promotion; raising of status
considerably; fairly; quite; rather; pretty
to decrease (in size or number); to diminish; to abate
drawn-out (protracted) war or contest
itself; one's own body; oneself; originally; naturally
preservation; retainment; keeping
contest decided by a single round (bout); contest decided by a single roll of dice; one-shot game (contest); make-or-break game
desirable; hoped for; preferable; advisable
Cao Cao (155-220), famous statesman and general at the end of Han, noted poet and calligrapher, later warlord, founder and first king of Cao Wei, father of Emperor Cao Pi; the main villain of novel the Romance of Three Kingdoms
fighting a good fight; putting up a good fight; fighting bravely
to succeed; to bear fruit
very likely; very probable
specialization; specialisation
expectation; anticipation; prediction; forecast; conjecture
in one go; in one gulp; in one breath; suddenly; all of a sudden; all at once
regarding ...; concerning ...; about ...; on ...; with respect to ...; in regard to ...
large; big; great; prominent; -sized; as big as; university
neck; bottleneck; obstruction; neckline
edition; version; plate; block; counter for editions of a publication
time; hour; period; class
it cannot be helped; there's nothing for it; it's no use fighting back; it's hopeless; there is no way out of it
to lose one's way; to get lost; to waver; to hesitate; to be captivated (by); to be infatuated (with)
spare time; free time; time (it takes to do something); time required; time off; leave; dismissal
to bring down (an animal, opponent, etc.); to kill; to shoot dead; to shoot down
to pile up; to heap up; to stack up; to repeat many times over; to go through repeatedly; to accumulate
combination; assortment; matching (in a contest); pairing; combination
important; essential; significant; major; key; principal
beginning; outset; first; onset
bad(-tasting); unpalatable; poor; unskillful; ugly; unattractive
gap; opening; break; interval; unguarded moment; carelessness
full of (e.g. mistakes); riddled with; covered all over with (blood, mud, etc.)
distant place; faraway location; far away
to throw; to fling; to hurl; to neglect; to abandon; to leave alone
to shorten the distance (between); to close the gap (e.g. on the leader); to get closer (e.g. to someone); to close in (on)
closing in on (the enemy, first place, etc.); coming close to; pressing hard; pressing hard (e.g. with a question); taking to task; grilling
destruction; annihilation; extermination
lacking skill; uninspiring; unexciting; dull; unrefined; boring (from being too plain)
to associate with; to keep company with; to go out with; to go along with; to follow someone's lead; to accompany someone
in the same way as; just like
plan; plot; idea; conception; vision; scheme