(1) our main/major competitor
(2) Over 200 competitors entered the race.
(3) Herbert Blocker of Germany, one of the oldest competitors, won the individual silver medal.

(1) Computer has found an increasingly wide utilization in all fields.
(2) Modern forms of agricultural utilization, have completely refuted this assumption.
(3) They represent important influences on the utilization of the feed.

(1) Many years elapsed before they met again.
(2) Forty-eight hours have elapsed since his arrest.
(3) It is often said that time elapses . actually it does not. Time stays put . We elapse.

(1) A fitting end to the meal would be a glass of port.
(2) It is fitting that the new centre for European studies should be in a university that teaches every European language.
(3) a tight-fitting dress

(1) a distant grumble of thunder
(2) My main grumble is about the lack of privacy.
(3) Thunder grumbled in the distance.

(1) We all had colds and couldn't stop sniffing and sneezing.
(2) sniffing the fresh morning air
(3) to sniff glue

(1) In the 1990s the area became a magnet for new investment.
(2) fridge magnets of your favourite cartoon characters
(3) Prospect Park, with its vast lake, is a magnet for all health freaks...

(1) a life assurance company
(2) There was an air of easy assurance and calm about him.
(3) Unemployment seems to be rising, despite repeated assurances to the contrary .

(1) financial/economic/legal/political constraints
(2) This decision will impose serious constraints on all schools.
(3) At last we could relax and talk without constraint.

(1) She's formidably intelligent.
(2) He now has the chance to prove himself in a formidably difficult role.
(3) They had to overcome formidable obstacles.

(1) Someone was waiting in the shadowy doorway.
(2) shadowy figures approached them out of the fog.
(3) the shadowy world of terrorism

(1) Water splashed onto the floor.
(2) Rain splashed against the windows.
(3) He splashed cold water on his face.

(1) I haven't seen hide nor hair of her for a month.
(2) She'd do anything to save her own hide .
(3) All he's worried about is his own hide (= himself) .

(1) a rapid/sharp/gradual decline
(2) urban/economic decline
(3) The company reported a small decline in its profits.

(1) the 1987 stock market crash
(2) I was terrified that the plane would crash.
(3) We're going to crash, aren't we?

(1) Mirrors in a room often give an illusion of space.
(2) The idea of absolute personal freedom is an illusion.
(3) He could no longer distinguish between illusion and reality.

(1) It is possible to discern a number of different techniques in her work.
(2) He discerned a certain coldness in their welcome.
(3) It is often difficult to discern how widespread public support is.

(1) a shopping/supermarket/luggage trolley
(2) a drinks trolley
(3) a tea trolley

(1) the party's exiled leaders
(2) a tax exile (= a rich person who moves to another country where taxes are lower)
(3) political exiles

(1) Their motives have never been satisfactorily explained.
(2) The relations of friendly cooperation between our two countries are developing satisfactorily.
(3) We cannot yet satisfactorily explain the genesis of the universe.

(1) nickel Metallic chemical element, one of the transition elements, chemical symbol Ni, atomic number 28.
(2) Polished chrome and sand nickel are available.
(3) It indicates that lead nitrate and nickel chloride have obvious reproductive toxicity.

(1) Sam cautioned him against making a hasty decision.
(2) The government cautioned that pay increases could lead to job losses.
(3) Suspects must be cautioned before any questions are asked.

(1) (figurative)There was no shelter from the fury of the storm.
(2) Her eyes blazed with fury.
(3) fury over tax increases (= as a newspaper headline ) .

(1) Nebula is a specific word concerning the field of astronomy.
(2) We try to arrange observation and recording to special astronomy events.
(3) The book treats of astronomy.

(1) Once in the bloodstream, the bacteria adhere to the surface of the red cells.
(2) For ten months he adhered to a strict no-fat low-salt diet.
(3) She adheres to teaching methods she learned over 30 years ago.

(1) the lowering of taxes and the consequent increase in spending
(2) the responsibilities consequent upon the arrival of a new child
(3) The warming of the Earth and the consequent climatic changes affect us all...

(1) She kept all the letters in a box.
(2) a money box
(3) cardboard boxes

(1) Flu is highly infectious.
(2) (figurative)infectious laughter
(3) I'm still infectious.

(1) She fastened the belt loosely around her waist.
(2) to use a term loosely
(3) The play is loosely based on his childhood in Russia.

(1) an 18th century country mansion
(2) 2 Moscow mansions, Cromwell Road
(3) ...an eighteenth century mansion in Hampshire...

(1) They arrived barely a minute later.
(2) I had barely started speaking when he interrupted me.
(3) He was barely 20 years old and already running his own company.

(1) The rope holding the boat suddenly tightened and broke.
(2) His mouth tightened into a thin line.
(3) to tighten a lid/screw/rope/knot

(1) a hardy breed of sheep
(2) ...the ten hardy supporters who had made the trek to Dublin from Riga.
(3) hardy antelope wander in from the desert.

(1) the voters' identification of the Democrats with high taxes
(2) their increasing identification with the struggle for independence
(3) Can I see some identification, please?

(1) car theft
(2) Police are investigating the theft of computers from the company's offices.
(3) Art theft is now part of organised crime.

(1) The course consists of ten core modules and five optional modules.
(2) the lunar module
(3) These courses cover a twelve-week period and are organised into three four-week modules.

(1) Residents were warned not to be extravagant with water, in view of the low rainfall this year.
(2) an extravagant present
(3) the extravagant claims/promises of politicians

(1) a daily circulation of more than one million
(2) The coins were taken out of circulation .
(3) Copies of the magazine were withdrawn from circulation .

(1) a public footpath
(2) They rambled on the footpath in the woods.
(3) Walk on the footpath in the country.

(1) Those children are always getting into mischief .
(2) I try to keep out of mischief .
(3) It's very quiet upstairs; they must be up to some mischief !