phone 14 Flashcards
rampant
(of something bad) getting worse quickly and in an uncontrolled way:
rampant corruption
Rampant inflation means that our wage increases soon become worth nothing.
He said that he had encountered rampant prejudice in his attempts to get a job.
Disease is rampant in the overcrowded city.
recession
a period when the economy of a country is not successful and conditions for business are bad:
The country is sliding into the depths of (a) recession.
tumbledown
(of a building) in a very bad condition, especially in a state of decay:
a tumbledown cottage
to fall quickly and without control:
I lost my footing and tumbled down the stairs.
At any moment the whole building could tumble down.
He lost his balance and tumbled over.
outset
C2
the beginning:
I told him at/from the outset I wasn’t interested.
coast
to move down a hill or slope without making any effort :
They bought a sled for coasting down the snowy slopes.
He watched the racers coasting down a hill as a boy in the 1960s.
to progress or succeed without any effort or difficulty:
While I struggled, my sister coasted through school with top grades.
peel
to remove the skin of fruit and vegetables:
Peel, core, and chop the apples.
When vehicles, people, or animals peel away/off, they separate from the group or structure they were part of and move away in a different direction:
One motorbike peeled away from the formation and circled round behind the rest.
humbling
causing someone to understand that they are not as important or special as they thought:
humbling experience It’s a humbling experience to see people being so positive about life when they have so little.
I find his heroism humbling.
setback
C1
something that happens that delays or prevents a process from developing:
Sally had been recovering well from her operation, but yesterday she experienced/suffered a setback.
There has been a slight/temporary setback in our plans.
subside
If a condition subsides, it becomes less strong or extreme:
The police are hoping that the violence will soon subside.
As the pain in my foot subsided, I was able to walk the short distance to the car.
bicker
to argue about things that are not important:
Will you two stop bickering!
They’re always bickering with each other about/over their personal problems.
ensue
to happen after something else, especially as a result of it:
The police officer said that he had placed the man under arrest and that a scuffle had ensued.
Chaos ensued when 60 charter schools run by one company were all suddenly closed.
After his outburst, a long silence ensued.
scuffle
a short and sudden fight, especially one involving a small number of people:
Two police officers were injured in scuffles with demonstrators at Sunday’s protest
bail
an amount of money that a person who has been accused of a crime pays to a law court so that they can be released until their trial. The payment is a way of making certain that the person will return to court for trial:
He was released/remanded on bail (of $100,000).
Because of a previous conviction, the judge refused to grant bail (= allow the accused person to be released).
Her parents have agreed to put up/stand (US also post) (= pay) bail for her.
to remove water from a boat using a container:
The boat’s sinking! Start bailing quickly!
If someone accused of a crime is bailed, they are released until their trial after paying bail to the court:
She was yesterday bailed for three weeks on drink-driving offences.
[ + to infinitive ] He was bailed to appear at the Magistrates’ Court next month.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
bail verb (STOP)
[ I ] informal
to stop doing something or leave a place before something is finished:
It was so boring I bailed early.
ante up
to give money, often unwillingly:
At least 200 people have been persuaded to ante up big money for the charity event.
vendor
someone who is selling something:
For the past few months she’s been working as a street vendor, selling fruit and vegetables.
The vendor of the house wants to exchange contracts this week.
a hot dog vendor
a street vendor
letdown
a disappointment:
After all I’d heard about the movie, it turned out to be a bit of a letdown.
objective
something that you plan to do or achieve:
Her main/prime objective now is simply to stay in power.
Can the sales team achieve/meet its financial objectives?
based on real facts and not influenced by personal beliefs or feelings:
an objective and impartial report
I can’t really be objective when I’m judging my daughter’s work.
ding
to damage the surface of something slightly by hitting it:
She was worried she might ding the car beside her when she parked.
ding verb (CRITICIZE)
[ T ] US informal
to speak angrily to or criticize someone:
Auditors dinged the agency for some of its practices.
gear up
to prepare for something that you have to do, or to prepare someone else for something:
gear (someone/something) up for something Politicians are already gearing up for the election.
[ + to infinitive ] I’m gearing myself up to ask him to give me my money back.
I’m trying to gear myself up for tomorrow’s exam.
undercapitalized
if a business is undercapitalized, it has less money than it needs in order to work effectively or to grow:
As with all small businesses, we are undercapitalized.
Many business travelers have long endured poor service, often from undercapitalized state carriers.
sissy
a boy who other boys dislike and laugh at because they think he is weak or interested in activities girls usually like, or a person who is weak and cowardly (= not brave):
Kevin is such a sissy.
[ as form of address ] Can’t you climb that tree, you big sissy?
herein
in this:
herein lies The people have no faith in their government, and herein lies the root of the problem.
propitious
likely to result in success, or showing signs of success:
With the economy in recession, it was not a propitious time to start a company.
assorted
consisting of various types mixed together:
a case of assorted wines
thrall
If you are in thrall to someone or something, or in the thrall of someone or something, he, she, or it has a lot of power to control you:
Her love for him was like a madness, and she was completely in its thrall.
thwart
to stop something from happening or someone from doing something:
Our holiday plans were thwarted by the airline pilots’ strike
haul
to pull something heavy slowly and with difficulty:
They hauled the boat out of the water.
haul yourself up She hauled herself up into the tree.
to take something or someone somewhere, especially by force:
haul something away FBI agents hauled away boxes of records.
haul someone off The police hauled him off to jail in front of his whole family.
to transport something, usually by road:
The roomy wagon has plenty of space for hauling the sports equipment she uses as coach of her son’s soccer team.
The product loses its economic advantage when it must be hauled farther than 80 miles.]
C2
a usually large amount of something that has been stolen or is illegal:
a haul of arms/drugs
all the things someone buys on an occasion when they go shopping:
shopping haul Check out the Ucinek family shopping haul.
haul video I saw those gloves in a haul video.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
haul noun [C] (FISH)
the amount of fish caught:
Fishermen have been complaining of poor hauls all year.\\
a journey, often a difficult one:
a long/short haul From there it was a long haul/only a short haul back to our camp.
weary
C2
very tired, especially after working hard for a long time:
I think he’s a little weary after his long journey.
Here, sit down and rest your weary legs.
weary of
C2
bored with something because you have experienced too much of it:
grow weary of I’ve been going out with the same people to the same places for years and I’ve just grown weary of it.
palpable
so obvious that it can easily be seen or known, or (of a feeling) so strong that it seems as if it can be touched or physically felt:
a palpable effect
Her joy was palpable.
spurious
false and not what it appears to be, or (of reasons and judgments) based on something that has not been correctly understood and therefore false:
Some of the arguments in favour of shutting the factory are questionable and others downright spurious.
based on false reasoning or information that is not true, and therefore not to be trusted:
They made spurious claims of personal injury.
exuberant
(especially of people and their behaviour) very energetic:
Young and exuberant, he symbolizes Italy’s new vitality.
incongruous
unusual or different from what is around or from what is generally happening:
The new computer looked incongruous in the dark book-filled library.
seem incongruous It seems incongruous to have a woman as the editor of a men’s magazine.
municipal
of or belonging to a town or city:
municipal authorities
municipal tennis courts
municipal elections
satiate
to completely satisfy yourself or a need, especially with food or pleasure, so that you could not have any more:
He drank greedily until his thirst was satiated.
behold
to see or look at someone or something:
The new bridge is an incredible sight to behold.
convene
to bring together a group of people for a meeting, or to meet for a meeting:
The prime minister convened (a meeting of) his cabinet to discuss the matter.
The council will be convening on the morning of the 25th.
egregious
extremely bad in a way that is very noticeable:
egregious error It was an egregious error for a statesman to show such ignorance.
facetious
not serious about a serious subject, in an attempt to be funny or to appear clever :
facetious remarks
He’s just being facetious.
blast
to explode or destroy something or someone with explosives, or to break through or hit something with a similar, very strong force:
An explosion blasted through the wall.
They blasted tunnels into the side of the mountain.
He saw what he thought was a grizzly bear and blasted it with his rifle.
to make a very loud and unpleasant noise, or to make something do this:
We could hear music blasting out from his car.
Loudspeakers blasted patriotic music.
He blasted his car horn aggressively.
to criticize someone or something severely:
The administration was blasted for failing to create jobs.
Recently she blasted what she described as a culture of exploitation in the fashion industry.
cliché
a phrase, remark, or opinion that has very often been said or expressed before and is therefore not original and not interesting:
My wedding day - and I know it’s a cliché - was just the happiest day of my life.
Occasionally his writing slips into cliché.
retrieve
to find and bring back something:
We taught our dog to retrieve a ball.
Computers are used to store and retrieve information efficiently.
regress
to return to a previous and less advanced or worse state, condition, or way of behaving:
She suffered brain damage from the car accident and regressed to the mental age of a five-year-old.
He says the city has regressed in terms of participation in recycling.
(of an illness or its symptoms (= effects)) to become less severe:
Following removal of the tumour, all the symptoms regressed.
The disease may regress if the patient stops smoking.
tumour
Add to word list
a mass of diseased cells that might become a lump or cause illness:
They found a malignant tumour in her breast.
a benign tumour
a brain tumour
adjourn
to have a pause or rest during a formal meeting or trial:
The meeting was adjourned until Tuesday.
Shall we adjourn for lunch?
to finish doing something and go somewhere, usually for a drink and some food:
Shall we adjourn to the sitting room for coffee?
plummet
to fall very quickly and suddenly:
House prices have plummeted in recent months.
Several large rocks were sent plummeting down the mountain.
She plummeted to the ground.
vertigo
a feeling of spinning around and being unable to balance, often caused by looking down from a height:
She can’t stand heights and has always suffered from vertigo.
regurgitate
to bring back swallowed food into the mouth: (vomit)
Owls regurgitate partly digested food to feed their young.
[ T ] disapproving
If you regurgitate facts, you just repeat what you have heard without thinking about it:
Many students simply regurgitate what they hear in lectures.
People are just regurgitating what they see on TV.
fascism
a political system based on a very powerful leader, state control, and being extremely proud of country and race, and in which political opposition is not allowed
Examples
This year’s history syllabus covers the rise of Fascism in Europe.
Fascism develops from right-wing extremism, supported traditionally by the middle classes, in contrast to Communism.
denounce
to criticize something or someone strongly and publicly:
The government’s economic policy has been denounced on all sides.
We must denounce injustice and oppression.
to accuse someone publicly of being something that is bad or wrong:
His former colleagues have denounced him as a spy.
agonize
to spend a lot of time trying to make a decision:
He agonized for several days before agreeing to move to Oklahoma.
