Vocabulary Destination C1&C2

I. WORD BUILDING
1. Greg is …………………….. to say the least, so I wouldn’t ask him to choose a hotel. DECIDE
2. It’s practically …………………………, for example, for a successful politician to be a poor
communicator. THINK
3. The weather has been so …………………………. today that I don’t know what to wear.
CHANGE
4. British businessman Sir Clive Sinclair has an ………………………… place in the minds of the
British people for two reasons. ENDURE
5. If this project is successful, the possibilities for expansion are ………………………... . END
6. The government will have to take some …………………………… to stop inflation from
increasing. MEASURE
7. The user controls how fast the seat moves along the rails as it travels from the bottom
of the stairs to the ………………………. at the top. LAND
8. Don’t you think violent films ……………………….. people to violence in real life? SENSITIVE
9. The news conference was ………………………….. boring. SPEAK
10. Sadly, Allen informs us that the story is probably mere ……………………, and that Churchill
may have actually written ‘rubbish’ in the margin. SAY
11. The expedition travelled miles in search of the …………………. mountain gorilla. ELUDE
12. Refusing to accept that the problems are ………………………………….., the WWF works
tirelessly on a seemingly never-ending list of projects to help protect the diversity of life
on Earth. MOUNT
13. Please keep emails short. ……………………… makes everyone’s lives easier. BRIEF
14. How dare they ………………………. blame without knowing all the facts first?
15. Each …………………………. is responsible for maintaining the area in front of their house.
HOUSE
16. Ryan’s face ……………………….. as he realized what a terrible mistake he’d made. RED
17. Do you really think your plans are going to come to ………………………... FRUIT
18. If one of our nurses has acted ………………………., you can be assured we will take the
strongest possible action against him or her. NEGLECT
19. Peter gave the ball a …………………… kick and sent it over the wall. MIGHT
20. I managed to …………………… Mike from sacking you, but just be more careful next time.
PERSUADE
21. The Pet Shop Boys’ sound …………….. and unique. IMITATE
22. Well, she dis study ……………………… at Oxford, so it’s hardly surprising she knows Latin
and Ancient Greek. CLASS
23. Jim got into trouble for ……………………………………………a police officer. PERSON
24. Parents do all that is …………………….. possible for their offspring. HUMAN
25. After ten matches, he has the …………………………. record of played ten, won none. ENVY
26. After dinner we went for a ……………………….. stroll along the seafront. LEISURE
27. Y our article is a bit …………. . Maybe you could make this paragraph a bit shorter. WORD
 28. The boss was accused of ………………………………………. the company funds. MANAGE
29. The ………………….. of Professor Ogden’s knowledge impresses everyone who meets him.
BROAD
30. The headmistress commended her on her ………………………….. behavior. EXAMPLE

II. IDIOMS

LOST OUR 1. Millie felt she needed to stop and

BEARINGS ……………………her life.
A STONE’S THROW 2. The little Peugeot has
…………………..with power steering and
an air bag.
A TIDY SUM 3. ‘When can we open our presents,
Mum?’ ‘………………………, Billy.’
TAKE STOCK OF 4. The hotel is only …………….from the
beach.
ALL IN GOOD TIME 5. We …………………………….in the fog and
ended up 30 miles from home.
TELL TALES 6. I ………………………that he was going to
resign.
BELOW PAR 7. No child should be put in the
powerful position of having to
……………………on another child.
THE POWERS THAT 8. There seems to be ……………………….for
BE the schoolboy’s behaviour.
TAKES PRIDE OF 9. We sold the house for ………………..and
PLACE moved south.
LOCK, STOCK, AND 10. He moved the whole company,
BARREL ………………………….., to Mexico.
NO RHYME OR 11. There was no alternative but
REASON ……………………………………………
TO GRIN AND BEAR 12. …………………………….do not seem
IT interested in solving the city's
transportation problems.
ON A WHIM 13. The statue …………………………..at
Gerrards Cross station.
HEARD ON THE 14. For a second year, economic growth
GRAPEVINE has been
substantially………………………..
ALL MOD CONS 15. ……………….., she decided to go away
for the weekend.

III. PHRASAL VERBS

1. I am going to have to mull this …………… for a while before I make a final decision.
2. Tell us how you hit ………….. such a great idea for a website.
3. There is nothing to swot ………. ………. as it’s a general knowledge quiz.
 4. I played so much football last season that I wore …………. two pairs of boots!
5. Could you lend me some money to tide me ………….. to the end of the month?
6. Josh can while ……………. a whole day playing online games.
7. I wish you wouldn’t creep …………….. on me like that! You frightened me to death.
8. It seems that the explorers went ……………….. after losing their map and wandered in the
jungle for days.
9. The minister was shouted …………….. by protestors angry at the government’s proposals.
10. As I was flicking through the magazine I chanced ………….. an interesting article.
11. Organisations concerned about the environment seem to have sprung …….. everywhere
these days.
12. Sizing UP your financial situation- however painful- is far better than just ignoring it.
13. If we club ………………… , I’m sure we can afford to get Mrs. Timms a nice leaving present.
14. One good way to drum …… support is to get people in the high street to sign a petition.
15. The steps were worn ……………. after many years of use.
16. The problems of decay have been piling …………….. for years and will not be solved easily.
17. I don’t know if I’m going to summon …………. the courage to tell Dad.
18. It took Larry a while to cotton ………………. the fact that I was joking.
19. There is no point lashing …………… at Jones. He’s not responsible for what’s happened.
20. The authorities shouldn’t give ………………. to this kind of blackmail from the workers.
21. They are phasing ……………. the old style passports.
22. The police are cracking ………………… on illegal parking around here.
23. The car was so badly damaged it had to be written …………………..
24. I didn’t take …………. my stepbrother at first, but after a while we grew closer.
25. You should sound your parents ……….. and see what they think of your plan.

IV. TOPIC VOCABULARY

1. Most newspapers are usually biased/prejudiced/skeptical towards a certain political
outlook.
2. I am slightly cynical/dubious/ingenious about whether Sean’s idea is going to work.
3. I’ve got a small request/query/problem about the exam syllabus. Should I talk to Mr.
Jones about it?
4. I gather/suppose/reckon from your tutor that you are thinking of changing course.
5. When trees fall and start to deteriorate/distort/decay, they provide a home for many
insects.
6. There is a lot of traffic, so I’m trying to find an alternative/alternate/alternating route.
7. I’ve amended/distorted/converted the contract and it now says that you will receive
15%.
8. After a short phase/spell/span of being unemployed, I decided to set up my own
business.
9. I did a brief spell/period/stint in the navy, then decided it wasn’t for me.
10. It depends on the time of year. It’s a seasonal/provisional/temporary problem.
11. Robots are often much more efficient/effective/useful than people because they can
work 24 hours a day without getting tired, and they don’t make mistakes.
12. There are plans to modernize the antique/obsolete/antiquated telephone system.
13. A man ran from the burning house, clutching/clenching/grasping a baby in his arms.
14. The speaker leapt/strode/marched on the stage and smiled confidently at the audience.
15. I was so bored I roamed/wondered/wandered into the centre of town and did a bit of
window shopping.
16. A lorry lost its cargo/load/goods on the motorway and there’s white paint everywhere.
17. I didn’t tell you about the possibility of the trip because I didn’t want to lift/raise/boost
your hopes.
18. I can’t begin to convey/confirm/disclose how sorry I am for the trouble I’ve caused.
19. I stood there mumbling/murmuring/stuttering in shock, unable to think of anything
sensible to say.
20. There’s no point raving/scribbling/quibbling over the bill. It’s only a few euros more
than we thought it would be anyway.
21. These words sum up the gist/core/sense of his international aims during the three
following years.
22. They didn't have a hint/an inkling/an understanding of how the new invention worked.
23. I’d really love to be the main correspondent/journalist/anchor hosting a national, nightly
news show.
24. Goebbels was also purposeful/useful/instrumental in the initial success Strauss had
under the Nazis.
25. Wilson assigned/attributed/ascribed his defeat to bad luck.
26. Soon Lehrer was owning up to what he claimed were inadvertent/negligent/inattentive
errors.
27. Only the urgent/timely/quick intervention of the managing director prevented a costly
mistake.
28. There is a ratio/ration/rate of two eggs per person.
29. The plastic had gone frail/fragile/brittle from sitting in the sun.
30. Salt dilutes/dissolves/dilates quite easily in water.
31. We need to redecorate. Look – there are blots/blocks/flakes of paint coming off the
walls.
32. The opposing team gloated/grimaced/grinned over our bad luck.
33. Practicing yoga, studies show, can alleviate/decrease/loosen symptoms of depression
and anxiety.
34. We saw how such provocative actions only inflamed passions and escalated the
controversy/discord/ unrest.
35. The procedure is good, but I think we can better/streamline/enlarge it further to make it
more efficient.
36. The rock festival was fun, but it was marred by the organization, which was disarray/a
chaos/a shambles.
37. Four is the ultimate/optimum/correct number of people for this project.
38. They’ve got a guest conductor who’s quite famous. Apparently, he’s written the
score/script/lines for a number of movies.
39. It’s one of the worst books I’ve ever read. Its only redeeming factor/element/feature is
that it’s quite short.
40. I love mountaineering, and I suppose I would liken/identify/integrate it to the
excitement of winning the lottery.
41. Having your heart broken is an inset/intimate/integral part of growing up.
42. But what you are saying is not coherent/continuous/consistent with what you said last
week.
43. Suddenly, I heard Melissa and Alex talking about me in the near/adjacent/next room.
44. It was a real blow when Jim lost his job because he’s got a large number of
siblings/dependants/ family, including three children and a mother-in-law.
45. Olivia has always yearned/inclined/favoured to return to the country she was born in.
46. I’ve never see anyone so keen/dedicated/eager to their job as Philip is.
47. Parents should try to treat all their children equally and not differentiate/praise/favour
one over another.
48. Nearby businesses offered a rest/recess/respite from the chaos on the streets with Wi-
Fi, cellphone charging, and good company.
49. I think I just fancy/adore/welcome getting a DVD and staying in tonight.
50. It’s important to have goals to urge/strive/ head towards.