Vocabulary and grammar list

NO

LANGUAGE UNITS

NOTES

Would you tuck me in, please? (in bed)

tuck somebody in to make a child comfortable in bed by arranging the sheets around them

He bought it yesterday. Shot to bits.

somebody bought it old-fashioned informal someone was killed

I was found in the wreckage of the plane.

Perhaps you know?

Am I being interrogated?

to ask someone a lot of questions for a long time in order to get information, sometimes using threats:

The police interrogated the suspect for several hours.

He refused to tell his interrogators anything.

I have this much lung. The rest of my organs are packing up.

British English informal Tif a machine packs up, it stops working because there is something wrong with it:

The photocopier's packed up again.

There’s meant to be lace in the next village.

a fine cloth made with patterns of many very small holes:

a handkerchief trimmed with lace

lace curtains

She’s a softie, she loves me.

someone who is easily affected by feelings of pity or sympathy, or who is easily persuaded:

He's a real softie.

I’m not sewing anything else for you.

to use a needle and thread to make or repair clothes or to fasten something such as a button to them:

Can you sew a patch on my jeans?

She sewed the two sides together.

I must be a curse.

something that causes trouble, harm etc

Noise is one of the curses of modern-day life.

I’ll catch up.

to come from behind and reach someone in front of you by going faster:

Drive faster - they're catching up with us.

You go on ahead. I'll catch you up in a minute.

I found plums in the orchard.

a place where fruit trees are grown:

a cherry orchard

We’re your apprentices.

someone who works for an employer for a fixed period of time in order to learn a particular skill or job:

She works in the hairdresser's as an apprentice.

an apprentice electrician

filial love

formal SSFrelating to the relationship of a son or daughter to their parents:

her filial duty

That’s my favourite kind of love. Excessive love of one’s wife.

much more than is reasonable or necessary:

his excessive drinking

$15 for two beers seems a little excessive.

They’re tourists. Absolutely rot.

= ROTTEN informal very bad [= terrible]: What rotten luck! The service was rotten He's a rotten driver.

He’s meant to be a ruddy good flier. ['r0dI]

British English informal used to emphasize what you are saying, especially when you are annoyed with someone or something [= bloody, damn]:

I wish that ruddy dog would stop barking!

She was the fairest of all women.

old use or literary pleasant and attractive:

a fair maiden

You could gaze at her at your leisure.

to look at someone or something for a long time, giving it all your attention, often without realizing you are doing so:

Nell was still gazing out of the window.

Patrick sat gazing into space (=looking straight in front, not at any particular person or thing).

… she shuddered.

to shake for a short time because you are afraid or cold, or because you think something is very unpleasant:

Maria shuddered as she stepped outside..

She shuddered at the thought that she could have been killed.

[This egg is ]for you. I’d like to take credit for it, but it’s from Mary.

approval or praise that you give to someone for something they have done:

Credit for this win goes to everybody in the team.

She deserves credit for trying her best.

Can he lay eggs?

Perhaps you know?

So, you’re our Canadian pickpocket?

someone who steals things from people's pockets, especially in a crowd

Now’s our opportunity to swap war wounds.

to tell information to someone and be given information in return:

We need to get together to swap ideas and information.

They sat in a corner and swapped gossip.

I think you’ve got the wrong end of the stick, old boy.

get (hold of) the wrong end of the stick British English informal to understand a situation in completely the wrong way: People who think the song is about drugs have got the wrong end of the stick.

I said no one would ever invent such a preposterous name.

formal completely unreasonable or silly [= absurd]:

The whole idea sounds absolutely preposterous!

You’ve been cheated. Did you bargain?

to discuss the conditions of a sale, agreement etc, for example to try and get a lower price:

They bargained over the level of wages.

women bargaining with traders

I apologize if I appear a΄brupt.

seeming rude and unfriendly, especially because you do not waste time in friendly conversation:

Sorry, I didn't mean to be so abrupt.

I’m rusty at social graces.

if you are rusty, you are not as good at something as you used to be, because you have not practised it for a long time:

My French is a bit rusty.

latitude

longitude

Perhaps you know?

He’s in love with the hotel plumbing.

the pipes that water flows through in a building:

We keep having problems with the plumbing.

The team is in mourning, darling.

great sadness because someone has died:

It was the custom to visit those in mourning and sit quietly with them.

We were feeling rather self-conscious.

worried and embarrassed about what you look like or what other people think of you:

Jerry's pretty self-conscious about his weight.

Why follow me? Escort me, by all means. Following me is predatory, isn’t it?

trying to use someone's weakness to get advantages for yourself - used to show disapproval:

predatory pricing predatory business practices

Please, don’t creep around this house.

to move in a quiet, careful way, especially to avoid attracting attention:

Johann would creep into the gallery to listen to the singers.

He crept back up the stairs, trying to avoid the ones that creaked.

Without your fund-raising heroics we’d still be kicking our heels.

kick your heels British English to waste time waiting for something: We were left kicking our heels for half the day.

To arm-twisting! (a toast)

twist somebody's arm informal to persuade someone to do something they do not want to do: No one twisted my arm about coming to see you.

I shall of course be bereft.

(*to bereave)

feeling very sad and lonely:

His death in 1990 left her completely bereft.

I shall produce a guide to the zinc bars.

In 1873 Émile Zola describes a zinc as a "counter for serving customers, in bars, cafés." By 1880 the term was also being used to designate the bars and cafés themselves. (A typical example of a “zinc” is the café where Amélie worked in the film “Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain”).

I’ve come to love that little tap of the fingernail against the syringe.

an instrument for taking blood from someone's body or putting liquid, drugs etc into it, consisting of a hollow plastic tube and a needle

If he wears a turban, he’s Sikh.

a member of an Indian religious group that developed from Hinduism in the 16th century

I will summon my husband by playing the piano.

formal to order someone to come to a place:

The president summoned Taylor to Washington.

He was summoned to attend an emergency meeting.

• They are staying.

• We should charge.

to ask someone for a particular amount of money for something you are selling:

The hotel charges $125 a night.

We won't charge for delivery if you pay now.

Try to get a radiator and a better jack.

a piece of equipment used to lift a heavy weight off the ground, such as a car, and support it while it is in the air:

a hydraulic jack

This is just a scrapbook.

a book with empty pages where you can stick pictures, newspaper articles, or other things you want to keep

That would be unconscionable, I suppose.

formal much more than is reasonable or acceptable:

The war caused an unconscionable amount of suffering.

The flare!

a piece of equipment that produces a bright flame, or the flame itself, used outdoors as a signal:

The distress flares were spotted by another ship.

He’s not actually a buffoon.

old-fashioned someone who does silly amusing things

What I object to is your finishing all my condensed milk.

a type of thick sweet milk sold in cans

If a woman can sew, she shouldn’t admit to it.

to agree unwillingly that something is true or that someone else is right:

'Okay, so maybe I was a little bit scared,' Jenny admitted.

Admit it! I’m right, aren't I?

Phillips openly admits to having an alcohol problem.

I love marmite. I’m addicted.

Marmite trademark

a type of soft, dark brown substance with a strong salty taste, which is a yeast extract. It is usually spread on bread in small quantities, but it can also be used to give taste to soups. It is a typically British food, sold in a round brown glass container. There is a similar product sold in Australia called Vegemite.

This is a Christmas (fire) cracker.

Guess!

Say you’re feeling faint. The heat. Swoon. They’ll catch you.

FAINT feeling weak and as if you are about to become unconscious because you are very ill, tired, or hungry: I was faint with hunger.

TO SWOON old-fashioned to fall to the ground because you have been affected by an emotion or shock

Too hot. I’m sweltering, in fact.

extremely hot and uncomfortable:

sweltering August days

You so do love a disguise.

something that you wear to change your appearance and hide who you are, or the act of wearing this:

His disguise didn't fool anyone.

She wore dark glasses in an absurd attempt at disguise.

Who the hell is Moose? (nickname)

moose plural moose

HBAa large brown animal like a deer that has very large flat horns that grow like branches and lives in North America, northern Europe, and parts of Asia

I’m dying for the rain. I long for the rain on my face.

to want something very much, especially when it seems unlikely to happen soon:

He longed to see her again.

She longed for the chance to speak to him in private.

She longed for him to return.

Don’t sulk, I’ll be back tomorrow evening.

to be silently angry and refuse to be friendly or discuss what is annoying or upsetting you - used to show disapproval:

Nicola sulked all morning.

He’s a wanderer. He’s a fool.

a person who moves from place to place and has no permanent home

We’ve been friends for donkey’s ears.

donkey's years British English spoken a very long time: I've had this jacket for donkey's years.

A stroke of genius.

stroke of genius/inspiration etc a very good idea about what to do to solve a problem: It was a stroke of genius to film the movie in Toronto.

One day he falls under the spell of a mysterious English woman, a harpy…

A SPELL a power that attracts, interests, and influences you very strongly: fall/come/be under a spell

I fell under the spell of her charm.

an ancient city that still casts its spell over travelers

A HARPY

1. literary a cruel woman

2. Harpy a cruel creature in ancient Greek stories, with the head and upper body of a woman and the wings and feet of a bird

They’re thimbles. They’re quite old.

a small metal or plastic cap used to protect your finger when you are sewing

It’s full of saffron.

It is the world's most expensive spice by weight, but very little is needed to flavor and color food. This spice has a strong earthy, hay-like flavor and gives dishes a yellow-orange color. Saffron is mentioned in the Bible, in Song of Solomon 4:14, when he is expressing his affection to his lover.

I think it’s called looting.

to steal things, especially from shops or homes that have been damaged in a war or riot:

Shops were looted and burned.

You seemed so big. I felt like a toddler.

a very young child who is just learning to walk

I’ve forgotten what a nuisance it is to wash.

a person, thing, or situation that annoys you or causes problems:

The dogs next door are a real nuisance.

What a nuisance! I've forgotten my ticket.

It's a nuisance having to get up that early on a Sunday morning.

I know it’s a bit of a short straw, but Jerry’s got our maps.

draw/get the short straw to be given something difficult or unpleasant to do, especially when other people have been given something better: Sorry, Jim, you drew the short straw. You're on toilet-cleaning duty.

It absolutely destroyed the poor sot.

old-fashioned someone who is drunk all the time [= drunkard]

I’m sick. I’m leaking blood.

if a container, pipe, roof etc leaks, or if it leaks gas, liquid etc, there is a small hole or crack in it that lets gas or liquid flow through: The roof is leaking.

A tanker is leaking oil off the coast of Scotland.

What’s the punishment for a΄dultery?

sex between someone who is married and someone who is not their wife or husband:

She had committed adultery on several occasions.

He’s suddenly infallible.

always right and never making mistakes:

No expert is infallible.

an infallible memory

Any minute now he will know. We’ll barge into someone.

to move somewhere in a rough careless way, often hitting against things:

She ran outside, barging past bushes and shrubs.

She barged her way through the shopping crowds.

The International Sand Club: misfits, buggers, fascists and fools.

A MISFIT someone who does not seem to belong in a particular group of people, and who is not accepted by that group, because they are very different from the other group members: I was very conscious of being a misfit at school. a social misfit

A BUGGER British English not polite an offensive word for someone who is very annoying or unpleasant

Dirty word, filthy word.

1. very dirty:

The house was filthy, with clothes and newspapers strewn everywhere.

2. showing anger or annoyance:

Simon had been drinking and was in a filthy temper. She gave him a filthy look.

You’re completely plastered!

informal very drunk:

Chris was plastered after five beers.

Lashings of apologies!

lashings of something British English old-fashioned a large amount of something (usually food or drink): apple pie with lashings of cream

How can you smile as if your life hadn’t capsized?

if a boat capsizes, or if you capsize it, it turns over in the water

Find the right loop and cut it.

a shape like a curve or a circle made by a line curving back towards itself, or a piece of wire, string etc that has this shape:

loop of wire/rope/string etc

A loop of wire held the gate shut.

I have to teach myself not to read too much into everything.

read something into something to think that a situation, action etc has a meaning or importance that it does not really have:

It was only a casual remark. I think you're reading too much into it.

Given all the traffic, I am bound to bump into one army or another.

taking something into account:

Given the circumstances, you've done really well.

Given that the patients have some disabilities, we still try to enable them to be as independent as possible.

I’ve been speaking to my research assistant. He tells me there’s a ghost in the cloisters.

a building where monks or nuns live