(1) flakes of snow/paint
(2) dried onion flakes
(3) You could see bare wood where the paint had flaked off.

(1) a foam mattress
(2) foam packaging
(3) a glass of beer with a good head of foam

(1) The floor was covered in grease and filth.
(2) How can you read such filth?
(3) The living-room floor was littered with filth and tin cans...

(1) Astronomers used to ask why only saturn has rings.
(2) saturn was to launch the 15 th flight, a Moon orbital mission.
(3) The saturn family of launch vehicles falls into three types or groups.

(1) undesirable consequences/effects
(2) It would be highly undesirable to increase class sizes further.
(3) prostitution and other undesirable practices

(1) Your English is infinitely better than my German.
(2) Human beings are infinitely adaptable.
(3) ...an infinite variety of landscapes...

(1) He accepted the award with characteristic modesty.
(2) I hate false (= pretended) modesty.
(3) They tried to disguise the modesty of their achievements.

(1) He still has nightmares about the accident.
(2) The trip turned into a nightmare when they both got sick.
(3) (informal)Nobody knows what's going on─ it's a nightmare !

(1) The death of the emperor marked the end of an epoch in the country's history.
(2) geological epochs
(3) Two main glacial epochs affected both areas during the last 100 million years of Precambrian times.

(1) The conclusions that they come to are highly questionable.
(2) It is questionable whether this is a good way of solving the problem.
(3) Her motives for helping are questionable.

(1) a marble sculpture of Venus
(2) He collects modern sculpture.
(3) the techniques of sculpture in stone

(1) to carry out/conduct a poll
(2) A recent poll suggests some surprising changes in public opinion.
(3) The final result of the poll will be known tomorrow.

(1) a highly profitable business
(2) It is usually more profitable to sell direct to the public.
(3) She spent a profitable afternoon in the library.

(1) There were no messages for me at the hotel.
(2) I left a message on your answering machine.
(3) Jenny's not here at the moment. Can I take a message?

(1) God is often conceived of as male.
(2) I cannot conceive (= I do not believe) (that) he would wish to harm us.
(3) I cannot conceive what it must be like.

(1) a cotton reel
(2) a reel on a fishing rod
(3) reels of magnetic tape

(1) TV pictures showed the arctic conditions.
(2) This ship was designed expressly for exploring the arctic waters.
(3) They flew over the unlimited reaches of the arctic.

(1) a thorough knowledge of the subject
(2) The police carried out a thorough investigation.
(3) She's very thorough and conscientious.

(1) He continues to insulate his country from the contagion of foreign ideas.
(2) Home owners are being encouraged to insulate their homes to save energy.
(3) Asbestos can be used to insulate a cooking stove.

(1) Recent events had no bearing on our decision.
(2) Regular exercise has a direct bearing on fitness and health.
(3) Her whole bearing was alert.

(1) Fame brought her nothing but misery.
(2) The vast majority of the population lives in utter misery.
(3) the miseries of unemployment

(1) The government will not negotiate with terrorists.
(2) We have been negotiating for more pay.
(3) a strong negotiating position

(1) building/environmental/food preservation
(2) a preservation group/society
(3) The central issue in the strike was the preservation of jobs.

(1) 12 Albert terrace
(2) a sun terrace
(3) a roof terrace

(1) She packed one change of underwear.
(2) ...a couple who went for a late-night swim in their underwear.
(3) ...a change of underwear.

(1) She won a scholarship to study at Stanford.
(2) He went to drama school on a scholarship .
(3) a magnificent work of scholarship

(1) Travel is by coach overnight to Berlin.
(2) a coach station (= where coaches start and end their journey)
(3) a coach party (= a group of people travelling together on a coach)

(1) Stir until the sauce has thickened.
(2) It was a dangerous journey through thickening fog.
(3) thicken the stew with flour.

(1) Large fastener importer seeking a Mechanical Plating Quality Engineer.
(2) Roll the seatback cover downward and engage the hook and loop fastener.
(3) These earrings snap on with special fastener.

(1) As we fall asleep the amplitude of brain waves slowly becomes greater.
(2) ...a man of nineteenth-century amplitude.
(3) Small variations in amplitude of an oscilloscope display caused by electrical noise.

(1) a sovereign ruler
(2) Lithuania and Armenia signed a treaty in Vilnius recognising each other as independent sovereign states...
(3) The Russian Federation declared itself to be a sovereign republic.

(1) They ended up squatting in the empty houses on Oxford Road.
(2) to live in a squat
(3) a squat tower

(1) Don't eat between meals.
(2) Children must attend school between the ages of 5 and 16.
(3) Many changes took place between the two world wars.

(1) The army may push southwards into the Kurdish areas.
(2) These birds migrate northwards in spring and southwards in fall.
(3) Tens of thousands of men, year after year, have travelled southwards to find work.

(1) Its application is helpful in long term economic production in large refinery and petrochemical plant.
(2) World Collapse In Fuel Demand Likely To Halt refinery Construction.
(3) refinery and petrochemical operation produce a variety of byproduct gases.

(1) air/naval/guerrilla, etc. warfare
(2) countries engaged in warfare
(3) class/gang warfare

(1) She raised the gun and fired.
(2) He raised a hand in greeting.
(3) She raised her eyes from her work.

(1) It is illegal to reproduce these worksheets without permission from the publisher.
(2) The photocopier reproduces colours very well.
(3) The atmosphere of the novel is successfully reproduced in the movie.

(1) Try to keep the stitches small and straight.
(2) to drop a stitch (= to lose one that you have made)
(3) chain stitch

(1) A barn adjoins the farmhouse.
(2) [常用于名词前]They stayed in adjoining rooms.
(3) We'll have more space if we knock down the adjoining wall (= the wall between two rooms) .