Englishfor English speakers
a
Determinative
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A is used when the following word could be any of a certain type.
Compare "A book I saw on the shelf" and "The book I gave you yesterday".
a
Noun
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A is the first letter of the alphabet.
The letter "a" comes before "b".
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In some schools, an A is a very high grade.
Ron got an A on his earth science test.
civil
Adjective
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About the citizens of a country, especially as opposed to the government, army, police, religion, etc.
One of the most important civil rights is freedom of speech.
In the Civil War, the Red Army had blocked off the northern part of the Ukraine from the hungry south.
The state is connected to civil society through aspects other than its role in administration
The government had run out of money to pay civil servants.
This comes under civil, rather than criminal, law.
The bridge would be one of the largest civil engineering projects in the country.
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If someone is civil, they are polite but not friendly.
Mum had been civil to me since the fight but something had gone between us.
action
Noun
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An action is something that you do, or something that happens, especially with motion.
At 3am, just west of the building, the plan was put into action.
There was a huge difference between my thoughts and my actions.
What they did was clearly wrong, but their actions were understandable.
The Health Authority is preparing to take legal action against the restaurants that fail to follow the regulations.