Vocabulary List of Advanced English Words

Abstemious

Not self-indulgent

Abstruse

Difficult to understand

Acuity

Keenness of thought

Alacrity

Promptness/Haste

Altruistic

Unselfishly concerned for others

Ambivalent

Conflicted (feelings)/ Mixed thoughts

Analogous

Comparable/Similar

Ascetic

A self-disciplined person (like a monk)

Astute

Shrewd/Sly/Smart

Belie

To contradict/disguise (ex. His wrinkles belie the fact that he is only 20 year old)

Brevity

Concise/Quick

Capricious

Impulsive/Whimsical

Censure

Disapproval

Corroborate

To confirm/support

Deference

Humble submission/respect

Depravity

Moral Corruption

Deprecate

To disapprove of

Despondent

In low spirits

Didactic

Instructive (very)

Diminution

Reduction in size or value

Disputatious

Argumentative

Eclectic

A mix of various ideas or styles

Enervating

Exhausting

Ephemeral

Short-lived/Fleeting

Ersatz

A poor substitute

Equivocal

Ambiguous/Questionable

Exonerate

To absolve or acquit

Extol

To praise

Facetious

Cleverly amusing/Bantering

Fastidious

Attentive to detail

Frivolous

Carefree/Useless

Furtive

Secretive/ Avoiding of attention

Gratuitous

Unwarranted or uncalled for

Guile

Sly or cunning

Impugn

To attack as wrong or false

Inane

Silly or stupid

Incorrigible

Cannot be corrected/improved

Insipid

Bland or lacking in flavor/interest

Intrepid

Dauntless/Fearless

Laconic

Brief/To the point

Levity

Humor/Frivolity

Miserly

Like a miser (a scrooge/skinflint)

Morose

Sullen and ill tempered

Phlegmatic

Unemotional/Stoic

Precocious

Developed early/quickly

Profusion

An excess of something

Quandary

A dilemma

Quixotic

Unrealistic/Idealistic

Rancor

Bitterness or resentment

Rebuttal

To refute

Reprove

Reprimand

Repudiate

Refuse to accept/be associated with

Reticence

Restrain/Reluctance

Sanguine

Optimistic/Cheerful

Succinct

Concise/Brief

Superfluous

More than enough

Surreptitious

Clandestine/Secret

Taciturn

Reserved/Silent

Trite

Unoriginal

Vacillate

Indecisive