express

Universal Words verb, adjective, adverb, noun verb 1 to show or make known a feeling, an opinion, etc. by words, looks or actions: [VN] Teachers have expressed concern about the emphasis on testing. * His views have been expressed in numerous speeches. * to express fears / doubts / reservations * to express interest / regret / surprise * [Vwh-] Words cannot express how pleased I am. 2 ~ yourself to speak, write or communicate in some other way what you think or feel: [VN] Teenagers often have difficulty expressing themselves. * Perhaps I have not expressed myself very well. * She expresses herself most fully in her paintings. * (formal) [VN-ADJ] They expressed themselves delighted. 3 [VN] ~ itself (formal) (of a feeling) to become obvious in a particular way: Their pleasure expressed itself in a burst of applause. 4 [VN] ~ sth as / in sth (especially mathematics) to represent sth in a particular way, for example by symbols: The figures are expressed as percentages. * Educational expenditure is often expressed in terms of the amount spent per student. seealsoUNEXPRESSED adjective [onlybeforenoun] 1 travelling very fast; sent or done very quickly: an express bus / coach / train * express delivery services 2 (formal) (of a wish or an aim) clearly and openly stated SYNDEFINITE: It was his express wish that you should have his gold watch after he died. * I came here with the express purpose of speaking with the manager. adverb (especially BrE) using a special fast service: I'd like to send this parcel express, please. noun 1 (also express train) [C] a fast train that does not stop at many places: the 8.27 express to Edinburgh * the Trans-Siberian Express 2 (also special delivery) [U] (BrE) a service for sending or transporting things quickly