Describing people | Recognizing adjectives | Working out meaning from context

People in relationship:

- client (clients)
NOUN A client of a professional person or organization is a person that receives a service from them in return for payment. • a solicitor and his client • The company requires clients to pay substantial fees in advance.

- colleague (colleagues)
NOUN Your colleagues are the people you work with, especially in a professional job. • Female academics are still paid less than their male colleagues. • In the corporate world, the best sources of business are your former colleagues.

- employer (employers)
NOUN Your employer is the person or organization that you work for. • employers who hire illegal workers • The telephone company is the country's largest employer.

- parent (parents)
NOUN Your parents are your mother and father. • Children need their parents. • When you become a parent the things you once cared about seem to have less value.

- sibling (siblings)
NOUN Your siblings are your brothers and sisters. [FORMAL] • Some studies have found that children are more friendly to younger siblings of the same sex. • Sibling rivalry often causes parents anxieties.

- spouse (spouses)
NOUN Someone's spouse is the person they are married to. • Husbands and wives do not have to pay inheritance tax when their spouse dies.

Describing people:

- autonomous
ADJECTIVE An autonomous person makes their own decisions rather than being influenced by someone else. • They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province. • the liberal idea of the autonomous individual

- consistent

ADJECTIVE Someone who is consistent always behaves in the same way, has the same attitudes towards people or things, or achieves the same level of success in something. • Becker has never been the most consistent of players anyway.  • his consistent support of free trade • a consistent character with a major thematic function

- conventional

ADJECTIVE Someone who is conventional has behavior and opinions that are ordinary and normal.  • a respectable married woman with conventional opinions  • this close, fairly conventional English family

- co-operative also cooperative

ADJECTIVE If you say that someone is co-operative, you mean that they do what you ask them without complaining or arguing.  • The president said the visit would develop friendly and co-operative relations between the two countries. • a contented and co-operative workforce

- efficient

ADJECTIVE If something or someone if efficient, they are able to do tasks successfully, without wasting time or energy.  • With today's more efficient contraception women can plan their families and careers. • Technological advances allow more efficient use of labour. • an efficient way of testing thousands of compounds

- flexible

ADJECTIVE Something or someone that is flexible is able to change easily and adapt to different conditions and circumstances.  • more flexible arrangements to allow access to services after normal working hours • We encourage flexible working.