abase:
v. humiliate; lower or depress in rank or esteem | abate:
v. subside; decrease; become less in amount or intensity |
abbreviation:
n. shortening something by omitting parts of it | abdicate:
v. give up, renounce, abandon, lay down, or withdraw from, as a right or claim |
abdication:
n. the act of giving up or renouncing a right, office, or position of power etc. | abet:
v. aid, usually in doing something wrong; encourage |
abeyance:
n. suspended action; temporary cessation or suspension | abhor:
v. fill with horror and loathing; horrify; hate |
abhorrent:
a. disgusting, loathsome | abjure:
v. renounce upon oath; abandon forever |
ablution:
n. washing or cleansing of the body, especially as part of religious rite | abnegation:
n. repudiation; self-sacrifice; renouncing your own interests in favor of interests of others |
abolition:
n. ending; act of abolishing; act of doing away with | abortive:
a. unsuccessful; failing to accomplish an intended objective; fruitless |
abrade:
v. wear away by friction; scrape; erode | abrasion:
n. scratch; friction |
abridge:
v. condense; shorten; reduce length of written text | abrogate:
a. abolish, do away with, or annul, especially by authority |
abscond:
v. leave quickly and secretly and hide oneself, often to avoid arrest or prosecution | abstemious:
a. sparing or moderation in eating and drinking; temperate |
abstruse:
a. obscure; profound; difficult to understand. | accede:
v. agree; give consent, often at insistence of another; concede |
acclivity:
n. upward slope, as of hill | accolade:
n. award of merit; expression of approval; praise |
accretion:
n. growth or increase in size by gradual external addition, fusion, or inclusion | acerbity:
n. bitterness of speech and temper; sourness or acidness of taste, character, or tone |
acidulous:
a. slightly sour in taste or in manner; sharp; caustic | acquiesce:
v. assent; agree without protesting |
acquisition:
n. the act of acquiring or gaining possession | acrimonious:
a. bitter and sharp in language, tone, or manner |
acrimony:
n. animosity, sharp or bitter hatred | acronym:
n. abbreviation |
adage:
n. an old saying, that has obtained credit by long use | addle:
v. muddle; drive crazy; become confused |
adherent:
n. person who adheres; one who follows or upholds a leader, party, cause | adjudicate:
v. hear and settle a case by judicial procedure |
adjure:
v. appeal to or entreat earnestly; command or enjoin solemnly, as under oath | adorn:
v. enhance or decorate with or as if with ornaments |
adornment:
n. embellishment; decoration; something that beautifies or adorns; ornament | adroit:
a. skillful and adept under pressing conditions |
adulterate:
v. make impure by adding inferior or tainted substances | adumbrate:
v. give hint or indication of something; disclose partially or guardedly; overshadow; shade |
advert:
n. advertisement an ad; public promotion of some product or service | affable:
a. easily approachable; warmly friendly |
aggrandize:
v. increase scope of; extend; intensify; make greater in power, influence, stature, or reputation | aggregation:
n. several things grouped together or considered as a whole |
aghast:
a. struck by shock, terror, or amazement | agnostic:
n. one who is skeptical of existence of a god or any ultimate reality |
aka:
ad. as known or named at another time or place; also known as | alkali:
n. soda ash; caustic soda, caustic potash; one of a class of caustic bases, such as soda, potash, and ammonia |
allege:
v. to assert to be true | allude:
v. refer casually or indirectly, or by suggestion |
allurement:
n. temptation; enticement; any real or apparent good held forth, or operating, as a motive to action | allusion:
n. an indirect reference |
altar:
n. elevated place or structure before which religious ceremonies may be enacted or upon which sacrifices may be offered | amalgam:
n. a combination of many different things; an alloy of mercury and other metals |
amalgamate:
v. combine; unite in one body; mix or alloy a metal with mercury | amass:
v. collect; gather for oneself, as for one's pleasure or profit |
ambidextrous:
a. capable of using either hand with equal ease | ambivalence:
n. state of having contradictory or conflicting emotional attitudes, such as love and hate |
amble:
n. moving at an easy pace; walk slowly or leisurely | amenity:
n. pleasantness resulting from agreeable conditions |
amorphous:
a. formless; lacking shape or definition | amplify:
v. broaden or clarify by expanding; intensify; make larger or more powerful; increase |
amputee:
n. a person who has had one or more limbs removed by amputation | analgesic:
a. serving to reduce sensibility to pain without loss of consciousness |
analogous:
a. comparable; similar or alike | anathema:
n. solemn curse; someone or something regarded as a curse |
ancillary:
a. serving as aid or accessory; auxiliary | anew:
ad. once more; again; in a new and different way |
animus:
n. feeling of animosity | annotate:
v. comment; make explanatory notes |
annualize:
v. adjust or calculate so as to reflect a rate that is based on a full year | anodyne:
n. source of relaxation or comfort; medicine that relieves pain |
anomalous:
a. deviating from normal or common order, form, or rule | antagonist:
n. one who contends with another, especially in combat; an adversary; opponent |
antedate:
v. be earlier in time; go back further | antediluvian:
a. antiquated; extremely old and ancient; belonging to very ancient times |
anthology:
n. book of literary selections by various authors | anthropoid:
a. manlike; resembling a human, especially in shape or outward appearance |
antipathy:
n. strong feelings of aversion or dislike | antithesis:
n. contrast; direct contrast; opposition |
antler:
n. entire horn, or any branch of the horn | apartheid:
n. South Africa's policy of racial separation, in place from 1948 to 1990. |
aperitif:
n. alcoholic beverage taken before a meal as an appetizer | aperture:
n. opening; diameter of such an opening; hole |
aphasia:
n. loss of speech due to injury or illness | aphorism:
n. definition or concise statement of principle; tersely phrased statement of truth or opinion |
apiary:
n. place where bees and beehives are kept, especially where bees are raised for their honey | aplomb:
n. poise; self-confident assurance |
apocryphal:
a. untrue; of questionable authorship or authenticity; erroneous; fictitious | apogee:
n. the highest point; point in orbit most distant from the body being orbited |
apostate:
n. one who abandons his religious faith or political beliefs | apotheosis:
n. elevation to godhood; fact or action of becoming a god; an ideal example of something |
appease:
v. bring peace, quiet, or calm to; satisfy or relieve | appellation:
n. name; title; act of naming; act of appealing for aid, sympathy |
apposite:
a. strikingly appropriate and relevant; well-suited | apprise:
v. inform; give notice to; make aware |
approbation:
n. expression of warm approval; praise | appropriation:
n. funding; money set aside for a specific purpose |
aquifer:
n. underground bed or layer yielding ground water for wells and springs etc | aquiline:
a. curved or hooked like an eagle's beak |
arable:
a. fit for growing crops, as by plowing | arbiter:
n. person with power to decide a dispute; judge |
arboreal:
a. tree-dwelling; treelike; living in trees | archetype:
n. prototype; original model or type after which other similar things are patterned |
archipelago:
n. a large group of islands; a sea, containing a large number of scattered islands | arena:
n. an enclosed area, often outdoor, for the presentation of sporting events or other spectacular events |
aromatic:
a. fragrant or sweet-smelling; caused by fragrant odor | arraign:
v. officially charge someone in a court of law |
arrears:
n. being in debt; unpaid, overdue debt or an unfulfilled obligation | arrogate:
v. claim without justification; claim for oneself without right |
artifice:
n. subtle but base deception; trickery; cleverness or skill; ingenuity | artless:
a. free of artificiality; natural; open and honest |
ascendancy:
n. superiority or decisive advantage; domination | ascetic:
a. leading a life of self-discipline and self-denial; austere |
aseptic:
a. preventing infection; having cleansing effect | aspect:
n. look, or particular appearance of the face; the visual percept of a region |
asperity:
n. harshness of manner, roughness | asphyxiate:
v. deprive of oxygen to the extent of producing death or very serious symptoms; suffocate |
aspirant:
n. one who aspires, as to advancement, honors, or a high position | assail:
v. assault; attack with or as if with violent blows |
assent:
v. express agreement to what is alleged or proposed; accept | assiduous:
a. constant in application or attention; diligent; unceasing or persistent |
assimilate:
v. to make similar, to incorporate or absorb into | assuage:
v. ease or lessen pain; satisfy or appease |
astigmatism:
n. eye defect that prevents proper focus | astringent:
a. causing contraction; having the effect of drawing tissue together; stern or austere |
asymmetric:
a. not identical on both sides of a dividing central line | at loggerheads:
ad. engaged in a dispute |
atrial:
a. of or pertaining to an atrium, especially the upper chambers of the heart | attainment:
n. something, such as an accomplishment or achievement; achievement |
attenuate:
v. make slender, fine, or small; weaken; lessen density of | attrition:
n. gradual decrease in numbers; reduction in work force without firing employees; wearing away of opposition by means of harassment |
audacious:
a. fearlessly, often recklessly daring; bold | augury:
n. sign of something coming; art or practice of foretelling events by signs or omens |
aura:
n. an invisible breath; distinctive atmosphere or quality associated with something | austere:
a. strict or severe in discipline; severely simple and unornamented |
austerity:
n. severe and rigid economy; severe or rigorous simplicity; absence of adornment or luxury | authenticate:
v. prove genuine; establish authenticity of |
autocrat:
n. dictator; ruler having unlimited power | autonomous:
a. self-governing; not controlled by others or by outside forces; independent |
avalanche:
n. fall or slide of a large mass, as of snow or rock, down a mountainside | avant-garde:
n. radically new or original; cutting edge |
avarice:
n. greediness for wealth; insatiable desire of gain | aver:
v. declare to be true; affirm |
aviation:
n. art or act of flying; specifically, the science or art of directing and controlling flying-machines | avocation:
n. activity taken up in addition to one's regular work or profession, usually for enjoyment |
avow:
v. declare openly; acknowledge openly, boldly, and unashamedly | avowal:
n. open declaration; frank acknowledgment |
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