Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

aloe vera /æ loʊ v I ə rə/ N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Aloe vera is a substance that contains vitamins and minerals and is often used in cosmetics. Aloe vera is also the name of the plant from which this substance is extracted.

aloft /əlɒ ft, [AM ] əlɔː ft/ ADV [ADV after v, be ADV ] Something that is aloft is in the air or off the ground. [LITERARY ] □  He held the trophy proudly aloft.

alone ◆◆◇ /əloʊ n/

1 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] When you are alone , you are not with any other people. □  There is nothing so frightening as to be alone in a combat situation. □  He was all alone in the middle of the hall. ● ADV [ADV after v] Alone is also an adverb. □  She has lived alone in this house for almost five years now.

2 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If one person is alone with another person, or if two or more people are alone , they are together, without anyone else present. □ [+ with ] I couldn't imagine why he would want to be alone with me. □ [+ with ] My brother and I were alone with Vincent.

3 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If you say that you are alone or feel alone , you mean that nobody who is with you, or nobody at all, cares about you. □  Never in her life had she felt so alone, so abandoned.

4 ADV [n ADV ] You say that one person or thing alone does something when you are emphasizing that only one person or thing is involved. [EMPHASIS ] □  You alone should determine what is right for you. □  They were convicted on forensic evidence alone.

5 ADV [n ADV ] If you say that one person or thing alone is responsible for part of an amount, you are emphasizing the size of that part and the size of the total amount. [EMPHASIS ] □  The BBC alone is sending 300 technicians, directors and commentators.

6 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If someone is alone in doing something, they are the only person doing it, and so are different from other people. □ [+ in ] Am I alone in thinking that this scandal should finish his career? ● ADV [n ADV ] Alone is also an adverb. □  I alone was sane, I thought, in a world of crazy people.

7 ADV [ADV after v] When someone does something alone , they do it without help from other people. □  Bringing up a child alone should give you a sense of achievement.

8 PHRASE If you go it alone , you do something without any help from other people. [INFORMAL ] □  I missed the stimulation of working with others when I tried to go it alone.

9to leave someone or something alone → see leave

10let alone → see let USAGE alone

Don’t use ‘alone’ in front of a noun. For example, don’t talk about ‘ an alone woman ’. Instead, say ‘a woman on her own’. □  These holidays are popular with people on their own .

along ◆◆◆ /əlɒ ŋ, [AM ] əlɔː ŋ/ In addition to the uses shown below, along is used in phrasal verbs such as 'go along with', 'play along', and 'string along'. 1 PREP If you move or look along something such as a road, you move or look towards one end of it. □  Newman walked along the street alone. □  The young man led Mark Ryle along a corridor. □  I looked along the length of the building.

2 PREP If something is situated along a road, river, or corridor, it is situated in it or beside it. □  …enormous traffic jams all along the roads. □  …houses built on piles along the river.

3 ADV [ADV after v] When someone or something moves along , they keep moving in a particular direction. □  She skipped and danced along. □  The wide road was blocked solid with traffic that moved along sluggishly.