Tra từ flat - Từ điển Oxford Advanced Learner 8th

flat [flat flats flatted flatting flatter flattest] adjective, noun, adverb, verb BrE [flæt] NAmE [flæt]
adjective (flat·ter, flat·test)

LEVEL
1. having a level surface, not curved or sloping
•low buildings with flat roofs
• People used to think the earth was flat.
• Exercise is the only way to get a flat stomach after having a baby.
•The sails hung limply in the flat calm (= conditions at sea when there is no wind and the water is completely level).
2. (of land)without any slopes or hills
• The road stretched ahead across the flat landscape.
• The desert was flat, mile after mile.
•He reached a flatter section of land near the river.
3. (of surfaces)smooth and even; without lumps or holes
• I need a flat surface to write on.
• We found a large flat rock to sit on.

NOT HIGH
4. broad but not very high
• Chapattis are a kind of flat Indian bread.
•flat shoes (= with no heels or very low ones)

DULL
5. dull; lacking interest or enthusiasm
• He felt very flat after his friends had gone home.
• It was a curiously flat note on which to end the election campaign.

VOICE
6. not showing much emotion; not changing much in tone
• Her voice was flat and expressionless.
• He spoke in a flat Midlands accent.

COLOURS/PICTURES
7. very smooth, with no contrast between light and dark, and giving no impression of depth
•Acrylic paints can be used to create large, flat blocks of colour.

BUSINESS
8. not very successful because very little is being sold
•The housing market has been flat for months.

REFUSAL/DENIAL
9. only before noun not allowing discussion or argument; definite
•Her request was met with a flat refusal.
•He gave a flat ‘No!’ to one reporter's question.
•These results are in flat contradiction to the theory of relativity.

IN MUSIC
10. used after the name of a note to mean a note a semitone/half tone lower
•That note should be B flat, not B.
Opp: ↑sharp
compare ↑natural
11. below the correct ↑pitch (= how high or low a note sounds)
•The high notes were slightly flat.
Opp: ↑sharp

DRINK
12. no longer having bubbles in it; not fresh
•The soda was warm and had gone flat.

BATTERY
13. (BrE)unable to supply any more electricity

TYRE
14. not containing enough air, usually because of a hole

FEET
15. with no natural raised curves underneath
see also ↑flat-footed
more at (flat) on your back at ↑back _n., in a (flat) spin at ↑spin _n.

Word Origin:
adj. and adv. n. senses 2 to 8 Middle English Old Norse flatr n. sense 1 early 19th cent. flet ‘floor, dwelling’ Germanic ↑flat ‘level’

Thesaurus:
flat adj.
•low buildings with flat roofs
level • • horizontal • |often approving smooth •
Opp: bumpy
a flat/level/horizontal/smooth surface
a flat/level/smooth road/floor
a flat/smooth rock/stone
flat/level ground/land
Flat or level? Level is used most often with the words ground and floor; flat is used more to talk about surfaces that are not rounded or landscapes that do not have any hills
•a flat base/stomach/surface
• a flat field/plateau/beach

Thesaurus:
flat noun C (BrE)
•They rented a large flat near the city centre.
penthouse • • suite • |especially AmE apartment • • condominium • |AmE, informal condo •
at sb's flat/apartment
a one—/two—/three— bedroom flat/apartment/condominium/condo
live in a/an flat/suite/penthouse/apartment/condominium/condo
rent a/an flat/suite/apartment
Flat or apartment? Both these words are used in British English, but flat is more usual. Soem people use apartment to mean accommodation that is larger, finer or more expensive than an ordinary flat. In American English use apartment.

Example Bank:
•I can't get this material to lie flat.
•Interest rates have remained flat.
•Shall I fold the paper flat or roll it up?
•She lay flat on the ground.
•The sea was almost completely flat.
•He went on in a flat tone.
•Life will seem a bit flat without you.
•She had that flat feeling that usually followed a rush of work.
•She was feeling very flat after the excitement of the flight.
•The sails hung limply in the flat calm
•The sense of intoxication wore off and he felt flat and weary.
•The town consisted mainly of low buildings with flat roofs.
Idioms: ↑and that's flat! ▪ ↑as flat as a pancake ▪ ↑fall flat ▪ ↑fall flat on your face ▪ ↑flat broke ▪ ↑flat out ▪ ↑in … flat ▪ ↑on the flat
Derived Word: ↑flatness

noun

ROOMS
1. countable (BrE)a set of rooms for living in, including a kitchen, usually on one floor of a building
• Do you live in a flat or a house?
• They're renting a furnished flat on the third floor.
•a ground-floor flat
•a new block of flats
•Many large old houses have been converted into flats.
•Children from the flats (= the block of flats) across the street were playing outside.
compare ↑apartment

LEVEL PART
2. singular the ~ of sth the flat level part of sth
•He beat on the door with the flat of his hand.
•the flat of a sword

LAND
3. countable, usually plural an area of low flat land, especially near water
•salt flats
see also ↑mudflat

HORSE RACING
4. the flat, the Flatsingular (BrE)the season for racing horses on flat ground with no jumps

IN MUSIC
5. countable a note played a semitone/half tone lower than the note that is named. The written symbol is (♭)
•There are no sharps or flats in the key of C major.
Opp: ↑sharp
compare ↑natural

TYRE
6. countable (especially NAmE)a tyre that has lost air, usually because of a hole
•We got a flat on the way home.
•We had to stop to fix a flat.

IN THEATRE
7. countable (technical)a vertical section of ↑scenery used on a theatre stage

SHOES
8. flats (also flat·ties)plural (informal)shoes with a very low heel
•a pair of flats

Word Origin:
adj. and adv. n. senses 2 to 8 Middle English Old Norse flatr n. sense 1 early 19th cent. flet ‘floor, dwelling’ Germanic ↑flat ‘level’

Collocations:
Moving house
Renting
live in a rented/(especially NAmE) rental property
rent/share/move into a furnished house/(BrE) flat/(especially NAmE) apartment
rent a studio/(BrE) a studio flat/(especially NAmE) a studio apartment/(BrE) a bedsit
find/get a housemate/(BrE) a flatmate/(NAmE) a roommate
sign/break the lease/rental agreement/contract
extend/renew/terminate the lease/(BrE) tenancy
afford/pay the rent/the bills/(NAmE) the utilities
(especially BrE) fall behind with/ (especially NAmE) fall behind on the rent
pay/lose/return a damage deposit/(NAmE) security deposit
give/receive a month's/two-weeks' notice to leave/vacate the property
Being a landlord
have a flat/apartment/room (BrE) to let/(especially NAmE) for rent
rent (out)/lease (out)/ (BrE) let (out)/sublet a flat/apartment/house/property
collect/increase/raise the rent
evict the existing tenants
attract/find new/prospective tenants
invest in rental property/(BrE) property to let/(BrE) the buy-to-let market
Buying
buy/acquire/purchase a house/(a) property/(especially NAmE) (a piece of) prime real estate
call/contact/use (BrE) an estate agent/(NAmE) a Realtor™/(NAmE) a real estate agent/broker
make/ (BrE) put in an offer on a house
put down/save for (BrE) a deposit on a house
make/put/save for (especially NAmE) a down payment on a house/home
apply for/arrange/take out a mortgage/home loan
(struggle to) pay the mortgage
make/meet/keep up/cover the monthly mortgage payments/(BrE also) repayments
(BrE) repossess/ (especially NAmE) foreclose on sb's home/house
Selling
put your house/property on the market/up for sale/up for auction
increase/lower your price/the asking price
have/hold/hand over the deed/(especially BrE) deeds of/to the house, land, etc.

Example Bank:
•Do you think that the council could find me another flat?
•Even the prices of small bachelor flats are unbelievable.
•I'll meet you back at your flat.
•Mendelssohn's Quintet in B flat
•Our flat is one of the two occupied in the block.
•She let herself into the flat with the spare key.
•She lives in the top flat.
•The flat is located in a modern development.
•The house has now been converted into flats.
•The key of E flat major has three flats.
•The landlady found they had been illegally subletting the flat.
•The musician rented a flat in a fashionable area of London.
•The tall blocks of flats dominated the skyline.
•These birds live on the coastal flats.
•They converted two rooms of their house into a granny flat for Tony's elderly mother.
•They have a flat in Paris and a house in Normandy.
•They live in the next flat.
•We got her a flat in the same block as ours.
•a block of high-rise flats
•a contract to refurbish 18 council flats
•a luxury block of flats overlooking the marina
•mud and sand flats rich in animal life
•the people who live in the downstairs flat
•Children from the flats across the street were playing outside.
•The landlord agreed to let a ground-floor flat to me.
•They're renting a furnished flat on the third floor.
•They've just started building a new block of flats near my mum's house.

adverb (comparative flat·ter, no superlative)

LEVEL
1. spread out in a level, straight position, especially against another surface
•Lie flat and breathe deeply.
•They pressed themselves flat against the tunnel wall as the train approached.

REFUSING/DENYING
2. (BrE) (NAmE ˌflat ˈout) (informal)in a definite and direct way
•She told me flat she would not speak to me again.
•I made them a reasonable offer but they turned it down flat.

IN MUSIC
3. lower than the correct ↑pitch (= how high or low a note sounds)
•He sings flat all the time.
Opp: ↑sharp

Word Origin:
adj. and adv. n. senses 2 to 8 Middle English Old Norse flatr n. sense 1 early 19th cent. flet ‘floor, dwelling’ Germanic ↑flat ‘level’

verb (-tt-)intransitive (AustralE, NZE)
to live in or share a flat/apartment
• My sister Zoe flats in Auckland.
Verb forms:

Word Origin:
adj. and adv. n. senses 2 to 8 Middle English Old Norse flatr n. sense 1 early 19th cent. flet ‘floor, dwelling’ Germanic ↑flat ‘level’

See also: ↑flat out ▪ ↑flatties ▪ ↑stony broke