SQUARE


Meaning of SQUARE in English

I. square 1 S2 W3 /skweə $ skwer/ BrE AmE adjective

1 . SHAPE having four straight equal sides and 90° angles at the corners:

a large square room

2 . ANGLE forming a 90° angle, or being close to or similar to a 90° angle:

square corners

3 . square metre/mile etc an area of measurement equal to a square with sides a metre long, a mile long etc:

about four square metres of ground

4 . five feet/two metres etc square having the shape of a square with sides that are five feet, two metres etc long:

The room is six metres square.

5 . LEVEL [not before noun] parallel with a straight line

square with

I don’t think the shelf is square with the floor.

6 . square meal a good satisfying meal:

Children should have three square meals a day.

7 . BODY if someone’s body or a part of their body is square, it looks broad and strong:

a square jaw

8 . all square British English to have the same number of points as your opponent in a competition:

The teams were all square at the end of the first half.

9 . (all) square informal if two people are square, they do not owe each other any money:

Here’s your £10 back, so that makes us square.

10 . square deal honest and fair treatment from someone, especially in business:

I’m not getting a square deal here.

11 . BORING informal someone who is square is boring and old-fashioned

12 . a square peg in a round hole informal someone who is in a job or situation that is not suitable for them

—squareness noun [uncountable]

⇨ win (something)/beat somebody fair and square at ↑ fair 3 (1)

II. square 2 S2 W3 BrE AmE noun [countable]

[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: esquarre , from Vulgar Latin exquadra , from exquadrare 'to make square' , from Latin quadrare 'to make square, fit' ]

1 . SHAPE a shape with four straight equal sides with 90° angles at the corners ⇨ rectangle :

First of all, draw a square.

square of

a small square of cloth

2 . IN A TOWN a large open area in the centre of a town or city, usually in the shape of a square, or the buildings surrounding it

main/market/town square

The hotel is just off the main square of Sorrento.

She lives in Hanover Square.

3 . square one the situation from which you started to do something

be back to/at square one

The police are now back at square one in their investigation.

go back to square one (=used when you start something again because you were not successful the first time)

Okay, let’s go back to square one and try again.

from square one

I’ve had to relearn the game from square one.

4 . NUMBER the result of multiplying a number by itself ⇨ square root

square of

The square of 4 is 16.

5 . IN A GAME a space on a board used for playing a game such as ↑ chess

6 . PERSON informal someone who is considered boring and unfashionable SYN nerd

7 . TOOL ( also set square ) a flat object with a straight edge, often shaped like an L, used for drawing or measuring 90° angles

III. square 3 BrE AmE verb [transitive]

1 . MULTIPLY to multiply a number by itself

2 . IN A COMPETITION British English to win a point or game so that you have now won the same number of points or games as the other team or player:

India won the second match to square the series at one each.

3 . square your shoulders to stand straight and push your shoulders back, usually to show your determination

4 . MAKE SOMETHING STRAIGHT to make something straight or parallel

5 . square the circle to attempt something impossible

square something ↔ away phrasal verb [usually passive] American English

to finish something, especially by putting the last details in order:

Get your work squared away before you leave.

square off phrasal verb

1 . square something ↔ off to make something have neat corners

2 . American English to get ready to fight someone

square up phrasal verb

1 . to pay money that you owe:

I’ll pay for the drinks and you can square up later.

2 . British English to get ready to fight someone

square up to

The two lads squared up to each other.

3 . square up to somebody/something to deal with a difficult situation or person in a determined way

square with phrasal verb

1 . square (something) with something if you square two ideas, statements etc with each other or if they square with each other, they are considered to be in agreement:

His story simply does not square with the facts.

How do you square that with your religious beliefs?

square something with your conscience (=make yourself believe that what you are doing is morally right)

2 . square something with somebody British English to persuade someone to agree to something:

I’ll take the day off if I can square it with my boss.

IV. square 4 BrE AmE adverb

1 . directly and firmly SYN squarely :

Look him square in the eye and say no.

2 . at 90° to a line SYN squarely

square to

Wright passed the ball square to Brown.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.