noun
1 type of family, social class, etc. sb comes from
ADJECTIVE
▪ family
▪
Can you tell me something about your family ~?
▪ broad
▪
It is important to have a broad educational ~.
▪ different , diverse , mixed , varied , various
▪
We work with clients from diverse ~s.
▪ similar
▪
I think we get on well because we're from similar ~s.
▪ privileged , wealthy
▪ deprived , disadvantaged , poor ( esp. BrE )
▪ middle-class , upper-class , working-class
▪ solid , stable , strong
▪
She has a good solid ~ in management.
▪ criminal
▪
She wanted to know about his criminal ~.
▪ engineering , military , musical , professional , scientific , technical
▪
Children from a military ~ often move around a lot.
▪
Even people with a technical ~ will struggle to understand some of the jargon.
▪ Christian , Jewish , Muslim , etc.
▪ class , cultural , ethnic , genetic , linguistic , racial , religious , social , socio-economic
▪ academic , educational
▪
Her academic ~ includes a degree in education.
VERB + BACKGROUND
▪ come from , have
▪
He came from a very privileged ~.
▪ be drawn from
▪
The students are drawn from very mixed social ~s.
BACKGROUND + VERB
▪ be in sth
▪
Her ~ was in biology and medicine.
BACKGROUND + NOUN
▪ check
▪
In the future, we will require ~ checks on airport employees.
PREPOSITION
▪ from a ~
▪
children from deprived ~s
▪ with a ~
▪
an economist with a ~ in business
▪ ~ in
PHRASES
▪ a range of ~s , a variety of ~s
2 facts connected with a situation/event
ADJECTIVE
▪ general
▪ factual
▪ cultural , economic , historical , political
VERB + BACKGROUND
▪ describe , explain , give (sb) , outline , provide (sb with)
▪
The book provides the ~ to the revolution.
▪ form
▪
Those discussions formed the ~ to the decision.
BACKGROUND + NOUN
▪ briefing , info ( informal ), information , knowledge , reading
▪
~ information on the country
PREPOSITION
▪ against the ~
▪
Against that general ~, let me give you a more detailed view of current practice.
▪ ~ to
▪
the technical ~ to the report
▪ ~ of
▪
the historical ~ of the project
3 part of a view/picture behind the main parts
ADJECTIVE
▪ black , blue , grey/gray , etc.
▪ dark
▪ neutral
VERB + BACKGROUND
▪ blend in with , match
▪
The wolves' coats turn white to match their snowy ~.
BACKGROUND + NOUN
▪ colour/color
▪
Most paintings look good against a neutral ~ colour/color.
PREPOSITION
▪ against a/the ~
▪
The areas of water stood out against the dark ~.
▪ in the ~
▪
The mountains in the ~ were capped with snow.
▪ on a/the ~
▪
bright blue on a red ~
4 position in which sb/sth is not important/noticed
VERB + BACKGROUND
▪ blend into , fade into , melt into , recede into , retreat into , slip into
▪
The dispute over the new contract allowed her other problems to fade into the ~.
▪
He had learned how to melt invisibly into the ~.
BACKGROUND + NOUN
▪ music , noise , radiation
▪ vocals
▪
Who did the ~ vocals on that track?
▪ distortion , hiss
▪
The signal was very clear, with no ~ hiss or distortion.
PREPOSITION
▪ in the ~
▪
There was a radio on in the ~.
▪
I could see my secretary hovering in the ~.
▪
He prefers to remain in the ~ and let his assistant deal with the press.