1 N‑COUNT A vole is a small animal that looks like a mouse but has very small ears and a short tail. Voles usually live in fields or near rivers.
2 → see also water vole
vo|li|tion /vəl I ʃ ə n, [AM ] voʊl-/
1
N‑UNCOUNT
Your
volition
is the power you have to decide something for yourself. [FORMAL
] □
2
PHRASE
If you do something
of
your
own volition
, you do it because you have decided for yourself that you will do it and not because someone else has told you to do it. [FORMAL
] □
vol|ley /vɒ li/ (volleys , volleying , volleyed )
1
VERB
In sport, if someone
volleys
the ball, they hit it before it touches the ground. □ [V
n prep/adv]
2
N‑COUNT
A
volley
of
gunfire is a lot of bullets that travel through the air at the same time. □ [+
volley|ball /vɒ libɔːl/ N‑UNCOUNT Volleyball is a game in which two teams hit a large ball with their hands backwards and forwards over a high net. If you allow the ball to touch the ground, the other team wins a point.
volt /voʊ lt/ (volts ) N‑COUNT A volt is a unit used to measure the force of an electric current.
volt|age
/voʊ
lt
I
dʒ/ (voltages
) N‑VAR
The
voltage
of an electrical current is its force measured in volts. □
volte-face
/vɒ
lt fɑː
s/ (volte-faces
) N‑COUNT
[usu sing] If you say that someone's behaviour is a
volte-face
, you mean that they have changed their opinion or decision completely, so that it is the opposite of what it was before. [FORMAL
] □
vol|uble
/vɒ
ljʊb
ə
l/ ADJ
If you say that someone is
voluble
, you mean that they talk a lot with great energy and enthusiasm. [FORMAL
] □
vol|ume ◆◆◇ /vɒ ljuːm/ (volumes )
1
N‑COUNT
[usu sing] The
volume
of
something is the amount of it that there is. □ [+
2
N‑COUNT
[usu sing] The
volume
of an object is the amount of space that it contains or occupies. □
3
N‑COUNT
A
volume
is a book. [FORMAL
] □
4
N‑COUNT
A
volume
is one book in a series of books. □ [+
5
N‑COUNT
A
volume
is a collection of several issues of a magazine, for example all the issues for one year. □ [+
6
N‑UNCOUNT
The
volume
of a radio, television, or sound system is the loudness of the sound it produces. □
7
PHRASE
If something such as an action
speaks volumes
about
a person or thing, it gives you a lot of information about them. □ [+
amount:
quantity: