Outcomes Pre-Int VocabBuilder Unit8
Outcomes Pre-Int VocabBuilder Unit8
8 EDUCATION
Pages 70–71 are seen by large numbers of people) on social attitudes |
last year, there were media reports that the prime
finals /ˈfaɪn(ə)lz/ Noun plural minister was going to resign | most of the news media
finals are the exams that university students take at the supported the president
end of their course
I’ve got my finals next term | I hope I don’t fail my finals nursery /ˈnɜː(r)s(ə)ri/ Noun
| she’s sitting her finals next month (taking the exams) | a nursery is a place where very young children are
good luck in your finals! looked after while their parents are at work. In Britain,
a nursery school is a school for very young children
Adjective: final
between three and five years old
what happens if you fail your final exams? | we’re in the
my youngest daughter starts nursery next month | she
middle of our final exams
goes to nursery three days a week | I’ve known him
fluent /ˈfluːənt/ Adjective since we were at nursery school together
if you are fluent, you speak a language easily and
off /ɒf/ Adverb
without making mistakes
if you have time off or take time off, you spend a period
Collocates: be fluent in something | a fluent speaker of time not working or studying but doing something
I won’t become fluent in English if I don’t work hard different
enough | she’s fluent in English, French and Spanish, Collocates: take time off | be off
and even speaks some Italian and Portuguese | he is a
I’m taking a year off to go travelling | I need to take the
fluent speaker of German
day off on Friday | I can’t come to the meeting because
Adverb: fluently | Noun: fluency I’m off tomorrow | after three weeks off I nearly forgot
she writes very fluently | after just a year living in where the office was! | I can’t take any time off till we’ve
Aldershot, he could speak English fluently | these finished the project
exercises will help you improve your fluency
pass /pɑːs/ Verb
graduate /ˈɡrædʒueɪt/ Verb if you pass a test or exam, you succeed in it
when you graduate, you are given your degree after you Collocates: pass a test/exam
finish your university course. A student who successfully
I just hope I pass my exams next week | she passed her
graduates is a graduate (ˈɡrædʒuət)
driving test first time | if you don’t pass this time, you’ll
Collocates: graduate from something have to take the exam again in January
when I graduated, I wanted to find a job in the media | I Opposite – Verb: fail
graduated in 2005 | she graduated from Oxford with a
I was ill for two weeks before the exam, so I expected
degree in law
to fail | my brother failed all his exams and my dad was
Noun: graduate really angry with him
graduates are likely to start jobs on a higher salary |
she’s a graduate of Cambridge University promise /ˈprɒmɪs/ Verb
if you promise to do something, you say that you will
Master’s /ˈmɑːstə(r)z/ Noun definitely do it
a Master’s or a Master’s degree is a university Collocates: promise someone something | promise to do
qualification that you can get which is higher than a first something
degree
my parents have promised me they’ll buy me a car if
Collocates: a Master’s in something | do a Master’s I pass my exams | will you promise to be home by 10
if you want to get a good job, you’ll have to do a o’clock? | he promised to phone me | but you must come.
Master’s | it took two years to get my Master’s | he has a You promised! | if I tell you, will you promise not to tell
Master’s degree in engineering | she’s studying for her anyone else?
Master’s in computer science Noun: promise
media /ˈmiːdiə/ Noun Collocates: make (someone) a promise | keep a promise |
the media is television, radio, newspapers, magazines, break a promise
etc. which prepare and send out information and politicians are always making promises and then
entertainment for people to watch, listen to, or read breaking them (not doing what they said they would do) |
Collocates: media coverage | mass media Tim kept his promise and never told his sister what I’d
I tried for months to get a job in the media | the election done
got a lot of media coverage (there were a lot of articles retake /ˌriːˈteɪk/ Verb
or programmes about it) | she’s written a book about the if you retake an exam, you take it again because you did
influence of the mass media (newspapers, TV, etc. that not pass it the first time
If I don’t get a good enough score, I’ll have to retake the strained (people felt socially uncomfortable) | the
exam in a couple of months | he had to retake the exam atmosphere was tense (people were worried and slightly
twice before he finally passed unfriendly) at the start of the meeting
Noun: retake
bullying /ˈbʊliɪŋ/ Noun uncount
I can’t come out tonight, I’m revising for my retake bullying is behaviour in which someone deliberately
tomorrow | how many retakes did you need? hurts or tries to frighten someone else who is weaker
than them
save /seɪv/ Verb
if you save money, you keep it so that you can use it there’s no violence or bullying in the school | we will not
later, rather than spending it straight away. The money tolerate bullying here (will not allow it) | bullying used
that you keep is your savings to a problem in the office but it’s been stamped out
(stopped)
I’m saving money for my university fees | I saved over
£500 last year | you should save as much as you can if Verb: bully | Noun: bully
you want to buy a flat the older children used to bully me sometimes | he’s the
Noun: savings school bully, so best to keep out of his way
I had to use my savings to get the car repaired
-ING NOUNS
system /ˈsɪstəm/ Noun The -ing form of a verb is often used to make a noun,
a system is all the related parts of a process or machine especially to describe an activity.
that work together to produce a result
There’s no bullying in this school.
our education system is very efficient | the heating
I do babysitting to earn some extra money.
system has broken down | the current system has been
in place for the last five years | we need to improve the I go swimming every day.
security system Parking is really difficult in the city centre.
We sat in the waiting room for two hours.
term /tɜː(r)m/ Noun
a term is one of the periods of time into which a school compulsory /kəmˈpʌlsəri/ Adjective
or university year is divided if something is compulsory, you must do it because of a
I’ve got my final exams next term | we never do much law or rule
work on the last day of term | I started a philosophy English and maths are both compulsory subjects at my
class in the third term | we don’t have classes in the school | sport is compulsory until you’re in the fifth year |
summer term, just exams I had to do two years of compulsory military service
Opposite – Adjective: optional
year /jɪə(r)/ Noun
a school year or a university year is the period that starts Geography and History are optional subjects, but we
in September and ends in July when students are at suggest you do both
school or university
copy /ˈkɒpi/ Verb
my brother’s in his second year at university | a third- if you copy something, you write it out exactly in the way
year student | what year are you in? | when I started at it has already been written somewhere else. If you copy
secondary school, the fifth-years (students in their fifth someone else’s work, you write what they wrote and say
year) looked like teachers to me it is your own work
we weren’t supposed to copy straight out of the
Pages 72–73 textbook | I forgot to take my book home last night.
Can I copy your homework? | if you’re caught copying,
approach /əˈprəʊtʃ/ Noun
you’ll be punished | we had to copy out four poems for
your approach to something is the particular way you do
homework
it or think about it
Noun: copy
Collocates: take an approach | an approach to
something she was given a copy of the agreement to sign
the school has a traditional approach to teaching | other deal with /ˈdiːl wɪð/ Phrasal verb
governments took a different approach to the problem | if you deal with something, you do what is necessary to
an exciting new approach to music teaching make sure that everything is in order. If you deal with
Verb: approach a difficult situation, you do what is necessary to stop it
he approached the job with a mixture of enthusiasm and being a problem
worry how do you deal with bad behaviour? | my colleague
deals with bookings | my secretary deals with all my
atmosphere /ætməsˌfɪə(r)/ Noun appointments | it’s time we dealt with this problem
the atmosphere of a place is the feeling you get when
you are there essay /ˈeseɪ/ Noun
the school has a good atmosphere | the hotel has a an essay is a piece of writing in which someone writes
lovely relaxing atmosphere | I didn’t like the atmosphere about a particular topic
at the party so I left early | the atmosphere was rather Collocates: write an essay
I have to write an essay on Shakespeare for homework a state pension at the age of 66 | the state education
| write a 2,000 word essay on the reasons for the First system
World War | hand your essays in by Friday lunchtime Opposite – Adjective: private
fail /feɪl/ Verb private education is very expensive in the UK | a private
if you fail a test or exam, you do not succeed in it rail company (not owned by the government)
what happens if you fail your final exam? | I was worried stressed /strest/ Adjective
that I’d fail | over half my class failed their French test | if you are stressed, you are very worried about
if you fail this time, you’ll have to retake the exam in something and cannot relax
January
I got really stressed before my driving test | you look
Opposite – Verb: pass stressed – why don’t you have a day off? | students
I just hope I pass my exams next week | she passed her reported that they felt stressed during their final
driving test first time exams
Noun: stress
get into /ˌɡet ˈɪntuː/ Phrasal verb
if you get into a school or university, you succeed in Collocates: be under stress
being accepted there as a student he’s under a lot of stress at the moment, which is why
how did you get into Oxford University? | it’s really he looks so unhappy | moving house can cause a lot of
difficult to get into Harvard or Yale | she got into stress
university when she was just 17
stuff /stʌf/ Noun uncount
mixed /mɪkst/ Adjective in informal English, you can use stuff as a general
things that are mixed involve different parts, some word to refer to any kind of thing or collection of things
good and some bad. If you have mixed feelings about without saying exactly what they are
something, you are not sure how you feel about it they get stressed because of exams and stuff | we did
Collocates: have mixed feelings/emotions football and boxing and stuff like that | we did a lot of
fun stuff at the holiday camp | you can buy all sorts of
my first impressions of the school were a bit mixed |
stuff there
he’s got mixed feelings about working for a tobacco
company | I had very mixed emotions after seeing her technological /ˌteknəˈlɒdʒɪk(ə)l/ Adjective
again | the film got mixed reviews | there was a mixed technological things involve machines and are based on
reaction from the class when they heard the news science and modern knowledge
qualification /ˌkwɒlɪfɪˈkeɪʃ(ə)n/ Noun we have good technological resources here | there has
a qualification is a piece of paper that shows you have been a lot of technological development over the last
passed certain exams or finished a particular course of ten years | we’ve made great technological advances
study successfully in the field of engineering | the department organises
scientific and technological research
what qualification do you get at university? | she’s got
excellent academic qualifications | you won’t get any Adverb: technologically | Noun: technology
qualifications unless you start working a bit harder | it a technologically advanced machine | there are many
took me seven years to get my medical qualifications benefits of modern technology
Adjective: qualified
test /test/ Noun
a qualified lawyer (one who has passed the exams and a test is a set of questions that you have to answer in
can work as a lawyer) | I didn’t get the job because there order show how much you know about a subject
were some better-qualified candidates
I’m revising for my geography test | did you pass the
resource /rɪˈzɔː(r)s/ Noun test? | a maths test | a spelling test | you have half an
resources are things that are available to be used, and hour to complete the test
that are useful Verb: test
the school has got very good resources | the Internet we were tested twice a week in maths | Mr Wilkins is
is a valuable resource | the country is rich in natural going to test us on Friday
resources (oil, gas, coal, etc.) | the university library is a
wonderful resource textbook /ˈteks(t)ˌbʊk/ Noun
a textbook is a book used in schools or universities,
set /set/ Verb which gives a lot of information about a particular subject
if you set some work, you give it to someone and ask textbooks are very expensive | can I borrow your
them to do it textbook for a few minutes? | the school provides all the
Mr Walters is going to set our maths test next week | textbooks we need
she forgot to set our homework for the weekend | I set
myself a target of learning 50 words a week translate /trænsˈleɪt/ Verb
to translate means to change written or spoken words
state /steɪt/ Adjective from one language into another
a state organisation is one that is paid for by the Collocates: translate from/into something
government of a country for anyone to use
can you translate this into Russian for me? | I’ve got to
my brothers all went to a state school | you’ll qualify for
translate this passage into French for homework | his complete /kəmˈpliːt/ Verb
book has been translated into 12 different languages | if you complete something, you finish doing all of it
she translated it from the original German | I didn’t know I managed to complete two levels on my new computer
any Japanese but luckily my wife could translate game | she completed the puzzle quickly | he left
Noun: translation | Noun: translator before the project was completed | Harry has recently
My Spanish isn’t very good, so I’m reading it in an completed his A level course
English translation | an accurate translation | my uncle is Adjective: complete | Noun: completion
a translator in Brussels most of my coursework is complete for this term |
completion of the project was delayed because of the
Pages 74–75 bad weather | the new completion date is January
next year
advantage /ədˈvɑːntɪdʒ/ Noun
an advantage is something you have which gives you contrary /ˈkɒntrəri/ Adjective
a better chance of success than the people you are if something is true contrary to what people think, it
competing with really is true, although most people do not realise it and
Collocates: be at an advantage | have an advantage | an think the situation is different
unfair advantage Collocates: contrary to something
the desire to get an advantage by cheating is nothing contrary to expectations, it’s not only weaker students
new | I had the advantage of being able to speak who cheat | contrary to common belief, the average age
French which helped me get the job | she had an unfair of becoming a grandparent is 51 | contrary to public
advantage because her parents gave her so much opinion, there is no such thing as “road tax”
money | if you have a driving licence, you’ll be at an
advantage | my height gave me an advantage when I declare /dɪˈkleə(r)/ Verb
played basketball if you declare something, you make a formal and official
statement saying it is true
Opposite – Noun: disadvantage
he was in trouble because he didn’t declare all his
Collocates: be at a disadvantage
income last year | the government declared a state of
we were at a disadvantage because we arrived late | emergency | if their army does not move back from our
both cars have advantages and disadvantages border, we will declare war (officially start a war with
them) | the company was declared bankrupt
arrest /əˈrest/ Verb
when the police arrest someone, they take them Noun: declaration
away as a prisoner because they think the person has the American Declaration of Independence
committed a crime
desire /dɪˈzaɪə(r)/ Noun
Collocates: arrest someone for something
someone’s desire for something is their strong wish to
police arrested him last night at the house where the have or achieve that thing
body was found | a man was arrested after stealing 10
Collocates: a desire for something | a desire to do
kilos of bananas | Bourne was arrested for dangerous
something | a strong desire
driving
the desire to succeed is nothing new | they have a
Noun: arrest
genuine desire to learn | she had a strong desire for
Collocates: be under arrest | put someone under arrest success | he no longer has the desire to become prime
he was under arrest for murder | police put him under minister
arrest as soon as he got off the aeroplane Verb: desire | Adjective: desirable
challenge /ˈtʃæləndʒ/ Verb I am sure they sincerely desire peace | do any of
if you challenge someone, you ask them to prove that them honestly desire to know the answer? | previous
they are honest or truthful because you think they have experience is desirable but not essential | these flats are
done something wrong highly desirable (lots of people would like to live in them)
it’s not possible to challenge everyone who might be earn /ɜː(r)n/ Verb
cheating | he challenged my account of the accident money you earn is the money you are paid for doing
your job
claim /kleɪm/ Verb
if you say that someone claimed that something was he didn’t declare all the money he earned last year | top
true, you mean that they said it was true but you do not football players earn millions of pounds a year | I deliver
believe them newspapers before school in the morning to earn some
money | how much does your dad earn? | she earns a
she claimed that she had a degree, but I know that
fortune (a lot of money)
she never went to university | he still claims that he is
innocent | he claimed that he never got my email Noun: earnings
Noun: claim average earnings rose again last year
the company made some false claims about the quality effort /ˈefə(r)t/ Noun
of its products effort is the work involved in trying to do something. If
you make an effort to do something, you try very hard to
do it
Collocates: make (an) effort | take effort | put effort into I pretended the essay was all my own work | we all
something pretended not to hear what he’d said | she had decided
they think cheating will bring success without effort | to pretend that nothing had happened | I had to pretend
it took a lot of effort to get the piano up the stairs | he I really liked the film | we all thought he’d hurt himself,
put a lot of effort into his language studies | if you don’t but he was only pretending
make an effort, you’ll never pass the exam
profit /ˈprɒfɪt/ Noun
emphasis /ˈemfəsɪs/ Noun profit is money that you get by selling something or
emphasis is special importance that something has, doing business. Your profit is the difference between the
which affects the way you deal with it amount it cost you to produce the thing you sold and the
amount you received when you sold it
Collocates: place/put emphasis on something
Collocates: make a profit | sell something at a profit |
kids are growing up in a world where great emphasis
profits rise/fall
is placed on money and winning | we place too much
emphasis on punishment | the emphasis here is on companies are always trying to increase their profits | I
speaking and listening rather than reading and writing sold my history textbooks on eBay at a huge profit | the
company made a profit of £10m last year | profits rose
expenses /ɪkˈspensɪz/ Noun plural for the third year in a row | profits fell because the cost
your expenses are the amounts of your own money that of paper went up
you spend in the course of doing your job, and that your
employer gives back to you separately from your salary push /pʊʃ/ Verb
if you push someone to do something, you make them
Collocates: claim expenses
do it by encouraging them very firmly or forcing them to
several politicians were caught lying about their do it
expenses | the company owes me hundreds of pounds
Collocates: push someone to do something | push
in expenses | she claimed £20 expenses for the train
someone into doing something
ticket | the company will reimburse (pay back) your
expenses at the end of the following month parents and schools often push kids to get the best test
scores | they really push pupils to achieve high marks
impatient /ɪmˈpeɪʃ(ə)nt/ Adjective | her parents pushed her so hard she nearly ran away
someone who is impatient loses interest or becomes from home | they pushed me into going to university
angry or upset when something takes a long time
question /ˈkwestʃ(ə)n/ Verb
technology can make people impatient | he was very
if you question someone, you ask them what they think
impatient with his children | as time went on, he became
about something
more and more impatient | don’t be so impatient! We’ve
nearly finished the majority of the students questioned said they had
cheated | we questioned 100 people as they came out
Adverb: impatiently || Opposites – Adjective: patient |
of the concert hall | the survey questioned travellers as
Adverb: patiently
they returned to the UK from India
the captain shook his head impatiently | thanks for
waiting – you’ve been very patient | she listened resign /rɪˈzaɪn/ Verb
patiently while I explained what had happened if you resign, you say officially that you are going to
leave your job
offer /ˈɒfə(r)/ Verb
Collocates: resign from something | resign as something |
if something offers an opportunity, it makes it available
resign something
cheating offers a way to succeed without trying | the city
she had to resign when she was caught lying about her
centre offers a variety of nightclubs | the university offers
expenses | they tried to persuade her not to resign | he’s
courses in medicine as well as in science and computing |
resigning from his post as sales director | he may be
the job offers me good career opportunities
forced to resign as prime minister | he resigned his post
pressure /ˈpreʃə(r)/ Noun as ambassador to the United Nations
pressure is a feeling of worry that you have when you Noun: resignation
know that it is important for you to succeed in doing Collocates: offer/submit your resignation | accept/reject
something someone’s resignation
Collocates: be under pressure | put pressure on Farage offered his resignation on the same day | the
someone committee reluctantly accepted her resignation
kids are under extreme pressure to succeed | the
pressure got too much for him and he walked out of the survey /ˈsɜː(r)veɪ/ Noun
exam early | my dad put a lot of pressure on me to get a survey is a set of questions that a lot of people are
into Oxford | I’ve been under a lot of pressure at work asked in order to find out what their opinions are
recently Collocates: carry out a survey | conduct a survey
in a recent survey, many students said they cheated |
pretend /prɪˈtend/ Verb
we’re conducting a survey into people’s attitude towards
if you pretend, you behave in a way that deliberately
climate change | the survey was carried out online and
suggests something about you that is not true
by phone | the latest survey shows that 40% of boys
Collocates: pretend to do something want to be professional footballers