- strength
- noun1 how strong sb/sth isADJECTIVE▪ considerable, enormous, great, immense, incredible, tremendous▪ high▪
The material has exceptionally high strength for its weight.
▪ greater, superior▪His superior physical strength won him the title.
▪ relative▪Profits have been helped by the relative strength of the euro against the dollar.
▪ maximum▪ growing, increased▪ new-found▪ continuing▪the continuing strength of the pound
▪ surprising, unexpected▪ superhuman, supernatural▪ brute, sheer▪He got the door open with brute strength.
▪ extra▪They are reinforced with steel for extra strength.
▪ collective, combined, overall▪They believe their combined strength will overwhelm the competition.
▪ numerical▪the numerical strength of the Chinese army
▪ emotional, inner, mental, spiritual▪ muscle, muscular, physical▪ tensile▪The steel adds tensile strength to the concrete.
▪ arm, leg▪It's well known that cycling builds leg strength.
▪ lower-body, upper-body▪ economic, electoral, financial, industrial, military▪ police, troop, union, etc.▪US troop strength in Afghanistan dropped to 18 000.
▪ bargaining (esp. BrE)▪ wind▪ signal▪The phone company aims to improve signal strength within buildings.
▪ alcoholicVERB + STRENGTH▪ have, possess▪He had just enough strength to reach for the phone.
▪ lack▪ find, muster (esp. AmE), summon, summon up▪I'm trying to summon up the strength to do some more work.
▪ draw, draw on, use▪She was able to draw on her immense inner strength.
▪ put▪He put all his strength into reorganizing the department.
▪ take▪It took all his strength to open the box.
▪ boost, build, build up, improve, increase▪You need to try and build up your strength before the winter.
▪I began taking gymnastics classes to boost my strength and flexibility.
▪ gain, gather▪The opinion that the president should stand down has gained considerable strength.
▪ gain in, grow in, increase in▪ add▪ conserve, maintain, save▪ lose▪ sap▪The series of steep hills sapped the cyclists' strength.
▪ get back, recover, regain▪ give sb/sth, lend sb/sth▪Her love and support gave me strength.
▪The metal reinforcement gives it the strength to resist the high winds.
▪ reduce, undermine▪Her unwillingness to answer questions undermined the strength of her position.
▪ assess, measure, test▪The Moroccan athlete ran a fast lap to test the strength of the other runners.
▪ underestimate▪ vary in▪These wines vary in strength between 11% and 15%.
STRENGTH + VERB▪ grow, increase▪ decline, drain, drain away, ebb, ebb away, fade, fail, falter, wane▪The country's economic strength is declining.
▪Her strength was ebbing fast, so her children were called to her bedside.
▪ returnPREPOSITION▪ up to strength▪The Korean team was not up to strength for the final.
▪ below strength, under strength (both BrE)▪The Chilean team was below strength for the final.
▪ with strength▪She pushed him away with unexpected strength.
▪ strength in▪She gradually regained strength in her legs.
PHRASES▪ at full strength▪The orchestra was at full strength for the Mahler symphony.
▪ back to full strength▪I'm still not quite back to full strength after my illness.
▪ every ounce of strength▪She summoned up every ounce of strength she possessed.
▪ draw strength from sth▪I draw great strength from the support of my family.
▪ a feat of strength▪He used to entertain people with his feats of strength.
▪ a pillar of strength, a tower of strength▪He was a tower of strength to his sisters when their father died.
▪ a position of strength▪They are negotiating from a position of strength.
▪ reserves of strength▪When she had twins, she discovered reserves of strength that she didn't know she had.
▪ a show of strength▪50 000 troops massed on the border in the biggest show of strength to date.
▪ a source of strength▪Her childhood memories were a great source of strength when her mother was killed.
▪ strength of character, strength of purpose, strength of will▪ strength of feeling▪ the strength of sb's position▪ a test of strength, a trial of strength▪Today's vote is being seen as a test of strength for the government.
▪The dispute developed into a trial of strength between management and the union.
▪ with all your strength▪She threw the rope with all her strength.
2 useful qualityADJECTIVE▪ great▪What's your greatest strength?
▪ real▪ individual, personal, unique▪ combined▪ relative▪We want to learn more about the relative strengths of our students.
▪ core, key▪The company's key strength is its people.
VERB + STRENGTH▪ capitalize on (esp. AmE), exploit, play to▪The team may not have the best players, but it plays to its strengths.
▪ discover, identifySTRENGTH + VERB▪ come from sth, lie in sth▪Her great strength lies in her flexibility.
PHRASES▪ strengths and weaknesses
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
