Collins Dictionaries - Collins Primary Thesaurus

rest

“What you need is a long rest,” said the head teacher to the exhausted teacher.

breakable ADJECTIVE

Something that is breakable is easy to break.

brittle

Dry earth is brittle and crumbles easily.

delicate

“Handle that antique vase gently. It’s delicate,” the auctioneer shouted.

easily broken

Pottery is easily broken.

flimsy

In traditional Japanese houses the interior walls are often flimsy, almost see-through.

fragile

The label on the box read “Fragile”, but the camera within was damaged beyond repair.

break down VERB

When a machine or a vehicle breaks down, it stops working.

conk out INFORMAL

The motorcyclist looked helpless. “Give us a push please, mate. My bike’s conked out.”

fail

When the steam train failed, a diesel had to tow it back to the depot.

go wrong

“I just knew that fancy vacuum cleaner would go wrong,” Mum sighed.

seize up

Our lawn mower seized up when a twig got jammed in the blades.

If someone’s car has a breakdown, it stops working during a journey.

break up VERB

If something breaks up, it comes apart.

disintegrate

Because of the explosion, the plane disintegrated in midair.

fall apart

My wonderful go-kart fell apart during its maiden trip.

When a married couple break up, they separate or get a divorce.

breathless ADJECTIVE

If you are breathless, you are breathing very fast or with difficulty.

gasping

By the time we reached the ridge of the hill, we were gasping.

out of breath

My gran gets out of breath even when she bends down.

puffed out INFORMAL

After running for the train I was puffed out.

puffing and panting INFORMAL

By the end of the fathers’ race Dad was puffing and panting.

wheezing

The poor asthmatic girl was still wheezing even after using her inhaler.

bright (1) ADJECTIVE

Bright colours or things are strong and startling.

brilliant

The brilliant diamond glittered in the light.

dazzling

We stepped out into dazzling sunshine.

gleaming

I polished Dad’s car until it was gleaming.

glistening

The glistening dewdrop sat like a jewel on the leaf.

glittering

For the show, Mum made me a glittering dress with sequins all over.

glowing

The glowing fire lit the old cottage kitchen far into the night.

shimmering

The sun rose as the ship sailed out onto the shimmering sea.

shining

The shining stars lit up the night.

twinkling

From the opposite shore we could see the twinkling lights of the town.

vivid

The parrot’s feathers were vivid shades of red, green and blue.

ANTONYMS: dim or dull

bright (2) ADJECTIVE

Someone who is bright is clever.

clever

My aunt is clever. At antique fairs, she never misses a bargain.

intelligent

Collies are intelligent dogs and can understand many commands.

quick-witted

Reginald’s quick-witted action saved his house from burning down.

smart

People say I’m smart because I’m as quick as lightning at identifying pop songs.

bright (3) ADJECTIVE

Someone who is bright is cheerful.

cheerful

A cheerful manner is important if you are dealing with the public.

jolly

My grandpa is a jolly man who always seems to be smiling.

light-hearted

In our class, discussions are always light-hearted, never too serious.

lively

Mrs Fenkle is a lively teacher, who always makes lessons interesting.

brilliant (1) ADJECTIVE

A brilliant colour or light is extremely bright.

bright

The dentist shone a bright light into my mouth so he could see my teeth clearly.

dazzling

The magnificent ruby was a dazzling red.

sparkling

As the plane came in to land, we could see the sparkling city lights below.

brilliant (2) ADJECTIVE

Someone who is brilliant is extremely clever or skilful.

exceptional

Parvinder is an exceptional pupil and is certain to go to university.

gifted

The Russian was a gifted pianist before he became a conductor.

talented

Nicole is a talented actress who would like to go to stage school.

bring VERB

If you bring something with you when you go to a place, you take it with you.

carry

A hotel porter’s job is to carry people’s luggage to their rooms.

convey

The minibus conveyed people out to the waiting aircraft.

transport

Cable cars transport sightseers to the top of the mountain.

bubbles PLURAL NOUN

Bubbles are balls of gas in a liquid.

fizz

“My cola has lost its fizz,” Wayne complained.

foam

As the tap kept running, the foam spilt over the sides of the bath.

froth

As we added the lemonade to the orange juice, froth started to appear on top.

suds

The washing-up bowl was full of suds.

bug NOUN INFORMAL

A bug is an infection or virus that makes you ill.

disease

The disease spread rapidly, and soon thousands were infected.

germ

Lydia must have caught some sort of germ, because she’s very poorly.

infection

Hospitals have to fight a constant battle against infection.

virus

Antibiotics are not effective in curing a virus.

build VERB

If you build something, you make it from all its parts.

assemble

“Assembling a bookcase from a kit is easy,” Dad said. Ours collapsed two days later.

construct

Grandad helped me construct a tree house in our back garden.

erect

The monument was erected within a week.

ANTONYM: demolish

building NOUN

A building is a structure with walls and a roof.

construction

The huge construction on the edge of town is going to be the new sports centre.

structure

The Eiffel Tower in Paris is perhaps the world’s best-known structure.

Buildings to live in:

bungalow

cabin

castle

cottage

flat

house

maisonette

mansion

palace

semidetached house

terraced house

tower block

Buildings to work in or visit:

barn

college

factory

fire station

gallery

garage

hospital

laboratory

library

lighthouse

museum

office block

police station

post office

power station

restaurant

school

shop

skyscraper

store

supermarket

theatre

warehouse

windmill

Buildings to worship in:

cathedral

chapel

church

gurdwara

mosque

synagogue

temple

build up VERB

If something builds up, it becomes greater.

accumulate

Snow accumulated on the snowball as it rolled downhill.

amass

Old Mr Godber amassed a fortune through dealing in scrap metal.

collect

A layer of dust and dead flies had collected on top of my wardrobe.

bully VERB

If someone bullies you into doing something, they make you do it by using force or threats.

frighten

The boys who frightened me by calling me names got into trouble.

intimidate

“Don’t try to intimidate me,” the old lady called. “I’m not afraid of you!”

terrorize

Some fanatics try to terrorize others by setting off bombs.

threaten

When the bully threatened me, I used my judo skills to stop him in his tracks.