itemi‧tem /ˈaɪtəm/ ●●● S3 W2 AWL noun 
He opened the cardboard box and took out each item. The store is having a sale on furniture and household items.item on the agenda/list/menu We went on to the next item on the agenda.item of clothing/furniture/jewellery etc (=a single piece of clothing, furniture, jewellery etc) luxury items such as exotic spices and perfumes The original 1965 bottle is now a collector’s item (=one of a set of objects people like to collect because they are interesting or valuable).► see thesaurus at thing2[countable] a single, usually short, piece of news in a newspaper or magazine, or on television: I also saw that news item in the Sunday Times.3be an item informal if two people are an item, they are having a romantic or sexual relationshipCOLLOCATIONSADJECTIVES/NOUN + itema particular item· A local authority can decide whether a particular item of expenditure should be cut.a single/individual item· This is the largest amount ever paid for a single item of jewellery.an essential/important item· Salt was an important item in the Roman economy.a household item· The shop stocks a wide variety of household items.a consumer item· Import controls have been lifted on hundreds of consumer items.a luxury item· Tea and coffee, once luxury items, became standard drinks for every social class.a collector’s item (=something a collector would want to own because it is interesting or valuable)· This record is so rare that it has become a collector’s item.stolen items· The police have recovered most of the stolen items.the offending item (=something that is causing a problem – often used humorously)· Replacement of the offending item should solve the problem.miscellaneous items (=of lots of different types)· The cardboard box contained a number of miscellaneous items.phrasesan item of clothing· She’d bought a few items of clothing for her trip.an item of jewellery British English, an item of jewelry American English· Expensive items of jewellery should be insured.an item of furniture· A few items of furniture had not yet been delivered.an item of food/a food item· Ice cream was probably her favourite item of food.an item of vocabulary/a vocabulary item (=a word or expression)· Students are encouraged to write down useful vocabulary items in their notebooks.an item on the agenda/list/menu· The next item on the agenda is next month’s sales conference.a range of items (=different types of items)· Clay was used to make an impressive range of items.
WORD ORIGINitem
Origin:
1500-1600 Latin ‘in the same way, also’ (used to introduce things in a list), from ita ‘in this way’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- A comfortable, adjustable chair is the single most important item for the health of a computer user.
- an item of clothing
- Bring any old household items for the sale.
- I turned the page, and saw a small item about Muhammad Ali.
- Irene read quickly over the short news item.
- Many of the things that people in the West take for granted are considered to be luxury items here.
- My aunt discovered that her old doll was a collector's item and worth a lot of money.
- The line at the checkout was for people with eight items or fewer.
- The main item of jewellery worn by men, other than a watch, is cuff links.
- The museum has over 5,000 items of historical interest.
- The news item announcing the verdict was much smaller than the item that announced his arrest.
- The next item will be of special interest to viewers who are dog-owners.
- There's an item about the robbery on page seven.
- We moved on to the next item on the agenda.
- Anyway, he saw him again in the office at Al-Liwa just before the item appeared.
- As new inventory items are received, new loans are created.
- Each user can hold many paths each of which holds many path items.
- In some cases, lots are made up of hundreds or even thousands of copies of the same item.
THESAURUS
used when you do not need to say the name, or when you do not know the name: · What’s that thing on the kitchen table?· Have you got all your things?
a thing – used when you are not sure what the thing is: · There’s something on your shirt.
especially written a solid thing: · a sharp metal object
formal a particular kind of thing, or one of a group of things: · household items· a luxury item· an item of equipment· The items included pieces of old pottery.· You are not allowed to take sharp items onto the plane.
formal a particular kind of thing, or one of a group of things. Article is very formal, and is used especially in the phrase an article of clothing: · They found several articles of clothing in the bushes.· suspicious articles· Each article has a card with it giving more information.
(also artefact) formal an object that someone has made, especially one that is very old and has historical value: · The museum has a collection of early Roman artifacts.
(also thingamajig/thingamabob) spoken informal a thing – used especially when you cannot remember the name of the thing, but often the other person knows what you are talking about: · Can you pass me the thingy?
Longman Language Activatora news report · During the war, most reports were compiled under government restrictions.· As more reports emerge about his business affairs, his re-election looks increasingly unlikely. news/weather/newspaper etc report · We'll be giving you further news and weather reports every hour throughout the day.· Newspaper reports say Woods is "delighted" with his success.report about/on · A recent report on child abuse in The Guardian suggests that as many as one in ten children are at risk.report from · We're getting reports from the scene of the fighting that 12 hostages have been killed.
a report in a newspaper or news programme about a recent event or something that is interesting to the public: · The main story tonight is the earthquake in Albania.· a headline-grabbing story· The story I read in the newspaper said they intend to close the theatre down. story about/on: · There have been a lot of stories in the papers recently about contaminated food. cover/front page story (=the main story in a magazine or newspaper that is on its front cover): · the front page story in The Wall Street Journala story breaks (=when something is reported in the news): · When the story broke, the police initially refused to release any further details.
a short report that is part of a news programme or newspaper, magazine etc: · The next item will be of special interest to viewers who are dog-owners.item on/about: · There's an item about the robbery on page seven.· I turned the page, and saw a small item about Muhammad Ali.news item: · The news item announcing the verdict was much smaller than the item that announced his arrest.
an important or exciting piece of news that is printed in one newspaper before it appears in any other: · It was his first major scoop and he promised not to reveal the source of his information.· CNN quickly recognised the opportunity for a scoop.
an important or surprising piece of news that is printed in only one newspaper or broadcast by only one news programme, especially because someone has let them use the information before anyone else: · Michael Jackson has promised the network an exclusive.· We have exclusives that you won't find on other networks.world exclusive (=something that has never been reported anywhere before): · The newspaper has a reputation for good reporting and world exclusives.
the way an event or subject is reported in the news, especially how much space or time is given to reporting it: · Too much coverage is given to sport on TV and not enough to political issues.coverage of: · coverage of the Greek electionsmedia/television/press etc coverage: · The AIDS conference received extensive media coverage. · Leach had no difficulty getting press coverage for his stunts.
a thing use this instead of the name of something when you do not need to say its name or when you do not know what it is called. You can use thing when you mean a physical object, or something such as an event, an idea, or something that someone says: · What's that thing on the kitchen table?· There were several things that I wanted to discuss.· I cried during the whole thing.· The first thing we need to do is call Becky.adjective thing thing: · We went to the aquarium, and they have this neat new thing where the tide goes in and out over a rock pool.
a thing - use this especially when you do not know what the thing is, or you have not decided yet what it will be: · I need to get something for Greg - it's his birthday tomorrow.· There's something on your shirt, on the back.· Something went wrong with the pumping system in the pool.something something adjective: · Do you want to hear something really funny?· He wanted to get her something special, something expensive.something else (=another thing): · I've just remembered something else I wanted to tell you.something to eat/wear/read etc: · I need to have something to eat before we go out.or something (=or something similar): · There's a stone or a nail or something stuck in my shoe.
a separate solid thing, especially one that you can touch or hold in your hand: · Children should be able to point to each object as they count it.· The sculpture is made from objects he found on beaches in Mexico.inanimate object (=a thing that is not alive): · After his stroke, he was able to name inanimate objects like saws and shovels, but unable to name most living things.
one particular thing, especially one that is being bought or sold: · The line at the checkout was for people with eight items or fewer.· A comfortable, adjustable chair is the single most important item for the health of a computer user.· The museum has over 5,000 items of historical interest.item of clothing/furniture/jewellery etc (=a single piece of clothing, furniture, jewellery etc): · The main item of jewellery worn by men, other than a watch, is cuff links.household item American (=an object used in the house): · Bring any old household items for the sale.luxury item (=an expensive item that is not really necessary): · Many of the things that people in the West take for granted are considered to be luxury items here.collector's item (=a rare item that some people would pay a lot of money to have): · My aunt discovered that her old doll was a collector's item and worth a lot of money.
formal a thing, especially one of a group of things: · Each article has a written history printed on a card below the display.article of clothing/furniture/jewellery etc (=a single piece of clothing, furniture, jewellery etc): · She didn't take much with her, just a few articles of clothing and a towel.household article British (=an object used in the house): · Most of our wedding presents were household articles.
an object that someone has made, such as a tool or piece of jewellery, especially one that is interesting because it is very old, comes from a different country etc: · Many Bronze Age artifacts were discovered at Luddesdown.· Do not buy any artefacts unless they have an export permit.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRYADJECTIVES/NOUN + item washing powder and other household products household chores
· A local authority can decide whether a particular item of expenditure should be cut.
· This is the largest amount ever paid for a single item of jewellery.
· Salt was an important item in the Roman economy.
· The shop stocks a wide variety of household items.
· Import controls have been lifted on hundreds of consumer items.
· Tea and coffee, once luxury items, became standard drinks for every social class.
(=something a collector would want to own because it is interesting or valuable)· This record is so rare that it has become a collector’s item.
· The police have recovered most of the stolen items.
(=something that is causing a problem – often used humorously)· Replacement of the offending item should solve the problem.
(=of lots of different types)· The cardboard box contained a number of miscellaneous items.
phrases· She’d bought a few items of clothing for her trip.
British English, an item of jewelry American English· Expensive items of jewellery should be insured.
· A few items of furniture had not yet been delivered.
· Ice cream was probably her favourite item of food.
(=a word or expression)· Students are encouraged to write down useful vocabulary items in their notebooks.
· The next item on the agenda is next month’s sales conference.
(=different types of items)· Clay was used to make an impressive range of items.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES· How many pieces of baggage do you have?
formal (=a piece of clothing)· All items of clothing should be clearly labelled.
· Every single piece of data is important.
(=something a government or person spends money on)· Housing is the biggest single item of expenditure in the budgets of most households.
washing powder and other household products household chores (=expensive things)· At Christmas we try to afford a few luxury items.
formal (=a word, especially in a coursebook or a language class)· The difficult vocabulary items are explained at the bottom of the page.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE· The possibility of insuring certain items should be investigated.· Highlight or underline certain items and ask the student only to finish those that are so marked.· Charities and small firms are exempt, as are certain essential items, such as food as a product.· Every language has certain items which have the property of reference in the textual sense.· Occasionally it will be necessary to decide to refuse or delay access to certain items of information.· The museum staff are still keen to recover certain items from the factory.· Something might be in Jay's hands for a short while - a certain item - then it would be gone.
· As in other countries, the recession inhibited collectors from putting exceptional items on the market.· Another area of uncertainty is the treatment of exceptional items.· Operating profit grew by 14%, excluding exceptional items.· In 1992 its pre-tax profits were £795 million, after exceptional items of £125 million.· Invesco saw pre-tax profit drop 23 p.c. to £14.5m in the year to December, after an exceptional item of £16.6m.· Pre-tax profits after exceptional items slid by 5% to £902m.· This included exceptional items from the financial restructuring, but the underlying loss was cut by almost £400m to £215m.· Before exceptional items, interest cover was 5.5 times, and dividends are covered 2.8 times by diluted earnings.
· Everything was black, save the make-up, which was displayed in individual items.· Congress surrendered some of its power Thursday and gave the presidency the authority to veto individual items in spending bills.· In large transactions vendors may also negotiate a lower limit for individual items.· The content validity of individual items may be determined by inspection by some one with expertise in the area of language assessment.· And even when logically there can be no individual item we are tempted to invent one.· Since reports were in sign the lexical identification of individual items often derived from the other parameters.· Auction catalogues do not carry critical comments on individual items for sale, but there are sometimes introductions with criticism.· Responses to the individual items are scored.
· He says the increase in food prices is one of the largest items fuelling inflation.· Probably the seabirds found extra food among the small fish and marine animals which clustered near the larger items of rubbish.· The largest single item of expenditure was advertising.· All are small pieces of larger contract items.· You can also use a portable workbench as a vice to hold larger items.· Of this money, 18% is spent on computers - the largest single item of expenditure.· Sterling liabilities Time deposits form the largest item, accounting for around 50 percent of the total.
· These lexical items act upon the grammar to constrain the temporariness sense since as lexical items they denote temporary activities.· Like many distinctions, that between open and closed classes of lexical items is not an absolute one.· However, for the moment we will accept the division of lexical items into open and closed classes.· These often show a dissociation between the stem of a lexical item and its affix.· Correspondingly, we shall have to consider three aspects of the delimitation of a lexical item.· It can be marked by very low pitch, even on lexical items, loss of amplitude and a lengthy pause.· Each lexical item is given its own card and is filed alphabetically.
· Taxes were extended to more luxury items and certain public health concessions were restricted for those earning over L40,000,000 a year.· Currency crisis A government order banning the sale of luxury items was extended on Nov. 18.· Tea and coffee, once luxury items, became standard drinks for every class.· In exchange for exports of grain they received money with which they purchased manufactured goods and luxury items.· Profits range from as little as 10% on some food products to over 400% on some luxury items.· Only luxury items beyond the reach of the average household remained on open sale.
· These are covered by the Warhammer Battle Magic supplement and are included as magic item cards.· Only one character at a time may wield these magic items.· The points values for characters do not include the cost of their magic items.· He can be given one more magic item from Warhammer or Warhammer Magic at the standard points cost.· The points values of any specific magic items have been listed with each entry.· Building up experience and discovering magic items gives Samson an enhanced chance of surviving the later stages of the adventure.· The usual rule regarding magic items is that only one item of a specific type can be included.· Bosses are always equipped exactly as the rest of the unit, except that they are permitted one magic item in addition.
· With the exception of M0, all the definitions of money supply include bank deposits as the major item.· The vehicles and major items of equipment of all sorts arrived in extremely poor condition.· Regulatory reform, for example, was a major item on Reagan's agenda.· After completing the video, catalog all the major items in your notebook or computer.· Meanwhile, construction of steelwork and major engineering items is making good progress under long lead funding arrangements.· The other major items of sport-related consumers' expenditure are part of the non-sport commercial sector.· As this comment suggests, food is the major item to be paid for within the family's residual income.· Sight deposits are the other major item, accounting for around 28 percent.
· Various other items of plant have been transferred to group factories.· A small porch at the rear can be used for other small items, although access is only from inside.· You do not always have to have a specific link to other items on the syllabus.· She was paying for it when her eye was caught by a stall covered with delicately made tablecloths and other handmade items.· He may also a number of magic weapons and other items as described below.· When a painting, sculpture or other item of craftwork is sold the ownership of the copyright remains with the artist.· A rune weapon will lose its powers for this time, and other rune-based magic items will be similarly affected.· It includes a number of other items as well.
· For example, the retailer may decide not to make a profit on a particular item.· All children were asked for the reasons why they thought particular items went together.· It depends, of course, on the particular item.· It is not always easy to ascertain the source of a particular item of income.· A local authority can discuss whether particular items of expenditure be cut so that the local rate may be reduced.· Some organisations specify particular items which are not covered by the reimbursement of removal costs policy.· At the same time, the nation's rulers have reduced their requirements for particular items.
· I don't remember every single item in every untidy report that the two of you have ever put in.· Already, then, before a single news item is introduced, a great deal has been communicated.· The largest single item of expenditure was advertising.· He never failed to deal with every single item, whether it amounted to five pages or five hundred.· Of this money, 18% is spent on computers - the largest single item of expenditure.· By then sugar was fully established as the most important single item imported into Britain.· It involves retrieval of single items from a lexical output system of the kind described in Chapter 6.· On some railroads, however, it was far and away the most important single item of freight.
· A small porch at the rear can be used for other small items, although access is only from inside.· She looked around like a person hopeless of finding one small item in a huge storehouse.· Pictured here is a small selection of items available from the Edinburgh Castle shop.· Divide the students into groups and pass out the jars and the small items.· Inside there's a small hanging shelf that is handy for storing small items or for hanging a torch.· Remove price stickers from small items and new-car windows.· Jenkins, who lives a block away from the store, said she shops there almost every day for small items.
· Culture-The above specific items are probably enough of a change you may think.· A trust receipt is a legal document that creates a lien on some specific item of inventory.· However, there is one specific item in respect of which I believe - nay, I know - the Government have fallen down.· Normal installation budgets, first drawn up three years in advance, include hundreds of specific line items.· Indemnities for specific items already identified by the key features review and any further items discovered at due diligence.· The points values of any specific magic items have been listed with each entry.· Sales-packs containing samples of our goods are available or you may prefer to take specific items.· Title searches, for instance, are not necessarily specific item searches and could well be subject searches.
· Pearson J. referred to the various items in dispute, allowed some and disallowed others.· During his whaling career, he had invented various items of shipboard gear.· She headed for the door at a dead run, her new arm thumping uselessly against various items of furniture.· Indeed, one may even say that sexuality was the theme linking the various items which comprise the matrix that is Orphism.· I need to acquire various items of equipment and a car.· She may also have restrictions about how much of her pocket money she may spend on various items.· While cleaning friers the boiling solution in the well can be used with advantage to clean various other small items of equipment.· I have not even been able to describe all the various tackle items now available for carp fishing.
NOUN· You might have experimented by having a different person take the chair for different agenda items.· He has signed into law several of his top agenda items, including a tougher juvenile justice code.· It is not viable to create agenda items which partners will find irrelevant or unmanageable.· On Wednesday 13 February, we met for the second time with pensions as the agenda item.· Problems and progress in the evolution of teaching skills are an important agenda item for such meetings.· As the name implies, the initial intention was more general than the agenda item and inorganic chemical nomenclature was included.· Notice of agenda items to me please, preferably by the preceding Friday in each case.
· When feeding on natural food items there may be free amino acids which the carp can detect.· Since 1980, controls have been lifted from all but a few food items, but marketers' earnings remain low.· Yet without question its most controversial food item is human.· Trays are served accurately according to food items, beverages, and condiments marked on menu. 4.· A 50g sample of each food item must be kept for 72 hours in case there is an outbreak of food poisoning.· Know the current costs of the food items that you buy regularly.· There were some food items to be bought; she was persisting, doggedly, with the recipe book.· My 11-year-old daughter Sarah does not revel in food, but one food item she does love is grits.
· It will automatically calculate, for example, what proportion of your income goes on things like the car and household items.· It went from being a new invention to a regular household item with remarkable speed.· Mirrors were still very dubious household items.· Water was still flowing across the island, carrying along a matted raft of vegetation and srnall household items.· As well as sweaters you can make toys, baby clothes, cushion covers and all sorts of craft and household items.· Scientists tested 131 products, including toys, video cables, phone cords, place mats and other household items.· Prepare a small box or bag containing ordinary household items for each of the expected guests.· Some shoppers look for furniture, toys, books and household items as well.
· The ebb and flow of controversy in television news items did not produce corresponding trends in public interest and discussion.· Already, then, before a single news item is introduced, a great deal has been communicated.· Let's take the recording task described earlier: to prepare news items for a magazine programme or news broadcast.· Yet behind the positive news items were reports that showed racial violence had hardly disappeared.· The curious properties proposed for space time, apparently correctly, helped turn this result into a popular news item.· David notes that it is interesting that currency flying on the Vulcan - see news item - has been maintained.· We pray for Your world and think of the news items that have been headlines in the last few days.· They saw a news item about the deaths on television and advised Gore to give himself up to police.
· Face validity reflects the extent to which the test items appear to be concerned with the abilities in question.· Hopefully, the test items gave you some ideas about where to begin with your positive plot.· This can also be seen in the responses to a series of sentence-completion test items directed toward eliciting cultural values.· The test consists of nine sets of items and each set has two practice items and ten test items.· Assessment frameworks: recent developments An assessment framework is a structure to which any test item can be related.· The roof rack was a test item and did not prove successful.· Different methods can influence the difficulty of test items and so the precision in the criterion statement may still prove illusory.· It indicates that the test items themselves are accurate.
VERB· It's hard to prevent a program from modifying the registry or adding an item to the Startup group.· An and Ganschow have also added items to their already intriguing continental menu.· What extra significance is added when different items are put together?· Guess what the Add / Remove Programs item does?· Don't be afraid to add your own items to the check-list; every meeting is different.· It remodeled stores, added 30 percent more items and restocked shelves with cigarettes, health products, magazines and greeting cards.· Congress often eliminates, adds or changes items on the list.· A good time to add an item, of course, is when you buy it and the receipt is nearby.
· How is it decided whether to buy an item or to make it in-house?· But places for them to eat, sleep and buy groceries or outdoors items are cropping up more often.· A certain amount of your pension or allowance is yours to buy personal items like clothes, shoes and toiletries.· Instead, they buy these items on open account from their suppliers on whatever credit terms are available.· I should mention that I had bought a few items of clothing that morning, before the trial began.· The need was recognized on entering the store and the shopper bought the exact item planned.· This means using your imagination and buying some fairly unusual items.· In 1939, Minnesota prohibited line agencies from buying items that cost more than $ 50 without approval from Central Purchasing.
· The Chart model has a far larger lexicon, however, containing 4,000 lexical items.· Prepare a small box or bag containing ordinary household items for each of the expected guests.· The library contains some 350,000 items very well catalogued and referenced.· These are usually substantially negotiated before the seller produces the disclosure letter which contains items of non-compliance with the warranties.· She must therefore establish with the client whether those later accounts contain similar items to those challenged for previous years.· Their catalogues contain fewer items, but the range of publications is wider than at the turn of the century.· A list of such bills for the period 27 April to 31 May 1546 contains 140 separate items.· The second part must contain the item name.
· That includes items your bought but never wore, that do not fit, are uncomfortable, or that you dislike.· Further vocabulary items which can also be employed in the drills may also be included.· He said he voted against the crime bill because it included items he opposed, such as midnight basketball programs.· These are covered by the Warhammer Battle Magic supplement and are included as magic item cards.· She included difficult filler items without pronouns to divert the subjects' attention from the anaphoric expressions.· This included exceptional items from the financial restructuring, but the underlying loss was cut by almost £400m to £215m.
· These rules include the items listed below.· In private and public statements Washington listed five items that could be considered encouraging symbols of a more constructive policy.· Typically, derived words are listed as separate items in a dictionary.· A veteran of four deployments, Shuart listed such items as exercise gear and extra writing paper and envelopes.· Make a check list of essential items such as a corkscrew, bottle opener and a sharp knife for cutting bread etc.· It also lists the items usually included in an expatriate's benefits package.· The inventory consists of three pages listing items of cloth.
· In capitalist society the capitalist exploits this labour by employing it to produce items for sale - commodities - in return for a wage.· Leaving London behind to set up workshops producing simple functional items, taking the beauty of nature around them for their inspiration.· The economics department at Ripon Grammar School have set up a small business producing items connected with the history of the city.· Within a few years, snuff taking declined and the box manufacturers were forced to produce new items.
· He refused to say where he had sold the items he had taken from the house.· Cost of goods sold represents such items as mat & rials costs, direct factory labor, and factory overhead costs.· We will endeavour to sell your items for you.· Limited assortment stores, sometimes called box stores, stock less than 1500 items; typically they sell no items requiring refrigeration.· Vending machines Vending machines usually sell items such as hot or cold drinks chocolate and cigarettes.· They will also be prohibited from selling items which were not on sale prior to the discounts.· The fishmonger at the top, opposite the church, was selling this last item.· Last year, it branched out into corporate gifts and selling limited items directly to the public.
· A small porch at the rear can be used for other small items, although access is only from inside.· This money was then used to purchase items they could not produce themselves, like salt.· Languages vary tremendously in the type of conjunctions they prefer to use as well as the frequency with which they use such items.· Managers still used line items to track their expenditures, but the council never saw them or voted on them.· The grant can be used to purchase any items other than stock or materials.· When speakers of one language borrow words from another language, the foreign words come to be used as regular vocabulary items.· A modified Delphi technique was used in assessing candidate items.· Gold and silver have attracted particular attention because they were used to make prestige items such as jewellery and regalia.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRYPHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
- They're not an item any more.
- All of the solos are items from original Sousa programs.
- Assets A financial institution's assets are items it owns and its claims on others.
- Here is an item he told me today.
- Specials are items that are priced less than their regular price for a period of time, perhaps only one day.
- The motivation issue is not an easy one to discuss, since it is an item which is seldom adequately defined.
- Third, there are items that are not measured because of shortcomings of the data sources.
- This is an item which should not be used.
- He then needs to estimate the desired shelf stock size for each category on the basis of this record of use.
- So we need to look for books that become standard stock items in schools.
- Twenty five percent off stock items and 15 percent off ordered furniture.
- Where this is impracticable, groups or categories of stock items which are similar will need to be taken together.
WORD FAMILYnounitemverbitemize
1[countable] a single thing, especially one thing in a list, group, or set of things: He opened the cardboard box and took out each item. The store is having a sale on furniture and household items.item on the agenda/list/menu We went on to the next item on the agenda.item of clothing/furniture/jewellery etc (=a single piece of clothing, furniture, jewellery etc) luxury items such as exotic spices and perfumes The original 1965 bottle is now a collector’s item (=one of a set of objects people like to collect because they are interesting or valuable).► see thesaurus at thing2[countable] a single, usually short, piece of news in a newspaper or magazine, or on television: I also saw that news item in the Sunday Times.3be an item informal if two people are an item, they are having a romantic or sexual relationshipCOLLOCATIONSADJECTIVES/NOUN + itema particular item· A local authority can decide whether a particular item of expenditure should be cut.a single/individual item· This is the largest amount ever paid for a single item of jewellery.an essential/important item· Salt was an important item in the Roman economy.a household item· The shop stocks a wide variety of household items.a consumer item· Import controls have been lifted on hundreds of consumer items.a luxury item· Tea and coffee, once luxury items, became standard drinks for every social class.a collector’s item (=something a collector would want to own because it is interesting or valuable)· This record is so rare that it has become a collector’s item.stolen items· The police have recovered most of the stolen items.the offending item (=something that is causing a problem – often used humorously)· Replacement of the offending item should solve the problem.miscellaneous items (=of lots of different types)· The cardboard box contained a number of miscellaneous items.phrasesan item of clothing· She’d bought a few items of clothing for her trip.an item of jewellery British English, an item of jewelry American English· Expensive items of jewellery should be insured.an item of furniture· A few items of furniture had not yet been delivered.an item of food/a food item· Ice cream was probably her favourite item of food.an item of vocabulary/a vocabulary item (=a word or expression)· Students are encouraged to write down useful vocabulary items in their notebooks.an item on the agenda/list/menu· The next item on the agenda is next month’s sales conference.a range of items (=different types of items)· Clay was used to make an impressive range of items.