READY FOR CAE UNIT 1 COLLOCATIONS & LISTENING

remote (possibility)

if a chance or possibility of something happening is .................. , it is not very likely to happen: I can't understand why he applied for the job; there wasn't even a _________________ possibility that he'd get it.

slim (chance)

very small in amount or number: Recent corruption scandals mean that the party now stands only a _________________ chance of victory in the forthcoming elections.

recurrent (problem)

happening or appearing several times: During his adolescence, serious illness was a __________________ problem and always seemed to strike at exam time.

daunting (challenge)

frightening in a way that makes you feel less confident: The situation does pose a rather _________________ challenge, but we will not be put off.

poor (motivation)

not as good as it could be or should be: His consistently low marks seem to be both the result and the cause of _________________ motivation.

overnight (success)

suddenly or surprisingly quickly: The book brought her great wealth and worldwide fame, but this was no _________________ success; her previous two novels had been bestsellers in her own country.

dismal (failure)

bad and unsuccessful: It was a night of __________________ failure for British athletes, whose recent successes had given cause for great optimism.

reject (the proposal)

to refuse to accept, believe in, or agree with something: Councillors have once again _____________________ the proposal for multi-storey car park exposure.

lifelong (ambition)

continuing or existing all through your life: As I've always said, it's been a ____________________ ambition of mine to play Hamlet, and now at last I can fulfil it.

inflexibility

unwillingness to make even the slightest change in your attitudes, plans etc: Management criticized the unions for their stubborn attitude and ___________________ in the wage negotiations.

sporting (achievement)

related to sports: Undoubtedly, the greatest __________________ acjievement of the year was Alek Schmidt's record-breaking marathon run of two hours and three minutes.

unfilled vacancies

available (job, position, vacancy) but no one has been found for it yet: The government is concerned at the number of ______________ vacancies in the nursing profession.

(achieve) notoriety for

the state of being famous or well known for something that is bad or that people do not approve of: He achieved _______________ ________________ failing a drugs test after winning the Olympic final.

meet requirements

Failure to _______________ legal safety _______________ has led to the temporary closure of the fairground.

burning (ambition)

a very strong ( ambition, desire, need etc): I have a _________________ ambition to travel to Australia.

(place) emphasis on

special attention or importance: There is a strong feeling within the company that greater ___________________ should be placed ________ staff development.

(light) refreshments

small amounts of food and drink that are provided at a meeting, sports event etc: Light _______________ will be served from 3.30pm in the main hall.

closeness to

the state of being not far from someone or something: She chose to live in Brighton because of its mild climate and ___________________ _______ London.

(in) eagerness

the state of being very keen and excited about something that is going to happen or about something you want to do: In her ________________ to answer the phone, she almost fell down the stairs.

(swear to) secrecy

to make someone promise not to repeat what you have told them: I cannot comment; I have been sworn to _____________ on the matter.

membership

when someone is a member of a club, group, or organization: The cost of __________________ has increased by 10% this year.

(pay for) breakages

things that have been broken while you were using them, or the charges made for doing this: Customers will be required to pay for any __________________ .

(increase) motivation

eagerness and willingness to do something without needing to be told or forced to do it: When pupils tire of studying, a system of rewards can help increase student _______________ .

(every) likelihood

the degree to which something can reasonably be expected to happen (probability): There is every ________________ that prices will continue to rise next year.

complete (failure)

used to emphasize that a quality or situation is as great as it could possibly be (total): Sadly, my attempts to learn Japanese met with ________________ failure .

(value) independence

the freedom and ability to make your own decisions in life: He valued his ________________ too much to ever want to get married.

formidable (challenge)

difficult to deal with and needing a lot of effort or skill: The government faces the ___________________ challenge of reducing unemployment.

(experience) anxiety

the feeling of being very worried about something: It's quite natural to experience a certain amount of ________________ on your first day at work.

simplicity

the quality of being simple and not complicated: The ________________ of the device is what has made it so popular.

publication

a book, magazine etc: His latest __________ is a book of verse on the theme of relationships.

standard (procedures)

accepted as normal or usual: In the interests of safety, a number of ________________ procedures need to be followed.

shortage

a situation in which there is not enough of something that people need: There is a chronic _________________ of housing in our cities.

pale into insignificance

to seem much less important when compared to something bigger, worse, more serious etc: Her 5000-metre run _______________ ____________ _______________ when compared with the marathon her grandfather completed the following week.

(complete) irrelevance

a lack of importance in a particular situation: The complete ___________________ of this answer shows that the candidate did not read the question carefully.

(express) disapproval of

an attitude that shows you think that someone or their behaviour, ideas etc are bad or not suitable: Union members expressed their ____________ ____________ the management's offer by walking out of the meeting.

(get a) kick (out of)

something that you enjoy because it is exciting: Just for a brief moment, I guess we got a _____________ out of it.

(do/play/have/come to a) gig

a performance by a musician or a group of musicians playing modern popular music or jazz, or a performance by a comedian: The fans who come to our __________ know our principles.

(feel/be) gutted

BrE spoken very shocked or disappointed

SYN devastated: I was ____________ when I lost my job.I was ____________ that the home team didn't come out on top.

(put the) blame on

responsibility for a mistake or for something bad: I can't put the ___________ __________ the coach, giving the novices a chance was a management decision.

(have no) regard for

respect and admiration for someone or something: They've got no ____________ __________ the fans, apparently.

(stir up) controversy

a serious argument about something that involves many people and continues for a long time: Newspapers usually stir up _____________ to increase the circulation.

(promote) awareness of

knowledge or understanding of a particular subject or situation: The idea was to promote _______________ ______________ how people feel.

(make/have a) debut

the first public appearance of an entertainer, sports player etc or of something new and important: Three of the players were making their _______________ .