pretty; lovely; clean; clear; completely; entirely
knothole; peep-hole; (fig.) bad eyes; tunnel vision
that's the way it is; yes; is that so?; is it?
to go ahead; to pull ahead
past middle age; nearing old age; near-elderly; age 40
man; male; fellow; guy; male lover; boyfriend
to stop walking; to pause
like; as; so that; in order that; be sure to; I hope (that)
from now on; after this; in the future; from here; from this point
for the first time; only after ... is it ...; only when ... do you ...; first time; (one's) first
one's post; place of work; workplace
guidance; leading (the way); information; notice; announcement (of a visitor's arrival); informing (someone) of a visitor's arrival
three years; third school year (e.g. of high school)
secretariat; executive office
to work (for, at, in); to be employed (at); to finish (a term); to serve (e.g. a sentence); to conduct (a ceremony); to perform (a Buddhist memorial service)
seeming ...; appearing ...; -ish; like a ...; typical of ...
gloomy; melancholy; dreary; depressed; dismal
thinking nothing of ...; undaunted by ...; in defiance of ...; in spite of ...; in the face of ...; ignoring ...
to spring; to bound; to be stimulated; to be encouraged; to pay handsomely; to splurge
insane; crazy; nuts; out of one's mind
to look up at; to raise one's eyes; to look up to; to admire; to respect
to become confused (disconcerted, disorganized, disorganised); to be flustered; to panic; to hurry; to rush; to hasten
to explain away (a mistake, failure, etc.); to make excuses for; to gloss over; to talk one's way out of
hollow; cavity; hole; cave
going out; outing; leaving (one's home, office, etc.)
to be ...-ing; to have been ...-ing
because; as; since; because of that; therefore; accordingly
then; well; so; well then
until then; till then; to that extent; the end of it; all there is to it
to stay indoors; to be confined indoors
as much as one can; as much as possible; if at all possible
safe (e.g. choice); secure; innocuous; acceptable; passable; satisfactory
way of saying (something); way of putting it; wording; phrasing; language; expression
insincere smile; ingratiating smile; polite smile; forced smile
to float; to set afloat; to show on one's face (smile, sadness, etc.); to recall; to call to mind
but then; although; though; reasonable; natural; just
(in a) long time; long time (ago); while (ago); long ago; long while (ago); (in a) long while
facial expression; countenance; look; appearance; expression (vocal, etc.)
to keep up (appearances); to put up (a good front); to smooth over (a mistake, fault, etc.); to gloss over; to mend; to repair
a little; a bit; somewhat; slightly; rather
mouth; lips; shape of the mouth; near an entrance; vicinity of an entrance
to have a cramp; to twitch; to stiffen (of a face, expression); to freeze; to shrink (of skin, due to a scar); to tauten
to finish; to stop; to close (a business, etc.); to close down; to put away; to put back
cannot be helped; unavoidable; pointless; useless; hopeless (person); annoying
motionlessly (e.g. stand, wait); (be) still; fixedly (e.g. gaze, stare); intently (e.g. listen, think); patiently (e.g. endure); stoically
sudden; abrupt; unexpected; unforeseen
to lay (something) face down; to place upside down; to point downwards (one's eyes, head, etc.); to cast down (one's eyes); to lay (oneself) face down; to lie face down; to conceal