air

CEFRA1

/ˈeː/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

01
noun
The mixture of gases around Earth that people and animals breathe.
02
verb
To show or broadcast something publicly.

Examples

He built castles in the air all day.
Let's go out for some fresh air.

At a glance

Sits at A1 on the CEFR scale

Senses: 5
Parts of speech: 2
Citations: 5
Synonyms: 5

Also pronounced

/ˈiə̯/

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

The substance constituting Earth's atmosphere: a gaseous mixture of nitrogen, oxygen, and various trace gases.
The substance of the atmosphere seen as an agency of freshness.
One of the four elements of the ancient Greeks and Romans.

More examples

In context

What you are saying is nothing but building a castle in the air.
As you ascend, the air gets thinner.
I'm going outside to get some air.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

After the rain, the fresh blank smelled sweet and clean.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Citations

The word in print, with each source given in full.

John Mayer has apologised for using a racist epithet in a recent interview with Playboy magazine, after a number of prominent black musicians aired their disapproval.
2010 February 11, Rosie Swash, “John Mayer apologises after using N-word in Playboy interview”, in The Guardian
Thus, in spite of all opposition, the rural and urban assemblies retained the germ of local government, and in spite of the dual control, as the result of which much of their influence was nullified, they did have a certain value in airing abuses and suggesting improvements.
1917, National Geographic, v.31, March 1917
The girl stooped to pluck a rose, and as she bent over it, her profile was clearly outlined. She held the flower to her face with a long-drawn inhalation, then went up the steps, crossed the piazza, opened the door without knocking, and entered the house with the air of one thoroughly at home.
1900, Charles W[addell] Chesnutt, chapter I, in The House Behind the Cedars, Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC
Even at the busiest periods, an air of quiet orderliness pervades the hall, and the first impression gained by the traveller is one of efficiency, neatness and cleanliness.
1951 October, H. A. Vallance, “Across Denmark by Lyntog”, in Railway Magazine, page 658
But the dull, cool, calculating effect given cumulatively through Stalin’s long career, the air of a great glacier moving slowly and by the easiest path to overwhelm some Alpine valley, is only part of the picture. At various times - and especially in his early career - the calm of his general manner was broken, and expression given to the driving emotions that possessed him.
1968, Robert Conquest, “The Purge Begins”, in The Great Terror: Stalin's Purge of the Thirties, Macmillan Company, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 77

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Origin

noun

From Middle English aire, from Old French air, from Latin āēr, from Ancient Greek ἀήρ (aḗr). Displaced native Old English lyft. More at lift, loft.

Deep Dive

noun

More examples

Related

Quick test

After the rain, the fresh blank— smelled sweet and clean.

Nearby

Origin

noun

After the rain, the fresh blank smelled sweet and clean.