2 If you call someone, you telephone them.
3 If you call someone, you shout their name loudly.
NOUN 4 A call is a shout or a cry. We heard a call for help.
call off
VERB If something is called off it is cancelled. The party was called off.
call on
VERB If you call on someone, you pay them a short visit.
calm calmer, calmest
ADJECTIVE 1 Someone who is calm is quiet and does not show any worry or excitement.
2 If the sea is calm, the water is not moving very much.
calorie calories
NOUN The amount of energy that food gives you is measured in calories.
came
VERB the past tense of come
camel camels
NOUN a large mammal with either one or two humps on its back. Camels live in hot desert areas and are used for carrying people and things.
camera cameras
NOUN a piece of equipment used for taking photographs or for filming
camouflage camouflages, camouflaging, camouflaged
NOUN 1 a way of avoiding being seen by having the same colour or appearance as the surroundings
VERB 2 To camouflage something is to hide it by giving it the same colour or appearance as its surroundings.
camp camps, camping, camped
NOUN 1 a place where people live in tents or stay in tents for a holiday
VERB 2 If you camp, you stay in a tent.
NOUN 3 a collection of buildings for soldiers or prisoners
camper NOUN
campaign campaigns, campaigning, campaigned
VERB When people campaign, they take action in order to achieve something. She campaigned against the export of live animals.
campaign NOUN
can could; cans
VERB 1 If someone says you can do something, you are allowed to do it.
2 If you can do something, you are able to do it. I can say hello in French.
NOUN 3 a metal container, often sealed, with food or drink inside
canal canals
NOUN a long, narrow, man-made stretch of water
canary canaries
NOUN a yellow songbird
cancel cancels, cancelling, cancelled
VERB If you cancel something that has been arranged, you stop it from happening. They cancelled the school trip.
cancer cancers
NOUN a serious disease in which abnormal cells in a part of the body increase rapidly, causing growths
candidate candidates
NOUN a person who is being considered for a job
candle candles
NOUN a stick of hard wax with a piece of string called a wick through the middle. You light the wick to produce a flame.
cane canes
NOUN 1 the long, hollow stem of a plant such as bamboo
2 strips of cane used for weaving baskets and other containers
3 a long, narrow stick used to support plants
canine canines
ADJECTIVE 1 relating to dogs
NOUN 2 a canine is one of the pointed teeth near the front of the mouth in humans and some animals
cannibal cannibals
NOUN a person who eats human flesh
cannon cannons or cannon
NOUN a large gun, usually on wheels, which fires heavy iron balls
cannot
VERB the same as can not
canoe canoes
NOUN a small, narrow boat that you row using a paddle
canoeing NOUN canoeist NOUN
cant
VERB a contraction of cannot
canteen canteens
NOUN a place to eat in a school or workplace
canvas canvases
NOUN 1 strong, heavy cloth used for making things such as sails and tents
2 a piece of canvas on which an artist does a painting
canyon canyons
NOUN a narrow river valley with steep sides
cap caps
NOUN 1 a soft, flat hat, often with a peak at the front
2 a bottle top
3 a small explosive used in toy guns
capable
ADJECTIVE 1 If you are capable of doing something, you are able to do it.
2 Someone who is capable is able to do something well.
capacity capacities
NOUN the maximum amount that something can hold or produce The arena has a seating capacity of two thousand.
capital capitals
NOUN 1 The capital of a country is the city where the government meets. Paris is the capital of France.
2 A capital, or a capital letter, is a larger, upper-case letter used at the beginning of a sentence or a name: Carol, Tim.
capsize capsizes, capsizing, capsized
VERB If a boat capsizes, it turns upside down.
capsule capsules
NOUN 1 a small container with medicine inside, which you swallow
2 the part of a spacecraft in which astronauts travel
[from Latin capsula meaning little box]
captain captains
NOUN 1 the officer in charge of a ship or aeroplane
2 the leader of a sports team
caption captions
NOUN a title printed underneath a picture or a photograph
captive captives
NOUN someone who is locked up and kept prisoner
capture captures, capturing, captured
VERB If someone captures someone or something, they take them prisoner.
car cars
NOUN 1 a four-wheeled road vehicle with an engine and room to carry a few passengers
2 a railway carriage used for a particular purpose the buffet car
caravan caravans
NOUN 1 a vehicle pulled by a car in which people live or spend their holidays
2 a group of people and animals travelling together, usually across a desert
carbohydrate carbohydrates
NOUN a substance that gives you energy. It is found in foods like sugar and bread.
carbon
NOUN a chemical found in coal, diamonds and graphite. All living things contain carbon.
carbon dioxide
NOUN the gas that human beings and other animals breathe out
carbon footprint carbon footprints
NOUN the amount of carbon monoxide produced by a person, company or country
card cards
NOUN 1 a piece of stiff paper or plastic with a message or information on it birthday card credit card
2 When you play cards, you play a game using special playing cards.
3 strong, stiff paper
cardboard
NOUN thick, stiff paper, which is stronger than card
cardigan cardigans
NOUN a knitted jacket that fastens up the front
care cares, caring, cared
VERB 1 If you care about something or someone, you are concerned about them and interested in them.
2 If you care for a person or an animal, you look after them.
NOUN 3 worry or trouble She didnt have a care in the world.
4 If you do something with care, you concentrate very hard on it so that you dont make mistakes. He wrote the telephone number down with great care.
PHRASE 5 If you take care of a person or an animal, you look after them. Shakira said she would take care of the hamsters while we were on holiday.
career careers
NOUN Your career is the series of jobs you have in life, often in the same occupation. a teaching career
careful
ADJECTIVE acting sensibly and with care
ANTONYM: careless
carefully ADVERB
careless
ADJECTIVE not paying attention to what you are doing
SYNONYMS: slapdash, sloppy
carelessly ADVERB carelessness NOUN
caretaker caretakers
NOUN a person who looks after a large building such as a school
cargo cargoes
NOUN goods carried on a ship or plane
Caribbean
Said carib-ee-un NOUN 1 short for the Caribbean Sea, which lies between the West Indies and South America
ADJECTIVE 2 to do with the Caribbean Sea or the islands in it I love Caribbean food.
carnation carnations
NOUN a plant with thin leaves and scented white, pink or red flowers
carnival carnivals
NOUN a public festival with music, processions and dancing
carnivore carnivores
NOUN an animal that eats meat
carnivorous ADJECTIVE
carol carols
NOUN a religious song sung at Christmas time
carpenter carpenters
NOUN a person who makes and repairs wooden things
carpentry NOUN
carpet carpets
NOUN a thick floor covering usually made of material like wool
carriage carriages
NOUN 1 one of the separate sections of a passenger train
2 an old-fashioned vehicle for carrying passengers, usually pulled by horses
Carroll diagram Carroll diagrams
NOUN a way of sorting and displaying information in the form of a grid
carrot carrots
NOUN a long, thin, orange-coloured root vegetable
carry carries, carrying, carried
VERB 1 If you carry something, you hold it and take it somewhere.
2 When a vehicle carries people, they travel in it.
3 If people or animals carry a germ or a disease, they can pass it on to others.
4 If a sound carries it can be heard a long way off. Their voices carried across the valley.
cart carts
NOUN a vehicle with wheels, used for carrying things and usually pulled by horses or cattle
carton cartons
NOUN a cardboard or plastic container
cartoon cartoons
NOUN 1 a humorous drawing in a newspaper, comic or magazine
2 a film in which all the characters and scenes are drawn
cartridge cartridges
NOUN 1 a tube containing a bullet and an explosive substance, used in guns
2 a small plastic container filled with ink that you put in a pen or a printer
cartwheel cartwheels
NOUN an acrobatic movement in which you lift both arms in the air then throw yourself sideways on to one hand, swinging your body around in a circle with your legs straight until you land on your feet again
carve carves, carving, carved
VERB If you carve something, you shape it or slice it with a knife.
cascade cascades, cascading, cascaded
NOUN 1 a small waterfall or group of waterfalls flowing down a rocky hillside
VERB 2 When water cascades, it flows very fast down a hillside or over rocks.
case cases
NOUN 1 a box for keeping or carrying things in
2 a particular situation or event a bad case of measles
3 A crime that the police are investigating is called a case.
cash
NOUN money in notes and coins
cashier cashiers
NOUN the person who deals with money in a place such as a shop or a bank
casserole casseroles
NOUN 1 a stew made with meat, vegetables or fish that is baked in the oven
2 a dish with a lid, which is used for cooking
cast casts, casting, cast
NOUN 1 all the people who act in a play or film
2 an object made by pouring a liquid such as plaster into a container and leaving it to harden
VERB 3 If an object casts a shadow on to a place, it makes a shadow fall there.
castaway castaways
NOUN someone who has been shipwrecked but manages to survive on a lonely shore or an island
castle castles
NOUN a large building with walls or ditches round it to protect it from attack
[from Latin castellum meaning small fort]
casual
ADJECTIVE 1 happening by chance and without planning I made a casual remark.
2 Casual clothes are suitable for informal occasions.
casualty casualties
NOUN a person killed or injured in an accident or a war There were many casualties after the motorway crash.
cat cats
NOUN a small, furry mammal with whiskers, a tail and sharp claws, often kept as a pet
catalogue catalogues
NOUN a list of things, such as the goods you can buy from a company, the objects in a museum, or the books in a library I ordered my trainers from a mail order catalogue.