Collins Dictionaries - Collins Primary Illustrated Dictionary

VERB 1 If you bump into something, you knock into it accidentally.

NOUN 2 a soft noise made by something knocking into something else

3 a raised, uneven part of a surface

SYNONYMS: bulge, lump

bumper bumpers

NOUN a bar on the front or back of a vehicle that protects it if it bumps into something

bumpy bumpier, bumpiest

ADJECTIVE Something that is bumpy has a rough, uneven surface. • a bumpy road

bun buns

NOUN a small, round bread roll or cake

bunch bunches

NOUN a group of things together • a bunch of flowers

bundle bundles, bundling, bundled

NOUN 1 a number of things tied together or wrapped up in a cloth

VERB 2 If you bundle someone or something somewhere, you push them there quickly and roughly.

bungalow bungalows

NOUN a one-storey house

[from Hindi bangla meaning house]

bunk bunks

NOUN a bed fixed to a wall in a ship or caravan

bunk beds

PLURAL NOUN two beds fixed together, one above the other

buoy buoys

NOUN a floating object anchored to the bottom of the sea, marking a channel or warning of danger

buoyancy

NOUN Something that has buoyancy is able to float in liquid or in the air.

buoyant

ADJECTIVE 1 Something that is buoyant is able to float.

2 Someone who is buoyant is lively and cheerful.

burden burdens

NOUN a heavy load

burger burgers

NOUN a flat fried cake of meat, vegetables or cheese, served in a bread roll

burglar burglars

NOUN someone who breaks into buildings and steals things

burgle VERB

burn burns, burning, burned or burnt

VERB 1 If something is burning, it is on fire.

2 To burn something means to damage or destroy it with fire.

3 People often burn fuel, such as coal, to keep warm.

NOUN 4 A burn is an injury caused by fire or by something hot.

You can write either burned or burnt as the past form of burn.

burqa burqas; also spelt burka

Said “bur-ka” NOUN a long garment worn by some Muslim women in public, covering everything except the eyes

burrow burrows, burrowing, burrowed

NOUN 1 a tunnel or hole in the ground dug by a small animal

VERB 2 When an animal burrows, it digs a burrow.

burst bursts, bursting, burst

VERB 1 When something bursts, or when you burst it, it splits open suddenly.

2 When you burst into a room, you enter suddenly and with force.

NOUN 3 A burst of something is a sudden short period of it. • a burst of applause

bury buries, burying, buried

VERB 1 If you bury something, you put it in a hole in the ground and cover it with earth.

2 If something is buried under something, it is covered by it. • My trainers were buried under a pile of clothes.

bus buses

NOUN a large motor vehicle that carries passengers

[from Latin omnibus meaning for all]

bush bushes

NOUN 1 a large plant, smaller than a tree and with a lot of woody branches

2 In Australia and South Africa, an uncultivated area outside a town or city is called the bush.

3 In New Zealand, the bush is land covered by rainforest.

bushy bushier, bushiest

ADJECTIVE Bushy hair or fur grows very thickly. • My dad has bushy eyebrows.

business businesses

NOUN 1 work relating to the buying and selling of goods and services

2 an organization that produces or sells goods, or provides a service

SYNONYMS: company, firm, organization

busker buskers

NOUN someone who sings or plays music in public places for money

bus stop bus stops

NOUN a place where the bus stops regularly for passengers to get on or off, usually marked with a sign

busy busier, busiest

ADJECTIVE 1 If you are busy, you are doing something and are not free to do anything else. • She was too busy to come to the cinema with us.

2 A busy place is full of people doing things or moving about.

but

CONJUNCTION 1 used to introduce an idea that is opposite to what has gone before • I love cooking, but I hate washing up afterwards.

2 used when you apologize for something • Sorry, but I can’t come to play tomorrow.

PREPOSITION 3 except • There was nothing to eat but potatoes.

butcher butchers

NOUN a shopkeeper who prepares and sells meat

butter

NOUN a soft, fatty food made from cream, which is spread on bread and used in cooking

buttercup buttercups

NOUN a wild plant with bright yellow flowers

butterfly butterflies

NOUN a type of insect with large, colourful wings. Butterflies develop from caterpillars.

buttocks

PLURAL NOUN Your buttocks are the part of your body that you sit on.

[from Old English buttuc meaning rounded slope]

button buttons, buttoning, buttoned

NOUN 1 a small, hard round object sewn on to clothing such as shirts • My new jeans fasten with buttons instead of a zip.

2 a small object on a piece of equipment that you press to make it work • You must push the button down to switch the video on.

VERB 3 If you button a garment, you fasten it using its buttons.

buy buys, buying, bought

VERB If you buy something, you get it by paying money for it.

buzz buzzes, buzzing, buzzed

VERB If something buzzes, it makes a humming sound, like a bee.

buzzer buzzers

NOUN a device that makes a buzzing sound. Buzzers are used to attract attention. • I pressed the door buzzer but nobody was home.

by

PREPOSITION 1 used to show who or what has done something • The announcement was made by the head teacher.

2 used to show how something is done • He cheered us up by taking us to the cinema.

3 next to or near to • They live by the park.

4 before a particular time • We should finish by tea time.

PREPOSITION OR ADVERB 5 going past • We drove by her house.

bypass bypasses

NOUN a road that takes traffic around the edge of a town instead of through the middle • The centre of town is much quieter since they built the bypass.

byte bytes

NOUN a unit of storage in a computer

Cc

cab cabs

NOUN 1 a taxi

2 The cab is where the driver sits in a lorry, bus or train.

cabbage cabbages

NOUN a large, green, leafy vegetable

cabin cabins

NOUN 1 a room in a ship where a passenger sleeps

2 a small wooden house, usually in the country

cabinet cabinets

NOUN 1 a small cupboard • a medicine cabinet

2 The cabinet in a government is a group of ministers who advise the leader and decide policies.

cable cables

NOUN 1 a strong, thick rope or chain

2 a bundle of wires with a rubber covering, which carries electricity

cable television

NOUN a television service that comes through underground wires

cactus cacti or cactuses

NOUN a thick, fleshy plant that grows in deserts. Cactuses are usually covered in spikes.

cadet cadets

NOUN a young person being trained in the armed forces or police

café cafés

NOUN a place where you can buy light meals and drinks

[from the French café meaning coffee or coffee house]

caffeine; also spelt caffein

NOUN a chemical in coffee and tea that makes you more active

cage cages

NOUN a box or room made with bars, in which birds or animals are kept

caged ADJECTIVE

cake cakes, caking, caked

NOUN 1 a sweet food made from eggs, flour, butter and sugar

2 a block of a hard substance such as soap