2 N‑COUNT A Singaporean is a person who comes from Singapore.
singe /s I ndʒ/ (singes , singeing , singed ) VERB If you singe something or if it singes , it burns very slightly and changes colour but does not catch fire. □ [V n] The electric fire had begun to singe the bottoms of his trousers. □ [V ] Toast the dried chillies in a hot pan until they start to singe.
sing|er ◆◇◇ /s I ŋə r / (singers ) N‑COUNT A singer is a person who sings, especially as a job. □ My mother was a singer in a dance band. □ She was one of the great opera singers of the century.
si nger-so ngwriter (singer-songwriters ) N‑COUNT A singer-songwriter is someone who writes and performs their own songs, especially popular songs. □ Twenty years ago this singer-songwriter released his first album.
sing|ing /s I ŋ I ŋ/ N‑UNCOUNT Singing is the activity of making musical sounds with your voice. □ …a people's carnival, with singing and dancing in the streets. □ [+ of ] …the singing of a traditional hymn. □ She's having singing lessons.
sin|gle ◆◆◆ /s I ŋg ə l/ (singles , singling , singled )
1 ADJ [ADJ n] You use single to emphasize that you are referring to one thing, and no more than one thing. [EMPHASIS ] □ A single shot rang out. □ Over six hundred people were wounded in a single day. □ She hadn't uttered a single word.
2 ADJ You use single to indicate that you are considering something on its own and separately from other things like it. [EMPHASIS ] □ Every single house in town had been damaged. □ The Middle East is the world's single most important source of oil.
3 ADJ Someone who is single is not married. You can also use single to describe someone who does not have a girlfriend or boyfriend. □ Is it difficult being a single mother? □ Gay men are now eligible to become foster parents whether they are single or have partners.
4 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A single room is a room intended for one person to stay or live in. □ A single room at the Astir Hotel costs £56 a night. ● N‑COUNT Single is also a noun. □ It's £65 for a single, £98 for a double and £120 for an entire suite.
5 ADJ [ADJ n] A single bed is wide enough for one person to sleep in.
6 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A single ticket is a ticket for a journey from one place to another but not back again. [BRIT ] □ The price of a single ticket is thirty-nine pounds. ● N‑COUNT Single is also a noun. □ [+ to ] …a Club Class single to Los Angeles. [in AM, use one-way ]
7 N‑COUNT A single or a CD single is a CD which has a few short songs on it. You can also refer to the main song on a CD as a single . □ The winners will get a chance to release their own single.
8 N‑UNCOUNT Singles is a game of tennis or badminton in which one player plays another. The plural singles can be used to refer to one or more of these matches. □ The British player won the men's singles.
9 → see also single-
10 in single file → see file
▸ single out PHRASAL VERB If you single someone out from a group, you choose them and give them special attention or treatment. □ [V n P ] The gunman had singled Debilly out and waited for him. □ [V n P + for ] His immediate superior has singled him out for a special mention. □ [V P n] We wanted to single out the main threat to civilisation. [Also V P n (not pron) for/as n] [Also V n P + as ] SYNONYMS single ADJ 1
sole: Their sole aim is to destabilize the government.
solitary: …the occasional solitary figure making a study of wildflowers.
lone: He was shot by a lone gunman.
single- /s I ŋg ə l-/ COMB single- is used to form words which describe something that has one part or feature, rather than having two or more of them. □ The single-engine plane landed in western Arizona. □ …a single-track road.
si ngle-brea sted ADJ A single-breasted coat, jacket, or suit fastens in the centre of the chest and has only one row of buttons.
si n|gle crea m N‑UNCOUNT Single cream is thin cream that does not have a lot of fat in it. [BRIT ] in AM, use light cream
si ngle-de cker (single-deckers ) N‑COUNT A single-decker or a single-decker bus is a bus with only one deck. [BRIT ]
si ngle-ha nded ADV [ADV after v] If you do something single-handed , you do it on your own, without help from anyone else. □ I brought up my seven children single-handed.
si ngle-mi nded ADJ Someone who is single-minded has only one aim or purpose and is determined to achieve it. □ …a single-minded determination to win.
si n|gle pa r|ent (single parents ) N‑COUNT [oft N n] A single parent is someone who is bringing up a child on their own, because the other parent is not living with them. □ I was bringing up my three children as a single parent. □ …a single-parent household.
si n|gles bar (singles bars ) N‑COUNT In North America, a singles bar is a bar where single people can go in order to drink and meet other single people.
si ngle-se x ADJ [usu ADJ n] At a single-sex school, the pupils are either all boys or all girls. □ Is single-sex education good for girls?
si n|gle su p|plement (single supplements ) also single person supplement N‑COUNT A single supplement is an additional sum of money that a hotel charges for one person to stay in a room meant for two people. □ You can avoid the single supplement by agreeing to share a twin room.