to scoff; to laugh at; to make fun of; to ridicule; to jeer at
putting a deliberately bad interpretation (on a person's actions); petty-minded suspicion
off the mark; off base; misdirected; irrelevant
to tease; to banter; to make fun of (someone)
naked sword; drawn sword; shellfish removed from the shell
to be worn down; to wear away; to wear out; to dwindle; to be reduced
fighting with real swords; game played in real earnest
favorite; favourite; pet (e.g. teacher's pet); bookmark (in a web browser)
to be involved (in); to get involved (in); to relate to (a matter); to pertain to; to (seriously) affect; to concern
big problem; major issue; big controversy
practice; experience; habituation; being used to; being comfortable with; being experienced in
to turn over; to change (one's mind); to reverse (one's decision); to fly (a flag); to let (a skirt, cape, etc.) flap in the wind
to be affected; to be theatrical; to be pompous
lie; falsehood; fiction; fabrication
obedience; submission; resignation
pretending to obey but secretly betraying (someone)
to some degree; up to a point; to some extent
brilliant; glorious; glittering; bright; splendid (e.g. achievement, success); promising (e.g. future)
vice; immorality; corruption
daily; everyday; days (e.g. of one's youth); every day; day after day
to bury; to inter; to entomb; to cover up; to hush up; to shelve
failure; poor result; disfavour; disfavor; unpopularity
to mistake (for something or someone else); to misread; to misjudge
brazenly; shamelessly; alternating wins and losses (every other day); (arch.) stupidly; (arch.) cluelessly; (arch.) slipping away secretly
fault; error; indiscretion; faux pas
to manage something successfully; to be successful