Collins Dictionaries - Collins Primary Illustrated Dictionary

besides

ADVERB also or in addition to

best

ADJECTIVE 1 the superlative of good and well • That was one of the best films I’ve ever seen.

ANTONYM: worst

ADVERB 2 The thing that you like best is the thing that you prefer to everything else.

bet bets, betting, bet

VERB If you bet on the result of an event, you will win money if what you bet on happens and lose money if it does not.

betray betrays, betraying, betrayed

VERB If you betray someone who trusts you, you tell people something secret about them.

better

ADJECTIVE 1 the comparative of good and well • I am feeling better today.

2 If you are better after an illness, you are no longer ill.

SYNONYM: cured

between

PREPOSITION OR ADVERB 1 If something is between two other things, it is situated or happens in the space or time that separates them. • He was head teacher between 1989 and 2000.

2 A relationship or a difference between two people or two things is one that involves them both. • the difference between frogs and toads

beware

VERB If you tell someone to beware of something, you are warning them that it might be dangerous or harmful.

bewilder bewilders, bewildering, bewildered

VERB If something bewilders you, it confuses and muddles you so that you can’t understand.

bewilderment NOUN

beyond

PREPOSITION 1 If something is beyond a certain place, it is on the other side of it. • Beyond the mountains was the secret valley.

2 If something is beyond you, you cannot do it or understand it.

bi-

PREFIX added to a word to mean two or twice. For example, someone who is bilingual can speak two languages.

bib bibs

NOUN a piece of cloth or plastic put under a baby’s chin to protect its clothes from stains

Bible Bibles

NOUN the sacred book of the Christian religion • I read about Noah and the Ark in the Bible.

bibliography bibliographies

NOUN a list of books or articles

bicycle bicycles

NOUN a two-wheeled vehicle that you ride by pushing two pedals with your feet

bid bids, bidding, bid

VERB If you bid for something, you offer to buy it for a certain sum of money. • He bid for an old bike at the auction.

big bigger, biggest

ADJECTIVE large or important

ANTONYMS: small, tiny, little

bike bikes

NOUN an abbreviation for bicycle

bikini bikinis

NOUN a small, two-piece swimming costume worn by women

bilingual

ADJECTIVE involving or using two languages • bilingual street signs

[from Latin bis meaning two and lingua meaning tongue]

bill bills

NOUN 1 a written statement of how much is owed for goods or services • a phone bill

2 a formal statement of a proposed new law that is discussed and then voted on in Parliament

3 A bill can be a piece of paper money. • a dollar bill

4 A bird’s bill is its beak.

billiards

NOUN a game in which a long stick called a cue is used to move balls on a table

billion billions

NOUN a thousand million • You can write one billion like this: 1,000,000,000.

billow billows, billowing, billowed

VERB 1 When things made of cloth billow, they swell out and flap slowly in the wind.

2 When smoke or cloud billows, it spreads upwards and outwards.

NOUN 3 a large wave

billy goat billy goats

NOUN a male goat

bin bins

NOUN a container, especially one that you put rubbish in

binary

ADJECTIVE The binary system is a number system used when working with computers. It uses only two digits, 0 and 1.

bind binds, binding, bound

VERB 1 If you bind something, you tie rope or string round it so that it is held firmly.

2 If you bind a wound, you wrap bandages round it.

3 When a book is bound, the pages are joined together and a cover is put on.

bingo

NOUN a game in which players aim to match the numbers that someone calls out with the numbers on the card they have been given

binoculars

PLURAL NOUN an instrument with lenses for both eyes, which you look through in order to see objects far away • They used binoculars for bird watching.

biodegradable

ADJECTIVE Biodegradable materials can be broken down naturally, and so they are not dangerous to the environment.

biography biographies

NOUN the history of someone’s life, written by someone else

biology

NOUN the study of living things

[from Greek bios + logos meaning life study]

birch birches

NOUN a tall, deciduous tree with thin branches and thin bark

bird birds

NOUN an egg-laying animal with feathers, two wings, two legs and a beak

birth births

NOUN Your birth was when you were born.

birthday birthdays

NOUN Your birthday is the anniversary of the date on which you were born.

birthmark birthmarks

NOUN a mark on your skin that has been there since you were born

biscuit biscuits

NOUN a small, flat cake that is crisp and usually sweet

bisect bisects, bisecting, bisected

VERB to divide a line or an area in half

bishop bishops

NOUN a high-ranking clergyman in some Christian Churches

bison

NOUN a large, hairy animal, related to cattle, with a large head and shoulders. Bison used to be very common on the prairies in North America, but they are now almost extinct.

bit bits

VERB 1 the past tense of bite • She bit into the toast.

NOUN 2 A bit of something is a small amount of it.

PHRASE 3 INFORMAL A bit means slightly or to a small extent. • That’s a bit difficult.

bitch bitches

NOUN a female dog

bite bites, biting, bit, bitten

VERB If you bite something, you cut into it with your teeth.

bitter bitterest

ADJECTIVE 1 A bitter taste is sharp and unpleasant.

2 A bitter wind is extremely cold.

3 If you are bitter about something, you feel angry and resentful.

bizarre

ADJECTIVE very strange and weird

SYNONYMS: odd, peculiar

black blacker, blackest

NOUN OR ADJECTIVE the darkest possible colour, like the sky at night when there is no light

blackberry blackberries

NOUN a small, soft black fruit that grows on brambles

blackbird blackbirds

NOUN a common European bird, the male of which has black feathers and a yellow beak

blackboard blackboards

NOUN a dark-coloured board in a classroom, which teachers write on using chalk

blackcurrant blackcurrants

NOUN Blackcurrants are very small, dark, purple fruits that grow in bunches on bushes.

black hole black holes

NOUN the empty space made by the collapse of a star

bladder bladders

NOUN the part of your body where urine is held until it leaves your body

blade blades

NOUN 1 the sharp part of a knife, axe or saw

2 a single piece of grass

blame blames, blaming, blamed

VERB If someone blames a person for something bad that has happened, they believe that person caused it.

SYNONYM: accuse

blank blanker, blankest

ADJECTIVE 1 Something that is blank has nothing on it. • a blank sheet of paper

2 If you look blank, your face shows no feeling or interest.

blanket blankets

NOUN a large rectangle of thick cloth that is put on a bed to keep people warm

[from Old French blancquete meaning little white thing]

blare blares, blaring, blared

VERB to make a loud, unpleasant noise • The radio blared from the flat below.

blast blasts, blasting, blasted

VERB 1 When people blast a hole in something, they make a hole with an explosion. • They’re using dynamite to blast away rocks.