failing college entrance exams and retaking them a year later
department of economics; faculty of economics
proud; triumphant; boastful; self-satisfied
to be excited; to be nervous; to be thrilled
with all due respect ...; I venture to say ...; Excuse me, but ...
to switch off; to turn off
intricate; elaborate; complicated; complex
easy; simple; there's no way that ...
patrolling; one's rounds; inspection tour; watchman; patrolman
discussion; deliberation; thought; opinion
dusk; nightfall; twilight
water's edge; beach; foreshore
superb view; picturesque scenery
once again; yet again; (there you go) again
standing on tiptoe and stretching one's back to make oneself taller; stretching oneself; overreaching oneself; overstretching oneself; trying to do something beyond one's ability
living only for one's work; a life with no other interest than one's work
far away in the distance; in the far distance
lonely (place); remote; in the middle of nowhere
noisily; clamorously; incessantly (complaining, pestering, etc.); going on and on; loudly (crying); wailing
hating; strongly disliking
small child; pipsqueak; short person; midget; small animal; runt
everybody; every last one of them; all
viscous; mushy; muddy; dirty (with oil, grease, etc.); to be in an ugly state (of emotions, relations, etc.); to be murky
intellectual; educated person; intelligentsia
paper-thin wafer (for wrapping powdered medicine, candies, etc.)
to conceal; to keep secret; to cover up
to show someone's true colors; to remove someone's mask; (lit.) to take the veneer off something
mask; disguise; guise; mask
to peel (roughly); to tear off; to rip off
cynicism (of mankind); belief that human nature is fundamentally evil
if anything; if pushed I'd say; if I had to say
belief that human nature is fundamentally good
inexperienced; immature; green; grassy-smelling; smelling of raw vegetation
unselfish; disinterested; unavaricious; free of avarice
strength in one's arms; physical strength; muscular strength; force; violence
cunning; craft; guile; slyness
transforming oneself; taking on another form; disguising oneself; artificial fly (for fishing)
to go to the bottom of an affair; to inquire into the origin
ugh (when angry, irritated, etc.); ack; ach; tsk; keh
older sister; elder sister
profit-and-loss arithmetic; calculating profit and loss; mercenary point of view