4000 Essential English Words 5 Unit 6: The Island
Word List
- altitude [ˈӕltətjuːd] n.
The altitude of a place is its height above sea level.
→ The air was thin at such a high altitude on the mountain.
- coastline [ˈkoustlain] n.
A coastline is the outline of a country’s coast.
→ He noticed that most of the cities in Australia are on the coastline.
- deter [diˈtəːr] v.
To deter means to prevent or discourage someone from doing something.
→ Icy roads deter people from driving their cars.
- devise [diˈvaiz] v.
To devise something means to have an idea or plan about it in the mind.
→ The thieves devised a plan to steal the diamonds.
- expertise [ˌekspə:rtiːz] n.
Expertise is the knowledge and skills to do something well.
→ John has a lot of advertising expertise. He can sell anything!
- fracture [ˈfræktʃə:r] n.
A fracture is a crack or break in something.
→ Don’t stand on that teg because there is a fracture. It might get worse.
- impair [imˈpɛər] v.
To impair something means to damage it or make it worse.
→ Drinking coffee impairs my ability to go to sleep.
- implement [ˈimpləment] v.
To implement something means to ensure that what has been planned is done.
→ The school decided to implement a new teaching strategy.
- indigenous [inˈdidʒənəs] adj.
If something is indigenous, it is originally from, or native to, a place.
→ Tomatoes are indigenous to the Americas.
- insight [ˈinsait] n.
Insight is a deep and accurate understanding of something.
→ The physics textbook gave the students new insight into gravity.
- limb [lim] n.
A limb is a large branch on a tree.
→ The monkey sat on the tree limb and enjoyed a piece of fruit.
- migraine [ˈmaiːgrein] n.
A migraine is a painful headache that makes one feel sick.
→ My sister gets a migraine every time she has a lot of stress.
- optimism [ˈoptəmizəm] n.
Optimism is the feeling of being hopeful about the future or success of something.
→ The mother had optimism about her children’s futures.
- peculiar [piˈkjuːliər] adj.
When something is peculiar, it is strange, sometimes in a bad way.
→ That peculiar smell coming from the kitchen reminds me of rotten eggs.
- proficient [prəˈfiʃənt] adj.
When a person is proficient at something, they can do it well.
→ Secretaries are proficient at typing quickly.
- quest [kwest] n.
A quest is a long and difficult search for something.
→ The treasure hunter went on a quest to find an ancient gold necklace.
- ridge [ridʒ] n.
A ridge is a long, narrow piece of raised land.
→ The brown bear walked along the edge of the mountain ridge.
- spouse [spaus] n.
A spouse is the person to whom someone is married.
→ I live in a home with my spouse and our two children.
- thrust [θrʌst] v.
To thrust means to push or move something quickly with a lot of force.
→ The boxer thrust his fist into the punching bag.
- tolerate [ˈtɒləreit] v.
To tolerate something means to be able to accept it even when it is unpleasant.
→ When you are in a hurry, it can be hard to tolerate traffic signals.
