All about A
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- ancestry
- family descent; ADJ. ancestral
- adapt
- make or become suitable for a specific use; alter; modify; adjust; N. adaptation: act of adapting; composition recast into a new form; Ex. The play is an adaption of a short novel.
- abominable
- detestable; extremely unpleasant
- adverse
- going against; opposing; unfavorable; hostile
- aloft
- upward; high up in the air
- adamant
- hard; inflexible
- academic
- related to a school; not practical or directly useful
- abortive
- unsuccessful; fruitless
- ambrosia
- food of the gods
- ambulatory
- able to walk
- anachronism
- an error involving time in a story; something or someone misplaced in time; ADJ. anachronistic
- aboriginal
- primitive; native; indigenous; being the first of its kind in a region;
- abate
- subside or moderate
- accede
- agree
- affected
- artificial; pretended
- airy
- of air; high in the air; lofty; immaterial; unreal
- advocate
- speak in favor of; support (an idea or plan); urge; plead for
- agility
- nimbleness; ability to move quickly
- ablution
- washing
- acumen
- mental keenness; sharpness of judgment; ability to judge quickly and well;
- allege
- state without proof
- actuate
- motivate; activate; cause to act
- abode
- dwelling place; home
- abeyance
- suspended action
- ambush
- act of lying in wait to attack by surprise; sudden attack made from a concealed position;
- abut
- border upon; adjoin
- acerbity
- bitterness of speech and temper; ADJ. acerbic: bitter; acrid (in taste, manner, or tone)
- adjacent
- adjoining; neighboring; close by
- adulterate
- make impure or of poorer quality by adding inferior or tainted(contaminated) substances
- angular
- sharp-cornered; having an angle; not rounded (body); bony; lean; gaunt; stiff in manner
- aberrant
- abnormal or deviant
- acme
- peak; pinnacle; highest point
- animosity
- active enmity
- alleviate
- relieve (pain)
- animated
- lively; spirited
- amalgam
- combination of different things; mixture of metals (containing mercury) used for filling holes in teeth
- alluvial
- pertaining to soil deposits left by running water
- addle
- make or become confused; muddle; drive crazy; become rotten (egg)
- allay
- calm; pacify
- abridge
- condense or shorten
- accommodate
- oblige or help someone; adjust or bring into harmony; adapt; make enough space for; ADJ. accommodative; CF. accomodating: helpful and obliging
- anarchy
- absence of governing body; state of disorder
- alliteration
- repetition of beginning sound in poetry
- annals
- records arranged in yearly parts; history
- agitate
- stir up; disturb
- accelerate
- move faster
- ambiguous
- unclear or doubtful in meaning; having more than one possible interpretation
- amity
- friendship; peaceful relationship as between nations
- anneal
- reduce brittleness and improve toughness by heating and cooling (metal or glass)
- abjure
- renounce upon oath
- abnegation
- renunciation; self-sacrifice; self-abnegation
- affinity
- feeling of kinship; similarity; Ex. strong affinity for her; Ex. many affinities between two languages
- acquittal
- deliverance from a charge; V. acquit: free from a charge or accusation; discharge from a duty; conduct (oneself) in a specified manner
- affiliation
- joining; associating with
- annul
- make void
- ambivalence
- the state of having contradictory or conflicting emotional attitudes or opinions
- acrid
- bitter (to the taste or smell); sharp; bitterly pungent
- abstract
- theoretical; not concrete; nonrepresentational
- actuary
- someone who advises insurance companies
- accolade
- award of merit; strong praise and approval
- aesthetic
- artistic; dealing with or capable of appreciating the beautiful (of a person or building);
- amiss
- wrong; faulty; Ex. something amiss; ADV.
- adjutant
- staff officer assisting the commander; assistant
- alimentary
- supplying nourishment
- adjunct
- something attached to but holding an inferior position
- accost
- approach and speak first to a person
- alimony
- payments made regularly to an ex-spouse after divorce
- altercation
- noisy quarrel
- admonish
- warn or speak to with gentle disapproval; reprove
- adversity
- great hardship or affliction; misfortune; calamitous event
- aggrandize
- make greater; increase in power, wealth, rank, or honor; N. aggrandizement
- adjourn
- suspend until a later time; move from one place to another
- amiable
- agreeable; lovable; warmly friendly
- aerie
- nest of a large bird of prey
- abide
- dwell; abide by: comply with; put up with; tolerate;
- altruistic
- unselfishly generous; concerned for others; N. altiruism: unselfish concern for the welfare of others; unselfishness; OP. egoism
- afterlife
- life after death; later part of one's life
- ameliorate
- improve
- allocate
- assign; set apart for a particular purpose
- amble
- walking at an easy unhurried pace; V: walk slowly and aimlessly
- amphibian
- able to live both on land and in water; N.
- amenable
- obedient; compliant; readily managed; responsive; willing to be led; answerable or accountable legally; responsible; able to be tested by;
- annex
- attach; add to a large thing; take possession of; incorporate (territory) into a larger existing political unit (by force); N: building added to a large one
- amputate
- cut off part of body; prune (a limb)
- anomalous
- abnormal; irregular
- animus
- hostile feeling or intent; animosity; hostility; disposition
- abyss
- enormous chasm; vast bottomless pit
- agglomeration
- collection; heap; V. agglomerate: gather into a rounded mass; N. aggolmeate: jumbled mass; heap
- allegory
- story, play, or picture in which characters are used as symbols; fable
- adept
- expert at; very skilled
- abject
- (of a condition) wretched; as low as possible; lacking pride; very humble; showing lack of self-respect; Ex. abject apology
- abstinence
- restraint from pleasant things, esp. eating or drinking; CF. abstention: act of abstaining from vote
- abash
- embarrass
- amalgamate
- (of societies or groups) combine; unite in one body
- adjuration
- solemn urging; V. adjure: entreat earnestly; enjoin solemnly
- adulation
- flattery; admiration that is more than is necessary or deserved
- accessory
- additional object; useful but not essential thing
- alcove
- nook; recess
- anesthetic
- substance that removes sensation with or without loss of consciousness;
- alienate
- make unfriendly or hostile; estrange; separate; change the ownership of
- acetic
- vinegary
- alchemy
- medieval chemistry
- abstruse
- obscure; profound; difficult to understand
- aegis
- shield; protection; defense
- anathema
- solemn curse; someone or something regarded as a curse;
- adore
- love deeply and respect highly
- allure
- entice; attract; tempt
- abhor
- detest; hate
- acrimonious
- stinging; caustic; bitter in words or manner; N. acrimony: bitter ill-natured animosity in speech or behavior
- agog
- highly excited; intensely curious
- affidavit
- written statement made under oath (for use as proof in a court of law)
- affable
- easily approachable; easy to talk to; warmly friendly
- acute
- (of the senses) sharp; quickly perceptive; keen; penetrating; brief and severe;
- agape
- openmouthed
- abscond
- depart secretly and hide
- accessible
- easy to approach; obtainable
- adhere
- stick fast; be a devotd follower; N. adhesion: adhering; devotion; loyality
- amphitheater
- oval building with tiers of seats; CF. arena
- animadversion
- critical remark; comment critically with disapproval
- acoustics
- science of sound; quality that makes a room easy or hard to hear in
- abusive
- coarsely insulting; physically harmful
- annuity
- yearly allowance
- acclivity
- sharp upslope of a hill; OP. declivity
- agrarian
- pertaining to land or its cultivation;
- adjoin
- be next to
- acclimate
- adjust to climate or environment; adapt
- abase
- lower; degrade; humiliate; make humble; make (oneself) lose self-respect
- ambience
- environment; atmosphere; Ex. restraurant with a pleasant ___: completely surrounding;
- acknowledge
- recognize; admit
- annotate
- comment; make explanatory notes
- amenities
- convenient features that helps to make life pleasant; social courtesies
- alias
- an assumed name esp. by a criminal (usually to mislead people);
- anecdote
- short story of an amusing or interesting event
- abrogate
- abolish
- agenda
- items of business at a meeting
- anguish
- acute pain; extreme suffering
- agnostic
- one who is skeptical of the existence or knowability of a god or any ultimate reality
- advert
- refer
- aberration
- deviation from the normal; mental disorder
- amorphous
- formless; lacking shape or definition
- anomaly
- irregularity
- amend
- correct; change ; generally for the better
- amoral
- nonmoral; having no understanding of right and wrong
- alloy
- mixture as of metals; something added that lowers in value or purity; V: mix; make less pure; lower in value or quality; spoil; CF. unalloyed: not in mixture with other maetals; pure; complete; unqualified;
- abysmal
- bottomless
- anarchist
- person who seeks to overturn the established government; advocate of abolishing authority
- analgesic
- causing insensitivity to pain; N.
- acidulous
- slightly sour (in taste or manner); sharp; caustic
- aggregate
- sum; total; ADJ. V: gather into a mass or whole; accumulate; add up to;
- abominate
- loathe; hate
- allude
- refer indirectly; N. allusion: indirect reference
- affirmation
- positive assertion; confirmation; solemn pledge by one who refuses to take an oath;
- adventitious
- accidental; casual; happening by chance
- anemia
- condition in which blood lacks red corpuscles; ADJ. anemic
- affliction
- state of distress; trial; cause of distress or suffering; inflict grievous suffering on
- amok(amuck)
- in a state of rage; Ex. run amok
- acquiesce
- assent; agree passively; comply without protest
- acrophobia
- fear of heights
- ample
- enough; abundant; spacious; large in size; Ex. ample opportunity/garden; N. amplitude: quality of being ample; abundance; largeness of space
- amicable
- peaceful; politely friendly; not quarrelsome;
- analogy
- similarity; parallelism; comparing two similar things
- analgesia
- condition of being unable to feel pain
- amnesty
- pardon (allowed by government to political criminals)
- annihilate
- destroy
- abolish
- cancel; put an end to
- absolve
- pardon (an offense)
- address
- direct a speech to; speak to; deal with or discuss; direct one's efforts or attention to; make with a destination; N: formal speech
- abstemious
- sparing in eating and drinking; temperate
- allegiance
- loyalty
- affront
- insult; offense; intentional act of disrespect; V: insult or hurt the feelings of intentionally
- acne
- skin disease (on the face)
- abscission
- cutting off; separation
- adroit
- skillful (in using mind or hand)
- alms
- money or goods given to the poor
- abet
- assist usually in doing something wrong; encourage
- acclaim
- applaud; praise; greet with great approval; announce with great approval;
- adversary
- opponent; enemy
- addiction
- compulsive habitual need
- acuity
- sharpness (of mind or senses of sight or hearing)
- addendum
- addition; appendix to book; something that is added (as at the end of a speech or book)
- anchor
- secure or fasten firmly; be fixed in place; N. anchorage
- anodyne
- drug that relieves pain or trouble;opiate; ADJ.
- Advent
- arrival
- abrasive
- rubbing away; tending to grind down
- adage
- wise saying; proverb
- abbreviate
- shorten
- alacrity
- cheerful promptness without reluctance
- amorous
- moved by sexual love; loving; of sexual love;
- accrue
- come to one as a gain; accumulate over time; come about by addition; Ex. benefits that accrue from scientific research; Ex. interest accruing in a bank account; N. accrual
- abstain
- refrain; withhold from participation; intentionally not use one's vote;
- anoint
- consecrate; put oil on (in a religious ceremony)
- amass
- collect (gradually, in a very large amount)
- accretion
- growth or increase in size by gradual addition; growth; increase; increase by natural growth; Ex. towers and other ___ of the castle;
- amazon
- female warrior
- ancillary
- serving as an aid or accessory; auxiliary; N.
- adorn
- decorate
- advocacy
- support; active pleading on behalf of someone or something
- accord
- agreement
- actuarial
- calculating; pertaining to insurance statistics
- accomplice
- partner in crime
- amulet
- charm; talisman; an object worn believed to protect against evil, bad luck
- analogous
- comparable; similar
- amplify
- increase in size or effect; expand; broaden or clarify by expanding; intensify; make stronger;
- adherent
- supporter; follower
- amnesia
- loss of memory
- aloof
- apart; not open in one's relationship with other people; reserved; ADV.
- aghast
- filled with great surprise or fear; horrified
- abdicate
- renounce; give up (position, right, or responsibility)
- accoutre
- equip;dress or equip in something noticeable or impressive.
- absolute
- complete; totally unlimited; having complete power; certain; not relative; Ex. absolute honesty/ruler; CF. absolutism
- affluence
- abundance; wealth
- ambidextrous
- capable of using either hand with equal ease