| Front | squeeze |
|---|---|
| Back | squeeze verb, noun BrE /skwiːz/ NAmE /skwiːz/ verb verb forms word origin thesaurus example bank press with fingers 1 [transitive, intransitive] ~ (sth) to press sth firmly, especially with your fingers to squeeze a tube of toothpaste to squeeze the trigger of a gun (= to fire it) He squeezed her hand and smiled at her. Just take hold of the tube and squeeze. get liquid out 2 [transitive] to get liquid out of sth by pressing or twisting it hard ~ sth out of/from sth to squeeze the juice from a lemon (figurative) She felt as if every drop of emotion had been squeezed from her. ~ sth (out) He took off his wet clothes and squeezed the water out. freshly squeezed orange juice ~ sth + adj. Soak the cloth in warm water and then squeeze it dry. into/through small space 3 [transitive, intransitive] to force sb/sth/yourself into or through a small space ~ sb/sth into, through, etc. sth We managed to squeeze six people into the car. It's a pretty town, squeezed between the mountains and the ocean. (figurative) We managed to squeeze a lot into a week (= we did a lot of different things). ~ into, through, etc. sth to squeeze into a tight dress/a parking space to squeeze through a gap in the hedge ~ through, in, past, etc. If you move forward a little, I can squeeze past. threaten 4 [transitive] ~ sb (for sth) (informal) to get sth by putting pressure on sb, threatening them, etc He's squeezing me for £500. limit money 5 [transitive] ~ sb/sth to strictly limit or reduce the amount of money that sb/sth has or can use High interest rates have squeezed the industry hard. ˌsqueeze sb ˈdry to get as much money, information, etc. out of sb as you can ˌsqueeze sb/sthˈin to give time to sb/sth, although you are very busy If you come this afternoon the doctor will try to squeeze you in. I'll try and squeeze in another hour's work before I go out. ˌsqueeze sb/sthˈout (of sth) to prevent sb/sth from continuing to do sth or be in business Supermarkets are squeezing out small shops. ˌsqueeze sth ˈout of/ˈfrom sb to get sth by putting pressure on sb, threatening them, etc to squeeze a confession from a suspect ˌsqueeze ˈup (against sb/sth) | ˌsqueeze sbˈup (against sb/sth) to move close to sb/sth so that you are pressed against them/it There'll be enough room if we all squeeze up a little. I sat squeezed up against the wall. noun word origin example bank pressing with fingers 1 [countable, usually singular] an act of pressing sth, usually with your hands He gave my hand a little squeeze. Give the tube another squeeze. of liquid 2 [countable] a small amount of liquid that is produced by pressing sth a squeeze of lemon juice in small space 3 [singular] a situation where it is almost impossible for a number of people or things to fit into a small or restricted space It was a tight squeeze but we finally got everything into the case. Seven people in the car was a bit of a squeeze. reduction in money 4 [countable, usually singular] a reduction in the amount of money, jobs, etc. available; a difficult situation caused by this a squeeze on profits We're really feeling the squeeze since I lost my job. a credit squeeze boyfriend/girlfriend 5 [singular] (informal, especially NAmE) a boyfriend or girlfriend Who's his main squeeze? put the ˈsqueeze on sb (to do sth) (informal) to put pressure on sb to act in a particular way; to make a situation difficult for sb You come straight to me if she tries to put the squeeze on you. Increased competition is really putting the squeeze on North American producers. |
Learn with these flashcards. Click next, previous, or up to navigate to more flashcards for this subject.
Next card: Escort sb escorted verb word origin example bank
Previous card: Teat english milk tiːt noun countable 1british rubber
Up to card list: A Song of Ice and Fire