A Homage To Our Brave Soldiers

Vocabulary Drilling:

homage - /ˈhɒmɪdʒ/

something that is said or done to show respect for somebody

The kings of France paid homage to no one.

He describes his book as ‘a homage to my father’.

They stood in silent homage around the grave.

gratitude -  the feeling of being grateful and wanting to express your thanks

He smiled at them with gratitude.

PART - I

symbolise - to be a symbol of something

The use of light and dark symbolizes good and evil.

decade - a period of ten years, especially a continuous period, such as 1910–1919 or 2000–2009

The nineties were a decade of rapid advances.

over a decade -  He's changed a lot over the past decade.

for decades -  The war may be short but the environmental impacts could last for decades.

toll - n- the amount of damage or the number of deaths and injuries that are caused in a particular war, disaster, etc.

Every hour, the news bulletin reported the mounting toll of casualties.

monument - a building, column, statue, etc. built to remind people of a famous person or event

exemplary - adj. - providing a good example for people to copy

Her behaviour was exemplary.

citation - /saɪˈteɪʃn/

i) an official statement about something special that somebody has done, especially about acts of courage in a war

a citation for bravery

ii) words or lines taken from a book or a speech

well-fortified - 

fortified -  v. - to make a place more able to resist attack, especially by building high walls

a fortified town

They fortified the area against attack.

brigade - a large group of soldiers that forms a unit of an army

battalion - a large group of soldiers that form part of a brigade

ii) a large group of people, especially an organized group with a particular purpose

a battalion of supporters

aspire - to have a strong desire to achieve or to become something

He aspired to be their next leader.

assault - n. - the crime of attacking somebody physically

shelling - the firing of shells from large guns

We suffered weeks of heavy shelling.

combat - fighting or a fight, especially during a time of war

in combat He was killed in combat.

casualties - n. - a person who is killed or injured in war or in an accident

Our primary objective is reducing road casualties.

inflicting - to make somebody/something suffer something unpleasant

They inflicted a humiliating defeat on the home team.

bayoneted - /ˈbeɪənət/

Innocent civilians had been shot and bayoneted.

encounter - /ɪnˈkaʊntə(r)/ n. - an unexpected or casual meeting with someone or something:

"she felt totally unnerved by the encounter"

comrades - n. - a friend or other person that you work with, especially as soldiers during a war

They were old army comrades.

ii) a person who is a member of the same communist or socialist political party as the person speaking

We must fight for our rights, comrades!

undaunted - adj. - still enthusiastic and determined, despite difficulties, danger, etc.

He seemed undaunted by all the opposition to his idea.

gallant - brave, especially in a very difficult situation

lobbed - to throw something so that it goes quite high through the air

Stones were lobbed over the wall.

They were lobbing stones over the wall.

grenade - a small bomb that can be thrown by hand or fired from a gun

His vehicle was damaged by a rocket-propelled grenade.

loophole - n. - a mistake in the way a law, contract, etc. has been written that enables people to legally avoid doing something that the law, contract, etc. had intended them to do

grim - adj. - looking or sounding very serious

  • He set about the task with grim concentration.

succumb - v. - to not be able to fight an attack, a temptation, etc.

  • The town succumbed after a short siege.
  • They were all offered bribes and some of them succumbed.

conspicuous - adj. - easy to see or notice; likely to attract attention

  • I felt very conspicuous in my new car.

valour - great courage, especially in war

  • He showed valour and skill on the battlefield.

ablaze - burning quickly and strongly

  • The whole building was soon ablaze.
  • Cars and buses were set ablaze during the riot.

revere - /rɪˈvɪə(r)/ to admire and respect somebody/something very much

synonym idolizeHer name is revered in Spain.He is now revered as a national hero.

alighted - to land in or on something after flying to it

  • A butterfly fluttered by and alighted on a rose.
  • Several birds alighted on the branches of the tree.
  • ii) to get out of a bus, a train or other vehiclesynonym get off
  • Do not alight from a moving bus.

overwhelmed - /ˌəʊvəˈwelm/ to have such a strong emotional effect on somebody that it is difficult for them to resist or know how to react

synonym overcome

  • She was overwhelmed by feelings of guilt.
  • The beauty of the landscape overwhelmed me.

gallery - a room or building for showing works of art, especially to the public

exhibit - /ɪɡˈzɪbɪt/ v. - to show something in a public place for people to enjoy or to give them information

immerse - to become or make somebody completely involved in something

ambience - the character and atmosphere of a place

  • The gentle colour scheme creates a relaxing ambience.

emotive - causing people to feel strong emotions

formidable - 

hinge - to attach something with a hinge

hinged on - p.v. - to depend on something completely

  • Everything hinges on the outcome of these talks.

faltered - to become weaker or less effective

synonym waverThe economy shows no signs of faltering.Her courage never faltered.The economy is beginning to falter.The team’s performance faltered badly after the break.

artillery - arge, heavy guns which are often moved on wheels

  • The town is under heavy artillery fire.

squarely - directly; not at an angle or to one side

  • She looked at me squarely in the eye.

utter disregard - 

utter - used to emphasize how complete something is

That's complete and utter nonsense!

To my utter amazement she agreed.

platoon - a small group of soldiers that is part of a company and commanded by a lieutenant

hail - n. - a shout or call used to attract attention.

slain on - past participle of slay

slay - to kill somebody/something in a war or a fight

celestial abode - 

celestial - of the sky or of heaven

foodie - a person who is very interested in cooking and eating different kinds of food

PART - II 

essence - the most important quality or feature of something, that makes it what it is

His paintings capture the essence of France.

in essence In essence (= when you consider the most important points), your situation isn't so different from mine.

valourous - showing great courage, especially in war

inconsequential - not important or worth considering

The speech was full of inconsequential details.

excerpt - 

enchanting - attractive and pleasant

philately - 

fluffy - adj. - soft, light and containing air