Deck 3 Flashcards
noun, verb
pique
/pik/
(noun)
annoyed or bitter feelings that you have, usually because your pride has been hurt
- When he realized no one was listening to him, he left in a fit of pique.
- She’d lied about it out of pique.
(verb)
to make someone annoyed or upset
synonym wound
- The incident piqued his pride.
pique somebody’s interest, curiosity, etc.
to make someone very interested in something
verb
engross
/ɪnˈɡroʊs/
if something engrosses you, it is so interesting that you give it all your attention and time
- As the business grew, it totally engrossed him.
adjective (informal)
stuck-up
(disapproving)
thinking that you are more important than other people and behaving in an unfriendly way toward them
synonym snobbish
- She was quite snobbish about pop culture.
- He fell into the snobbish habit of connecting high social status with moral superiority.
- Snobbish universities are rejecting some of the country’s brightest students.
noun, verb
chip
/tʃɪp/
(noun)
1.
- salt and vinegar flavor potato chips
2.
= microchip
- chip technology
3. the place from which a small piece of wood, glass, etc. has broken from an object
- This mug has a chip in it.
4. a small piece of wood, glass, etc. that has broken off an object
- chips of wood
- chocolate chip cookies (= cookies containing small pieces of chocolate)
5. a small flat piece of plastic used to represent a particular amount of money in some types of gambling (figurative)
- The release of prisoners was used as a bargaining chip.
(verb)
1. to damage something by breaking a small piece off it; to become damaged in this way
- a badly chipped saucer
- She chipped one of her front teeth.
- These plates chip easily.
2. to cut or break small pieces off something with a tool
- Chip away the damaged area.
- The fossils had been chipped out of the rock.
- It took a long time to chip a hole in the wall.
- It needs skill to chip a block of stone into a recognizable shape.
chip off (phrasal verb)
to damage something by breaking a small piece off it; to be damaged in this way
- He chipped off a piece of his tooth.
- The paint had chipped off.
verb
evict
/ɪˈvɪkt/
to force someone to leave a house or land, especially when you have the legal right to do so
- A number of tenants have been evicted for not paying the rent.
- The council has tried to get them evicted.
noun
retainer
/rɪˈteɪnər/
- a sum of money that is paid to someone to make sure they will be available to do work when they are needed
- The agency will pay you a monthly retainer. - a device that keeps a person’s teeth straight after they have had treatment with braces
- (old-fashioned) a servant, especially one who has been with a family for a long time
verb
quote
/kwoʊt/
- to repeat the exact words that another person has said or written
- He quoted a passage from the minister’s speech.
- to quote Shakespeare
- Quote this reference number in all correspondence.
- The figures quoted in this article refer only to the United States.
- The President was quoted in the press as saying that he disagreed with the decision.
- “It will all be gone tomorrow.” “Can I quote you on that?”
- Don’t quote me on this (= this is not an official statement), but I think he is going to resign.
- She said, and I quote, “Life is meaningless without love.”
- “New York is the biggest collection of villages in the world ,” he quoted. - to mention an example of something to support what you are saying
- Can you quote me an instance of when this happened? - to tell a customer how much money you will charge them for a job, service, or product. to give a market price for shares, gold, foreign money, or a business company’s shares on a stock exchange
- They quoted us $300 for installing a shower unit.
- Yesterday the euro was quoted at $1.42775, unchanged from Monday.
- Several cosmetic companies are quoted on the New York Stock Exchange.
quote (… unquote) (informal)
used to show the beginning (and end) of a word, phrase, etc. that has been said or written by someone else
- It was quote, “the hardest decision of my life,” unquote, and one that he lived to regret.
adjective
rueful
/ˈrufl/
feeling or showing that you are sad or sorry
- a rueful smile
ruefully /ˈrufəli/ adverb
- He laughed ruefully.
- “So this is goodbye,” she said ruefully.
- He ruefully admitted that he envied her.
adjective
proactive
/proʊˈæktɪv/
(of a person or policy) controlling a situation by making things happen rather than waiting for things to happen and then reacting to them
- a proactive approach
- Managers must be proactive in identifying and preventing potential problems.
compare reactive
phrasal verb
top off
top something off (with something)
to complete something successfully by doing or adding one final thing
- The outfit was topped off with a large black hat.
top something off/up
to fill a container that already has some liquid in it with more liquid
- Top the car off with gas before you set off.
- Top the gas off before you set off.
- Can I top your glass off (= give you some more to drink)?
- Fill the glass half full with beer and top it off with lemonade.
noun
vantage point
/ˈvæntɪdʒ ˌpɔɪnt/
(formal vantage)
a position from which you watch something; a point in time or a situation from which you consider something, especially the past
- The café was a good vantage point for watching the world go by.
- From the vantage point of the present, the war seems to have achieved nothing.
adjective (formal)
searing
/ˈsɪrɪŋ/
- so strong that it seems to burn you
- the searing heat of a tropical summer
- searing pain - (of words or speech) powerful and critical
- a searing attack on the government
verb (literary)
forsake
/fərˈseɪk/
forsake-forsook-forsaken
- to leave someone or something, especially when you have a responsibility to stay
synonym abandon
- He had made it clear to his wife that he would never forsake her. - to stop doing something, or leave something, especially something that you enjoy
synonym renounce
- She forsook the glamor of the city and went to live in the wilds of Montana.
verb
writhe
/raɪð/
to twist or move your body without stopping, often because you are in great pain
- She was writhing around on the floor in agony.
- The snake writhed and hissed.
- (figurative) He was writhing (= suffering a lot) with embarrassment.
verb
flail
/fleɪl/
- to move around without control; to move your arms and legs around without control
- The boys flailed around on the floor.
- He was running along, his arms flailing wildly. - to hit someone or something very hard, especially with a stick
adjective
placid
/ˈplæsɪd/
- (of a person or an animal) not easily excited or irritated
- a placid baby/horse
opposite high-spirited - calm and peaceful, with very little movement
synonym tranquil
- the placid waters of the lake
placidity /pləˈsɪdət̮i/ (noun)
placidly /ˈplæsɪdli/ (adverb)
- “Of course,” said Helen placidly.
- The river sparkled placidly in the sun.
