(1) Anything was preferable to the tense atmosphere at home.
(2) He finds country life infinitely preferable to living in the city.
(3) It would be preferable to employ two people, not one.

(1) A consortium plans to build a natural-gas pipeline from Russia to supply eastern Germany.
(2) Already in the pipeline is a 2.9 per cent pay increase for teachers.
(3) Therefore, hydrate is easily formed in surface throttling process, and it will plug gas transmission pipeline.

(1) The children are already learning to multiply and divide.
(2) 2 multiplied by 4 is/equals/makes 8 (2×4 = 8) .
(3) multiply 2 and 6 together and you get 12.

(1) My doctor has forbidden me sugar.
(2) Lack of space forbids further treatment of the topic here.
(3) ‘Maybe you'll end up as a lawyer, like me. ’ ‘God forbid! ’

(1) constant interruptions
(2) a constant stream of visitors all day
(3) Babies need constant attention.

(1) An agreement was finally reached between management and employees.
(2) They had made a verbal agreement to sell.
(3) They had an agreement never to talk about work at home.

(1) a technical/legal/scientific, etc. term
(2) a term of abuse
(3) ‘Register ’ is the term commonly used to describe different levels of formality in language.

(1) a pair of silk stockings
(2) ...a pair of nylon stockings.
(3) Two faces grotesquely disfigured in nylon stocking masks looked through the window.

(1) Let's ask for the bill.
(2) a ten-dollar bill
(3) to introduce/approve/reject a bill

(1) The tour included a visit to the Science Museum.
(2) Does the price include tax?
(3) Your duties include typing letters and answering the telephone.

(1) I don't have a bank account.
(2) The defendant asked for 21 similar offences to be taken into account...
(3) Urban planners in practice have to take account of many interest groups in society.

(1) safety precautions
(2) precautions against fire
(3) You must take all reasonable precautions to protect yourself and your family.

(1) The papers in maths and English are very testing.
(2) I got left behind at school with the maths.
(3) He is now reading for a maths degree at Surrey University.

(1) increasingly difficult/important/popular
(2) It is becoming increasingly clear that this problem will not be easily solved.
(3) increasingly, training is taking place in the office rather than outside it.

(1) Please inform us of any changes of address.
(2) I have been reliably informed (= somebody I trust has told me) that the couple will marry next year.
(3) ‘He's already left, ’ she informed us.

(1) regulations governing the sale of alcoholic beverages
(2) I haven't made a sale all week.
(3) She gets 10% commission on each sale.

(1) I think they've got a cheek making you pay to park the car.
(2) chubby/rosy/pink cheeks
(3) He kissed her on both cheeks.

(1) There is no immediate prospect of peace.
(2) A place in the semi-finals is in prospect (= likely to happen) .
(3) There's a reasonable prospect that his debts will be paid.

(1) wet clothes
(2) wet grass
(3) You'll get wet (= in the rain) if you go out now.

(1) They knelt down and prayed.
(2) I'll pray for you.
(3) to pray for peace

(1) He hasn't been selected for the team.
(2) All our hotels have been carefully selected for the excellent value they provide.
(3) She was selected as the parliamentary candidate for Bath.

(1) Today is the fifth (of May).
(2) the fifth century BC
(3) It's her fifth birthday.

(1) a piece of string/wood
(2) She wrote something on a small piece of paper.
(3) a large piece of land

(1) The colours were an exact match.
(2) He started to phone me at the exact moment I started to phone him (= at the same time) .
(3) Her second husband was the exact opposite of her first (= completely different) .

(1) marine life
(2) a marine biologist (= a scientist who studies life in the sea)
(3) ...breeding grounds for marine life.

(1) a basketball game/coach/team
(2) The plan has a sting intail: it means we lose one day's holiday.
(3) To master the skill of playing basketball he is making a great business of it.

(1) She opened her mouth to say something.
(2) His mouth twisted into a wry smile.
(3) Their mouths fell open (= they were surprised) .

(1) the maximum speed/temperature/volume
(2) For maximum effect do the exercises every day.
(3) a maximum security prison

(1) The singular of ‘bacteria ’ is ‘bacterium ’.
(2) The verb should be in the singular .
(3) a singular noun/verb/ending

(1) the 20th century (= AD1901–2000 or 1900–1999)
(2) eighteenth-century writers
(3) ...a 17th-century merchant's house.

(1) He suffered from headaches and loss of appetite .
(2) The walk gave me a good appetite.
(3) Don't spoil your appetite by eating between meals.

(1) He died after a long illness.
(2) childhood illnesses
(3) minor/serious illnesses

(1) The trucks waited at the warehouse to pick up their loads.
(2) The women came down the hill with their loads of firewood.
(3) These backpacks are designed to carry a heavy load .

(1) to display artistic, etc. tendencies
(2) I have a tendency to talk too much when I'm nervous.
(3) There is a tendency for this disease to run in families.

(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) The debate simply revived old hatreds.
(2) racial hatred (= between people from different races)
(3) a profound hatred of war

(1) natural disasters
(2) the natural world (= of trees, rivers, animals and birds)
(3) a country's natural resources (= its coal, oil, forests, etc.)

(1) The door opens outwards.
(2) Factories were spreading outwards from the old heart of the town.
(3) The top door opened outwards...

(1) a delivery van
(2) Please pay for goods on delivery (= when you receive them) .
(3) Allow 28 days for delivery .

(1) acting in her capacity as manager
(2) We are simply involved in an advisory capacity on the project.
(3) The factory is working at full capacity.