bolt from the blue; great surprise
emotion; feeling; atmosphere; mood; spirit
to take down in notes (meeting minutes, etc.); to apply (concepts, ideas, etc. to specific processes or methods); to drop into something (e.g. a bag); to entice; to lure
cruelty; hard-heartedness
to refer to; to use as reference
(it won't be possible) on such short notice
pickled (something); pickled in (something); preserved in; overreliance on (e.g. medication); excessive use of
delusion; trick of the imagination
marital relationship; marital relations
foresight; foreknowledge; intimation; premonition; prediction
seedbed; nursery; seed-plot
mechanism; machinery; trick; dodge; mechanical doll; string puppet
to claim victims; to cause casualties
privacy; secrecy; confidentiality
percussion; tapping; examining by percussion; sounding out (someone's intentions); making an approach (about)
indicate reason; infers some protest
master and servant; lord and retainer; employer and employee
introduction; bringing in; leading in; installation
winning over; placation; gentle persuasion
easy to deal with; easily manageable; tractable; malleable
river; stream; River; the ... river
friendly; easy to get on with; easy to talk to; easy to like
going on and on (about inconsequential things); talking nonsense; idling away the time; dawdling
to be dented; to be indented; to be beaten; to be overwhelmed; to be disheartened; to feel down
all you want; as much as one wants
to be good (at); to go well; to look (taste, etc.) good; to hold one's liquor; to be able to hold one's drink
dispersion; breakup; variance; dispersion
rewriting (book); renewal; transfer of ownership
blockage; blockade; blocking up; stoppage; obstruction; occlusion
excavation; exhumation; discovery (e.g. new talent)
detection (of a plot, fraud, etc.); discovery; coming to light; being uncovered
No Entry; No Trespassing; No Admittance; off-limits; restricted; forbidden
to knit one's brows; to frown
loss (of assets, profit, etc.)
to tire of; to lose interest in; to be too much for one; to find unmanageable; to be beyond one's control; to not know what to do with
to live up to expectations; to meet expectations
to have a short turning radius (e.g. car); to be adaptable; to be quick to respond to shifting circumstances
relay; hook-up; relay broadcasting
to go first; to take the lead; to lead the way