CPE vocabulary

Ms Huong 23-5-2025

thrust upon

to force someone to accept or deal with something:

Fatherhood had been thrust on him.

get an inkling of

a feeling that something is true or likely to happen, although you are not certain:

[ + that ] I didn't have the slightest inkling that she was unhappy.

inkling of He must have had some inkling of what was happening.

glimmer

a slight sign of something good or positive:

glimmer of hope This month's sales figures offer a glimmer of hope for the depressed economy.

glimmer of interest She's never shown a glimmer of interest in classical music.

glimmer of light The first glimmer of light (= sign of development or understanding) has appeared in the peace talks.

to shine with a weak light or a light that is not continuous:

The lights of the village were glimmering in the distance.

glimmer with The sky glimmered with stars.

impromptu (a)

done or said without earlier planning or preparation (spontaneous)

an impromptu party/performance

float

to suggest a plan or an idea to be considered:

float an idea Laura has floated the idea that we should think about expanding into Europe next year.

to move or act without purpose:

float around/about Since he lost his job, he's just floated around/about doing nothing.

extemporize

to speak or perform without any preparation or thought:

I'd lost my notes and had to extemporize.

Các từ đồng nghĩa

ad-lib

improvise

scrawled impromptu headline=extemporized headline

pan out

to work out

We'll have to see how things pan out.

Their attempt to start a new business didn't pan out.

wing one’s way to sw

find your way to sw (figurative)

*wing it (=impromptu, extemporised)

to perform or speak without having prepared what you are going to do or say:

I didn't have time to prepare for the talk, so I just had to wing it.

irascible

made angry easily:

She's becoming more and more irascible as she grows older.
Các từ đồng nghĩa

bad-tempered

choleric formal

short-tempered

quake in their shoes/boots

If you are quaking in your boots or quaking in your shoes, you feel extremely nervous or afraid

potter on

to move around without hurrying, and in a relaxed and pleasant way (linger on)

I spent the afternoon pottering around the garden doing a few odd jobs.

He doesn't drive very fast - he tends to potter along.

find one’s feet

to become familiar with and confident in a new situation:

Did it take you long to find your feet when you started your new job?

put out

to annoy or upset someone, often by what you do or say to them:

She was very put out when they turned up two hours late for dinner.

He seemed a bit put out at not having been invited.

to cause trouble or extra work for someone:

Would it put you out if we came tomorrow instead of today?

personage (n)

to cause trouble or extra work for someone:

Would it put you out if we came tomorrow instead of today?

raid

to enter a place illegally and usually violently, and steal from it:

The post office was raided late at night.

(of the police) to enter a place suddenly in order to find someone or something:

Police officers from the organized crime division have raided businesses in central London.

to take something from a place, usually secretly:

I caught Toby raiding the fridge.