Word List 4

reservoir /?rez?rvwɑ?r/

【釋】n. 水庫；蓄水池

【例】A large quantity of water is stored in the reservoir.

【近】receptacle, container

【釋】n. 蓄積 (a large or extra supply of something)

【例】a reservoir of talent

gauge /ɡe?d?/

【釋】v. 測量 (measure exactly)

【例】Home sales provide a useful way of gauging the overall state of the economy.

【近】survey, meter

velocity /v??lɑ?s?ti/

【釋】n. 速度 (speed)

【例】Light travels at the highest achievable velocity in the universe.

【近】swiftness

chunk /t???k/

【釋】n. 大塊 (a thick, solid piece of something)

【例】a chunk of cheese

【近】lump

derivative /d??r?v?t?v/

【釋】n. 衍生物 (by-product)

【例】Tofu is one of many soybean derivatives.

【近】ramification

【反】original

predator /?pred?t?r/

【釋】n. 捕食性動物 (an animal that naturally preys on others)

【釋】n. 掠奪者 (a person or group that ruthlessly exploits others)

【例】The company is worried about takeovers by various predators.

replicate /?repl?ke?t/

【釋】v. 復制；重做 (make or do something again in exactly the same way)

【例】Researchers tried many times to replicate the original experiment.

【近】reproduce, duplicate

infinite /??nf?n?t/

【釋】adj. 無限的 (boundless)

【例】a teacher with infinite patience

synthesis /?s?nθ?s?s/

【釋】n. 合成 (combination)

【例】a synthesis of traditional and modern values

mediate /?mi?die?t/

【釋】v. 調解，調停 (intervene)

【例】Let me try to mediate your dispute.

【近】moderate

【形】mediation

degrade /d??ɡre?d/

【釋】v. 惡化 (lower the character or quality of)

【例】degrade the environment

【釋】v. 使丟臉

【例】You degrade yourself when you tell a lie.

【釋】v. 降解

【例】They degrade into carbon and oxygen.

trivial /?tr?vi?l/

【釋】adj. 不重要的 (unimportant)

【例】I know it sounds trivial, but I’m worried about it.

【近】commonplace

【反】profound

arbitrary /?ɑ?rb?treri/

【釋】adj. 任意的 (not based on reason or evidence)

【例】An arbitrary number has been assigned to each district.

【近】random, casual

【釋】adj. 武斷的 (done without concern for what is fair or right)

【例】Although arbitrary arrests are illegal, they continue to occur in many parts of the country.

【反】rational, democratic

approximate /??prɑ?ks?m?t/

【釋】adj. 大約的 (rough)

【例】Use these figures as an approximate guide in your calculations.

【近】indefinite

【反】precise

plausible /?pl??z?bl/

【釋】adj. 看似合理的 (seeming likely to be true)

【例】a plausible explanation

【近】reasonable, likely, feasible, possible

【反】unlikely

optical /?ɑ?pt?kl/

【釋】adj. 視力的 (relating to or using sight)

【例】He has optical trouble.

【釋】adj. 光學的 (of or relating to or involving light or optics)

【例】Telescopes and microscopes are optical instruments.

contradict /?kɑ?ntr??d?kt/

【釋】v. 與…矛盾 (conflict)

【例】The two stories contradict each other.

【反】【釋】v. 駁 (say that something that somebody else has said is wrong, and that the opposite is true)

【例】She dared not contradict him.

【近】dispute, counter

【形】contradiction

atomic /??tɑ?m?k/

【釋】adj. 原子的 (of or relating to an atom or atoms)

【例】Only the President could authorize the use of the atomic bomb.

fracture /?fr?kt??r/

【釋】v. 破裂，折斷；骨折 (cause a crack)

【例】Her wrist fractured when she fell on the ice.

【近】crack, split, crevice, break

formulation /?f??rmju?le??n/

【釋】n. 配方 (a substance prepared according to a formula)

【例】There have been problems with the formulation of the vaccine.

【釋】n. 制定 (creating a plan or a policy)

【例】the process of policy formulation and implementation

【釋】n. 表達 (the style of expressing yourself)

【例】This is a far weaker formulation than is in the draft resolution which is being proposed.

residual /r??z?d?u?l/

【釋】adj. 剩余的，殘留的 (remaining after the greater part or quantity has gone)

【例】I still felt some residual bitterness ten years after my divorce.

【近】leftover

altitude /??lt?tu?d/

【釋】n. 高度 (the height of something above the level of the sea)

【例】Some visitors find it difficult to adjust to the city’s high altitude.

【近】height, elevation

emit /i?m?t/

【釋】v. 散發 (produce and discharge)

【例】The metal container began to emit a clicking sound.

【近】discharge

elimination /??l?m??ne??n/

【釋】n. 消除，淘汰 (the act of removing)

【例】the elimination of waste products from the body

thermal /?θ??rml/

【釋】adj. 熱的 (relating to heat)

【例】The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.

【釋】n. 上升熱氣流

【例】Birds use thermals to lift them through the air.

【形】thermometer

fungus /?f??ɡ?s/

【釋】n. 真菌，霉菌，菌類

【例】rust fungus causing rust spots on apples and pears, etc.

【近】mushroom, mold

terminology /?t??rm??nɑ?l?d?i/

【釋】n. 術語 (the vocabulary of technical terms)

【例】scientific terminology

【近】vocabulary, usage

contradictory /?kɑ?ntr??d?kt?ri/

【釋】adj. 互相矛盾的 (containing or showing a contradiction)

【例】It is contradictory between people’s profits and nature.

【近】paradoxical, opposite

pesticide /?pest?sa?d/

【釋】n. 殺蟲劑

【例】Pesticide levels in food are simply too difficult to calibrate.

sediment /?sed?m?nt/

【釋】n. 沉淀物 (matter that settles to the bottom of a liquid)

【近】deposit, residue, silt

radius /?re?di?s/

【釋】n. 半徑；半徑范圍

【例】All roads within a two-mile radius of the stadium were closed.

acceleration /?k?sel??re??n/

【釋】n. 加速 (speedup)

【例】the recent acceleration in the growth of drug-related crimes

【近】increase, surge

friction /?fr?k?n/

【釋】n. 摩擦 (rubbing)

【例】The pistons are graphite-coated to reduce friction.

【近】abrasion

【釋】n. 矛盾 (conflict)

【例】Sara sensed that there had been friction between her children.

【反】harmony

uplift /??pl?ft/

【釋】n./v. 振奮 (fill in high spirits)

【例】He felt his career needed an uplift.

【近】boost, raise, lift, cheer up

【釋】n. (地殼)上升 (a rise of land to a higher elevation)

【例】Uplift and erosion at last produced the desert landscape we see today.

proton /?pro?tɑ?n/

【釋】n. 質子

【例】A proton is an elementary particle of matter.

secrete /s??kri?t/

【釋】v. 分泌 (produce)

【例】Insulin is secreted by the pancreas.

【近】emit, release

【反】absorb

attorney /??t??rni/

【釋】n. 代理人；出庭律師 (a professional person authorized to practice law)

【例】He needed to consult with an attorney.

【近】lawyer, counsel

reception /r??sep?n/

【釋】n. 接待處，服務臺 (the place where people’s appointments and questions are dealt with)

【釋】n. 招待會；接待 (the act of receiving)

【例】At the reception they served smoked salmon.

【近】greeting

priest /pri?st/

【釋】n. 牧師

【例】He had trained to be a Catholic priest.

founder /?fa?nd?r/

【釋】n. 創建者 (a person who founds or establishes some institution)

【例】the founder of modern physics

【近】father, author, inventor

【釋】v. 沉沒 (sink below the surface)

【例】The fishing vessel foundered on the rocks.

【釋】v. 失敗 (fail)

【例】The talks foundered on the issue of reform.

shed /?ed/

【釋】v. 流 (spill)

【例】She shed no tears when she heard he was dead.

【釋】v. 去除 (get rid of)

【例】The firm is to shed 700 jobs.

【釋】n. 小棚屋 (an outbuilding with a single story)

【例】a garden shed

desperate /?desp?r?t/

【釋】adj. 絕望的；極渴望的 (involving a hopeless sense that a situation is so bad as to be impossible to deal with)

【例】Car firms are desperate to achieve economies of scale.

【近】wretched

prayer /prer/

【釋】n. 祈求，祈禱 (a solemn request for help or expression of thanks)

【例】This drug could be the answer to our prayers.

【近】plea

conviction /k?n?v?k?n/

【釋】n. 堅定的信仰 (a strong belief)

【例】She spoke with great conviction.

【近】belief, opinion

【釋】n. 定罪 (a final judgment of guilty in a criminal case)

【例】He will appeal against his conviction.

【近】guilt, sentence

compel /k?m?pel/

【釋】v. 強迫 (push; force)

【例】The law can compel fathers to make regular payments for their children.

grave /ɡre?v/

【釋】adj. 嚴重的 (serious)

【例】a grave risk of fire

【釋】n. 墓 (tomb)

【例】His grave is marked by a fine stela.

【釋】adj. 嚴肅的 (quiet and serious)

【例】William was up on the roof for some time and when he came down he looked grave.

overlook /?o?v?r?l?k/

【釋】v. 忽略 (fail to notice)

【例】He seems to have overlooked one important fact.

ongoing /?ɑ?nɡo???/

【釋】adj. 連續的 (continuing; still in progress)

【例】an ongoing debate

【反】intermittent

vulnerable /?v?ln?r?bl/

【釋】adj. 易受傷害的 (susceptible to attack)

【例】Young birds are very vulnerable to predators.

【近】helpless, weak

resume /r??zu?m/

【釋】v. 重新開始 (start again)

【例】The search is expected to resume early today.

【反】suspend

distress /d??stres/

【釋】n. 痛苦 (pain)

【例】Her mouth grew stiff with pain and distress.

【近】agony, torment

【形】distressed

flee /fli?/

【釋】v. 逃離 (run away)

【例】Many refugees have been forced to flee from their homeland.

patch /p?t?/

【釋】n. 塊，片 (a small piece)

【例】There was a small patch of blue in the grey clouds.

【釋】n. 補丁 (a piece of material covering a hole in something)

【例】jackets with patches on the elbows

【釋】v. 修補 (mend)

【例】We can patch up those holes.

anniversary /??n??v??rs?ri/

【釋】n. 周年紀念日 (the date on which an event took place in a previous year)

【例】The bank celebrates its hundredth anniversary in December.

inevitable /?n?ev?t?bl/

【釋】adj. 必然的，不可避免的 (unavoidable)

【例】The accident was the inevitable consequence of carelessness.

【近】necessary

【釋】n.必然發生的事 (a situation that is unavoidable)

【例】accept the inevitable

foster /?f??st?r/

【釋】v.培養 (encourage or promote the development of)

【例】Girls are encouraged to play with toys that foster language and human relations skills.

【近】promote, stimulate

【反】suppress

【釋】v. 寄養 (place in care of)

【例】He was placed in foster care after he lost his parents.

generous /?d?en?r?s/

【釋】adj. 慷慨的 (showing a readiness to give more of something, as money or time, than is strictly necessary or expected)

【例】German banks are more generous in their lending.

【近】unselfish, charitable

prevail /pr??ve?l/

【釋】v. 盛行 (become popular)

【例】The use of horses for ploughing still prevails among the poorer farmers.

【釋】v. 戰勝 (win)

【例】The invaders prevailed over the native population.

【近】win, triumph

withdrawal /w?e?dr???l/

【釋】n. 撤退，收回 (removal)

【例】the withdrawal of a product from the market

cease /si?s/

【釋】v. 停止，結束 (stop)

【例】The fighting along the border has temporarily ceased.

【近】halt

exclusive /?k?sklu?s?v/

【釋】adj. 獨有的，排外的 (not shared)

【例】She attended an exclusive private school.

【反】inclusive

【釋】adj. 唯一的 (sole)

【例】Many of their cheeses are exclusive to our stores in Britain.

torture /?t??rt??r/

【釋】n./v. 酷刑；折磨 (inflict severe pain on)

【例】The confession was made under torture.

【近】pain, abuse, torment, agony, suffering, distress

stun /st?n/

【釋】v. 使震驚 (shock)

【例】Her words stunned me—I had no idea she felt that way.

【近】astound

bare /ber/

【釋】adj. 裸露的 (naked)

【例】She likes to walk around in bare feet.

【反】furnished

installation /??nst??le??n/

【釋】n. 安裝 (placing in position)

【例】The installation of a new computer system will take about a week.

【釋】n. 就職 (instance of placing in position or official post)

【例】Her installation as president will take place tomorrow.

ingredient /?n?ɡri?di?nt/

【釋】n. 要素 (element)

【例】It has all the ingredients of a good mystery story.

【釋】n. (食物)配料

enclose /?n?klo?z/

【釋】v. 圍繞 (surround or close off on all sides)

【例】The yard had been enclosed with iron railings.

【近】encompass

halt /h??lt/

【釋】n./v. 停止 (stop)

【例】He criticized the government for failing to halt economic decline.

rage /re?d?/

【釋】n./v. 憤怒 (violent, uncontrollable anger)

【例】His face was dark with rage.

【近】fury, wrath, outrage

authorize /???θ?ra?z/

【釋】v. 授權 (warrant)

【例】I can authorize payments up to ￡5000.

【近】sanction

assemble /??sembl/

【釋】v. 集合 (meet together)

【例】After dinner, the men would assemble in the living room to watch the game on TV.

【近】convene, congregate

【反】disperse

【釋】v. 裝配 (connect or put together the parts)

【例】Their father helped them assemble their new bicycles in the garage.

【形】assembly

retailer /?ri?te?l?r/

【釋】n. 零售商 (a merchant who sells goods at retail)

【例】Take the goods back to your retailer who will refund you the purchase price.

accommodate /??kɑ?m?de?t/

【釋】v. 容納；提供住宿 (provide somebody with a room or place to sleep, live or sit)

【例】The aircraft is capable of accommodating 28 passengers.

【近】lodge

【釋】v. 適應 (adapt to)

【例】I need to accommodate to the new schedule.

blast /bl?st/

【釋】n./v. 爆炸 (a big explosion, especially one caused by a bomb)

【例】27 schoolchildren were injured in the blast.

【近】explosion

companion /k?m?p?ni?n/

【釋】n. 朋友 (friend)

【例】He was a good friend, a dependable companion.

merchant /?m??rt??nt/

【釋】n. 商人 (a businessperson engaged in retail trade)

【例】The merchant offers a bribe to him.

【近】retailer

endorse /?n?d??rs/

【釋】v. 認可，支持 (support)

【例】That brand of sneaker is endorsed by several basketball stars.

【反】oppose

violate /?va??le?t/

【反】【釋】v. 違 (break or fail to comply with)

【例】to violate international law

【近】breach

【反】comply

diminish /d??m?n??/

【釋】v. 減少，縮小 (reduce)

【例】The evidence suggests that our sense of touch is programmed to diminish with age.

retreat /r??tri?t/

【釋】n./v. 退出；撤退 (move away from something or someone)

【例】The enemy’s retreat left marks of haste.

【近】recede, withdraw

【反】advance

dawn /d??n/

【釋】n./v.黎明，破曉 (sunrise)

【例】When the great day dawned, the first concern was the weather.

【反】dusk

designate /?dez?ɡne?t/

【釋】v. 指定，指派 (assign)

【例】They designated a leader.

【近】appoint, nominate

【釋】v. 把…命名為 (call by a name)

【例】Let’s designate this angle of the triangle A.

【釋】v. 標出 (point out the location of)

【例】These lines designate the boundaries.

obstacle /?ɑ?bst?kl/

【釋】n. 障礙 (a thing that blocks one’s way or prevents or hinders progress)

【例】To succeed, you must learn to overcome obstacles.

【近】obstruction

pursuit /p?r?su?t/

【釋】n. 追逐；愛好 (the action of following or pursuing)

【例】the pursuit of happiness

【近】aim, goal, objective

descend /d??send/

【釋】v. 起源 (originate)

【例】She was descended from a noble family.

【釋】v. 下降 (come down)

【例】Things are cooler and damper as we descend to the cellar.

【反】ascend, climb

intrigue /?n?tri?ɡ/

【釋】v. 激起興趣 (arouse the curiosity or interest of)

【例】Throughout history, people have been intrigued by the question of whether there is intelligent life elsewhere in the universe.

【近】fascinate, arouse

【釋】v. 密謀 (make and carry out secret plans)

【例】She was intriguing with her sister against her mother.

【釋】n. 陰謀 (a secret plan to harm or cheat someone)

【例】a tale of political intrigue

【近】plot, scheme

【形】intrigued, intriguing

tactic /?t?kt?k/

【釋】n. 策略 (an action or strategy carefully planned to achieve a specific end)

【例】This tactic applies to application and mail servers only.

【近】strategy, scheme

sculpture /?sk?lpt??r/

【釋】n. 雕塑 (statue)

【例】He studied sculpture because he enjoyed working with clay.

devastate /?dev?ste?t/

【釋】v. 使壓垮，使痛苦 (make somebody feel very shocked and sad)

【例】He was devastated by grief.

【釋】v. 毀壞 (destroy)

【例】a country devastated by war

【近】destroy, ravage

integrity /?n?teɡr?ti/

【釋】n. 正直；誠實 (the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles)

【例】He is a man of great integrity.

【近】honesty, morality

【釋】n. 完整 (the state of being whole and not divided)

【例】to respect the territorial integrity of the nation

【反】division, fragility

steer /st?r/

【釋】v. 引導，帶領 (escort)

【例】He steered the boat into the harbor.

【近】guide, direct

innovative /??n?ve?t?v/

【釋】adj. 有創意的 (featuring new methods; advanced and original)

【例】There will be a prize for the most innovative design.

patent /?p?tnt/

【釋】n./v. (獲得)專利(權)；執照

【例】If you don’t patent your invention, other people may make all the profit out of it.

【近】license

remedy /?rem?di/

【釋】n. 治療藥物；改進措施 (a medicine or treatment for a disease or injury)

【例】Pericles foresaw that peace would lead to unemployment, and among his remedies was a public building program.

【近】treatment, cure, medicine, solution

【釋】v. 糾正 (set right (an undesirable situation))

【例】The bill seeks to remedy a historic injustice in which black people were deprived of their right to own land.

provoke /pr??vo?k/

【釋】v. 引起 (cause a particular reaction or have a particular effect)

【例】The announcement provoked a storm of protest.

【近】arouse, evoke, elicit

counterpart /?ka?nt?rpɑ?rt/

【釋】n. 對應的人或物 (someone or something that has the same job or purpose as another)

【例】The secretary of defense met with his counterparts in Asia to discuss the nuclear crisis.

【近】equivalent, coordinate

eligible /?el?d??bl/

【釋】adj. 合格的，合適的 (qualified)

【例】I’d like to join but I’m not eligible yet.

【近】desirable

deem /di?m/

【釋】v. 認為，視作 (have a particular opinion about something)

【例】The principal will take whatever action she deems appropriate in this case.

【近】consider

mainstream /?me?nstri?m/

【釋】n./adj. 主流(的) (the ideas and opinions that are thought to be normal)

【例】Arran became increasingly estranged from the mainstream of Hollywood.

【近】normal, conventional, ordinary, common, usual

【反】fringe

【釋】v. 使為多數人接受 (make a particular idea or opinion accepted by most people)

【例】Vegetarianism has been mainstreamed.

spark /spɑ?rk/

【釋】v. 引發 (set off; bring about)

【例】The proposal would spark a storm of protest around the country.

【釋】n. 火花，閃光 (a momentary flash of light)

【例】A single spark can start a prairie fire.

【近】flicker, flare

【釋】n. 一點 (small amount)

【例】Even Oliver felt a tiny spark of excitement.