# bulk

Pronunciation: say "BULK" /bʌlk/

## Noun

1. The size of something, especially the amount of space its volume occupies.
   - Simple: The overall size of something, especially how much space it takes up.
   - _The bulk of the old engine made it awkward to fit under the hood._
   - _Glaciers are remarkable for their sheer bulk and slow, grinding movement._
2. Unpackaged goods such as coal, ore, or grain, carried in large volumes rather than in individual containers.
   - Simple: Loose goods like coal, grain, or ore that are carried in large amounts without packaging.
   - _Dry bulk such as iron ore is loaded directly into the ship's holds._
   - _The terminal can store thousands of tons of bulk before transfer._
3. The major or greatest part of something.
   - Simple: The biggest or main part of something.
   - _The bulk of the work was finished before lunch._
   - _She spent the bulk of her savings on a single trip._
6. The majority or the larger remaining share of a group or quantity.
   - Simple: Most of a group or amount, or the larger share.
   - _The bulk of the residents voted to keep the park open._
   - _By dawn the bulk of the herd had already crossed the river._
7. Added body mass, especially muscle gained through training and diet.
   - Simple: Extra body weight, especially muscle built up from working out.
   - _Months of heavy lifting added serious bulk to his frame._
   - _She wanted to build strength without putting on too much bulk._
9. A huge body, mass, or structure.
   - Simple: A very big body or structure.
   - _The whale's enormous bulk briefly blocked the sunlight near the surface._
   - _The cathedral's gray bulk dominated the city skyline._
10. Indigestible plant material in food that adds mass to the diet and aids digestion; dietary fiber.
   - Simple: The part of food that the body cannot digest, which helps the gut keep working.
   - _Whole grains and vegetables add bulk to your diet._
   - _Doctors often recommend more bulk to keep digestion regular._
11. A phase of training and eating in which a person deliberately gains muscle mass.
   - Simple: A stretch of time when someone eats more and trains hard to build muscle.
   - _His winter bulk added nearly ten pounds of muscle over four months._
   - _Many lifters plan a bulk during the off-season and a cut before competitions._
12. A quantity of goods carried or sent together as cargo, or anything moved in the same manner.
   - Simple: A load of goods carried together, like cargo on a ship.
   - _The freighter delivered a bulk of timber to the northern port._
   - _Several bulks of imported cotton waited on the dock for inspection._
13. The general substance or main point of something, such as a speech or argument.
   - Simple: The main point or overall meaning of something said or written.
   - _The bulk of the witness's account came down to a single misunderstanding._
   - _Reporters captured the bulk of the senator's argument in one headline._
16. A theorized space of more dimensions inside which our four-dimensional universe may be contained.
   - Simple: A possible larger space with extra dimensions that our universe might sit inside.
   - _In some models, gravity alone can travel through the bulk while other forces stay on our universe._
   - _Physicists picture our universe as a thin sheet floating in the bulk._

## Adjective

4. Large in size, mass, or volume, as goods or materials typically are.
   - Simple: Sold or made in large amounts, as goods often are.
   - _They placed a bulk order to bring the per-unit price down._
   - _The bulk delivery required two extra trucks to move it all._
5. Considered as a whole; total or aggregate.
   - Simple: Counted all together as one total.
   - _The contractor gave one bulk price covering all the materials and labor._
   - _The bulk figure on the invoice included tax and shipping._

## Verb

8. To gain body mass deliberately through diet, exercise, and training.
   - Simple: To put on body weight on purpose, usually muscle, by eating and training.
   - _Wrestlers often bulk in the months before a tougher weight class._
   - _If you want to bulk, you need to eat well above your usual intake._
14. To increase in size, swelling or expanding outward.
   - Simple: To grow bigger or swell up.
   - _The tumor bulked over several weeks, alarming the doctors._
   - _Sails bulk and snap when the wind suddenly rises._
15. To place or keep items together in large, loose quantities rather than separate packages.
   - Simple: To put or keep things together in one big amount.
   - _Shippers bulk the ore before loading it onto freight cars._
   - _The cooperative bulked the harvested wheat for sale in spring._
17. To appear or seem prominent, especially in size, extent, or importance.
   - Simple: To seem large or important in someone's mind.
   - _The decision bulked large in every conversation they had._
   - _Old fears bulk large when night falls and the house is quiet._

## Noun

18. The physical body of a person, especially its main mass or trunk. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The body of a person, especially the chest and trunk.

## Verb

19. To add mass or volume to something, making it larger or fuller. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To make something bigger or fuller by adding more to it.
   - _Merchants would bulk the sacks with chaff to cheat their buyers._
   - _She bulked the thin broth with crusts of stale bread._

## Origin

From Middle English bulk (a heap, cargo, or bulge), borrowed from Old Norse búlki (the freight or cargo of a ship), which goes back through Proto-Germanic to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "beam, pile, or prop." It was later mixed with Middle English bouk (belly, trunk).

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/bulk (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).