Intermediate — Set 20

Set 20 of Intermediate covers 5 words: participate, annoy, disagree, afford, encourage. Each entry below includes its definition, an example sentence, and synonyms — practice them with the interactive cards above.

1. participate · verb/pɑrˈtɪsəˌpeɪt/

   take part in

   We expect all the member countries to fully participate in the project.

   Synonyms: join, be involved, take a role

   Origin: late 15th century (as adjective): from Latin participat- ‘shared in’, from the verb participare, based on pars, part- ‘part’ + capere ‘take’

2. annoy · verb/əˈnɔɪ/

   to do something that will upset someone or cause someone to get angry; irritate

   His constant talking started to annoy me and I could not work any more.

   Synonyms: irritate, be a nuisance to

   Origin: Middle English (in the sense ‘be hateful to’): from Old French anoier (verb), anoi (noun), based on Latin in odio in the phrase mihi in odio est ‘it is hateful to me’

3. disagree · verb/ˌdɪsəˈɡri/

   to have a different opinion

   Mary and Robert disagree about almost everything but they still work together.

   Synonyms: argue, debate

   Origin: late 15th century (in disagree (sense 2), also in the sense ‘refuse to agree to’): from Old French desagreer

4. afford · verb/əˈfɔrd/

   to have enough money to do something

   That was the hardest time of my life. I was even unable to afford my rent and stayed at one of my closest friend's house for over a month.

   Origin: late Old English geforthian, from ge- (prefix implying completeness) + forthian ‘to further’, from forth. The original sense was ‘promote, perform, accomplish’, later ‘manage, be in a position to do’

5. encourage · verb/ɪnˈkərɪdʒ/

   give someone the courage and support to do something

   My high school German teacher encouraged me to learn another language. That's how I started learning Italian.

   Synonyms: support, help, motivate

   Origin: Middle English (formerly also as incourage): from French encourager, from en- ‘in’ + corage ‘courage’