vise
/vaɪs/ (bre, ipa) · [vˈaɪs] /vaɪs/ (ame, ipa) · [vˈaɪs] /ˈvīs How to pronounce vise (audio)/ (ame, mw)
vise — noun
- visesingular
- visesplural
1. a workshop tool with two flat metal jaws that clamp shut as you turn a handle or
a workshop tool with two flat metal jaws that clamp shut as you turn a handle or screw, designed to keep an object steady while you work on it with a file, saw, or drill.
The carpenter tightened the vise around the wooden chair leg before sanding it.
tightened the vise around [object]
A bench vise holds metal parts securely while you thread a screw into them.
hold [object] securely while [action]
Tomas clamped the steel rod in the vise and began filing the rough edge smooth.
Wear eye protection near a vise because small metal chips can fly up.
- clamp
A broader term for any device that presses parts together; a clamp may not have the screw-and-jaw design of a vise.
- bench clamp
Specifically a clamp attached to a workbench; less common in everyday speech.
文法句型
vise — countable noun
用法筆記
The US spelling is vise; the UK spelling is vice. In both spellings, this meaning (the bench tool) is the same. Do not confuse with 'vice' meaning a bad habit or immoral behavior.
常見錯誤
2. a powerful grip, a tight hold, or a situation that confines or restricts someone
a powerful grip, a tight hold, or a situation that confines or restricts someone or something, as if they were being squeezed by a vise.
The winter storm held the mountain town in a vise of snow and ice.
caught in the vise of [something] (figurative)
Every time the phone rang, a vise of anxiety tightened around Kenta's chest.
Small businesses lay in the vise of rising costs and falling demand.
Dr. Chen felt the vise of a migraine pressing behind her left eye.
- clutch
Emphasizes the act of gripping or seizing; often used of fear or cold.
- stranglehold
Stronger and more negative than vise; suggests a deliberate tightening meant to harm or destroy.
- grip
More general; less precise about the mechanical, squeezing quality.
- release
The act of letting go or freeing from a tight hold.
文法句型
a vise of [something]
in the vise of [something]
用法筆記
This is a figurative extension of the physical tool sense. It almost always appears with a following prepositional phrase ('of [something]') that names the force or situation doing the squeezing.
vise — verb
- visepresent simple I / you / we / they
- vises3rd person singular
- vising-ing form
- visedpast simple
1. to press, hold, or squeeze something very firmly, either with a vise tool or in
to press, hold, or squeeze something very firmly, either with a vise tool or in a way that feels like being caught in a vise.
The plumber vised the pipe in place before cutting through it with a hacksaw.
vised [object] in place before [action]
Mei-Lin vised the bracket between the jaws of the bench tool before drilling.
Omar's arm was vised between the heavy crate and the wall, trapping him.
The park ranger vised his walking stick in a clamp before carving a new handle.
- release
To let go of or free something that was held tight.
文法句型
vise [object] in/to [place]
be vised in [place]
用法筆記
Used most often in the past tense (vised) or as a past participle (is vised / was vised). The passive voice ('was vised') is especially common for the literal meaning, because the focus is on the object being held rather than on who is doing the holding.