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