Chip Conley: Measuring what makes life worthwhile

1.      Maid-  A woman servant.

·         Jon hired a maid yesterday.

·         A maid is a person who would clean up your mess for you.

2.      Mired- a difficulty or embarrassment that is hard to extricate yourself from

·         He felt mired when she gave him the news.

·         It is normal to feel mired after hearing such things.

3.      Mundane- prozaic; ordinary

·         Even though the gift she gave him was mundane, He was really happy to get it.

·         Sometimes mundane situations can turn into a distaster.

4.     Boycotting-   The act or practice of subjecting an obnoxious person or company to the organized persecution         called a boycott.

·         Some people went on the streets, boycotting the government’s ideas.

·         I’m boycotting sultanas in the cheesecake.

5.      Vulnerable- Susceptible to physical or emotional injury.

·         She was really strong, but her father’s death made her vulnerable.

·         He was always shy and vulnerable.

6.      Revenue- All the income produced by a particular source

·         He was happy when he saw revenue of his company for 2012.

·         It was the biggest revenue percentage drop sine 1999.

7.      Befuddled  -confused or perplexed

·         He was really beffudled, but guests coulnd tell it.

·         Kate’s mood changes really befuddled Jack.

Rob Forbes on ways of seeing

 Lofty- seeming to think you are better than the others

·         He has such a lofty manner.

·         He was driven by lofty ideas.

Consistent- always behaving in the same way or having the same attitudes

·         He is the team’s most consistent player.

·         They needed to be consistent in their approach.

Wake- up call- a warning to take action concerning something that was overlooked or neglected

·         It seemed to be a wake – up call for him.

·         It was a wake – up call and since then he knew that something has to change.

Self- explanatory- self- evident

·         Jack’s decisions were self- explanatory.

·         Steps taken were self – explanatory

 Sludge -mud, mire, or ooze covering the ground or forming a deposit, as on a riverbed.

·          The pavement was covered with sludge.

·         When Jane got home, she was covered with sludge.

Encrusted - having a hardened crust as a covering

·         It was encrusted with mud.

·          Black satin encrusted with silver and diamonds.

Letdown- a disappointment

·         The cancellation of the game was a real letdown.

·         Part of this letdown is the result of visibility issues

Johanna Blakley: Lessons from fashion's free culture

1.      Seam- a line where two pieces of cloth, leather etc. have been stitched together.

·         While he was jumping over the fence, his seams went undone.

·         Just join the shoulder seams together.

2.      Garment-  a piece of clothing

·         The outer garment was too loose- fitting.

·         He pulled his garment on and left the room.

3.      Knock off- fake eg. piece of clothing

·         She wants to be fashionable but she doesn’t have enough money to wear labeled clothes so she is wearing knock offs.

4.      Incorporate-  to include sth into sth

·         The company incorporated many eco- friendly ideas into this project.

·         Many of Tom’s suggestions have been incorporated in the plan.

5.      Label  - a brief description given for purposes of identification.

·         What does it say on the label?

·         The care- label says ‘dry- clean only’.

6.      Apparel- clothes

·         She used to wear fine apparel.

·         The store sells children’s apparel.

7.      Utilitarian- intended to be useful and practical rather than attractive of comfortable

·         Ugly utilitarian buildings became his surroundings.

·         She was wearing plain utilitarian apron.

Luca Turin on the science of scent

1.      Fragrance- a pleasant smell

·        The bath oils come in various fragrances.

·        Yesterday Helen bought new fragrance from Dior.

2.      Lush-  beautiful and making you feel pleasure; seemingly expensive

·        They rent a lush apartment.

·        He is so lush.

3.      Plausible- reasonable and likely to be true or successful

·        Tom’s story really sounds plausible.

·        He has given a plausible explanation.

4.      Bark- the outer covering of a tree

·        The people strip the bark and use it in medicines.

·        The bark of a birch is black and white.

5.      Repel- to keep someone or something away

·        I bought a lotion that repels mosquitoes.

·        This smell really repels me.

6.      Sulphur- a common yellow chemical substance that burns with a very strong unpleasant smell

·        Sulphur’s symbol is S.

·        Sulphur is used in industry.

7.      Rotten- badly decayed and no longer good to use

·        The fruits went rotten very quickly.

·        The smell of rotten eggs is one of the worst one can imagine.

The Brain in Love- Helen Fisher

1.      Inscription- letters inscribed ( especially words engraved or carved) on something

·         There was an inscription carved on the door

·         The simple inscription on her grave says” R.I.P”

2.      To pine-  to become sad and not continue your life as normal because someone has died or gone away

·         One year after she left, he was still pining.

·         After 2 weeks in Kraków I’ve been pining for home.

3.      Core- the most important, central part of something

·         He was the core of Jane’s Universe.

·         Debt is at the core of the problem

4.      To crave- to have an extremely desire for something

·         Tom’s just an insecure child who craves attention.

·         He has always craved excitement.

5.       To distort- to change the appearance, sound, or shape something so that it is strange or unclear

·         Tall buildings can distort radio signals.

·         The loud speaker seems to distort his voice.

6.      Scruffy-  dirty and untidy

·         He was wearing a hoodie an scruffy pair of jeans.

·         There was a gang of scruffy children hanging around.

7.      Tot-  very small child (inf)

·         The program for tots was on.

·         These are good toys for tiny tots.

A.J Jacobs- A Year of Living Biblically

1.      Immerse (somebody in something)- to become completely involved in an acitivity

·        Jack is really immerse in his studies.

·        Jane and Jill were immersed in a conversation about Tom.

2.      Profound- having a strong influence of effect

·        His experience of war had a profound effect on his work.

·        Seeing people die was a profound experience for him.

3.      Obscure- not well known and not very important

·        He was an obscure poet then, but after his death he become famous

·        The details  of  Jim’s life remained obscure.

4.      Pamphlet- a very thin book with paper covers, that gives information about something

·        A girl was standing in front of the restaurant and she was giving pamphlets to passers- by.

·        I wanted to ask a question but then I realized that everything about it was written on the pamphlet.

5.       To covet- to want something very much, especially something that belongs to someone else

·        She always coveted wisdom but she never achieved it.

·        Coveting is one of the sins.

6.      Compassionate- feeling sympathy for people who are suffering.

·        My mum is a caring and compassionate woman.

·        Being compassionate is one of the features of good doctor.

7.      Pebble-  a smooth stone found especially on a beach or on the bottom of a river

·        The beach was covered with white pebbles.

·        Jane was picking up pebbles and shells.

Sheena Iyengar: How to make choosing easier

1.      Various-  of many different kinds

·         For various reasons, she was charged with a murder.

·         She showed a diagram with informationa about various types of music.

2.      Upscale (AmE)/ Upmarket (BrE)-  designed for or used by people who belong to a high social class or have a lot of money

·         We went to that shop but it was quite upscale.

·         One of the advantages of upscale groceries is that you can find almost everything there.

3.       Waistline- A line thought of as encircling the body at the waist

·         Ann is wearing a red dress with a belt on her waistline.

·         The water in the lake was up to his waistline.

4.      Extraneous- not important

·         His opinions were extraneous.

·         Emma told him that she couldn’t bear him thinking that every single of her problems was extraneous.

5.       Retailer- a person or business that sells goods to customers in a shop

·         When I don’t know where to find something- I always go and ask retailer.

·         He was chosen the nicest retailer in the whole district.

6.      To enroll- to sign up; to join a group

·         Tom enrolled on art course.

·         She was enrolled in lifecycle fund.

7.      Exterior-  the outside of something

·         The exterior walls need refreshment.

·         The exterior of a car was hidden beneath loads of mud.