Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

WORD LIST

LETTER A

Abandon: to leave a place, thing or person forever

Abase: degrade

Abashed: embarrassed

Abate: to become less strong

Abbreviate: to make a word or phrase shorter by using only the first letters of each

word:

Aberration: a temporary change from the typical or usual way of behaving

Abject: when someone is extremely unhappy, poor, frightened, etc

Abjure: to state publicly that you no longer agree with a belief or way of behaving

Ablution: the act of washing yourself

Abominate: to hate something very much

Aboriginal: describes a person or living thing that has existed in a country or continent

since the earliest time known to people

Abort: to cause something to stop or fail before it begins or before it is complete

Abrasive: rude and unfriendly

Abrogate: to end a law, agreement or custom formally

Abscond: to go away suddenly and secretly in order to escape from somewhere

Absolve: o free someone from guilt, blame or responsibility for something

Abet: to help or encourage someone to do something wrong or illegal

Abdicate: to stop controlling or managing something that you are in charge of

Abstemious: not doing things which give you pleasure, especially not eating good food

or drinking alcohol

Abstruse: difficult to understand

Abut: If a building or area of land abuts on something, it is next to it or touches it on one

side:

Abysmal: very bad

Academic: describes someone who is clever and enjoys studying

Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

Accessory: something added to a machine or to clothing, which has a useful or

decorative purpose:

Acclaim: public approval and praise

Acclimate: to (cause to) change to suit different conditions of life, weather, etc

Accolade: praise and approval

Accomplice: a person who helps someone else to commit a crime or to do something

morally wrong

Accost: to approach or stop and speak to someone in a threatening way

Accoutre: the equipment needed for a particular activity or way of lift

Accretion: gradual increase or growth by the addition of new layers or parts

Accrue: to increase in number or amount over a period of time

Acerbic: describes something that is spoken or written in a way that is direct, clever and

cruel

Acoustics: the way in which the structural characteristics of a building or room affect the

qualities of musical or spoken sound

Acquiesce: to accept or agree to something, often unwillingly

Acrid: describes a smell or taste that is strong and bitter and causes a burning feeling in

the throat:

Acrimonious: full of anger, arguments and bad feeling

Actuate: to make a machine work or be the reason a person acts in a certain way

Acumen: skill in making correct decisions and judgments in a particular subject, such as

business or politics:

Adage: a wise saying

Adamant: impossible to persuade, or unwilling to change an opinion or decision

Addle: to make someone feel confused and unable to think clearly

Adept: having a natural ability to do something that needs skill

Adjunct: something added or connected to a larger or more important thing

Adjure: to ask or order someone to do something

Admonish: to tell someone that they have done something wrong

Adorn: to add something decorative to a person or thing

Adroit: very skilful and quick in the way you think or move

Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

Adulation: very great admiration or praise for someone

Adulterate: to make food or drink weaker or to lower its quality, by adding something

else

Advent: the arrival of an event, invention or person

Adverse: having a negative or harmful effect on something

Advert: an informal advertisement

Aegis: with the protection or support of someone or something, especially an

organization

Aesthetic: relating to the enjoyment or study of beauty

Affable: friendly and easy to talk to

Affected: artificial and not sincere

Affiliation: a connection with a political party or religion, or with a larger organization

Affinity: an attraction or sympathy for someone or something, especially because of

shared characteristics

Affirm: to state something as true

Affluence: having a lot of money or owning a lot of things

Agape: with the mouth open, especially showing surprise or shock

Aggrandize: increase in power, importance or wealth

Aggregate: something formed by adding together several amounts or things; a total

Aghast: suddenly filled with strong feelings of shock and anxiety

Agile: able to move your body quickly and easily

Agnostic: someone who does not know, or believes that it is impossible to know,

whether a god exists

Agrarian: related to the land, especially farms, and its ownership

Alacrity: speed and eagerness

Alcove: a small space in a room, formed by one part of a wall being further back than the

parts on each side

Alias: used when giving the name that a person is generally known by, after giving their

real name:

Alienate: to cause someone or a group of people to stop supporting and agreeing with

you

Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

Allay: to make someone feel less worried or frightened

Allege: to state that someone has done something illegal or wrong without giving proof

Allegiance: loyalty and support for a ruler, country, group or belief

Allegory: a story, play, poem, picture or other work in which the characters and events

represent particular qualities or ideas, related to morality, religion or politics:

Alleviate: to make something bad such as pain or problems less severe

Alloy: a metal that is made by mixing two or more metals, or a metal and another

substance

Allude: to mention someone or something in an indirect way

Allure: attraction, charm or excitement

Aloof: describes an unfriendly person who refuses to take part in things

Altercation: a loud argument or disagreement

Altruism: willingness to do things which benefit other people, even if it results in

disadvantage for yourself

Alchemy: a process that is so effective that it seems like magic

Amalgamate: to join or unite to form a larger organization or group, or to make separate

organizations do this

Ambidextrous: able to use both hands equally we

Ambiguous: having or expressing more than one possible meaning, sometimes

intentionally

Ambivalent: having two opposing feelings at the same time, or being uncertain about

how you feel

Amble: to walk in a slow and relaxed way

Ameliorate: to make a bad or unpleasant situation better

Amiable: describes a person or their behaviour that is pleasant and friendly

Amicable: relating to behaviour between people that is pleasant and friendly often

despite a difficult situation

Amiss: wrong; not suitable or as expected

Amity: friendship; a good relationship

Amoral: without moral principles

Amorous: of or expressing sexual desire

Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

Amputate: to cut off a part of the body

Anachronism: a person, thing or idea which exists out of its time in history, especially

one which happened or existed later than the period being shown, discussed, etc

Analgesic: a type of drug which stops you from feeling pain

Analogy: a comparison between things which have similar features, often used to help

explain a principle or idea

Anarchy: lack of organization and control, especially in society because of an absence or

failure of government

Ancillary: providing support or help; additional; extra

Anecdote: a short often amusing story, especially about something someone has done

Anaemia: a medical condition in which there are not enough red blood cells in the blood

Anaesthetic: a substance that makes you unable to feel pain

Anguish: extreme unhappiness caused by physical or mental suffering

Animated: to make someone seem more happy or active

Animosity: strong dislike, opposition or anger

Annals: historical records of the activities of a country or organization, or history in

general

Annihilate: to destroy completely so that nothing is left

Annotate: to add a brief explanation or opinion to a text or drawing

Annuity: a fixed amount of money paid to someone every year, usually until their death,

or the insurance agreement or investment which provides the money that is paid

Annul: to officially announce that something such as a law, agreement, or marriage no

longer exists

Anodyne: intended to avoid causing offence or disagreement, especially by not

expressing strong feelings or opinions

Anomaly: a person or thing that is different from what is usual, or not in agreement with

something else and therefore not satisfactory

Anonymous: made or done by someone whose name is not known or not made public

Antagonism: hate, extreme unfriendliness or active opposition

Antediluvian: extremely old-fashioned

Antidote: a chemical, especially a drug, which limits the effects of a poison

Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

Apathy: when someone lacks interest or energy and is unwilling to take action especially

over a matter of importance

Aperture: a small and often narrow opening, especially one that allows light into a

camera

Aphorism: a short clever saying which is intended to express a general truth

Apiary: a place where people keep bees, especially a collection of hives (= containers in

which bees live) kept to provide hone

Arable: describes farming and farm land that is used for, or is suitable for, growing crops

Arbiter: someone who makes a judgment or solves an argument or decides what will be

done

Arbitrate: to make a judgment in an argument, usually because asked to do so by those

involved

Arcade: a covered area or passage in which there are shops, or a covered passage joined

to a building on one side and with columns and arches along the other side

Arrant: old fashioned

Armada: a large group of war ships

Arraign: to formally accuse someone in a court of law of a particular crime and ask them

to state whether they are guilty or not

Arrogant: unpleasantly proud and behaving as if you are more important than, or know

more than, other people

Artefacts: n object that is made by a person, such as a tool or a decoration, especially

one that is of historical interest

Artifice: clever trick or something intended to deceive

Aplomb: confidence and style

Apocalypse: a very serious event resulting in great destruction and change

Apocryphal: describes a story that is probably not true although often told and believed

by some people to have happened

Apogee: he most successful, popular or powerful point

Apostate: a person who has given up their religion or left a political part

Apotheosis: the best or most extreme example of something

Appal: o make someone have strong feelings of shock or of disapproval

Apparition: the spirit of a dead person appearing in a form which can be seen

Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

Appease: to prevent further disagreement in arguments or war by giving to the other

side an advantage that they have demanded

Appellation: name or title

Append: to add something to the end of a piece of writing

Apposite: suitable and right for the occasion

Appraise: to examine someone or something in order to judge their qualities, success or

needs

Apprehend: to catch and arrest someone who has not obeyed the law

Apprise: to inform

Approbation: approval or agreement, often given by an official group; praise

Archaic: of or belonging to the distant past; from an ancient period in history

Archetype: a typical example of something; the original model of something from which

others are copied

Archipelago: a group of small islands or an area of sea in which there are many small

islands:

Ascendancy: a position of power, strength or success

Ascetic: avoiding physical pleasures and living a simple life, often for religious reasons

Askance: to look at or think about someone or something with doubt, disapproval or a

lack of trust

Asperity: the quality of being severe in the way that you speak and behave

Assiduous: showing hard work, care and attention to detail

Assimilate: to take in, fit into, or become similar (to)

Astringent: describes remarks which are clever but very critical or unkind

Astute: clever and quick to see how to take advantage of a situation

Atone: to do something that shows that you are sorry for something bad that you did

Audacious: showing a willingness to take risks or offend people

Augment: to increase the size or value of something by adding something to it

August: having great importance and especially of the highest social class

Auspicious: suggesting a positive and successful future

Austere: without comfort; plain and without decoration; severe

Word List Letter A

www.wordoful.com wordoful@gmail.com

Authenticate: to prove that something is real, true, or what people say it is

Autocrat: a ruler with unlimited power, or someone who demands total obedience from

other people

Autonomy: the right of a group of people to govern itself, or to organize its own

activities

Autopsy: he cutting open and examination of a dead body in order to discover the cause

of death

Auxiliary: giving help or support, especially to a more important person or thing

Avarice: an extremely strong desire to obtain or keep wealth;

Aver: to state the truth of something strongly

Aversion: a feeling of strong dislike or a lack of willingness to do something

Avid: extremely eager or interested

Avow: to state or admit something

Axiom: a statement or principle which is generally accepted to be true, but is not

necessarily so

Azure: (having) the bright blue colour of the sky on a sunny day