UNITS 17&18 • TOPIC Flashcards
acknowledge
uk |əkˈnɒl.ɪdʒ| us |əkˈnɑː.lɪdʒ|
verb
1. to accept, admit, or recognize something, or the truth or existence of something
* “[acknowledge someone as something] Historians generally acknowledge her as a genius in her field.”
* ”[+ -ing verb] She acknowledged having been at fault.”
* ”[+ that] She acknowledged that she had been at fault.”
* “You must acknowledge the truth of her argument.”
* ”[+ obj + to infinitive] She is usually acknowledged to be one of our best artists.”
* “They refused to acknowledge (= to recognize officially) the new government.”
* “The government won’t even acknowledge the existence of the problem.”
2. to tell someone, usually in a letter or email, that you have received something they sent you
* “They didn’t acknowledge my letter.”
* “[acknowledge receipt of] Please acknowledge receipt of this letter.”
agonize
uk |ˈæɡ.ə.naɪz| us |ˈæɡ.ə.naɪz|
verb
1. to spend a lot of time trying to make a decision
* “He agonized for several days before agreeing to move to Oklahoma.”
apathy
uk |ˈæp.ə.θi| us |ˈæp.ə.θi|
noun
1. behaviour that shows no interest or energy and shows that someone is unwilling to take action, especially over something important
* “widespread apathy among students”
* “voter apathy”
avoid
uk |əˈvɔɪd| us |əˈvɔɪd|
verb
1. to stay away from someone or something
* “I try to avoid supermarkets on Saturdays - they’re always so busy.”
* “I’m anxious to avoid the motorway at rush hour.”
* “Do you think Lukas is avoiding me? I haven’t seen him all day.”
2. to prevent something from happening or to not allow yourself to do something
* ”[+ -ing verb] I try to avoid going shopping on Saturdays.”
* “The report studiously avoided any mention of the controversial plan.”
* “The plane narrowly avoided disaster when one of the engines cut out on take-off.”
* “I left the pub to avoid a fight (= prevent a fight from happening).”
* “Unnecessary paperwork should be avoided (= prevented) at all costs.”
behaviour
uk |bɪˈheɪ.vjər| us |bɪˈheɪ.vjɚ|
noun
1. the way that someone behaves [U]
* “Her behaviour is often appalling.”
* “He was notorious for his violent and threatening behaviour.”
2. the way that a person, an animal, a substance, etc. behaves in a particular situation or under particular conditions [C/U biology, chemistry, physics, psychology specialized]
* “His research involved the study of instinctive behaviour in birds.”
* “These behaviours can be observed among many children who have lost a parent or other loved one.”
chuckle
uk |ˈtʃʌk.əl| us |ˈtʃʌk.əl|
verb
1. to laugh quietly
* “She was chuckling as she read the letter.”
chuckle
uk |ˈtʃʌk.əl| us |ˈtʃʌk.əl|
noun
1. a quiet laugh
* “He gave a chuckle in response to her question.”
* "”What is it?” she asked with a nervous chuckle.”
comfort
uk |ˈkʌm.fət| us |ˈkʌm.fɚt|
noun
1. a pleasant feeling of being relaxed and free from pain [U]
* “[for comfort] She evidently dresses for comfort.”
* “It’s a little too hot for comfort.”
* “[in the comfort of] Now you can watch the latest films in the comfort of your own room.”
2. the state of feeling better after feeling sad or worried, or something that makes you feel better in this way [C/U]
* “The letters that people wrote after his death gave me a lot of comfort.”
* “It’s some comfort to his wife (= it makes her feel less sad) to know that he died instantly and didn’t suffer.”
* “[if it’s any comfort] I’ve got to take an exam too, if it’s any comfort (= if it makes you feel better to know that we share the same problem or bad luck).”
* “[draw comfort from] I know she goes out a lot at night, but I draw comfort from the fact that she’s always with friends.”
* “[take comfort from] She did not win the competition, but she can take comfort from the number of books she has sold.”
* “[comfort to] He’s a great comfort to his mother.”
3. the state of having a pleasant life with enough money for everything that you need [U]
* “[in comfort] He could retire now and live in comfort for the rest of his life.”
4. something that makes your life easy and pleasant [C usually plural]
* “After the trip, it was nice getting back to a few home comforts.”
* “[creature comforts] She’s always liked her creature comforts (= the type of pleasure found in the house, for example warmth, food, etc.).”
comfort
uk |ˈkʌm.fət| us |ˈkʌm.fɚt|
verb
1. to make someone feel better when they are sad or worried
* “The girl’s mother was at home today, being comforted by relatives.”
conduct
uk |kənˈdʌkt| us |kənˈdʌkt|
verb
1. to organize and perform a particular activity [T]
* “We are conducting a survey to find out what our customers think of their local bus service.”
* “The experiments were conducted by scientists in New York.”
* “How you choose to conduct your private life is your own business!”
conduct
uk |ˈkɒn.dʌkt| us |ˈkɑːn.dʌkt|
noun
1. behaviour
* “bad/excellent/disgraceful conduct”
* “The club has a strict code (= set of rules) of conduct.”
2. the way in which an activity is organized and performed [formal]
* “He was criticized for his conduct of the inquiry.”
consequence
uk |ˈkɒn.sɪ.kwəns| us |ˈkɑːn.sə.kwəns|
noun
1. a result of a particular action or situation, often one that is bad or not convenient
* “[serious consequences] Not making a will can have serious consequences for your children and other family members.”
* “[dire consequences] Eating too much processed food can have dire health consequences.”
* “[as a consequence of] Scientists think it is unlikely that any species will actually become extinct as a consequence of the oil spill.”
* “[unintended consequence] The discovery came about as an unintended consequence of a search for something else.”
* “Well, if you insist on eating so much, you’ll have to suffer (= accept and deal with) the consequences!”
* “He will have to face the consequences of his actions.”
* “If someone commits a crime, they have to take the consequences.”
contentment
uk |kənˈtent.mənt| us |kənˈtent.mənt|
noun
1. happiness and satisfaction, often because you have everything you need
* “His face wore a look of pure contentment.”
* “More people were finding that material things do not bring contentment .”
cross
uk |krɒs| us |krɑːs|
verb
1. to go across from one side of something to the other [I/T]
* “It’s not a good place to cross the road.”
* “[cross over] Look both ways before you cross over the road.”
* “[UK] Look both ways before you cross over.”
* “Cross the bridge and turn right.”
* “[cross from something into something] They crossed from Albania into Greece.”
cross
uk |krɒs| us |krɑːs|
noun
1. a written mark (x or +) formed by two lines going across each other. The mark x is usually used to show where something is, or that something has not been written correctly. [UK]
2. an object made of one long upright piece of wood, with a smaller piece across it near the top. In the past, people were tied or fastened with nails to crosses as a punishment and left hanging on them until they died.
3. an object in the shape of a cross that people were killed on, used as a symbol of Christianity
* “Christ died on the Cross.”
* “She wears a gold cross around her neck.”
* “The priest made the sign of the cross (= the shape of a cross made by moving his hand between four points on his chest) over the dead bodies.”
4. a medal in the shape of a cross
* “In Britain, the Victoria Cross is awarded for acts of great bravery during wartime.”
5. a mixture of two or more different things that have been combined to produce something new
* “[cross between] Police dogs are often a cross between a retriever and a German Shepherd.”
* “A hybrid plant is a cross between two plants that are genetically different.”
* “He looks like a cross between Lord Byron, Mick Jagger, and Kate Moss.”
cross
uk |krɒs| us |krɑːs|
adjective
1. annoyed or angry [mainly UK]
* “[cross with] Don’t be cross with me — it’s not my fault.”
* “[get cross] My Dad gets cross with me if I leave the kitchen in a mess.”
* “After waiting for almost an hour I started to get a bit cross.”
dignity
uk |ˈdɪɡ.nə.ti| us |ˈdɪɡ.ə.t̬i|
noun
1. calm, serious, and controlled behaviour that makes people respect you
* “He is a man of dignity and calm determination.”
* “She has a quiet dignity about her.”
* “I think everyone should be able to die with dignity.”
2. the importance and value that a person has, that makes other people respect them or makes them respect themselves
* “How could you wear something so indecent? Have you no dignity?”
* “In hospital, she felt stripped of all her dignity.”
* “He longs for a society in which the dignity of all people is recognized.”
disgust
uk |dɪsˈɡʌst| us |dɪsˈɡʌst|
noun
1. a strong feeling of disapproval and dislike at a situation, person’s behaviour, etc.
* “[in disgust] She walked out in disgust.”
* “[disgust at] We are demonstrating to show our anger and disgust at the treatment of refugees.”
* “[in disgust at] He resigned from the committee in disgust at the corruption.”
* “[much to someone’s disgust] Beresford, much to his disgust, was fined for illegal parking.”
disgust
uk |dɪsˈɡʌst| us |dɪsˈɡʌst|
verb
1. to make you feel extreme dislike or disapproval
* “Doesn’t all this violence on TV disgust you?”
disillusioned
uk |ˌdɪs.ɪˈluː.ʒənd| us |ˌdɪs.ɪˈluː.ʒənd|
adjective
1. disappointed and unhappy because of discovering the truth about something or someone that you liked or respected
* “He’s become a disillusioned man.”
* “[disillusioned with] All the other teachers are thoroughly disillusioned with their colleague.”
fed up
uk |ˌfed ˈʌp| us |ˌfed ˈʌp|
adjective
1. bored, annoyed, or disappointed, especially by something that you have experienced for too long
* “[fed up with] I’m fed up with my job.”
* “[get fed up] He got fed up with all the travelling he had to do.”
giggle
uk |ˈɡɪɡ.əl| us |ˈɡɪɡ.əl|
verb
1. to laugh repeatedly in a quiet but uncontrolled way, often at something silly or rude or when you are nervous
* “Stop that giggling in the back row!”
giggle
uk |ˈɡɪɡ.əl| us |ˈɡɪɡ.əl|
noun
1. a nervous or silly laugh [C]
* “[nervous giggle] There were a few nervous giggles from people in the audience.”
* “I tried to stifle a giggle.”
glance
uk |ɡlɑːns| us |ɡlæns|
verb
1. to give a quick short look [I usually + adv/prep]
* “[glance around] She glanced round the room to see who was there.”
* “[glance round] Kate glanced round the court hoping that nobody would recognize her.”
* “[glance up] He glanced up from his book as I passed.”
* “[glance over] Could you glance over this letter and see if it’s alright?”
* “[glance through] I only had to time to glance through the newspaper headlines.”
2. to shine, reflect light, or sparkle [I + adv/prep literary]
* “[glance on] The sunlight glanced on the lake.”
3. In cricket, if a batter glances the ball, they hit it quickly and lightly at an angle so that it goes behind them with only a small change of direction [T sports specialized]
* “He glanced the delivery for four.”
* “She glanced a short-pitched delivery down to fine leg for a single.”
