(~r, ~st)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
If you describe something as ~, you mean that it is not complicated, and is therefore easy to understand.
...~ pictures and diagrams.
...pages of ~ advice on filling in your tax form...
Buddhist ethics are ~ but its practices are very complex to a western mind.
? complicated
ADJ
simply
When applying for a visa state simply and clearly the reasons why you need it.
ADV: ADV with v
2.
If you describe people or things as ~, you mean that they have all the basic or necessary things they require, but nothing extra.
He ate a ~ dinner of rice and beans.
...the ~ pleasures of childhood...
Nothing is ~r than a cool white shirt.
ADJ
simply
The living room is furnished simply with wicker furniture...
ADV: ADV after v
3.
If a problem is ~ or if its solution is ~, the problem can be solved easily.
Some puzzles look difficult but once the solution is known are actually quite ~...
I cut my purchases dramatically by the ~ expedient of destroying my credit cards.
ADJ
4.
A ~ task is easy to do.
The ~st way to install a shower is to fit one over the bath.
= easy
ADJ: oft ADJ to-inf
simply
Simply dial the number and tell us your area.
ADV: ADV with v
5.
If you say that someone is ~, you mean that they are not very intelligent and have difficulty learning things.
He was ~ as a child.
ADJ
6.
You use ~ to emphasize that the thing you are referring to is the only important or relevant reason for something.
His refusal to talk was ~ stubbornness.
= plain
ADJ: ADJ n emphasis
7.
In grammar, ~ tenses are ones which are formed without an auxiliary verb ‘be’, for example ‘I dressed and went for a walk’ and ‘This tastes nice’. Simple verb groups are used especially to refer to completed actions, regular actions, and situations. Compare continuous .
ADJ
8.
In English grammar, a ~ sentence consists of one main clause. Compare compound , complex .
ADJ
9.
see also simply