public

pub|lic¹ W1S1 [ˈpʌblık] adj

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1¦(ordinary people)¦

2¦(for anyone)¦

3¦(government)¦

4¦(known about)¦

5¦(not hidden)¦

6¦(place with a lot of people)¦

7 public life

8 public image

9 go public

10 public appearance

11 public property

12 public enemy number one

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[Date: 1400-1500; : French; Origin: publique, from Latin publicus, probably from poplicus, from populus 'people'; influenced by pubes 'adult' ( PUBES)]

1.) ¦(ORDINARY PEOPLE)¦ [only before noun]

relating to all the ordinary people in a country, who are not members of the government or do not have important jobs

▪ We have to show that publishing this story is in the public interest (=helpful or useful to ordinary people) .

▪ Public opinion is gradually shifting in favor of the imprisoned men.

▪ There was a public outcry (=display of anger by a lot of people) about the shooting.

2.) ¦(FOR ANYONE)¦ [only before noun]

available for anyone to use

≠ ↑private

▪ a public telephone

▪ a public footpath

▪ proposals to ban smoking in public places

▪ a public library

▪ full public access to information

public transport

BrE /public transportation

AmE (=buses, trains etc)

3.) ¦(GOVERNMENT)¦ [only before noun]

relating to the government and the services it provides for people

≠ ↑private

▪ the Government's public spending plans

▪ We do not believe he is fit for public office (=a job in the government) .

▪ efforts to control public expenditure

▪ public funding for the arts

→↑public service

4.) ¦(KNOWN ABOUT)¦

known about by most people

▪ Details of the highly sensitive information have not been made public .

▪ It is a job that brings him constantly into the public eye (=seen or heard a lot on television, radio etc) .

▪ Although not a public figure (=famous person) , he was a man of great influence.

5.) ¦(NOT HIDDEN)¦

intended for anyone to know, see, or hear

≠ ↑private

▪ Today the school finds itself in the midst of a very public debate.

public display of grief/affection etc

(=showing your emotions so that everyone can see)

▪ She was acutely embarrassed by his public display of temper.

▪ There will be a public inquiry into the sinking of the oil tanker.

▪ a fear of public speaking

6.) ¦(PLACE WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE)¦

a public place usually has a lot of people in it

≠ ↑private

▪ Let's go somewhere less public where we can talk.

7.) public life

work that you do, especially for the government, that makes you well-known to many people

▪ Howard seems to have retired from public life.

8.) public image

the public image of a famous person or organization is the character or attitudes that most people think they have

public image of

▪ attempts to improve the public image of the police

9.) go public

a) to tell everyone about something that was secret

go public on/with

▪ The planners are almost ready to go public on the road-building scheme.

b) to become a ↑public company

▪ Many partnerships went public in the 1980s to secure extra capital.

10.) public appearance

a visit by a famous person in order to make a speech, advertise something etc

▪ She is paid £10,000 for the briefest of public appearances.

11.) public property

a) something that is provided for anyone to use, and is usually owned by the government

▪ The army was called out to protect public property.

b) something that everyone has a right to know about

▪ Our lives seem to have become public property.

12.) public enemy number one

the criminal, problem etc that is considered the most serious threat to people's safety

▪ Drugs have become public enemy number one.

public ²

public² W2S2 n

1.) the public [also + plural verb British English]

ordinary people who do not work for the government or have any special position in society

▪ The meeting will be open to the general public .

▪ Police warned members of the public not to approach the man, who may be armed.

▪ On the whole, the public are conservative about education.

2.) in public

if you do something in public, you do it where anyone can see

≠ in private

▪ Her husband was always nice to her in public.

→wash/air your dirty linen/laundry (in public) at ↑dirty¹ (7)

3.) [singular, U also + plural verb British English]

the people who like a particular singer, writer etc

▪ He is adored by his public.

▪ The theatre-going public are very demanding.