I. noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a picnic spot/place (= a place that is suitable for a picnic )
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We found a beautiful picnic spot.
a spot check (= a quick check of one thing in a group done to obtain information )
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They did a spot check on 160 vehicles to see how many passengers were wearing seat belts.
a tourist destination/centre/spot
▪
Egypt became a popular tourist destination in the nineteenth century.
a vacation spot (= a place for a vacation )
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The island is my favorite vacation spot.
be glued to the spot British English
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Sarah was glued to the spot, terrified by the scene in front of her.
beauty spot
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Guests will be able to visit some of the local beauty spots.
blind spot
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I have a blind spot where computers are concerned.
find/spot/notice an error
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His accountant spotted several errors in his tax return.
hot spot
▪
Many microwaves heat unevenly, leading to hot spots in the milk.
lonely place/road/spot etc
make/do/carry out etc spot checks
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We carry out spot checks on the vehicles before they leave the depot.
night spot
▪
my favourite New York night spot
parking space/place/spot
▪
I couldn’t find a parking space near the shops.
secluded garden/spot/beach etc
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We sunbathed on a small secluded beach.
spot check
▪
spot checks on quality
spot the difference (= see the difference )
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It’s easy to spot the difference between real and imitation leather.
spotted dick
the exact position/location/spot etc
▪
The satellite pictures showed the enemy’s exact location.
trouble spot
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She’s reported from many of the world’s trouble spots.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADJECTIVE
black
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It has olive-green skin with black spots or rings and lives near water or rivers.
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Mr Bean's mate was bringing out an extraordinary white horse covered in black spots .
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With increasing frequency, it seems, the good talking-to becomes a permanent black spot on a school record.
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Jim, if I get the black spot , you go to that doctor.
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We examined the broken ends of the rattan stay and found black spots of mould growing inside the strands.
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But he was wearing a bikini, a pink bikini with big black spots all over it.
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As she moved to obey, the black spot of the gun followed her unerringly across the sitting room.
blind
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The trouble was, Tweed was thinking, Paula had a blind spot where Dalby was concerned.
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But even Hymes has his blind spots .
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It was the blind spot of the internationalist Left.
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It is as though the panel has developed a blind spot which does not admit the possibility that the newcomer might win.
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He knew if some one was standing in the blind spot directly behind him, he was in trouble.
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Finlayson spent fifteen minutes teaching Tribe the signals, and describing the blind spots of enemy aircraft.
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The queue shuffled into a blind spot between two viewports.
bright
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This and our unbelievable performance against Northtown have been the only bright spots in another nightmare week.
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Yet the South Carolina economy does have bright spots .
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The Slater boys used to be the brightest spot in my day.
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But for every bright spot in the region there was a laggard.
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During the evening of that Christmas Day came a really bright spot as far as I was concerned.
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I kept on seeing little bright spots , so I kept on turning my legs.
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Cadney one of the few bright spots .
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The body is reddish-brown covered with small bright blue spots that are more numerous toward the rear.
dark
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When the fresh retina was dissected under dim red light, the fovea was usually visible as a dark spot .
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An increase in the number of dark spots on the sun marks such a period of high solar activity.
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A small dark spot , very like a mole.
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Something seemed to be absorbing the bright ultraviolet glow in dark spots 25 to 50 miles wide.
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In summer the coat tends to become dappled with darker spots .
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If skies are clear, find a dark spot with a wide view of the sky, relax and enjoy.
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This fish is dar above with blue spots and light below with dark brown spots.
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They are greenish gray to yellowish with many large round dark spots .
exact
▪
He wasn't interested in an examination by torchlight of the exact spot where Harry Lawrence and the contact had fallen.
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And at Niagara, guides pocketed tips by pointing to the exact spot where Sam Patch had made his last successful leap.
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Hundreds of temple volunteers ensured that you were seated in the exact spot marked out for you.
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The exact spot on the bridge table the gold vase belonged.
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They selected the exact spot which bisects exactly the continents and oceans.
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Lickliter followed by hitting his drive in the exact same spot .
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All I could see was the posts and the exact spot centrally between them where I was going to touch down.
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You can shew me the exact spot and that will save time.
high
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Only high spot from what should have been a red letter day was the terrific £300 raised for the local Hartlepool hospice.
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After pulling himself to a higher spot , he called again, got through and was plucked from the mountain.
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The high spot of the evening was a photograph of Russell's office wall with all its railway memorabilia.
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But these are only a few of the high spots .
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Recover the outline and high spots by removing the patina from them with the grease remover or polishing powder.
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That gave it a high spot on her list of things to put out of commission. 0314.
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Below: High spot of many a visitor's trip is aerobatics in a Tiger Moth.
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The high spot of the tour, however, was to be an audience with the Pope.
hot
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Palm-fringed beaches, guaranteed gorgeous weather and an equally warm local welcome make it one of the finest holiday hot-spots .
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Wilson then proposed that hot spots all over the globe possessed this same steadiness.
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But melanoma country is any hot spot .
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The clusters of hot spots were yet another case of inside affecting outside.
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Now it claims to be receiving up to ten a week, with Glasgow and Yorkshire emerging as illegal software hot spots .
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His unit was shipping out for the latest hot spot , Formosa, in a couple of weeks.
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Places that some people somehow seem to pass by, in search of more recently heard of hot spots .
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In all the years since Wilson proposed his theory of hot spots , plumes have remained elusive, practically imaginary structures.
lonely
▪
It was a lonely spot , and no-one would know for a few days.
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They retreated to keep under cover in some dark lonely spot .
only
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This and our unbelievable performance against Northtown have been the only bright spots in another nightmare week.
▪
Of course, Skewers is a laid back, lunch-\#only spot .
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Their only bright spot , thus far, being a 5-1 defeat of Swindon.
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The only bright spot was the news that Lewis should be fit to bowl in the final Test.
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Its only weak spot is in coping with bigger potholes, which send a jarring crash through the bodyshell.
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The only really important spot is Soapy Finnegan this evening.
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Hit the post, penalties turned down ... The only bright spots seem to be Strach's comeback and a 3-0 win.
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The only bright spot was when Diana decided to give one of her presents away to a rather irascible nightwatchman.
red
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Jessica felt her eyes close but could see the light, two hot white searchlights, hot red spots .
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Check your feet daily for cuts, sores, bumps and red spots , especially if you have diabetes.
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Various other spots were tried on the yellow beak, the red spot causing the greatest response.
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They were sunfish, beautiful gold-and-green fish with a bright red spot on the edge of each gill cover.
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When he looked at it, there was blood oozing from two split knuckles. Red spots had splashed across the picture.
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This one is black with red spots .
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Her face would be pale except for two red spots high on her cheekbones.
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The red spots in the caudal peduncle region are one of the unique characteristics of this species.
small
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Guppies suffering from this disease are covered in small white spots .
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The system requires depth at the small forward spot , which the Warriors lack, and good ball-handlers.
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When a complementary wavelength is used the response to the small spot only occurs at the offset of the stimulus.
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The body is reddish-brown covered with small bright blue spots that are more numerous toward the rear.
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We realise that this is simply a small sacred spot in the midst of environmental carnage.
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In one large room, dancers could reserve a small spot on the floor to work on solo numbers.
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Both sexes have a small black spot in the midline at the base of the tail stalk.
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These black markings can be in the form of small black spots or larger markings.
soft
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Chub I have a very soft spot in my heart for chub.
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The length of the piece tends to display the soft spots of dystopian fiction: plot improbabilities, claustrophobic metaphors.
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She had a soft spot for Jimmy.
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To find your soft spots , read the following rules and determine which ones you consistently break.
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However, abscesses should never be lanced until there is an obvious soft spot in the centre of the swelling.
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Most recently, Matt identified soft spots in our proposals including old and irrelevant information.
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More experimentally-minded workers have since found many soft spots in what had seemed a solid concept.
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Smart, alert, good hands, finds the soft spots .
sore
▪
In more serious cases your doctor may prescribe you an oral antibiotic which will reduce the number of sore and inflamed spots .
▪
This is a sore spot with me.
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And now she had pierced her again in this sore spot .
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Tom gently washed Willie's body again and smoothed witch-hazel on to the sore spots .
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It's a warm good wine; it hits some little sore spot .
tight
▪
I think also that three other Hearthwares shall come, in case we need to fight our way out of some tight spot .
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He had been in many tight spots during his life, and guarding a warehouse did not trouble him unduly.
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Eight extra bullets in a tight spot could mean the difference between life and death.
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BThis is one of the tight spots of the restaurant business.
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Drawbacks are the introduction of a bit more slop in the system and the potential for reduced access in tight spots .
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Or a mite more forgiving in a tight spot ?
▪
You're in a tight spot .
top
▪
He led the ballot, getting enough votes to claim the top spot as head cheerleader.
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Norton seconds held Sunderland to 3-3, so the Wearsiders slipped off the top spot .
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What we will never know is what price Ford will have to pay to get it to the top spot .
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Not so long ago Eamon Darcy was edged out of the top nine automatic spots , losing by a matter of a few points.
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Essex as well as being the champion county take the top spot from Middlesex.
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Gourley and Letham hold top spots in their respective sections.
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Both managers were content with a result which leaves United in top spot and Swindon third.
very
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He had passed by the very spot only the other day, and it had brought tears to his eyes.
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Chub I have a very soft spot in my heart for chub.
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Which is why we're meeting here at this very spot .
▪
Three years ago a tortoise of ours got killed like that and on just about this very spot .
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As if, on this very spot a hundred years ago ... what?
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This is a very popular spot for picnics, and cars are prohibited at the rest house.
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I'd stood near that very spot with a chum and rejoiced at Wilson's victory.
weak
▪
Rheumatic fever as a child, so the infection settled there, on the weakest spot .
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Fogarty told me he was eleven when he understood his own weak spot .
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If this type of interviewer senses a weak spot he or she will hang on in there - mercilessly.
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So while the weather is reasonably dry, check the exterior for weak spots in the defences.
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A young teenage girl often becomes hypercritical of her mum-and knows exactly how to hit her weak spots .
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Its only weak spot is in coping with bigger potholes, which send a jarring crash through the bodyshell.
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He had two fundamental weak spots .
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Find a weak spot and pick at it.
white
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For true white spot , W.S.3 is an excellent remedy, and there is no need to isolate the fish during treatment.
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I sat in my seat watching little white spots drift in front of me.
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Guppies suffering from this disease are covered in small white spots .
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Very pale green spots on the head and white spots on the body over a brown ground color identify this species.
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The next day the fungus had dropped off and there were less white spots .
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The rest of the fish is light ta or white with orange spots .
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A white spot on a yellow model gathered very little more response.
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Thrush typically produces white spots on the palate.
■ NOUN
beauty
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She wears a lot of makeup and even a false beauty spot on her cheek.
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Ted, who has lived for over thirty years in Yorkshire, will guide you to a different beauty spot every day.
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The beauty spot brings back horrific memories for the couple; memories of a night they were not meant to survive.
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Guests can enjoy trips to local beauty spots , dancing at a local hotel, and visits to local theatres.
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He attacked the couple as they cuddled in their car at a remote beauty spot .
check
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Perhaps random spot checks could be carried out in the same way as breathalyser tests.
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The cutters often worked in a vacuum, so to speak, relying on spot checks and routine searches during their patrols.
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Most drivers pass the spot check , not so this Volkswagen.
market
▪
There is both a spot market and a forward market in most currencies.
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The recent increases were in line with movements in the Rotterdam spot market .
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They found that, for each index, the futures market led the spot market by a few minutes.
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Futures prices rise too, pulling the spot market behind them.
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In addition you will also find the oil spot market , the energy future exchange, the grain exchange and the fruit auction.
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This additional information is then available to traders in the spot market .
night
▪
Top-O Smart, stylish night spot .
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She looked thoroughly sophisticated, the type to want to hit the night spots .
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Buster Brown's A dashing and exciting night spot .
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The most renowned of these pipe bands travel periodically to the cities, where they perform in night spots for tourists.
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The Lord Darnley One of the city's most exciting night spots .
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Top O'Night Club Sophisticated night spot with style and taste, wide range of wines and whisky.
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Scarborough has six leading night spots .
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Buster Brown's Enjoyment is the keynote of this popular Edinburgh night spot , with exotic drinks a speciality.
penalty
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Craig Smith put them ahead before Kevin Harmison levelled from the penalty spot .
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It too will have extra time and kicks from the penalty spot if necessary.
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But for Stuart Gault's priceless accuracy from the penalty spot , Derry's cause would now almost certainly be lost.
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He was fouled by Michael Goddard in the box and Barney Bowers duly obliged from the penalty spot .
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United took the lead from the penalty spot .
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Referee Worrall pointed to the penalty spot .
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And moments later more trouble hit Everton as Alan Shearer collected his seventh goal in eight games from the penalty spot .
price
▪
In contrast, the future spot price can not be known with certainty precisely because it is a future price.
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However, the correlations between current changes in the spot price and lagged changes in the futures price were low.
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The width of this band depends not only on f, but also on the spot price and the riskless interest rate.
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Before the delivery date, the futures price could be above or below the spot price.
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Therefore, the introduction of futures will increase the amount of information reflected in the spot price .
rate
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The spot rate is also known as the basic rate or telegraphic transfer rate.
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There is a second condition required for a rational agent to be indifferent between equal forward and expected future spot rates .
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The forward rates quoted by banks in the foreign exchange market stand either at a premium or discount in relation to the spot rate.
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Banks quote spot rates against the dollar.
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The forward rate may not be equal to the expected future spot rate.
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Premiums are therefore deducted from the spot rate .
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A premium is deducted from the existing spot rate .
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This is guaranteed by the bank, irrespective of what happens to the spot rate over the next three months.
trouble
▪
Their occupational duty, as they saw it, was equally clear-sufficient numbers and mobile reserves for the trouble spots .
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In the event of a threat to security, they would grab their helmets and weapons and rush to the trouble spot .
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As the verb is the first trouble spot encountered in the sentence, the substitution is made there.
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Undeterred, the band went sight-seeing around the various trouble spots , getting their pictures taken besides security gates and confused-looking squaddies.
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Typically, the software comes with a pre-programmed database of known Internet trouble spots .
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The list of trouble spots is endless.
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Local News Editor Rona Johnson was especially effective directing reporters to new trouble spots .
■ VERB
change
▪
The leopard did not change its spots , its instincts or its appetites.
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We are happy to report, therefore, that Jaguar Man appears to have changed his spots .
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Agitatedly, it changed its spots from orange to blue to green and, finally, flushed perfectly purple.
choose
▪
As buckles are amongst my favourite finds this was a good enough reason to choose this spot for a further search.
▪
Setting the two filter angles corresponds to choosing spots to rub off.
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Again, when you do let it run free, try to choose a quiet spot away from people as much as possible.
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He chose the same spot by himself the next evening.
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Siegfried had chosen his spot well - half way between two watch-towers.
find
▪
Shortly afterwards they found the ideal spot .
▪
She finds her spot outside the three-point line and lofts the ball, pushing from her fingertips.
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He found the spot where the three reeds were growing and at a single blow cut down all three with his sword.
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People who hit a $ 50 jackpot likely have found their favorite spot .
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The body of Angela Stewart was found at a picnic spot near Farnham.
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It takes nearly two hours, but they finally find the spot .
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More experimentally-minded workers have since found many soft spots in what had seemed a solid concept.
▪
You won't find this at trendier spots .
hit
▪
The cognac was not quite up to Skipton's fine Napoleonic standards, but it hit the spot with unerring accuracy.
▪
It is one reason why the Clippers seem to hit a dry spot offensively in most games.
▪
She looked thoroughly sophisticated, the type to want to hit the night spots .
▪
Remember when Wilkinson hit that rough spot in the board meeting?
▪
A young teenage girl often becomes hypercritical of her mum-and knows exactly how to hit her weak spots .
▪
Finally, doctors hit the right spot , and the sound of angry hornets filled the operating room.
▪
It just hit the right spot .
▪
So why does it shock us and shake us so badly when we hit a tough spot ?
mark
▪
Flowers yesterday marked the spot where Mr Reed died.
▪
And I marked out the spots .
▪
The slip knot should be marked with a spot of colour on the line.
▪
They marked the spots and checked to be sure the radios were working, then let the turtles go.
▪
Two stones, standing vertically, mark the spot .
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He returned the ball to the marked spot on the fairway and pulled a club from the bag.
▪
All that remained was the odd burnt-out farmhouse to mark the spot where civilisation had once existed.
▪
Pilots of the planes had planned to drop bouquets, funeral wreaths and a smoke flare to mark the spot .
park
▪
After a peg-legged walk from the parking spot , I arrived to an empty foyer.
▪
Nearest parking spot appears to be in Utah.
▪
The city could take back the 110 additional diplomat parking spots it created under the pact, Mastro said.
▪
Miguel crawled up the street slowly, slipping into a parking spot a block down from the fire.
▪
Why should I have to pay $ 40 for a parking spot ?
▪
There was a parking spot for us right out front.
▪
They manage to lead urbane lives while not having to search the block foolishly for a parking spot .
pick
▪
I think on all these courses you've got to pick your spots .
▪
He had picked the spot perfectly.
▪
Impromptu teams are picked on the spot , with a knowledgeable captain to ensure a balance.
▪
It was one of those cases where we trusted the ground guys to pick the spot .
▪
Sunderland reacted quickly to the set-back, with club record singing Don Goodman calmly picking his spot to equalise a minute later.
▪
Miguel told him, picking a spot opposite the car seat for the desk.
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Now, as momentum picks up, vacant spots downtown are filling in, like a jigsaw puzzle falling into place.
▪
Yellow flight, this is Preacher Six. Pick your spots .
point
▪
And at Niagara, guides pocketed tips by pointing to the exact spot where Sam Patch had made his last successful leap.
▪
But after deliberation, referee Hart pointed to the spot and Molby cracked in the penalty.
▪
He points to a spot of oil in the water and hurls his harpoon and strikes the spot dead center.
root
▪
For a moment, she was rooted to the spot .
▪
He stood rooted to the spot .
▪
The noise hypnotised the Wooltons, rooting them to the spot .
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He had covered half the distance when a loud, commanding voice rooted him to the spot .
▪
After all, you don't want to be rooted to the spot in front of a microphone - you want to perform!
▪
An accountant is rooted to the spot as sheets of glass plummet towards her.
▪
They'd just set foot back in the ship proper when the burst of machine gun fire rooted them to the spot .
stand
▪
I stood frozen to the spot unable to do anything.
▪
That occurred some seven hundred years ago, yet I stood upon that same spot where he died.
▪
He knew if some one was standing in the blind spot directly behind him, he was in trouble.
▪
He stood rooted to the spot .
▪
I remember standing in the same spot two years before without two nickels to rub together.
▪
By the time the rope went tight I had been standing in the same spot for nearly an hour and a half.
▪
Black, taking his cue from the darkness, stands up from his spot and extends his hand to Blue.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
X marks the spot
a leopard can't change its spots
be riveted to the spot
break out in spots/a rash/a sweat etc
bright spot
▪
The show has a few bright spots, but is mainly uninspiring.
▪
But for every bright spot in the region there was a laggard.
▪
But now even those bright spots may be fading.
▪
I kept on seeing little bright spots, so I kept on turning my legs.
▪
Redland was a bright spot, up 34p at 481p, after figures and the Steetley merger.
▪
The money was the one bright spot the evening had produced so far, the carrot to the threat of the stick.
▪
The only bright spot was the news that Lewis should be fit to bowl in the final Test.
▪
This and our unbelievable performance against Northtown have been the only bright spots in another nightmare week.
▪
Yet the South Carolina economy does have bright spots.
can see/spot/tell sth a mile off
▪
But I think he's lovely, and you can tell a mile off that he likes you.
▪
He's a hawkeye, and can spot one a mile off, like that faraway kestrel.
▪
Our sportsdesk can spot from a mile off a person who can not tell an in-swinger from a bouncer.
change your spots
▪
Agitatedly, it changed its spots from orange to blue to green and, finally, flushed perfectly purple.
▪
The leopard did not change its spots, its instincts or its appetites.
▪
We are happy to report, therefore, that Jaguar Man appears to have changed his spots.
come out in spots/a rash etc
▪
Tell them you've come out in a rash, or something.
have a soft spot for sb
▪
Although I have a soft spot for him after his super-game Hennessy win, he does not appeal greatly as 7-2 favourite.
▪
I do have a soft spot for Britain's best-selling car, the Ford Fiesta.
▪
The reason why I have a soft spot for this notebook, he wrote.
hit the spot
▪
A cold beer sure would hit the spot.
▪
The cognac was not quite up to Skipton's fine Napoleonic standards, but it hit the spot with unerring accuracy.
in a tight corner/spot
▪
And now here was I in a tight corner and was I going to use violence?
▪
Did people in tight corners always turn to her?
▪
Drawbacks are the introduction of a bit more slop in the system and the potential for reduced access in tight spots.
▪
Eight extra bullets in a tight spot could mean the difference between life and death.
▪
However, employers could find themselves in a tight corner if they attempted to increase employee contributions or reduce benefits.
▪
Or a mite more forgiving in a tight spot?
▪
The better choice here is a crescent-pattern spanner which has angled jaws so that it can be reversed in tight corners.
▪
You're in a tight spot.
knock spots off sb/sth
▪
It certainly knocks spots off anything attempted by the newly-Thatcherising Conservatives in the run-up to the 1979 election.
rooted to the spot/floor/ground etc
▪
Ashi found herself rooted to the spot in disbelief as she watched the threshing legs of her daughter.
▪
For a few moments he had felt rooted to the floor and had been unable to move.
▪
For a moment, she was rooted to the spot.
▪
He stands still, his feet rooted to the ground, his knees locked.
▪
He stood rooted to the spot.
▪
So startled was he by this sudden onslaught, Ryker momentarily froze, rooted to the spot.
▪
Unable to move, Philippa remained rooted to the spot.
sore point/spot/subject (with sb)
▪
And now she had pierced her again in this sore spot.
▪
Finally, there are plans to provide custodians a sore point to enable the churches to open for two hours a day.
▪
Graduate entry with resultant opportunities for promotion was then - as now - an especially sore point.
▪
It is still a sore point with both grandparents that neither Alice nor Henry have been baptized.
▪
The potential restriction of physician income is a major sore point.
▪
This is a sore spot with me.
▪
Tom gently washed Willie's body again and smoothed witch-hazel on to the sore spots.
weak points/spots
▪
Are you naturally more cautious, preferring to test the strength of your enemy before striking at his weak points?
▪
He had not dealt with the bishop's weak points nor, according to Hooker, had he carried the audience with him.
▪
However, in most of these, effusive approval is showered upon her, and her weak points are minimized.
▪
Positive interpretation of weaknesses Be honest about assessing your weak points as well.
▪
Scattered in pursuit, they provided perfect weak points for our counterattack.
▪
That is why molecular studies designed to find the weak points in the viral attack must continue, Trono said.
▪
We examined our weak points, and turned them into strengths.
▪
What are his strong and weak points?
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪
a 30-second spot on the local radio station
▪
a chicken-pox spot
▪
Detectives found a few spots of blood on the carpet.
▪
Do you mind cleaning the grease spots behind the stove?
▪
Gabel's wins earned him a spot on the Olympic team.
▪
grease spots
▪
He has a bald spot on the top of his head.
▪
It looked like a perfect spot for a picnic.
▪
It took me about twenty minutes to find a parking spot .
▪
Las Vegas has a growing reputation as an entertainment and vacation spot .
▪
Oh no, I've got a spot on my new shirt!
▪
Our cat is covered with big brown spots.
▪
People had left flowers at the spot where the police officer was killed.
▪
Put some of the hardier plants outdoors in a protected spot .
▪
She agreed to meet him at the same spot the next evening.
▪
The essay is good, but a few spots still need some work.
▪
The letter was covered in small ink spots, as though his hand had been shaking as he wrote it.
▪
The museum sits on the exact spot where gold was first discovered.
▪
There are bike trails to the highest spot on the island, which has magnificent views of San Francisco.
▪
This looks like a good spot to stop and rest.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪
And after James Brooks dropped out of the directing spot , Ted Demme jumped in.
▪
But even Hymes has his blind spots.
▪
He had a bald spot , under a straggle of brown hair, and a ratty Fu Manchu moustache.
▪
I stood frozen to the spot unable to do anything.
▪
I think on all these courses you've got to pick your spots.
▪
Soon, they ceased to live on the spot , and employed agents to do their work.
▪
Supporters contend that Slaughterhouse Canyon is an ideal spot .
II. verb
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
easily
▪
Each stick has a colour code and infringements are easily spotted .
▪
Perhaps most important, they are not easily spotted by metal detectors or traditional X-ray machines.
▪
Their presence, particularly under a lawn, is betrayed by the worm casts which are easily spotted between the green grass.
▪
They can usually be easily spotted .
▪
You can easily spot morel-mushroom hunters.
quickly
▪
He will quickly spot things players can and can not do.
▪
Henson quickly spotted another storm toward the north.
▪
Sceptics hunting for flaws in the tax have quickly spotted one potential problem.
▪
Sins are quickly spotted and remedies as quickly prescribes.
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The importance of computers is that these arbitrage opportunities can be quickly spotted and capitalised upon.
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They were quickly spotted by a police patrol who ushered them off the motorway and down the A41 slip road.
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You will quickly spot which plants produce their favourite seeds.
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He got the cleaning job as a stop-gap 3 years ago and quickly spotted his chance.
■ NOUN
car
▪
Police spotted the car on Balboa Avenue about 7: 30 a.m.
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She spotted his car and raced down the steps in her knee-high suede boots; his heart was pounding.
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Policeman Steve Bedford spotted the car as he patrolled Ringwood, Hampshire, and slapped a ticket on the windscreen.
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Some lookout he was; he spotted the car when it was almost on top of them.
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It was then that I spotted the police car tucked in behind the ambulance.
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Which is why he spotted the stationary police car .
difference
▪
Voice over It's fairly simple to spot the difference between the real thing and a fake.
▪
Many a blindfolded tasting panel has failed to spot the difference between the apple grown without pesticides and that which has.
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The trick is to spot the difference .
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Most Christians reading the Bible from a New Testament perspective would not spot the difference unless it was pointed out.
▪
The eye perceives differences which the radiometer does not, and in some cases fails to spot differences which the instrument does.
man
▪
It was here that he spotted two men stealing a truck loaded with aluminium scrap.
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A resident spotted a man sitting in a car watching the fire and notified police.
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After a 30-minute search, they spotted the man who sold them the tickets.
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In another case, two police officers spotted a man cycling without his hands on the handlebars.
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The victim was attacked after spotting the men acting suspiciously at 3.25am outside his house in Bracknell, Berks.
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The spooky goings-on happened when night watchman James Durham spotted a man with a heavy overcoat walking his black retriever.
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Well, a law student might have spotted that a man can not be convicted without the dead body being around.
mile
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Our sportsdesk can spot from a mile off a person who can not tell an in-swinger from a bouncer.
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He's a hawkeye, and can spot one a mile off, like that faraway kestrel.
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A milkman later spotted the men a mile away - still without a stitch on and clutching their King Edwards.
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You can spot the shit a mile away!
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Next time the vessel was spotted was 120 miles away in the North Sea off Eyemouth.
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I could spot a Fox a mile away.
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They could spot him coming a mile away.
police
▪
The alarm was raised shortly afterwards by a milkman and officers in a passing police car who spotted the smoke and flames.
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The veteran police officer had spotted a shadowy figure on the second floor of the complex.
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In another case, two police officers spotted a man cycling without his hands on the handlebars.
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The high-speed chase began after police spotted the gang with the stolen vehicles at the M1 Woodhall Services near Sheffield.
sign
▪
As taxpayers we are entitled to know why intelligence services failed to spot signs of an end to the Cold War.
▪
Lifeguards say the calf spotted Monday showed no sign of injury and still had a stubby part of its umbilicus attached.
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But as long as you spot the early signs you should be okay - just keep the red bits covered for a few days.
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Officers have been visiting stores advising businessmen how to spot the signs of an abuser.
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Christopher spotted the sign for Beyazik's Garage when it was still a hundred yards ahead of them.
talent
▪
And they were not fools: they could spot talent .
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It was during one of these that he was spotted by a talent scout and signed up by Warner Brothers.
top
▪
But she has failed to reach the top spots in the charts recently with songs from follow-up Wishing.
▪
Here are the top three ways to spot if a fireman is gay: 1.
trouble
▪
Even people who have been in the business for decades sometimes have trouble spotting impostor curls.
▪
Potential new trouble spots to be aware of.
▪
But keeping $ 1 billion-plus cruisers deployed near potential trouble spots takes a lot of people, money and ships.
▪
Other potential trouble spots for Forbes include his refusal to release his personal income tax returns, as Dole has done.
▪
To keep the ships on station for extended times, the Navy would stage these warships near trouble spots continuously.
■ VERB
fail
▪
And if you fail to spot these, a quick glance at the contents of his bookshelf gives it away.
▪
Many a blindfolded tasting panel has failed to spot the difference between the apple grown without pesticides and that which has.
▪
But during the course of the evening, I failed to spot the arrogant monster we've seen in the past.
▪
No, apparently he had a mental disorder that prison medics failed to spot , so it was their fault.
▪
The eye perceives differences which the radiometer does not, and in some cases fails to spot differences which the instrument does.
try
▪
Armed with powerful telescopes, they're trying to spot a Peregrine Falcon chick, born just two weeks ago.
▪
We must try to spot something on the ground.
▪
At the junction, I paused, eyes flicking from side to side, trying to spot Kevin's contact.
▪
In the early forties, predecessors of Joe McCarthy were snooping around trying to spot Communists in government.
▪
Two men with muddied faces and bracken on their helmets are in a ruined building, trying to spot an enemy rifleman.
▪
If there are many volunteers then spotting them will be like trying to spot a needle in a haystack.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
X marks the spot
a leopard can't change its spots
bird-spotting/train-spotting etc
bright spot
▪
The show has a few bright spots, but is mainly uninspiring.
▪
But for every bright spot in the region there was a laggard.
▪
But now even those bright spots may be fading.
▪
I kept on seeing little bright spots, so I kept on turning my legs.
▪
Redland was a bright spot, up 34p at 481p, after figures and the Steetley merger.
▪
The money was the one bright spot the evening had produced so far, the carrot to the threat of the stick.
▪
The only bright spot was the news that Lewis should be fit to bowl in the final Test.
▪
This and our unbelievable performance against Northtown have been the only bright spots in another nightmare week.
▪
Yet the South Carolina economy does have bright spots.
can see/spot/tell sth a mile off
▪
But I think he's lovely, and you can tell a mile off that he likes you.
▪
He's a hawkeye, and can spot one a mile off, like that faraway kestrel.
▪
Our sportsdesk can spot from a mile off a person who can not tell an in-swinger from a bouncer.
have a soft spot for sb
▪
Although I have a soft spot for him after his super-game Hennessy win, he does not appeal greatly as 7-2 favourite.
▪
I do have a soft spot for Britain's best-selling car, the Ford Fiesta.
▪
The reason why I have a soft spot for this notebook, he wrote.
in a tight corner/spot
▪
And now here was I in a tight corner and was I going to use violence?
▪
Did people in tight corners always turn to her?
▪
Drawbacks are the introduction of a bit more slop in the system and the potential for reduced access in tight spots.
▪
Eight extra bullets in a tight spot could mean the difference between life and death.
▪
However, employers could find themselves in a tight corner if they attempted to increase employee contributions or reduce benefits.
▪
Or a mite more forgiving in a tight spot?
▪
The better choice here is a crescent-pattern spanner which has angled jaws so that it can be reversed in tight corners.
▪
You're in a tight spot.
sore point/spot/subject (with sb)
▪
And now she had pierced her again in this sore spot.
▪
Finally, there are plans to provide custodians a sore point to enable the churches to open for two hours a day.
▪
Graduate entry with resultant opportunities for promotion was then - as now - an especially sore point.
▪
It is still a sore point with both grandparents that neither Alice nor Henry have been baptized.
▪
The potential restriction of physician income is a major sore point.
▪
This is a sore spot with me.
▪
Tom gently washed Willie's body again and smoothed witch-hazel on to the sore spots.
weak points/spots
▪
Are you naturally more cautious, preferring to test the strength of your enemy before striking at his weak points?
▪
He had not dealt with the bishop's weak points nor, according to Hooker, had he carried the audience with him.
▪
However, in most of these, effusive approval is showered upon her, and her weak points are minimized.
▪
Positive interpretation of weaknesses Be honest about assessing your weak points as well.
▪
Scattered in pursuit, they provided perfect weak points for our counterattack.
▪
That is why molecular studies designed to find the weak points in the viral attack must continue, Trono said.
▪
We examined our weak points, and turned them into strengths.
▪
What are his strong and weak points?
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪
A resident spotted a man sitting in his car watching the explosion and notified the police.
▪
Drops of milk spotted the table.
▪
He was spotted in the Manhattan area in mid-May.
▪
I'm glad you spotted the mistake before it was too late.
▪
I spotted this article about it in the paper.
▪
I dropped my keys in the grass, but luckily Jim spotted them.
▪
If you spot Mom and Dad coming, warn me.
▪
Police finally caught up with Serrano when he was spotted eating in an Upper East Side restaurant.
▪
She quickly spotted the danger of relying on Hal for everything.
▪
She won't be difficult to spot -- she's got pink hair and weighs about 300 pounds.
▪
They've spotted us - let's get out of here.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪
Even people who have been in the business for decades sometimes have trouble spotting impostor curls.
▪
If there are many volunteers then spotting them will be like trying to spot a needle in a haystack.
▪
If you are lucky, you will also spot a pelican or two.
▪
It now appears that much of the change whose initial signs he spotted did in fact reflect a climatic shift.
▪
Smith told me later they had spotted Wilson making his way back to Ashley Gardens on foot.
▪
Some children spotted the feet sticking out of the bushes by the roadside.
▪
Termites are often relatively easy to spot , especially in the early stages.
III. adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ NOUN
check
▪
But spot checks by the agency have indicated travelers are informed only about two-thirds of the time.
market
▪
When spot market prices rose, the utilities were unable to increase their rates.
price
▪
Typically in a declining market, prices gradually shift from contract levels to the spot prices, traders said.
▪
All the gold fulfilled maturing forward contracts where the contract price exceeded the spot price.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
X marks the spot
a leopard can't change its spots
be riveted to the spot
bird-spotting/train-spotting etc
break out in spots/a rash/a sweat etc
can see/spot/tell sth a mile off
▪
But I think he's lovely, and you can tell a mile off that he likes you.
▪
He's a hawkeye, and can spot one a mile off, like that faraway kestrel.
▪
Our sportsdesk can spot from a mile off a person who can not tell an in-swinger from a bouncer.
change your spots
▪
Agitatedly, it changed its spots from orange to blue to green and, finally, flushed perfectly purple.
▪
The leopard did not change its spots, its instincts or its appetites.
▪
We are happy to report, therefore, that Jaguar Man appears to have changed his spots.
come out in spots/a rash etc
▪
Tell them you've come out in a rash, or something.
hit the spot
▪
A cold beer sure would hit the spot.
▪
The cognac was not quite up to Skipton's fine Napoleonic standards, but it hit the spot with unerring accuracy.
knock spots off sb/sth
▪
It certainly knocks spots off anything attempted by the newly-Thatcherising Conservatives in the run-up to the 1979 election.
rooted to the spot/floor/ground etc
▪
Ashi found herself rooted to the spot in disbelief as she watched the threshing legs of her daughter.
▪
For a few moments he had felt rooted to the floor and had been unable to move.
▪
For a moment, she was rooted to the spot.
▪
He stands still, his feet rooted to the ground, his knees locked.
▪
He stood rooted to the spot.
▪
So startled was he by this sudden onslaught, Ryker momentarily froze, rooted to the spot.
▪
Unable to move, Philippa remained rooted to the spot.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪
All the gold fulfilled maturing forward contracts where the contract price exceeded the spot price.
▪
At any moment the current spot exchange rate is the anticipated spot exchange rate discounted to the present.
▪
Both the four eye and spot fin have a posterior eye spot.
▪
In Tokyo, spot gold was last quoted at $ 400. 25 per ounce.
▪
Most of the change in the current spot exchange rate reflects changes in the anticipated spot exchange rate.