DOD Entries Group A
English for Academic Teaching Purposes
DOD Guidelines
Participant DOD Schedule Group A
DOD 1
Week of February 19
Compiled by Jaanus
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| self fulfilling prophecy (phrase) | something that if you say it often enough will become true | For example, if you constantly tell yourself you are brilliant, eventually you will, in fact, be brilliant. |
| coping (v.) | 1. to multiply (something); 2. to deal or handle (with something or (just) something | |
| fixed mindset (phrase) | means that this person has fixed ways of thinking or ideas | |
| carved in stone (phrase) | something what we can not change very easily or is completely fixed | |
| expanding nature (phrase) | means that something is becoming more advanced or larger “…expanding nature of intelligence and the brain…” | |
| assigned (v.) | included into a group or attached with something | |
| to keep mastering (phrase) | to work at succeeding at something continuously | |
| farewell (n.) | the last saying of “goodbye” | the “farewell letter” (n.) a last letter or message from somebody |
| stake (n., v.) | (n.) 1. as a post or a standing mark at a road; 2. as a (fire) stake — a collected and ordered hump of branches of wood to be burned; (v.) to mark something (like trees) | |
| heartfelt (n.) | something good and/or romantic coming from heart (from “inside”) or touching the feelings |
DOD 2
Week of February 26
Compiled by Kai and Jana
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| Head lice (n.), in plural | Singular form is louse, an insect who feeds like a parasite on humans | |
| Forelock (n.) | part of hair growing from the front of the head | |
| Buckwheat (n.) | the plant itself or seed of this plant used as a cereal grain | Gives a brown porridge, not so widely used in Western-Europe than in Estonia |
| Clover (n.) | A type of herb having leaves with three parts and white or pink or violet flowers | Synonyms: trefoil and shamrock, used as a floral emblem by the Irish |
| Whortleberry (n.) | A type of dark blue berry, same as bilberry and blueberry (in Eston. mustikas) | There is also bog whortleberry (in Eston. sinikas); red whortleberry (in Eston. pohl) |
| Creep (n..) | Unpleasant person | informal |
| Rubric (n.) | 1) a method and tool for grading assignments or assessing something; 2)Any title or instruction inserted in the book in a different colour or lettering | *The second use mentioned of this word is not commonly known or used by your instructor :) |
| Mole (n..) | Black mammal almost blind usually living underground | |
| Flag (v.) | 1) To wave or signal a person to stop; 2) to mark something as unusual or important | |
| Sly (adj.) | Secretive and cunning | idiom: "sly as a fox" |
DOD 3
Week of March 5
Compiled by Eno & Marika
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| crux (n) (pl. cruxes, cruces) | main or central idea | |
| swop (n) | swap, process of exchanging | British variant of swap |
| twang (n) | sound like that of a plucked string | "country twang" |
| endure (v) | last, continue in the same state, survive | |
| faint of heart | (emotionally) weak | not for the faint of heart |
| grain (n) | (only one possible definition) wood fibers | The arrangement, direction, or pattern of the fibrous tissue in wood (answers.com) |
| go against the grain | choose a more complicated or difficult way | "vastukarva", one's characteristic attitude |
| bend (n) | curve | |
| unravel (v) | detangle, unknit (opposite to knitting) | unravel a sweater; unravel a mystery |
| tart (adj) | acid to taste | a tart apple |
| a bird in a bush | unrealistic dream, delusive promise | From proverb: a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush |
| birds of a feather | people with similar intentions | From proverb: birds of a feather flock together |
| hear the birdies sing | to be knocked out | American slang |
| do bird | to be held in prison | slang |
| give somebody the bird | 1. to sack; 2. to do the thing that people usually do with the theater plays they do not like (for example: listeners give Carmen the bird at its premiere in 1875) | slang (note: this expression is the equivalent of another slang figure: give somebody the finger ) |
| a dead bird | a sure thing, something one can be sure about | Australian slang |
| strictly for the birds | unimportant, unsuitable, silly | American slang |
DOD 4
Week of March 12
Special thanks to Silvi (from group B)
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| To pitch (v) | Throw, set up, hit, adapt | Phrasal Verbs (informal): pitch in — 1. To set to work vigorously. 2. To join forces with others; help or cooperate. pitch into — To attack verbally or physically; assault. pitch on/upon — To succeed in choosing or achieving, usually quickly: pitched on the ideal solution. |
| Rogue | n. 1. An unprincipled, deceitful, and unreliable person; 2. A vicious and solitary animal, an organism that shows an undesirable variation from a standard. adj. 1. Vicious and solitary. Used of an animal, especially an elephant. 2. Large, destructive, and anomalous or unpredictable 3. Operating outside normal or desirable controls | a rogue wave; a rogue tornado; Even if you do choose to accept it for a rogue case where a family needed some quick cash… |
| Go out on a limb (idiom) | In an isolated or disadvantaged position in one's support of someone or something | Climate change has birds out on a limb. |
| Coincidence (n) | The state or fact of occupying the same relative position or area in space or in time | he waited for the coincidence of the target and the cross hairs |
| Wary (adj) | On guard; watchful | Students warned to be wary of Wikipedia |
| Rapport (n) | Relationship, especially one of mutual trust or emotional affinity | Rapport is one of the most important features or characteristics of unconscious human interaction |
| amendment (n) | 1. The act of changing for the better; improvement 2. A correction or alteration, as in a manuscript. | Society may sometimes show signs of repentance and amendment. The 19th Amendment to the Constitution gave women the right to vote. |
| unravel (v) | a. To separate (entangled threads). 2. To separate and clarify the elements of (something mysterious or baffling); solve. | The secrets within her family become unraveled in a horrifying scene in the middle of the night. |
| weak of heart (idiom) | Death (not for the weak of heart) pictures from reptiles | |
| Scavenge (v) | 1. To search through for salvageable material 2. To collect and remove refuse from v.intr. 1. To search through refuse for useful material. 2. To feed on dead or decaying matter. | Some people in Estonia scavenged the garbage cans for food scraps. Our streets are periodically scavenged. Jackals and hyenas scavenge somewhere between 20-50 percent of their diet depending on the season. |
DOD 5
Week of March 19
Risto
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| multitasking (n) | doing several things at once | Multitasking may make you more productive, but it also makes it harder for your brain to learn, according to a new study"; "Thirty-five percent of Generation Y drivers admit to multitasking while driving, whereas 30 percent of Generation X and 21 percent of Baby Boomer drivers do" |
| tackle (v) | to deal with something, to solve (the problem) | "Europe need to tackle the problem of psychosocial risks at work" |
| chunk (v) put together, (n) | a compact mass, thick piece | "Research suggests that seven words is about the upper limit that people manage as a single chunk. It is far easier to remember a seven-word chunk than seven separate individual words"; you can find recipe for Chocolate Chunk Cookies on the website http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/chocolate-chunk-cookies-recipe.htm. |
| solicit (v) | to try to obtain something, plead strongly, persuade | "This nables imprisoned Estonian underworld leaders solicit special benefits for themselves."; "No official or public employee will solicit or accept from any person…" |
| disruptive (adj) | disturbing, interruptive, causing trouble | "Some issues are more serious, such as students drinking alcohol in class or coming to class under the influence of drugs, professors also cited such disruptive and inappropriate offenses as students using cell phones, having food delivered to them during class, kissing in the back of the classroom, unauthorized guests, reading newspapers and coming to class late and leaving early." |
| rigid (adj) | inflexible, firm | "How can we make the lecturing less like a lecture (passive, rigid, routine knowledge transmission) and more like active communication between teacher and students?" |
DOD 6
Week of March 26
Kalle
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| Remedy (n.,v.) | 1. Any drug or agent that cures a disease 2. Anything that serves to put a fault to rights, improve conditions 3. tolerance 4. to cure 5. to put to rights, to correct | Past remedy (a.) – unprovable, irreparable |
| Outsource (v.) | 1. To subcontract to another company 2. to buy in (components for a product) rather than manufacture them | |
| Propensity | natural tendency or disposition | ~ to do; ~for doing |
| eligible (adj.) Eligibility (n) | 1. fit, qualified (for an office or function) 2. desirable and worthy of being choosen (as a spouse) | ‚Am I eligible to attend?’ ‚An eligible young man’ |
| Play up (v.) | 1. to emphasize or highlight; 2. to behave irritatingly (towards); 3. to function erratically; 4. to hurt | To play up one’s best features; The car is playing up again; My back is playing me up again |
| Lectern (n.) | 1. reading desk or support in a church; 2. any similar desk or support | |
| Runt (n.) | 1. the smallest and weekest young animal in a litter; 2. an undersized or undergrown creatures | Runts (also known as Fruit Runts) are candies sold by Nestlé under their Willy Wonka Candy Company brand. First seen on the market in 1982, they are fruit flavoured and shaped candies and are very much like large Nerds. Original Runts have a hard candy shell with a somewhat powdery center. There is also a newer soft and chewy version known as Chewy Runts. The candies are in the shape of the fruit flavor they represent. Each box contains banana, orange, cherry, strawberry, blue raspberry, and watermelon. The watermelon flavor recently replaced the long standing lime flavor, and blue raspberry was added at the same time. |
| Precipitation | 1. meteorol. Rain, snow, sleet , etc. 2. chem. Precipitate 3. rash or undue haste 4. materialization (spirit in body form) | |
| Either feast or famine (idiom) | Either too much or not enough | Precipitation is either way up or way down, either feast or famine |
DOD 8
Week of April 10
Compiled by Helle & Susanne
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| smorgasbord (n) | a table covered with different type of food, people don’t sit round this table | In Estonian we say “swedish table” |
| filler(s) (n) | words or phrases in spoken language that have no direct connection with the main idea of talk, they “fill” ; e.g. you know, say, etc | In Estonian they are called “parasite words” |
| mock-up (n) | the scaled (times smaller) copy of building, bridge,.. | The mock-up of Tartu song stage has been built and tested by engineers of TTÜ several years ago |
| to raise the bar (phrase) | to enhance the fulfillments or demand more than before | |
| bedrock (n) | 1. the main principles, the base of theory; 2.the foundation (ground, clay,…) | |
| nebulous | something that has no definite form or limits | |
| excerpt (n) | the segment or piece of movie, document… | |
| precedence | priority, advantage | MS claimed its precedence as the leading software producer of the world |
| beverage (n) | a drink | carbonated beverage, non-alcoholic beverage |
| java (n) | coffee | colloquial language |
| to steep (v) | to let the tea bag sit in the tea pot, until the tea is ready | |
| mature (adj.) | mellow, ready to be picked | a fruit can be mature, also can a person be mature |
| ratio (n) | a proportion or relationship | |
| threshold (n) | a limit | |
| caffeine (n) | the stimulating drug found in coffee, tea and other beverages | |
| boost (n) | a push upward, an increase |
DOD 9
Week of May 3
Compiled by Kaupo
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| Facets | one aspects of the diverse issue | |
| to tempt | to fuel the desire by being attractive or inviting | |
| Reciprocal | mutual equal relationship between all sides | |
| to clue | to give guiding information | |
| To gauge | to evaluate something against some standards | |
| Bent | determined to do something | |
| against the grain | something that goes on opposite direction to custom practices | |
| outright | open, free attitude or response to something | |
| to rubbish | to have negative attitude towards something, to make a fool of something or somebody | |
| pigeonhole | compartment or simplified category what can be used to place think, terms etc. | can also be a verb: to pigeonhole something or someone |
DOD 10
Week of May 10
Compiled by Thomas-Andreas
| Word (Part of Speech) or phrase or idiom | Definition | Special Notes or Context |
|---|---|---|
| cross-cultural | involving more than one culture | |
| a teacher's pet | a student, who is treated better by the teacher than the other students | |
| preaching to the choir | speaking to an audience, who is sympathetic and receptive to what is being told about | |
| to butt in | to interrupt someone else's conversation | |
| to talk at | to speak to someone without letting her say a word | |
| jot down | taking short notes | |
| to fall in with | to agree | |
| to deter | to discourage from doing something, to make difficult to do something | |
| to file an application | to make an application | |
| gold-plated | covered with gold | especially jewelry |
| to embezzle | to make something (usually money) dishonestly or secretly to his own | you can embezzle money from your place of employment, i.e. you steal money secretly from your employer without anyone knowing. It's a felony. |
page revision: 14, last edited: 13 May 2007 18:02
