Vocabulary - List 1 (A-B)

Vocabulary

Building vocabulary is a powerful way to enhance your life and career.

Learning how to build a better vocabulary can be a pleasurable and profitable investment of both your time and effort. At least fifteen minutes a day of concentrated study on a regular basis can bring about a rapid improvement in your vocabulary skills, which in turn can increase your ability to communicate by writing, conversing, or making speeches. Acquiring a large vocabulary can benefit you in school, at work, and socially. It will enable you to understand others' ideas better and to have the satisfaction of getting your thoughts and ideas across more effectively.

There are many ways to improve your vocabulary. When working to improve your vocabulary it's important to know your goals in order to best choose the way in which you want to learn. Reading can be a great way to improve your vocabulary.Here are a number of methods to help you improve, and expand, your English vocabulary.

Four basic steps to a better vocabulary :--

1. Be Aware of Words.

2. Read.

3. Use a Dictionary.

4. Study and Review Regularly.

Remember, work on vocabulary is never a waste of time. It pays dividends in terms of your final score, but more importantly, it makes you a more educated person.

We are presenting some vocabulary lists for you.and we keep on adding important common words.

                                                                                                                                contd...

 

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Vocab List - 1

 ( A - B )

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   {A}

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** abaft

(adv.) on or toward the rear of a ship

* The passengers moved abaft of the ship so as to escape the fire in the front of the ship. 

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** abandon

(v) to leave behind; to give something up;

(n) freedom; enthusiasm; impetuosity

* (v) After failing for several years, he abandoned his dream of starting a grocery business.

* (n) Lucy embarked on her new adventure with abandon.

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** abase

(v.) to degrade; to humiliate; to disgrace

* The mother’s public reprimand abased the girl. 

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** abbreviate

(v.) to shorten; compress; diminish

* His vacation to Japan was abbreviated when he acquired an illness treatable only in the United States.

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** abdicate

(v.) to reject, renounce, or abandon

* Due to his poor payment record, it may be necessary to abdicate our relationship with the client. 

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** aberrant

(adj.) abnormal; straying from the normal or usual path

* The aberrant flight pattern of the airplane alarmed the air traffic controllers.

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** abeyance

(n.) a state of temporary suspension or inactivity

* Since the power failure, the town has been in abeyance.

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** abhor

(v.) to hate

* By the way her jaw tensed when he walked in, it is easy to see that she abhors him.

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** abject

(adj.) of the worst or lowest degree

* The Haldemans lived in abject poverty, with barely a roof over their heads.

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** abjure

(v.) to give up

* The losing team may abjure to the team that is winning.

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** abnegation

(n.) a denial

* The woman’s abnegation of her loss was apparent when she began to laugh.

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** abominate

(v.) to loathe; to hate

* Please do not abominate the guilty person until you hear the complete explanation.

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** abridge

(v.) to shorten; to limit

* The editor abridged the story to make the book easier to digest.

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** abrogate

(v.) to cancel by authority

* The judge would not abrogate the law.

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** abrupt

(adj.) happening or ending unexpectedly

* The abrupt end to their marriage was a shock to everyone.

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** abscond

(v.) to go away hastily or secretly; to hide

* The newly wed couple will abscond from the reception to leave on the honeymoon.

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** absolve

(v.) to forgive; to acquit

* The judge will absolve the person of all charges. 

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** abstemious

(adj.) sparing in use of food or drinks

* If we become stranded in the snow storm, we will have to be abstemious with our food supply.

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** abstinence

(n.) the act or process of voluntarily refraining from any action or practice; self-control; chastity

* In preparation for the Olympic games, the athletes practiced abstinence from red meat and junk food, adhering instead to a menu of pasta and produce.

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** abstruse

(adj.) hard to understand; deep; recondite

* The topic was so abstruse the student was forced to stop reading.

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** abysmal

(adj.) very deep

* The abysmal waters contained little plant life.

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** accede

(v.) to comply with; to consent to

* With defeat imminent, the rebel army acceded to hash out a peace treaty.

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** acclaim

(n.) loud approval; applause

* Edward Albee’s brilliantly written 'Broadway revival of A Delicate Balance' received wide acclaim. 

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** accolade

(n.) approving or praising mention; a sign of approval or respect

* Rich accolades were bestowed on the returning hero. 

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** accomplice

(n.) co-conspirator; partner; partner-in-crime

* The bank robber’s accomplice drove the get-away car. 

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** accretion

(n.) growth by addition; a growing together by parts

* With the accretion of the new members, the club doubled its original size. 

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** accrue

(v.) a natural growth; a periodic increase

* During his many years of collecting stamps, he was able to accrue a large collection of valuable items. 

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** acerbic

(adj.) tasting sour; harsh in language or temper

* The baby’s mouth puckered when she was given the acerbic medicine.

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** acquiesce

(v.) to agree without protest

* The group acquiesced to the new regulations even though they were opposed to them.

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** acrid

(adj.) sharp; bitter; foul smelling

* The fire at the plastics factory caused an acrid odor to be emitted throughout the surrounding neighborhood. 

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** acrimony

(n.) sharpness or bitterness in language or manner. 

* The acrimony of her response was shocking. 

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** adage

(n.) an old saying now accepted as being truthful

* The adage “do unto others as you wish them to do unto you” is still widely practiced.

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** adamant

(adj.) not yielding, firm

* The girl’s parents were adamant about not allowing her to go on a dangerous backpacking trip.

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** addled

(adj.) rotten

* The egg will become addled if it is left unrefrigerated.

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** adept

(adj.) skilled; practiced

* The skilled craftsman was quite adept at creating beautiful vases and candleholders.

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** adjure

(v.) solemnly ordered

* The jurors were adjured by the judge to make a fair decision.

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** adroit

(adj.) expert or skillful

* The driver’s adroit driving avoided a serious accident.

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** adulation

(n.) praise in excess

* The adulation given to the movie star was sickening.

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** adulterate

(v.) to corrupt, debase, or make impure

* The dumping of chemicals will adulterate the pureness of the lake.

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** adversary

(n.) an enemy; foe

* The peace treaty united two countries that were historically great adversaries. 

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** adverse

(adj.) negative; hostile; antagonistic; inimical

* Contrary to the ski resort’s expectations, the warm weather generated adverse conditions for a profitable weekend. 

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** advocate

(v.) to plead in favor of;

(n.) supporter; defender

* (v.) Amnesty International advocates the cause for human rights. 

* (n.) Martin Luther King, Jr. was a great advocate of civil rights. 

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** aesthetic

(adj.) of beauty; pertaining to taste in art and beauty

* She found that her aesthetic sense and that of the artist were at odds. 

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** affable

(adj.) friendly; amiable; good-natured

* Her affable puppy loved to play with children.

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** affiliate

(v.) to connect or associate with; to accept as a member

* The hiking club affiliated with the bird-watching club.

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** affinity

(n.) a connection; similarity of structure

* There is a strong emotional affinity between the two siblings.

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** aggrandize

(v.) to make more powerful

* The king wanted to aggrandize himself and his kingdom. 

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** aghast

(adj.) astonished; amazed; horrified; terrified; appalled

* The landlord was aghast at his water bill.

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** agrarian

(adj.) of the land

* Many agrarian people are poor.

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** alacrity

(n.) eager readiness or speed

* The manager was so impressed by the worker’s alacrity; he suggested a promotion.

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** alchemist

(n.) a person who studies chemistry

* The alchemist’s laboratory was full of bottles and tubes of strange

looking liquids.

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** alchemy

(n.) any mysterious change of substance or nature

* The magician used alchemy to change the powder into a liquid

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** allegory

(n.) a symbolic description

* The book contained many allegories on Russian history.

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** alleviate

(v.) to lessen or make easier

* The airport’s monorail alleviates vehicular traffic.

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** allocate

(v.) set aside; designate; assign

* There have been front row seats allocated to the performer’s family.

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** allude

(v.) to refer indirectly to something

* The story alludes to part of the author’s life.

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** allure

(v) to attract;

(n) entice; attraction; temptation; glamour

* The romantic young man allured the beautiful woman by preparing a wonderful dinner.

* Singapore’s allure is its bustling economy.

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** allusion

(n.) an indirect reference (often literary); a hint

* The mention of the pet snake was an allusion to the man’s sneaky ways. 

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** aloof

(adj.) distant in interest; reserved; cool

* Even though the new coworker was aloof, we attempted to be friendly. 

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** altercation

(n.) controversy; dispute

* A serious altercation caused the marriage to end in a bitter divorce.

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** altruism

(n.) unselfish devotion to the welfare of others

* After the organization aided the catastrophe victims, it was given an award for altruism.

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** altruistic

(adj.) unselfish

* The altruistic volunteer donated much time and energy in an effort to raise funds for the children’s hospital. 

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** amalgam

(n.) a mixture or combination (often of metals)
 
* That ring is made from an amalgam of minerals; if it were pure gold it would never hold its shape.

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** amalgamate

(v.) to mix, merge, combine

* The three presidents decided to amalgamate their businesses to build one strong company.

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** amass

(v.) to collect together; accumulate

* The women amassed a huge collection of priceless diamonds and pearls.

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** ambiguous

(adj.) not clear; uncertain; vague

* The ambiguous law did not make a clear distinction between the new and old land boundary.

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** ambivalent

(adj.) undecided

* The ambivalent jury could not reach a unanimous verdict.

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** ameliorate

(v.) to improve or make better

* A consistent routine of exercise has shown to ameliorate health.

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** amendment

(n.) a positive change

* The amendment in his ways showed there was still reason for hope.

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** amiable

(adj.) friendly

* The newcomer picked the most amiable person to sit next to during the meeting. 

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** amiss

(adj.) wrong; awry;

(adv.)wrongly; in a defective manner

* (adj.) Linda knew something was amiss when she discovered a missing report.

* (adv.) Due to poor planning and inadequate organization, the project went amiss.

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** amity

(n.) friendly relations

* The amity between the two bordering nations put the populations at ease.

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** amorphous

(adj.) with no shape; unorganized; having no determinate form

* The amorphous gel seeped through the cracks. 

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** amortize

(v.) to put money into a fund at fixed intervals

* The couple was able to amortize their mortgage sooner than they
thought. 

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** anachronism

(n.) something out of place in time (e.g., an airplane in 1492) 

* He realized that the film about cavemen contained an anachronism when he saw a jet cut across the horizon during a hunting scene.

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** analogy

(n.) similarity; correlation; parallelism

* The teacher used an analogy to describe the similarities between the two books.

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** anaphylaxis

(n.) an allergic reaction

* The boy’s severe anaphylaxis to a series of medications made writing prescriptions a tricky proposition. 

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** anarchist

(n.) one who believes that a formal government is unnecessary

* The yell from the crowd came from the anarchist protesting the
government.

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** anchorage

(n.) something that can be relied on

* Knowing the neighbors were right next door was an anchorage for the elderly woman.

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** anecdote

(n.) a short account of happenings

* The speaker told an anecdote about how he lost his shoes when he was young.

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** animosity

(n.) a feeling of hatred or ill will

Animosity grew between the two feuding families.

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** anoint

(v.) to crown; ordain;

* A member of the monarchy was anointed by the king. 

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** anomaly

(n.) an oddity, inconsistency; a deviation from the norm

* An anomaly existed when the report listed one statistic, and the spokeswoman reported another.

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** anonymous

(adj.) nameless; unidentified

* Not wishing to be identified by the police, he remained anonymous by returning the money he had stolen by sending it through the mail.

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** antagonism

(n.) hostility; opposition

* The rebellious clan captured a hostage to display antagonism to
the new peace treaty.

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** antipathy

(n.) a strong dislike or repugnance

* The vegetarian had an antipathy toward meat.

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** apathy

(n.) lack of emotion or interest

* He showed apathy when his relative was injured.

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** apocalyptic

(adj.) pertaining to a discovery or new revelation

* Science-fiction movies seem to relish apocalyptic visions. 

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** apocryphal

(adj.) counterfeit; of doubtful authorship or authenticity

* The man who said he was a doctor was truly apocryphal.

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** appease

(v.) to satisfy; to calm

* A milk bottle usually appeases a crying baby.

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** apposite

(adj.) suitable; apt; relevant

* Discussion of poverty was apposite to the curriculum, so the professor allowed it.

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** apprehensive

(adj.) fearful; aware; conscious

* The nervous child was apprehensive about beginning a new school year.

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** approbatory

(adj.) approving or sanctioning

* The judge showed his acceptance in his approbatory remark.

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** arable

(adj.) suitable (as land) for plowing

* When the land was deemed arable the farmer decided to plow. 

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** arbiter

(n.) one who is authorized to judge or decide

* The decision of who would represent the people was made by the arbiter.
 
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** arbitrary

(adj.) based on one’s preference orjudgment

* Rick admitted his decision had been arbitrary, as he claimed no expertise on the matter.

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** arcane

(adj.) obscure; secret; mysterious

* With an arcane expression, the young boy left the family wondering what sort of mischief he had committed.

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** archetype

(n.) original pattern or model; prototype

* The scientist was careful with the archetype of her
invention so that once manufacturing began, it would be easy to reproduce it.

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** ardent

(adj.) with passionate or intense feelings

The fans’ ardent love of the game kept them returning to watch the terrible team.

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** arduous

(adj.) laborious, difficult; strenuous

*  Building a house is arduous work, but the result is well worth the labor.

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** arid

(adj.) extremely dry, parched; barren, unimaginative

* The terrain was so arid that not one species of plant could survive.
 
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** aromatic

(adj.) having a smell which is sweet or spicy

* The aromatic smell coming from the oven made the man’s mouth water.

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** arrogant

(adj.) acting superior to others; conceited

* After purchasing his new, expensive sports car, the arrogant doctor refused to allow anyone to ride with him to the country club.

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** arrogate

(v.) to claim or demand unduly

* The teenager arrogated that he should be able to use his parent’s car whenever he desired. 

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** articulate

(v.) to utter clearly and distinctly ;

(adj.) clear, distinct; expressed with clarity; skillful with words

* (v.)It’s even more important to articulate your words when you’re on the phone.

* (adj.) You didn’t have to vote for him to agree that Adlai Stevenson was articulate.

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** artifice

(n.) skill in a craft

* The artifice of glass-making takes many years of practice.

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** ascetic

(n.) one who leads a simple life of self-denial;

(adj.) rigorously abstinent

* (n.) The monastery is filled with ascetics who have devoted their lives to religion.

* (adj.) The nuns lead an ascetic life devoted to the Lord.

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** aseptic

(adj.) germ free

* It is necessary for an operating room to be aseptic.

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** askance

(adv.) a sideways glance of disapproval

* The look askance proved the guard suspected some wrongdoing.

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** asperity

(n.) harshness

* The man used asperity to frighten the girl out of going.

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** aspersion

(n.) slanderous statement; a damaging or derogatory criticism

* He blamed the loss of his job on an aspersion stated by his co-worker to his superior.

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** aspirant

(n.) a person who goes after high goals

* The aspirant would not settle for assistant director—only the top job was good enough. 

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** assay

(n.) to determine the quality of a substance. 

* Have the soil assayed.

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** assess

(v.) to estimate the value of

* She assessed the possible rewards to see if the project was worth her time and effort.

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** assiduous

(adj.) carefully attentive; industrious

* It is necessary to be assiduous if a person wishes to make the most of his time at work.

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** assuage

(v.) to relieve; ease; make less severe

* The medication helped assuage the pain of the wound. 

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** astringent

(n.) a substance that contracts bodily tissues;

(adj.) causing contraction; tightening; stern, austere

* (n.) After the operation an astringent was used on his skin so that the stretched area would return to normal.

* (adj.) The downturn in sales caused the CEO to impose astringent measures.

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** astute

(adj.) cunning; sly; crafty

The astute lawyer’s questioning convinced the jury of the defendant’s guilt.

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** atrophy

(v.) to waste away, as from lack of use; to wither;

(n.)failure to grow

* The atrophy of the muscles was due to the injury.

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** attenuate

(v.) to thin out; to weaken

* The chemist attenuated the solution by adding water.

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** atypical

(adj.) something that is abnormal

* The atypical behavior of the wild animal alarmed the hunters.

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** audacious

(adj.) fearless; bold

* The audacious soldier went into battle without a shield.

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** augment

(v.) to increase or add to; to make larger

* They were able to augment their savings over a period of time.

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** august

(adj.) to be imposing or magnificent

* The palace was august in gold and crystal.

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** auspicious

(adj.) being of a good omen; successful

* It was auspicious that the sun shone on the first day of the trip. 

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** austere

(adj.) having a stern look; having strict self-discipline

* The austere teacher assigned five pages of homework each day.

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** authentic

(adj.) real; genuine; trustworthy

* An authentic diamond will cut glass.

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** authoritarian

(n.);  acting as a dictator;

(adj.)demanding obedience

* (n.) The authoritarian made all of the rules but did none of the work. 

* (adj.)Fidel Castro is reluctant to give up his authoritarian rule. 

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** autocracy

(n.) an absolute monarchy; government where one person holds power

* She was extremely power-hungry and therefore wanted her government to be an autocracy.

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** autocrat

(n.) an absolute ruler

* The autocrat in charge of the government was a man of power and prestige.

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** avarice

(n.) inordinate desire for gaining and possessing wealth

* The man’s avarice for money kept him at work through the evenings and weekends.

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** aver

(v.) to affirm as true

* The witness was able to aver the identity of the defendant. 

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** awry

(adj.)turned or twisted toward one side; not functioning properly

(adv.) away from the correct or expected course

* (adj.) Reena's skirt was awry and looked silly with her silk blouse.

*(adv.) Hearing the explosion in the laboratory, the scientist realized the experiment had gone awry.

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** azure

(adj.) the clear blue color of the sky

* The azure sky made the picnic day perfect.

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   {B}

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** baleful

(adj.) harmful, malign, detrimental

* The strange liquid could be baleful if ingested.

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** banal

(adj.) trite; without freshness or originality

* Attending parties became trite after a few weeks. 

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** baneful

(adj.) deadly or causing distress, death

* Not wearing a seat belt could be baneful.

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** baroque

(adj.) extravagant; ornate; embellished

* The baroque artwork was made up of intricate details which kept the museum-goers enthralled.

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** bastion

(n.) a fortified place or strong defense

* The strength of the bastion saved the soldiers inside of it.

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** batten

(v.) to gain

* The team could only batten by drafting the top player.

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** bauble

(n.) a showy yet useless thing

* The woman had many baubles on her bookshelf.

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** beget

(v.) to bring into being

* The king wished to beget a new heir.

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** beholden

(adj.) indebted to

* The children were beholden to their parents for the car loan.

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** behoove

(v.) to be advantageous; to be necessary

* It will behoove the students to buy their textbooks early.

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** belittle

(v.) to make small; to think lightly of

* The unsympathetic friend belittled her friend’s problems and spoke of her own as the most important.

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** bellicose

(adj.) quarrelsome; warlike

* The bellicose guest would not be invited back again.

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** bemuse

(v.) to preoccupy in thought

* The girl was bemused by her troubles.

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** benefactor

(n.) one who helps others; a donor

* An anonymous benefactor donated $10,000 to the children’s hospital.

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** beneficent

(adj.) conferring benefits; kindly; doing good

* A beneficent donation helped the organization meet its goal.

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** benevolent

(adj.) kind; generous

* The benevolent gentleman volunteered his services.

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** benign

(adj.) mild; harmless; kind

* A lamb is a benign animal, especially when compared with a lion.

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** berate

(v.) scold; reprove; reproach; criticize

* The child was berated by her parents for breaking the china.

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**  bereft

(v.) to be deprived of; to be in a sad manner;

(adj.) hurt by someone’s death

* (v.) The widower was bereft for many years after his wife’s death.

* (adj.) The loss of his job will leave the man bereft of many luxuries

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** beseech

(v.) to ask earnestly

* The soldiers beseeched the civilians for help.

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** besmirch

(v.) to dirty or discolor

* The soot from the chimney will besmirch clean curtains.

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** bestial

(adj.) having the qualities of a beast; brutal

* The bestial employer made his employees work in an unheated room.

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** betroth

(v.) to promise or pledge in marriage

* The man betrothed his daughter to the prince.

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** biased

(adj.) prejudiced; influenced; not neutral

* The vegetarian had a biased opinion regarding what should be ordered for dinner. 

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** biennial

(adj.) happening every two years;

(n.) a plant which blooms every two years

* (adj.) The biennial journal’s influence seemed only magnified by its infrequent publication.

* (n.) She has lived here for four years and has seen the biennials bloom twice. 

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** bilateral

(adj.) pertaining to or affecting both sides or two sides; having two sides

* The brain is a bilateral organ, consisting of a left and right hemisphere.
 
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** blasphemous

(adj.) irreligious; away from acceptable standards; speaking ill of using profane language

* The upper-class parents thought that it was blasphemous for their son to marry a waitress.

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** blatant

(adj.) obvious; unmistakable; crude; vulgar

* The blatant foul was reason for ejection.

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** blighted

(adj.) causing frustration or destruction

* The blighted tornado left only one building standing in its wake.

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** blithe

(adj.) happy; cheery; merry; a cheerful disposition

* The blithe child was a pleasant surprise.

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** bode

(v.) to foretell something

* The storm bode that we would not reach our destination.

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** bombast

(n.) pompous speech; pretentious words

* The presenter ended his bombast with a prediction of his future success.

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** bombastic

(adj.) pompous; wordy; turgid

* The bombastic woman talks a lot about herself.

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** boor

(n.) a rude person

* The boor was not invited to the party, but he came anyway.

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** breadth

(n.) the distance from one side to another

* The table cloth was too small to cover the breadth of the table.

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** brevity

(n.) briefness; shortness

* On Top 40 AM radio, brevity was the coin of the realm.

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** brindled

(adj.) mixed with a darker color

* In order to get matching paint we made a brindled mixture.

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** broach

(v.) to introduce into conversation

* Broaching the touchy subject was difficult.

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** brusque

(adj.) abrupt in manner or speech

* His brusque answer was neither acceptable nor polite.

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** bucolic

(adj.) having to do with shepherds or the country

* The bucolic setting inspired the artist.

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** bumptious

(adj.) arrogant

* He was bumptious in manner as he approached the podium to accept his
anticipated award.

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** bungler

(n.) a clumsy person

The one who broke the crystal vase was a true bungler.

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** burgeon

(v.) to grow or develop quickly

* The tumor appeared to burgeon more quickly than normal. 

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** burlesque

(v.); to imitate in a non-serious manner;

(n.) a comical imitation

* (v.) His stump speeches were so hackneyed,he seemed to be burlesquing of his role as a congressman.

* (n.) George Burns was considered one of the great practitioners of burlesque.

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** burly

(adj.) strong; bulky; stocky

* The lumberjack was a burly man.

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** burnish

(v.) to polish by rubbing

* The vase needed to be burnished to restore its beauty.

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