surroundings; environs; circumference
plain; frank; candid; open; direct; straightforward
pretending to respect someone while in fact staying distant; keeping at arm's length; avoiding (something unpleasant); shying away from; giving the batter an "intentional walk"
to whisper; to murmur; to rumor; to rumour
slander; bad-mouthing; abuse; insult; speaking ill (of)
to shift one's attention to; to shift one's focus on
to deceive; to falsify; to dodge; to beg the question (issue, difficulties); to varnish over; to gloss over
if you think about it; come to think of it
to cut down; to slay; to truncate; to round down; to omit; to discard
to go through; to suffer; to experience (something unpleasant)
though imperfect; somehow; somehow or other
to come along; to come around; to turn up; to arrive at the present; to get where one is; to have been doing something (for a period of time)
pure; true; genuine; unmixed
inexperienced; immature; green; grassy-smelling; smelling of raw vegetation
effort; exertion; endeavour; endeavor; hard work; striving
force; strength; capability; ability; efficacy; effect; effort
to grant (request, wish); to answer (prayer); to fulfill (conditions); to meet (requirements)
to come true (of a wish, prayer, etc.); to be realized; to suit (e.g. a purpose); to meet (wishes, ideals, etc.); to match (implies competition); to rival
considerably; not a little; in no small numbers
memory; sense; experience
so to speak; so to call it; as it were
the past; bygone days; one's past (that one would prefer remained secret); past (tense); preterit; previous life
surrounding at a distance
quiet; calm; easily; comfortably; distant; far-off
to not make good use of (e.g. advice); to disregard; to treat as useless; to treat with disdain
very; awfully; exceedingly; (not) at all; by no means; simply (cannot)
to cut; to cut through; to sever (connections, ties); to turn off (e.g. the light); to terminate (e.g. a conversation); to hang up (the phone); to punch (a ticket)
to hate; to dislike; to loathe
far from; anything but; not at all; let alone; to say nothing of; not to mention
in a whisper; in a low voice; in undertones
to reach the point that; to come to be that; to turn into
(not) ever; (not) by any means; (not) in the least; (not) in any way; (not) at all
now that you mention it; come to think of it; that reminds me; on that subject; speaking of which
research society; study class (e.g. religious); seminar (e.g. presentation of research)
to come together; to merge; to fit; to match; to be profitable; to be equitable
easy; trifling; harmless; nothing of the sort; not at all
to dress (oneself in); to attire oneself in; to adorn; to pretend; to feign; to affect
(of a lie, etc.) obvious; transparent
on countless occasions; many a time
once; one time; temporarily; for a moment; one degree; one tone
direct; immediate; personal; firsthand
to make snide remarks; to put into bad mood