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

bore

noun
 
/bɔː(r)/
 
/bɔːr/
Idioms
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  1. [countable] a person who is very boring, usually because they talk too muchTopics Feelingsc1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • awful
    • crashing
    • dreadful
    phrases
    • a bit of a bore
    See full entry
  2. [singular] a situation or thing that is boring or that annoys you
    • It's such a bore having to stay late this evening.
    • It’s a real bore having to meet my aunt for lunch.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • real
    • terrible
    See full entry
  3. [countable]
    (also gauge especially in North American English)
    the hollow inside of a tube, such as a pipe or a gun; the measurement from one side of the hole to the other
    • a tube with a wide/narrow bore
    • a twelve-bore shotgun
  4. [countable] a strong, high wave that rushes along a river from the sea at particular times of the yearTopics Geographyc2
  5. [countable]
    (also borehole)
    a deep hole made in the ground, especially to find water or oil
  6. Word Originnoun sense 3 and noun sense 5 Old English borian (verb), of Germanic origin; related to German bohren. noun senses 1 to 2 mid 18th cent. (as a verb): of unknown origin. noun sense 4 early 17th cent.: perhaps from Old Norse bára ‘wave’; the term was used in the general sense ‘billow, wave’ in Middle English.
Idioms
a crashing bore
  1. (British English, old-fashioned) a very boring person, activity, event or subject
See bore in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
previously
adverb
 
 
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