3 VERB If you say that someone claims responsibility or credit for something, you mean they say that they are responsible for it, but you are not sure whether or not they are telling the truth. □ [V n] An underground organisation has claimed responsibility for the bomb explosion.
4 VERB If you claim something, you try to get it because you think you have a right to it. □ [V n] Now they are returning to claim what was theirs.
5 N‑COUNT A claim is a demand for something that you think you have a right to. □ [+ to ] Rival claims to Macedonian territory caused conflict in the Balkans.
6 VERB If someone claims a record, title, or prize, they gain or win it. [JOURNALISM ] □ [V n] Zhuang claimed the record in 54.64 seconds.
7 N‑COUNT If you have a claim on someone or their attention, you have the right to demand things from them or to demand their attention. □ [+ on ] She'd no claims on him now. □ [+ on ] He was surrounded by people, all with claims on his attention.
8 VERB If something or someone claims your attention, they need you to spend your time and effort on them. □ [V n] There is already a long list of people claiming her attention.
9 VERB If you claim money from the government, an insurance company, or another organization, you officially apply to them for it, because you think you are entitled to it according to their rules. □ [V n] Some 25 per cent of the people who are entitled to claim State benefits do not do so. □ [V ] John had taken out redundancy insurance but when he tried to claim, he was refused payment. □ [V + for ] They intend to claim for damages against the three doctors. ● N‑COUNT Claim is also a noun. □ [+ for ] …the office which has been dealing with their claim for benefit. □ [+ on ] Last time we made a claim on our insurance they paid up really quickly.
10 VERB If you claim money or other benefits from your employers, you demand them because you think you deserve or need them. □ [V n] The union claimed a pay rise worth four times the rate of inflation. ● N‑COUNT Claim is also a noun. □ [+ for ] They are making substantial claims for improved working conditions. □ Electricity workers have voted for industrial action in pursuit of a pay claim.
11 VERB If you say that a war, disease, or accident claims someone's life, you mean that they are killed in it or by it. [FORMAL ] □ [V n] Heart disease is the biggest killer, claiming 180,000 lives a year.
12 → see also no claims
13 PHRASE Someone's claim to fame is something quite important or interesting that they have done or that is connected with them. □ His greatest claim to fame is that he coached an England side to victory.
14 PHRASE If you lay claim to something you do not have, you say that it belongs to you. [FORMAL ] □ Five Asian countries lay claim to the islands.
15 to stake a claim → see stake
claim|ant /kle I mənt/ (claimants )
1 N‑COUNT A claimant is someone who is receiving money from the state because they are unemployed or they are unable to work because they are ill. [BRIT ] □ …benefit claimants.
2 N‑COUNT A claimant is someone who asks to be given something which they think they are entitled to. □ The compensation will be split between 140 claimants.
clai ms ad|just|er (claims adjusters ) also claims adjustor N‑COUNT A claims adjuster is someone who is employed by an insurance company to decide how much money a person making a claim should receive. [AM , BUSINESS ] in BRIT, use loss adjuster
clair|voy|ant /kleə r vɔ I ənt/ (clairvoyants )
1 ADJ Someone who is believed to be clairvoyant is believed to know about future events or to be able to communicate with dead people. □ …clairvoyant powers.
2 N‑COUNT A clairvoyant is someone who claims to be clairvoyant.
clam /klæ m/ (clams , clamming , clammed ) N‑COUNT Clams are a kind of shellfish which can be eaten.
▸ clam up PHRASAL VERB If someone clams up , they stop talking, often because they are shy or to avoid giving away secrets. [INFORMAL ] □ [V P ] As soon as I told her my name, she clammed up.
clam|ber /klæ mbə r / (clambers , clambering , clambered ) VERB If you clamber somewhere, you climb there with difficulty, usually using your hands as well as your feet. □ [V prep/adv] They clambered up the stone walls of a steeply terraced olive grove.
clam|my /klæ mi/ ADJ Something that is clammy is unpleasantly damp or sticky. □ [+ with ] My shirt was clammy with sweat.
clam|or|ous /klæ mərəs/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you describe people or their voices as clamorous , you mean they are talking loudly or shouting. [LITERARY ] □ …the crowded, clamorous streets.
clam|our /klæ mə r / (clamours , clamouring , clamoured ) in AM, use clamor 1 VERB If people are clamouring for something, they are demanding it in a noisy or angry way. [JOURNALISM ] □ [V + for ] …competing parties clamouring for the attention of the voter. □ [V to-inf] At breakfast next morning my two grandsons were clamouring to go swimming. ● N‑SING Clamour is also a noun. □ [+ for ] …the clamour for his resignation.
2 N‑SING Clamour is used to describe the loud noise of a large group of people talking or shouting together. □ She could hear a clamour in the road outside.