abash
(v) To make ashamed; to embarrass
He said nothing but looked abashed.
abate
(v) To subside; to reduce
The storm/wind/rain has started to abate.
abdicate
(v) To step down from a position of power or responsibility
*King Edward VIII abdicated (the British throne) in 1936.
*She abdicated all responsibility for the project.
aberration
n Something not typical; a deviation from the standard
abhor
v To hate very very much; to detest
abject
adj Hopeless; extremely sad and servile; defeated; utterly bummed out
abnegate
v To deny oneself things; to reject; to renounce
abortive
adj Unsuccessful
abridge
v To shorten; to condense
absolute
adj Total; unlimited; perfect
absolve
v To forgive or free from blame; to free from sin; to free from an obligation
abstinent
adj Abstaining; voluntarily not doing something especially something pleasant that is bad for you or has a bad reputation
abstract
adj Theoretical; impersonal
abstruse
adj Hard to understand
abysmal
adj Extremely hopeless or wretched; bottomless
accolade
n An award; an honor
accost
v To approach and speak to someone
acerbic
adj Bitter; sour; severe
acquiesce
v To comply passively; to accept; to assent; to agree
acrid
adj Harsh; like acid
acrimonious
adj Full of spite; bitter; nasty
acumen
n Keenness of judgment; mental sharpness
acute
adj Sharp; shrewd
adamant
adj Stubborn; unyielding; completely inflexible
address
v To speak to; to direct ones attention to
adherent
n Follower; supporter; believer
admonish
v To scold gently; to warn
adroit
adj Skillful; dexterous; clever; shrewd; socially at ease
adulation
n. Wild or excessive admiration; flattery
adulterate
v. To contaminate; to make impure
adverse
adj Unfavorable; antagonistic
aesthetic
adj Having to do with artistic beauty; artistic
affable
adj Easy to talk to; friendly
affectation
n Unnatural or artificial behavior usually intended to impress
affinity
n Sympathy; attraction; kinship; similarity
affluent
adj Rich; prosperous
agenda
n Program; the things to be done
agrarian
adj Relating to land; relating to the management or farming of land
aggregate
n Sum total; a collection of separate things mixed together
agnostic
n One who believes that the existence of a god can be neither proven nor disproven
alacrity
n Cheerful eagerness or readiness to respond
allege
v To assert without proof
alleviate
v To relieve usually temporarily or incompletely; to make bearable; to lessen
allocate
v To distribute; to assign; to allot
alloy
n A combination of two or more things usually metals
allusion
n An indirect reference often to a literary work; a hint hint
aloof
adj Uninvolved; standing off; keeping ones distance
altruism
n Selflessness; generosity; devotion to the interests of others
ambiance
n Atmosphere; mood; feeling mood
ambiguous
adj Unclear in meaning; confusing; capable of being interpreted in different ways
ambivalent
adj Undecided; neutral; wishy-washy
ameliorate
v To make better or more tolerable ;
amenable
adj Obedient; willing to give in to the wishes of another; agreeable
amenity
n Pleasantness; attractive or comfortable feature
amiable
adj Friendly; agreeable
amnesty
n An official pardon for a group of people who have violated a law or policy
amoral
Lacking a sense of right and wrong; neither good nor bad neither moral nor immoral; without moral feelings
amorous
adj Feeling loving especially in a sexual sense; in love relating to love
amorphous
adj Shapeless; without a regular or stable shape
anachronism
n Something out of place in time or history; an incongruity
analogy
A comparison of one thing to another; similarity similarity
anarchy
n Absence of government or control; lawlessness; disorder
anecdote
n A short account of a humorous or revealing incident
anguish
v Agonizing physical or mental pain
animosity
n Resentment; hostility; ill will
anomaly
n An aberration; an irregularity; a deviation ;
antecedent
n Someone or something that went before; something that provides a model for something that came after it
antipathy
n Firm dislike; a dislike ↔sympathy ;
antithesis
n The direct opposite
apartheid
n The abhorrent policy of racial segregation and oppression in the Repubic of South Africa
apathy
n Lack of interest; lack of feeling
aphorism
A brief often witty saying; a proverb
apocalypse
A prophetic revelation especially one concerning the end of the world
apocryphal
adj Of dubious authenticity; fictitious; spurious
apotheosis
n Elevation to divine status; the perfect example of something
appease
To soothe; to pacify by giving in to
appreciate
v To increase in value
apprehensive
adj Worried; anxious
approbation
n Approval; praise
appropriate
v To take without permission; to set aside for a particular use
aptitude
n Capacity for learning; natural ability
arbiter
n One who decides; a judge
arbitrary
adj Random; capricious random
arcane
adj Mysterious; known only to a select few mysterious
archaic
adj Extremely old; ancient; outdated
archetype
n An original model or pattern
ardent
adj Passionate half-hearted
arduous
adj Hard; difficult
aristocratic
adj Of noble birth; snobbish
artful
adj Wily; sly ; =crafty
artifice
n A clever trick; cunning ;
ascendancy
n Supremacy; domination
ascetic
n Hermit like; practicing self-denial
assiduous
adj Hardworking; busy; quite diligent
assimilate
v To take in; to absorb; to learn thoroughly
assuage
v To soothe; to pacify; to ease the pain of; to relieve
astute
adj Shrewd; keen in judgment ;
attrition
n Gradual wearing away weakening or loss; a natural or expected decrease in numbers of size
audacity
n Boldness; reckless daring; impertinence ;
augment
v To make bigger; to add to; to increase ;