pipe

noun

/paɪp/

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[countable, uncountable] a tube through which liquids and gases can flow
- Both hot and cold water pipes should be properly insulated.
- steel/copper pipes
- a burst pipe
- The house was blown apart by an explosion, caused by a leaking gas pipe.
- PVC pipe is commonly used in building and construction.
- a drainage/sewage pipe
- Insulation may reduce the danger of pipes bursting in winter.
Collocations Decorating and home improvement
Decorating and home improvementHouses
- refurbish/renovate/ (British English) do up a building/a house
- convert a building/house/room into homes/offices/(especially North American English) apartments/(British English) flats
- extend/enlarge a house/building/room/kitchen
- build (British English) an extension (to the back/rear of a house)/(North American English) an addition (on/to something)/(British English) a conservatory
- knock down/demolish a house/home/building/wall
- knock out/through the wall separating two rooms
Decoration
- furnish/paint/ (especially British English) decorate a home/a house/an apartment/a flat/a room
- be decorated in bright colours/in a traditional style/with flowers/with paintings
- paint/plaster the walls/ceiling
- hang/put up/strip off/remove the wallpaper
- install/replace/remove the bathroom fixtures/(British English) fittings
- build/put up shelves
- lay wooden flooring/timber decking/floor tiles/a carpet/a patio
- put up/hang/take down a picture/painting/poster/curtain
DIY/home improvement
- do (British English) DIY/carpentry/the plumbing/the wiring
- make home improvements
- add/install central heating/underfloor heating/insulation
- fit/install double-glazing/a smoke alarm
- insulate your house/your home/the walls/the pipes/the tanks/(especially British English) the loft
- fix/repair a roof/a leak/a pipe/the plumbing/a leaking (especially British English) tap/(North American English usually) faucet
- block/clog (up)/unblock/unclog a pipe/sink
- make/drill/fill a hole
- hammer (in)/pull out/remove a nail
- tighten/untighten/loosen/remove a screw
- saw/cut/treat/stain/varnish/paint wood
see also drainpipe, exhaust, soil pipe, waste pipe, water pipe, windpipe
Extra Examples
- He laid the pipes under the floorboards.
- Insulating your pipes will save on your heating bills.
- The pipe from the boiler to the bath.
- The pipes lead into the river.
- The pipes will have to pass through the wall.
- the pipe for the hot water
- to join two lengths of pipe together
- All the old lead pipes were replaced with plastic and copper.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- underground
- gas
- sewage
- …
… of pipe
- length
verb + pipe
- install
- lay
- run
- …
pipe + verb
- lead
- pass through something
- run
- …
preposition
- through a/the pipe
- pipe for
- pipe from
- …
See full entry
[countable] a narrow tube with a bowl at one end, used for smoking tobacco
- to smoke a pipe
- He puffed on his pipe.
- pipe tobacco
- He knocked out his pipe in the big glass ashtray.
see also peace pipe
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- clay
- peace
- crack
- …
verb + pipe
- smoke
- light
- fill
- …
pipe + noun
- smoker
- smoke
- tobacco
- …
phrases
- the bowl of a pipe
- the stem of a pipe
See full entry
[countable] a musical instrument in the shape of a tube, played by blowing see also pan pipes, pitch pipeTopics Musicb2
[countable] any of the tubes from which sound is produced in an organ
pipes
(also bagpipes [plural], North American English also bagpipe [singular])
a musical instrument played especially in Scotland. The player blows air into a bag held under the arm and then slowly forces the air out through pipes to produce a noise.
CultureSimilar instruments are played in many countries, including Ireland, but in Britain the bagpipes are mainly associated with Scotland. The sound they make is unusual, but their music is suitable both for dancing and for serious occasions such as funerals. A person who plays the bagpipes is called a piper.

Word OriginOld English pīpe ‘musical tube’, pīpian ‘play a pipe’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch pijp and German Pfeife, based on Latin pipare ‘to peep, chirp’, reinforced in Middle English by Old French piper ‘to chirp, squeak’.

pipe

verb

/paɪp/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they pipe	/paɪp/ /paɪp/
he / she / it pipes	/paɪps/ /paɪps/
past simple piped	/paɪpt/ /paɪpt/
past participle piped	/paɪpt/ /paɪpt/
-ing form piping	/ˈpaɪpɪŋ/ /ˈpaɪpɪŋ/

Phrasal Verbs

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[transitive] pipe something (+ adv./prep.) to send water, gas, oil, etc. through a pipe from one place to another
- to pipe oil across the desert
- Water is piped from the reservoir to the city.
[transitive] pipe something (+ adv./prep.) [usually passive] to send sounds or signals through a wire or cable from one place to another
- The speech was piped over a public address system.
[transitive, intransitive] pipe (somebody) to play music on a pipe or the bagpipes, especially to welcome somebody who has arrived
- Passengers were piped aboard ship at the start of the cruise.
- a prize for piping and drumming
[intransitive, transitive] (+ speech) to speak or sing in a high voice or with a high sound
- Outside a robin piped.
[transitive] pipe something (on something) to decorate food, especially a cake, with thin lines of icing, etc. by forcing it out of a special bag or tube
- The cake had ‘Happy Birthday’ piped on it.