English Vocabulary in Use: Advanced Book with Answers and Enhanced eBook Vocabulary Reference and Practice 3rd Edition

The medical words in the box below are used metaphorically in the following text.
Fill the gaps using these words. Use a dictionary if necessary.
ailing fatal disease rash paralysed prognosis fever contagious
Over to 
you
Learn more medical vocabulary by going to the following website, which provides information 
for people who want to learn more about a medical condition: www.nhs.uk.
53.1
53.2
53.3
53.4
The country has been 
1
by the latest rail strike, with no rail 
services at all running today. The railway service has been 
2
for some time, but if today’s action is prolonged it may prove 
3
to the rail industry. The Minister for Transport commented: ‘The country 
has been suffering from a 
4
of local strikes since the first 
one in Nortown last month. It was 
5
and one strike led to 
another. Things reached 
6
pitch last week and we can only 
hope that this 
7
will come to an end soon.’ The minister’s 
8
is that things will only start to improve once people 
appreciate the seriousness of the situation.
National Rail Strike
23 November

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114
English Vocabulary in Use Advanced
Diet, sport and fitness
54
A healthy heart
Our arteries circulate blood around the body and are essential to good health, but the blood flow 
can be 
impeded
1
by fatty 
plaque
2
that can 
clog
3
them. The production of plaque is associated 
with high levels of 
cholesterol
4
and clogged blood vessels can lead to a heart attack or a 
stroke
5
. 
Some foods, such as eggs and shellfish, while