sphere AC / sfɪə $ sfɪr / noun [ countable ]

1 a ball shape

2 a particular area of activity, work, knowledge etc

in the ... sphere

television’s increasing role in the political sphere

public/private sphere

Women have often been excluded from positions of power in the public sphere.

3 sb’s/sth’s sphere of influence a person’s, country’s, organization’s etc sphere of influence is the area where they have power to change things

adjectives

the public sphere (= public positions and activities ) Men still controlled the public sphere.

the private sphere After the war, women refused to return quietly to the private sphere.

the political sphere Unions became more active in the political sphere.

the economic sphere Will the reform programme be extended beyond the economic sphere?

the domestic sphere More women started to be trained for tasks outside the domestic sphere.

the social sphere The following chapter considers the influence of factors in the wider social sphere.

-sphere / sfɪə $ sfɪr / suffix [ in nouns ] technical

relating to the air or gases surrounding the Earth :

the atmosphere

un‧de‧sir‧a‧ble 1 / ˌʌndɪˈzaɪərəb ə l◂ $ -ˈzaɪr- / adjective formal

something or someone that is undesirable is not welcome or wanted because they may affect a situation or person in a bad way

undesirable effects/consequences etc

The drug may have other undesirable effects.

punishment of undesirable behaviour

cat‧e‧go‧ry S2 W2 AC / ˈkætəɡ ə ri, ˈkætɪɡ ə ri $ -ɡɔːri / noun ( plural categories ) [ countable ]

a group of people or things that are all of the same type

category of

There are five categories of workers.

people in the over-45 age category

Seats are available in eight of the ten price categories .

fall into/belong in/fit into a category

Voters fall into three main categories .

Williams’ style does not fit easily into the category of jazz.

verbs

fit into a category Rogers doesn’t fit into either category.

put somebody/something into categories People are individuals and you can’t really put them into categories.

sus‧cep‧ti‧ble / səˈseptəb ə l, səˈseptɪb ə l / adjective

1 likely to suffer from a particular illness or be affected by a particular problem → immune

susceptible to

Older people are more susceptible to infections.

Soil on the mountain slopes is very susceptible to erosion.

2 a susceptible person is easily influenced or attracted by someone or something SYN impressionable :

A lot of TV advertising is aimed at susceptible young children.

susceptible to

She was very susceptible to flattery.

3 susceptible of something formal if something is susceptible of an action, that action can be done to it :

Working conditions are susceptible of improvement by legislation.

vul‧ne‧ra‧ble W3 / ˈvʌln ə rəb ə l / adjective

1 someone who is vulnerable can be easily harmed or hurt OPP invulnerable :

He took advantage of me when I was at my most vulnerable.

We work mainly with the elderly and other vulnerable groups.

be vulnerable to something

Children are most vulnerable to abuse within their own home.

2 a place, thing, or idea that is vulnerable is easy to attack or criticize OPP invulnerable

vulnerable to

The fort was vulnerable to attack from the north.

Their theories were badly thought out and very vulnerable to ridicule.

— vulnerably adverb

— vulnerability / ˌvʌln ə rəˈbɪləti, ˌvʌln ə rəˈbɪlɪti / noun [ uncountable ]

in‧cli‧na‧tion AC / ˌɪŋkləˈneɪʃ ə n, ˌɪŋklɪˈneɪʃ ə n / noun

1 [ uncountable and countable ] a feeling that makes you want to do something :

My natural inclination was to say no.

inclination to do something

Neither of my children showed the slightest inclination to follow me into journalism.

2 [ uncountable and countable ] a tendency to think or behave in a particular way

inclination to do something

an inclination to see everything in political terms

inclination to/towards

She’s troubled by her son’s inclination toward atheism.

by inclination

Bart was a romantic by inclination.

trig‧ger 1 AC / ˈtrɪɡə $ -ər / noun [ countable ]

1 the part of a gun that you pull with your finger to fire it

pull/squeeze the trigger

He took aim and squeezed the trigger.

2 be the trigger (point) (for something) to be the thing that quickly causes a serious problem :

The hijacking became a trigger point for military action.

dose 1 / dəʊs $ doʊs / noun [ countable ]

1 the amount of a medicine or a drug that you should take

dose of

Never exceed the recommended dose of painkillers.

high/low dose

Start with a low dose and increase it.

2 an amount of something that you do or experience at one time, especially something unpleasant

lethal/fatal dose (of something) (= an amount that kills )

a lethal dose of radiation

I quite like Jamie in small doses (= in limited amounts but not a lot or often ) .

chron‧ic / ˈkrɒnɪk $ ˈkrɑː- / adjective

1 a chronic disease or illness is one that continues for a long time and cannot be cured → acute :

chronic heart disease

2 a chronic problem is one that continues for a long time and cannot easily be solved :

chronic unemployment

There is a chronic shortage of teachers.

3 chronic alcoholic/gambler etc someone who has behaved in a particular way for a long time and cannot stop :

He was a chronic alcoholic and unable to hold down a job.

a chronic smoker

— chronically / -kli / adverb :

in‧ter‧per‧son‧al / ˌɪntəˈpɜːs ə nəl◂ $ -tərˈpɜːr- / adjective

relating to relationships between people :

interpersonal skills

interpersonal communication

ˈone-shot adjective [ only before noun ] American English

happening or done only once SYN one-off British English :

This is a one-shot deal. If it doesn’t work, it’s over.

Wear and tear is the damage or change that is caused to something when it is being used normally.

    ...the problem of wear and tear on the equipment in the harsh desert conditions.

dev‧a‧stat‧ing / ˈdevəsteɪtɪŋ / adjective

1 badly damaging or destroying something

devastating effect/impact

Acid rain has a devastating effect on the forest.

devastating results/consequences

The oil spill had devastating consequences for wildlife.

It will be a devastating blow for the town if the factory closes.

2 making someone feel extremely sad or shocked :

He was in Nice when he heard the devastating news .

Long-term unemployment can be devastating.

3 very impressive or effective :

In a devastating display of military muscle, soldiers seized the town.

nouns

a devastating effect/impact The recession has had a devastating impact on employment in this area.

devastating consequences/results a terrible disease with devastating results

pay‧cheque British English , paycheck American English / ˈpeɪ-tʃek / noun [ countable ]

1 a cheque that someone receives as payment for their wages :

a weekly paycheque

2 especially American English the amount of wages someone earns SYN pay packet British English :

a nice fat paycheck

ob‧li‧ga‧tion W3 / ˌɒbləˈɡeɪʃ ə n, ˌɒblɪˈɡeɪʃ ə n $ ˌɑːb- / noun [ uncountable and countable ]

a moral or legal duty to do something

obligation to

America’s obligation to its allies

Employers have an obligation to treat all employees equally.

the rights and obligations imposed on them by treaties

He stayed with the team out of a sense of obligation .

phrases

be under an obligation (= have an obligation ) The landlord is under an obligation to repair the house.

a sense of obligation the sense of obligation that you feel towards your family

adjectives

a moral/legal/social obligation We have a moral obligation to take care of our environment.

strain 1 W3 / streɪn / noun

1 worry [ uncountable and countable ] worry that is caused by having to deal with a problem or work too hard over a long period of time → stress :

I couldn’t look after him any more; the strain was too much for me.

Did you find the job a strain ?

the stresses and strains of police life

strain for

The trial has been a terrible strain for both of us.

strain on

It’s quite a strain on me when he’s drinking heavily.

put/place a strain on somebody

The long working hours put a severe strain on employees.

under (a) strain

I know you’ve been under a lot of strain lately.

crack/collapse/buckle etc under the strain (= become unable to deal with a problem or work )

I could see that she was beginning to crack under the strain.

2 difficulty [ uncountable and countable ] a difficulty or problem that is caused when a person, relationship, organization, or system has too much to do or too many problems to deal with

strain on

The dry summer has further increased the strain on water resources.

put/place (a) strain on something

The flu epidemic has put a huge strain on the health service.

strain in

The attack has led to strains in the relationship between the two countries.

under (a) strain

His marriage was under strain.

break/crack/collapse etc under the strain

The party split under the strain.

3 force [ uncountable ] a situation in which something is being pulled or pushed, or is holding weight, and so might break or become damaged

strain on

The strain on the cables supporting the bridge is enormous.

put/place (a) strain on something

Some of these exercises put too much strain on the back muscles.

These four posts take the strain of the whole structure.

break/snap/collapse etc under the strain

The rope snapped under the strain.

4 injury [ uncountable and countable ] an injury to a muscle or part of your body that is caused by using it too much :

Long hours working at a computer can cause eye strain.

The goalkeeper is still out of action with a knee strain.

5 plant/animal [ countable ] a type of animal, plant, or disease

strain of

different strains of wheat

a new strain of the flu virus

adjectives

great/considerable/severe strain The country’s health system is under great strain.

an intolerable strain (= too great to bear ) The cost of these wars put an intolerable strain on the economy.

financial strain This welfare program has eased the financial strain of raising children alone.

verbs

ease the strain (= make it less ) You can do much to ease the strain of the situation for her.

phrases

be under (a) strain Claudia could see that he was under considerable strain.

stresses and strains Holidays help people to cope with the stresses and strains of life.

dif‧fuse 1 / dɪˈfjuːz / verb

1 [ intransitive and transitive ] to make heat, light, liquid etc spread through something, or to spread like this

diffuse through/into/across

The pollutants diffuse into the soil.

2 [ intransitive and transitive ] to spread ideas or information among a lot of people, or to spread like this :

Their ideas diffused quickly across Europe.

3 [ transitive ] to make a bad feeling or situation less strong or serious :

an attempt to diffuse his anger

— diffusion / dɪˈfjuːʒ ə n / noun [ uncountable ]

triv‧i‧al / ˈtrɪviəl / adjective

not serious, important, or valuable

trivial problem/matter/complaint etc

We were punished for the most trivial offences.

a trivial sum

Her feelings for Simon seemed trivial by comparison .