content
- 01 B1 Intermediate
n.the ideas, stories, or information in a book, video, or website.
n.the substantive information or creative material contained within a medium, such as writing, speech, or digital platforms.
Simple“The website has great content, but the design is a bit old-fashioned.”
In context“Digital marketers are increasingly focused on high-quality video content to improve user engagement across social media platforms.”
- 02 B1 Intermediate
n.the things that are inside a container, room, or book.
n.the physical or abstract items contained within a specific space or vessel; often used in the plural.
Simple“He emptied the contents of his bag onto the table to find his keys.”
In context“The customs officer requested that the traveller disclose the full contents of the wooden crate before it could be cleared for transport.”
Synonyms - 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.the amount of a particular substance inside something else.
n.the proportion or quantity of a specific component within a mixture or substance.
Simple“This orange juice has a very high sugar content.”
In context“The laboratory analysis revealed that the soil sample had an unusually high moisture content, which explained the recent structural shifts in the foundation.”
Synonyms - 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.happy and satisfied with what you have.
adj.feeling or manifesting satisfaction with one's circumstances; not desiring more.
Simple“She was content to stay at home and read a book while it rained.”
In context“After years of travelling for work, he felt perfectly content living a quiet life in a small coastal village.”
UsageUsually follows a linking verb like 'be' or 'feel'.
Teacher's tipNote the pronunciation shift: the adjective has the stress on the second syllable (con-TENT), while the noun has it on the first (CON-tent).
Antonyms - 05 C1 Advanced
v.to make yourself or someone else feel satisfied with a situation.
v.to satisfy or appease someone; frequently used reflexively to indicate accepting a situation.
Simple“Since there was no cake left, he had to content himself with a biscuit.”
In context“The board had to content themselves with a modest increase in profits, given the volatility of the global market that year.”
UsageOften used reflexively as 'to content oneself with'.
- 06 C2 Proficiency
n.the total amount of space inside a shape with many sides.
n.the n-dimensional volume or measure of a polytope or similar geometric figure.
Simple“The professor explained how to calculate the content of a four-dimensional shape.”
In context“In higher-dimensional geometry, the term content is used as a generalisation of length, area, and volume for n-dimensional objects.”
Usage content of external · actual content · content available
“The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.”
“This has resulted in widespread low moisture content within the soil, enabling temperatures to reach the high 30s celsius.”
From Middle English contenten (“to satisfy”), from Latin contentus (“contained; satisfied”), past participle of continēre (“to contain”).
From Middle English content (plural contentes, contence), from Latin contentus, past participle of continēre (“to hold in, contain”), as Etymology 1, above. English apparently developed a substantive form of the adjective, which is not mirrored in Romance languages.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.