sur|ti|tle /sɜː r ta I t ə l/ (surtitles ) N‑COUNT [usu pl] At an opera or play that is being performed in a foreign language, surtitles are a translation or summary of the words, which appear on a screen above the stage.
sur|veil|lance /sə r ve I ləns/ N‑UNCOUNT Surveillance is the careful watching of someone, especially by an organization such as the police or the army. □ He was arrested after being kept under constant surveillance. □ Police keep track of the kidnapper using electronic surveillance equipment.
sur|vey ◆◆◇ (surveys , surveying , surveyed ) The noun is pronounced /sɜː r ve I /. The verb is pronounced /sə r ve I /, and can also be pronounced /sɜː r ve I / in meanings 2 and 6 . 1 N‑COUNT If you carry out a survey , you try to find out detailed information about a lot of different people or things, usually by asking people a series of questions. □ According to the survey, overall world trade has also slackened.
2 VERB If you survey a number of people, companies, or organizations, you try to find out information about their opinions or behaviour, usually by asking them a series of questions. □ [V n] Business Development Advisers surveyed 211 companies for the report. □ [V -ed] Only 18 percent of those surveyed opposed the idea.
3 VERB If you survey something, you look at or consider the whole of it carefully. □ [V n] He pushed himself to his feet and surveyed the room.
4 N‑COUNT If someone carries out a survey of an area of land, they examine it and measure it, usually in order to make a map of it. □ …the organizer of the geological survey of India.
5 VERB If someone surveys an area of land, they examine it and measure it, usually in order to make a map of it. □ [V n] The council commissioned geological experts to survey the cliffs.
6 N‑COUNT A survey is a careful examination of the condition and structure of a house, usually carried out in order to give information to a person who wants to buy it. [mainly BRIT ] □ …a structural survey undertaken by a qualified surveyor. in AM, use inspection 7 VERB If someone surveys a house, they examine it carefully and report on its structure, usually in order to give advice to a person who is thinking of buying it. [mainly BRIT ] □ [V n] …the people who surveyed the house for the mortgage. in AM, use inspect COLLOCATIONS survey NOUN
1
noun + survey : consumer, employee, household; opinion; crime
adjective + survey : comprehensive, detailed; national, nationwide, online; annual, recent
verb + survey : carry out, conduct, undertake; commission; publish, release
4
adjective + survey : brief
sur|vey|or /sə r ve I ə r / (surveyors )
1 N‑COUNT A surveyor is a person whose job is to survey land. □ …the surveyor's maps of the Queen Alexandra Range.
2 N‑COUNT A surveyor is a person whose job is to survey buildings. [BRIT ] □ Our surveyor warned us that the house needed totally rebuilding. in AM, use structural engineer , inspector 3 → see also quantity surveyor
sur|viv|al ◆◇◇ /sə r va I v ə l/
1 N‑UNCOUNT If you refer to the survival of something or someone, you mean that they manage to continue or exist in spite of difficult circumstances. □ …companies which have been struggling for survival in the advancing recession. □ Ask for the free booklet 'Debt: a Survival Guide'.
2 N‑UNCOUNT If you refer to the survival of a person or living thing, you mean that they live through a dangerous situation in which it was possible that they might die. □ If cancers are spotted early there's a high chance of survival. □ An animal's sense of smell is still crucial to its survival.
3 PHRASE You can use the survival of the fittest to refer to a situation in which only the strongest people or things continue to live or be successful, while the others die or fail.
sur|vive ◆◆◇ /sə r va I v/ (survives , surviving , survived )
1 VERB If a person or living thing survives in a dangerous situation such as an accident or an illness, they do not die. □ [V ] They battled to survive in icy seas for over four hours. □ [V ] Those organisms that are that are most suited to the environment will survive. □ [V n] Drugs that dissolve blood clots can help people survive heart attacks.
2 VERB If you survive in difficult circumstances, you manage to live or continue in spite of them and do not let them affect you very much. □ [V ] …people who are struggling to survive without jobs. □ [V n] …a man who had survived his share of boardroom coups.
3 VERB If something survives , it continues to exist even after being in a dangerous situation or existing for a long time. □ [V ] When the market economy is introduced, many factories will not survive. □ [V n] The chances of a planet surviving a supernova always looked terribly slim.
4 VERB If you survive someone, you continue to live after they have died. □ [V n] Most women will survive their spouses. SYNONYMS survive VERB 1
pull through: Everyone was very concerned whether he would pull through or not.
live: He's got a terrible disease and will not live long.
last: The marriage had lasted for less than two years.
sur|vi|vor /sə r va I və r / (survivors )
1 N‑COUNT A survivor of a disaster, accident, or illness is someone who continues to live afterwards in spite of coming close to death. □ [+ of ] Officials said there were no survivors of the plane crash.