{ "term": "balance", "partOfSpeech": "noun", "ox3000": true, "cefr": "b1", "definitions": [ { "senseNumber": 1, "definition": "a situation in which different things exist in equal, correct or good amounts", "sensetop": "balance between A and Bin balance", "cefr": "b1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "Try to maintain a good balance of carbohydrates and protein in your diet." }, { "text": "Tourists often disturb the delicate balance of nature on the island." }, { "text": "His wife's death disturbed the **balance of his mind**." }, { "text": "Try to keep a balance between work and relaxation.", "contextForm": "balance between A and B" }, { "text": "It is important to keep the different aspects of your life in balance.", "contextForm": "in balance" }, { "text": "How do you find an acceptable balance between closeness and distance in a relationship?" }, { "text": "Pulling up all the plants will disturb the natural balance of the pond." }, { "text": "There is an even gender balance among staff and students." }, { "text": "With children, it is important to achieve the right balance between love and discipline." }, { "text": "You have to maintain a balance in your life or else you'll go crazy." }, { "text": "The diet should contain a healthy balance of foods." }, { "text": "Does the course offer the right balance between academic and practical work?" } ], "collocations": { "adjective": ["changing", "shifting", "military"], "verb + balance": ["affect", "change", "shift"], "balance + verb": ["change", "shift", "swing"], "phrases": [ "the balance of advantage", "the balance of forces", "the balance of power" ] } }, { "senseNumber": 2, "definition": "the ability to keep steady with an equal amount of weight on each side of the body", "cefr": "b1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "Athletes need a good sense of balance." }, { "text": "I struggled to **keep my balance** on my new skates." }, { "text": "She cycled round the corner, **lost her balance** and fell off." }, { "text": "Cats have a very good sense of balance." }, { "text": "Gymnasts have excellent balance." }, { "text": "He set his feet wider and adjusted his balance." }, { "text": "Tightness in one set of muscles will affect your whole balance." }, { "text": "Yoga improves balance as well as flexibility." } ], "collocations": { "adjective": ["excellent", "good", "poor"], "verb + balance": ["have", "affect", "improve"], "balance + noun": ["beam"], "preposition": ["off balance"], "phrases": ["a sense of balance"] } }, { "senseNumber": 3, "definition": "the amount that is left after taking numbers or money away from a total", "cefr": "b1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "to check your **bank balance** *(= to find out how much money there is in your account)*" }, { "text": "Consider a **balance transfer** to a credit card with a lower rate of interest *(= = moving the amount owed from one card to another)*." }, { "text": "Everyone likes to have a healthy bank balance." }, { "text": "He checked the balance of his current account." }, { "text": "Interest is calculated on the daily cleared balance and paid direct to your account." }, { "text": "The balance of the proceeds will be used for new equipment." }, { "text": "That figure is the balance brought forward from the previous year." } ], "topics": ["Money"], "collocations": { "adjective": ["account", "bank", "cash"], "verb + balance": ["have", "ask for", "request"], "phrases": ["the balance of payments", "the balance of trade"] } }, { "senseNumber": 4, "definition": "an amount of money still owed after some payment has been made", "cefr": "b1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "The balance of $500 must be paid within 90 days." }, { "text": "I'll pay the balance later." }, { "text": "The final balance is due six weeks before departure." } ], "topics": ["Money"], "collocations": { "adjective": ["account", "bank", "cash"], "verb + balance": ["have", "ask for", "request"], "phrases": ["the balance of payments", "the balance of trade"] } }, { "senseNumber": 5, "definition": "the largest part of a group or an amount; the position of advantage or attention", "sensetop": "the balance (of something)", "examples": [ { "text": "The balance of opinion was that work was more important than leisure." }, { "text": "The balance has now shifted from the unions to employers." }, { "text": "The balance of economists are expecting a rise in interest rates." }, { "text": "He argues that the balance has swung too far in favour of capitalism." } ] }, { "senseNumber": 6, "definition": "an instrument for weighing things, with a bar that is supported in the middle and has dishes hanging from each end", "examples": [] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "(considering) the evidence on both sides of an argument, to find the most likely reason for or result of something", "labels": "(formal)", "examples": [ { "text": "The balance of evidence suggests the Liberal party's decline began before the First World War." }, { "text": "The coroner thought that on the balance of probabilities, the pilot had suffered a stroke just before the crash." } ], "topics": ["Opinion and argument"] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "if the future of something/somebody, or the result of something is/hangs in the balance, it is not certain", "examples": [ { "text": "The long-term future of the space programme hangs in the balance." }, { "text": "Tom’s life hung in the balance for two weeks as he lay in a coma." } ] }, { "senseNumber": 1, "definition": "to make somebody unsteady and in danger of falling", "examples": [ { "text": "I was thrown off balance by the sudden gust of wind." }, { "text": "The sudden movement threw him off balance." } ] }, { "senseNumber": 2, "definition": "to make somebody surprised and no longer calm", "cefr": "c2", "examples": [ { "text": "The senator was clearly caught off balance by the unexpected question." } ], "topics": ["Feelings"] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "after considering all the information", "examples": [ { "text": "On balance, the company has had a successful year." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to make a situation equal or fair again", "examples": [ { "text": "For years poorer children have had to put up with a lower quality education, and now is the time to redress the balance." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to manage to find a way of being fair to two things that are opposed to each other; to find an acceptable position that is between two things", "examples": [ { "text": "We need to strike a balance between these conflicting interests." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to affect the result of something in one way rather than another", "examples": [ { "text": "In an interview, smart presentation can tip the balance in your favour." }, { "text": "New evidence tipped the balance against the prosecution." } ] } ], "pronunciations": { "uk": [ { "pronunciation": "/ˈbæləns/", "audio": "ba/balance/balance__gb_4.mp3" } ], "us": [ { "pronunciation": "/ˈbæləns/", "audio": "ba/balance/balance__us_2.mp3" } ] }, "wordOrigin": "Middle English (in sense 5 of the noun): from Old French balance (noun), balancer (verb), based on late Latin (libra) bilanx ‘(balance) having two scale pans’, from bi- ‘twice, having two’ + lanx ‘scale pan’." }