation for diatomic molecules... N. Total angular momentum of the electrons and nuclei, excluding spin... Replaces former K. 1962P. J. & B. Durrant Introd. Adv. Inorg. Chem. vii. 207 The angular momentum due to the rotation of the [diatomic] molecule about an axis at right angles to the internuclear axis is denoted by N. 1962J. Potter tr. Messiah's Quantum Mech. II. xxi. 964 Each quantum number n represents the number of vibrational quanta relative to a particular normal mode of vibration. 1966G. Herzberg Molecular Spectra & Molecular Struct. III. i. 73 For 3σ states each rotational level except the one with N = 0 is split into three component levels..corresponding to J = N + 1, N, N - 1, respectively. 1973J. Yarwood Atomic & Nuclear Physics vi. 188 The quantum mechanical treatment [of the one-electron atom] introduces the integral principal quantum number n which..decides the total energy of the system, the quantum number l which..has any integral value between o and (n - 1), and the azimuthal magnetic quantum number ml which is an integer having (2l + 1) values between + l and - l.
5. n-declension, the ‘weak’ declension of Teutonic nouns and adjectives, in which the stem ends in n; so n-stem, n-plural.
1843Proc. Philol. Soc. I. 73 The n declension..makes its appearance in many of the Indo-European languages, besides the Gothic. 1866Morris Ayenb. Inwyt p. xxxv, They are remnants of the n declension. 1886T. Le M. Douse Introd. Gothic p. x, Consonant Declensions; n-stems. 1894V. Henry Comp. Gram. Engl. & Germ. 236 The n-plural requires no explanation.
6. N-rays (originally n-rays), a form of radiation app. identified in 1903 by R. Blondlot of the University of Nancy, from the initial letter of which the name is derived. N1-rays (originally n1-rays), another form of radiation, having, in some respects, the opposite effects. [Soon after their alleged discovery it was concluded that such rays do not exist and Blondlot's work was in error.]
1903Nature LXVIII. 119/2 The name n-rays is suggested for these radiations. Ibid. 578/1 Several papers on the so-called N rays discovered by M. Blondlot are printed in the Journal de Physique for August. 1904― LXIX. 455/2 The n1-rays, described in the previous note, have exactly the opposite effect. 1906Nature 1 Mar. 413/1 It would be interesting to know whether anyone has obtained success in repeating the latest experiment designed to show the objective reality of the n-rays. 1925A. Huxley Let. 25 Jan. (1969) 241 You remember the unanimously favourable verdict in favour of N rays? 1941W. Seabrook Doctor Wood: Mod. Wizard of Laboratory xvii. 234 According to Blondlot, the rays were given off spontaneously by many metals. A piece of paper, very feebly illuminated, could be used as a detector, for, wonder of wonders, when the N rays fell upon the eye they increased its ability to see objects in a nearly dark room. 1973Nature 12 Oct. 344/2 The protracted error immortalised in scores of publications can be due only to psychological (self-deception), not to chemical causes. The ‘anomalous’ water belongs to the category exemplified by the N rays of Blondlot.
†7. Radiology. A unit of neutron dosage (see quot. 1942). Obs.
1942Aebersold & Lawrence in Ann. Rev. Physiol. IV. 36 In this laboratory, a standard Victoreen r-meter with a 100r condenser-chamber is used. The unit of fast neutron exposure is arbitrarily taken as that amount which produces the same reading with this meter as a roentgen of x-ray. Thus an n of fast neutrons produces inside this 100r Victoreen thimble chamber the same amount of ionization as produced by an r of x-rays. 1948E. Paterson in R. Paterson Treatment of Malignant Dis. by Radium & X-Rays xxxiii. 593 The n unit has fulfilled a useful function, however, in demonstrating differences in effect between X- or gamma-radiation and neutrons when ratios of the dosage required to produce effects are compared.
II. Abbreviations.
1. N. = various proper names, as Nathaniel, Nicholas, Noah, etc.; N, naira (formerly, {pstlg}N, Nigerian pound); N., Nationalist; N (Chem.), Nitrogen; N, nuclear; n. (Gram.), noun, neuter; N.A., National Academician (U.S.); N.A.A.C.P., National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (U.S.); N.A.A.S., National Agricultural Advisory Service; N.A.B., National Assistance Board; N.A.C.A., National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (U.S.); NAD(P), nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide (phosphate); N.B., New Brunswick; N.B.C., National Broadcasting Corporation (U.S.); N.B.G., no bloody good (cf. N.G.); N.C.B., National Coal Board; N.C.O., non-commissioned officer; N.C.R., no carbon required, the registered trade-name for paper chemically treated so that the pressure of writing or typing alone produces duplicate copies without the use of carbon paper between sheets; n.d., N.D., no date; N.D.C., National Defence Contribution; N.D.P., National Democratic Party (Canad.); NEB, National Enterprise Board; N.E.B., New English Bible; N.E.D., New English Dictionary; N.E.D.(C.), National Economic Development (Council); N.F., National Front; N.F., New Franc (nouveau franc); N.F., Norman French; N.F.S., National Fire Service; N.F.T., National Film Theatre; N.G., n.g., no go, no good (the latter is the current use, cf. N.B.G.); N.H.I., National Health Insurance; N.H.S., National Health Service; NIC, Nic (also with pronunc. nɪk), newly industrialized (or industrializing) country; NIMBY, nimby, orig. U.S. (with pronunc. ˈnɪmbɪ), ‘not in my backyard’, a slogan expressing objection to the siting of something considered unpleasant, such as nuclear waste, in one's own locality; freq. attrib.; NIR [f. the initials of Russ. Nauchno-Issledovatel′skaya Rabota scientific research work], a colour television system developed in Russia, similar to SECAM; N.I.R.A., National Industrial Recovery Act (U.S.); N.K.V.D. [Russ. Naródnȳĭ Komissariát Vnútrennikh Del], Soviet Commissariat of Internal Affairs, replacing the Ogpu; N.l., North latitude; N.L.F., National Liberation Front; NNI, noise and number index (see noise n. 3 d); N.O., Natural Order; Naval Officer; N.O.R.A.D., North American Air Defence; N.O.W., National Organization for Women (U.S.); N.P., Notary Public; n.p. (see quot. 1952); also, not paginated; N.P.D. [G. Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands], National Democratic Party of Germany; N.P.L., National Physical Laboratory; N.P.V., Net Present Value; N.R.A., National Recovery Administration (U.S.); N.R.D.C., National Research Development Corporation; N.S., New Style; N.S. (Banking) not sufficient; N.S.P.C.A., National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; N.S.P.C.C., National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children; N.S.W., New South Wales (Austral.); N.T., New Testament; N.T., Northern Territory (Austral.); N.T.S.C., National Television System Committee (U.S.); N.U.M., National Union of Mineworkers; N.U.R., National Union of Railwaymen; N.U.S., National Union of Students; N.U.T., National Union of Teachers; N.Y.S.E., New York Stock Exchange.
See also I., O., , , A., P., Nibmar, C., n-p-n, (as main entries).
1789J. Brown Sel. Rem. (1807) 155 It is neither *N. nor F. nor P. that I either fear or trust.
1960Brit. Exports & Exchange Restrictions (Swiss Bank Corporation) May 108, 1 Nigerian Pound = 20 Shillings. 1{pstlg}*N = 1{pstlg}stg. 1973Times 1 Oct. (Nigeria Suppl.) p. xi/3 Each member would be paid N120 a month.
1958Oxford Mail 19 July 1/2 Beirut battle group is part of *N-weapon division... U.S. paratroopers..equipped with tactical nuclear weapons. 1958Observer 2 Nov. 6/1 Plenty of Aldermaston badges, with their semaphore symbol of ND—nuclear disarmament.
1883Harper's Mag. Nov. 843/2 He enjoys..the unusual distinction of being an *N.A. and an A.R.A.
1910Crisis Nov. 12 (heading) The *N.A.A.C.P. 1974Black Panther 16 Mar. 4/4 The NAACP filed its first suit attacking segregation and discrimination in education on March 15, 1933, against the University of North Carolina.
1948Sci. News VI. 48 The *N.A.A.S., which is the only body giving advice on the whole of agriculture. 1971Arable Farmer Feb. 70/1 A nationwide series recently completed by NAAS, of 77 experiments testing nitrogen, phosphate and potash rates for spring barley.
1953B. Abel-Smith Reform of Social Security 27 Malingering is very hard to detect, as the *N.A.B. is constantly aware. Ibid., We might keep our whole system on a flat rate basis but take the N.A.B. level as representing the community's present definition of subsistence. 1969Listener 12 June 834/3 In Northborough..mothers were not allowed to collect the father's weekly contribution..through the NAB.
1922Aviation 13 Nov. 665/1 (heading) *N.A.C.A. For National Air Policy. 1970N. Armstrong et al. First on Moon i. 17 Vaguely co⁓ordinated by something called NACA—the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics.
1961Biochem. Jrnl. LXXX. 322/1 *NAD formation almost certainly involves nucleophilic attack on the α-phosphorus of ATP. 1964W. G. Smith Allergy & Tissue Metabolism viii. 85 The resulting α-β- unsaturated acid is reduced to its saturated counterpart by an enzyme which requires the reduced form of NADP. 1970R. W. McGilvery Biochemistry xvi. 319 In general, NADP is used as an electron carrier for reductive syntheses, such as the formation of fatty acids.., whereas NAD is used more in the processes of energy production.
a1912W. T. Rogers Dict. Abbrev. (1913) 133/1 *N.B... New Brunswick. 1929F. W. Wallace Rec. Canad. Shipping 2 Abyssinia, ship, 833 tons. Built 1868, St. John, N.B. 1973Fisheries Fact Sheet (Environment Canada Fisheries & Marine Service) No. 1. 1 (caption) Purse seining in Baie des Chaleurs, N.B.
1950G. Marx Let. 7 Nov. in Groucho Lett. (1967) 75, I heard you on the *NBC radio show. 1969Listener 13 Nov. 667/1 The Duke of Edinburgh ‘met the press’ recently on America's NBC network.
1903R. Bedford True Eyes xxxiv. 195 So see here—this place is *N.B.G., Billy, me man. Let's do what I say—sell everythin' an' clear. 1929C. Mackenzie Three Couriers ii. v. 180 Crowder messing about with a typewriter? O.K. Crowder outside an office? N.B.G. 1956A. Wilson Anglo-Saxon Attitudes ii. iii. 369 Those Barkers were n.b.g.: I saw quite a lot of their dishonesty at Melpham. 1973G. Mitchell Murder of Busy Lizzie iii. 42 Bang goes our reason for coming here... She said it was N.B.G. and that seems to be just about right.
1948Coal Dec. 12/2 There are many complaints and criticisms of the *N.C.B. It would be surprising if there were not. 1955Times 3 Aug. 11/4 An official of the N.C.B. opencast executive said that the prospecting had shown the site to contain about 750,000 tons of good quality coal. 1963Times 7 Feb. 13/4 It is essential not to impair the work at the N.C.B. which has made it possible to raise productivity four times above the national average.
1803–10Orderly Bks. of Manx Fencibles in Yn Lioar Manninagh (1890) I. 152 Any party, consisting of 6 men or upwards, must have a *N.C.O...appointed to go with them. 1883Army Regulations II. 102 Report on conviction of N.C.O. by civil power. 1915Cornhill Mag. Mar. 388 Had a chat with my N.C.O.s. 1955Times 11 May 6/7 Corporal J. R. Saunders, who receives the George Medal, was the n.c.o. in charge of fire fighting at the storage unit. 1973K. Giles File on Death i. 5 Old top secrets..guarded by superannuated N.C.O.s.
1954in Official Gaz. (U.S. Patent Off.) (1955) 12 July 104/1 *NCR no carbon required paper. 1956Brit. Printer Mar. 42/1 Since its appearance on the US market some 18 months ago, ncr paper..is now being manufactured in this country. The initials ncr represent not only the name of the manufacturers—the National Cash Register Co Ltd—but the particular characteristics of the paper (No Carbon Required). 1967C. Wilson in Wills & Yearsley Handbk. Management Technol. 46 Copies of print-outs are obtained with carbon paper or NCR paper. The latter (‘no carbon required’) has a chemically coated surface activated by percussion.
1834William Pickering's Catal. Manuscripts & Bks. 19 Angler's Guide{ddd}Lond. *n.d. 1879Blackwell's Catal. No. i. 10 Chappell's Old English Ditties..n.d. 1917T. J. Wise Bibliogr. Brontë Family vi. 225 Museum of Brontë Relics.. A Descriptive Catalogue. (N.D., but circa 1890). 1952J. Carter ABC for Book-Collectors 124 No date (n.d.). This term, unqualified, means that research has failed (or has not attempted) to establish even an approximate date for the book described. 1959N. & Q. CCIV. 292/1 A Chronicle History of Portsmouth by Henry Slight (3d. edit., n.p., n.d.).
1937Times 1 June 17/5 The present *N.D.C. scheme..imposes a high rate of tax on excess profits only. 1939Times 4 Jan. 17/2 The figures in each case are struck after provisions for income-tax and N.D.C.
1961Edmonton (Alta.) Jrnl. 4 Aug. 17/3 The *NDP organizers produced mimeographed songsheets complete with Tommy Douglas lyrics. 1972Maclean's Mag. Mar. 12/2 The NDP..refused to have the issue even raised for discussion.
1973J. Hart et al. National Enterprise Board (Labour Party Green Paper) i. 12 The *NEB would ‘hold’ all existing government shares in joint public–private firms. 1983Times 30 June 15/2 The British Technology Group..includes the NEB and the National Research Development Corporation (NRDC).
1961Theology May 175 There is no need to give an account here of the principles and methods of the *N.E.B. 1980G. B. Caird Lang. & Imagery of Bible i. iv. 97 Does the prophet (Isa. 13:5) foresee the devastation of the whole land (AV, NEB) or of the whole earth (JB)?
1904A. S. Palmer in R. C. Trench On Study of Words (rev. ed.) 175 Dr. Murray decides in favour of this explanation, of unknown authorship, and so spurious, uncanonical,—*N.E.D. 1961Essays & Studies XIV. 35 Of the many accounts of the origin and progress of the dictionary, it may suffice to mention here the following: the Preface to Vol. 1 of N.E.D., [etc.]. 1973Jrnl. Soc. Bibliogr. Nat. Hist. VI. 229 The work is known familiarly as NED, OED, or even ‘Murray’. 1975N. & Q. for Som. & Dorset Sept. 127 The single reference cited under lug-fall in the N.E.D...takes the definition a little further.
1962Daily Tel. 9 Feb. 12/2 The *NEDC will not be a collection of amateurs or mere theorists. Ibid. 7 Mar. 12/2 The collective wisdom of ‘NED’. 1964M. Argyle Psychol. & Social Probl. xvi. 199 A new government advisory department, like N.E.D.C. or N.I.C.
1970Facts (National Front) i. 3/3 (caption) *N.F. supports the Springboks. 1976Economist 13 Mar. 18/1 The National Front vote, and the derisory failure of..the former NF leader, showed there is a small but steady support of 2–3% for the Front. 1984S. Townsend Growing Pains A. Mole 22 Ms. Fossington-Gore shouted back, ‘You're wearing a symbol of fascism, you nasty NF lout.’
1960British Exports & Exchange Restrictions (Swiss Bank Corporation) May 55 Only spare parts from O.E.E.C. countries may be obtained through import certificates when the value is less than NF. 5,000. 1971A. Diment Think Inc. ii. 28, I..added three $100 bills and two NF 1000 notes to the wad.
1942Daily Mirror 25 Feb. 4/5 It will be necessary to enrol men under 41 for whole-time duties in the National Fire Service... Men over 25 when they registered will still be given an opportunity to express preference for the *NFS. 1947Science News IV. 47 Four days after she disappeared a fire broke out in the cellar of the Baptist Church and a passing police officer called the N.F.S.
1965New Statesman 19 Mar. 462/3 Ozu..made some 54 films, of which only nine have ever been seen in London and those only by assiduous patrons of the *NFT. 1969Listener 24 July 125/1 Members of the NFT poured into their cinema to hear a discussion between Satyajit Ray and Lindsay Anderson.
1838Morning Post (Boston) 25 June 2/3 They then went together to the plaintiff's to try to settle, but it was *n.g. 1840Daily Pennant (St. Louis) 20 June (Th.), The bells, boys, and engines tried to get up a fire last night, but it was N.G. 1922Joyce Ulysses 427 Fish and taters. N.g. 1972‘L. Egan’ Paper Chase (1973) x. 160 So that little ride on the merry-go-round was n.g.
1934Foster & Taylor National Health Insurance xiv. 191 Enter on debit side of Cash Book and credit side of *N.H.I. Fund Current Account. 1958Spectator 20 June 806/1 A doctor..wrote on what he called unjustified claims by his patients upon the N.H.I.
1948Lancet 20 Nov. 823/3 Other doctors do not discriminate between private and *N.H.S. patients. Ibid. 4 Dec. 904/1 The pharmacist's principal trouble just now is over delay in payment of his accounts under the N.H.S. 1968Listener 11 July 58/3 One of the hospital committee shown arguing in the NHS film whether or not it should refund the cost of a 7s 11d vest. 1975Guardian 5 Nov. 14/5 There will be the equivalent of 2,500 to 3,000 more beds available for NHS use.
1978Economist 10 June 84/1 The newly industrialising countries—those with a growing industrial base geared to exports—have an acronym, *Nics. 1980Sci. Amer. Sept. 58/3 The N.I.C. and OPEC countries have about a fifth of the population of the developing countries other than China. 1986Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 26 Aug. 32/1 South Korea, Taiwan and the two city-states of Singapore and Hong Kong are often known as NICs because they have been very successful at developing their economies and growing rapidly.
1980Christian Science Monitor 6 Nov. b5/3 A secure landfill anywhere near them is anathema to most Americans today. It's an attitude referred to in the trade as *NIMBY—‘not in my backyard’. 1986Times 30 Apr. 12/6 Wakeham has become a convert to the Nimby..principle. A chief whip who thinks that nuclear waste is too dangerous for his constituency will find it hard to persuade other Tory MPs that it is safe for theirs.
1966Economist 12 Feb. 628 This Russian-designed system offers the best prospect of a single acceptable colour television system for the whole of Europe... The Russians call the Soviet system *NIR. 1969Carnt & Townsend Colour Television II. vii. 237 In April, 1963, the Non-linear NIR system had already been anticipated by B. W. B. Pethers of the BBC. This was some two years before the NIR system came to light, but at that time it was felt that NIR did not have any significant advantages over the other systems.
1933Sun (Baltimore) 23 Aug. 1/3 ‘Threats, intimidation, compulsion, boycotts, blacklists and suppression of opinion,’ he declared, ‘were never contemplated by the *N.I.R.A. and, therefore, have no rightful place in the picture.’ Ibid. 9 Sept. 1/2 The power of propaganda and the press has had few better illustrations than the way in which the so called ‘Nira’ is obscuring the other great Administration activities in Washington and in the country.
1942V. Conolly Soviet Asia (Oxf. Pamphs. on World Affairs) 13 The *N.K.V.D. (Commissariat of Internal Affairs, former O.G.P.U.). 1945Koestler Yogi & Commissar iii. iii. 208 The deportees were called for..by the so-called ‘Executive Troikas’ of the N.K.V.D. 1973T. Allbeury Choice of Enemies vi. 21 He was wearing an NKVD uniform.
1965New Society 22 Apr. 259 Nguyen Huu Tho was made president of the *NLF. 1971Ink 12 June 8/3 The delegates..would have been Thieu/Ky (S. Vietnam), Tho (NLF), Ho Chi Minh (N. Vietnam). 1972H. Evans Editing & Design: Newsman's English vii. 147 When the report says the NLF, the deskman should write in ‘the National Liberation Front, political arm of the Vietcong...’ This does not offend the reader who knows and it helps the rest, which is most of us. There was at one time, anyway, another NLF—in Aden—and at another an FLN, in Algeria and France.
1963*NNI [see noise n. 3 d]. 1969Guardian 5 Mar. 9/2 Within such an area noise levels would be 40 NNI. 1970R. D. Ford Introd. to Acoustics vii. 144 An external NNI of 55 has been taken as the recommended limit in the vicinity of London Airport and householders exposed to more noise have been offered a special grant for soundproofing their homes.
1914‘Bartimeus’ Naval Occasions xvii. 144 That girl to-night—Molly—I suppose she has refused half a dozen *N.O.'s. 1916G. Franklin Naval Digression i. xv. 136 Which brings to light another peculiarity of the average N.O.—how he can adopt a friendly ‘hail-fellow-well-met’ attitude to all and sundry and lose nothing in respect by it, even should they be ex-service men. 1958M. Dickens Man Overboard i. 14 There'll be a lot of sharks about waiting for the innocent N.O. with his touching faith in human nature.
1959Roundel June 3/1 Creation of the North American Air Defence Command by the governments of Canada and the United States was recognition..that air defence of the continent..is a single, common problem. *NORAD is a truly integrated, international Command—responsible to both the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Canadian Chiefs of Staff Committee. 1970Toronto Daily Star 24 Sept. 31/3 In NORAD we permitted American nuclear bombers to make provocative flights over Canadian territory.
1966N.Y. Times 22 Nov. 44/1 *NOW..was formed three weeks ago in Washington to press for ‘true equality for all women in America’. 1970G. Greer Female Eunuch 296 When NOW was formed it was read into the Congressional record. 1973Times 2 June 8/3 Betty Friedan..‘founding mother’ of NOW in 1966.
1882Halkett & Laing Dict. Anon. & Pseudon. Eng. Lit. I. 122/1 Answer to the Declaration published by the Archbishop of Canterbury{ddd}*n.p., n.d. Octavo. Pp. 12. a1912W. T. Rogers Dict. Abbrev. (1913) 137/1 n.p., no place (no printer's name). 1952J. Carter ABC for Book-Collectors 124 No place, no printer, no publisher (indiscriminately or collectively shortened to n.p.). 1966Dawson's of Pall Mall Catal. No. 162. 12 Cicero..Laelius de amicitia. (n.p., n.d.) (Cologne..about 1467). 1969N. B. Eales Cole Library of Early Med. & Zool. 330 The Complete Dictionary of Arts and Sciences... 2 vols. Fr., [4], vi, n.p. Pls. 1–11, 14–35, 40–42.
1966Guardian 14 Mar. 21/8 The *NPD..won up to 10 per cent in some Bavarian towns. 1969S. Hyland Top Bloody Secret ii. 125 The two people who..organised the first conference of the Neo-Nazi party, NPD.
a1912W. T. Rogers Dict. Abbrev. (1913) 137/1 *N.P.L., National Physical Laboratory (Bushey, by Teddington). 1920Flight XII. 1131/2 With regard to the staffs at the N.P.L. and at the R.A.E., he said he hoped that provision would be made to maintain these on an adequate scale. 1959Ann. Reg. 1958 388 There was a scientific symposium at the National Physical Laboratory (N.P.L.), Teddington.
1964Economist 26 Sept. 1195/1 Then DCF is no more use than *NPV. 1969D. C. Hague Managerial Econ. ii. vi. 128 If we..add together the sums of money in Column C, including the minus {pstlg}1,000 for Year 0, we are left with a net amount of {pstlg}10. This is known as the net present value (NPV) of the project.
1933N.Y. Times 3 Aug. 16/4 The most vital issue in the whole National Recovery Program is, of course, the question whether we shall end up speaking of it as the NRA or the *N.R.A. People are saying NIRA and NRA but there is no denying the fact that there is a self-conscious air about it. 1933G. Ade Let. 25 Aug. (1973) 170 The country editor..need not ignore the N.R.A. or the Farm Relief Board or any of the agencies intended to bring us back to happier times. 1962Amer. Speech XXXVII. 48 Many such letter groups have entered the American language as items of common exchange: O.K...N.R.A.
1954F. A. Buttress World List Abbrev. 186 *NRDC, National Research Development Corporation, 1 Tilney Street, London, W.1. 1959Engineering 6 Feb. 182/3 If proof were required that NRDC's activities are useful and beneficial, it is provided by their profitability. 1967Jane's Surface Skimmer Systems 1967–68 30/1 The Company has been granted an NRDC licence.
1698Prior Let. Earl Halifax, Paris, the 9th Aug: *NS. 1709Steele Tatler No. 4 ⁋5 They write from Saxony of the 13th Instant, N.S.
1900Westm. Gaz. 30 June 9/3 It is generally sufficient..that the bank has not returned cheques unpaid with the mystical letters ‘N.S.’ (not sufficient) in the corner.
a1912W. T. Rogers Dict. Abbrev. (1913) 137/2 *N.S.P.C.A., National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
1895Civil Rights for Children (N.S.P.C.C.) (inside back cover), Mary P. Bolton Asst.-Sec., *N.S.P.C.C. 1963 Social Work Oct. 20/2 Some will emphasise the word ‘neglect’ and think in terms of an extended N.S.P.C.C. inspectorate.
[1852T. Cass Let. 1 May in J. Deans Pioneers of Canterbury (1937) x. 221, I take the opportunity of sending you a few lines by way of *N.S. Wales, a cattle vessel leaving in a day or two.] 1889H. C. Russell (title) The source of the underground water in the western districts... (Read before the Royal Society of N.S.W., August 7, 1889.) 1909B. Stevens Golden Treasury of Austral. Verse 336 Gidya, a Queensland and N.S.W. aboriginal word for a tree of the acacia species. 1971Sunday Australian 8 Aug. 3/1 Justice ministers in Victoria and NSW, said yesterday they were considering..changes.
1866tr. Viner's Gramm. N.T. Dict. (ed. 6) 14 The idiom of the *N.T. is..a variety of the Greek language.
a1912W. T. Rogers Dict. Abbrev. (1913) 138/1 *N.T.,..Northern Territory, -ies (Australia). 1930A. G. Price Hist. & Problems of Northern Territory 64 For labour in the N.T., see reports of Gilruth..and Urquhart. 1969Northern Territory News (Darwin) 11 July 3/3 The NT Police Commissioner..wants breath-analyser tests introduced in the Territory.
1957B.B.C. Handbook 136 The *N.T.S.C. system now in use for a public service in the United States of America. 1966Economist 12 Feb. 628/2 The Americans manage to transmit colour from coast to coast by NTSC.
1948Ann. Reg. 1947 i. v. 90 The negotiations with the *N.U.M. on the method of working overtime..languished.
1914Railway Mag. Nov. 401/1 It was..agreed that all existing contracts and conditions of service shall remain in operation,..(signed) for General Managers' Committee:—..for *N.U.R.:—..for A.S.L.E.&F.:—. 1955Times 2 May 12/7 The union have won the right to put their case without having representatives of the N.U.R. present. 1975Guardian 17 June 26/8 The NUR executive threw the negotiating ball firmly back into Mr Wilson's court.
1924University I. 21 F. G. Connor..who attended as the representative of the English *N.U.S., described the constitution and development of the National Union of Students of England and Wales. 1973J. H. M. Scott Dons & Students xii 145 The vice-chancellors turned it down, effectively siding with the nus against it.
1889Schoolmaster 4 May 634/1 In place of the familiar initials, N.U.E.T. we have the shorter, and let us hope the improved, form of *N.U.T... The objects of the N.U.E.T. remain the objects of the N.U.T. 1973L. Holcombe Victorian Ladies at Work iii. 39 The National Union of Teachers..was organized in 1870... In 1911 the N.U.T. elected its first woman president.
1941Exchange Feb. 3/1 ‘Secondary distribution!’ That's a phrase to make the heart of any floor member of the New York Stock Exchange skip a beat. It means—in most cases, where *NYSE stocks are being distributed—that just so much business is not passing through the Exchange. 1964Financial Times 25 Feb. 3/7 A special committee set up by the N.Y.S.E. 1973N.Y. Law Jrnl. 4 Sept. 4/2 It might be possible to include all NYSE-listed securities.
b. N. = North; also N.B., North Britain (Scotland); N.E., NE., North-east, etc.; N.W., North-west, esp. (usu. followed by a numeral) a London postal district.
1615Capt. Adams Jrnl. Voy. Siam 21 May, From 4 to 8, 1 l[eague] n. 1615T. Roe Jrnl. 26 Mar. in Embassy to Court of Gt. Mogul (1899) I. 3 Wee..saw land N.W. for the Canarye 8 leauges off. 1708Lond. Gaz. No. 4418/3 The Wind was this Morning..at six, at N., at eight at N.E. 1720De Foe Capt. Singleton vii. (1840) 131 As the course of the other rivers were N. by E. or N.N.E. the course of this lay N.N.W. 1769Falconer Dict. Mar. s.v. Sailing, The former [ship] steering E. b N. 1855Maury Phys. Geog. (ed. 2) 258 The wind is reported as prevailing..from N. 3 times. 1857J. A. Symonds Let. 1 Feb. (1967) I. 88 Sunday. Harrow N.W... You will wonder what N.W. means on the top of this page. It is in consequence of some Postal arrangements that those letters should be affixed to districts of London. 1899W. J. Locke White Dove (1900) x. 151 Dr. Frodsham..had..[moved] from the house in Weymouth Street into the purer air of the N.W. district. 1965Listener 27 May 792/1 Living with him was his beautiful companion, a Madame de Bargeton of N.W.3, something of a Madame Verdurin also. 1967Ibid. 30 Nov. 733/2 Who could have littered the Times with byelines and signed columns and a woman's page so close to NW1's heart? 1971A. Bennett in D. Nathan Laughtermakers iv. 93, I did a series on television with sketches about this area, N.W.1, of which I am a part, and so in a sense it was making fun of myself. But it pinpointed something and since then N.W.1 has been used as a catchphrase to indicate Sunday supplement trendiness which people now find rather suspect.
2. N.B. = Lat. nota bene, ‘note well’.
1673Ray Journ. Low C. 163 NB. One of these Electors may nominate himself to any office. 1710Addison Tatler No. 224 ⁋5 Of late Years, the N.B. has been much in Fashion. 1755Hervey Theron & Aspasio I. xi. 415 ‘Behold.’ He sets his N.B. on the passage. 1797Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XI. 722/1 N.B. At the end of the tube G there is a lens for increasing the density of the rays. 1800Asiat. Ann. Reg. ii. 95/1 He..ingeniously added a N.B. at the foot of the whole. 1861G. H. Lewes Jrnl. 3–6 June in Geo. Eliot's Lett. (1954) III. 424 Reposed awhile and chatted (N.B. all the journey we have had fine talk with Trollope). 1965I. Fleming Man with Golden Gun iii. 40 Distinguishing marks: a third nipple about two inches below his left breast. (N.B. in Voodoo and allied local cults this is considered a sign of invulnerability and great sexual prowess.)
3. a. N (also rarely N, n) (Chem.) = normal a. and n. A. 2 b (i).
1863F. Sutton Syst. Handbk. Volumetric Anal. 165 Free iodine is..very readily estimated by solution in iodide of potassium, and titration with N/10 hyposulphite. 1906Amer. Chem. Jrnl. XXXV. 511 A saturated solution of silver chloride..is only about 0·00001N. 1931J. C. Ware Analyt. Chem. iv. 137 Test the solubility of a portion of the precipitate..with 2 cc. 6n HNO3. 1970M. D. Hawkins Calculations in Volumetric & Gravimetric Anal. 11. 35 The solution was titrated against 0·0908n potassium thiocyanate.
b. n (also rarely n) (Chem.) = normal a. and n. A. 2 b (ii).
1889G. M'Gowan tr. A. Bernthsen's Text-bk. Org. Chem. i. 44 From petroleum have been separated..normal heptane, n-octane, n-nonane, and n-decane. 1938L. F. Fieser in H. Gilman Org. Chem. I. ii. 53 The conversion of n-butylcyclopentane into o-ethyltoluene on dehydrogenation with palladium charcoal. 1971N. L. Allinger et al. Org. Chem. iii. 28 One isomer, isobutane, has one carbon atom which is bound to three other carbons, and there is no such carbon atom in the other isomer, n-butane.
c. In Physics N is used to designate the series of X-ray emission lines of longer wavelength than the M-series obtained by exciting the atoms of any particular element (cf. M 5 a); these arise from electron transitions to the atomic orbit of fourth-lowest energy, of principal quantum number 4, which is thus termed the N-shell, and electrons in this shell N-electrons.
1911[see M 5 a]. 1923H. L. Brose tr. Sommerfeld's Atomic Structure & Spectral Lines viii. 505 Our relativistic formula of the fine-structure..furnishes us with a principle of sub-division for the multiplicity of M- and N-lines. Ibid. 507 Just as the M-shell belongs to the quantum-number 3, so does the N-shell to the quantum-number 4. 1948Lapp & Andrews Nuclear Radiation Physics v. 74 In the heavier elements such as tungsten (Z = 74) the N shell is saturated with 32 electrons. 1967G. L. Clark Handbk. X-Rays i. 7 At still longer wavelengths M- and N-series lines have been measured only for heavier elements. 1968Physical Rev. CLXVI. 944/1 Radiationless transitions are favored in low-Z elements and always dominate in the M, N, and higher shells for the ordinary Auger effect. 1970E. P. Bertin Princ. & Pract. X-Ray Spectr. Anal. i. 27 An electron having just enough energy to expel, say, an LII electron can also expel LIII, M, and N electrons, but not LI or K electrons.
d. N (Physics) = newton.
1951Symbols, Signs & Abbrev. (R. Soc. Symbols Comm.) 14/2 Newton... N. 1973Kleppner & Kolenkow Introd. Mechanics ii. 84 Since g = 9·8 m/s2, the weight of 1 kg mass is 9·8 N.
Add:[II.] [1.] NFL, National Football League (U.S.).
1946Encycl. Brit. IX. 486c/1 Under Carr, the *N.F.L. was developed from obscurity into a national enterprise. 1972J. Mosedale Football i. 6 Jim Brown of the Cleveland Browns..was the greatest ground-gainer in NFL history. 1984J. Lawton All Amer. War Game p. viii, Gamblers..wager more than $1 billion on college and NFL football each weekend.
NIREX |ˈnaɪrɛks|, Nuclear Industry Radioactive Waste Executive.
1982Wastes Managem. LXXII. 458/1 *NIREX, which has been set up by British Nuclear Fuels Limited, the Central Electricity Generating Board, the South of Scotland Electricity Board and the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, was welcomed by the Government. 1989New Scientist 14 Jan. 30/1 Environmentalists are angry that NIREX has not considered as an option the long-term storage of nuclear waste above ground.
Add:[B.] [II.] [1.] [a.] NGO, non-governmental organization (see also quango n.).
1946Rev. Rep. Comm. Arrangements Consultation Non-Govt. Org. in U.N. Econ. & Social Council Official Rec. (1947) 1st Year: 2nd Sess. 320/1 It shall be known as the ‘Committee on Arrangements for Consultation with Non-Governmental Organizations’ (short title: ‘Council NGO Committee’). 1949Goodrich & Hambro Charter of United Nations (ed. 2) ii. x. 403 Applications for consultative status, after being screened by the Secretariat on the basis of criteria adopted by the Council and considered by the [Economic & Social] Council NGO Committee, are finally acted upon by the Council. 1969Plano & Olton Internat. Relations Dict. 291 Under the United Nations Charter (Article 71), the Economic and Social Council is empowered to make suitable arrangements for consultation with NGOs on matters within its competence. 1992Cultural Survival Q. Fall 39/3 The association will continue with its present policies and projects, hoping to demonstrate to people inside the reserve and to the government and NGOs that we are responsible and dependable and worthy of support.
N.H.S. trust = hospital trust s.v. *hospital n. 7.
1989Independent 4 Nov. 3/1 Hospitals that go self-governing would move out of direct management by health authorities, becoming instead semi-independent NHS trusts, free to set their own terms and conditions for staff and surviving by selling their services to district health authorities and private patients. 1993Private Eye 4 June 10/1 Crawley and Horsham NHS Trust (motto—‘Where people matter’) is also two months old, {pstlg}750,000 in debt and slashing its support services.
▸ NORML n.humorously after normal adj. U.S. National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
1971Playboy June 57/2 The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (*NORML),..launched by a Playboy Foundation grant, will sponsor and promote reform legislation..to remove penalties for possession and use of grass. 1973N.Y. Times Mag. 21 Jan. 8/2 The capital's most improbable lobbyist..was sitting at his cluttered desk beneath his ‘Reefer Madness’ wall poster..recounting..how he came to start NORML. 1999Esquire July 30/1 You already know that Internet valuations are higher than a NORML caucus in Amsterdam.
▸ nvCJD n. Med. = new variant CJD n. at new adj. and n. Special uses 2a. Cf. variant CJD n. at variant adj. and n. Additions.
1996Med. Post (Nexis) 18 June 1 New variant CJD (*NV-CJD) has been identified in 11 Britons so far. 1996Guardian 25 Oct. i. 3/7 With clinical knowledge of the symptoms of nvCJD restricted to relatively few specialists, there is controversy over the diagnosis of new cases. 1998Jrnl. Neurol. Sci. 155138 Since the report of new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (nvCJD) in humans last year, the search was on for direct evidence to link the condition to Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE).
▸ NVQ n. Educ. = National Vocational Qualification n. at national adj. and n. Special uses; cf. GNVQ.
1987Times Higher Educ. Suppl. 5 June 4/3 The National Council for Vocational Qualifications..believes that there are considerable benefits to be gained for both the country and individuals in extending the *NVQ framework. 1993Brit.: Official Handbk. (H.M.S.O.) 415/1 The following five levels of NVQs have been established: Level 1—Foundation..Level 2—Basic craft..Level 3—Technician, advanced craft, supervisor..Level 4—Higher technician, junior management..Level 5—Professional, middle management. 2001Evening Post (Bristol) (Electronic ed.) 24 Jan. If they then successfully complete a level three NVQ—equivalent to five GCSEs—they are guaranteed a place on a three-year, pre-registration nursing diploma course. |