bar
noun /bɑː(r)/
/bɑːr/
Idioms 
enlarge image[countable] a place where you can buy and drink alcoholic and other drinks- We arranged to meet in a bar called the Flamingo.
- The area is full of restaurants and bars.
- The bar staff are very friendly.
- It's the island’s only licensed bar (= one that is allowed to sell alcoholic drinks).
- (British English) I found David in the bar of the Red Lion (= a room in a pub where drinks are served).
Extra ExamplesTopics Drinksa2- The hotel has a restaurant, bar and swimming pool.
- There were not many people in the bar.
- He's been working in a bar called the Anvil.
- We could meet at the theatre and have a drink in the bar.
- It's a singles bar.
- It was supposed to be a restaurant but seemed more like a dive bar.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- licensed
- crowded
- open
- …
- enter
- frequent
- go to
- …
- food
- menu
- snacks
- …
- in a/the bar
- at a/the bar
- [countable] (especially in compounds) a place in which a particular kind of food or drink is the main thing that is served
- a sushi bar
- The hotel has a cocktail bar on the top floor.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- licensed
- crowded
- open
- …
- enter
- frequent
- go to
- …
- food
- menu
- snacks
- …
- in a/the bar
- at a/the bar
- [countable] a long wide wooden surface where drinks, etc. are served
- at the bar She was sitting at the bar.
- behind the bar He spent the summer working behind the bar at the local pub.
- It was so crowded I couldn't get to the bar.
Extra ExamplesTopics Drinksb1- They were chatting at the bar.
- The barmaid stood behind the bar.
- I didn't recognize the man who was serving behind the bar.
- (humorous) You can usually find him propping up (= leaning on) the bar of the Queen's Head.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- breakfast
- be propping up
- at the bar
- behind the bar
- [countable] a piece of something with straight sides
- a bar of chocolate/soap
- a chocolate bar
- (North American English) a candy bar
Vocabulary Building A bar of …A bar of …If you want to describe a whole unit of a particular substance, or a group of things that are normally together, for example when you buy them, there are different words to use.see also energy bar, Nanaimo bar- a bar of soap/chocolate; a candy bar
- a block of ice/stone/wood
- a bolt/roll/length of fabric
- an ice/a sugar cube
- a loaf of bread
- a roll of film/carpet
- a slab of marble/concrete
- a stick of gum
- a bunch of bananas/grapes
- a bunch/bouquet of flowers
- a bundle of sticks
- a set/bunch of keys
- a set of chairs/glasses/clothes/guitar strings
- [countable] a long straight piece of metal or wood. Bars are often used to stop somebody from getting through a space.
- He smashed the window with an iron bar.
- The room was small, with bars on the windows.
- The windows at street level were fitted with bars.
- a five-bar gate (= one made with five horizontal bars of wood)
- a long narrow area, usually at the top or side of a computer screen, that contains links or pull-down menus or displays information about the website or program that you are using see also address bar, menu bar, navigation bar, scroll bar, title bar
- the bar[singular] the crossbar of a goal
- His shot hit the bar.
- [countable] a band of colour or light
- Bars of sunlight slanted down from the tall narrow windows.
- [countable, usually singular] bar (to something) a thing that stops somebody from doing something
- At that time being a woman was a bar to promotion in most professions.
- (British English)
enlarge image(North American English also measure)[countable] one of the short sections of equal length that a piece of music is divided into, and the notes that are in it- four beats to the bar
- the opening bars of a piece of music
- She played a few bars on the piano.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + bar- hum
- play
- sing
- …
- in a/the bar
- two, four, etc. beats to the bar
- the Bar[singular] (British English) the profession of barrister (= a lawyer in a higher court)
- to be called to the Bar (= allowed to work as a qualified barrister)
CultureTo be called to the Bar is to be received into the profession of barrister after training for the Bar. In Britain the Bar is governed by the Bar Council. The head of the Bar of England and Wales and the Bar of Northern Ireland is called the attorney general, and the head of the Scottish Bar is called the Dean of Faculty.Topics Law and justicec2 - the Bar[singular] (North American English) the profession of any kind of lawyer
- a unit for measuring the pressure of the atmosphere, equal to a hundred thousand newtons per square metre see also millibar
- [countable] a piece of metal with wire wrapped around it that becomes red and hot when electricity is passed through it
- Switch another bar on if you’re cold.
for drinks/food
of chocolate/soap
of metal/wood
in computing
in sports
of colour/light
that prevents something
in music
law
measurement
in electric fire
Word Originnoun senses 1 to 12 Middle English: from Old French barre (noun), barrer (verb), of unknown origin. noun sense 13 early 20th cent.: from Greek baros ‘weight’.
Idioms
behind bars
- (informal) in prison
- The murderer is now safely behind bars.
lower the bar
- to set a new, lower standard of quality or performance
- In the current economic climate we may need to lower the bar on quotas.
not have a bar of something
- (Australian English, New Zealand English, informal) to have nothing to do with something
- If he tries to sell you his car, don't have a bar of it.
raise the bar
- to set a new, higher standard of quality or performance
- The factory has raised the bar on productivity, food safety and quality.
- This latest computer game raises the bar for interface design.
- The awards go to people who have truly raised the bar.
- Perhaps the new admission requirements raised the bar too high.
set the bar
- to set a standard of quality or performance
- The show really sets the bar for artistic invention.
- Sofia sets the bar very high for what she expects of herself.