Speech patterns

1. He was evidently a person of consequence.

• She was a woman of few words.

• He is a man of property.

• She was a woman of few ideas.

2.  No sooner had I arrived than I sent her a letter to say that I was the bearer of a gift from her cousin.

• No sooner had the company made an announcement then share prices began to rise.

• Hardly had I added up the figures when the mistake became apparent.

• Hardly had the athletes covered the first lap when the leading runner slipped and fell.

3. Within an hour I received her reply to the effect that she would be pleased to receive me at four o'clock in the afternoon.

• The letter said something to the effect that she was no longer needed.

• I sent a note to the effect that I had joined the teaching staff.

• Many banks will make statements to the effect that they don't make loans like that.

Phrases and word combinations

to encounter robust build to tower over to make an acquaintance of somebody to talk of one thing or another till presently a loquacious creature to pull strings to withdraw one’s offer to expostulate

to be confounded with death in one’s heart to hand the advert for insertion harrowing circumstances to laugh consumedly to control one’s mirth to set eyes on somebody by no means a beauty lunatic to be on tenterhooks

Essential vocabulary

1. odd, adj 1) strange, different from what is normal or expected, especially in a way that you disapprove of or cannot understand, e.g. It was an odd thing to say. It is an odd way to behave. They're an odd couple. There was something odd about him. What she did was unforgivable, but the odd thing was he didn't seem to mind. She was holding an extremely odd-looking weapon.

it is/seems odd (that) e.g. It seemed odd that he wanted a picture of me.

Ant. unusual

2) various (only before noun) not specially chosen or collected, e.g. Any odd scrap of paper will do.

3) not in a pair/set (only before noun) separated from a pair or set: an odd shoe

the odd man/one out (British English) someone or something that is different from the rest of the group or not included in it, e.g. Which shape is the odd one out? I was always the odd one out at school.

against (all) the odds (although there are great difficulties) e.g. Against all the odds, he recovered from his terrible injuries.

overcome the odds (succeed although there are great difficulties)

enormous/heavy/overwhelming odds e.g. The South Africans overcame the odds to beat Australia. The odds are stacked against the young birds, especially in winter. Their job was to hold on despite impossible odds, in order to give the rest of the army time to strike.

be at odds 1) to disagree be at odds with, e.g. Briggs found himself at odds with his colleagues.

be at odds over/on e.g. The two politicians were at odds over what was the truth.

2) if two statements, descriptions, actions etc are at odds with each other, they are different although they should be the same

Syn.: unusual, strange, odd, bizarre, extraordinary, exceptional, remarkable

oddly, adv in a strange or unusual way, e.g. She's been behaving oddly this week.

oddly enough used to say that something seems strange or surprising, e.g. Oddly enough, someone asked me the same question only yesterday.

2. relax v t/i 1) to rest or do something that is enjoyable, especially after you have been working, e.g. I just want to sit down and relax. What Robyn needed was a drink to relax her. A hot bath should help to relax you.

2) to become quiet and calm after you have been upset or nervous, or to make someone do this, e.g. Once out of danger, he started to relax. Relax! Everything's fine.

3) if you relax a part of your body or it relaxes, it becomes less stiff or less tight, e.g. Gentle exercise can relax stiff shoulder muscles.

relax your hold/grip on e.g. The party has no intention of relaxing its hold on the country.

relaxed adj 1) feeling calm, comfortable, and not worried or annoyed, e.g. Gail was lying in the sun looking very relaxed and happy.

relaxed about, e.g. I feel more relaxed about my career than I used to.

2) a situation that is relaxed is comfortable and informal, e.g. There's a very relaxed atmosphere in the school.

3) not strict, or not feeling that you have to do something in the way that other people think you should do it

a relaxed attitude/manner/style etc, e.g. She has a fairly relaxed approach to housework.

relaxing making you feel relaxed, e.g. a relaxing afternoon in the garden.