to shave (wood, leather, etc.); to sharpen (e.g. pencil); to cut down (budget, expenses, staff, time, etc.); to curtail; to delete; to erase
to scatter away; to blast away; to blow away (via explosion)
fighting with one's back to the wall; having burnt one's bridges; last stand; last-ditch effort
slightly early; just before
antiquity; ancient times; bygone days; former times
retention; maintenance; preservation
lack of words; being tongue-tied; suppressing what you want to say
resignation; acceptance; consolation
to be packed (with); to be filled; to be blocked (of a pipe, nose, etc.); to be clogged; to be become shorter; to shrink; to be at a loss (for)
if so; in that case; in that situation
to say in other words; to put another way; to express in different words; to reword; to rephrase
trust (in); confidence; faith; reliance
sometime; someday; one day; some time or other; the other day; in due course
humming a tune (while doing something else)
to destroy; to break (by striking); to smash; to ruin (a plan, atmosphere, etc.); to spoil; to wreck
correction; revision; amendment
to close (e.g. book, eyes, meeting, etc.); to shut
correspondence; communication; transmission; news; signal; telecommunications
chance; opportunity; machine; aircraft; counter for aircraft; counter for (remaining) lives
through (e.g. an intermediary, a medium); via; over (e.g. a network); across; by way of; by means of
to exchange (messages, greetings, arguments, etc.); to intersect; to cross; ... with one another; ... to each other
investigation; examination; inquiry; enquiry; survey
counterfeit goods; knock-off; imitation
making; producing; appearance (attire, make-up, etc.); build; physique; sashimi
if you think about it; come to think of it
transformation; variation; metamorphosis; modification; deformation; variety
absolute; complete; utter; pure; sheer
science; to think about scientifically; to think in terms of science
laws of nature; physical laws; physics
structure; construction; arrangement; plan; plot; contrivance
physical law; laws of physics
use; application; employment; utilization; utilisation