to lend an ear to; to listen to
hateful; detestable; loathsome
critical (touch and go) situation; explosive situation
definite; final; decisive; conclusive
chance; start; opportunity; cause; reason; excuse
agglutination; adhesion; deadlock; stalemate; agglutination
to descend (e.g. a mountain); to go down; to alight (e.g. from bus); to get off; to step down; to retire; to be granted
next (to); adjoining; adjacent; house next door; neighbouring house; next-door neighbour
suddenly; abruptly; slowly; without haste; calmly
clearly; plainly; distinctly; to be clear; to be definite; to be certain
to join hands together; to join forces; to collaborate
actor; actress; man of wits; clever person; cunning fellow
to be pleased; to gloat; to glow with self-satisfaction
honour; honor; dignity; prestige; reputation; appearances
to keep up (appearances); to put up (a good front); to smooth over (a mistake, fault, etc.); to gloss over; to mend; to repair
affirmative vote; yes vote; aye
to cut; to cut through; to sever (connections, ties); to turn off (e.g. the light); to terminate (e.g. a conversation); to hang up (the phone); to punch (a ticket)
no matter how you put it; whatever the circumstances may be; say what you like; no matter how you look at it
violence; reckless action; (an) outrage
acquisition (esp. corporate); buy-out; takeover; bribery; buying off; corruption
to make a mistake; to blunder
unpleasant; disagreeable; nasty; lewd; lascivious; obscene
secret communication (with the enemy); collusion; betrayal; adultery; (extramarital) affair
within expectations; as expected; within the scope of hypothesis or assumption
fantasy; illusion; vision; dream
record of proceedings; minutes
to check through; to thoroughly investigate
quick; speedy; prompt; rapid; swift
account book; register; ledger
secret accounts; second set of accounts
to have (someone) by the short hairs; to have something on (someone)
to kill; to choke the life out of
injustice; unfairness; wrongdoing; iniquity; impropriety; irregularity
irrefutable evidence; smoking gun; solid evidence; incontestable proof; dead giveaway
skill; ability; dexterity; performance; workmanship; craftsmanship
clapping hands; applause; clapping one's hands in prayer (at a shrine)
to reach; to get to; to arrive at
approval; adoption (of a motion, bill, etc.); passage
to triumph; to be elated with success
arrest; apprehension; capture