🔤 Vocabulary Bank
Build your English vocabulary — one word at a time.
1475 words found — page 28 of 31
thrilled
Intermediate
/θrɪld/
Extremely pleased and excited about something good happening
"She was thrilled when she found out she got the job."
Till / Cash register
Beginner
/tɪl/ /kæʃ ˈreɪdʒɪstər/
The place in a shop where you pay for things
"The queue at the till was very long during lunch time."
time expression
Elementary
/taɪm ɪkˈspreʃən/
Words that show when something happened (yesterday, last week, on Saturday)
"I had breakfast in the morning."
timeline
Upper Intermediate
/ˈtaɪmlaɪn/
A schedule showing when different parts of a project will happen
"According to the timeline, we'll complete phase one by March 2024."
time marker
Elementary
/ˈtaɪm ˈmɑːrkər/
Words that show when something happened, like 'yesterday,' 'last week,' or 'two days ago.'
"Use time markers to show when the past action happened: I saw him yesterday."
Time marker
Elementary
/taɪm ˈmɑːrkər/
A word or phrase that shows when something happened (yesterday, last week, in 2020).
"**Last month**, I **visited** Paris. Here 'last month' is the time marker."
timetable
Beginner
/ˈtaɪmˌteɪbəl/
A list showing times when buses, trains, classes, or events happen.
"I checked the bus timetable to find the next departure."
to acknowledge
Upper Intermediate
/ækˈnɒlɪdʒ/
To admit or accept that something is true or important
"I acknowledge that your point has merit, but I still disagree with the conclusion."
to add
Elementary
/tu ˈæd/
To put something with something else; to include more information
"I want to add that I also speak Spanish in addition to English."
to add -ed
Elementary
/tu ˈæd iː diː/
To put -ed at the end of a regular verb to make it past tense
"We add -ed to study to make studied."
to admit
Intermediate
/ədˈmɪt/
To confess or acknowledge that something (usually negative) is true
"He admitted making a mistake in the calculation."
to a point
Intermediate
/tə ə pɔɪnt/
Agreeing partially; suggesting that an opinion is true only to some extent.
"You're right to a point, but the situation is actually more complicated."
to appreciate
Elementary
/əˈpriːʃieɪt/
To feel grateful or thankful for something someone has done.
"I really appreciate you inviting me, but I can't make it."
toast
Beginner
/toʊst/
Bread that is cooked until brown and crispy
"I usually eat eggs with toast for breakfast."
to avoid
Intermediate
/əˈvɔɪd/
To stay away from something; to not do something deliberately
"I'm avoiding eating sugar because I'm on a diet."
to beat around the bush
Advanced
/biːt əˈraʊnd ðə bʊʃ/
To avoid saying something directly; to delay getting to the point
"Stop beating around the bush and tell me what really happened at the meeting."
to be from
Beginner
/tə bi frɒm/
To have your origin or hometown in a particular place; where you come from
"I'm from Portugal, but I've lived in London for five years."
to belong to
Beginner
/bɪˈlɔŋ tuː/
To be owned by someone or be a part of a group.
"This phone belongs to her — it's her phone."
to bend over backwards
Advanced
/bend ˈoʊvər ˈbækwərdz/
To make extreme effort to help or please someone; to go out of your way
"The company bent over backwards to accommodate the client's unusual requests."
to burn bridges
Advanced
/bɜːrn ˈbrɪdʒɪz/
To damage relationships or close doors permanently in a harmful way
"Leaving without notice might burn bridges with your current employer."
to cancel
Intermediate
/ˈkænsl/
To decide that something planned will not happen.
"The flight was canceled due to bad weather."
to catch
Intermediate
/kætʃ/
To understand or hear something that was said, especially if you had to listen carefully
"Did you catch the time of the meeting? I think she said 2 PM but I'm not sure."
to check in
Elementary
/tʃek ɪn/
To arrive at a hotel and register; to officially arrive
"When we checked in at 3 PM, the staff gave us a warm welcome."
to circumlocute
Advanced
/ˌsɜːkəmˈlɒkjuːt/
To express something using many words instead of being direct; to talk around a topic
"Rather than say 'no,' the negotiator circumlocuted by discussing various practical concerns."
to clarify
Upper Intermediate
/ˈklærɪfaɪ/
To explain something more clearly or give more details to remove confusion
"Let me clarify what I meant — I wasn't criticizing your work, just suggesting improvements."
to compile
Upper Intermediate
/kəmˈpaɪl/
To gather and put together information from different sources into one document
"I spent three weeks compiling data from various research studies for the final report."
to consider
Intermediate
/kənˈsɪdər/
To think carefully about something before deciding
"She's considering taking a new job in London."
to construct
Upper Intermediate
/kənˈstrʌkt/
To build or create something using words or materials
"You construct passive sentences by moving the object to the beginning of the sentence."
to convert
Upper Intermediate
/kənˈvɜːrt/
To change something from one form to another
"Let me show you how to convert an active sentence into the passive voice."
to cost
Elementary
/tuː kɔːst/
To have a price; to require you to pay money
"That new laptop cost me $800, but it was worth every penny."
to count someone in
Elementary
/kaʊnt ɪn/
To include someone as a participant; to confirm someone will attend.
"You can count me in for the camping trip!"
to deflect
Upper Intermediate
/dɪˈflekt/
To avoid answering directly by changing the subject or redirecting attention
"When asked about his mistakes, he tried to deflect by blaming his team."
to defuse tension
Advanced
/dɪˈfjuːz ˈtenʃən/
To reduce anger or conflict in a situation gradually and carefully
"The mediator used calm language to defuse tension between the two parties."
to dodge
Upper Intermediate
/dɒdʒ/
To avoid something skilfully, especially a difficult question or responsibility
"She dodged the question about her qualifications by talking about her experience instead."
to-do list
Elementary
/təˈduː lɪst/
A written list of tasks or jobs you need to complete.
"I wrote a to-do list with five things to do before Friday."
to elaborate
Upper Intermediate
/ɪˈlæbəreɪt/
To explain or add more detail and information about something already mentioned
"The introduction is too short—you should elaborate on the purpose of your investigation."
to elaborate (speaking)
Intermediate
/ɪˈlæbəreɪt/
To explain something in more detail or give more information about it
"Could you elaborate on what you meant by sustainable growth?"
to engage the audience
Intermediate
/tə ɪnˈɡeɪdʒ ðɪ ˈɔːdiəns/
To get and keep the audience's attention and interest during a talk
"Ask questions to engage the audience and keep them interested."
to fancy
Elementary
/ˈfænsi/
British English: to want to do something; to feel like doing something.
"Do you fancy a cup of tea?"
to focus on
Intermediate
/tə ˈfoʊkəs ɑːn/
To give special attention or importance to something.
"We use passive voice to focus on the action rather than on who does it."
to get the ball rolling
Advanced
/ɡet ðə bɔːl ˈroʊlɪŋ/
To start or initiate a process or project; to begin something
"We need someone to get the ball rolling on this innovation project before the deadline."
to go / takeout
Beginner
/tə ˈɡoʊ/ or /ˈteɪkaʊt/
Food that you buy but eat elsewhere, not in the restaurant
"I'll have a sandwich to go. I'm eating at my desk."
to have an axe to grind
Advanced
/hæv ən æks tə ɡraɪnd/
To have a hidden, selfish reason or grudge motivating your actions
"I suspect he supports that policy because he has an axe to grind with the opposition."
to illustrate
Intermediate
/ˈɪl.ə.streɪt/
To explain or show something using examples or visual aids to make it clearer.
"To illustrate this concept, the lecturer showed us a real case study from last year."
to introduce
Beginner
/ˌɪn.trəˈdjuːs/
To tell someone your name and basic information when you meet them for the first time
"Let me introduce myself. I'm Sarah, and I'm a software engineer."
to kick off
Intermediate
/tə kɪk ɔːf/
To start or begin something, especially a presentation or event
"I'll kick off my presentation by introducing the main topic."
to launch
Intermediate
/lɔːntʃ/
To introduce a new product, service, or project to the public or market.
"Our company is launching a new app next month."
tolerate
Intermediate
/ˈtɑːləreɪt/
To accept or allow something unpleasant without complaint
"I cannot tolerate loud noises while I'm trying to work."