Language I

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

Test your Informal English

hip adjective hipper; hippest [also more hip; most hip] informal 1 : knowing about and following the newest styles, fashions, etc. He tried to learn about the latest bands so he could impress his hip new college friends. 2 : very popular or fashionable She knows how to get into all of the hippest clubs and restaurants. hype /hap/ noun

[noncount] informal + often disapproving : talk or writing that is intended to make people excited about or interested in something or someone There was a great deal of media hype surrounding the senator's announcement. After months of promotional hype, the band finally released their new album. hack noun plural hacks [count] 1 disapproving a : a writer who produces a large amount of work mainly to make money a hack writer b : someone who does work that is not important or original a political hack hack noun plural hacks [count] 1 : the act of hitting something roughly with an ax, knife, etc. He took a hack at the branch. 2 baseball, informal : SWING He took a hack at a high fastball and popped it up. 3 : a loud, dry cough a smoker's hack hag /hg/ noun

plural hags [count] offensive : an ugly, evil, or unpleasant old woman seersucker /sisk/ noun

Language I Agustina Victoria Borr Vocabulary [noncount] : a light type of cloth that has an uneven surface and a pattern of lines often used before another noun a seersucker dress/jacket/suit silver screen noun Meaning: the silver screen old-fashioned 1 : a screen in a movie theater one of the greatest films ever to hit the silver screen [=one of the greatest films ever shown in movie theaters] 2 : movies in general stars of the silver screen [=movie stars] couch potato noun plural -toes [count] informal + disapproving : someone who spends a lot of time sitting and watching television teleprompter /tlpr:mpt/ noun

plural teleprompters [count] chiefly US : a machine that helps someone who is speaking to an audience or on television by showing the words that need to be said scotfree /sk:tfri:/ adjective

informal : without the punishment that is deserved It's not fair. I was punished and they got off scot-free. [=they were not punished at all] scrimp /skrmp/ verb

scrimps; scrimped; scrimping [no obj] : to spend as little money as you can : to be careful about spending money They scrimped and saved for their big vacation. stingy /stni/ adjective

stingier; stingiest [also more stingy; most stingy] disapproving 1 : not liking or wanting to give or spend money a stingy old miser The company was too stingy to raise salaries. : not generous He is stingywith compliments. [=he doesn't give many compliments]

Language I 2 : small in size or amount stingy portions of food

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

nofrills adjective always used before a noun : offering or providing only the most important or basic things : not fancy or luxurious We flew with a no-frills airline. The restaurant offers no-frills dining. whiz (chiefly US) or Brit whizz noun plural whizzes [count] informal : someone who is very good at something a computer whiz He's a whiz at math. feeble /fi:bl/ adjective

feebler /fi:bl/; feeblest /fi:blst/ [also more feeble; most feeble] 1 : very weak a feeble old man She's still feeble from her long illness. We heard a feeble cry for help. Business is suffering because of the feeble economy. synonyms WEAK 2 : not good enough : not successful or effective a feeble joke He made a feeble attempt/effort to explain his behavior. He offered a feeble excuse for his behavior. Dislike is too feeble a word for how she feels about him. wimp /wmp/ noun

plural wimps [count] informal : a weak person who lacks confidence, courage, etc. I was too much of a wimp [=coward] to confront him. weak /wi:k/ adjective

weaker; weakest [also more weak; most weak] 1 : having little physical power or ability : not strong He has a weak throwing arm. The illness left her too weak to stand up. The child was born withweak lungs. weak eyes/eyesight

Language I Agustina Victoria Borr 2 : having little power or force The batter hit a weak ground ball. a weak punch weak winds She uttered her reply in a weakvoice. girl Friday noun plural -days [count] informal + old-fashioned : a woman who does many different jobs in an office : a female office assistant Girl Guide noun plural Guides [count] : a member of a worldwide organization for girls ages 7 through 18 that is similar to the Girl Scouts in the United States called also Guide girlie also girly /gli/ adjective 1 always used before a noun : featuring attractive young women who are wearing little or no clothing a girlie show/magazine 2 : having a quality that is considered suitable for girls or women and not suitable for men or boys She likes to wear girlie pink dresses. a girlie voice yuppie /jpi/ noun

Vocabulary

plural yuppies [count] often disapproving : a young college-educated adult who has a job that pays a lot of money and who lives and works in or near a large city Her friends are just a bunch of yuppies. often used before another noun her yuppie friends yummy /jmi/ adjective

yummier; yummiest [also more yummy; most yummy] informal : very pleasing to the taste : DELICIOUS a yummy dessert He prepared all sorts of yummy dishes. yippee /jpi/ interjection

informal + old-fashioned used to express delight or joy Yippee! We're on vacation! yucky also US yukky /jki/ adjective

yuckier also yukkier; yukkiest [also more yucky; most yucky] informal 1 : causing discomfort, disgust, or a strong feeling of dislike : unpleasant and disgusting The water was dirty and smelled yucky. yucky food

Language I 2 : having an unpleasant feeling in your stomach : somewhat sick I felt yucky after eating all that cake. bitty /bti/ adjective

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

1 chiefly US, informal : very small a little bitty [=tiny] room 2 Brit, informal : made up of many small parts that do not seem to fit together well a bitty and uneven book batty /bti/ adjective

battier; battiest informal 1 : foolish or silly It's just another one of her batty [=harebrained, nutty, wacky] ideas. potty adjective pottier; pottiest [also more potty; most potty] Brit, informal 1 : CRAZY I think he's gone a little potty. All this noise is driving me potty! 2 : very interested in or excited about someone or something She's just potty about this new dance class. patty also pattie /pti/ noun

plural patties [count] 1 chiefly US : a small, flat cake of chopped food hamburger/beef/chicken patties 2 US : a soft, flat candy a peppermint patty rape /rep/ verb

rapes; raped; raping [+ obj] : to force (someone) to have sex with you by using violence or the threat of violence He is accused of raping the girl. She was raped by a fellow student.

Language I smooch /smu:t/ verb

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

smooches; smooched; smooching informal : to kiss [no obj] They smooched while sitting on the porch swing. [+ obj] She smooched him while they were on the porch swing. streak /stri:k/ noun

plural streaks 3 : a period of repeated success or failure a lucky streak a streak of 11 straight victories a winning/losing streak [=a series of wins/losses] The team has recently been on a hot streak. [=the team has been winning a lot of games recently] 4 : a long, narrow area or flash of light a streak of lightning/light knead /ni:d/ verb

kneads; kneaded; kneading [+ obj] 1 : to prepare (dough) by pressing a mixture of flour, water, etc., with your hands Knead the dough until it is smooth. 2 : to press and squeeze (a person's muscles) with your hands He kneaded [=massaged] the muscles in my neck. Mickey Mouse adjective informal + disapproving : not deserving to be taken seriously : having little value or importance He took a lot of Mickey Mouse [=very easy] courses when he was in college. The company is just aMickey Mouse operation. blueribbon adjective always used before a noun : made up of people who have special knowledge, abilities, etc. a blue-ribbon committee/panel brownie /brani/ noun

plural brownies [count] 1 Brownie : a member of an organization of Girl Scouts or Girl Guides for girls ages 7 through 10 compare CUB SCOUT Red Crescent noun

Language I Agustina Victoria Borr Meaning: the Red Crescent : an organization in Islamic countries that helps people who are suffering because of a war or natural disaster hangover /hov/ noun

Vocabulary

plural hangovers [count] : a sick feeling or condition that comes after drinking too much alcohol at an earlier time She woke up with a hangover. leftover /lftov/ noun

plural leftovers 1 leftovers [plural] : food that has not been finished at a meal and that is often served at another meal Are we having leftovers again? 2 [count] : a thing that remains after something is finished or ended The law is a leftover from earlier times. leftover adjective always used before a noun Do you have any leftover pizza from last night? pushup /pp/ noun

plural pushups [count] chiefly US : an exercise in which you lay on your stomach and raise and lower your body by straightening and bending your arms called also (Brit) press-up hangup /hp/ noun

plural hangups [count] informal : something that causes you to feel worried, afraid, embarrassed, etc. We all have our hang-ups. often + about He has a lot of hang-ups about money. yob /j:b/ noun

plural yobs [count] Brit, informal : a teenage boy or young man who does noisy and sometimes violent things as part of a group or gang : HOOLIGAN A couple of yobs damaged his car.

Language I nob /n:b/ noun

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

plural nobs [count] chiefly Brit, informal + old-fashioned : a person who is wealthy or belongs to the upper class She threw a party and invited all the local nobs.

heavy noun plural heavies [count] 1 : a bad person in a movie or play : VILLAIN He played the heavy in film after film. 2 US, informal : a person or thing that is serious, important, or powerful : HEAVYWEIGHT The conference will be attended by several media heavies. They have become one of the industryheavies. sissy also Brit cissy /ssi/ noun

plural sissies [count] informal + disapproving 1 : a boy who is weak or who likes things that girls usually like The other kids laughed at him and called him a sissy because he didn't like sports. 2 : a person who is weak and fearful Don't be such a sissy. [=wimp] It's just a frog. sissy adjective He thinks golf is a sissy sport. prissy /prsi/ adjective

prissier; prissiest [also more prissy; most prissy] informal + disapproving : having or showing the annoying attitude of people who care too much about dressing and behaving properly and who are easily upset by other people's behavior, language, etc. She was too prissy to wear jeans. a prissy do-gooder ninny /nni/ noun

plural ninnies [count] informal + somewhat old-fashioned : a foolish or stupid person nanny /nni/ noun

Language I Agustina Victoria Borr plural nannies [count] 1 : a woman who is paid to care for a young child usually in the child's home When I was growing up, I had a nanny. 2 Brit : GRANDMOTHER teenyweeny /ti:niwi:ni/ adjective

Vocabulary

teenyweenier; teenyweest [also more teenyweeny; most teenyweeny] informal : very small : TINY I'll just have a teeny-weeny piece of cake. Aren't you even a teeny-weeny bit jealous? a teeny-weeny little house/bug (humorous) I like the car, too, but there's just one teeny-weeny littleproblem: we can't afford it! itchy /ti/ adjective

itchier; itchiest 1 a : feeling or having an itch My eyes are/feel itchy. itchy skin an itchy back b : causing an itch an itchy rash This sweater is itchy. 2 informal : feeling a strong desire to do something, to change something, etc. Voters are itchy for change. He was itchy to get going. If you have itchy feet, you have a strong desire to leave a place, job, etc., and go somewhere else. She's had the same job for five years, and she's starting to get itchy feet. If you have an itchy finger or itchy fingers, you have a strong desire to do or get something, especially something that other people think is wrong or dangerous. a movie about a gunman who has an itchy (trigger) finger [=a gunman who wants to shoot his gun; a gunman who is eager or likely to shoot someone] jittery /tri/ adjective

[more jittery; most jittery] informal : very nervous I always get/feel jittery when I have to give a speech. The latest economic news has made some investors jittery. iffy /fi/ adjective

iffier; iffiest [also more iffy; most iffy] informal 1 : having many uncertain or unknown qualities or conditions : not certain an iffy situation/proposal/decision It's iffy [=doubtful] whether he can play in the game. 2 : not certain to be good I'm hoping to play golf tomorrow, but the weather looks a bit iffy. [=there's a chance that the weather will be bad]

Language I footwork

Agustina Victoria Borr /ftwk/ noun

Vocabulary

[noncount] 1 : the activity of moving or walking from place to place The investigation required a lot of footwork. 2 : movement of the feet in a sport, dance, etc. He used quick footwork to dodge his opponent. The tango involves some fancy footwork. 3 : active and skillful movement or activity to achieve a goal He knows that getting enough votes for the proposal is going to require some fancy politicalfootwork. legwork /lgwk/ noun

[noncount] : the active physical work that is involved in doing something I wrote the article myself, but my assistant gathered the information and did most of the otherlegwork. fib /fb/ noun

plural fibs [count] informal : an untrue statement about something minor or unimportant I have to admit that I told a fib when I said I enjoyed the movie. Is she telling fibs again? scoff /sk:f/ verb

scoffs; scoffed; scoffing : to laugh at and talk about someone or something in a way that shows disapproval and a lack of respect [no obj] He scoffed when she told him that she planned to become an actress. He scoffed at the idea/notion/suggestion of her becoming an actress. [+ obj] You! An actress?! he scoffed. You have no more talent than I do! compare 2SCOFF nincompoop /nnkmpu:p/ noun

plural nincompoops [count] informal : a foolish or stupid person The people running that company are a bunch of nincompoops! roasting noun [singular] Brit : the act of severely criticizing someone My father gave me a roasting [=yelled at me] for coming home late. He got a roasting from his boss. [=his boss criticized him severely]

Language I clanger /kl/ noun

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

plural clangers [count] Brit, informal : a bad and embarrassing mistake : BLUNDER a verbal clanger They lost the game after a defensive clanger. see also drop a clanger at2DROP relish /rl/ noun

plural relishes 1 [count, noncount] : a seasoned sauce that is used to add flavor to other foods and that is made of chopped fruit or vegetables mango relish ; especially : such a sauce made from pickles I like to eat hot dogs with mustard and relish. 2 a [noncount] : enjoyment of or delight in something She plays the role with great relish. He took particular relish in pointing out my error. b [singular] : a feeling of liking something He showed little relish for the job. [=he did not like the job] tipoff /tp:f/ noun

plural tipoffs [count] 1 : a warning that something (such as a crime) is going to happen The police received a tip-off about the robbery from an informer. see also tip off at 6TIP 2 : a clear sign or indication of something The worried expression on his face was a tip-off that something had gone wrong. compare 2TIP-OFF tell off[phrasal verb] tell (someone) off or tell off (someone) informal 1 US : to yell at or insult (someone who did or said something that made you angry) He wished that he could tell his boss off. often + for She told him off for spreading rumors about her. 2 Brit : to criticize (someone) in an angry way from a position of authority often + for The teacher told the girl off for talking during class. hold off[phrasal verb] 1 a : to wait to do something You need to decide now. You can't hold off any longer. He held off as long as he could. often + on She decided to hold off on her vacation for a while longer. If you hold off doingsomething or hold off on doing something, you wait to do it at a later time. He held off on announcing his decision. b : to not happen until later The rain held off until we got home. [=it didn't rain until we got home]

Language I Agustina Victoria Borr 2 hold (someone) off or hold off (someone) : to stop (someone) from coming near someone or something Her bodyguard held off the crowd. [=kept the crowd away from her] busboy /bsbo/ noun

Vocabulary

plural busboys [count] : a man or boy whose job is to remove dirty dishes, clean tables, etc., at a restaurant wide boy noun plural boys [count] Brit, informal + disapproving : a man who earns a lot of money by doing things that are dishonest or illegal sweet tooth noun [singular] informal : a liking for sweet foods He's always had a sweet tooth. [=he has always liked sweets] wisdom tooth noun plural teeth [count] : one of four large teeth in the back of your mouth that do not appear until you are an adult tip noun 2 [count] Brit a : a place where rubbish is left : DUMP b informal : a very messy place : DUMP This place is a real tip! filthy /fli/ adjective

filthier; filthiest 1 : very dirty filthy clothes filthy streets 2 a : very offensive or disgusting and usually about sex a filthy movie/joke He has a filthy mouth. [=he uses language that is very offensive] chaos /ke:s/ noun

Language I Agustina Victoria Borr Vocabulary [noncount] 1 : complete confusion and disorder : a state in which behavior and events are not controlled by anything The loss of electricity caused chaos throughout the city. When the police arrived, the street was in total/complete/absolute chaos. The country had descended into economic chaos.

soil verb soils; soiled; soiling formal 1 [+ obj] : to make (something) dirty I soiled my blouse/shirt at the cocktail party. The ink soiled his hands. Her clothes were soiledand very wet. soiled linens/underwear/diapers sometimes used figuratively He refused to soil his hands [=do anything dishonest or wrong] for her.

black eye noun plural eyes [count] : a dark area of skin around the eye caused by being hit hard He gave me a black eye. [=he punched me in the eye causing a dark bruise] often used figuratively The scandal gave the team a black eye. [=the scandal caused people to think badly of the team]

blackout

/blkat/ noun

plural blackouts [count] 1 : a period when lights are kept off or are hidden from view to guard against enemy airplane attack in a war the blackouts of World War II 2 : a period when lights are off because of an electrical power failure She keeps flashlights and candles handy in case of a blackout. compare BROWNOUT 3 : a sudden and temporary loss of consciousness, vision, or memory He told his doctor he had been experiencing blackouts. blackleg /blklg/ noun

plural blacklegs [count] Brit, disapproving : a person who works while other employees are on strike : SCAB

Language I black belt noun plural belts [count] : an expert in a martial art such as karate or tae kwon do She is a karate black belt. ; also : the rank of such an expert He has a black belt in judo. squashy /skw:i/ adjective

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

squashier; squashiest [also more squashy; most squashy] chiefly Brit : soft and easy to press into a different shape squashy [=squishy] cushions/pillows a squashy sofa

wishywashy

/wiw:i/ adjective

wishywashier; -est [also more wishywashy; most wishywashy] disapproving : not having or showing strong ideas or beliefs about something : weak and not able or not willing to act He gave me some wishy-washy answer. wishy-washy politicians

faint

/fent/ adjective

fainter; faintest 1 : not clearly seen, heard, tasted, felt, etc. We heard a faint noise. a faint smell/odor/aroma the faint glow of a distant light There was afaint smile on her lips. a faint [=weak] radio signal 2 : very slight or small There's just a faint chance/possibility that the weather will improve by tomorrow. a faint hope afaint reminder of their former greatness He didn't have the faintest idea/notion what she was talking about. [=he did not know what she was talking about] She showed not the faintest interest in him. [=she showed no interest at all in him] 3 not used before a noun : weak and dizzy I'd better lie down; I feel faint. She felt faint from/with hunger.

lodger

/l:/ noun

plural lodgers [count] : a person who rents a room in another person's house

Language I pigsty /pgsta/ noun plural pigsties [count] 1 : a place where pigs are kept called also (US) pigpen, sty 2 informal : a dirty or messy place His room was a pigsty. called also (US) pigpen, sty squat noun

Agustina Victoria Borr

Vocabulary

plural squats 1 [count] : a position in which your knees are bent and your body lowered so that you are close to your heels or sitting on your heels 2 [noncount] US slang : the least amount : anything at all I don't know squat [=diddly-squat] about baseball. He didn't do squat all day. The car is worthsquat. [=nothing at all] 3 [count] chiefly Brit : an empty building that squatters live in She lives in a squat. squat adjective squatter; squattest : short and thick a squat man = a man with a squat body a squat tower