Today’s word of the day exercise is
This is an extremely useful word for IELTS people with a number of uses. It can be used as an alternative to steady when describing charts in academic task 1, it can also be used to describe relationships, situations and environments in task 2 essays. It also has a more technical use in medicine when patients are said to be in a stable condition.
Forms of the word
* Note on spelling. I spell the verb stabilise as is more conventional in British English. You can, however, use stabilize too. Just try to be consistent and spell it the same way throughout.
Using the word
in a stable condition: The patient is not out of danger but is now in a stable condition.
government/environment/community/society/political situation: One reason the economy in these countries suffers is the unstable political situation.
relationship: Most people would agree that children benefit from growing up in a stable environment.
fairly/more or less/relatively: After this dramatic fall his figure remained more or less stable at 8% for 2 years.
price/cost etc stabilise: The price then stabilised at 8% for two years.
at: The fertility rates then stabilised at 1.8 children per female.
to close the stable door after the horse has bolted: If you close the stable door after the horse has bolted (run away), you have done something too late or pointlessly.