isolation; being alone; being friendless
worth; merit; value; good point; redeeming feature; saving grace
honestly speaking; in truth; in all honesty; to be frank
literary world; literary circles
towards (a destination); for the purpose of; with the goal of; targeting (a group, a demographic)
old-fashioned; ancient-looking; time-worn
disliked; hated; tendency; smack (of); distinction; discrimination
right or wrong; good or bad; quality; having both merits and demerits; having both advantages and disadvantages
to get used to; to grow accustomed to; to become skilled in; to become experienced at; to become tame; to become domesticated
(not) even once; (not) ever
withdrawal from a group; resignation; secession; unsubscribing (mailing list, etc.)
adopted daughter; foster daughter
together; jointly; at the same time; with; both
to paint; to plaster; to lacquer; to varnish; to spread; to smear
red; crimson; red-containing colour (e.g. brown, pink, orange); Red (i.e. communist); red light (traffic); red ink (i.e. in finance or proof-reading); (in) the red
letter (of alphabet); character; writing
to shut out; to bar; to lock out; to exclude
to make; to produce; to prepare (food); to brew (alcohol); to raise; to grow; to till
nonexistent; not being (there); not having; not
if anything; if pushed I'd say; if I had to say
stairs; stairway; staircase
to descend (e.g. a mountain); to go down; to alight (e.g. from bus); to get off; to step down; to retire; to be granted
sound of footsteps; sense or sign that something is approaching
failure; mistake; blunder
poor; pitiful; piteous; pitiable
to carry out to completion; to carry through; to see (something) through; to complete; to accomplish
geometric (progression, etc.)
president (of a society); chairman
thump-thump; bang-bang; pit-a-pat; to beat fast (of one's heart); to throb; to pound
terrible; dreadful; terrifying; surprising; startling; tremendous
stubborn; obstinate; pigheaded
Japan Business Federation; Keidanren
period; time; opportunity; chance; age; term (e.g. in office); session (e.g. of parliament)
to work (for); to be employed (at); to serve (as); to act (as); to conduct a religious service
financial world; business circles
shade; shadow; behind (something); other side; background; behind the scenes
prime minister (as the head of a cabinet government); premier; leading; overseeing; leader
to be in time (for); to serve (suit, meet) the purpose; to be good enough; to be enough