Meaning of strong in English

strong

adjective

/strɒŋ/ us

/strɑːŋ/

strong adjective (NOT WEAK)

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powerful; having or using great force or control:

She must be very strong to carry such a weight on her back.

It is surely the duty of the stronger members in a society to help those who are weak.

strong influence/effect My grandmother had a strong influence/effect on my early childhood.

Strong winds are forecast in the area for the next few days.

It's surprising what strong memories a photograph can produce.

as strong as an ox Get Carl to lift it - he's as strong as an ox (= very strong).

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

having a lot of physical or mental strength

strongHe is a big, strong man.
strongTwo thirds of voters see him as a strong leader.
powerfulHe is the most powerful fighter I have seen in a boxing ring.
muscularHe is tall with a muscular body.
muscledShe has worked hard to achieve that muscled body.

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Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

felt or experienced with a lot of force

strongI felt a strong urge to hug him.
powerfulAnger is one of the most powerful human emotions.
intenseShe learned that even intense emotional pain passes.
fierceThe people have a fierce pride in their country.
deepHe suffered from a deep feeling of inadequacy.
deep-seatedHe has a deep-seated loathing of snobbery.

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effective; of a good quality or level and likely to be successful:

We will need strong policies if our economic problems are to be solved.

I can give you stronger pain-killing drugs if these aren't strong enough.

Strong trading links exist between us and many South American countries.

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

having a lot of physical or mental strength

strongHe is a big, strong man.
strongTwo thirds of voters see him as a strong leader.
powerfulHe is the most powerful fighter I have seen in a boxing ring.
muscularHe is tall with a muscular body.
muscledShe has worked hard to achieve that muscled body.

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skilled or good at doing something:

Without a doubt, she's the strongest candidate we've interviewed for the job.

strong on As a guitarist, he's strong on (= good at) technique but lacks feeling in some pieces.

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He was swept out to sea by the strong current.
I'm not a strong swimmer so I prefer not to go out of my depth.
You'll need a strong abrasive for cleaning this sink.
The strong police presence only heightened the tension among the crowd.
A strong wind will favour the bigger boats.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Physically strong and powerful

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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Efficient and effective

Intelligence

strong adjective (DETERMINED)

difficult to argue with; firm and determined:

strong opinion She has strong opinions about religion.

strong personality He has a strong personality, but don't let him bully you.

strong view Most of the group have strong views on the subject of divorce.

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He's a strong advocate of state ownership of the railways.
She left home in the face of strong opposition from her parents.
Some people put their faith in strong leaders rather than sound policies.
What this state needs is really strong government.
I don't think that's a very strong argument.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Strong-willed

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strong adjective (NOTICEABLE)

If a taste, smell, etc. is strong, it is very noticeable or powerful:

A strong light was shining straight in my eyes.

There's a really strong smell of bleach in the corridor.

This coffee is too strong for me.

The room was decorated in very strong colours.

What a strong likeness there is between the brothers!

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He's got a strong French accent.
There was a strong smell of burning.
The sun was so strong we had to pull down the blinds.
The stink of rotting seaweed was strong along the seashore.
How do you like your tea - strong or weak?

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Having a powerful effect

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strong adjective (DIFFICULT TO BREAK)

difficult to break, destroy, or make sick, or able to support a heavy weight or force:

a strong box/chair

The window is made from very strong glass - it won't shatter.

It's a serious disease, but he's very strong - I think he'll pull through.

See also

strength (POWER)

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

not breaking easily

strongYou will need a strong cardboard box to carry all those books.
toughCeramic tiles are tougher than plastic shower screens.
sturdyYou'll need sturdy boots for this weather.
solidYou will need to build a good solid base for your shed.
hard-wearingCotton canvas is the most hard-wearing fabric.

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More examplesFewer examples

Mind that box - the bottom isn't very strong.
He has a very strong constitution.
He has good strong digestion.
The bags we sell have very strong seams, so they will last for years.
These are good strong toys for tiny tots.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Physically strong and powerful

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strong adjective (LANGUAGE)

expressing something in a forceful way, without trying not to offend people:

strong words He used very strong words about the way the federal officials had behaved.

The manager had some strong words to say about the team's defensive play.

in the strongest terms She said that she condemned their actions in the strongest terms.

strong language

language that expresses something in a forceful way, without trying not to offend people:

The State Department also used strong language to deny a US policy shift.

language that uses a lot of swear words (= rude or offensive words):

The movie is rated PG for strong language.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Ways of speaking

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strong adjective (LIKELY)

very likely to happen:

strong possibility/likelihood There's a strong possibility/likelihood of finding the child within the next few hours.

strong chance The treatment's chances of success are stronger if it is started as soon as the disease is diagnosed.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Possible and probable

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strong adjective (IN NUMBER)

[ after noun ]

having the stated number of people, members, etc.:

The crowd had grown to be several hundred strong.

See also

strength (NUMBER)

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

General words for size and amount

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strong adjective (FLOUR)

Strong flour contains a lot of gluten (= a protein that is contained in wheat and some other grains) and is used to make food such as bread and pizza dough:

Sift the strong plain flour into a warm mixing bowl.

The higher the protein content, the stronger the flour and the more crusty and chewy the bread.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Flour & yeast

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strong adjective (CHEMISTRY)

chemistry specialized

A strong acid, alkali, or chemical base produces many ions (= atoms with an electrical charge) when it is dissolved in water.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Chemistry - general words

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Idioms

be going strong

strong nerves

strong

adverb

informal

/strɒŋ/ us

/strɑːŋ/

come on strong

to behave towards another person in a way that is too severe, or that shows a strong sexual interest that the other person does not want:

I think you came on a bit strong - it wasn't her fault.

to make an extra effort in order to be successful or to have control in a situation:

He came on strong in the early rounds to annihilate the competition.

(Definition of strong from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

strong | American Dictionary

strong

adjective [ -er/-est only ]

/strɔŋ/

strong adjective [-er/-est only] (PHYSICALLY POWERFUL)

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physically powerful or energetic:

You must be strong to be able to lift all that weight.

I feel a little stronger every day.

Strong winds blew down a number of trees.

The doctor prescribed a stronger pain-killer.

strong adjective [-er/-est only] (DIFFICULT TO BREAK)

not easily broken or damaged:

The swings are strong enough for any of the kids.

strong adjective [-er/-est only] (DETERMINED)

having a forceful and determined personality:

He has a strong personality, but don’t let him intimidate you.

strong adjective [-er/-est only] (IMPORTANT)

having a lot of influence or importance:

My grandmother had a strong influence on me as a child.

He is a strong supporter of the arts in the city.

strong adjective [-er/-est only] (PERSUASIVE)

believed or expressed without any doubt; persuasive:

She has strong opinions about many things.

There are strong arguments to support both sides.

strong adjective [-er/-est only] (OBVIOUS)

easily noticed, felt, tasted, or smelled; obvious:

He bears a strong likeness to his brother.

This coffee is too strong!

There was a strong smell of gas.

strong adjective [-er/-est only] (REALISTIC)

likely or realistic:

There’s a strong possibility that the naval base will close next year.

(Definition of strong from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

strong | Business English

strong

adjective

/strɒŋ/ us

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an activity or industry that is strong is growing and becoming more successful:

Economic news has been better than expected, with retail sales remaining strong.

Worldwide sales benefited from a strong performance in Europe.

strong demand/growth/trading

a strong economy/market/sector

having or making a lot of money and so in a good financial position:

Commodity prices have remained extremely strong this year.

The Company maintains a strong financial position, with working capital of $33,500,000.

Several technology stocks are continuing to post strong gains on Nasdaq.

Nearly all leading markets enjoyed a strong performance during April, led by Wall Street.

strong balance sheets/cash flows

having existed for a long time and likely to remain successful:

While Europe has developed a strong position in mobile communications, substantial barriers still remain.

Owning a strong brand is key to having a successful business.

a strong link/relationship/alliance

used to describe behaviour or opinions that are firm and determined:

Scientists have been telling us for years that it is essential for us to take strong action on global warming.

Against strong opposition from some CEOs, investors moved to ensure that the roles of chair and CEO were separated.

strong leadership/management

strong commitment/interest/support There has been strong support in Congress for the proposals.

MONEY

a currency that is strong keeps or increases its value in relation to most other currencies:

Money experts anticipate the pound will remain strong against the dollar next year.

a strong dollar/euro/pound

-strong

used after a number to show how many people belong to or are involved in something:

The call centre has an 80-strong workforce.

be sb's strong point/suit

to be the thing that someone is particularly good at:

Financial planning does not seem to be the strong suit of many consumers in the modern world.

a strong chance/possibility

used to say that something is likely to happen:

A sale of the business in three parts is a strong possibility.

(Definition of strong from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of strong

strong

Although, in principle, strong objections may be raised against such direct comparisons, some qualitative results have been obtained.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Structural consistency is an example of a strong rule that has the power to invalidate changes that yield physically unsupportable designs.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Economic returns from these projects may provide a strong incentive for such countries to participate.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

However, differences in the nature of wage labour between the two regions were very strong, as a result of the specific route of the transition.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

One patient was refused because the fact that she already had a 4-month baby did not by itself seem a sufficiently strong indication.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The numbers illustrate that nationally there have been two strong parties and other very small ones.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Note that intractability assumptions for random instances are much stronger than complexity-theoretic assumptions, which usually refer only to the worst case.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

There was a stronger rationale for reform and both international and domestic factors played important roles.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

This is because vowels in both primarily and secondarily stressed syllables are rendered strong and not weakened.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Table 6 shows that 60 per cent already had a strong commitment to teaching when they left school.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

We may surmise that if the data collection and scoring procedures had been uniform across the three studies, the correlation would have been stronger.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

In fact, strong reduction strategies are useful in all situations where symbolic matching has to be conducted in the scope of binders.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Recent studies have provided strong evidence in support of the above interpretation.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

As these examples show, what we are dealing with here are areas of strong structural equivalence between the two languages.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

In these cases, strong responses differ substantially in measured amplitude in a way that is most readily explained as the result of eye-movements.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

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These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

What is the pronunciation of strong?