List of one word definitions

The following paragraph describes a scene from The Picture of Dorian Gray not reprinted in this textbook. Revise the paragraph, correcting any sentence fragments or run-ons. The fragments may be corrected by combining sentences, by adding words (such as a subject or a verb), or by changing the form of the verb. The run-ons may be corrected in several ways.
1 Dorian living in constant fear of the portrait’s secret. 2 One day Basil Hallward came to visit Dorian, he wanted to exhibit the portrait in a show. 3 Dorian’s threat never to speak to Basil again if Basil insisted on looking at the portrait. 4 The artist wanted to see the portrait again however he valued Dorian’s friendship. 5 He yielded to Dorian’s wishes he asked Dorian to sit for another portrait. 6 Dorian’s answer astonishing. 7 That he would never sit for Basil again. 8 The artist left, Dorian moved the portrait to a locked room. 9 To which he alone had the key. 10There the portrait unseen while Dorian remained perpetually youthful

Although
the borderline between various linguistic units is not always sharp
and clear, we shall try to define every new term on its first
appearance at once simply and unambiguously, if not always very
rigorously. The approximate definition of the term word
has already been given in the opening page of the book.

The
important point to remember about
definitions
is that they should indicate the most essential characteristic
features of the notion expressed by the term under discussion, the
features by which this notion is distinguished from other similar
notions. For instance, in defining the word one must distinguish it
from other linguistic units, such as the phoneme, the morpheme, or
the word-group. In contrast with a definition, a description
aims at enumerating all the essential features of a notion.

To
make things easier we shall begin by a preliminary description,
illustrating it with some examples.

The
word
may be described as the basic unit of language. Uniting meaning and
form, it is composed of one or more morphemes, each consisting of one
or more spoken sounds or their written representation. Morphemes as
we have already said are also meaningful units but they cannot be
used independently, they are always parts of words whereas words can
be used as a complete utterance (e. g. Listen!).
The
combinations of morphemes within words are subject to certain linking
conditions. When a derivational affix is added a new word is formed,
thus, listen
and
listener
are
different words. In fulfilling different grammatical functions words
may take functional affixes: listen
and
listened
are
different forms of the same word. Different forms of the same word
can be also built analytically with the help of auxiliaries. E.g.:
The
world should listen then as I am listening now (Shelley).

When
used in sentences together with other words they are syntactically
organised. Their freedom of entering into syntactic constructions is
limited by many factors, rules and constraints (e. g.: They
told me this story but
not *They
spoke me this story).

The
definition of every basic notion is a very hard task: the definition
of a word is one of the most difficult in linguistics because the

27

simplest
word has many different aspects. It has a sound form because it is a
certain arrangement of phonemes; it has its morphological structure,
being also a certain arrangement of morphemes; when used in actual
speech, it may occur in different word forms, different syntactic
functions and signal various meanings. Being the central element of
any language system, the word is a sort of focus for the problems of
phonology, lexicology, syntax, morphology and also for some other
sciences that have to deal with language and speech, such as
philosophy and psychology, and probably quite a few other branches of
knowledge. All attempts to characterise the word are necessarily
specific for each domain of science and are therefore considered
one-sided by the representatives of all the other domains and
criticised for incompleteness. The variants of definitions were so
numerous that some authors (A. Rossetti, D.N. Shmelev) collecting
them produced works of impressive scope and bulk.

A
few examples will suffice to show that any definition is conditioned
by the aims and interests of its author.

Thomas
Hobbes (1588-1679),
one
of the great English philosophers, revealed a materialistic approach
to the problem of nomination when he wrote that words are not mere
sounds but names of matter. Three centuries later the great Russian
physiologist I.P. Pavlov (1849-1936)
examined
the word in connection with his studies of the second signal system,
and defined it as a universal signal that can substitute any other
signal from the environment in evoking a response in a human
organism. One of the latest developments of science and engineering
is machine translation. It also deals with words and requires a
rigorous definition for them. It runs as follows: a word is a
sequence of graphemes which can occur between spaces, or the
representation of such a sequence on morphemic level.

Within
the scope of linguistics the word has been defined syntactically,
semantically, phonologically and by combining various approaches.

It
has been syntactically defined for instance as “the minimum
sentence” by H. Sweet and much later by L. Bloomfield as “a
minimum free form”. This last definition, although structural in
orientation, may be said to be, to a certain degree, equivalent to
Sweet’s, as practically it amounts to the same thing: free forms
are later defined as “forms which occur as sentences”.

E.
Sapir takes into consideration the syntactic and semantic aspects
when he calls the word “one of the smallest completely satisfying
bits of isolated ‘meaning’, into which the sentence resolves
itself”. Sapir also points out one more, very important
characteristic of the word, its indivisibility:
“It cannot be cut into without a disturbance of meaning, one or two
other or both of the several parts remaining as a helpless waif on
our hands”. The essence of indivisibility will be clear from a
comparison of the article a
and
the prefix a-
in
a
lion and
alive.
A lion is
a word-group because we can separate its elements and insert other
words between them: a
living lion, a dead lion. Alive is
a word: it is indivisible, i.e. structurally impermeable: nothing can
be inserted between its elements. The morpheme a-
is
not free, is not a word. The

28

situation
becomes more complicated if we cannot be guided by solid spelling.’
“The Oxford English Dictionary», for instance, does not
include the
reciprocal pronouns each
other and
one
another under
separate headings, although
they should certainly be analysed as word-units, not as word-groups
since they have become indivisible: we now say with
each other and
with
one another instead
of the older forms one
with another or
each
with the other.¹

Altogether
is
one word according to its spelling, but how is one to treat all
right, which
is rather a similar combination?

When
discussing the internal cohesion of the word the English linguist
John Lyons points out that it should be discussed in terms of two
criteria “positional
mobility”
and
“un­interrupt­abili­ty”.
To illustrate the first he segments into morphemes the following
sentence:

the
—
boy
—
s
—
walk
—
ed
—
slow
—
ly
—
up
—
the
—
hill

The
sentence may be regarded as a sequence of ten morphemes, which occur
in a particular order relative to one another. There are several
possible changes in this order which yield an acceptable English
sentence:

slow
—
ly
—
the
—
boy
—
s
—
walk
—
ed
—
up
—
the
—
hill
up —
the
—
hill
—
slow
—
ly
—
walk
—
ed
—
the
—
boy
—
s

Yet
under all the permutations certain groups of morphemes behave as
‘blocks’ —
they
occur always together, and in the same order relative to one another.
There is no possibility of the sequence s
—
the
—
boy,
ly —
slow,
ed —
walk.
“One
of the characteristics of the word is that it tends to be internally
stable (in terms of the order of the component morphemes), but
positionally mobile (permutable with other words in the same
sentence)”.²

A
purely semantic treatment will be found in Stephen Ullmann’s
explanation: with him connected discourse, if analysed from the
semantic point of view, “will fall into a certain number of
meaningful segments which are ultimately composed of meaningful
units. These meaningful units are called words.»³

The
semantic-phonological approach may be illustrated by A.H.Gardiner’s
definition: “A word is an articulate sound-symbol in its aspect of
denoting something which is spoken about.»⁴

The
eminent French linguist A. Meillet (1866-1936)
combines
the semantic, phonological and grammatical criteria and advances a
formula which underlies many subsequent definitions, both abroad and
in our country, including the one given in the beginning of this
book: “A word is defined by the association of a particular meaning
with a

¹Sapir
E. Language.
An Introduction to the Study of Speech. London, 1921,
P.
35.

² Lyons,
John. Introduction
to Theoretical Linguistics. Cambridge: Univ. Press, 1969.
P. 203.

³ Ullmann
St. The
Principles of Semantics. Glasgow, 1957.
P.
30.

⁴ Gardiner
A.H. The
Definition of the Word and the Sentence //
The
British Journal of Psychology. 1922.
XII.
P. 355
(quoted
from: Ullmann
St.,
Op.
cit., P. 51).

29

particular
group of sounds capable of a particular grammatical employment.»¹

This
definition does not permit us to distinguish words from phrases
because not only child,
but
a
pretty child as
well are combinations of a particular group of sounds with a
particular meaning capable of a particular grammatical employment.

We
can, nevertheless, accept this formula with some modifications,
adding that a word is the smallest significant unit of a given
language capable of functioning alone and characterised by positional
mobility
within
a sentence, morphological
uninterruptability
and semantic
integrity.²
All these criteria are necessary because they permit us to create a
basis for the oppositions between the word and the phrase, the word
and the phoneme, and the word and the morpheme: their common feature
is that they are all units of the language, their difference lies in
the fact that the phoneme is not significant, and a morpheme cannot
be used as a complete utterance.

Another
reason for this supplement is the widespread scepticism concerning
the subject. It has even become a debatable point whether a word is a
linguistic unit and not an arbitrary segment of speech. This opinion
is put forth by S. Potter, who writes that “unlike a phoneme or a
syllable, a word is not a linguistic unit at all.»³
He calls it a conventional and arbitrary segment of utterance, and
finally adopts the already mentioned
definition of L. Bloomfield. This position is, however, as
we have already mentioned, untenable, and in fact S. Potter himself
makes ample use of the word as a unit in his linguistic analysis.

The
weak point of all the above definitions is that they do not establish
the relationship between language and thought, which is formulated if
we treat the word as a dialectical unity of form and content, in
which the form is the spoken or written expression which calls up a
specific meaning, whereas the content is the meaning rendering the
emotion or the concept in the mind of the speaker which he intends to
convey to his listener.

Summing
up our review of different definitions, we come to the conclusion
that they are bound to be strongly dependent upon the line of
approach, the aim the scholar has in view. For a comprehensive word
theory, therefore, a description seems more appropriate than a
definition.

The
problem of creating a word theory based upon the materialistic
understanding of the relationship between word and thought on the one
hand, and language and society, on the other, has been one of the
most discussed for many years. The efforts of many eminent scholars
such as V.V. Vinogradov, A. I. Smirnitsky, O.S. Akhmanova, M.D.
Stepanova, A.A. Ufimtseva —
to
name but a few, resulted in throwing light

¹Meillet
A. Linguistique
historique et linguistique generate. Paris,
1926.
Vol.
I. P. 30.

² It
might be objected that such words as articles, conjunctions and a few
other words
never occur as sentences, but they are not numerous and could be
collected into a
list of exceptions.

³ See:
Potter
S. Modern
Linguistics. London, 1957.
P.
78.

30

on this problem and achieved a
clear presentation of the word as a basic unit of the language. The
main points may now be summarised.

The
word
is the
fundamental
unit
of language.
It is a dialectical
unity
of form
and
content.
Its content or meaning is not identical to notion, but it may reflect
human notions, and in this sense may be considered as the form of
their existence. Concepts fixed in the meaning of words are formed as
generalised and approximately correct reflections of reality,
therefore in signifying them words reflect reality in their content.

The
acoustic aspect of the word serves to name objects of reality, not to
reflect them. In this sense the word may be regarded as a sign. This
sign, however, is not arbitrary but motivated by the whole process of
its development. That is to say, when a word first comes into
existence it is built out of the elements already available in the
language and according to the existing patterns.

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Words beginning with A — list and definitions learning English

---

What will I learn from the English lesson a list verbs beginning with A ?

This lesson is a list of words beginning with A from the big list of A to Z of words and definitions to help you, when you don’t know the meaning of the word. It is important not to try and remember the words, but just to use the list as a reference guide to help you.

How do I use this English book of words A to Z?

Click on each letter of the alphabet to get the list of the idioms with an explanation of each.

[ A ] [ B ] [ C ] [ D ] [ E ] [ F ] [ G ] [ H ] [ I ] [ J ] [ K ] [ L ] [ M ] [ N ] [ O ] [ P ] [ Q ] [ R ] [ S ] [ T ] [ U ] [ V ] [ W ] [ X ] [ Y ] [ Z ]

The big book of words uses the following grammar after each word

After each word is listed you will see one of the following v, n or adj. To get a more detailed explanation of each click on each link.

• n. (noun) — is a name word
• v. (verb) — is an action word
• ad. (adjective/adverb) — is used as a describing word

Words Beginning with A.

abase v. To lower in position, estimation, or the like; degrade.

abbess n. The lady superior of a nunnery.

abbey n. The group of buildings which collectively form the dwelling-place of a society of monks or nuns.

abbot n. The superior of a community of monks.

abdicate v. To give up (royal power or the like).

abdomen n. In mammals, the visceral cavity between the diaphragm and the pelvic floor;the belly.

abdominal n. Of, pertaining to, or situated on the abdomen.

abduction n. A carrying away of a person against his will, or illegally.

abed adv. In bed; on a bed.

aberration n. Deviation from a right, customary, or prescribed course.

abet v. To aid, promote, or encourage the commission of (an offense).

abeyance n. A state of suspension or temporary inaction.

abhorrence n. The act of detesting extremely.

abhorrent adj. Very repugnant; hateful.

abidance n. An abiding.

abject adj. Sunk to a low condition.

abjure v. To recant, renounce, repudiate under oath.

able-bodied adj. Competent for physical service.

ablution n. A washing or cleansing, especially of the body.

abnegate v. To renounce (a right or privilege).

abnormal adj. Not conformed to the ordinary rule or standard.

abominable adj. Very hateful.

abominate v. To hate violently.

abomination n. A very detestable act or practice.

aboriginal adj. Primitive; unsophisticated.

aborigines n. The original of earliest known inhabitants of a country.

aboveboard adv. & adj. Without concealment, fraud, or trickery.

abrade v. To wear away the surface or some part of by friction.

abrasion n. That which is rubbed off.

abridge v. To make shorter in words, keeping the essential features, leaning out minor particles.

abridgment n. A condensed form as of a book or play.

abrogate v. To abolish, repeal.

abrupt adj. Beginning, ending, or changing suddenly or with a break.

abscess n. A Collection of pus in a cavity formed within some tissue of the body.

abscission n. The act of cutting off, as in a surgical operation.

abscond v. To depart suddenly and secretly, as for the purpose of escaping arrest.

absence n. The fact of not being present or available.

absent-minded adj. Lacking in attention to immediate surroundings or business.

absolution n. Forgiveness, or passing over of offenses.

absolve v. To free from sin or its penalties.

absorb v. To drink in or suck up, as a sponge absorbs water.

absorption n. The act or process of absorbing.

abstain v. To keep oneself back (from doing or using something).

abstemious adj. Characterized by self denial or abstinence, as in the use of drink, food.

abstinence n. Self denial.

abstruse adj. Dealing with matters difficult to be understood.

absurd adj. Inconsistent with reason or common sense.

abundant adj. Plentiful.

abusive adj. Employing harsh words or ill treatment.

abut v. To touch at the end or boundary line.

abyss n. Bottomless gulf.

academic adj. Of or pertaining to an academy, college, or university.

academician n. A member of an academy of literature, art, or science.

academy n. Any institution where the higher branches of learning are taught.

accede v. To agree.

accelerate v. To move faster.

accept v. To take when offered.

access n. A way of approach or entrance; passage.

accessible adj. Approachable.

accession n. Induction or elevation, as to dignity, office, or government.

accessory n. A person or thing that aids the principal agent.

acclaim v. To utter with a shout.

accommodate v. To furnish something as a kindness or favor.

accompaniment n. A subordinate part or parts, enriching or supporting the leading part.

accompanist n. One who or that which accompanies.

accompany v. To go with, or be associated with, as a companion.

accomplice n. An associate in wrong-doing.

accomplish v. To bring to pass.

accordion n. A portable free-reed musical instrument.

accost v. To speak to.

account n. A record or statement of receipts and expenditures, or of business transactions.

accouter v. To dress.

accredit v. To give credit or authority to.

accumulate v. To become greater in quantity or number.

accuracy n. Exactness.

accurate adj. Conforming exactly to truth or to a standard.

accursed adj. Doomed to evil, misery, or misfortune.

accusation n. A charge of crime, misdemeanor, or error.

accusatory adj. Of, pertaining to, or involving an accusation.

accuse v. To charge with wrong doing, misconduct, or error.

accustom v. To make familiar by use.

acerbity n. Sourness, with bitterness and astringency.

acetate n. A salt of acetic acid.

acetic adj. Of, pertaining to, or of the nature of vinegar.

ache v. To be in pain or distress.

Achillean adj. Invulnerable.

achromatic adj. Colorless,

acid n. A sour substance.

acidify v. To change into acid.

acknowledge v. To recognize; to admit the genuineness or validity of.

acknowledgment n. Recognition.

acme n. The highest point, or summit.

acoustic adj. Pertaining to the act or sense of hearing.

acquaint v. To make familiar or conversant.

acquiesce v. To comply; submit.

acquiescence n. Passive consent.

acquire v. To get as one’s own.

acquisition n. Anything gained, or made one’s own, usually by effort or labor.

acquit v. To free or clear, as from accusation.

acquittal n. A discharge from accusation by judicial action.

acquittance n. Release or discharge from indebtedness, obligation, or responsibility.

acreage n. Quantity or extent of land, especially of cultivated land.

acrid adj. Harshly pungent or bitter.

acrimonious adj. Full of bitterness.

acrimony n. Sharpness or bitterness of speech or temper.

actionable adj. Affording cause for instituting an action, as trespass, slanderous words.

actuality n. Any reality.

actuary n. An officer, as of an insurance company, who calculates and states the risks and premiums.

actuate v. To move or incite to action.

acumen n. Quickness of intellectual insight, or discernment; keenness of discrimination.

acute adj. Having fine and penetrating discernment.

adamant n. Any substance of exceeding hardness or impenetrability.

addendum n. Something added, or to be added.

addle v. To make inefficient or worthless; muddle.

adduce v. To bring forward or name for consideration.

adhere v. To stick fast or together.

adherence n. Attachment.

adherent adj. Clinging or sticking fast.

adhesion n. The state of being attached or joined.

adieu inter. Good-by; farewell.

adjacency n. The state of being adjacent.

adjacent n. That which is near or bordering upon.

adjudge v. To award or bestow by formal decision.

adjunct n. Something joined to or connected with another thing, but holding a subordinate place.

adjuration n. A vehement appeal.

adjutant adj. Auxiliary.

administrator n. One who manages affairs of any kind.

admissible adj. Having the right or privilege of entry.

admittance n. Entrance, or the right or permission to enter.

admonish v. To warn of a fault.

admonition n. Gentle reproof.

ado n. unnecessary activity or ceremony.

adoration n. Profound devotion.

adroit adj. Having skill in the use of the bodily or mental powers.

adulterant n. An adulterating substance.

adulterate v. To make impure by the admixture of other or baser ingredients.

adumbrate v. To represent beforehand in outline or by emblem.

advent n. The coming or arrival, as of any important change, event, state, or personage.

adverse adj. Opposing or opposed.

adversity n. Misfortune.

advert v. To refer incidentally.

advertiser n. One who advertises, especially in newspapers.

advisory adj. Not mandatory.

advocacy n. The act of pleading a cause.

advocate n. One who pleads the cause of another, as in a legal or ecclesiastical court.

aerial adj. Of, pertaining to, or like the air.

aeronaut n. One who navigates the air, a balloonist.

aeronautics n. the art or practice of flying aircraft

aerostat n. A balloon or other apparatus floating in or sustained by the air.

aerostatics n. The branch of pneumatics that treats of the equilibrium, pressure, and mechanical properties.

affable adj. Easy to approach.

affect v. To act upon

affectation n. A studied or ostentatious pretense or attempt.

affiliate n. Some auxiliary person or thing.

affirmative adj. Answering yes; to a question at issue.

affix v. To fasten.

affluence n. A profuse or abundant supply of riches.

affront n. An open insult or indignity.

afire adv. & adj. On fire, literally or figuratively.

afoot adv. In progress.

aforesaid adj. Said in a preceding part or before.

afresh adv. Once more, after rest or interval.

afterthought n. A thought that comes later than its appropriate or expected time.

agglomerate v. To pile or heap together.

aggrandize v. To cause to appear greatly.

aggravate v. To make heavier, worse, or more burdensome.

aggravation n. The fact of being made heavier or more heinous, as a crime , offense, misfortune, etc.

aggregate n. The entire number, sum, mass, or quantity of something.

aggress v. To make the first attack.

aggression n. An unprovoked attack.

aggrieve v. To give grief or sorrow to.

aghast adj. Struck with terror and amazement.

agile adj. Able to move or act quickly, physically, or mentally.

agitate v. To move or excite (the feelings or thoughts).

agrarian adj. Pertaining to land, especially agricultural land.

aide-de-camp n. An officer who receives and transmits the orders of the general.

ailment n. Slight sickness.

airy adj. Delicate, ethereal.

akin adj. Of similar nature or qualities.

alabaster n. A white or delicately tinted fine-grained gypsum.

alacrity n. Cheerful willingness.

albeit conj. Even though.

albino n. A person with milky white skin and hair, and eyes with bright red pupil and usually pink iris.

album n. A book whose leaves are so made to form paper frames for holding photographs or the like.

alchemy n. Chemistry of the middle ages, characterized by the pursuit of changing base metals to gold.

alcohol n. A volatile, inflammable, colorless liquid of a penetrating odor and burning taste.

alcoholism n. A condition resulting from the inordinate or persistent use of alcoholic beverages.

alcove n. A covered recess connected with or at the side of a larger room.

alder n. Any shrub or small tree of the genus Alumnus, of the oak family.

alderman n. A member of a municipal legislative body, who usually exercises also certain judicial functions.

aldermanship n. The dignity, condition, office, or term of office of an alderman.

alias n. An assumed name.

alien n. One who owes allegiance to a foreign government.

alienable adj. Capable of being aliened or alienated, as lands.

alienate v. To cause to turn away.

alienation n. Estrangement.

aliment n. That which nourishes.

alkali n. Anything that will neutralize an acid, as lime, magnesia, etc.

allay v. To calm the violence or reduce the intensity of; mitigate.

allege v. To assert to be true, especially in a formal manner, as in court.

allegory n. The setting forth of a subject under the guise of another subject of aptly suggestive likeness.

alleviate v. To make less burdensome or less hard to bear.

alley n. A narrow street, garden path, walk, or the like.

alliance n. Any combination or union for some common purpose.

allot v. To assign a definite thing or part to a certain person.

allotment n. Portion.

allude v. To refer incidentally, or by suggestion.

allusion n. An indirect and incidental reference to something without definite mention of it.

alluvion n. Flood.

ally n. A person or thing connected with another, usually in some relation of helpfulness.

almanac n. A series of tables giving the days of the week together with certain astronomical information.

aloof adv. Not in sympathy with or desiring to associate with others.

altar n. Any raised place or structure on which sacrifices may be offered or incense burned.

alter v. To make change in.

alteration n. Change or modification.

altercate v. To contend angrily or zealously in words.

alternate n. One chosen to act in place of another, in case of the absence or incapacity of that other.

alternative n. Something that may or must exist, be taken or chosen, or done instead of something else.

altitude n. Vertical distance or elevation above any point or base-level, as the sea.

alto n. The lowest or deepest female voice or part.

altruism n. Benevolence to others on subordination to self-interest.

altruist n. One who advocates or practices altruism.

amalgam n. An alloy or union of mercury with another metal.

amalgamate v. To mix or blend together in a homogeneous body.

amateur adj. Practicing an art or occupation for the love of it, but not as a profession.

amatory adj. Designed to excite love.

ambidextrous adj. Having the ability of using both hands with equal skill or ease.

ambiguous adj. Having a double meaning.

ambitious adj. Eagerly desirous and aspiring.

ambrosial adj. Divinely sweet, fragrant, or delicious.

ambulance n. A vehicle fitted for conveying the sick and wounded.

ambulate v. To walk about

ambush n. The act or state of lying concealed for the purpose of surprising or attacking the enemy.

ameliorate v. To relieve, as from pain or hardship

amenable adj. Willing and ready to submit.

Americanism n. A peculiar sense in which an English word or phrase is used in the United States.

amicable adj. Done in a friendly spirit.

amity n. Friendship.

amorous adj. Having a propensity for falling in love.

amorphous adj. Without determinate shape.

amour n. A love-affair, especially one of an illicit nature.

ampere n. The practical unit of electric-current strength.

ampersand n. The character &; and.

amphibious adj. Living both on land and in water.

amphitheater n. An edifice of elliptical shape, constructed about a central open space or arena.

amplitude n. Largeness.

amply adv. Sufficiently.

amputate v. To remove by cutting, as a limb or some portion of the body.

amusement n. Diversion.

anachronism n. Anything occurring or existing out of its proper time.

anagram n. The letters of a word or phrase so transposed as to make a different word or phrase.

analogous adj. Corresponding (to some other) in certain respects, as in form, proportion,relations.

analogy n. Reasoning in which from certain and known relations or resemblance others are formed.

analyst n. One who analyzes or makes use of the analytical method.

analyze v. To examine minutely or critically.

anarchy n. Absence or utter disregard of government.

anathema n. Anything forbidden, as by social usage.

anatomy n. That branch of morphology which treats of the structure of organisms.

ancestry n. One’s ancestors collectively.

anecdote n. A brief account of some interesting event or incident.

anemia n. Deficiency of blood or red corpuscles.

anemic adj. Affected with anemia.

anemometer n. An instrument for measuring the force or velocity of wind.

anesthetic adj. Pertaining to or producing loss of sensation.

anew adv. Once more.

angelic adj. Saintly.

Anglophobia n. Hatred or dread of England or of what is English.

Anglo—Saxon n. The entire English race wherever found, as in Europe, the United States, or India.

angular adj. Sharp-cornered.

anhydrous adj. Withered.

animadversion n. The utterance of criticism or censure.

animadvert v. To pass criticism or censure.

animalcule n. An animal of microscopic smallness.

animate v. To make alive.

animosity n. Hatred.

annalist n. Historian.

annals n. A record of events in their chronological order, year by year.

annex v. To add or affix at the end.

annihilate v. To destroy absolutely.

annotate v. To make explanatory or critical notes on or upon.

annual adj. Occurring every year.

annuity n. An annual allowance, payment, or income.

annunciation n. Proclamation.

anode n. The point where or path by which a voltaic current enters an electrolyte or the like.

anonymous adj. Of unknown authorship.

antagonism n. Mutual opposition or resistance of counteracting forces, principles, or persons.

Antarctic adj. Pertaining to the south pole or the regions near it.

ante v. In the game of poker, to put up a stake before the cards are dealt.

antecede v. To precede.

antecedent n. One who or that which precedes or goes before, as in time, place, rank, order, or causality.

antechamber n. A waiting room for those who seek audience.

antedate v. To assign or affix a date to earlier than the actual one.

antediluvian adj. Of or pertaining to the times, things, events before the great flood in the days of Noah.

antemeridian adj. Before noon.

antemundane adj. Pertaining to time before the world’s creation.

antenatal adj. Occurring or existing before birth.

anterior adj. Prior.

anteroom n. A room situated before and opening into another, usually larger.

anthology n. A collection of extracts from the writings of various authors.

anthracite n. Hard coal.

anthropology n. The science of man in general.

anthropomorphous adj. Having or resembling human form.

antic n. A grotesque, ludicrous, or fantastic action.

Antichrist n. Any opponent or enemy of Christ, whether a person or a power.

anticlimax n. A gradual or sudden decrease in the importance or impressiveness of what is said.

anticyclone n. An atmospheric condition of high central pressure, with currents flowing outward.

antidote n. Anything that will counteract or remove the effects of poison, disease, or the like.

antilogy n. Inconsistency or contradiction in terms or ideas.

antipathize v. To show or feel a feeling of antagonism, aversion, or dislike.

antiphon n. A response or alteration of responses, generally musical.

antiphony n. An anthem or other composition sung responsively.

antipodes n. A place or region on the opposite side of the earth.

antiquary n. One who collects and examines old things, as coins, books, medals, weapons, etc.

antiquate v. To make old or out of date.

antique adj. Pertaining to ancient times.

antiseptic n. Anything that destroys or restrains the growth of putrefactive micro- organisms.

antislavery adj. Opposed to human slavery.

antispasmodic adj. Tending to prevent or relieve non-inflammatory spasmodic affections.

antistrophe n. The inversion of terms in successive classes, as in «the home of joy» and «the joy of home».

antitoxin n. A substance which neutralizes the poisonous products of micro-organisms.

antonym n. A word directly opposed to another in meaning.

anxious adj. Distressed in mind respecting some uncertain matter.

apathy n. Insensibility to emotion or passionate feeling.

aperture n. Hole.

apex n. The highest point, as of a mountain.

aphorism n. Proverb.

apiary n. A place where bees are kept.

apogee n. The climax.

apology n. A disclaimer of intentional error or offense.

apostasy n. A total departure from one’s faith or religion.

apostate adj. False.

apostle n. Any messenger commissioned by or as by divine authority.

apothecary n. One who keeps drugs for sale and puts up prescriptions.

apotheosis n. Deification.

appall v. To fill with dismay or horror.

apparent adj. Easily understood.

apparition n. Ghost.

appease v. To soothe by quieting anger or indignation.

appellate adj. Capable of being appealed to.

appellation n. The name or title by which a particular person, class, or thing is called.

append v. To add or attach, as something accessory, subordinate, or supplementary.

appertain v. To belong, as by right, fitness, association, classification, possession, or natural relation.

apposite adj. Appropriate.

apposition n. The act of placing side by side, together, or in contact.

appraise v. To estimate the money value of.

appreciable adj. Capable of being discerned by the senses or intellect.

apprehend v. To make a prisoner of (a person) in the name of the law.

apprehensible adj. Capable of being conceived.

approbation n. Sanction.

appropriate adj. Suitable for the purpose and circumstances.

aqueduct n. A water-conduit, particularly one for supplying a community from a distance.

aqueous adj. Of, pertaining to, or containing water.

arbiter n. One chosen or appointed, by mutual consent of parties in dispute, to decide matters.

arbitrary adj. Fixed or done capriciously.

arbitrate v. To act or give judgment as umpire.

arbor n. A tree.

arboreal adj. Of or pertaining to a tree or trees.

arborescent adj. Having the nature of a tree.

arboretum n. A botanical garden or place devoted to the cultivation of trees or shrubs.

arboriculture n. The cultivation of trees or shrubs.

arcade n. A vaulted passageway or street; a roofed passageway having shops, etc., opening from it.

archaic adj. Antiquated

archaism n. Obsolescence.

archangel n. An angel of high rank.

archbishop n. The chief of the bishops of an ecclesiastical province in the Greek, Roman, and Anglican church.

archdeacon n. A high official administrator of the affairs of a diocese.

archaeology n. The branch of anthropology concerned with the systematic investigation of the relics of man.

archetype n. A prototype.

archipelago n. Any large body of water studded with islands, or the islands collectively themselves.

ardent adj. Burning with passion.

ardor n. Intensity of passion or affection.

arid adj. Very dry.

aristocracy n. A hereditary nobility

aristocrat n. A hereditary noble or one nearly connected with nobility.

armada n. A fleet of war-vessels.

armful n. As much as can be held in the arm or arms.

armory n. An arsenal.

aroma n. An agreeable odor.

arraign v. To call into court, as a person indicted for crime, and demand whether he pleads guilty or not.

arrange v. To put in definite or proper order.

arrangement n. The act of putting in proper order, or the state of being put in order.

arrant adj. Notoriously bad.

arrear n. Something overdue and unpaid.

arrival n. A coming to stopping-place or destination.

arrogant adj. Unduly or excessively proud, as of wealth, station, learning, etc.

arrogate v. To take, demand, or claim, especially presumptuously or without reasons or grounds.

Artesian well n. A very deep bored well. water rises due to underground pressure

artful adj. Characterized by craft or cunning.

Arthurian adj. Pertaining to King Arthur, the real or legendary hero of British poetic story.

artifice n. Trickery.

artless adj. Ingenuous.

ascendant adj. Dominant.

ascension n. The act of rising.

ascent n. A rising, soaring, or climbing.

ascetic adj. Given to severe self-denial and practicing excessive abstinence and devotion.

ascribe v. To assign as a quality or attribute.

asexual adj. Having no distinct sexual organs.

ashen adj. Pale.

askance adv. With a side or indirect glance or meaning.

asperity n. Harshness or roughness of temper.

aspirant n. One who seeks earnestly, as for advancement, honors, place.

aspiration n. An earnest wish for that which is above one’s present reach.

aspire v. To have an earnest desire, wish, or longing, as for something high and good, not yet attained.

assailant n. One who attacks.

assassin n. One who kills, or tries to kill, treacherously or secretly.

assassinate v. To kill, as by surprise or secret assault, especially the killing of some eminent person.

assassination n. Murderer, as by secret assault or treachery.

assay n. The chemical analysis or testing of an alloy ore.

assent v. To express agreement with a statement or matter of opinion.

assess v. To determine the amount of (a tax or other sum to be paid).

assessor n. An officer whose duty it is to assess taxes.

assets n. pl. Property in general, regarded as applicable to the payment of debts.

assiduous adj. Diligent.

assignee n. One who is appointed to act for another in the management of certain property and interests.

assimilate v. To adapt.

assonance n. Resemblance or correspondence in sound.

assonant adj. Having resemblance of sound.

assonate v. To accord in sound, especially vowel sound.

assuage v. To cause to be less harsh, violent, or severe, as excitement, appetite, pain, or disease.

astringent adj. Harsh in disposition or character.

astute adj. Keen in discernment.

atheism n. The denial of the existence of God.

athirst adj. Wanting water.

athwart adv. From side to side.

atomizer n. An apparatus for reducing a liquid to a fine spray, as for disinfection, inhalation, etc.

atone v. To make amends for.

atonement n. Amends, reparation, or expiation made from wrong or injury.

atrocious adj. Outrageously or wantonly wicked, criminal, vile, or cruel.

atrocity n. Great cruelty or reckless wickedness.

attaché n. A subordinate member of a diplomatic embassy.

attest v. To certify as accurate, genuine, or true.

attorney-general n. The chief law-officer of a government.

auburn adj. Reddish-brown, said usually of the hair.

audacious adj. Fearless.

audible adj. Loud enough to be heard.

audition n. The act or sensation of hearing.

auditory adj. Of or pertaining to hearing or the organs or sense of hearing.

augment v. To make bigger.

augur v. To predict.

Augustinian adj. Pertaining to St. Augustine, his doctrines, or the religious orders called after him.

aura n. Pervasive psychic influence supposed to emanate from persons

aural adj. Of or pertaining to the ear.

auricle n. One of the two chambers of the heart which receives the blood from the veins.

auricular adj. Of or pertaining to the ear, its auricle, or the sense of hearing.

auriferous adj. Containing gold.

aurora n. A luminous phenomenon in the upper regions of the atmosphere.

auspice n. favoring, protecting, or propitious influence or guidance.

austere adj. Severely simple; unadorned.

autarchy n. Unrestricted power.

authentic adj. Of undisputed origin.

authenticity n. The state or quality of being genuine, or of the origin and authorship claimed.

autobiography n. The story of one’s life written by himself.

autocracy n. Absolute government.

autocrat n. Any one who claims or wields unrestricted or undisputed authority or influence.

automaton n. Any living being whose actions are or appear to be involuntary or mechanical.

autonomous adj. Self-governing.

autonomy n. Self-government.

autopsy n. The examination of a dead body by dissection to ascertain the cause of death.

autumnal adj. Of or pertaining to autumn.

auxiliary n. One who or that which aids or helps, especially when regarded as subsidiary or accessory.

avalanche n. The fall or sliding of a mass of snow or ice down a mountain-slope, often bearing with it rock.

avarice n. Passion for getting and keeping riches.

aver v. To assert as a fact.

averse adj. Reluctant.

aversion n. A mental condition of fixed opposition to or dislike of some particular thing.

avert v. To turn away or aside.

aviary n. A spacious cage or enclosure in which live birds are kept.

avidity n. Greediness.

avocation n. Diversion.

avow v. To declare openly.

awaken v. To arouse, as emotion, interest, or the like.

awry adv. & adj. Out of the proper form, direction, or position.

aye adv. An expression of assent.

azalea n. A flowering shrub.

azure n. The color of the sky.

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