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body

[ bod-ee ]

/ ˈbɒd i /

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See synonyms for: body / bodied / bodies / bodying on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural bod·ies.

the physical structure and material substance of an animal or plant, living or dead.

a corpse; carcass.

the trunk or main mass of a thing: the body of a tree.

Anatomy, Zoology. the physical structure of a human being or animal, not including the head, limbs, and tail; trunk; torso.

Architecture. the principal mass of a building.

the section of a vehicle, usually in the shape of a box, cylindrical container, or platform, in or on which passengers or the load is carried.

Nautical. the hull of a ship.

Aeronautics. the fuselage of a plane.

Printing. the shank of a type, supporting the face.

Geometry. a figure having the three dimensions of length, breadth, and thickness; a solid.

Physics. a mass, especially one considered as a whole.

the major portion of an army, population, etc.: The body of the American people favors the president's policy.

the principal part of a speech or document, minus introduction, conclusion, indexes, etc.

a person: She's a quiet sort of body.

Law. the physical person of an individual.

a collective group: student body; corporate body.

Also called heavenly body .Astronomy. an object in space, as a planet or star.

a separate physical mass or quantity, especially as distinguished from other masses or quantities.

consistency or density; richness; substance: This wine has good body.Wool has more body than rayon.

the part of a dress that covers the trunk or the part of the trunk above the waist.

Ceramics. the basic material of which a ceramic article is made.

verb (used with object), bod·ied, bod·y·ing.

to invest with or as with a body.

to represent in bodily form (usually followed by forth).

adjective

of or relating to the body; bodily.

of or relating to the main reading matter of a book, article, etc., as opposed to headings, illustrations, or the like.

OTHER WORDS FOR body

3 main, bulk.

12 mass, group, throng, multitude; preponderance, majority.

See synonyms for body on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR body

12 handful, scattering, few.

See antonyms for body on Thesaurus.com

VIDEO FOR BODY

Can You Name These Forgotten Body Parts?

Did you know that every part of our body has a name? And we aren't just talking about elbows and toes. Can you name these small, sometimes forgotten, body parts?

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QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about body

in a body, as a group; together; collectively: We left the party in a body.

keep body and soul together, to support oneself; maintain life: Few writers can make enough to keep body and soul together without another occupation.

Origin of body

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English bodig; akin to Old High German botah

synonym study for body

1, 2. Body, carcass, corpse, cadaver agree in referring to a physical organism, usually human or animal. Body refers to the material organism of an individual, human or animal, either living or dead: the muscles in a horse's body; the body of a victim ( human or animal ). Carcass refers only to the dead body of an animal, unless applied humorously or contemptuously to the human body: a sheep's carcass; Save your carcass. Corpse refers only to the dead body of a human being: preparing a corpse for burial. Cadaver refers to a dead body, usually a corpse, particularly one used for scientific study: dissection of cadavers in anatomy classes.

Words nearby body

Bodley, Bodmin, Bodö, Bodoni, Bodvar Bjarki, body, body armour, body art, body bag, body beautiful, body blow

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use body in a sentence

Jiménez also told the Blade the morgue did not properly store her sister’s body.
Tijuana authorities criticized over handling of transgender woman’s murder|Michael K. Lavers|September 17, 2020|Washington Blade
She feared that confinement was taking its toll on her body.
A woman in ICE detention says her fallopian tube was removed without her consent|Nicole Narea|September 17, 2020|Vox
However the strength of these independent bodies completely depends on who is put into these positions and ultimately the decisions for those lie within the office of the president.
Podcast: COVID-19 is helping turn Brazil into a surveillance state|Anthony Green|September 16, 2020|MIT Technology Review
In the human body, thousands of different players make the meaningful whole possible.
What the Meadow Teaches Us - Issue 90: Something Green|Andreas Weber|September 16, 2020|Nautilus

The potential advantage of a vaccine using an attenuated live strain is that the body will encounter—and be able to react to—the entire virus.
Synthetic biologists have created a slow-growing version of the coronavirus to give as a vaccine|David Rotman|September 16, 2020|MIT Technology Review
And not just sick in the body but in your mind, because you start obsessing.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In other words, the free speech exhibited by the folks at Charlie Hebdo was not virtuous—until there was a body count.
Politicians Only Love Journalists When They're Dead|Luke O’Neil|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It jettisons jiggling ribbons of joy to every part of my body.
‘A Gronking to Remember’ Speed Read: 8 Naughtiest Bits|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
My body used for his hard pleasure; a stone god gripping me in his hands.
‘A Gronking to Remember’ Speed Read: 8 Naughtiest Bits|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“I have to think her body type played a role,” said Rachel Greenblatt, a Lecturer in Jewish Studies at Harvard University.
Why Was Bess Myerson the First and Last Jewish Miss America?|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The Duchess had also a tent for their sick men; so that we had a small town of our own here, and every body employed.
The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner (1801)|Daniel Defoe
The sad end of the mission to King M'Bongo has been narrated in the body of this work.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
The evening previous to his death he was walking about the farm, in the full possession of all his faculties of mind and body.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
The generall mayne body of the planters are divided into Officers, Laborers, Farmors.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
(c) Decomposition of exudates anywhere in the body, as in empyema, bronchiectasis, and large tuberculous cavities.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd

British Dictionary definitions for body

body

/ (ˈbɒdɪ) /

noun plural bodies

the entire physical structure of an animal or human beingRelated adjectives: corporeal, physical
(as modifier)body odour

the flesh, as opposed to the spiritwhile we are still in the body

the trunk or torso, not including the limbs, head, or tail

a dead human or animal; corpse

the largest or main part of anythingthe body of a vehicle; the body of a plant

a separate or distinct mass of water or land

the main part; majoritythe body of public opinion

the central part of a written workthe body of a thesis as opposed to the footnotes

a number of individuals regarded as a single entity; groupthe student body; they marched in a body

maths a three-dimensional region with an interior

physics an object or substance that has three dimensions, a mass, and is distinguishable from surrounding objects

fullness in the appearance of the hair

the characteristic full quality of certain wines, determined by the density and the content of alcohol or tannina Burgundy has a heavy body

substance or firmness, esp of cloth

the sound box of a guitar, violin, or similar stringed instrument

a woman's close-fitting one-piece garment for the torso

the part of a dress covering the body from the shoulders to the waist

another name for shank (def. 11)

the pigment contained in or added to paint, dye, etc
the opacity of a paint in covering a surface
the apparent viscosity of a paint

(in watercolour painting)

a white filler mixed with pigments to make them opaque
(as modifier)body colour See also gouache

printing the measurement from top to bottom of a piece of type, usually ascender to descender

an informal or dialect word for a person

keep body and soul together to manage to keep alive; survive

(modifier) of or relating to the main reading matter of a book as distinct from headings, illustrations, appendices, etcthe body text

verb bodies, bodying or bodied (tr)

(usually foll by forth) to give a body or shape to

Word Origin for body

Old English bodig; related to Old Norse buthkr box, Old High German botah body

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with body

body

In addition to the idioms beginning with body

body blow
body English

also see:

keep body and soul together
over my dead body

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.