{
    "term": "stimulus",
    "partOfSpeech": "noun",
    "ox5000": true,
    "cefr": "c1",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "something that helps somebody/something to develop better or more quickly",
            "sensetop": "stimulus for somethingstimulus to somethingstimulus (for somebody) (to do something)",
            "cefr": "c1",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Books provide children with ideas and a stimulus for play.",
                    "contextForm": "stimulus for something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The new tax laws should act as a stimulus to exports.",
                    "contextForm": "stimulus to something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "This development also acted as a stimulus for Britain to modernize her air force.",
                    "contextForm": "stimulus (for somebody) (to do something)"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Congress passed the President's economic stimulus package."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The initial stimulus came from a letter in the newspaper."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He stressed the value of public investment as a stimulus to growth."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The research provided the stimulus for improvements in public libraries."
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["great", "major", "powerful"],
                "verb + stimulus": ["act as", "give", "provide"],
                "stimulus + verb": ["come from something"],
                "stimulus + noun": ["bill", "package", "plan"],
                "preposition": ["stimulus for", "stimulus to"],
                "phrases": ["a response to a stimulus"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "something that produces a reaction in a human, an animal or a plant",
            "cefr": "c1",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "**sensory/verbal/visual stimuli**"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The animals were conditioned to respond to **auditory stimuli** *(= sounds)*."
                },
                {
                    "text": "plant growth responses to environmental stimuli"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The pupils dilate in response to chemical stimuli."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The very act of lying down in bed should provide a strong stimulus for sleep."
                },
                {
                    "text": "a response to a stimulus"
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Biology"],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["great", "major", "powerful"],
                "verb + stimulus": ["act as", "give", "provide"],
                "stimulus + verb": ["come from something"],
                "stimulus + noun": ["bill", "package", "plan"],
                "preposition": ["stimulus for", "stimulus to"],
                "phrases": ["a response to a stimulus"]
            }
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈstɪmjələs/",
                "audio": "st/stimulus/stimulus__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈstɪmjəlaɪ/",
                "audio": "st/stimulus/stimuli__gb_1.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈstɪmjələs/",
                "audio": "st/stimulus/stimulus__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈstɪmjəlaɪ/",
                "audio": "st/stimulus/stimuli__us_1.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "late 17th cent.: from Latin, ‘goad, spur, incentive’."
}