Preventing or keeping away something（何かを防ぐ又は遠ざける）

→“The fence is designed to hold crimes at bay.”

→“The humid air masses held the sea breeze at bay.”

Cold and unpleasant; not promising（寒く不快な、先行きが暗い）

→“The poet wrote this poem on a bleak February morning in rainy Scotland.”

→“Faced with bleak prospects of admission at top colleges, some students apply to overseas academic institutions.”

To be at the point of change （転換期）

→“The school is on the cusp of large-scale personnel changes.”

→“The authoritarian regime is on the cusp amidst the mounting domestic protests and international criticism.”

Terrible; serious（恐ろしい、差し迫って大変な）

→“If you don’t take care of your health now, there will be dire consequences later.”

→“His financial situation is dire.”

Remains of fire or of some former substance （残り火、前の時期・時代からの残留物）

→“You should make sure to splash enough water on the campfire. Don’t leave any embers.”

→“Some say that belief in heaven is a dying ember left over from the Middle Ages.”

→“He sat and contemplated on the embers of his past glory.”

(As verb) To make a surprising change in one’s opinion or position on something（自分の意見や姿勢を極端に変える）

→“Towards the end of her life, the writer flip-flopped about her view on abortion.”

(As noun) A surprising change in one’s opinion or position（自分の意見や姿勢を極端に変えること）

→“His recent flip-flop could spell doom for the presidential candidate’s election prospects.”

Irritate; vex（イライラさせる、怒らせる）

→“His arrogance galled her.”

→“It galls me to see that man being so successful.”

To make bubbles（泡立たせる）

→“He took the shampoo and lathered his hair.”

→“This antibacterial hand soap is highly effective, though it doesn’t lather well.”

A situation of intense excitement or fright（極度に興奮又は恐れおののいた状態）

→“The terrorist attack was followed by chaotic mayhem.”

→“Mayhem greets the government’s decision to raise tax.”

Absolute, definitive, total or complete（絶対的、圧倒的、完全な）

→“The parents expressed outright opposition to their son’s choice of marriage partner.”

→“In their family, the wife owns the house outright.”

→“The Labor Party was the outright winner in the latest election, with the mandate to form a labor government.”

A composite of different things（いろいろな要素から構成されている集合体）

→“Shinjuku is a patchwork of contemporary Japanese cultural expressions.”

→“The financial world is relying on a patchwork of measures rather than a universal, coordinated plan to put recession under control.”

To oversee or supervise with strict control; to forcibly make someone accept（厳密な管轄下に置く、半強制的に受諾させる）

→“The committee presented a proposal to ramrod the electoral system.”

→“President Obama has failed to ramrod balanced budget legislation through Congress.”

To grow strong or big（強くなる、大きくなる）

→“My grandfather waxes sentimental when he sees an old movie.”

→“As she became more relaxed, Jane waxed more intimate and frank with him.”

→“We saw the moon wax as we sat chatting on the river bank.”

An amount that something produces（生み出される総量）

→“Since the major earthquake and tsunami, the average rice yield in Tohoku has declined.”

→“Yields showed a sudden rise as the new leader calmed the financial markets.”