IELTS English Vocabulary - D

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IELTS English Vocabulary - D

DAMAGE:

(verb) Destroy or break. Example: ‘The tornado damaged a large number of houses’.

DATA:

(noun) Statistics, figures, information. For example: ‘The most accurate data available on a country’s population is probably found in Census information collected every four years in a Government survey.’

DEADLINE:

(noun) The time by which something must be done or completed. Example: ‘The deadline for finishing the report is next Tuesday’.

DEATH PENALTY:

When the punishment for a crime means you will be killed, this is the death penalty. See also: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

DEBATE:

(noun) Discussion, argument. For example: ‘Controversial subjects such as capital punishment often attract heated debate.’

DEBT:

(noun) Something owed; needs to be repaid. Example: ‘Many students amass a large debt while studying.’

DECADE:

(noun) Ten year period. For example: ‘Almost certainly violent crime has increased dramatically over the last decade.’

DECLINE:

(noun) A weakening, a fall off, a drop off. For example: ‘Fortunately, there has been a decline in the number of cigarette smokers over recent years.’

DEDUCE:

(verb) Figure out, reason, work out. For example: ‘It can be deduced from the information given that the problem is likely to continue.’

DEDUCTION:

(noun) A conclusion drawn from evidence. Example: ‘The deduction made was clearly logical.’

DEFINE:

(verb) Identify, describe. For example: ‘The main responsibilities of a job are defined in the job description.’

DEFINITE:

(adjective) Certain, sure. For example: ‘Scientists know that there are definite links between cigarette smoking and lung cancer, though the causes of many other cancers as still unknown.’

DEMONSTRATE:

(verb) To show. Example: ‘It is important to demonstrate a range of accurate grammar in your IELTS essay’.

DENOTE:

(verb) Indicate, stand for, identify. For example: ‘Many road accidents are caused because drivers do not understand the Highway Code and ignore road signs which denote the need for caution.’

DENY:

(verb) Disallow, refuse. For example: ‘The students were denied the right to longer holidays despite their protests.’

DEPRESS:

(verb) Weaken, cause to drop. For example: ‘The Government should take action in reducing inflation as many people are worried that it will depress the economy even further.’

DERIVE:

(verb) Arrive at (from reasoning). For example: ‘This conclusion can logically be derived from the information given.’

DESCRIPTION:

(noun) A statement that describes something. Example: ‘For Task I writing, you may have to give a description of a diagram’.

DESIGN:

(verb) Invent, create. For example: ‘The Head of the Marketing Department has designed a new marketing strategy which will hopefully bring more business to the company.’

DESPITE:

(preposition) In spite of, even with. For example: ‘Despite the Government’s efforts to increase safety of citizens, the level of crime has continued to increase.’

DETECT:

(verb) Form an inpression, find out, discover. For example: ‘From the reaction of the staff, it was easy to detect that they were unhappy with the new proposal.’

DETERIORATE:

(verb) To get worse. For example: ‘The situation has deteriorated’.

DETRACT FROM:

(verb) reduce value or importance of something. Example: ‘His negative comments detracted from the enjoyment of the evening’.

DEVIATE:

(verb) Move away from, differ. For example: ‘A large number of young people today like to deviate from the norm of their society.’

DEVICE:

(noun) Machine, tool, gadget. For example: ‘Electronic devices such as mobile phones have improved our ability to communicate’

DEVOTE:

(verb) dedicate, give, alot. For example: ‘It is important to devote adequate time to studying for an exam to ensure a good result.’

DIALOGUE:

(noun) A conversation. Example: ‘In Parts One and Three of the listening test, you will hear a dialogue between two or more people and you will have to answer questions.’

DIFFERENTIATE:

(verb) Tell apart, distinguish, see the difference between. For example: ‘It is important for teachers to differentiate between the different skills and abilities of their students to ensure they all get a good education.’

DIMENSION:

(noun) Aspect, feature, factor. For example: ‘The subject has many dimensions which must be taken into consideration when formulating a rounded argument.’

DIMINISH:

(verb). Reduce, weaken, detract from (authority, reputation, prestige, responsibility). Example: ‘Many people are unhappy when laws are introduced which seem to diminish parents’ responsibility for their own children.’

DIRECTION:

(noun) Route, focus, aim. Example: ‘The introduction of a report shows the direction and main ideas included in the body’.

DISADVANTAGED:

Not having an equal situation to something or someone else; when something or someone has less than other people have.

DISCHARGE:

(verb) 1. To fire a weapon. ‘He discharged the gun’

(verb) 2. To release. let go. ‘The patient was discharged from hospital this morning’.

DISCRETE:

(adjective) Separate, disconnected. For example: ‘The Council is made up of there discrete divisions and communication between them is often difficult.’

DISCRIMINATE:

(verb) Show prejudice. For example: ‘Companies should not discriminate against older workers because of their age as their knowledge, experience and maturity can be of great benefit to a business.’

DISMISS:

(verb) Choose to ignore; decide something is unimportant. Example: ‘The CEO dismissed the idea of higher wages for staff’.

DISORDER:

(noun) Illness, syndrome. Example: ‘Many learning disorders have now been identified.’

DISPARITY:

 (noun) A difference, something that is not similar. Example: ‘There are disparities in economic stability in different regions’.

See also: INEQUALITY

DISPLACE:

(verb) move or shift from usual position. For example: ‘Due to the enormous damage to property a large number if people were displaced due to the damage caused by earthquake.’

DISPLAY:

(verb) show, present. For example: ‘By law, motorists must display a current tax disc in the windscreen of their vehicle.’

DISPOSE OF:

(verb) Get rid of, throw away. For example: ‘It is our duty as citizens to dispose of rubbish responsibly.’

DISTINCT:

(adjective) clear, defintie, noticeable. For example: ‘The bar chart shows that there is a distinct variation in purchasing habits over the period shown.’

DISTORT:

(verb) Alter, warp, misrepresent. For example: ‘The facts received were so distorted that it was difficult to know the truth of the matter.’

DISTRIBUTE:

(verb) Spread, give out. For example: ‘It is the Council’s responsibility to distribute information leaflets on this topic to ensure that the public are aware.’

DIVERSE:

(adjective) Varied, including different types. For example: ‘Cities such as London for example, are interesting as the population there is made up of many cultures and is so diverse.’

DIVISION:

(noun) Differences in standard between two or more things. Example: ‘There are divisions in wealth between different areas of the country’.

DOCUMENT:

(noun) Report, file, paper. For example: ‘A marriage certificate is an example of a legally-binding document.’

DOGMATIC:

(adjective) Describing opinions or beliefs that are unproven but presented as facts. Example: ‘It is important that you state your opinions in an appropriate manner and are not dogmatic.’

DOMAIN:

(noun) Area. sphere. For example: ‘The domain of computer science involves many sub areas.’

DOMESTIC:

(adjective) Within a country, internal, national. For example: ‘A number of countries generate much higher income from business in their international markets than from domestic sales.’

DOMINATE:

(verb) Rule, control, lead, govern, overshadow. For example: ‘Use of Microsoft products is so widespread it can be said that they dominate the software industry.’

DRAFT:

(verb) Draw up, prepare, plan. For example: ‘I need to draft a proposal before the meeting next week.’

DRAMA:

(noun) Crisis, commotion. For example: ‘The proposed changes to the education system have caused quite a drama in the newspapers recently.’

DRAMATIC:

(adjective) Signiificant, large, major. “There was a dramatic rise in the cost of production.”

DRAWBACK:

(noun) a problem, a weakness. Example: ‘One drawback of living in a foreign country is that you may not be able to communicate so easily’.

DULL:

(adjective) Not interesting; boring. Example: ‘Some technical books can be very dull to read.’

DURATION:

(noun) Period, length of time. For example: ‘Exam candidates are not allowed to talk at all for the full duration of the exam.’

DYNAMIC:

(adjective) Continually changing or progressing. For example: ‘The IT industry is extremely dynamic with huge investment into Research and Development. ‘