Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary полностью

4 PREP If something is below a particular amount, rate, or level, it is less than that amount, rate, or level. □  Night temperatures can drop below 15 degrees Celsius. □  Rainfall has been below average. ● ADV Below is also an adverb. □  …temperatures at zero or below.

5 PREP If someone is below you in an organization, they are lower in rank. □  Such people often experience less stress than those in the ranks immediately below them.

6below par → see par

be|low stai rs also below-stairs ADV [n ADV , ADV after v] People sometimes use below stairs to refer to the servants in a rich household and the things that are connected with them. □  …a glimpse of life below stairs at Buckingham Palace. ● ADJ [usu ADJ n] Below-stairs is also an adjective. □  …the below-stairs world of a 1920s country house.

belo w-the-be lt → see belt

belo w-the-li ne pro|mo |tion (below-the-line promotions ) N‑VAR Below-the-line promotion is the use of promotional methods that can be controlled by the company selling the goods or service, such as in-store offers and direct selling. Compare above-the-line promotion . [BUSINESS ] □  The advertising campaign will be supported by a PR and below-the-line promotion.

belt ◆◇◇ /be lt/ (belts , belting , belted )

1 N‑COUNT A belt is a strip of leather or cloth that you fasten round your waist. □  He wore a belt with a large brass buckle.

2 → see also safety belt , seat belt

3 N‑COUNT A belt in a machine is a circular strip of rubber that is used to drive moving parts or to move objects along. □  The turning disc is connected by a drive belt to an electric motor.

4 → see also conveyor belt , fan belt

5 N‑COUNT A belt of land or sea is a long, narrow area of it that has some special feature. □  Miners in Zambia's northern copper belt have gone on strike.

6 → see also Bible Belt , commuter belt , green belt

7 VERB If someone belts you, they hit you very hard. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n] 'Is it right she belted old George in the gut?' she asked. ● N‑COUNT Belt is also a noun. □  Father would give you a belt over the head with the scrubbing brush.

8 VERB If you belt somewhere, you move or travel there very fast. [INFORMAL ] □ [V prep/adv] We belted down Iveagh Parade to where the motor was.

9 → see also belted

10 PHRASE Something that is below the belt is cruel and unfair. □  Do you think it's a bit below the belt what they're doing? □  …this kind of below-the-belt discrimination.

11 PHRASE If you have to tighten your belt , you have to spend less money and manage without things because you have less money than you used to have. □  Clearly, if you are spending more than your income, you'll need to tighten your belt.

12 PHRASE If you have something under your belt , you have already achieved it or done it. □  Clare is now a full-time author with six books, including four novels, under her belt.

▸  belt out PHRASAL VERB If you belt out a song, you sing or play it very loudly. [INFORMAL ] □ [V P n] We shouldn't have opera singers belting out the national anthem before England matches. [Also V n P ]

belt|ed /be lt I d/ ADJ If someone's jacket or coat, for example, is belted , it has a belt fastened round it. □  She wore a brown suede jacket, belted at the waist.

be lt-tightening N‑UNCOUNT If you need to do some belt-tightening , you must spend less money and manage without things because you have less money than you used to have. □  This will cause further belt-tightening in the public services.