The Facts On File Student's Thesaurus,3rd Revised edition

593 Pages·2005·2.59 MB·English

by  Marc McCutcheon

THE FACTS ON FILE
STUDENT’S
THESAURUS
THIRD EDITION

THE FACTS ON FILE
STUDENT’S
THESAURUS
THIRD EDITION
d
Marc McCutcheon
The Facts On File Student’s Thesaurus, Third Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Marc McCutcheon
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
The Facts On File student’s thesaurus / [edited by] Marc McCutcheon.—3rd ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-8160-6038-X (hc : alk. paper)
1. English language—Synonyms and antonyms. I. Title: Student’s thesaurus. II. McCutcheon, Marc.
PE1591.F24 2005
423’.12—dc222004061966 2004050661
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institutions, or sales promotions. Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at [phone] or [phone].
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Text design adapted by Dorothy M. Preston
Cover design and illustration by Nora Wertz
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VB Hermitage 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
d
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the greatly expanded third edition word that is not quite right for your purposes,
of The Facts On File Student’s Thesaurus. We’ve then a thesaurus should be able to provide a
added nearly 50,000 words of text to help you perfect alternative. For example, suppose you
express yourself on paper and in speech, better want to find the right word to describe a skinny
than ever before. friend but don’t want to use skinny because it
seems negative. You can look in this thesaurus
WHAT IS A THESAURUS? and find substitutes, such as thinor lean.
A thesaurus is a book that lists synonyms and HOW DO YOU USE THIS THESAURUS?
antonyms. Synonyms are words that have the
This thesaurus has been organized to be simple
same or similar meanings, and they can often be
and easy to use. The word you are looking for
substituted for each other. Antonyms, on the
is known as a primary entry, and you can find
other hand, are words that have the opposite
it listed in alphabetical order. A primary entry
meanings. By way of example, shy and bashful
is presented in bold type. The part of speech
are synonyms for timid, and bold and assertive
that the primary entry is follows immediately
are its antonyms.
in its abbreviated form in italictype.
Next is a list of synonyms and then a sample
WHY USE A THESAURUS?
sentence illustrating how the primary entry
A thesaurus is a valuable reference tool for word can be used. If the primary entry word can
improving your writing. But how can it be valu- be used in more than one way, additional syn-
able to you? For starters, it can help you avoid onym lists follow. If there are any antonyms,
overusing any particular word, thus making your they will appear at the end of the synonym lists.
conversation and writing more lively and inter- This thesaurus has an extra vocabulary-
esting. As a case in point, the word valuable has building feature called Word Search. It lists
been used twice in this paragraph. If it were to words and terms related to the primary entry
appear again, it would make the text too repeti- that are not synonyms of it. After locating syn-
tive. As a substitute, a synonym, such as impor- onyms for, say, dog (canine, hound, mutt, etc.),
tant,would be more appealing (appealing,by the you may require some words to accurately
way, is used here as a synonym for interesting). describe a dog. A coat streaked with gray, for
There is another important way in which a example, is said to be grizzled. The soles of a
thesaurus can be of value to you. If you know a dog’s feet are known as pads.The lower cheeks
v
vi d Introduction
of a dog are its chops. With this fun but oh-so- synonyms good enough to merit inclusion. For
useful feature, you will be able to make your example, alphabetize means “to arrange in the
writing more descriptive and precise. order of the letters of the alphabet.” But there
A variety of abbreviations are used in this the- are no other words that mean precisely the same
saurus—mainly referring to parts of speech. It is thing, so alphabetizedoes not appear in this the-
important to be familiar with them when using saurus. Finally, a word of caution is in order. In
the thesaurus. Following is a list of the abbrevi- some of the synonym lists, you will find words
ations used in this book: that look like they cannot be substituted for the
primary entry, or at least not in the accompany-
adj. adjective
ing sentence. This happens because there are
adv. adverb
very few words in the English language that are
ant. antonym
truly interchangeable. Synonyms of the primary
interj. interjection
word that will not work in the sample sentence
n. noun
are included because there are other situations
prep. preposition
and other sentences for which they may be just
vb. verb
right. In general, synonyms most closely associ-
This thesaurus lists thousands of the most ated with the primary entry are listed first.
commonly used words; however, you may be
looking for a word that has not been included. Now you know how to use this thesaurus.
Omissions occur when a word is judged to be Keep it on your bookshelf next to your diction-
too obscure to include or when there are no ary, for it should prove to be as essential.
A
d
abandon vb. 1. desert, reject, forsake, drop, abbreviation n. condensation, shortening,
renounce. Uncaring people abandon their friends abridgment, compression, reduction. Virtually
in a crisis. 2. discontinue, abort, cease, stop, everyone knows the abbreviation for “Doctor.”
forgo. A major avalanche forced the climbers to Ant. expansion, enlargement, extension,
abandon their attempt on Mt. McKinley. –n. 3. increase.
gusto, dash, animation, verve. Hip-hop dancers
WORD SEARCH
perform with abandon. Ant. 1. keep, claim. 2.
continue, maintain. 3. self-control, restraint, (Common abbreviations)
AC: alternating current, air conditioning
caution, moderation.
A.D.: anno Domini, in the year of the Lord
abandoned adj. 1. shameless, wild, loose, a.k.a.: also known as
immoral. The playboy led an abandoned way of a.m.: ante meridiem(before noon)
life. 2.vacant, deserted, unoccupied, neglected. AM: amplitude modulation
An abandoned building typically becomes a ruin. anon.: anonymous
Ant. 1. upright, moral, virtuous, chaste. 2. ASAP: as soon as possible
occupied, maintained. aux.: auxiliary
B.C.: before Christ
abandonment n. discontinuance, cessation,
C: Celsius, centigrade
halt, stoppage. The abandonment of the mission
CEO: chief executive officer
was caused by a defect in the rocket. Ant. con-
cl.: centiliter
tinuation, prolongation, extension.
cm.: centimeter
abate vb. diminish, subside, lessen, weaken, co.: company
decline, wane. It was at least 48 hours before the COD: cash on delivery
rain began to abate. Ant. increase, strengthen, corp.: corporation
intensify. CPR: cardiopulmonary resuscitation
DA: district attorney
abbey n. monastery, convent, friary, priory. The
DOA: dead on arrival
abbey is a refuge for those monks and nuns who
Dr.: Doctor
seek to live an uncomplicated life.
ESP: extrasensory perception
abbreviate vb. condense, shorten, contract, etc.: et cetera(and so forth)
compress, reduce. “Mister” is usually abbreviated F: Fahrenheit
as “Mr.” Ant. lengthen, extend, increase, FM: frequency modulation
expand, protract, prolong. ft.: foot
1
2 d abdicate
FYI: for your information and—most of all—wooden stakes. Ant. adore,
g.: gram love, admire, prize, cherish, treasure.
GOP: Grand Old Party
hq.: headquarters abhorrence n. loathing, repugnance, aversion,
in.: inch detestation, disgust, hatred. Most people react
IQ: intelligence quotient with abhorrence to the thought of increased taxa-
kg: kilogram tion. Ant. approval, admiration, acceptance,
km: kilometer endorsement.
l: liter
abhorrent adj. revolting, nauseating, abom-
lb.: pound
inable, detestable, repugnant. Cruelty to children
mg.: milligram
is the worst kind of abhorrent conduct. Ant.
ml.: milliliter
admirable, commendable, laudable, praiseworthy.
mm.: millimeter
mph: miles per hour abide vb. 1. remain, linger, stay, tarry. Please
oz.: ounce don’t hurry off, but abide here with me. 2.endure,
PC: personal computer
tolerate, bear, suffer. Many people can’t abide the
p.m.: post meridiem(after noon)
smell of cheap cigars. Ant. 1. leave, depart, quit.
P.S.: postscript
2. reject, decline, spurn, oppose.
RBI: runs batted in
rpm: revolutions per minute abiding adj. unshakable, firm, constant, last-
RSVP: repondez s’il vous plait(please answer) ing, enduring. Honest people have abiding trust in
SOS: save our ship/save our souls others. Ant. passing, momentary, temporary.
TBA: to be announced
UFO: unidentified flying object ability n. capability, competence, capacity, apti-
VIP: very important person tude, skill, talent, qualification. She has the abil-
VP: vice president ity to excel in graduate school. Ant. inability,
incapability, incompetence, inadequacy.
abdicate vb. resign, renounce, relinquish,
abandon, vacate, surrender. The rebels forced abject adj. 1. wretched, hopeless, miserable,
their king to abdicate his throne. terrible, piteous. His abject condition is the result
of losing his job. 2. servile, cringing, groveling,
abdomen n. stomach, belly, midsection,
subservient, spiritless. The student’s abject apol-
tummy, gut. The boxer was punched in the
ogy made little impression on her teacher. Ant.
abdomen.
1. dignified, hopeful. 2. assured, spirited,
abduct vb. kidnap, shanghai, steal, grab, seize. admirable.
Terrorists abducted the ambassador. Ant. free,
release, return. ablaze adj. 1. burning, blazing, flaming, flar-
ing, aflame, afire. The building was totally ablaze
aberration n. abnormality, irregularity, oddity,
before anyone knew what was happening. 2.
anomaly, deviation, quirk. Snow in July is an
bright, shiny, aglow, luminous, radiant. The boy
aberration. Ant. norm, regularity.
was ablaze with love for the girl next door. Ant.
abhor vb. loathe, detest, despise, hate, disdain, 1. extinguished. 2. gloomy, somber, depressed,
reject. Vampires abhor garlic, crosses, sunlight, dispirited.
abrasiond 3
able adj. capable, qualified, competent, effec- aboriginal adj. native, indigenous, endemic,
tive, proficient. The personnel director was look- original, primal, primitive. The aboriginal people
ing for able employees. Ant. inept, unable, living on the island are actually transplanted Asians.
incapable, unqualified.
aborigine n. native, indigene, first inhabitant,
able-bodied adj. strong, fit, healthy, sound, original settler, settler. The aborigines lived there
strapping, athletic. John was able-bodied enough long before anyone else. Ant. immigrant, new
to unload the entire truck by himself. Ant. dis- arrival, foreigner.
abled, handicapped.
abort vb. cancel, terminate, abandon, halt,
abnormal adj. odd, unusual, unnatural, irreg- stop, cease. A computer malfunction forced flight
ular, extraordinary, uncommon. The boy’s abnor- controllers to abort the shuttle launch. Ant. con-
mal behavior was a source of concern for his clude, complete, finish, achieve.
parents. Ant. normal, common, ordinary, natu-
abortion n. miscarriage, termination, expul-
ral, usual, typical.
sion, infanticide, aborticide. Unfortunately, Mary
abnormality n. oddity, exception, irregularity, had a spontaneous abortion and lost the baby.
peculiarity, aberration. Her only abnormality was
putting ketchup on her ice cream. about adv. 1. almost, approximately, around,
nearly. It’s about 93 million miles from the Earth
aboard adj. on board, topside, on deck. When to the Sun. 2. around, throughout, everywhere.
Gilligan came aboard, we knew we were trouble. As the man walked through the dark cemetery, he
kept looking carefully about. –prep. 3. concern-
abode n. home, house, residence, dwelling,
ing, regarding, involving. The movie was about
habitation, quarters. If I were rich, my abode
ghosts and goblins.
would be a truly grand old castle.
abolish vb. eliminate, negate, disallow, end, above prep. 1. over, beyond, past. This book is
not intended for people above the age of eighteen.
cancel, nullify, rescind, revoke. The Emancipa-
tion Proclamation abolished slavery. Ant. con- 2.over, higher than. Her name was above his on
the list. –adv. 3. over, overhead. His bedroom is
serve, retain, establish, create, institute.
on the floor above. Ant. 1–3. under, below,
abolition n. ending, termination, elimination, beneath.
eradication, repeal. The abolition of slavery was
long overdue. Ant. establishment, start, creation. abracadabra n. incantation, invocation,
charm, hocus pocus, mumbo jumbo. The magi-
A-bomb n. atomic bomb, nuclear bomb, ther- cian shouted “abracadabra” and some other invo-
monuclear bomb, weapon of mass destruction. cation and the rabbit vanished.
The A-bomb can unleash a staggering amount of
power. abrade vb. scrape, grate, scuff, scour, grind,
See also NUCLEAR BOMB. erode, gouge, sand. We were warned that the rough
surface of the stone might abrade the table’s finish.
abominable adj. awful, horrible, nasty, loath-
some, despicable, deplorable, atrocious. Slavery abrasion n. scratch, scrape, cut, chafe, irrita-
was an abominable institution. Ant. great, won- tion, scuff. She fell and suffered an abrasion on
derful, commendable. her left hand.