A

accelerate

accommodate [1]

• He bought a huge house to accommodate his library.
• The ballroom can accommodate 400 people.
• The island was used to accommodate child refugees.
• We’ve made every effort to accommodate your point of view.
• Her eyes took a while to accommodate to the darkness.

accompany [1]

• Children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult.
• Wherever her husband went, she would accompany him.
• Daniel wanted Liz to accompany him on violin.
• The disease is accompanied by sneezing and fever.
• Please see accompanying booklet for instructions.
• Your passport application form should be accompanied by two recent photographs.

account for [1]

• Afro-Americans account for 12% of the US population.
• Recent pressure at work may account for his behavior.
• Can you account for your movements on that night?
• Three days after the earthquake, more than 150 people had still to be accounted for.

achieve

acquire [1]

• Manning hoped to acquire valuable works of art as cheaply as possible.
• The council acquired the land using a compulsory purchase order.
• The college acquired a reputation for very high standards.
• He spent years acquiring his skills as a surgeon.
• Elsie acquired a good knowledge of Chinese.

adapt [1]

add

address [1]

• That letter was addressed to me.
• Send a stamped, self-addressed envelope (=with your address on it so it can be sent back to you).
• Our products address the needs of real users.
• Marlowe now addressed himself to the task of searching the room.
• She turned to address the man on her left.
• You will have to address your comments to our Head Office.
• He addressed an audience of 10,000 supporters.
• The president should be addressed as ‘Mr. President’.

adhere [1]

• The eggs of these fish adhere to plant leaves.

adjust [1]

• They’ll soon settle in – kids are very good at adjusting.
• It took a few seconds for her eyes to adjust to the darkness.
• My parents had trouble adjusting to living in an apartment.
• It took time to adjust myself to motherhood.
• Check and adjust the brakes regularly.
• Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning.
• If your employment status changes, your tax code will be adjusted accordingly.

adopt

advance [1]

• A line of US tanks slowly advanced.
• Troops advanced on the rebel stronghold (=moved towards it in order to attack it).
• The army advanced across the plain.
• Our understanding of human genetics has advanced considerably.
• The group’s research has done much to advance our knowledge of the HIV virus.
• Will they advance you some money until you get your first paycheck?
• I advanced \$1,500 to Kramer last Thursday.
• The meeting has been advanced to ten o’clock.

affect

alleviate [1]

• a new medicine to alleviate the symptoms of flu.
• measures to alleviate poverty.

allow

alter [1]

• Her face hadn’t altered much over the years.
• The city centre has altered beyond recognition (=changed very much).
• Nothing can alter the fact that the refugees are our responsibility.
• She had the dress altered for the wedding.

analyze

apply

argue [1]

• We could hear the neighbours arguing.
• Gallacher continued to argue with the referee throughout the game.
• They were arguing about how to spend the money.
• The children were arguing over which TV programme to watch.

arise [1]

• A crisis has arisen in the Foreign Office.
• More problems like those at the nuclear power plant are certain to arise.
• Several important legal questions arose in the contract negotiations.
• Can we begin by discussing matters arising from the last meeting?

arrange [1]

• Contact your local branch to arrange an appointment.
• Have you arranged to meet Mark this weekend?
• Beth arranged a meeting with the marketing director.
• We still have to arrange how to get home.
• Matthew arrived at 2 o’clock as arranged.
• The company will arrange for a taxi to meet you at the airport.
• Ben arranged the flowers in a vase.
• The list is arranged alphabetically.
• The children were arranged in lines according to height.
• a symphony arranged for the piano

assemble

assess

assist [1]

• You will be employed to assist in the development of new equipment.
• We want to assist people to stay in their own homes.
• They had no maps to assist them.

associate [1] [2]

• I don’t associate him with energetic sports.
• Through science we’ve got the idea of associating progress with the future.
• Groups have been barred from events because they are associated with vandalism.

assume

attach [1]

• Attach a recent photograph to your application form.
• a small battery attached to a little loudspeaker
• No blame can be attached to Roy for the incident.
• It’s easy to let the emotions attached to one situation spill over into others. (=be connected with)

attempt [1]

• In this chapter I will attempt to explain what led up to the revolution.
• Weather conditions prevented them from attempting the jump.

avoid

B

behold [1]

• The beauty of the garden was a pleasure to behold.

bring about [1]

• How can we bring about a change in attitudes?
• A huge amount of environmental damage has been brought about by the destruction of the rainforests.
• The problem is to discover the procedures by which high-level units bring this about.

broaden [1]

• The course helps school-leavers broaden their knowledge of the world of work.
• I’d like to work abroad to broaden my horizons (=learn, experience, or attempt new things).
• Travel broadens the mind (=helps you to understand and accept other people’s beliefs, customs etc).
• Mr Mates said the party must broaden its appeal to younger voters.
• Flynn’s appeal broadened as the campaign continued into the summer months.
• I want to broaden the discussion to other aspects of the problem.
• Mark’s smile broadened.
• The council decided to broaden the pavement.

C

calculate

capture [1]

carry out [1]

• We need to carry out more research.
• A survey is now being carried out nationwide.
• Turn off the water supply before carrying out repairs.

categorize

cause

challenge

change

cherish [1]

• He cherished his privacy.
• I cherish the memory of that day.
• willingness to re-examine cherished beliefs.
• In marriage, a man promises to cherish his wife.
• his most cherished possession.

choose

claim

classify

collect

combine

commence [1]

• Work will commence on the new building immediately.
• Your first evaluation will be six months after you commence employment.
• The course commences with a one week introduction to Art Theory.
• The planes commenced bombing at midnight.

compare

compensate [1]

• Because my left eye is so weak, my right eye has to work harder to compensate.
• Her intelligence more than compensates for her lack of experience.
• the government’s promise to compensate victims of the flood
• The firm will compensate workers for their loss of earnings.

compute

concentrate

confine [1]

• The police cadet’s duties were confined to taking statements from the crowd.
• We confined our study to ten cases.
• Owen did not confine himself to writing only one type of poem.
• Any soldier who leaves his post will be confined to barracks (=made to stay in the barracks).
• He was allegedly confined in a narrow dark room for two months.
• Firefighters managed to confine the fire to the living room.
• Vaughan is confined to a wheelchair.
• She’s confined to bed with flu.

conclude

concur [1]

• The committee largely concurred with these views.
• Everything concurred to produce the desired effect.

conduct

confirm [1]

• New evidence has confirmed the first witness’s story.
• To confirm my diagnosis I need to do some tests.
• Research has confirmed that the risk is higher for women.
• The new results confirm what most of us knew already.
• The president refused to confirm the rumor.
• Managers have so far refused to confirm or deny reports that up to 200 jobs are to go.

connect to

consider

consolidate [1]

• The company has consolidated its position as the country’s leading gas supplier.
• The team consolidated their lead with a third goal.
• We consolidate information from a wide range of sources.
• They took out a loan to consolidate their debts.
• The company is planning to consolidate its business activities at a new site in Arizona.

construct

contemplate [1]

• He had even contemplated suicide.
• Did you ever contemplate resigning?
• The thought that she might be dead was too terrible to contemplate.
• Jack went on vacation to contemplate his future.
• She sat down and contemplated what she had done.
• contemplate your navel (=think so much about your own life that you do not notice other important things – used humorously)
• He contemplated her with a faint smile.

contradict [1]

• Deborah opened her mouth to contradict, but closed it again.
• Dad just can’t bear to be contradicted.
• The article flatly contradicts their claims.
• The witness statements contradict each other and the facts remain unclear.

contact [1]

• There is very little contact between the two tribes.
• Many of us have no direct contact with elderly people.
• We stay in contact by email.
• The town is cut off from contact with the outside world.
• Children need physical contact with a caring adult.
• The disease spreads by sexual contact between infected animals.
• For a second, his hand was in contact with mine.
• When water comes into contact with air, carbon dioxide is released.
• The bomb exploded on contact (=at the moment it touched something).
• Everyone who came into contact with Di felt better for knowing her.
• Pat’s job brings her into contact with the problems people face when they retire.
• He has a lot of contacts in the media.
• a worldwide network of contacts.

contrast [1]

• The snow was icy and white, contrasting with the brilliant blue sky.
• These results contrast sharply with other medical tests carried out in Australia.
• In another passage, Melville again contrasts the land with the sea.
• an essay comparing and contrasting (=showing how two things are similar and different) Verdi and Wagner and their operas.

contribute

control

convert [1]

• They converted the spare bedroom into an office.
• The stocks can be easily converted to cash.
• a 19th-century converted barn (=barn changed into a house)
• a sofa that converts into a bed
• In the process, the light energy converts to heat energy.
• European missionaries converted thousands to Christianity.
• She converted to Catholicism.
• people who have recently converted to vegetarianism
• She succeeded in converting me to her point of view.
• newly converted feminists

correlate

correspond

corroborate [1]

• We now have new evidence to corroborate the defendant’s story.
• Experiments elsewhere corroborate these results.

create

D

date [1]

• a newspaper dated November 23,1963.
• Make sure you sign and date it at the bottom.
• The rocks are dated by examining the fossils found in the same layer.
• radiocarbon dating
• His designs are so classic, they’ve hardly dated at all.
• Is he still dating Sarah?
• Are Chris and Liz dating?
• Yes, I remember the Moon landings – that dates me, doesn’t it?

deal with

debate [1]

• the gun-control debate in the US
• The new drug has become the subject of heated debate within the medical profession.
• There has been widespread public debate over the introduction of genetically modified food.
• There was much lively debate about whether women should spend more time in the home.
• A fierce debate raged over which artist’s work should be chosen for the prize.
• the ongoing debate between environmentalists and the road-building lobby over the future of our countryside
• Nuclear power has always been a topic that has sparked off considerable debate.

decay [1]

• Her body was already starting to decay.
• Most archaeological finds are broken, damaged, or decayed.
• decaying organic matter.

decline

decompose [1]

• a partially decomposed body.

decrease

dedicate [1]

• The actress now dedicates herself to children’s charity work.
• The book was dedicated to her husband.
• The company dedicated \$50,000 for the study.

decide

deduce [1]

• From her son’s age, I deduced that her husband must be at least 60.
• What did Darwin deduce from the presence of these species?

define

delay

demonstrate

depict [1]

• a book depicting life in pre-revolutionary Russia.
• The god is depicted as a bird with a human head.

derive [1]

• Medically, we will derive great benefit from this technique.
• Many students derived enormous satisfaction from the course.
• This word is derived from Latin.
• patterns of behaviour that derive from basic beliefs

describe

design

detect

determine

develop

devise [1]

• She devised a method for quicker communications between offices.

discard [1]

• Discard any old cleaning materials.
• discarded paper

discover

discuss

display

disprove [1]

• These figures disproved Smith’s argument.

distribute

divide

dominate [1]

• The industry is dominated by five multinational companies.
• New Orleans dominated throughout the game.
• Her loud voice totally dominated the conversation.
• Education issues dominated the election campaign.
• The cathedral dominates the city.

drop

E

educate

effect

elect

elicit [1] [2]

• When her knock elicited no response, she opened the door and peeped in.
• The test uses pictures to elicit words from the child.
• to elicit the truth
• to elicit a response with a question

eliminate [1]

• The credit card eliminates the need for cash or cheques.
• There is no solution that will totally eliminate the possibility of theft.
• Fatty foods should be eliminated from the diet.

employ

enable

enhance

ensure [1]

• facilities to ensure the safety of cyclists
• The hospital tries to ensure that people are seen quickly.

escalate

establish

evaluate [1]

• You should be able to evaluate your own work.
• We need to evaluate the success of the campaign.
• It can be difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of different treatments.

evaporate

examine

execute [1]

• Thousands have been executed for political crimes.
• 13 people were summarily executed (=killed without any trial or legal process) by the guerrillas.
• The job involves drawing up and executing a plan of nursing care.
• The skaters’ routine was perfectly executed.

exist

expand

expect

experience [1]

• Many old people will experience problems as the result of retirement.
• Children need to experience things for themselves in order to learn from them.
• Many women experience feelings of nausea during pregnancy.

expire [1]

• My passport expires next week.
• players whose contracts expire this summer.
• My driving licence expires in March.
• The lease on the flat expired on June 14th.
• The chairman’s term of office has already expired.
• Ophelia expires in Act IV of Hamlet.

explain

explore

expose [1]

• He lifted his T-shirt to expose a jagged scar across his chest.
• Potatoes turn green when exposed to light.
• The report revealed that workers had been exposed to high levels of radiation.
• The film exposes the utter horror of war.
• The report exposes the weaknesses of modern medical practice.
• The baron was exposed as a liar and a cheat.
• Some children are never exposed to classical music.
• I’m afraid I might expose my real feelings for him.

express

extend

extract

F

facilitate [1]

• Computers can be used to facilitate language learning.

fall

filter

find

focus on

formulate [1]

• He formulated Labour Party education policy in 1922.
• Darwin formulated the theory of natural selection.
• We are studying the situation but have not formulated any response yet.

G

generate

give rise to

guarantee

H

help to

I

identify

illustrate

immerse [1]

• Immerse your foot in ice-cold water to reduce the swelling.
• immerse yourself in something
• She was far too immersed in her studies.
• He left school at 16 and immersed himself in the Labour Party.

impede [1]

• Storms at sea impeded our progress.

implement

imply

impose [1]

• The court can impose a fine.
• The government imposed a ban on the sale of ivory.
• parents who impose their own moral values on their children (impose something on somebody)
• We could ask to stay the night, but I don’t want to impose on them.
• Military spending imposes a huge strain on the economy.

improve

include

incorporate [1]

• We’ve incorporated many environmentally friendly features into the design of the building.
• Our original proposals were not incorporated in the new legislation.

increase

incur [1]

• If the council loses the appeal, it will incur all the legal costs.
• the heavy losses incurred by airlines since September 11th
• She wondered what she’d done to incur his displeasure this time.

indicate [1]

• Research indicates that over 81% of teachers are dissatisfied with their salary.
• Long skid marks on the pavement indicated the driver had attempted to brake.
• The study indicates a connection between poverty and crime.
• The Russians have already indicated their willingness to cooperate.
• Professor Johnson has indicated his intention to retire at the end of next year.
• ‘That’s her, ’ said Toby, indicating a girl on the other side of the room.
• Sales targets are indicated on the graph by a vertical dotted line.
• Don’t forget to indicate before you pull out.

infer [1]

• A lot can be inferred from these statistics.
• From the evidence, we can infer that the victim knew her killer.

influence

inhibit

insert

install

interpret

introduce

intrude [1]

• Would I be intruding if I came with you?
• Employers should not intrude into the private lives of their employees.
• It is to be hoped that TV cameras never intrude on this peaceful place.

invade

invert [1]

• Invert the cake onto a cooling rack.
• a black inverted triangle.
• They may be hoping to invert the presumption that a defendant is innocent until proved guilty.

investigate

isolate

L

limit

link

locate

M

maintain

manage to

match

maximize

measure

minimize

mirror [1]

• Henry’s sad smile mirrored that of his son.
• The economic recovery in Britain was mirrored in the US.

miscalculate

misjudge

misunderstand

mitigate [1]

• Measures need to be taken to mitigate the environmental effects of burning more coal.

model

modify

monitor

mount

N

neglect [1]

• She smoked and drank, neglected the children, and left the clothes unmended.
• a neglected garden
• The building has been badly neglected.
• Many of these ideas have been neglected by modern historians.
• The police officer was accused of neglecting his duty (=not doing everything he should).

note

notice [1]

• He noticed a woman in a black dress sitting across from him.
• I didn’t notice any smoke.
• Have you noticed any change in him?
• I noticed that her hands were shaking.
• He never seems to notice when people take advantage of him.
• She hadn’t noticed before quite how grey his hair was.
• Did you notice him leaving the party early?

O

observe [1]

• Scientists have observed a drop in ozone levels over the Antarctic.
• It was observed that 40 percent of patients had high blood pressure.
• Officers observed him driving at 90 miles per hour.
• Predators have been observed to avoid attacking brightly coloured species.

obtain

occur

offer

operate

oppose [1]

• Congress is continuing to oppose the president’s health care budget.
• He is opposed by two other candidates.

optimize

orient [1]

• He has trouble orienting himself to any written work.
• Humankind needed to orient itself Continually by Signs, or by an address.

originate [1]

• How did the plan originate?
• A lot of our medicines originate from tropical plants.
• Many Christmas traditions originated in Germany.
• The idea originated with the ancient Greek philosophers.
• The town originated as a small fishing port.
• The technique was originated by an Italian artist.

outline [1]

• The new president outlined plans to deal with crime, drugs, and education.
• a map with our property outlined in red
• trees outlined against the sky

outlaw [1]

• The bill would have outlawed several types of guns.

outperform [1]

• Stocks generally outperform other investments.

overcome [1]

• He struggled to overcome his shyness.
• Her financial problems could no longer be overcome.
• The engineer was working on the freezer when he was overcome by gas.
• Charles was overcome with grief.
• Australia overcame the Netherlands 2–1.

overlook

P

peak

perform

permit

pinpoint [1]

• It’s difficult to pinpoint the cause of the accident.
• They need to pinpoint exactly what skills are necessary.
• Rescue teams have now pinpointed the location of the ship.

plot

point out

pose [1]

• Officials claim the chemical poses no real threat.
• The events pose a challenge to the church’s leadership.
• Rising unemployment is posing serious problems for the administration.
• We posed for photographs.

position

precede [1]

• a type of cloud that precedes rain
• Lunch will be preceded by a short speech from the chairman.
• The guard preceded them down the corridor.

predict

prefer

prepare

prescribe [1]

• If these don’t work I may have to prescribe you something stronger.
• the drugs prescribed for his stomach pains.
• What punishment does the law prescribe for this crime?

present

prevent

produce

progress [1]

promise

propose

prove

provide

publish

purchase

put forward

Q

quantify

R

reach [1]

• Chelsea could reach the final of the European Cup.
• I had reached the point where I was earning a good salary.
• The kids have reached the age when they can care for themselves.
• By 2008, that figure is expected to reach 7 million.
• wind speeds reaching up to 180 mph.
• Prices rose steadily to reach record levels.
• The theatre has reached an agreement with striking actors.
• It took the jury three days to reach a verdict.
• The talks will continue until a conclusion is reached.
• She reached into her bag and produced a business card.
• He reached down to help her to her feet.
• Kelly reached for his gun.
• Luisa reached out her hand to stroke the cat.
• It’s no good – I can’t reach.
• She’s too small to reach the table.
• She fell while reaching down a vase from the top shelf.
• The phone lead isn’t long enough to reach the bedroom.
• a skirt that reaches halfway down her legs.
• Her hair reaches down to her waist.
• We reached London late at night.
• The pyramids can be reached by public transport.

realize

recap [1]

• Finally, the teacher recapped the main points of the lesson.
• To recap, our main aim is to increase sales by 15 percent this year.

recognize [1]

• I didn’t recognize you in your uniform.
• British medical qualifications are recognized in Canada.
• The World Health Organization has recognized alcoholism as a disease since 1951.
• One must recognise that homesickness is natural.
• It is important to recognize how little we know about this disease.
• Lawrence’s novel was eventually recognized as a work of genius.

recommend

record

reduce

refine [1]

• Car makers are constantly refining their designs.

refute [1]

• an attempt to refute Darwin’s theories
• She refuted any allegations of malpractice.

regulate

reinforce [1]

• The film reinforces the idea that women should be pretty and dumb.

relate

relieve [1]

• Drugs helped to relieve the pain.
• Some people eat for comfort, to relieve their anxieties.
• programs aimed at relieving unemployment.
• The guard will be relieved at midnight.
• a plain wall relieved by flecks of blue and yellow.
• The books helped relieve the boredom of waiting.

remain

remove

repeat

report

represent

reproduce

resolve [1]

• The crisis was resolved by negotiations.
• Barnet was desperate for money to resolve his financial problems.
• After the divorce she resolved never to marry again.
• Mary resolved that she would stop smoking.
• The Senate resolved to accept the president’s proposals.
• DNA samples were extracted and resolved.

restrict [1]

• The new law restricts the sale of hand guns.
• You may need to restrict access to certain files (=limit the number of people who can read them).
• The agreement will restrict competition.
• In future we will restrict class sizes to 20 students.
• The cramped living conditions severely restricted the children’s freedom to play.

retain [1]

• You have the right to retain possession of the goods.
• The state wants to retain control of food imports.
• A lot of information can be retained in your computer.
• Limestone is known to retain moisture.
• I find it very difficult to retain facts.
• He has retained a lawyer to challenge the court’s decision.
• We had to pay a retaining fee (=an amount of money to keep someone working for you).
• It’s increasingly difficult to recruit and retain good staff.

retreat [1]

• The rebels retreated to the mountains.
• They were attacked and forced to retreat.
• He saw her and retreated, too shy to speak to her.
• Perry lit the fuse and retreated to a safe distance.
• It was not a conscious choice to retreat from public life.
• The flood waters are slowly retreating.
• The Canadian government has retreated from a plan to kill 300 wolves.
• After the noise of the city he was glad to retreat to his hotel room.

reveal [1]

• He may be prosecuted for revealing secrets about the security agency.
• a test that can reveal a teacher’s hidden skills
• He revealed that he had been in prison twice before.
• The violinist revealed himself as a talented interpreter of classical music.
• The curtain opened to reveal the grand prize.

review

revise

rise

S

sample [1]

• a chance to sample the local food
• 18% of the adults sampled admitted having had problems with alcohol abuse.
• Here’s your chance to sample the delights of country life.
• Many of his songs have been sampled by other artists.

score

seem [1]

• Ann didn’t seem very pleased.
• It seems a foolish decision now.
• The last few days had seemed like a dream.
• Teri seemed like a nice girl.
• We waited for what seemed like hours.
• It seems like you’re catching a cold, Taylor.
• It seemed as if the end of the world had come.
• It seemed that Freeman had killed the man, and dumped the body in the lake.
• It seems likely that he will miss the team’s next game.
• The rainbow seemed to end on the hillside.
• Doesn’t that seem weird to you?
• It seems to me you don’t have much choice.
• There seem to be a lot of people outside.
• ‘So Bill’s leaving her?’ ‘So it seems.’
• I seem to have lost my car keys.
• It would seem that someone left the building unlocked.

select

separate [1]

• The lighthouse is separated from the land by a wide channel.
• This will keep your dressing from separating.
• At this point, the satellite separates from its launcher.
• Separate the students into four groups.
• First, separate the eggs (=divide the white part from the yellow part).
• Jill and John separated a year ago.
• I decided to separate from my partner.

show

signify [1]

• Some tribes use special facial markings to signify status.
• The image of the lion signified power and strength.
• The symbol used signifies that the frequency is measured in kHz.
• Hamilton waved his hand to signify that he didn’t mind what they decided.
• He turned away from her slightly to signify his indifference.
• These figures don’t really signify in the overall results.

simulate

solve

spawn [1]

• New technology has spawned new business opportunities.
• Interesting also to Bezos the history buff, who like to talk about the Cambrian explosion about 550 million years ago, when multicelled life spawned unprecedented variation of species–and with it, a wave of extinctions. (here)

speculate [1]

• She refused to speculate.
• Jones refused to speculate about what might happen.
• Some analysts speculated that jobs will be lost.
• He speculated in stocks.

stabilize

state

strike [1]

• She fell heavily, striking her head against the side of the boat.
• A snowball struck him on the back of the head.
• Several cars were struck by falling trees.
• The last rays of the setting sun struck the windows.
• She struck him hard across the face.
• The victim had been struck with some kind of wooden implement.
• Paul struck him a blow to the head.
• The assassin’s bullet struck home (=hit exactly where it should).
• A rather worrying thought struck me.
• The first thing that struck me was the fact that there were no other women present.
• It struck her that losing the company might be the least of her worries.
• You can’t help being struck by her kindness.
• In many countries, the police are forbidden to strike.
• They’re striking for the right to have their trade union recognized in law.
• The killer might strike again.
• Guerrillas struck a UN camp, killing 75.
• Opponents of the war say that civilian villages have been struck several times.
• The law would strike at the most basic of civil rights.
• Such prejudices strike right at the heart o any notions of a civilized society.
• The scandal seemed to have struck a mortal blow to the government’s chances of re-election.
• The plague struck again for the third time that century.
• Everything seemed to be going fine when suddenly disaster struck.
• The temple burned down after it was struck by lightning last year.
• The church clock began to strike twelve.
• Brazil struck first with a goal in the third minute.

stroll [1]

• We were strolling along, laughing and joking.
• They went for a stroll in the park.

study

substitute [1]

• The recipe says you can substitute yoghurt for the sour cream.
• Bill substituted for Larry, who was off sick.
• Michael Owen had to be substituted after 20 minutes on the field.

succeed [1]

• She wanted to be the first woman to climb Mount Everest, and she almost succeeded.
• Scientists claim they have succeeded in finding a cure for cancer.
• Very few people succeed in losing weight and keeping it off.

suggest

summarize

support

sustain [1]

• She found it difficult to sustain the children’s interest.
• He was incapable of sustaining close relationships with women.
• the policies necessary to sustain economic growth
• Two of the firefighters sustained serious injuries.
• Some nearby buildings sustained minor damage.
• The company has sustained heavy financial losses this year.
• They gave me barely enough food to sustain me.
• The thought of seeing her again was all that sustained me.
• He leant against her so heavily that she could barely sustain his weight.
• This argument is difficult to sustain.

T

tackle [1]

• There is more than one way to tackle the problem.
• It took twelve fire engines to tackle the blaze.
• When I tackled Susan about it, she admitted she’d made a mistake.
• I certainly couldn’t tackle both of them on my own.

test

tempt [1]

• The new program is designed to tempt young people into studying engineering.
• It would take a lot of money to tempt me to quit this job.
• If you leave valuables in your car it will tempt thieves.
• I’m tempted to buy that dress.

touch [1]

• She reached out to touch his arm.
• If your house has been burgled, you shouldn’t touch anything until the police arrive.
• ‘Don’t touch me!’ she yelled.
• A hand touched her on the shoulder.
• As our glasses touched, he said ‘Cheers!’
• Her dress was so long that it was touching the ground.

track [1]

• Police have been tracking the four criminals all over Central America.
• The dogs tracked the wolf to its lair.
• The progress of each student is tracked by computer.

transfer [1]

• Swod transferred from MI6 to the Security Service.
• They’re transferring him to a special unit at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
• You’ll be transferred to the Birmingham office.
• The exhibition transfers to York City Art Gallery on 23rd January.
• Transfer the meat to warm plates.
• I’d like to transfer \$500 to my checking account.
• Ideas that work well in one school often don’t transfer well to another.
• You will be met on arrival at the airport and transferred to your hotel.
• Transfer the files onto a memory stick.
• It is unlikely that the disease will be transferred from animals to humans.

transpire [1]

• It transpired that Paolo had left his driving licence at home.
• As it transpired, the Labour government did not dare go against the pressures exerted by the City.

treat [1]

• She treats me like one of the family.
• Penny doesn’t think her co-workers treat her as an equal.
• The prisoners were well treated by their guards.
• Despite her seniority, Margot was never treated with much respect.
• Please treat this information as completely confidential.
• She treats everything I say as a joke.
• We treated Mom to lunch at the Savoy.
• I treated myself to a new dress.

trigger [1]

• The assassination triggered off a wave of rioting.
• Certain forms of mental illness can be triggered by food allergies.
• trigger a memory (=make you suddenly remember something)
• His action triggered a massive response from the government.
• The burglars fled after triggering the alarm.

U

undergo [1]

• The country has undergone massive changes recently.
• He has been released from prison to undergo medical treatment in the United States.
• She has been undergoing tests since Monday.
• Teachers should be expected to undergo mid-career training and development.

undertake [1]

• Dr Johnson undertook the task of writing a comprehensive English dictionary.

unify [1]

• Strong support for the war has unified the nation.
• His music unifies traditional and modern themes.

uphold [1]

• a committee that aims to uphold educational standards.
• The conviction was upheld by the Court of Appeal.

use

utilize [1]

• We must consider how best to utilize what resources we have.

V

validate [1]

• The Supreme Court has validated the lower court’s interpretation of the law.
• Many scientists plan to wait until the results of the study are validated by future research.
• Talking with people who think like you helps validate your feelings.

vanish [1]

• My keys were here a minute ago but now they’ve vanished.
• The youngster vanished without a trace one day and has never been found.
• The bird vanished from sight.
• She seemed to have just vanished into thin air (=suddenly disappeared in a very mysterious way).
• By the 1930s, the wolf had vanished from the American West.
• Public support for the prime minister has now vanished.

vary

verify

yield [1]

• Our research has only recently begun to yield important results.
• Each of these oilfields could yield billions of barrels of oil.
• The tourist industry yielded an estimated \$2.25 billion for the state last year.
• These investments should yield a reasonable return.
• high-yielding crops
• The military has promised to yield power.
• The hijackers refuse to yield to demands to release the passengers.
• Further action may be necessary if the leaders do not yield to diplomatic pressure.
• Finally she yielded to temptation and helped herself to a large slice of cake.
• Yield to traffic on the left.
• Ideally, the surface should yield slightly under pressure.

W

witness

References

• Science research writing for non-native speakers of English, Hilary Glasman-Deal, pp. 241-242.