No. 32 (Aug 11, 2011)
Apprentice
A pupil or disciple(弟子)
→“The shogi master is not willing to take on apprentices.”
→“A former apprentice gave the heavy weight champion a lesson in punching.”
Blight
To damage(被害を起こす)
→“The minority group is severely blighted by the ongoing recession.”
→“The writer blighted millions of readers with her wicked comments.”
Craft
To carefully and skillfully create(緻密に作り上げる)
→“I watched in awe as the child crafted a beautiful bird out of colored sheets of paper.”
→“The politician gradually crafted his public image over 40 years.”
Furor
An outcry; an explosive outburst of anger(憤激)
→“The president’s decision to declare war on Libya without the consent of Congress has caused a furor among the Republicans.”
→“Amid the sex-scandal furor, the lawmaker announced his resignation.”
Gyrate
To move about fast; to spin; to fluctuate(迅速に動き回る、回転または上下運動する)
→“The jazz dancers gyrated effortlessly on the stage.”
→“The stock market gyrated as investors’ worries persisted.”
Hedge
1. To avoid giving a straightforward answer(にごす、ごまかす)
→“Don’t hedge. Give me a clear answer now.”
→“The Congressman attempted to hedge by saying that he had an urgent business to attend to.”
2. Hedge against: To protect oneself against possible risks(リスクに備えて予防策を取る)
→“Saving a portion of your monthly salary will hedge against future contingencies.”
→“The prefectural government is trying to hedge against the mounting national debt crisis.”
3. Hedge one’s bets: To reduce one’s risks by simultaneously pursuing more than one option(リスクを減らすために複数の選択を同時に取る)
→“She says she is hedging her bets by dating 3 eligible men.”
→“When I was a child, my grandfather taught me the importance of hedging my bets in all critical decision points in life.”
Mesmerize
To impress in a powerful, breath-taking way(あっとするほど印象づける)
→“I was mesmerized by her amazing performance on the stage.”
→“The Grand Canyon was just mesmerizing.”
Nascent
Newly emerging; starting to develop(新しく出現・発展しつつある)
→“The town is working hard to expand its nascent tourist industry.”
→“There are signs of nascent democracy from the new nation.”
Paltry
Trivial or insignificant(取るに足らない)
→“Forget about it. It’s a paltry issue anyways.”
→“Compared to how much he makes a year, my salary is paltry.”
Redundancy
The lack of need because something or somebody else already exists that performs the same function(余分、重複)
→“When the two major banks merged, it resulted in large scale redundancies in the workforce.”
→“There are numerous redundancies in your report. I want you to go over it carefully and edit it.”
Spawn
To make something happen in large quantities(多量に発生させる)
→“World War II spawned a lot of best-sellers.”
→“he Internet has spawned new business opportunities around the globe.”
Throttle
To obstruct and make difficult to succeed(邪魔する)
→“My coworker is jealous of me, taking every opportunity to throttle my success.”
→“The strong yen is gradually throttling Japan’s economy.”