My English Words List - December - 2021

endemic

endemic

adjective

COVID-19 is likely to become an endemic disease.

A Nature survey shows many scientists expect the virus that causes COVID-19 to become endemic, but it could pose less danger over time.

Eighteen months later, most leading immunologists believe Covid-19 will become endemic—a persistent but manageable threat on par with seasonal flu—conceivably by the end of 2022.

Covid will become an endemic disease as early as 2024, Pfizer executives said Friday, meaning the virus will transition from a global emergency to a constant presence causing regional outbreaks across the world — much like the flu.

noun

It typically takes a few years for a new viral pathogen to move from pandemic to endemic

omicron

omicron

noun

  • the 15th letter of the Greek alphabet

In November 2021, a COVID-19 variant was named Omicron, after the 15th letter of the Greek alphabet.

Omicron

instant

instant

adjective

instant coffee

Instant coffee

Is this coffee instant or regular?

Instant coffee

Instant noodle

Instant noodle in typical block form (dried)

Instant noodle

Instant Pot

Instant Pot DUO60

Instant Pot

clementine

clementine

noun

Five clementines whole, peeled, halved and sectioned

jicama

jicama

noun

Fresh jícama for sale at a farmers' market

Pachyrhizus erosus

paprika

paprika

noun

Mallorcan pimentón tap de cortí paprika

tomato sauce made with garlic, paprika, and pepper

Paprika

Worcestershire sauce

Worcestershire sauce

noun

Worcestershire sauce in a dish

Worcestershire sauce

kale

kale

noun

Curly kale, one of the many varieties of kale

Kale

bunch

bunch

noun

a bunch of grapes

a bunch of friends

a bunch of children

a bunch of money

He always had a bunch of keys on his belt.

Dried herbs hung in bunches from the kitchen rafters.

parchment

parchment

noun

Parchment with a quill and ink

Central European (Northern) type of finished parchment made of goatskin stretched on a wooden frame

Ancient people wrote on parchment.

Archimedes Palimpsest

recipe

recipe

noun

A recipe in a cookbook for pancakes with the prepared ingredients

This is one of my grandmother’s recipes.

Recipe

palindrome

palindrome

noun

Ambigram of the palindrome "Dogma I am God"

The word “dad” and the number “1881” are palindromes.

Palindrome

cartridge

cartridge

noun

  • a case or container that holds a substance, device, or material which is difficult, troublesome, or awkward to handle and that usually can be easily changed

The printer needs a new ink cartridge.

Two cartridges (one with black ink, one with colored inks) installed in an inkjet printer

Ink cartridge

A modern round

Cartridge (firearms)

clipper

clipper

noun

An electric trimmer, Electric hair clippers

 variety of nail clippers; the clipper on the left is in the plier style; the centre and right clippers are in the compound lever style

  • a device used for cutting something

hair clippers

nail clippers

Hair clipper

Nail clipper

screwdriver

screwdriver

noun

A slotted or "flat-blade" screwdriver

Screwdriver

screw

screw

noun

An assortment of screws

Screw

verb

Remember to screw the lid back on the jar.

Screw the light bulb into the fixture.

Screw the cap on tight.

The lid screws onto the jar.

waiver

waiver

noun

Please read the following waivers and agreements carefully.

a criminal defendant’s waiver of a jury trial

The college got a special waiver from the town to exceed the building height limit.

He signed an insurance waiver before surgery.

Waiver

waive

waive

verb

waive a jury trial

waive the fee

She waived her right to a lawyer.

The university waives the application fee for low-income students.

The bank manager waived the charge (= said we didn’t have to pay), as we were old and valued customers.

toad

toad

noun

Toad

toad

broom

broom

noun

Sorghum-made brooms with long handles as well as short handles

durian

durian

noun

A bunch of durian

Durian

aisle

aisle

noun

An aisle of Bristol Cathedral, Bristol, England.

The bride walked down the aisle to the altar.

Aisle

yell

yell

verb

  • to make a sudden, loud cry

We saw people yelling for help.

I heard someone yelling my name.

billiards

billiards

noun

Pool table with equipment.

Cue sports

stapler

stapler

noun

Office stapler

Stapler

awkward

awkward

adjective

an awkward attempt

an awkward design

She is awkward at dancing.

The machine is very awkward to operate.

passage

passage

noun

Her office is at the end of the passage.

the passage of food through the digestive system

the passage of air into and out of the lungs

the passage from life to death

Hallway

kiddo

kiddo

noun

  • child, kid
  • used by an adult to speak to a young person

reverence

reverence

noun

Their religion has/shows a deep reverence for nature.

Reverence for or worship of the dead is found in all societies, because belief in life after death is universal. — World Religions, 1983

Reverence for Life says that the only thing we are really sure of is that we live and want to go on living. This is something that we share with everything else that lives, from elephants to blades of grass—and, of course, every human being. So we are brothers and sisters to all living things, and owe to all of them the same care and respect, that we wish for ourselves.

Reverence for Life

vestibule

vestibule

noun

A floor plan with a modern vestibule shown in red.

please leave your wet boots in the vestibule

Synonyms

entranceway, entry, entryway, hall, hallway, lobby

Vestibule (architecture)

incisor

incisor

noun

  • a tooth (as any of the four front teeth of the human upper or lower jaw) for cutting

Permanent teeth of the right half of the lower dental arch, seen from above.

canine

canine

noun

  • a conical pointed tooth especially : one situated between the lateral incisor and the first premolar

Medical animation showing Canine teeth and their arrangement in the mouth of an adult human being.

molar

molar

noun

  • a large tooth near the back of the mouth with a broad surface used for grinding

Image showing molar teeth and their arrangement in the mouth of an adult human being

ditch

ditch

verb

ditch an old car

If you are using a single-layer cloth mask to protect yourself from a new COVID-19 variant that is believed to be more than six times as infectious as Delta “ditch it, full stop.”

Anglosphere

Anglosphere

noun

the countries of the world in which the English language and cultural values predominate

Anglosphere

platter

platter

noun

A salad platter.

large platters of hot turkey and ham

She ordered the seafood platter.

Platter (dishware)

oat

oat

noun

Oat plants with inflorescences

Oat grains in their husks

Oat

earbud

earbud

noun

In-ear monitors extend into the ear canal, providing isolation from outside noise.

  • a small earphone inserted into the ear

Headphones

bud

bud

noun

Inflorescence bud scales in Halesia carolina

The bush has plenty of buds but no flowers yet.

Bud

verb

The trees budded early this spring.

canonical

canonical

adjective

As a canonical example

His proposals were generally accepted as canonical.

gospel

gospel

noun

a reading from the Gospel of St. John

Gospel

drizzle

drizzle

Drizzle

noun

  • rain that falls lightly in very small drops

Yes, it’s raining, but it’s only a drizzle.

the intermittent drizzle was just heavy enough to spoil all of our outdoor activities

verb

  • to rain in very small drops

It was beginning to drizzle, so she pulled on her hood.

rebate

rebate

noun

There is a $50 rebate offered with the printer.

Mail in your receipt and get a rebate.

Rebate (marketing)

Tax refund

wrestle

wrestle

verb

They’ll be wrestling each other for the championship.

good-for-nothing

good-for-nothing

adjective

  • of no use or value

sparrow

sparrow

noun

  • a common type of small bird that usually has brown or gray feathers

Sparrow in Tharparkar, Sindh

Old World sparrow

New World sparrow

parrot

parrot

noun

Eclectus parrots, male left and female right

Parrot

verb

Some of the students were just parroting what the teacher said.

the toddler parroted everything her father said, often to the latter’s embarrassment

biodegradable

biodegradable

adjective

biodegradable trash bags

fasten

fasten

verb

Make sure the lid is tightly fastened.

two boards fastened together by nails

fastener

Hooks

Loops

A shoe using hook-and-loop closures

Hook-and-loop fastener

trampoline

trampoline

noun

House of Air Trampoline Park in San Francisco

Trampoline