bulk
/bʌlk
/noun
1 [mass noun] The mass or size of something large: residents jump up and down on their rubbish to reduce its bulk...
- Yet, the sheer weight and bulk of detail in this Department report are an indication that things are happening - and have been happening for a considerable time.
- As greater mass and bulk are added to provide specific protection, discomfort escalates.
- Make the pockets out of lining or lightweight fabrics to reduce bulk.
Synonyms
size, volume, dimensions, measurements, proportions, mass, substance, scale, magnitude, immensity, hugeness, vastness, massiveness, bulkiness, largeness, bigness, ampleness, amplitude
1.1Large size or shape: he moved quickly in spite of his bulk...
- A study in strength when he was playing, Matthews has added bulk to almost every Lion and it has worked.
- From an early age he was fat, perhaps seeking in food both the bulk to defend himself and the comfort he could not find at home.
- Arriving at the dockside, you are reminded of the sheer bulk of the ship.
1.2 [count noun] A large mass or shape.Her shoes were off, under the bench I think, if I had correctly interrupted the black bulks on the grass directly beneath her behind....
- Then there might have been a unity with the law courts, and an avoidance of the two bulks of the Hilton and the BT Tower side by side. Buildings like us, made permanent.
- With all the mountains reigning high over them not much light can shine through the bulks of rock.
1.3 [as modifier] Large in quantity: bulk orders of over 100 copies...
- Their differences are resolved when Bell agrees only to sell his eggs in large bulk orders that Windy could never fulfil.
- Anything that can break down the bulk adoption of textbooks by states would certainly help.
- What now seems to be in fashion in Bulgaria is the bulk registration of sensible names to be put on bid afterwards and sold for much higher fees.
1.4Roughage in food: potatoes supply energy, essential protein, and bulk...
- Dietary fiber - also known as roughage or bulk - includes all parts of plant foods that your body can't digest or absorb.
- Insoluble fiber provides bulk or roughage to your diet, but you don't digest it.
- Stevia, on the other hand, is used in such tiny amounts that it doesn't provide any bulk or volume to foods.
1.5Cargo in an unpackaged mass such as grain or oil: [as modifier]: the port is specially designed for the largest dry bulk vessels...
- In 1974 there were 9 ships handling bulk cargo, including grain, iron ore, limestone, salt, sand and coal.
- To boost profits, it switched some carriers from dry bulk cargoes to coal, and raised freight rates for coal along the coastal region.
- Georgia is also expanding the dry bulk cargo handling facilities of its Black Sea ports.
1.6 Printing The thickness of paper or a book.Standard book papers vary in bulk from about 200 to 900 pages per inch....
- Lower bulk reduces opacity. Higher bulk will increase the overall thickness of a book. Therefore, it helps to know a paper's measure in pages per inch (caliper).
- The instrument used to measure bulk is called a micrometer. Four sheets of paper are measured and the figure divided by four to establish the paper stock's calliper, for example 12 or 15 points.
2 (the bulk of) The greater part of something: the bulk of the traffic had passed...
- Rents and taxes from the offshore sector make up the bulk of the income of the State.
- They did keep the bulk of their forces outside the city, as they were asked to do.
- The rented homes sector is where the bulk of Park Lane's growth has come from in the last few years.
Synonyms
majority, greater quantity/number, larger part/number, best/better part, main part, major part;
most, almost all, more than half;
(main) body, lion's share, predominance, preponderance, generality
verb [with object]
1Treat (a product) so that its quantity appears greater than it is: traders were bulking up their flour with chalk...
- However, the Food Standards Agency found last year that imported chicken meat is sometimes bulked out with water, increasing the weight by as much as a third.
- Why Watson bulked out his modest little story to such extravagant length, alas, we shall never know.
- Still, a large part of the adoration must be nostalgia for past glories on the basis of the dreary recent material which bulked out their set.
Synonyms
make bigger, make larger, expand, pad out, fill out, eke out, add to, augment, increase
1.1 [no object] (bulk up) Build up flesh and muscle, typically in training for sporting events: he took dietary supplements to bulk up as he lifted weights...
- These are excellent foods for bulking up and adding muscle mass, but they can add some body fat if overconsumed.
- He later went on to star at the University of Minnesota where he would take his training to a new level and bulk up to his current proportions.
- Those may be appropriate for hardgainers, powerlifters or trainers who want to bulk up in the offseason and need insulin and calories to do so.
2Combine (shares or commodities for sale): your shares will be bulked with others and sold at the best prices available
Phrases
bulk large
in bulk
Origin
Middle English: the senses 'cargo as a whole' and 'heap, large quantity' (the earliest recorded) are probably from Old Norse búlki 'cargo'; other senses arose perhaps by alteration of obsolete bouk 'belly, body'.