prop; stay; support; brace; fulcrum
desk pad; sheet of plastic (or cardboard, felt, etc.) placed under writing paper; being pinned under; being caught under; model; pattern
to break; to destroy; to wreck; to ruin; to break (a bill, etc.)
tragedy; tragic drama; tragic play; tragedy; calamity; disaster
knowing no bounds; showing no signs of stopping or slowing down
upright; honest; faithful; conscientious; sincere
exhaustion; fatigue; impoverishment; (financial) exhaustion; ruin
or something; for instance ... (though there are other suitable options); ... or ...; as soon as; right after; while still
escape; break-out; prolapse; proptosis
pains; hard work; effort; trouble; labour; labor
sneak photography; non-consensual photography; peeping photos
declaration of war; proclamation of war
to stream; to flow (liquid, time, etc.); to be washed away; to be carried; to drift; to float (e.g. clouds); to sweep (e.g. rumour, fire)
to crawl out of; to creep out of
to raise; to bring to (someone's attention); to appeal to (reason, emotions, etc.); to work on (one's emotions); to complain; to sue (a person)
simultaneous; concurrent; same time; synchronous; together
small; little; slightly less than; just about; somewhat; somehow
to talk; to chat; to chatter
to operate (e.g. a machine); to handle; to have a good command of (a language); to play proficiently (of a musical instrument); to work (a puppet); to pull the strings of a puppet
... is the reason; ... is my excuse
various; varied; diverse; all sorts of
guess; speculation; supposition
to fly about; to flutter about; to flit about; to fly past each other
high alert; a state of high alert; on alert
stage; step; level; rank; order; stairs
each nation; many nations; many countries
to take measures; to work out a plan; to lecture; to read aloud; to confer
National Aeronautics and Space Administration; NASA
to be in the firing line; to bear the brunt of (an attack, criticism, etc.); to face (e.g. questioning)
serious matter; major incident; matter of grave concern; crisis
to cover; to bury (e.g. one's face in hands); to submerge; to fill (completely); to stuff; to pack
to be needed; to be wanted
insufficient; inadequate; imperfect
light; well-lit; bright (of a colour); brightly-coloured; cheerful; bright; encouraging (for the future of a project, etc.)
basics; fundamentals; basis; foundation
stance; attitude; standpoint; stance; posture
people; men and women; each person; everybody