Must Words and Idioms for IELTS and TOEFL --- Vol.

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Compiled by: RAMINEM Teacher – www.Teacher.az

Sustainable: causing little or no damage to the environment

Ecosystem: all the living things in an area and the way they affect each other and the
environment

Fairly: more than average, but less than very

Current: of the present time

Strain: pressure

Ecological: connected with the relation of plants and living creatures to each other and to
their environment

Upset: not right

Green tax: taxes on environmental pollutants or on goods whose use produces such pollutants

Finance: to provide the money needed for something to happen

Initiative: a new action or movement, often intended to solve a problem

Conservation: the protection of plants and animals, etc.

Ban: an official order that prevents something from happening

Energy-efficient: using little electricity, gas, etc

Far-fetched: difficult to believe

Consume: to use fuel, energy or time, especially in large amounts

Run dry: to be all used so that none is left

Pose: to create a threat, problem, etc. that has to be dealt with

Hazard: a thing that can be dangerous or cause damage

Food mileage/ food miles: distance food has to travel between where it is grown or made and
where it is consumed

Ca o footp i t: “o eo e’s a o footp i t is a easu e e t of the a ou t of a o

dioxide that their activities produce.

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Eco-friendly: describes a product that has been designed to do the least possible damage to
the environment

Green building: a structure and using process that is environmentally responsible and
resource-efficient

Further: more

Logging: the activity of cutting down trees for wood

Fell: to cut down a tree

Vanish: to disappear or stop being present or existing

Life form: any living thing

Irreplaceable: too special, unusual or valuable to replace with something or someone else

Species: a set of animals or plants in which the members have similar characteristics to each
other and can breed with each other

Extinction: a situation in which something no longer exists

Habitat: the natural environment in which an animal or plant usually lives

Loss: the state of no longer having sth or as much of sth; the process that leads to this

Pollutant: a substance that pollutes sth, especially air and water

Airborne: in the air

Vegetation: plants in general, especially the plants that are found in a particular area or
environment

Emit: to send out sth such as light, heat, sound, gas, etc.

Green house gasses: any of the gases that are thought to cause the greenhouse effect

Ice cap: a layer of ice permanently covering parts of the earth, especially around the North
and South Poles

Exhaust fumes: waste gases that come out of a vehicle, an engine or a machine

Alternative energy: electricity or power that is produced using the energy from the sun, wind,
water, etc.

Renewable energy: describes a form of energy that can be produced as quickly as it is used

Dump: to get rid of something unwanted, especially by leaving it in a place where it is not

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allowed to be

Toxic: poisonous

waste: unwanted matter or material of any type

Hydrogen vehicle: a vehicle with an engine that uses water

Hybrid car: a vehicle with an engine that uses both petrol and another type of energy, usually
electricity

Contaminate: to make something less pure or make it poisonous

Power station: a factory where electricity is produced

Heavy metal: a dense (= heavy in relation to its size) and usually poisonous metal, such as lead

Certain: particular but not named or described

Practice: action

Take toll: If something takes its/their/a toll, it causes damage

Pesticide: a chemical substance used to kill harmful insects, small animals, wild plants and
other unwanted organisms

Fertilizer: a substance which is spread on the land or given to plants, to make plants grow well

Preclude: prevent

Aquatic: living or growing in, happening in, or connected with water

Break through: an important development

Life expectancy: the number of years that a person is likely to live

Cybernetics: the scientific study of communication and control, especially concerned with
comparing human and animal brains with machines and electronic devices

Proliferation: the sudden increase in the number or amount of sth; a large number of a
particular thing

Devote: give, spend

Labor: work, especially physical work

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Diminish: decrease

Substantially: very much; a lot

Mass: a large amount or quantity of sth

Automation: the use of machines to do work that was previously done by people

Transform: to change the form of sth

Downsizing: to reduce the number of people who work in a company, business, etc. in order
to reduce costs

Workforce: all the people who work for a particular company, organization, etc.

Power outage: an interruption in the supply of electricity

Crash: If a computer or system crashes, it suddenly stops operating

Irretrievable: that you can never get back

Costly: involving a lot of loss or damage

Push back the frontier s of knowledge: to increase knowledge of science

Deem: consider

Incurable: that cannot be cured

Innovation: the introduction of new things, ideas or ways of doing sth

Transistor: a small electrical device containing a semiconductor , used in televisions, radios,

etc. to control or increase an electric current

Circuit: the complete path of wires and equipment along which an electric current flows

Microprocessor: a part of a computer that controls its main operations

Perform: to work or function Consciousness:

Turn on: to attack someone suddenly and unexpectedly

The elderly: old people considered as a group

Technophobe: a person who is afraid of, dislikes or avoids new technology

Technophile: a person who is enthusiastic about new technology Passionately:

Embrace: to accept something enthusiastically

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Leading-edge: he most advanced

State-of-the-art: he most advanced

Know-how: practical knowledge and ability

Tech-savvy: practical knowledge and the ability to use modern technology

Cyber addict: addicted to computers and the Internet

Double-glazed: having two layers of glass with a space between them

Insulated: protected with a material that prevents heat, sound, electricity, etc. from passing
through

Low-rise: low, with only a few floors

Demolish: to pull or knock down a building

High-rise: very tall and having a lot of floors

Skyscraper: a very tall building in a city

House: to give a person or animal a place to live, or to provide space for something

Smart: controlled by a computer, so that it appears to act in an intelligent way

Domestic: used in the home

Household chores: a task that you do regularly at home

Regular folks: ordinary people

Rely on: to need or depend on sb/sth

Word of mouth: what people tell each other

Broadcast: to send out a program on television or radio

Gag: to prevent a person or organization from talking or writing about a particular subject

Disclose: to make something known publicly, or to show something that was hidden

Abolish: to end an activity or custom officially

Pride: to value a skill or good quality that you have

Press: newspapers and magazines, and those parts of television and radio which broadcast

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news

Bury: hide

Leak: to give secret information to the public, for example by telling a newspaper

Respectable: to tell someone about particular facts

Quality: of a high standard

Coverage: the reporting of a particular important event or subject

Tabloid: a newspaper of this size with short articles and a lot of pictures and stories about
famous people, often thought of as less serious than other newspapers

Jui y gossip: i te esti g sto ies a out othe people’s p i ate li es, that ay e u kind or not

Seek to: to try to

Entertain: to keep a group of people interested or enjoying themselves

Inform: to tell someone about particular facts

Reference: a mention of something

Current affairs: political news about events happening now

Significant: important

Relegate: to put someone or something into a lower or less important rank or position

Omit: to not include sth/sb

Altogether: completely

Misleading: giving the wrong idea or impression and making you believe sth that is not true

Paparazzi: the photographers who follow famous people everywhere they go in order to take
photographs of them for newspapers and magazines

At any cost: If something must be done or avoided at all costs, it must be done or avoided
whatever happens

Checkbook journalism: the practice of paying people a lot of money for information that can
be used in newspaper stories, specially about crime or famous people

I asio of p i a y: iolatio of people’s ight to e f ee f o the atte tio of the pu li

Conventional: normal and ordinary

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Implement: safeguard: to do things that you hope will stop something unpleasant from
happening

Ill-informed: knowing less than you should about a particular subject

Distorted: wrong

Disorder: illness

Exhibit: display, show

Symptom: a change in your body or mind that shows that you are not healthy; a sign that sth
exists, especially sth bad

Fall behind: to not do sth at the right time

Bloodshed: killing and violence

Imitate: to behave in a similar way to someone or something else, or to copy the speech or
behavior, etc. of someone or something

Interfere: to prevent something from working effectively or from developing successfully

Arouse: to make sb have a particular feeling or attitude

Humane: civilized and good

Decent: civilized and good

Sentimental: producing emotions such as pity, romantic love or sadness, which may be too
strong or not appropriate

Deadly dull: extremely boring

Bored to death: extremely bored

Keep you on the edge of your seat: to very exciting and you want to know what is going to
happen next

Mediocre: not very good

Clichéd: using phrases or ideas that have been used so often that they no longer have much
meaning and are not interesting

Imaginative: having or showing new and exciting ideas

Sensational: very good and exciting

Usurp: to take s ’s positio a d/o po e

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Avid: very enthusiastic about sth

Cost a fortune: cost a lot of money

Educator: a person whose job is to teach or educate people; a person who is an expert in the
theories and methods of education

Auditory: connected with hearing

Kinesthetic: kinesthetic learners need to be physically active and find it hard to sit still in a
conventional classroom

Adopt: to accept or start to use something new

Approach: method

Address: to give attention to or deal with a matter

Passive: not acting to influence or change a situation

Perform: to do sth, such as a piece of work, task or duty

task: an activity which is designed to help achieve a particular learning goal, especially in
language teaching

Collaboratively: involving, or done by, several people or groups of people working together

Regarding: about sb/sth

Curriculum: the subjects that are included in a course of study or taught in a school, college,
etc

Set text:specific boks which students must study

Attendance: the act of being present at a place, for example at school

Optional: that you can choose to do or have if you want to

Correspondence program: a course of study that you do at home, using books and exercises
sent to you by post / mail or by email

Comprehensive: designed for students of all abilities in the same school

Selective: one that chooses which children to admit, especially according to ability

Literacy: the ability to read and write

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Numeracy: a good basic knowledge of mathematics; the ability to understand and work with
numbers

Secure: to get something

Leading: most important or most successful

Scholar: a person who knows a lot about a particular subject because they have studied it in
detail

Distraction: a thing that takes your full potential attention away from what you are doing or
thinking about

Full: maximum

Potential: qualities that exist and can be developed

Drop out: to leave school, college, etc. without finishing your studies

Deprived of: not having the things that are necessary for a pleasant life

Discipline: training which produces obedience or self-control

Lack: to not have or not have enough of something that is needed or wanted

Grave: seriously bad

Periodic: happening repeatedly over a period of time

Professional : related to work that needs special training or education

Evaluation: the act of judging or forming an opinion about sb/sth

Obligatory: that you must do because of the law, rules, etc.

Panic: a sudden feeling of great fear that cannot be controlled and prevents you from thinking
clearly

Mental breakdown: period of mental illness, usually without a physical cause, which results in
anxiety , difficulty in sleeping and thinking clearly, a loss of confidence and hope, and a feeling
of great sadness

Competence: knowledge, skill

Merely: only

Take in to account: to consider particular facts, circumstances, etc. when making a decision
about sth

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Substitute: to use sb/sth instead of sb/sth else

Co ti uous assess e t: the syste i hi h the uality of a stude t’s o k is judged y

various pieces of work during a course and not by one final examination

Formative test: a test that is given during a course of instruction and that informs both the
student and the teacher how well the student is doing.

Summative test: a test given at the end of a course of instructio , that easu es o su s up
how much a student has learned from the course.

Agile: able to move quickly and easily

Get the hang of: to learn how to do or to use sth

Indulge in: do sth that you like

Passive hobby: Activities related to spending leisure time on pursuits such as reading books or
magazines, looking at images, listening to radio or music and activities involving the media.

The elderly: old people considered as a group

Undemanding: not needing a lot of effort or thought

Pursue adventure: to have an unusual, exciting or dangerous experience, journey or series of

events

Extreme sports: a sport that is very dangerous and exciting

Communion: a close relationship with someone in which feelings and thoughts are exchanged

Couch potato: a person who watches a lot of television and does not have an active style of
life

Recreational: connected with activities that people do for enjoyment when they are not
working

Ordinary folks: common people

Lead: live

Sedentary: a life in which you spend a lot of time sitting down

Organic: produced or practised without using artificial chemicals

Free range: connected with a system of farming in which animals are kept in natural
conditions and can move around freely

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Battery chicken: chicken, etc. kept in small cages on a farm

Genetically modified: describes a plant or animal that has had some of its genes changed
scientifically

Resistance: the power not to be affected by sth

Boost: to make sth increase, or become better or more successful

Mineral: a chemical that your body needs to stay healthy

Synthesize: to produce a substance chemically in plants or animals

Substance: material with particular physical characteristics

Deposit: to leave a layer of sth on the surface of sth, especially gradually and over a period of
time

Artery: any of the tubes that carry blood from the heart to other parts of the body

Clogged: blocked

Trigger: to cause something bad

Attack: a serious medical condition in which the heart does not get enough blood, causing
great pain and often leading to death

Stroke: a sudden change in the blood supply to a part of the brain, which can cause a loss of
the ability to move particular parts of the body

Fatal: A fatal illness or accident, etc. causes death

Pre-packaged: put into packages before being sent to shops / stores to be sold

Malnutrition: a poor condition of health caused by a lack of food or a lack of the right type of
food

Act on: listen to

Dietitian: a person whose job is to advise people on what kind of food they should eat to keep
healthy

Serving: an amount of food for one person

Alter: change

Composition: the parts, substances, etc. that something is made of

Urge: to strongly advise or try to persuade someone to do a particular thing

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Gm food: genetically modified food

Stave off: to stop something bad from happening, or to keep an unwanted situation or person
away, usually temporarily

Alzhei e ’s disease: a se ious disease, espe ially affe ti g olde people, that p e e ts the
brain from functioning normally and causes loss of memory, loss of ability to speak clearly,
etc.

Aging: the process of growing old

Cognition: the process by which knowledge and understanding is developed in the mind

Dramatically: a lot; suddenly or obviously

Disorder: an illness of the mind or body

Restore: to bring back

Vitality: energy and enthusiasm

Rejuvenated: look or feel young and energetic again

Attention span: the length of time that you can keep your thoughts and interest fixed on
something

Utmost: used to emphasize how important something is

Social network: the different groups of people that you know

Companionship: the enjoyment of spending time with other people

Obesity: the state of being very fat, in a way that is not healthy

Jeopardize: to put something in danger of being harmed or damaged

Underfunding: a situation in which something is given less money than it needs

Cutback: a reduction in something, made in order to save money

Welfare-state: a system by which the government provides a range of free services to people
who need them, for example medical care, money for people without work, care for old
people, etc.

Adequate: enough in quantity, or good enough in quality, for a particular purpose or need

Chronic: lasting for a long time; difficult to cure or get rid of

Orthodox: considered traditional, normal and acceptable by most people

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Put faith in sth: to make a decision to trust something or someone

Alternative medicine: any type of treatment that does not use the usual scientific methods of
Western medicine, for example one using plants instead of artificial drugs

Pin: put

Acupuncture: a treatment for pain and illness in which thin needles are positioned just under
the surface of the skin at special nerve centres around the body

Herbal tablet: a small solid piece of medicine made from plant whose leaves, flowers or
seeds are used in medicines

Remedy: a successful way of curing an illness

Fable: a short story which tells a general truth or is only partly based on fact type

Inanimate: not alive in the way that people, animals and plants are

Moral lesson: Teaching or exhibiting goodness or correctness of character and behavior

Express explicitly: say or show in an open or direct way

Pithy: short but expressed well and full of meaning

Maxim: a short statement of a general truth, principle or rule for behaviour

Legend: a very old story or set of stories from ancient times, or the stories, not always true,
that people tell about a famous event or person

Reaffirm: to strengthen

Commonly held value: the beliefs that all or most people have about what is right and wrong
and what is most important in life, which control their behaviour

Represent: to show or describe something or someone

Collective: done or shared by all members of a group of people; involving a whole group or
society

Folk believes: the beliefs of ordinary people

Evolve: to develop gradually, especially from a simple to a more complicated form

Ritual: a series of actions that are always performed in the same way, especially as part of a

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religious ceremony

Satisfy: fulfill

Spiritual: connected with the human spirit, rather than the body or physical things

Bond: to develop a close connection or strong relationship with someone

Ethnic: of a national or racial group of people

Industrialization: the process of developing industries in a country

Globalization: when available goods and services, or social and cultural influences, gradually
become similar in all parts of the world

Lift so eo e’s spi its: to ake so eo e happie

Social cohesion: when the members of a society are united

Joyous: very happy

Solidarity: support by one person or group of people for another because they share feelings,
opinions, aims, etc.

Unfortunate: the people who do not not have much luck, money, etc.

Needy: poor and not having enough food, clothes, etc

Act of piety: something people do out of respect for God and their religion

Committed: believing strongly in sth

Religious doctrine: a belief or set of beliefs taught be a religion

Unwavering: not changing or becoming weaker in any way

loyalty: the quality of being faithful in your support of sb/sth

Critical feature: an important part of something

Bosom friend: a friend that you like a lot and have a very close relationship with

Break down: If a system, relationship or discussion breaks down, it fails because there is a
problem or disagreement

Critical: expressing disapproval of sb/sth and saying what you think is bad about them

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Casual: without deep affection

acquaintance: a person that you know but who is not a close friend

See eye to eye: to share the same views as sb about sth

Mutual friend: a person who is the friend of two people who may or may not know each other

Hit it off: to like someone and become friendly immediately

Get on like a house on fire: If two people get on like a house on fire, they like each other very
much and become friends very quickly

Lifelo g: lasti g fo the hole of a pe so ’s life

Companion: a person you spend a lot of time with because you are friends

Take something the wrong way: to understand something as wrong or insulting

Heart to heart chat: a serious conversation between two people, usually close friends, in
which they talk honestly about their feelings

Heal the lift: end a serious disagreement between friends

Abuse: betray

Disloyal: not loyal or faithful

Close-knit: having strong relationships with each other and taking a close, friendly interest in
ea h othe ’s a ti ities a d p o le s

Single-parent family: a family which includes either a mother or a father but not both

Ties: the friendly feelings that people have for other people

Loose: weak

Heated sibling rivalry: big and intense competition between brothers and sisters

Feel their age: feel as old as they are

De ilitati g: to ake s ’s ody o i d eake

Grumpy: easily annoyed and complaining

High proportion: a high number of

Enterprise: an organization, especially a business

Personal fulfillment: he feeling of being happy and satisfied that you have everything you

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want or need

Demand: to ask for something forcefully, in a way that shows that you do not expect to be
refused

Pillar: a very important member or part of a group, organization, system, etc

Mentor: to help and give advice to someone who has less experience

Catch pearls of wisdom: obtain important and useful advice

Pry: to try to find out private facts about a person

Detail: to describe something completely, giving all the facts

Privacy: the state of being free from the attention of the public

Checkbook journalism: the practice of paying people a lot of money for information that can
be used in newspaper stories, especially about crime or famous people

Unscrupulous: without moral principles; not honest or fair

Issue: a subject or problem

Impoverished: very poor; without money

Disadvantaged: not having the standard of living conditions, education, etc. that most people
have

Lucrative: producing a large amount of money; making a large profit

Revenue: the income that a government or company receives regularly

Cycle of poverty: a phenomenon where poor families become trapped in poverty for
generations

Community: all the people who live in a particular area, country, etc. when talked about as a
group

Overcrowding: the situation when there are too many people or things in one place

Embrace: to accept an idea, a proposal, a set of beliefs, etc.

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Assimilate into: become similar (to)

Abandon: to leave a thing

Heritage: the history, traditions and qualities that a country or society has had for many years
and that are considered an important part of its character

Eco-tourism: the business of organizing holidays to places that people do not usually visit in a
way which helps local people and does not damage the environment

Preserve: to keep something as it is, especially in order to prevent it from decaying or being
damaged or destroyed

Hands-on experience: Someone who has hands-on experience of something has done or used
it rather than just read or learned about it

Pristine: not developed or changed in any way; left in its original condition

Wilderness: a large area of land that has never been developed or used for growing crops

Wildlife souvenir: souvenirs made from animals

Boom: to increase or become successful and produce a lot of money

Development: the process of using an area of land, especially to make a profit by building on
it, etc.

Nature reserve: an area of land where the animals and plants are protected

Impose: to officially force a rule, tax, punishment, etc. to be obeyed or received

Harsh: heavy and strong

Penalty: a punishment, or the usual punishment, for doing something that is against a law

Logging: the activity of cutting down trees for wood

Poaching: to illegally hunt birds, animals or fish

Cottage: a small house, especially in the country

Accommodate: o provide sb with a room or place to sleep, live or sit

Wander : to walk around slowly in a relaxed way or without any clear purpose or direction

Off the beaten track: in a place where few people go, far from any main roads and towns

Hair-raising: extremely frightening but often exciting

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Independent traveler: traveller who organize things themselves rather than using a company
that will arrange flights, hotels etc

Itinerary: a plan of a journey, including the route and the places that you visit

Package tour: a holiday in whih the price includes flights, transfer, and accommodation.

All-inclusive: a holiday in whih the price includes flights, transfer, accommodation, food or
drink.

Undertake: go on, make

Endeavour: to try to do something

Economize: to try to save money by reducing the amount that you are spending

Come up with: to invent or find

Teleport: to move sb/sth immediately from one place to another a distance away, using
special equipment

Adverse: negative and unpleasant

Manual: involving using the hands or physical strength

Unsociable hours: If someone works unsocial hours, they work late at night, early in the
morning, at weekends, or on public holidays

Labor: to do hard physical work

Sustain: to suffer or experience, especially damage or loss

Strain injury: A strain is an injury to a muscle or tendon in which the fibers tear as a result of
overstretching

Steady job: a job that is not going to end suddenly

Unskilled laborer: a person whose job involves hard physical work that is not skilled,
especially work

Made redundant: To lose your job because there is no more work available for you in a
company

Computerization: using a computers to do the things that were done by people or other
machines before

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Automation: the use of machines to do work that was previously done by people

Blue-collar worker: people who do physical work in industry

White-collar employee: relating to people who work in offices, doing work that needs mental
rather than physical effort

Perk: an advantage or extra thing, such as money or goods, which you are given because of
your job

Increment: a regular increase in the amount of money that sb is paid for their jo

Sickness benefit: money paid by to people who are away from work because of illness

Pension scheme: a system in which you, and usually your employer, pay money regularly into
a fund while you are employed. You are then paid a pension when you retire.

Generous: big

Incentive: something that encourages you to do sth

Commission: an amount of money that is paid to sb for selling goods and which increases with
the amount of goods that are sold

Redundancy: the situation when sb has to leave their job because there is no more work
available for them

Figure: a number representing a particular amount, especially one given in official informatio

Spendthrift: a person who spends too much money or who wastes money

Extravagant: spending a lot more money or using a lot more of sth than you can afford or than
is necessary

In debt: the situation of owing money, especially when you cannot pay

Peace: to not be annoyed by worry, problems , etc.

loan: money that an organization such as a bank lends and sb borrows

Charge: to ask an amount of money for goods or a service

Interest: the extra money that you pay back when you borrow money

rate: an amount or level of

Balance: to arrange a system that relates to money so that the amount of money spent is not
more than the amount received

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Income: money that is earned from doing work or received from investments

Expenditure: the total amount of money that a person spends

Run up debt: do things which cause you to owe a large amount of money

Save for a rainy day: to save sth, especially money, for a time when you will really need it

Put aside: to save money for a particular purpose Reduction:

Bargain: a thing bought for less than the usual price

Outright: completely or immediately

Primary industry: industries involved in the production of raw materials

Key i dust y: the ost i po ta t i dust ies i a ou t y hi h a e esse tial to the ou t y’s
economy

Do esti : elati g to a pe so ’s o ou t y

Investor: a person who puts money into something in order to make a profit or get an
advantage

Shares: one of the equal parts into which the ownership of a company is divided and which
can be bought by members of the public

Strategic industry: an industry that a government considers to be very important for the
ou t y’s e o o y o safety

Exercise: have, hold

monopoly: complete control of something, especially an area of business, so that others have
no share

Bail out: to help a person or organization that is in difficulty, usually by giving or lending them
money

Channel: to direct something into a particular place or situation ,etc.

Promote: to encourage the popularity, sale, development or existence of something

Gi i k: so ethi g hi h is ot se ious o of eal alue that is used to att a t people’s

attention or interest temporarily, especially to make them buy something

Employ: to use something

Catchy: pleasing and easy to remember

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Slogan: a short easily remembered phrase, especially one used to advertise an idea or a
product

Entice: to persuade someone to do something by offering them something pleasant

Stimulate: to make sth develop or become more active; to encourage sth

Demand: a need for something to be sold or supplied

Enterprise: an organization, especially a business

Survive: to continue to live or exist

Cut-throat competition: a competition in which people compete with each other in aggressive
and unfair ways

Stocked: If a shop or factory stocks something, it keeps a supply of it

Hit: to go to, reach

spree: a short period of time that you spend doing one particular activity that you enjoy, but
often too much of it

Retrieve: to find and bring back

Rack: a frame or shelf, often formed of bars, which is used to hold things

Leisure pursuit: hobby

Shopaholic: a person who enjoys shopping very much and spends too much time or money
doing it

Shop till you drop: shop until you are too tired to continue

Be after sth: to be looking for someone or something or trying to find or get them

Particular: specific

buy: something that is bought or that is for sale

Impulsive : acting suddenly without thinking carefully

Determine: to make sth happen in a particular way

Dist a t: to take s ’s atte tio a ay f o hat they a e t yi g to do

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