Deck 26 Flashcards
opinionated
An opinionated person is certain about their beliefs, and expresses their ideas strongly and often
the gamut
the whole range of things that can be included in something
- ‘In her stories, she expresses the whole gamut of emotions, from happiness to sorrow.’
habitual
usual or repeated
- ‘habitual drug use’
frugal
careful when using money or food, or (of a meal) cheap or small in amount
a jacksie
a person’s bottom
a quid
a pound
to wallow in sth
to allow yourself to enjoy something completely
repressed
having feelings that you do not express
- ‘English people are notoriously repressed and don’t talk about their feelings.’
culpable
deserving to be blamed or considered responsible for something bad
- ‘He was held culpable for all that had happened.’
to soil oneself
to shit oneself
to extradite
to make someone return for trial to another country or state where they have been accused of doing something illegal
- ‘He will be extradited to Arizona from Florida.’
mercurial
changing suddenly and often
- ‘a mercurial temperament’
ahead of the curve
better than average
an impetus
An impetus is a force behind something, whether it’s a boulder rolling down a hill or a person making a decision.
to doctor
to change a document in order to deceive people
a stakeout
the continuous watching of a building or area, especially by the police
nightly
(happening) every night
to have hollow legs
Someone that overindulges in liquor, food, etc. without showing signs of effect is said to have hollow legs
in your salad days
during the period of time when you were a young person and had little experience
a tall drink of water
old slang for a visually appealing man or woman
by the book
exactly according to rules or the law
a leper
a person who is strongly disliked and avoided by other people because of something bad that he or she has done
a fish story
a story which is not true
to take on someone/something
to fight or compete against someone or something
- ‘I’ll take you on in a game of chess.’
ajar
If a door is ajar, it is slightly open
highbrow
(of books, plays, etc.) involving serious and complicated or artistic ideas, or (of people) interested in serious and complicated subjects
estranged
an estranged husband or wife is not now living with the person they are married to
a hamlet
a small village, usually without a church
to hobnob
to spend time being friendly with someone who is important or famous
- ‘She often has her picture in the papers, hobnobbing with the rich and famous.’
a premonition
a feeling that something, especially something unpleasant, is going to happen
over my dead body
If you say something will happen over your dead body, you mean that you will do everything you can to prevent it
to pay the piper
to face the results of one’s actions; to receive punishment for something
the BarcaLounger
a type of deeply padded reclining chair
a tableau
a group of models or motionless figures representing a scene from a story or from history
to swill
to cause a liquid to flow around or over something, often in order to clean it
- ‘The dentist handed me a glass of water to swill my mouth out with.’
to the letter
If you obey instructions or rules to the letter, you do exactly what you have been told to do, giving great attention to every detail
to implore
to ask someone to do or not do something in a very sincere, emotional, and determined way
- ‘She implored her parents not to send her away to school.’
a scuffle
a short and sudden fight, especially one involving a small number of people
a pittance
a very small amount of money, especially money received as payment, income, or a present
- ‘He works hard but he’s paid a pittance.’
a loofah
an object with a rough surface that is used to rub the body when washing
kempt
If you’re kempt, you’re neat and well-groomed.
- ‘Your always-kempt house will be harder to keep tidy after you adopt six furry puppies.’
a spruce
an evergreen tree with leaves like needles, or the pale-coloured wood from this tree
a lemon
vehicle (often new) that is found to have several manufacturing defects which may affect the safety, value or use of the vehicle
dismal
sad and without hope
blimey
an expression of surprise
- ‘Blimey, what a lot of food!’
a throng
a crowd or a large group of people
- ‘A huge throng had gathered around the speaker.’
milling
moving around in a large group, with no particular purpose, or in no particular direction
- ‘I lost sight of him among the milling crowds.’
If I had a nickel for every time
When someone uses this expression, they mean that the specific thing happens a lot
volition
the power to make your own decisions
docile
quiet and easy to influence, persuade, or control
compartmentalisation
An unconscious psychological defence mechanism used to avoid mental discomfort and anxiety caused by a person’s having conflicting values, emotions, beliefs, etc. within themselves.
Compartmentalization allows these conflicting ideas to co-exist by inhibiting direct or explicit acknowledgement and interaction between separate compartmentalized self-states.
desultory
without a clear plan or purpose and showing little effort or interest
pretence
a way of behaving that is intended to deceive people
- ‘They kept up a pretence of normality as long as they could.’
a detour
a different or less direct route to a place that is used to avoid a problem or to visit somewhere or do something on the way
to subpoena
to order someone to go to a law court to answer questions
- ‘They were subpoenaed to testify before the judge.’
to get cold feet
to suddenly become too frightened to do something you had planned to do, especially something important such as getting married
deference
respect and politeness
- ‘He treats her with such deference.’
facetious
not serious about a serious subject, in an attempt to be funny or to appear clever
nautical
relating to ships, sailing, or sailors
- ‘nautical equipment’
a fender bender
a minor car accident
turndown service
the practice of staff entering a guest’s room and “turning down” the bed linen of the bed in the room, preparing the bed for use
to scoot
to go quickly
‘I’ll have to scoot or I’ll miss my train.’
kismet
a force that some people think controls what happens in the future, and is outside human control
- ‘It must have been kismet.’
to think out
to consider carefully and rationally in order to reach a conclusion
boudoir
a beautifully decorated room used in the past by a woman for sleeping, dressing, relaxing, and entertaining
to bust (one’s) chops
to exert a significant amount of energy or work very hard to do, accomplish, or complete something
rudimentary
basic
- ‘Her knowledge is still only rudimentary.’
valediction
an act of bidding farewell; a leave-taking
a stickler
a person who thinks that a particular type of behaviour is very important, and always follows it or tries to make other people follow it
- ‘He’s a stickler for detail/accuracy/efficiency.’
rags-to-riches
used to describe what happens to a person who was poor but becomes rich
- ‘a rags-to-riches story’
commendation
praise, or an official statement that praises someone
to be in the bag
If something is in the bag, you are certain to get it or to achieve it
- ‘Once we’d scored the third goal, the game was pretty much in the bag.’
bushed
very tired
a reprieve
an official order that stops or delays the punishment, especially by death, of a prisoner
- ‘He was sentenced to death but was granted a last-minute reprieve.’
on the fence
not able to decide something
munitions
military weapons such as guns and bombs
end-all
the ultimate purpose, object, or conclusion
- ‘Money is the be-all and end-all of his existence.’
mazel tov
(among Jewish people) congratulations; good luck
a schmuck
a stupid or silly person
to glom onto sth/sb
to become very interested in something such as a new idea or fashion or in someone
to extort
to get something by force or threats, or with difficulty
- ‘He had been extorting money from the old lady for years.’
hairy
frightening or dangerous, especially in a way that is exciting
a cot
a small bed for a baby or young child with high bars around the sides so that the child cannot fall out
a bib
a cover made of cloth or plastic that is worn by young children when eating to protect their clothes
to strew
to spread things in an untidy way over a surface
- ‘Her clothes lay strewn on the floor.’
to hash out something
to talk about something with someone else in order to reach agreement about it
to beat someone to something
to do something before someone else
- ‘I wanted to call with the news, but Steve beat me to it.’
to botch
to spoil something by doing it badly
- ‘We botched (up) our first attempt at wallpapering the bathroom.’
a leap of faith
an act of believing in or attempting something whose existence or outcome cannot be proved or known
jake
in good standing, or at the least without conflict
- ‘Now that you’ve paid up, we’re jake.’
to manscape
(of a man) to remove (unwanted body hair other than scalp hair) by waxing, shaving, etc.
fat chance
used to say that you certainly do not think that something is likely to happen
a hunchback
a person who has a back with a large, round lump on it, either because of illness or old age
a trollop
a woman who has had a lot of sexual relationships without any emotional involvement
a frock
a dress
lo and behold
used to present a new scene, situation, or turn of event
a hag
an ugly old woman
lecherous
(especially of men or a look) showing a strong sexual interest in someone
mirthful
full of laughter, humour, or happiness
- ‘The ending of the film is melancholy rather than mirthful.’
buff
a person who knows a lot about and is very interested in a particular subject
