Neck I Nek Risk Long Craned Part Difficult

• he tied a scarf around his neck.
• i woke up with a stiff neck.
• giraffes have very long necks.
• she craned (= stretched) her neck to get a better view.

neck

1. the part of the body between the head and the shoulders
• He tied a scarf around his neck.
• I woke up with a stiff neck.
• Giraffes have very long necks.
• She craned (= stretched) her neck to get a better view.
• He broke his neck in the fall.
• Somebody's going to break their neck (= injure themselves) on these steps.
• The hairs on the nape of my neck stood on end.

Extra Examples

• I craned my neck to see what was happening at the front.
• I cricked my neck playing tennis and now I can't turn round properly.
• I had a crick in my neck from staring up at the sky so long.
• I keep the key on a string around my neck.
• The hairs on the back of my neck prickled with fear.
• The veins in his neck stood out like knotted rope.
• She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
2. the part of a piece of clothing that fits around the neck
• SEE ALSO cowl neck
  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/cowl-neck
• He wore a casual shirt with an open neck.
• Her dress had three buttons at the neck undone.
• What neck size do you take?
3. having the type of neck mentioned
• SEE ALSO open-necked
  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/open-necked
• a round-necked sweater
4. a long narrow part of something
• the neck of a bottle
• the narrow neck of land between the lake and the sea
• the neck of a guitar
5. the neck of an animal, cooked and eaten
• neck of lamb
6. to have a lot of something to deal with
• We're up to our neck in debt.
• He's in it (= trouble) up to his neck.
7. a combination of confidence and lack of respect
• I didn't think she would have the brass neck to do that.
8. to watch closely what somebody is doing in a way that makes them feel anxious and/or annoyed
• I can’t get any work done with you breathing down my neck.
9. if a person or an animal wins a race by a neck, they win it by a short distance
10. roughly holding the back of an animal’s or person’s neck
• She grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and threw him out.
• The cat picked up her kitten by the scruff of its neck.
11. to be shouted at or punished because of something that you have done
12. a difficult problem or responsibility that it seems impossible to solve or get rid of
• My debts are a millstone around my neck.
• Unemployment was an economic millstone around the country’s neck.
13. level with somebody in a race or competition
• The cyclists were neck and neck as they approached the final lap.
14. a particular place or area
• He's from your neck of the woods (= the area where you live).
• What are you doing in this neck of the woods?
15. a person or thing that is very annoying
• That man's a pain in the neck!
16. to risk losing your job, damaging your reputation, etc. by doing or saying something
• It's not a matter that I'm prepared to put my head on the block for.
17. to risk being killed or injured in order to do something
• I'm not going to risk my neck playing rugby with you!
18. to rescue somebody from a very difficult situation
• He's out to save his own political neck.
19. to try to avoid death, punishment, etc., especially by leaving others in an extremely difficult situation
• To save his own skin, he lied and blamed the accident on his friend.
20. to do or say something when there is a risk that you may be wrong
• I’ll stick my neck out and say that Bill is definitely the best candidate for the job.
21. when you say that you will wring somebody’s neck, you mean that you are very angry or annoyed with them
• When he was late again I wanted to wring his neck.

Word Origin

• Old English hnecca ‘back of the neck’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch nek ‘neck’ and German Nacken ‘nape’.