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Definition of carrot noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

carrot

noun
 
/ˈkærət/
 
/ˈkærət/
Idioms
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  1. [uncountable, countable] a long pointed orange root vegetable
    • grated carrot
    • a slice of carrot cake
    • a pound of carrots
    • a bag of baby carrots
    • a glass of carrot juice
    • carrot sticks (= long thin pieces)
    Topics Fooda1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • raw
    • cooked
    • steamed
    verb + carrot
    • eat
    • have
    • cook
    carrot + noun
    • top
    • cake
    • juice
    See full entry
  2. [countable] a reward promised to somebody in order to persuade them to do something synonym incentive
    • They are holding out a carrot of $120 million in economic aid.
    • It's a big carrot he's dangling in front of Marler's nose.
    Extra Examples
    • Even with the carrot of a free lunch it is unlikely that many people will turn up.
    • In a market economy profits are the carrot that encourages firms to take risks.
    Topics Discussion and agreementc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + carrot
    • dangle
    • hold out
    • offer (somebody)
    phrases
    • a carrot and stick
    See full entry
  3. Word Originlate 15th cent.: from French carotte, from Latin carota, from Greek karōton.
Idioms
the carrot and (the) stick (approach)
  1. if you use the carrot and stick approach, you persuade somebody to try harder by offering them a reward if they do, or a punishment if they do not
    • The emphasis is on the carrot of incentive rather than the stick of taxes.
    Extra Examples
    • to adopt the carrot-and-stick approach
    • He decided to use the carrot and stick approach.
See carrot in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
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