(1) They went over budget (= spent too much money) .
(2) budget cuts
(3) tax cuts in this year's budget

(1) Reports conflicted on how much of the aid was reaching the famine victims.
(2) These results conflict with earlier findings.
(3) conflicting emotions/interests/loyalties

(1) Help yourself to a clean towel.
(2) a hand/bath towel (= a small/large towel)
(3) a beach towel (= a large towel used for lying on in the sun)

(1) On Capitol Hill, senators today appear to view the matter as something of a tempest in a teapot.
(2) Where does this teapot go?
(3) He dipped a metal spoon into the cavernous depths of the darkening teapot.

(1) He questioned Chrissie, and listened attentively to what she told him.
(2) She listened attentively while I poured out my problems.
(3) She listened attentively and set down every word he said.

(1) Don't look so worried!
(2) I'm not worried about her─she can take care of herself.
(3) Doctors are worried about the possible spread of the disease.

(1) A bunch of kids were hanging around outside.
(2) a kid of 15
(3) She's a bright kid.

(1) industrial/civil/social/political/popular unrest
(2) There is growing unrest in the south of the country.
(3) The real danger is civil unrest in the east of the country...

(1) a voluntary agreement
(2) Attendance on the course is purely voluntary.
(3) to pay voluntary contributions into a pension fund

(1) She stressed the importance of good teamwork.
(2) Today's complex buildings require close teamwork between the architect and the builders.
(3) Do you think our good teamwork comes from our star signs?

(1) We outlined our proposals to the committee.
(2) They saw the huge building outlined against the sky.
(3) This is a brief outline of the events.

(1) White has always been a symbol of purity in Western cultures.
(2) Mandela became a symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle.
(3) What is the chemical symbol for copper?

(1) a leaking pipe
(2) The roof was leaking.
(3) The tank had leaked a small amount of water.

(1) a coal cellar
(2) ...the restaurant's extensive wine cellar.
(3) The box of papers had been stored in a cellar at the family home.

(1) Now that he's been promoted he's in seventh heaven.
(2) I was the seventh child in a family of 11.
(3) A million people died, a seventh of the population.

(1) We set off once more, over a rough mountain track.
(2) The two men turned to watch the horses going round the track.
(3) ...the athletics track.

(1) a mail-order catalogue (= a book showing goods for sale to be sent to people's homes)
(2) to consult the library catalogue
(3) An illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition.

(1) the temptation of easy profits
(2) to give way to/yield to temptation
(3) I couldn't resist the temptation to open the letter.

(1) The annual slaughter of wildlife in italy is horrific.
(2) The refugees were put in camps in italy before being resettled.
(3) Robinson was sent to italy to cover the 1990 World Cup.

(1) I hope it doesn't stain the carpet.
(2) This carpet stains easily.
(3) The juice from the berries stained their fingers red.

(1) Thank you─you're a real gentleman.
(2) He's no gentleman!
(3) Ladies and gentlemen! Can I have your attention, please?

(1) They were too poor to buy shoes for the kids.
(2) We aim to help the poorest families.
(3) It's among the poorer countries of the world.

(1) The planet Jupiter may have no solid surface at all.
(2) The boat bumped against a solid object.
(3) She had refused all solid food.

(1) garden tools
(2) a cutting tool
(3) power tools (= using electricity)

(1) She's not a political animal.
(2) The government which followed the election was a very different animal.
(3) animal desires/passion/instincts

(1) before lunch
(2) the day before yesterday
(3) The year before last he won a gold medal, and the year before that he won a silver.

(1) I have a very good visual memory.
(2) the visual arts
(3) The building makes a tremendous visual impact.

(1) a cotton mill
(2) sewing cotton
(3) a cotton reel

(1) There is a limit to the amount of pain we can bear.
(2) The team performed to the limit of its capabilities.
(3) She knew the limits of her power.

(1) a hen pheasant
(2) battery hens
(3) a small flock of laying hens

(1) I used my thumbnail to tighten the screw on my lamp.
(2) Eddie parked his cycle against a lamp post and padlocked it.
(3) In the evenings we eat by the light of an oil lamp.

(1) loud laughter
(2) a deafeningly loud bang
(3) She spoke in a very loud voice.

(1) to have/hold/call/attend a meeting
(2) a committee/staff meeting
(3) What time is the meeting?

(1) After the earthquake, the people set about rebuilding their homes.
(2) He rebuilt the engine using parts from cars that had been scrapped.
(3) When she lost her job, she had to rebuild her life completely.

(1) Can you drive?
(2) Don't drive so fast!
(3) I drove to work this morning.

(1) That's cheating in my book.
(2) She always does everything by the book.
(3) I'm in her good books at the moment because I cleared up the kitchen.

(1) She had money squirrelled away in various bank accounts.
(2) The squirrel stashes away nuts for winter.
(3) The squirrel leads up the tree as lightning.

(1) A trade agreement was concluded between the two countries.
(2) They concluded a treaty with Turkey.
(3) ‘Anyway, she should be back soon, ’ he concluded.

(1) They start work at dawn .
(2) It's almost dawn.
(3) We arrived in Sydney as dawn broke (= as the first light could be seen) .

(1) We have lived in the same house for twenty years.
(2) Our children go to the same school as theirs.
(3) She's still the same fun-loving person that I knew at college.