From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishscalescale1 /skeɪl/ ●●● S2 W2 noun 1 size/level [singular, uncountable]SIZELEVEL the size or level of something, or the amount that something is happeningscale of We had underestimated the scale of the problem.on a large/small/grand etc scale There has been housing development on a massive scale since 1980. Most alternative technologies work best on a small scale. A structural survey revealed the full scale of the damage. I was shocked by the sheer scale (=very big scale) of the destruction.on a global/international/world scale Pollution could cause changes to weather patterns on a global scale. Large firms benefit from economies of scale (=ways of saving money because they are big).2 range [countable usually singular]POSITION/RANK a whole range of different types of people or things, from the lowest level to the highest Some rural schools have 50 pupils, while at the other end of the scale are city schools with nearly 5,000 pupils.up/down the scale She gradually made her way up the social scale. animals which are lower down the evolutionary scale (=the range of animals that have developed gradually over a long time)3 → scales4 measuring system [countable]TM a system of numbers that is used for measuring the amount, speed, quality etc of somethingon a scale The earthquakes measured 7 on the Richter scale. changes to the company’s pay scale Your performance will be judged on a scale of 1 to 10. We use a sliding scale (=in which prices are not firmly fixed) for charges.5 measuring marks [countable]TM a set of marks with regular spaces between them on a tool that is used for measuring, or on the side of a mathematical drawing a ruler with a metric scale6 map/model [countable, uncountable]SIZE the relationship between the size of a map, drawing, or model and the actual size of the place or thing that it represents a map with a scale of 1:250,000to scale All our models are made to scale.scale model/drawing etc (=one done using a strict scale) a scale drawing of the Eiffel Tower 7 music [countable]APM a series of musical notes that become higher or lower, with fixed distances between each note the scale of G major8 fish [countable usually plural]HB one of the small flat pieces of skin that cover the bodies of fish, snakes etc9 teeth [uncountable] British EnglishHB a white substance that forms on your teeth10 water pipes [uncountable]HCC a white substance that forms around the inside of hot water pipes or containers in which water is boiled11 → the scales fell from somebody’s eyes → full-scaleCOLLOCATIONS – Meaning 1: the size or level of something, or the amount that something is happeningphraseson a large scaleThis technology has been developed on a large scale in the US.on a massive/huge scaleThe drug is produced on a massive scale.on a grand scale (=very large and impressive)The Romans built on a grand scale.on a small scaleThey started by producing and selling on a small scale.on a human scale (=one that is small enough for people to understand and be happy with)Architects have been asked to redesign some of the buildings on a more human scale.on a national scale (=involving the whole country)The survey was carried out on a national scale.on an international scale (=involving more than one country)Preparations to deal with an outbreak of the disease are being made on an international scale.on a global/world scale (=involving the whole world)This is a product that can be sold in high volumes on a global scale.on an unprecedented scale (=more than ever before)Propaganda techniques were used on an unprecedented scale.economies of scale (=ways of saving money that are available to large organizations)Merging these departments will create economies of scale.adjectivesthe full scale of somethingHe acknowledged that the full scale of the problem was not known.the sheer scale of something (=used for emphasis)He was shocked by the sheer scale of the suffering he witnessed. COLLOCATIONS – Meanings 2 & 4phrasesthe top of a scaleAt the top of the scale come the predators.the bottom of a scaleHe started at the bottom of the pay scale.the end of a scale (=the top or bottom)At the other end of the scale, the youngest competitor was just sixteen years old.further/higher up a scalePeasants managed their land as skilfully as some people higher up the social scale.further/lower down a scaleBonuses are not paid to people lower down the salary scale.ADJECTIVES/NOUN + scale the social scaleAt the other end of the social scale, life is a constant struggle to get enough to eat.the evolutionary scale (=the way in which animals have developed over time from simple ones to more complicated and more intelligent ones)Birds are much lower on the evolutionary scale than dogs.a pay/salary scaleAs a senior teacher, she has reached the top of her pay scale.verbsmove up/down a scaleSome farmers prospered and moved up the social scale.
Examples from the Corpus
scale• Seven of their 1:20 scale models have been chosen for exhibition and two have been combined to provide the full-scale installation.• The researchers devised a scale to measure people's attitudes toward certain types of behavior.• Hurricanes are graded on a scale from one to five, with five the strongest.• On a scale of one to ten, ten being best, his new movie is a two.• We were not expecting a public response on such a scale.• The map was drawn to a scale of one inch to the mile.• Greg stood on the bathroom scale and looked in the mirror.• How might we apply the lesson that these organizers learned on the much greater scale of an entire nation?• the F major scale• Economies of scale and the use of computers were expected to reduce administrative costs.• The salary scale goes from $60,000 to $175,000.• There is one large pointed slightly rugose tentacle scale on each pore.• Rescue workers are trying to assess the scale of the disaster.• At the other end of the scale, good advice in these shops is sometimes very expensive.• At the upper end of the scale is the Parker School, with tuition of over $9,000 a year.• Scientists are only just beginning to realize the scale of the problem.• This guy tips the scale at 400 pounds.• the scale on a thermometer• In order to ingratiate himself with the populace, he rebuilt the Temple of Jerusalem on a hitherto unprecedented scale.• The association between echographic measurement and visual scales is a simple method of evaluating the relationship between the stomach and appetite.economies of scale• Analogously, large loans attract a lower interest rate than small loans because of the administrative economies of scale.• World trade, then, allows what economists call economies of scale.• Each has been trying to outbid the rest in an attempt to gain market share and so exploit economies of scale.• However, just to confuse matters, economies of scale plus economies of scope do not imply subadditivity.• There are a number of qualifications to this prediction, apart from the possibility of economies of scale discussed above.• Yet it is clear that transport costs can have important consequences in the presence of economies of scale.• The benefits of reaping economies of scale depend upon how far costs fall as output levels are increased.• This is not to say that mass markets have disintegrated or that economies of scale are irrelevant to competitive performance.the evolutionary scale• This sub-order, which is further down the evolutionary scale. includes the Tarsiidae, or tarsiers.• Birds are much lower on the evolutionary scale, which is another criterion in determining what we consider cruelty to animals.• How coral colonies grow Tearing itself apart Only slightly further up the evolutionary scale in terms of reproduction are the Echinoderms.sliding scale• The Trotskyist movement has long advocated a sliding scale of wages to meet the rising cost of living.• Its correlative, a sliding scale of hours to meet unemployment, is now becoming timely.• The disparity between solar noon and mean noon widens and narrows as the seasons change, on a sliding scale.• The rest of the kitty will be divided among the other 21 clubs on a sliding scale in units of £35,000.• The fee is on a sliding scale according to value, and nobody who appraises for us is paid for it.• What was the going rate, his professional self asked, and was it adjusted to a sliding scale?• So it was that the trade emulated this sliding scale system for the populace at large.scale model/drawing etc• Seven of their 1:20 scale models have been chosen for exhibition and two have been combined to provide the full-scale installation.• A section on the skyscraper with amazing scale models shows the growth and diversity in this monumental building style.• It is a one-fifth scale model of Endeavour, built using traditional methods, but also allowing for modern safety requirements.• And yet, that lifetime was a kind of scale model for what followed.• Use should be made of such things as plans of models, dress patterns, scale drawings, photographs, maps.• The show features original architectural drawings, photos, scale models and videos.• A method of reconstruction which incorporates some of the advantages of both physical reconstruction and reconstruction drawings is the scale model.• This was approximately one fifth full size, but was a working mock-up rather than a true scale model.scalescale2 verb 1 [transitive]CLIMB to climb to the top of something that is high and difficult to climb Rescuers had to scale a 300-metre cliff to reach the injured climber.2 → scale the heights3 [transitive] technical to make writing or a picture the right size for a particular purposescale something to something The writing can be scaled to any size, depending on the paper.4 [intransitive] if something will scale, it will continue to work well even if it is made bigger or comes to include more things Will this way of networking scale? → scale something ↔ down/back → scale something ↔ up→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
scale• Paramount released 14 films in 1995 and some reports say Redstone has asked that number be scaled back.• Sainty, like many others, had scaled down this year, leaving the million dollar plus pictures at home.• The output reading obtained with the enlarged input is then correspondingly scaled down.• Corbett has scaled El Capitan in Yosemite a record 46 times.• Chapters 9 and 10 deal with issues directly linked to scaling laws in chemistry and analytical devices.• Underneath, I have I copied the graphic into a Draw 98 frame and scaled that instead.• Marsalis scales the stratospheric extreme of the piccolo trumpet without a single bobble.• Somehow the men had scaled the twenty foot wall without setting off the alarm.• Some banks try to scale their prices down for small-business customers to entice them to use electronic services.From Longman Business Dictionaryscalescale /skeɪl/ noun1[singular, uncountable] the size or level of something, especially when this is largescale ofNo-one had anticipated the scale of the redundancies (=that there would be so many).We need to recycle plastics on a much bigger scale.2diseconomies of scale [plural]ECONOMICS the disadvantages that a big factory, shop etc has compared with a smaller one, for example because it is more difficult to run a larger production unitOver a period of decades, output becomes less profitable as diseconomies of scale arise.3economies of scale [plural]ECONOMICS the advantages that a big factory, shop etc has over a smaller one because it can spread its FIXED COSTs over a larger number of units and therefore produce or sell things more cheaplyJoint production ventures allow for greater economies of scale.4[countable] a list of figures used for measuring and comparing amountsscale ofa progressive scale of tax ratesManagers gave their opinion of the bond markets, ranked on a scale of one to ten.the company pay scale → salary scale → sliding scale 