lesson pack 03

 0    46 flashcards    gustawjakubowski
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Question American English Answer American English
adjective describing an event happens very fast, and often unexpectedly
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whirlwind
They married three months after they met - it was a real whirlwind romance.
a statement that limits a more general statement
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caveat
He agreed to the interview, with the caveat that he could approve the final article.
happening now
adj.
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underway
It’s time to get this project underway (= started).
a person that is last in a group to do something
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straggler
We watched the last of the stragglers come in, three hours after the first runner.
to be a property or characteristic or something
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reside in something
The power to sack employees resides in the Board of Directors.
quick and probably not detailed
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cursory
a cursory glance/look
to identify or designate as being responsible
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finger something as
An international team of scientists fingered the fungus as the culprit in die-offs of 19 amphibian species
a strong, negative reaction to something
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backlash
The mayor foresaw no political backlash against his proposal.
to stop increasing or being reduced
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level off
The plane descended to 18,000 feet before leveling off.
as fast as possible
idiom
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at full tilt
He was driving at full speed down the motorway when it happened.
to stay inside something
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within the bounds of something
What you did wasn't within the bounds of acceptable behaviour.
to be involved in a difficult situation, especially for a long period of time
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be mired down in something
The peace talks are mired in bureaucracy.
to search into or question closely
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probe
... probed the impact of technology on social behavior.
an increase in the number or amount of something
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uptick
Many hospitals noticed a big uptick in cases when kids went back to their classrooms.
to gradually end, often in a disappointing or weak way
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fizzle out
They went to different universities and their relationship just fizzled out.
showing interest only in a narrow range of matters, especially those that directly affect yourself, your town, or your country
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parochial
a parochial view/opinion
Although it's just a local paper, it somehow manages not to be too parochial in its outlook.
something that is believed to show how a situation will develop or change in the future
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bellwether for/of something
The report is viewed as a bellwether for national economic trends.
using or containing a great and usually an excessive number of words; wordy
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verbose
The message is clear and concise and displays no verbosity.
strange in a frightening and mysterious way
adj.
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eerie
eerie feeling
He had the eerie feeling that he had met this stranger before.
given less or little thought, attention, or action; give something low priority
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put on a back burner
I'm going to be putting work stuff on the back burner for a while after my son is born.
(of a plan) to have the opposite result from the one you intended
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backfire
Her plans to make him jealous backfired on her when he started dating her best friend.
to get a large amount of something, especially money or information, by collecting it over a long period
verb
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amass
She has amassed a huge fortune from her novels.
to start doing something by chance, without having intended to do it
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stumble into something
He had stumbled into teaching English after he finished college.
to take or obtain a portion of something
phrasal verb
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carve out something
I decided to invest in their unique product because I could see it carving out a chunk of the tech market in the near future.
freedom to behave, act, or think in the way you want to
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latitude in (doing) something
1) Judges now have considerable latitude in sentencing. 2) The foundation has wide latitude in how it structures its sponsorships and agreements.
to imagine something
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conceive of something
He couldn't conceive of a time when he would have no job.
a dynamic and difficult experience
metaphor
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white-water ride
A time at Google has been a white-water ride of experimentation and creation.
unusual and strange
of behavior
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oddball
She has made a successful career out of her oddball humour.
to be completely different from something
idiom
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be a far cry from something
This flat is a far cry from the house they had before.
felt strongly and often hidden from other people
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deep down
Deep down, I know you love me really.
articles for sale
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wares
a tradesman selling his wares
not known to many people
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obscure
Official policy has changed, for reasons that remain obscure.
empty, simple, or obvious, especially without decoration or anything that is not necessary
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stark
The stark reality is that we are operating at a huge loss.
silly or stupid thing
often about ideas
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crackpot
crackpot ideas
This sounds like another crackpot conspiracy theory to me.
diverse and disorderly in appearance or composition
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ragtag
They're a small ragtag army of racketeers, bandits, and murderers
something that does not need to be considered as a problem, because you have a lot of it
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(something) is no object
For a millionaire like him, money is no object.
to play an important part in doing something
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be instrumental in (doing) something
John was instrumental in getting the contract to build the new building
to have a personal stake in something, typically because one could potentially benefit from it.
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have a vested interest (in something)
Of course I have a vested interest in how the board reacts to this proposal—if they like it, they might promote me!
to examine something in order to make a judgment or form an opinion
phrasal verb
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size up something
Voters are still sizing up the candidates.
more than enough
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ample
ample evidence
There's ample evidence that the lawyer knew exactly what she was doing.
different from usual things and therefore surprising or upsetting
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jarring experience
innocence or naiveté in thinking
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dewy optimism
to supply or produce something positive
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yield
The investigation yielded some unexpected results.
without being polite or caring about other people’s feelings
adjective
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blunt
blunt criticism
a bad habit; serious moral failing
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vice
Drinking too much is a vice.
to arrange a process so that a large portion of activity occurs in an early period
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front-load
front-loaded the primaries so that most of them occur early rather than later in the election year.

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