Deck 28 Flashcards
to balk
to be unwilling to do something or to allow something to happen; to omit, intentionally neglect
- ‘I balked at the prospect of spending four hours on a train with him.’
rationale [rash-uh-nal]
the reasons or intentions that cause a particular set of beliefs or actions
- ‘I don’t understand the rationale for these restrictions.’
a voivodeship
one of the provinces of Poland
to glower
to look very angry, annoyed, or threatening
- ‘There’s no point glowering at me like that - you know the rules.’
to besmirch
to say bad things about someone to influence other people’s opinion of them
to whinge
to complain, especially about something that does not seem important
- ‘She’s always whingeing (on) about something.’
an aftermath
the period that follows (consequence) an unpleasant event or accident, and the effects that it causes
- ‘Many more people died in the aftermath of the explosion.’
FWIW
for what it’s worth: used, for example in emails, when you are giving someone information and you do not know if it is useful or not
groggy
faint or weak as from exhaustion, blows, or drunkenness
well read
Someone who is well read has learned a lot of information on different subjects by reading.
by and by
after a short period
- ‘You’ll get used to it by and by.’
lock, stock, and barrel
including all or every part of something
- ‘We had to move our things lock, stock, and barrel to the other side of the country.’
a kiki
A party including good music and good friends
- ‘Let’s have a kiki!’
feckless
weak in character and lacking determination
quirky
unusual in an attractive and interesting way:
plaid [U]
a pattern of squares and lines on cloth, or cloth with this pattern
stick-in-the-mud
someone who is old-fashioned and too serious and avoids enjoyable activities
ennui [U] [ahn-wee]
a feeling of being bored and mentally tired caused by having nothing interesting or exciting to do
- ‘The whole country seems to be affected by the ennui of winter.’
no biggie
shortened from the phrase “no big deal”; not something to worry about
shrimpy
(used especially of persons) of inferior size
gilded
- covered with a thin layer of gold or a substance that looks like gold
- rich or of a higher social class
in the nick of time
at the last possible moment
- ‘We got there just in the nick of time.’
a hoarder
a person or organization that collects a lot of money or objects, sometimes secretly
a treasure trove of sth
a place that is full of something good
- ‘a treasure trove of information’
a shot in the dark
an attempt to guess something when you have no information or knowledge about the subject and therefore cannot possibly know what the answer is
derision
the situation in which someone or something is laughed at and considered stupid or of no value
- ‘They treated his suggestion with derision.’
- derisively
to be au fait with sth [oh fe]
to be familiar with or know about something
explicable
able to be explained
to revoke
to officially cancel (a decree, decision, or promise)
to kowtow
to show too much respect to someone in authority, always doing what you are told and changing what you do in order to please them
vorpal
deadly
efficacy
the ability, especially of a medicine or a method of achieving something, to produce the intended result
- ‘They recently ran a series of tests to measure the efficacy of the drug.’
a fraidy
timid, easily frightened, cowardly
to furlough
to allow or force someone to be absent temporarily from work
a quiff
a piece of hair brushed upwards and backwards from a man’s forehead
comic relief [U]
an amusing scene, incident, or speech introduced into serious or tragic elements, as in a play, in order to provide temporary relief from tension, or to intensify the dramatic action.
novelty
something that has not been experienced before and so is interesting
- ‘Tourists are still a novelty on this remote island.’
inscrutable
impossible to understand or interpret
diminutive
A diminutive person is short and small. A diminutive word is a “cute” version of a word or name: for example, “duckling” is a diminutive of “duck” and Billy is a diminutive form of the name William.
to feign [feyn]
to pretend to have a particular feeling, problem, etc. :
- ‘You know how everyone feigns surprise when you tell them how old you are.’
