Inside Out

Africa – Glossary
cause noun [count] length noun [count/uncount]
an event, thing, or person that makes something a measurement of how long something is in size
happen This beautiful bird is small, with a total length of
The major cause of these accidents is drivers going about three inches.
too fast.
the mainland noun [singular]
cheetah noun [count] a large mass of land that forms the main part of a
a large African wild animal that has yellow fur country but does not include any islands belonging to
with black spots and can run extremely fast the country
the US mainland
colony noun [count]
a country that is controlled by another country military adjective
a former British colony relating to armies or armed forces and the way in
which they are organised
continent noun [count] The huge influx of military and civilian personnel
one of the very large areas of land on Earth that are created a problem.
usually divided into several countries
the continent of Africa population noun [singular]
all the people who live in a particular area
economic adjective Less than 40% of the population voted in the last
relating to the economy of a particular country or election.
region
Economic growth is slowing down. populous adjective
a populous nation, city, area etc has many people
empire noun [count] living in it
a number of countries ruled by one person or
government poverty noun [uncount]
the Ottoman Empire a situation in which someone does not have enough
money to pay for their basic needs
evolve verb Half the world’s population is living in poverty.
when a type of plant or animal evolves, its physical
form changes over a long period of time progress noun [uncount]
These unique plants evolved undisturbed for the process of developing or improving
millions of years. Keep me informed about the progress of the project.

giraffe noun [count] situation noun [count]

a tall African animal that has a very long neck and the set of conditions that exist at a particular time in a
legs particular place
concern about the current situation south of the
grow verb border
to increase in size
The world’s population was growing faster than speed noun [count/uncount]
predicted. the rate at which someone or something moves
The device measures the speed and direction of the
height noun [count/uncount] wind.
the degree to which something is high or someone
is tall wild adjective
He was about the same height as his wife. a wild animal or plant lives or grows on its own in
natural conditions and is not raised by humans
human being noun [count] The wild rose is a familiar sight in woods and
a person hedges.

independent adjective zebra noun [count]

ruled by its own government, rather than controlled an African animal similar to a horse but with black
by another country and white stripes on its body

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Copyright © Macmillan Publishers Limited 2008. Definitions from the Macmillan English Dictionary 2 Edition © 2007 and the
Macmillan Essential Dictionary © 2003, A&C Black Publishers Ltd www.macmillandictionaries.com