VO Book 1 Flashcards
groan under the weight of something
(formal) used to say that there is too much of something
ex) Companies like Ford and General Motors groan under the weight of their history, manifested in the legacy costs that are a result of decades of promises to support workers and provide them with health care in their old age.
manifest verb
BrE /ˈmænɪfest/ ; NAmE /ˈmænɪfest/ (formal)
1) manifest something (in something) to show something clearly, especially a feeling, an attitude or a quality
synonym demonstrate
ex) His hidden frustration was clearly manifested in his recent journal.
Social tensions were manifested in the recent political crisis.
legacy costs
The costs involved with a company paying increased healthcare fees and other benefit-related costs for its current employees and retired pensioners. It is believed that escalating legacy costs can be a very large contributing factor towards limiting a company’s competitiveness.
Typically, it is the larger, older and more established companies that have problems with spiraling legacy costs, because they have the most pension and healthcare liabilities. In the face of these costs, many companies are taking measures to lower legacy costs as much as possible. One example of this can be seen by the trend of companies changing their employee retirement plans from defined-benefit plans to defined-contribution plans.
ex) Companies like Ford and General Motors groan under the weight of their history, manifested in the legacy costs that are a result of decades of promises to support workers and provide them with health care in their old age.
balloon verb
BrE /bəˈluːn/ ; NAmE /bəˈluːn/
1) [intransitive] balloon (out/up) to suddenly swell out or get bigger
ex) In 1999, General Motors spent $3.6 billion to provide health benefits to 1.2 million workers, retirees and dependents. By 2005 the cost had ballooned to $5.3 billion for 1.1 million.
parts maker noun
a manufacturer producing components for incorporation in assemblies made by another
ex) GM, Ford and the parts maker Delphi have all offered thousands of buyouts as part of efforts to restructure their inefficient manufacturing businesses, trimming payrolls to become more competitive.
buyout noun
BrE /ˈbaɪaʊt/ ; NAmE /ˈbaɪaʊt/
buy out phrasal verb
3) buy out someone’s contract AMERICAN to pay a person or organization the rest of an amount of money that has been promised in a contract so that someone can leave or be forced to leave their job early
ex) GM, Ford and the parts maker Delphi have all offered thousands of buyouts as part of efforts to restructure their inefficient manufacturing businesses, trimming payrolls to become more competitive.
trim verb
BrE /trɪm/ ; NAmE /trɪm/
1) trim something to make something neater, smaller, better, etc., by cutting parts from it
ex) GM, Ford and the parts maker Delphi have all offered thousands of buyouts as part of efforts to restructure their inefficient manufacturing businesses, trimming payrolls to become more competitive.
payroll noun
BrE /ˈpeɪrəʊl/ ; NAmE /ˈpeɪroʊl/
1) a list of people employed by a company showing the amount of money to be paid to each of them
ex) GM, Ford and the parts maker Delphi have all offered thousands of buyouts as part of efforts to restructure their inefficient manufacturing businesses, trimming payrolls to become more competitive.
We have 500 people on the payroll.
2) [usually singular] the total amount paid in wages by a company
The firm is growing fast with a monthly payroll of $1 million.
army noun
BrE /ˈɑːmi/ ; NAmE /ˈɑːrmi/ (pl. armies)
3) [countable + singular or plural verb] a large number of people or things, especially when they are organized in some way or involved in a particular activity
ex) But that means fewer workers supporting armies of retirees, a demographic challenge not unlike the one facing the Social Security system.
not unlike
similar to; a clumsy, noncommittal way of expressing simple similarity
ex) But that means fewer workers supporting armies of retirees, a demographic challenge not unlike the one facing the Social Security system.
She was led into an office not unlike the one she had just left.
Well, yes, I guess it would be fair to say that Bush’s appropriation of power for the executive is not unlike the administration of Hitler’s Germany, but that misses the point.
He looks not unlike Elijah Wood.
concession noun
BrE /kənˈseʃn/ ; NAmE /kənˈseʃn/
1) [countable, uncountable] something that you allow or do, or allow somebody to have, in order to end an argument or to make a situation less difficult
ex) The United Automobile Workers union has already made concessions on the superior health insurance its members receive.
The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike.
to win a concession from somebody
a major/an important concession
She made no concession to his age; she expected him to work as hard as she did.
slash verb
BrE /slæʃ/ ; NAmE /slæʃ/
2) [often passive] slash something (informal) (often used in newspapers) to reduce something by a large amount
ex) But slashing benefits is a short-term approach, and an insufficient answer when GM lost $10.6 billion in 2005.
insufficient adjective
BrE /ˌɪnsəˈfɪʃnt/ ; NAmE /ˌɪnsəˈfɪʃnt/
insufficient (to do something) | insufficient (for something) (formal) not large, strong or important enough for a particular purpose
synonym inadequate
opposite sufficient
ex) But slashing benefits is a short-term approach, and an insufficient answer when GM lost $10.6 billion in 2005.
insufficient time
His salary is insufficient to meet his needs.
The management paid insufficient attention to working conditions.
There are fears that the existing flood barrier may prove insufficient.
I’m afraid we have insufficient evidence.
lose verb
BrE /luːz/ ; NAmE /luːz/
- red ink noun
** black ink noun
10) [TRANSITIVE] to make less money than you spend or invest
ex) But slashing benefits is a short-term approach, and an insufficient answer when GM lost $10.6 billion in 2005.
The company lost more than £5 million last year.
- a situation in which a company is losing a lot of money
ex) The line between profitability and red ink in a bookstore is so thin that even the little decisions are important.
The parent company has been falling apart for several months, bleeding red ink, and losing clients.
The boom a decade ago has now given way to a sea of red ink.
** profit or break-even; opposite of red ink (loss)
- Medicare
** Medicaid
- In the United States, Medicare is a national social insurance program, administered by the U.S. federal government since 1966, currently using about 30 private insurance companies across the United States. Medicare provides health insurance for Americans aged 65 and older who have worked and paid into the system. It also provides health insurance to younger people with disabilities, end stage renal disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
** Medicaid in the United States is a social health care program for families and individuals with low income and limited resources. The Health Insurance Association of America describes Medicaid as a “government insurance program for persons of all ages whose income and resources are insufficient to pay for health care”. Medicaid is the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services for people with low income in the United States. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the state and federal governments and managed by the states, with each state currently having broad leeway to determine who is eligible for its implementation of the program. States are not required to participate in the program, although all currently do.[when?] Medicaid recipients must be U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents, and may include low-income adults, their children, and people with certain disabilities. Poverty alone does not necessarily qualify someone for Medicaid.
hammer out something
1) to discuss a plan, an idea, etc. until everyone agrees or a decision is made
ex) In an ideal world, America would joint the overwhelming majority of developed countries and hammer out some kind of national health care system.
to hammer out a compromise
failing preposition
BrE /ˈfeɪlɪŋ/ ; NAmE /ˈfeɪlɪŋ/
used to introduce a suggestion that could be considered if the one just mentioned is not possible; if that is not possible
ex) Failing such a sudden and unlikely onset of sanity, creative solutions are needed.
Ask a friend to recommend a doctor or, failing that, ask for a list in your local library.
Buy her some flowers, or failing that, just send her a card.
Appointments are available on the 2nd and the 6th of this month but failing either of those, we could fit you in on the 15th.
strike a bargain/deal
to make an agreement with somebody in which both sides have an advantage
ex) Senator Barack Obama has proposed striking a bargain with American automakers to help them with retiree health care costs in exchange for higher fuel efficiency standards.
mileage noun
(also milage)
BrE /ˈmaɪlɪdʒ/ ; NAmE /ˈmaɪlɪdʒ/
2) [uncountable, countable] the number of miles that a vehicle can travel using a particular amount of fuel
synonym fuel efficiency/economy
ex) Senator Barack Obama has proposed striking a bargain with American automakers to help them with retiree health care costs in exchange for higher fuel efficiency standards.
If you drive carefully you can get better mileage from your car.
This car has great mileage.
bully verb
BrE /ˈbʊli/ ; NAmE /ˈbʊli/
to frighten or hurt a weaker person; to use your strength or power to make somebody do something
ex) Cyberbullying is an imprecise label for online activities ranging from barrages of teasing texts to sexually harassing group sites.
imprecise adjective
BrE /ˌɪmprɪˈsaɪs/ ; NAmE /ˌɪmprɪˈsaɪs/
not giving exact details or making something clear
synonym inaccurate
opposite precise
ex) Cyberbullying is an imprecise label for online activities ranging from barrages of teasing texts to sexually harassing group sites.
The witness’s descriptions were too imprecise to be of any real value.
barrage noun
BrE /ˈbærɑːʒ/ ; NAmE /bəˈrɑːʒ/
2) [singular] barrage (of something) a large number of something, such as questions or comments, that are directed at somebody very quickly, one after the other, often in an aggressive way
ex) Cyberbullying is an imprecise label for online activities ranging from barrages of teasing texts to sexually harassing group sites.
a barrage of questions/criticisms/complaints
the media’s barrage of attacks on the President’s wife
harass verb
BrE /ˈhærəs/ ; NAmE /ˈhærəs/ ; BrE /həˈræs/ ; NAmE /həˈræs/
- molest verb
BrE /məˈlest/ ; NAmE /məˈlest/
** assault verb
BrE /əˈsɔːlt/ ; NAmE /əˈsɔːlt/
1) [often passive] harass somebody to annoy or worry somebody by putting pressure on them or saying or doing unpleasant things to them
ex) Cyberbullying is an imprecise label for online activities ranging from barrages of teasing texts to sexually harassing group sites.
He has complained of being harassed by the police.
- 1) molest somebody to attack somebody, especially a child, sexually
synonym abuse
** 1) assault somebody to attack somebody violently, especially when this is a crime
ex) He has been charged with assaulting a police officer.
Four women have been sexually assaulted in the area recently.
He admitted indecently assaulting the child.
Many healthcare workers say they have been physically assaulted by patients.
quantify verb
BrE /ˈkwɒntɪfaɪ/ ; NAmE /ˈkwɑːntɪfaɪ/
quantify something to describe or express something as an amount or a number
ex) The extent of the phenomenon is hard to quantify.
The risks to health are impossible to quantify.