Vocabulary Building: Definitions and Examples
Key Vocabulary Terms and Their Meanings
Understanding Words: Definitions, Synonyms, and Antonyms
This document provides a comprehensive list of words, complete with their meanings, synonyms, and antonyms. Enhance your vocabulary and understanding of the English language.
1. Agitated
- Meaning: Feeling or appearing troubled or nervous.
- Antonyms: Calm, composed, relaxed.
- Synonyms: Anxious, unsettled, disturbed.
2. Call-up
- Meaning: A summons or notice, especially for military service or recruitment.
- Antonyms: Discharge, release, exemption.
- Synonyms: Draft, conscription, enlistment.
3. Hiding
- Meaning: Concealing or staying out of sight to avoid detection or danger.
- Antonyms: Exposure, visibility, openness.
- Synonyms: Concealment, seclusion, evasion.
4. Persecution
- Meaning: Hostile and oppressive treatment, often due to race, religion, or beliefs.
- Antonyms: Tolerance, acceptance, support.
- Synonyms: Oppression, discrimination, harassment.
5. Confined
- Meaning: Restricted in space, movement, or freedom.
- Antonyms: Free, unrestricted, liberated.
- Synonyms: Restricted, limited, restrained.
6. Concentration Camps
- Meaning: Places where large numbers of people, often minorities, are detained.
- Antonyms: Freedom, safety, protection.
- Synonyms: Internment camps, detention centers, labor camps.
7. Tension
- Meaning: Mental or emotional strain; a state of being stretched or pulled.
- Antonyms: Relaxation, ease, calmness.
- Synonyms: Stress, pressure, strain.
8. Despair
- Meaning: A complete loss of hope or confidence.
- Antonyms: Hope, optimism, joy.
- Synonyms: Hopelessness, desperation, gloom.
9. Isolation
- Meaning: The state of being alone or separated from others.
- Antonyms: Inclusion, companionship, togetherness.
- Synonyms: Solitude, seclusion, loneliness.
10. Confidante
- Meaning: A person with whom one shares their secrets or private matters.
- Antonyms: Betrayer, traitor, adversary.
- Synonyms: Trustee, confidant, intimate.
11. Solace
- Meaning: Comfort or relief in times of distress or sadness.
- Antonyms: Agony, distress, torment.
- Synonyms: Comfort, consolation, relief.
12. Revelation
- Meaning: A surprising and previously unknown fact or discovery.
- Synonyms: Disclosure, revelation, unveiling, discovery, divulgence.
- Antonyms: Concealment, secrecy, suppression, hiding, obscurity.
13. Straitened
- Meaning: Characterized by financial difficulty or hardship.
- Synonyms: Financially challenged, impoverished, destitute, penniless, needy.
- Antonyms: Prosperous, affluent, wealthy, well-off, opulent.
14. Cosmopolitan
- Meaning: Familiar with and at ease in many different cultures and countries.
- Synonyms: Multicultural, worldly, international, sophisticated, global.
- Antonyms: Provincial, insular, parochial, narrow-minded, local.
15. Princely
- Meaning: Having the qualities associated with a prince, such as elegance.
- Synonyms: Regal, royal, majestic, opulent, splendid.
- Antonyms: Humble, modest, ordinary, common, unimpressive.
16. Surplus
- Meaning: An excess or amount beyond what is needed.
- Synonyms: Excess, extra, leftover, overage, abundance.
- Antonyms: Shortage, deficiency, scarcity, insufficiency, deficit.
17. Literate
- Meaning: Able to read and write.
- Synonyms: Educated, lettered, cultured, well-read, knowledgeable.
- Antonyms: Illiterate, unlettered, uneducated, ignorant, unlearned.
18. Astrological
- Meaning: Relating to astrology.
- Synonyms: Zodiacal, horoscopic, celestial, starry, astromantic.
- Antonyms: Non-astrological, non-zodiacal, non-celestial, non-starry.
19. Cascade
- Meaning: A large amount of something that flows or falls rapidly.
- Synonyms: Waterfall, cataract, descent, torrent, fall.
- Antonyms: Ascent, climb, rise, incline, upswing.
20. Unhesitatingly
- Meaning: Without hesitation, doubt, or delay.
- Synonyms: Promptly, immediately, instantly, readily, willingly.
- Antonyms: Hesitatingly, reluctantly, tentatively, slowly, with reservation.
21. Pivotal
- Meaning: Of crucial importance or significance.
- Synonyms: Crucial, central, fundamental, essential, critical.
- Antonyms: Insignificant, inconsequential, unimportant, secondary, trivial.
22. Instilled
- Meaning: To gradually but firmly introduce or teach an idea.
- Synonyms: Inculcated, imparted, infused, implanted, embedded.
- Antonyms: Neglected, omitted, removed, erased, neglected.
23. Duplicity
- Meaning: Deceitfulness or double-dealing.
- Antonym: Honesty.
- Synonym: Deception.
24. Blueprint
- Meaning: A detailed plan or design.
- Antonym: Chaos.
- Synonym: Plan.
25. Eavesdrop
- Meaning: To secretly listen to a conversation.
- Antonym: Ignore.
- Synonym: Spy.
26. Cavalcade
- Meaning: A formal procession of people or vehicles.
- Antonym: Disarray.
- Synonym: Parade.
27. Echelon
- Meaning: A level or rank in an organization or hierarchy.
- Antonym: Bottom.
- Synonym: Tier.
28. Condescend
- Meaning: To behave in a superior manner.
- Antonym: Humble.
- Synonym: Patronize.
29. Embezzle
- Meaning: To steal money entrusted to one’s care.
- Antonym: Return.
- Synonym: Misappropriate.
30. Culpable
- Meaning: Deserving blame or censure for a wrongdoing.
- Antonym: Innocent.
- Synonym: Guilty.
31. Artifice
- Meaning: Clever or cunning trickery.
- Antonym: Honesty.
- Synonym: Deception.
32. Diligence
- Meaning: Careful and persistent effort to accomplish a task.
- Antonym: Laziness.
- Synonym: Hard work.
33. Backhanded
- Meaning: Indirect or ambiguous.
- Antonym: Direct.
- Synonym: Indirect.
34. Disconcert
- Meaning: To disturb or unsettle.
- Antonym: Comfort.
- Synonym: Upset.
35. Barbaric
- Meaning: Savagely cruel, uncivilized, or primitive.
- Antonym: Civilized.
- Synonym: Savage.
36. Disposable
- Meaning: Designed to be used once and thrown away.
- Antonym: Indispensable.
- Synonym: Throwaway.
37. Blatant
- Meaning: Very obvious and intentional.
- Antonym: Subtle.
- Synonym: Obvious.
38. Abject
- Meaning: Extremely hopeless, miserable, or wretched.
- Antonym: Noble.
- Synonym: Miserable.
39. Abrasive
- Meaning: Harsh and rough in manner or texture.
- Antonym: Smooth.
- Synonym: Rough.
40. Cumulative
- Meaning: Increasing or growing by accumulation.
- Antonym: Decreasing.
- Synonym: Accumulative.
41. Access
- Meaning: The ability to enter, use, or approach something.
- Antonym: Denial.
- Synonym: Entry.
42. Deference
- Meaning: Respectful submission.
- Antonym: Disrespect.
- Synonym: Respect.
43. Acclimatize
- Meaning: To adapt to a new environment.
- Antonym: Destabilize.
- Synonym: Adapt.
44. Deferment
- Meaning: The act of delaying or postponing something.
- Antonym: Advancement.
- Synonym: Postponement.
45. Adjunct
- Meaning: Something added to another in a subordinate capacity.
- Antonym: Main.
- Synonym: Addition.
46. Deliberate (adjective)
- Meaning: Done consciously and intentionally.
- Antonym: Unintentional.
- Synonym: Planned.
47. Affluent
- Meaning: Having a lot of money and possessions.
- Antonym: Poor.
- Synonym: Wealthy.
48. Deport
- Meaning: To expel someone from a country.
- Antonym: Admit.
- Synonym: Exile.
49. Agnostic
- Meaning: A person who believes that it is impossible to know whether God exists.
- Antonym: Theist.
- Synonym: Doubter.
50. Derision
- Meaning: Contemptuous ridicule or mockery.
- Antonym: Praise.
- Synonym: Mockery.
51. Arduous
- Meaning: Involving strenuous effort.
- Antonym: Easy.
- Synonym: Difficult.