Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense bones, present participle boning, past tense, past participle boned
1. variable noun
Your bones are the hard parts inside your body which together form your skeleton.
Many passengers suffered broken bones.
Stephen fractured a thigh bone.
The body is made up primarily of bone, muscle, and fat.
She scooped the chicken bones back into the stewpot.
2. verb
If you bone a piece of meat or fish, you remove the bones from it before cooking it.
Make sure that you do not pierce the skin when boning the chicken thighs. [VERB noun]
The boned fish is so easy to serve. [VERB-ed]
3. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
A bone tool or ornament is made of bone.
...a small, expensive pocketknife with a bone handle.
4. See also marrow bone, T-bone steak
5.
See bare bones
6.
See close to the bone
7.
See to feel something in your bones
8.
See make no bones
9.
See make no bones
10.
See skin and bone
11.
See to cut something to the bone
12.
See to the bone
Phrasal verbs:
See bone up on
bone in British English
(bəʊn)
noun
1.
any of the various structures that make up the skeleton in most vertebrates
2.
the porous rigid tissue of which these parts are made, consisting of a matrix of collagen and inorganic salts, esp calcium phosphate, interspersed with canals and small holes
▶ Related adjectives: osseous, osteal
3.
something consisting of bone or a bonelike substance
4. (plural)
the human skeleton or body
they laid his bones to rest
come and rest your bones
5.
a thin strip of whalebone, light metal, plastic, etc, used to stiffen corsets and brassieres
6. (plural)
the essentials (esp in the phrase the bare bones)
to explain the bones of a situation
7. (plural)
dice
8. (plural) an informal nickname for a doctor
9. close to the bone
10. feel in one's bones
11. have a bone to pick
12. make no bones about
13. point the bone
verb(mainly tr)
14.
to remove the bones from (meat for cooking, etc)
15.
to stiffen (a corset, etc) by inserting bones
16.
to fertilize with bone meal
17. vulgar, slang
to have sexual intercourse with
18. British a slang word for steal
Derived forms
boneless (ˈboneless)
adjective
Word origin
Old English bān; related to Old Norse béin, Old Frisian bēn, Old High German bein
Bône in British English
(French bon)
noun
a former name of Annaba
Bône in American English
(boʊn)
Obsolete
Annaba
bone in American English
(boʊn)
noun
1.
any of the separate parts of the hard connective tissue forming the skeleton of most full-grown vertebrate animals
2.
this tissue, composed essentially of living cells embedded in hard calcium compounds
3. [pl.]
the skeleton
4. [pl.]
the body, living or dead
5.
a bonelike substance or part, as whalebone
6.
a thing made of bone or of bonelike material
; specif.,
a.
a corset stay
b. [pl.]; Informal
dice
7.
a. [pl.]
flat sticks used as clappers in minstrel shows
b. US; [pl., with sing. v.]
an end man in a minstrel show
8.
bone white
verb transitiveWord forms: boned or ˈboning
9.
to remove the bones from
10.
to put whalebone or other stiffening into
11.
to fertilize with bone meal
verb intransitive Slang
12. US
to study hard and hurriedly, as in preparation for an examination; cram
usually with up
Idioms:
feel in one's bones
have a bone to pick
make no bones about
Word origin
ME bon < OE ban, bone, esp. of a limb, akin to Ger bein, a leg; only Gmc
More idioms containing
bone
work your fingers to the bone
dry as a bone
have a bone to pick with someone
cut something to the bone
close to the bone
a bone of contention
Examples of 'bone' in a sentence
bone
The approach was tested successfully on mice with bone cancer.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Anything put clearly in writing is less likely to become a bone of contention.
The Sun (2016)
Many need surgery to put bones back in place.
The Sun (2016)
The results were shocking and ruined her flawless skin and perfect bone structure.
The Sun (2016)
Although its other benefits, such as improving bone density, are beneficial as you age.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
With 11 players absent, he is down to the bare bones.
The Sun (2017)
Now a large scientific team that I was part of has discovered new fossil bones and stone tools that challenge this view.
Smithsonian Mag (2017)
Remove the skin and bones from the fish.
The Sun (2006)
Her fingers had been bitten so hard the bones fractured.
The Sun (2009)
They might as well bring back my bones.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Only give the bare bones such as a name.
The Sun (2010)
This is a hip bone and the skin that was left over.
The Sun (2010)
Did their mother die of ennui or choke on a chicken bone?
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
It was just bones and a bit of skin.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
This year a repeat scan showed a slight worsening of my bone density.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
This has been a serious bone of contention at home.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Metal foam has also been used to form prosthetic bones and limbs.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
There were fractured bones but no serious injuries.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
There is also an acute shortage of bone marrow and stem cell donors.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
They also made no bones about it being driven in part by the need to save money.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
They are a piece of bone and a layer of skin.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
We look forward to hearing more meat on the bone in the coming months.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
They shaved off some of the bone and removed the bobble.
The Sun (2013)
She resembled a stick and we agreed that the bones of a skeleton did not suit either of us.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
There isn't a bad bone in his body.
The Sun (2014)
A salt intake that high has been linked to an increased risk of kidney problems and bone thinning.
The Sun (2008)
After my brother died from bone cancer when he was 19 it made me realise family needs to come first.
The Sun (2011)
Word lists with
bone
Industrial oils
In other languages
bone
British English: bone /bəʊn/ NOUN
Your bones are the hard parts inside your body which together form your skeleton.
He broke his thigh bone.
American English: bone
Arabic: عَظْمَة
Brazilian Portuguese: osso
Chinese: 骨头
Croatian: kost
Czech: kost
Danish: knogle
Dutch: bot
European Spanish: hueso
Finnish: luu
French: os
German: Knochen
Greek: οστό
Italian: osso
Japanese: 骨
Korean: 뼈
Norwegian: bein
Polish: kość
European Portuguese: osso
Romanian: os
Russian: кость
Latin American Spanish: hueso
Swedish: ben
Thai: กระดูก
Turkish: kemik
Ukrainian: кістка
Vietnamese: xương
British English: bone VERB
If you bone a piece of meat or fish, you remove the bones from it before cooking it.
Make sure that you do not pierce the skin when boning the chicken thighs.
American English: bone
Brazilian Portuguese: desossar
Chinese: 去除肉、鱼 骨或刺
European Spanish: deshuesar
French: désosser
German: die Knochen herauslösen aus
Italian: disossarecarne
Japanese: 骨を抜く
Korean: 뼈를 발라내다
European Portuguese: desossar
Latin American Spanish: deshuesar
All related terms of 'bone'
T-bone
a large choice steak cut from the sirloin of beef, containing a T-shaped bone
bone up
to study intensively
bone ash
the residue obtained when bones are burned in air, consisting mainly of calcium phosphate . It is used as a fertilizer and in the manufacture of bone china
bone bed
a sediment containing large quantities of fossilized animal remains , such as bones, teeth, scales , etc
bone cell
a cell found in bone in any of its functional states ; an osteoblast, osteoclast , or osteocyte
bone dry
If you say that something is bone dry , you are emphasizing that it is very dry indeed.
bone idle
very idle ; extremely lazy
bone meal
Bone meal is a substance made from animal bones which is used as a fertilizer .
bone oil
a dark brown pungent oil, containing pyridine and hydrocarbons , obtained by the destructive distillation of bones
bone wax
a mixture of wax , oil , and carbolic acid applied to the cut surface of a bone to prevent bleeding
heel bone
the largest tarsal bone, forming the heel in humans
leg bone
a bone of the leg
long bone
any of the long, cylindrical , marrow-containing bones of the limbs
pin bone
a hip bone on a cow , horse or similar animal, that sticks out
shin bone
the inner and thicker of the two bones of the human leg between the knee and ankle
bone black
a fine charcoal made by burning animal bones in closed containers: used as a pigment , in refining sugar , etc.
bone china
Bone china is a kind of thin china that contains powdered bone.
bone health
A person's health is the condition of their body and the extent to which it is free from illness or is able to resist illness.
bone marrow
Bone marrow is the soft fatty substance inside human or animal bones.
bone shaker
an early-model bicycle , esp. one with hard rubber tires
bone white
any of various shades of grayish or yellowish white
cannon bone
a bone in the legs of horses and other hoofed animals consisting of greatly elongated fused metatarsals or metacarpals
coffin bone
the terminal phalangeal bone inside the hoof of the horse and similar animals
crazy bone
→ funny bone
fetter bone
the part of a horse's foot between the fetlock and the hoof
funny bone
Your funny bone is the soft part of your elbow which gives you an uncomfortable feeling on your skin if it is hit .
hamate bone
a wedgelike bone on the side of the wrist connecting the wrist with the fourth and fifth metacarpals , which connect to the ring and little fingers
haunch bone
the ilium , or hipbone
hyoid bone
the horseshoe-shaped bone that lies at the base of the tongue and above the thyroid cartilage or a corresponding bone or group of bones in other vertebrates
jugal bone
of or relating to the zygomatic bone
malar bone
of or relating to the cheek or cheekbone
marrow bone
Marrow bones are the bones of certain animals, especially cows , that contain a lot of bone marrow. They are used in cooking and in dog food .
splint bone
one of the rudimentary metacarpal or metatarsal bones in horses and similar animals, occurring on each side of the cannon bone
thigh bone
the longest thickest bone of the human skeleton , articulating with the pelvis above and the knee below
bone-chilling
extremely cold
bone density
the degree of compactness of bone
bone strength
Your strength is the physical energy that you have, which gives you the ability to perform various actions, such as lifting or moving things.
bone up on
If you bone up on a subject , you try to find out about it or remind yourself of what you have already learned about it.
frontal bone
the bone forming the forehead and the upper parts of the orbits . It contains several air spaces
membrane bone
any bone that develops within membranous tissue , such as the clavicle and bones of the skull , without cartilage formation
parietal bone
either of the two bones forming part of the roof and sides of the skull
sphenoid bone
the large butterfly-shaped compound bone at the base of the skull , containing a protective depression for the pituitary gland
splenial bone
a small bone in the lower jaw of some animals, such as reptiles and birds
stirrup bone
the stapes , one of the three bones of the middle ear
temporal bone
either of two compound bones forming part of the sides and base of the skull : they surround the organs of hearing
tympanic bone
the part of the temporal bone in the mammalian skull that surrounds the auditory canal
unciform bone
a small bone of the wrist
bone conduction
the transmission of sound vibrations to the internal ear through the cranial bones (opposed to air conduction )
bone structure
the skeletal composition of a human or animal
bone turquoise
fossilized bone or tooth stained blue with iron phosphate and used as a gemstone
Chinese translation of 'bone'
bone
(bəun)
n
(c/u) (in body of human, animal, Anat) 骨头(頭) (gǔtou) (根, gēn)
(c) (in fish) 刺 (cì) (根, gēn)
vt
[meat, fish]剔除骨刺 (tìchú gǔcì)
I've got a bone to pick with you我对(對)你有怨言 (wǒ duì nǐ yǒu yuànyán)
to make no bones about sth公开(開)承认(認)某事 (gōngkāi chéngrèn mǒushì)