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arbiter

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130 Terms
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arbiter

(of something) a person with the power or influence to make judgements and decide what will be done or accepted

  • The law is the final arbiter of what is considered obscene.

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outmoded

​no longer fashionable or useful

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hubris

the fact of being too proud. In literature, a character with this quality ignores warnings and laws and this usually results in their downfall and death.

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enervate

[] somebody to make somebody feel weak and tired

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cliché

a phrase or an idea that has been used so often that it no longer has much meaning and is not interesting

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purview

(formal) within/outside the limits of what a person, an organization, etc. is responsible for; dealt/ not dealt with by a document, law, etc.

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trimester

​*(medical)* a period of three months during the time when a woman is pregnant

(North American English)

(also term especially in British English)

one of the three periods in the year during which classes are held in schools, universities, etc.

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scarf

a piece of cloth that is worn around the neck, for example for warmth or decoration. Women also wear scarves over their shoulders or hair

to eat a lot of something quickly

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visceral

(literary) resulting from strong feelings rather than careful thought

(anatomy) relating to the large organs inside the body, especially the intestines

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awry

​if something goes awry, it does not happen in the way that was planned

​not in the right position

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exult

​to feel and show that you are very excited and happy because of something that has happened

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antiphon

(in traditional Western Christian liturgy) a short sentence sung or recited before or after a psalm or canticle.

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tenable

(of a theory, an opinion, etc.) easy to defend against attack or criticism

[not before noun] (of a job, position, etc., especially in a university) that can be held for a particular period of time

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deadening

​making something such as a sound, a feeling, etc. less strong

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monolithic

​used to describe large single vertical blocks of stone, especially ones that were shaped into a column by people living in ancient times, and that may have had some religious meaning

​*(often disapproving)* used to describe single, very large organizations that are very slow to change and not interested in individual people

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cogitate

(about/on something) to think carefully about something

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intracellular

located or occurring within a cell or cells.

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traction

the action of pulling something along a surface; the power that is used for doing this

a way of treating a broken bone in your body that involves using special equipment to pull the bone gradually back into its correct place

the force that stops something, for example the wheels of a vehicle, from sliding on the ground

​the extent to which an idea, a product, etc. becomes popular or gains support

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reams

[plural] (informal) a large quantity of writing

​[countable] (specialist) 500 sheets of paper

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conscience

[countable, uncountable] the part of your mind that tells you whether your actions are right or wrong

[uncountable, countable] a guilty feeling about something you have done or failed to do

[uncountable] the fact of behaving in a way that you feel is right even though this may cause problems

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smithy

a place where a blacksmith works

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loomed

[intransitive] (+ adv./prep.) to appear as a large shape that is not clear, especially in a frightening way

[intransitive] (of something bad) to appear serious and likely to happen soon

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paralytic

[not before noun] (British English, informal) very drunk

[usually before noun] (formal) affected by paralysis; making somebody unable to move

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carol

a Christian religious song sung at Christmas

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grueling

very difficult and making you very tired, needing great effort for a long time

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trajectory

the curved path of something that has been fired, hit or thrown into the air

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ambition

[countable] something that you want to do or achieve very much

[uncountable] the desire or strength of mind to be successful, rich, powerful, etc.

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surreal

very strange; more like a dream than reality, with ideas and images mixed together in a strange way

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biweekly

produced or happening every two weeks or twice each week

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oncology

the scientific study of and treatment of tumors in the body

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inflected/inflection (verb/noun)

[intransitive] if a word [], its ending or spelling changes according to its grammatical function in a sentence; if a language [], it has words that do this

​a change in how high or low your voice is as you are speaking

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indignant

feeling or showing anger and surprise because you think that you have been treated unfairly

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prosody

(specialist) the patterns of sounds and rhythms in poetry; the study of this

(phonetics) the part of phonetics that deals with stress and intonation as opposed to individual speech sounds

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dismal

causing or showing the feeling of being sad

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paragon

a person who is perfect or who is a perfect example of a particular good quality

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psychiatric

relating to mental illnesses

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intractable

(of a problem or a person) very difficult to deal with

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neuromodulation

delivering electrical signals to the brain

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ineluctable

that you cannot avoid

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spate

[] of something a large number of things, which are usually unpleasant, that happen suddenly within a short period of time

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despondency

a feeling of being sad and without much hope

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apse

a small area in a church, often in the shape of a semicircle and usually at the east end of the building

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convolution

a thing that is very complicated and difficult to follow

​a twist or curve, especially one of many

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brittle

​hard but easily broken

​(of a sound) hard and sharp in an unpleasant way

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apocryphal

(of a story) well known, but probably not true

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allotted

​to give time, money, tasks, etc. to somebody/something as a share of what is available

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tureen

a large, deep dish with a lid (= cover), used for serving vegetables or soup

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oncologist

a doctor who studies and treats tumors in the body

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metastases

​the development of tumors in different parts of the body resulting from cancer that has started in another part of the body; one of these tumors

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battery

[countable] battery (of something) a large number of things or people of the same type

[countable] (specialist) a number of large guns that are used together

[countable] (British English)(often used as an adjective)a large number of small cages that are joined together and are used for keeping chickens, etc. in on a farm

​[uncountable] (law) the crime of attacking somebody physically

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volition

the power to choose something freely or to make your own decisions

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psychogenic

having a psychological (mental) origin or cause rather than a physical one.

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esoteric

likely to be understood or enjoyed by only a few people with a special knowledge or interest

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dwindle

​to become gradually less or smaller

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spiel

a speech that somebody has used many times that is intended to persuade you to believe something or buy something

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antiseptic

a substance that helps to prevent infection in wounds by killing bacteria

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hubbub

​the loud sound made by a lot of people talking at the same time

a situation in which there is a lot of noise, excitement and activity

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frontal

​connected with the front of something

(medical) connected with the front part of the head

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benign

(formal) (of people) kind and gentle; not hurting anybody

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lobe

(also earlobe)

the soft part at the bottom of the ear

​a part of an organ in the body, especially the lungs or brain

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sheen

​a soft smooth shiny quality

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instilled

to gradually put an idea or attitude into somebody's mind; to make somebody feel, think or behave in a particular way over a period of time

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levity

behaviour that shows a lack of respect for something serious and that treats it with humour

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juridical

​connected with the law, judges or legal matters

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pasty

pale and not looking healthy

a small pie containing meat and/or vegetables

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battered

old, used a lot, and not in very good condition

​attacked violently or repeatedly and injured

​[usually before noun] attacked and badly damaged by weapons or by bad weather

​[usually before noun] (of food) covered in batter and fried

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sheared

​[transitive] shear something to cut the wool off a sheep

[intransitive, transitive] shear (something) (off) (specialist) (especially of metal) to break under pressure; to cut through something and make it break

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amid

in the middle of or during something, especially something that causes excitement or fear

surrounded by something

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solace

a feeling of emotional comfort when you are sad or disappointed; a person or thing that makes you feel better or happier when you are sad or disappointed

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meager

small in quantity and poor in quality

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dehiscent

(of a pod or wound) characterized by splitting or bursting open.

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truculent

tending to argue or become angry; slightly aggressive

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singly

alone; one at a time

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rote

the process of learning something by repeating it until you remember it rather than by understanding the meaning of it

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formalism

a style or method in art, music, literature, etc. that pays more attention to the rules and the correct arrangement and appearance of things than to inner meaning and feelings

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vengeful

showing a desire to punish somebody who has harmed you

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inexorable

(of a process) that cannot be stopped or changed

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discharge

[transitive, often passive] to allow somebody to leave hospital because they are well enough to leave

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gurney

a type of trolley that is used for moving patients in a hospital

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pandora’s box

a process that, if started, will cause many problems

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neurosurgeon

a doctor who performs operations on the nervous system (​the system of all the nerves in the body that carries messages between the brain and the rest of the body), especially the brain

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resuscitated

[] ​ somebody/something to make somebody start breathing again or become conscious again after they have almost died

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trauma

[uncountable] (psychology) a mental condition caused by severe shock, stress or fear, especially when the harmful effects last for a long time

​[uncountable, countable] (medical) an injury

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arteries

any of the tubes that carry blood from the heart to other parts of the body

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