rout upkeep brace exemplify fiddle

rout

rout1 /raʊt/ verb [transitive]

to defeat someone completely in a battle, competition, or election

upkeep

up·keep /ˈʌpkiːp/ noun [uncountable]

the process of keeping something in good condition
1. upkeep of
  1. Most of the money is spent on the upkeep of the building
the cost or process of looking after a child or animal and giving them the things they need:
1. Poorer people find it hard to pay for their pet’s upkeep.

brace

brace1 /breɪs/ verb

[transitive] to mentally or physically prepare yourself or someone else for something unpleasant that is going to happen.
- brace yourself (for something)
  - Nancy braced herself for the inevitable arguments.
  - The military needs to brace itself for further spending cuts, says McCoy.
- brace yourself to do something
  - Cathy braced herself to see Matthew, who she expected to arrive at any minute.
- be braced for something
  - The base was braced for an attack.
[transitive] to push part of your body against something solid in order to make yourself more steady
- brace something against something
  - Gina braced her back against the wall and pushed as hard as she could.
- brace yourself (for something)
  - The pilot told passengers and crew to brace themselves for a rough landing.
[transitive] to make something stronger by supporting it:
- Wait until we’ve braced the ladder.
- Workers used steel beams to brace the roof.
[intransitive and transitive] to make your body or part of your body stiff in order to prepare to do something difficult.

exemplify

ex·em·pli·fy /ɪɡˈzempləfaɪ, ɪɡˈzemplɪfaɪ/ verb (past tense and past participle exemplified, present participle exemplifying, third person singular exemplifies) [transitive] formal

to be a very typical example of something:
1. The building exemplifies the style of architecture which was popular at the time
to give an example of something
1. Problems are exemplified in the report.

–exemplification /ɪɡˌzempləfəˈkeɪʃən, ɪɡˌzemplɪfəˈkeɪʃən/ noun [uncountable and countable]

fiddle

fiddle2 verb

[intransitive] to keep moving and touching something, especially because you are bored or nervous:

Stop fiddling, will you!
I sat and fiddled at the computer for a while.

fiddle with

She was at her desk in the living room, fiddling with a deck of cards.

Reference

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English