(~s, ~ing, ~ed)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
Your ~ is the part of your body which joins your head to the rest of your body.
She threw her arms round his ~ and hugged him warmly...
He was short and stocky, and had a thick ~.
N-COUNT: usu poss N
2.
The ~ of an article of clothing such as a shirt, dress, or sweater is the part which surrounds your ~.
...the low, ruffled ~ of her blouse...
He wore a blue shirt open at the ~.
N-COUNT: usu sing
3.
The ~ of something such as a bottle or a guitar is the long narrow part at one end of it.
Catherine gripped the broken ~ of the bottle.
N-COUNT: usu the N of n
4.
If two people are ~ing, they are kissing each other in a sexual way. (INFORMAL)
They sat talking and ~ing in the car for another ten minutes...
I found myself behind a curtain, ~ing with my best friend’s wife.
= snog
V-RECIP: usu cont, pl-n V, V with n, also V n (non-recip)
5.
If you say that someone is breathing down your ~, you mean that they are watching you very closely and checking everything you do.
Most farmers have bank managers breathing down their ~s.
PHRASE: V and N inflect
6.
In a competition, especially an election, if two or more competitors are ~ and ~, they are level with each other and have an equal chance of winning.
The latest polls indicate that the two main parties are ~ and ~...
The party is running ~-and-~ with Labour.
PHRASE: usu v-link PHR, oft PHR with n
7.
If you say that someone is risking their ~, you mean they are doing something very dangerous, often in order to achieve something.
I won’t have him risking his ~ on that motorcycle.
PHRASE: V and N inflect
8.
If you stick your ~ out, you bravely say or do something that might be criticized or might turn out to be wrong. (INFORMAL)
During my political life I’ve earned myself a reputation as someone who’ll stick his ~ out, a bit of a rebel.
PHRASE: V and N inflect
9.
If you say that someone is in some sort of trouble or criminal activity up to their ~, you mean that they are deeply involved in it. (INFORMAL)
He is probably up to his ~ in debt.
PHRASE: N inflects
10.
Someone or something that is from your ~ of the woods is from the same part of the country as you are. (INFORMAL)
It’s so good to see you. What brings you to this ~ of the woods?
PHRASE: usu in PHR
11.
to have a millstone round your ~: see millstone
the scruff of your ~: see scruff