GOLD ADVANCED WORDLIST U2

insensitive - not noticing, or not taking the care to, other people’s feelings, and not realizing
when they are upset
narrowly, HARDLY, BARELY
bizarre
blindfolded with your eyes covered by a piece of cloth
showdown – a meeting, argument, fight etc that will settle a disagreement or competition
that has continued for a long time
Britain has a World Cup showdown with Australia next month.
capitalisation -to write a letter of the alphabet using a capital letter
It's important to learn the capitalisation rules in English.
dismiss - to refuse to consider someone’s idea, opinion etc, because you think it is not
serious, true, or important
dread - to feel anxious or worried about something that is going to happen or may happen
I’m dreading going back to work. (notice: past continuous here)
unbalanced argument –
The government's report is a totally unbalanced one and should not be taken as true.
privacy -Freedom of the press has to led a lack of privacy for many people.
sensitivity - His comments show a lack of sensitivity.
disturbed - worried or upset
Police are very disturbed about the latest trend.
reassuring - making you feel less worried or frightened
It’s reassuring to know that problems are rare.audio
slog – noun - piece of work that takes a lot of time and effort and is usually boring
It’ll be a slog, but I know we can do it.
shameless - not seeming to be ashamed of your bad behaviour although other people think
you should be ashamed
She shamelessly took advantage of him.
distract
cultivated - a cultivated image is one which has been carefully improved or developed
Her cultivated image makes her appear more interesting than she really is.
Image - the opinion people have of a person, organization, product etc, or the way a
person, organization etc seems to be to the public
He is trying to improve his public image.
fulfil a need
endeavour - an attempt to do something new or difficult
They made every endeavour to find the two boys.
ultimately - finally, after everything else has been done or considered
Ultimately, the decision rests with the child’s parents.
sour - sharp,bad, unpleasant etc
The meeting ended on a sour note, with neither side able to reach agreement.
subtle /satl/ - not easy to notice or understand unless you pay careful attention
The pictures are similar, but there are subtle differences between them.
tactics - a method that you use to achieve something
Shock tactics are being used in an attempt to stop drink drivers.
response - something that is done as a reaction to something that has happened or been
said - The law was passed in response to public pressure.
unambitious - feeling or showing lack of ambition
His unambitious approach to work held him back from any promotion.
witty - using words in a clever and amusing way
He's always making witty remarks.
empathise - to be able to understand someone else’s feelings, problems etc, especially
because you have had similar experiences
My mother died last year so I can really empathize with what he’s going through.
went on - to continue doing something or being in a situation
He went on working until he was 91.
eloquence - ability to express your ideas and opinions well, especially in a way that
influences people - She spoke with feeling and eloquence.
banter- friendly conversation in which people make a lot of jokes with, and amusing
remarks about, each other. - She enjoyed the easy banter amongst her friends.
sarcastic- saying things that are the opposite of what you mean, in order to make an
unkind joke or to show that you are annoyed
He can’t help making sarcastic comments.
sporadic- happening fairly often, but not regularly
There has been sporadic violence downtown.
unease - a feeling of worry or slight fear about something
As she neared the door, Amy felt a growing sense of unease.
burst- a short sudden effort or increase in activity
The van gave a sudden burst of speed.
dismantled - to gradually get rid of a system or organization
They made an election promise to dismantle the existing tax legislation.
dwindle- to gradually become less and less or smaller and smaller
His money had dwindled away.
courteous- polite and showing respect for other people
The staff are always courteous and helpful.
struck down by- to kill someone or make them extremely ill
Over 50 nurses at the clinic have been struck down with a mystery virus.
acquaintance - someone you know, but who is not a close friend
She was a casual acquaintance of my family in Vienna.
blocked off- to completely close something such as a road or an opening.
Police blocked off the city centre streets.
wandered- if your mind, thoughts etc wander, you no longer pay attention to something,
especially because you are bored or worried
Mrs Snell’s mind wandered and the voices went on and on.
Flicked - to move with a sudden quick movement, or to make something move in this way
The cow’s tail flicked from side to side.
Stereotyping - the action of deciding unfairly that a type of person has particular qualities or
abilities because they belong to a particular race, sex, or social class
Stereotyping is not only hurtful, it is also wrong.
chat-up line - something that someone says in order to start a conversation with someone
they think is sexually attractive
Despite your awful chat-up line I will go out for dinner with you.
abstract
existing only as an idea or quality rather than as something real that you can see or touch
His ideas were too abstract to be of any practical use.
touching
making you feel pity, sympathy, sadness etc
It was a touching reunion of father and son.
eagerness
the state of being very keen and excited about something that is going to happen or about
something you want to do
People were pushing each other out of the way in their eagerness to get to the front.
debate
a formal discussion of a particular problem, subject etc in which people express different
opinions, and sometimes vote on them
There was much lively debate about whether women should spend more time in the home.
discussion
when you discuss something
The embassy will continue discussions with the Chinese government.
presentation
an event at which you describe or explain a new product or idea
We will begin a series of presentations to help the public fully understand our system.
speech
a talk, especially a formal one about a particular subject, given to a group of people
Each child had to give a short speech to the rest of the class.
statement
something you say or write, especially publicly or officially, to let people know your intentions
or opinions, or to record facts
In an official statement, she formally announced her resignation.
trustworthy
able to be trusted and depended on
If you have any financial problems John can help you. He's a very trustworthy person.
authoritative
behaving or speaking in a confident determined way that makes people
respect and obey you
He has a commanding presence and an voice.
flat
‘He’s dead,’ she said in a flat voice.
harsh
unpleasantly loud and rough - His voice was harsh and menacing.
high-pitched
She spoke in a very high-pitched voice.
husky
a husky voice is deep, quiet, and attractive
‘Come quickly,’ she said in a husky whisper.
mellow
a mellow sound is pleasant and smooth
He had such a warm, mellow voice, that I began to drift off to sleep.
nasal
a sound or voice that is nasal comes mainly through your nose
He spoke in a high nasal voice.
soothing
a soothing sound makes someone feel calmer and less anxious, upset or angry
The soothing sound of her singing helped the baby to fall asleep.
squeaky
I can’t stand her squeaky voice.
warm
friendly or making someone feel comfortable and relaxed
Please give a warm welcome to our special guest.
wobbly
a wobbly voice is weak and shakes, especially because you feel frightened or upset
Her wobbly voice gave away how emotional she was feeling.
vocal
relating to the voice or to singingAllison’s vocal style is influenced by country and
blues music.
speaks volumes
if something speaks volumes, it clearly shows the nature of something or the feelings of a
person
What you wear speaks volumes about you.
breathy
if someone’s voice is breathy, you can hear their breath when they speak
She had an attractive, breathy voice.
crude
offensive or rude, especially in a sexual way
His language was often crude.
letting yourself down
to not do something that someone trusts or expects you to do
He felt he had let himself down when he didn’t win the race.
budget
the money that is available to an organization or person, or a plan of how it will be spent
The budget for photography has been cut.
address
if you address a problem, you start trying to solve it
Our products address the needs of real users.
feedback
advice, criticism etc about how successful or useful something is
How can I provide feedback without making someone angry?
offence
when you offend or upset someone by something you do or say
The problem was how to say ‘no’ to her without causing offence.
disinclined
to be unwilling to do something - I was disinclined to talk to Sam about it.
offensive
very rude or insulting and likely to upset people - I found her remarks deeply offensive.
heavy-going
difficult to understand or deal with - I found his latest novel a bit heavy-going.
justify
to give an acceptable explanation for something that other people think is unreasonable
Ministers must appear before Parliament and justify their actions.
conventions
behaviour and attitudes that most people in a society consider to be normal and right
Playing together teaches children social conventions such as sharing.
cognitive
related to the process of knowing, understanding, and learning something
The cognitive abilities of young children are often underestimated.
bears .... out
if facts or information bear out a claim, story, opinion etc, they help to prove thatit is true
Evidence bears out the idea that students learn best in small groups.
juvenile
silly and typical of a child rather than an adult - He has a very juvenile sense of humour.
Childlike
having qualities that are typical of a child, especially positive qualities such
as innocence and eagerness. - ‘You know I love you,’ she said with childlike simplicity.
youthful
typical of young people, or seeming young
She has managed to maintain her youthful appearance.
demeanor
the way someone behaves, dresses, speaks etc that shows what their character is like
I like his quiet, reserved demeanor. It has a very calming effect on those around him.
mature
someone, especially a child or young person, who is mature behaves in a sensible and
reasonable way, as you would expect an adult to behave
Laura is very mature for her age.
puerile
silly and stupid - He's always making puerile jokes.
geriatric
too old to work well - He's a geriatric rock star.
adolescent
a young person, usually between the ages of 12 and 18, who is developing into an adult
His adolescent behaviour drives us mad.
childish
behaving in a silly way that makes you seem much younger than you really are
boyish
someone who is boyish looks or behaves like a boy in a way that is attractive
At 45, she still had a trim boyish figure.