exorbitant; outrageous; ridiculous; absurd; excessive; inordinate
middle; midway; middle position; moderate position; interim; intermediary
(handling) fee; charge (e.g. for a cancellation); commission; brokerage
shipping charges; transportation expenses
to be eye-popping; to be staggering; to be amazing
highly priced; expensive; valuable; costly
luxury grocery item (e.g. alcohol, coffee, tea, tobacco); indulgence; something consumed for taste or stimulant effect rather than nourishment
to cheat someone out of; to wangle; to get; to obtain
private funds; own funds; private property
fortune-telling; divination
tower; steeple; spire; stupa; pagoda; dagoba
habit; behavior; behaviour; trait
before one knows; before one becomes aware of; unnoticed; unawares
stink; bad odor; bad odour; stench
alarm bell; fire bell; warning; wake-up call
getting closer; drawing nearer; being not much different; being near (age, skill, etc.); becoming close (i.e. friendly); becoming intimate
dignitaries; very important persons; VIPs
talented person; clever person
consequence; result; conclusion
the most; the extreme; prime; conspicuous
to be lazy; to be slack; to feel dull; to feel languid; to feel listless
popular name; common name; given name
person with a lot of free time on their hands; person of leisure; idler; loafer
phantom; vision; illusion; extremely rare item
superior; excellent; fine
enclosure; fence; storage (of fruit, vegetables, etc.); partitioned area of a room for conducting tea ceremonies; mistress; castle
let me see; well; errr ...; uhh ...
fragment; scrap; piece; shred
to take a long hard look at; to look (someone) full in the face
recognition; awareness; perception; understanding; knowledge; cognition
to distinguish; to recognize; to recognise; to tell apart; to differentiate
to be inferior to; to be less good at; to fall behind
in general; on the whole; for the most part; by and large; almost all
ordinary; common; commonplace; mediocre; unremarkable; undistinguished
a dime a dozen; two a penny
substitute; replacement; stand-in; proxy; compensation; exchange
root (of a plant); stump (of a tree); root (of a problem, etc.); base