Day 27 Flashcards
Knock off
to stop working, usually at the end of the day:
- I don’t knock off until six.
- What time do you knock off work?
Ultimately
finally, after a series of things have happened:
- Everything will ultimately depend on what is said at the meeting with the directors next week.
- Ultimately, of course, he’d like to have his own business but that won’t be for some time.
C2
used to emphasize the most important fact in a situation:
- Ultimately, he’ll have to decide.
Beforehand
earlier (than a particular time):
- I knew she was coming that afternoon because she had phoned beforehand to say so.
Pertinent
relating directly to the subject being considered:
- a pertinent question/remark
- Chapter One is pertinent to the post-war period.
Remonstrance
a complaint to someone or about something:
- He didn’t attempt any further remonstrance.
- Leila paid no real attention to my remonstrances.
Unobtrusive
not noticeable; seeming to fit in well with the things around:
- Make-up this season is unobtrusive and natural-looking.
Amass
to get a large amount of something, especially money or information, by collecting it over a long period:
- She has amassed a huge fortune from her novels.
- Some of his colleagues envy the enormous wealth that he has amassed.
Labour
practical work, especially when it involves hard physical effort:
- The car parts themselves are not expensive, it’s the labour that costs the money.
- manual labour (= hard work using the hands)
C1 [ U ]
workers, especially people who do practical work with their hands:
- skilled/unskilled labour
To fetch
to go to another place to get something or someone and bring it, him, or her back:
- [ + two objects ] Could you fetch me my glasses/fetch my glasses for me from the other room, please?
- I have to fetch my mother from the station.
Stroll
to walk in a slow relaxed way, especially for pleasure:
- We could stroll along the beach after dinner.
- An elderly couple strolled hand in hand in the park.
Haze
• Like everything is covered in a haze
Surveillance
Tread
to put your foot on something or to press something down with your foot:
- I kept treading on his toes when we were dancing.
- Yuck! Look what I’ve just trodden in!
- A load of food had been trodden into the carpet.
- Before the days of automation, they used to tread grapes to make wine.
literary
to walk:
- He trod heavily and reluctantly up the stairs.
- I sometimes see him flash past in his sports car as I tread my weary way (= walk in a tired way) to work.
Daunt
to make someone feel slightly frightened or worried about their ability to achieve something:
- She was not at all daunted by the size of the problem.
Come out of the blue
• The storms that come out of the blue are the hardest to deal with
Irrevocable
impossible to change:
- an irrevocable decision
Audacity
courage or confidence of a kind that other people find shocking or rude:
- [ + to infinitive ] It took a lot of audacity to stand up and criticize the chairman.
- disapproving He had the audacity to blame me for his mistake!
Whomever
whoever when used as the object:
- Give it to whomever you please.
Essential
necessary or needed:
- Government support will be essential if the project is to succeed.
- There is essential work to be done before the building can be re-occupied.
- Water is essential for/to living things.
- It is essential (that) our prices remain competitive.
[ + to infinitive ] For the experiment to be valid, it is essential to record the data accurately.
Essence
Frivolous
behaving in a silly way and not taking anything seriously:
- I think he sees her as a frivolous young woman.
- I’m sorry to be so frivolous.
Opposite
unfrivolous (SERIOUS)
- A frivolous activity or object is silly or not important rather than useful or serious:
- I feel like doing something completely frivolous today.
- They waste their time and money on frivolous things.
Conviction
the fact of officially being found to be guilty of a particular crime, or the act of officially finding someone guilty:
- Since it was her first conviction for stealing, she was given a less severe sentence.
- He has a long record of previous convictions for similar offences.
- The conviction of the three demonstrators has caused public outrage locally.
Rigorous
careful to look at or consider every part of something to make certain it is correct or safe:
- rigorous testing/checking/methods
Gambling
to risk money, for example in a game or on a horse race:
- I like to gamble when I play cards - it makes it more interesting.
- He gambles on the horses (= horse races).
- He gambled away all of our savings.
