excluding; except (for); apart from; outside (a boundary, scope, etc.)
creak; squeak; creaking; discord; strife; friction
phew; whew; huff; whoo; woohoo
to be solved; to be worked out; to come loose; to come untied; to be removed (of restrictions); to be lifted (e.g. of a ban)
to take a breath; to take a short rest
from the standpoint of; from the viewpoint of; on; above; the best; top
very; extremely; terrible; horrid; remarkable; extraordinary
success; achievement; succeeding (in life); (worldly) success; prosperity
to do; to undertake; to send; to dispatch; to put; to move; to give (esp. to someone of equal or lower status)
someone working behind-the-scenes; scene shifter; lady consort (to a high personage)
maid; helper; help; assistance
very; greatly; immense; enormous; serious; grave
but; however; provided that
exactly the opposite (of); completely opposite; quite contrary
vector; direction (e.g. of one's activities or interests); focus
speech; expression; wording; language
carriage; poise; bearing; demeanor; movement (of the body)
that kind of; of the sort; of the kind; such
indication; sign; hint; tone (of the market)
to dance (orig. a hopping dance); to be manipulated; to dance to someone's tune
inexpert or untrained eyes
ability; competency; talent; skill; capacity
to stick; to paste; to stretch; to spread; to form (e.g. ice on a pond); to fill; to swell
such; like that; that sort of
(around the) neck; nape; collar (at the front of a coat, kimono, etc.); collar area
to loosen; to slacken; to relax (attention, efforts, etc.); to let down (one's guard); to relax (a rule); to ease (e.g. restrictions)
easy; simple; ready; casual; off-hand; easy-going
with a (cry of) "ah!"; with a shout (of surprise, shock, etc.); in surprise; in astonishment
to pick up; to gather; to find (and pick up; something someone has dropped); to select; to choose; to get (unexpectedly); to hit upon (luck, an opportunity, etc.)
insincere smile; ingratiating smile; polite smile; forced smile
staringly; fixedly; unblinkingly
name; given name; first name
to concentrate; to focus on; to devote; to stiffen; to become tense
to remove; to take off; to drop (e.g. from a team); to remove (from a position); to leave (e.g. one's seat); to go away from; to dodge (a question, blow, etc.)
to stare back at; to look back at
(coming to a) sudden stop
to hit; to strike; to strike (noon, etc.); to sound (cymbals, etc.); to beat (rhythmically, e.g. pulse, waves, etc.); to move; to impress
pain; ache; soreness; damage; injury; wear