bus

Everyday

1. A bus is a big road vehicle that carries many people, often on a set route with stops. tree →
2. A school bus takes children to and from school. tree →
3. To bus people is to take them somewhere by bus. tree →
4. (casual) «Hop on the bus», «catch the bus», «get the bus» all mean travel by bus; «the 12» means the bus number 12. tree →
5. (casual) «Throw someone under the bus» means blame them to save yourself. tree →
6. (rude) «The bloody bus is late again» is everyday grumbling. tree →
7. (formal) Notices and exams say «omnibus» (old), «public transport vehicle», «passengers alighting» (getting off) and «passengers boarding» (getting on), «coach» for a long-distance bus. tree →
8. Old Southern speech uses "bus" or "bust" to mean to break or burst out suddenly. tree →

In the lessons

a vehicle where passengers get on (add) and get off (take away); also buses that carry equal numbers; road safety: wait at the stop, cross behind the bus only when it has gone; phrases: «get on the bus», «get off the bus», «by bus», «bus stop», «school bus», «miss the bus», «bus pass», «bus fare»; in casual talk «catch the 12», «bus at 8:40», «hop on»; in rough talk «bloody bus is late again», «he threw me under the bus»; in the exam voice «7 passengers alighted», «5 passengers boarded», «a vehicle with a seating capacity of 40»

Examples

• There were 28 children on the bus. tree →
• At the stop, 7 children got off. tree →
• 5 more got on. tree →
• Each bus holds 40 people; how many buses are needed for 120? tree →
• I go to school by bus. tree →
• Hurry or we'll miss the bus! tree →
• Stay in your seat while the bus is moving. tree →
• bus at 8:40, its 8:25 now, how long? tree →
• Bloody bus is late again, 20 minutes! tree →
• He threw me under the bus and told Miss it was my idea. tree →
• A vehicle conveying 28 passengers halts, whereupon 7 alight and 5 board. Determine the number of passengers thereafter. tree →
• The bus fare is 2 dollars for kids. tree →

Note

Plural: buses. A place whose count changes: «got on» adds, «got off» takes away; «boarded» adds, «alighted» takes away. Trap: «how many more got off than got on» asks for a difference of the changes, not the people on the bus. Trap: «how many buses are needed» rounds up: a part-full bus still counts. «bus at 8:40, it's 8:25» asks for the wait: 15 minutes.