Destination Unit 12

Attribute sth to sth

Ex: The power failure was attributed to the recent storms and high winds.

To say or believe that something is the result of a particular thing

Haphazard

Ex: The books had been piled on the shelves in a haphazard fashion.

=Messy, With no particular order or plan; not organized well

Hazard to/of

Ex: Growing levels of pollution represent a serious health hazard to the local population.

Ex: Everybody is aware of the hazards of smoking.

Something that can be dangerous or cause damage

Inadvertent = unintentional

Done by accident, without being intended

Instrumental in

Ex: He was instrumental in bringing about an end to the conflict.

Important in making something happen

Lucky charm

Vật may mắn

Superstitious

Ex: I'm superstitious about the number 13.

Mê tín

Wobble

Ex: This chair wobbles.

Lung lay, lắc lư

Greenery

Ex: The room was decorated with flowers and greenery.

attractive green leaves and plants

Instinct

Ex: Children do not know by instinct the difference between right and wrong.

Bản năng

Chance upon sb

= Come across/ run into sb [Phrasal verb: chance]

Cut back (on sth)

Ex: If we don't sell more we'll have to cut back production.

Ex: to cut back on spending

to reduce something (esp. money that you spend) [Phrasal verb: cut]

Die out

Ex: This species has nearly died out because its habitat is being destroyed.

to stop existing (tuyệt chủng) = become exstinct [Phrasal verb: die out]

Dig the dirt/ Dig up dirt on sb

Ex: They hired private investigators to dig up dirt on their political opponents.

Bươi móc chuyện xấu của ai đó [Dig]

Put down to

Ex: What do you put her success down to?

to consider that something is caused by something [Phrasal verb: Put]

Spring up
Ex: Play areas for children are springing up all over the place.

to appear or develop quickly and/or suddenly [Phrasal verb: Spring]

Store up

Ex: By ignoring your feelings you are only storing up trouble for yourself.

Ex: She had stored up all her anger and eventually snapped.

1. to not deal with problems when you have them, especially when this causes problems later

2. to not express strong feelings, especially negative feelings, so that they get even stronger and cause problems later

   [Store]

Bet/Risk sth on sth

Ex: She bet everything on her startup succeeding.

to risk money, trust, or confidence on the outcome of an event. It’s often used in gambling or figuratively to express strong belief in something. [Bet]

a good/safe/sure bet

Ex: Clothes are a safe bet as a present for a teenager.

something that is likely to happen, to succeed or to be suitable [Bet]

for certain

Ex: I can’t say for certain when we’ll arrive

without doubt [certain]

Make certain (that)

Ex: I think there’s a bus at 8 but you'd better call to make certain.

to find out whether something is definitely true [certain]

Take a chance (on sth)

Ex: We took a chance on the weather and planned to have the party outside.

to decide to do something, knowing that it might be the wrong choice [chance]

Leave nothing to chance
Ex: We'll plan everything very carefully and leave nothing to chance.

to plan things carefully; to make certain that everything happens as planned [chance]

Second chance
Ex: Jeff deceived me once already—I won't give him a second chance.

an opportunity to try something again after failing or making a mistake [chance]

Pure/Sheer chance
Ex: It was sheer chance that we were both there.

a situation that happens entirely due to luck, without any deliberate cause [chance]

Stand a chance (of doing something)
Ex: She stands a good chance of passing her exam.

to have the possibility of succeeding or achieving something [chance]

There's every chance that
Ex: There's every chance that she'll be elected.

used to indicate that something is very likely to happen [chance]

There's no chance that
Ex: There's no chance that he'll change his mind.

used to indicate that something is impossible or very unlikely to happen [chance]

By dint of (sth/doing sth)
Ex: He succeeded by dint of hard work.

by means of sth [dint]

At sb's disposal
Ex: He will have a car at his disposal for the whole month.

available for use as you prefer/sb prefers [disposal]

Find yourself doing sth
Ex: He looked up to find her watching him.

to discover yourself doing sth or in a particular situation, especially when this is unexpected [find]

Find your way
Ex: Will you be able to find your way back?

to reach a destination by discovering the right way to get there [find]

Educated guess (<> wild guess, lucky guess, rough guess)
Ex: Let's make an educated guess.

a guess that is based on some degree of knowledge, and is therefore likely to be correct [guess]

At a guess
Ex: At a guess, he was in his early sixties.

used when giving an approximate amount or measurement to indicate uncertainty [guess]

It (just) so happens that = As luck would have it
Ex: It just so happened they'd been invited too.

by chance [happen]

As it happens
Ex: As it happens, I have a spare set of keys in my office.

used when you say something that is surprising, or something connected with what someone else has just said [happen]

At lightning speed
Ex: She completed the task at lightning speed.

extremely quickly [lightning]

Trust to luck
Ex: I stumbled along in the dark, trusting to luck to find the right door.

to put your confidence in something such as luck, chance, etc. because there is nothing else to help you [trust]

The luck of the draw
Ex: To a large extent the life you have depends on who your parents were; it’s just the luck of the biological draw.

the fact that chance decides something, in a way that you cannot control [luck]

A stroke/piece of luck
Ex: Finding that money was a real stroke of luck.

an unexpected fortunate event [luck]

In luck
Ex: Do you have any tickets for tonight’s game?" "You’re in luck – we have two left.

experiencing a surprisingly good situation [luck]

In the nature of sth
Ex: His speech was in the nature of an apology.

similar to something; a type of something [nature]

In sb's nature
Ex: It's not in his nature to be unkind.

the usual way that a person or an animal behaves that is part of their character [nature]

Second nature
Ex: He found that teaching was second nature to him.

something that you do very easily and naturally, because it is part of your character or you have done it so many times [nature]

The odds are that = chances are that

The odds of doing

= chances

Against all (the) odds
Ex: Against all (the) odds, he made a full recovery.

despite the likelihood of failure or defeat [odds]

Caught in the rain
Ex: We didn't have our umbrellas and got caught in the rain.

to be unexpectedly subjected to rainfall without appropriate protection [caught]

Run the risk of sth/doing sth = put sth at risk
Ex: We don't want to run the risk of losing their business.

to be or put yourself in a situation in which something bad could happen to you [risk]

Pose a risk/threat to sb/sth
Ex: Pollutants in the river pose a real risk to the fish.

to create a threat, problem, etc. that has to be dealt with [pose]

Under threat
Ex: These ancient woodlands are under threat from new road developments.

the possibility of trouble, danger, or disaster [threat]

In all weathers = come rain or shine
Ex: He goes fishing in all weathers.

if something is done in all weathers, it is done in every type of weather [weathers]

Under the weather
Ex: I'm feeling a bit under the weather today.

feeling slightly ill and not as well as usual [weather]

Weatherproof
Ex: The finished roof should be weatherproof for years.

that is not affected by weather; that protects sb/sth from wind and rain [weatherproof]

Gust of wind
Ex: A gust of wind blew his hat off.

Một cơn gió [wind]

Winds of change
Ex: A wind of change was blowing through the banking world.

an event or a series of events that has started to happen and will cause important changes or results [winds]

Act of God
Ex: The insurance company refused to pay for the damage, claiming it was an act of God.

an event caused by natural forces beyond human control, such as a storm, a flood or an earthquake [act]

Be down on your luck
Ex: In the movie, they play two jazz musicians who are down on their luck.

to have no money because of a period of bad luck [luck]

Draw the short straw
Ex: Mike drew the short straw and had to clean the bathroom.

to have to do the least enjoyable of a range of duties, often because you have been chosen to do it [straw]

Have green fingers
Ex: She really has green fingers; her garden is always beautiful.

to be good at making plants grow [green fingers]

Let nature take its course
Ex: The midwife must judge when to let nature take its course and when to intervene.

to allow natural processes to happen, without trying to stop or change them (used especially in the context of illness) [nature]

Out of the blue
Ex: The decision came out of the blue.

unexpectedly; without warning [blue]

Assessor

People who assess [Word Form: Assess]

Causative

Ex: Smoking is a causative factor in several major diseases.

(formal) acting as the cause of something [Word Form: Cause]

Causal

Ex: the causal relationship between poverty and disease

(formal) connected with the relationship between two things, where one causes the other to happen [Word Form: Cause]

Elusive

Ex: Eric, as elusive as ever, was nowhere to be found.

difficult to find, define or achieve [Word Form: Elude]

Fortuitous

Ex: His success depended on a fortuitous combination of circumstances.

happening by chance, especially a lucky chance that brings a good result [Word Form: Fortune]

Instinctively = by instinct

Theo bản năng [Word Form: Instinct]

Unintended

Ex: In law you are considered responsible for the unintended consequences of your actions.

[Adj] Result or meaning is one that you did not plan or intend to happen [Word Form: Intend]

Surmount

(in)surmountable

Ex: She was well aware of the difficulties that had to be surmounted.

= Overcome [Word Form: Mount]

Mountaineer

Người leo núi [Word Form: Mountain]

Mistify

Ex: They were totally mystified by the girl's disappearance.

= Baffle [Word Form: Mystery]

Recurring = Recurrent

[Adj] repeated [Word Form: Occur]

(im)probability

=(un)likelihood [Word Form: Probable]

Seeming

Ex: We discussed the seeming contradiction of his arguments.

Ex: it was a seemingly impossible task.

appearing to be something that may not be true [Word Form: Seem]

Seemingly

Ex: Seemingly, he borrowed the money from the bank.

= Apparently, according to what you have read or heard [Word Form: Seem]