L.15

Front 1

ivory

Back 1

ˈaɪvəri/ noun

1 [noncount] : a hard white substance that forms the tusks of elephants and other animals

• a carved piece of ivory

Front 2

stronghold

Back 2

ˈstrɑːŋˌhoʊld
1 : an area where most people have the same beliefs, values, etc. : an area dominated by a particular group
• The area/district/state is a Republican stronghold.

Front 3

poverty

Back 3

ˈpɑːvɚti
1 [noncount] : the state of being poor
• rural/urban poverty
• families living in poverty
• He came from poverty.
• He was born in/into poverty.
2 [singular] formal : a lack of something
• There is a poverty of information about the disease.
• a poverty of imagination

Front 4

participant

Back 4

par·tic·i·pant /pɑɚˈtɪsəpənt/ noun, pl -pants[count] : a person who is involved in an activity or event : a person who participates in an activity or event - often + in
• All the participants in the cooking contest received a free cookbook.
• They were active participants in the project.

Front 5

circulation

Back 5

cir·cu·la·tion /ˌsɚkjəˈleɪʃən/ noun, pl -tions
1 [noncount]
a : the movement of blood through the body that is caused by the pumping action of the heart
• He has bad circulation in his legs.
• The drug improves blood circulation.
b : movement of air, water, etc., through the different parts of something
• The attic has poor air circulation.
• the circulation of ocean waters
• Let's open the windows to get some circulation in here.
2 [noncount] : the act of passing something (such as money, information, etc.) from person to person or place to place
• This memo is not meant for circulation. : the state of being passed from person to person or place to place
• The coins have recently entered circulation.
• That rumor has been in circulation [=has been going around] for a long time.
• The magazine has been taken out of circulation. [=the magazine will no longer be made and sold]
3 [noncount] : the state of being actively involved in social activities (such as parties or dates)
• She's finally getting back in/into circulation after her divorce. [=she has started dating and going out again after her divorce]
• He'll be out of circulation [=unable to go out socially] for a while after the surgery.
4 [count] : the average number of copies of a newspaper, magazine, etc., that are sold over a particular period
• The newspaper has the largest circulation in the country.
• The magazine has a weekly circulation of about 70,000 subscribers nationwide.

Front 6

revive

Back 6

re·vive /rɪˈvaɪv/ verb -vives; -vived; -viv·ing
1 a [+ obj] : to make (someone or something) strong, healthy, or active again
• The doctors were trying to revive the patient. [=to make the unconscious patient conscious again]
• Visiting my old house has revived [=brought back] childhood memories.
• The water revived [=refreshed] the flowers.
• The success of the movie has revived her career.
• The government is trying to revive the economy.
• Our spirits were revived by his enthusiasm.
b [no obj] : to become strong, healthy, or active again
• The store's business is beginning to revive.
2 [+ obj] : to bring (something) back into use or popularity
• The family is trying to revive an old custom.
3 [+ obj] : to arrange to have (an old play, opera, etc.) performed in front of an audience
• He has decided to revive Molière's Tartuffe.

Front 7

falter

Back 7

fal·ter /ˈfɑːltɚ/ verb -ters; -tered; -ter·ing[no obj]
1 : to stop being strong or successful : to begin to fail or weaken
• The business was faltering due to poor management.
• Their initial optimism has faltered.
• signs that the economy is faltering
2 : to begin to walk or move in an unsteady way
• Her steps began to falter.
3 : to feel doubt about doing something
• He never faltered [=wavered] in his determination to go to college.
4
✦If your voice falters, you are unable to speak normally because you are unsure about what to say or because you are feeling strong emotions.
• Her voice faltered when she spoke about her parents.
- faltering adj
• a faltering economy
• They are trying to save their faltering [=failing] marriage.
• He was only able to take a few faltering steps.

Front 8

reconcile

Back 8

وفق دادن، تطبیق دادن، صلح یا آشتی دادن

rec·on·cile /ˈrɛkənˌsajəl/ verb -ciles; -ciled; -cil·ingformal
1 [+ obj] : to find a way of making (two different ideas, facts, etc.) exist or be true at the same time
• I'm afraid her story cannot be reconciled with the proven facts. [=her story must be false because it does not agree with the proven facts]
• You'll need to reconcile [=settle] your differences with her.
• It can be difficult to reconcile your ideals with reality.
2 : to cause people or groups to become friendly again after an argument or disagreement
[+ obj]
• His attempt to reconcile his friends (with each other) was unsuccessful.
- often used as (be) reconciled
• After many years, they are finally reconciled (with each other). [=they are friendly again]
[no obj]
• We will never reconcile.
• After many years, they finally reconciled (with each other).
reconcile to [phrasal verb]reconcile (someone) to (something) : to cause (someone) to accept (something unpleasant)
• He eventually became reconciled to his position in life.
• I reconciled myself to the loss.
- rec·on·cil·able /ˌrɛkənˈsaɪləbəl/ adj
• Your theory is easily reconcilable with our results.

Front 9

tolerate

Back 9

tol·er·ate /ˈtɑːləˌreɪt/ verb -ates; -at·ed; -ating[+ obj]
1 : to allow (something that is bad, unpleasant, etc.) to exist, happen, or be done
• Our teacher will not tolerate bad grammar.
• Racist or sexist behavior will not be tolerated.
• I can't tolerate that noise.
• The government cannot tolerate lawlessness.
• How can you tolerate such laziness?
2 : to experience (something harmful or unpleasant) without being harmed
• These plants tolerate drought well.
3 : to accept the feelings, behavior, or beliefs of (someone)
• I don't like my boss, but I tolerate him.
- tol·er·a·tion /ˌtɑːləˈreɪʃən/ noun [noncount]
• religious toleration

Front 10

initiative

Back 10

ini·tia·tive /ɪˈnɪʃətɪv/ noun, pl -tives
1 the initiative : the power or opportunity to do something before others do
• If you want to meet her, you're going to have to take the initiative and introduce yourself.
• The company has the opportunity to seize the initiative by getting its new products to the market before its competitors.
• By failing to get its products to the market on schedule, the company has lost the initiative (to its competitors).
2 [noncount] : the energy and desire that is needed to do something
• She has ability but lacks initiative. [=drive]
✦If you do something on your own initiative, you do it because you choose to, not because someone has told you to do it.
• I'm doing this on my own initiative. [=because I want to]
✦If you use your (own) initiative, you decide for yourself what to do instead of waiting to be told by someone else.
• You should use your own initiative to come up with a solution.
3 [count] : a plan or program that is intended to solve a problem
• The governor has proposed a new initiative to improve conditions in urban schools.
• anti-poverty initiatives

Front 11

cruel

Back 11

cru‧el
S3 /ˈkruːəl/ adjective
1) making someone suffer or feel unhappy
His death was a cruel blow.
Sometimes life seems unbearably cruel.
2) deliberately hurting people or animals OPP kind
The prisoner was a hard cruel man.
cruel jokes about mothers-in-law
It was a cruel tactless thing to say.
cruel to
She was often cruel to her sister.
3) be cruel to be kind to do something to someone that will make them upset or unhappy in order to help them in another way
— cruelly adverb
He was cruelly neglected by his parents.

Thesaurus
cruel deliberately hurting people or making them suffer It was cruel to lock him in there all day. Her father had been very cruel to her when she was a child. a cruel, selfish woman

heartless not feeling any pity and not caring about other people or their problems How could you be so heartless! He was cold and heartless and had no concern for the welfare of his employees.

sadistic getting pleasure from making other people suffer a sadistic killer a sadistic thing to do

barbaric extremely cruel, in a way that shocks people a barbaric punishment a barbaric sport

vicious very violent and cruel, especially by suddenly attacking someone and causing injury to them a vicious attack on an innocent man Some dogs can be vicious.

brutal very cruel and violent, in a way that shows no human feelings a brutal dictator the brutal methods used by the secret police

inhumane inhumane conditions, treatment etc are not considered acceptable because they cause too much suffering the inhumane treatment of prisoners

cold-blooded a cold-blooded murder, attack etc is done without showing any feeling or pity for the person who is attacked. A cold-blooded killer kills people without showing any pity a woman 's cold-blooded murder of her devoted husband a cold-blooded psychopath



Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Fifth Edition (LDOCE5) © Pearson Education Limited 2009

Front 12

appetizer

Back 12

ap·pe·tiz·er also Brit ap·pe·tis·er /ˈæpəˌtaɪzɚ/ noun, pl -ers[count] : a small dish of food served before the main part of a meal