- background
- noun1 type of family, social class, etc. sb comes fromADJECTIVE▪ family▪
Can you tell me something about your family background?
▪ broad▪It is important to have a broad educational background.
▪ different, diverse, mixed, varied, various▪We work with clients from diverse backgrounds.
▪ similar▪I think we get on well because we're from similar backgrounds.
▪ privileged, wealthy▪ deprived, disadvantaged, poor (esp. BrE)▪ middle-class, upper-class, working-class▪ solid, stable, strong▪She has a good solid background in management.
▪ criminal▪She wanted to know about his criminal background.
▪ engineering, military, musical, professional, scientific, technical▪Children from a military background often move around a lot.
▪Even people with a technical background will struggle to understand some of the jargon.
▪ Christian, Jewish, Muslim, etc.▪ class, cultural, ethnic, genetic, linguistic, racial, religious, social, socio-economic▪ academic, educational▪Her academic background includes a degree in education.
VERB + BACKGROUND▪ come from, have▪He came from a very privileged background.
▪ be drawn from▪The students are drawn from very mixed social backgrounds.
BACKGROUND + VERB▪ be in sth▪Her background was in biology and medicine.
BACKGROUND + NOUN▪ check▪In the future, we will require background checks on airport employees.
PREPOSITION▪ from a background▪children from deprived backgrounds
▪ with a background▪an economist with a background in business
▪ background inPHRASES▪ a range of backgrounds, a variety of backgrounds2 facts connected with a situation/eventADJECTIVE▪ general▪ factual▪ cultural, economic, historical, politicalVERB + BACKGROUND▪ describe, explain, give (sb), outline, provide (sb with)▪The book provides the background to the revolution.
▪ form▪Those discussions formed the background to the decision.
BACKGROUND + NOUN▪ briefing, info (informal), information, knowledge, reading▪background information on the country
PREPOSITION▪ against the background▪Against that general background, let me give you a more detailed view of current practice.
▪ background to▪the technical background to the report
▪ background of▪the historical background of the project
3 part of a view/picture behind the main partsADJECTIVE▪ black, blue, grey/gray, etc.▪ dark▪ neutralVERB + BACKGROUND▪ blend in with, match▪The wolves' coats turn white to match their snowy background.
BACKGROUND + NOUN▪ colour/color▪Most paintings look good against a neutral background colour/color.
PREPOSITION▪ against a/the background▪The areas of water stood out against the dark background.
▪ in the background▪The mountains in the background were capped with snow.
▪ on a/the background▪bright blue on a red background
4 position in which sb/sth is not important/noticedVERB + BACKGROUND▪ blend into, fade into, melt into, recede into, retreat into, slip into▪The dispute over the new contract allowed her other problems to fade into the background.
▪He had learned how to melt invisibly into the background.
BACKGROUND + NOUN▪ music, noise, radiation▪ vocals▪Who did the background vocals on that track?
▪ distortion, hiss▪The signal was very clear, with no background hiss or distortion.
PREPOSITION▪ in the background▪There was a radio on in the background.
▪I could see my secretary hovering in the background.
▪He prefers to remain in the background and let his assistant deal with the press.
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
