word-vault
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A lightweight JavaScript package for English word definitions and collections.
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{
"term": "surface",
"partOfSpeech": "noun",
"ox3000": true,
"cefr": "b1",
"definitions": [
{
"senseNumber": 1,
"definition": "the outside or top layer of something",
"cefr": "b1",
"ox3000": true,
"examples": [
{
"text": "We need a **flat**, smooth **surface** to play the game on."
},
{
"text": "an uneven **road surface**"
},
{
"text": "a broad leaf with a large **surface area**"
},
{
"text": "**Surface water** *(= rainwater that has collected on the surface of a road)* made driving conditions hazardous."
},
{
"text": "Teeth have a hard surface layer called enamel."
},
{
"text": "Smooth the surface with a spatula."
},
{
"text": "the inner surface of a bone"
},
{
"text": "the surface layer of the skin"
}
],
"topics": ["Colours and Shapes", "Transport by car or lorry"],
"collocations": {
"adjective": ["even", "flat", "level"],
"verb + surface": ["come to", "come up to", "reach"],
"surface + noun": ["area", "level", "layer"],
"preposition": [
"above the surface",
"on a/the surface",
"over the surface"
],
"phrases": ["the Earth’s surface", "the surface of the Earth"]
}
},
{
"senseNumber": 2,
"definition": "the top layer of an area of water or land",
"sensetop": "on the surface (of something)below/beneath/under the surface (of something)",
"cefr": "b1",
"ox3000": true,
"examples": [
{
"text": "the **earth's surface**"
},
{
"text": "These plants float on the surface of the water.",
"contextForm": "on the surface (of something)"
},
{
"text": "We could see fish swimming just below the surface.",
"contextForm": "below/beneath/under the surface (of something)"
},
{
"text": "Alligators **lurk beneath the surface **of the swamp."
},
{
"text": "The earth’s **surface temperature **is rising."
},
{
"text": "Cracks began to appear in the surface of the earth."
},
{
"text": "The ball rolled onto the frozen surface of the pond."
},
{
"text": "The captain brought the submarine to the surface."
},
{
"text": "The ring slowly sank beneath the surface of the mud pool."
},
{
"text": "The wind rippled the surface of the lake."
},
{
"text": "Visible light from the sun passes through the atmosphere to the Earth's surface."
}
],
"collocations": {
"adjective": ["even", "flat", "level"],
"verb + surface": ["come to", "come up to", "reach"],
"surface + noun": ["area", "level", "layer"],
"preposition": [
"above the surface",
"on a/the surface",
"over the surface"
],
"phrases": ["the Earth’s surface", "the surface of the Earth"]
}
},
{
"senseNumber": 3,
"definition": "the flat upper part of a piece of furniture, that is used for working on",
"cefr": "b2",
"ox3000": true,
"examples": [
{
"text": "She's cleaned all the kitchen surfaces."
},
{
"text": "You'll need a large smooth surface for rolling out the pastry."
}
],
"collocations": {
"adjective": ["even", "flat", "level"],
"verb + surface": ["come to", "come up to", "reach"],
"surface + noun": ["area", "level", "layer"],
"preposition": [
"above the surface",
"on a/the surface",
"over the surface"
],
"phrases": ["the Earth’s surface", "the surface of the Earth"]
}
},
{
"senseNumber": 4,
"definition": "the outer appearance of a person, thing or situation; the qualities that you see or notice, that are not hidden",
"sensetop": "below/beneath/under the surface (of something)",
"examples": [
{
"text": "Rage bubbled just below the surface of his mind.",
"contextForm": "below/beneath/under the surface (of something)"
},
{
"text": "She gives the impression of being rather conventional, but under the surface she is wildly eccentric."
}
]
},
{
"senseNumber": null,
"definition": "when not thought about deeply or carefully and completely; when not looked at carefully",
"examples": [
{
"text": "It seems like a good idea on the surface but there are sure to be problems."
},
{
"text": "On the surface, he appeared unchanged."
},
{
"text": "On the surface his words were funny, but I detected a lot of anger behind them."
}
]
},
{
"senseNumber": null,
"definition": "to deal with, understand, or find out about only a small part of a subject or problem",
"examples": [
{
"text": "We left feeling that we had just scratched the surface of this fascinating country."
},
{
"text": "The investigation barely scratched the surface of the city's drug problem."
}
]
}
],
"pronunciations": {
"uk": [
{
"pronunciation": "/ˈsɜːfɪs/",
"audio": "su/surface/surface__gb_1.mp3"
}
],
"us": [
{
"pronunciation": "/ˈsɜːrfɪs/",
"audio": "su/surface/surface__us_1.mp3"
}
]
},
"wordOrigin": "early 17th cent.: from French (from sur- and face), suggested by Latin superficies."
}