30/4 K11 2026

paper over the cracks

hide problems, especially arguments between people, in order to make a situation seem better than it really is

curry favour with

Fawn over

Refit

to make repairs or changes to a building, factory, or store in order to improve it or change its purpose

Go-getter

someone who is very energetic, determined to be successful, and able to deal with new or difficult situations easily

Stonewall

prevent someone from discovering information by not being helpful or by refusing to answer questions

counterweight

a thing that has an equal but opposite effect to something else and can be used to limit the bad effects of something

prepubescent

Truoc day thi

imperturbable

staying calm and controlled despite problems or difficulties

be on the shortlist for sth

Trong ds tranh giành thắng

It’s just as well that

It is a good thing that

discerning

able to make or usually making careful judgments about the quality of similar things

incisive

expressing an idea or opinion clearly and in a persuasive manner

acerbic

clever but cruel

contentious

causing , involving, or likely to cause disagreement and argument

felicitous

suitable to express thoughts/feelings/…

concession

a reduction in the usual price of something, made available to students, old people, etc.:

exemption (from)

(+ giới từ) special permission not to do or pay something:

irresolute

not able or willing to take decisions or actions:

intransigent

refusing to change your opinions or behaviour:

deadlocked

agreement in an argument cannot be reached

altruistic

showing a wish to help or bring advantages to others, even if it results in disadvantage for yourself:

magnanimous

very kind and generous towards an enemy or someone you have defeated:

self-effacing

not making yourself noticeable, or not trying to get the attention of other people:

sententious

trying to appear wise, intelligent, and important, in a way that is annoying:

didactic

intended to teach, especially in a way that is too determined or eager, and often fixed and unwilling to change: giáo huấn

perfunctory

done quickly, without taking care or interest:

gallows humour

jokes or humorous remarks that are made about unpleasant or worrying subjects such as death and illness

stoically

without complaining or showing your feelings, especially when something bad happens to you:

be all mouth and no trousers

to talk a lot about doing something but never do it:

house of cards

a complicated organization or plan that is very weak and can easily be destroyed or easily go wrong

smart mouth

having this means speaking to other people in a way that shows little respect.

effusive

Dạt dào (expressing welcome, approval, or pleasure in a way that shows very strong feeling)

Ironic

interesting, strange, or funny because of being very different from what you would usually expect

make a song and dance about

to make something seem more important than it really is so that everyone notices it

make heavy weather of sth

to find something hard to do and spend a lot of time on it, although it is not difficult

Labyrinthine

used to describe something that has a lot of parts and is therefore confusing

Rebarbative

unpleasant and unattractive

arcane

Mysterious và ít ng biết

prolix

using too many words and therefore boring or difficult to read or listen to

captious

often expressing criticisms about matters that are not important

Censorious

often criticizing other people

punctilious

very careful to behave correctly or to give attention to details

Tongue-in-cheek

said or done as a joke

button-up

used to describe a piece of clothing that fastens with a row of buttons up the front:

airs and graces

false ways of behaving that are intended to make other people feel that you are important and belong to a high social class:

hook, line, and sinker

completely

lock, stock, and barrel

including all or every part of something:

bells and whistles

special features that are added to a product or system to attract more buyers:

in variance with

to be in disagreement with someone or something, or to be different from him, her, or it:

steep in

đắm chìm, có nhiều kiến thức về

in collusion with

(organizations, people) agreed to act together secretly or illegally in order to deceive or cheat someone

run into problems

gặp vấn đề

come across as

to behave in a way that makes people believe that you have a particular characteristic:

fall through

fail to happen

set sth back

delay/reduce to a weaker state

set sb back

tốn nhiều tiền

lay up

force sb to stay in bed

wear sb down

to make someone feel tired and less able to deal successfully with a situation:

back off

• to stop being involved in a situation, usually in order to allow other people to deal with it themselves:

• lùi lại vì sợ ai
  
  

pull out

• hương tiện giao thông nhập làn / rời đi

• Rút quân khỏi một khu vực hoặc chiến trường (thường vì dc ordered)

• to stop being involved in an activity or agreement:

  
  

iron out

to remove problems or find solutions:

gloss over

to avoid considering something, such as an embarrassing mistake, to make it seem not important, and to quickly continue talking about something else:

play down

to make something seem less important or less bad than it really is:

talk sth up

to speak with enthusiasm about something:

clam up

to become silent suddenly, usually because you are embarrassed or nervous, or do not want to talk about a particular subject:

phase sth out

to remove or stop using something gradually or in stages

snap sth up

to buy or get something quickly and enthusiastically because it is cheap or exactly what you want:

drum sth up

to increase interest in something or support for something:

let on

to tell other people about something that you know, especially when it is a secret:

pass off

happen