squeezes

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of squeeze.

   The machine squeezes the grapes until every drop of juice runs out.

   Whenever she is nervous, she squeezes the strap of her bag tightly.

   Note

   The -s form follows a single subject, but the construction after it varies. With a direct object it presses or hugs: squeezes the grapes, squeezes her friend. With a path phrase it fits through a tight space: squeezes into the last seat, squeezes past the crowd. With out, it extracts something with effort, and figuratively it can mean burdening people, as in a landlord who squeezes his tenants.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of squeeze.

   A couple of gentle squeezes on his hand told her he was still awake.

   The half-empty bottle gave only a few weak squeezes of sauce.

   Note

   The plural counts the countable kinds of squeeze: two squeezes of a hand, a few squeezes of a lemon, a run of affectionate squeezes. The figurative sense of a tight spot is usually singular, as in being in a squeeze. The same spelling also serves as the present-tense verb, so the squeezes is a noun and she squeezes is a verb.

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