- 1 [uncountable] (British English) thick stiff paper a piece of card The model of the building was made of card. with information
- 2 [countable] a small piece of stiff paper or plastic with information on it, especially information about somebody’s identity a membership card an appointment card see also green card, identity card, loyalty card, red card, report card, yellow card Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveID, identity, membership, … verb + cardhand somebody, hand out, scan, … card + nouncatalogue, reader prepositionon a/the card See full entry
- 3[countable] = business card Here's my card if you need to contact me again. Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveID, identity, membership, … verb + cardhand somebody, hand out, scan, … card + nouncatalogue, reader prepositionon a/the card See full entry
- 4[countable] = visiting card Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveID, identity, membership, … verb + cardhand somebody, hand out, scan, … card + nouncatalogue, reader prepositionon a/the card See full entry for money
- 5 [countable] a small piece of plastic, especially one given by a bank or shop/store, used for buying things or obtaining money I put the meal on (= paid for it using) my card. see also cash card, charge card, chip card, credit card, debit card, gift card, phonecard, SIM card, smart card, swipe card Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveplastic, ATM, cash, … verb + cardpay by, put something on, use, … card + nounnumber, holder, company, … See full entry with a message
- 6 [countable] a piece of stiff paper that is folded in the middle and has a picture on the front of it, used for sending somebody a message with your good wishes, an invitation, etc. a birthday/get-well/good luck card see also Christmas card, greetings card Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivegreeting, greetings, birthday, … verb + cardgive somebody, send somebody, sign, … See full entry
- 7[countable] = postcard Did you get my card from Italy? Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivegreeting, greetings, birthday, … verb + cardgive somebody, send somebody, sign, … See full entry in games
- 8 [countable] = playing card (British English) a pack of cards (North American English) a deck of cards see also trump card, wild card Wordfindercardace, card, cut, deal, gambling, hand, jack, shuffle, suit, trump Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveplaying, winning, court, … … of cardsdeck, pack, hand, … verb + cardcut, deal, shuffle, … card + noungame, player, playing, … See full entry
- 9 cards [plural] a game or games in which playing cards are used Who wants to play cards? I've never been very good at cards. Let's have a game of cards. She won £20 at cards. Oxford Collocations Dictionary … of cardgame verb + cardsplay, lose at, win at, … See full entry See related entries: Card games computing
- 10 [countable] a small device containing an electronic circuit that is part of a computer or added to it, enabling it to perform particular functions a printed circuit card a graphics/network/sound card see also expansion card Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivegraphics, memory, network, … verb + cardinstall card + nounslot See full entry See related entries: Computer hardware person
- 11[countable] (old-fashioned, informal) an unusual or amusing person horse races
- 12[countable] a list of all the races at a particular race meeting (= a series of horse races) See related entries: Equine sports for wool/cotton
- 13[countable] (specialist) a machine or tool used for cleaning and combing wool or cotton before it is spun Word Originnoun senses 1 to 12 late Middle English (originally in sense 8 of the noun): from Old French carte, from Latin carta, charta, from Greek khartēs ‘papyrus leaf’. noun sense 13 late Middle English: from Old French carde, from Provençal carda, from cardar ‘tease, comb’, based on Latin carere ‘to card’.Extra examples Bennett is something of a wild card. Contact the bank and cancel all your cards. Each player in turn must play a card. Everyone at work signed a card for her. He always wins at cards. He had a wallet full of plastic cards. He went around the room handing out business cards. I’ll put the meal on my card. She paid for her holiday by credit card. She searched the library’s card catalogue. She wrote the main points of her speech on index cards. The bank hasn’t issued me with a cash card yet. The computer has three additional card slots. The kidnappers hold all the cards. The restaurant accepts all major credit cards. This defender’s ability to score vital goals has often proved a trump card. We play cards every Friday night. You need to install a new graphics card.Idioms
noun jump to other results
BrE BrE//kɑːd//; NAmE NAmE//kɑːrd//
Computer hardware, Card games, Equine sports
something that gives somebody an advantage over other people in a particular situation
you are unlikely to succeed because the conditions are not good for you
you are likely to succeed because the conditions are good and you have an advantage
(British English, informal) to be told to leave a job
(British English, informal) to make somebody leave their job
to have an idea, a plan, etc. that will give you an advantage in a particular situation and that you keep secret until it is needed
(informal) to be able to control a particular situation because you have an advantage over other people
to keep your ideas, plans, etc. secret
to tell somebody honestly what your plans, ideas, etc. are
(informal) likely to happen The merger has been on the cards for some time now.
to mention a particular subject, idea or quality in order to gain an advantage He accused his opponent of playing the immigration card during the campaign. see also race card
to deal successfully with a particular situation so that you achieve some advantage or something that you want If you play your cards right, the job could be yours when she leaves.
to make your plans or intentions known
Check pronunciation: card
