No. 12 (March 24, 2011)
Buffet
To hit repeatedly or strike sharply(立て続けに叩く)
→“The teacher buffeted the blackboard for attention.”
To treat harshly(酷い仕打ちをする)
→“I quit the company because I was sick of being buffeted by my boss.”
Conundrum
A big puzzle; an insoluble problem(大きな謎、難解な問題)
→“How the universe started remains a scientific conundrum.”
→“How to respond to the uprising in the Middle East is a foreign policy conundrum.”
Epicenter
The surface of the earth directly above the center of an earthquake; the central or most critical location(地震・物事の中心地)
→“The epicenter of the major earthquake was in the northeastern part of Japan.”
→“Beijing is becoming the epicenter of commerce and trade in Asia.”
Expat
A foreign resident of a country(駐在員、在留している外国人)
→“The Chinese corporation has a lot of expats in its New York office.”
→“Japanese expats around the world are following the news about the catastrophe with growing concern.”
Fester
For a bad condition to get worse(悪化する)
→“A deep-seated anger festers below the surface.”
→“The wound festered into an infection.”
Pique
To stimulate; to provoke; to incite(刺激する、憤慨させる)
→“Her interest was piqued when she overheard the conversation.”
→“The receptionist’s attitude piqued him into an outburst.”
Pulverize
To utterly destroy(破壊する、壊滅状態にする)
→“The Senator made an impassioned speech, pulverizing the opponent’s argument.”
→“The hurricane pulverized the coastal town.”
Ramble
To speak or write in an unorganized way; to walk about aimlessly(まとまりの ない話し方・書き方をする、特に目的もなく歩き回る)
→“Some of the audience went to sleep as the speaker rambled on.”
→“His eyes rambled over the words on the page.”
Rogue
Erratic and irregular in behavior(規則違反の、不良の、無法の)
→“The new country is acting like a rogue regime.”
(As noun) An outlaw; a nonconformist(アウトロー、不良、ならず者)
→“The government announced a major campaign against rogues.”
Rue
To deplore; to regret(悲嘆する、後悔する)
→“The Prime Minister rues his dwindling popularity.”
→“I rue the day Osama bin Laden was born.”
Slam
To harshly criticize; to attack(はげしく非難する)
→“Human rights groups slammed the government’s policy.”
→“He was slammed for his stupid comment.”
Smart
To feel pain; to suffer(痛みを感じる)
→“While running the marathon, his eyes smarted as sweat drops trickled in.”
→“She is still smarting under the disappointment of her loss.”
Tease out
To obtain hidden information(隠された情報を引き出す)
→“After much prodding, I was able to tease the secret out of her.”
→“A secret agent’s principal mission is to tease out classified info from foreign powers.”
Thrash about/around
To move from one side to the other in a violent manner; to exert oneself(横から横へ体を荒々しく動かす、必死に努力する・頭をひねる)
→“The drunkard thrashed about when the police tried to control him.”
→“For the past 45 minutes I have been thrashing around for an answer to the question.”
Thrash out
To discuss something thoroughly so as to come to a solution or agreement(徹底的に話し合い解決策・合意に達する)
→“The leaders were finally able to thrash out a tentative agreement on the party platform.”
→“The family had a lively discussion thrashing out the details of the vacation plan.”