Spelling Bee level 4

aerosol

aerosol. noun: a substance made up of tiny particles mixed into a gas To protect us against mosquitoes on the bushwalk, we took an aerosol as well as a cream insect repellent.

aisle

aisle. noun: a clear path between seats in a hall, aircraft, and so on The bride walked slowly down the narrow aisle of the church.

allergy

allergy. noun: an unusual sensitivity to things that are normally harmless, like pollen, dust and certain foods Some people have an allergy to wattle.

allotment

allotment. noun: a portion or share We had to make our allotment of food last for the whole week of the camping trip.

allusion

allusion. noun: a passing mention of something The speech made allusion to his service to the community.

alternative

alternative. noun: one of two or more choices Going by public transport is a better alternative than taking a car.

ambiguous

ambiguous. adjective: unclear, due to having more than one meaning As the question was quite ambiguous, we had to ask the teacher to explain what she meant.

amputate

amputate. verb: to cut off a limb or part of a limb, by a surgical operation The surgeon had to amputate his finger after it had been crushed in an industrial accident.

amulet

amulet. noun: an item, such as a piece of jewellery, worn in the belief that it will protect against evil The villagers believed that if they wore a gold amulet, evil spirits would be kept away.

anteroom

anteroom. noun: a waiting room The candidates waited in the anteroom until they were called for their interview.

anticipation

anticipation. noun: the act of anticipating The anticipation of waiting for my results made me very nervous.

apologetic

apologetic. adjective: full of regret, or showing that you are sorry He was apologetic about the way he had behaved at the party.

apparel

apparel. noun: your outer clothing That shop has an interesting range of winter apparel.

apparition

apparition. noun: a ghostly appearance He appeared out of the fog like an apparition.

applicable

applicable. adjective: suitable or able to be used This rule is only applicable to Year 7 students.

approximate

approximate. adjective: fairly accurate but not completely exact The approximate time of departure is 11 a.m.

aquarium

aquarium. noun: a glass container in which fish and water plants are kept My cousin keeps some very interesting axolotls in her aquarium.

argumentative

argumentative. adjective: liking to argue or quarrelsome She was known for her argumentative personality.

armament

armament. noun: the weapons on a military aircraft or ship Torpedoes made up part of the submarine's armament.

arthritic

arthritic. adjective: affected by a disease that causes swelling and pain in the joints of the body My grandma rarely plays the piano anymore because of her arthritic fingers.

artillery

artillery noun: large guns on wheels The army won the battle with the use of heavy artillery.

ascertain

ascertain. verb: to find out or determine as true The detectives managed to ascertain that the suspect had been at the scene of the crime.

askance

askance. adverb: with mistrust or disapproval I realised that I had said something wrong when the teacher looked askance at me.

assessor

assessor. noun: someone who makes official estimates, as of damage for insurance purposes, or of property, and so on An assessor evaluated the damage to our house after the thunderstorm.

association

association. noun: a group of people interested in the same thing Mum belongs to an association that raises money for hospitals.

assumption

assumption. noun: something you take for granted The assumption that chocolate is bad for you is luckily not entirely true.

attorney

attorney. noun: a person appointed by someone to do legal business for them We had our attorney review the contract before we signed it.

attractive

attractive. adjective: pleasing There were a lot of attractive qualities about moving to the country.

atypical

atypical. adjective: different from usual His failure in the exam was atypical because he usually did very well.

audacity

audacity. noun: boldness or daring, especially careless boldness We were all amazed that she had the audacity to argue with the teacher.

austere

austere. adjective: very plain and simple The millionaire lived a surprisingly austere life.

authenticate

authenticate. verb: to prove to be genuine The archaeologists will authenticate the age of the fossil.

aviation

aviation. noun: the science or act of flying in an aircraft The air force had an exhibition on the history of aviation.

ballast

ballast. noun: heavy material carried by a ship to keep it steady, or by a balloon to control its height Ships use water as ballast to improve their maneuvreability and stability.

barbarian

barbarian. noun: someone with bad manners and not much education Everyone thought he was a barbarian for eating his chicken with his hands.

barnacle

barnacle. noun: a crustacean that attaches itself to the bottom of ships, floating timber and marine rocks He cut his foot on a barnacle attached to a piece of driftwood on the beach.

barramundi

barramundi. noun: a large silver-grey fish which is good to eat We caught a huge barramundi when we went fishing in Darwin.

beguiling

beguiling. adjective: charming She had a most beguiling manner that made everybody like her.

benefactor

benefactor. noun: someone who gives help or money to those who need it The hospital was able to open a new ward because of a gift from a benefactor.

bewilderment

bewilderment. noun: a state of complete confusion We looked at our friend in bewilderment when he started speaking in what he said was Klingon.

bicentenary

bicentenary. noun: a 200th anniversary Australia had its bicentenary of European settlement in 1988.

billionaire

billionaire. noun: someone who has a billion dollars or more He didn't think that his invention would make him a billionaire but he did believe that some people would find it useful.

biodegradable

biodegradable. adjective: able to be broken down by the action of very small living things like bacteria We buy biodegradable soap powder to minimise its effect on the environment.

bounteous

bounteous. adjective: plentiful or generous There was a bounteous supply of food at the banquet.

buccaneer

buccaneer. noun: a pirate In the film, the sailors' boat was hijacked by a daring buccaneer.

burglary

burglary. noun: the crime of breaking into a building to steal things We were worried because there had been a burglary in the building next door.

capability

capability. noun: the power or skill to be able to do something He had the knowledge and capability to cook, but was lazy.

cassette

cassette. noun: the plastic container holding the recording tape used in videos and tape recorders My dad has an old cassette of the 1995 football grand final but we can't play it on our DVD player.

casualty

casualty. noun: someone hurt or killed in an accident or war The only casualty of the accident was taken to hospital in an ambulance.

categorical

categorical. adjective: clear, plain, and direct Her statement was categorical -- there was no doubt about its meaning.

caterpillar

caterpillar. noun: the worm-like larva of a moth or butterfly It's hard to believe that this big black caterpillar will become a beautiful butterfly.

cathartic

cathartic. adjective: providing relief by getting rid of feelings that trouble you I always find yoga to be cathartic -- it also keeps me flexible.

ceremonial

ceremonial. adjective: belonging to or used for a ceremony The ceremonial gowns worn by the professors looked very impressive.

circumspect

circumspect. adjective: cautious and watchful She knew she must be circumspect about any comments she made on radio and television.

clemency

clemency. noun: mercy or leniency We pleaded with my mother to show clemency to the naughty puppy.

cognition

cognition. noun: the process of thinking, reasoning, remembering, and so on The injury to her brain affected her cognition.

commentary

commentary. noun: a description of a public event, such as a sporting match, broadcast or televised as it happens The commentary accompanying the swimming finals made it even more exciting to watch.

commodious

commodious. adjective: convenient and roomy We rented a commodious house for our holiday.

competence

competence. noun: the quality of being capable or competent The surgeon's competence was known throughout the world.

conceited

conceited. adjective: too proud of yourself or of your own abilities Unfortunately, his huge success as a writer has made him very conceited.

conclusive

conclusive. adjective: final and not able to be changed Not only did they win the game, it was a very conclusive victory.

concurrent

concurrent. adjective: happening at the same time I am exhausted because I am working on three concurrent jobs.

congenial

congenial. adjective: pleasant or agreeable He is a congenial host who always makes his guests feel relaxed.

consequence

consequence. noun: a result A consequence of their forgetfulness is that they are now stuck in the rain without an umbrella.

conspiracy

conspiracy. noun: a secret plot planned by a number of people There was a conspiracy to give our teacher a surprise birthday party.

constructive

constructive. adjective: helpful or useful If you haven't got anything constructive to say, don't say anything!

controversial

controversial. adjective: subject to different points of view; debatable The political party was divided about the controversial issue.

convulsion

convulsion. noun: a twisting of the body caused by violent muscular contractions She was trying so hard not to laugh -- she looked as though she was having a convulsion.

coronation

coronation. noun: the ceremony at which a person becomes king or queen The press were eager to get as many photos at the coronation of the prince as possible.

counterfeit

counterfeit. adjective: made to look exactly like something else in an attempt to deceive people The police were on the lookout for counterfeit $50 notes.

cranium

cranium. noun: that part of the skull which encloses the brain His helmet helped protect his cranium when he fell off his bike.

credential

credential. noun: something which gives the right to belief or trust The recommendation was the only credential she needed.

credulous

credulous. adjective: ready to believe things unquestioningly You'd have to be pretty credulous to believe that the moon is made of cheese.

crotchety

crotchety. adjective: bad-tempered or irritable She is always very crotchety before she has a cup of tea in the morning.

cumulative

cumulative. adjective: increasing by adding something on a regular basis The cumulative effects of one illness after another were too much for her.

decongestant

decongestant. noun: a drug that helps clear your nose when it is blocked or your chest if you have a cough I went to the chemist to buy a decongestant to help clear my nose.

deference

deference. noun: respectful or courteous regard In deference to the children present, my uncle made sure that his jokes were entirely acceptable to all.

deliberately

deliberately. adverb: on purpose Tim deliberately missed the early train so that he could meet his friends on the station.

delinquent

delinquent. adjective: guilty of consistent bad behaviour or law-breaking The delinquent youths were banned from future sporting matches.

dermatitis

dermatitis. noun: dryness and redness of the skin which is itchy or painful Her dermatitis was so bad she had to wear gloves to protect her hands.

detriment

detriment. noun: loss, damage, or injury She concentrated on studying history, to the detriment of her other subjects.

detritus

detritus. noun: any broken up material or debris A trail of detritus was left on the road after the car accident.

disembodied

disembodied. adjective: free of the body People who stayed in the haunted house reported hearing disembodied voices.

disposition

disposition. noun: your personality or particular character It's always nice to be around my friend -- she has such a cheerful disposition.

distraught

distraught. adjective: very worried or upset The lost toddler became more and more distraught as daylight faded.

effigy

effigy. noun: a picture or statue of a person A bronze effigy of the president stood at the entrance of the palace.

electrician

electrician. noun: someone who looks after the electrical wiring in buildings We had to call the electrician after the storm because the wires were damaged.

elliptical

elliptical. adjective: of or having the form of an oval The earth revolves around the sun in an elliptical orbit.

eminence

eminence. noun: a high rank or standing After many years of hard work, she had reached a position of eminence in her profession.

emulsion

emulsion. noun: a milk-like mixture, often rather oily Mayonnaise is just an emulsion of oil and egg yolk.

enigmatic

enigmatic. adjective: puzzling or difficult to interpret She had an enigmatic smile on her face so I couldn't tell if she was happy or not.

enlightenment

enlightenment. noun: the state of having knowledge or understanding I experienced a brief moment of enlightenment after my calculus lesson but then I was just as confused as ever.

entaglement

entanglement. noun: the action which causes something to become caught or held in, as a net or snare It's very unfortunate that dolphins and other sea creatures often die from entanglement in fishing nets.

epidermis

epidermis. noun: the outer, non-sensitive layer of the skin The epidermis of an elephant is much thicker than ours.

escalator

escalator. noun: a continuously moving stairway that carries people upwards or downwards There were no stairs so they had to use the escalator to reach the higher level.

esoteric

esoteric. adjective: understood by, meant for, or belonging to a select few or to a special field of study She found it hard to find information on the esoteric subject of taxidermy.

evocative

evocative. adjective: tending to evoke memories That old song is evocative of my childhood.

excavation

excavation. noun: a hole or cavity made by digging The excavation had to be done very slowly and carefully so none of the relics were damaged.

exemplify

exemplify. verb: to show or make clearer by example These two habitats exemplify my point about biodiversity.

expatriate

expatriate. noun: someone who has left their own country to live in another My cousin is an Australian expatriate in the Netherlands.