Spelling Bee level 3

abdomen

abdomen noun: the main part of the body that contains the stomach and other organs She saw the doctor about the pain in her abdomen.

accomplished

accomplished adjective: highly skilled Jonathan was an accomplished pianist by the time he was seven.

accost

accost verb: to approach someone, often in a threatening way The thugs planned to accost the man and steal his wallet.

affluent

affluent adjective: wealthy or rich Australia is a relatively affluent country with few people living in extreme poverty.

agile

agile adjective: quick, lively and active The circus performer was an agile acrobat.

animation

animation noun: the process of preparing moving cartoons The computer animation in the cartoon film was amazing.

arboreal

arboreal adjective: having to do with, or living in, trees Koalas are arboreal animals, so are more comfortable up a tree than on the ground.

aromatic

aromatic adjective: having a pleasant smell The heated aromatic oil made the whole house smell pleasant.

balcony

balcony noun: a small verandah, usually up high We stood on the balcony and watched the parade pass by.

betrayal

betrayal noun: the act of deceiving someone by doing something without their knowledge She was deeply hurt by her friend's betrayal.

bettong

bettong noun: a very small kangaroo that looks like a small wallaby with a short nose The bettong is one of Australia's nocturnal marsupials.

blithely

blithely adverb: in a happy or carefree way She blithely ran outdoors and danced on the lawn even though it was raining.

bonsai

bonsai noun: a tree grown in a special way that keeps it very small, by keeping it in a small pot and cutting its roots and branches We have a very small bonsai in a pot on our coffee table.

brackish

brackish adjective: slightly salty Mangroves can grow in brackish water.

bravado

bravado noun: bravery and confidence which is often pretended She was full of bravado until the time came for her to sing.

brusque

brusque adjective: quick to say something and not very polite His brusque manner sometimes upsets people.

carnivore

carnivore noun: an animal that eats mostly meat The lion is a carnivore that attacks its prey with ferocity.

cautious

cautious adjective: taking great care when there is danger You have to be cautious walking on these slippery wet tiles.

cavernous

cavernous adjective: like a huge, deep cave Our voices echoed in the empty, cavernous hall.

celebrant

celebrant noun: a special person who leads a ceremony, such as a wedding They were married in their garden by a celebrant.

clearance

clearance noun: the space between two things The boat only had a clearance of thirty centimetres under the bridge.

clerk

clerk noun: someone who works in an office, doing things like keeping records, opening letters and sending out bills to people who owe money As a clerk, it was my mother's responsibility to maintain the customer records.

clique

clique noun: a small group of people who keep themselves apart from others The group formed a tight little clique and would not let anybody else join them.

concerted

concerted adjective: done together in an organised way We put in a concerted effort to finish the job on time.

concourse

concourse noun: an open space or main hall in a public building, especially a railway station The concourse at the railway station is always crowded at peak hour.

epidemic

epidemic noun: a lot of cases of an illness in a short period of time Before vaccinations, an epidemic of flu could kill thousands of people.

festivity

festivity noun: a joyful celebration or occasion The festivity had to wait until all of the work was done.

forthright

forthright adjective: speaking your mind openly and honestly I found his forthright approach very refreshing.

hoary

hoary adjective: grey or white, especially with age You can tell by the wolf's hoary coat that he's very old.

juncture

juncture noun: a particular point in time At the most important juncture in the whole evening, the electricity suddenly went off.

khaki

khaki noun: a greenish-brown colour, used especially for soldiers' uniforms The khaki of the soldiers' uniforms blended so well with the foliage that it was hard to spot them.

kilojoule

kilojoule noun: a metric measure of work or energy equal to 1000 joules or the amount of food needed to produce it The body requires a particular kilojoule intake to function well.

kimono

kimono noun: a wide-sleeved Japanese robe which is tied at the waist My friend brought me back a red silk kimono from Tokyo.

manifesto

manifesto noun: a public statement by a government or group, setting out its ideas or goals The government issued its manifesto for their coming term.

marsupial

marsupial noun: a mammal such as a kangaroo which keeps its young in a pouch for a few months after birth The kangaroo is a marsupial as well as the wallaby, the koala and the possum.

metallic

metallic adjective: relating to or consisting of metal There was a loud metallic clang as my keys fell down the drain.

monotony

monotony noun: lack of change or variety, which produces boredom The road was straight for hundreds of kilometres with nothing to relieve the monotony.

monotreme

monotreme noun: an egg-laying mammal The only examples of a monotreme are the platypus and the echidna.

monstrosity

monstrosity noun: something which is extremely ugly or unsightly The new town hall was supposed to be an elegant design but everyone thought it was a monstrosity.

nautilus

nautilus noun: a kind of sea creature with a spiral shell divided into many parts While we were snorkelling, we saw lots of colourful fish, a tortoise and a nautilus in its shell.

nicety

nicety noun: a fine or small point We didn't have time to worry about every detail and nicety in the document.

nightingale

nightingale noun: a small migratory Eurasian bird, noted for the melodious song of the male The song of the nightingale can often be heard in the evenings.

nominee

nominee noun: someone put forward to fill an office or stand for election The office put my name forward as a nominee for president of the association.

obviously

obviously adverb: clearly and plainly Luca had been waiting for hours and was obviously feeling very impatient.

operative

operative adjective: working or functional The mechanic found the truck's brakes to be fully operative when inspected.

paradox

paradox noun: someone or something which seems to show contradictions It’s a paradox that there should be poverty in such a rich country.

paramedic

paramedic noun: a person who provides medical care to injured or sick people before they get to hospital We were lucky that there was a paramedic having coffee near the scene of the accident, so help was immediately at hand.

patronage

patronage noun: the financial support that customers bring to a shop, hotel, and so on The patronage of the shop triples on the weekends.

pedestal

pedestal noun: a support for a statue or the like The statue's pedestal bore a plaque with information about the sculptor and his subject.

penance

penance noun: a penalty you agree or offer to accept to show you are sorry for doing wrong She agreed that washing the dishes all week was a reasonable penance for lying.

pergola

pergola noun: a shelter formed of bars supported on posts, over which climbing plants are often grown They spent a pleasant afternoon talking and eating under the pergola.

permanent

permanent adjective: lasting forever The city needs a permanent water supply.

personality

personality noun: strong and interesting qualities of character He always enjoyed Meredith's company because she had such a vibrant personality.

perverse

perverse adjective: deliberately going against what is expected or wanted He seemed to take perverse pleasure in my embarrassment.

petunia

petunia noun: a kind of plant with funnel-shaped flowers of different colours The nursery potted the petunia for us so we didn't have to do it ourselves at home.

phantom

phantom noun: the spirit of a dead person imagined as wandering among living people In the play, there was a phantom who dwelt in the sewers below the opera house.

pillage

pillage verb: to rob brutally and violently, as in war We read about how Vikings used to pillage towns, especially from their ships.

pittance

pittance noun: a very small amount of money After paying all his debts, he was left with a pittance.

plague

plague noun: any serious disease which spreads very quickly We saw a film about the plague that killed thousands of people in London in the 17th century.

plantation

plantation noun: a farm, especially in tropical areas where crops such as coffee, sugar or cotton are grown It's amazing how many types of tea are grown at the plantation.

pleasantry

pleasantry noun: a polite remark or action A pleasantry is always a good way to start a conversation.

pliable

pliable adjective: flexible or easily bent He rubbed oil into the leather until it was soft and pliable.

possessive

possessive adjective: wanting to keep or control something or someone all by yourself The collector was possessive of all his model ships and wouldn't let anyone touch them.

pragmatic

pragmatic adjective: concerned with practical consequences or values She tried to be pragmatic about the situation to achieve a realistic outcome.

precaution

precaution noun: something done in advance to prevent problems They took chains as a precaution for driving in the snow.

president

president noun: the elected head of a republic If Australia becomes a republic we will have a president instead of a prime minister.

prevalent

prevalent adjective: widespread Snakes seem to be more prevalent this summer.

principled

principled adjective: having guiding rules for right behaviour I voted for my most principled classmate in the school captain election.

prolific

prolific adjective: producing plentifully He is a prolific author, publishing a novel every year.

prospector

prospector noun: a person who searches for gold or other minerals This business was started by a prospector who came to Australia during the gold rush.

protection

protection noun: the act of keeping safe Vitamin C helps give protection against colds.

punitive

punitive adjective: concerned with punishment Our dog trainer says it's better to be positive than punitive when teaching puppies.

quadruped

quadruped noun: an animal with four feet The horse is a powerful quadruped that can run at high speeds.

queasy

queasy adjective: feeling as if you are going to be sick Driving along the winding mountain road made me feel very queasy.

recognition

recognition noun: the act of recognising He showed no recognition of her after all those years.

reluctant

reluctant adjective: unwilling We were reluctant to go outside because it was so cold.

renovate

renovate verb: to restore to good condition or repair We plan to renovate the new house before we move in.

reprimand

reprimand noun: a scolding, especially from someone in charge She was expecting a reprimand for being late.

republican

republican adjective: having to do with a nation that is not ruled by a monarch A republican government does not have a king or queen.

residual

residual adjective: left over If there is any residual money it will be given to charity.

respiration

respiration noun: breathing Unlike humans, most fish have gills for respiration.

restraint

restraint noun: a holding back of feelings She showed considerable restraint in a potentially explosive situation.

reticent

reticent adjective: not inclined to speak freely The suspect seemed very reticent to discuss the source of the money.

retrospect

retrospect noun: contemplation of the past It is often easy to think of a clever thing to say in retrospect, when it's too late!

revulsion

revulsion noun: a sudden and violent change of feeling against someone or something The gory details of the crime filled them with revulsion.

royalty

royalty noun: kings, queens and members of their families It was a great honour to attend the dinner held for the visiting royalty.

ruminate

ruminate verb: to consider something very carefully or meditate about it for a long while You shouldn't have said that to her -- she will ruminate about it for days!

sachet

sachet noun: a small, sealed package or bag used to contain small quantities of something The flight attendant gave all of the passengers a hot scented towel folded in a sachet.

sacrifice

sacrifice verb: to give up something important or valuable for the sake of something else He was happy to sacrifice his chance of winning to help his friend.

salivate

salivate verb: to produce saliva, especially in anticipation of food Just the thought of lobster mornay makes me salivate.

sarcastic

sarcastic adjective: using harsh or bitter derision or irony ‘You’re up early’, she said in a sarcastic voice, it's not even lunch time yet'.

scalpel

scalpel noun: a small, very sharp knife used by doctors in operations The surgeon held the scalpel in her steady hand.

sedentary

sedentary adjective: relating to or needing a sitting position If you have a sedentary job you should make time for some exercise.

seminar

seminar noun: a meeting of students, such as in a university, engaged in advanced study and original research under a professor or lecturer I'd better hurry -- there's a seminar on the effects of wind farms that I don't want to miss.

sensei

sensei noun: a form of address to a master and teacher, especially in martial arts The martial arts students address their instructor as ‘sensei’.

sensitive

sensitive adjective: easily influenced or affected She was sensitive about being the shortest person in the class.

serviette

serviette noun: a piece of cloth or paper, used during a meal to wipe your lips and hands and to protect your clothes Dad always tells me to use a serviette, but I usually spill food on my clothes anyway.

sheriff

sheriff noun: in America, the person in charge of making certain the laws are obeyed in a particular area Both of my cousins are in the police force -- one is a constable in Perth and the other is a sheriff in Alabama.

simplistic

simplistic adjective: so simple as to lose accuracy The movie only gave a simplistic account of the causes of the war.

sincere

sincere adjective: having and expressing true feelings He was sincere in his offer to help paint the fence and was there early the next morning with his paintbrush.