U

US
SE
EF
FU
UL
LV
VO
OC
CA
AB
BU
UL
LA
AR
RY
YF
FO
OR
RT
TH
HE
E IIG
GC
CS
SE
EE
EX
XA
AM
M ((E
ES
SL
L))
C
EEFFFFEEC
C
CA
AU
USSEE ((vveerrbb))
CTT ((nnoouunn))
CEER
RTTA
AIIN
N
lead to: The research could lead to a
cure for many serious illnesses.
result in: The fire resulted in damage
to their property.
be responsible for: He was
responsible for the accident.

impact on: His work has had an

enormous impact on the study of
genetics.
influence on: In his book, he
examines the influence of the media
on our society.
affect: (v) The disease affects women
more than men.
influence: (v) She has influenced him
a lot.

have no doubt: I have no doubt that a

cure for the disease will one day be
found.
there is no doubt: There is no doubt
that violence on our TV screens does
influence children.

IIN
NC
CR
REEA
ASSEE ((vveerrbb))

D
DEEC
CR
REEA
ASSEE ((vveerrbb))

H
HA
AVVEE FFU
UN
N EEN
NJJO
OYY

increase by (percent): Last year, the

number of burglaries increased by 15
percent.
go up: Last month unemployment
went up from 1.6 million to just over
1.7 million.
grow: The volume of traffic on our
roads continues to grow.
double/triple/quadruple: Since 1950,
the number of people dying from
cancer has almost doubled.

decrease by (percent): The average

rainfall has decreased by around 30
percent.
go down: The percentage of fat in our
diets has gone down.
fall: The number of tigers in the wild
has fallen to just over 10,000.
drop: At night, the temperature drops
to minus 20 degrees.

LLIIK
A
KEE N
NO
OTT LLIIK
KEE
AD
DVVA
AN
NTTA
AG
GEESS // D
DIISSA
AD
DVV..
be keen on sb/sth: Im keen on tennis. benefit
be into sth: Shes into music.
drawback: disadvantage
cant stand
A
AM
MA
AZZIIN
NG
G

G
GO
OO
OD
D
Convenient
beneficial
suitable

EEXXC
CEELLLLEEN
NTT
oustanding
superb: He is a
superb dancer.

FFU
UN
NN
NYY ((hhuum
moorroouuss))

breathtaking
impressive
striking
stunning
astonishing

VVEER
RYY B
BA
AD
D

inappropriate
unsuitable
disappointing

awful
disgusting
hideous
shocking
terrible

B
BEEA
AU
UTTIIFFU
ULL ((ppllaacceess))
breathtaking
stunning
awe-inspiring
striking
spectacular
spotless: very clean

a great number of +
countable noun: A great
number of students.
a great deal of+uncount: A
great deal of pressure.

B
BEEA
AU
UTTIIFFU
ULL ((ppeeooppllee))
attractive
good-looking
gorgeous
striking
stunning

U
UG
GLLYY ((ppeeooppllee && ppllaacceess))
unattractive
unpleasant
unsightly
filthy: very dirty

A
A LLO
OTT

B
BO
OR
RIIN
NG
G
dull
tedious
monotonous

amusing
hilarious

B
BA
AD
D

VVEER
RYY
absolutely
extremely
highly
incredibly
remarkably

have fun
it is/was fun: Our trip was great fun.
enjoyable
exciting
thrilling: very exciting
enjoy yourself / ourselves / himself
have a good/great/wonderful time
have the time of your life

N
NO
OTT M
MA
AN
NYY
a few / few + countable noun
a small number of + countable
a little / little + uncountable
a small amount of + uncount

VVEER
RYY H
HO
OTT // C
CO
OLLD
D
freezing
boiling
(More vocabulary on page 2)

VVEER
RYY M
MU
UC
CH
H // N
NO
OTT VVEER
RYY M
MU
UC
CH
H
dramatically: Your life changes
dramatically at university.
significantly
slightly: She's slightly taller than her
sister.
IGCSE | Useful Vocabulary

PPEER
RSSO
ON
NA
ALLIITTYY A
AD
DJJEEC
CTTIIVVEESS
ambitious
cheerful: happy
easy-going
creative imaginative
outgoing - unsociable
realistic - unrealistic
reliable - unreliable
sensible - insensible
sensitive - insensitive
sympathetic
individualistic
EEN
NVVIIR
RO
ON
NM
MEEN
NTTA
ALL IISSSSU
UEESS
global warming
climate change: changes in the weather around the world,
which result in much higher or lower temperatures, violent
storms, floods, or droughts
the greenhouse effect
acid rain: rain that contains pollution from factories, power
stations etc, which causes damage to forests
the hole in the ozone layer
hazardous / toxic waste: dangerous waste materials, for
example produced by industries, hospitals etc
pesticides: they can be harmful when they are absorbed
into crops or the soil: Farmers are being asked to reduce
their use of pesticides.
GM foods: genetically modified foods
organic foods
fossil fuels: fuels such as coal or oil. Burning these fuels
causes a lot of carbon gases to be released into the
atmosphere
fumes: harmful gas or smoke, for example from cars,
factories etc, which can damage people's health
exhaust fumes (=from cars)
endangered species
extinction: The white rhino is close to extinction.
soil erosion
deforestation
floods
droughts
environmentally friendly/eco-friendly: environmentallyfriendly products or methods do not cause harm to the
environment: a campaign to encourage people to use
environmentally-friendly forms of transport
recycle (v) / recycling (n) / recyclable (adj)
solar power/wind power: Solar power is a renewable
resource.
environmentalist: someone who is concerned about
protecting the environment
environmental group
EEC
CO
ON
NO
OM
MIIC
CA
AN
ND
D SSO
OC
CIIA
ALL IISSSSU
UEESS
discrimination
homeless people
exploitation
unemployment
inequality
vandalism
famine
violent crime
malnutrition
mugging
overpopulation
rape
begging
capital punishment
drug abuse
fine
inequality

H
HEEA
ALLTTH
H
health care systems
health service
private medicine
health insurance
alternative medicine
traditional medicine
acupuncture
X-ray
blood test

W
WEEA
ATTH
HEER
R
warm
boiling
mild: mild winter weather is pleasant because it is not as
cold as it usually is. It seems quite mild for February.
humid
cool
chilly: a little cold, in a way that makes you feel
uncomfortable
freezing: extremely cold.
drizzle: light rain.
shower: a short period of rain. Heavy showers (=when a
lot of rain falls for short periods).
hail/stones: frozen raindrops that fall as small balls of ice.
There were frequent showers of rain and hail.
frost: ice that looks white and powdery and covers things
when the temperature is very cold. The grass and trees
were white with frost.
icy: covered in ice and very slippery. Be careful - the roads
are icy this morning.
overcast: if the sky is overcast, it is very cloudy and dark,
and there will probably be rain.
fog: thick cloudy air near the ground that is very difficult to
see through. Thick/dense fog: Dense fog is making
driving conditions difficult on many roads. foggy:
adjective.
gust of wind: (=when the wind suddenly blows strongly) A
sudden gust of wind blew the paper out of his hand.
breeze: a gentle pleasant wind.
gale: a very strong wind. The fence was blown down in
the gale last night.
thunderstorm: a storm where there is a lot of thunder and
lightning.
blizzard: a storm with a lot of snow and strong winds.
hurricane - tornado: a small but very powerful twisting
mass of air that causes a lot of damage. Tornadoes are
most common in the central area of the US.
EED
DU
UC
CA
ATTIIO
ON
N
graduate from school
degree: She has a degree in economics.
distance learning
e-learning: a method of study that involves using the
Internet and communicating with teachers using email
grant: an amount of money given to someone, especially
by the government, to help pay for their education,
research
scholarship
IGCSE | Useful Vocabulary

W
WO
OR
RK
K
employee: someone who is paid to work for someone
else: a government employee
worker: someone who does a job, especially low-ranking
job: a conflict between workers and management
co-worker: someone who works with you and has a similar
position.
part-time job / work part-time
full-time job / work full-time
self-employed: working for yourself and not employed by a
company:
job opportunities: Big cities offer good job opportunities.
job satisfaction: the enjoyment you get from doing your
job: Being a teacher gives me high job satisfaction.
job security: how permanent your job is likely to be.
promotion: a move to a more important job or position in a
company or organization: a job with good prospects for
promotion
be promoted
bonus money added to someone's wages, especially as a
reward for good work: Every worker in this company
receives an annual bonus.
pay rise: an increase in the amount of money you are paid
for doing your job.
work overtime: Nurses often have to do a lot of overtime.
well-paid job / badly-paid job
challenging job
pleasant / satisfying job
stressful job
tiring job

TTH
HEE M
MEED
DIIA
A
the media: all the organizations, such as television, radio,
and newspapers, that provide news and information for the
public, or the people who do this work: The event attracted
interest from the national media.
the press: newspapers and news magazines, or the
people who work for them: The case was widely reported
in the press.
journalist: someone who writes news reports for
newspapers, magazines, television, or radio.
reporter: someone whose job is to write about news
events for a newspaper, or to tell people about them on
television or on the radio.
correspondent
broadcast (verb) It was in 1954 that BBC TV broadcast its
first national news summary, introduced by Mr Richard
Baker.
cable television
satellite television

TTH
HEE C
CIITTYY
facilities: things that are provided in a place in order to
make particular services or activities available: The
facilities at the hotel were excellent -- tennis courts,
swimming pool, several bars and a good restaurant.
pedestrian: someone who is walking, especially along a
street or other place used by cars
curb: the raised edge of a road, between where people
can walk and cars can drive.
pavement: a hard level surface or path at the side of a
road for people to walk on
road sign / street sign
traffic lights
traffic jam(s)

G
GIIVVIIN
NG
GO
OPPIIN
NIIO
ON
NSS
In my opinion/In my view
It seems to me that
I believe
As far as Im concerned

paparazzi
celebrity
star
personality
become famous / become well-known
rise to fame

FFIILLM
MSS A
AN
ND
DB
BO
OO
OK
KSS
blockbuster: a book or film that is very good or successful.
box-office hit: a successful film, play or actor who many
form/start a new company
people go to see.
set up a business
gripping plot / story: very exciting and interesting.
apply for a job
fascinating plot / story
be/go on strike: to refuse to continue working because of
entertaining plot / story
an argument with an employer about working conditions,
hilarious plot / story
pay levels or job losses.
retire: to leave your job or stop working because of old age tedious plot / story: boring
humourless plot / story
or ill health.
slow-moving plot / story
resign from a job: decide to leave a job.
depressing plot / story
be fired from a job
unimaginative plot / story
be unemployed
likeable characters
be out of work/a job: be unemployed.
convincing characters / acting
disappointing acting
stunning special effects / photography

IGCSE | Useful Vocabulary