.rearguard 'action noun [usually sing.] a
struggle to change or stop sth even when it is not likely that you will succeed
® ££ ; M fB It H : They have been
fighting a rearguard action for
two years to stop their house being demolished. A-7 7J^-
7,
rearing /'riarir); NAmE 'riripj noun [U] 1 the process of caring for children as they grow
up, teaching them how to behave as members of society IE # ;
# W ; ip If 2 the process of
breeding animals or birds and caring for them as they grow t§]#: livestock rearing rearm /ri'aim; NAmE -'a:rm/ verb to obtain, or supply sb with, new or better weapons,
armies, etc. It
: [V] The country was forbidden to rearm under
the terms of the treaty. ft
0 [VN] Rebel troops were
being rearmed.
4► re-arma-ment /ri'aimamant; NAmE -'a:rm-/ noun [U]
rearmost /'riamaust; NAmE 'rirmoust/ adj. (formal) furthest back H H Jfj ; jjkfaM : the rearmost section of the aircraft
re-arrange /,ri:a'remd3/ verb [VN] 1 to
change the position or order of things; to change your position Jr §r # Ai; ?X fv S: We’ve rearranged the furniture in the bedroom. ff] * $r & M. T EK*1MI, o She
rearranged herself in another
pose.
2 to change the time, date or
place of an event ]6$f5£ W; ) saa RESCHEDULE:
Can we rearrange the meeting for next Tuesday at 2? |£ ► re-arrange-ment
noun [C, U]
,rear-view 'mirror noun a mirror in which a driver can see the traffic behind faW^L — picture o page Ri rearward /'riawad; NAmE 'rirward/ adj. (formal) at or near the back of sth fa ® tfy; . 09: rearward seats fa
ffiflAUfv
SYNONYMS
N&flJHr
reason
grounds» excuse ♦
motive ♦ need ♦ justification ♦ cause ♦ pretext
These are all words for a cause or an
explanation for sth that has happened or that sb has done. l^U:#iM]J^JtH#
reason a cause or an
explanation for sth that has happened or that sb has done; a fact that makes it
right
orfairtodosth^^^4^#^«OT, »A. m
#, IE A II A,
ilS: He said no but he didn’t give a
reason. fM7f7, fSI&7‘'MJi(l3o grounds (rather formal) a good or true reason for saying, doing or believing
sth |gi&,
A~MA, Hlg: You have no grounds for complaint, jfc
excuse a reason, either true or invented, that you give to
explain or defend your behaviour; a good reason that you give for doing sth
that you want to do for other reasons Iff A ft dIt AfJf 09if lt>J, in 1-1. Si: Late again!
What’s your excuse this time?
Xj&PJ 7 j #
'a P ? o
It gaye me an excuse to take the
car.mm^mm
motive a reason that
explains sb’s behaviour Ihz^IJI , fjR
H: There seemed to be no motive for the murder.
need (usually used in
negative statements) a good reason to do sth ( )
IbE^.
There is no need for you to get
up early tomorrow. f^ BJf
justification (rather formal) a good reason why sth
exists or is done :
/ can see no possible justification for any further tax
increases. ftIMBfcT,
,rear-wheel 'drive noun [U] a system in which power from the engine is sent
to the back wheels of a vehicle fa$£W.ih
(fkfft) —compare front-wheel drive rea-SOn 0“w /*ri:zn/ noun, verb
m noun 1 [C] ~ (why ... )
| ~
(that ... ) | ~ (for sth/for doing sth) a cause or an
explanation for sth that has happened or that sb has done JUR IS; Si; If#: Td like to know the
reason why you’re so late. f&A
ft* iS il] UP 'A7 |0] o 0 We aren’t going for the simple
reason that we can’t afford
it. RUES
Aff]
o She gave no
reasons for her decision. fj& fiMM#o OI have no particular reason for doubting
him. Aff&Hifeo
<> He said no but he
didn’t give a reason, ftfei&^fT,
f& <> Give me one good reason why I should help
you. UcA#^^#? *olt
'<i^E#09JffiAo o For some reason (= one that I don’t know or don’t understand)
we all have to come in early tomorrow. tl]f 1 #10, o The man
attacked me for no apparent
reason. ifr fic <> 0 She resigned for personal
reasons. jjfe tB 77 A
M 0 ffi! SI o 0 For reasons of security
the door is always kept locked. A 7 ^ 7, n&JMff #Jo 0 He
wants to keep them all in
his office for reasons best known to himself, fifeH IS Ml IP W£ ffe W ftH, W. ® O people who, for
whatever reason,
are unable to support
themselves g|$tS|IIA##)®ESl7'fib o ‘Why do you want to know?’ ‘No reason.’ (= I do not want to
say why) “f&Aff*&£i$niI? ” “7 A# ” 0 ‘Why did she do that?’
‘She must have her reasons (= secret reasons which she does not want to
tell).’ ” <>
(formal) He was excused by
reason of (= because
of) his age. ft® 2 [u] ~ (to do sth) |
~
(why ...) | ~ (for sth/for doing sth) a fact that makes it right
or fair to do sth IE A S A ; ilJf; 'If Jl: They
have reason to believe that he is lying, fikfll WS A iA A ffe o We have every reason (= have very good reasons) to feel
optimistic. 3% CJ % A ^ Si % )i. o 0
GROUNDS OR
JUSTIFICATION? ffl grounds 3EJ1 justification ?
Justification is used to talk about finding or understanding reasons
for actions, or trying to explain why it is a good idea to do sth. It is often
used with words like little, no, some,
every, without, and not any. Grounds is used more for talking about reasons that already
exist, or that have already been decided, for example by law. * justification A, little, no, some, every,
without fq not any ^ i|j£- Ac grounds LZfffji 09
} rnoral/economic
grounds itfS I
cause (ratherformal) a reason for having particular feelings or behaving
in a particular way
fr A/*A:09I£I£]. ^Jl, tktyl-. There is no cause for alarm.
pretext (rather
formal) a false reason that you give
for doing sth, usually sth bad, in order to hide the real reason ffASSlcfUi^ ( )
W^IEJiA
M Ife 09 ft P, IE is]: He left the party early on the pretext of having to
work. ftfcftP
■
PATTERNS AND COLLOCATIONS
■
(a/an)
reason/grounds/excuse/motive/need/ justification/cause/pretext for sth
■
the reason/motive behind
sth
■
on the grounds/pretext of/that...
■
(a) good/valid reason/grounds/excuse/motive/
justification/cause
the main/primary reason/grounds/excuse/motive/
justification/cause