verb , noun
■ verb
/ trænsˈfɜː(r); NAmE / ( -rr- )
TO NEW PLACE
1.
transfer (sth/sb) (from ... ) (to ... ) to move from one place to another; to move sth/sb from one place to another :
[ v ]
The film studio is transferring to Hollywood.
[ vn ]
How can I transfer money from my bank account to his?
The patient was transferred to another hospital.
[ vn , v ] ( especially NAmE )
I couldn't transfer all my credits from junior college.
( especially NAmE )
If I spend a semester in Madrid, will my credits transfer?
TO NEW JOB / SCHOOL / SITUATION
2.
transfer (sb) (from ... ) (to ... ) to move from one job, school, situation, etc. to another; to arrange for sb to move :
[ v ]
Children usually transfer to secondary school at 11 or 12.
He transferred to UCLA after his freshman year.
[ vn ]
Ten employees are being transferred from the sales department.
FEELING / DISEASE / POWER
3.
if you transfer a feeling, a disease, or power, etc., or if it transfers from one person to another, the second person has it, often instead of the first :
[ vn ]
Joe had already transferred his affections from Lisa to Cleo.
This disease is rarely transferred from mother to baby (= so that the baby has it as well as the mother) .
[also v ]
PROPERTY
4.
[ vn ] transfer sth (to sb) to officially arrange for sth to belong to sb else or for sb else to control sth
SYN sign over :
He transferred the property to his son.
IN SPORT
5.
transfer (sb) (from ... ) (to ... ) ( especially BrE ) to move, or to move sb, to a different sports team, especially a professional football ( soccer ) team :
[ v ]
He transferred to Everton for £6 million.
[ vn ]
He was transferred from Spurs to Arsenal for a huge fee.
TO NEW VEHICLE
6.
transfer (sb) (from ... ) (to ... ) to change to a different vehicle during a journey; to arrange for sb to change to a different vehicle during a journey :
[ v ]
I transferred at Bahrain for a flight to Singapore.
[ vn ]
Passengers are transferred from the airport to the hotel by taxi.
INFORMATION / MUSIC, etc.
7.
transfer (sth) (from sth) (to sth) to copy information, music, an idea, etc. from one method of recording or presenting it to another; to be recorded or presented in a different way :
[ vn ]
You can transfer data to a disk in a few seconds.
[ v ]
The novel does not transfer well to the movies.
■ noun
/ ˈtrænsfɜː(r)/
CHANGE OF PLACE / JOB / SITUATION
1.
[ U , C ] the act of moving sb/sth from one place, group or job to another; an occasion when this happens :
electronic data transfer
the transfer of currency from one country to another
He has asked for a transfer to the company's Paris branch.
After the election there was a swift transfer of power .
IN SPORT
2.
[ U , C ] the act of moving a sports player from one club or team to another :
It was the first goal he had scored since his transfer from Chelsea.
a transfer fee
to be on the transfer list (= available to join another club)
CHANGE OF VEHICLE
3.
[ U , C ] an act of changing to a different place, vehicle or route when you are travelling :
The transfer from the airport to the hotel is included in the price.
TRAIN / BUS TICKET
4.
[ C ] ( NAmE ) a ticket that allows a passenger to continue their journey on another bus or train
PICTURE
5.
[ C ] ( especially BrE ) ( NAmE usually decal ) a picture or design that can be removed from a piece of paper and stuck onto a surface, for example by being pressed or heated
PSYCHOLOGY
6.
[ U ] ( psychology ) the process of using behaviour which has already been learned in one situation in a new situation
—see also language transfer
••
WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English (as a verb): from French transférer or Latin transferre , from trans- across + ferre to bear. The earliest use of the noun (late 17th cent.) was as a legal term in the sense conveyance of property .