publicadjective
uk/ˈpʌb.lɪk/us/ˈpʌb.lɪk/public adjective (PEOPLE)
B2 relating to or involving people in general, rather than being limited to a particular group of people:
More examples
- The new tax caused a huge amount of public anger.
- She will be making a public appearance, signing copies of her latest novel.
- Her speech failed to generate the public support she had been hoping for.
- The public mood changed dramatically after the bombing.
- The government is trying to restore public confidence in its management of the economy.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Ordinary people
- community
- Essex girl
- folk
- grassroots
- Jane Doe
- Joe Bloggs
- mass
- mass market
- Middle America
- mortal
- multitude
- omnibus
- on the ground idiom
- popular
- popularly
- the common man idiom
- the general public
- the hoi polloi
- the man/woman in the street idiom
- the man/woman on the Clapham omnibus idiom
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public adjective (GOVERNMENT)
B1 provided by the government from taxes to be available to everyone:
More examples
- In the survey, a majority of people favoured higher taxes and better public services over tax cuts.
- The prime minister has announced that public spending will be increased next year.
- We must stop public money being misspent in this way.
- The new government's policy is to transfer state industries from the public sector to the private sector.
- It is illegal for public officials to solicit gifts or money in exchange for favours.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
UK politics: government administration & organisation
- awkward
- backbench
- bench
- collectivization
- D-notice
- decentralize
- loyalist
- maladministration
- midterm
- Number Ten
- ombudsman
- order paper
- policy
- positive vetting
- privatize
- prorogue
- reshuffle
- soviet
- Westminster
- whip
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public adjective (PLACE)
A public place is one where a lot of people are:
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Ordinary people
- community
- Essex girl
- folk
- grassroots
- Jane Doe
- Joe Bloggs
- mass
- mass market
- Middle America
- mortal
- multitude
- omnibus
- on the ground idiom
- popular
- popularly
- the common man idiom
- the general public
- the hoi polloi
- the man/woman in the street idiom
- the man/woman on the Clapham omnibus idiom
See more results »
Idiom(s)
publicnoun [ U, + sing/pl verb ]
uk/ˈpʌb.lɪk/us/ˈpʌb.lɪk/More examples
- Mass murders hold a gruesome fascination for the public.
- Companies publish annual reports to inform the public about the previous year's activities.
- The garden in all its glory is now open to the public.
- The police are appealing to the public for any information about the missing girl.
- The company only supplies its goods to the building trade, not direct to the public.
B1 all ordinary people:
the group of people who are involved with you or your organization, especially in a business relationship:
B2 in a place where people can see you:
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Ordinary people
- community
- Essex girl
- folk
- grassroots
- Jane Doe
- Joe Bloggs
- mass
- mass market
- Middle America
- mortal
- multitude
- omnibus
- on the ground idiom
- popular
- popularly
- the common man idiom
- the general public
- the hoi polloi
- the man/woman in the street idiom
- the man/woman on the Clapham omnibus idiom
See more results »
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics: