#3 COVID: One year on

Link:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english/ep-210225

Vocabulary

1. pandemic: occurring over a wide geographic area and typically affecting a significant proportion of the population

ex: The 1918 flu was pandemic and claimed millions of lives.

2. take hold: to become effective, established, or popular

ex: The change in the law has not yet taken hold.

3. wimpy: not strong, brave, or confident

ex: Some people are horribly wimpy about sickness.

4. sheer: used to emphasize how very great, important, or powerful a quality or feeling is; nothing except

ex: Words could not convey the sheer terror of the experience.

5. kicks in: to begin operating or having an effect: get started

ex: The county will be able to spend more when a new tax kicks in next year.

6. genome: the complete set of genetic material of a human, animal, plant, or other living thing

Although the copy numbers of the vector genome were reduced, our data did not rule out promoter shut-off completely.

7. feeble: markedly lacking in strength

ex: We heard a feeble cry for help.

8. take stock: is to think carefully about a situation or event and form an opinion about it, so that you can decide what to do

ex: After two years spent teaching overseas, she returned home for a month to take stock of her life.

9. outbreak: a sudden appearance of something, esp. of a disease or something else dangerous or unpleasant

ex: First, before the outbreak, a large proportion of the population was susceptible because of the geographical characteristics of the health district.

10. lockdown: an emergency situation in which people are not allowed to freely enter, leave, or move around in a building or area because of danger

ex: The school has been placed on lockdown this morning while authorities investigate a bomb threat.