share

share

I

share¹ S1 W1 /ʃeə $ ʃer/ verb
1.  USE TOGETHER  [intransitive and transitive] to have or use something with other people:
    We don’t have enough books, so you’ll have to share.
    The three of us shared a taxi.
    share something with somebody
    I have an office that I share with some other teachers.
2.  LET SOMEBODY USE SOMETHING  [transitive] to let someone have or use something that belongs to you:
    As a kid, he’d never share his toys.
    share something with somebody
    Will you share your fries with me?
3.  DIVIDE  [transitive] (also share out) to divide something between two or more people
    share something between/among somebody
    They shared the cake between them.
    On his death, his property was shared out between his children.
4.  RESPONSIBILITY/BLAME  [transitive] to have equal responsibility for doing something, paying for something etc:
    We share the responsibility for the children.
    I own the house, but we share the bills.
    We all share some of the blame for the accident.
5.  SAME  [transitive] to have the same opinion, quality, or experience as someone else
    share sb’s view/concern/belief etc
    Other parents share her belief in the importance of reading.
    I believe my view is widely shared.
    share something with somebody
    Stubbornness was a characteristic he shared with his mother.
6.  TELL SOMEBODY SOMETHING  [intransitive and transitive] to tell other people about an idea, secret, problem etc:
    Students were able to share their experiences.
    share something with somebody
    Would you like to share your feelings with the group?
7. share your life with somebody if you share your life with someone, you spend your life together with them as their husband, wife etc:
    I’m not ready to share my life with anyone.
8. share and share alike spoken used to say that you should share things fairly and equally between everyone
     

COLLOCATIONS

(for Meaning 5)

■ nouns
   ▪ share a belief/opinion It was clear that the police did not share her opinion.
   ▪ share a view He shared my view of what had been going on.
   ▪ share a feeling I know that many people do not share my feelings.
   ▪ share sb’s values (=have the same ideas about what is right and wrong) The only way to change things is to elect politicians who share our values.
   ▪ share sb’s concern/enthusiasm etc (=feel the same concern, enthusiasm etc as someone else) I share the concern of parents about the content of some of these computer games.
■ adverbs
   ▪ be widely shared (=shared by a lot of people) This view is now widely shared.
     

THESAURUS

■ to give something to a group of people
   ▪ hand something out/give something out to give something to each of the people in a group: The teacher handed out the test papers. | I’m going to give out some forms for you to fill in.
   ▪ distribute to give things to a large number of people, especially in the streets: Anti-war protesters were distributing leaflets.
   ▪ share (also share something out British English) to divide something into equal parts and give a part to each person: They shared the profits among the staff.
     
share in something phrasal verb
  if you share in someone’s success, happiness etc, you have it or enjoy it with them:
    His daughters did not share in his happiness.

II

share² S1 W1 noun1.  IN A COMPANY  [countable] one of the equal parts into which the ownership of a company is divided
    share in
    We’ve got shares in Allied Chemicals. ⇨ stock¹(2)
2.  PART OF SOMETHING  [singular] the part of something that you own or are responsible for
    share of/in
    I gave them my share of the bill and left.
    a share in the profits
    I do my share (=do my part) of the housework.
3. your (fair) share
  a. if you have had your share of something, for example problems, success, or adventure, a lot of it has happened to you:
    You’ve sure had your share of problems, haven’t you?
    He’d had more than his fair share of adventure.
  b. your share of something is the amount that you deserve to have:
    Don’t worry – you’ll get your fair share.
4. share in something your part in an activity, event etc:
    Employees are always given a share in decision-making.
5. house/flat share British English when people live together in the same house or flat and pay the rent together
—sharing noun [uncountable]
⇨ the lion’s share at lion(2), ⇨ timeshare
     

COLLOCATIONS

■ verbs
   ▪ have/hold/own shares A lot of the employees own shares in the company.
   ▪ buy/invest in shares I bought some shares in British Gas five years ago.
   ▪ sell shares This isn’t a good time to sell shares.
   ▪ trade in/deal in shares (=buy and sell shares as a business) They make their money by trading in stocks and shares.
   ▪ shares rise/go up (=their value increases) The company’s shares rose 5.5p to 103p.
   ▪ shares fall/go down (=their value decreases) Shares fell sharply on the London Stock Market yesterday.
■ share + NOUN
   ▪ share price The company’s share price has continued to go down.
   ▪ share ownership The government tried to encourage wider share ownership.
   ▪ share dealing (=buying and selling shares as a business) He was convicted of illegal share dealing.