Assignment 4

1. commencement (n) [COUNTABLE]
a graduation ceremony

2. address (n) [COUNTABLE]
a formal speech given by someone to a group of people, especially as part of an important occasion
ex: The president is to deliver a televised address to the country.

3. big deal (n) spoken
something that is very important
ex: Relax- it's not that big a deal if we're five minutes late.

4. drop out
to leave school, college, etc. without finishing your studies
ex: She started a degree but dropped out after only a year.

5. or so
about
ex: It'll cost $100 or so.

6. biological (adj)
connected with the processes that take place within living things

7. unwed (adj)
(used especially in newspapers) not married

8. except that (conj)
used for introducing a statement that makes what you have just said seem less true or less possible
ex: I'd be glad to help, except that I'm going to be away this weekend.

9. sign off (phrasal v) [INTRANSITIVE]
to end a broadcast on television or radio

10. relent (v) [INTRANSITIVE]
to change your mind about not allowing something to happen or not letting someone do something
ex: My parents finally relented and let us go to the party.

11. naive (adj)
a naive person lacks experience of life and tends to trust other people and believe things too easily

12. dogma (n) [COUNTABLE/UNCOUNTABLE]
a belief or set of beliefs that people are expected to accept without asking questions about them

13. farewell (interjection)
used for saying goodbye to someone when you do not expect to see them again for a long time

14. idealistic (adj)
believing very firmly in something which is good but probably impossible to achieve
ex: We were young and idealistic.

15. dorm (n) [COUONTABLE] INFORMAL
a dormitory, a large room containing many beds, especially in a boarding school or university

16. hitchhike (v) [INTRANSTIVE]
to travel by asking other people to take you in their car, by standing at the side of a road and holding out your thumb or a sign
ex: They hitchhiked around the coast of Ireland.

17. stumble into (phrasal v) [TRANSITIVE]
to become involved in something by accident
ex: He claims he stumbled into acting.

18. intuition (n) [COUNTABLE/UNCOUNTABLE]
an ability to know or understand something through your feelings, rather than by considering facts or evidence
ex: Archaeologists oftenuse their intuition to decide where to dig.

19. subtle (adj)
delicate and complicated in an attractive way

20. screw up (phrasal v) [INTRANSITIVE/TRANSITIVE] VERY INFORMAL
to make a serious mistake, or to spoil something, especially a situation
ex: He made a bad decision that screwed up his entire life.

Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address >> video
Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address >> transcript