SCALE


Meaning of SCALE in English

(~s, scaling, ~d)

Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.

1.

If you refer to the ~ of something, you are referring to its size or extent, especially when it is very big.

However, he underestimates the ~ of the problem...

The break-down of law and order could result in killing on a massive ~...

N-SING: also no det, with supp

see also full-~ , large-~ , small-~

2.

A ~ is a set of levels or numbers which are used in a particular system of measuring things or are used when comparing things.

...an earthquake measuring five-point-five on the Richter ~...

The higher up the social ~ they are, the more the men have to lose.

N-COUNT: usu with supp

see also sliding ~ , time~

3.

A pay ~ or ~ of fees is a list that shows how much someone should be paid, depending, for example, on their age or what work they do. (BRIT)

...those on the high end of the pay ~...

N-COUNT: usu with supp

4.

The ~ of a map, plan, or model is the relationship between the size of something in the map, plan, or model and its size in the real world.

The map, on a ~ of 1:10,000, shows over 5,000 individual paths.

N-COUNT: usu with supp

see also full-~ , large-~

5.

A ~ model or ~ replica of a building or object is a model of it which is smaller than the real thing but has all the same parts and features.

Franklin made his mother an intricately detailed ~ model of the house.

ADJ: ADJ n

6.

In music, a ~ is a fixed sequence of musical notes, each one higher than the next, which begins at a particular note.

...the ~ of C major.

N-COUNT

7.

The ~s of a fish or reptile are the small, flat pieces of hard skin that cover its body.

N-COUNT: usu pl

8.

Scales are a piece of equipment used for weighing things, for example for weighing amounts of food that you need in order to make a particular meal.

...a pair of kitchen ~s.

...bathroom ~s...

N-PLURAL: also a pair of N

9.

If you ~ something such as a mountain or a wall, you climb up it or over it. (WRITTEN)

...Rebecca Stephens, the first British woman to ~ Everest...

= climb

VERB: V n

10.

If something is out of ~ with the things near it, it is too big or too small in relation to them.

The tower was surmounted by an enormous statue, utterly out of ~ with the building.

PHRASE: usu v-link PHR, oft PHR with n

11.

If the different parts of a map, drawing, or model are to ~, they are the right size in relation to each other.

...a miniature garden, with little pagodas and bridges all to ~.

PHRASE: v-link PHR, PHR after v

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