phone 5

Question 1

conceive

Answer 1

C2 [ I or T ] to imagine something:

I think my uncle still conceives of me as a four-year-old.

He couldn’t conceive of a time when he would have no job.

[ + question word ] I can’t conceive (= it is too shocking to imagine) how anyone could behave so cruelly.

[ + that ] I find it hard to conceive (= it is too shocking to imagine) that people are still treated so badly.

Question 2

provoke

Answer 2

to cause a reaction, especially a negative one:

The prospect of increased prices has already provoked an outcry.

Test results provoked worries that the reactor could overheat.

Question 3

finery

Answer 3

beautiful clothing and jewellery worn on a special occasion:

There we all were in our finery, waiting for the bride and groom to arrive.

Question 4

pomp

Answer 4

impressive and colourful ceremonies, especially traditional ceremonies on public occasions:

The prime minister was received with all the traditional pomp and ceremony that is laid on for visiting heads of government.

Despite all the pomp of his office/position, he has only limited powers.

2) informal at a time when someone was most successful or popular:
Today his game was reminiscent of that of Pele in his pomp.

Question 5

mischievous

Answer 5

behaving in a way, or describing behaviour,
that is slightly bad but is not intended to cause serious harm or damage:

She has a mischievous sense of humour.

a book about the mischievous antics of his ten-year-old daughter

Question 6

dignitary

Answer 6

a person who has an important position in a society:

Several foreign dignitaries attended the ceremony.

Question 7

outlay

Answer 7

an amount of money spent for a particular purpose, especially as a first investment in something:

For an initial outlay of $2,000 to buy the equipment, you can earn up to $500 a month if the product sells well.

Few are able to afford the cash outlay.

Question 8

circumspect

Answer 8

careful not to take risks:

Officials were circumspect about saying what the talks had achieved

Question 9

propaganda

Answer 9

information, ideas, opinions, or images, often only giving one part of an argument, that are broadcast, published, or in some other way spread with the intention of influencing people’s opinions:

political/wartime propaganda

At school we were fed communist/right-wing propaganda.

One official dismissed the ceasefire as a mere propaganda exercise.

Question 10

appendix

Answer 10

WRITING a separate part at the end of a book or report that gives additional information:

The appendix lists all the Olympic champions.

an appendix to sth Financial projections are included in an appendix to the business plan.

For a list of committee members’ names and contact details, see appendix B.

Question 11

implore

Answer 11

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.

Question 12

rational

Answer 12

C1 based on clear thought and reason:

There must be some rational explanation for what happened.

a rational act/course of action
a rational argument/decision

He was too upset to be rational.

Question 13

abhorrent

Answer 13

morally very bad:

an abhorrent crime
Racism of any kind is abhorrent to me.

Question 14

repulsive

Answer 14

extremely unpleasant or unacceptable:

What a repulsive old man!

I think rats and snakes are repulsive.

Question 15

eminent

Answer 15

famous, respected, or important:

an eminent historian

Question 16

dynamic

Answer 16

B2 having a lot of ideas and enthusiasm:

She’s young and dynamic and will be a great addition to the team.

We need a dynamic expansion of trade with other countries.

2) C2 continuously changing or developing:

Business innovation is a dynamic process.

The situation is dynamic and may change at any time.

Question 17

acclaim

Answer 17

public approval and praise:

critical acclaim Despite the critical acclaim, the novel did not sell well.

to great acclaim Her first novel was published to great acclaim in 2018.

Hamlet was played by Ion Caramitrou to rapturous acclaim.

Question 18

apprehend

Answer 18

to catch and arrest someone who has not obeyed the law:

The police have finally apprehended the killer.

Question 19

visceral

Answer 19

based on deep feeling and emotional reactions rather than on reason or thought:

visceral hatred/excitement

His approach to acting is visceral rather than intellectual.

Question 20

pan out

Answer 20

to develop in a particular way or in a successful way:

We’ll have to see how things pan out.

Their attempt to start a new business didn’t pan out.

Question 21

misconstrue

Answer 21

to form a false understanding of the meaning or intention of something that someone does or says:

She said Harris had misconstrued her comments.

Their caution was misconstrued as cowardice.

Question 22

accentuate

Answer 22

to emphasize a particular feature of something or to make something more noticeable:

Her dress was tightly belted, accentuating the slimness of her waist.

The new policy only serves to accentuate the inadequacy of help for the homeless.

Question 23

disperse

Answer 23

to spread across or move away over a large area, or to make something do this:

When the rain came down the crowds started to disperse.

Police dispersed the crowd that had gathered.

Question 24

augment

Answer 24

to increase the size or value of something by adding something to it:

He would have to find work to augment his income.

Question 25

eclipse

Answer 25

a situation in which something becomes less important:

The eclipse of the ruling political party was inevitable.

His remarkable contribution to literature has been too long in eclipse.

Question 26

amorphous

Answer 26

(of a physical thing) having no fixed form or shape:

The amorphous substance that results from the breakdown of sugar is known as caramel.

an amorphous mass of jelly

(of an idea, a plan, etc.) having no clear structure or details:

How can historians deal with such amorphous human qualities as fear and grief?

It wasn’t clear what they expected from me other than the amorphous “change”.

Question 27

monetize

Answer 27

to change something into money, or to express something in terms of money or a currency:

Japan is monetizing several trillion dollars of government debt.

to make money from something:

The problem was how to monetize this kind of social networking site.

Question 28

supplant

Answer 28

to replace:
Printed books will soon be supplanted by e-books.

Small children can often feel supplanted in their parents’ affections (= that their parents no longer like them as much) when a new brother or sister is born.

Question 29

boil something down

Answer 29

to reduce information, usually so that it contains only its most important parts:

He had boiled down a lengthy report to just a few paragraphs.

Question 30

engender

Answer 30

to make people have a particular feeling or make a situation start to exist:

Her latest book has engendered a lot of controversy.

The vice-president’s speech did not engender confidence in his judgment.

Question 31

stipulate

Answer 31

to say exactly how something must be or must be done:

She agreed to buy the car, but stipulated racing tyres and a turbo-powered engine.

[ + that ] The law stipulates that new cars must have seat belts for the driver and every passenger.

[ + question word ] We have signed a contract which stipulates when the project must be completed.

Question 32

atonement

Answer 32

something that you do to show that you are sorry for something bad that you did:

He said that young hooligans should do community service as atonement for their crimes.

Question 33

abhor, abominate

Answer 33

to hate a way of behaving or thinking, often because you think it is not moral:
I abhor all forms of racism.

He abominates cruelty of all kinds.

Question 34

rationalize

Answer 34

to try to find reasons to explain your behaviour, decisions, etc.:

She rationalized the cost by saying that an expensive carpet would last longer than a cheaper one.

Question 35

remorse

Answer 35

a feeling of sadness and being sorry for something you have done:

He felt no remorse for the murders he had committed.

After the argument, she was filled with remorse.

Question 36

recital

Answer 36

a performance of music or poetry, usually given by one person or a small group of people:

I went to a violin recital today.

2) a detailed description of something or a list of things:
She gave us a long, boring recital of all her troubles.

He is giving a recital of Bach’s sonatas.

Question 37

poke

Answer 37

to push a finger or other pointed object quickly into someone or something:

You’ll poke someone in the eye with that umbrella if you’re not careful!

Two kids were poking a stick into the drain.

2) to (cause something to) appear or stretch out from behind or through something else:
Cathy poked her head round the door to say hello.
The first green shoots are poking up through the soil.

Question 38

deploy

Answer 38

to use something or someone, especially in an effective way:

The company is reconsidering the way in which it deploys its resources/staff.

My job doesn’t really allow me fully to deploy my skills/talents.

2) to put something into use:
[ I ] When airbags deploy, they save lives.
[ T ] Automobiles deploy air bags in crashes of 8 to 12 miles per hour.

Question 39

inlay

Answer 39

a decorative pattern put into the surface of an object:

The walls of the palace are marble with silver inlay.

Question 40

arbitrate

Answer 40

to make a judgment in an argument, usually because asked to do so by those involved:

I’ve been asked to arbitrate between the opposing sides.

An outside adviser has been brought in to arbitrate the dispute between the management and the union.

Question 41

oversight

Answer 41

a mistake made because of a failure to notice something:

They claimed it was simply (an) oversight.

responsibility for a job or activity and for making sure it is being done correctly:
Who has oversight of genetic testing?

Because of a bank oversight, the money had not been credited to my account.

Question 42

negate

Answer 42

to cause something to have no effect:

The increase in our profits has been negated by the rising costs of running the business.

2) to show something to be wrong or to be the opposite of what was thought, or to cause something to have no effect:

The increase in sales was negated by the rising cost of materials.

Question 43

precognitive

Answer 43

showing or relating to knowledge of a future event, especially when this comes from a direct message to the mind, such as in a dream, rather than by reason:

She claims she has precognitive abilities and can foresee events.

He seemed to have,
through his perceptive and precognitive powers, received the story out of thin air.

Question 44

haphazard

Answer 44

not having an obvious order or plan:

He tackled the problem in a typically haphazard manner.

2) lacking order or purpose; not planned:

Haphazard record-keeping made it difficult for the agency to keep track of its clients.

Question 45

assertive

Answer 45

Someone who is assertive behaves confidently and is not frightened to say what they want or believe:

If you really want the promotion, you’ll have to be more assertive.

Question 46

authentic

Answer 46

C1 If something is authentic, it is real, true, or what people say it is:

an authentic 1920s dress
authentic Italian food

He was there and saw what happened, so his is the only authentic account.

Question 47

extol

Answer 47

to praise something or someone very much:

His book extolling the benefits of vegetarianism sold thousands of copies.

She is forever extolling the virtues of her children.

Question 48

virtue

Answer 48

C2 a good moral quality in a person, or the general quality of being morally good:

Patience is a virtue.

Question 49

enlighten

Answer 49

to provide someone with information and understanding, or to explain the true facts about something to someone:

Should the function of children’s television be to entertain or to enlighten?

I don’t understand this. Could you enlighten me?

Question 50

bishop

Answer 50

a priest of high rank who is in charge of the priests of lower rank in a particular area:

the Bishop of Durham
Bishop Desmond Tutu

Question 51

perplexity

Answer 51

a state of confusion or a complicated and difficult situation or thing:

She stared at the instruction booklet in complete perplexity.

the perplexities of life

Question 52

indubitable

Answer 52

that cannot be doubted:
an indubitable fact

Question 53

mint

Answer 53

informal an extremely large amount of money:

If his books sell worldwide, he’ll make a mint.

2) to produce something new, especially to invent a new phrase or word:

a freshly minted slogan/phrase
newly minted college graduates

in mint condition

perfect, as if new:
I bought a two-year-old car, in mint condition, with less than 20,000 miles.

3) Mint stamps and coins, etc. have not been used:

A collector would pay $500 for a mint copy.