chap ‧ ter S3 W1 AC /ˈtʃæptə $ -ər/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1100-1200 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: chapitre , from Late Latin capitulum , from Latin caput 'head' ]
1 . one of the parts into which a book is divided:
Read Chapter 11 as your homework.
This chapter discusses power, and how people use it.
2 . a particular period or event in someone’s life or in history ⇨ era
chapter of
a new chapter of peace and cooperation
chapter in
the noblest chapter in our history
3 . all the priests belonging to a ↑ cathedral , or a meeting of these priests
4 . the local members of a large organization such as a club:
the local chapter of the American Legion
5 . give/quote somebody chapter and verse to give someone exact details about where to find some information
6 . a chapter of accidents British English a series of unlucky events coming one after another
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ adjectives
▪ this chapter/the present chapter
The present chapter deals with the years leading up to the war.
▪ the next chapter
This theme will be developed in the next chapter.
▪ the following chapters (=the ones after this one)
The following chapters will explore this issue.
▪ the previous/preceding chapter
The method is described in the previous chapter.
▪ earlier chapters (=the ones before this one)
All these have been mentioned briefly in earlier chapters.
▪ later chapters (=the ones after this one)
These points will be explored in more detail in later chapters.
▪ the introductory/opening chapter (=the first chapter)
There’s a short introductory chapter giving an outline of the subject matter.
▪ the last/final chapter
The final chapter summarizes the themes in the book.
■ verbs
▪ be divided into chapters
The book is divided into ten chapters.
▪ read a chapter
I haven’t even read the first chapter yet.
▪ write a chapter
He wrote the first chapter 20 years before the book was published.
▪ see chapter 2/3 etc (=used in books to direct a reader to a chapter)
His scientific claims were never justified (see chapter 16).
▪ be discussed/described in chapter 1/2/3 etc
These points will be discussed in chapter 8.
▪ a chapter deals with something
Three further chapters deal with soil, water, and air.
▪ a chapter explores something
The second chapter explores the effects of these changes in more detail.
▪ a chapter is devoted to something (=it deals only with a particular subject)
Five whole chapters are devoted to social reform.
■ phrases
▪ the beginning/start of a chapter
His character is introduced at the beginning of the first chapter.
▪ the end of a chapter
The answers are given at the end of the chapter.
▪ the remainder of a chapter formal (=the rest of a chapter)
The remainder of this chapter is devoted to a discussion of privatization.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ part something that together with other things forms a whole:
It looks like part of a car engine.
|
The best part of the movie was the end.
|
The hardest part is getting started.
▪ bit especially British English informal a small part of something:
Some bits of the book are really funny.
|
I didn’t read the bottom bit.
▪ piece one of several different parts that you join together to make something:
One of the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle was missing.
|
The furniture comes in several pieces.
▪ component a part of a machine or process:
The company supplies engine components for trucks.
|
Education is a major component in a child' s growth and development.
▪ section a part of something that is clearly different and separate from other parts:
The test is divided into two sections.
|
the reference section of the library
|
the string section of the orchestra
▪ chapter one of the numbered parts that a book is divided into:
The opening chapter of the book sets the scene.
▪ scene one of the parts that a film or play is divided into:
Some scenes had to be cut because they were too violent.
|
act 1, scene 2 of the play
▪ episode a part of a story on the television or the radio, which is told in separate parts:
I missed last week’s episode.