English Vocabulary Unit 38 - 45

Archeologists

Person who studies material evidence from past societies.

empires

group of countries ruled by a single person

kingdom

A country ruled by a king or a queen

dynasties

different rulers who are all from the same family, or a period of time that a country is controlled by them

dawn

beginning

reigns

period that a queen, king or emperor rules.

heirs

person who is legally entitled to continue the work of someone important who has died or who has the same position as they had.

successors

person who takes over from another person

coronations

Event when a king or queen receives his/her crown

conquests

when someone or an army defeats and takes over another country

manuscripts

texts written by hand

peasants

person who works on the land and earns little, usually having a low social status. 

labourer

person who does unskilled manual work.

migrations

moving from one place to another in large numbers

shreds

Very small amounts

Bronze Age

Period when the metals copper and tin began to be used to make weapons, tools, etc. (Stone Age, Iron Age)

medieval

Of or from the European Middle Ages

Renaissance

Period of new Growth of interest and activity in the arts especially in Europa in the 14th to 16th centuries. 

pre-colonial

Period before Europeans arrived in large numbers (in America) and took power.

Post-colonial

Period after Europeans arrived in large numbers (in America) and took power.

infantry

soldiers on foot (uncountable)

cavalry

soldiers on horseback (uncountable)

(suit of) armor

metal protective clothing worn by soldiers

chariot

two-wheeled vehicle pulled by a horse and used in ancient times for racing and war

galleon

large sailing ship with three or four masts used in the 15h to 18th centuries

warlord

a military leader who controls a country or, more often, an area within a country

slave

person legally owned by someone and who has to work for them (noun = slavery)

ruler =

leader of a country

explorer

Someone who travels to places no one else is thought ever to have visited in order to find out what is there.

merchant

Someone who buys and sells things in large amounts, especially by trading with other countries.

monarch

neutral term for a king or queen ( a country with a king or queen at its head can also be called a monarchy)

The nobility

Collective term for people of the highest social rank in a society.

Fundamentally

In a basic and important way

denial

not allowing people to have

violation

act that spoils or destroys something

dignity

worth

absolute poverty

being poor according to a fixed minimum standard; sometimes called the poverty line.

relative poverty

Being poor in relation to others around you.

Extreme poverty

Living below the poverty line

Human poverty

Being poor in a range of ways, not only financial

Another word for extreme poverty?

penury

social context

situation

Shelter

A place to live that is protected from the weather.

Nutrition

Food that people take into their body

malnourished

suffering from ill health because of poor food. (noun = malnourishment, malnutrition)

Literacy

Ability to read and write

sanitation

System for taking dirty water and waste from homes to ensure good hygiene

deprivation

lacking in things considered necessary for a pleasant life.

classed

categorised

affluence;affluent

wealth;wealthy

Below the breadline

Having the level of income of an extremely poor person.

To make ends meet

To have enough money to buy all you need.

poverty-stricken

affected by poverty

impoverished

poor, without money to live on.

destitute (adj)

without money, home, food or possessions (noun = destitution)

money has been tight

There has not been much money.

Tighten our belts

Spend less than before

lowest income bracket

The group earning the least money. 

Lobby (v)

Try to influence the opinions of MP’s and Lords

Petition

formal process involving sending a written appeal to an MP, following a set format, which is then presented to the Commons by the MP

legislation

possible future laws

committee stage

period after a proposed law has been discussed by parliament when it is looked at in detail by a different group of people.

Bill

Proposal for a law currently under discussion.

Select committee

a committee that checks and reports on some aspect of government work.

scrutinising

looking very closely at

rallies

large political meetings or demonstrations

briefing

informational

ultimately

in the end

(something is) down to

(something is being) the responsibility of

(something is correctly) set out

(something is) in the right format

Hansard

The official record of parliamentary business

present

make something known

constituents

People, who voted for them (MP), people in their constituency (political region)

Speaker (british political system)

MP with responsibility for controlling for controlling the way parliamentary business is done.

observations (from government departments)

comments

substantive

of significance

policies

official plans of action

crossing departmental boundaries

dealing with different departments

Environmental Audit

Closely examines environmental consequences of government decisions

Allegations

Complaints that have not been proven

conduct (n)

behaviour

to shadow (v)

To follow closely to see how a job is done

wide-ranging 

covering many subjects, diverse

expertise

high level of knowledge or skill

constitution

full set of laws of a country

constituted

formed (used about an official organisation)

humanity

all people

foundation

Time, when it was established (founded)

pursued

try to achieve (pursue an aim, goal, career, strategy etc.)

establish

set up, put in place

conquering

beating, getting rid of

illiteracy

inability to read and write

negotiations

discussions in an attempt to reach an agreement

injustice

unfairness

to uphold

to support

minorities

groups of people who differ racially or in some other ways from most of the people in the place they live. (ethnic, religious, oppressed minority)

intervention

involvement in a difficult situation in order to improve it

justified

caused by a good reason

political movement

a group of people with the same belief that work in order to achieve something

slogan

a short phrase that catches peoples attention and is easy to remember