something

some|thing

W1S1 [ˈsʌmθıŋ] pron

1.) used to mean a particular thing when you do not know its name or do not know exactly what it is

→↑anything, everything ↑everything, nothing ↑nothing

▪ There's something in my eye.

▪ Sarah said something about coming over later.

sth new/old/good etc

▪ It's a good car but I'm looking for something newer.

▪ The house was too small so they decided to look for something else (=a different one) .

▪ I think there's something wrong (=a problem) with the phone.

▪ I don't know what he does exactly, but I know it has something to do with computers (=is related to them in some way) .

2.) sth to eat/drink/read/do etc

some food, a drink, a book, an activity etc

▪ Would you like something to drink?

▪ I should take something to read on the plane.

3.) do sth

to do something in order to deal with a problem or difficult situation

▪ Don't just stand there - do something!

do something about

▪ Can you do something about that noise?

4.) sth about sb/sth

used to say that a person, situation etc has a quality or feature that you recognize but you cannot say exactly what it is

(there is) sth different/odd/unusual about sb/sth

▪ There was something rather odd about him.

▪ There's something about her voice that I find really sexy.

5.) ... or sth

spoken used when you cannot remember, or do not think it is necessary to give, another example of something you are mentioning

▪ Her name was Judith, or Julie, or something.

▪ Here's some money. Get yourself a sandwich or something.

6.) sth like 100/2000 etc

close to but not exactly a large amount such as 100, 2000 etc

▪ Something like 50,000 homes are without power.

7.) be thirty-sth/forty-sth etc

used to say that someone is aged between 30 and 39, between 40 and 49 etc when you do not know exactly

8.) be (really/quite) sth

spoken used to say that something is very good and impressive

▪ Running your own company at 21 is really something.

▪ That was really something, wasn't it?

9.) be sth else

spoken to be unusual or funny to other people

▪ You really are something else!

10.) there's sth in/to sth

used to admit that someone's words are true or their ideas are successful etc

▪ They had to concede that there was something in his teaching methods.

▪ Do you think there's something to the rumours about Larry and Sue?

11.) have sth of sth

to have a few of the same features or qualities that someone else has

▪ It was clear that Jenkins had something of his father's brilliance.

12.) be sth of a gardener/an expert etc

to know a lot about something or to be very good at something

▪ Charlie's always been something of an expert on architecture.

13.) sth of a shock/surprise etc

formal used to say that something is a shock, surprise etc, but not completely or not in a strong or severe way

▪ The news came as something of a surprise

14.) a little sth

used when you are telling someone that you have bought them a present

▪ I got you a little something for your birthday.

15.) sixty sth/John sth etc

spoken used when you cannot remember the rest of a number or name

▪ 'How much did you spend on groceries?' 'A hundred and twenty something.'

16.) make sth of yourself

to become successful

17.) that's sth

used to say that there is one thing that you should be glad about

▪ At least we have some money left. That's something, isn't it?