1trou·ble 
/ˈtrʌbəl/ noun
plural trou·bles /ˈtrʌbəl/ noun 1 : problems or difficulties [noncount] ▪ The new system is giving me trouble. ▪ He was having trouble with his homework. ▪ I had a little trouble finding the place. ▪ He had no trouble finding a new job. ▪ This decision could spell trouble [=cause problems] for all of us. ▪ So far, the trip has been trouble free. [=so far, there have been no problems on the trip] ▪ gangs looking to make/cause trouble [count] — usually plural ▪ She told me all her personal troubles. ▪ Your troubles are over now that he's out of your life. ▪ I have my own troubles to worry about. ▪ They've had some financial troubles since he lost his job. 2 [noncount] a : a situation that is difficult or has a lot of problems
▪ When the new CEO arrived, the company was in trouble. ▪ She's in big/deep financial trouble. [=she has serious problems with her money] ▪ She got into trouble with her credit cards. ▪ Can anyone help get the company out of trouble? [=solve the company's problems]
b : a situation that occurs if you do something wrong or break a rule and which will make someone angry or cause you to be punished
▪ He's always getting in/into trouble at school. ▪ He promised to keep/stay out of trouble. [=behave well, not do anything bad] — often + with ▪ She was in trouble with the police. ▪ He will be in trouble with his mom if he's late. 3 [noncount] : a physical pain or illness
▪ heart/stomach trouble ▪ She has been having trouble with her knee. 4 [noncount] : a situation in which a machine does not work correctly
▪ He's been having car/engine/computer trouble. ▪ She was having trouble with her computer. 5 [singular] : a bad feature, characteristic, quality, etc.
▪ His trouble is that he's lazy and unreliable. — often + with ▪ The trouble with driving into the city is finding a place to park. 6 [noncount] : extra effort or work
▪ You didn't have to go to all that trouble for me. [=you didn't have to do all the extra work for me] ▪ Thank you for taking the trouble [=making the effort] to write. ▪ They didn't even take the trouble to call and let me know they'd be late. ▪ I decided that upgrading the software was more trouble than it's worth. ▪ It's not worth the trouble. ▪ If it's no trouble [=if it is not too difficult or inconvenient], could you bring us some more coffee? ▪ “I'm sorry to bother you.” “It's no trouble. I'm happy to help.”
▪ When the new CEO arrived, the company was in trouble. ▪ She's in big/deep financial trouble. [=she has serious problems with her money] ▪ She got into trouble with her credit cards. ▪ Can anyone help get the company out of trouble? [=solve the company's problems]
b : a situation that occurs if you do something wrong or break a rule and which will make someone angry or cause you to be punished
▪ He's always getting in/into trouble at school. ▪ He promised to keep/stay out of trouble. [=behave well, not do anything bad] — often + with ▪ She was in trouble with the police. ▪ He will be in trouble with his mom if he's late.
▪ heart/stomach trouble ▪ She has been having trouble with her knee.
▪ He's been having car/engine/computer trouble. ▪ She was having trouble with her computer.
▪ His trouble is that he's lazy and unreliable. — often + with ▪ The trouble with driving into the city is finding a place to park.
▪ You didn't have to go to all that trouble for me. [=you didn't have to do all the extra work for me] ▪ Thank you for taking the trouble [=making the effort] to write. ▪ They didn't even take the trouble to call and let me know they'd be late. ▪ I decided that upgrading the software was more trouble than it's worth. ▪ It's not worth the trouble. ▪ If it's no trouble [=if it is not too difficult or inconvenient], could you bring us some more coffee? ▪ “I'm sorry to bother you.” “It's no trouble. I'm happy to help.”
ask for trouble — see ask
look for trouble — see 1look
