bulk

(bŭlk)
n.

1. Size, mass, or volume, especially when very large.
2. 1. A distinct mass or portion of matter, especially a large one: the dark bulk of buildings against the sky.
   2. The body of a human, especially when large or muscular.
3. The major portion or greater part: "The great bulk of necessary work can never be anything but painful" (Bertrand Russell).
4. See fiber (sense 6).
5. Thickness of paper or cardboard in relation to weight.
6. A ship's cargo.

v., bulked, bulk·ing, bulks.

v.intr.

1. To be or appear to be massive in terms of size, volume, or importance; loom: Safety considerations bulked large during development of the new spacecraft.
2. To grow or increase in size or importance.
3. To cohere or form a mass: Certain paper bulks well.

v.tr.

1. To cause to swell or expand.
2. To cause to cohere or form a mass.

adj.
Being large in mass, quantity, or volume: a bulk buy; a bulk mailing.

phrasal verb:

bulk up

1. To gain weight by gaining muscle: dietary supplements that helped the weightlifters bulk up.

idiom:

in bulk

1. Unpackaged; loose.
2. In large numbers, amounts, or volume.

[Middle English, perhaps partly alteration of bouk, belly, trunk of the body (from Old English būc) and partly from Old Norse bulki, cargo, heap.]

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as a noun preceded by the and denoting magnitude or size, is correctly used with of and a singular noun, as in the bulk of the book / the bulk of his land / the bulk of the clergy. It should not be used in this way with ordinary plural nouns: ☒

As far as basic analog technology goes, the bulk of our clients want to keep it that way—Mix Magazine, American English 2003, although collective plurals are more acceptable: The bulk of the forces were tied down on the front south of Rome—history website, British English 2003 [Old English (up to 1150)C].

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Direct mail: Standard Mail (A) and Standard Mail (B) class mail, sent in large volumes at special postage rates. See also bulk mail.

Magazines: subscriptions or single-copy orders sold in quantities greater than one per issue to a single buyer; also called bulk order. Printing: measurement of the thickness of paper.

noun

1. Great extent, amount, or dimension: amplitude, magnitude, mass, size, volume (often used in plural). See big/small/amount.
2. A measurable whole: amount, body, budget, corpus, quantity, quantum. See big/small/amount.
3. A separate and distinct portion of matter: body, mass, object. See matter.
4. Solid and well-developed muscles: brawn, muscularity. Informal beef. See body/spirit.
5. The main part: body. Anatomy corpus. See big/small/amount.
6. The greatest part or portion: mass, preponderance, preponderancy, weight. See big/small/amount.

n

Definition: largeness
Antonyms: lesser part, minor part, smallest part

Although sometimes erroneously used to describe wine sold in jugs or boxes, the term bulk wine actually refers to wine that's not yet packaged for retail sale.

For a list of words related to bulking, see:

• Activities and Treatments - bulking: increasing size of muscles by weight work

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See words rhyming with "bulk."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Bulk.

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - størrelse, omfang, volumen
v. intr. - fylde, tage plads op
v. tr. - give fylde, have betydning
adj. - upakket, løst

idioms:

• bulk up    samle i partier

Nederlands (Dutch)
merendeel, (lichaams) omvang, grootte, (grote) massa, vezels (in etenswaren), scheepslading, opvullen, op bepaalde wijze eruit zien, in grote hoeveelheden (kopen etc.), samenvoegen (ladingen)

Français (French)
n. - grosseur, grandeur, corpulence, masse, volume, la majeure partie, la plus grande partie, le plus gros de, (Comm) en gros, en vrac, fibre (végétale), (Naut) cargaison (en cale)
v. intr. - occuper une large place ou une place importante
v. tr. - occuper une place
adj. - estimer (douanes)

idioms:

• bulk up    grossir, augmenter, (s')agrandir

Deutsch (German)
n. - Menge, Größe, Umfang, Mehrzahl, Großteil
v. - umfangreicher machen, zusammenfassen
adj. - umfangreich, in losen Mengen verfrachtet

idioms:

• bulk up    anschwellen

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (κύριος) όγκος, μέγεθος, μέγιστο/κύριο μέρος, μάζα, σωρός, ομαδική αποστολή
v. - προβάλλω επιβλητικά, φαντάζω τεράστιος, διογκώνω, φουσκώνω, συνδυάζω φορτία (σε μία παρτίδα)

idioms:

• bulk up    διογκώνω, φουσκώνω, παραγεμίζω

Italiano (Italian)
gran volume

idioms:

• bulk up    accumulare

Português (Portuguese)
n. - magnitude (f), parte (f) principal, massa (f)
v. - ter importância, crescer, aumentar

idioms:

• bulk up    fazer inchar ou parecer mais grosso

Русский (Russian)
величина, масса, большинство

idioms:

• bulk up    делать толще (напр. книгу)

Español (Spanish)
n. - masa, volumen, corpulencia, magnitud, la mayor parte
v. intr. - abultar, hacer bulto, pesar, tener importancia
v. tr. - abultar, hacer bulto, pasar, tener importancia
adj. - magnitud

idioms:

• bulk up    amontonar

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - volym, omfång, skeppslast, växtfibrer
v. - föra samman, slå ihop

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
大小, 大批, 体积, 变得重要, 显得巨大, 扩大, 膨胀, 显得大, 显得重要, 大量的, 大批的, 散装的

idioms:

• bulk up    胀大, 增加, 扩大, 膨胀

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 大小, 大批, 體積
v. intr. - 變得重要, 顯得巨大, 擴大, 膨脹
v. tr. - 顯得大, 顯得重要
adj. - 大量的, 大批的, 散裝的

idioms:

• bulk up    脹大, 增加, 擴大, 膨脹

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 크기, 대부분, 상품
v. intr. - 부피가 커지다, 영향을 미치다, 두껍다
v. tr. - ~을 부풀게 하다, ~를 확인하다
adj. - 부피가 큰

idioms:

• bulk up    금액이나 수량을 붇다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - かさ, 容積, 大部分, 繊維質, 積み荷, 大きさ
v. - 大きくなる

idioms:

• bulk up    大きくなる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) حجم, كتله, مقدار, جمله (فعل) بدا كبيرا أو مهما, يكبر, يضخم‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮גוף גדול, חלק עיקרי, גודל, נפח, מטען של אוניה, במיוחד בלתי-ארוז‬
v. intr. - ‮תפס מקום רב‬
v. tr. - ‮ניפח למראה, צירף‬
adj. - ‮לא-ארוז, כולל, כללי‬

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