interest synonym, interest definition | Thesaurus

Search also in: Web News Encyclopedia Images



1    affection, attention, attentiveness, attraction, concern, curiosity, notice, regard, suspicion, sympathy  
2    concern, consequence, importance, moment, note, relevance, significance, weight  
3    activity, diversion, hobby, leisure activity, pastime, preoccupation, pursuit, relaxation  
4    advantage, benefit, boot     (dialect)   gain, good, profit  
5    in the interest of      for the sake of, on behalf of, on the part of, profitable to, to the advantage of  
6    authority, claim, commitment, influence, investment, involvement, participation, portion, right, share, stake  
7      (often plural)    affair, business, care, concern, matter  
8    amuse, arouse one's curiosity, attract, catch one's eye, divert, engross, fascinate, hold the attention of, intrigue, move, touch  
9    affect, concern, engage, involve  
,       n  
1    boredom, coolness, disinterest, dispassion, disregard, unconcern  
2    inconsequence, insignificance, irrelevance, worthlessness  
      vb   bore, burden, irk, repel, tire, weary  
English Collins Dictionary - English synonyms & Thesaurus  


  ( interests    plural & 3rd person present)   ( interesting    present participle)   ( interested    past tense & past participle  )
1       n-uncount   If you have an interestin something, you want to learn or hear more about it.  
also a N  
There has been a lively interest in the elections in the last two weeks..., His parents tried to discourage his interest in music, but he persisted..., Food was of no interest to her at all.     
2       n-count   Your interests are the things that you enjoy doing.  
Encourage your child in her interests and hobbies even if they're things that you know little about...     
3       verb   If something interests you, it attracts your attention so that you want to learn or hear more about it or continue doing it.  
That passage interested me because it seems to parallel very closely what you're doing in the novel...      V n  
It may interest you to know that Miss Woods, the housekeeper, witnessed the attack.      it V n to-inf  
4       verb   If you are trying to persuade someone to buy or do something, you can say that you are trying to interest them in it.  
In the meantime I can't interest you in a new car, I suppose?...      V n in n/-ing  
5       n-count   If something is in the interests of a particular person or group, it will benefit them in some way.  
usu pl, usu in N with poss  
Did those directors act in the best interests of their club?...     
6       n-count   You can use interests to refer to groups of people who you think use their power or money to benefit themselves.  
usu pl, supp N  
The government accused unnamed `foreign interests' of inciting the trouble...     
7       n-count   A person or organization that has interests in a company or in a particular type of business owns shares in this company or this type of business.     (BUSINESS)   usu with supp  
Disney will retain a 51 percent controlling interest in the venture.     
8       n-count   If a person, country, or organization has an interestin a possible event or situation, they want that event or situation to happen because they are likely to benefit from it.  
usu N in n/-ing  
The West has an interest in promoting democratic forces in Eastern Europe...     
9       n-uncount   Interest is extra money that you receive if you have invested a sum of money. Interest is also the extra money that you pay if you have borrowed money or are buying something on credit.  
oft N n  
Does your current account pay interest?...     
    compound interest  
    vested interest  
11    If you do something in the interests of a particular result or situation, you do it in order to achieve that result or maintain that situation.  
in the interests of/in the interest of      phrase   N inflects, PHR n  
...a call for all businessmen to work together in the interests of national stability.     
    to have someone's interests at heart  

compound interest     
Compound interest is interest that is calculated both on an original sum of money and on interest which has previously been added to the sum. Compare simple interest.     (BUSINESS)      n-uncount  
human interest     
If something such as a news story has human interest, people are likely to find it interesting because it gives interesting details about the person or people involved.      n-uncount   oft N n  
...a human interest story.     
Customers allowed the banks to use their money interest-free.     
interest rate        ( interest rates    plural  ) The interest rate is the amount of interest that must be paid. It is expressed as a percentage of the amount that is borrowed or gained as profit.      n-count  
The Finance Minister has renewed his call for lower interest rates.     
If you accuse someone of self-interest, you disapprove of them because they always want to do what is best for themselves rather than for anyone else.      n-uncount  
Their current protests are motivated purely by self-interest.     
simple interest     
Simple interest is interest that is calculated on an original sum of money and not also on interest which has previously been added to the sum. Compare compound interest.     (BUSINESS)      n-uncount  
  (Antonym: compound interest)   
vested interest        ( vested interests    plural  ) If you have a vested interestin something, you have a very strong reason for acting in a particular way, for example to protect your money, power, or reputation.      n-var   usu N in n/-ing  

Translation English Cobuild Collins Dictionary  

Collaborative Dictionary     English Thesaurus
Also: payday advance, overnight loan.
neologism ... created on some blog
syn.: slang, jargon
Economic Term.
Or sign up in the traditional way

  • Create your own vocabulary list
  • Contribute to the Collaborative Dictionary
  • Improve and share your linguistic knowledge