Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

5 PHRASE If people, places, or events come alive , they start to be lively again after a quiet period. If someone or something brings them alive , they cause them to come alive. □  The doctor's voice had come alive and his small eyes shone.

6 PHRASE If a story or description comes alive , it becomes interesting, lively, or realistic. If someone or something brings it alive , they make it seem more interesting, lively, or realistic. □  She made history come alive with tales from her own memories.

7 PHRASE If you say that someone or something is alive and kicking , you are emphasizing not only that they continue to survive, but also that they are very active. [EMPHASIS ] □  …worries that the secret police may still be alive and kicking.

8 PHRASE If you say that someone or something is alive and well , you are emphasizing that they continue to survive. [EMPHASIS ] □  A man who went missing yesterday during a blizzard has been found alive and well. USAGE alive

Don’t use ‘alive’ in front of a noun. Don’t say, for example, ‘ I have no alive relatives ’ or ‘ They export alive animals ’. Instead you use living to talk about people, or live /la I v/ to talk about animals. □  I have no living relatives. □  They export live animals.

al|ka|li /æ lkəla I / (alkalis ) N‑VAR An alkali is a substance with a pH value of more than 7. Alkalis form chemical salts when they are combined with acids.

al|ka|line /æ lkəla I n/ ADJ Something that is alkaline contains an alkali or has a pH value of more than 7. □  Some soils are actually too alkaline for certain plant life. ●  al|ka|lin|ity /ælkəl I n I ti/ N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] A pH test measures the acidity or alkalinity of a substance.

all ◆◆◆ /ɔː l/

1 PREDET You use all to indicate that you are referring to the whole of a particular group or thing or to everyone or everything of a particular kind. □  …the restaurant that Hugh and all his friends go to. □  He lost all his money at a blackjack table in Las Vegas. ● DET All is also a determiner. □  There is built-in storage space in all bedrooms. □  85 percent of all American households owe money on mortgages. □  He was passionate about all literature. ● QUANT All is also a quantifier. □  He was told to pack up all of his letters and personal belongings. □  He was talking to all of us. ● PRON All is also a pronoun. □  We produce our own hair-care products, all based on herbal recipes. □  I'd spent all I had, every last penny. ● PRON All is also an emphasizing pronoun. □  Milk, oily fish and egg all contain vitamin D. □  We all admire professionalism and dedication.

2 DET You use all to refer to the whole of a particular period of time. □  George had to cut grass all afternoon. □  She's been feeling bad all week. ● PREDET All is also a predeterminer. □  She's worked all her life. □  He was looking at me all the time. ● QUANT All is also a quantifier. □  He spent all of that afternoon polishing the silver. □  Two-thirds of the women interviewed think about food a lot or all of the time.

3 PRON You use all to refer to a situation or to life in general. □  All is silent on the island now. □  As you'll have read in our news pages, all has not been well of late.