Unit 2 Sailing the oceansPart Two: Teaching ResourcesSection 3: Words and expressions from Unit 2Sailing the oceansmercy noun (pl. -ies) 1. [U] a kind or forgiving attitude towards sb that you have the power to harm or right to punish humanity: to ask / beg / plead for mercy They showed no mercy to their hostages. God have mercy on us. The troops are on a mercy mission (= a journey to help people) in the war zone. 2. [C, usually sing.] (informal) an event or a situation to be grateful for, usually because it stops sth unpleasant: It’s a mercy she wasn’t seriously hurt. His death was a mercy (= because he was in great pain.at the mercy of sb/sth not able to stop sb/sth harming you because they have power or control over you: I’m not going to put myself at the mercy of the bank. We were at the mercy of the weather. leave sb/sth to the mercy / mercies of sb/sth to leave sb/sth in a situation that may cause them to suffer or to be treated badly: privatized companies left 1to the mercy of market forces (humorous) I’ll leave you to the tender mercies of these ladies! throw yourself on sb’s mercy (formal) to put yourself in a situation where you must rely on sb to be kind to you and not harm or punish youlongside prep. 1. next to or at the side of sth: A police car pulled up alongside us. a lifeboat moored alongside the yacht Much of the land alongside the river is below sea level. 2. together with or at the same time as sth/sb: Traditional beliefs still flourish alongside a modern urban lifestyle. exploration noun [C, U] 1. the act of travelling through a place in order to find out about it or look for sth in it: the exploration of space oil exploration (...
