concentrate
gb/kˈɔnsəntɹˌeɪt/ us/kˈɔnsəntɹˌeɪt/
A2
English
~ 1400
Senses
0 senses
Verb
A2
action
1
Focus attention or mental effort
To give all your attention to one thing and not think about anything else.
Usage pattern:
to concentrate on [something]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'concentrate' with 'focus' but use the wrong preposition; the correct phrase is 'concentrate on', not 'concentrate at' or 'concentrate in'.
Synonyms
focus (More common in everyday speech; often interchangeable.)
Antonyms
distract (Means to take attention away from something.)
Collocations
concentrate hard
|concentrate fully
|concentrate on work
|concentrate on studies
|concentrate better
Themes
daily life
|education
|work
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- I can't concentrate with all that noise outside.
- She needs to concentrate on her driving.
- He found it hard to concentrate after the long meeting.
- Please be quiet so I can concentrate on my homework.
Learner examples
- I must concentrate on my homework.
- She cannot concentrate when the TV is on.
- He tries to concentrate in class.
- We need to concentrate during the test.
Verb
B1
action
2
Make a substance stronger
To make a liquid stronger by taking water out of it.
Usage pattern:
to concentrate [a liquid/substance]
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse this meaning with 'focus'; context usually makes the difference clear.
Synonyms
condense (Focuses more on reducing volume rather than increasing strength.)
Antonyms
dilute (Means to make a liquid weaker by adding more liquid, usually water.)
Collocations
concentrate juice
|concentrate a solution
|concentrate flavor
Themes
science
|cooking
|food_drink
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The factory concentrates orange juice for shipping.
- Boiling will concentrate the sauce's flavor.
- They concentrated the solution by evaporating the water.
Learner examples
- They concentrate fruit juice in the factory.
- Boiling will concentrate the soup.
- We can concentrate milk by removing water.
Verb
B2
action
3
Bring together in one place
To put people or things close together in one place.
Usage pattern:
to concentrate [things/people] in [a place]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse this with 'focus' on an idea, but here it means physical gathering or grouping.
Synonyms
gather (A more general and less formal term for bringing together.)
Antonyms
disperse (Means to spread people or things apart over a larger area.)
Collocations
concentrate troops
|concentrate resources
|concentrate efforts
Themes
geography
|military
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The army concentrated its forces near the border.
- We should concentrate our efforts on this project.
- Factories are concentrated in the city's industrial zone.
Learner examples
- They concentrate soldiers near the city.
- We must concentrate our work here.
- Shops are concentrated in the town center.
Noun
B1
entity
4
Substance with reduced liquid content
A liquid that has had water removed to make it stronger.
Synonyms
essence (Usually refers to flavoring substances, especially in cooking.)
Antonyms
dilution (A weaker form of a liquid after adding more liquid.)
Collocations
orange juice concentrate
|tomato paste concentrate
Themes
science
|cooking
|food_drink
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The recipe calls for frozen orange juice concentrate.
- We added water to the concentrate before drinking it.
- This paint is made from a natural dye concentrate.
Learner examples
- I buy juice concentrate from the store.
- Add water to the concentrate to make juice.
- We use tomato concentrate for cooking.
Grammar
Dictionary form
concentrate
IPA
GB/kˈɔnsəntɹˌeɪt/
US/kˈɔnsəntɹˌeɪt/
Syllables & stress
con - cen - trate (3 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (con)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: concentrate
- Plural: concentrate, concentrates
Verb
- Base: concentrate
- 3rd Person Singular: concentrates
- Present Participle: concentrating
- Past: concentrated
Word family
Expressions
concentrate on
1/kˈɔnsəntɹˌeɪt ˈɔn/
fixed phrase
Focus attention on something specific
To give all your attention to something particular.
Examples
- You need to concentrate on finishing your assignment.
- He is concentrating on learning Spanish right now.
concentrate one's efforts
1/kˈɔnsəntɹˌeɪt wˈʌnz ˈɛfɚts/
fixed phrase
Focus energy on one goal
To put all your energy into doing one thing.
Examples
- We should concentrate our efforts on improving customer service.
- They are concentrating their efforts on finding new investors.
orange juice concentrate
1/ˈɔɹɪnd͡ʒ d͡ʒˈus kˈɔnsəntɹˌeɪt/
fixed phrase
Orange juice with water removed
Orange juice that has had most of its water taken out so it is strong and easy to store.
Examples
- This drink is made from frozen orange juice concentrate.
- They import orange juice concentrate from Brazil.