vice
part of speech
noun (a vice, vices); noun (UK vice, US vise = tool); prefix (vice-)
meaning for a pupil
1) A bad habit or a wrong way of behaving. tree →
2) Serious crime such as illegal gambling. tree →
3) (UK; US «vise») A tool with two jaws that holds something firmly while you work on it. tree →
4) (prefix «vice-») Next in rank below the top person: vice-captain, vice president. tree →
sense in the lessons
In stories and old fables: virtues and vices; a character's vice (greed, laziness) causes trouble. In design and technology lessons: clamp wood in a vice before sawing. At school: vice-captain, vice-principal. Phrases: «a grip like a vice», «vice-captain».
examples
- Greed was the king's worst vice. tree →
- Chocolate is my only vice, laughed Mum. tree →
- Clamp the wood in the vice before you saw it. tree →
- She was chosen as vice-captain of the netball team. tree →
- His hand gripped mine like a vice. tree →
- The vice-principal took the assembly today. tree →
- He is a great teacher, a corrector of morals, a censor of vice, and a commender of virtue. tree →
note
The tool is spelt «vice» in the UK, Ireland, Australia, NZ and «vise» in the USA. Opposite of a vice (habit) is a virtue. «Vice versa» (the other way round) is a different phrase.
In the corpora
- Virtues are good habits such as honesty and courage; vices are bad habits such as greed and cruelty.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «vice» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.