NOUN 1 The contour of something is its general shape or outline.
2 On a map, a contour is a line joining points of equal height.
contract contracts, contracting, contracted
Said “con-trakt” NOUN 1 a legal agreement about the sale of something or work done for money • He was given a two-year contract.
Said “con-trakt” VERB 2 When something contracts, it gets smaller or shorter. • Metals contract with cold and expand with heat.
ANTONYM: expand
contraction contractions
NOUN a shortened form of a word or words, often marked by an apostrophe • “I’ve” is a contraction of “I have”.
contradict contradicts, contradicting, contradicted
VERB If you contradict someone, you say that what they have just said is wrong.
contradiction NOUN
contrary
ADJECTIVE 1 Contrary ideas, opinions or attitudes are completely different from each other.
PHRASE 2 On the contrary is used to contradict something that has just been said.
contrast contrasts, contrasting, contrasted
Said “con-trast” NOUN 1 a great difference between things • the contrast between town and country
Said “con-trast” VERB 2 If you contrast things, you describe or emphasize the differences between them.
contribute contributes, contributing, contributed
VERB 1 If you contribute to something, you do something to make it successful. • Everyone contributed to the class project.
2 If you contribute money to something, you help to pay for it. • We contributed some money to the appeal for the homeless.
SYNONYMS: donate, give
contribution NOUN
control controls, controlling, controlled
NOUN 1 If you have control over something, you are able to make it work the way you want it to.
2 The controls on a machine are the knobs or other devices used to work it.
VERB 3 If someone controls a country or an organization, they make the decisions about how it is run.
4 If someone controls something such as a machine, they make it work the way they want it to.
PHRASE 5 If something is out of control, nobody has any power over it. • The fire was out of control.
controversial
ADJECTIVE Something that is controversial causes a lot of discussion and argument, because many people disapprove of it. • The film was controversial.
convalescent convalescents
NOUN someone who is resting while recovering from an illness
convenient
ADJECTIVE If something is convenient, it is easy to use or it makes something easy to do. • It’s convenient living close to the bus stop.
convenience NOUN
convent convents
NOUN 1 a building where nuns live
2 a school run by nuns
conventional
ADJECTIVE Someone who is conventional thinks or behaves in an ordinary and accepted way.
converge converges, converging, converged
VERB When things meet or join at a particular place, they converge. • The roads converge after three kilometres.
convergence NOUN
conversation conversations
NOUN When people have a conversation, they talk to each other.
convert converts, converting, converted
VERB 1 If you convert something, it changes from one thing to another. • Dad converted the loft into a workshop.
2 If someone converts you, they persuade you to change your religious or political beliefs.
3 In mathematics, convert means to change a number from one form to another. These are equal to each other. For example, you can convert a fraction to a decimal (½ = 0.5).
convex