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Capital
A city that is the center of government of a country
Washington DC is the capital of the US.
Nickname
Informal name.
Dick is Richard’s nickname
Crime
Illegal activity.
Stealing is a crime.
Chief
Person in charge of a group.
Police chief.
The US President is the Commander in Chief of the arm forces.
Increase
Things that control what people can do by imposing limits.
There are shortages of many things today because of constraints in the production and distribution of goods.
Because of financial constraints the company is facing, there will be no salary increase this year.
Consume
Eat, use up.
People are consumed with worries about the economy.
The lion must consume between 5 and 12 kg of meat each day.
This car consumes a lot of fuel.
Fertilizer
A natural or chemical substance that is given to plants to help them grow better.
Some fertilizers are made with phosphate rock.
Former
Before the present time
Russia was part of the former Soviet Union (USSR).
Disrupt Disruption Disruptive
To prevent something from continuing
The dog disrupted the ball game.
Video streaming is a disruptive technology. It made video rental service obsolete.
Hardship
Difficult conditions of life.
During the economic recessions, some people suffer great hardships.
Many people in the world are still living in hardships; they are suffering hunger, homelessness, etc.
Indexation
Varying a payment according to the variation of the inflation index.
In Canada, government pensions are indexed to inflation.
Inflation Inflate
Continuous rise in prices / Filling something with air.
The inflation rate in Zimbabwe was so high, the government issued One hundred trillion Dollar bills.
Part balloons are inflated with helium to make them float.
Measure
A method of dealing with a situation/ To find out the size of an object.
The government have developed measures to limit the spread of the new virus.
This table measures 1 meter by 1.5 meters.
Mortgage
Money that a person borrows to buy a house and pays back in several payments .
With higher interest rate, mortgage payments will exceed the budget of many people .
Nutrient
A substance that plants or animals need in order to live and grow.
Potash, phosphate are nutrients used in the production of fertilizer.
Rice needs nutrients, light and water.
Milk is a nutrient for babies.
Odd in Canada is an odd sight.
Probability, chance/ Uneven number/ Strange
The odd of an economic soft landing is low right now.
1,3,5,7 are odd numbers
An exterior palm tree seen
Preserve
To keep and to protect.
The independence of the central bank must be preserved.
We must preserve the earth, it’s our only planet.
Poll
Election/ opinion survey.
The US will go to the polls in November 2022 to elect new members of the Congress.
Opinion polls are showing that the opposition will win control of Congress in November.
Ratchet – Ratchet up
A ratchet is a device that allows movement in one direction only, by one small step with each movement of the lever.
Ratchet up the interest rate is to increase it gradually.
Recession
A period when the economy is contracting and conditions for business are bad.
Rising interest rate and high prices of goods will create a recession.
Remote
Far, isolated.
Hanga Roa is a very remote island, far out in the Pacific Ocean.
His chance for promotion is remote, he doesn’t have management skills.
Ripple
Small waves on the water surface, sometimes caused by a water drop or a stone that fell into the water.
Ripple off: Spread out like a ripple.
The increase in food price will ripple off into other areas, for example, workers will ask for higher wages because they need more money to buy food; then higher wages to cause increases in the prices of other products, etc.
Rough ride
A violent ride.
IDIOM: In for a rough ride – Will find many difficulties.
We are in for a rough ride in the days ahead, because the economy will enter a recession.
Segment
Part of a whole, such as a circle, a market, a population.
In the event of a recession, some segments of the population will suffer more than others.
Wooden bowls are often made by joining segments of wood.
Senior
Higher in rank, older.
A general is a senior officer.
Stores usually offer discount to senior citizens (65 years – old or older).
Soft landing
A mild slowdown of the economy/ A gradual, smooth landing of an airplane or a dropping object.
With rising prices and high interest rate, the chance of a soft landing of the economy is small.
The skydiver glides down to a soft landing.
Suppress – Suppression
To end something by force/ To prevent something from being seen or expressed.
Photo: Forest fire suppression from the air
People fear voter suppression in some US States.
The sentence was suppressed from the speech delivered by the author.
Take heat
Endure the pressure, stress.
The government will take a lot of heat from the opposition for this scandal (The opposition will put a lot of pressure on the government).
IDIOM: If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen: If you can’t endure the stress, leave or give up.