someone working behind-the-scenes; scene shifter; lady consort (to a high personage)
blow; shock; strike; batting
support; backing; aid; assistance
floral pattern; flourish; ornament; star (actor, player, etc.)
direct control; direct supervision
to serve as; to act as; to fill (the position of); to play the role of; to be in charge of; to hold (a position)
adjutant; aide; aide-de-camp
coming out; going out; attending (work); appearing (on stage); start; beginning; origins
(social) position; status; standing; position (in a company, organization, etc.); post; rank
common people; ordinary people; masses
under (guidance, supervision, rules, the law, etc.); under (a flag, the sun, etc.); beneath; with (e.g. one blow); on (the promise, condition, assumption, etc. that ...); (someone's) side
to sympathize with; to sympathise with; to think of (a far-off person, place, etc.); to cast one's mind to; to worry about; to feel anxious about
to live up to (one's) expectations; to meet expectations
clothing; dressing; binding (of a book)
(common) soldier; rank and file; army; troops; warfare; strategy
development; cultivation; application; exploitation (of resources)
to content oneself with; to be resigned to (one's fate); to be contented (satisfied) with (one's lot)
position; situation; viewpoint; standpoint; point of view
claim; insistence; assertion; advocacy; emphasis; contention
group; faction; (political) faction; wing; school (of thought, painting, etc.); sect
steady; sound; stable; safe (e.g. business); reliable; trustworthy
pair; the two; both persons; both things
argument; discussion; dispute; controversy
white heat; incandescence; (emitting) white light; becoming excited; getting heated (e.g. of a discussion); reaching a climax
engineer; technical expert; technician; craftsperson
plan; project; schedule; scheme; program; programme
no matter what it takes; by any means necessary; at all costs; by hook or by crook
firm; unshakeable; resolute
to get; to secure; to learn; to master; to complete
one's origin (e.g. city, country, parentage, school)
(one's) superior; (one's) boss; the higher-ups
to lend an ear (to); to hear out; to listen to
running alone; running solo; having a large lead (over the others); being far ahead (of everyone else); having one's own way; ignoring others' opinions and acting as one wishes
sorcery; black magic; netherworld; world outside the six realms where evil spirits roam
to cause; to induce; to bring about; to pull upright; to help up (e.g. a fallen person)
setback; deadlock; standstill; impasse; miscarriage
imbalance; proceeding irregularly; unsteady progress; limp; claudication
end (of life); death; demise; (peacefully) spending one's final years
to go out to meet; to receive; to call for; to summon; to accept (e.g. as a member of a group or family); to take (e.g. a wife)
to take responsibility (for a fallout); to accept the blame; to take the blame
to leave; to go away; to pass; to elapse; to be distant; to send away; to drive off
to press against; to push against; to force against; to foist on (task, responsibility); to impose (one's will)
management; (executive) staff; leaders; leadership; top brass; upper echelons
to be crowded; to be packed; to be complex; to go into; to put into; to do intently