/ba
I
poʊ
lə
r
/ ADJ
[usu ADJ
n]
Bipolar
systems or situations are dominated by two strong and opposing opinions or elements. [FORMAL
] □
…the bipolar world of the Cold War years.
bi|po
|lar dis|o
r|der
(
bipolar disorders
) N‑VAR
Bipolar disorder
is a mental illness in which a person's state of mind changes between extreme happiness and extreme depression.
birch
/bɜː
r
tʃ/ (birches
) N‑VAR
A
birch
or a
birch tree
is a type of tall tree with thin branches.
bird
◆◆◇ /bɜː
r
d/ (birds
)
1
N‑COUNT
A
bird
is a creature with feathers and wings. Female birds lay eggs. Most birds can fly.
2
N‑COUNT
Some men refer to young women as
birds
. This use could cause offence. [BRIT
, INFORMAL
]
3
→ see also
early bird
,
game bird
4
PHRASE
If you refer to two people as
birds of a feather
, you mean that they have the same interests or are very similar.
5
PHRASE
A bird in the hand
is something that you already have and do not want to risk losing by trying to get something else.
6
PHRASE
If you say that a
little bird
told you about something, you mean that someone has told you about it, but you do not want to say who it was.
7
PHRASE
If you say that doing something will
kill two birds with one stone
, you mean that it will enable you to achieve two things that you want to achieve, rather than just one.
bird|cage
/bɜː
r
dke
I
dʒ/ (birdcages
) also
bird cage
N‑COUNT
A
birdcage
is a cage in which birds are kept.
bi
rd flu
N‑UNCOUNT
Bird flu
is a virus which can be transmitted from chickens, ducks, and other birds to people.
birdie
/bɜː
r
di/ (birdies
, birdying
, birdied
)
1
N‑COUNT
In golf, if you get a
birdie
, you get the golf ball into a hole in one stroke fewer than the number of strokes which has been set as the standard for a good player.
2
VERB
If a golfer
birdies
a hole, he or she gets a birdie at that hole. □ [V
n]
He birdied five of the first seven holes.
bird|life
/bɜː
r
dla
I
f/ also
bird life
N‑UNCOUNT
The
birdlife
in a place is all the birds that live there.
bird|like
/bɜː
r
dla
I
k/ also
bird-like
ADJ
If someone has a
birdlike
manner, they move or look like a bird. □
…the birdlike way she darted about.
bi
rd of pa
ra|dise
(
birds of paradise
) N‑COUNT
A
bird of paradise
is a songbird which is found mainly in New Guinea. The male birds have very brightly coloured feathers.
bi
rd of pa
s|sage
(
birds of passage
) N‑COUNT
If you refer to someone as a
bird of passage
, you mean that they are staying in a place for a short time before going to another place. □
Most of these emigrants were birds of passage who returned to Spain after a relatively short stay.
bi
rd of pre
y
(
birds of prey
) N‑COUNT
A
bird of prey
is a bird such as an eagle or a hawk that kills and eats other birds and animals.
bi
rd's eye vie
w
(
bird's eye views
) N‑COUNT
[usu sing] You say that you have a
bird's eye viewof
a place when you are looking down at it from a great height, so that you can see a long way but everything looks very small.
bird|song
/bɜː
r
dsɒŋ, [AM
] -sɔːŋ/ (birdsongs
) also
bird song
N‑UNCOUNT
Birdsong
is the sound of a bird or birds calling in a way which sounds musical. □
The air is filled with birdsong.
bi
rd ta|ble
(
bird tables
) N‑COUNT
A
bird table
is a small wooden platform on a pole which some people put in their garden in order to put food for the birds on it.
bi
rd-watcher
(
bird-watchers
) also
birdwatcher
N‑COUNT
A
bird-watcher
is a person whose hobby is watching and studying wild birds in their natural surroundings.
bi
rd-watching
also
birdwatching
N‑UNCOUNT
Bird-watching
is the activity of watching and studying wild birds in their natural surroundings.
Biro
/ba
I
roʊ/ (Biros
) N‑COUNT
A
Biro
is a pen with a small metal ball at its tip which transfers the ink onto the paper. [BRIT
, TRADEMARK
]