7 PHRASE If you refer to someone's attitude as sour grapes , you mean that they say that something is worthless or undesirable because they want it themselves but cannot have it. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ He should take recent criticisms seriously, not treat them as sour grapes.
source ◆◆◇ /sɔː r s/ (sources , sourcing , sourced )
1 N‑COUNT The source of something is the person, place, or thing which you get it from. □ Renewable sources of energy must be used where practical. □ Tourism, which is a major source of income for the city, may be seriously affected.
2 VERB In business, if a person or firm sources a product or a raw material, they find someone who will supply it. [BUSINESS ] □ [V n] Together they travel the world, sourcing clothes for the small, privately owned company. □ [V n] About 60 per cent of an average car is sourced from outside of the manufacturer. [Also V from n]
3 N‑COUNT A source is a person or book that provides information for a news story or for a piece of research. □ Military sources say the boat was heading south at high speed.
4 N‑COUNT The source of a difficulty is its cause. □ [+ of ] This gave me a clue as to the source of the problem.
5 N‑COUNT [usu sing] The source of a river or stream is the place where it begins. □ [+ of ] …the source of the Tiber. SYNONYMS source VERB 2
obtain: Evans was trying to obtain a false passport and other documents.
get: We get all our ingredients from local suppliers.
acquire: I recently acquired some wood from a holly tree. NOUN 4
cause: Smoking is the biggest preventable cause of death and disease.
sou rce code (source codes ) N‑VAR Source code is the original form of a computer program as it is written by a programmer. It is then converted into code that the computer can understand. [COMPUTING ]
sou r crea m also soured cream N‑UNCOUNT Sour cream is cream that has been artificially made sour by being mixed with bacteria. It is used in cooking.
sourdough /saʊə doʊ/ (sourdoughs )
1 N‑VAR Sourdough or sourdough bread is bread made using fermenting dough, that has a slightly sour taste. □ Mashed avocado is delicious on toasted sourdough. □ …an artisan bakery selling ryes and sourdoughs, fruit and olive breads.
2 N‑UNCOUNT Sourdough is fermenting dough used as an ingredient to make bread rise. □ The bread was made with coarser flour and raised with sourdough.
south ◆◆◆ /saʊ θ/ also South
1 N‑UNCOUNT [oft the N ] The south is the direction which is on your right when you are looking towards the direction where the sun rises. □ [+ of ] The town lies ten miles to the south of here. □ All around him, from east to west, north to south, the stars glittered in the heavens.
2 N‑SING The south of a place, country, or region is the part which is in the south. □ [+ of ] …holidays in the south of France.
3 ADV [ADV after v] If you go south , you travel towards the south. □ We did an extremely fast U-turn and shot south up the Boulevard St. Michel. □ He went south to climb Taishan, a mountain sacred to the Chinese.
4 ADV Something that is south of a place is positioned to the south of it. □ [+ of ] They now own and operate a farm 50 miles south of Rochester. □ [+ of ] I was living in a house just south of Market Street.
5 ADJ [ADJ n] The south edge, corner, or part of a place or country is the part which is towards the south. □ …the south coast of Alderney.
6 ADJ ' South ' is used in the names of some countries, states, and regions in the south of a larger area. □ Next week the President will visit five South American countries in six days. □ …the states of Mississippi and South Carolina.
7 ADJ A south wind is a wind that blows from the south.
8 N‑SING The South is used to refer to the poorer, less developed countries of the world. □ The South is poorer than the North, and the divide is growing.
south|bound /saʊ θbaʊnd/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] Southbound roads or vehicles lead or are travelling towards the south. □ …the southbound train from the Scottish Highlands. □ …the southbound carriageway of the M61.
sou th-ea st ◆◆◇ also southeast
1 N‑UNCOUNT [oft the N ] The south-east is the direction which is halfway between south and east. □ The city of Ch'eng Tu lies some seven hundred miles to the South-East.
2 N‑SING The south-east of a place, country, or region is the part which is in the south-east. □ [+ of ] …the South-east of England. □ The heaviest snowfalls today are expected in the south east.
3 ADV [ADV after v] If you go south-east , you travel towards the south-east. □ We turned south-east, making for Portoferraio.
4 ADV Something that is south-east of a place is positioned to the south-east of it. □ [+ of ] …the potteries of Iznik, some 120km south-east of Istanbul.
5 ADJ [ADJ n] The south-east part of a place, country, or region is the part which is towards the south-east. □ …South-East Asia. □ …an island just off Shetland's south-east coast.
6 ADJ [ADJ n] A south-east wind is a wind that blows from the south-east.