purpose: The purpose of the occasion was to raise money for medical supplies.
job: Their main job is to preserve health rather than treat illness.
role: …the drug's role in preventing more serious effects of infection. VERB 2
work: The pump doesn't work and we have no running water.
run: We told him to wait out front with the engine running.
operate: The number of these machines operating around the world has increased hugely.
func|tion|al /fʌ ŋkʃən ə l/
1 ADJ Functional things are useful rather than decorative. □ …modern, functional furniture. □ The decor is functional.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] Functional means relating to the way in which something works or operates, or relating to how useful it is. □ …rules defining the territorial boundaries and functional limits of the local state.
3 ADJ Functional equipment works or operates in the way that it is supposed to. □ We have fully functional smoke alarms on all staircases.
func|tion|al|ism /fʌ ŋkʃənəl I zəm/ N‑UNCOUNT Functionalism is the idea that the most important aspect of something, especially the design of a building or piece of furniture, is how it is going to be used or its usefulness. [TECHNICAL ]
func|tion|al|ity /fʌ ŋkʃ ə næ l I ti/ N‑UNCOUNT The functionality of a computer or other machine is how useful it is or how many functions it can perform. □ It is significantly more compact than any comparable laptop, with no loss in functionality.
func|tion|ary /fʌ ŋkʃənəri, [AM ] -neri/ (functionaries ) N‑COUNT A functionary is a person whose job is to do administrative work, especially for a government or a political party. [FORMAL ]
fu nc|tion key (function keys ) N‑COUNT Function keys are the keys along the top of a computer keyboard, usually numbered from F1 to F12. Each key is designed to make a particular thing happen when you press it. [COMPUTING ] □ It's always worth consulting the manual to find out what the function keys do.
fund ◆◆◆ /fʌ nd/ (funds , funding , funded )
1 N‑PLURAL Funds are amounts of money that are available to be spent, especially money that is given to an organization or person for a particular purpose. □ The charity raises funds for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy. □ …government funds.
2 → see also fund-raising
3 N‑COUNT [oft n N ] A fund is an amount of money that is collected or saved for a particular purpose. □ [+ for ] …a scholarship fund for undergraduate engineering students.
4 → see also trust fund
5 VERB When a person or organization funds something, they provide money for it. □ [be V -ed] The airport is being privately funded by a construction group. □ [V -ed] …a new privately funded scheme. ● -funded COMB □ …government-funded institutions.
6 N‑COUNT If you have a fund of something, you have a lot of it. □ [+ of ] He is possessed of an extraordinary fund of energy.
fun|da|men|tal ◆◇◇ /fʌ ndəme nt ə l/
1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] You use fundamental to describe things, activities, and principles that are very important or essential. They affect the basic nature of other things or are the most important element upon which other things depend. □ Our constitution embodies all the fundamental principles of democracy. □ A fundamental human right is being withheld from these people.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] You use fundamental to describe something which exists at a deep and basic level, and is therefore likely to continue. □ But on this question, the two leaders have very fundamental differences.
3 ADJ If one thing is fundamental to another, it is absolutely necessary to it, and the second thing cannot exist, succeed, or be imagined without it. □ The method they pioneered remains fundamental to research into the behaviour of nerve cells.
4 ADJ [ADJ n] You can use fundamental to show that you are referring to what you consider to be the most important aspect of a situation, and that you are not concerned with less important details. □ The fundamental problem lies in their inability to distinguish between reality and invention. SYNONYMS fundamental ADJ 1
centraclass="underline" …a central part of their culture.
key: Education is likely to be a key issue in the next election.
basic: Access to justice is a basic right.
essentiaclass="underline" Jordan promised to trim the city budget without cutting essential services.
fun|da|men|tal|ism /fʌ ndəme ntəl I zəm/ N‑UNCOUNT Fundamentalism is the belief in the original form of a religion or theory, without accepting any later ideas. □ Religious fundamentalism was spreading in the region. ● fun|da|men|tal|ist (fundamentalists ) N‑COUNT [oft N n] □ He will try to satisfy both wings of the party, the fundamentalists and the realists. □ …fundamentalist Christians.
fun|da|men|tal|ly /fʌ ndəme ntəli/
1 ADV You use fundamentally for emphasis when you are stating an opinion, or when you are making an important or general statement about something. [EMPHASIS ] □ Fundamentally, women like him for his sensitivity and charming vulnerability. □ He can be very charming, but he is fundamentally a bully.
2 ADV [ADV with v] You use fundamentally to indicate that something affects or relates to the deep, basic nature of something. □ He disagreed fundamentally with the President's judgment. □ Environmentalists say the treaty is fundamentally flawed.
fun|da|men|tals /fʌndəme ntəlz/ N‑PLURAL The fundamentals of something are its simplest, most important elements, ideas, or principles, in contrast to more complicated or detailed ones. □ [+ of ] …teaching small children the fundamentals of road safety. □ They agree on fundamentals, like the need for further political reform.