Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - example

~ n 1 for example used before mentioning a specific thing, person, place etc in order to explain what you mean or to support an argument  (Many countries, for example, Mexico and Japan, have a lot of earthquakes. | Look at John, for example, now there's someone who's overcome his physical disabilities.) 2 a thing, person, situation etc that you mention to show what you mean or to show that something is true  (The two examples on this page show the behaviour patterns of severely depressed patients.) + of  (a wonderful example of High Gothic architecture) give an example  (I don't really understand what you mean, could you give me an example? | good example (=example that shows something clearly) | classic/typical example)  (a classic example of what not to do | prime example (=example of something you do not like or do not approve of))  (Franco, a prime example of a man hungry for power) 3 set an example to behave in a sensible way so that other people will copy you  (It's my duty as an officer to set an example to the troops.) 4 be an example to if someone's behaviour is an example to you, it is so good that you should copy it  (Her courage is an example to us all.) 5 follow sb's example to copy someone's behaviour yourself  (I suggest you follow Rosie's example and start doing regular exercize.) 6 make an example of to punish someone so that other people are afraid to do the same thing