{ "term": "tongue", "partOfSpeech": "noun", "ox3000": true, "cefr": "b1", "image": "data/images/cl/clothes_shoes.png", "definitions": [ { "senseNumber": 1, "definition": "the soft part in the mouth that moves around, used for tasting, swallowing, speaking, etc.", "cefr": "b1", "ox3000": true, "examples": [ { "text": "He clicked his tongue to attract their attention." }, { "text": "She ran her tongue over her lips." }, { "text": "It's very rude to stick your tongue out at people." }, { "text": "The dog lay in a patch of shade with its tongue hanging out." }, { "text": "The snake's tongue flicked out of its mouth." } ], "topics": ["Body"], "collocations": { "adjective": ["long", "forked", "loose"], "verb + tongue": ["poke out", "put out", "stick out"], "tongue + verb": ["hang out", "flick", "flicker"], "tongue + noun": ["piercing"], "phrases": [ "a slip of the tongue", "be on the tip of your tongue", "get your tongue around something" ] } }, { "senseNumber": 2, "definition": "the tongue of some animals, cooked and eaten", "examples": [ { "text": "a slice of ox tongue" } ], "collocations": { "adjective": ["long", "forked", "loose"], "verb + tongue": ["poke out", "put out", "stick out"], "tongue + verb": ["hang out", "flick", "flicker"], "tongue + noun": ["piercing"], "phrases": [ "a slip of the tongue", "be on the tip of your tongue", "get your tongue around something" ] } }, { "senseNumber": 3, "definition": "a language", "labels": "(formal or literary)", "examples": [ { "text": "Even when we speak the same tongue we do not always understand one another." }, { "text": "I tried speaking to her in her native tongue." }, { "text": "The market place was full of people speaking many strange tongues." }, { "text": "She could hear men whispering in a foreign tongue." }, { "text": "She speaks English and Danish, though her native tongue is German." } ], "collocations": { "adjective": ["mother", "native", "common"], "verb + tongue": ["speak"], "preposition": ["in a/​the tongue"], "phrases": ["speak in tongues"] } }, { "senseNumber": 4, "definition": "a particular way of speaking", "labels": "(formal)", "examples": [ { "text": "He has a sharp tongue." }, { "text": "I'll thank you to **keep a civil tongue in your head** *(= speak politely)*." } ], "collocations": { "adjective": ["long", "forked", "loose"], "verb + tongue": ["poke out", "put out", "stick out"], "tongue + verb": ["hang out", "flick", "flicker"], "tongue + noun": ["piercing"], "phrases": [ "a slip of the tongue", "be on the tip of your tongue", "get your tongue around something" ] } }, { "senseNumber": 5, "definition": "speaking in the way mentioned", "examples": [ { "text": "sharp-tongued" } ] }, { "senseNumber": 6, "definition": "a long, narrow piece of leather under the laces on a shoe", "cefr": "c2", "examples": [], "topics": ["Clothes and Fashion"] }, { "senseNumber": 7, "definition": "something that is long and narrow and like a tongue in shape", "sensetop": "tongue (of something)", "labels": "(literary)", "examples": [ { "text": "a tongue of flame" } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to stop yourself from saying something that might upset somebody or cause an argument, although you want to speak", "examples": [ { "text": "I didn't believe her explanation but I bit my tongue." } ], "topics": ["Opinion and argument"] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "said to somebody, especially a child, who stays silent when expected to speak, for example after being asked a question", "labels": "(informal)", "examples": [ { "text": "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to be able to speak or express your opinion", "examples": [], "topics": ["Opinion and argument"] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to pronounce a difficult word correctly", "examples": [ { "text": "He was having trouble getting his tongue around my name." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to talk too much, especially about things that are private", "examples": [] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to say nothing although you would like to give your opinion", "labels": "(old-fashioned)", "examples": [] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to make somebody talk more freely than usual", "examples": [ { "text": "A bottle of wine had loosened Harry's tongue." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "if a word or name is on the tip of your tongue, you are sure that you know it but you cannot remember it", "examples": [] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to be easy to say or pronounce", "examples": [ { "text": "It's not a name that exactly trips off the tongue, is it?" } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to cause people to start talking/people are talking about somebody’s private affairs", "labels": "(informal)", "examples": [ { "text": "His sudden resignation set tongues wagging." }, { "text": "This is a small island and tongues are beginning to wag." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "a small mistake in something that you write or say", "examples": [ { "text": "Did I call you Richard? Sorry, Robert, just a slip of the tongue." }, { "text": "I didn't mean to say that—it was just a slip of the tongue." } ] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "to be careful what you say in order not to offend somebody or make them angry", "examples": [] }, { "senseNumber": null, "definition": "if you say something with your tongue in your cheek, you are not being serious and mean it as a joke", "examples": [] } ], "pronunciations": { "uk": [ { "pronunciation": "/tʌŋ/", "audio": "to/tongue/tongue__gb_2.mp3" } ], "us": [ { "pronunciation": "/tʌŋ/", "audio": "to/tongue/tongue__us_1.mp3" } ] }, "wordOrigin": "Old English tunge, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch tong, German Zunge, and Latin lingua." }