Chapter eight
One overcast morning, as I was pushing the boiled egg around my plate, Ali walked in cradling a pile of chopped wood. I asked him where Hassan was.
1.cradling
elated topics: Babies, Telephone, telegraph
cra‧dle1 /ˈkreɪdl/ noun
1 [countable] a small bed for a baby, especially one that moves gently from side to side → cot
She rocked the cradle to quieten the child.
2 → the cradle of something
3 → from (the) cradle to (the) grave
4 [singular] the beginning of something
Like most Catholic children, he had heard stories of Ireland from the cradle.
5 [countable] a structure that is used to lift something heavy up or down
a window-cleaner’s cradle
6 [countable] the part of a telephone where you put the receiver when you are not using it
She replaced the receiver on the cradle.
→ cat's cradle, → rob the cradle at rob(5)
Examples from the Corpus
cradle
• The baby rested peacefully in his cradle.
• Out of nowhere came a gold incense cradle.
• Jane put Chantal down in her makeshift cradle in the corner and hastily tidied herself up.
• When the telephone rang, it was like a rude interruption into a special cradle of time.
• In it was a single bed and also the cradle in which she and Jessie had lain many years ago.
• Ancient Athens is generally thought of as the cradle of democracy.
• Baghdad, the cradle of civilization
• He put the phone down on the cradle and stared at it.
• When we hear Frau Braun coming, I hastily drop the gauze over the cradle and hide behind the partition.
• Yearning made a warm cradle in her stomach.
• I curse myself for not strangling you in your cradle.
rocked ... cradle
• If she cried he rocked the cradle and sang to her tunelessly.
from the cradle
• They are electrically powered and operate from supports built on rails with vertical and horizontal movement controlled from the cradle.
• Her life, comparative ease from the cradle up; she had to thank her father.
• Because you've been crackers about Christopher, in love with him from the cradle.
• He had heard stories of Ireland from the cradle, as most Catholic children had.
• Practices which have characterised the details of your daily living from the cradle upwards are dealt a swift and final blow.
• The state now provided something of a protective safety net from the cradle to the grave.
cradle2 verb [transitive]
1 to hold something gently, as if to protect it
John cradled the baby in his arms.
see thesaurus at hug
2 to hold a telephone receiver by putting it between your ear and your shoulder
She hunched over the desk, telephone cradled at her neck.
→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
cradle
• Inside, John lay cradling a pillow in the dark.
I asked him what had happened and he said it was nothing, that he’d gotten into a little scuffle with some kids over the kite.”
2.scuf‧fle1 /ˈskʌfəl/ noun [countable]
a short fight that is not very violent SYN tussle
Scuffles broke out between rival supporters during the match.
scuffle with/between
scuffles with police
He was rocking on the leather swivel chair behind his desk, reading a newspaper.
3.swiv‧el1 /ˈswɪvəl/ (also swivel around/round) verb (swivelled, swivelling British English, swiveled, swiveling American English)
[intransitive, transitive] to turn around quickly and face a different direction, or to make something do this → spin
Anna swivelled round to face him.
She swivelled her head round to watch what was happening.
Danny swiveled his chair away from me.
→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
swivel
• Kovitsky swiveled around to look at her.
• These cover a wide field of view without having to swivel as human eyes do.
• These swivel freely and act as weathervanes.
• As Agnes looked down Granny's eyes sprang open and swivelled from side to side.
• Ralph swivelled in his chair and looked directly at Meg.
• His eyes seemed to be trying to imitate a lizard and swivel in opposite directions.
• When there was nowhere to go in that infernally small space, one could always swivel in the other direction.
• The satellite has difficulty swiveling its antenna toward Earth.
• Mr Tench swivelled round in astonishment as the men burst through his office door.
• He swivelled the camera on the tripod to follow her as she crossed the yard.
• She swivelled the computer screen around so that I could see it too.
Related topics: Daily life, Technology
swivel2 noun [countable]
an object that joins two parts of something and helps it to turn around
Examples from the Corpus
swivel
• Affixed to the wall at a considerable height is a small television on a swivel, facing the bed.
• She looks around her with a swivel of her huge head.
