Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

2 PRON Us is sometimes used to refer to people in general. □  All of us will struggle fairly hard to survive if we are in danger. □  Each of us will have our own criteria for success.

3 PRON A speaker or writer may use us instead of 'me' in order to include the audience or reader in what they are saying. [mainly FORMAL ] □  This brings us to the second question I asked.

4 PRON In non-standard English, us is sometimes used instead of 'me'. [BRIT , SPOKEN ] □  'Hang on a bit,' said Eileen. 'I'm not finished yet. Give us a chance.' USAGE us

In standard English, don’t use ‘us’ as the object of a sentence when we is the subject. Don’t say, for example, ‘ We bought us some drinks ’. You say ‘We bought ourselves some drinks’. □  After the meeting we introduced ourselves .

US /juː e s/ also U.S. N‑PROPER [N n] The US is an abbreviation for the United States . □  The first time I saw TV was when I arrived in the U.S. in 1956. □  They are to inherit 100,000 U.S. dollars.

USA /juː es e I / also U.S.A. N‑PROPER The USA is an abbreviation for the United States of America .

us|able /juː zəb ^ə l/ ADJ If something is usable , it is in a good enough state or condition to be used. □  Charity shops and jumble sales welcome usable clothes. □  Half of the island's population has no usable English.

USAF /juː es e I e f/ also U.S.A.F. N‑PROPER The USAF is an abbreviation for the United States Air Force .

us|age /juː s I dʒ/ (usages )

1 N‑UNCOUNT Usage is the way in which words are actually used in particular contexts, especially with regard to their meanings. □  The word 'undertaker' had long been in common usage. □ [+ of ] He was a stickler for the correct usage of English.

2 N‑COUNT A usage is a meaning that a word has or a way in which it can be used. □  It's very definitely a usage which has come over to Britain from America.

3 N‑UNCOUNT Usage is the degree to which something is used or the way in which it is used. □  Parts of the motor wore out because of constant usage. □  If your water usage is very small, it may be worthwhile opting for a meter.

USB /ju ː es bi ː/ (USBs ) N‑COUNT A USB on a computer is a place where you can attach another piece of equipment, for example a printer. USB is an abbreviation for 'Universal Serial Bus'. [COMPUTING ] □  The device plugs into one of the laptop's USB ports.

USB stick (USB sticks ) N‑COUNT A USB stick is a small object for storing digital information that you can connect to the USB part of a computer or other device. [COMPUTING ] □  My history lectures are saved as PowerPoint files on a USB stick.

use

➊ VERB USES

➋ NOUN USES

➊ use ◆◆◆ /juː z/ (uses , using , used )

1 VERB If you use something, you do something with it in order to do a job or to achieve a particular result or effect. □ [V n] Trim off the excess pastry using a sharp knife. □ [V n] He had simply used a little imagination. □ [V n to-inf] Officials used loud hailers to call for calm. □ [V n prep] The show uses Zondo's trial and execution as its framework.

2 VERB If you use a supply of something, you finish it so that none of it is left. □ [V n] You used all the ice cubes and didn't put the ice trays back. □ [V n] They've never had anything spare–they've always used it all. ● PHRASAL VERB Use up means the same as use . □ [V P n] It isn't them who use up the world's resources. □ [V n P ] We were breathing really fast, and using the air up quickly.