Brush up

Question 1

width

Answer 1

the distance across something from one side to the other:

It is five metres in width.
The needle is seven times smaller than the width of a human hair.
The material is available in various widths.

Question 2

deck

Answer 2

a flat area for walking on, built across the space between the sides of a boat:
We sat on deck until it was dark.
See also
quarterdeck
sun deck
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one of the floors of a bus:
the upper/top deck of the bus
​
a wooden floor built outside, where people can sit and relax
below decks
​
on a level of a ship below the main deck:
Our cabin was below decks.

Question 3

circumference

Answer 3

the line surrounding a circular space, or the length of this line:
the circumference of a circle
​
the outside edge of an area or object that is round or curved, or the length of this edge:
the circumference of an orange

Question 4

veil

Answer 4

1. a piece of thin material worn by women to cover the face or head:
   After the ceremony, the bride lifted up her veil to kiss her husband.
   The women wore black veils that covered all but their eyes.
2. to cover something, especially the face or body, with a veil:
   In some societies, women are expected to be veiled when they go out in public.

Question 5

howl

Answer 5

1. If a dog or wolf howls, it makes a long, sad sound:

In the silence of the night, a lone wolf howled.
​
2. to make a loud sound, usually to express pain, sadness, or another strong emotion:

An injured dog lay in the middle of the road, howling with/in pain.
We were howling with laughter.

3. figurative
   The opposition howled down the government’s proposal (= shouted loudly to express disapproval).

Question 6

trickle

Answer 6

If liquid trickles somewhere, it flows slowly and without force in a thin line:

Blood trickled out of the corner of his mouth.
Oil was trickling from a tiny hole in the tank.

Question 7

carriage

Answer 7

a vehicle with four wheels pulled by a horse or horses
​
A carriage is also a baby carriage.

Question 8

wagon

Answer 8

a vehicle with four wheels, which must be pulled or pushed:

European settlers journeyed across America in covered wagons.

Question 9

cart

Answer 9

a vehicle with either two or four wheels that is pushed by a person, or pulled by an animal, esp. a horse, and is used for carrying goods
​
A cart is also a shopping cart.

Question 10

chariot

Answer 10

a two-wheeled vehicle pulled by a horse, used in ancient times by the military and in racing

Question 11

set off

Answer 11

to start on a trip:

What time do we set off tomorrow?

Question 12

porch

Answer 12

a covered area next to the entrance of a house, sometimes open to the air and sometimes surrounded by a screen (= wire net):

The back porch looks out on our garden.

Question 13

joystick

Answer 13

a vertical handle that can be moved forwards, backwards, and sideways to control the direction or height of an aircraft or to control a machine or computer game

Question 14

express

Answer 14

anger
a concern
your regrets

Question 15

make

Answer 15

an apology
a complaint
an excuse

Question 16

give

Answer 16

a compliment
an excuse
a reason
a criticism

Question 17

offer

Answer 17

your congratulations
a criticism
an invitation
sympathy

Question 18

high above

Answer 18

They live in a beautiful house high above the sea.

Question 19

way up high

Answer 19

Can you see that kite way up high in the sky?

Question 20

far behind

Answer 20

Don’t worry. They’ll never catch us now. They’re too far behind.

Question 21

hurdle

Answer 21

a frame or fence for jumping over in a race:

He fell at the last hurdle.
She cleared (= jumped over) all the hurdles easily and raced to the finishing line.
hurdles [ plural ]
​
a race in which people or horses jump over hurdles:

the 400-metre hurdles

Question 22

sugar daddy

Answer 22

a rich older man who lavishes gifts on a young woman in return for her company or sexual favours.

Question 23

drench

Answer 23

to make someone or something extremely wet:

A sudden thunderstorm had drenched us to the skin.
The athletes were drenched in/with sweat.

Question 24

moron

Answer 24

a very stupid person:

Some moron smashed into the back of my car yesterday.
[ as form of address ] You moron!

Question 25

creepy

Answer 25

strange and slightly frightening:

a creepy old house

Question 26

bash

Answer 26

to attack someone or something with an object:
He bashed his arm against a shelf.
​
If you bash someone with words, you criticize that person severely:
Some of these countries have been bashing the United States.

Question 27

thaw

Answer 27

to (cause to) change from a solid, frozen state to a liquid or soft one, because of an increase in temperature:

Allow the meat to thaw completely before cooking it.
The sun came out and thawed the ice.
It’s beginning to thaw (= the weather is warm enough for snow and ice to melt).