Deck 21 Flashcards
to take a rain check (on sth)
used to tell someone that you cannot accept an invitation now, but would like to do so at a later time
- ‘Mind if I take a rain check on that drink? I have to work late tonight.’
larceny
theft of personal property
homely
(of a person) unattractive in appearance
at large
(especially of a criminal or dangerous animal) at liberty; escaped or not yet captured
a bachelor party
a party for a man who is going to get married, to which only his male friends are invited
defamation
the act of harming someone’s reputation by saying or writing bad things about them
a wuss
a coward (= person who is not brave)
unseemly
(of behaviour or actions) not proper or appropriate
cerulean
deep blue in colour like a clear sky
to commend
to formally and officially praise someone
a bearing on sth
relation; relevance
- ‘The case has no direct bearing on the issues being considered.’
a bloke
a man
to nick
to steal
a bellend
a stupid or annoying man
to say something in a roundabout way
to say something indirectly
compliance
the act of obeying an order, rule, or request
abhorrent
inspiring disgust by being morally very bad
brittle
delicate and easily broken
embittered
very angry about unfair things that have happened to you
donezo
an exclamation to be used when finished wtih something
- ‘I’m donezo!’
to bump uglies
to have sex
to play coy
to avoid giving a direct or complete answer
- ‘When asked about his next book, he played coy.’
haphazard
not having an obvious order or plan
- ‘He tackled the problem in a typically haphazard manner.’
to consort
to spend a lot of time in the company of a particular group of people, especially people whose character is not approved of
- ‘They claimed he had been consorting with drug dealers.’
a waiver
an agreement that you do not have to pay or obey something
ennui [U]
a feeling of being bored and mentally tired caused by having nothing interesting or exciting to do
to bemoan
to complain or express sadness about something
intrepid
extremely brave and showing no fear of dangerous situations
perchance
by chance; possibly; perhaps
- ‘Do you know her, perchance?’
a bee’s knees
a highly admired person or thing
frayed
with the threads at the edge coming loose
to exonerate
to show or state that someone or something is not guilty of something
- ‘The report exonerated the crew from all responsibility for the collision.’
a stumper
a puzzling question
phat
excellent
to hit the mark
be successful in an attempt or accurate in a guess
in the sticks
in the middle of nowhere
to have/keep several balls in the air
to try to do several different things at the same time
whimsical
playfully quaint or fanciful, especially in an unusual and amusing way
to stonewall
to stop a discussion from developing by refusing to answer questions or by talking in such a way that you prevent other people from giving their opinions
reprehensible
If someone’s behaviour is reprehensible, it is extremely bad or unacceptable
thine
archaic form of yours
shrill
(of a voice or sound) high-pitched and piercing
hark
used to tell someone to listen
- ‘Hark, I hear a distant trumpet!’
same old same old
used to say that a situation or someone’s behaviour remains the same, especially when it is boring or annoying
- ‘Most people just keep on doing the same old same old every day.’
to strut
to walk in a proud way trying to look important
to desist
to stop doing something, especially something that someone else does not want you to do
- ‘The soldiers have been ordered to desist from firing their guns.’
to clout
to hit someone or something hard
to stymie
prevent or hinder the progress of
- ‘The changes must not be allowed to stymie new medical treatments.’
to skedaddle
to depart quickly or hurriedly; run away
serene
calm, peaceful and untroubled; tranquil
frenetic
fast and energetic in a rather wild and uncontrolled way
an intricacy - intricacies
details, especially of an involved or perplexing subject
an cobweb
a spider’s web, especially when old and dusty
semblance [U]
a situation or condition that is similar to what is wanted or expected, but is not exactly as hoped for
- ‘The city has now returned to some semblance of normality after last night’s celebrations.’
a celebutante /sɪˈlɛbjuːtɑːnt/
a celebrity who is well known in fashionable society
draught /drɑːft/
denoting beer or cider served from a barrel or tank rather than from a bottle or can
- ‘draught ale’
a next of kin
the person or group of people you are most closely related to
henpecked
A henpecked man is controlled by and a little frightened of a woman, especially his wife.
to browbeat
to try to force someone to do something by threatening them or persuading them forcefully and unfairly
- ‘Don’t be browbeaten into working more hours than you want.’
a linchpin
a person or thing vital to an enterprise or organisation
crinkly
full of creases or wrinkles; wrinkled
to limp
to walk slowly and with difficulty because of having an injured or painful leg or foot
brazen
bold and without shame
a misnomer
a name that does not suit what it refers to, or the use of such a name
- ‘It was the scruffiest place I’ve ever stayed in, so “Grand Hotel” was a complete misnomer.’
forceps (pl.)
a metal instrument with two handles used in medical operations for picking up, pulling, and holding things
poised
ready to do a particular thing at any moment
- ‘The company is poised to launch its new advertising campaign.’
to go south
to make an escape; to disappear
- ‘The mugger went South just after the crime.’
to garrotte
to kill someone by putting a metal wire or cord around their neck and pulling it
to rout
to defeat an opponent completely
to work around the clock
to work all day and all night long
temerity [U]
a willingness to do or say something that shocks or upsets other people
- ‘She had the temerity to call me a liar.’
on the lam
moving from place to place to avoid being found or caught
- ‘Richard has been on the lam for a week now.’
a dearth
an amount or supply that is not large enough
- ‘a dearth of new homes in the region’
a tadpole
a small, black creature with a large head and long tail that lives in water and develops into a frog or toad
to bifurcate
(of roads, rivers, branches, etc.) to divide into two parts
toodles!
a shortened anglicised version of the French phrase à tout à l’heure which means goodbye.
to tinker with sth
to make small changes to something, especially in an attempt to repair or improve it
- ‘I wish the government would stop tinkering with the health service.’
to glean
to collect information in small amounts and often with difficulty
- ‘From what I was able to glean, the news isn’t good.’
a lackey
a servant or someone who behaves like one by obeying someone else’s orders or by doing unpleasant work for them
mottled
covered with areas of different colours that do not form a regular pattern
- ‘mottled skin’
a courtship
a period during which a couple develop a romantic relationship before getting married
to court
to be involved with (someone) romantically, with the intention of marrying
- ‘He was courting a girl from the neighbouring farm.’
dejection [U]
a sad and depressed state; low spirits
inclined
likely or wanting to do something
- ‘No one seemed inclined to help.’
weepy
feeling likely to cry
a frontier
a border between two countries
to dissipate
to (cause to) gradually disappear or waste
- ‘The heat gradually dissipates into the atmosphere.’
- ‘His anger dissipated as the situation became clear.’
to hover
to remain in one place in the air
to clamp down on sth
to take strong action to stop or limit a harmful or unwanted activity
- ‘The government is clamping down on teenage drinking.’
the brunt of sth
the main force of something unpleasant
- ‘Small companies are feeling the full brunt of the recession.’
an enclosure
an area surrounded by fences or walls
- ‘an enclosure for the horses’
stirring
causing excitement or strong emotion; rousing
to scrutinise
to examine something very carefully in order to discover information
to cop out
to avoid doing something that one ought to do
- ‘He would not cop out of the difficult tax decisions.’
upkeep [U]
the cost or process of keeping something, such as a building, in good condition
- ‘The upkeep of larger old properties is very expensive.’
uproar [S/U]
a situation in which a lot of people complain about something angrily or make a lot of noise
- ‘The book caused an uproar in France.’
the subject matter
the things that are being talked or written about, or used as the subject of a piece of art, etc.
- ‘The subject matter of the documentary was not really suitable for children.’
to excavate
to remove earth that is covering very old objects buried in the ground in order to discover things about the past
to undulate
to move with a smooth wave-like motion
- ‘Her body undulated to the thumping rhythm of the music.’
perverse
strange and not what most people would expect or enjoy
- ‘She took a perverse pleasure in hearing that her sister was getting divorced.’
