Prior to; before（～より前に、先立って）

→“The stock market edged up ahead of jobs data release.”

→“Ahead of talks, Obama called the Prime Minister of China.”

→“I went to the school administration office and signed up for the free lecture way ahead of the deadline.”

To increase; to strengthen; to improve（増やす、強化する、向上させる）

→“Japan just announced that it will beef up aid package to Africa.”

→“The politician is beefing up his PR campaign.”

Prestige; a seal of approval （権威、封印）

→“Toyota is struggling to restore its cachet through a series of quality control measures.”

→“New York University is gaining in academic cachet.”

To hesitate; to be indecisive and refrain from action （躊躇する）

→“China and Brazil push ahead with new economic projects while Japan dithers.”

→“Stop dithering and make up your mind !”

In fact; in substance; in reality（実質的）効果的とは異なる意味になります！

→“The rebels are in effective control of the countryside.

→“The plan has effectively been executed, although some loose ends need to be tied up.”

The basic structure（基本的構造）

→“Domestic violence endangers the fabric of society.”

→“Her memory broke through the fabric of time and space.”

An embarrassing mistake made in public（公で犯す恥ずかしい失敗）

→“The MP (Member of Parliament) resigned over his diplomatic gaffe.”

→“Don’t worry about the gaffe. It happens to the best of us.”

Heavy; large in quantity（重い、大きい）

→“Due to recession, every employee had to take a hefty pay cut.”

→“We saw a hefty elephant at the circus.”

To sign; to make official（サインする、公式に締結する）

→“The pitcher and the Boston Red Sox are going to ink a five-year contract.”

→“He inked the deal and went out to celebrate it.”

To shock into action（びっくりさせ行動に駆り立てる）

→“India’s shift in policy jolts neighboring nations.”

→“The pay cut jolted me to start looking for a new job.”

To hang over ominously（不吉にのしかかる）

→“The dark wintry New York City is looming beyond the windows.”

→“High unemployment looms on the entire economy.”

→“The final exams loom for the students.”

Many; a large number（多数の）

→“The store has myriad cheap goods on sale.”

→“There were a myriad of people at the party.”

→“I read myriads of books while on vacation.”

To reform; to repair（改正する、修理する）

→“The pension system needs to be overhauled.”

(As noun) A necessary change; a reform

→“The government will consider an overhaul of financial regulations.”

To be ready; to be prepared（用意・準備ができている、姿勢が整っている）

→“The new political party is poised for take-off.”

→“She is poised to take a leadership role in the company.”

(As noun) Poise: Confidence （自信）

→“The new president has poise that comes with experience.”

A difficult situation with no solution or exit in sight; a predicament（窮地、ジレンマ）

→“The nation has to confront its economic quagmire.”

→“Afghanistan has turned into a military quagmire for the US.”

To increase incrementally（徐々に増やす）

→“North Korea’s provocation ratcheted up tensions in the region.”

→“Afghanistan is ratcheting up defense against foreign invasion.”