when breath becomes air words

arbiter

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.

outmoded

​no longer fashionable or useful

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.

enervate

[] somebody to make somebody feel weak and tired

cliché

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

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.

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.

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

visceral

(literary) resulting from strong feelings rather than careful thought

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

awry

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

​not in the right position

exult

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

antiphon

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

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

deadening

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

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

cogitate

(about/on something) to think carefully about something

intracellular

located or occurring within a cell or cells.

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

reams

[plural] (informal) a large quantity of writing

​[countable] (specialist) 500 sheets of paper

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

smithy

a place where a blacksmith works

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

paralytic

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

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

carol

a Christian religious song sung at Christmas

grueling

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

trajectory

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

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.

surreal

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

biweekly

produced or happening every two weeks or twice each week

oncology

the scientific study of and treatment of tumors in the body

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

indignant

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

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

dismal

causing or showing the feeling of being sad

paragon

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

psychiatric

relating to mental illnesses

intractable

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

neuromodulation

delivering electrical signals to the brain

ineluctable

that you cannot avoid

spate

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

despondency

a feeling of being sad and without much hope

apse

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

convolution

a thing that is very complicated and difficult to follow

​a twist or curve, especially one of many

brittle

​hard but easily broken

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

apocryphal

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

allotted

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

tureen

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

oncologist

a doctor who studies and treats tumors in the body

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

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

volition

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

psychogenic

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

esoteric

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

dwindle

​to become gradually less or smaller

spiel

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

antiseptic

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

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

frontal

​connected with the front of something

(medical) connected with the front part of the head

benign

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

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

sheen

​a soft smooth shiny quality

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

levity

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

juridical

​connected with the law, judges or legal matters

pasty

pale and not looking healthy

a small pie containing meat and/or vegetables

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

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

amid

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

surrounded by something

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

meager

small in quantity and poor in quality

dehiscent

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

truculent

tending to argue or become angry; slightly aggressive

singly

alone; one at a time

rote

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

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

vengeful

showing a desire to punish somebody who has harmed you

inexorable

(of a process) that cannot be stopped or changed

discharge

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

gurney

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

pandora’s box

a process that, if started, will cause many problems

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

resuscitated

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

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

arteries

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

femoral

​relating to the thigh bone

catheters

a thin tube that is put into the body in order to remove liquid such as urine

diffuse

​ spread over a wide area

not clear or easy to understand; using a lot of words

swelling

[uncountable] the condition of being larger or rounder than normal

dilated

(of a part of the body) to become larger, wider or more open; to make a part of the body larger, wide or more open

intubation

a process where a healthcare provider inserts a tube through a person's mouth or nose, then down into their trachea (airway/windpipe)

labile

liable to change; easily altered.

barometer

an instrument for measuring air pressure to show when the weather will change

cognitive

connected with mental processes of understanding

prognosis

​*(medical)* an opinion, based on medical experience, of the likely development of a disease or an illness

(formal) a judgement about how something is likely to develop in the future

abdomen

​the part of the body below the chest that contains the stomach, bowels, etc.

concurrent

[] ​ (with something) existing or happening at the same time

inure to

[] somebody/yourself to something

(formal)

to make someone/yourself get used to something unpleasant so that they/you are no longer strongly affected by it

transcendence

​the ability to go beyond the usual limits; existence or experience beyond the normal or physical level

cloak

​to cover or hide something

compassionate

feeling or showing sympathy for people or animals who are suffering