{
    "term": "wire",
    "partOfSpeech": "noun",
    "ox3000": true,
    "cefr": "b2",
    "image": "data/images/co/cord.png",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "metal in the form of thin thread; a piece of this",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "a coil of copper wire"
                },
                {
                    "text": "wire mesh"
                },
                {
                    "text": "A high **wire fence** encircles the complex."
                },
                {
                    "text": "a wire basket"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The box was fastened with a rusty wire."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Cool the cakes on a wire rack."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Surely the wires shouldn't show like that?"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The wire was stretched between two poles."
                },
                {
                    "text": "wire coat hangers"
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["taut", "loose", "fine"],
                "… of wire": ["length", "piece", "strand"],
                "verb + wire": ["cut", "bend", "twist"],
                "wire + noun": ["mesh", "netting", "basket"],
                "preposition": ["behind a/​the wire", "under a/​the wire"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "a piece of wire that is used to carry an electric current or signal",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "electrical wires"
                },
                {
                    "text": "a spider's web of unsightly overhead wires"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The telephone wires had been cut."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Don't place carpets over electrical wires."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Don't touch that wire. It's live."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He disconnected the wire from the clock."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The electrician ran a wire from the kitchen to the bedroom."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The wire was attached to a pin in the plug."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Watch out for bare wires."
                },
                {
                    "text": "overhead electricity wires"
                },
                {
                    "text": "the flow of electrical current down a wire"
                },
                {
                    "text": "I found myself tripping over a tangle of wires and cables."
                },
                {
                    "text": "There were wires trailing everywhere."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Where does this wire go?"
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Engineering"],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["electric", "electrical", "electricity"],
                "verb + wire": ["attach", "connect", "disconnect"],
                "wire + verb": ["go", "lead", "run"],
                "preposition": ["along a/​the wire", "down a/​the wire"],
                "phrases": ["a tangle of wires"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 3,
            "definition": "an electronic listening device that can be hidden on a person",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "an undercover police informer who was wearing a wire"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 4,
            "definition": "a wire fence",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Three prisoners escaped by crawling under the wire."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Behind the wire, the prisoners were exercising."
                },
                {
                    "text": "They cut the perimeter wire and escaped."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 5,
            "definition": "a telegram (= a message sent by telegraph and then printed and given to somebody)",
            "labels": "(informal, especially North American English)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "We sent a wire asking him to join us."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to become confused about what somebody has said to you so that you think they meant something else",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "We seem to have got our wires crossed. I thought you were coming on Tuesday."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "if you say that a situation goes down to the wire, you mean that the result will not be decided or known until the very end",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "a person who is lively and full of energy",
            "examples": [],
            "topics": ["Personal qualities"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to use your influence in order to get an advantage for somebody",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "at the last possible opportunity; just in time",
            "labels": "(informal, especially North American English)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The files arrived just under the wire and we made the deadline."
                },
                {
                    "text": "We got in under the wire."
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈwaɪə(r)/",
                "audio": "wi/wire/wire__gb_1.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈwaɪər/",
                "audio": "wi/wire/wire__us_1.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "Old English wīr; of Germanic origin, probably from the base of Latin viere ‘plait, weave’."
}