Leisure and Lifestyle

• big fan of anything cultural

  culture vulture
• person who never keeps doing one activity for long

  dabbler
• stopped liking, lost interest in

  to go off something
• a lot of activities

  full diary
• takes part enthusiastically

  keen participant
• an empty building where people start living without the owner’s permission

  squat
• a very small, dirty house or flat in a bad (or run down) condition

  a hovel
• rented accommodation provided by the state for people who have low incomes

  council or social housing

  large groupe of these houses

  council estate
• flats in a tall, modern building with a lot of floors

  High-rise (flats) or tower blocks
• a set of rooms for an elderly person, connected to a relative’s house

  a granny flat
• information that is true but not pleasant or welcome

  home truths
• nothing special

  nothing to write home about
• become more energetic and active than before

  get a new lease of life
• done so often it is boring

  hackneyed
• unconnected and not in a clear order

  disjointed
• against accepted social standards and likely to shock some people

  risqué
• extremely upsetting

  harrowing
• done or expressed in a simple but attractive style

  understated
• excellent reviews

  glowing reviews
• calls from the audience to perform some more

  encores
• always associated with that type of role

  typecast
• very negatively criticised

  panned/slated
• highly praised

  lauded
• was a failure

  bombed
• someone who paints quickly and carelessly (disapproving)

  daubers
• educated with regard to art

  visually literate
• not affected by

  inured to
• intended for educated, intelligent people (often disapproving)

  highbrow (opp. lowbrow)
• inspiring great admiration because it is brilliant in some way

  dazzling (opp. pedestrian)
• calling up images and memories

  evocative (opp. uninspiring)
• opposite of intriguing

  dreary
• better than any other

  peerless (opp. run-of-the-mill)
• description of a sequence of events

  chronicle
• rather dark, mournful and gloomy

  lugubrious
• in the face of a bad situation

  wry
• which arouse memories or images

  evocative
• who has the same name as the title of the book

  eponymous protagonist
• a collection of, for example, poems or short stories by different authors

  anthology
• not complex; slightly negative connotation

  lightweight
• difficult to read

  heavy going