Deck 23 Flashcards
a shin
the front part of your leg between your knee and your foot
waterlogged
saturated with or full of water
to strain
to separate liquid food from solid food, especially by pouring it through a utensil with small holes in it:
- ‘Could you strain the vegetables, please?’
to infuse
to fill someone or something with an emotion or quality
- ‘The pulling down of the Berlin Wall infused the world with optimism.’
vacuous
not expressing or showing intelligent thought or purpose
- ‘a vacuous remark/question/expression/smile’
you snooze, you lose
if you do not pay attention and do something quickly, someone else will do it instead of you
none the worse for wear
When you say that someone was none the worse for wear, what you mean is that the experience did not harm him in any way.
- ‘Ramesh returned my scooter after six weeks. It was none the worse for wear.’
a ruffian
a violent, wild, and unpleasant person, usually a man
curfew
a time by which a child must be home in the evening
crikey
an expression of surprise
a vagabond
a person who has no home and usually no job, and who travels from place to place
personable
having a pleasant appearance and character
to level with someone
to tell someone the truth, esp. when it may be unpleasant
- ‘I’ll level with you – the salary is not particularly good.’
peachy fucking keen
An expression that everything is great, even when there are problems showing.
to put all one’s eggs in one basket
to make everything dependent on only one thing
iteration
the process of doing something again and again, usually to improve it, or one of the times you do it
to titillate
to make someone excited intentionally but only a little, usually with sexual images or descriptions
- ‘So many adverts these days are designed to titillate.’
rife
If something unpleasant is rife, it is very common or happens a lot
- ‘Dysentery and malaria are rife in the refugee camps.’
a penchant
a liking for, an enjoyment of, or a habit of doing something, especially something that other people might not like
- ‘Her penchant for disappearing for days at a time worries her family.’
vexation [U]
worry or anger
- ‘After several unsuccessful attempts to start his car, he swore in vexation.’
acrimonious
full of anger, arguments, and bad feeling
indispensable
Something or someone that is indispensable is so good or important that you could not manage without it, him, or her
to sidetrack
to direct a person’s attention away from an activity or subject towards another one that is less important
- ‘Ruth was looking for an envelope in a drawer when she was sidetracked by some old letters.’
the status quo [kwoh]
the present situation
- ‘Certain people always want to maintain the status quo.’
intrusive
affecting someone in a way that annoys them and makes them feel uncomfortable
- ‘intrusive lighting’
to a T
precisely; exactly; perfectly; with great attention to detail
- ‘The announcement of the political endorsement was timed to a T.’
insurmountable
too great to be overcome
- ‘an insurmountable problem’
irate
very angry
a blitz (blitzes pl.)
a fast, violent attack on a town, city, etc., usually with bombs dropped from aircraft
convivial
friendly and making you feel happy and welcome
- ‘a convivial atmosphere/host’
replete
well supplied
inanimate
showing no sign of life; lifeless
lavish
large in quantity and expensive or impressive
- ‘lavish gifts/praise/banquets’
to overshadow
to cause someone or something to seem less important or less happy
delirious
unable to think or speak clearly because of fever or mental confusion
to beguile
to persuade, attract, or interest someone, sometimes in order to deceive them
- ‘He was completely beguiled by her beauty.’
chock-full
completely full
- ‘The whole room was chock-full of books.’
to perambulate
If you’re fond of strolling around your neighbourhood with no special destination, you like to perambulate.
to plod
to walk taking slow steps, as if your feet are heavy
- ‘We plodded through the mud.’
to jolt
to (cause something or someone to) move suddenly and violently
- ‘The train stopped unexpectedly and we were jolted forwards.’
prosaic
without interest, imagination, and excitement
fortitude
courage in pain or adversity
penitent
showing that you are sorry for something you have done because you feel it was wrong
to curtail
to stop something before it is finished, or to reduce or limit something
- ‘to curtail your spendings’
to laud
to praise
a conch
a large spiral shell, or the tropical snail-like sea creature that lives in it
to conk
to hit someone, usually on the head with a heavy object
exasperation
the feeling of being annoyed, especially because you can do nothing to solve a problem
a propensity [S]
the fact that someone is likely to behave in a particular way, especially a bad way
- ‘She’s inherited from her father a propensity to talk too much.’
rivalry
a situation in which people, businesses, etc. compete with each other for the same thing
to scavenge
to look for or get food or other objects in other people’s rubbish
lugubrious
sad and serious
diligent
careful and using a lot of effort
- ‘a diligent student’
disgruntled
unhappy, annoyed, and disappointed about something
exuberant
(especially of people and their behaviour) very energetic
to be no/little love lost between
If there is no/little love lost between two people, they do not like each other.
variegated
having a pattern of different colours or marks
- ‘variegated leaves’
a moot point
a subject that people cannot agree about
brick-and-mortar
existing as a physical building, especially a shop, rather than doing business only on the internet
curative
able to cure or cause to get better
unequivocal
leaving no doubt; unambiguous
parsimonious
not willing to spend money or give something
to stockpile
to store a large supply of something for future use
sentient
able to experience feelings
- ‘It is hard for a sentient person to understand how any parents could treat their child so badly.’
poise
calm confidence in a person’s way of behaving, or a quality of grace and balance in the way a person holds or moves their body
- ‘He looked embarrassed for a moment, then quickly regained his poise.’
kith and kin
people you are connected with, especially by family relationships
embolden
to make someone brave
- ‘Emboldened by drink, he walked over to speak to her.’
ditto
used to agree with something that has just been said, or to avoid repeating something that has been said
- ‘Local residents are opposed to the proposal. Ditto many members of the city council (= they are also opposed).’
ephemeral
lasting for only a short time
tardy
slow or late in happening or arriving
demure
(especially of women) quiet and well behaved
impalpable
difficult to feel or understand:
to nettle
to make someone annoyed or slightly angry
acerbic
(especially of a comment or style of speaking) sharp and forthright
jejune
very simple or childish
loathsome
extremely unpleasant
- ‘He’s a loathsome man.’
detestable
used to refer to people or things that you hate very much
exacting
demanding a lot of effort, care, or attention
- ‘an exacting training schedule’
dog days
the hottest days of the summer
a fish out of water
someone who is uncomfortable in a specific situation
- ‘I felt like a fish out of water at my new school.’
to pass muster
to reach an acceptable standard
- ‘New teams won’t be admitted to the league if their stadiums don’t pass muster.’
to rear its (ugly) head
(of something unpleasant) to appear
- ‘Jealousy reared its ugly head and destroyed their marriage.’
so to speak
used to explain that what you are saying is not to be understood exactly as stated
- ‘I just love my little poodle. she’s my baby, so to speak.’
dog-eat-dog
used to describe a situation in which people will do anything to be successful, even if what they do harms other people
- ‘It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there.’
to be/get bogged down
to be/become so involved in something difficult or complicated that you cannot do anything else
- ‘Try not to get too bogged down in the details.’
an old wives’ tale
a piece of advice or a theory, often related to matters of health, that was believed in the past but is now known to be wrong
aghast
suddenly filled with strong feelings of shock and worry
fastidious
giving too much attention to small details and wanting everything to be correct and perfect
- ‘He is very fastidious about how a suitcase should be packed.’
percipient
good at noticing and understanding things
to vitiate
to destroy or damage something
- ‘a mind vitiated by prejudice’
morose
unhappy, annoyed, and unwilling to speak or smile
sullen
angry and unwilling to smile or be pleasant to people
to instigate
to cause an event or situation to happen by making a set of actions or a formal process begin
- ‘The government will instigate new measures to combat terrorism.’
ostentatious
characterised by pretentious or showy display; designed to impress
to repudiate
to refuse to accept something or someone as true, good, or reasonable
to mar
to spoil something, making it less good or less enjoyable
- ‘Sadly, the text is marred by careless errors.’
inchoate [in-koh-eyt]
only recently or partly formed, or not completely developed or clear
- ‘She had a child’s inchoate awareness of language.’
irrepressible
full of energy and enthusiasm; impossible to stop
feasible
able to be made, done, or achieved
- ‘With the extra resources, the project now seems feasible.’
aloof
not friendly or willing to take part in things
- ‘She seemed rather aloof when in fact she was just shy.’
