cluster

CEFRB2

/ˈklʌstə/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A group of similar things close together.

  2. 02

    verb

    To gather closely together.

Examples

  • The cluster of cells continued to grow in the laboratory.

  • The Milky Way galaxy is bound in a cluster of about thirty-five galaxies.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings
  1. A bunch or group of several discrete items that are close to each other.

  2. A group of galaxies, nebulae, or stars that appear to the naked eye to be near each other.

  3. A group of computers that work together.

More examples

In context
  • A cluster of flowers grew in the pot.

  • The Pleiades cluster contains seven bright stars.

  • a cluster of islands

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

A tight blank of stars appeared in the night sky above the mountain.

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

Nearby

Origin

noun

The noun is derived from Middle English cluster (“bunch, cluster, spray; compact body or mass, ball”) [and other forms], from Old English cluster, clyster (“cluster, bunch, branch”), from Proto-Germanic *klas-, *klus- (“to clump, lump together”) (possibly from Proto-Indo-European *gel- (“to ball up; to clench; to amass”)) + *-þrą (suffix forming nouns denoting an instrument or tool). The English word is probably a doublet of clot. The verb is derived from the noun. Cognates * Dutch klister (“cluster”) (dialectal) * Icelandic klasi (“cluster; bunch of grapes”) * Low German Kluuster (“cluster”) * Swedish kluster (“cluster”)