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language        
  1      language   languages
     A language is a system of communication which consists of a set of sounds and written symbols which are used by the people of a particular country or region for talking or writing.
        ...the English language...
        Students are expected to master a second language.
        Holidays are for seeing the sights, hearing the language and savouring the smells.
     N-COUNT
     
  2      language
     Language is the use of a system of communication which consists of a set of sounds or written symbols.
        Students examined how children acquire language.
        Language is not art but both are forms of human behavior.
     N-UNCOUNT
     
  3      language
     You can refer to the words used in connection with a particular subject as the language of that subject.
        ...the language of business.
     N-UNCOUNT: the N of n, supp N
     
  4      language
     You can refer to someone's use of rude words or swearing as bad language when you find it offensive.
        Television companies tend to censor bad language in feature films.
        There's a girl gonna be in the club, so you guys watch your language.
     N-UNCOUNT: adj N, poss N
     
  5      language
     The language of a piece of writing or speech is the style in which it is written or spoken.
        ...a booklet summarising it in plain language...
        The tone of his language was diplomatic and polite.
        Mr Harris has not been afraid to use language that many in his party despise.
     N-UNCOUNT: with supp
     
  6      language   languages
     You can use language to refer to various means of communication involving recognizable symbols, non-verbal sounds, or actions.
        Some sign languages are very sophisticated means of communication.
        ...the digital language of computers.
     N-VAR: supp N, N of n
     
(c) HarperCollins Publishers.

live 1 verb uses        
  1      live   lives   living   lived
     If someone lives in a particular place or with a particular person, their home is in that place or with that person.
        She has lived here for 10 years.
        She always said I ought to live alone.
        Where do you live?.
        He still lives with his parents.
     VB
     
  2      live   lives   living   lived
     If you say that someone lives in particular circumstances or that they live a particular kind of life, you mean that they are in those circumstances or that they have that kind of life.
        We lived quite grandly.
        Compared to people living only a few generations ago, we have greater opportunities to have a good time.
        We can start living a normal life again now.
        ...the local support group for people living with HIV and AIDS.
     VB
     
  3      live   lives   living   lived
     If you say that someone lives for a particular thing, you mean that it is the most important thing in their life.
        He lived for his work.
     VB
     
  4      live   lives   living   lived
     To live means to be alive. If someone lives to a particular age, they stay alive until they are that age.
        He's got a terrible disease and will not live long.
        A perennial is a plant that lives indefinitely.
        He lived to be 103.
        My father died nigh on ten years ago, but he lived to see his first grandson.
        Matilda was born in northern Italy in 1046 and apparently lived to a ripe old age.
        The blue whale is the largest living thing on the planet.
        Ian was her only living relative.
     VB
     
  5      live   lives   lived
     If people live by doing a particular activity, they get the money, food, or clothing they need by doing that activity.
        ...the last indigenous people to live by hunting...
        These crimes were committed largely by professional criminals who lived by crime.
     VB: no cont
     
  6      live   lives   living   lived
     If you live by a particular rule, belief, or ideal, you behave in the way in which it says you should behave.
        They live by the principle that we are here to add what we can to life, not to get what we want from it.
     VB
     
  7      live   lives   lived
     If a person or occasion lives in someone's mind or in history, they are remembered for a long time.
        The memory of that will live with me for many years to come.
        His name will live in history as one of the greatest bowlers of all time.
     VB: no cont
     
  +      live on   lives on; living on; lived on
     Live on means the same as live.
        Lenin lives on in the minds and hearts of millions of people.
     PHR-V
     
  8      live
     If you say that someone lives and breathes a particular subject or activity, you are emphasizing that they are extremely enthusiastic about it.
        He has lived and breathed polo since he was seven.
     PHR: Vs inflect, PHR n emphasis
     
  9      live
     If you tell someone that they haven't lived unless they experience a particular thing, you are telling them that thing is extremely good and should be experienced.
        If you have never been to an opera, you haven't lived.
        You haven't lived until you've used their new micro system.
     PHR: have inflects, usu PHR with cl
     
  10      live
     You can use expressions such as to live in fear and to live in terror to indicate that someone is always thinking about an unpleasant or frightening event, because they think that it might happen.
        One in 10 Californians is unemployed and thousands more live in fear of losing their jobs.
     PHR: V inflects, usu PHR of -ing/n
     
  11      live
     You say live and let live as a way of saying that you should let other people behave in the way that they want to and not criticize them for behaving differently from you.
     CONVENTION
     
  12      live
     If you live it up, you have a very enjoyable and exciting time, for example by going to lots of parties or going out drinking with friends. (INFORMAL)
        There is no reason why you couldn't live it up once in a while.
     PHR: V inflects
     
(c) HarperCollins Publishers.

run        
  1      run   runs   running   ran
     When you run, you move more quickly than when you walk, for example because you are in a hurry to get somewhere, or for exercise.
        I excused myself and ran back to the telephone.
        Police believe the gunmen ran off into the woods.
        Neighbouring shopkeepers ran after the man and caught him.
        He ran the last block to the White House with two cases of gear.
        Antonia ran to meet them.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  +      run   runs
     Also a noun.
        After a six-mile run, Jackie returns home for a substantial breakfast.
     N-COUNT: usu sing
     
  2      run   runs   running   ran
     When someone runs in a race, they run in competition with other people.
        ...when I was running in the New York Marathon...
        Phyllis Smith ran a controlled race to qualify in 51.32 sec.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  3      run   runs   running   ran
     When a horse runs in a race or when its owner runs it, it competes in a race.
        He was overruled by the owner, Peter Bolton, who insisted on Cool Ground running in the Gold Cup.
        If we have a wet spell, Cecil could also run Armiger in the Derby.
     V-ERG The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  4      run   runs   running   ran
     If you say that something long, such as a road, runs in a particular direction, you are describing its course or position. You can also say that something runs the length or width of something else.
        ...the sun-dappled trail which ran through the beech woods.
        ...a gas-filled glass tube with a thin wire running down the centre...
        The hallway ran the length of the villa.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  5      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run a wire or tube somewhere, you fix it or pull it from, to, or across a particular place.
        Our host ran a long extension cord out from the house and set up a screen and a projector.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  6      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run your hand or an object through something, you move your hand or the object through it.
        He laughed and ran his fingers through his hair.
        I ran the brush through my hair and dashed out.
        Fumbling, he ran her card through the machine.
        It hurt to breathe, and he winced as he ran his hand over his ribs.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  7      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run something through a machine, process, or series of tests, you make it go through the machine, process, or tests.
        They have gathered the best statistics they can find and run them through their own computers.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  8      run   runs   running   ran
     If someone runs for office in an election, they take part as a candidate.
        It was only last February that he announced he would run for president.
        It is no easy job to run against John Glenn, Ohio's Democratic senator.
        Women are running in nearly all the contested seats in Los Angeles.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = stand
  9      run
     A run for office is an attempt to be elected to office. (mainly AM; in BRIT usually use bid)
        He was already preparing his run for the presidency.
     N-SING: N for n The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  10      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run something such as a business or an activity, you are in charge of it or you organize it.
        His stepfather ran a prosperous paint business.
        Is this any way to run a country?.
        Each teacher will run a different workshop that covers a specific area of the language.
        ...a well-run, profitable organisation.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  11      run   runs   running   ran
     If you talk about how a system, an organization, or someone's life is running, you are saying how well it is operating or progressing.
        Officials in charge of the camps say the system is now running extremely smoothly.
        ...the staff who have kept the bank running.
     VB: usu cont The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  12      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run an experiment, computer program, or other process, or start it running, you start it and let it continue.
        He ran a lot of tests and it turned out I had an infection called mycoplasma.
        You can check your program one command at a time while it's running.
     V-ERG The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  13      run   runs   running   ran
     When you run a recording tape or video tape or when it runs, it moves through the machine as the machine operates.
        Leaphorn pushed the play button again, ran the tape, pushed stop, pushed rewind.
        When I checked my answering machine, I found the tape had run to the end but recorded nothing.
     V-ERG The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = play
  14      run   runs   running   ran
     When a machine is running or when you are running it, it is switched on and is working.
        He had failed to realise that the tape recorder was still running.
        We told him to wait out front with the engine running.
        ...with everybody running their appliances all at the same time.
     V-ERG: usu cont The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  15      run   runs   running   ran
     A machine or equipment that runs on or off a particular source of energy functions using that source of energy.
        Black cabs run on diesel.
        Rows of stalls are given over to restaurants running off gas cylinders.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  16      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run a car or a piece of equipment, you have it and use it. (mainly BRIT)
        I ran a 1960 Rover 100 from 1977 until 1983.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  17      run   runs   running   ran
     When you say that vehicles such as trains and buses run from one place to another, you mean they regularly travel along that route.
        A shuttle bus runs frequently between the Inn and the Country Club.
        ...a government which can't make the trains run on time.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  18      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run someone somewhere in a car, you drive them there. (INFORMAL)
        Could you run me up to Baltimore?
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = drive
  19      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run over or down to a place that is quite near, you drive there. (INFORMAL)
        I'll run over to Short Mountain and check on Mrs Adams.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = drive
  20      run   runs
     A run is a journey somewhere.
        A run to Southampton showed the car was capable of a reasonable journey.
        ...doing the morning school run.
        ...after their bombing runs against ground troops.
     N-COUNT The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  21      run   runs   running   ran
     If a liquid runs in a particular direction, it flows in that direction.
        Tears were running down her cheeks.
        There were cisterns to catch rainwater as it ran off the castle walls.
        Wash the rice in cold water until the water runs clear.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = flow
  22      run   runs   running   ran
     If you run water, or if you run a tap or a bath, you cause water to flow from a tap.
        She went to the sink and ran water into her empty glass.
        They heard him running the kitchen tap.
        I threw off my clothing quickly and ran a warm bath.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  23      run   runs   running   ran
     If a tap or a bath is running, water is coming out of a tap.
        You must have left a tap running in the bathroom.
        He came fully awake to hear the bath running.
     VB: only cont The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  24      run   runs   running   ran
     If your nose is running, liquid is flowing out of it, usually because you have a cold.
        Timothy was crying, mostly from exhaustion, and his nose was running.
     VB: usu cont The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = drip
  25      run   runs   running   ran
     If a surface is running with a liquid, that liquid is flowing down it.
        After an hour he realised he was completely running with sweat.
        The window panes were running with condensation.
     VB: usu cont The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  26      run   runs   running   ran
     If the dye in some cloth or the ink on some paper runs, it comes off or spreads when the cloth or paper gets wet.
        The ink had run on the wet paper.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  27      run   runs   running   ran
     If a feeling runs through your body or a thought runs through your mind, you experience it or think it quickly.
        She felt a surge of excitement run through her.
        All sorts of thoughts were running through my head.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = go
  28      run   runs   running   ran
     If a feeling or noise runs through a group of people, it spreads among them.
        A buzz of excitement ran through the crowd.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = go
  29      run   runs   running   ran
     If a theme or feature runs through something such as someone's actions or writing, it is present in all of it.
        Another thread running through this series is the role of doctors in the treatment of the mentally ill.
        ...the theme running through the book...
        There was something of this mood running throughout the Congress's deliberations.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  30      run   runs   running   ran
     When newspapers or magazines run a particular item or story or if it runs, it is published or printed.
        The New Orleans Times-Picayune ran a series of four scathing editorials entitled `The Choice of Our Lives.'
        ...an editorial that ran this weekend entitled `Mr. Cuomo Backs Out.'
     V-ERG The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = carry, print
  31      run   runs   running   ran
     You can use run to indicate that you are quoting someone else's words or ideas.
        `Whoa, I'm goin' to Barbay-dos!' ran the jaunty lyrics of a 1970s hit song.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = go
  32      run   runs   running   ran
     If an amount is running at a particular level, it is at that level.
        Today's RPI figure shows inflation running at 10.9 per cent.
        The deficit is now running at about 300 million dollars a year.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = stand
  33      run   runs   running   ran
     If a play, event, or legal contract runs for a particular period of time, it lasts for that period of time.
        It pleased critics but ran for only three years in the West End.
        The contract was to run from 1992 to 2020.
        I predict it will run and run.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  34      run   runs   running   ran
     If someone or something is running late, they have taken more time than had been planned. If they are running to time or ahead of time, they have taken the time planned or less than the time planned.
        Tell her I'll call her back later, I'm running late again.
        The steward will be able to tell you whether the event is running to time or is ahead of schedule.
     VB: usu cont The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  35      run   runs   running   ran
     If you are running a temperature or a fever, you have a high temperature because you are ill.
        The little girl is running a fever and she needs help.
     VB The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  36      run   runs
     A run of a play or television programme is the period of time during which performances are given or programmes are shown.
        The show will transfer to the West End on October 9, after a month's run in Birmingham.
        Meanwhile, Dusty Springfield's new TV series began a run on BBC 1.
     N-COUNT: with supp The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  37      run
     A run of successes or failures is a series of successes or failures.
        The England skipper is haunted by a run of low scores.
        The Scottish Tories' run of luck is holding.
     N-SING: usu N of n The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  38      run   runs
     A run of a product is the amount that a company or factory decides to produce at one time.
        Wayne plans to increase the print run to 1,000.
        Their defense markets are too small to sustain economically viable production runs.
     N-COUNT: usu supp N The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  39      run   runs
     In cricket or baseball, a run is a score of one, which is made by players running between marked places on the field after hitting the ball.
        At 20 he became the youngest player to score 2,000 runs in a season.
     N-COUNT The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  40      run
     If someone gives you the run of a place, they give you permission to go where you like in it and use it as you wish.
        He had the run of the house and the pool.
     N-SING: the N of n The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  41      run
     If you say that someone or something is different from the average run or common run of people or things, you mean that they are different from ordinary people or things.
        ...a man who was outside the common run of professional athletes at the time.
        ...trying to accomplish the usual run of maintenance jobs and write a column too.
     N-SING: with supp The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  42      run
     If there is a run on something, a lot of people want to buy it or get it at the same time.
        A run on sterling has killed off hopes of a rate cut.
        Loss of confidence could trigger a run on Citibank that would threaten the entire financial system.
     N-SING: N on n The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  43      run   runs
     A ski run or bobsleigh run is a course or route that has been designed for skiing or for riding in a bobsleigh.
     N-COUNT: usu n N The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = course
  44      run
     If something happens against the run of play or against the run of events, it is different from what is generally happening in a game or situation. (BRIT)
        The decisive goal arrived against the run of play.
        Against the run of the polls, the Socialist Workers' Party won Sunday's general election by an unexpectedly large margin.
     PHR The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  45      run
     If you run someone close, run them a close second, or run a close second, you almost beat them in a race or competition.
        The Under-21 team has defeated Wales and Scotland this season, and ran England very close.
        The party won at least one county, and ran a close second in several others.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  46      run
     If a river or well runs dry, it no longer has any water in it. If an oil well runs dry, it no longer produces any oil.
        Streams had run dry for the first time in memory.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = dry up
  47      run
     If a source of information or money runs dry, no more information or money can be obtained from it.
        Three days into production, the kitty had run dry.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     = dry up
  48      run
     If a characteristic runs in someone's family, it often occurs in members of that family, in different generations.
        The insanity which ran in his family haunted him.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  49      run
     If you make a run for it or if you run for it, you run away in order to escape from someone or something.
        A helicopter hovered overhead as one of the gang made a run for it.
        Cody, get out, run for it.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  50      run
     If people's feelings are running high, they are very angry, concerned, or excited.
        Feelings there have been running high in the wake of last week's killing.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  51      run
     If you talk about what will happen in the long run, you are saying what you think will happen over a long period of time in the future. If you talk about what will happen in the short run, you are saying what you think will happen in the near future.
        Sometimes expensive drugs or other treatments can be economical in the long run.
        In fact, things could get worse in the short run.
     PHR: PHR with cl, PHR with v The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  52      run
     If you say that someone would run a mile if faced with something, you mean that they are very frightened of it and would try to avoid it.
        Yasmin admits she would run a mile if Mark asked her out.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  53      run
     If you say that someone could give someone else a run for their money, you mean you think they are almost as good as the other person.
        ...a youngster who even now could give Meryl Streep a run for her money.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  54      run
     If someone is on the run, they are trying to escape or hide from someone such as the police or an enemy.
        Fifteen-year-old Danny is on the run from a local authority home.
     PHR: v-link PHR, PHR after v The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  55      run
     If someone is on the run, they are being severely defeated in a contest or competition.
        His opponents believe he is definitely on the run.
        I knew I had him on the run.
     PHR: usu v-link PHR The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  56      run
     If you say that a person or group is running scared, you mean that they are frightened of what someone might do to them or what might happen.
        The administration is running scared.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
  57      run
     If you are running short of something or running low on something, you do not have much of it left. If a supply of something is running short or running low, there is not much of it left.
        Government forces are running short of ammunition and fuel.
        We are running low on drinking water.
        Time is running short.
     PHR: V inflects The form run is used in the present tense and is also the past participle of the verb
     
(c) HarperCollins Publishers.

speak        
  1      speak   speaks   speaking   spoke   spoken
     When you speak, you use your voice in order to say something.
        He tried to speak, but for once, his voice had left him.
        He speaks with a lisp.
        I rang the hotel and spoke to Louie.
        She says she must speak with you at once.
        She cried when she spoke of Oliver.
        ...as I spoke these idiotic words.
     VB
     
  ?spoken
        ...a marked decline in the standards of written and spoken English in Britain.
     ADJ: ADJ n
     
  2      speak   speaks   speaking   spoke   spoken
     When someone speaks to a group of people, they make a speech.
        When speaking to the seminar Mr Franklin spoke of his experience, gained on a recent visit to Trinidad.
        He's determined to speak at the Democratic Convention.
        The President spoke of the need for territorial compromise.
     VB
     
  3      speak   speaks   speaking   spoke   spoken
     If you speak for a group of people, you make their views and demands known, or represent them.
        He said it was the job of the Church to speak for the underprivileged.
        I speak for all 7,000 members of our organization.
        Obviously I can't speak for other people, but certainly no one I know would entertain the idea.
     VB
     
  4      speak   speaks   speaking   spoke   spoken
     If you speak a foreign language, you know the language and are able to have a conversation in it.
        He doesn't speak English.
        Many of them can speak two or three or more languages.
     VB
     
  5      speak   speaks   speaking   spoke   spoken
     People sometimes mention something that has been written by saying what the author speaks of.
        Throughout the book Liu speaks of the abuse of Party power.
        St Paul speaks of the body as the `temple of the Holy Spirit'.
     VB
     
  6      speak   speaks   speaking   spoke   spoken
     If two people are not speaking, they no longer talk to each other because they have quarrelled.
        He is not speaking to his mother because of her friendship with his ex-wife.
        The co-stars are still not speaking.
     V-RECIP: with neg
     
  7      speak   speaks   spoke   spoken
     If you say that something speaks to you of a quality, experience, or feeling, you mean that it is evidence of it or expresses it.
        His behaviour spoke of an early maturity.
        The length of the car and the high polish of its fittings both spoke of money.
        Their music speaks to us with an innate grandeur we can all understand.
     VB: no cont
     
  8      speak   speaks   spoke   spoken
     If you say that something speaks for itself, you mean that its meaning or quality is so obvious that it does not need explaining or pointing out.
        ...the figures speak for themselvesmlow order books, bleak prospects at home and a worsening outlook for exports...
        The results speak for themselves.
     VB: no cont
     
  9      speak
     If you say `Speak for yourself' when someone has said something, you mean that what they have said is only their opinion or applies only to them. (INFORMAL)
        `We're not blaming you,' Kate said. `Speak for yourself,' Boris muttered.
     CONVENTION
     
  10      speak
     If a person or thing is spoken for or has been spoken for, someone has claimed them or asked for them, so no-one else can have them.
        She'd probably drop some comment about her `fiance' into the conversation so that he'd think she was already spoken for.
        By December last year most of the resources had been spoken for.
     PHR: V inflects
     
  11      speak
     If you say that actions speak louder than words, you mean that people's actions show their real attitudes, rather than what they say. This expression is sometimes used to advise a person to do something positive.
     PHR
     
  12      speak
     Nothing to speak of means `hardly anything' or `only unimportant things'.
        They have no weaponry to speak of.
        `Any fresh developments?'n`Nothing to speak of.'
     PHR: n PHR, with brd-neg
     
  13      speak
     You can use not to speak of when adding something which your previous statement also applies to, or applies to even more than other things.
        This move caused consternation among universities and the government, not to speak of the students affected.
     PHR: cl PHR n
     = not to mention
  14      speak
     If you speak well of someone or speak highly of someone, you say good things about them. If you speak ill of someone, you criticize them.
        Both spoke highly of the Russian president.
        It seemed she found it difficult to speak ill of anyone.
     PHR: V inflects, PHR n
     
  15      speak
     You use so to speak to draw attention to the fact that you are describing or referring to something in a way that may be amusing or unusual rather than completely accurate.
        I ought not to tell you but I will, since you're in the family, so to speak.
        The five countries have now all passed, so to speak, their entry test.
     PHR: PHR with cl
     = as it were
  16      speak
     If you are on speaking terms with someone, you are quite friendly with them and often talk to them.
        For a long time her mother and her grandmother had hardly been on speaking terms.
     PHR: usu v-link PHR, oft PHR with n
     
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then        
  1      then
     Then means at a particular time in the past or in the future.
        He wanted to have a source of income after his retirement; until then, he wouldn't require additional money.
        She eventually decided to go professional. Since then she's had considerable success across the Atlantic as well as one hit single.
        I spent years on the dole trying to get bands together and I never worried about money then.
     ADV: ADV with cl, oft prep ADV
     * now
  2      then
     Then is used when you refer to something which was true at a particular time in the past but is not true now.
        ...the Race Relations Act of 1976 (enacted by the then Labour Government)...
        He was known by many for his role in the then record-breaking robbery of the mail train from Glasgow to London in August 1963.
     ADJ: ADJ n
     
  +      then
     Also an adverb.
        Richard Strauss, then 76 years old, suffered through the war years in silence.
        Roberts was then a newly married man.
     ADV: ADV group
     
  3      then
     You use then to say that one thing happens after another, or is after another on a list.
        Add the oil and then the scallops to the pan, leaving a little space for the garlic.
        I felt myself blush. Then I sniffed back a tear.
        New mothers have been observed to touch the feet and hands first, then the body, and then the baby's face.
     ADV: ADV cl/group, ADV before v
     
  4      then
     You use then in conversation to indicate that what you are about to say follows logically in some way from what has just been said or implied.
        `I wasn't a very good scholar at school.'n`What did you like doing best then?'.
        You're not gonna tell me, are you? Do I have to guess, then?.
        `I got a load of money out of them.'n`So you're okay, then.'
     ADV: cl/group ADV
     
  5      then
     You use then at the end of a topic or at the end of a conversation.
        `I can meet you after work. Six o'clock?'n`Fine.'n`Six o'clock, then?'.
        `I'll talk to you on Friday anyway.'n`Yep. Okay then.'.
        He stood up. `That's settled then.'
     ADV: cl/group ADV
     
  6      then
     You use then with words like `now', `well', and `okay', to introduce a new topic or a new point of view.
        Now then, I think the Queen should be taxed.
        Well then, I'll put the kettle on and make us some tea.
        Okay then let me ask how you do that.
     ADV: adv ADV
     
  7      then
     You use then to introduce a summary of what you have said or the conclusions that you are drawing from it. (WRITTEN)
        This, then, was the music that appeared to dominate the world of serious concert music in the mid-1960s.
        By 1931, then, France alone in Europe was a country of massive immigration.
     ADV: ADV with cl
     = therefore
  8      then
     You use then to introduce the second part of a sentence which begins with `if'. The first part of the sentence describes a possible situation, and then introduces the result of the situation.
        If the answer is `yes', then we must decide on an appropriate course of action.
     ADV: ADV cl
     
  9      then
     You use then at the beginning of a sentence or after `and' or `but' to introduce a comment or an extra piece of information to what you have already said.
        We have to do quite a bit of reading, and then we have our ongoing work which would be an essay.
        He sounded sincere, but then, he always did.
     ADV: ADV cl
     
(c) HarperCollins Publishers.

work        
  1      work   works   working   worked
     People who work have a job, usually one which they are paid to do.
        Weiner works for the US Department of Transport.
        I started working in a recording studio.
        Where do you work?.
        He worked as a bricklayer's mate.
        I want to work, I don't want to be on welfare.
     VB
     
  2      work
     People who have work or who are in work have a job, usually one which they are paid to do.
        Fewer and fewer people are in work.
        I was out of work at the time.
        She'd have enough money to provide for her children until she could find work.
        What kind of work do you do?
     N-UNCOUNT: oft in/out of N
     
  3      work   works   working   worked
     When you work, you do the things that you are paid or required to do in your job.
        I can't talk to you right nowmI'm working.
        He was working at his desk.
        Some firms expect the guards to work twelve hours a day.
     VB
     
  4      work
     Your work consists of the things you are paid or required to do in your job.
        We're supposed to be running a business here. I've got work to do.
        I used to take work home, but I don't do it any more.
        There have been days when I have finished work at 2pm.
        ...an image of teaching which highlighted the stressful and difficult aspects of the teacher's work.
     N-UNCOUNT
     
  5      work   works   working   worked
     When you work, you spend time and effort doing a task that needs to be done or trying to achieve something.
        Linda spends all her time working on the garden.
        While I was working on my letter the telephone rang.
        Leonard was working at his German. His mistakes made her laugh.
        The most important reason for coming to university is to work for a degree.
        The government expressed hope that all the sides will work towards a political solution.
     VB
     
  +      work
     Also a noun.
        There was a lot of work to do on their house.
        We knew we would have to organise the wedding but we hadn't appreciated how much work was involved.
        He said that the peace plan would be rejected because it needed more work.
     N-UNCOUNT
     
  6      work
     Work is the place where you do your job.
        Many people travel to work by car.
        She told her friends at work that she was trying to lose weight.
     N-UNCOUNT: usu to/at N
     
  7      work
     Work is something which you produce as a result of an activity or as a result of doing your job.
        It can help to have an impartial third party look over your work.
        Tidiness in the workshop is really essential for producing good work.
        That's a beautiful piece of work. You should be proud of it.
     N-UNCOUNT: oft poss/adj N
     
  8      work   works
     A work is something such as a painting, book, or piece of music produced by an artist, writer, or composer.
        In my opinion, this is Rembrandt's greatest work.
        Under his arm, there was a book which looked like the complete works of Shakespeare.
        The church has several valuable works of art.
     N-COUNT: usu with supp
     
  9      work   works   working   worked
     If someone is working on a particular subject or question, they are studying or researching it.
        Professor Bonnet has been working for many years on molecules of this type.
     VB
     
  +      work
     Also a noun.
        Their work shows that one-year-olds are much more likely to have allergies if either parent smokes.
     N-UNCOUNT
     
  10      work   works   working   worked
     If you work with a person or a group of people, you spend time and effort trying to help them in some way.
        She spent a period of time working with people dying of cancer.
        He knew then that he wanted to work among the poor.
     VB
     
  +      work
     Also a noun.
        ...a highly respected priest who is noted for his work with the poor...
        She became involved in social and relief work among the refugees.
     N-UNCOUNT: with supp, usu poss N, N with/among n
     
  11      work   works   working   worked
     If a machine or piece of equipment works, it operates and performs a particular function.
        The pump doesn't work and we have no running water.
        Is the telephone working today?.
        Ned turned on the lanterns, which worked with batteries.
        How does the gun work?
     VB
     
  12      work   works   working   worked
     If an idea, system, or way of doing something works, it is successful, effective, or satisfactory.
        95 per cent of these diets do not work.
        If lust is all there is to hold you together, the relationship will never work.
        I shouldn't have come, I knew it wouldn't work.
        A methodical approach works best.
     VB
     
  13      work   works   working   worked
     If a drug or medicine works, it produces a particular physical effect.
        I wake at 6am as the sleeping pill doesn't work for more than nine hours.
        The drug works by increasing levels of serotonin in the brain.
     VB
     
  14      work   works   working   worked
     If something works in your favour, it helps you in some way. If something works to your disadvantage, it causes problems for you in some way.
        One factor thought to have worked in his favour is his working class image.
        This obviously works against the interests of the child.
     VB
     
  15      work   works   working   worked
     If something or someone works their magic or works their charms on a person, they have a powerful positive effect on them.
        Nevertheless, she is always optimistic about the possibilities and can work her charm on the disenchanted.
        Our spirits rallied as the bitter-sweet alcohol worked its magic.
     VB
     
  16      work   works   working   worked
     If your mind or brain is working, you are thinking about something or trying to solve a problem.
        My mind was working frantically, running over the events of the evening.
     VB
     
  17      work   works   working   worked
     If you work on an assumption or idea, you act as if it were true or base other ideas on it, until you have more information.
        We are working on the assumption that it was a gas explosion.
     VB
     
  18      work   works   working   worked
     If you work a particular area or type of place, you travel around that area or work in those places as part of your job, for example trying to sell something there.
        Brand has been working the clubs and the pubs since 1986, developing her comedy act.
        This is the seventh year that he has worked the streets of Manhattan.
     VB
     
  19      work   works   working   worked
     If you work someone, you make them spend time and effort doing a particular activity or job.
        They're working me too hard. I'm too old for this.
        They didn't take my father away, but kept him in the village and worked him to death.
     VB
     
  20      work   works   working   worked
     If someone, often a politician or entertainer, works a crowd, they create a good relationship with the people in the crowd and get their support or interest.
        The Prime Minister has an ability to work a crowdmsome might even suggest it is a kind of charm.
        He worked the room like a politician, gripping hands, and slapping backs.
     VB
     
  21      work   works   working   worked
     When people work the land, they do all the tasks involved in growing crops.
        Farmers worked the fertile valleys.
     VB
     = farm
  22      work   works   working   worked
     When a mine is worked, minerals such as coal or gold are removed from it.
        The mines had first been worked in 1849, when gold was discovered in California.
        Only an agreed number of men was allowed to work any given seam at any given time.
     VB
     
  23      work   works   working   worked
     If you work a machine or piece of equipment, you use or control it.
        Many adults still depend on their children to work the video.
     VB
     = operate
  24      work   works   working   worked
     If something works into a particular state or condition, it gradually moves so that it is in that state or condition.
        It's important to put a locking washer on that last nut, or it can work loose.
     VB
     
  25      work   works   working   worked
     If you work a substance such as dough or clay, you keep pressing it to make it have a particular texture.
        Work the dough with the palm of your hand until it is very smooth.
        Remove rind from the cheese and work it to a firm paste, with a fork.
     VB
     
  26      work   works   working   worked
     If you work a material such as metal, leather, or stone, you cut, sew, or shape it in order to make something or to create a design.
        ...the machines needed to extract and work the raw stone.
        ...a long, cool tunnel of worked stone.
     VB
     
  27      work   works   working   worked
     If you work with a particular substance or material, you use it in order to make something or to create a design.
        He studied sculpture because he enjoyed working with clay.
     VB
     
  28      work   works   working   worked
     If you work a part of your body, or if it works, you move it.
        Each position will work the muscles in a different way.
        Her mouth was working in her sleep.
     V-ERG
     
  29      work   works
     A works is a place where something is manufactured or where an industrial process is carried out. Works is used to refer to one or to more than one of these places.
        The steel works, one of the landmarks of Stoke-on-Trent, could be seen for miles.
        ...a recycling works.
        ...the works canteen.
     N-COUNT-COLL: usu n N, N n
     
  30      work   works
     Works are activities such as digging the ground or building on a large scale.
        ...six years of disruptive building works, road construction and urban development.
     N-PLURAL: usu supp N
     
  31      work
     You can say the works after listing things such as someone's possessions or requirements, to emphasize that they possess or require everything you can think of in a particular category. (INFORMAL)
        Amazing place he's got theremsquash courts, swimming pool, jacuzzi, the works.
     N-SING: the N emphasis
     = the lot
  32      work
     If someone is at work they are doing their job or are busy doing a particular activity.
        The salvage teams are already hard at work trying to deal with the spilled oil.
        He is currently at work on a novel.
        Television cameras were invited in to film him at work.
     PHR: usu v-link PHR
     
  33      work
     If a force or process is at work, it is having a particular influence or effect.
        The report suggested that the same trend was at work in politics.
        It is important to understand the powerful economic and social forces at work behind our own actions.
     PHR: usu v-link PHR
     
  34      work
     If you say that you will have your work cut out to do something, you mean that it will be a very difficult task.
        The new administration has its work cut out for it. Creating jobs in this kind of environment is not going to be easy.
        He will have his work cut out to get into the team.
     PHR: V inflects, oft PHR for n, PHR to-inf
     
  35      work
     If something is in the works, it has already been planned or begun. (mainly AM; in BRIT usually use in the pipeline)
        He said there were dozens of economic plans in the works.
        Nobody should be surprised by this. It's been in the works for some time.
     PHR: usu n PHR, v-link PHR
     
  36      work
     You can use work to talk about how easily or quickly a particular task is done. For example, if a person or thing makes short work of doing something or makes light work of it, they do it quickly and easily.
        An aerosol spray will make short work of painting awkward objects.
        This horse made light work of the cross-country course.
        Australia made hard work of beating them.
     PHR: V inflects, PHR -ing/n
     
  37      work
     If you describe someone as a nasty piece of work, you think they are very unpleasant or cruel. (mainly BRIT, INFORMAL)
        Underneath I think he's actually a rather nasty piece of work.
     PHR: usu v-link PHR
     
  38      work
     If you put someone to work or set them to work, you give them a job or task to do.
        By stimulating the economy, we're going to put people to work.
        Instead of sending them to prison, we have set them to work helping the lemon growers.
     PHR: V inflects, oft PHR prep, PHR -ing
     
  39      work
     If you get to work, go to work, or set to work on a job, task, or problem, you start doing it or dealing with it.
        He promised to get to work on the state's massive deficit.
        He returned to America where he set to work on a new novel.
     PHR: V inflects, oft PHR on n
     
  40      work
     If you work your way somewhere, you move or progress there slowly, and with a lot of effort or work.
        Rescuers were still working their way towards the trapped men.
        Many personnel managers started as secretaries or personnel assistants and worked their way up.
     PHR: V inflects, PHR prep/adv
     
  41      work
     You can say to someone `nice work' or `good work' in order to thank or praise them for doing something well or quickly.
        Nice work, Matthew. I knew you could do it.
     CONVENTION formulae
     
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both        
  1      both
     You use both when you are referring to two people or things and saying that something is true about each of them.
        She cried out in fear and flung both arms up to protect her face.
        Put both vegetables into a bowl and crush with a potato masher.
     DET: DET pl-n
     
  +      both
     Also a quantifier.
        Both of these women have strong memories of the Vietnam War.
        We're going to Andreas's Boutique to pick out something original for both of us.
     QUANT: QUANT of pl-n
     
  +      both
     Also a pronoun.
        Miss Brown and her friend, both from Stoke, were arrested on the 8th of June.
        Will there be public-works programmes, or community service, or both?
     PRON
     
  +      both
     Also an emphasizing pronoun.
        He visited the Institute of Neurology in Havana where they both worked.
        `Well, I'll leave you both, then,' said Gregory.
     PRON-EMPH: n PRON
     
  +      both
     Also a predeterminer.
        Both the band's writers are fascinating lyricists.
        Both the horses were out, tacked up and ready to ride.
     PREDET: PREDET det pl-n emphasis
     
  2      both
     You use the structure both...and when you are giving two facts or alternatives and emphasizing that each of them is true or possible.
        Now women work both before and after having their children.
        Any such action would have to be approved by both American and Saudi leaders.
     CONJ-COORD
     
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early        
  1      early
     Early means before the usual time that a particular event or activity happens.
        I knew I had to get up early.
        Why do we have to go to bed so early?
     ADV-GRADED: ADV after v
     * late
  +      early   earlier   earliest
     Also an adjective.
        I decided that I was going to take early retirement.
        I planned an early night.
     ADJ-GRADED: ADJ n
     
  2      early   earlier   earliest
     Early means near the beginning of a day, week, year, or other period of time.
        ...in the 1970s and the early 1980s.
        ...a few weeks in early summer...
        She was in her early teens.
        ...the early hours of Saturday morning.
     ADJ-GRADED: ADJ n
     * late
  +      early
     Also an adverb.
        We'll hope to see you some time early next week.
        ...early in the season.
     ADV-GRADED: ADV with cl, ADV n/prep
     
  3      early
     Early means before the time that was arranged or expected.
        She arrived early to secure a place at the front.
        The first snow came a month earlier than usual.
     ADV-GRADED: ADV after v
     * late
  +      early   earlier   earliest
     Also an adjective.
        I'm always early.
     ADJ-GRADED
     
  4      early   earlier   earliest
     Early means near the beginning of a period in history, or in the history of something such as the world, a society, or an activity.
        ...the early stages of pregnancy.
        ...Fassbinder's early films.
        ...the early days of the occupation...
        It's too early to declare his efforts a success.
     ADJ-GRADED: ADJ n
     
  5      early   earlier   earliest
     Early means near the beginning of something such as a piece of work or a process.
        ...the book's early chapters.
     ADJ-GRADED: ADJ n
     
  +      early
     Also an adverb.
        ...an incident which occurred much earlier in the game.
     ADV-GRADED: ADV with cl, ADV prep
     
  6      early   earlier   earliest
     Early refers to plants which flower or crop before or at the beginning of the main season.
        ...these early cabbages and cauliflowers.
     ADJ-GRADED: ADJ n
     
  +      early
     Also an adverb.
        This early flowering gladiolus is not very hardy.
     ADV-GRADED: ADV with v
     
  7      early   earlier   earliest
     Early reports or indications of something are the first reports or indications about it. (FORMAL)
        The early indications look encouraging.
        Earlier reports that troops opened fire are now being denied.
     ADJ-GRADED: ADJ n
     
  8      early
     You can use as early as to emphasize that a particular time or period is surprisingly early.
        Inflation could fall back into single figures as early as this month.
        ...as early as 1838.
     PHR: PHR n emphasis
     
  9      early
     If you say about something that might be true that it is early days, you mean that it is too soon for you to be completely sure about it. (INFORMAL)
        The chances of Francis eventually becoming manager of England are perhaps higher. It is early days, of course, and he has yet to win anything.
     PHR: V inflects
     
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every        
  1      every
     You use every to indicate that you are referring to all the members of a group or all the parts of something and not only some of them.
        Every village has a green, a church, a pub and a manor house.
        Record every expenditure you make.
        ...mediterranean fish of every shape and hue...
        We need help, every kind of help.
        ...recipes for every occasion.
     DET: DET sing-n
     
  +      every
     Also an adjective.
        His every utterance will be scrutinized.
        He will find his every step more harshly spotlighted than has been the case previously.
     ADJ: poss ADJ n
     
  2      every
     You also use every in order to say how often something happens or to indicate that something happens at regular intervals.
        We were made to attend meetings every day.
        A burglary occurs every three minutes in London.
        She will need to have the therapy repeated every few months.
        They meet here every Friday morning.
     DET
     
  3      every
     You use every in front of a number when you are saying what proportion of people or things something happens to or applies to.
        Two out of every three Britons already own a video recorder.
        About one in every 20 people have clinical depression.
        He said Africa was suffering badly from deforestation: for every ten trees cut down, only one was planted.
     DET: out of/in/for DET amount
     
  4      every
     You can use every before some nouns, for example `sign', `effort', `reason', and `intention' in order to emphasize what you are saying.
        The Congressional Budget Office says the federal deficit shows every sign of getting larger.
        I think that there is every chance that you will succeed.
        The Chinese Foreign Minister was making every effort to secure a peaceful settlement.
        Every care has been taken in compiling this list.
     DET: DET sing-n emphasis
     * no
  5      every
     If you say that someone's every whim, wish, or desire will be satisfied, you are emphasizing that everything they want will happen or be provided.
        Dozens of servants had catered to his every whim.
     ADJ: poss ADJ n emphasis
     
  6      every
     You use every in the expressions every now and then, every now and again, every once in a while, and every so often in order to indicate that something happens occasionally.
        Stir the batter every now and then to keep it from separating.
        Every so often the horse's heart and lungs are checked.
     PHR: PHR after v, PHR with cl
     
  7      every
     If something happens every other day or every second day, for example, it happens one day, then does not happen the next day, then happens the day after that, and so on. You can also say that something happens every third week, every fourth year, and so on.
        I went home every other week.
        It has been snowing, roughly every third day, for as long as I've had the flu.
     PHR: PHR after v, PHR with cl
     
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go 1 moving or leaving        
        In most cases the past participle of go is gone, but occasionally you use `been': see been.
  1      go   goes   going   went   gone
     When you go somewhere, you move or travel there.
        We went to Rome.
        Gladys had just gone into the kitchen.
        I went home at the weekend.
        Four of them had gone off to find help.
        It took us an hour to go three miles.
     VB
     
  2      go   goes   going   went   gone
     When you go, you leave the place where you are.
        Let's go.
        She's going tomorrow.
     VB
     
  3      go   goes   going   went   gone
     You use go to say that someone leaves the place where they are and does an activity, often a leisure activity.
        We went swimming very early.
        Maybe they've just gone shopping.
        He went for a walk.
     VB
     
  4      go   goes   going   went   gone
     When you go to do something, you move to a place in order to do it and you do it. You can also go and do something, and in American English, you can go do something. However, you always say that someone went and did something.
        His second son, Paddy, had gone to live in Canada.
        I must go and see this film.
        Go ask whoever you want.
     VB
     
  5      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If you go to school, work, or church, you attend it regularly as part of your normal life.
        She will have to go to school.
        His son went to a top university in America.
     VB
     
  6      go   goes   going   went   gone
     When you say where a road or path goes, you are saying where it begins or ends, or what places it is in.
        There's a mountain road that goes from Blairstown to Millbrook Village.
     VB
     = lead
  7      go   goes   going   went   gone
     You can use go in expressions such as `don't go telling everybody', in order to express disapproval of the kind of behaviour you mention, or to tell someone not to behave in that way.
        You don't have to go running upstairs every time she rings.
        Don't you go thinking it was your fault.
     VB: with brd-neg
     
  8      go   goes   going   went   gone
     You can use go with words like `further' and `beyond' to show the degree or extent of something.
        He went even further in his speech to the conference.
        Some physicists have gone so far as to suggest that the entire Universe is a sort of gigantic computer.
     VB
     
  9      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If you say that a period of time goes quickly or slowly, you mean that it seems to pass quickly or slowly.
        The weeks go so quickly!
     VB
     = pass
  10      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If you say where money goes, you are saying what it is spent on.
        Most of my money goes on bills.
        The money goes to projects chosen by the wider community.
     VB
     
  11      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If you say that something goes to someone, you mean that it is given to them.
        A lot of credit must go to the chairman and his father.
        The job went to Yuri Skokov, a capable administrator.
     VB
     
  12      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If someone goes on television or radio, they take part in a television or radio programme.
        The Turkish president has gone on television to defend stringent new security measures.
        We went on the air, live, at 7.30.
     VB
     
  13      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If something goes, someone gets rid of it.
        The Institute of Export now fears that 100,000 jobs will go.
        If people stand firm against the tax, it is only a matter of time before it has to go.
     VB
     
  14      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If someone goes, they leave their job, usually because they are forced to.
        He had made a humiliating tactical error and he had to go.
     VB
     
  15      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If something goes into something else, it is put in it as one of the parts or elements that form it.
        ...the really interesting ingredients that go into the dishes that we all love to eat.
     VB
     
  16      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If something goes in a particular place, it fits in that place or should be put there because it is the right size or shape.
        He was trying to push it through the hole and it wouldn't go.
        ...This knob goes here.
     VB
     
  17      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If something goes in a particular place, it belongs there or should be put there, because that is where you normally keep it.
        The shoes go on the shoe shelf.
        `Where does everything go?'
     VB
     
  18      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If you say that one number goes into another number a particular number of times, you are dividing the second number by the first.
        Six goes into thirty five times.
     VB
     
  19      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If one of a person's senses, such as their sight or hearing, is going, it is getting weak and they may soon lose it completely. (INFORMAL)
        His eyes are going; he says he has glaucoma.
        Lately he'd been making mistakes; his nerve was beginning to go.
     VB
     = fail
  20      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If something such as a light bulb or a part of an engine is going, it is no longer working properly and will soon need to be replaced.
        I thought it looked as though the battery was going.
     VB
     
  21      go   goes   going   went   gone
     If you say that someone is going or has gone, you are saying in an indirect way that they are dying or are dead.
        `Any hope?'n`No, he's gone.'
     VB
     
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