Complete with the collocation

Question 1

1. Victoria has a working …….. of Chinese, which she needs for her job as an international corporate lawyer.

Answer 1

KNOWLEDGE
o To have a working knowledge of something: A knowledge of how to make something work without deeper theoretical understanding of why it works. To have enough knowledge of a system, subject, language etc to be able to use it or to do a particular job.

Question 2

2. The defendant told the judge that she accepted full …….. for her actions and that she would plead guilty.

Answer 2

RESPONSIBILITY
o To accept/take full responsibility for something: asumir total responsabilidad – “Of course, if you refuse treatment or stop taking medication, you accept full responsibility for what happens to your body as a result.”

Question 3

3. After William realised his mistake, he was forced to …….. his pride and apologise.

Answer 3

SWALLOW
o To swallow one’s pride: to decide to do something although it will make you feel embarrassed or ashamed. Tragarse el orgullo. “He was forced to swallow his pride and ask if he could have his old job back.” “Swallowing her pride, Katy begs for forgiveness.”

Question 4

4. I thought I ____ my position absolutely clear. Either he goes or I do!

Answer 4

MADE
o To make one’s position clear: To make one’s opinion, point of view, or intention (about something) clearly understood. Often used with modifiers before the word “clear” such as “absolutely, very” – “You have to be sure to make your position very clear, both in person and in writing, so that if there’s a dispute later on the other party can’t claim to have been misinformed.”

Question 5

5. Tanya came away from the interview with the overriding ______that she wouldn’t get the job.

Answer 5

IMPRESSION, FEELING, BELIEF
o With the overriding impression, feeling, belief: con la impression, sentimiento, pensamiento predominante, primordial de que…
o Overriding: majority, principal, predominante
o Overriding concern: mayor preocupación

Question 6

6. Although my mother’s in her seventies she is still very young at ________.

Answer 6

HEART
o To be young at heart: thinking and acting like young people. Thinking and behaving as if you are younger than you really are. To be active and have a lot of energy. “Dad may be nearly 90 but he’s still young at heart.” “The band members are still young at heart.”

Question 7

7. When the shop assistant refused the customer a refund, he was met with a torrent of ______.

Answer 7

ABUSE
o A torrent of abuse: A torrent of abuse or questions is a lot of abuse or questions directed continuously at someone. Un torrente de insultos, una sarta de injurias. “He turned round and directed a torrent of abuse at me.”

Question 8

8. The drowning boy was pulled out of the river and given the ________ of life by a medic.

Answer 8

KISS
o To give sb the kiss of life: to help to keep someone who has stopped breathing alive by blowing into their mouth. Hacer el boca a boca. “I was a lifeguard at the local pool for five years, but I’ve only had to give one person the kiss of life.”
o Pull out – sacar, retirarse, irse.