paper

pa|per¹ W1S1 [ˈpeıpə US -ər] n

↑flower, ↑paper, ↑string

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1¦(for writing/wrapping)¦

2¦(newspaper)¦

3¦(documents/letters)¦

4 on paper

5¦(examination)¦

6¦(speech/piece of writing)¦

7¦(piece of schoolwork)¦

8¦(official publication)¦

9¦(for walls)¦

10¦(financial)¦

11¦(toilet)¦

12 not worth the paper it is written on/printed on

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[Date: 1300-1400; : Old French; Origin: papier, from Latin papyrus; PAPYRUS]

1.) ¦(FOR WRITING/WRAPPING)¦[U]

material in the form of thin sheets that is used for writing on, wrapping things etc

piece/sheet of paper

▪ Write it down on a piece of paper.

scrap/slip of paper

(=a small piece of paper)

▪ recycled paper

▪ a box wrapped in plain brown paper

▪ flowers made from tissue paper (=very light thin paper)

writing/wrapping paper

▪ sheets of writing paper

2.) ¦(NEWSPAPER)¦

a newspaper

▪ Have you seen today's paper?

▪ You'll read about it in tomorrow's papers.

Sunday/evening/daily paper

▪ The story was all over the Sunday papers.

local/national/trade paper

▪ Why don't you put an ad in the local paper?

3.) ¦(DOCUMENTS/LETTERS)¦

papers [plural]

a) pieces of paper with writing on them that you use in your work, at meetings etc

▪ I left some important papers in my briefcase.

b) documents and letters concerning someone's private or public life

▪ While I was organizing Simon's papers I came across his diaries.

c) divorce papers

documents concerning a ↑divorce

d) official documents such as your ↑passport, ↑identity card etc

▪ My papers are all in order (=they are legal and correct) .

→↑White Paper, ↑green paper, ↑order paper

4.) on paper

a) if you put ideas or information on paper, you write them down

put/get sth down on paper

▪ You need to get some of these thoughts down on paper.

b) if something seems true on paper, it seems to be true as an idea, but may not be true in a real situation

= ↑in theory

▪ It's a nice idea on paper, but you'll never get it to work.

5.) ¦(EXAMINATION)¦ BrE

a set of printed questions used as an examination in a particular subject, and the answers people write

▪ an exam paper

▪ I have a stack of papers to mark.

history/French etc paper

▪ The geography paper was really easy.

6.) ¦(SPEECH/PIECE OF WRITING)¦

a piece of writing or a talk on a particular subject by someone who has made a study of it

▪ a scientific paper

paper on

▪ a paper on psychology

▪ Professor Usborne gave a paper on recent developments in his field.

7.) ¦(PIECE OF SCHOOLWORK)¦ especially AmE a piece of writing that is done as part of a course at school or university

= ↑essay paper on

▪ a paper on the Civil War

8.) ¦(OFFICIAL PUBLICATION)¦

a report prepared by a government or committee on a question they have been considering or a proposal for changes in the law

▪ We will publish a discussion paper on the future of the BBC.

paper on

▪ the 1998 White Paper on political reform

▪ a working paper (=a report that is not final) on funding the Health Service

9.) ¦(FOR WALLS)¦ [U and C]

paper for covering and decorating the walls of a room

= ↑wallpaper

▪ a floral paper

10.)¦(FINANCIAL)¦ [U and C]

↑stocks and ↑shares that can be bought and sold on a financial market

11.) ¦(TOILET)¦[U]

soft thin paper used for cleaning yourself after you have used the toilet

= ↑toilet paper, toilet roll ↑toilet roll

12.) not worth the paper it is written on/printed on

if something such as a contract is not worth the paper it is written on, it has no value because whatever is promised in it will not happen

→put/set pen to paper at ↑pen¹ (3), ↑waste paper

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HINT sense 1

When paper refers to the material that you write on, it is an uncountable noun. Do not say that something is written on 'a paper'. Say that it is written on a piece of paper.

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paper ²

paper² adj [only before noun]

1.) made of paper

▪ a paper bag

2.) written or printed on paper

▪ The brochure is available in electronic and paper versions.

3.) paper qualifications

an expression meaning documents showing that you have passed particular examinations, used specially when you think that experience and knowledge are more important

▪ Paper qualifications are no guide to ability.

4.) existing only as an idea but not having any real value

▪ paper profits (=a record of the value of something, that is not real until the thing is sold)

▪ paper promises

paper ³

paper³ v [T]

1.) to decorate the walls of a room by covering them with special paper

= ↑wallpaper

2.) paper over the cracks

to try to hide disagreements or difficulties

▪ We need to discuss disagreements honestly without papering over the cracks.