でた単 大学受験

I'm researching English questions from university entrance exams (all national universities and prestigious private universities).
I've thoroughly examined 25 years' worth of questions from 2000 to 2025.

The "Detatan University Entrance Exam" vocabulary list is created by meticulously analyzing words and their usage that have actually appeared on university entrance English exams.

Research on University Entrance Exam English
In creating the "Detatan University Entrance Exam" vocabulary list, I've been solving entrance exam questions almost daily.

Here are some expressions that I found unusual in reference books and vocabulary lists, among those that have repeatedly appeared.

Included in the Idioms section (scheduled to be added as Stage 5 in early July)
take its toll (on ~)
This appeared in the Eiken Grade 1 exam in 1999 in the form "cynicism starts to take its toll."

In university entrance exams, this phrase appeared in:
2003 Osaka University (Late Admission)
2004 Aoyama Gakuin University (Law)
2009 Waseda University (Commerce) - Question asking for a paraphrase of "time took its toll" (contextual expression)
2011 Keio University (Law) - Question asking for a paraphrase of "takes its toll on": negatively affects
2017 Seikei University
2021 Waseda University (International Liberal Studies)
2021 Kyoritsu Women's University - Question asking for a paraphrase of "take its toll on": have a negative effect
2024 Aoyama Gakuin University (Literature) - Question asking for a paraphrase of "take its toll": have a negative effect

This phrase means "to have a negative effect, to cause damage or loss, to bring about undesirable results."

Even among well-known universities, it appears 8 times, and 4 of those times questions ask for paraphrased expressions.

Including the form "take a toll," this expression has appeared in numerous exams, including:
2002 Nagoya City University (with a note on "take a toll on")
2013 Meiji University
2015 Rikkyo University
2018 Hamamatsu University School of Medicine
2019 Keio University School of Medicine (with a note on "have a bad effect")
2025 Sophia University (Economics/Business Administration)
and many others.

Since it has appeared so many times, I decided to include it in "Vocabulary for University Entrance Exams."

I put particular effort into creating the sections on "auxiliary verbs" and "conjunctions."

I've also included "would sooner" and "would as soon."

would sooner: "I'd rather do..."
2004 Mie University: Translation of the underlined part containing "would sooner"
2006 Yamanashi University: A choice of options including "would sooner" as a usage of "would"
2007 Nanzan University: I would sooner cut off my right arm than be (blank) to right-handedness. Fill in the blank. The question asks to choose "converted" from the options.
2007 Miyazaki University: A question asking to choose the feelings of a woman who said, "Look, if you would sooner finish these drinks and say goodbye, we can. The meal hasn't been ordered."
2015 Kansai Gaidai University: A question asking to choose a paraphrase after underlining "would sooner."

It appears in 5 out of 5 tests, even if you just quickly find it.

would as soon: "I'd rather do..."
2003 University of Tokyo:
The question asks for a paraphrase of the underlined part of "I'd just as soon remain in my seat."

The University of Tokyo is skilled at creating multiple-choice questions, so this is a problem you should try solving to experience it firsthand.

The University of Tokyo likes to include questions involving "would," and they include almost all possible usages of auxiliary verbs and conjunctions that might appear on the exam.

(Adjective) in the knowledge that SV form (included in conjunctions)

2017 Tokyo Jikei University School of Medicine
Translate the entire sentence into underlined section

With genuine trust, we could negotiate to coordinate our strategies and produce cooperative solutions, secure in the knowledge that we could trust each other not to break agreements for individual advantage.

In the exam room, you might get nervous and translate it literally as "with confidence in the knowledge that..." or "knowing that...". While this is sufficient for reading comprehension, for the underlined section, it would be better to translate it into Japanese that conveys something like "with confidence that neither of us would break the agreement for our own benefit."

2019 Keio University (Pharmacy)
First half omitted... happy in the knowledge that they have found the solution to some particular puzzle,

2001 Nagoya University
Once a man in his fifties could feel secure in the knowledge that he had another 10 working years at least.

(Adjective) in the knowledge that SV can be replaced with words like secure, happy, safe, confident, etc. Examples of words that appeared in these entrance exams are also provided.

Noun
2013 Meiji University
Q. State the meaning of "concentration" in the text.
1. Old Maid 2. Poker 3. Sevens 4. Concentration

Although this is a reading comprehension question following the explanation of "a card game played face down," it's possible to interpret it as fitting all four meanings, so examinees who had confirmed the meaning of "concentration" as "Concentration" would have an advantage.

concentration
[U] Concentration, attention; [C][U] Density, density; (card game) Concentration

These are the meanings included in the questions.

Most questions use the meaning of "attention, concentration."

The next most common meaning is "density, density."

2001 National Center Test (now Common Test): "Carbon dioxide concentration"
2006 Kobe City University: "Dense, concentrated"
2008 University of Tokyo (Late Admission): "Dense, concentrated," underlined portion
2009 Tohoku University: "Greenhouse gas concentration, carbon dioxide concentration"
2010 Keio University (SFC): "Arsenic concentration"
2013 Nihon University College of Science and Technology: "Salt concentration"
2015 Tohoku University: "Salt concentration"
2016 University of Electro-Communications: "Dense"
2016 Okayama University: "Concentration"
2024 Kobe University: "Concentration"

We are compiling this kind of analysis into the "Detatan" app. We will continue our analysis.

For verbs and adjectives, we analyze their "occurring forms" (present tense, past tense, progressive tense, passive voice, characteristic objects, etc.) and provide example sentences in the forms they are commonly used in. (Currently under daily adjustment)

We compared this vocabulary list with commercially available English vocabulary books, examining its compatibility with entrance exam questions from the past 25 years, and analyzing how many previously unexamined words are included. Our goal was to create a more efficient and effective vocabulary list, specifically for university entrance exams.

We have aimed for unparalleled comprehensiveness, detail, and appropriateness in the sections on auxiliary verbs, conjunctions, and phrasal prepositions.


Stages 1-3 (by part of speech, word, and importance)
Stage 4 (phrases, approximately 1300)
Stage 5 (idioms, scheduled to be added in July)
*Developed and created by
Namiko Takahashi
Passed Grade 1 18 times (records confirmed)
Total 2916 around 2018
Eiken Grade 1 obtained (1st stage 2273/2550 G1 +10, 2nd stage 643/850 G1 +2)
Eiken Grade 1 Writing perfect score 850/850
2023, 2nd test, total 2937
Eiken Grade 1 obtained (1st stage 2313/2550 G1 +11, 2nd stage 624/850 G1 +1)
TOEIC L&R perfect score (new format 990 points, old format 990 points)
Former employee of a major consulting firm and a well-known English education publisher
*English audio
Patricia D. (University of Washington graduate)

*In-app sound effects
Free sound effect material: Kurage Kosho
http://www.kurage-kosho.info/

Sound effect material: Pocket Sound
https://pocket-se.info/