Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - exercise

~1 n 1 »FOR HEALTH« physical activities that you do in order to stay healthy and become stronger  (I could use some exercise - let's go for a swim. | do/take exercise (=exercise regularly))  (Do at least fifteen minutes exercise each day. | get exercise (=do exercise as part of your daily life))  (You don't get much exercise sitting at a desk all day like this.) 2 »MOVEMENT« a movement or set of movements that you do regularly in order to keep a particular part of your body strong and healthy  (The doctor gave me some exercises to help with my back. | do exercises)  (Jan does her exercises every morning.) 3 »FOR A SKILL« C usually plural an activity or process that helps you practise a particular skill such as playing a musical instrument or singing 4 »IN A BOOK« a set of questions in a book which test a student's skill or knowledge  (Do Exercises 3 and 4 on page 51 for homework.) 5 »ARMY/NAVY ETC« an activity that trains soldiers, pilots etc for war when there is still peace  (a naval exercise) 6 »FOR A RESULT« an activity that is intended to have a particular result  (Getting everyone to agree was quite a difficult exercise. | an exercise in awareness/self-control etc (=something that you do in order to gain or develop a particular quality))  (The ceremony was an exercise in self-congratulation for a leader desperate to regain popularity.) 7 the exercise of power/influence/authority etc formal the use of power, influence etc in order to achieve something ~2 v 1 to walk, do sports etc in order to stay healthy and become stronger  (It's important to exercise regularly.) 2 to make a particular part of your body move in order to make it stronger  (Swimming exercises all the major muscle groups.) 3 exercise power/influence/caution etc formal to use power, influence etc  (I intend to exercise my right to vote.) 4 to make an animal walk or run in order to keep it healthy and strong  (Don's out exercising the horses.) 5 T often passive formal to make someone think about a subject or problem and consider how to deal with it  (Scientists continue to be exercised about the ethics of genetic engineering.)