apron of a gun; cover for the touch-hole on a cannon or matchlock
beep; honk (car horn); buzz (buzzer); boo (wrong answer, like buzzer on quiz shows)
March; third month of the lunar calendar
May; fifth month of the lunar calendar
fluff; fuzz; nap; hachures; hatching
theme; subject; motif; theme for the Imperial New Year's Poetry Contest
well-versed (in); profoundly knowledgeable (about); high in the attainment (of)
to omit; to leave out; to overtake; to pass; to say; to speak
secret; private; surreptitious
person who sets questions (for an exam or quiz)
setting a question (for an exam, quiz, etc.); setting a theme (for composition of poetry)
fresh; (liquid) non-dairy creamer; coffee whitener
root (of a plant); root (of a tooth, hair, etc.); center (of a pimple, etc.); root (of all evil, etc.); source; one's true nature
apple (fruit); apple tree (Malus pumila)
Java (Indonesian island); Java coffee
to lower the curtain; to come to an end
self-evident truth; obvious fact; truism; axiom
not budging an inch; to stand one's ground
glaringly; dazzlingly; blazingly
flawless; absolute perfection
efficiently; skillfully; adeptly; adroitly; deftly
sudden turn; sudden change; (suddenly occurring) accident; emergency
labored breathing; laboured breathing; dyspnea; dyspnoea
death by suffocation; death by choking
withdrawal; discontinuance; abandoning; dropping
to bear in mind; to keep remembering; to note
awareness; realization; noticing
how far; to what extent; up to what point
mostly; almost; nearly; roughly; approximately; about
it was, wasn't it?; must have been; I think (it was); how might it have been?
unless one ...; if one does not ...
to inquire (about); to enquire; to ask; to interrogate; to question intensely; to grill (someone about something)
to attach; to join; to furnish (a house with); to wear; to put on; to keep a diary; to make an entry
chilly; unpleasantly cold