■ verb ju:z
1》 take, hold, or deploy as a means of achieving something.
↘ informal take (an illegal drug).
2》 take or consume (an amount) from a limited supply.
↘( ~ something up ) consume or expend the whole of something.
↘( be ~d up ) informal (of a person) be worn out.
3》 treat in a particular way: ~ your troops well.
↘exploit unfairly.
4》 ju:st ( ~d to ) did repeatedly or existed in the past.
5》 ju:st ( be/get ~d to ) be or become familiar with through experience.
6》 ( one could ~ ) informal one would like or benefit from.
■ noun ju:s
1》 the action of using or state of being ~d.
↘the ability or power to exercise or manipulate something: he lost the ~ of his legs.
↘a purpose for or way in which something can be ~d.
2》 value; advantage.
↘ Law, historical the benefit or profit of lands, especially lands in the possession of another who holds them solely for the beneficiary.
3》 the characteristic ritual and liturgy of a Christian Church or diocese.
Phrases
have no ~ for informal dislike or be impatient with.
make ~ of benefit from.
~ and wont formal established custom.
~ someone's name cite someone as an authority or reference.
Origin
ME: the noun from OFr. us , from L. usus , from uti 'to ~'; the verb from OFr. ~r , based on L. uti .
Usage
Confusion can arise over whether to write ~d to or ~ to , largely beca~ the pronunciation is the same in both cases. Except in negatives and questions, the correct form is ~d to : we ~d to go to the cinema all the time . However, in negatives and questions using the auxiliary verb do , the correct form is ~ to , beca~ the form of the verb required is the infinitive: I didn't ~ to like mushrooms .