Difficult word and their meaning

50 Difficult Words with Meanings. Really? Is it something that matters in the preparation for competitive exams? Or is it even something you should bother going through? The simple answer is YES. Good vocabulary can take you to places in competitive exams as well as in life. Are you ready to learn new difficult words with meanings? Here is the complete list of 50 difficult words with meanings!

Why Improve Your Vocabulary?

Here are some reasons why you must improve your vocabulary:

1. Study abroad tests such as GRE, GMAT, IELTS, TOEFL, PTE, SAT, etc. include vocabulary sections to test your English proficiency. Hence, practising vocabulary daily can help you score well on these tests.
2. Developing your vocabulary will sharpen your mind.
3. Knowing the correct word can help you express your thoughts more accurately.
4. Developing your vocabulary is a great way to improve your communication skills.

Must Read: Daily Used English Words

50 Difficult Words with Meanings and Examples

1. Abnegation /abnɪˈɡeɪʃ(ə)n/: Renouncing a belief or doctrine
   Example: “I believe in the abnegation of political power”
2. Aggrandize /əˈɡrandʌɪz/: enhance power, wealth or status
   Example: It was an action intended to aggrandize the Frankish dynasty.
3. Alacrity /əˈlakrɪti/: Eagerness
   Example: He accepted the invitation with alacrity.
4. Anachronistic /ənakrəˈnɪstɪk/: misplaced chronologically
   Example: He is rebelling against the anachronistic morality of his parents.
5. Archetypal /ˌɑːkɪˈtʌɪp(ə)l/: quintessential of a certain kind
   Example: She is the archetypal country doctor.
6. Ascetic /əˈsɛtɪk/: one who practices self-denial as part of spiritual discipline
   Example: She has adopted an ascetic life of prayer, fasting, and manual labour.
7. Beguile /bɪˈɡʌɪl/: influence someone in a deceptive way
   Example: He beguiled the voters with his good looks.
8. Blandishment /ˈblandɪʃm(ə)nt/: intentional flattery for persuasion
   Example: The blandishments of the travel brochure.
9. Cajole /kəˈdʒəʊl/: persuade by flattery or coaxing
   Example: He hoped to cajole her into selling the house.
10. Callous (/ˈkaləs/: disregard for others
    Example: Her callous comments about the murder made me shiver.
11. Camaraderie /kaməˈrɑːd(ə)ri/: a sense of solidarity arising out of familiarity and sociability
    Example: I like the enforced camaraderie of office life.
12. Circumlocution /ˌsəːkəmləˈkjuːʃ(ə)n/: expressing someone in an indirect way
    Example: His admission came after years of circumlocution.
13. Clamour/ˈklamə/: proclaim something noisily
    Example: The questions rose to a clamour in the meeting.
14. Cognizant /ˈkɒ(ɡ)nɪz(ə)nt/: awareness or realization
    Example: Politicians must be cognizant of the political boundaries within which they work.
15. Construe /kənˈstruː/: interpret or assign meaning
    Example: His words could hardly be construed as an apology.
16. Convivial /kənˈvɪvɪəl/: enjoyable atmosphere or jovial company
    Example: It is a convivial cocktail party.
17. Demagogue /ˈdɛməɡɒɡ/: a political leader who uses rhetoric to appeal to prejudices and desires of ordinary citizens
    Example: The minister is a gifted demagogue with particular skill in manipulating the press.
18. Denigrate /ˈdɛnɪɡreɪt/: belittle someone
    Example: Many doom and gloom merchants denigrate their own country.
19. Didactic /dɪˈdaktɪk/: instructive with a moral intent
    Example: It is a didactic novel that set out to expose social injustice.
20. Disparate /ˈdɪsp(ə)rət/: of a distinct kind
    Example: They inhabit disparate worlds of thought.

Time to take a breather! You’re almost there! Let’s quickly finish up our list of 50 difficult words with meanings!

1. Eclectic /ɪˈklɛktɪk/: deriving the best ideas and styles from a diverse range of sources
   Example: My university is offering an eclectic mix of courses.
2. Egregious /ɪˈɡriːdʒəs/: reprehensible or outrageously bad
   Example: It is an egregious abuse of copyright.
3. Embezzlement /ɛmˈbɛzlm(ə)nt/: misappropriation of funds
   Example: He has charges of fraud and embezzlement.
4. Enervate /ˈɛnəveɪt/: lacking in vitality or mentally/ morally drained
   Example: The weather has an enervating heat today.
5. Ephemeral /ɪˈfɛm(ə)r(ə)l/: lasting for a short duration
   Example: Fads are ephemeral: new ones regularly drive out the old.
6. Equanimity /ˌɛkwəˈnɪmɪti/: maintaining composure in stressful situations
   Example: He accepted both the good and the bad with equanimity.
7. Fatuous /ˈfatjʊəs/: devoid of intelligence
   Example: It was a fatuous comment.
8. Gratuitous /ɡrəˈtjuːɪtəs/: uncalled for or unwarranted
   Example: Gratuitous violence was reported.
9. Iconoclast /ʌɪˈkɒnəklast/: someone who criticizes or attacks cherished ideas and beliefs
   Example: His son Gegnesius 722 was taken to Constantinople, where he won over to his opinions the iconoclast emperor, Leo the Isaurian. 
10. Idiosyncratic /ˌɪdɪə(ʊ)sɪŋˈkratɪk/: something peculiar to an individual
    Example: He emerged as one of the great, idiosyncratic talents of the nineties.
11. Incumbent /ɪnˈkʌmb(ə)nt/: something that is morally binding
    Example: The government realized that it was incumbent on them to act.
12. Inveterate /ɪnˈvɛt(ə)rət/: habitual
    Example: She is an inveterate gambler.
13. Libertarian /ˌlɪbəˈtɛːrɪən/: someone who cherishes ideas of free will
    Example: He is studying libertarian philosophy.
14. Licentious /lʌɪˈsɛnʃəs/: someone who is promiscuous
    Example: The ruler’s tyrannical and licentious behaviour.
15. Largess /lɑːˈ(d)ʒɛs/: Kindness or Generosity in bestowing gifts or money
    Example: The king can’t bestow these costly jewels with such a largess
16. Multifarious /ˌmʌltɪˈfɛːrɪəs/: multifaceted or diverse
    Example: The university offers multifarious activities.
17. Obdurate /ˈɒbdjʊrət/: being stubborn and refusing to change one’s opinion
    Example: I argued this point with him, but he was obdurate.
18. Ostracism /ˈɒstrəsɪz(ə)m/: excluding a person or certain section from society by majority consent
    Example: “I argued this point with him, but he was obdurate”
19. Pejorative /pɪˈdʒɒrətɪv/: showing disapproval
    Example: Permissiveness is used almost universally as a pejorative term.
20. Pertinacious /ˌpəːtɪˈneɪʃəs/: someone who is stubbornly unyielding
    Example: She worked with a pertinacious resistance to interruptions.
21. Phlegmatic /flɛɡˈmatɪk/: expressing little or no emotion
    Example: He portrays the phlegmatic British character on the show.
22. Promulgate /ˈprɒm(ə)lɡeɪt/: to broadcast or announce
    Example: These objectives have to be promulgated within the organization.
23. Quotidian /kwɒˈtɪdɪən/: something that is of daily occurrence
    Example: The car sped noisily off through the quotidian traffic.
24. Recalcitrant /rɪˈkalsɪtr(ə)nt/: resistant to authority
    Example: A class of recalcitrant fifteen-year-olds raided the store.
25. Sanctimonious /ˌsaŋ(k)tɪˈməʊnɪəs/: the pretence of being morally pious to exhibit moral superiority
    Example: What happened to all the sanctimonious talk about putting his family first?
26. Solipsism /ˈsɒlɪpsɪz(ə)m/: the philosophical theory that only the self-existence is known and all that exists
    Example: We cannot avoid the popularity of the solipsism mentality.
27. Travesty /ˈtravɪsti/: distorting facts or imitation
    Example: The absurdly lenient sentence is a travesty of justice.
28. Ubiquitous /juːˈbɪkwɪtəs/: omnipresent or existing everywhere
    Example: His ubiquitous influence was felt by the family.
29. Vicissitude /vɪˈsɪsɪtjuːd/: an unwelcome or unpleasant change in circumstances or fortune
    Example: Her husband’s sharp vicissitudes of fortune.
30. Vociferous /və(ʊ)ˈsɪf(ə)rəs/: something or someone who is offensively/ conspicuously loud.
    Example: He was a vociferous opponent of the takeover.

Good job! How many of these 50 Difficult Words with Meanings do you remember? No, don’t peep. Be honest. It’s okay even if you remember none of these hard words for now. The task of making yourself familiar with the new difficult words, especially those that we don’t use in our everyday conversations can seem impossible and exhaustive, but fret not for a few simple tricks can help you go a long way. 

Must Read: 50 Difficult Phrases with Meaning

How to Learn the Unfamiliar Words with Meaning?

Our mind tends to be more active and learn better when we engage in activities that seem more fun, learning difficult words in English can seem boring but you can make this task more fun and exciting. You and your friends can make placards with difficult words and challenge each other with meanings, the fun activity will keep you engaged and help you keep those difficult words in mind.

If group activities don’t seem like the ideal situation for you, you can make lists of the difficult words and revise them before going to bed, our brain tends to revise the things we learn and observe through the day while we sleep so this might help you learn better.

20 Hard Words with Meanings

Have you memorized 50 difficult words? If yes, we have got another set of hard words that will help you ace competitive exams. Here is the list of hard words in English that you must remember:

1. Abject /ˈabdʒɛkt/: Experienced or present to the maximum degree
   “The result plunged her into abject misery”
2. Abscond /əbˈskɒnd,abˈskɒnd/: Leave hurriedly and secretly
   “After her secret was revealed she absconded from the party”
3. Bereft /bɪˈrɛft/: Deprived of or lacking“
   The house bereft of colours and painting”
4. Calumny /ˈkaləmni/: The making of false and defamatory statements about someone to damage their reputation
   “He doesn’t seem like a person who would spread a calumny of others”
5. Capitulate /kəˈpɪtjʊleɪt/: Cease to resist an opponent or an unwelcome demand
   “Our forces were prepared to capitulate enemies”
6. Umbrage /ˈʌmbrɪdʒ/: Annoyance or offence
   “She took umbrage of his rude comment.”
7. Emollient /ɪˈmɒlɪənt/: Having the quality of softening or soothing the skin
   “I prefer using an emollient shampoo over others”
8. Dirge /dəːdʒ/: A lament for the dead, especially one forming part of a funeral rite
   “When Rachel sang a dirge for her father, everyone had teary eyes”
9. Dispel /dɪˈspɛl/: make doubt disappear
   “The calmness of the morning dispel Ross’s disappointment”
10. Epistolary /ɪˈpɪst(ə)ˌləri/: In the form of letters
    “My grandparent’s college times epistolary collection is very interesting.”
11. Epistolary /ɪˈpɪst(ə)ˌləri/: In the form of letters or documents
    Example: The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a perfect example of Epistolary.
12. Exacerbate /ɪɡˈzasəbeɪt,ɛkˈsasəbeɪt/: To make a situation, a bad feeling or a problem worse
    Example: According to a survey stress can cause or exacerbate health conditions the humans.
13. Forbearance /fɔːˈbɛːr(ə)ns/: Self-control, Patience, Tolerance
    Example: Without forbearance, Ray wouldn’t have cleared his house loan.
14. Gourmand /ˈɡʊəmənd,ˈɡɔːmənd/: A person who likes and enjoys eating food
    Example: If you are a dessert gourmand, then you must try Kentucky Chocolate Pie.
15. Heterogeneous /ˌhɛt(ə)rə(ʊ)ˈdʒiːnɪəs/: Diverse in content or character
    Example: I gave him heterogeneous ideas for his master’s thesis topics.
16. Impecunious /ˌɪmpɪˈkjuːnɪəs/: Having less money or no money at all
    Example: After buying a new house, Sam was so impecunious that he couldn’t even afford Christmas cards.
17. Pellucid /pɪˈl(j)uːsɪd,pɛˈl(j)uːsɪd/: Clear, Easy to understand, comprehensible
    Example: His pellucid explanation of why he wants to leave the job made higher authorities release him without any conditions.
18. Philanthropic /.fɪlənˈθrɒpɪk/: An organisation or person promoting the welfare of others
    Example: Because of the financial aid received by the philanthropic bodies, Kate managed to complete her higher education.
19. Protean /ˈprəʊtɪən,prəʊˈtiːən/: Frequently changing, Trending, Versatile
    Example: Vicky Kaushal is a protean actor who is capable of performing any kind of role.
20. Spurious /ˈspjʊərɪəs/: Illegitimate, False
    Example: They made spurious claims of accidents just to get the insurance funds.

Difficult English Words to Pronounce

Want to know the hardest word? Here are the most difficult words to pronounce in English:

1. Otorhinolaryngologist: oh-toh-RYE-noh-LAR-ən-GOL-ə-jee
2. Anemone: uh·neh·muh·nee
3. Anathema: uh·na·thuh·muh
4. Worcestershire: vu·stuh·shuh
5. Balmoral: bal·maw·ruhl
6. Antidisestablishmentarianism: an·tee·dis·uh·sta·bluhsh·muhnt·euh·ree·uhn·i·zm
7. Asterisk: a·stuh·ruhsk
8. Brewery: broo·uh·ree
9. Defibrillator: duh·fi·bruh·lei·tuh
10. February: feh·bruh·ree
11. Rural: roo·ruhl
12. Floccinaucinihilipilification: Flok-si-no-si-ny-hil-i-pil-i-fi-kay-shuhn
13. Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia: Hi-poh-po-toh-mon-stroh-ses-kwee-peh-dah-leejoh-foh-beeja
14. Colonel: kuh·nuhl
15. Choir: kvai·uh
16. Chores: chawz
17. Isthmus: is·muhs
18. Library: lai·bruh·ree
19. Strait: streit
20. Gibraltar: ji·braal·tuh

[BONUS] 50 Simple Words with Meaning

Here is a collection of simple words with meanings that are commonly used in everyday life, some of which are as follows:

1. Back: The rear surface of the human body from the shoulders to the hips.
2. Base: The lowest part or edge of something, especially the part on which it rests or is supported.
3. Behaviour: How one acts or conducts oneself, especially towards others.
4. Belief: An acceptance that something exists or is true, especially one without proof.
5. Birth: The emergence of a baby or other young from the body of its mother; the start of life as a physically separate being.
6. Answer: A thing that is said, written, or done as a reaction to a question, statement, or situation.
7. Approval: The belief that someone or something is good or acceptable.
8. Bread: Food made of flour, water, and yeast mixture and baked.
9. Breath: An inhalation or exhalation of air from the lungs. 
10. Brother: A man or boy concerning other sons and daughters of his parents. 
11. Building: It is a structure with a roof and walls, such as a house or factory. 
12. Burn: (Of a fire) produces flames and heat while consuming a material such as coal or wood.
13. Business: It refers to a person’s regular occupation, profession, or trade.
14. Butter: It is a pale yellow edible fatty substance made by churning cream and used as a spread or in cooking. 
15. Current: Belonging to the present time; happening or being used or done now.
16. Damage: Physical harm that impairs the value, usefulness, or normal function of something. 
17. Danger: The possibility of suffering harm or injury. 
18. Daughter: A girl or woman concerning either or both of her parents. 
19. Day: Each of the twenty-four-hour periods, reckoned from one midnight to the next, into which a week, month, or year is divided, and corresponding to a rotation of the earth on its axis.
20. Death: The action or fact of dying or being killed; the end of the life of a person or organism.
21. Decision: A conclusion or resolution reached after consideration.
22. Detail: An individual fact or item
23. Development: The process of developing or being developed.
24. Direction: A course along which someone or something moves.
25. Comparison: A consideration or estimate of the similarities or dissimilarities between two things or people. 
26. Competition: The activity or condition of striving to gain or win something by defeating or establishing superiority over others.
27. Connection: A relationship in which a person or thing is linked or associated with something else.  
28. Cook: To prepare (food, a dish, or a meal) by mixing, combining, and heating the ingredients.
29. Country: A nation with its government, occupying a particular territory.
30. Cover: To put something on top of or in front of (something), especially to protect or conceal it. 
31. Credit: A customer can obtain goods or services before payment, based on the trust that payment will be made in the future.
32. Cry: To shed tears, typically as an expression of distress, pain, or sorrow.
33. Care: The provision of what is necessary for the health, welfare, maintenance, and protection of someone or something. 
34. Cause: A person or thing that gives rise to an action, phenomenon, or condition. 
35. Chance: It is the probability of something desirable happening. 
36. Change: Make (someone or something) different; alter or modify. 
37. Cloth: A woven or felted fabric made from wool, cotton, or a similar fibre. 
38. Colour: The property possessed by an object of producing different sensations on the eye as a result of the way it reflects or emits light. 
39. Comfort: A state of physical ease and freedom from pain or constraint. 
40. Company: A commercial business. 
41. Art: The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.
42. Attack: Take aggressive military action against (a place or enemy forces) with weapons or armed force.
43. Attention: When a notice is taken of someone or something; the regarding of someone or something as interesting or important. 
44. Blood: The red liquid that circulates in the arteries and veins of humans and other vertebrate animals, carrying oxygen and carbon dioxide from the tissues of the body.
45. Blow: (Of wind) move creating an air current.
46. Body: The physical structure, including the bones, flesh, and organs, of a person or an animal.
47. Account: A report or description of an event or experience OR a record or statement of financial expenditure and receipts relating to a particular period or purpose. 
48. Air: The invisible gaseous substance surrounding the earth, a mixture mainly of oxygen and nitrogen.
49. Amount: A quantity of something, especially the total of a thing or things in number, size, value, or extent.
50. Animal: A living organism that feeds on organic matter, typically having specialized sense organs and a nervous system and able to respond rapidly to stimuli.

Importance of Difficult Words in Competitive Exams

Some difficult words in English can be a pest for everyone, whether it be a native speaker or a new learner. There are multiple tough words in the language which are troublesome. It becomes impossible to get a hold of these words, especially for those who are preparing for competitive exams. Students, however, invent new techniques to ease the learning process like using music to learn new words or making flashcards with hard words on one side and meaning on the other. Another fascinating method for memorizing difficult words is to associate a story around it as remembering the story is much easier than retaining the meaning of a tough word. 

We know that for all those who wish to pursue an education abroad or even appear for entrances, you must fare well in the verbal ability section of the test, it can seem like a never-ending task-learning new difficult words and their meanings, so we have curated a list of few difficult words that can give you an edge over others while you prepare for your SAT/ACT or GMAT/GRE as well as IELTS/TOEFL/PTE.

This list is also going to help students with English for competitive exams. Even those who enjoy the English language or wish to improve their vocabulary can go through our list and learn 50 Difficult Words with Meanings.

Must Read: Not Just Mandarin, These are the Most Difficult Languages in the World!

Use of English Vocabulary in GMAT

The Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) mainly comprises 4 sections: Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, Analytical Writing, and Integrated Reasoning. A thorough English vocabulary is a must to score on 3 of these sections of the GMAT syllabus, with only the quantitative section relying more on your mathematical and logical skills. In the various sections of the GMAT exam pattern, students are assessed on their ability to read and understand the written material and apply those to the subsequent questions to conform to standard written English. Moreover, GMAT verbal reasoning questions and critical reasoning problems imperatively evaluate one’s knowledge of English proficiency in terms of reasoning and analytical skills.

Use of English Vocabulary in GRE

The GRE pattern includes 3 sections: Quantitative, Verbal, and Analytical Writing. While studying the GRE syllabus, you must master English grammar along with hundreds of hard words to get a good score on two of these three sections excluding the quantitative reasoning section.

Sample Question Under the Category of Sentence Equivalence: Although it does contain pioneering strategies, one would hardly describe the work as ____________. 

1. Original
2. Orthodox
3. Eccentric
4. Conventional
5. Innovative
6. Trifling

The answer is (1) and (5)

Explanation: We first eliminate the words “Orthodox” and “Conventional” because they are very similar in meaning and do not complete the sentence sensibly. The word “Although” and “Hardly” are crucial signposts here. The work contains some pioneering strategies, but apparently, it is not completely a pioneering work.

Best Vocabulary Books 

Why do you want to limit yourself to only 50 difficult words? Become a master of vocabulary with the help of reference books. Here is a list of some best-selling vocabulary books that can help you to ace the word meaning section of any competitive exam: 

Reference Books	Link
1100 Words You Need to Know by Murray Brombert, Melvin Gordon	Click Here, to get your copy!
Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis	Click Here, to get your copy!
Verbal Advantage: Ten Easy Steps to a Powerful Vocabulary by Charles Harrington Elster	Click Here, to get your copy!
The Vocabulary Builder Workbook by Chris Lele	Click Here, to get your copy!
Six Weeks to Words of Power by Wilfred Funk	Click Here, to get your copy!
Little Red Book of Word Power by Terry O’Brien	Click Here, to get your copy!
Merriam-Webster’s Vocabulary Builder by  Mary Wood Cornog	Click Here, to get your copy!
Instant Word Power by Norman Lewis	Click Here, to get your copy!

FAQs

We hope this list of 50 Difficult Words with Meanings and these tricks will help you engage with new difficult words and help you in your test preparation. If you wish to seek further guidance on your test preparation and your career, you can check out Leverage Edu today and schedule a free consultation session now. Call us immediately at 1800 57 2000 for a free 30-minute counselling session.

difficult words they are usually the ones that are not used very often, that arise mainly in a formal context. For that reason, they look different, or even strange.

The biggest difficulty is in understanding their meaning, and also in the act of speaking, that is, the correct way to pronounce them.

Check out a list below and find the most diverse types of difficult words and their meanings!

Difficult Word List

1. Agnostic

One who neither believes in God nor denies his existence.

Example: He claimed to be an agnostic, until, in despair, he found himself asking God for help.

2. Good wishes

Expression of joy at the news received.

Example: Good wishes to the new president!

3. Banister

Small ornate column used in fences.

Example: The use of a baluster is one of the hallmarks of Roman architecture.

4. sympathy

Consent or Approval.

Example: They were received with the approval of the Assembly.

5. cornucopia

Abundance, horn-shaped vase filled with flowers and fruits representing plenty.

Example: The birthday table was filled with sweets, a cornucopia of options.

6. Notary

In which there is delay.

Example: Be patient! This type of process is voluntary.

7. Deleterious

Degrading, unhealthy, harmful.

Example: The kitchen of the banned restaurant was a deleterious environment, full of garbage, insects and food scraps.

8. unnerved

Who received instruction, who fell apart.

Example: After much instruction, he finally looks despondent.

9. hardened

One who is not persuaded or not moved.

Example: It’s so hardened that not even such news moves you.

10. Philanthropist

Selfless, benevolent.

Example: The institution only remained open thanks to donations from a philanthropist.

11. Filautious

Smug.

Example: With his airy air, he said he already knew all that.

12. funny

Say jokes or jokes.

Example: Despite his condition, he spends his days making fun of it.

13. weekly

Weekly.

Example: Participating in those grueling meetings was his weekly sacrifice.

14. horrific

Horrifying.

Example: His tone of voice is horrific!

15. Iconoclast

One who contests the veneration of religious symbols.

Example: It makes no sense to rely on an iconoclast for the restoration of this religious monument.

16. Idiosyncrasy

Particular characteristic of the temperament of a person or group.

Example: Where will I have thrown away my taste and ability to choose, my very personal idiosyncrasy?

17. Innocuous

Harmless.

Example: With the guarantee that any reaction would be innocuous, he agreed to give it a try.

18. playful

Cheerful, comical.

Example: My grandfather was known for his shiny bald head, his immense white beard and his playful smile.

19. Juvenile

That rejuvenates.

Example: I feel much better! The tour was really youthful.

20. Kafkaesque

Which resembles Kafka’s proposals.

Example: The transcendent reality present in the works translates its kafkaesque style.

21. nagging

Pungent, sharp.

Example: When he saw Maria on the Ferris wheel with João, José felt a sharp pain.

22. loquacious

Eloquent, one who talks a lot.

Example: The loquacious way you address the audience is admirable.

23. Mendacious

The one who lies.

Example: Nobody would be able to believe such a mendacious speech.

24. drowsy

Slow, listless, boring.

Example: I don’t like Sunday, it’s the most drowsy day of the week.

25. sharpen

Sharpen.

Example: With more clarification on the subject, we will be able to sharpen everything that was exposed.

26. numismatics

Study or collection of ancient coins and banknotes.

Example: According to experts in numismatics, there are Real coins with manufacturing defects that make them very valuable.

27. hateful

That harbors hate.

Example: You won’t get anywhere with your hateful words.

28. Kiss

Kiss, with the sense of compliance or conciliation.

Example: He sealed the peace with a kiss and left.

29. Prognosis

Which indicates prediction.

Example: The doctor’s prognosis indicated serious complications in your health status.

30. putrefied

In a state of decay.

Example: Some time after the tragedy, several rotting animals were found.

31. Chimera

Dream that cannot be fulfilled.

Example: Right now, solving this problem would be a real chimera.

32. Quintessence

Peak, maximum, prime.

Example: He was very arrogant, he didn’t let anyone speak, he believed that his opinion was the quintessence of wisdom.

33. recondite

Hidden.

Example: He looked for a hidden place and started to cry.

34. Ruffian

Brawler, troublemaker, bully, whoever practices bullying.

Example: He was well behaved in front of his parents, but at school he was a ruffian.

35. Sectarian

Intolerant, intransigent, extremist, fanatic.

Example: He drew attention for his sectarian speech, he did not tolerate any kind of difference.

36. Sumity

One who stands out for scholarship.

Example: The teacher was a master of Baroque art.

37. taciturn

Gloomy, obscure.

Example: I never saw him smile, he was always with a glum look.

38. quibble

Doing rounds.

Example: Don’t try to quibble because I understand very well what these candidates want.

39. Uphanism

One who prides himself on something in an exaggerated way.

Example: The pride makes you face problems very seriously.

40. Warp

Plot, plot, intrigue.

Example: The warp of the novel makes the reader aware of all the characters.

41. Likelihood

Speech that seems to be true, coherent, plausible.

Example: The book portrays the horrors of war, its verisimilitude is terrifying.

42. vicissitude

Succession of changes.

Example: It will depend not only on us, but on the vicissitudes of life.

43. reproach

Offensive behavior.

Example: I would never imagine that he would respond with reproach.

44. Warranty

Guarantee by the credit instrument known as a warrant.

Example: Suggested the warrantage as a guarantee.

45. syrup

Annoy.

Example: What my classmate best knows how to do is syrup with nonsense conversations.

46. Xiphopagus

Twin joined to brother by some part of the body, Siamese twin.

Example: In some cases, the separation of the Xifópagus twin puts their health at risk.

47. Yanomami

Denomination of indigenous people who inhabit Brazil and Venezuela.

Example: It is part of Yanomami culture to use various types of dyes in body painting.

48. swab

Small rod with an absorbent tip used for drug application or collection of organic material.

Example: The physician inserted the swab into the patient’s nose to collect a specimen for diagnostic examination.

49. Zeugma

Figure of speech that consists of the omission of a previously mentioned term.

Example: The prayer «I like apples, Mary, pears» is a case of zeugma.

50. Zoomorphic

Which has the shape of an animal.

Example: Its zoomorphic aspect scares anyone.

The biggest words in the Portuguese language

This is the biggest word in the Portuguese language:

Pneumoultramicroscopicosilicovulcanoconiotic

He doesn’t need to tell. She has 46 letters! According to the Portuguese Online Dictionary (Dicio) it means:

adjective

Related to a disease that attacks the lungs, caused by inhaling or breathing in volcanic ash, from ashes from volcanoes. It refers to pneumoultramicroscopicosilicovulcanoconiosis (disease).

masculine noun

Individual with this disease.

Besides that, there are several words that are difficult to speak especially because of their length. Many of them are linked to the areas of Biology and Chemistry:

• Pneumoultramicroscopicosilicovulcanoconiosis, for example, is a disease. It has 44 letters.
• Parachlorobenzylpyrrolidinoneethylbenzimidazole and Piperidineethoxycarbomethoxybenzophenone, with 43 and 37 letters, respectively, are names of substances.
• Hippotomonstrosquipedaliophobia it is also the name of a disease and is 33 letters long.
• Not constitutional is the greatest of all adverbs. It has 29 letters.

read orthoepy and find many words that we used to pronounce incorrectly.

In prosody, check out more examples of words that are often mispronounced, but due to the incorrect use of accentuation.

See too:

• super difficult tongue twisters
• palindrome
• Synonyms
• Synonyms and Antonyms
• Homonyms and Paronyms
• Source of popular expressions you need to know

50 Difficult Words New With Meanings: We use many thousands of words in a day. We may not know all the meanings of each word, and we may not even be aware of all the synonyms for the words we use. Vocabulary books are a good tool for learning new vocabulary and finding synonyms; they can also help improve your knowledge base. Complete List of 50 Difficult Words new with Meanings and Examples. write, read, spell and understand are considered to be difficult words in English. Well, this list of 50 Difficult Words with Meanings, is carefully curated and includes some difficult words that you would surely like In our daily life, we use so many English words while interacting with people, but do you even think of how many words and their meaning we miss out? List of 50 Difficult English Words With Meanings. 50 difficult words with meaning| Words for TOEFL, IELTS & more. 50 Hard Words with Meanings – How to Learn the Most Difficult Words in English?. Most of the words we are using while communicating have synonyms, but we never use them. list of 50 Difficult Words with Senses, which is carefully prearranged and contains difficult words which you can surely use while presenting yourself and for your profile on social apps. Using difficult words can be a good grace for the applicants while conversation, difficult words attract people that make the people impress the other person. Here is the list of 50 Difficult new English Words with Meanings:

Here are 50 difficult New words 2023 with their meanings:

1. Abhor: to hate or detest
2. Acrimonious: bitter or harsh in tone or temper
3. Acrophobia: a fear of heights
4. Acumen: keenness of judgment or insight
5. Adage: a long-established saying or proverb
6. Aeon: an extremely long period of time
7. A fortiori: with even greater reason
8. Agnostic: a person who believes that the existence of God or gods is unknown or unknowable
9. Allegory: a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning
10. Altruism: unselfish concern for or devotion to the welfare of others
11. Amalgam: a mixture of two or more things, especially metals
12. Amorphous: without definite shape or form
13. Anachronism: something that is out of place in time
14. Anathema: something that is deeply detested
15. Apathy: lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern
16. Apocryphal: of doubtful authenticity
17. Apoplectic: relating to or affected by apoplexy (a sudden loss of consciousness and control of bodily functions caused by a rupture of a blood vessel in the brain)
18. Appall: to fill with dismay or horror
19. Apocryphal: of doubtful authenticity
20. Arcanum: a secret or mystery
21. Ascetic: a person who practices severe self-discipline and self-denial, typically for religious reasons
22. Atrocity: an act of extreme cruelty or barbarity
23. Augury: the practice of interpreting omens
24. Auspicious: giving promise of success or good fortune
25. Avarice: extreme greed for wealth or possessions
26. Baffle: to confuse or perplex
27. Banal: lacking in originality or interest
28. Bard: a poet, traditionally one reciting epics and associated with a particular oral tradition
29. Bastion: a defensive wall or fortified position
30. Belligerent: aggressively hostile
31. Benevolent: characterized by or showing goodwill or kindness
32. Bewilder: to confuse or perplex utterly
33. Bilious: bad-tempered or irritable
34. Blight: a plant disease causing withering and death
35. Blithe: carefree and happy-go-lucky
36. Bogus: not genuine or true
37. Bombast: extravagant language that is intended to impress but is usually ineffective
38. Brash: offensively confident or self-assertive
39. Burgeon: to grow or develop rapidly
40. Callous: insensitive or unfeeling
41. Cantankerous: bad-tempered and quarrelsome
42. Captivate: to attract and hold the attention of someone completely
43. Caricature: a picture, description, or imitation of someone or something that exaggerates certain features in order to create a comic or grotesque effect
44. Cataclysm: a violent upheaval or disaster
45. Catty: spiteful or malicious
46. Celibacy: the state of being unmarried and not having sexual relations
47. Censure: to express strong disapproval of
48. Chagrin: a feeling of deep disappointment or vexation
49. Charlatan: a person falsely claiming to have special knowledge or abilities
50. Chicanery: trickery or deception

50 New English Words with Meaning and Sentences

How can remembering difficult words help you?

Difficult words can be used in the exams such as IELTS, TOEFL, GRE exams, etc. Understanding words and answering the questions correctly will fetch you outstanding marks in the examinations. Plus, your vocabulary will improve as a result of remembering difficult words.

Difficult english words with meanings and sentences, Here is the list of 50 Difficult new English Words with Meanings. In today’s time it is very important for everyone to know the English language. If you want to have a good command over English then you have to learn the words everyday. Start with 10 words daily and then increase your capacity to learn them. Also make sentences with these words so that you can know the use of these difficult words very well.

50 Words With Difficult-to-Remember Meanings. Most of the words we are using while communicating have synonyms, but we never use them. list of 50 Difficult Words with Senses, which is carefully prearranged and contains difficult words which you can surely use while presenting yourself and for your profile on social apps. Using difficult words can be a good grace for the applicants while conversation, difficult words attract people that make the people impress the other person. Consequently,

Speaking good English is regarded as a skill in today’s society. Even for the eligibility of several competitive exams such as GMAT, TOEFL, IELTS, one must be well- acquainted with good vocabulary. A good comprehensive list with 50 difficult words and their meaning along with examples which will be sufficient to make a good first impression.

Why should you learn difficult words? 

The answer is to prepare for competitive exams, you can interact more easily with interviewers when you go for any kind of interview, it sharpens your mind and it improves your confidence and skills.  If you use advanced and high-level words in your conservation, then the interviewer gets a good impression that you are good at communication skills and you have a vast knowledge of things.

A lot of novels contain difficult words, so an understanding of such words makes it easy to read and understand them. You can also read novels for improving your vocabulary. If you find any difficult words in it, you can search for the meaning on the internet and note them down for future reference.

How to remember difficult words?

With continuous practice, you will be able to memorize these difficult words.

Hard English Words

List of 50 Difficult English Words With Meanings: As a follow up to our article on confusing words, here are ten of the most difficult words in English. Most of the words we are using while interaction have synonyms, but we never use them. Really? Do you think difficult words are helpful when you are preparing for the competitive exams? Or it is something that is bothering you? The answer to this is very simple which is YES. Good vocabulary takes you ahead in competitive exams as well as in your life. Well, here is the list of 50 Difficult Words with Meanings, which is carefully organized and contains difficult words which you can surely use while introducing yourself and for your profile on social apps. Learn Difficult English Words with Meaning and Sentence and Improve Your English Vocabulary .

Personality development can be shown by your talking ways and along with the person behavior. Communication can be the key of various things mainly it can enhance your value if you speak frequent english along with use attractive words into your language.

Using of difficult words can be a good grace for the candidates while conversation, difficult words attract people that make the people impress the other person. Consequently, if you want to attract the other person to impress them with your personality and skills add these difficult words into your conversation.

1. Adamant- refusing to be persuaded or to change one’s mind
2. Acumen- the ability to make good judgments and quick decisions
3. Ascetic -a person practices self-denial as part of spiritual discipline
4. Anachronistic -antique, misplaced chronologically
5. Aggrandize– to increase or enhance power, wealth or status
6. Alacrity -great willingness, eagerness
7. Abnegation -the action of renouncing a belief or doctrine
8. Awedde – to overcome anger
9. Bagel – Something that is transitive
10. Baffle- totally bewilder
11. Beseech– ask urgently and fervently to do something
12. Beguile -charm, influence someone in a deceptive way
13. Brusque – short and abrupt
14. Blandishment -a flattering or pleasant statement
15. Callous -not caring or disregard for others
16. Camaraderie -a feeling of solidarity arising out of familiarity and sociability
17. Cajole -to persuade a person to do something by flattery or coaxing
18. Clamor -proclaim or demand something noisily
19. Circumlocution -expressing someone with too many words in an indirect way
20. Cognizant – realization or awareness 
21. Construe – to interpret or assign meaning
22. Convivial -happy and enjoyable atmosphere or jovial company
23. Denigrate -to criticize someone
24. Dispel – make doubt disappear
25. Didactic  – designed to teach people something
26. Demagogue -a political leader who uses rhetoric to appeal to prejudices and desires of ordinary citizens
27. Disparate – consisting of people or things of a distinct kind
28. Egregious – outrageously bad
29. Embezzlement -misappropriation of funds.
30. Ephemeral– lasting or used for an only short duration
31. Eclectic -deriving the best ideas and styles or taste from a diverse range of sources
32. Enervate -feel drained in vitality or energy.
33. Equanimity -maintaining a calm state of mind in stressful situations
34. Fatuous -pointless or devoid of intelligence
35. Gratuitous -given or done free of charge, uncalled for or unwarranted
36. Impeccable – flawless
37. Incumbent -something that is morally binding
38. Idiosyncratic -something which is peculiar to an individual
39. Iconoclast -a person who criticizes or attacks cherished beliefs
40. Inveterate -having a particular habit or habitual
41. Kvetchy- Ill-tempered
42. Libertarian -someone who believes in ideas of free will
43. Licentious -disregarding accepted conventions, someone who is promiscuous
44. Mendacious -not telling the truth, deceitful
45. Multifarious -multifaceted or diverse types
46. Ostracism -excluding a person from society by majority consent
47. Obdurate -being stubborn to change one’s opinion
48. Obfuscate – unclear; confuse
49. Obsequious – try to win favor from influential people
50. Obstreperous – noisy and difficult to control
51. Ostensible – appearing to be true
52. Pallid – abnormally pale or lacking intensity of color
53. Pertinacious -holding to an opinion, someone who is stubbornly unyielding
54. Promulgate-to promote or broadcast or announce
55. Pejorative -showing or expressing disapproval
56. Phlegmatic -having little or no emotion
57. Quotidian -something that is occurring daily 
58. Recalcitrant -resistant or uncooperative to authority
59. Sanctimonious -pretending being morally pious to exhibit moral superiority
60. Solipsism -the theory that only the self-existence is known 
61. Travesty -a false or distorting fact or imitation
62. Ubiquitous -omnipresent or appearing everywhere
63. Unfathom – Puzzling
64. Vicissitude – an unpleasant change in fortune or circumstances 
65. Vociferous -someone who is offensively/ conspicuously loud.
66. Timbre- Voicetone
67. Boorish- Rude, Uncultured
68. Uncouth– Impolite, Unrefined
69. Querulous– Complaining, Showing that one is irritated.
70. Plumes– Soft features
71. Throng– Crowd, In large numbers
72. Irk– Annoy
73. Sordid– Dishonest or immoral
74. Invigorate– give strength or energy to
75. Alienate– cause to feel isolated

Some English words can be annoying for everyone, whether it is a professional or a beginner. There are many difficult words that cause trouble. It is very difficult for a person to get used to these words, especially for a student. Students use different ways like music to get used to these words or by making flashcards with difficult words and their meaning. Some other method of learning difficult words is to create a story for remembering the difficult words as it is easy to remember a story rather than learning the meaning of a difficult word. As we all know for the people who want to get education from abroad or while giving an entrance exam you must perform well in the verbal ability section in that test.  

Vocabulary is the major and necessary aspect for the person who wants to prepare for the competitive exam, and it is very important to master it when you are giving a test. You cannot learn so many words at a time, there is a limit for cramming of words at a time. Learn just a few difficult words at a time and after that properly understand their meaning. Try to make sentences using difficult words and use them in your day-to-day life while interacting with the people.

Use of English vocabulary in The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT)

The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) consists of Integrated Reasoning, Verbal, Quantitative and Analytical Writing. A complete English vocabulary is necessary to score on these sections, with the quantitative section which includes mathematical and logical skills. Some sections of GMAT, measure your understanding and ability to read the written content.      

Use of English vocabulary in The Graduate Record Examination (GRE)

The Graduate Record Examination consists of 3 sections: Verbal, Analytical Writing and Quantitative. GRE is a kind of difficult exam to crack. Many people say that GRE is much more difficult in comparison to GMAT. The vocabulary of GRE is more difficult because so many rare words are given in the question paper that is difficult to understand. So, students should prepare in the best way possible and should learn new words as many as possible. One should be good in English grammar along with hundreds of difficult words to score well in two of the 3 sections without including the quantitative section. Thus, when it is about GRE examination students should be completely prepared in their vocabulary skills.  

Our mind works properly, and it learns things better when we engage in fun activities, when we learn difficult words it looks boring, but we can make it exciting and full of fun. You along with your friends challenge one another by making placards with meanings, this kind of activity will keep you busy and you can easily keep the hard words in your mind. If these kinds of group activities do not suit you, make a list of the difficult words and just before sleep revise them, this will help you in learning the words better.   

Books to improve vocabulary

Want to improve your vocabulary? If yes, then here is a compilation of essential books for you.

• 504 Absolutely Essential Words
• Build Your Vocabulary Skills
• Word Power Made Easy
• The Elements of Style
• The Meaning of Everything
• Word by Word

new English words you should know in 2023

So, let’s make this vocabulary list interesting by adding some latest and trendy English words to it. Check out the list here:

Stan

Meaning: An extremely excessively enthusiastic and devoted fan (stalker-fan).

Nomophobia

Meaning: Fear or worry at the idea of being without your phone or unable to use it.

Peoplekind

Meaning: A gender-neutral alternative to mankind’.

Bottle episode

Meaning: An episode of a television series that is confined to one setting and isn’t expensive to produce.

Carbon sink

Meaning: A forest, ocean, or another natural environment’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Buzzy

Meaning: Something that generates excitement and gets people talking.

Sober-curious

Meaning: Experimenting with a period of not drinking alcohol.

Permaculture

Meaning: It is a portmanteau word, which means it combines two words to make a new one.

Hellacious

Meaning: an awful experience and is often used to describe traffic, weather or even a period of time.

Climate emergency

Meaning: defined as a situation in which urgent action is required to reduce or halt climate change and avoid potentially irreversible environmental damage resulting from it.

Flamboyant

Meaning: easily able to attract the attention of others due to some qualities like exuberance, confidence, and stylishness.

Inquisitive

Meaning: displaying interest in knowing different things, being very curious about a particular thing.

Exuberant

Meaning: Having a lot of energy, being cheerful and excited.

Vitriolic

Meaning: Being harsh, bitter, or malicious in tone

Vivacious

Meaning: Being vigorous and excited

Abstruse

Meaning: difficult to understand and grasp

Contrite

Meaning: feeling or expressing pain or sorrow

Covet

Meaning: wishing, longing, or craving for something

Mawkish

Meaning: State of being very sentimental or emotional

The conversation is key to language that enhance our personality and develops us. While conversation it can help others to know your knowledge. Using these words into your conversation can enhance your personality. Different word into our daily conversation can enhance your personality along with can give a good impact on others.

Henceforth try to add these difficult words into your daily conversation or use them in your vocabulary so that they can enhance your English, your knowledge. These words can add stars in your impression. As if we interact with someone or go or an interview job our personality, our language our way of talking is the first thing which comes in the notice by the others. So if we use these difficult words or non-common words so they can add extra stares into your personality along with can enhance your confidence level, that will boast you high towards your work or among people. You and your friends can make plug cards with difficult words and challenge each other with meanings, the fun activity will keep you engaged and help you keep those difficult words in mind.

How to learn difficult words with meanings

Following are some steps through which it will be easier to learn difficult English words with meanings:

• Students can maintain a notebook for vocabulary
• They should learn at least one word on daily basis.
• Students should solve crossword puzzle to increase their knowledge
• Students should have a habit of reading novels.
• A handy dictionary should be with you. You can download it on your mobile. So wherever you be, you can learn easily some hard words of English. As we all know that it is a world of technology, and mobile phones are used on a very large scale. You must be aware of various applications on your mobile. You can also download a dictionary application using the play store or apple store. When you open the dictionary app, you will be able to find the meaning of all the difficult words.
• You might be confused about which application to use as there are millions of applications available on the internet, then you must refer to the following applications to learn the English language- Rosetta Stone, FluentU, Hello English, Duolingo, etc.
• When you listen your favorite songs, you also learn the lyrics of that songs, so in case of when you learning English learn it as in the form.
• You can also start watching English movies, and series to practice high-level English. You will get to know more about the tone of speaking used by the native English people.

Apart from these today in English language you’ll see the so called Gen Z kids using different different kinds of acronyms on Social Media. Which apparently seems very fun and there is always some or the other new word or new acronyms coming up. For example – brb which means be right back, Ikr which means I know right and several such acronyms are used informally.

Difficult Words why we need to remameber ?

We need to remember the why because it’s the reason we do things. The why is our purpose, our motivation- it’s what drives us to do what we do. If we don’t have a strong why, we won’t be as likely to stick with something when it gets tough. Remembering the why helps us to stay focused and motivated. The motive is to learn the language in depth and to become fluent in it. Using difficult yet standard words in writing or speaking increases vocabulary and leave a good impact on the listeners.

50 most diificult words in english language and their meaning

Everyone has to be attached, these words are ubiquitous and
inevitable in every writing.

Which of these words have you had contact with before reading this article? I’m sure you can’t remember more than 20 words without consulting a dictionary (smiles).

At this point, read them again, master them, and use them in your sentences. Note that there is no way you will not come across difficult words like these in articles you read. However, apart from looking at the dictionary from time to time to check the meaning of difficult words when you come across them, you can use Grammarly. 

When you have Grammarly installed on your phone, the app will automatically list the different meanings of a word that you click on for you. Take a look at the picture below, for example.

Jump to Section

• 50 Difficult English Words and their Meanings
• 12 Hardest Words to Pronounce and Tricks to Actually do that
• Why is it Important to Have a Good Vocabulary?
• How to Learn the Most Difficult Words in English?
• Final Thoughts on Difficult English Words and Their Meanings

No matter how long you have been learning the English language, still while reading a book, magazine or while watching a movie you do come across words that might startle you and call for your prolonged look. In fact, the sole reason behind it is the vastness of the language. So, don’t you wonder how to unscramble this mystery when at the same time, there are uncountable words to know about in this language? There exist countless words which we make use of, some words more often than others.

So, this article will help you out to know a little about this plethora of words. We are going to talk about some of the hardest English words and subsequently about words that are difficult to pronounce.

50 Difficult English Words and their Meanings

Words Beginning from A

• Ascetic – avoiding physical pleasures because of religious reasons
• Abnegation – an action made to reject someone or something
• Archetypal – someone having all the qualities of a particular type of lifestyle
• Aggrandize – adding to the power or wealth of an individual or country
• Anachronistic – placing someone or something chronologically wrong
• Alacrity – having great willingness and eagerness for something

Words Beginning from B

• Beguile – charm in a deceptive way
• Blandishment – statement for gently pleasuring someone

Words Beginning from C

• Convivial – friendly character
• Cajole – persuading someone with your nice behaviour
• Construe – understanding something
• Callous – not caring about others
• Camaraderie – the mutual feeling of trust
• Circumlocution – expressing something in a long way
• Clamour – demanding something
• Cognizant – being aware

Words Beginning from D

• Demagogue – a political leader will manipulate skills
• Denigrate – unfair criticism
• Didactic – teaching moral lesson
• Disparate – people or things with different qualities together

Words Beginning from E

• Eclectic – generating ideas
• Egregious – bad and shocking in a huge way
• Embezzlement – to steal
• Enervate – feeling out of energy
• Ephemeral – lasting for a short period
• Equanimity – a very calm state of mind

Words Beginning from F

• Fatuous – something pointless

Words Beginning from G

• Gratuitous – anything that has some harmful effect

Words Beginning from I

• Iconoclast – any statue
• Idiosyncratic – something unusual
• Incumbent – a person with an official position
• Inveterate – having a habit for a long time

Words Beginning from L

• Libertarian – a person of the state who conveys a message to people
• Licentious – lack of standards

Words Beginning from M

• Mendacious – lying
• Multifarious – different kinds or variety

Words Beginning from O

• Obdurate – not changing your mind according to others
• Ostracism – excluding from something

Words Beginning from P

• Pejorative – expressing criticism
• Pertinacious – sticking to your actions or words
• Phlegmatic – not getting angry easily
• Promulgate – making an official announcement

Words Beginning from Q

• Quotidian – everyday event

Words Beginning from R

• Recalcitrant – tough to control

Words Beginning from S

• Sanctimonious – acting superior to others
• Solipsism – self-centred

Words Beginning from T

• Travesty – not have qualities in a shocking way

Words Beginning from U

• Ubiquitous – something very common

Words Beginning from V

• Vicissitude – changes and problems of life that you have to deal with
• Vociferous – saying what is on your mind in a confident way

12 Hardest Words to Pronounce and Tricks to Actually do that

Good pronunciation is a very important part of the language but there are some words with which we can struggle. Hence, we have come up with a list of some of the most difficult words to pronounce and techniques to be able to actually do that:

• Synecdoche- made to represent whole (SE-NEK-DE-QKE)
• Segue- smooth transition (SE-QGWA)
• Quinoa- a crop (KEN-WA)
• Posthumous- occurring or awarded (PAS-CHE-MES)
• Onomatopoeia- a figure of speech that resonates with sounds (ONO-MATO-POEIA)
• Ignominious- something shameful (IG-NE-MI-NE-ES)
• Draught- the flow of cold air (DRAFT)
• Conch- a type of shell (KANJK)
• Cache- computing hardware (K’ASH)
• Boatswain- merchant officer (‘BO-SEN)
• Anemone- a flowering plant (E-NE-ME-NE)
• Anathema- an idea you hate (E-NA-THE-ME)

Moreover, audios will help you the best in understanding words. So, the video mentioned below will help you in understanding the pronunciation of some really difficult words better:

Why is it Important to Have a Good Vocabulary?

There are a lot of words to convey the same meaning but each word helps in conveying the meaning in a different way. That is why it is important to have a good vocabulary. In fact, we write and read a lot of things throughout the day and if we don’t have a good knowledge of words then we will definitely face difficulties in it. Additionally, repeating the same word over and over again in a piece of content can leave a bad impression on the person reading it or listening to it.

And if you are preparing for some kind of competitive exams then you can not ignore vocabulary at any cost. They have special sections for words, their meanings, synonyms, and antonyms so you need to build up your vocabulary in order to excel in that section. So, it can be said that a good vocabulary is required for day-to-day life as well as for appearing for advanced exams.

To summarize, the video mentioned below will tell you some simple ways and tricks by which you can easily improve your vocabulary:

How to Learn the Most Difficult Words in English?

It is not possible for us to learn all the difficult worlds together in one go. So here are some simple ways by which you can learn difficult English words:

• Make reading a part of your life because while reading books you come across a lot of words that are unknown to you and will gradually become a part of your dictionary.
• Also, maintain a separate notebook for your vocabulary. Whenever you come across a new word note it in your diary with its meaning and read it whenever you get time.
• Further, you can also take the help of vocabulary books and videos for a little better understanding.
• Nonetheless, You can also play games like crosswords as they will help you learn new words in a fun way.
• Also, try to include the new words that you learn in your language so that you can remember them for a long time.

Final Thoughts on Difficult English Words and Their Meanings

In conclusion, one needs to understand that keeping up with the new additions and changes taking place in the language becomes really important. Above all, with the help of this article, you would have been able to add a lot of things to your knowledge and boost your vocabulary to a whole new level. So, the next time whenever you are writing a piece of content use these new words so that you can surprise the people reading it.

To know about more such interesting facts, you can head to the Podium Blog.

Márcia Fernandes Licensed Professor in Literature

Difficult words are usually the ones that are not used frequently, which arise mainly in a formal context. For that reason, they look different, or even strange.

The greatest difficulty is in understanding their meaning, and also in the act of speaking, that is, the correct way to pronounce them.

Check out a list below and find the most diverse types of difficult words and their meanings!

List of difficult words

1. Agnostic

One who does not believe in God and does not deny his existence.

Example: He claimed to be agnostic, until, desperate, he found himself asking God for help.

2. Alvissaras

Expression of joy at news received.

Example: Alvissaras to the new president!

3. Baluster

Small ornate column used in fences.

Example: The use of a baluster is one of the hallmarks of Roman architecture.

4. Beneplacite

Consent or approval.

Example: They were received with the approval of the Assembly.

5. Cornucopia

Abundance, horn-shaped vase full of flowers and fruits that represents abundance.

Example: The birthday table was full of sweets, a cornucopia of options.

6. Cuntatório

In which there is delay.

Example: Have patience! This type of process is cuntatory.

7. Deleterious

Degrading, unhealthy, harmful.

Example: The kitchen in the banned restaurant was a deleterious environment, full of garbage, insects and food scraps.

8. Skinny

Who received instruction, who disheveled.

Example: After a lot of instruction, he finally looks disheveled.

9. Stoned

He who is not persuaded or moved.

Example: It is so hard that even such news does not move you.

10. Philanthropist

Altruistic, benevolent.

Example: The institution only remained open thanks to donations from a philanthropist.

11. Philaucious

Presumptuous.

Example: With his air, he said he already knew all that.

12. Graçolar

Say jokes or jokes.

Example: Despite his condition, he spends his days being funny.

13. Hebdomadário

Weekly.

Example: Participating in those exhaustive meetings was his weekly sacrifice.

14. Horrifying

Horrifying.

Example: The tone of your voice is horrifying!

15. Iconoclast

One who disputes the veneration of religious symbols.

Example: It does not make sense to have an iconoclast for the restoration of this religious monument.

16. Idiosyncrasy

Particular characteristic of the temperament of a person or group.

Example: Where will I have thrown away my taste and ability to choose, my personal idiosyncrasy?

17. Innocuous

Harmless.

Example: With the guarantee that any reaction would be harmless, he agreed to experiment.

18. Playful

Cheerful, comical.

Example: My grandfather was known for his shiny bald head, his huge white beard and his playful smile.

19. Youthful

That rejuvenates.

Example: I feel much better! The tour was really youthful.

20. Kafkaesco

Which resembles Kafka’s proposals.

Example: The transcendent reality present in the works reflects his Kafkaesque style.

21. Lancinating

Pungent, sharp.

Example: When he saw Maria on the ferris wheel with João, José felt excruciating pain.

22. Gabby

Eloquent, one who talks a lot.

Example: The talkative manner in which he speaks to the audience is admirable.

23. Mendacious

The one who lies.

Example: No one would be able to believe such a mendacious speech.

24. Modorrento

Slow, listless, tedious.

Example: I don’t like Sunday, it’s the most boring day of the week.

25. Sharpen

Sharpen.

Example: With more clarification on the subject, we will be able to clarify everything that was exposed.

26. Numismatics

Study or collection of old coins and banknotes.

Example: According to numismatics experts, there are Real coins with manufacturing defects that make them very valuable.

27. Odiento

That holds hate.

Example: You will not get anywhere with your odious words.

28. Oculus

Kiss, with the sense of fulfillment or conciliation.

Example: He sealed the peace with a kiss and left.

29. Prognosis

Indicating forecast.

Example: The doctor’s prognosis indicated serious complications in his health.

30. Putrefied

In a state of decay.

Example: Times after the tragedy, several putrefying animals were found.

31. Chimera

Dream that cannot be realized.

Example: At this point, solving this problem would be a real chimera.

32. Quintessence

Height, maximum, exquisite.

Example: He was very arrogant, he didn’t let anyone speak, he believed that his opinion was the quintessence of wisdom.

33. Hidden

Hidden.

Example: He looked for a hidden place and started to cry.

34. Ruffian

Bully, troublemaker, bully, who practices bullying .

Example: He was well-behaved in front of his parents, but at school he was a ruffian.

35. Sectarian

Intolerant, uncompromising, extremist, fanatic.

Example: He called attention for sectarian discourse, he did not tolerate any kind of difference.

36. Sum

One that stands out for its erudition.

Example: The teacher was an expert in Baroque art.

37. Taciturn

Gloomy, dark.

Example: I never saw him smile, his eyes were always sullen.

38. Tergiversar

Making rodeos.

Example: Don’t try to quibble because I already understood very well what these candidates want.

39. Pride

One who takes pride in something in an exaggerated way.

Example: Ufanism makes you take problems very seriously.

40. Warp

Plot, plot, intrigue.

Example: The warp of the novel leaves the reader attentive to all the characters.

41. Likelihood

Speech that seems to be true, coherent, plausible.

Example: The book portrays the horrors of war, its verisimilitude is terrifying.

42. Vicissitude

Succession of changes.

Example: It will depend not only on us, but on the vicissitudes of life.

43. Victim

Offensive behavior.

Example: I would never imagine that he would respond with reproach.

44. Warranties

Guarantee by the credit title known as warrant.

Example: Suggested warranting as a guarantee.

45. Syrup

Annoy.

Example: What my classmate knows best is to syrup with meaningless conversations.

46. ​​Xipophagus

Twin joined to the brother by some part of the body, Siamese twin.

Example: In some cases, the separation of the conjoined twin puts your health at risk.

47. Yanomami

Denomination of indigenous people that inhabits Brazil and Venezuela.

Example: It is part of the Yanomami culture to use various types of dyes in body paintings.

48. Swab

Small rod with an absorbent tip used to apply medicine or collect organic material.

Example: The doctor inserted the swab into the patient’s nose to collect a sample for the diagnostic test.

49. Zeugma

Figure of speech that consists of the omission of a previously said term.

Example: The sentence «I like apples, Maria, pears» is a case of zeugma.

50. Zoomórfico

That presents animal form.

Example: Its zoomorphic aspect scares anyone.

The biggest words in the Portuguese language

This is the biggest word in the Portuguese language:

Pneumoultramicroscopicossilicovulcanoconiotic

You don’t have to tell. It has 46 letters ! According to the Portuguese Online Dictionary (Dicio) it means:

adjective

Related to the disease that attacks the lungs, caused by the inhalation or inspiration of volcanic ash, ash from volcanoes. It refers to pneumoultramicroscopicossilicovulcanoconiosis (disease).

masculine noun

Individual with this disease.

In addition to this, there are several words that are difficult to speak especially because of their length. Many of them are linked to the areas of Biology and Chemistry:

• Pneumoultramicroscopicossilicovulcanoconiosis, for example, is a disease. It has 44 letters.
• Parachlorobenzylpyrrolidinonethylbenzimidazole and Piperidinoethoxycarbomethoxybenzophenone, with 43 and 37 letters, respectively, are names of substances.
• Hypopotomonstrosesquipedaliofobia is also the name of a disease and has 33 letters.
• Anticonstitucionalissimamente is the greatest of all adverbs. It has 29 letters.

Read orthography and find many words that we tend to misspell.

In prosody, check out more examples of words that are usually pronounced wrong, but due to the incorrect use of stress.

Also see:

Attempt Free Mock Tests- Click Here

Also check , Learn English Language

Table of content

Lists of 50 Difficult Words with Meanings
Lists of 20 Difficult to Pronounce

Lists of 50 Difficult Words with Meanings

1. Abnegation /abnɪˈɡeɪʃ(ə)n/: Renouncing a belief or doctrine
2. Aggrandize /əˈɡrandʌɪz/: enhance power, wealth or status.
3. Alacrity /əˈlakrɪti/: Eagerness
4. Anachronistic /ənakrəˈnɪstɪk/: misplaced chronologically
5. Archetypal /ˌɑːkɪˈtʌɪp(ə)l/: quintessential of a certain kind
6. Ascetic /əˈsɛtɪk/: one who practices self-denial as part of spiritual discipline
7. Beguile /bɪˈɡʌɪl/: influence someone in a deceptive way
8. Blandishment /ˈblandɪʃm(ə)nt/: intentional flattery for persuasion
9. Cajole /kəˈdʒəʊl/: persuade by flattery or coaxing
10. Callous (/ˈkaləs/: disregard for others
11. Camaraderie /kaməˈrɑːd(ə)ri/: a sense of solidarity arising out of familiarity and sociability
12. Circumlocution /ˌsəːkəmləˈkjuːʃ(ə)n/: expressing someone in an indirect way
13. Clamor /ˈklamə/: proclaim something noisily
14. Cognizant /ˈkɒ(ɡ)nɪz(ə)nt/: awareness or realization
15. Construe /kənˈstruː/: interpret or assign meaning
16. Convivial /kənˈvɪvɪəl/: enjoyable atmosphere or jovial company
17. Demagogue /ˈdɛməɡɒɡ/: a political leader who uses rhetoric to appeal to prejudices and desires of ordinary citizens
18. Denigrate /ˈdɛnɪɡreɪt/: belittle someone
19. Didactic /dɪˈdaktɪk/: instructive with a moral intent
20. Disparate /ˈdɪsp(ə)rət/: of a distinct kind
21. Eclectic /ɪˈklɛktɪk/: deriving the best ideas and styles from a diverse range of sources
22. Egregious /ɪˈɡriːdʒəs/: reprehensible or outrageously bad
23. Embezzlement /ɛmˈbɛzlm(ə)nt/: misappropriation of funds
24. Enervate /ˈɛnəveɪt/: lacking in vitality or mentally/ morally drained
25. Ephemeral /ɪˈfɛm(ə)r(ə)l/: lasting for a short duration
26. Equanimity /ˌɛkwəˈnɪmɪti/: maintaining composure in stressful situations
27. Fatuous /ˈfatjʊəs/: devoid of intelligence
28. Gratuitous /ɡrəˈtjuːɪtəs/: uncalled for or unwarranted
29. Iconoclast /ʌɪˈkɒnəklast/: someone who criticizes or attacks cherished ideas and beliefs 
30. Idiosyncratic /ˌɪdɪə(ʊ)sɪŋˈkratɪk/: something peculiar to an individual.
31. Incumbent /ɪnˈkʌmb(ə)nt/: something that is morally binding
32. Inveterate /ɪnˈvɛt(ə)rət/: habitual
33. Libertarian /ˌlɪbəˈtɛːrɪən/: someone who cherishes ideas of free will
34. Licentious /lʌɪˈsɛnʃəs/: someone who is promiscuous
35. Largess /lɑːˈ(d)ʒɛs/: Kindness or Generosity in bestowing gifts or money
36. Multifarious /ˌmʌltɪˈfɛːrɪəs/: multifaceted or diverse
37. Obdurate /ˈɒbdjʊrət/: being stubborn and refusing to change one’s opinion
38. Ostracism /ˈɒstrəsɪz(ə)m/: excluding a person or certain section from society by majority consent
39. Pejorative /pɪˈdʒɒrətɪv/: showing disapproval
40. Pertinacious /ˌpəːtɪˈneɪʃəs/: someone who is stubbornly unyielding
41. Phlegmatic /flɛɡˈmatɪk/: expressing little or no emotion
42. Promulgate /ˈprɒm(ə)lɡeɪt/: to broadcast or announce
43. Quotidian /kwɒˈtɪdɪən/: something that is of daily occurrence
44. Recalcitrant /rɪˈkalsɪtr(ə)nt/: resistant to authority
45. Sanctimonious /ˌsaŋ(k)tɪˈməʊnɪəs/: pretense of being morally pious to exhibit moral superiority
46. Solipsism /ˈsɒlɪpsɪz(ə)m/: the philosophical theory that only the self-existence is known and all that exists
47. Travesty /ˈtravɪsti/: distorting facts or imitation
48. Ubiquitous /juːˈbɪkwɪtəs/: omnipresent or existing everywhere
49. Vicissitude /vɪˈsɪsɪtjuːd/: an unwelcome or unpleasant change in circumstances or fortune
50. Vociferous /və(ʊ)ˈsɪf(ə)rəs/: something or someone who is offensively/ conspicuously loud.

Lists of 20 Difficult to Pronounce

1. Otorhinolaryngologist: oh-toh-RYE-noh-LAR-ən-GOL-ə-jee
2. Anemone: uh·neh·muh·nee
3. Anathema: uh·na·thuh·muh
4. Worcestershire: vu·stuh·shuh
5. Balmoral: bal·maw·ruhl
6. Antidisestablishmentarianism: an·tee·dis·uh·sta·bluhsh·muhnt·euh·ree·uhn·i·zm
7. Asterisk: a·stuh·ruhsk
8. Brewery: broo·uh·ree
9. Defibrillator: duh·fi·bruh·lei·tuh
10. February: feh·bruh·ree
11. Rural: roo·ruhl
12. Floccinaucinihilipilification: Flok-si-no-si-ny-hil-i-pil-i-fi-kay-shuhn
13. Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia: Hi-poh-po-toh-mon-stroh-ses-kwee-peh-dah-leejoh-foh-beeja
14. Colonel: kuh·nuhl
15. Choir: kvai·uh
16. Chores: chawz
17. Isthmus: is·muhs
18. Library: lai·bruh·ree
19. Strait: streit
20. Gibraltar: ji·braal·tuh

Also check,

• Informal Letter Format: Know How To Write An Informal Letter
• Informal Letter to your Friend Describing About Your School
• Informal Letter to your Friend Describing About Your Hobby
• Informal Letter to your Friend Describing About Your School trip
• Informal Letter to your Friend Describing About Your Summer holidays
• Informal Letter to your Friend Describing About Your Birthday party
• Informal Letter to your Friend Describing About Your Ancestral House

Have you ever come across a word and deciphered its meaning only to know at the end that it meant something different? If this sounds familiar, this blog on 50 difficult words with meaning is for you. 

You must be wondering about the importance of learning difficult words in English. Well, these words can help you sail through competitive exams, enhance your communication skills, and many such things. Read ahead to learn about more such benefits of learning difficult words.

Benefits of improving your vocabulary

1. It will help you tackle aptitude tests

Popular study abroad tests like GRE, GMAT, IELTS, TOEFL, PTE, SAT, etc. all have vocabulary sections and are very important when you’re applying to a university or looking for a job after graduation.

2. It will make it easier for you to interact with your peers abroad

You don’t wanna feel lost when they drop one of these words in your conversation. Because you may not believe it, they use these words way more often than we do.

3. It will sharpen your mind

That’s right, learning new words and languages hones the critical side of your brain! Which, as I’ve already said, is super important to nail your aptitude tests.

4. It will help you express yourself better

Have you ever felt like you can’t express yourself through words? The more you expand your vocabulary, the more opportunity you have to express your thoughts and emotions accurately.

5. It will help you succeed in your career

The more effective your communication skills are higher the chance you have of climbing the ladder of success! When you communicate smartly, you can influence and inspire people all around.

Case in point, let’s take a look at these 50 difficult words with meaning and expand our knowledge! But wait-

Why should I care about your list of 50 difficult words with meaning?

The first thing you should do while preparing for your GMAT or GRE is take a mock test. This will give you an idea of what your current aptitude levels are.

So what does that have to do with learning difficult words?

When you take the mock tests, you may find it difficult to understand the questions.

Not because the questions are difficult in themselves, but because they are written using words that are difficult to understand.

What’s more, the options given for the answer are even tougher to comprehend!

For example, here’s a Sentence Completion question from the Verbal Section of GRE–

Question

Colleagues describe Padgett as both forthright and reticent, humble and (i)………….., good-natured and (ii) …………. . And in her behavior as a businesswoman, Padgett herself does little to (iii) …………. these contradictions. She says she is pro-employee but is avowedly anti-union. She calls herself a pro customer but acknowledges that she runs a store with higher profit margins and prices than almost any other grocer.

Answer

(i) – a) diffident b) eccentric c) arrogant

(ii) – a) pricky b) solicitous c) phlegmatic

(iii) – a) dispel b) fulfill c) accentuate

Do you see what I’m trying to say?

GRE has 3 sections, with Verbal being one of the toughest ones.

The GMAT has 4 sections, namely, Verbal Reasoning, Analytical Reasoning, Integrated Reasoning, and Quantitative Reasoning. You need a strong vocabulary to score well in 3 of these sections in the exam.

This is where our list of 50 difficult words with meanings comes in.

50 difficult words with meanings and sentences

Without further ado-

1. Belie – To give a false representation to; misrepresent
   Example – The smile on his lips belies the pain he’s been feeling 
2. Arrant – Complete and wholly
   Example – You are an arrant fool
3. Untoward – Inconvenient
   Example – I find attending lectures on Zoom untoward as it does not make me feel included in the class
4. Byzantine – Complex and intricate
   Example – You can’t just end a marriage like that, you have to complete the byzantine procedures of filing a divorce case in the courts
5. Conciliate – To make peace with
   Example – All attempts at conciliation have failed and civil war seems inevitable
6. Equivocate – To speak vaguely, with the intention of misleading someone
   Example – Politicians often say that they will work on the issue of climate change, but they are just equivocating to get the votes
7. Truculent – Have a fierce, savage nature
   Example – The truculent attitude of farmers to cheaper imports is inspiring
8. Diatribe – A verbal attack against a person
   Example – Because Sheila was unhappy with the administration, she launched a lengthy diatribe against the board during lunch.
9. Quisling – A traitor
   Example – He had the quisling owner of the factory arrested
10. Artless – without cunning or deceit
    Example – My artless comment was mistaken for rudeness

40 more to go!

1. Blinkered – To have a limited perspective
   Example – They’ve got a very blinkered view of life
2. Maudlin – Overly emotional
   Example – You didn’t invite me out here to listen to my maudlin rambling.
3. Invective – Abusive language
   Example – A woman had hurled racist invective at the family.
4. Remonstrate – To make objections while pleading
   Example – Whenever I refuse my young daughter anything, she likes to remonstrate by stomping her feet on the floor
5. Sartorial – Related to fashion
   Example – The wedding party arrived in sartorial splendor.
6. Sybarite – A person who indulges in luxury
   Example – A Sybarite on an inadequate income, was ever the man of action.
7. Inundate – Flooded
   Example – Her office was inundated with requests for tickets.
8. Curmudgeon – A surly person
   Example – Clearly, I only play a curmudgeon in the newspaper. 
9. Anodyne – Something that soothes or relieves pain
   Example – Morphine is the greatest anodyne we possess, and no drug yet discovered equals it in pain-relieving power. 
10. Gaffe – A socially awkward act
    Example – He didn’t realize what a gaffe he’d made.

30 more to go!

1. Vie – Compete for something
   Example – They are both vying for the same managerial position.
2. Decimation – Killing a large part of the population
   Example – It is likely the category five hurricane will decimate the small beach town.
3. Garrulous – Talking too much
   Example – He was so garrulous that he could not keep a secret.
4. Hubris – Overbearing pride
   Example – Her humble attitude was refreshing in a society to be saturated by hubris.
5. Dovetail – To fit together tightly
   Example – I’m following up on a few things that might dovetail.
6. Impetuous – Characterized by undue haste and lack of thought
   Example – In the past, impetuous young men would drop out of college and run off to join the army.
7. Circumlocution – Expressing someone in an indirect way
   Example – His admission came after years of circumlocution.
8. Surreptitious – Taking pains not to be caught or detected
   Example – He made a surreptitious recording with a concealed hand-held machine. 
9. Peripatetic – Traveling by foot
   Example – He had a peripatetic career as a salesman.
10. Magisterial – Someone who exercises unwarranted power
    Example – Their jurisdictions coincide for the most part with the magisterial and fiscal boundaries.

20 more to go!

1. Asperity – Harsh in manner 
   Example – There was a touch of asperity in his tone.
2. Decry – Express strong disapproval of 
   Example – He is impatient with those who decry the scheme.
3. Puerile – Displaying a lack of maturity 
   Example – Since my son is thirty-three years of age, I do not find his puerile behavior amusing.
4. Incontrovertible – Impossible to deny
   Example – We have incontrovertible evidence of what took place.
5. Inviolate – Something that must be kept sacred 
   Example – The constitution proclaims that public property shall be inviolate.
6. Puissant – Powerful
   Example – The young man has a puissant body.
7. Cosset – Excessive indulgence
   Example – He cosseted her with flowers and champagne.
8. Eclectic – Deriving the best ideas and styles from a diverse range of sources
   Example – My universities offer an eclectic mix of courses.
9. Iconoclast – Someone who criticizes or attacks cherished ideas and beliefs
   Example – His son Gegnesius 722 was taken to Constantinople, where he won over to his opinions the iconoclast emperor, Leo the Isaurian. 
10. Anachronism – Something that is inappropriate for the given time period
    Example – In today’s computer world, a floppy disk is an anachronism. 

10 more to go!

1. Enormity – An act of extreme wickedness
   Example – She stared at the fire, shocked by the enormity of what she had done.
2. Dolorous – Showing sorrow
   Example – Sally stopped. Then she uttered a dolorous phrase that we could all understand. My dog is dead, she said, as tears filled her eyes.
3. Solicitous – Showing hovering attentiveness
   Example – I appreciated his solicitous inquiry about my health.
4. Impugn – Attack as false or wrong
   Example – Her motives have been scrutinized and impugned.
5. Despot – A cruel and oppressive dictator
   Example – The despot claimed to be the chosen instrument of divine providence.
6. Splenetic – Very irritable
   Example – Next in line for the splenetic outburst of a disaffected supporter: Martin Chuffing Edwards.
7. Abrogate – To revoke 
   Example – The Supreme Court can abrogate laws deemed unconstitutional.
8. Inveterate – Habitual
   Example – She is an inveterate gambler.
9. Officious – Intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner
   Example – ‘I’ll see,’ the nurse said, with an officious toss of her head.
10. Pillory – Ridicule or expose to public scorn
    Example – The offensive thing is that he has been so widely pilloried for doing so.

Some bonus words for you

1. Abject- without any hope 

Example- He lives in abject poverty. 

2. Candor- Honest

Example- She treated the matter with great candor. 

3. Cogent- Persuasive

Example- He had a cogent argument to make. 

4. Dearth- Shortage/scarcity

Example- The team has no dearth of good players. 

5. Evanescent- Short-lived

Example- The photographer perfectly captured that evanescent moment.

6. Cognizant-Aware 

Example- He is cognizant of the ongoing issue. 

7. Fatuous- Lack of intelligence 

Example- I was shocked by his fatuous remark. 

8. Mendacious- Lying

Example- Do not give them another mendacious story. It’s time you tell the truth. 

9. Disparate- Distinct 

Example- We are trying to put all disparate ideas to execute this plan. 

10. Ubiquitous– Present everywhere 

Example- He is one of the most ubiquitous media personalities today. 

I can’t remember difficult English words with meanings

I know! I’ve been there. This is why I’m going to share an amazing trick that Memory Athletes use to remember difficult words.

Sure, you’ll find a lot of resources both online and offline (we’re gonna cover that soon). Some of them will tell you to speak out loud and memorize the words every day until the day of your exam. Others will ask you to look at examples and use these words in your everyday life.

But they can only help you remember these words for maybe a week or two.

The method used by Memory Athletes, on the other hand, helped me so much I can remember the meanings of these words even today!

How to remember difficult English words?

We have ten amazing tips that will blow your mind!

1. Read the word and try to relate it to something you already know.
2. Break it into two words if that makes things easier for you.
   For example – for the word Inundated – I broke it into 3 words – ‘in’ ‘a’ and ‘date’
3. Create a mental image of these words in your mind
   I imagined myself being on a date with a guy
4. Relate this image to the actual meaning of the word!
5. Have fun while learning. Play word puzzles and quiz yourself when you want to relax.
6. Be more observant of what you read. Instead of glancing over unknown words, look up the meaning and note them down. 
7. Learn with a friend. Sometimes learning words can become mundane, so take the help of your friends and build your knowledge. 
8. Learn a few words at a time and don’t overburden yourself. Learn around 8-10 words a day.
9. Use these new words in your day-to-day life to retain them better. 
10. Revise what you have learned a day later and then a week later. 

How? Let’s see-
Inundated means Flooded
So I imagined that the restaurant I was in started to flood!

I know what you’re thinking – it’s crazy.

But it works, doesn’t it? 

Now, you’ll never forget what inundated means.

Try out this trick with the words on this list and have fun while memorizing them. You’re welcome!

What are some of the most misspelled words?

When it comes to acing the English section, only learning the words is not enough. You need to learn to spell them the right way. So, here are some of the most misspelled words that you need to get right!

Misspelling	Correct spelling
Acomodate	Accommodate
Acheive	Achieve
Comitte	Committee
Definately	Definitely
Embaras	Embarrass
Fourty	Forty
Irrestable	Irresistible
Appearence	Appearance
Calender	Calendar
Concience	Conscience

Some confusing words you should know about 

Besides misspelling certain words, you might get confused with the usage of some words. So, here are some of the most commonly misused words. 

• Accept and Except 

Accept refers to accepting something, whereas except means to exclude something. 

• Illicit and Elicit 

Illicit is the other name for being unlawful. On the other hand, elicit means to evoke. 

• Effect and Affect 

While effect means an outcome, affect means influence. 

• Their, There, and They’re

While ‘their’ is a possessive word, there means a location, and ‘they’re’ is the contraction of ‘they are.’

Difficult words to pronounce in English 

Now that we have learned more than 50 new words with meaning, it’s time to pronounce some difficult words. Here you go! 

Word	Pronunciation
Accessory	ak-ses–uh-ree
Balmoral	bal-maw-ruh
Colonel	kur-nl
Epitome	uh–pi–tuh–mee
Hyperbole	hahy-pur-buh-lee

Where can I find more such words?

You’ll find online articles giving you multiple suggestions, including books like Six Weeks to Words of Power, Merriam-Webster’s Vocabulary Builder, and 1100 Words You Need to Know.

But instead of being swamped with so many books to read, I suggest you use only these 2 resources-

1. Word Power by Norman Lewis

This book is a delightful read!

In it, you will have to learn only 10 words a day.

But the teaching method (breaking down the word etymology) of the author is so phenomenal that you’ll end up understanding the meanings behind a thousand words by the end of this book.

What’s more, it has several exercises in the middle, that help you improve your grammatical and syntactic skills. This is perfect for those attempting tests like SAT, GRE, GMAT, TOEFL, IELTS, etc.

2. The GRE Vocabulary Flashcards on Magoosh

This app has hundreds of flashcards you can read from.

Go through a few flashcards every day, over and over again. Read the meanings, use the trick I gave above to remember these words, and look at the examples.

Then do it all over again. Because when it comes to remembering vocabulary words with meaning, practice will make you perfect!

3. 500 Absolutely Essential Words 

This is for people who want to build a foundation for strong English. The book has over 500 frequently used words with meanings and sample sentences, short reading passages, exercises, etc. This makes it quite helpful for students preparing for English proficiency exams.

4. English Vocabulary in Use Series

This series by Cambridge University Press can be used by students of all levels to improve their vocabulary. If you are preparing for TOEFL or IELTS, grab this series to score well in your exam. Each of these books is designed per various skill levels and gets more technical. It includes the following books-

• Elementary Vocabulary 
• Basic Vocabulary in Use
• Pre-intermediate and Intermediate Vocabulary
• Upper-Intermediate Vocabulary
• Advanced Vocabulary

5. Oxford Learner’s Pocket Word Skills

This book by Oxford has 32 modules, each covering various areas of different topics. It has over 180 topics with 3500 keywords and phrases presented in context. It also covers essay writing and spoken English sections. You can also test your knowledge with its ‘Cover and Check’ cards. This book is ideal for students preparing for Cambridge exams and IELTS.

How can I improve my vocabulary?

Here are a few ways you can learn more words and expand your vocabulary – 

• Build a habit of reading. You must read all kinds of texts – fiction, academic papers, articles, and interviews – to build a solid vocabulary and improve comprehension. 
• Keep a thesaurus and a dictionary handy, and learn to use the new words in the right context. 
• If you want to memorize words faster, you can try making flashcards for reference.
• Write. You can write about any topic that interests you, like laughter, your favorite movie, or a superhero. If you can’t come up with a topic, look for prompts online!
• Listening to music and watching movies in any language is a great way to build and strengthen your vocabulary.
• Moreover, making it a habit to converse in that language regularly can help you use the new words you learn effectively.

Key takeaways 

• Vocabulary is an important aspect of various competitive exams, including IELTS, TOEFL, GMAT, SAT, GRE, etc. It is essential for you to enhance your vocabulary to ace these exams.
• To begin with, you can go through these difficult words with meanings and try to use these words in your everyday life. 
• You can also use these words to enhance your English speech to grab people’s attention. 
• Besides learning more than 50 difficult words with meaning, you can also read books, journals, listen to music, etc., to enhance your vocabulary.
• So, grab your notebook and prepare well by revising these words!  

There you have it – 50 (well, 60) difficult words with meaning, resources to find more, and tips to remember these oh-so-new words.

If you think we should add something more to our blog about ’50 difficult words with meaning,’ reach out to us.

Or…drop a comment!

Liked this blog? Read next: Top 9 motivational speeches students should listen to

FAQs

Q1. What are the 10 difficult words?

Answer – Here are 10 difficult words you should look at-

1. Capitulate
2. Divisive
3. Extant
4. Fetter
5. Hegemony
6. Inoculate
7. Linchpin
8. Mores
9. Pariah
10. Reprobate

Q2. What is the hardest word to say?

Answer – Worcestershire is one of the hardest words to get right in English.

Q3. What is the most used word?

Answer – The most used word in English is ‘the.’

Q4. What is the oldest word?

Answer- Some of the words that researchers believe date back 15000 years include-

• Bark
• Mother
• Spit

Q5. Is vocabulary important for GRE?

Answer- Yes, having a strong vocabulary is crucial for you to score well on GRE. The Verbal Reasoning section is all about testing your vocabulary by asking questions on antonyms, analogies, sentence completion, etc. It is also one of the toughest sections of the exam. Therefore,  go through the difficult words with meaning to ace this section. 

Q6. What is contextual vocabulary?

Answer- Contextual vocabulary includes guessing the meaning of words by understanding the sentence without depending on a dictionary. 

Q7. What is the best way to retain difficult words for a longer period of time?

Answer- You can start by reading the words and jotting them down with the meaning. Then, try to use those difficult words in sentences to memorize them. 

Q8. What is a very long word?

Answer- Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis is one of the longest difficult words in the English dictionary. 

Want to know about difficult words with meanings? If yes, then this blog post is for you. In this post, you will check out the list of more than 100+ difficult or hardest words along with their meanings.

Knowing difficult words is very useful in improving your communication and writing skills. Generally, students are advised to learn difficult words because it can help in improving their English and writing skills. Also, it can help in general as well as in competitive examinations.

Now, let’s move toward the list of difficult words with meaning.

1. Abluvion: that which is washed off.

2. Accismus: a form of irony in which a person feigns indifference to or pretends to refuse something he or she desires.

3. Alalia: loss of power of speaking

4. Amaurosis: partial or total loss of sight

5. Anecdote: narrative, story

6. Brunette: dark-skinned and brown-haired woman with dark eyes.

7. Blare: utter loudly, roar, bellowing noise.

8. Billingsgate: abuse, foul language.

9. Bastinado: to best with a stick in the soles of feet.

10. Buoy: an an-chored floating seamark for showing navigable course.

11. Caoutchouc: raw rubber (India rubber)

12. Cauterisation: an act of burning or searing.

13. Chandelier: a kind of branched support for holding several lights.

14. Chiaroscuro: light and shade in painting.

15. Cotyloid: of the shape or a cup.

16. Dactyl: the metrical foot.

17. Daltonism: colourblindness.

18. Deglutinate: to separate what is glued.

19. Dirigible: an aircraft that is able to be guided.

20. Duelling: the act or practice of fighting in single combat.

21. Ecclesiast: the preacher, a clergyman, an author of one of the old testaments.

22. Eirenicon: a proposal for peace, a peace-making message.

23. Emolument: advantage, gain, salary.

24. Epicarp: the outer skin of fruits.

25. Euphemism: substitution of a mild expression for an unpleasant thing.

26. Fistulate: to become a pipe, to make hallow like a pipe.

27. Flageolet: a small wind instrument.

28. Fontanelle: a gap between the bones of the skull of a young animal or infant.

29. Formidableness: dreadfulness.

30. Fortuitist: one who depends on fate.

31. Fratricidal: pertaining to the killing of a brother or sister.

32. Galimatias: meaning-less talk.

33. Garrulous: loquacious, talkative.

34. Gnathic: pertaining to jaws.

35. Gossamer: the web of a spider floating in the air.

36. Gridiron: a frame of iron bars for broiling.

37. Hackneyed: trite, much used.

38. Hearsay: a rumour, gossip.

39. Helianthus: the sunflower.

40. Hereabouts: near here.

41. Hyacinthine: a kind of gem.

42. Idiosyncrasy: the peculiarity of mental constitution.

43. Impresario: an organiser of public entertainments.

44. Inalienability: the qua; it of being transferable.

45. Inkling: a hint, a whisper.

46. Inspissate: to make thick, to condense.

47. Jinricksha: a light two-wheeled carriage drawn by a man.

48. Johnsonian: abounding in difficult and pedantic words.

49. Juxtapose: to place side by side.

50: Jurisprudence: the science of human law.

Hard Words with Meanings (51-100)

51. Kedgy: merry, happy, lively.

52. Knapsack: a leather or canvas bag.

53. Kinship: blood relationship, alliance.

54. Kerseymere: twilled woollen cloth.

55. Kaleidoscope: an optical toy in which an endless variety of beautiful coloured designs is seen.

56. Lanchrymation: the burst of tears.

57. Lambrequin: a short piece of drapery over a door or window.

58. Languorously: in a dull manner.

59. Lithoglyph: an engraving on a gem.

60. Loquacious: talkative, chattering, noisy.

61. Magnanimous: having the greatness of mind, high-souled, high-minded.

62. Magniloquent: bragging, speaking pompously, boastful.

63. Maladministration: bad management.

64. Masquerade: a masked ball, a false show, pretence.

65. Melancholy: mental depression, sad, gloomy, depressing.

66. Nacarat: a bright orange-red colour, a fabric so coloured.

67. Naivety: unaffectedness, simplicity.

68. Nuptail: pertaining to marriage.

69. Nymphomania: uncontrollable sexual desire in women.

70. Nux Vomica: a tree yielding a poisonous fruit.

71. Obduracy: hardness of heart.

72. Obnubilation: confused condition.

73. Odontoloxia: irregularity of teeth.

74. Oneiromancy: the act of divining by dreams.

75. Ought: used in the force of expressing duty, to be morally necessary, should.

76. Palingenesis: a new birth, regeneration.

77. Pantisocracy: a community in which all should have equal power.

78. Pantophagist: he who eats all kinds of food.

79. Paronym: words alike in sound but different in spelling and meaning.

80. Pauperization: reducing poverty.

81. Quasi: that is to say, as if, almost.

82. Querulous: habitually complaining, peevish.

83. Quixotic: visionary, romantic, absurd.

84. Quoit: a heavy circular iron ring was thrown to encircle an iron peg.

85. Quotum: share, proportion.

86. Rejuvebescence: renewal of youth.

87. Reify: to convert mentally into a material thing.

88. Reliquiae: remains of animals or plants.

89. Relics: a dead body.

90. Retrospect: backward view, review of past time, a survey of past events.

91. Salubrious: wholesome, healthy.

92. Sarcophagous: feeding on flesh.

93. Scansorial: habitually climbing, fit for climbing.

94. Scathless: without injury.

95. Septifarious: turned in seven different ways.

96. Tautologize: to repeat the same thing.

97. Tellural: pertaining to the earth.

98. Tenaciousness: the quality of being adhesive.

99. Tergiferous: carrying on the back.

100. Thwaite: a piece of barren land.

Difficult Words in English with Meanings

101. Umbrifererous: casting a shade.

102. Unforsaken: not deserted.

103. Ungenteel: impolite.

104: Unigeniture: state of being the only one begotten.

105. Unremunerative: not profitable.

106. Veracious: true, one who observes truth.

107. Vermiceous: pertaining to worms.

108. Vicegerency: the office of a deputy.

109: Vaxatious: distressing irritating, teasing.

110. Vicinage: neighbourhood.

111. Walrus: a large tusked carnivorous sea animal.

112. Wantwit: one who is destitute of wit, a fool.

113. Wssail: a festive occasion, a drinking bout, a merry song, health drinking.

114. Weepingly: in tears.

115. Wretchedness: extreme misery or sorrow.

116. Xanthochroia: yellow discolouration of the skin.

117. Xyloid: like wood.

118. Xerotribia: dry friction.

119. Xerochastic: opening when dried.

120. Xylocarp: a hard and woody fruit.

121. Yardarm: the end of a ship’s yard.

122. Yokel: an ignorant rustic fellow.

123. Yurt: a tent of the people of the arctic region.

124. Yucca: a plant of the lily family.

125. Yulan: a beautiful flowering tree.

126. Zoiatria: veterinary surgery.

127. Zoanthropy: a monomania in which a man believes himself to be a beast.

128. Zapote: a round fruit with a hard stone.

129. Zythum: a kind of beer.

130. Zwieback: a kind of sweet biscuit.

10 Most Difficult Words to Pronounce in English

1. Asterisk
2. Apocryphal
3. Anemone
4. Colloquialism
5. Defibrillator
6. Explicit
7. Massachusetts
8. Synecdoche
9. Schadenfreude
10. Worcestershire

Difficult Words to Spell with Silent Letters

• Faux
• Subtle
• Honest
• Receipt
• Asthma
• Muscle
• Phlegm
• Chthonic
• Pterodactyl
• Mnemonic
• Apropos
• Knead
• Gnaw
• Solemn
• Rendezvous

10 Hardest Words to Spell

1. Gobbledegook
2. Pochemuchka
3. Chiaroscurist
4. Logorrhea
5. Handkerchief
6. Pronunciation
7. Intelligence
8. Wierd
9. Pharaoh
10. Misspell

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)