stack

stack

I

stack¹ /stæk/ noun
1. [countable] a neat pile of things ⇨ heap
    stack of
    a stack of papers
    stacks of dirty dishes
2. a stack of something/stacks of something especially British English informal a large amount of something:
    He’s got stacks of money.
3. [countable] a chimney
4. the stacks [plural] the rows of shelves in a library where the books are kept
⇨ blow your top/stack at blow¹(16)
     

THESAURUS

   ▪ pile a group of things of the same type that are put on top of each other: a huge pile of cardboard boxes
   ▪ stack a neat pile of things of the same type: There were stacks of books on the floor.
   ▪ heap a large messy pile of things: All his clothes were in a heap on the floor.
   ▪ mound a pile of something with a round shape: a small mound of rice on the plate
   ▪ mountain a very large pile of something with a round shape: a mountain of dirty laundry waiting to be washed

II

stack² verb
1. (also stack up) [intransitive and transitive] to make things into a neat pile, or to form a neat pile:
    The assistants price the items and stack them on the shelves.
    a stacking hi-fi system
2. [transitive] to put neat piles of things on something:
    He went back to stacking the shelves.
    be stacked with something
    The floor was stacked with boxes.
3. the odds/cards are stacked against somebody used to say that someone is unlikely to be successful
4. stack the cards British English, stack the deck American English informal to arrange cards dishonestly in a game
     
stack up phrasal verb
  1. stack something ↔ up to make things into a neat pile
  2. informal used to talk about how good something is compared with something else
    stack up against
    Parents want to know how their kids’ schools stack up against others.
  3. if a number of things stack up, they gradually collect or get stuck in one place:
    Traffic stacked up behind the bus.