Words of the week
This page is for learning new words through English explanation.
Words of the week from September 25
feature something important, interesting or typical of a place or thing An interesting feature of the city is the old market.
peculiar strange or unusual, especially in a way that is unpleasant or worrying There was something peculiar in the way he smiled.
Words of the week from September 4
fawn a deer less than one year old
insole a piece of material shaped like your foot that is placed inside a shoe to make it more comfortable
Words of the week from August 3
dunk to put food quickly into liquid before eating it. She sat reading a magazine, dunking cookies in her coffee.
mayfly a small insect that lives near water and only lives for a very short time
Words of the week from July 10
shaggy being or covered with long and untidy hair. The man had a shaggy beard.
significant noticable importance or influence. He made a significant improvement in his English.
Words of the week form October 24
fort a building built in order to defend an area against attack
hive a structure made for bees to live in
Words of the week from October 3
pacy a book or a film having a story that develops quickly
purr when a cat makes a low continuous sound, especially when it is happy
Words of the week from September 26
obligatory to do something that you have to do because of the law. It is obligatory for all employees to wear protective clothing.
posh elegant and expensive. You look very posh in your new suit.
Words of the week from September 19
dory a narrow fish that has a deep body and that can open its mouth very wide
fetch to go to where something is and bring it back. The inhabitants have to walk a mile to fetch water.
Words of the week from September 12
stump the bottom part of a tree left in the ground after the rest has fallen or been cut down
tracker a person who can find people or wild animals by following the marks they leave on the ground
Words of the week from September 5
erase to remove something completely. She tried to erase the memory of that evening.
insist to demand that something happens or that somebody agrees to do something. She insisted on his wearing a suit.
Words of the week from June 20
ample enough or more than enough. There was ample time to get to the airport.
birth mark a red or brown mark on a person´s skin that has been there since they were born.
Words of the week from June 13
ponce a man who controls one or several prostitutes and the money that they earn.
riddle a question that is difficult to understand and that has a surprising answer, that you ask somebody as a game. She always talks in riddles.
Words of the week from May 30
yolk the round yellow part in the middle of an egg. Separate the whites from the yolks.
warden a person who is responsible for taking care of a particular place and making sure that the rules are obeyed. A forest warden.
Words of the week from May 23
hesitate to be slow to speak or act because you feel uncertain or nervous. She hesitated before replying.
negotiation formal discussion between people who are trying to reach an agreement. They begin another round of negotiations today.
Words of the week from May 16
livery the colours in which the vehicles, aircraft, etc. of a particlular company are painted.
precious rare and worth a lot of money. The crown was set with precious jewels.
Words of the week from May 9
fray if cloth frays or something frays it, the threads in it start to come apart. It was fashionable to fray the bottoms of your jeans.
whisk to mix liquids, eggs, etc. into a stiff liht mass.
Words of the week from May 2
colander a metal or plastic bowl with a lot of small holes in it, used for draining water from vegetables
javelin a long stick with a pointed end which is thrown in sporting event
Words of the week from April 25
tremble to shake in a way that you cannot control, especially because you are very nervous. My legs were trembling with fear.
wring to twist and squeeze clothes in order to get the water out of them. She wrung out her clothes.
Words of the week from April 18
haggle to argue with sb in order to reach an agreement especially about the price. I left him in the market haggling over the price of a shirt.
kitty a group of people all give an amount and the money is spent on sth they agree on. We each put 20 dollars in the kitty to cover the bills.
Words of the week from April 11
fragrance a pleasant smell. The bath oil comes in various fragrances.
lockstep a way of walking together where people move their feet at the same time. The coffin was carried by six soldiers walking in lockstep.
Words of the week from April 4
raid a short surprise attack on an enemy by soldiers, ships or aircraft. They carried out a bombing raid on enemy bases.
stroll to walk somewhere in a slow relaxed way. People were strolling along the beach.
Words of the week from March 28
doddle a task or an activity that is very easy. The first year of the course was an absolute doddle.
lullaby a soft gentle song sung to make a child go to sleep.
Words of the week from March 21
abuse the use of something in way that is wrong or harmful. He was arrested on abusing of power.
rinse to wash something with clean water only, not using soap. Rinse the cooked pasta with boiling water.
Words of the week from March 14
essential completely necessary, extremely important. Money is not essential to happiness.
idle (of people) not working hard, lazy. Bob is an idle student.
Words of the week from March 7
bread winner a person who supports their family with the money they earn.
current happening now, of the present time. Current price of petrol is very high.
Words of the week from February 28
impact the powerful effect that something has on something Tourism has big impact on the environment.
freckle a small, pale brown spot on a person´s skin, especially on their face, caused by the sun
Words of the week from February 21
jot to write something quickly I´ll jot down the address for you.
maroon a large firework that shoots into the air and makes a loud noise, used to attract attention, especially at sea
Words of the week from February 14
seldom not often She seldom goes to the theatre.
purr when a cat purrs, it makes a low continuous sound in the throat, especially when it is happy.
Words of the week from February 7
hub the central and the most important of a place or activity. This is the commercial hub of the city.
mock to laugh at somebody or something in an unkind way. He is always mocking my French accent.
Words of the week from January 31
proclaim to publicly and officially tell people about something important The president proclaimed a state of emergency.
red-hot so hot that it looks red Red-hot coals glowed in the fire.
Words of the week from January 24
tale a story created using imagination which is full of action and adventure. Charles Dickens wrote A tale of two cities.
unwilling not wanting to do something and refusing to do it. They are unwilling to invest any money in the project.
Words of the week from January 17
brief lasting only a short time. Mozart´s life was brief.
scruffy dirty or untidy. He looked a little scruffy.
Words of the week from January 10
apron a piece of clothing worn over the front of the body, for example when cooking. My mum always wears her favourite apron during cooking.
crack to break without dividing into separate parts. The ice cracked as I stepped onto it.
Words of the week from January 3
genuine real, exact what it appears to be Is the painting a genuine Picasso?
occasion a particular time when something happens I met him on several occasions.
Words of the week from December 13
immediate happening or done without delay Saying yes was his immediate answer to her question.
mat a small piece of thick carpet or strong a material that is used to cover part of a floor clean your shoes on the mat before you come in.
Words of the week from December 6
freak a person who is considered to be unusual because of the way they behave She was treated like a freak because she didn´t want to have children.
lap the top part of your legs that forms a flat surface when you are sitting down There is only one seat so you will have to sit on my lap.
Words for the week from November 29
edge the outside limit of an area, object or a surface He stood on the edge of the cliff.
pile a number of things that are placed on top of each other The table was full of piles of books.
Words of the week from November 22
bother to spend time and energy doing something Why I bother? Nobody listens to me.
grave a place where a dead person is burried. We visited grandma´s grave.
Words of the week from November 15
hack to cut somebody/something with rough, heavy blows. I hacked the dead branches off.
misuse to use something in the wrong way or for wrong purpose. He misused his position for getting that business.
Words of the week from November 8
crane a tall machine with a long arm, used to lift and move building materials. They used two crains for building this skyscraper.
knot a join made by tying together two pieces of string. He tied the two ropes together with a knot.
Words of the week from November 1
dizzy feeling as if everythng is turning around you and that you are not able to balance. Climbing so high made me feel dizzy.
lure to persuade or trick somebody to go somewhere or to do something by promising them a reward. The child was lured into a car but managed to escape.
Words of the week from October 25
including having something as part of a group or set. I´ve got three days holiday including New Yearś Day.
nosy too interested in things that do not concern you. I have nosy neighbours, they know everything about me.
Words for the week from October 18
riddle a question that is difficult to understand and that has a surprising answer. Stop talking in riddles.
rundown a reduction in the amount, size or activity of something. There was rundown of transport services last year.
Words for the week from October 11
pant to breathe quickly with short breaths, because you have been doing some physical exercise. She finished the race panting heavily.
pants (British English) - underpants or knickers, (American English) - trousers
pants (British English slang) - something you think is poor quality - synonym rubbish. Their new CD is absolutu pants!
Words for the week from October 4
goody a thing that is very nice to eat. We have a full basket of goodies for the children.
illegible difficult or impossible to read. His writing is comletely illegible.
Words for the week from September 27
conductor a person who stands in front of an orchestra and directs their performance. A person whose job is to collect money from passengers on a bus or check their tickets.
wait up to wait for somebody to come home at night before you go to bed. My mum always waits up for me when I work late.
Words for the week from September 20
crop the amount of grain, fruit, etc. that is grown in one season. There is very poor crop of apples this year.
harvest the time of year when the crops are gathered in. Farmers are extremely busy during the harvest.
Words for the week from September 13
goggles a pair of large round pieces of glass with an edge which fits against the skin so that dust or wind or water cannot get near the eyes He wears goggles when he rides a motorbike.
jar a glass container with a top She made several jars of strawberry jam.
Words for the week from September 6
race a competition between people, animals or vehicles to see which one is the fastest John won the race in London.
relieve to remove or reduce an unpleasant feeling or pain She relieved when she told the truth.
Words for the week from August 30
stamp a tool for printing the date or name of a company - Every document needs a stamp.
subscribe to pay some money regularly in order to get something He subscribed some sport channels.
sign to write your name on a document He signed himself "Jimmy"
Words for the week from August 16
furniture objects that can be moved such as tables, chairs, beds... There is some new furniture in the living room.
screw a thin pointed piece of meatal with a spiral line. Screws are turned and pressed into wood.
Words for the week from January 18
icicle a piece of ice that is formed when water freezes as it falls down from a roof Falling icicle broke a roof of my car.
leap to jump high or a long way Dolphins often leap out of the water.
recently not long time ago We got a letter from him recently.
Words for the week from November 30
candle round stick of wax which is burned to make light He had twenty candles on his cake.
mulled wine hot wine with cinamon and sugar We bought mulled wine at Christmas market.
wreath an arrangement of flowers and leaves in the shape of flowers In December we usually have a wreath on the table in the kitchen.
Words for the week from November 23
ribbon a narrow strip of material used to tie things or for decoration She was wearing two blue silk ribbons in her hair.
wrap to cover something completely in paper or other material, for example a present I don´t like wrapping Christmas presents
Words for the week from November 9
dough a mixture of flour and water that is made into bread or dumplings It takes more than 12 hours to have good dough for bread.
quail a small brown bird whose meat and eggs are used for food. The eggs are very small and the cover has brown spots.
wheelbarrow a large open container with a wheel and two handles that you use outside to carry to carry things I carried all the sand from the street to the garden in the wheelbarrow
Words for the week from November 2
cemetery a place where dead people are buried A lot of people visit cemetery at the beginning of November.
lamb young sheep or goat or meat from sheep or goat. We had lamb with potato for lunch.
slope an area where one end is higher than the other. He goes skiing to the slope behind the town.
Words for the week from October 26
dill a plant with yellow flowers whosse leaves and seeds have a strong taste and are used in cooking I like dill sauce with an egg and dumplings.
hang on to ask somebody to wait for a short time or to stop what they are doing Hang on, I am not quite ready.
last to continue for a particular period of time The meeting only lasted for a few minutes.
Words for the week from October 19
main most important - main road We have our main meal at lunch
suitable good for something Wine is suitable drink with fish.
care to look after somebody Young people should care about their grandparents.
Words for the week from October 12
belly the part of the body below the chest He has a big belly from drinking too much beer.
composer a person who write music Mozart was a great composer.
reach to achieve a particular aim He reached the compromise with his rivals.
Words for the week from October 5
arrange to plan or organize something She arranged a meeting for Monday.
bacon meat from the back of a pig I like bacon and eggs for breakfast.
choice An act of choosing between two or more possibilities Women must make choice between family and career.
degree A unit for measuring Water freezes at zero degrees Celsius