Meaning of world in English

world

noun

/wɝːld/ uk

/wɜːld/

world noun (THE EARTH)

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A1 [ S ]

the earth and all the people, places, and things on it:

Different parts of the world have very different climatic conditions.

Which bridge has the longest span in the world?

News of the disaster shocked the (whole/entire) world.

We live in a changing world and people must learn to adapt.

She's a world authority on fetal development.

a world record/championship

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People from different cultures have different conceptions of the world.
The richer countries of the world should take concerted action to help the poorer countries.
I'm flirting with the idea of taking a year off and traveling round the world.
He's one of the highest-earning professional golfers in the world.
The museum's collection includes works of art from all around the world.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

The Earth & outer space - general words

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world noun (GROUP/AREA)

B1 [ C usually singular ]

a group of things such as countries or animals, or an area of human activity or understanding:

the Muslim world

the modern/industrialized world

the animal world

stars from the rock music world

Unexpected things can happen in the world of subatomic particles.

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This argument may seem arcane to those not closely involved in the world of finance.
He was considered as something of a maverick in the publishing world.
They are unable to see beyond the narrow world of the theater.
Stars from the world of entertainment turned out to celebrate his 40th year in show business.
She was a key figure in the international art world.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Groups and collections of things

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

Topics & areas of interest

world noun (PLANET)

[ C ]

a planet or other part of the universe, especially one where life might or does exist:

There was a man on the news last night who believes we've been visited by beings from other worlds.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

The Earth & outer space - general words

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Idioms

at one with the world
be worlds apart
do someone a world of good
for all the world
go/come down in the world
go/come up in the world
have the world at your feet
in a world of your own
make a world of difference
make the world go around/round

More idioms

a man/woman of the world
mean the world to someone
not for the world
out of this world
put the world to rights
the ways of the world
what, how, why, etc. in the world
what's the world coming to?
the world and his wife
the world is someone's oyster
a world of difference

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

world | Intermediate English

world

noun

/wɜrld/

world noun (THE EARTH)

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[ U ]

the planet on which human life has developed, esp. including all people and their ways of life:

People from all over the world will be attending the conference.

The rapid growth of computers has changed the world.

[ U ]

The world can also mean the whole physical universe:

The world contains many solar systems, not just ours.

world noun (WHOLE AREA)

[ C ]

all of a particular group or type of thing, such as countries or animals, or a whole area of human activity or understanding:

the animal/plant world

the business world

the world of entertainment

In the world of politics, the president’s voice is still the most powerful in the nation.

world noun (LARGE DEGREE)

[ U ]

a large degree; a lot:

There’s a world of difference between the two hotels.

Idioms

in a world of your own
in the world
man of the world

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

world | Business English

world

noun [ C, usually singular ]

/wɜːld/ us

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a particular area of activity:

Our world of work is changing rapidly.

the world of advertising/the internet

the business/corporate world

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

Examples of world

world

What happens in my life, in my world, doesn't have anything to do with you.

From NPR

More than 300,000 podcasts exist in the world as of the close of 2015.

From The Atlantic

This is the world we are headed toward.

From TIME

The book goes out into the world, and who knows?

From The Atlantic

This will make the world a better place.

From CNN

We're all coming together towards making the world a better place.

From Voice of America

It's what people in 3rd and 4th world countries do.

From CNN

And as the world for birds goes, our world can't be far behind.

From National Geographic

Budgets fool us into believing that they will not only tame us, but the world around us as well.

From New York Daily News

But what in the world was that album all about?

From TIME

It's a fun world to be a part of.

From VentureBeat

It's bringing those worlds together that most interests me.

From NJ.com

Is the world a better place for having you and your work a part of it?

From Fast Company

Start paying attention to the physical world around you.

From Huffington Post

It housed one of the world's important collections of arms and armor.

From CNBC

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.