(1) The instructions were not just confusing, they were positively misleading.
(2) Very few of those interviewed spoke positively about their childhood.
(3) Thinking positively is one way of dealing with stress.

(1) an evil man
(2) an evil grin
(3) evil deeds

(1) The sound of footsteps on the path broke the stillness.
(2) The stillness of the fields was broken by the sound of a gunshot.
(3) In whatever she did, she was fully present , with ease, stillness, and simplicity.

(1) low-tar cigarettes
(2) a tarred road
(3) The oil has hardened to tar...

(1) an intermediate stage/step in a process
(2) Liquid crystals are considered to be intermediate between liquid and solid.
(3) an intermediate skier/student, etc.

(1) ‘He ate it with mustard. ’ ‘Oh, gross! ’
(2) gross behaviour
(3) She's not just fat, she's positively gross!

(1) How could everything go so disastrously wrong?
(2) a disastrous harvest/fire/result
(3) Lowering interest rates could have disastrous consequences for the economy.

(1) Most of the play is written in verse, but some of it is in prose.
(2) a hymn with six verses
(3) a book of comic verses

(1) a ham actor
(2) a radio ham
(3) a slice of ham

(1) to implement changes/decisions/policies/reforms
(2) [不可数名词]the implementation of the new system
(3) agricultural implements

(1) embassy officials
(2) to inform the embassy of the situation
(3) a demonstration outside the Russian embassy

(1) Can I introduce my wife?
(2) He introduced me to a Greek girl at the party.
(3) We've already been introduced.

(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 books were all covered with dust.
(2) There wasn't a speck of dust anywhere in the room.
(3) That guitar's been sitting gathering dust (= not being used) for years now.

(1) to crack a nut (= open it)
(2) a Brazil nut
(3) a hazelnut

(1) Her questions about my private life embarrassed me.
(2) I didn't want to embarrass him by kissing him in front of his friends.
(3) It embarrassed her to meet strange men in the corridor at night.

(1) confidential information/documents
(2) Your medical records are strictly confidential (= completely secret) .
(3) He spoke in a confidential tone, his voice low.

(1) Gas ignites very easily.
(2) (figurative)Tempers ignited when the whole family spent Christmas together.
(3) Flames melted a lead pipe and ignited leaking gas.

(1) Fat is an excellent insulator against the cold.
(2) Dry air is a good insulator, but sea water is not.
(3) The atoms of an insulator hold their electrons very tight.

(1) Stand with your arms by your side and your head erect.
(2) The church was erected in 1582.
(3) Police had to erect barriers to keep crowds back.

(1) The hills were shrouded in mist .
(2) Early morning mist patches will soon clear.
(3) The origins of the story are lost in the mists of time (= forgotten because it happened such a long time ago) .

(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) The General is ideally qualified for the job.
(2) The hotel is ideally situated for country walks.
(3) They were an extremely happy couple, ideally suited.

(1) The cookies will flatten slightly while cooking.
(2) These exercises will help to flatten your stomach.
(3) He flattened his hair down with gel.

(1) pedestrian areas
(2) pedestrian accidents are down by 5%.
(3) In Los Angeles a pedestrian is a rare spectacle...

(1) The vulgarians with whom lily and Ralph grapple unsuccessfully are accurately and acidly observed.
(2) Jack: lily, come here. Here's horse.
(3) lily was there, looking at me, with a pure air of innocence. I couldn't say anything!

(1) a haunting melody
(2) The melody is then taken up by the flutes.
(3) old Irish melodies

(1) Mortgage defaults have risen in the last year.
(2) The default option is to save your work every five minutes.
(3) On this screen, 256 colours is the default.

(1) He glanced briefly towards her but there was no sign of recognition.
(2) the automatic recognition of handwriting and printed text by computer
(3) a growing recognition that older people have potential too

(1) a block of text in a document
(2) (British English)The theatre gives discounts for block bookings (= a large number of tickets bought at the same time) .
(3) The three-hour class is divided into four blocks of 45 minutes each.

(1) a pair of leather gloves with fur linings
(2) the stomach lining
(3) ...a padded satin jacket with quilted lining.

(1) to meet your doom
(2) She had a sense of impending doom (= felt that sth very bad was going to happen) .
(3) Despite the obvious setbacks, it is not all doom and gloom for the England team.

(1) I felt sick with jealousy.
(2) sexual jealousy
(3) I'm tired of her petty jealousies.

(1) Danxi medicine reflects distinctly the economic and cultural communication and social culture the Yuan Dynasty.
(2) Particle collision frequency decreases distinctly compared with that before adjustment.
(3) The teacher pronounces distinctly.

(1) The book is full of references to growing up in India.
(2) She made no reference to her illness but only to her future plans.
(3) the President's passing reference to (= brief mention of) the end of the war

(1) mentally and physically handicapped
(2) physically and emotionally exhausted
(3) I felt physically sick before the exam.

(1) Benedictine/Buddhist monks
(2) ...saffron-robed Buddhist monks.
(3) For an honorable Buddhist monk, inference or words are useless here.

(1) He specialized in criminal law.
(2) Many students prefer not to specialize too soon.
(3) The shop specializes in hand-made chocolates.

(1) unnecessary/excessive bureaucracy
(2) the power of the state bureaucracy
(3) living in a modern bureaucracy

(1) He hoisted himself onto a high stool.
(2) The cargo was hoisted aboard by crane.
(3) to hoist a flag/sail