Day 31

Question 1

To comply

Answer 1

to act according to an order, set of rules, or request:
- He’s been ordered to have the dog destroyed because it’s dangerous, but he refuses to comply.
- There are serious penalties for failure to comply with the regulations.

Question 2

Colossal

Answer 2

extremely large:
- In the centre of the hall stood a colossal wooden statue, decorated in ivory and gold.
- They were asking a colossal amount of money for the house.

Question 3

Arbitrary

Answer 3

based on chance rather than being planned or based on reason:
arbitrary decision-making
- Did you have a reason for choosing your destination or was it arbitrary?

Question 4

Superficial

Answer 4

(of a person) never thinking about things that are serious or important:
- He’s fun to be with, but he’s very superficial.

appearing to be real or important when this is not true or correct:
- There are superficial similarities between the two cars, but really they’re very different in terms of performance.

Question 5

Swell

Answer 5

to become larger and rounder than usual; to (cause to) increase in size or amount:
- It was obvious she had broken her toe, because it immediately started to swell (up).
- The group recruited more members, swelling its ranks (= increasing its size) to more than 1.3 million.
- literary His heart/breast swelled with pride (= he felt very proud) as he stood watching his son graduate.
-If music swells, it becomes louder.

Question 6

To attain

Answer 6

to reach or succeed in getting something:
- He has attained the highest grade in his music exams.
- We need to identify the best ways of attaining our objectives/goals.
- India attained independence in 1947, after decades of struggle.

Question 7

Entice

Answer 7

to persuade someone to do something by offering them something pleasant:
- The adverts entice the customer into buying things they don’t really want.
- People are being enticed away from the profession by higher salaries elsewhere.
- [ + to infinitive ] A smell of coffee in the doorway enticed people to enter the shop.

Question 8

To seduce

Answer 8

to persuade or cause someone to do something that they would not usually consider doing by being very attractive and difficult to refuse:
- I wouldn’t normally stay in a hotel like this, but I was seduced by the fabulous location.
- They were seduced into buying the washing machine by the offer of a free flight.

Question 9

Harness

Answer 9

a piece of equipment with straps and belts, used to control or hold in place a person, animal, or object:
- a safety harness
- a baby harness
- a parachute harness

Question 10

Stymie

Answer 10

to prevent something from happening or someone from achieving a purpose:
- In our search for evidence, we were stymied by the absence of any recent documents.

Question 11

Plague

Answer 11

to cause worry, pain, or difficulty to someone or something over a period of time:
- Financial problems have been plaguing their new business partners.
- My shoulder’s been plaguing me all week.

to annoy someone, especially by asking repeated questions:
- The children plagued him with questions all through lunch.
- He’s been plaguing me for a loan of the book.

Question 12

Extol

Answer 12

to praise something or someone very much:
- His book extolling the benefits of vegetarianism sold thousands of copies.
- She is forever extolling the virtues of her children.

Question 13

Exacerbate

Answer 13

to make something that is already bad even worse:
- This attack will exacerbate the already tense relations between the two communities.

Question 14

Dissuade

Answer 14

to persuade someone not to do something:
- I tried to dissuade her from leaving.

Question 15

Dwindle

Answer 15

to become smaller in size or amount, or fewer in number:
- The community has dwindled to a tenth of its former size in the last two years.
- Her hopes of success in the race dwindled last night as the weather became worse.

Question 16

Accolade

Answer 16

praise and approval:
- He’s been granted the ultimate accolade - his face on a postage stamp.
- Her approval was the highest accolade he could receive.

Question 17

Tribute

Answer 17

to praise someone or something:
- The minister paid tribute to the men who had fought the blaze.

Question 18

Embezzle

Answer 18

to secretly take money that is in your care or that belongs to an organization or business you work for:
- She embezzled thousands of dollars from the charity.

Question 19

Coerce

Answer 19

to persuade someone forcefully to do something that they are unwilling to do:
- The court heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession.

Question 20

Verge

Answer 20

the edge or border of something:
- They set up camp on the verge of the desert.

Question 21

Sleet

Answer 21

wet, partly melted falling snow:
- Driving snow and sleet brought more problems to the county’s roads last night.

Question 22

Weir

Answer 22

a wall built under the water across a river, over which the water flows from one level - to another in a controlled way

Question 23

Dam

Answer 23

a wall built across a river that stops the river’s flow and collects the water, especially to make a reservoir (= an artificial lake) that provides water for an area:
- The Aswan High Dam is on the River Nile in Egypt.

Question 24

Wail

Answer 24

to make a long, high cry, usually because of pain or sadness:
- The women gathered around the coffin and began to wail, as was the custom in the region.
- [ + speech ] “My finger hurts,” wailed the child.

Question 25

Ululate

Answer 25

to make a long, high cry with the mouth and tongue that changes between two or three notes, often to show emotion at a ceremony such as a wedding or funeral:
- By night, Bamako is a riot of noise as singers ululate at wedding parties.