Language Study

●Word Study

Word list:

Comparative / comprehend / confession / destiny / hostile / respond / similarity / superficial / supreme / vital / mutuality / occupy / persist / preference / reference

1. comparative

a. A . having significance only in relation to something else

b. relating to or based on or involving comparison

Examples:

●comparative anatomy

●comparative adjective

●comparative method

●No horse has a speed comparable to that of his.

2. Comprehend

v. a. to get the meaning of something

b. to include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one’s sphere or territory

Examples:

●The judge said that it was difficult to comprehend why the police acted so in this matter.

●The park comprehends all the land on the other side of the river.

●The problem is above/beyond my comprehension.

3. confession

n. an admission of misdeeds or faults; (Roman Catholic Church) the act of a penitent disclosing his sinfulness before a priest in the sacrament of penance in the hope of absolution

Examples:

●He made a confession.

●Confession is the first step to repentance.

[谚]认罪是悔罪的第一步； 悔过必先认错。

●Open confession is good for the soul.

[谚]直认无讳， 身心泰然。

4. destiny

n. a. an event (or a course of events) that will inevitably happen in the future

b. your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)

Example:

●a master of one’s own destiny

●He was destined to be an actor.

●The destination of his study is the law.

5. hostile

a. unfriendly; showing dislikes

●hostile to a person/ a country/ a nation

●be hostile to Christianity

●be hostile to reform/ any change

●a man hostile to war 反战人士

●They showed an open hostility to…

●There is much hostility against America.

6. mutuality

n. a reciprocal relation between interdependent entities

Example:

●Although there are not real winners or losers, in games of pretending children soon learn that the game ends when mutuality ends.

●mutual love/ aid/ friend/ benefit and collaboration

7. occupy

v. a. to engage or engross wholly

b. to keep busy with

c. to take; use up

Examples:

●The workers were occupied in building new houses.

●He occupies an important position in the Ministry of Education.

8. persist

v. a. to refuse to stop

b. to continue to exist

Examples:

●persist in the study of English

●On the top of very high mountains snow persists throughout the year.

9. preference

n. a. grant of favor or advantage to one over another

b. the right or chance to choose; a predisposition in favor of something

Examples:

●A teacher should not show preference for any one of his pupils.

●preference bond 优先股

●preferential right 优先权

●You may come, preferably, in the morning.

10. reference

n. a. the act of referring or consulting

b. a book to which you can refer for authoritative facts

c. a formal recommendation by a former employer to a potential future employer describing the person’s qualifications and dependability

Examples:

●Keep this dictionary for reference.

●When I was looking for a job, I asked my head teacher to give me a reference.

11. respond

v. to show a response or a reaction to something

Examples:

●I offered him a drink but he didn’t respond.

●The plane responds well to the controls.

●respond by a nod

●respond with a smile

12. similarity

n. the quality of being similar dissimilarity

Examples:

●a similarity of writing styles

●Several explanations have been offered to explain similarity increases interpersonal attraction.

13. superficial

a. involving a surface only; not deep or penetrating emotionally or intellectually; of little substance or significance

●superficial water

●superficial feet

●superficial knowledge

●superficial extent

14. supreme

a. a. greatest in status or authority or power

b. highest in excellence or achievement sovereign

Examples:

●The most important law court is called the Supreme Court.

●supreme courage 最大的勇气

●supreme disgust 极端的厌恶

●the supreme test of fidelity 忠诚最后的考验

●supreme good 至善

15. vital

a. full of life; full of spirit; urgently needed

● Phrases and Expressions

List:

take in / in a certain perspective / come forward / in terms of / in those respects / all but / wipe out / give way to

1. in those respects

●in those details; at those points

Examples:

●In those respects, I don’t agree with you.

●This room is fine except in one respect— what can I sit on?

●In many respects the new version is worse than the old one.

2. all but

●almost; nearly

Examples:

●It’s all but impossible.

●an all but impossible task

●All but the morning star have disappeared.

●All but one were present.

3. wipe out

●to get rid of; destroy all of

Examples:

●wipe out a stain/deficits/illiteracy

●The entire population was wiped out by the terrible disease.

●The cost of the new building will wipe out all the company’s profits this year.

4. give way (to)

a. to admit defeat in an argument or fight

b. to break under pressure; collapse

c. to have its place taken by

d. to allow oneself to show

Examples:

●My new evidence forced him to give way.

●The floor gave way under the heavy weight.

●Steam trains gave way to electric trains.

●He gave way to tears.

5. take in

a. to provide lodgings for (a person)

b. to include

c. to understand fully; grasp

d. to deceive

Examples:

●He had nowhere to sleep so we offered to take him in.

●This is the total cost of the holiday, taking everything in.

●It took me a long time to take in what you were saying.

●Don’t be taken in by his promise.

6. in a certain perspective

●from a certain point of view

Examples:

●The company’s results need to be looked at in their proper perspective; our profits have fallen but it’s been a difficult year for our competitors, too.

●You must get the story in its right perspective.

7. come forward

●to offer oneself to fill a position; give help to the police, etc.

Examples:

●Only two people have come forward for election to the committee.

●No one has come forward with any information about the murder.

8. in terms of/ in… terms

●with regard to; from the point of view of

Examples:

●The book has been well reviewed, but in terms of actual sales it hasn’t been very successful.

●In business terms the project is not really viable, but it would add to the prestige of the company.

●Word Building

List:

●Prefix—mis

●Root—press

●Suffix—ship

● Grammar

Uses of the infinitive

A. the subject of a sentence

To compromise appears advisable.

It is an offence to drop litter in the street.

B. the complement of a verb

His plan is to keep the affair secret.

He forgot to leave the car keys on the table.

C. the object or part of the object of a verb

He wants me to pay.

She learnt how to make lace.

D. be + infinitive: commands or instructions

No one is to leave this building without the

permission of the police.

She is to be married next month.

E. purpose

I want a case to keep my records in.

He sent his son to a boarding school in order to have some peace.

F. after certain adjectives

He is quite likely to come today.

You are lucky to be going by air.

G. as a connective link

He survived the crash only to die in the desert.

He returned home to learn that this daughter had just become engaged.

H. replace relative clauses

He is the second man to be killed in this way.

There is a lot to be done.

I. after certain nouns

His ability to get on with people is his chief asset.

Their promise to rebuild the town was not taken seriously.

J. with too/enough and certain adjectives/adverbs

He was too drunk to drive home.

Would you be so good as to forward my letters?

She had enough sense to turn off the gas.

K. certain infinitive phrases can be placed at the beginning or end of a sentence

To be perfectly frank, you’re a bad driver.

To be honest, I just don’t like her.

I’ve never met him, to tell you the truth.