INDEX:
1. a liquid
2. an amount of liquid
3. a liquid that flows easily
4. a liquid that is almost solid
5. when something becomes a liquid
6. when a liquid gets thicker
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ POUR
↑ FLOW
↑ WATER
↑ WET
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1. a liquid
▷ liquid /ˈlɪkwɪd, ˈlɪkwəd/ [countable/uncountable noun]
a substance, such as water or milk, that is not a solid and not a gas :
▪ Add most of the flour to the liquid and stir the mixture.
▪ She screamed as the boiling liquid burned her skin.
liquid [adjective usually before noun]
use this about something which is liquid, but which is usually a solid or a gas :
▪ Treat your plants once a week with liquid fertiliser.
▪ liquid soap
▪ liquid nitrogen
▷ fluid /ˈfluːɪd, ˈfluːəd/ [countable/uncountable noun]
a liquid - used especially in technical contexts :
▪ In extreme heat your body will lose fluid and salt.
▪ Brake fluid was leaking out from under my car.
body/bodily fluids
▪ The HIV virus is transmitted though body fluids, during sexual intercourse.
2. an amount of liquid
▷ drop /drɒpǁdrɑːp/ [countable noun]
a very small amount of liquid in a round shape, that falls from somewhere :
drop of
▪ Big drops of rain slid down the window pane.
▪ Add a few drops of vanilla essence, the egg white and half the butter.
▪ She applied a few drops of perfume behind her ears and smiled at her reflection in the mirror.
▷ blob /blɒbǁblɑːb/ [countable noun]
a drop or small amount of thick liquid :
blob of paint/glue/wax/grease etc
▪ Rita dropped a blob of paint on the new carpet.
▪ Blobs of wax had dripped from the candle onto the table cloth.
▪ Put a blob of glue on each surface and carefully press together.
▷ pool /puːl/ [countable noun]
an area of liquid lying on a surface :
pool of
▪ Trautman was lying in a pool of blood.
▪ A pool of oil had collected under the car.
3. a liquid that flows easily
▷ thin /θɪn/ [adjective]
a thin liquid flows very easily - use this about liquids that are often thick :
▪ The paint was too thin, and was dripping everywhere.
▪ For these crepes you will need a fairly thin batter, so do not add too much flour.
▷ runny /ˈrʌni/ [adjective] informal
food that is runny is liquid but should be thicker than it is :
▪ a boiled egg with a runny yolk
▪ runny custard
▷ watery /ˈwɔːt ə riǁˈwɔː-, ˈwɑː-/ [adjective]
food or drink that is watery contains too much water, so that it does not taste or look good :
▪ The coffee is horrible - really weak and watery.
▪ All they had to eat for weeks was bread and watery cabbage soup.
4. a liquid that is almost solid
▷ thick /θɪk/ [adjective]
a thick liquid flows slowly because it is almost solid :
▪ If you want to make the sauce thicker, add flour.
▪ thick vegetable soup
▷ lumpy /ˈlʌmpi/ [adjective]
a liquid that is lumpy contains small solid pieces, so it is not as smooth as it should be :
▪ This gravy is lumpy.
▪ I hate lumpy porridge.
▷ creamy /ˈkriːmi/ [adjective]
thick and smooth like cream :
▪ The tomato soup was hot, creamy and delicious.
▪ Add the chocolate to the butter and eggs, stirring the mixture until it is thick and creamy.
▷ smooth /smuːð/ [adjective]
if a liquid is smooth, it is thick and has no lumps in it, especially because it has been mixed very well :
▪ Beat the eggs and flour until they are smooth.
▪ Blend the strawberries with a little icing sugar in a food processor until it forms a smooth purée.
▷ paste /peɪst/ [countable noun]
a soft and usually sticky mixture of liquid and another substance, which you can spread easily :
▪ Mix the flour in just enough milk to make a smooth paste.
▪ Tahini is a paste made from ground sesame seeds.
▪ He made a paste of mud and water.
5. when something becomes a liquid
▷ melt /melt/ [intransitive verb]
if something solid melts or if heat melts it, it becomes liquid :
▪ The chocolate had melted and was all over the inside of her pocket.
▪ Melt the butter in a saucepan and stir in the sugar.
melted [adjective only before noun]
▪ a pasta dish topped with melted cheese
▷ dissolve /dɪˈzɒlvǁdɪˈzɑːlv/ [intransitive verb]
if something solid dissolves or if you dissolve it, it is added to a liquid and mixed with it, so that it become liquid itself :
▪ The crystals dissolve in water to create a purple liquid.
▪ Dissolve the salt in 125 ml of hot water.
▷ thaw /θɔː/ [intransitive verb]
if ice, snow, or a frozen lake or river thaws, it becomes a liquid because the temperature has become warmer :
▪ The lake is frozen all winter, but it usually thaws in March.
▪ The snow had started to thaw, and there was a faint scent of spring in the air.
▷ melt down /ˌmelt ˈdaʊn/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to melt something such as a metal object, especially so that you can make it into something different :
melt down something
▪ He melts down coins to make into earrings and ornaments.
▪ Most of the brass in the church has been melted down and sold.
melt something down
▪ We collected all the old candles and melted them down to make one big candle.
▷ molten /ˈməʊlt ə n/ [adjective only before noun]
molten rock, metal, glass etc has been made into a liquid by being heated to a very high temperature :
▪ You can watch craftsmen make beautiful vases out of molten glass.
▪ The town was buried under a river of molten lava.
▪ Castings are made by pouring molten metal into a mould and allowing it to solidify.
▷ condense /kənˈdens/ [intransitive verb]
if gas or steam condenses, it becomes liquid by becoming colder :
▪ Steam from the shower condensed on the cold bathroom mirror.
▪ During cold nights, air condenses on the grass to form dew.
condense into
▪ The gaseous metal is put in a closed container and cooled so that it condenses into liquid zinc.
▷ soluble /ˈsɒljɑb ə lǁˈsɑː-/ [adjective]
a solid substance that is soluble can be mixed into a liquid so that it become part of it :
▪ soluble aspirin
▪ The use of soluble chemical fertilizers is banned, as they seep into rivers and pollute the water supply.
be soluble in something
▪ There are two sorts of vitamins: some are soluble in fat, and some soluble in water.
water-soluble/fat-soluble etc
soluble in water, fat etc
▪ Plants take up water-soluble minerals through their roots.
6. when a liquid gets thicker
▷ thicken/get thicker /ˈθɪkən, get ˈθɪkəʳ/ [intransitive verb/verb phrase]
if a liquid thickens or you thicken it, it becomes more solid and does not flow very easily :
▪ When the sauce is just starting to thicken, pour it over the meat.
▪ Now boil the mixture until it thickens.
▪ As the temperature goes down, the oil in the engine gets thicker.
▷ set /set/ [intransitive verb]
if a liquid sets, for example some types of food or plastics, it becomes solid or almost solid after a period of time :
▪ Leave the jam in a cool place to set.
▪ It’s best to pour your yoghurt into small containers before it sets.
▪ Has the glue set yet?
▷ clot /klɒtǁklɑːt/ [intransitive verb]
if blood clots, it becomes thicker and more solid :
▪ Blood had clotted on the cuts on his back and on his arms.
▪ Some types of snake venom prevent blood from clotting.
▷ congeal /kənˈdʒiːl/ [intransitive verb]
if a liquid congeals, it thickens and becomes unpleasantly sticky and almost solid as it becomes cooler :
▪ Josie picked up a plate of congealed egg and beans, and scraped it into the bin.