QS leap Flashcards
strive
VERB
If you strive to do something or strive for something, you make a great effort to do it or get it.
He strives hard to keep himself very fit. [VERB to-infinitive]
She strove to read the name on the stone pillar. [VERB to-infinitive]
The region must now strive for economic development as well as peace. [VERB + for]
[Also VERB]
Synonyms: try, labour, struggle, fight More Synonyms of strive
striving
Word forms: plural strivings
UNCOUNTABLE NOUN [also NOUN in plural]
…a politician consumed by his own passionate striving for leadership
entitle
- VERB
If you are entitled to something, you have the right to have it or do it.
If the warranty is limited, the terms may entitle you to a replacement or refund. [VERB noun + to]
They are entitled to first class travel. [VERB noun to noun]
There are 23 Clubs throughout the U.S., and your membership entitles you to enjoy all of them. [VERB noun to-infinitive] - VERB [usually passive]
If the title of something such as a book, film, or painting is, for example, ‘Sunrise’, you can say that it is entitled ‘Sunrise’.
Chomsky’s review is entitled ‘Psychology and Ideology’.
…a performance entitled ‘United States’.
protean
ADJECTIVE [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
If you describe someone or something as protean, you mean that they have the ability to continually change their nature, appearance, or behaviour.
[formal]
He is a protean stylist who can move from blues to ballads and grand symphony.
Synonyms: changeable, variable, volatile, versatile
exemplary
- ADJECTIVE [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
If you describe someone or something as exemplary, you think they are extremely good.
Underpinning this success has been an exemplary record of innovation. - ADJECTIVE [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
An exemplary punishment is unusually harsh and is intended to stop other people from committing similar crimes.
He demanded exemplary sentences for those behind the violence.
Synonyms: warning, harsh, cautionary, admonitory
protracted
ADJECTIVE
Something, usually something unpleasant, that is protracted lasts a long time, especially longer than usual or longer than you hoped.
[formal]
After protracted negotiations, Ogden got the deal he wanted.
…a protracted civil war.
The struggle would be bitter and protracted.
Synonyms: extended, long, prolonged, lengthy
fallacy
VARIABLE NOUN [oft NOUN that]
A fallacy is an idea which many people believe to be true, but which is in fact false because it is based on incorrect information or reasoning.
It’s a fallacy that the affluent give relatively more to charity than the less prosperous.
It exposes the fallacy of short-term industrial gain at long-term environmental expense.
[Also + of]
Synonyms: error, mistake, illusion, flaw
resurrected
VERB
If you resurrect something, you cause it to exist again after it had disappeared or ended.
Attempts to resurrect the ceasefire have already failed once. [VERB noun]
Sam Torrance is the man I have to thank for resurrecting my career. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: revive, renew, bring back, kick-start [informal] More Synonyms of resurrect
resurrection (rezərekʃən ) UNCOUNTABLE NOUN
This is a resurrection of an old story from the mid-70s. [+ of]
Synonyms: raising or rising from the dead, return from the dead, restoration to life More Synonyms of resurrect
Synonyms: revival, restoration, renewal, resurgence
decimated
- VERB
To decimate something such as a group of people or animals means to destroy a very large number of them.
The pollution could decimate the river’s thriving population of kingfishers. [VERB noun]
British forces in the Caribbean were being decimated by disease. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: destroy, devastate, wipe out, ravage More Synonyms of decimate
decimation (desɪmeɪʃən ) UNCOUNTABLE NOUN [usually NOUN of noun]
…the decimation of the great rain forests. - VERB
To decimate a system or organization means to reduce its size and effectiveness greatly.
…a recession which decimated the nation’s manufacturing industry. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: reduce, diminish, decrease, weaken More Synonyms of decimate
decimation UNCOUNTABLE NOUN [usually NOUN of noun]
Government policies have resulted in a decimation of essential services used by the poor.
falter
- VERB
If something falters, it loses power or strength in an uneven way, or no longer makes much progress.
Normal life is at a standstill, and the economy is faltering. [VERB]
The car was out of sight around a bend in moments, but the engine did not falter or slow down. [VERB]
The faltering economy has affected the new party’s popularity. [VERB-ing] - VERB
If you falter, you lose your confidence and stop doing something or start making mistakes.
I have not faltered in my quest for a new future. [VERB]
As he neared the house his steps faltered. [VERB]
Synonyms: hesitate, delay, waver, vacillate More Synonyms of falter - VERB
If your voice falters when you are speaking, you hesitate or pause, because you are unsure about what you are saying or are upset.
Her voice faltered and she had to stop a moment to control it. [VERB]
Synonyms: stutter, pause, stumble, hesitate
ferocity
UNCOUNTABLE NOUN
The ferocity of something is its fierce or violent nature.
The armed forces seem to have been taken by surprise by the ferocity of the attack.
Synonyms: savagery, violence, cruelty, brutality
canicular
ADJECTIVE
of or relating to the star Sirius or its rising
unfailingly
ADJECTIVE [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
If you describe someone’s good qualities or behaviour as unfailing, you mean that they never change.
He had the unfailing care and support of Erica, his wife.
…a man of unfailing courtesy and kindness.
He continued to appear in the office with unfailing regularity thereafter.
Synonyms: reliable, constant, dependable, sure More Synonyms of unfailing
unfailingly ADVERB [usually ADVERB adjective, oft ADVERB with verb]
He was unfailingly polite to customers.
Foreigners unfailingly fall in love with the place.
onerous
ADJECTIVE
If you describe a task as onerous, you dislike having to do it because you find it difficult or unpleasant.
[formal]
…parents who have had the onerous task of bringing up a very difficult child.
Synonyms: trying, hard, taxing, demanding
fend
VERB
If you have to fend for yourself, you have to look after yourself without relying on help from anyone else.
The woman and her young baby had been thrown out and left to fend for themselves.
seclusion
UNCOUNTABLE NOUN
If you are living in seclusion, you are in a quiet place away from other people.
She lived in seclusion with her husband on their farm in Panama.
They love the seclusion of their garden. [+ of]
Synonyms: privacy, isolation, solitude, hiding
