Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary полностью

blitz /bl I ts/ (blitzes , blitzing , blitzed )

1 VERB If a city or building is blitzed during a war, it is attacked by bombs dropped by enemy aircraft. □ [be V -ed] In the autumn of 1940, London was blitzed by an average of two hundred aircraft a night. □ [V n] They blitzed the capital with tanks, artillery, anti-aircraft weapons and machine guns.

2 N‑PROPER The heavy bombing of British cities by German aircraft in 1940 and 1941 is referred to as the Blitz .

3 N‑COUNT If you have a blitz on something, you make a big effort to deal with it or to improve it. [INFORMAL ] □ [+ on ] Regional accents are still acceptable but there is to be a blitz on incorrect grammar.

4 N‑COUNT An advertising or publicity blitz is a major effort to make the public aware of something. □  On December 8, the media blitz began in earnest.

blitz|krieg /bl I tskriːg/ (blitzkriegs )

1 N‑COUNT A blitzkrieg is a fast and intense military attack that takes the enemy by surprise and is intended to achieve a very quick victory.

2 N‑COUNT Journalists sometimes refer to a rapid and powerful attack or campaign in, for example, sport, politics, or advertising as a blitzkrieg . [INFORMAL ] □  …a blitzkrieg of media hype.

bliz|zard /bl I zə ^r d/ (blizzards ) N‑COUNT A blizzard is a very heavy snowstorm with strong winds.

bloat|ed /bloʊ t I d/

1 ADJ If someone's body or a part of their body is bloated , it is much larger than normal, usually because it has a lot of liquid or gas inside it. □  …the bloated body of a dead bullock. □  His face was bloated.

2 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If you feel bloated after eating a large meal, you feel very full and uncomfortable. □  Diners do not want to leave the table feeling bloated.

3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you describe an organization as bloated , you mean that it is larger and less efficient than it should be. □  …its massive state apparatus and bloated bureaucracy.

bloat|ing /bloʊ t I ŋ/ N‑UNCOUNT Bloating is the swelling of a body or part of a body, usually because it has a lot of gas or liquid in it. □  …abdominal bloating and pain.

blob /blɒ b/ (blobs )

1 N‑COUNT A blob of thick or sticky liquid is a small, often round, amount of it. [INFORMAL ] □  …a blob of chocolate mousse.

2 N‑COUNT You can use blob to refer to something that you cannot see very clearly, for example because it is in the distance. [INFORMAL ] □  You could just see vague blobs of faces.

bloc /blɒ k/ (blocs )

1 N‑COUNT A bloc is a group of countries which have similar political aims and interests and that act together over some issues. □  …the former Soviet bloc. □  …the world's largest trading bloc.

2 → see also en bloc

block ◆◆◇ /blɒ k/ (blocks , blocking , blocked )

1 N‑COUNT A block of flats or offices is a large building containing them. □ [+ of ] …blocks of council flats. □  …a white-painted apartment block.

2 N‑COUNT A block in a town is an area of land with streets on all its sides. □  She walked four blocks down High Street. □  He walked around the block three times.

3 N‑COUNT A block of a substance is a large rectangular piece of it. □ [+ of ] …a block of ice.

4 VERB To block a road, channel, or pipe means to put an object across it or in it so that nothing can pass through it or along it. □ [V n] Some students today blocked a highway that cuts through the center of the city. □ [V -ed] He can clear blocked drains.

5 VERB If something blocks your view, it prevents you from seeing something because it is between you and that thing. □ [V n] …a row of spruce trees that blocked his view of the long north slope of the mountain.

6 VERB If you block someone's way, you prevent them from going somewhere or entering a place by standing in front of them. □ [V n] I started to move round him, but he blocked my way.