first of all; to begin with; probably; most likely; more or less (satisfactory); on the whole
behind closed doors; behind-the-scenes; (under the veil of) secrecy
to leave; to depart; to take one's leave
very; extremely; terrible; horrid; remarkable; extraordinary
plain; frank; candid; open; direct; straightforward
to let leak; to let out (e.g. light); to let out (a secret); to leak (information); to give utterance to (e.g. one's dissatisfaction); to vent; to wet one's pants
calm; quiet; gentle; moderate; reasonable; amicable
to change; to be transformed; to move to; to be different; to be uncommon
to forge; to temper; to drill; to train; to discipline
young bird; chick; fledgling; hina doll; doll displayed during the Girls' Festival
to lick; to lap; to taste; to experience (esp. a hardship); to look down on (someone); to make fun of
intelligence gathering; information gathering
strength; power; proficiency; ability
superior; excellent; brilliant; outstanding
strategy; stratagem; trick; scheme; plot
to betray; to turn traitor to; to double-cross
provincia; province of ancient Rome
intelligence agency; secret service
quotient; dealing; dealer; second degree (of the Japanese and Chinese pentatonic scale); Shang dynasty (China, approx. 1600-1046 BCE); Yin dynasty
construction; building; putting up; erecting; creation; formulation
fluently (speaking a foreign language); incessantly (speaking); glibly; one after the other (flipping through pages); thin (paper, cloth, etc.); flimsy
to talk; to chat; to chatter
to fit; to get into; to be fit for (a job, etc.); to be suited for; to fall into; to plunge into
spine; line of the backbone; seam down the back (of clothing)
cool; chilly; feeling nice and cold
cordial welcome; hearty welcome; kind treatment; hospitality
to erase; to delete; to turn off (power); to switch off; to extinguish; to put out
chronological order; time series
in order; in turn; one by one
to give birth; to bear (child); to lay (eggs); to produce; to yield; to give rise to
now (when it is already much too late); at this stage; afresh; anew; again
use; adoption; acceptance; appointment; employment; engagement
study; research; investigation
centralized authoritarian rule; centralised authoritarian rule
essential; important; crucial; vital; main
mobilization; mobilisation
convening; calling together (e.g. parliament); call-up (for military service)
to take out; to get out; to put out; to reveal; to submit (e.g. thesis); to turn in; to publish
from the place (where); from the fact that ...; caused by the fact that ...; because