{
    "term": "neck",
    "partOfSpeech": "noun",
    "ox3000": true,
    "cefr": "a2",
    "image": "data/images/bo/body.png",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "the part of the body between the head and the shoulders",
            "labels": "(informal)(formal)(British English)(British English)(disapproving)(both informal, often disapproving)(informal, disapproving)",
            "cefr": "a2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "He tied a scarf around his neck."
                },
                {
                    "text": "I woke up with a stiff neck."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Giraffes have very long necks."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She **craned** *(= stretched)*** her neck** to get a better view."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He broke his neck in the fall."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Somebody's going to **break their neck** *(= injure themselves)* on these steps."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The hairs on the **nape of my neck** stood on end."
                },
                {
                    "text": "I craned my neck to see what was happening at the front."
                },
                {
                    "text": "I cricked my neck playing tennis and now I can't turn round properly."
                },
                {
                    "text": "I had a crick in my neck from staring up at the sky so long."
                },
                {
                    "text": "I keep the key on a string around my neck."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The hairs on the back of my neck prickled with fear."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The veins in his neck stood out like knotted rope."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Body"],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["long", "short", "slender"],
                "verb + neck": ["crane", "strain", "break"],
                "neck + noun": ["muscle", "brace", "collar"],
                "preposition": ["around your neck", "round your neck", "in the neck"],
                "phrases": [
                    "the back of the neck",
                    "the nape of the neck",
                    "a crick in your neck"
                ]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "the part of a piece of clothing that fits around the neck",
            "cefr": "a2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "He wore a casual shirt with an open neck."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Her dress had three buttons at the neck."
                },
                {
                    "text": "What neck size do you take?"
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Clothes and Fashion"],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["high", "low", "open"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 3,
            "definition": "having the type of neck mentioned",
            "sensetop": "-necked",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "a round-necked sweater"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 4,
            "definition": "a long narrow part of something",
            "sensetop": "neck (of something)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "the neck of a bottle"
                },
                {
                    "text": "the narrow neck of land between the lake and the sea"
                },
                {
                    "text": "the neck of a guitar"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 5,
            "definition": "the neck of an animal, cooked and eaten",
            "sensetop": "neck (of something)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "neck of lamb"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to have a lot of something to deal with",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "We're up to our neck in debt."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He's in it *(= trouble)* up to his neck."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "a combination of confidence and lack of respect",
            "labels": "(British English, informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "I didn't think he would have the brass neck to do that."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to watch closely what somebody is doing in a way that makes them feel anxious and/or annoyed",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "I can’t get any work done with you breathing down my neck."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "if a person or an animal wins a race by a neck, they win it by a short distance",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "roughly holding the back of an animal’s or person’s neck",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "She grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and threw him out."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The cat picked up her kitten by the scruff of its neck."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to be shouted at or punished because of something that you have done",
            "labels": "(British English, informal)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "a difficult problem or responsibility that it seems impossible to solve or get rid of",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "My debts are a millstone around my neck."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Unemployment was an economic millstone around the country’s neck."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "level with somebody in a race or competition",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The cyclists were neck and neck as they approached the final lap."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "a particular place or area",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "He's from your neck of the woods *(= the area where you live)*."
                },
                {
                    "text": "What are you doing in this neck of the woods?"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "a person or thing that is very annoying",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "That man's a pain in the neck!"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to risk losing your job, damaging your reputation, etc. by doing or saying something",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "It's not a matter that I'm prepared to put my head on the block for."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to risk being killed or injured in order to do something",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "I'm not going to risk my neck playing rugby with you!"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to rescue somebody from a very difficult situation",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "He's out to save his own political neck."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to try to avoid death, punishment, etc., especially by leaving others in an extremely difficult situation",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "To save his own skin, he lied and blamed the accident on his friend."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to do or say something when there is a risk that you may be wrong",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "I’ll stick my neck out and say that Bill is definitely the best candidate for the job."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "when you say that you will wring somebody’s neck, you mean that you are very angry or annoyed with them",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "When he was late again I wanted to wring his neck."
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/nek/",
                "audio": "ne/neck/neck__gb_2.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/nek/",
                "audio": "ne/neck/neck__us_1.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "Old English hnecca ‘back of the neck’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch nek ‘neck’ and German Nacken ‘nape’."
}