to quickly do a series of things, especially in order to practise them: J think we'll start by running through the opening dance routine!. I There are a few more scenes from the play J'd[r]
Trang 1run yourself down As a nation we're always
running ourselves down, instead of being
proud of our achievements.
*SIMILAR TO: criticize, knock
3 Ibe run down I
to feel tired and unhealthy because you have
been working too hard, not getting enough
sleep, or worrying a lot aboutsomething: Is
Sue all right? She looked rather run down
when I last saw her.II was feeling generally
run down and in need of a vacation.
*SIMILAR TO: exhausted
4 Irun down I Irun down ~
IrunIsthIdown I
if a battery, watch etc runs down, or you run
it down, it gradually loses power until there IS
none left: The toy stopped moving Its batterzes
had obviously run down. ISomeone had left the
lights on and run down the carsbattery.
5 Irun downJSthJ ~ sth Idown I
BrE to gradually reduce the amount of work
that a company or other organization does, in
order to prepare for closing it: BSEL say they
will run down the shipyard unless another
buyer is found. IThe local hospital was being
run down and no longer took emergency cases.
*SIMILAR TO: wind down
6 Irun down ~ Irun IsthIdown I
to let something such as a company, an
orga-nization, or a country's economy get Into
very bad condition: Every time a new party
gets into power, they always accuse the
prevt-ous government of running down the economy.
*SIMILAR TO: ruin
7 Irun down I Irun down ~
IrunI sth Idown I
if supplies of something run down, or are run
down, they gradually all get used until there
is none left: It is estimated that supplies of gas
from the North Sea will start to run down
between now and the end of the century.
8 Irun down ~
to quickly look at or read aloud a list of
things or people: Do you want me to run down
the list of possible candidates?
*SIMILAR TO: run through
rundownN [SINGULAR]
a short report or explanation in which you
mention the most important information:
She began by giving a brief rundown of
the decisions that had been made at the
previous meeting.
BrE to find someone or something that you
have been looking for: Ifinally managed to
run him down at his club in Mayfair.
*
10 Irun down ~ IrunIsth[down I
to chase after something and succeed in
stop-ping it: Shane managed to run down the ball
just before it reached the boundary.
Irunfor~
to try to be elected to a particular position:
Burns wants to run for governor at the next election. I Observers in Oklahoma see Watts eventually running for the Senate.
run for office (=try to be elected to animportant political position) Hillary has made no secret of her wish to runfor office.
*SIMILAR TO: stand for
Irun for itI
to run as quickly as you can, especially inorder to escape from someone or something:
When he saw the police coming, Riney decided
to run for it. II think he's seen us VVed better run for it.
1 IrunI~ Irun inISb]
old-fashioned informal if the police run someone
in, they catch that person and take them tothe police station: Southend police ran In a young man for speeding yesterday, and discov- ered that he had been involved in the robbery.
*SIMILAR TO: arrest
BrEif you run in a new car, you drive it slowlyand carefully at first, in order to aVOId damag-
ing the engine: The car had a sign on the back
which read 'Running in Please pass.'
Irun into ~ NOT PASSNE
when you did not expect to meet them:
While I was in Paris I ran into an old friend who I hadn't seen in years.
school-*SIMILAR TO: bump into, run across, come
across
2 Irun into~
if you run into problems, difficulties etc, yousudderily experience them and have to dealwith them, especially when you did notexpect them: The company had run into financial difficulties during the recession. I
Streibl recently ran into trouble over tions that he took free trips which were paid for by a defence company. I Plans to build another runway at Heathrow airport have run into strong opposition from local residents and environmental groups.
allega-*SIMILAR TO: meet with, encounter formal
Trang 23 Irun into hundreds/thousands/millions etcI
to reach a total of several hundreds,
thou-sands etc - used to talk about the total cost of
something, or the total number of people
killed by something: The cost of repairing the
damage is expected to run into millions of
dol-lars. IA spokesperson for the Austrian
govern-ment said that the death toll could run into
hundreds.
*SIMILAR TO: reach
4 Irun intoI~I
to accidentally drive into something such as
a car or a wall: Someone had run into the back
of the bus. IDi and Dodi were killed when
their car ran into a wall at high speed in Paris.
*SIMIlAR TO:drive (into)
5 Irun intoIs~I
if one thing runs into another, for example
another word, colour, or quality, it joins it
and mixes with it, so that is difficult to notice
where one ends and the other begins: The
words seemed to run into each other, and I
couldn't catch what she was saying. IIt was
strange how good and bad could run into each
other, could appear as interchangeable.
*SIMlLAR TO:merge into
-~ Irunoff I
to leave somewhere by running, for example
to avoid being caught: The robbers ran off
down a nearby street. IHer 'l-shirt caught fire
and she ran off screaming.
*SIMILARTO:flee
2 Irunoff I
to suddenly leave someone or leave the place
where you live, without telling anyone: His
wife ran off and left him.IThe popular story is
that Arthur was so heartbroken that he ran off
to Africa.
3 Irun offlstEJ Irun~
to quickly print several copies of something:
Nowadays you can run off your invitations on
a laser printer for virtually nothing. IAuthors
were allowed to visit the printers while their
books were being run off, in order to make any
alterations.
4 Irun offlsthl ~lsthloffls01
if something runs off a power supply, it works
by using the power from it It's designed to run
off batteries or mains electricity. I The stove
was run off a portable generator, which was
kept in the basement.
to write something quickly and easily, for
example a letter, poem, or the words to a
song: Lennon later said that he and Paul ran off
the song in a taxi on the way to the recording
I1U11 pff with
1 Irunoff with Is~
to secretly go away with someone and have
a sexual relationship with them, especiallywhen other people disapprove of this: His
wife ran off with the insurance man, and left him with two kids to bring up on his own. I
Gillian was thirteen when her father ran off with one of his pupils who'd left school a year earlier.
*SIMILARTO: go off with, run away with
2 Irunoff with IsthI
informal to steal something and take it away:
Her employers thought she had run off with the family silver. IDon't worry! I'm not going
to run off with it!
*SIMlLAR TO:go off with informal
1 Irunon~ Irunlsth~
to operate using a particular kind of computer
or computer system, or to make something do
this: The software will run on any Pc. IIn those days all our machines ran on OS2. ICan you run it on Windows 98?
2 Irun onl
to continue happening for longer than wasexpected: The meeting ran on until after 6 o'clock.
AmE to talk for a long time, especially when
other people are not interested in what youare talking about
+ about My dad will run on for hours about
golf if you give him the chance.
*SIMlLAR TO:jabber away informal, chatter (on), go on informal, ramble on
to say to each other.IThe guerrillas finally ran out of ammunition and withdrew.
Trang 3+~Irun outl
if something runs out, there is no more of it
left: Their adventure lasted until the money
ran out. IMy husband tries to be sympathetic,
but I can tell his patience is running out. I
Brazil's luck ran out in the final and they lost
to France 3-0.
<'''"Irun outI
if ticket or an official document or agreement
runs out, it reaches the end of the time when
it is officially allowed to be used or have an
effect: His contract with the club is due to run
out in December. IMy passport won't run out
for at least another year.
*SIMILAR TO: expire
4 Irun out of steamALSO run out of gas AmE I
to no longer feel eager to do something, or no
longer feel that you have enough energy to
continue: Nazeem starts really fast, but he
tends to run out of steam after he's been
box-ing for a few rounds. IThe Republicans'
cam-paign to get rid ofClinton began to run out of
gas.
5 Irun ~ outI Irun out ~
BrEto end a player's period of play in a game
of cricket, by touching or throwing the ball
against the wickets (=the sets of sticks that
the players run between to get points) Lara
was run out by the Australians, after scoring
yet another century for the West Indies.
6 Irun out 15thI Irun ~ outl
if you run out a length of rope or line, you let
it unwind and go away from you: One of the
climbers stood on the edge of the cliff face and
ran out about 50 foot of rope.
run out of
1 Irun outofl~
2 Irun~outof~
old-fashioned to force someone to leave a town
or area, because they have done something
wrong and you are very angry with them:
They burnt the house down and ran him out of
the district.
run sb out of town Her father threatened to
run him out of town if hesomuch as went
near the girl.
*SIMILAR TO: hound out
run out on
Irun out onI~
to suddenly leave your wife, husband,
friends etc, and cause a lot of problems for
them: Joey's wife had run out on him 13 years
earlier. IYehudi was not in his bed "He's run
out on us," I said to myself "That's the last we'll ever see of him."
*SIMILAR TO: walk out on, desert
et Irun over ~ ~ sb/sthloverI
to drive over someone or something, cially with the result that they are injured or
espe-killed: Barthes was run over by a laundry van
as he was crossing a busy Paris street. ILee was really upset when her cat got run over. I
Some idiot in a white van nearly ran me over.
*SIMILAR TO: knock down, mow down
-~;~ Irun over ~
to quickly explain something to someone,especially a series of points or instructions:
I'll just run over how the burglar alarm works.
*SIMILAR TO: run through, go through
3 Irunover~
to quickly read or repeat something in order:
to remember it or to check that is correct:
Sean ran over his notes one last time, then made his way to the exam hall.
*SIMILAR TO: run through, go through
-+ Irun overI
if a container runs over, it become too full of
a liquid, and the liquid starts flowing over the
side: The woman filled up his glass until it started to run over. ISomeone in an upstairs flat had let their bath run over, and there was water absolutely everywhere.
*SIMILAR TO: overflow
5 Irun overlrun over timeI
if a meeting, game, television programme etcruns over, it continues past the time when it
was planned to end: We should be through by
eight, but the session might run over. IThe show was running over time, and the director had to cut one of the scenes.
+ into The tunnel project ran over into the
following year.
6 Irun overI~
if a feeling runs over you, you suddenly feel
it very strongly: She felt a sudden shudder of
fear run over her.
*SIMILAR TO: run through, come over
7 your mind runs oversthl
runsthover in your mind
to think about something such as a series ofevents or possibilities etc: Quickly his mind
ran over all the awful possibilities Maybe they'd had some kind of accident, or even been killed. IGive yourself a few minutes to run it over in your mind, then tell me what you think. IShe let her mind run over the events of the previous day.
Trang 4SEErun around
run through
1 1run through Ist~
if an idea, quality, feeling etc runs through
something, it is present in all of it: This sense
of sadness and loss runs through so many of
Housman spoems. IRacism runs right through
our society from top to bottom. IThe main
argument running through the article is that
genetic research poses a threat to the future of
mankind.
*SIMILAR TO: pervade formol
2 Irun through I ~
if a feeling runs through you, you suddenly
feel it very strongly: A shudder ran through
her at the thought of meeting Luke Calder
again. IHe felt a thrill of excitement run
through him at the mention of her name.
*SIMILAR TO: run over, come over
3 Irun through I sb's Imindlhead I
if something runs through your mind, you
think about it or imagine it: The thought ran
through my mind that the other man was
prob-ably as frightened as J was. IRunning through
her mind, like a tape she couldn't switch off
was the newspaper story that Sebastian had
been seen with another woman.
4 Irun through I st8
to think about or imagine something from
beginning to end, especially a series of
events, reasons, or instructions: As he waited
outside, he ran through the reasons why he
thought he should get the job. IHelen ran
through the scene in her mind again and
again,' maybe she had over-reacted.
*SIMILAR TO: go over
5 [run through I st8
to quickly read or look at something,
espe-cially in order to check or find something:
Hartwig ran through the names in the
note-book to see if there were any that he
recog-nized. ICan we run through the video tape
again? J just want to make sure we haven't
missed anything.
*SIMILAR TO: go through
6 Irun through I sth I
to quickly talk about or explain something
from beginning to end, especially a series of
events, reasons, or instructions: Can you run
through your movements on the night of the
murder? IThe woman quickly ran through the
instructions with me They seemed simple
running through the opening dance routine. I
There are a few more scenes from the play J'd like to run through before we take a break.
run-through N[c]
when you quickly do a series of things,especially in order to practise them: They did a complete run-through of the whole opera, and it went off perfectly.
if you run something through a computer, you
ask the computer to check it, change it, do
cal-culations with it etc, in order to provide you with the result you want: The police run this
information through a special computer, which has information on hundreds of thousands of criminals and suspected criminals.
*SIMILAR TO: stab
10 I run through I
to spend all of a large amount of moneyquickly and waste it: The previous Earl had run through most of the family fortune at the casino in Monte Carlo.
*SIMILAR TO: squander
-1 Irun toIsthI
to reach a particular number or amount, cially a large number or amount: The Macpherson report runs to several hundred pages, and J haven't had time to read it all. I
espe-Dinnerfor two should run to around $50.IThe cost of building and launching each shuttle can
nm to as much as $100 million.
2 Ican/will run to ~
BrE to have enough money to be able to payfor something: We couldn't quite run to vin- tage champagne, so we chose a decent bottle
of wine instead. I Bill, the budget for the course will run to some new paintbrushes as well, won't it?
3 Iruntol~
to go to someone and expect them to help or
protect you, or tell you what you should do:
Trang 5Natalie had run to her new lover, only to be
turned away broken-hearted.
come running to sb (=expect someone to
help and protect you when you should
be able to deal with a problem yourself)
Whenever there's the slightest problem he
always comes running to me for help.
4 Isb's taste runs toIsthI
if someone's taste runs to something, it is
one of the things that they like: I'm not sure
if Edgar's taste in music would run to acid
jazz.
'!> Irun upl
to suddenly run to where someone or
some-thing is and stop next to them: A man with a
gun ran up and shot him dead.
+ to Anne ran up to Mrs Lynde. HI hate
you!" she shouted.
2 Irun up debtsllosses/a bill/a deficit etc I
to borrow or lose a lot of money, or have to
pay a big bill for something: The Rome Opera
company has run up debts of over $40
mil-lion. I While she was at college she ran up a
huge phone bill. IIn September Daiwa Bank
announced that a New York bond trader had
run up $1.1 billion in losses.
*SIMILAR TO:accumulate formol
3 Irun up your credit cardI
to spend a lot of money using your credit
card: He had no money of his own, he just ran
up his wife's credit card until the bank stopped
the card.
4 Irun up~
especially AmE to succeed in achieving
some-thing - use this to say how successful or
unsuccessful someone has been: The Sonics
ran up 64 victories this year.
5 Irun upIst8 IrunIsthIupI
if you run up a flag, you raise it on a pole,
usually by pulling a rope: The school had run
up the South African flag in honour of
Mandela 50visit.
6 Irunuplst8 Irun ~
BrE to quickly make something, especially a
piece of clothing using a sewing machine: If!
give her the material, she can easily run up
the dressfor me at home.
Irun up against I sth/sb I K
to have to deal with unexpected problems or
difficulties, a difficult opponent, or someone
who stops you from being able to do what
strong opposition from the local community. I
Have the Rockets finally run up against a team they can't beat? IHe plays a truly mali- cious killer, who runs up against a small-town sheriff.
*SIMILAR TO:run into, come up against
been rushing around all day trying to get ready to go on vacation. I Politicians are always rushing around the country before an election in order to gain support.
*SIMILAR TO:dash (about/around)
~ Irush into ~
IrushI sb Iinto I~
to do something very quickly, especially tooquickly without thinking about it enough, or
to make someone do this: When you're
buy-ing a house, it's best not to rush in and buy the first thing that comes along. I The President insisted that he would not be rushed into a decision about sending troops into the area.
rush into doing sth The couple explained
that they didn't want to rush into having children - they had their careers to think of first.
rush into things spoken (=rush into
some-thing) We haven't talked about marriage yet We don't want to rush into things.
not rush into anythingspokenI've been ing to various people about jobs - I'm not rushing into anything until I'm sure L've found what1want.
talk-rush off
I rush off I )(
to leave very suddenly or quickly, becauseyou have to go somewhere or do something:
1 wanted to talk to him, but he had to rush off
to a meeting. IThere's no need to rush off just yet, we've got plenty of time. ISorry to rush off like this 1promise I'll be free tomorrow.
*SIMILAR TO:dash off informal, shoot off
Trang 6ut!ItlliIfJl!JJ 4,@, •• IIr.'-il
'rush outlsth' 'rush I~~ >
to produce a new product, book, or more
copies of something very quickly, especially
because a lot of people will want to buy it: A
special video of the series was rushed out in
time for Christmas. IXcelerated Systems Inc.
from San Diego has rushed out version 1.2 of
its Liken software.
rush throu h '
Irush through I~ ~I through I
to pass a law or deal with official business as
quickly as possible: As a result of a serious
increase in the level of political violence, the
government rushed through the Public Order
to be damaged and gradually destroyed by
forms on the surface of iron and steel when
it is wet: He had an old Cadillac which was
quietly rusting away in his garage.
Irust upI
if something rusts up, so much rust forms on
it that it does not work and cannot be usedany more Rust is the brown or red substancethat forms on the surface of iron and steelwhen it gets wet: The house had metal windows that had completely rusted up.
be rusted up The car radiator was all rusted up and it kept overheating.
I don't think I can even rustle up enough money for a holiday this year.
*SIMILARTO:cobble together
Trang 7sacked out early last night.
to put a saddle (=a leather seat) on a horse's
back: We saddled up and set off back to the
farm. I He began saddling up his horse,
preparing to ride off with his bride-to-be.
saddle with
Ibe saddled with @!iJ
to have a job, responsibility, or problem that
you do not want, but have to deal with: I've
been saddled with the job of organizing the
kids' party. IGermany is saddled with some of
the highest labor costs in the world, which has
reduced its competitiveness in the global
economy.
saddle yourself with a debt (=make
your-self responsible for a debt) Students are
saddling themselves with enormous debts
to pay their course fees and living
ex-penses.
saddle sb with sth (=give someone a debt
or problem to deal with) They managed the
company saffairs badly, saddling NTN with
to do something that will prevent something
bad from happening: They have produced a
leaflet to warn you of garden hazards, and
how to safeguard against them. I The new
security systems have proved insufficient to
safeguard against computer fraud.
SAIL
sailed, sailed, sailing
sail through
Isail through I Isail through I st8
to pass a test or examination very easily andsuccessfully, or to deal with a difficult expe-rience easily without having any problems:
After sailing through her bronze and silver swimming awards, Fiona started working towards the gold. ISome women find preg- nancy very traumatic, while others sail through without any problems at all.
SALLY
sallied, sallied, sallying
Isally forth I
in a brave and confident way to do
some-thing: Ena Burke sallied forth from the kitchen,
a large covered tray in her hands. IBeaufort was a massive fortress from which Richard's knights could sally forth to attack the enemy.
*SIMIlAR TO: venture forthformalorhumorous
SALT
salted, salted, salting
salt away
Isalt away ~ Isalt ~ away I
to save money for the future by hiding it,especially money that you have got dishon-
estly: Drug traffickers are salting away their
funds, serving their prison sentences, and then coming out to a life of luxury.
*SIMILAR TO: stash awayinformal
SAND
sanded, sanded, sanding
Isand down I~ IsandI~IdownI
to make a surface smooth by rubbing it withspecial equipment or sandpaper (=special
paper that is rough on one side) Sand down
the woodwork before you paint it.
Trang 8saved, saved, saving
save on
1 Isaveon~
to spend less money on something than you
did before: If I cycled to work I could save on
petrol.
save on billslcosts/rent We moved to a
smaller apartment to save on rent. I The
official Energy Efficiency Unit suggests
these easy ways of saving on heating costs.
*SIMILAR TO: economize (on)
2 Isave onIs!EJ
especiolly 8rE to reduce the amount of work
that you have to do, especially boring work:
Lets use paper plates - it'll save on the
wash-ing up. IA computerized system saves on
paperwork.
-Isave upI Isave up's!EJ Isave ~
to keep money so that you can use it in the
future, especially when you add more money
every week, month ete: If you want to buy a
car, you'll have to start saving up. I fVe've
saved up $2000 so far. IHe saved up for years
in order to buy that house in the country.
+ for I'm saving up for a holiday.
savoured, savoured, savouring BrE
savored, savored, savoring AmE
Isavour of§]
seems to contain some of that quality: William
explained his plan to me, but his words savored
of deliberate deceit. I The victim appears to
have been poisoned, in a killing that savours of
revenge.
*SIMILAR TO: smack of
SAW
sowed, sawn, sawing 8rE
sawed, sawed, sawing AmE
IsawupI~ IsawIsthlup]
to cut something into many pieces using a
saw (=a tool that has a metal blade with
v-shaped teeth) I sawed up the tree jar firewood.
SAY
said, said, saying
1 Iit says a lot for ~
to show that someone or something has a lot
of good qualities: It says a lot for Nigel that he
gives up his Saturdays to coach the kids ball team. I It says a lot for the African National Congress that, after eleven of their supporters were killed last week, they are still prepared to talk peace.
'foot-2 Inot say much for§]
to show that something is not of a high
stan-dard or quality: These results don't say much
for the quality of the teaching. IHis mance didn't say much for their training methods.
origi-Since the end of the Cold War NATO countries have been scaling back their armed forces. I
Several countries have scaled down their plans for expanding nuclear power. I The whole industry is scaling back.
*SIMILAR TO: reduce, cut back
• OPPOSITE: scale up scaled-down/scaled-back AD)
reduced or made smaller: The planning committee eventually agreed on a scaled- down version of the project.
scaling-down N [SINGULAR]
when something is scaled down:
scaling-down of the coal industry
2 I scale down §] ~ sth I downI
to reduce the size of something such as adrawing or a model of something: The design might not look so good when it is scaled down jar reproduction in newspapers and magazines.
• orrosm:scale up scaled-down AD)
reduced to a smaller size: a scaled-down
model of the statue
Trang 9scale up
1 !scale uplsth] Iscalel~
if a government, company etc scales
some-thing up, they make it bigger or do more of it
than they did before or than they originally
planned: The company is scaling up
produc-tion of mobile phones to take advantage of the
increasing demand.
*SIMILAR TO: increase
• orrosrrt: scale down
2 Iscale up ~ Iscale ~
to increase the size of something such as a
drawing or a model of something: Does the
software allow graphics to be scaled up or
down?
• OPPOSITE: scale down
SCAN
scanned, scanned, scanning
Iscan in~ Iscan~
to copy images from paper onto a computer
screen: With a sheet-fed scanner, you can put
in five or 10 pages of text and scan them in
automatically. IThe workers all had pictures
of their families scanned into their computers
and displayed on the corner of their screens.
SCARE
scared, scared, scaring
1 Iscare away/off I~ ~ away/off I
to make a person or animal go away by
frightening them: We lit fires to scare away
the wolves. I Luckily, her sister came home
and scared the intruder off before he could do
any harm.
*SIMILAR TO: frighten away/off
2 Iscare away/off ~ ~I s-ca-r-e-I-sb-I-aw-ay-/-off-I
to stop someone from doing something they
intended to do, by making them feel worried
or nervous: Mayor Brown blamed the media for
exaggerating the cityscrime problem and
scar-ing tourists away.IRising prices are scaring off
many potential customers:
*SIMILAR TO: frighten away/off
Iscare upI sthlsb I
AmE informal to look for something or
some-one that may be difficult to find: Sellers went
to England, trying to scare up a buyer for the
Ischlep around I Ischlep around ~
AmE spoken informal to waste time by doingalmost nothing: "What did you do today?"
"Not much [just schlepped around the house, really."
*SIMILAR TO: loaf around
have been taught it: Victor Amadeus had been
carefully schooled in the duties of a Catholic prince.
SCOOP
scooped, scooped, scooping
Iscoop out I~ Iscoop §1outI
to remove the inside part of something using
your hand, or a spoon: Cut the melon in half
and scoop out the seeds.
Iscoop up ~ Iscoop I~
to put your hands under something and lift it
up with a quick movement: She put her hand into the pond and scooped up a tiny frog. IHis mother scooped him up in her arms and cuddled him.
SCOOT
scooted, scooted, scooting
-Iscoot over I
AmE spoken informal to move in order to make
space for another person: Can you scoot over,
Iscope outr~ Iscope I sth/sb r~
AmE informalto look at something or someone
to see what they are like: We used to scope
Trang 10school dances. IThe coalition has sent staff to
scope out the housing situation for the citys
Iscore offI"SbJ
BrEto try to make someone seem stupid and
make yourself seem clever, especially by
say-ing somethsay-ing clever or funny: I never liked
Professor Lyle - he was always trying to score
off his students. IPoliticians don't debate
any-thing seriously - they just exchange insults
and try to score off each other.
-Iscore out/through ~
Iscorel~hlout/throughl
that has been written because it is wrong or
unsuitable: Mr Kronweiser thought for a
moment, then neatly scored through the word
'unusual', and replaced it with 'exceptional '.
*SIMILAR TO: cross out, delete
SCOUR
scoured, scoured, scouring
scour away
Iscour away ~ ~ sth IawayI
if water or wind scours rock or land away, it
removes it gradually over a long period of
time: Rain had scoured away the soft sandstone.
*SIMILAR TO:erode, wear away
-1 Iscour out l~ Iscour I sthlout I
to clean the inside part of something very
thoroughly by rubbing it hard with a rough
material: The pans need to be scoured out.
2 Iscour out ~ Iscour ~ outI
if flowing water scours out a hole, pool, valley
etc, it forms the hole, pool ete by continuous
movement over a long period: The stream had
flowed down the mountainside and scoured out
the perfectly formed pool below.
SCOUT
scouted, scouted, scouting
Iscout around/about/round I
to look for something in a particular area: We
haven't got much food in I'll scout around in the village and see what I can get.
+ for I put up the tent and then went scouting round for firewood.
*SIMILAR TO:look around
-Iscoutout~
to examine an area in order to get information
about it, especially in a military situation: They
had sent in advance troops to scout out the dangers. IAmerican companies are eager to scout out business opportunities in Vietnam.
making quick movements with your fingers,often when you feel nervous: She scrabbled around for a piece of paper to write on. I
Digby s briefcase burst open, and his face burned red as 1000 delegates watched him scrabble about on the floor, trying to retrieve its contents.
2 Iscrabble around/about/round I
something that you need, when you are ried because you need it urgently
wor-+ for The government cut their funding without warning, and they found themselves scrabbling around for alternative sources of
Trang 11scraped, scraped, scraping
scrape along
Iscrape alongI
to have just enough money to buy the things
you need to live, but no more
+ onMany children live in poverty, their
families managing to scrape along on less
than £150 a week.
*SIMILARTO: get by, scrape by
1 I scrape by I
to have just enough money to buy the things
you need to live, but no more: My parents
lent me some money, and somehow we
man-aged to scrape by.
+ onMature students with young families
are having to scrape by on an inadequate
student grant.
*SIMILARTO: get by, scrape along
2 Iscrape byI Iscrape byI sth I
AmE to only just succeed in doing something
for example passing an examination or
deal-ing with a situation: When Mike finally
scraped by his exams and got into college,
Mary wept with joy. IIn the end Dole just
managed to scrape by in Iowa and lost New
Hampshire.
*SIMilAR TO: scrape through
Iscrape inI Iscrape into ~
to only just succeed in being accepted into a
college, or a profession, or in winning an
election, game, or race: Our daughter Louise
just scraped into university, but in the end she
managed to get a good degree. IThe Labour
candidate scraped in with a majority of only
80 votes.
Iscrape out ~ Iscrape ~IoutI
if you scrape out a bowl or other container,
you use a knife or spoon to remove all the
food or other substance that is stuck to its
sides: My mother spooned the cake mixture
into a tin, and then gave me the bowl to scrape
out.
Iscrape through I Iscrape through ~
to only just succeed in passing an
examina-tion or course, or in winning an election,
game, or race: 1 scraped through my final
exams with grades only just high enough to
+to The team had scraped through to the
quarter-finals by beating Tondu 12-10.
*SIMILARTO:scrape byAmE
+ for There were still homeless people on the streets scratching around for a place to shelter.
2 Iscratch around/about/round I
to search for something on the ground using
your hands or a stick: A pathetic skinny dog was scratching around behind the dustbins searching for scraps of food.
scratch out
Iscratch out@] Iscratch Isth lout I
to draw a line through a written word using
a pen or knife, so that it cannot be read: He
looked through the book, but many of the names had been scratched out.
*SIMILARTO:cross out, score out/through
scratch round BrE.
SCREAM
screamed, screamed, screaming
-., scream outI Iscream I~thlout I
to shout something in a loud high voice,because you are frightened or angry: His mother screamed out, "Run! Run for your life!" I "You bastard, Hayman,' Manville screamed out to the empty, darkened streets.
Trang 12scream out in terror/pain Everywhere there SCREW
were people running about, screaming out in screwed, screwed, screwing
terror.
*SIMILAR TO: cry out
scream out at
Iscream out at ~
if something screams out at you, it is very
noticeably ugly or wrong - use this about
colours that are too bright or very bad
mis-takes or faults: The bathroom tiles are a really
horrible colour - whenever I go in there they
just scream out at me.
SCREEN
screened, screened, screening
1 Iscreen offI~ Iscreen ~
to separate part of a room from the rest of
the room by using a curtain or wall that can
be moved: An area at the far end of the hall
had been screened offas a waiting-room.
+withlby The prayer room was screened off
from the rest of the church by heavy velvet
curtains.
*SIMILAR TO: partition off, curtain off
2 Iscreen offIsthI Iscreen IsthIo!!J
to put something such as trees, buildings, or
a wall in front of an area so that it cannot be
seen
+ with/by The end section of the garden was
screened off by a row offir trees.
1 Iscreen out I~ [screen I~IoutI
to use tests and other methods to prevent
unsuitable people from joining a company or
organization: Extensive inquiries were made
to screen out job applicants with criminal
records. I Testing and the use of
question-naires screen out high-risk blood donors who
may have been infected with malaria or the
HIVvirus.
2 Iscreen out ~ Iscreen lsth lout I
to prevent harmful or unwanted light, gas,
sound etc from entering somewhere: Sun
lotions protect your skin by screening out
dan-gerous ultraviolet rays from the sun. ITeletype
machines could be heard in the studio, so
efforts were made to screen out this noise.
*SIMILAR TO: filter out
1 Iscrew around I
AmE spoken informal to spend time doing silly
things: The guys in the back of the class would
always screw around and learn nothing.
*SIMILAR TO: fool around, mess around
informal
2lscrewls~
spoken especially AmE to cause trouble orproblems for someone, especially by chang-ing your mind a lot or preventing them from
getting what they want: They really screwed
us around - every day there was a new set of rules and regulations.
*SIMILAR TO: mess around informal, piss about/
around BrE informal
3 Iscrew around I
spoken informal to have sex with a lot of
dif-ferent people This is a rude expression andsome people are offended by it: Axel's girl-
friend Doro thought he had been screwing around.
+ with My father was screwing around with
other women, and Mum found out.
*SIMILAR TO: sleep around informal, cat around
AmE old-fashioned informal
screw around with
Iscrew around with I~
AmE spoken informal to make unnecessarychanges that affect something in an annoyingway and cause problems: The last time he 'cl screwed around with Helen's rent, there 'cl been a fight. IAll the tax people care about is screwing around with small businesses like
informal to force someone to give you money
or information: landowners who screwed all they could out of the local peasants
Iscrew 1"SbJ over I Iscrew over I"5bJ
AmE spoken informal to deceive someone, cially in order to get money from them dis-honestly, or to cause someone a lot of prob-
espe-lems: My last company really screwed me over.1No wonder workers feel sore when their own unions are screwing them over.
* rip off informal
Trang 13screw up
1 Iscrew~
spoken informal if a bad experience screws you
up, it makes you feel unhappy, anxious, and
confused for a long period of time: It really
screwed her up when her mother died. IIused
to do a lot of drugs, and they really screwed
me up.
*SlMlLAR TO: mess up informal, fuck up taboo
screwed-up AD]
a screwed-up rich kid who got himself
expelled from boarding school IThe guys
really screwed-up He had a terrible time
when he was a kid.
2 Iscrew upI Iscrew upI~
Iscrew I5thI~
spoken informal to make a mistake or to spoil
something: Somebody screwed up, and it got
delivered to the wrong house. IYou've really
screwed up this time The boss is furious. I
How can anyone support a government that's
screwing up the economy, as this one is?IWhy
did you let Slater handle the deal? I knew he'd
screw things up.
*SIMILAR TO: mess up informal, foul up informal
screw-up N[cl
a mistake that spoils arrangements: There'd
been a screw-up in plane reservations.
3 screw up your eyeslface,
screw your eyeslface up
to make your eyes narrower or the muscles
in your face tighter: Miss Jarman screwed up
her face in disgust "I can't abide that man
-theres something devious about him." IHe
rested his arms on the railing and looked out
over Central Park, his eyes screwed up against
the sun.
4 Iscrew upI sth] Iscrew ~
BrE if you screw up a piece of paper, you
twist and crush it with your hands making it
into a small round shape: Vida screwed up the
letter and threw it into the trash.
*SIMILAR TO:crumple up
SCRIBBLE
scribbled, scribbled, scribbling
scribble down 2u" ~i~ :iji.f0ii1,
Iscribble down I sth I [scribble IsthIdownI
to write something quickly in an untidy way:
I scribbled down his phone number and
promised to call him. IBy age 9 Carpenter
was scribbling down poems and playing the
quality: Builders seem to scrimp on windows
to keep costs down.
*SIMIlAR TO:skimp on
SCROUNGE
scrounged, scrounged, scrounging
[scrounge IsthIupI Iscrounge upIsi8
AmE to collect the money or things that youneed to do something, or find someone whocan help you to do it, especially when this isdifficult: The students have to scrounge up relatives who will give them a room II'll see
if I can scrounge up some old clothes for the garage sale.
*SIMILAR TO: scare up AmE informol
SCRUB
scrubbed, scrubbed, scrubbing
Iscrub outIsthI Iscrub I~outI
to clean the inside of a place or object oughly, using a brush or similar cleaning tool:
thor-Itsyour turn to scrub out the bathtub , Tom scrubbed the bucket out and placed it on the rack to dry.
*SIMILAR TO:clean out
scrub ~
Iscrub upI
if a doctor or nurse scrubs up, they washtheir arms and hands before doing a medicaloperation: Dr Hannon, you should probably scrub up now for your one 0'clock patient.
SCRUNCH
scrunched, scrunched, scrunching
scrunch up
1 Iscrunch upI sth I Iscrunch I sth ~
to twist or crush something into a small
shape: I scrunched up the letter J was writing and started over. IDon't scrunch up my shirt like that It'll get wrinkled.
2 Iscrunch upI sth I Iscrunch ~
to twist your face, eyes, nose etc into a funnyshape in order to show how you are feeling: