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Chapter 22 Driving South
Chapter 22 Driving South
insurance policy plural insurance policies [countable]
a written agreement for insurance with an insurance company
accusation [countable]
a statement saying that someone is guilty of a crime or of doing something wrong
COLLOCATIONS
make an accusation (against somebody)
bring/level an accusation (against somebody) (=make an accusation)
face an accusation (=have an accusation made against you)
deny an accusation
serious accusation
false accusation
wild accusations( done or said without much thought or care, or without knowing all the facts)
accusation against A number of serious accusations have been made against her.
accusation of His administration now faces accusations of corruption.
accusation that The organizers of the march strongly denied government accusations that they
intended to cause trouble.
flat comparative flatter, superlative flattest
1 SURFACEsmooth and level, without raised or hollow areas, and not sloping or curving:
houses with flat roofs
2 MONEY a flat rate, amount of money etc is fixed and does not change or have anything added to it:
Clients are charged a flat rate of £250 annually.
3 TYRE/BALL a flat tyre or ball has no air or not enough air in it
4 NOT DEEP not very deep, thick, or high, especially in comparison to its width or length:
The cake came out of the oven flat, not fluffy.
5 DRINK a drink that is flat does not taste fresh because it has no more bubbles of gas in it
6 NOT INTERESTING [not before noun] a performance, book etc that is flat lacks interest, excitement,
or energy: Arsenal looked flat for large parts of the game.
7 BATTERYBritish English a flat BATTERY has lost its electrical power [= dead American English]
Have you checked that the batteries haven't gone flat (=become flat)?
8 BUSINESS/TRADE if prices, economic conditions, trade etc are flat, they have not increased or
improved over a period of time: Analysts are expecting flat sales in the coming months.
11 VOICE not showing much emotion, or not changing much in sound as you speak:
'He's dead,' she said in a flat voice.
12 a flat refusal/denial etc a refusal etc that is definite and which someone will not change:
Our requests were met with a flat refusal.
13 be flat on your back
a) to be lying down so that all of your back is touching the floor
b) to be very ill so that you have to stay in bed for a period of time:
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Chapter 22 Driving South
grave [countable] noun
1 the place in the ground where a dead body is buried [↪ tomb]:
At the head of the grave there was a small wooden cross.
2 the grave literary death: He took that secret to the grave.
3 somebody would turn in their grave
used to say that someone who is dead would strongly disapprove of something happening now:
The way Bill plays that piece would have Mozart turning in his grave.
a ceremony for someone who has died: funeral a ceremony at which someone who has died is
buried or burned
burial when someone's body is put into the ground
cremation when someone's body is burned
hearse a large car that takes the body to the funeral
coffin a box in which someone is buried or carried to the funeral
grave the place where someone is buried
graveyard/cemetery an area where dead people are buried
undertaker someone who arranges funerals
the mourners the people at a funeraldie
grave adj
1 grave problems, situations, or worries are very great or bad [↪ serious]:
Matthew's life is in grave danger.
The report expressed grave concern over the technicians' lack of training.
I have grave doubts about his ability.
The situation is becoming very grave.
2 looking or sounding quiet and serious, especially because something important or worrying has
happened Turnbull's face was grave as he told them about the accident.
—gravely adverb: Adam nodded gravely.
depressingmaking you feel very sad: It's a depressing thought.
depressed
1 a) very unhappy: She felt lonely and depressed.
depressed about
Don't get depressed about it.
The divorce left him deeply depressed.
I was depressed at the thought of all the hard work ahead.
b) suffering from a medical condition in which you are so unhappy that you cannot live a normal
life: patients who are clinically depressed
2 an area, industry etc that is depressed does not have enough economic or business activity:
Britain's depressed housing market
3 formal a depressed level or amount is lower than normal: a depressed appetite
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Chapter 22 Driving South
pretence BrE ; pretense American English [singular,uncountable]/ prɪˈtent s/
1 a way of behaving which is intended to make people believe something that is not true pretence
that the pretence that the old system could be made to work
pretence of/at (being/doing) something a pretence at seriousness
Tollitt made no pretense of being surprised.
How long are you going to keep up the pretence of being ill?
abandon/give up/drop a pretence
Abandoning any pretense at politeness, they ran for the door.
under the pretence of (doing) something
John waited for her under the pretence of tying his shoelaces.
2 under/on false pretences without telling the truth about yourself or your intentions:
You brought me here under false pretences!
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