Unit 5 Wordlist Language Hub Upper Intermediate  

Part of
Word/Phrase speech IPA (UK) IPA (USA) Definition Sample sentence
Green vocabulary
compost heap noun ˈkɒmpɒst hiːp ˈkɑmˌpoʊst hip a pile of decaying plants and Can you throw the
vegetables that becomes left-over food on the
fertaliser compost heap?
double glazing noun ˈdʌb(ə)l ˈɡleɪzɪŋ windows or doors that have My heating bill is much
two layers of glass, so that the lower since I had double
building will be warmer and glazing installed.
quieter
energy-efficient noun ˈenə(r)dʒi ɪˈfɪʃ(ə)nt ˈenərdʒi ɪˈfɪʃ(ə)nt a light-producing electrical The company have
lightbulb laɪt bʌlb laɪt bʌlb device that uses advanced installed energy-efficient
technology to reduce the lightbulbs throughout
amount of power it uses the building.
insulation noun ˌɪnsjʊˈleɪʃ(ə)n ˌɪnsjəˈleɪʃ(ə)n protection from heat, cold, Houses have much
noise or electricity better insulation than
they used to.
smart meter noun smɑː(r)t ˈmiːtə(r) smɑrt ˈmiːtə(r) an electronic meter that The app allows you
enables users to track their to access your smart
energy use and allows meter on the go.
consumption figures to be read
remotely
solar panel noun ˈsəʊlə(r) ˈpæn(ə)lz ˈsoʊlər ˈpæn(ə)l a piece of equipment that uses The solar panels
energy from the Sun to create generate more energy
power for a building than we actually need.
thermostat noun ˈθɜː(r)məʊstæt ˈθɜrməˌstæt a piece of equipment that According to the
controls the temperature in a thermostat, it’s over
building, machine or engine 30 degrees in here!
underfloor noun ˈʌndə(r)ˌflɔː(r) ˈʌndərˌflɔr ˈhitɪŋ a system that warms a It’s actually really warm
heating ˈhiːtɪŋ building by radiating heat in the kitchen because
from the floors we’ve got underfloor
heating.
water butt noun ˈwɔːtə(r) bʌt ˈwɔtər bʌt a large container used for We use whatever’s been
collecting rain that comes off collected in the water
the roof of a house butt to water the garden
each night.
wind turbine noun wɪnd ˈtɜː(r)baɪn wɪnd ˈtɜrˌbaɪn a large machine like a windmill I might get a wind
used for producing electricity turbine installed on
from the wind the roof.
Describing areas of a city
commercial adjective kəˈmɜː(r)ʃ(ə)l kəˈmɜrʃ(ə)l relating to business These buildings are
suitable for domestic or
commercial use.
housing noun ˈhaʊzɪŋ buildings for people to live in There’s an urgent need
for more affordable
housing.
industrial adjective ɪnˈdʌstriəl relating to industry Most people work in
the industrial area of
the city.
residential adjective ˌrezɪˈdenʃ(ə)l relating to where people live We live in a quiet
rather than work residential area about
ten minutes from the
city centre.
rural adjective ˈrʊərəl ˈrʊrəl relating to or in the countryside Many people living in
remote rural areas don’t
have internet access.
slum noun slʌmz a poor area of a town where She grew up in the
the houses are in very bad slums on the edge of
condition the city

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Unit 5 Wordlist Language Hub Upper Intermediate  

Part of
Word/Phrase speech IPA (UK) IPA (USA) Definition Sample sentence
suburbs adjective ˈsʌbɜː(r)bz ˈsʌˌbɜrbz an area where people live that Perhaps we’ll move
is outside the city centre to the suburbs when
we’re older.
urban adjective ˈɜː(r)bən ˈɜrbən relating to towns and cities, or People generally move
happening there to urban areas in search
of work.
Prefixes
decontaminate verb ˌdiːkənˈtæmɪˌneɪt ˌdikənˈtæmɪˌneɪt to remove a dangerous or It took years to
poisonous substance from decontaminate the area
something after the chemical leak.
disqualify verb dɪsˈkwɒlɪfaɪd dɪsˈkwɑlɪˌfaɪd to not allow someone to take He was disqualified
part in a competition, or to from the competition
force them to leave it, usually for cheating.
because they have done
something that is not allowed
by the rules
extraordinary adjective ɪkˈstrɔː(r)d(ə)n(ə)ri ɪkˈstrɔrd(ə)nˌeri very unusual and surprising Really? Wow, that’s an
extraordinary story.
illegal adjective ɪˈliːɡ(ə)l ɪˈliɡ(ə)l not allowed by the law It’s illegal to drive
without a seat belt.
impossible adjective ɪmˈpɒsəb(ə)l ɪmˈpɑsəb(ə)l extremely difficult to do or to It would be impossible
deal with to get there without
a car.
mislead verb mɪsˈliːd mɪsˈlid to make someone believe The local community
something that was incorrect were misled by housing
or untrue developers.
outperform verb ˌaʊtpə(r)ˈfɔː(r)m ˌaʊtpərˈfɔrm to do something better than The new IT system
someone or something else helped them
outperform their
competitors.
overpopulation noun ˌəʊvə(r) ˌoʊvər the state of too many people Overpopulation is a
ˌpɒpjʊˈleɪʃ(ə)n ˌpɑpjəˈleɪʃ(ə)n living in the same area problem in many parts
of the world.
overpriced adjective ˌəʊvə(r)ˈpraɪst ˌoʊvərˈpraɪst worth less than the price that is The train is massively
being charged overpriced, especially as
it’s always late!
redevelop verb ˌriːdɪˈveləp ˌridɪˈveləp to improve an area that is in The whole area is
bad condition by destroying or being redeveloped for
improving old buildings and residential use.
building new ones
suburban adjective səˈbɜː(r)bən səˈbɜrbən in a suburb, or relating to a Lots of families and older
suburb people live in suburban
areas.
underestimate verb ˌʌndərˈestɪˌmeɪt to think or guess that I seriously
something is smaller, less underestimated the
important etc than it really is cost of having the
windows replaced.
unhappy adjective ʌnˈhæpi not satisfied People in London are
pretty unhappy about
the cost of housing.
upgrade verb ʌpˈɡreɪd to improve the quality of a We’re going to upgrade
service or product the IT system next year.

Language Hub Upper Intermediate Student’s Resource Centre.

Published by Macmillan Education, a division of Springer Nature Limited. © Springer Nature Limited, 2020. This page may be photocopied and used within the class. 2