bag

Everyday

1. A bag is a soft container you carry things in, made of paper, plastic, cloth or leather. tree →
2. A bag is the amount a bag holds: a bag of sweets. tree →
3. To bag something is to put it in a bag, or to grab it for yourself: I bagged the front seat. tree →
4. (casual) «Bags» (UK, Ireland, Australia) or «dibs» (US) claims something first: «Bags the window seat!» tree →
5. (casual) «Bags of» means lots of: bags of time. «Not my bag» means not what I like. tree →
6. (casual, Australia, NZ) To bag someone is to criticise them or make fun of them. tree →
7. (rude) «Old bag» is a nasty name for an older woman; do not use it. tree →
8. (formal) The exam voice says «receptacle», «container», «sack», «parcel». tree →

In the lessons

a container; often one of several equal groups («3 bags, each has 4» = 3 × 4) or what a total is split into («equally into 3 bags» = divide); in everyday life school bag, shopping bag, lunch bag, sleeping bag, tea bag, schoolbag, «pack your bags»; in casual talk «bags I go first», «bags of time», «in the bag» (sure to happen); in safety never put a plastic bag over your head; in the exam voice «receptacles», «containers each containing»

Examples

• There are 3 bags. Each bag has 4 stamps. tree →
• A box has 20 balloons and a bag has 19 balloons. tree →
• Rita puts 18 sweets equally into 3 bags. tree →
• Each bag holds 5 oranges. How many oranges are in 6 bags? tree →
• Don't forget your school bag! tree →
• We packed the groceries into bags. tree →
• I bought a bag of chips for the trip. tree →
• Plastic bags can hurt sea turtles, so we reuse them. tree →
• Bags the front seat! tree →
• relax, we've got bags of time, bus is at 9 tree →
• We're 3 goals up, the game's in the bag. tree →
• A total of 18 confectionery items is distributed equally among 3 receptacles; determine the contents of each receptacle. tree →
• These are magic bags which never grow empty. tree →

Note

A container is not a clue by itself. Trap: «N bags, each has M» is multiply, «puts … equally into N bags» is divide, and «a box has … a bag has … how many fewer» is subtract. Count the things in the bags, not the bags, unless the question asks for bags. «bags of time» is a lot of time, not a number of bags; «in the bag» means sure to win. «Bags!» is a claim, like «dibs». «a receptacle» in an exam is just a container.

In Jewish tradition

A bag held weights for the market, and the law forbids false weights in it. The prophet Micah asks if God can accept a bag of deceitful weights. Job speaks of his sin as sealed up in a bag, and in the Song of Songs a bag of myrrh is a picture of a beloved.

Interpretation. The rabbis taught that false weights are a serious sin because they cheat people. Honest measures were seen as a sign of fear of God. Job's sealed bag is read as a picture of sins kept safe until judgment.

Examples

• Thou shalt not have in thy bag diverse weights, a great and a small. (Torah DEU.25.13, JPS 1917) tree →
• My transgression is sealed up in a bag, and Thou heapest up mine iniquity. (Writings JOB.14.17, JPS 1917) tree →
• 'Shall I be pure with wicked balances, and with a bag of deceitful weights?' (Prophets MIC.6.11, JPS 1917) tree →
• My beloved is unto me as a bag of myrrh, that lieth betwixt my breasts. (Writings SNG.1.13, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

A container is not a clue by itself. Trap: «N bags, each has M» is multiply, «puts … equally into N bags» is divide, and «a box has … a bag has … how many fewer» is subtract. Count the things in the bags, not the bags, unless the question asks for bags. «bags of time» is a lot of time, not a number of bags; «in the bag» means sure to win. «Bags!» is a claim, like «dibs». «a receptacle» in an exam is just a container.