to outwit; to outmanoeuvre; to steal a march on; to get the jump on; to anticipate; to forestall
religious leader; person of religion; religious figure; religionist
setting the table; laying the table; setting up; getting one's ducks in a row; running interference
unexplored region; secluded region; place off the beaten track
preventing (someone) from leaving; confinement; keeping indoors; being stranded; grounding
way of reciting; way of telling a story
detective bureau; detective agency; investigation firm
the other world; the next world; the world beyond; world after death
before; previously; ahead; Pardon me for leaving (before you)
focusing on only one thing; obsessively; intensely; selfish; self-serving
desirable; hoped for; preferable; advisable
cartoon-character costume
with a clang or a clink; tinkle
to cut and even up; to cut several pieces to the same size
work; workmanship; craftsmanship; artifice; trick; device
red food coloring; red food colouring
to get cracked; to develop a crack; to be fissured
walking about town; stroll around town; walking the streets (e.g. for exercise)
longish; moderately long; somewhat long; fairly long
invasion; raid; attack; visitation (of a calamity)
to gain weight; to put on weight
to hear a rumor; to get wind of
height of summer; high summer; hottest part of the summer
punctuation; pause; juncture; end; (place to) stop
self-centered; stuck on oneself
no chance of; no way that; certainly not; will never happen
end; verge; extremity; miss; failure; blank (e.g. lottery ticket)
dandelion (esp. species Taraxacum platycarpum)
descendant; posterity; offspring
real nuisance; becoming inconvenienced by someone else's problems (through no fault of one's own)
estrangement; alienation; neglecting to stay in contact
to be replaced with new growth
to shade an account; to add something extra