SAT Vocab A-B
Terms
undefined, object
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- avert
- v. To turn away or aside.
- absolve
- v. To free from sin or its penalties.
- bibliomania
- n. The passion for collecting books.
- anecdote
- n. A brief account of some interesting event or incident.
- actuary
- n. An officer, as of an insurance company, who calculates and states the risks and premiums.
- alteration
- n. Change or modification.
- annotate
- v. To make explanatory or critical notes on or upon.
- bestrew
- v. To sprinkle or cover with things strewn.
- agile
- adj. Able to move or act quickly, physically, or mentally.
- antiseptic
- n. Anything that destroys or restrains the growth of putrefactive micro-organisms.
- anthropology
- n. The science of man in general.
- blazon
- v. To make widely or generally known.
- beatify
- v. To make supremely happy.
- automaton
- n. Any living being whose actions are or appear to be involuntary or mechanical.
- abed
- adv. In bed; on a bed.
- absence
- n. The fact of not being present or available.
- adjutant
- adj. Auxiliary.
- beneficiary
- n. One who is lawfully entitled to the profits and proceeds of an estate or property.
- acerbity
- n. Sourness, with bitterness and astringency.
- aversion
- n. A mental condition of fixed opposition to or dislike of some particular thing.
- asperity
- n. Harshness or roughness of temper.
- amusement
- n. Diversion.
- assay
- n. The chemical analysis or testing of an alloy ore.
- ascension
- n. The act of rising.
- advocacy
- n. The act of pleading a cause.
- acquittal
- n. A discharge from accusation by judicial action.
- alluvion
- n. Flood.
- buffoon
- n. A clown.
- animosity
- n. Hatred.
- annuity
- n. An annual allowance, payment, or income.
- accession
- n. Induction or elevation, as to dignity, office, or government.
- achromatic
- adj. Colorless,
- brevity
- n. Shortness of duration.
- bumper
- n. A cup or glass filled to the brim, especially one to be drunk as a toast or health.
- antispasmodic
- adj. Tending to prevent or relieve non-inflammatory spasmodic affections.
- benignant
- adj. Benevolent in feeling, character, or aspect.
- abeyance
- n. A state of suspension or temporary inaction.
- bilateral
- adj. Two-sided.
- appreciable
- adj. Capable of being discerned by the senses or intellect.
- acknowledgment
- n. Recognition.
- archdeacon
- n. A high official administrator of the affairs of a diocese.
- alto
- n. The lowest or deepest female voice or part.
- analogy
- n. Reasoning in which from certain and known relations or resemblance others are formed.
- assassination
- n. Murderer, as by secret assault or treachery.
- braggart
- n. A vain boaster.
- boll
- n. A round pod or seed-capsule, as a flax or cotton.
- boycott
- v. To place the products or merchandise of under a ban.
- bridle
- n. The head-harness of a horse consisting of a head-stall, a bit, and the reins.
- annals
- n. A record of events in their chronological order, year by year.
- advertiser
- n. One who advertises, especially in newspapers.
- allegory
- n. The setting forth of a subject under the guise of another subject of aptly suggestive likeness.
- almanac
- n. A series of tables giving the days of the week together with certain astronomical information.
- buoyant
- adj. Having the power or tendency to float or keep afloat.
- assassinate
- v. To kill, as by surprise or secret assault, especially the killing of some eminent person.
- autonomous
- adj. Self-governing.
- benign
- adj. Good and kind of heart.
- alcove
- n. A covered recess connected with or at the side of a larger room.
- attache
- n. A subordinate member of a diplomatic embassy.
- beset
- v. To attack on all sides.
- berth
- n. A bunk or bed in a vessel, sleeping-car, etc.
- aldermanship
- n. The dignity, condition, office, or term of office of an alderman.
- adherence
- n. Attachment.
- bailiff
- n. An officer of court having custody of prisoners under arraignment.
- arboretum
- n. A botanical garden or place devoted to the cultivation of trees or shrubs.
- acrid
- adj. Harshly pungent or bitter.
- alder
- n. Any shrub or small tree of the genus Alumnus, of the oak family.
- alliance
- n. Any combination or union for some common purpose.
- absorption
- n. The act or process of absorbing.
- altar
- n. Any raised place or structure on which sacrifices may be offered or incense burned.
- barcarole
- n. A boat-song of Venetian gondoliers.
- bullock
- n. An ox.
- biography
- n. A written account of one's life, actions, and character.
- anticlimax
- n. A gradual or sudden decrease in the importance or impressiveness of what is said.
- barograph
- n. An instrument that registers graphically and continuously the atmospheric pressure.
- admonish
- v. To warn of a fault.
- airy
- adj. Delicate, ethereal.
- affect
- v. To act upon
- breach
- n. The violation of official duty, lawful right, or a legal obligation.
- adieu
- inter. Good-by; farewell.
- bray
- n. A loud harsh sound, as the cry of an ass or the blast of a horn.
- Antarctic
- adj. Pertaining to the south pole or the regions near it.
- brine
- n. Water saturated with salt.
- badger
- v. To pester.
- animadvert
- v. To pass criticism or censure.
- austere
- adj. Severely simple; unadorned.
- bolster
- v. To support, as something wrong.
- antemeridian
- adj. Before noon.
- bureau
- n. A chest of drawers for clothing, etc.
- archetype
- n. A prototype.
- annunciation
- n. Proclamation.
- arcade
- n. A vaulted passageway or street; a roofed passageway having shops, etc., opening from it.
- baton
- n. An official staff borne either as a weapon or as an emblem of authority or privilege.
- anthropomorphous
- adj. Having or resembling human form.
- bacterium
- n. A microbe.
- acreage
- n. Quantity or extent of land, especially of cultivated land.
- Anglophobia
- n. Hatred or dread of England or of what is English.
- atrocious
- adj. Outrageously or wantonly wicked, criminal, vile, or cruel.
- accelerate
- v. To move faster.
- bigamist
- n. One who has two spouses at the same time.
- adulterant
- n. An adulterating substance.
- analogous
- adj. Corresponding (to some other) in certain respects, as in form, proportion, relations.
- benevolence
- n. Any act of kindness or well-doing.
- broach
- v. To mention, for the first time.
- actuate
- v. To move or incite to action.
- bolero
- n. A Spanish dance, illustrative of the passion of love, accompanied by caste nets and singing.
- brogan
- n. A coarse, heavy shoe.
- aspiration
- n. An earnest wish for that which is above one's present reach.
- arrogant
- adj. Unduly or excessively proud, as of wealth, station, learning, etc.
- addendum
- n. Something added, or to be added.
- bumptious
- adj. Full of offensive and aggressive self-conceit.
- autocracy
- n. Absolute government.
- appraise
- v. To estimate the money value of.
- antislavery
- adj. Opposed to human slavery.
- bravado
- n. An aggressive display of boldness.
- adjudge
- v. To award or bestow by formal decision.
- aboriginal
- adj. Primitive; unsophisticated.
- burgher
- n. An inhabitant, citizen or freeman of a borough burgh, or corporate town.
- avarice
- n. Passion for getting and keeping riches.
- alley
- n. A narrow street, garden path, walk, or the like.
- belay
- v. To make fast, as a rope, by winding round a cleat.
- bombardier
- n. A person who has charge of mortars, bombs, and shells.
- bedlam
- n. Madhouse.
- athwart
- adv. From side to side.
- ally
- n. A person or thing connected with another, usually in some relation of helpfulness.
- bawl
- v. To proclaim by outcry.
- besmear
- v. To smear over, as with any oily or sticky substance.
- aforesaid
- adj. Said in a preceding part or before.
- anonymous
- adj. Of unknown authorship.
- bosom
- n. The breast or the upper front of the thorax of a human being, especially of a woman.
- assiduous
- adj. Diligent.
- bleak
- adj. Desolate.
- biology
- n. The science of life or living organisms.
- apparent
- adj. Easily understood.
- ascendant
- adj. Dominant.
- abduction
- n. A carrying away of a person against his will, or illegally.
- ascribe
- v. To assign as a quality or attribute.
- assimilate
- v. To adapt.
- Americanism
- n. A peculiar sense in which an English word or phrase is used in the United States.
- annalist
- n. Historian.
- atone
- v. To make amends for.
- bight
- n. A slightly receding bay between headlands, formed by a long curve of a coast-line.
- becalm
- v. To make quiet.
- betide
- v. To happen to or befall.
- accordion
- n. A portable free-reed musical instrument.
- aristocracy
- n. A hereditary nobility
- bibliography
- n. A list of the words of an author, or the literature bearing on a particular subject.
- arraign
- v. To call into court, as a person indicted for crime, and demand whether he pleads guilty or not.
- account
- n. A record or statement of receipts and expenditures, or of business transactions.
- apology
- n. A disclaimer of intentional error or offense.
- bronchus
- n. Either of the two subdivisions of the trachea conveying air into the lungs.
- astute
- adj. Keen in discernment.
- abbey
- n. The group of buildings which collectively form the dwelling-place of a society of monks or nuns.
- breaker
- n. One who trains horses, dogs, etc.
- buffoonery
- n. Low drollery, coarse jokes, etc.
- bequeath
- v. To give by will.
- bass
- adj. Low in tone or compass.
- acidify
- v. To change into acid.
- aural
- adj. Of or pertaining to the ear.
- abstinence
- n. Self denial.
- apiary
- n. A place where bees are kept.
- bombard
- v. To assail with any missile or with abusive speech.
- actuality
- n. Any reality.
- afire
- adv. & adj. On fire, literally or figuratively.
- ampersand
- n. The character &; and.
- avidity
- n. Greediness.
- accessory
- n. A person or thing that aids the principal agent.
- acclaim
- v. To utter with a shout.
- aerial
- adj. Of, pertaining to, or like the air.
- assuage
- v. To cause to be less harsh, violent, or severe, as excitement, appetite, pain, or disease.
- anteroom
- n. A room situated before and opening into another, usually larger.
- antecede
- v. To precede.
- arrival
- n. A coming to stopping-place or destination.
- amenable
- adj. Willing and ready to submit.
- admittance
- n. Entrance, or the right or permission to enter.
- absorb
- v. To drink in or suck up, as a sponge absorbs water.
- arboriculture
- n. The cultivation of trees or shrubs.
- allotment
- n. Portion.
- adamant
- n. Any substance of exceeding hardness or impenetrability.
- alien
- n. One who owes allegiance to a foreign government.
- allusion
- n. An indirect and incidental reference to something without definite mention of it.
- asexual
- adj. Having no distinct sexual organs.
- academy
- n. Any institution where the higher branches of learning are taught.
- aggravate
- v. To make heavier, worse, or more burdensome.
- atomizer
- n. An apparatus for reducing a liquid to a fine spray, as for disinfection, inhalation, etc.
- artful
- adj. Characterized by craft or cunning.
- acquit
- v. To free or clear, as from accusation.
- antenatal
- adj. Occurring or existing before birth.
- anthracite
- n. Hard coal.
- archaeology
- n. The branch of anthropology concerned with the systematic investigation of the relics of man.
- abdominal
- n. Of, pertaining to, or situated on the abdomen.
- batten
- n. A narrow strip of wood.
- bemoan
- v. To lament
- affiliate
- n. Some auxiliary person or thing.
- accumulate
- v. To become greater in quantity or number.
- amity
- n. Friendship.
- betimes
- adv. In good season or time.
- bronchitis
- n. Inflammation of the bronchial tubes.
- abut
- v. To touch at the end or boundary line.
- accomplice
- n. An associate in wrong-doing.
- aberration
- n. Deviation from a right, customary, or prescribed course.
- avow
- v. To declare openly.
- bodice
- n. A women's ornamental corset-shaped laced waist.
- baste
- v. To cover with melted fat, gravy, while cooking.
- blemish
- n. A mark that mars beauty.
- accompanist
- n. One who or that which accompanies.
- autonomy
- n. Self-government.
- abscission
- n. The act of cutting off, as in a surgical operation.
- ambulance
- n. A vehicle fitted for conveying the sick and wounded.
- aerostat
- n. A balloon or other apparatus floating in or sustained by the air.
- apposition
- n. The act of placing side by side, together, or in contact.
- brandish
- v. To wave, shake, or flourish triumphantly or defiantly, as a sword or spear.
- affable
- adj. Easy to approach.
- awaken
- v. To arouse, as emotion, interest, or the like.
- brusque
- adj. Somewhat rough or rude in manner or speech.
- aerostatics
- n. The branch of pneumatics that treats of the equilibrium, pressure, and mechanical properties.
- anemic
- adj. Affected with anemia.
- balsam
- n. A medical preparation, aromatic and oily, used for healing.
- anew
- adv. Once more.
- acquire
- v. To get as one's own.
- acid
- n. A sour substance.
- bellicose
- adj. Warlike.
- bewilder
- v. To confuse the perceptions or judgment of.
- bomb
- n. A hollow projectile containing an explosive material.
- bristle
- n. One of the coarse, stiff hairs of swine: used in brush-making, etc.
- betrothal
- n. Engagement to marry.
- anticyclone
- n. An atmospheric condition of high central pressure, with currents flowing outward.
- arrange
- v. To put in definite or proper order.
- amputate
- v. To remove by cutting, as a limb or some portion of the body.
- antique
- adj. Pertaining to ancient times.
- antiquary
- n. One who collects and examines old things, as coins, books, medals, weapons, etc.
- allot
- v. To assign a definite thing or part to a certain person.
- bulwark
- n. Anything that gives security or defense.
- benefit
- n. Helpful result.
- atheism
- n. The denial of the existence of God.
- biped
- n. An animal having two feet.
- assassin
- n. One who kills, or tries to kill, treacherously or secretly.
- archaism
- n. Obsolescence.
- abjure
- v. To recant, renounce, repudiate under oath.
- aura
- n. Pervasive psychic influence supposed to emanate from persons
- aloof
- adv. Not in sympathy with or desiring to associate with others.
- archbishop
- n. The chief of the bishops of an ecclesiastical province in the Greek, Roman, and Anglican church.
- aroma
- n. An agreeable odor.
- autocrat
- n. Any one who claims or wields unrestricted or undisputed authority or influence.
- arrangement
- n. The act of putting in proper order, or the state of being put in order.
- autopsy
- n. The examination of a dead body by dissection to ascertain the cause of death.
- accursed
- adj. Doomed to evil, misery, or misfortune.
- antecedent
- n. One who or that which precedes or goes before, as in time, place, rank, order, or causality.
- acquiesce
- v. To comply; submit.
- bountiful
- adj. Showing abundance.
- averse
- adj. Reluctant.
- alabaster
- n. A white or delicately tinted fine-grained gypsum.
- bilingual
- adj. Speaking two languages.
- ascetic
- adj. Given to severe self-denial and practicing excessive abstinence and devotion.
- amphitheater
- n. An edifice of elliptical shape, constructed about a central open space or arena.
- arborescent
- adj. Having the nature of a tree.
- accompany
- v. To go with, or be associated with, as a companion.
- adduce
- v. To bring forward or name for consideration.
- aboveboard
- adv. & adj. Without concealment, fraud, or trickery.
- abyss
- n. Bottomless gulf.
- bore
- v. To weary by tediousness or dullness.
- beget
- v. To produce by sexual generation.
- armful
- n. As much as can be held in the arm or arms.
- abscess
- n. A Collection of pus in a cavity formed within some tissue of the body.
- ambidextrous
- adj. Having the ability of using both hands with equal skill or ease.
- angular
- adj. Sharp-cornered.
- able-bodied
- adj. Competent for physical service.
- batter
- n. A thick liquid mixture of two or more materials beaten together, to be used in cookery.
- bowler
- n. In cricket, the player who delivers the ball.
- benison
- n. Blessing.
- antonym
- n. A word directly opposed to another in meaning.
- bitterness
- n. Acridity, as to the taste.
- antagonism
- n. Mutual opposition or resistance of counteracting forces, principles, or persons.
- agitate
- v. To move or excite (the feelings or thoughts).
- autarchy
- n. Unrestricted power.
- aye
- adv. An expression of assent.
- by-law
- n. A rule or law adopted by an association, a corporation, or the like.
- benignity
- n. Kindness of feeling, disposition, or manner.
- Achillean
- adj. Invulnerable.
- accost
- v. To speak to.
- alcoholism
- n. A condition resulting from the inordinate or persistent use of alcoholic beverages.
- acknowledge
- v. To recognize; to admit the genuineness or validity of.
- blase
- adj. Sated with pleasure.
- barring
- prep. Apart from.
- adhere
- v. To stick fast or together.
- bric-a-brac
- n. Objects of curiosity or for decoration.
- afterthought
- n. A thought that comes later than its appropriate or expected time.
- bedaub
- v. To smear over, as with something oily or sticky.
- ailment
- n. Slight sickness.
- ablution
- n. A washing or cleansing, especially of the body.
- amorous
- adj. Having a propensity for falling in love.
- auricular
- adj. Of or pertaining to the ear, its auricle, or the sense of hearing.
- addle
- v. To make inefficient or worthless; muddle.
- abstruse
- adj. Dealing with matters difficult to be understood.
- anxious
- adj. Distressed in mind respecting some uncertain matter.
- brokerage
- n. The business of making sales and purchases for a commission; a broker.
- bevel
- n. Any inclination of two surfaces other than 90 degrees.
- brigand
- n. One who lives by robbery and plunder.
- accomplish
- v. To bring to pass.
- academic
- adj. Of or pertaining to an academy, college, or university.
- aide-de-camp
- n. An officer who receives and transmits the orders of the general.
- abnegate
- v. To renounce (a right or privilege).
- abridgment
- n. A condensed form as of a book or play.
- accustom
- v. To make familiar by use.
- aeronaut
- n. One who navigates the air, a balloonist.
- adjacent
- n. That which is near or bordering upon.
- anode
- n. The point where or path by which a voltaic current enters an electrolyte or the like.
- analyze
- v. To examine minutely or critically.
- arrear
- n. Something overdue and unpaid.
- biograph
- n. A bibliographical sketch or notice.
- bestride
- v. To get or sit upon astride, as a horse.
- appertain
- v. To belong, as by right, fitness, association, classification, possession, or natural relation.
- altitude
- n. Vertical distance or elevation above any point or base-level, as the sea.
- accuse
- v. To charge with wrong doing, misconduct, or error.
- annihilate
- v. To destroy absolutely.
- avocation
- n. Diversion.
- beau
- n. An escort or lover.
- adumbrate
- v. To represent beforehand in outline or by emblem.
- accouter
- v. To dress.
- alienate
- v. To cause to turn away.
- appall
- v. To fill with dismay or horror.
- ardor
- n. Intensity of passion or affection.
- banal
- adj. Commonplace.
- augur
- v. To predict.
- adroit
- adj. Having skill in the use of the bodily or mental powers.
- aver
- v. To assert as a fact.
- abrasion
- n. That which is rubbed off.
- acoustic
- adj. Pertaining to the act or sense of hearing.
- benevolent
- adj. Loving others and actively desirous of their well-being.
- blithesome
- adj. Cheerful.
- append
- v. To add or attach, as something accessory, subordinate, or supplementary.
- ambush
- n. The act or state of lying concealed for the purpose of surprising or attacking the enemy.
- broadcast
- adj. Disseminated far and wide.
- accept
- v. To take when offered.
- bier
- n. A horizontal framework with two handles at each end for carrying a corpse to the grave.
- ascent
- n. A rising, soaring, or climbing.
- album
- n. A book whose leaves are so made to form paper frames for holding photographs or the like.
- bigamy
- n. The crime of marrying any other person while having a legal spouse living.
- alleviate
- v. To make less burdensome or less hard to bear.
- advent
- n. The coming or arrival, as of any important change, event, state, or personage.
- abbess
- n. The lady superior of a nunnery.
- apothecary
- n. One who keeps drugs for sale and puts up prescriptions.
- brazier
- n. An open pan or basin for holding live coals.
- acute
- adj. Having fine and penetrating discernment.
- belie
- v. To misrepresent.
- authentic
- adj. Of undisputed origin.
- antediluvian
- adj. Of or pertaining to the times, things, events before the great flood in the days of Noah.
- assailant
- n. One who attacks.
- bravo
- interj. Well done.
- analyst
- n. One who analyzes or makes use of the analytical method.
- bask
- v. To make warm by genial heat.
- bethink
- v. To remind oneself.
- baffle
- v. To foil or frustrate.
- aristocrat
- n. A hereditary noble or one nearly connected with nobility.
- awry
- adv. & adj. Out of the proper form, direction, or position.
- armory
- n. An arsenal.
- beneficial
- adj. Helpful.
- assonate
- v. To accord in sound, especially vowel sound.
- anemia
- n. Deficiency of blood or red corpuscles.
- amalgam
- n. An alloy or union of mercury with another metal.
- aeronautics
- n. the art or practice of flying aircraft
- anagram
- n. The letters of a word or phrase so transposed as to make a different word or phrase.
- buoyancy
- n. Power or tendency to float on or in a liquid or gas.
- Anglo-Saxon
- n. The entire English race wherever found, as in Europe, the United States, or India.
- browbeat
- v. To overwhelm, or attempt to do so, by stern, haughty, or rude address or manner.
- assonant
- adj. Having resemblance of sound.
- agrarian
- adj. Pertaining to land, especially agricultural land.
- beneficent
- adj. Characterized by charity and kindness.
- abdomen
- n. In mammals, the visceral cavity between the diaphragm and the pelvic floor; the belly.
- apprehensible
- adj. Capable of being conceived.
- allude
- v. To refer incidentally, or by suggestion.
- acquisition
- n. Anything gained, or made one's own, usually by effort or labor.
- beatitude
- n. Any state of great happiness.
- audition
- n. The act or sensation of hearing.
- aggression
- n. An unprovoked attack.
- arbitrate
- v. To act or give judgment as umpire.
- bereave
- v. To make desolate with loneliness and grief.
- anthology
- n. A collection of extracts from the writings of various authors.
- aviary
- n. A spacious cage or enclosure in which live birds are kept.
- botany
- n. The science that treats of plants.
- anachronism
- n. Anything occurring or existing out of its proper time.
- abbot
- n. The superior of a community of monks.
- ancestry
- n. One's ancestors collectively.
- acrimony
- n. Sharpness or bitterness of speech or temper.
- befriend
- v. To be a friend to, especially when in need.
- ado
- n. unnecessary activity or ceremony.
- autumnal
- adj. Of or pertaining to autumn.
- bestial
- adj. Animal.
- apostasy
- n. A total departure from one's faith or religion.
- ache
- v. To be in pain or distress.
- archipelago
- n. Any large body of water studded with islands, or the islands collectively themselves.
- antedate
- v. To assign or affix a date to earlier than the actual one.
- brae
- n. Hillside.
- absurd
- adj. Inconsistent with reason or common sense.
- advert
- v. To refer incidentally.
- aphorism
- n. Proverb.
- abdicate
- v. To give up (royal power or the like).
- adoration
- n. Profound devotion.
- beseech
- v. To implore.
- blatant
- adj. Noisily or offensively loud or clamorous.
- accusation
- n. A charge of crime, misdemeanor, or error.
- bodily
- adj. Corporeal.
- botanize
- v. To study plant-life.
- alternate
- n. One chosen to act in place of another, in case of the absence or incapacity of that other.
- abusive
- adj. Employing harsh words or ill treatment.
- avalanche
- n. The fall or sliding of a mass of snow or ice down a mountain-slope, often bearing with it rock.
- absent-minded
- adj. Lacking in attention to immediate surroundings or business.
- bole
- n. The trunk or body of a tree.
- approbation
- n. Sanction.
- affluence
- n. A profuse or abundant supply of riches.
- arid
- adj. Very dry.
- appellate
- adj. Capable of being appealed to.
- atrocity
- n. Great cruelty or reckless wickedness.
- burgess
- n. In colonial times, a member of the lower house of the legislature of Maryland or Virginia.
- anemometer
- n. An instrument for measuring the force or velocity of wind.
- bombast
- n. Inflated or extravagant language, especially on unimportant subjects.
- affront
- n. An open insult or indignity.
- Augustinian
- adj. Pertaining to St. Augustine, his doctrines, or the religious orders called after him.
- benefice
- n. A church office endowed with funds or property for the maintenance of divine service.
- alienable
- adj. Capable of being aliened or alienated, as lands.
- akin
- adj. Of similar nature or qualities.
- acme
- n. The highest point, or summit.
- azure
- n. The color of the sky.
- alias
- n. An assumed name.
- butt
- v. To strike with or as with the head, or horns.
- amalgamate
- v. To mix or blend together in a homogeneous body.
- abstain
- v. To keep oneself back (from doing or using something).
- antechamber
- n. A waiting room for those who seek audience.
- antemundane
- adj. Pertaining to time before the world's creation.
- antiphony
- n. An anthem or other composition sung responsively.
- angelic
- adj. Saintly.
- apex
- n. The highest point, as of a mountain.
- animadversion
- n. The utterance of criticism or censure.
- athirst
- adj. Wanting water.
- anhydrous
- adj. Withered.
- antistrophe
- n. The inversion of terms in successive classes, as in "the home of joy and the joy of home".
- ante
- v. In the game of poker, to put up a stake before the cards are dealt.
- arbiter
- n. One chosen or appointed, by mutual consent of parties in dispute, to decide matters.
- aggrandize
- v. To cause to appear greatly.
- aggrieve
- v. To give grief or sorrow to.
- adulterate
- v. To make impure by the admixture of other or baser ingredients.
- assets
- n. pl. Property in general, regarded as applicable to the payment of debts.
- adjuration
- n. A vehement appeal.
- acumen
- n. Quickness of intellectual insight, or discernment; keenness of discrimination.
- begrudge
- v. To envy one of the possession of.
- authenticity
- n. The state or quality of being genuine, or of the origin and authorship claimed.
- abject
- adj. Sunk to a low condition.
- artless
- adj. Ingenuous.
- bursar
- n. A treasurer.
- abrupt
- adj. Beginning, ending, or changing suddenly or with a break.
- ballad
- n. Any popular narrative poem, often with epic subject and usually in lyric form.
- borough
- n. An incorporated village or town.
- archaic
- adj. Antiquated
- adjacency
- n. The state of being adjacent.
- arbitrary
- adj. Fixed or done capriciously.
- admissible
- adj. Having the right or privilege of entry.
- ashen
- adj. Pale.
- baize
- n. A single-colored napped woolen fabric used for table-covers, curtains, etc.
- ardent
- adj. Burning with passion.
- azalea
- n. A flowering shrub.
- befog
- v. To confuse.
- battalion
- n. A body of infantry composed of two or more companies, forming a part of a regiment.
- apostle
- n. Any messenger commissioned by or as by divine authority.
- alternative
- n. Something that may or must exist, be taken or chosen, or done instead of something else.
- alchemy
- n. Chemistry of the middle ages, characterized by the pursuit of changing base metals to gold.
- assonance
- n. Resemblance or correspondence in sound.
- annual
- adj. Occurring every year.
- blithe
- adj. Joyous.
- acetate
- n. A salt of acetic acid.
- altercate
- v. To contend angrily or zealously in words.
- accurate
- adj. Conforming exactly to truth or to a standard.
- autobiography
- n. The story of one's life written by himself.
- antilogy
- n. Inconsistency or contradiction in terms or ideas.
- auspice
- n. favoring, protecting, or propitious influence or guidance.
- anterior
- adj. Prior.
- Artesian
- well n. A very deep bored well. water rises due to underground pressure
- antiquate
- v. To make old or out of date.
- administrator
- n. One who manages affairs of any kind.
- adversity
- n. Misfortune.
- auburn
- adj. Reddish-brown, said usually of the hair.
- actionable
- adj. Affording cause for instituting an action, as trespass, slanderous words.
- arrant
- adj. Notoriously bad.
- amorphous
- adj. Without determinate shape.
- betroth
- v. To engage to marry.
- brogue
- n. Any dialectic pronunciation of English, especially that of the Irish people.
- allege
- v. To assert to be true, especially in a formal manner, as in court.
- baleful
- adj. Malignant.
- albino
- n. A person with milky white skin and hair, and eyes with bright red pupil and usually pink iris.
- amphibious
- adj. Living both on land and in water.
- assent
- v. To express agreement with a statement or matter of opinion.
- bide
- v. To await.
- Arthurian
- adj. Pertaining to King Arthur, the real or legendary hero of British poetic story.
- atonement
- n. Amends, reparation, or expiation made from wrong or injury.
- affix
- v. To fasten.
- apathy
- n. Insensibility to emotion or passionate feeling.
- appropriate
- adj. Suitable for the purpose and circumstances.
- bulrush
- n. Any one of various tall rush-like plants growing in damp ground or water.
- accommodate
- v. To furnish something as a kindness or favor.
- abase
- v. To lower in position, estimation, or the like; degrade.
- bale
- n. A large package prepared for transportation or storage.
- bibliophile
- n. One who loves books.
- biennial
- n. A plant that produces leaves and roots the first year and flowers and fruit the second.
- abhorrent
- adj. Very repugnant; hateful.
- acquaintance
- n. Release or discharge from indebtedness, obligation, or responsibility.
- alter
- v. To make change in.
- advocate
- n. One who pleads the cause of another, as in a legal or ecclesiastical court.
- amour
- n. A love-affair, especially one of an illicit nature.
- alderman
- n. A member of a municipal legislative body, who usually exercises also certain judicial functions.
- altruism
- n. Benevolence to others on subordination to self-interest.
- antiphon
- n. A response or alteration of responses, generally musical.
- assignee
- n. One who is appointed to act for another in the management of certain property and interests.
- benefactor
- n. A doer of kindly and charitable acts.
- abidance
- n. An abiding.
- audible
- adj. Loud enough to be heard.
- ambitious
- adj. Eagerly desirous and aspiring.
- apogee
- n. The climax.
- absolution
- n. Forgiveness, or passing over of offenses.
- antipathize
- v. To show or feel a feeling of antagonism, aversion, or dislike.
- ambiguous
- adj. Having a double meaning.
- abundant
- adj. Plentiful.
- agglomerate
- v. To pile or heap together.
- aliment
- n. That which nourishes.
- askance
- adv. With a side or indirect glance or meaning.
- bibulous
- adj. Fond of drinking.
- bungle
- v. To execute clumsily.
- arbor
- n. A tree.
- aqueous
- adj. Of, pertaining to, or containing water.
- amicable
- adj. Done in a friendly spirit.
- augment
- v. To make bigger.
- aghast
- adj. Struck with terror and amazement.
- aggravation
- n. The fact of being made heavier or more heinous, as a crime , offense, misfortune, etc.
- amatory
- adj. Designed to excite love.
- abhorrence
- n. The act of detesting extremely.
- afresh
- adv. Once more, after rest or interval.
- auriferous
- adj. Containing gold.
- abrade
- v. To wear away the surface or some part of by friction.
- aspire
- v. To have an earnest desire, wish, or longing, as for something high and good, not yet attained.
- ambrosial
- adj. Divinely sweet, fragrant, or delicious.
- arboreal
- adj. Of or pertaining to a tree or trees.
- brigadier
- n. General officer who commands a brigade, ranking between a colonel and a major-general.
- adherent
- adj. Clinging or sticking fast.
- anarchy
- n. Absence or utter disregard of government.
- braze
- v. To make of or ornament with brass.
- abomination
- n. A very detestable act or practice.
- anathema
- n. Anything forbidden, as by social usage.
- alienation
- n. Estrangement.
- apotheosis
- n. Deification.
- armada
- n. A fleet of war-vessels.
- alkali
- n. Anything that will neutralize an acid, as lime, magnesia, etc.
- boatswain
- n. A subordinate officer of a vessel, who has general charge of the rigging, anchors, etc.
- altruist
- n. One who advocates or practices altruism.
- adhesion
- n. The state of being attached or joined.
- access
- n. A way of approach or entrance; passage.
- antidote
- n. Anything that will counteract or remove the effects of poison, disease, or the like.
- accede
- v. To agree.
- arrogate
- v. To take, demand, or claim, especially presumptuously or without reasons or grounds.
- Baconian
- adj. Of or pertaining to Lord Bacon or his system of philosophy.
- abet
- v. To aid, promote, or encourage the commission of (an offense).
- alacrity
- n. Cheerful willingness.
- brethren
- n. pl. Members of a brotherhood, gild, profession, association, or the like.
- boorish
- adj. Rude.
- Briticism
- n. A word, idiom, or phrase characteristic of Great Britain or the British.
- brigade
- n. A body of troops consisting of two or more regiments.
- allay
- v. To calm the violence or reduce the intensity of; mitigate.
- acquaint
- v. To make familiar or conversant.
- abstemious
- adj. Characterized by self denial or abstinence, as in the use of drink, food.
- bureaucracy
- n. Government by departments of men transacting particular branches of public business.
- botanical
- adj. Connected with the study or cultivation of plants.
- bauble
- n. A trinket.
- auxiliary
- n. One who or that which aids or helps, especially when regarded as subsidiary or accessory.
- baritone
- adj. Having a register higher than bass and lower than tenor.
- belate
- v. To delay past the proper hour.
- acrimonious
- adj. Full of bitterness.
- blaspheme
- v. To indulge in profane oaths.
- blockade
- n. The shutting up of a town, a frontier, or a line of coast by hostile forces.
- antitoxin
- n. A substance which neutralizes the poisonous products of micro-organisms.
- animate
- v. To make alive.
- Britannia
- n. The United Kingdom of Great Britain.
- brooch
- n. An article of jewelry fastened by a hinged pin and hook on the underside.
- amateur
- adj. Practicing an art or occupation for the love of it, but not as a profession.
- anesthetic
- adj. Pertaining to or producing loss of sensation.
- acquiescence
- n. Passive consent.
- blaze
- n. A vivid glowing flame.
- albeit
- conj. Even though.
- aspirant
- n. One who seeks earnestly, as for advancement, honors, place.
- apposite
- adj. Appropriate.
- acetic
- adj. Of, pertaining to, or of the nature of vinegar.
- adverse
- adj. Opposing or opposed.
- anatomy
- n. That branch of morphology which treats of the structure of organisms.
- admonition
- n. Gentle reproof.
- benediction
- n. a solemn invocation of the divine blessing.
- antic
- n. A grotesque, ludicrous, or fantastic action.
- abnormal
- adj. Not conformed to the ordinary rule or standard.
- burnish
- v. To make brilliant or shining.
- abrogate
- v. To abolish, repeal.
- belle
- n. A woman who is a center of attraction because of her beauty, accomplishments, etc.
- aqueduct
- n. A water-conduit, particularly one for supplying a community from a distance.
- bedeck
- v. To cover with ornament.
- butte
- n. A conspicuous hill, low mountain, or natural turret, generally isolated.
- alcohol
- n. A volatile, inflammable, colorless liquid of a penetrating odor and burning taste.
- accredit
- v. To give credit or authority to.
- ameliorate
- v. To relieve, as from pain or hardship
- aurora
- n. A luminous phenomenon in the upper regions of the atmosphere.
- believe
- v. To accept as true on the testimony or authority of others.
- academician
- n. A member of an academy of literature, art, or science.
- Antichrist
- n. Any opponent or enemy of Christ, whether a person or a power.
- accusatory
- adj. Of, pertaining to, or involving an accusation.
- audacious
- adj. Fearless.
- abscond
- v. To depart suddenly and secretly, as for the purpose of escaping arrest.
- archangel
- n. An angel of high rank.
- appease
- v. To soothe by quieting anger or indignation.
- accompaniment
- n. A subordinate part or parts, enriching or supporting the leading part.
- abominate
- v. To hate violently.
- Bowdlerize
- v. To expurgate in editing (a literary composition) by omitting words or passages.
- breech
- n. The buttocks.
- affirmative
- adj. Answering yes; to a question at issue.
- artifice
- n. Trickery.
- assessor
- n. An officer whose duty it is to assess taxes.
- belligerent
- adj. Manifesting a warlike spirit.
- abominable
- adj. Very hateful.
- attorney-general
- n. The chief law-officer of a government.
- aggress
- v. To make the first attack.
- apprehend
- v. To make a prisoner of (a person) in the name of the law.
- boisterous
- adj. Unchecked merriment or animal spirits.
- afoot
- adv. In progress.
- birthright
- n. A privilege or possession into which one is born.
- accuracy
- n. Exactness.
- amply
- adv. Sufficiently.
- bustle
- v. To hurry.
- astringent
- adj. Harsh in disposition or character.
- accessible
- adj. Approachable.
- belittle
- v. To disparage.
- beck
- v. To give a signal to, by nod or gesture.
- bromine
- n. A dark reddish-brown, non-metallic liquid element with a suffocating odor.
- ampere
- n. The practical unit of electric-current strength.
- bulbous
- adj. Of, or pertaining to, or like a bulb.
- animalcule
- n. An animal of microscopic smallness.
- apparition
- n. Ghost.
- abridge
- v. To make shorter in words, keeping the essential features, leaning out minor particles.
- aborigines
- n. The original of earliest known inhabitants of a country.
- brotherhood
- n. Spiritual or social fellowship or solidarity.
- assess
- v. To determine the amount of (a tax or other sum to be paid).
- ambulate
- v. To walk about
- appellation
- n. The name or title by which a particular person, class, or thing is called.
- auricle
- n. One of the two chambers of the heart which receives the blood from the veins.
- amplitude
- n. Largeness.
- barometer
- n. An instrument for indicating the atmospheric pressure per unit of surface.
- adjunct
- n. Something joined to or connected with another thing, but holding a subordinate place.
- affectation
- n. A studied or ostentatious pretense or attempt.
- apostate
- adj. False.
- aggregate
- n. The entire number, sum, mass, or quantity of something.
- aperture
- n. Hole.
- auditory
- adj. Of or pertaining to hearing or the organs or sense of hearing.
- brimstone
- n. Sulfur.
- buttress
- n. Any support or prop.
- advisory
- adj. Not mandatory.
- antipodes
- n. A place or region on the opposite side of the earth.
- attest
- v. To certify as accurate, genuine, or true.
- annex
- v. To add or affix at the end.
- brittle
- adj. Fragile.