I. ADJECTIVE USES
(~r, ~st)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
You use ~ to describe something that you admire and think is very good.
There is a ~ view of the countryside...
This is a ~ book.
...London’s ~st art deco cinema.
ADJ: usu ADJ n
~ly
They are ~ly engineered boats.
ADV: ADV -ed
2.
If you say that you are ~, you mean that you are in good health or reasonably happy.
Lina is ~ and sends you her love and best wishes.
ADJ: v-link ADJ
3.
If you say that something is ~, you mean that it is satisfactory or acceptable.
The skiing is ~...
Everything was going to be just ~...
It’s ~ to ask questions as we go along, but it’s better if you wait until we have finished.
ADJ: usu v-link ADJ, oft it v-link ADJ to-inf
•
Fine is also an adverb.
All the instruments are working ~.
ADV
4.
You say ‘~’ or ‘that’s ~’ to show that you do not object to an arrangement, action, or situation that has been suggested.
If competition is the best way to achieve it, then, ~...
If you don’t want to give it to me, that’s ~, I don’t mind...
CONVENTION formulae
5.
Something that is ~ is very delicate, narrow, or small.
The heat scorched the ~ hairs on her arms...
? coarse
ADJ: usu ADJ n
~ly
Chop the ingredients ~ly and mix them together.
? coarsely
ADV: ADV with v
6.
Fine objects or clothing are of good quality, delicate, and expensive.
We waited in our ~ clothes...
ADJ: usu ADJ n
7.
A ~ detail or distinction is very delicate, small, or exact.
The market likes the broad outline but is reserving judgment on the ~ detail.
ADJ: usu ADJ n
~ly
They had to take the ~ly balanced decision to let the visit proceed...
ADV: usu ADV -ed, also ADV after v
~ness
...a sense of quality and ~ness of detail.
N-UNCOUNT: oft N of n
8.
A ~ person is someone you consider good, moral, and worth admiring.
He was an excellent journalist and a very ~ man.
ADJ: usu ADJ n approval
9.
When the weather is ~, the sun is shining and it is not raining.
He might be doing a spot of gardening if the weather is ~.
ADJ
II. PUNISHMENT
(~s, fining, ~d)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
A ~ is a punishment in which a person is ordered to pay a sum of money because they have done something illegal or broken a rule.
N-COUNT
2.
If someone is ~d, they are punished by being ordered to pay a sum of money because they have done something illegal or broken a rule.
She was ~d ?300 and banned from driving for one month...
An east London school has set a precedent by fining pupils who break the rules.
VERB: be V-ed, V n