state; condition; situation; appearance; circumstances
to eat a mouthful; to take a bite
childcare leave; maternity leave
one-man business; sole proprietor; sole proprietorship; individual owner-manager
enterprise; business; company; corporation
childcare leave; leave taken after the compulsory maternity leave
standard; basis; criterion; norm; reference; datum
before very long; soon; someday; of the previously mentioned; of that number; among them
to bend one's head slightly to one side; to look slightly doubtful
easy; trifling; harmless; nothing of the sort; not at all
vocal sound; tone of voice
thinly; slightly; vaguely; a little
to gouge; to hollow out; to greatly perturb; to cause emotional pain; to get to the bottom of things; to relentlessly bring the truth to light
putting money aside; savings; deposit (e.g. in a bank); accumulated surplus of wins; wins in the bank
unnecessary; not needed; not necessary
much more; still more; single layer (or storey, etc.); (arch.) rather; (arch.) sooner
thought; imagination; mind; desire; wish; love
to lose; to miss (a change, opportunity); to lose (a loved one); to be bereaved of; to concede (goals, points, etc.)
I'm sorry; (it's) inexcusable; I feel regretful; thank you very much (for help, etc.)
calm; quiet; gentle; moderate; reasonable; amicable
to be content; to have enough; to be happy; to be sufficient; to be satisfied
to overflow; to brim over; to flood
violent emotion; passion; fury
frantic; frenetic; inevitable death; brinkmate (inevitable checkmate)
to hold down; to twist someone's arm; to force (someone) to yield (e.g. an argument); to make (someone) surrender
strange; unfamiliar; unknown; unfamiliarity; strangeness; stranger
to take good care of; to treasure; to value; to hold dear; to prize; to cherish
(I) won't say anything no matter what; to be unwilling to tell even under threat
to let go of; to release; to part with (e.g. a possession); to relinquish; to send away (e.g. one's child); to let go
deadline; closing; cofferdam; closed (door, window, etc.)
to chase; to run after; to follow (a set order, a trend, etc.); to drive out; to get rid of; to drive (e.g. a herd)
to shave (wood, leather, etc.); to sharpen (e.g. pencil); to cut down (budget, expenses, staff, time, etc.); to curtail; to delete; to erase
not necessarily so; is not always true
selfish; egoist; (arch.) self-indulgent; (arch.) wilful; (arch.) willful
absolute; complete; utter; pure; sheer
(those) who are; (that) which is; in the capacity of
before one's eyes; in front of one; under one's nose; immediate; imminent; around the corner
towards (a destination); for the purpose of; with the goal of; targeting (a group, a demographic)
there is no way that ...; easy; simple
special someone; special person; precious one; significant other
in the same way as; just like