Unit 2: Thinking and Learning

assess (v) to carefully consider a situation, person, or problem in We tried to assess his suitability for the job.
order to make a judgment
assess (v) to calculate what something costs or is worth Our agent will assess the value of your property.
assume (v) to believe that something is true, even though no one Everyone accepted she was telling the truth,
has told you or even though you have no proof although, in fact, this was quite a lot to assume.
baffle (v) if a problem, someone's behavior, etc baffles you, you Detectives remain baffled by these murders.
cannot understand it or solve it
biased (adj) preferring one person, thing, or idea to another in a It was a biased report.
way that is unfair
concentrate (v) to give all your attention to the thing you are doing
I was sleeping badly and finding it hard to
concentrate.
consider (v) to think about something carefully before making a She paused and considered for a moment.
decision or developing an opinion
consider (v) to have a particular opinion about someone or They consider it inevitable that some jobs will be
something lost.
contemplate (v) to consider doing something in the future I'm contemplating retirement next year.
contemplate (v) to think very carefully about something for a long time I haven't got time to sit around contemplating the
meaning of life.
cynical (adj) someone who is cynical believes that people care only I know that some of you are very cynical about
about themselves and are not sincere or honest, or the proposals.
expects things not to be successful or useful
deduce (v) to know something as a result of considering the Finding fossils far inland, he deduced that the
information or evidence that you have area had once been covered by water.
deliberate (v) to think about or discuss something very carefully, The judges deliberated for an hour before
especially before you make an important decision choosing the winner.
dilemma (n) a situation in which you have to make a difficult I'm in a dilemma over whether to tell him or not.
decision
discriminate (v) to treat someone unfairly because of their religion, Employers are not allowed to discriminate on the
race, or other personal features basis of gender.
discriminate (v) to recognize the difference between things: Long-range missile attacks simply cannot
discriminate between military and civilian
targets.
dubious (adj) not completely good, safe, or honest The story seemed a bit dubious to me.
dubious (adj) not sure about the truth or quality of something, or I'm very dubious about his ability to do the job.
whether you should do something
estimate (n) an amount that you guess or calculate using the According to official estimates, over 25% of
information available carbon emissions come from the United States.

estimate (n) a statement telling a customer how much money you The committee is currently getting estimates for
will charge if they employ you to do a particular piece repairs to the stonework.
of work
estimate (v) to say what you think an amount or value will be, It's difficult to estimate the cost of making your
either by guessing or by using available information to house safe.
calculate it
faith (n) strong belief in or trust of someone or something I'm delighted to know you have such faith in me.
gather (v) to believe that something is true, although no one has You're new here, I gather.
directly told you about it
genius (n) someone who is much more intelligent or skillful than She was a mathematical genius.
other people
genius (n) a very high level of skill or ability Baking allows you to show your creative genius.
grasp (v) to understand something He was finding it difficult to grasp the rules of
the game.
guesswork (n) the process of trying to find the answer to something It was a theory based on pure guesswork.
by guessing, or the answer found by using this method
hunch (n) a feeling that something is true or will happen, I've got a hunch there'll be an election soon.
although you do not know any definite facts about it
ideology (n) a system of ideas and principles on which a political or State control is a fundamental aspect of Marxist
economic theory is based ideology.
ingenious (adj) an ingenious plan, piece of equipment, etc uses new This is an ingenious device for opening bottles.
and clever ideas
inspiration (n) a sudden feeling of enthusiasm or a new idea that Dreams are a rich source of inspiration for some
helps you to do or create something writers.
intuition (n) an ability to know or understand something through Archaeologists often use their intuition to decide
your feelings, rather than by considering facts or where to dig.
evidence
justify (v) to show that there is a good reason for something, You'll be expected to justify your actions.
especially something that other people think is wrong
na'ive (adj) a nai’ve person lacks experience of life and tends to I was a naive 17-year-old at the time.
trust other people and believe things too easily
notion (n) an idea or understanding of something I haven't the faintest notion what you're talking
about.
optimistic (adj) someone who is optimistic is hopeful about the future She said that she was optimistic about the future
and tends to expect that good things will happen of the company.
optimistic (adj) based on beliefs that are too confident That's a very optimistic assessment of the overall
situation.
paradox (n) a person, thing, or situation that is strange because We get this apparent paradox of people migrating
they have features or qualities that do not normally to an area that has very high unemployment.
exist together
pessimistic (adj) someone who is pessimistic is not hopeful about the She said that she was pessimistic about the future
future and tends to expect that bad things will happen of the company.
pessimistic (adj) thinking that the worst thing will happen in every That's a very pessimistic assessment of the
situation overall situation.
plausible (adj) likely to be true, honest or suitable A bomb was the only plausible explanation for
the crash.
ponder (v) to think carefully about something for a long time I'm still pondering whether to tell Janine or not.
before reaching a decision
prejudiced (adj) someone who is prejudiced has an unreasonable Rafferty's reporting was clearly biased and
opinion or feeling about someone or something, prejudiced against the homeless.
especially hatred or fear of a particular group of
people
presume (v) to think something is true because it is likely, although I presume you've already ordered lunch.
you cannot be certain
query (n) a question that you ask because you want information We have a number of queries regarding delivery.
or because you are not certain about something
query (v) to ask a question about something because you have It is not for us to query his decisions.
doubts about it
query (v) to ask something 'Who would do such a thing?' he queried.
reckon (v) to believe that something is true I reckon there's something wrong with him.
reflect (v) to think about something carefully and seriously Josie reflected on how easily she could have been
killed.
sceptical/ having doubts about something that people think is Harrison approved the plan, but Riley remained
skeptical (adj) true or right skeptical.
speculate (v) to consider or discuss why something has happened We can only speculate on the reasons for his
sudden resignation.
suppose (v) to believe that something is probably true, based on She was about 35, Dexter supposed.
your experience, your knowledge, and any other
information that you have
academic (adj) relating to education, especially education in colleges The book brings together several academic
and universities subjects.
academic (adj) good at learning things by studying She's certainly bright, but she's not very
academic.
academic (adj) not relating to a real situation, and therefore not Given the lack of funding, any discussion of
relevant future plans was somewhat academic.
academic (n) someone who teaches or does research at a college or The meeting was chaired by a leading Japanese
university academic.
conscientious working hard and being careful to do things well Simon is a very conscientious worker.
(adj)
cram (v) to study hard in order to learn a lot in a short time, My exams are in two weeks, so I'm cramming at
especially for an examination the moment.
curriculum (n) the subjects that students study at a particular school Our mathematics curriculum is much broader
or college now.
distance learning a system in which students work at home with the help Are you doing the course by distance learning?
(n phr) of television and radio broadcasts and send work to
their teachers by post or e-mail
graduate (n) someone who has a degree from a university There aren't many careers for history graduates.
graduate (v) to complete your studies at a university or college, He graduated from Yale University in 1936.
usually by getting a degree
ignorant (adj) not knowing something that you should know or need I was ignorant of the terms used in business.
 to know
inattentive (adj) not giving much attention to someone or something I hate speaking in front of an inattentive
audience.
intellectual (adj) relating to the ability to think in an intelligent way and Students were asked which task represented the
to understand things, especially difficult or greatest intellectual challenge.
complicated ideas and subjects
intellectual (adj) well educated and interested in art, science, literature, Though not intellectual, my mother was highly
etc at an advanced level intelligent.
intellectual (n) someone who is well educated and interested in art, Though not an intellectual, my mother was
science, literature, etc at an advanced level highly intelligent.
intelligent (adj) good at thinking clearly and quickly, at understanding Surely an intelligent person like you can deal
difficult ideas and subjects, and at gaining and using with this?
knowledge
intensive (adj) involving a lot of teaching or training in a short time It's an intensive language course for beginners.
knowledgeable knowing a lot about many different subjects or about He's extremely knowledgeable about business
(adj) one particular subject and finance.
lecture (n) a talk to a group of people about a particular subject, The course will be taught through a series of
especially at a college or university lectures and seminars.
lecture (v) to give a lecture or a series of lectures She lectures on Greek Literature at the Sorbonne.
mock exam (n an examination you take for practice before an We've got our mock GCSE exams next month.
phr) important examination
plagiarise (v) to take someone else's work, ideas, or words as if they They accused her of plag1ansing her speech.
were your own
self-study (n) work that you do without the help of a teacher I have to do a lot of self-study on this course.
seminar (n) a class at a college or university in which a small We had a very interesting seminar on climate
group of students discusses a subject with a teacher change.
special needs (n the particular needs of people who are physically or If a student has special needs, he or she will be
phr) mentally disabled offered, additional classes.
tuition (n) the work that a teacher does when they teach a He's been getting private tuition in French.
particular subject, especially to one person or a small
group
tutorial (n) a lesson in which a small group of students discusses a We had a very interesting tutorial on climate
subject with a tutor, especially at a university or change.
college