NOUN INFORMAL
A bug is an infection or virus that makes you ill.
disease
The disease spread rapidly, and soon thousands were infected.
germ
Lydia must have caught some sort of germ, because she’s very poorly.
infection
Hospitals have to fight a constant battle against infection.
virus
Antibiotics are not effective in curing a virus.
build VERB
If you build something, you make it from all its parts.
assemble
“Assembling a bookcase from a kit is easy,” Dad said. Ours collapsed two days later.
construct
Grandad helped me construct a tree house in our back garden.
erect
The monument was erected within a week.
ANTONYM: demolish
building NOUN
A building is a structure with walls and a roof.
construction
The huge construction on the edge of town is going to be the new sports centre.
structure
The Eiffel Tower in Paris is perhaps the world’s best-known structure.
Buildings to live in:
bungalow
cabin
castle
cottage
flat
house
maisonette
mansion
palace
semidetached house
terraced house
tower block
Buildings to work in or visit:
barn
college
factory
fire station
gallery
garage
hospital
laboratory
library
lighthouse
museum
office block
police station
post office
power station
restaurant
school
shop
skyscraper
store
supermarket
theatre
warehouse
windmill
Buildings to worship in:
cathedral
chapel
church
gurdwara
mosque
synagogue
temple
build up VERB
If something builds up, it becomes greater.
accumulate
Snow accumulated on the snowball as it rolled downhill.
amass
Old Mr Godber amassed a fortune through dealing in scrap metal.
collect
A layer of dust and dead flies had collected on top of my wardrobe.
bully VERB
If someone bullies you into doing something, they make you do it by using force or threats.
frighten
The boys who frightened me by calling me names got into trouble.
intimidate
“Don’t try to intimidate me,” the old lady called. “I’m not afraid of you!”
terrorize
Some fanatics try to terrorize others by setting off bombs.
threaten
When the bully threatened me, I used my judo skills to stop him in his tracks.
bump (1) VERB
If you bump into something, you knock into it accidentally.
collide with
My bike collided with a tree at top speed.
knock
Julian knocked his knee against the table leg.
strike
Allegra fell downstairs, striking her head on the banister.
bump (2) NOUN
A bump is a sound like something knocking into something else.
thud
I heard a thud from upstairs – my sister had fallen out of bed.
thump
The apple landed with a thump on the ground beneath the tree.
bump (3) NOUN
A bump is a raised, uneven part of a surface.
bulge
The bulge under the shoplifter’s coat proved to be a clock radio.
lump
I couldn’t sleep last night because of a lump in my mattress.
swelling
When I banged my head I got a swelling over my eye, but it soon went down.
bumpy ADJECTIVE
Something that is bumpy has a rough, uneven surface.
rough
The pirate’s chin was rough, as though he had shaved with a knife and fork.
uneven
Our soccer pitch is uneven, which makes the ball’s bounce unpredictable.
bunch (1) NOUN
A bunch is a group of things together.
bundle
The servant gathered a bundle of twigs.
cluster
Clusters of grapes hung from the vine.
bunch (2) NOUN
A bunch is a group of people.
crowd
The crowd grew restless as the floodlights stayed off.
gang
In the old days, gangs of sailors would use force to persuade men to join the navy.
party