- something
- [[t]sʌ̱mθɪŋ[/t]]
♦1) PRON-INDEF: oft PRON adj, PRON adj about n You use something to refer to a thing, situation, event, or idea, without saying exactly what it is.
He realized right away that there was something wrong...
There was something vaguely familiar about him...
The garden was something special...
`You said there was something you wanted to ask me,' he said politely...
There was something in her attitude that bothered him...
People are always out in their cars, watching television or busy doing something else.
2) PRON-INDEF: PRON prep You can use something to say that the description or amount that you are giving is not exact.He described the smell as something between a circus and a sea-port...
Clive made a noise, something like a grunt...
There was something around a thousand dollars in the office strong box...
Their membership seems to have risen to something over 10,000.
3) PRON-INDEF If you say that a person or thing is something or is really something, you mean that you are very impressed by them. [INFORMAL]You're really something...
The doors here are really something, all made of good wood like mahogany...
This is really something. Someone actually thinks my records are all right!
4) PRON-INDEF You can use something in expressions like `that's something' when you think that a situation is not very good but is better that it might have been.Well, at least he was in town. That was something...
Well, you're staying. That's something I suppose.
5) PRON-INDEF: PRON of n If you say that a thing is something of a disappointment, you mean that it is quite disappointing. If you say that a person is something of an artist, you mean that they are quite good at art.The city proved to be something of a disappointment...
She received something of a surprise when Robert said that he was coming to New York...
He is something of a fighter, and will certainly want to win.
6) PRON-INDEF: PRON in n If you say that there is something in an idea or suggestion, you mean that it is quite good and should be considered seriously.Christianity has stood the test of time, so there must be something in it...
There had been something in Des's first statement...
Could there be something in what he said?
7) PRON-INDEF (vagueness) You use something in expressions such as `or something' and `or something like that' to indicate that you are referring to something similar to what you have just mentioned but you are not being exact.This guy, his name was Briarly or Beardly or something...
The air fare was about a hundred and ninety-nine pounds or something like that.
English dictionary. 2008.
