From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Numbers, Finance, Human, Maths, Visual, Newspapers, printing, publishing, Other sports, Painting and drawing, Statistics
figurefig‧ure1 /ˈfɪɡə $ ˈfɪɡjər/ ●●● S1 W1 noun [countable] 1 number a) HMN[usually plural] a number representing an amount, especially an official numberunemployment/sales/trade figures Ohio’s unemployment figures for December Government figures underestimate the problem. It’s about 30,000 in round figures (=to the nearest 10,20,100 etc). b) HMNa number from 0 to 9, written as a character rather than a word the figure ‘2’ executives with salaries in six figures (=more than £99,999)a four/five/six figure number (=a number in the thousands, ten thousands, hundred thousands etc) → double figures, single figures2 amount of moneyBF a particular amount of moneyfigure of an estimated figure of $200 million3 person a) someone who is important or famous in some waya leading/key/central figure Several leading figures resigned from the party. the outstanding political figure of his time b) someone with a particular type of appearance or character, especially when they are far away or difficult to see a tall figure in a hat Through the window I could see the commanding figure of Mrs Bradshaw. → cult figure at cult24 woman’s bodyHBH the shape of a woman’s body She has a good figure.keep/lose your figure (=stay thin or become fat) Most women have to watch their figure (=be careful not to get fat).5 → father/mother/authority figure6 → figures7 HMmathematical shape a geometric shape A hexagon is a six-sided figure.8 painting/modelAV a person in a painting or a model of a person the figure in the background → figurine9 drawingTCN (written abbreviation fig.) a numbered drawing or a diagram in a book10 → put a figure on it/give an exact figure11 → a fine figure of a man/woman12 → a figure of fun13 on iceDSO a pattern or movement in figure skatingCOLLOCATIONSADJECTIVES/NOUN + figurehigh/lowThe figures are worryingly high.sales figuresWe exceeded our target sales figures.unemployment figuresThere have been changes in the way the unemployment figures are calculated.trade figures (=showing the value of a country's exports compared to imports)Trade figures showed a slump last month.government figures (=figures produced by the government)Government figures suggest a moderate recovery in consumer spending.official figuresAccording to official figures, two million houses in England are inadequately heated.the latest figuresThe latest figures show that crimes are down by 0.2 percent.the exact figureThe government was unable to give the exact figure for the number of foreign workers in the country.an approximate/rough figureHe gave us an approximate figure for the cost of the repairs.a ballpark figure informal (=one that is not exact)Can you give me a ballpark figure of the likely price?verbsreach double/six etc figures (=be 10 or more/100,000 or more etc)The death toll in the region has reached five figures.add up the figuresI must have made a mistake when I added up the figures.release the figures (=make them public)The company will release the sales figures later this week.phrasesin single figures (=less than 10)Women heads of department are in single figures.in double figures (=between 10 and 99)Only two of the group had scores in double figures. in round figures (=to the nearest 10,20,100 etc)In round figures, about 20 million people emigrated from Europe during that period.according to the figuresAccording to official figures, exam results have improved again this year.a four/five/six etc figure number (=a number in the thousands/ten thousands/hundred thousands etc)Choose a four figure number that you can easily remember. Examples from the Corpus
figure• Now, the. 78 figure might seem pretty good if one did not know two crucial facts about the study.• a figure in a red robe• Freddy's bent figure limped in front of him.• Dark figures emerged from the building, and disappeared into the night.• Ohio's employment figures for December are not available.• That means a commitment to every figure in it, a commitment to taking a risk to achieve the budgeted outputs.• But for the writers and early translators of the Gospels, it was a very precise term, denoting a very exact figure.• Inflation in Japan is around 3%, while the German figure is now over 4%.• Government figures published today show that unemployment is rising again.• She eats enormous meals but still manages to keep her figure.• Susie wore a close-fitting black dress which made the most of her figure.• On a cheque, write the amount in words and in figures.• a rare 16th century Japanese figure• The motionless figures ap-peared determined still to make the leap to the playground.• Add up that row of figures, and transfer the full amount to the top of the next page.• The Gingrich investigation is hardly the first time Cole has taken on highly placed public figures.• Retailers are reporting their November sales figures today.• sales figures• Ali was one of the great sports figures of this century.• Caroline really has a terrific figure.• By the age of retirement that figure will increase to one in every five.• ""We need $30,000 to get the project started.'' ""How close are you to that figure?''• She turned slowly and looked at the figure in the chair.• He offered to buy the team for the figure of $140 million.• I saw the figure of a woman below the bridge.• The figures were recently released by the magazine.• A comparison of the two figures shows the estimated profit on investment.• Exercise and a sensible diet will help you get your figure back after having a baby.in round figures• Estimates for the delay, given in round figures, ranged from two to eight hours.• The LibDems, in round figures, had 45 percent, Conservatives 25 percent and Labour 17.• That's five and a half hours at a bit under two knots - say ten miles in round figures.political figure• Produced news reports have shifted from focusing on the words of candidates and political figures to concentrating on their images and actions.• His legal responsibilities for issues such as extradition have also brought him into contact with senior legal and political figures in Ireland.• Mr Heseltine was one of the most colourful political figures of the past 30 years.• Sportsmen, journalists, newspaper photographers and local political figures were among the many walking in the cortege.• He has not yet found a running mate, although he has approached several minor political figures.• He is arguably the third most powerful political figure in the state, after Gov.• He returned to his contact lists, abandoning the military personnel and concentrating upon purely political figures.• The political figure who has tried the hardest to harness this newfound enthusiasm is Pat Robertson. watch ... figure• Alida watched her black figure, stiff as a crow, from the window.• At first there seemed to be nothing there, but as he watched the figure of a man emerged.• I nodded my head, watching the shadowed figures gesturing, belching in hunger, nodding heads, tippling bottles.• Marian watched the tall figure in grey disappear through the trees.• It seemed like she wasn't really watching the figures on telly though.• Lindsey stifled a sigh as she watched his retreating figure.figurefigure2 ●●● S1 W3 verb 1 [intransitive]IMPORTANT to be an important part of a process, event, or situation, or to be included in somethingfigure in/among Social issues figured prominently in the talks. My wishes didn’t figure among his considerations. Reform now figures high on the agenda.2 [transitive] informalTHINK/HAVE THE OPINION THAT to form a particular opinion after thinking about a situationfigure (that) From the way he behaved, I figured that he was drunk. It was worth the trouble, I figured.3 → that figures/(it) figures4 → go figure5 [transitive] American EnglishCOUNT/CALCULATE to calculate an amount SYN work out I’m just figuring my expenses. → figure on something → figure somebody/something ↔ out→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
figure• Destiny will figure further down Olivetti's range, on personal computers and the M700.• The operation went fine, and they figure he'll be home next week.• What do you figure his chances of winning are?• You haven't figured it out yet?• She was younger and prettier than any of us' d figured on.• We had their offense and defense figured out exceptionally well.• He needs to sit down and figure out how many people are coming.• The dwarfs were devastated, because they could not figure out how to save Snow White this time.• So they're up there in the cashiers' office trying to figure out where all the money's coming from.• Lott figured prominently in the Chiefs' win last night.• There has been criticism about the current method for figuring social security retirement benefits.• The Reichmanns figured that if New York went out of business the world would go with it.• I figured we had as much right to vote for old crooks as new ones.• I'm telling you because I figure you're the only one who can keep a secret.figured prominently• New technology figured prominently as participants found ways of matching regional information and research needs with fast-paced advances in computer technology.• Strategy never figured prominently except in the most generalized way.• Housing Programmes Housing has not figured prominently in inner-urban policy.• They had all figured prominently in the election manifesto of the Labour party at the time.• Luca Cumani's well-related filly figured prominently until fading in the closing stages.figure (that)• A neat example of a sinusoidal oscillator is the Wien bridge oscillator shown in figure 10.13.• Every region reported a decline when compared to April's figures.• Harrick figured if he could do it in six, he could do it in 4. 8.• A few figures in battle-dress were walking round the perimeter.• One of the tasks facing all freshmen is to figure out ways to counter this loneliness.• Reserves and production figures quoted in this annual report are on a working interest basis unless otherwise stated.• I buy the pie shell because I figure that's easier than making it.• Some figure the King would appreciate the tribute.• Jasper built things more or less by figuring them out.From Longman Business Dictionaryfigurefig‧ure1 /ˈfɪgəˈfɪgjər/ noun1figures [plural] a number representing an amount, especially an officially published numberI need this week’s sales figures.These are the worst unemployment figures in three years.Poor trade figures rattled the market.February figures showed growth in lending had slowed to 5.5%.2[countable]ACCOUNTING a number written as a sign rather than a wordIn management reports, it is often worth adding up the columns of figures that are presented.3double figures numbers between 10 and 99Their economy is a mess with inflation well into double figures.4six-figure/seven-figure etc a number in the hundred thousands, millions etc, often used to talk about someone’s incomeWhat’s the point of a six-figure salary with no time to enjoy it?5[countable] a particular amount of moneyThe event raised $200,000 for charity, and this is not the final figure. (=the amount that will be obtained in the end) 6put a figure on something to say exactly how much something costs, is worth etcPolice are waiting to hear from the accountants before they can put an exact figure on the amount missing.7[countable] written abbreviation fig a numbered drawing or DIAGRAM in a bookFigure 3.1 shows the important position of planning in the decision-making process.figurefigure2 verb1[transitive] American English informal to calculate an amountDid you figure your expenses for last month yet?2[intransitive] to be involved in an important part of an activity, process, or situationfigure inA number of top British companies all figure in his career background.→ See Verb tableOrigin figure1 (1200-1300) French Latin figura, from fingere “to shape, make” 