DUO Section01 ~ 03
■ assure verb
1. to tell someone that something will definitely happen or is definitely true so that they are less worried
- Her doctor has assured us that she’ll be fine.
- The document is genuine, I can assure you.
2. to make something certain to happen or to be achieved
- A win on Saturday will assure them ofpromotion to Division One.
■ turn out
■ pillar
1. a tall upright round post used as a support for a roof or bridge
■ subtle adjective
1. not easy to notice or understand unlessyou pay careful attention
- The pictures are similar, but there are subtle differences between them.
■ scent noun
1. a pleasant smell that something has
- a yellow rose with a lovely scent
■ soak verb
1. if you soak something, or if you let it soak, you keep it covered with a liquid for a period of time, especially in order to make it softer or easier to clean
- Let the pans soak; I’ll wash them later.
■ scarcely adverb
1. almost not or almost none at all
- The city had scarcely changed in 20 years.
- It was getting dark and she couldscarcely see in front of her.
■ prose noun
1. written language in its usual form, as opposed to poetry
■ encyclopedia
1. a book or CD, or a set of these, containing facts about many different subjects, or containing detailed facts about one subject:
■ quote verb
1. to repeat exactly what someone else has said or written:
- He quoted a short passage from the Bible.
■ fable noun
1. a traditional short story that teaches a moral lesson, especially a story about animals:
■ contemporary adjective
1. belonging to the present time
■ next to
■ at times
■ more or less
■ those who
■ beyond description
■ move over
■ abstract adjective
1. based on general ideas or principles rather than specific examples or real events
- Human beings are the only creatures capable of abstract thought(=thinking about ideas).
■ beg
1. to ask for something in an anxious or urgent way, because you want it very much:
- She begged and pleaded with themuntil they finally agreed.
■ apt adjective
be apt to do something
1. to have a natural tendency to do something
- Some of the staff are apt to arrive late on Mondays.
2. exactly right for a particular situation or purpose
- ‘Love at first sight’ is a very apt description of how he felt when he saw her.
■ impulse noun
1. a sudden strong desire to do something without thinking about whether it is a sensible thing to do
- Gerry couldn’t resist the impulse to kiss her.
■ as it is
a)(TRUE) because of the situation that actually exists – used when that situation is different from what you expected or needed:
- They hoped to finish the kitchen by Friday, but as it is they’ll probably have to come back next week.
■ compromise noun
1. an agreement that is achieved after everyone involved accepts less than what they wanted at first, or the act of making this agreement:
- Compromise is an inevitable part of marriage.
■ certain adjective
1. confident and sure, without any doubts
- I felt certain that I’d passed the test.
■ extent noun
1 to... extent
used to say how true something is or how great an effect or change is:
- I do agree with him to an extent.
■ competent adjective
1. having enough skill or knowledge to do something to a satisfactory standard
- A competent mechanic should be able to fix the problem.
■ decent adjective
1. of a good enough standard or quality:
- Don’t you have a decent jacket?
2. following moral standards that are acceptable to society
- The majority of residents here are decent citizens.
■ concrete adjective
1. made of concrete:
2. definite and specific
- First, the police must have concrete evidence of an offence.
■ welfare noun
1. someone’s welfare is their health and happiness:
- Our only concern is the children’s welfare.
