bone
gb/bˈoʊn/ us/bˈoʊn/
A1
English
~ 2000
Senses
0 senses
Noun
A2
entity
1
Hard skeletal structure
A hard part inside the body that helps form the shape and support of animals and people.
Usage pattern:
[someone] breaks [a bone]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'bone' with 'joint', but a joint is where two bones meet, not the bone itself.
Synonyms
osseous tissue (A more technical, medical term for bone)
Antonyms
cartilage (A softer connective tissue in the body, in contrast to hard bone)
Collocations
break a bone
|bone fracture
|human bone
|bone marrow
|bone density
Themes
anatomy
|health
|biology
|body
|animals
|science
Examples
- He broke a bone in his arm during the game.
- The human body has over 200 bones.
- Calcium is important for healthy bones.
- The dog buried a bone in the backyard.
Learner examples
- I broke a bone in my leg.
- Bones are hard inside the body.
- The dog is chewing a bone.
- We have many bones in our body.
Noun
informal
B1
entity
2
Essential core element
The most important or main parts of something.
Usage pattern:
the bones of [something]
Common mistake:
Some learners may think 'bones' here means physical bones; it's figurative for structure or main parts.
Synonyms
core (Refers to the central or most important part)
Antonyms
details (Details are the small parts, as opposed to the essential structure)
Collocations
the bones of the story
|strip down to the bones
|bare bones
Themes
metaphor
|structure
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The bones of the plan are solid, but we need more detail.
- She explained the bones of the story before going into specifics.
- This report gives you the bare bones of the situation.
Learner examples
- I told her the bones of my idea.
- We learned the bones of the story.
- This is just the bare bones of my plan.
Verb
B2
action
3
Remove bones from food
To take bones out of meat or fish.
Usage pattern:
to bone [meat/fish]
Common mistake:
Learners might confuse 'bone' (verb) with 'debone'; both mean the same, but 'debone' is more common in professional cooking terms.
Synonyms
debone (A more technical or culinary term for removing bones)
Antonyms
leave whole (Keeping meat or fish with bones in)
Collocations
bone a chicken
|bone the fish
|boned meat
Themes
cooking
|food preparation
|food_drink
|daily_life
Examples
- She boned the chicken before roasting it.
- I need to bone this fish for dinner.
- The chef showed us how to bone a duck.
Learner examples
- I will bone the fish before we eat.
- He boned the chicken for soup.
- The cook boned the meat.
Noun
A1
entity
4
Bone as animal treat/toy
A piece of bone for a dog to chew.
Synonyms
chew toy (for dogs) (Synthetic version of a chewable item for pets)
Antonyms
kibble (Small dry pet food pieces, not a large chewable object)
Collocations
dog bone
|chew bone
Themes
pets
|daily life
|animals
|daily_life
Examples
- The dog was happily chewing on a bone.
- I bought a big bone for my puppy.
- He gave the dog a leftover steak bone.
Learner examples
- The dog has a bone.
- I gave my dog a big bone.
- My dog likes chewing a bone.
Grammar
Dictionary form
bone
IPA
GB/bˈoʊn/
US/bˈoʊn/
Syllables & stress
bone (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (bone)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: bone
- Plural: bone, bones
Verb
- Base: bone
- 3rd Person Singular: bones
- Present Participle: boning
- Past: boned
Word family
Forms
bones
noun
boning
verb
boned
verb
Core family
bony
adjective B2
Negative and opposite forms
boneless
adjective
Advanced or less common
debone
verb
Expressions
to feel it in your bones
1/tə fˈil ˈɪt ˈɪn jˈʊɹ bˈoʊnz/
idiom
informal
Sense something without proof
To be sure something will happen or is true, even if you have no proof.
Examples
- I can feel it in my bones that we're going to win.
- She felt it in her bones that he was lying.
to make no bones about [something]
1/tə mˈeɪk nˈoʊ bˈoʊnz əbˈaʊt sˈʌmθɪŋ/
idiom
informal
Speak openly without hesitation
To say something in a direct and honest way, without trying to hide your feelings or opinion.
Examples
- She made no bones about her dislike for the new policy.
- I'll make no bones about it: I think this is a bad idea.
to work your fingers to the bone
1/tə wˈɚk jˈʊɹ fˈɪŋɡɚz tə ðə bˈoʊn/
idiom
informal
Work extremely hard until exhausted
To work very hard for a long time until you are very tired.
Examples
- She worked her fingers to the bone to provide for her family.
- They worked their fingers to the bone to finish the project on time.
bare bones
1/bˈɛɹ bˈoʊnz/
idiom
Only basic essential parts
Only the most important parts, with nothing extra.
Examples
- The report gives only the bare bones of what happened.
- We need more than just the bare bones of an idea.
bare bones
2/bˈɛɹ bˈoʊnz/
idiom
only the basic structure
The most simple, basic form of something, with all extra details removed.
Examples
- The report gives only the bare bones of the new policy.
- We need more than the bare bones of an idea before we invest.
- He lives a bare-bones lifestyle to save money.