4 VERB If a person or thing thrashes something, or thrashes at something, they hit it continually in a violent or noisy way. □ [V n] …a magnificent paddle-steamer on the mighty Mississippi, her huge wheel thrashing the muddy water. □ [V + at ] Three shaggy-haired men thrash tunelessly at their guitars.
5 → see also thrashing
▸ thrash out
1 PHRASAL VERB If people thrash out something such as a plan or an agreement, they decide on it after a great deal of discussion. □ [V P n] The foreign ministers have thrashed out a suitable compromise formula. [Also V n P ]
2 PHRASAL VERB If people thrash out a problem or a dispute, they discuss it thoroughly until they reach an agreement. □ [V P n] …a sincere effort by two people to thrash out differences. [Also V n P ]
thrash|ing /θræ ʃ I ŋ/ (thrashings )
1 N‑COUNT If one player or team gives another one a thrashing , they defeat them easily or by a large score. [INFORMAL ] □ Can the New Zealand bowlers fight back after their thrashing at Christchurch?
2 N‑COUNT If someone gives someone else a thrashing , they hit them several times as a punishment. □ If Sarah caught her, she would get a thrashing.
3 → see also thrash
thread /θre d/ (threads , threading , threaded )
1 N‑VAR Thread or a thread is a long very thin piece of a material such as cotton, nylon, or silk, especially one that is used in sewing. □ …a tiny Nepalese hat embroidered with golden threads.
2 N‑COUNT The thread of an argument, a story, or a situation is an aspect of it that connects all the different parts together. □ The thread running through many of these proposals was the theme of opportunity.
3 N‑COUNT A thread of something such as liquid, light, or colour is a long thin line or piece of it. □ [+ of ] A thin, glistening thread of moisture ran along the rough concrete sill.
4 N‑COUNT The thread on a screw, or on something such as a lid or a pipe, is the raised spiral line of metal or plastic around it which allows it to be fixed in place by twisting. □ The screw threads will be able to get a good grip.
5 N‑COUNT On the internet, a thread is a series of messages from different people about a particular subject. □ I saw the post but I didn't read the thread below it.
6 VERB If you thread your way through a group of people or things, or thread through it, you move through it carefully or slowly, changing direction frequently as you move. □ [V n prep] Slowly, she threaded her way back through the moving mass of bodies. □ [V prep] We threaded through a network of back streets.
7 VERB If you thread a long thin object through something, you pass it through one or more holes or narrow spaces. □ [V n + through ] …threading the laces through the eyelets of his shoes. □ [V n + into ] These instruments allow doctors to thread microscopic telescopes into the digestive tract.
8 VERB If you thread small objects such as beads onto a string or thread, you join them together by pushing the string through them. □ [V n prep] Wipe the mushrooms clean and thread them on a string.
9 VERB When you thread a needle, you put a piece of thread through the hole in the top of the needle in order to sew with it. □ [V n] I sit down, thread a needle, snip off an old button.
10 PHRASE If you say that something is hanging by a thread , you mean that it is in a very uncertain state and is unlikely to survive or succeed. □ The fragile peace was hanging by a thread as thousands of hardliners took to the streets.
11 PHRASE If you pick up the threads of an activity, you start it again after an interruption. If you pick up the threads of your life , you become more active again after a period of failure or bad luck. □ Many women have been able to pick up the threads of their former career.
thread|bare /θre dbeə r /
1 ADJ Threadbare clothes, carpets, and other pieces of cloth look old, dull, and very thin, because they have been worn or used too much. □ She sat cross-legged on a square of threadbare carpet.
2 ADJ If you describe an activity, an idea, or an argument as threadbare , you mean that it is very weak, or inadequate, or old and no longer interesting. □ …the government's threadbare domestic policies.
threat ◆◆◇ /θre t/ (threats )
1 N‑VAR A threat to a person or thing is a danger that something unpleasant might happen to them. A threat is also the cause of this danger. □ [+ to ] Some couples see single women as a threat to their relationships. □ [+ of ] The Hurricane Center warns people not to take the threat of tropical storms lightly. [Also + from ]
2 N‑COUNT [oft N to-inf] A threat is a statement by someone that they will do something unpleasant, especially if you do not do what they want. □ He may be forced to carry out his threat to resign. □ [+ by ] The writer remains in hiding after threats by former officials of the ousted dictatorship.
3 PHRASE If a person or thing is under threat , there is a danger that something unpleasant might be done to them, or that they might cease to exist. □ His position as leader will be under threat at a party congress due next month. □ [+ of ] She lives daily under threat of violence. [Also + from ] SYNONYMS threat NOUN 1