great

Word family  noun greatness great adjective great adverb greatly

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++great1 /ɡreɪt/ ●●● S1 W1 adjective (comparative greater, superlative greatest)  1  large 大的 [usually before noun] very large in amount or degree 大量的；很大程度的 The movie was a great success. 这部影片大获成功。 The news came as possibly the greatest shock of my life. 这个消息可能是我一生中最大的打击。 The paintings cost a great deal (=a lot) of money. 这些画价值不菲。 John always takes great care over his work. 约翰工作时总是非常小心。 It gives me great pleasure (=I am very pleased) to introduce tonight’s speaker. 我非常高兴请出今晚的演讲者。 It’s a great pity that none of his poems survive. 非常遗憾，他的诗歌没有一首保存下来。 The temptation was too great to resist. 诱惑太大，难以抵挡。► see thesaurus at big2  excellent 极好的 especially spokenGOOD/EXCELLENTvery good 非常好的 SYN wonderful, fantastic The weather here is great. 这里的天气非常好。 It’s great to be home. 回家真好。 a great day out for all the family 一家人愉快出游的一天sound/taste/smell/feel etc great I worked out this morning and I feel great. 我今早做了运动，感觉很好。 You look great in that dress. 你穿那条裙子很漂亮。great for doing something Email’s great for keeping in touch. 电子邮件是很好的联系方式。the great thing about somebody/something (=the very good thing about someone or something) 某人/某物的优点 The great thing about Alex is that he’s always willing to explain things to you. 亚历克斯的优点是他总愿意把事情解释给你听。► see thesaurus at good, nicen GrammarGreat is not used with ‘very’ in this meaning. You say: You did a really great job. ✗Don’t say: You did a very great job.3  important 重要的 a) [usually before noun] important or having a lot of influence 伟大的；影响大的 one of the greatest scientific achievements of our time 我们这个时代最伟大的科学成就之一 What makes a novel truly great? 是什么使一部小说真正伟大？ great historical events 重大的历史事件 b) used in the title of a person or event that was very important in the past 重要的，重大的〔用于历史上重要人物的称号或重要事件的名称〕Peter/Catherine etc the Great I’m reading a biography of Alexander the Great. 我在看一部亚历山大大帝的传记。 the Great Depression 大萧条the Great War old-fashioned (=World War I) 第一次世界大战4  generous 高洁的 very good or generous in a way that people admire 崇高的 a great humanitarian gesture 崇高的人道主义姿态5  extremely skilful 技艺高超的 famous for being able to do something extremely well 伟大的，卓越的，杰出的 Ali was undoubtedly one of the greatest boxers of all time. 阿里无疑是有史以来最伟大的拳击手之一。 a book about the lives of the great composers 介绍大作曲家生平的一本书6  big 大的 written very big 大的，巨大的 SYN huge A great crowd had gathered. 一大群人聚集了起来。 A great iron stove filled half the room. 一个巨大的铁炉占了房间的一半。7  BIG 大的great big spokenVERY very big 非常大的 Get your great big feet off my table! 把你的大脚从我桌上拿下来！8  doing STH a lot 某事做得很多 used to emphasize that someone does something a lot 酷爱做某事的〔用于强调〕a great talker/reader/admirer etc Anthony’s a great talker – sometimes you just can’t get a word in. 安东尼很健谈——有时你根本插不上话。 Len was a great believer in the power of positive thinking. 莱恩坚信积极思维的力量。be a great one for doing something She’s a great one for telling stories about her schooldays. 她很喜欢讲她学生时代的故事。9  to a greater or lesser extent used to emphasize that something is always true, even though it is more true or noticeable in some situations than others 或多或少，多多少少 Most companies operate in conditions that are to a greater or lesser extent competitive. 大多数公司的经营多少都面临着一些竞争。10  be no great shakes informalBAD AT to not be very good, interesting, or skilful 不是很好，不怎么样 The work’s no great shakes, but at least I’m earning. 这工作不怎么样，但至少我在挣钱。11  be going great guns informalSUCCESSFUL to be doing something extremely well 很成功，很顺利 After a slow start, the Tigers are going great guns. 老虎队起步慢，现在却顺风顺水。12  bad 不好的 spoken informal used when you are disappointed or annoyed about something 太糟了〔表示失望或生气〕 ‘Daniel’s cancelled the party.’ ‘Oh great!’ “丹尼尔把派对取消了。”“噢，太糟了！”13  animal/bird/plant etc 兽类/鸟类/植物等 used in the names of some animals or plants, especially when they are bigger than other animals or plants of the same type 大〔用于相似动植物中较大者的名称前〕 the Great Crested Grebe 凤头䴙☆14  the great outdoors informal the countryside, considered as enjoyable and healthy 〔有趣又有益健康的〕大自然，野外 He had a taste for adventure and the great outdoors. 他喜欢冒险，喜欢大自然。15. great minds (think alike) spoken used humorously when you and another person have had the same idea 英雄所见（略同）〔幽默用法，表示和另一个人有同样的想法〕16  the greater good a general advantage that you can only gain by losing or harming something that is considered less important 〔需要牺牲较不重要的东西才能得到的〕更大的利益 Some wars are fought for the greater good. 有时候战争是为了获取更大的利益。17  the great apes the different types of animals that are similar to large monkeys, considered as a group 类人猿 Alone of the great apes, the gorilla is not very efficient at using tools. 类人猿中，唯独大猩猩不太会使用工具。18  the great divide a situation in which there is a big difference between groups in society, areas of a country etc, for example a big difference between their wealth or attitudes 分水岭，差距，差异〔指不同社会群体、地区等在财富和价值观上的差别〕 The great divide between north and south seems to be as unbridgeable as ever. 巨大的南北差距似乎依然难以弥合。19. Greater London/Los Angeles/Manchester etc SGLondon, Los Angeles etc and its outer areas 大伦敦/大洛杉矶/大曼彻斯特等〔指包括市区和周围地区在内的区域〕20. huge/enormous great British English spokenBIG used to emphasize how big something is 巨大的，庞大的21. great Scott!/great Heavens! spoken old-fashioned used to express shock or surprise 天哪！〔表示震惊或惊讶〕22. great with child literary very soon to have a baby 怀孕的，有身孕的 —greatness noun [uncountable] She was destined for greatness. 她注定不平凡。

Examples from the Corpus

great• ""Did you have a good holiday?'' ""It was great!''• an excellent film• Maria del Carmen Asencio, a great activist and a good friend of mine, was among them.• Olivier was a great actor.• It would be of great assistance if customers could have the exact money ready.• I have great difficulty in reading without my glasses.• It is actively looking for more pilot schemes to identify the greater efficiencies needed and the best options available for waste collection.• He had squandered his great gifts of talent, intellect, and personal magnetism.• As far as the eye could see, there stretched a great herd of buffalo.• "Your car won't be ready until next week." "Oh, great! I need it tomorrow."• "Let's have a barbecue, " "That's a great idea."• It'd be great if you could come.• That is a matter of great importance.• The point is, we get great information all the time about what is good and bad for us.• Ella Fitzgerald was the greatest jazz singer ever.• a great lady• I was never really a great one for sport as a child.• Other sights: If you grow bored with the great outdoors or just want to warm up, you have many options.• The greatest pleasure comes when caddie and player are in perfect synchronization.• Like great sailing ships, the clouds sped across the sky.• Here he had much greater scope than in London's country.• McEnroe was possibly the greatest tennis player of all time.• I feel great this morning!• "You want to go to a movie instead?" "Yeah, great, why not!"• Many of our great works of art are being sold and exported.great care• More experiments on more lymphoma-bearing mice followed, and the doses likely to achieve the best effect were assessed with great care.• If you have to clean a patient's eyes, take great care and ask them not to move.• Great care must be taken when the fish is transferred by net as the spines inevitably tangle.• George is very kind and caring and took great care over Lennie.• He began to weigh his words with great care, struggling to express himself as economically and clearly as possible.• Great care was taken in the design of the control panel and the instruments mounted on it.• Great care was taken with his education, but teaching him what he did not wish to learn was a dangerous business.the great thing about somebody/something• That was one of the great things about both the Lisa and the Macintosh.• D.S. One of the great things about drama school is what you learn to reject as much as what you actually learn.• And the great thing about Grandfather, apparently, was that he was interested in everyone.• That's the great thing about having a car.• I think the greatest thing about it was the talent that came out to support it.• And that's the great thing about it.• One of the great things about setting a text is that it widens the musical vocabulary greatly.• One of the great things about these utilities is the frequency with which they're updated.the Great War• His father had bought a place in Kildare before the Great War.• Then they went home to the battlefields of the Great War.• Before the Great War, and afterwards also, this had been a street where bank managers and principal shopkeepers lived.• You know, Nicholas, that whatever miseries the Great War brought it destroyed a great deal that was unhealthy between the sexes.• But times had changed, the Great War had seen to that.• Collections of diplomatic documents concerned with the origins of the Great War have also had their built-in weaknesses.• The Third Republic had survived the Great War of 1914-18 but its institutions were blamed by many for the humiliation of 1940.be a great one for doing something• Margaret used to be a great one for rote learning.• They say in his day he was a great one for the ladies.• Tyrone Guthrie was a great one for comic business, and it was amazing to see how Michael picked it all up.great2 noun  1  [countable usually plural] a very successful and famous person in a particular sport, profession etc 〔某项运动、某一行业等的〕杰出人物 Jack Nicklaus is one of golf’s all-time greats. 杰克·尼克劳斯是空前杰出的高尔夫球手之一。 I think his show’s OK, but I wouldn’t call him one of the greats. 我觉得他的节目还可以，但他算不上是什么杰出人物。► see thesaurus at star2. the great and the good people who are considered important – used humorously 重要人物，大人物〔幽默用法〕

Examples from the Corpus

great• Fitzgerald is one of the all-time jazz greats.great- /ɡreɪt/ prefix  1. great-grandfather/great-grandmother/great-aunt/great-uncle the grandfather, grandmother etc of your parents （外）曾祖父/（外）曾祖母/姑婆[姨婆]/伯公[舅公]2. great-grandchild/great-granddaughter etc the grandchildren of your child 曾（外）孙/曾（外）孙女等Origin great1 Old English

great1 adjective →10-22
→n GRAMMAR1great2 noungreat- prefixLDOCE OnlineChinese  

degree large or Corpus very amount in

great

I

great¹ S1 W1 /ɡreɪt/ adjective (comparative greater, superlative greatest)1.  LARGE  [usually before noun] very large in amount or degree:
    The movie was a great success.
    The news came as possibly the greatest shock of my life.
    The paintings cost a great deal (=a lot) of money.
    John always takes great care over his work.
    It gives me great pleasure (=I am very pleased) to introduce tonight’s speaker.
    It’s a great pity that none of his poems survive.
    The temptation was too great to resist.
2.  EXCELLENT especially spoken
  very good
   SYN  wonderful, fantastic:
    The weather here is great.
    It’s great to be home.
    a great day out for all the family
    sound/taste/smell/feel etc great
    I worked out this morning and I feel great.
    You look great in that dress.
    great for doing something
    Email’s great for keeping in touch.
    the great thing about somebody/something (=the very good thing about someone or something)
    The great thing about Alex is that he’s always willing to explain things to you.
3.  IMPORTANT
  a. [usually before noun] important or having a lot of influence:
    one of the greatest scientific achievements of our time
    What makes a novel truly great?
    great historical events
  b. used in the title of a person or event that was very important in the past
    Peter/Catherine etc the Great
    I’m reading a biography of Alexander the Great.
    the Great Depression
    the Great War old-fashioned (=World War I)
4.  GENEROUS very good or generous in a way that people admire:
    a great humanitarian gesture
5.  EXTREMELY SKILFUL famous for being able to do something extremely well:
    Ali was undoubtedly one of the greatest boxers of all time.
    a book about the lives of the great composers
6.  BIG written very big
   SYN  huge:
    A great crowd had gathered.
    A great iron stove filled half the room.
7. great big spoken very big:
    Get your great big feet off my table__
8.  DOING SOMETHING A LOT used to emphasize that someone does something a lot
    a great talker/reader/admirer etc
    Anthony’s a great talker – sometimes you just can’t get a word in.
    Len was a great believer in the power of positive thinking.
    be a great one for doing something
    She’s a great one for telling stories about her schooldays.
9. to a greater or lesser extent used to emphasize that something is always true, even though it is more true or noticeable in some situations than others:
    Most companies operate in conditions that are to a greater or lesser extent competitive.
10. be no great shakes informal to not be very good, interesting, or skilful:
    The work’s no great shakes, but at least I’m earning.
11. be going great guns informal to be doing something extremely well:
    After a slow start, the Tigers are going great guns.
12.  BAD spoken informal used when you are disappointed or annoyed about something:
    ‘Daniel’s cancelled the party.’ ‘Oh great__’
13.  ANIMAL/BIRD/PLANT ETC used in the names of some animals or plants, especially when they are bigger than other animals or plants of the same type:
    the Great Crested Grebe
14. the great outdoors informal the countryside, considered as enjoyable and healthy:
    He had a taste for adventure and the great outdoors.
15. great minds (think alike) spoken used humorously when you and another person have had the same idea
16. the greater good a general advantage that you can only gain by losing or harming something that is considered less important:
    Some wars are fought for the greater good.
17. the great apes the different types of animals that are similar to large monkeys, considered as a group:
    Alone of the great apes, the gorilla is not very efficient at using tools.
18. the great divide a situation in which there is a big difference between groups in society, areas of a country etc, for example a big difference between their wealth or attitudes:
    The great divide between north and south seems to be as unbridgeable as ever.
19. Greater London/Los Angeles/Manchester etc London, Los Angeles etc and its outer areas
20. huge/enormous great British English spoken used to emphasize how big something is
21. great Scott__/great Heavens__ spoken old-fashioned used to express shock or surprise
22. great with child literary very soon to have a baby
—greatness noun [uncountable]:
    She was destined for greatness.

II

great² noun1. [countable usually plural] a very successful and famous person in a particular sport, profession etc:
    Jack Nicklaus is one of golf’s all-time greats.
    I think his show’s OK, but I wouldn’t call him one of the greats.
2. the great and the good people who are considered important – used humorously
     

THESAURUS

■ a very famous person
   ▪ superstar an extremely famous performer, especially a musician or film actor: The film made Tom Cruise an international superstar.
   ▪ legend someone who is famous and admired for being extremely good at doing something – used especially about people who are at the end of a long career or who have died: blues legend John Lee Hooker | Jane Fonda is the daughter of film legend Henry Fonda.
   ▪ great [usually plural] someone who was one of the best players or performers that there have ever been: He was one of the all-time soccer greats.