Comprehensive English Language Study Notes

Common English Definitions

• Considered to be: Regarded as
• Mess around: Behave in a silly way or waste time
• Blame: Say that a certain thing is responsible for something bad
• Favouring: Giving somebody an advantage
• Get on with: Do without hesitation
• Hurry: Act quickly
• Countless: A great number of
• Chatting: Exchanging comments online
• Partner: A boyfriend or a girlfriend
• Come first: Are the most important things
• Blush: Go red with embarrassment
• Sincere: Honest, meaning what you say
• Cautious: Careful to avoid danger
• Nickname: Informal name used instead of your real name
• Something clicked: We got on well together
• Know someone inside out: Know someone really well
• Fierce: Strong
• Came up against: Encountered
• Opportunity: A chance
• Rare: Not common
• Turned into: Transformed into
• Gave up: Stopped trying
• Attempt: Try
• Rope: Thick cord (not clothes)
• Spectacles: Glasses (not shows)
• Set off: Began a journey
• Headed for: Went in the direction of
• Took off: Left the ground
• Saw off: Went to an airport to say goodbye to someone
• Get away: Go on holidays for a short time
• Offenders: Criminals
• Risen: Gone up
• Veteran: Somebody who is very experienced
• Harsh: Stricter or more severe
• Take part in: Participate in
• Reoffend: Commit a crime again
• Peers: People who are the same age as you
• Assume: Presume (not show off)
• Crime: Any illegal act (not just a serious criminal offence)
• Embarrassed: Upset and self-conscious (not pregnant)

Prefixes and Word Formation

• Anti-: Learning, war
• Co-: Exist, educational, operation
• Mis-: Behave, print, understand
• Under-: Achieve, cook, estimate
• Out-: Perform, play, run
• Re-: Do, write
• Over-: Work, charge, confident

Adjective and Verb Collocations

• Addicted to: Similar
• Jealous, proud of: Good, bad at
• Excited, serious about: Dependent, keep on
• Famous, remembered for: Interested, involved in
• Pleased, obsessed with

Negative Prefixes

• Dis-: Honesty, approve, loyalty
• Il-: Legal, legible
• Im-: Mature, polite, possible
• In-: Compatible
• Ir-: Rational, responsible
• Un-: Comfortable, usual

Phrasal Verbs and Nouns

• Relationships: Ask out, chat up, fall for, fall out, get on, get out, grow apart, put up with, settle down, split up
• Abstract Nouns: Determination, endurance, inspiration, encouragement, ambition, ability, toughness, weakness, patience
• Verb Collocations: Lose (touch, memory, temper, weight), Take (a break, a book, your time, notes), Get (a job, nowhere, permission, the chance)
• Phrasal Verbs: Come across, break down, carry on, head for, pick up, see off, set off, take off
• Prepositional Phrases: At (all times, risk), By (accident, yourself), In (front, debt), Without (doubt, exception), Against (the law, the odds), On (purpose, your own), Under (arrest, the circumstances), For (a living, certain)
• Compound Nouns: Police car, exam results, detective series, football team, traffic lights, bus stop