See Also: case 1, noun(dictionary)
Case(law)
Just in case(finance)
fly-case(medicine)
CASE(encyclopedia)
Case Law(money)
case(1)(dictionary)
Case(medicine)
case(2)(dictionary)
case(dictionary)

case 1, noun (oh)




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1 ?example?
2 ?situation?
3 (just) in case
4 in any case
5 in that case
6 ?reason/argument?
7 ?law/crime?
8 ?box/container?
9 it's a case of something
10 ?disease?
11 in case of something
12 ?grammar?
13 be on somebody's case
14 be on the case
15 get off my case
16 ?person?
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[Sense: 1-5, 7-16; Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: cas, from Latin casus 'fall, chance', from cadere 'to fall']
[Sense: 6; Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old North French; Origin: casse, from Latin capsa 'box, case', from capere 'to take']
?EXAMPLE?
[C] an example of a particular situation or of something happening
case of
::There were 16 cases of damage to vehicles in the area.
in the case of sth
::The amount of fruit in fruit juices must be 6% in the case of berries and 10% in the case of other fruits.
in some/many/most etc cases
::In many cases standards have greatly improved.
::Williams' career is a case in point (=a clear example of something that you are discussing or explaining) .
::This is a classic case (=typical example) of poor design.
?SITUATION?
[C usually singular] a situation that exists, especially as it affects a particular person or group
in sb's case
::Like the others, he produced a written explanation, but in Scott's case this was a 30-page printed booklet.
::Changing men's and women's traditional roles is not easy, but in our case it has been helpful.
it is the case (that)
::It may be the case that the scheme will need more money.
::We tend to think of these people as untrustworthy, but that is not the case.
in this case
::In this case, several solutions could be tried.
in which case
::He won't want to eat it unless he's really hungry, in which case he'll eat almost anything.
(just) in case
a) as a way of being safe from something that might happen or might be true
::Take an umbrella, in case it rains.
::He had his camera ready, just in case he saw something that would make a good picture.
b) AmE if
::In case I'm late, start without me.
in any case
whatever happens or happened
::I don't see why I couldn't do it. In any case, I'm going to try.
::He's too young to come and in any case I want him to spend the time with Mom.
in that case
if that is the situation
::'He didn't want to talk to Sally.' 'In that case why did he agree to meet her?'
?REASON/ARGUMENT?
[C usually singular] a set of reasons why something should happen or be done
::Let me research the facts before I put forward a case .
case for
::A group of us met to make our case for more women in the cabinet.
::There is a strong case (=very good set of reasons) for getting parents more involved in the school's activities.
?LAW/CRIME?
[C] a) a question or problem that will be dealt with by a law court
::The case will be heard in the High Court.
::She is keen at all costs to avoid a court case .
::The lawyers will only be paid if they win the case .
::He was bound to lose the case .
case against
::Marshall has dropped the case against us.
b) all the reasons that one side in a legal argument can give against the other side
::The evidence does not support the prosecution's case.
::The court ruled that we had a case (=had enough good arguments to go to a law court) .
c) an event or set of events that need to be dealt with by the police in order to find out if a crime has been committed and who committed it
case of
::Police are investigating a case of armed robbery.
on the case
::Around 50 police officers are on the case.
?BOX/CONTAINER?
[C] a) a large box or container in which things can be stored or moved
::a packing case
::a case of wine
b) a special box used as a container for holding or protecting something
::a jewellery case
::Jim put his violin back in its case.
c) BrE a suitcase
::Polly carried her cases upstairs to the bedroom.
-see also bookcase , briefcase , pillowcase
it's a case of sth
spoken used before describing a situation
::Everyone can learn, it's just a case of practising.
::It's a case of too many people and not enough jobs.
?DISEASE?
[C] an example of a disease or a person who has a disease
case of
::There are thousands of new cases of AIDS in Africa every year.
in case of sth
used to describe what you should do in a particular situation, especially on official notices
::In case of fire, break the glass.
?GRAMMAR?
[U and C] technical the way in which the form of a word changes, showing its relationship to other words in a sentence
::case endings
be on sb's case
informal to be criticizing someone continuously
::Dad's always on my case about something or other.
be on the case
spoken if someone says they are on the case, they know about a problem and are going to try to solve it
get off my case
spoken used to tell someone to stop criticizing you or complaining about you
::OK, OK, just get off my case!
?PERSON?
[C] someone who is being dealt with by a doctor, a social worker, the police etc
-see also basket-case, nutcase
-see also lower case , I rest my case at rest 2 (9), upper case
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GRAMMAR(just) in case
in case is followed by the simple present, the simple past, or 'should' : Write it down in case you forget (NOT in case you will forget). | I had a snack, just in case there was no time (NOT in case there would be no time) to eat later. | Here's a contact number, in case there should (NOT will/would) be a problem.
WORD CHOICE: in this case, in this respect
Do not use in this/that case to refer to a particular aspect of something. Use in this/that respect : He supports the death penalty, and in that respect (NOT in that case) I think he is wrong. | Computers can search for information much more quickly than humans, and in this respect (NOT in this case) they are more efficient.