possession; retention; maintenance
whispering; subdued; murmuring; dry and tasteless
(not) well; (not) properly; (not) enough; (not) sufficiently; (not) satisfactorily; (not) decently
to taste; to savor; to appreciate; to enjoy; to experience; to go through
to pour into; to wash down; to insert (e.g. into a data stream)
end; verge; extremity; miss; failure; blank (e.g. lottery ticket)
order; command; decree; (software) instruction; statement
working away from the office
public matter; governmental matter; prince; duke; lord; sir
government office; government agency; authorities
order; observance; discipline; rules; law; regulations
exceptional; unusual; extraordinary; unprecedented; singular
personnel affairs; human affairs; human resources; HR
prudish; strait-laced; boring; square
occupation; profession; job; vocation; trade; calling
to say enough (as much as required); to say plenty; to say well; to say cleverly; to say often; to say frequently
you must be kidding; hey, come on!; surely not!
uh-huh; mm-hmm; with a moan; with a groan
sour (expression); (lit.) as if having swallowed a bitter bug
relation; connection; relevance
division (of a larger group); branch; field; class (subclass); group; category
to give (esp. to someone of lower status); to bestow; to provide; to afford; to assign; to cause
title (e.g. Doctor, Professor, Lord); job title; position (in a company); degree; status; rank
section manager; section chief
leisurely post; do-nothing job; sinecure
to pull apart; to separate; to have a lead over; to pull ahead of; to outdistance
to play with fire; to do something very dangerous; to take a great risk; (lit.) to step on a tiger's tail
ingenious; skillful; clever; deft
core; heart (of the matter); point; crux; kernel
way of talking; speaking style
left utterly helpless; have no one to turn to; unapproachable
thoroughly; completely; severely; harshly; (arch.) scattered; (arch.) disconnected
to spill; to drop; to grumble; to complain; to let one's feelings show
suspicion will raise bogies; once you suspect something, everything else will look suspicious; jumping at shadows
even if ...; even supposing that ...
to be stubborn; to be obstinate; to be perverse; to not give in
to learn by experience; to learn one's lesson; to learn the hard way; to be discouraged (by); to have enough (of); to be disgusted (with)