Part 1 (Letter A)

Abate

Grow less in intensity

Abridge

Reduce (a text) in length

Abstract

Not concrete; theoretical

Abstruse

Difficult to understand

Academic

(1) related to education; (2) not practical or directly useful

Accessible

Able to be reached

Acclaim

Announce with great approval

Acknowledge

Recognize, possibly reluctantly, the status or rights of

Acquiesce

Agree without protesting

Acrid

Sharply bitter in taste or odor

Acrimonious

Bitter in words or manner

Acute

(1) quickly perceptive; (2) keen; (3) brief and severe

Adherent

Someone who follows a leader or supports a cause

Adopt

(1) legally take a child as one’s own; (2) choose to follow an approach or idea; (3) assume a position or attitude; (4) formally accept (suggestion, report)

Adroit

Having skill or resourcefulness in coping with situations

Adversary

One who resists or opposes

Adverse

Unfavorable; preventing success

Adversity

Force negatively affecting one’s well-being

Advocate

Speak in favor of

Aesthetic

Dealing with or capable of appreciating the beautiful

Affirmation

Positive statement

Afford

(1) have enough money to pay for; (2) provide

Alleviate

Make more bearable

Allusion

Indirect or hinted reference

Altruistic

Unselfishly concerned for the well-being of others

Ambiguous

Having several possible meanings, and therefore unclear

Ambivalent

Having conflicting emotional attitudes

Amorphous

Lacking shape or definition

Analogous

Showing a likeness or similarity

Anarchy

Political and social disorder; state of being without a governing body or leader

Animosity

Active ill will

Anomaly

Something not easily classified or that deviates. From the norm

Antagonism

Active resistance

Antipathy

Deep-seated dislike

Antithesis

Direct opposite

Apathy

Lack of concern, especially about things that others find important

Appease

Cause to grow calm or subside

Application

(1) request; (2) act of putting something to use; (3) diligent attention; (4) relevance

Appreciate

(1) be thankful for; (2) increase in worth; (3) be thoroughly conscious of

Apprehension

(1) fear of future evil; (2) understanding; (3) arrest (of a criminal)

Appropriate

Take possession of for one’s own use (possibly without the authority or right to do so)

Arbitrary

Determined by impulse or whim; capricious

Archaic

Characteristic of an earlier or more primitive time

Articulate

Expressing oneself clearly

Articulate

Express (an idea) clearly; pronounce distinctly

Assertion

(1) confident statement; (2) demand for other people’s acceptance or respect

Assiduous

Characterized by careful, persistent attention (to a task)

Assuage

(1) soothe; (2) make less intense

Assumption

(1) something taken for granted as true or sure to happen, without proof; (2) act of taking possession

Astute

Characterized by shrewdness and clear-sightedness

Atrophy

waste away

Attribute (noun)

Inherent quality

Attribute (verb)

Explain by pointing out a cause

Augment

Make larger or more numerous

Autonomous

Not controlled or governed by outside forces

Advert

(1) prevent; (2) turn away