charge
( charges plural & 3rd person present) ( charging present participle) ( charged past tense & past participle )
1 verb If you charge someone an amount of money, you ask them to pay that amount for something that you have sold to them or done for them.
Even local nurseries charge £100 a week... V n
The hospitals charge the patients for every aspirin... V n for n
Some banks charge if you access your account to determine your balance. V
...the architect who charged us a fee of seven hundred and fifty pounds. V n n
2 verb To charge something to a person or organization means to tell the people providing it to send the bill to that person or organization. To charge something to someone's account means to add it to their account so they can pay for it later.
(=bill)
Go out and buy a pair of glasses, and charge it to us... V n to n
All transactions have been charged to your account. V n to n
3 n-count A charge is an amount of money that you have to pay for a service.
We can arrange this for a small charge..., Customers who arrange overdrafts will face a monthly charge of £5.
4 n-count A charge is a formal accusation that someone has committed a crime.
He may still face criminal charges..., They appeared at court yesterday to deny charges of murder.
5 verb When the police charge someone, they formally accuse them of having done something illegal.
They have the evidence to charge him... V n
Police have charged Mr Bell with murder. V n with n
6 verb If you charge someone with doing something wrong or unpleasant, you publicly say that they have done it.
WRITTEN
(=accuse)
He charged the minister with lying about the economy. V n with -ing/n
7 n-uncount If you take chargeof someone or something, you make yourself responsible for them and take control over them. If someone or something is in your charge, you are responsible for them.
usu N of n
A few years ago Bacryl took charge of the company..., I have been given charge of this class..., They would never forget their time in his charge.
8 If you are in charge in a particular situation, you are the most senior person and have control over something or someone.
♦
in charge phrase v-link PHR, oft PHR of n
Who's in charge here?, ...the Swiss governess in charge of the smaller children.
9 n-count If you describe someone as your charge, they have been given to you to be looked after and you are responsible for them.
usu pl, poss N
The coach tried to get his charges motivated.
10 verb If you charge towards someone or something, you move quickly and aggressively towards them.
He charged through the door to my mother's office... V prep/adv
He ordered us to charge. V
...a charging bull. V-ing
Charge is also a noun., n-count
...a bayonet charge.
11 verb To charge a battery means to pass an electrical current through it in order to make it more powerful or to make it last longer.
Alex had forgotten to charge the battery. V n
Charge up means the same as charge., phrasal verb
There was nothing in the brochure about having to drive the car every day to charge up the battery. V P n (not pron)
12 n-count An electrical charge is an amount of electricity that is held in or carried by something. (TECHNICAL) usu sing
13
→
charged
→
baton charge
→
cover charge
→
depth charge
→
service charge
14 If something is free of charge, it does not cost anything. ♦
free of charge phrase
(=free) The leaflet is available free of charge from post offices. charge up →
charge 11
baton charge ( baton charges plural) ( baton charging present participle) ( baton charged past tense & past participle ) , baton-charge A baton charge is an attacking forward movement made by a large group of policemen carrying batons.
(BRIT) n-count
Baton-charge is also a verb. (JOURNALISM) verb
Police in riot gear baton-charged the crowd. V n
charge card ( charge cards plural ) , chargecard
1 n-count A charge card is a plastic card that you use to buy goods on credit from a particular store or group of stores. Compare credit card.
(BRIT)
2 n-count A charge card is the same as a credit card.
(AM)
chargé d'affaires ( chargés d'affaires plural )
1 n-count A chargé d'affaires is a person appointed to act as head of a diplomatic mission in a foreign country while the ambassador is away.
2 n-count A chargé d'affaires is the head of a minor diplomatic mission in a foreign country.
charge nurse ( charge nurses plural ) A charge nurse is a nurse who is in charge of a hospital ward.
(BRIT) n-count
congestion charge ( congestion charges plural ) Congestion charges refer to money motorists must pay in order to drive in some city centres. Congestion charges are intended to reduce traffic within those areas. n-count
♦
congestion charging n-uncount
...the decision on whether to introduce congestion charging on urban roads.
cover charge ( cover charges plural ) A cover charge is a sum of money that you must pay in some restaurants and nightclubs in addition to the money that you pay there for your food and drink. n-count usu sing
depth charge ( depth charges plural ) A depth charge is a type of bomb which explodes under water and which is used especially to destroy enemy submarines. n-count
reverse charge call ( reverse charge calls plural ) A reverse charge call is a telephone call which is paid for by the person who receives the call, rather than the person who makes the call.
(BRIT) n-count
in AM, use collect call
service charge ( service charges plural ) A service charge is an amount that is added to your bill in a restaurant to pay for the work of the person who comes and serves you. n-count
Most restaurants add a 10 per cent service charge.