C2 Wordlist Unit 10
C2 Wordlist Unit 10
C2 Wordlist Unit 10
69
credibility (n) /ˌkredəˈbɪləti/ candid (adj) /ˈkɑndɪd/
the quality that makes sb appear trustworthy (of photos) taken unexpectedly while the
and respectable ● The scandal destroyed his subject is behaving naturally; open and direct
credibility as a politician. ➣ credit (v), credible ● The magazine was full of candid shots of
(adj), credibly (adv) celebrities, supposedly caught unawares as
they went about their daily lives. ➣ candour
attainable (adj) /əˈteɪnəbl/
that can be achieved or reached ● You (n), candidly (adv)
would be more self-content if you set more unwitting (adj) /ʌnˈwɪtɪŋ/
realistically attainable goals instead of wearing unaware of what is happening ● She became
yourself out. ➣ attain (v), attainment (n) the unwitting victim of a telephone scam.
➣ wit (n), unwittingly (adv)
vouch for sb/sth (phr v) /vaʊtʃ fɔː ˈsʌmbədi/
ˈsʌmθɪŋ/ disclosure (n) /dɪsˈkləʊʒə(r)/
state that you can verify the good character the act of revealing sth that was previously
of sb/sth ● Can you vouch for Judy’s work unknown ● She took the publishers to court
experience? over the public disclosure of her letters.
➣ disclose (v)
rub off (phr v) /rʌb ɒf/
have an influence on sb/sth else so that it versus (prep) /ˈvɜːsəs/
adopts some of the same qualities, beliefs, used to compare two different things ● A child
etc. ● His optimism never fails to rub off on his can figure out the difference between hearsay
companions. versus facts.
sneaky (adj) /ˈsniːki/ get into hot water (expr) /get ɪntə hɒt wɔtə/ get
secretive or deceptive ● That was a sneaky into trouble ● You’re liable to get into hot
trick you pulled on your brother. ➣ sneak (v) water if you put too much personal information
for the whole world to see on social media.
camouflage (v) /ˈkæməflɑːʒ/
cover the appearance of sth to make it look take a dim view of sth (expr) /teɪk ə dɪm vjuː
like sth else ● His natural looks are well əvˈsʌmθɪŋ/
camouflaged by hairpieces and botox. disapprove of sth ● Our science teacher took a
➣ camouflage (n) dim view of being called a geek.
suspend (v) /səˈspend/ from scratch (expr) /frɒm skræʧ/
stop an activity ● Authorities have finally from the beginning ● When I realised my
suspended the search for the missing plane. essay was off topic, I had to start writing it
➣ suspension (n), suspended (adj) from scratch again.
snappy (adj) /ˈsnæpi/ rake in sth (phr v) /reɪk ɪn ˈsʌmθɪŋ/
witty and easily remembered ● T-shirts bearing collect sth, especially money, in large amounts
snappy slogans hung outside the souvenir ● That actor must be raking it in from the
shop. coffee ads.
pepper sth with sth (expr) /ˈpepə(r) ˈsʌmθɪŋ wɪθˈ tantalising (adj) /ˈtæntəlaɪzɪŋ/
sʌmθɪŋ/ tempting ● The tantalising view of the tropical
include large quantities of sth repeatedly in beach beckoned to them from the glossy ad.
sth ● Her Twitter feed is peppered with quotes ➣ tantalise (v), tantalisingly (adv)
from others more famous than she will ever
be. ➣ pepper (n) make money hand over fist (expr) /meɪk mʌni
hænd əʊvə fɪst/
plug (v) /plʌg/ make a lot of money very quickly ● The skilled
give words of praise to promote sth ● In his hacker has been making money hand over fist
cookery book, the chef avoided reference from online gaming.
to specific brands in order to avoid plugging
staggering (adj) /ˈstæɡərɪŋ/
them. ➣ plug (n) very surprising ● She has a staggering number
efficacy (n) /ˈefɪkəsi/ of followers who read her blogs on social
the ability to have the desired effect media. ➣ stagger (v)
● Exhaustive tests have been carried out to
overt (adj) /əʊˈvɜːt/
assess the efficacy of the medication. publicly open ● Pay no attention to their overt
➣ efficacious (adj)
claims that using a credit card will solve your
manipulation (n) /məˌnɪpjuˈleɪʃn/ the act problems.
of controlling sb/sth by making
fall foul of sth (expr) /fɔːl faʊəv ˈsʌmθɪŋ/ do sth
them behave in a certain way ● Political
wrong or illegal often without intending to ●
campaigners are adept at the manipulation of The film fell foul of the censorship board.
public opinion. ➣ manipulate (v), manipulative
(adj)
70
explicit (adj) /ɪkˈsplɪsɪt/ materialism (n) /məˈtɪəriəlɪz(ə)m/
open and direct ● The reasons why the post the way of life that puts money and
were deleted should be made explicit. possessions over everything else ● The
➣ explicitly (adv) economic downturn has led us to question
the ethics of materialism. ➣ materialist (n),
monetary (adj) /ˈmʌnɪtri/
related to money ● How can they market materialistic (adj)
goods of little monetary value at such merchandising (n) /ˈmɜːtʃəndaɪzɪŋ/
extortionate prices? the activity or process of advertising and
marketing goods ● The trashy novel and film
egocentric (adj) /ˌeɡəʊˈsentrɪk/
self-centred and not considering the needs of became a box office success only through
others ● Who has time to read through all the clever merchandising. ➣ merchandise (v),
egocentric messages and photos on social merchandise (n)
media? ➣ ego (n), egoism (n), egoist (n) momentum (n) /məˈmentəm/
a moving object's (or similar metaphor’s)
effusive (adj) /ɪˈfjuːsɪv/
appearing to be overly emotional ● I didn’t retention of kinetic energy ● Support for the
know quite how to respond to her effusive leading candidate began to lose momentum
welcome since we were practically strangers. as the election day drew near. ➣ momentous
➣ effusion (n), effusively (adv)
(adj), momentously (adv)
franchise (n) /ˈfræntʃaɪz/
an agreement between a company and sb
Expressions who wants to market its products or services
using its brand name in a given place ● Airport
fall foul of sth
baggage handling services are run through a
from scratch
private business franchise. ➣ franchise (v),
get into hot water
franchisee (n)
make money hand over fist
take a dim view of sth discern (v) /dɪˈsɜːn/
understand the meaning of or notice sth
● It was difficult to discern the source of the
misinformation. ➣ discernible (adj), discernibly
(adv)
Nouns: marketing vanity (n) /ˈvænəti/
asset infomercial extreme pride in your own appearance or
benchmark infusion abilities ● Are compulsive selfies acts of vanity
billboard jingle or a sign of insecurity? ➣ vain (adj), vain (adv)
consumerism juggernaut
typographical (adj) /ˌtaɪpəˈɡræfɪkl/
desolation materialism
related to typing and the preparing of written
disclaimer medication material for print ● His bank statement
disclosure merchandising showed a staggering balance, as a result
endorsement momentum of a typographical error. ➣ typography,
epitome platform typographer (n), typographically (adv)
falsehood recession ✎ Syn: typographic
foray saturation
franchise semblance promotional (adj) /prəˈməʊʃənl/
immediacy sitcom related to advertising ● They sent out a
promotional email to all their customers.
➣ promote (v), promotion (n), promoter (n)
71
classified (adj) /ˈklæsɪfaɪd/ woo (v) /wuː/
a small advertisement in a newspaper or try to persuade sb to support sth ● Targeted
website placed by people who want to buy or offers of cut-price vouchers are aimed to woo
sell goods or services, etc. ● They sold their customers to overpriced restaurants.
old car through an online classified ad.
equate (v) /iˈkweɪt/
market share (n) /ˈmɑːkɪt ʃeə(r)/ regard sth as the same as sth else ● High
the relative number of sales of a product that earnings do not equate with happiness, but
one company has compared with sales of all they might help make life more comfortable. ➣
companies selling the same thing ● He claims equation (n), equality (n), equal (adj), equally
to have a 60 % share of the international (adv)
publishing market. gear sth to/towards sb/sth (phr v) /geə
leaflet drop (n) /ˈliːflət drɒp/ ˈsʌmθɪŋ tuː/təˈwɔːdz ˈsʌmθɪŋ/ˈsʌmbədi/
a distribution of large numbers of advertising adapt sth to make it suitable for a particular
leaflets to homes, etc. ● As a student, he purpose ● The ad for snack bars was clearly
earned some cash by doing leaflet drops for a geared towards working parents.
promotional company.
saturation (n) /ˌsætʃəˈreɪʃn/
trade paper (n) /treɪd ˈpeɪpə(r)/ the point where sth cannot be added to
a newspaper with news exclusively related to because there is already an abundance
a particular type of business ● The latest word ● The best way to avoid saturation coverage of
in the trade papers is that a merger of the news events is to switch off the TV and media
telecommunication giants is imminent. threads. ➣ saturate (v)
cajole (v) /kəˈdʒəʊl/ restraint (n) /rɪˈstreɪnt/
persuade sb to do sth through kind words sth that prevents sth increasing ● Those
● She had to be cajoled into doing the annoying marketing calls keep coming without
interview. restraint. ➣ restrain (v), restraining (adj)
coax (v) /kəʊks/ charisma (n) /kəˈrɪzmə/
encourage; persuade ● Len tried to coax his the quality to charm and impress others
father into buying him a car. ➣ coaxing (n), ● She lacked the charisma and finesse of her
coaxing (adj) parents. ➣ charismatic (adj)
entice (v) /ɪnˈtaɪs/ hypocrite (n) /ˈhɪpəkrɪt/
attract or persuade sb to do sth ● Promises sb who pretends to believe in or support sth
of cash rewards are used to entice clients to that they don’t ● He’s always recommending
change their phone providers. ➣ enticement products he’s never used himself. What a
(n), enticing (adj), enticingly (adv) hypocrite! ➣ hypocrisy (n), hypocritical (adj),
hype (v) /haɪp/ hypocritically (adv)
exaggerate the qualities of sth to attract acquire (v) /əˈkwaɪə(r)/
attention to it ● Stunning landscape images obtain by buying or receiving as a gift; gain
were used to hype up the hotel’s location. by your own efforts ● Miranda has acquired a
➣ hype (n) reputation as film director. ➣ acquisition (n),
induce (v) /ɪnˈdjuːs/ acquired (adj)
cause sth to happen; persuade sb to do sth compliment (n) /ˈkɒmplɪmənt/
● Even the offer of a bonus could not induce a comment or gesture that expresses
her to stay another moment in the job. admiration or praise ● It was a great
➣ inducement (n), induction (n) compliment to be invited to dinner by the
mayor. ➣ compliment (v), complimentary (adj)
pitch (v) /pɪʧ/
promote a product; put forward (an idea) fraud (n) /frɔːd/
● The energy bars are pitched as a healthy a crime of cheating a person or organisation
snack despite containing harmful additives. out of money ● The gang were involved in
➣ pitch (n) large-scale internet fraud, cheating small
companies out of cash. ➣ fraudulent (adj)
sway (v) /sweɪ/
cause sth to change; cause sb to change wear sb down (phr v) /weə ˈsʌmbədi daʊn/ tire sb
an opinion ● Currency rates began to sway out so they agree to do sth ● The sales staff’s
dramatically when the election result was approach is to wear customers down
known. ➣ sway (n) with repeated phone calls until they give in
tout (v) /taʊt/ and buy something. It’s water-on-a-stone
try to persuade people to buy sth ● Street tactics.
vendors touted their wares at every corner.
➣ tout (n)
72
suck sb/sth in (phr v) /sʌkˈsʌmbədi/ˈsʌmθɪŋ satire (n) /ˈsætaɪə(r)/
ɪn/ a form of criticism through humour often to
make sb get involved in sth ● Don’t get sucked exaggerate weaknesses in an amusing way
in to pyramid marketing schemes; the only one ● Aristophanes masterfully addressed social
who profits is the company owner. issues through satire in ancient time.
➣ satirise (v), satirical (adj), satirically (adv)
splash out (phr v) /splæʃ aʊt/
spend a lot of money at once ● With discounts sarcasm (n) /ˈsɑːkæzəm/
that were almost too good to be true, she the use of comments that have an opposite
splashed out and treated herself to a couple of meaning to what they say to criticise or make
new outfits. fun of sb ● ‘So the dog ate your homework
again,’ said the teacher with more than a hint
flick through sth (phr v) /flɪk θruː ˈsʌmθɪŋ/
of sarcasm. ➣ sarcastic (adj), sarcastically
look quickly through written material,
photos, information, etc. ● In search of a (adv)
housewarming gift for his friend, Andy flicked asset (n) /ˈæset/
through the pages of the brochure from that anything of value which a person or
well-known Swedish furniture outlet. company owns ● After the company declared
bankruptcy, its assets were sold off.
vacant (adj) /ˈveɪkənt/
unresponsive as though devoid of thought benchmark (n) /ˈbentʃmɑːk/
● My enquiry about the comparative technical a standard used to draw comparisons against
specs of the various TVs on sale was met ● The country’s national health service was
with a shrug and a vacant look from the sales seen as a benchmark for the rest of Europe.
assistant. ➣ vacate (v), vacancy (n), vacantly ➣ benchmark (v)
(adv)
intimidate (v) /ɪnˈtɪmɪdeɪt/
persistence (n) /pəˈsɪstəns/ frighten sb into doing sth you want them to
the act of continuing to try to do sth in a ● The bank tried to intimidate them into settling
determined way despite difficulties our debts out of court. ➣ intimidation (n),
● My persistence paid off when the company intimidating (adj)
finally agreed to give me a refund for the
fracture (v) /ˈfræktʃə(r)/
faulty printer. ➣ persist (v), persistent (adj), break sth; split sth into pieces so it can’t
persistently (adv) function ● The ranks of the opposition party
strive (v) /straɪv/ fractured after their electoral defeat. ➣ fracture
try very hard ● The shop strives to retain its (n), fractious (adj)
existing customers through loyalty incentives.
repression (n) /rɪˈpreʃn/
➣ strife (n) (adv)
the use of force to restrict a group of people
inescapable (adj) /ˌɪnɪˈskeɪpəbl/ ● Greeks suffered religious and other forms of
that cannot be avoided; unavoidable repression during the Ottoman rule. ➣ repress
● Counting their losses, they came to the (v), repressive (adj), repressively (adv)
inescapable conclusion that it was time to
desolation (n) /ˌdesəˈleɪʃn/
close the business. ➣ inescapably (adv) the feeling of loneliness and sadness; the
tank (v) /tænk/ state of a place that has been abandoned
fail by reaching a point with no hope of or destroyed ● He lived with a constant
growth ● When Greece's economy tanked, it sense of desolation during the long period of
translated into the closing of numerous family unemployment. ➣ desolate (v), desolate (adj)
businesses. ➣ tank (n), tanker (n)
recession (n) /rɪˈseʃn/
an economic period when trade and Nouns: behaviour & attitude
production levels are at a low, resulting in high authenticity persistence
unemployment ● The world economy has charisma repression
been in deep recession for the past decade. compliment restraint
➣ recede (v), recess (n), recessive (adj), credibility sarcasm
recessively (adv) hypocrite satire
scorn (n) /skɔːn/ inferiority scorn
an attitude towards sb/sth that you regard as intimacy vanity
stupid or inferior ● His suggestion was met manipulation fraud
with scorn from the store manager.
➣ scorn (v), scornful (adj), scornfully (adv)
73
raw material (n) /rɔː məˈtɪəriəl/
Phrasal verbs the basic untreated components used to make
sth ● China imports a number of raw materials
butt in rake in sth from Australia for use in manufacturing.
flick through sth rub off
gear sth to/towards splash out swell (v) /swel/
sb/sth suck sb/sth in increase in size ● Due to the heavy rains, the
go down vouch for sb/sth river began to swell and burst its banks.
pepper sth with sth wear sb down ➣ swell (n), swelling (n), swollen (adj)
74