5 English vocab words (3)

 

a glitch – a technical problem. i.e. Ladies and gentlemen, please bear with us, there has been a technical glitch in our sound equipment, but we are confident we can fix it shortly. Or: The rollout of the new model of the cell phone was delayed because engineers discovered a glitch in the system and were not sure how to fix it.

to overhaul something – to fix something so that it works better. i.e. My car was pretty old and it was not running well, so I went to the mechanic and he was able to overhaul it so that it runs perfectly now. Or: Our accounting department has been working too slowly, so its supervisor decided to overhaul it by replacing some accountants and hiring new ones.

a temptation – something that makes you want to do something that you know you shouldn’t do. i.e. That cake was a real temptation for me to eat, but because I am on a diet I was able to resist the temptation and I am so proud of myself. Or: Quitting this stressful job was a real temptation, but because I need to make a living, I resisted the temptation and I still work here.

your carbon footprint – this means the amount of carbon dioxide you have used or are currently using. Carbon dioxide is a gas that results when electricity is generated or when you use a car. Global warming is due to the carbon dioxide building up in the atmosphere. Your footprint is the mark you leave with your foot as you walk, so your ‘carbon footprint’ is the carbon dioxide you cause to be created in the world as you live. i.e. I try to turn off the lights when I don’t need them, and I use a fan instead of air conditioning. In this way I hope to reduce my carbon footprint. Or: Joe is so irresponsible. He takes 30-minute hot baths, runs his air conditioning all the time, never shuts off his lights – his carbon footprint is huge.

a moocher – this is someone who tries to get lots of free things from others. i.e. Someone I know from Guangzhou decided to visit me in Shenzhen. Little did I know he was a moocher who would never pay for any of the meals we ate at restaurants or any of the tickets for events we attended. I was bleeding money while this moocher was in town because I paid for everything. Or: Bob’s brother-in-law came to stay for a week. The moocher ate all the food in the refrigerator and never bought anything for Bob’s family.