tubular

Everyday

1. Tubular means shaped like a tube: long, round and hollow, like a pipe or a drinking straw. tree →
2. Tubular also means made of tubes, like a tubular steel chair frame. tree →
3. (slang, old-fashioned, US) Tubular meant great or cool, in surfer talk of the 1980s. tree →

In the lessons

In science and technology lessons, «tubular» describes shapes and structures: tubular bones, tubular flowers, tubular steel in bikes and bridges; hollow tubes are strong but light. In music, «tubular bells» are long metal tubes you hit. In stories it is a describing word for shape. Phrases: «tubular steel», «tubular bells», «tubular frame».

Examples

• Bike frames are often made of tubular steel or aluminium. tree →
• The flower has tubular petals, so only bees with long tongues can reach the nectar. tree →
• The school chairs have tubular metal legs. tree →
• The orchestra played the tubular bells at the end of the piece. tree →
• A drinking straw is a tubular shape. tree →
• Worms have long tubular bodies. tree →
• (slang) «That wave was totally tubular, dude!» said the surfer in the old film. tree →

Note

Adjective only. Stress on «TU»: TOO-byoo-lur. It comes from «tube». The slang meaning is old and jokey; today most people say «cool» or «awesome». A tubular thing is hollow; a solid round bar is a rod or cylinder, not a tube.