Upper-Intermediate — Set 94

Set 94 of Upper-Intermediate covers 5 words: evaluation, revenge, maintenance, loyalty, desperation. Each entry below includes its definition, an example sentence, and synonyms — practice them with the interactive cards above.

1. evaluation · noun/əˌvæljʊˈeɪʃən/

   careful thought of something before giving a decision

   Greenpeace carried out an evaluation of existing legal statements that could be referred to in order to stop cutting trees in rainforests.

   Synonyms: assessment, judgement, appraisal

2. revenge · noun/rəˈvɛndʒ/

   to punish someone in return for something bad they have done to you

   After their son was being shot on the street for nothing, the devastated parents tried hard to take their revenge by sending the murderer to a lifetime prison.

   Synonyms: vengeance, avenge, grievance

   Origin: late Middle English: from Old French revencher, from late Latin revindicare, from re- (expressing intensive force) + vindicare ‘claim, avenge’

3. maintenance · noun/ˈmeɪnt(ə)nəns/

   the act of keeping something in a good condition

   Having a good looking garden requires a routine maintenance from keeping the weeds under control to planting in the correct season.

   Synonyms: preservation, upkeep, conservation

   Origin: Middle English (in the sense ‘aiding a party in a legal action without lawful cause’): from Old French, from maintenir (see maintain)

4. loyalty · noun/ˈlɔɪ(ə)lti/

   being faithful to the people around you or your country

   Showing loyalty to someone for a lifetime is a really hard thing to do as you never know what future will bring to you.

   Synonyms: faithfulness, reliability, trustworthiness

5. desperation · noun/ˌdɛspəˈreɪʃən/

   a kind of worry that you have because you do not know how to tackle a bad situation

   As the parents did not hear from their daughter for 3 days, they called all the hospitals around their area in desperation in case there had been an accident.

   Synonyms: hopelessness, grief, sorrow

   Origin: late Middle English: from Old French, from Latin desperatio(n-), from the verb desperare (see despair)