Session #05 Flashcards
Creep up
(v) : to gradually increase in amount, price, etc.
e. g. house prices are creeping up again.
Rhetoric
(n) : 1. (formal) speech or writing that is intended to influence people, but that is not completely honest or sincere
2. (formal) the skill of using language in speech or writing in a special way that influences or entertains people
e.g. the rhetoric of political slogans
Dole
(n): (informal) money paid by the state to unemployed people
e. g. 1. He’s been on the dole (= without a job)
2. We could all be in the dole queue on Monday (= have lost our jobs)
Intensive
(adj) : 1. involving a lot of work or activity done in a short time
2. extremely thorough; done with a lot of care
e. g. 1. an intensive language course
2. his disappearance has been the subject of intensive investigation
Despair
(v) : to stop having any hope that a situation will change or improve
e. g. Don’t despair! We’ll think of a way out of his body
Falter
(v) : to become weaker or less effective = waver
e. g. The economy shows no sign of faltering
Grapple
(v) : to try hard to find a solution to a problem
e. g. The new government has to yet grapple with the problem of air pollution
Allocate
(v) : to give sth officially to sb/sth for a particular purpose
e. g. A large sum has been allocated for buying new books for the library
Eligible
(adj) : a person who is eligible for sth or to do sth, is able to have or to do it because they have the right qualifications, are the right age, etc. != ineligible
e. g. Only those over 70 are eligible for the special payment
Worthwhile
(adj) : important, enjoyable, interesting, etc. worth spending time, money or afford on
e. g. The smile on her face made it all worthwhile
Perplexed
(adj) : confused and anxious because you are unable to understand sth
e. g. She looked perplexed
Undeterred
(adj): if sb is undeterred by sth, they do not allow it to stop them from doing sth
Piazza
(n): a public square, especially in an Italian town
Scanning
reading rapidly in order to find specific facts
Literature
(n): written works including novels, poetry and plays which are considered to have artistic value
Hemisphere
half of a sphere, usually the Earth or the brain
Stimulus
Something that encourages activity in people or things
Relief
(n): the feeling of happiness that you have when sth unpleasant stops or does not happen
e. g. 1. It was a relief to be able to talk to someone about it.
2. We all breathed a sigh of relief when he left.
Scheme
(n) : a plan or system for doing or organizing sth
e. g. a local scheme for recycling newspaper.
Tackle
(v) : 1. to make a determinded effort to deal with a diffucult problem or situation
2. to speak to sb about a problem or difficult situation = confront
e. g. 1. The government is determinded to tackle inflation.
2. I tackled him about the money he owed me.
Micromanage
control everything, down to the smallest things.
Bossy
you’re always telling the people what to do
Procrastinate
(v): (formal) to delay doing sth that you should do, usually
because you don’t want to do it — procrastination (n)
e.g. I know I’ve got to deal with the problem at some point - I’m just
procrastinating. — When it comes to housework, I tend to procrastinate.
Civil
(adj) : polite in formal way but possibly not friendly ≠ uncivil
e. g. She greeted him civilly but with no sign of affection.
Thesis
(n): a long piece of writing completed by a student as part of a
university degree, based on their own research.
Revise
(v): 1. to change your opinions or plans, for example because of sth you
have learned — 2. to change sth, such as a book or an estimate, in order to
correct or improve it — Revision (n)
e.g. I can see I will have to revise my opinions of his abilities now. — a revised
edition of the textbook.
All-nighter
(n): (informal) an event or activity that continues throughout the
night
e.g. he would do an all-nighter, the way he used to in school
Sprint
(v) : to run or swim a short distance very fast
e. g. I sprinted the last few metres.
Hypothesis
(n): an idea or explanation of sth that is based on a few known
facts but that has not yet been proved to be true or correct = theory
e.g. A hypothesis about the function of dreams.
Gratification
(n): (formal) the state of feeling pleasure when sth goes well for
you or when your desires are satisfied; sth that gives you pleasure =
satisfaction
e.g. A feed will usually provide instant gratification to a crying baby
Spiral
(n): a continuous harmful increase or decrease in sth, that gradually goes
faster and faster
e.g. The destructive spiral of violence in the inner cities.
Propagate
(v): (formal) to spread an idea, a belief or a piece of information
among many people
e.g. Television advertising propagates a false image of the ideal family.
Leisure
(n): time that is spent doing what you enjoy when you are not working
or studying
e.g. These days we have more money and more leisure to enjoy.
Dread
(n): a feeling of great fear about sth that moght or will happen in the
future; a thing that causes this feeling
e.g. the prospect of growing old fills me with dread.
Dormant
(adj): not active or growing now but able to become active or to grow
in the future = inactive
e.g. A dormant volcano — During the winter the seeds lie dormant in the soil.
Mayhem
(n): confusion and fear, unusually caused by violent behaviour or by
some sudden shocking eventTED Talk: Procrastinators 9
e.g. There was absolute mayhem when everyone tried to get out at once.
Epiphany
(n): a moment of sudden and great revelation or realization
Sneaky
(adj): (informal) behaving in a secret and sometimes dishonest on
unpleasant way = crafty
e.g. That was a sneaky trick!
