002 Flashcards
(51 cards)
sour
Something that is sour has a sharp, unpleasant taste like the taste of a lemon:
♦ The stewed apple was sour even with honey.
♦ I love the sour taste of limes.
indulgent
If you are indulgent, you treat a person with special kindness, often in a way that is not good for them:
♦ His indulgent mother was willing to let him do anything he wanted.
♦ I was indulgent so I took a day off of work, went to a spa and got a massage.
hit the road
to leave, especially in a car:
After cleaning the room we are going to hit the road.
tighten your belt (idiom)
When you tighten your belt, it means that you spend less money in order to save up to buy something huge and expensive.
For example, if you’ve decided to tighten your belt you will possibly stop going to a coffee shop several times a week. So that extra money will go into your savings.
mundane
Something that is mundane is very ordinary and not at all interesting or unusual:
◊ Mundane matters such as paying bills and shopping for food do not interest her.
◊ The worst part about these tourists is that they always take photos of quite literally everything, even the most mundane objects.
◊ The show was just another mundane family sitcom.
strive
to try very hard to do something or to make something happen, especially for a long time or against difficulties:
◊ He strives hard to keep himself very fit.
◊ She strove to read the name on the stone pillar.
◊ In her writing she strove for a balance between innovation and familiar prose forms.
◊ The region must now strive for economic development as well as peace.
pillar
1) a strong column made of stone, metal, or wood that supports part of a building:
◊ A row of reinforced concrete pillars supports the bridge.
2) pillar of something - a very important member or part of a group, organization, system, etc.:
◊ Mrs Maple is a pillar of the local church.
◊ The pillar of her economic policy was keeping tight control over money supply.
◊ My father had been a pillar of the community.
spit
1) Spit is the watery liquid produced in your mouth:
◊ She used a little spit on a tissue to wipe the mirror clean.
2) If someone spits, they force an amount of liquid out of their mouth, often to show hatred or contempt:
◊ Bob Ewell spat contemptuously right in the lawyer’s face.
◊ He spat the meat out in disgust.
◊ I don’t like their lack of manners, being loud, spitting and littering like they were at home.
3) If something such as a machine or food that is cooking spits, it sends out small amounts of something, making a series of short, sharp noises:
◊ The engine spat and banged.
◊ The fire where kebabs were sizzling and spitting.
4) If someone spits an insult or comment, they say it in an angry or hostile way:
◊ ‘Wait a minute,’ Mindy spat. ‘You can’t stay overnight.’
◊ He appeared to be angry, spitting out disconnected words.
5) If it is spitting, it is raining very lightly:
◊ If it’s only spitting, perhaps we don’t need waterproofs.
6) A spit is a long rod which is pushed through a piece of meat and hung over an open fire to cook the meat:
◊ Roast the lamb on a spit.
7) A spit of land is a long, flat, narrow piece of land that sticks out into the sea.
hatred
Hatred is a noun and means extremely strong feeling of dislike for someone or something:
◊ Her hatred of them would never lead her to murder.
◊ She gave me a look of intense hatred.
◊ The fighting between the different social groups has become a terrifying spiral of death and hatred.
contempt
If you have contempt for someone or something, you have no respect for them or think that they are unimportant:
◊ At school she had complete contempt for all her teachers.
◊ He has contempt for those beyond his immediate family circle.
giddy
1) If you feel giddy, you feel unsteady and think that you are about to fall over, usually because you are not well:
◊ He felt giddy and light-headed.
◊ When she got off the roller coaster, she felt giddy and lightheaded.
2) If you feel giddy with delight or excitement, you feel so happy or excited that you find it hard to think or act normally:
◊ She was giddy with excitement.
◊ I was giddy that I was fortunate enough to live in such a lovely place and share its beauty with a complete stranger for a moment!
deception
Deception is the act of deceiving (hiding the truth, especially to get an advantage) someone or the state of being deceived by someone:
● He was found guilty of obtaining money by deception.
● He was arrested on charges of attempted deception when he tried to use a stolen credit card.
● Her husband was a practised liar, capable of extraordinary deception.
detain
When the police detain someone, they keep them in a place under their control:
● The act allows police to detain a suspect for up to 48 hours.
● He was arrested and detained for questioning.
● Thank you. We won’t detain you any further.
exaggerate
/ɪɡˈzædʒ.ə.reɪt/
to make something seem larger, more important, better, or worse than it really is:
● The threat of attack has been greatly exaggerated.
● Don’t exaggerate - it wasn’t that expensive.
● I’m not exaggerating - it was the worst meal I’ve ever eaten in my life.
parole
If a prisoner is given parole, he or she is released before the official end of their prison sentence and has to promise to behave well:
● Although sentenced to life, he will become eligible for parole after serving 10 years.
● He’s been released on parole.
spiteful
Someone who is spiteful does cruel things to hurt people they dislike:
● And he began describing how spiteful and uncertain she was, how if you were only a day late with your interest the pledge was lost.
chatter
relish
If you relish something, you get a lot of enjoyment from it or look forward to it very much:
● I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.
● Jacqueline is not relishing the prospect of another spell in prison.
Relish is also a noun:
● She ate her cake slowly and with relish.
● I have no relish for hunting and killing animals.
mend
1) If you mend something that is broken or not working, you repair it, so that it works properly or can be used:
● They took a long time to mend the roof.
● Could you mend this hole in my shirt?
● He can mend anything - he’s so good with his hands.
2) If a person or a part of their body mends or is mended, they get better after they have been ill or have had an injury:
● You’ll mend. The X-rays show that your arm will heal all right.
● I’m feeling a good bit better. The cut aches, but it’s mending.
3) If you try to mend divisions between people, you try to end the disagreements or quarrels between them:
● The country’s president is seeking to mend relations with the United States.
sew
When you sew something such as clothes, you make them or repair them by joining pieces of cloth together by passing thread through them with a needle:
● She sewed the dresses on the sewing machine.
● I made this skirt just by sewing two pieces of material together.
assembly
1) a group of people, especially one that meets regularly for a particular purpose, such as government, or, more generally, the process of coming together, or the state of being together:
● the United Nations General Assembly
● The U.S. Constitution guarantees free speech, freedom of assembly and equal protection.
● He waited until complete quiet settled on the assembly.
2) In a school, assembly is a gathering of all the teachers and pupils at the beginning of the school day:
● All pupils are expected to attend school assembly.
3) The assembly of a machine, device, or object is the process of fitting its different parts together:
● For the rest of the day, he worked on the assembly of an explosive device.
● car assembly
● The assembly of the circuit boards is done in China.
prick
1) If something sharp pricks you or if you prick yourself with something sharp, it sticks into you or presses your skin and causes you pain:
● She had just pricked her finger with the needle.
If you prick something or prick holes in it, you make small holes in it with a sharp object such as a pin:
● She pricked the balloon with a pin and it burst with a loud bang.
2) If tears prick your eyes, you feel as if you are about to cry:
● Davydd felt tears prick his eyes.
3) If something pricks your conscience, you suddenly feel guilty about it. If you are pricked by an emotion, you suddenly experience that emotion:
● I was pricked by the needle of curiosity.
an unpleasant emotion that is felt for a short time:
● With the thought came a tiny prick of fear.
● Her thoughts returned with a prick of concern to Emily and her imminent dental appointment.
● He felt in spite of himself a prick of jealousy.
thorny
1) A thorny plant or tree is covered with thorns:
● a thorny rose bush
2) A thorny problem or subject is difficult to deal with:
● the thorny issue of immigration policy
● the thorny issue of taxation
will (noun)
1) Will is the determination to do something:
● He was said to have lost his will to live.
2) If something is the will of a person or group of people with authority, they want it to happen:
● Democracy responds and adjusts to the will of the people.
● The parliament didn’t deserve to represent the nation’s will.
3) If you will something to happen, you try to make it happen by using mental effort rather than physical effort:
● I looked at the phone, willing it to ring.
● He was watching her fixedly, willing her to look at him.
