noun
ADJECTIVE
▪ big , considerable , decided ( esp. AmE ), distinct , grave , great , huge , major , obvious , real , serious , severe , significant , substantial
▪
Lack of qualifications is an obvious ~.
▪ main , primary ( AmE ), principal
▪ slight
▪ added , additional
▪ long-term
▪ competitive
▪
These requirements will have to be standardized if some banks are not to suffer a competitive ~.
▪ strategic , tactical (both esp. AmE )
▪
The fog was giving them a tactical ~.
▪ economic , educational , financial , racial , social , socio-economic
▪
the problems of racial ~ and poverty
▪ cost ( esp. AmE )
▪
This put them at a crippling cost ~.
▪ possible , potential
▪
A potential ~ of this method is that it requires considerable expertise to perform it accurately.
▪ inherent
▪
the inherent ~ that low-income communities face
▪ unfair
▪
Some students were at an unfair ~.
VERB + DISADVANTAGE
▪ experience , face , have , suffer , suffer from
▪
the ~ experienced by older people in the workplace
▪
The present system has the ~ that nobody really understands how it works.
▪
Competition has its ~s.
▪ offset , outweigh
▪
The plan's advantages outweigh the ~s.
▪ overcome
▪ avoid
PREPOSITION
▪ at a ~
▪
We were at a distinct ~ compared with children from richer families.
▪
There was no reason for her to feel at a ~.
▪ despite a/the ~
▪
Despite these ~s, many older people maintain an active social life.
▪ to sb's ~
▪
This change in the law will be to the ~ of small companies.
▪ ~ for
▪
another ~ for the night-worker
▪ ~ in
▪
There are ~s in using this treatment.
▪ ~ to
▪
There are ~s to all those approaches.
PHRASES
▪ advantages and ~s
▪
Each plan has its own advantages and ~s.
▪ place sb at a ~ , put sb at a ~
▪
The fact that he didn't speak another language put him at a ~.