first (of all); firstly; probably; most likely; more or less (satisfactory); on the whole
absolutely essential; indispensable; vital; critical
procedure; process; proceedings; formalities
what did you just say (to me)?; what's that?
interference; meddling; butting in
as usual; as is one's habit
(with a) slamming noise (door, telephone receiver); (with a) banging noise; (with a) clash (broken dish); (with a) clank; (with a) bang
rather; better; instead; if anything
though; notwithstanding; although
to be silent; to say nothing
observation; survey; watching
no good; not serving its purpose; hopeless; wasted; cannot; must not
light; well-lit; bright (of a colour); brightly-coloured; cheerful; bright; encouraging (for the future of a project, etc.)
poor (at); weak (in); not very good (at); not one's cup of tea; not one's favorite
in comparison to; rather than
immediately; right away; on the spot
bitter smile; wry smile; strained laugh; sarcastic laugh
surfacing; rising to the surface; emerging; leaping into prominence; rising (of rank)
all kinds of things; various things; large number of people
passing the baton (in a relay race); baton pass; baton handoff; passing the baton; handing over (a job, responsibility over something, etc.)
to pass (the night); to spend; to reveal; to divulge; to prove; to verify
to slip into; to crawl into (under); to conceal oneself (under); to sneak into; to infiltrate
hit; success; guess; prediction; affability; friendliness; sensation
to lend an ear; to hearken; to give an ear to; to listen carefully
to astonish; to astound; to stupefy; to flabbergast; to strike a person dumb; to dumbfound
daring; fearless; audacious; bold; dauntless; daredevil
reckless; thoughtless; rash; ill-advised; impulsive; mad (e.g. scheme)
tactics; strategy; military operation; naval operation
if it is not ...; if it does not ...
to quarry; to cut (timber); to begin to talk; to break the ice; to start a fire (with flint, by rubbing sticks together, etc.); to select and extract (from a media file)
one way or another; in many ways; in various ways
to be useful; to be helpful; to serve the purpose
to cause someone to worry
ardent; passionate; vehement
fan; enthusiast; lover (of); fan (e.g. electric)
zealous; enthusiastic; ardent; fervent; keen; eager
with a crack; with a snap; firmly; sharply; precisely; properly
standing facing each other (e.g. mountains, buildings); standing opposite each other; confrontation; squaring off against (adversaries, armies, forces); standing off against
one clap; one beat; one mora (taken as a unit of time)
without holding anything back; mercilessly; relentlessly; energetically; vigorously
fast; quick; early (in the day, etc.); premature; (too) soon; not yet