The Medicine of Coronavirus Flashcards
definite [/ˈdefɪnət/]
clearly known, seen, or stated SYN clear OPP indefinite
It’s impossible for me to give you a definite answer.
regular [/ˈreɡjələ/]
1 EVERY HOUR/DAY/WEEK ETC happening every hour, every week, every month etc, usually with the same amount of time in between OPP irregular
The company holds regular meetings with employees.
His breathing was slow and regular.
Trains will run at regular intervals from 11am to 4pm.
We hear from him on a regular basis.
He phones us every Sunday at six, regular as clockwork (=always at the same time).
a regular job (=a job that you do during normal working hours)
2 OFTEN [only before noun] happening or doing something very often OPP irregular
a regular occurrence
Regular exercise helps keep your weight down.
regular customer/visitor
He’s one of the bar’s regular customers.
Penn Station was in regular use (=people used it often) until the 1960s.
mass [/mæs/]
1 LARGE AMOUNT
a) [countable] a large amount of a substance which does not have a definite or regular shape
The food had congealed into a sticky mass.
mass of
a high mass of rock
b) [countable usually singular] a large amount or quantity of something
mass of
a huge mass of data
c) masses of something British English informal a large amount of something, or a lot of people or things
Masses of books covered every surface in the room.
2 CROWD [singular] a large crowd
mass of
There was a mass of people around the club entrance.
crowd [/kraʊd/]
1 [countable] a large group of people who have gathered together to do something, for example to watch something or protest about something
crowd of
a crowd of angry protesters
a crowd of 30,000 spectators
There were crowds of shoppers in the street.
A vast crowd gathered in the main square.
quantity [/ˈkwɒntəti/]
1 [countable, uncountable] an amount of something that can be counted or measured
quantity of
The police also found a quantity of ammunition in the flat.
Add 50 grams of butter, and the same quantity of sugar.
a large/small/vast etc quantity of something
He had consumed a large quantity of alcohol.
Huge quantities of oil were spilling into the sea.
in large/small/sufficient etc quantities
Buy vegetables in small quantities, for your immediate use.
Your work has improved in quantity and quality this term.
► Don’t say ‘a big quantity’. Say a large quantity.► see thesaurus at amount
2 [uncountable] the large amount of something
The sheer quantity of text meant that people did not read the whole of their newspaper.
sickness [/ˈsɪknəs/]
[uncountable] the state of being ill SYN illness
an insurance policy against long-term sickness and injury
disrupt [/dɪsˈrʌpt/]
to prevent something from continuing in its usual way by causing problems
Traffic was disrupted by a hoax bomb.
Climate change could disrupt the agricultural economy.
severe [/səˈvɪə/]
VERY SERIOUS severe problems, injuries, illnesses etc are very bad or very serious
His injuries were quite severe.
outbreak [/ˈaʊtbreɪk/]
if there is an outbreak of fighting or disease in an area, it suddenly starts to happen a cholera outbreak outbreak of outbreaks of fighting the outbreak of World War II
acute [/əˈkjuːt/]
1 PROBLEM an acute problem is very serious
The housing shortage is more acute than first thought.
► see thesaurus at serious
2 FEELING an acute feeling is very strong
acute pain
acute embarrassment
acute anxiety
3 ILLNESS technical an acute illness or disease quickly becomes very serious OPP chronic
acute arthritis
respiratory [/rɪˈspɪrətəri/]
relating to breathing or your lungs
respiratory disease
survive [/səˈvaɪv/]
[intransitive, transitive] to continue to live after an accident, war, or illness
Only 12 of the 140 passengers survived.
mutate [/mjuːˈteɪt/]
1 if an animal or plant mutates, it becomes different from others of the same kind, because of a change in its genetic structure
Simple organisms like bacteria mutate rapidly.
2 to change and develop a new form
Technology continues to mutate at an alarming rate.
strain [/streɪn/]
1 WORRY [countable, uncountable] worry that is caused by having to deal with a problem or work too hard over a long period of time → stress
I couldn’t look after him anymore; the strain was too much for me.
Did you find the job a strain?
the stresses and strains of police life
strain for
The trial has been a terrible strain for both of us.
strain on
It’s quite a strain on me when he’s drinking heavily.
2 DIFFICULTY [countable, uncountable] a difficulty or problem that is caused when a person, relationship, organization, or system has too much to do or too many problems to deal with
strain on
The dry summer has further increased the strain on water resources.
3 slight variations of the original
slight [/slaɪt/]
1 [usually before noun] small in degree OPP big
a slight improvement
a slight increase
variation [/ˌveəriˈeɪʃən/]
[countable, uncountable] a difference between similar things, or a change from the usual amount or form of something
variation of
White bread is really just a variation of French bread.
variation in
variations in the quality of the rugs
The study concluded that the variation between the CD players was very small.
2 [countable] something that is done in a way that is different from the way it is usually done
Most of his poems are variations on the theme of love.
origin [/ˈɒrɪdʒɪn/]
the place or situation in which something begins to exist
origin of
a new theory to explain the origins of the universe
in origin
Most coughs are viral in origin.
The word is French in origin.
threat [/θret/]
1 [countable, uncountable] a statement in which you tell someone that you will cause them harm or trouble if they do not do what you want
Your threats don’t scare me.
threat of
the threat of military invasion
threat from
He says his family received phone threats from the group.
2 [countable usually singular] the possibility that something very bad will happen
threat of
the threat of famine
threat from
