act of parliament see under parliament

act as

To perform the duties of

act for

1. To substitute for
2. To represent legally or contractually

act on

1. To exert an influence on
2. To act in accordance with

act out

1. To play as an actor
2. To express in behaviour (one's fears, etc)

act up (informal)

1. To behave badly
2. (of a machine) to malfunction

act up to

1. To come in practice up to the standard of
2. To fulfil

catch someone in the act

To come upon someone in the process of doing something they should not be doing

clean up one's act (informal)

To regulate one's activities, put one's affairs in good or proper order

get in on or get into the act (informal)

To start participating in something apparently profitable already taking place in order to share in the benefits

get one's act together (informal)

To get oneself organized

hard act to follow (informal)

An outstanding person, or something outstanding another person has done, regarded as difficult to equal

put on an act

1. To make a pretence
2. To show off

parliament /pärˈlə-mənt/

1. An assemblage of the political representatives of a nation, often forming the supreme legislative body
2. (in France until the Revolution) one of certain superior and final courts of judicature, in which also the edicts of the king were registered before becoming law
3. A meeting for deliberation
4. Gingerbread in the form of rectangular biscuits (also parˈliament-cake or (Scot) parˈley or parˈly)
5. A little-used term for a group of owls

parliamentāˈrian noun

1. An adherent of Parliament in opposition to Charles I
2. A person who is skilled in the ways of parliament

On the side of parliament during the English Civil War

parliamentaˈrianism or parliamentˈarism noun

1. The principles of parliamentary government
2. The parliamentary system

parliamentarily /-mentˈər-i-li/ adverb

parliamentˈary adjective

1. Relating to parliament
2. Enacted, enjoined, or done by parliament
3. According to the rules and practices of legislative bodies
4. (of language) civil, decorous
5. (in the Civil War) for Parliament against the Royalists

parliamenting /-mentˈing/ noun

1. Acting as a member of parliament
2. Debating

parliamentary agent noun

A person employed by private individuals or societies for drafting bills or managing business to be brought before parliament

parliamentary burgh see under burgh

parliamentary private secretary noun

A Member of Parliament acting as an aide to a government minister (abbrev PPS)

parliamentary train noun

A railway train which, by act of parliament (1844), ran daily with sufficient accommodation for passengers at a penny a mile

parˈliament-heel noun

A slight careening of a ship

parˈliament-hingeˈ noun

A hinge allowing a door to be laid back along the wall

parˈliament-house noun

A building where parliament sits or has sat

parˈliament-manˈ noun

1. A member of parliament
2. A parliamentarian

act of parliament

A statute that has passed through both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, and received the formal royal assent

(Act of) Parliament clock

A type of wall clock (usu of mahogany, and with a large uncovered dial found esp in public houses) which became popular around 1797 in response to an act of parliament imposing a tax on all clocks and watches

Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration see Ombudsman