The Synonym Finder

1368 Pages·1978·40.67 MB·english

by  J. I. Rodale

/-(The
îynonym
Finder
Completely Revised
by
Laurence Urdang, Editor in Chief
and
Nancy LaRoche, Managing Editor
Faye C. Allen Assistant Editors Barbara W. Carlson
Susan L. Duquès Janet S. Muller
Catherine A. Eckert Mary B. Redfield
Adela Haberski French
Vincent D. Regan Editorial Assistant Marilyn Scott
Winifred vanRoden
Jack Vestali
Charles GerraS, Project Development and Coordination
for Rodale Press
Rodale Press, Emmaus, Pa.
Copyright © 1978 by Rodale Press, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this publica-
tion may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopy, record-
ing, or any information storage and retrieval
system without the written permission of
the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America on recycled paper,
containing a high percentage of de-inked fiber.
16 18 20 19 17 15
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Rodale, Jerome Irving, 1898-1971, ed.
The synonym finder.
1. English language—Synonyms and antonyms.
I. Urdang, Laurence. II. LaRoche, Nancy.
III. Title.
PE1591.R64 1978 423 M 78-11440
ISBN 0-87857-236-8
ISBN 0-87857-244-9 deluxe
INTRODUCTION
Those who work with language know that there is no such thing as a
true "synonym." Even though the meanings of two words may be the
same — or nearly so — there are three characteristics of words that al-
most never coincide: frequency, distribution, and connotation. Panther a
leo and lion, cucurbit and squash, sodium carbonate and washing soda
have quite different frequencies in English. We all know that a house is
not a home, that not all women are ladies, that not all men are gentlemen;
at a more subtle level, we soon learn the differences between motherly
and maternal, fatherly and paternal, brotherly and fraternal. These are
connotative differences.
It is a curiosity of English that it continuously acquires words from
other languages to expand its lexicon. Observers have often noted that
even if a new coinage or a loanword from another language starts out
with "exactly" the same meaning as an existing word in English, the
meanings begin to drift apart before very long, one acquiring quite
different frequency, distribution, and connotation from the other. An
incredible fact about English is that it retains many of the words de-
veloped in its lexicon. Some words do become obsolete and are dropped
forever. Most, however, remain and develop nuances that expand for
the writer and speaker the opportunities for expression and expressiveness.
For these reasons, a synonym dictionary must be used with caution.
Even though two words may be quite similar in meaning, the substitu-
tion of one for the other may not always be appropriate, and the writer's
intent may be ill served by his failure to select the mot juste. The Synonym
Finder contains more words than any book of its kind — more than
1,500,000. Sometimes, it will be consulted to find a word that will lend
variety to the user's language ; other times it will be consulted to remind
the user of the temporarily lost word or expression that was "right on the
tip of his tongue." In either case, it should be used with understanding.
Every effort has been made to make this book as accurate, as com-
plete, and as easy to use as possible. Inevitably, a user may disagree with
the treatment given a particular word. In that case, he is urged to consult
a major dictionary where he is likely to find fuller information on the
word than The Synonym Finder can be expected to offer. The nature of
language and the behavior of words defy precision in the preparation of
a work like The Synonym Finder. The editors have often had to make
admittedly arbitrary decisions on word inclusion and placement. It is to
be hoped, however, that among the many related words offered, the user
will find several that suit his subject and his context.
Laurence Urdang
Essex, Connecticut
July 28, 1978
A Note on the Style of
THE SYNONYM FINDER
The Synonym Finder follows dictionary format. Entries are arranged al-
phabetically, with all appropriate parts of speech included under a single
headword. Homographs — words spelled identically but of different
origins — are entered separately with an identifying superior number.
Word listings have been organized numerically according to definition
and major semantic groups; further discriminations are shown within
these groups by separating subgroups by semicolons.
Usage levels are indicated by appropriate labels, such as Slang, In-
formal, etc. ; technical or specialized words are identified by a field label
such as Chemistry, Nautical, etc. In addition, gist information {enclosed
in parentheses) is often included to help the user avoid inappropriate
choices.
All gist and usage information appears before the word to which it
applies, and applies to that immediately following word only, unless
otherwise clearly indicated (e.g., Both Inf., All SI.). Foreign words and
phrases as yet unassimilated into English are appropriately labeled and
italicized.
In most cases, usage or technical labels have been written in full (e.g.,
Archaic, Literary). Common and easily understood abbreviations that
have been employed are listed below. The labels Informal and Slang,
when written in full before an entire listing, refer to the entry headword,
rather than to the synonyms that follow. When abbreviated {Inf. or SI.),
the labels, like others in The Synonym Finder, refer to the following word.
List of Abbreviations
Aeronaut. Aeronautics Med. Medicine
Anat. Anatomy Metaphys. Metaphysics
Anthropol. Anthropology Mil. Military
Arc hit. Architecture
Astron. Astronomy Naut. Nautical
Obs. Obsolete
Bacteriol. Bacteriology
Ophthalm. Ophthalmology
Biol. Biology
Ornithol. Ornithology
Bot. Botany
Brit. British
Parl. Parliament
Parl. Proc. Parliamentary Procedure
Chem. Chemistry
Pathol. Pathology
Ch. Church
Pharm. Pharmacology
Civ. Eng. Civil Engineering
Philos. Philosophy
Class. Myth. Classical Mythology
Phonet. Phonetics
Phys. Chem. Physical Chemistry
Derog. Derogatory
Physiol. Physiology
Dial. Dialect
Pi. plural
Print. Printing
Eccles. Ecclesiastical
Psychoanal. Psychoanalysis
Educ. Education
Psychol. Psychology
Elect. Electronics
Embryol. Embryology
Relig. Religion
Entomol. Entomology
Rhet. Rhetoric
Euph. Euphemistic
Rom. Cath. Ch. Roman Catholic Church
Rom. Hist. Roman History
Fig- Figurative
Fort. Fortifications Scot. Scotland/Scottish
Fr. French SI. Slang
s.o. someone
Geom. Geometry
Sp. Spanish
Ger. German
s.t. something
Gk. Greek
Theat. Theater
Hist. History Theol. Theology
Hort. Horticulture
U.S. United States
Inf. Informal usu. usually
It. Italian
Vet. Med. Veterinary Medicine
Mach. Machinery
Math. Mathematics Zool. Zoology

aback abashment
A
aback, adv. 1. rearward, to or in the rear, back, to- profligate, reprobate, depraved, lewd, impure, un-
ward the back, behind, backward, hindward; Naut. chaste; immoral, wicked, accursed, flagitious, vicious,
abaft, Naut. aft, Naut. astern, Naut. sternward; retro- corrupt; sinful, bad, unprincipled, dishonorable,
gressively, regressively, retrogradingly; Fig. aloof, Fig. disreputable; lost, irreclaimable, irreformable, incor-
at a distance. rigible, unrepentant, hardened.
2. taken aback surprised, startled, astonished, abandonment, n. 1. desertion, forsaking, rejection;
shocked, astounded, stupefied; flabbergasted, stunned, defection, heresy, apostasy, recreance, recreancy;
bewildered, amazed, thunderstruck, dumfounded; neglect, negligence, dereliction; departure, decamp-
perplexed, confounded, nonplused, disconcerted, dis- ment, evacuation.
composed, discomfited, Inf. thrown off guard, Inf. 2. relinquishment, abnegation, resignation, abdica-
thrown for a loss, Inf. floored. tion, Archaic, demission; renunciation, repudiation,
abandon1, v. 1. forsake, desert, leave behind, throw disavowal, recantation, denial, (under oath) abjura-
over, jilt, run out on. Inf. leave flat, turn one's back tion, backpedaling.
on, SI. give the deep six; ignore, cut off, neglect, ostra- 3. surrender, yielding, nonresistance.
cize; leave, depart, quit, go away from, vacate, abase, v. 1. degrade, debase, vitiate, demean, dis-
evacuate. credit, demote, depose; devaluate, reduce, lower,
2. discard, cast off, jettison, throw away, get rid of, depress; humiliate, humble, mortify, bring low, take
toss out, throw out, (of cards) throw in, Inf. ditch, Inf. down, bring or take down a peg.
chuck, SI. deep-six. 2. disgrace, dishonor, shame; slander, calumniate,
3. discontinue, give up, retire from, withdraw from, asperse, denigrate, malign, vilify, vituperate, revile,
stop, end, cease, Inf. quit cold; throw up, lose hope of, smirch, besmirch, smear, Inf. badmouth; belittle,
despair of; forbear, desist from, drop; forgo, do or go deprecate, deflate, disparage, depreciate, downgrade,
without, dispense with, waive, lay aside. Inf. put down, Inf. playdown.
4. repudiate, reject, disown, renounce, wash one's abasement, n. 1. degradation, depravation, debase-
hands of; renege, forswear, disavow, disclaim, recant, ment, vitiation, deterioration, degeneration; devalua-
(usu. under oath) abjure; bail out, bow out, pull out tion, downfall, fall, descent, lowering, reduction,
of, Inf. back out of, back-pedal, Inf. back away from detrusion, depression; humiliation, humble pie, mor-
or off on, Inf. cop out; betray, turn traitor, SI. sell tification, deflation; humility, humbleness, meekness,
down the river, Si. rat out or rat out on; defect, servility, lowliness, abjectness, submission, resigna-
apostatize. tion, self-abasement, prostration.
5. relinquish, abnegate, let go, deliver up, turn over 2. disgrace, shame, dishonor, disrepute, obloquy, in-
to; surrender, concede, yield, submit, 5/. throw in the gloriousness; infamy, ignominy, baseness, vileness,
towel or the sponge; resign, abdicate, give up. turpitude, meanness, despicableness, contemp-
6. (of oneself) give way to, lose oneself in, yield to; tibleness.
indulge, gratify, wallow in, carouse, dissipate. abash, v. disconcert, discomfit, take aback, ruffle,
abandon2, n. 1. lack of restraint or self-control, un- discompose; embarrass, chagrin, discountenance, put
restraint, lawlessness, surrender to impulse; licentious- out of countenance, shame, put to shame, make
ness, wantonness, dissipation, profligacy; intemper- ashamed, humiliate, mortify, humble, put down, take
ance, incontinence, Obs. immoderation. down, disgrace, cause to lose face; nonplus, confound,
2. enthusiasm, spirit, élan, animation; verve, dash, confuse, bewilder, astonish, dumfound, perturb;
life, vigor, ardor, //. brio; spontaneity, impetuosity, dismay, dishearten, daunt, intimidate, cow, browbeat,
freedom. overawe, overwhelm.
abandoned, adj. 1. forsaken, deserted, neglected; abashed, adj. 1. disconcerted, nonplused, taken
relinquished, given up, left behind, Naut. (of a ship) aback, out of countenance, discomfited, dumfounded,
ahull; discarded, rejected, cast off or away or aside; chagrined; dismayed, daunted, cowed, intimidated,
shunned, scorned, outcast, forlorn, Poetic, lorn; awestruck, overawed, subdued, timid, timorous.
bereft, adrift, alone, solitary, lonely, desolate; desti- 2. embarrassed, ashamed, humiliated, mortified;
tute, desperate, helpless, hopeless, wretched, mourn- shamefaced, shy, bashful, self-conscious, retiring,
ful, unfortunate, friendless. withdrawn.
2. unrestrained, uncontrolled, unconstrained, licen- abashment, n. awe, dismay, consternation, confusion,
tious; shameless, dissolute, loose, wanton, dissipated, discomfiture; embarrassment, mortification, shame,
abate aberration
humiliation, chagrin, vexation; shyness, bashfulness, abdomen, n. 1. belly, stomach, Inf. tummy, gut,
self-consciousness. 5/. breadbasket, Scot, and North Eng. wame; paunch,
abate, v. 1. reduce, diminish, decrease, lower, lessen, potbelly, Inf. bay window, Inf. corporation, SI. pot,
attenuate, weaken, bate; alleviate, mitigate, allay, SI. beerbelly, SI. spare tire, Obs. gorbelly; colonie cavi-
palliate, assuage, relieve; mollify, soften, pacify, ap- ty, intestinal cavity; visceral cavity, Anat., Zool.
pease; quiet, calm, tranquilize, soothe, SI. simmer venter, ventral region, ventricular cavity, Anat. epigas-
down; moderate, temper, Archaic, attemper; quell, trium; pouch, (of birds) gizzard, (of birds) crop, craw,
slake, blunt, dull. maw, ingluvies, (of birds) proventriculus, (both of
2. subside, let up, intermit, cease; decline, fall off, ruminating animals) first stomach, rumen.
taper off, wane, fade away, ebb, slacken. 2. intestines, bowels, colons, (of swine) chitterlings;
3. deduct, subtract, allow; discount, mark down, cut innards, inwards, insides, vitals, viscera, (of animals)
back; rebate, remit, pay back. entrails, Inf. gizzard, SI. guts.
4. omit, leave out, skip, pass over, eschew, avoid. abdominal, adj. intestinal, visceral, splanchnic; gas-
abatement, n. 1. reduction, lessening, letup, mod- tric, stomachic, stomachal, stomachical, Anat. celiac,
eration, tempering; decrease, fall-off, diminution, ventral, ventricular.
remission; alleviation, mitigation, assuagement, relief, abdominous, adj. 1. potbellied, round-bellied, big-
palliation, mollification, softening; waning, fading, bellied, 5/. beer-bellied, large-bellied, great-bellied,
ebb, decline, subsidence; weakening, attenuation. Obs. gorbellied; paunchy, Inf. bay-windowed, Inf.
corporational; obese, fat, corpulent, overweight, Scot.
2. suppression, check, control, curb, limitation,
fodgel; chubby, tubby, pudgy, plump; round, rounded
restraint; stoppage, termination, arrestment, aboli-
out, rotund, portly.
tion, eradication, elimination, extermination, extin-
2. full, bulging, protuberant, bloated, distended;
guishment; quashing, quelling, crushing; prohibition,
swollen, turgid, tumid; puffy.
prevention, repression.
abduct, v. 1. (usu. of persons) carry off, rape,
3. deduction, reduction, allowance; markdown, cut-
seize, steal, make off or away with; kidnap, SI. snatch,
back, discount, write-off.
seize as hostage, hold for ransom; run off with, spirit
abattoir, n. slaughterhouse, slaughterpen, shambles,
away, steal away; lay hold of, lay hands on; (usu. in
butchery, Obs. butcher-row. reference to military service) impress, press, conscript,
abbé, n. ecclesiastic, clergyman, cleric, man of the Naut. shanghai, crimp.
cloth; abbot, prior, monk, friar, monastic, celibate; 2. commandeer, take over by force, hijack, skyjack,
priest, padre; pastor, curate; minister, divine. See also pirate; expropriate, appropriate, misappropriate, ar-
clergyman, ecclesiastic, priest. rogate; wrest from, usurp, accroach; help oneself to,
abbey, n. monastery, religious house, priory, clois- make free with.
ter, cenoby, friary; convent, nunnery; seminary. 3. Usu. Physiol. abduce, draw away, take away.
abbot, n. general, superior, head, officer, provincial, abduction, n. 1. (all of persons) robbery, theft,
abbé, Eastern Ch. archimandrite; conventual, monk, capture, seizure, rape; man-stealing, kidnapping, child-
monastic, cénobite, friar, brother; ecclesiastic, church- stealing; impressment, conscription; (both of animals)
man, cleric, priest. petnapping, dognapping.
2. abbess, prioress, mother superior, mother general, 2. commandeering, hijacking, skyjacking, air piracy;
mother vicar. expropriation, arrogation, misappropriation.
abbreviate, v. shorten, reduce, Obs. breviate; con- abductor, n. thief, robber, crook, rapist; kidnapper,
tract, cut, cut down, cut short, crop, clip; retrench, petnapper; skyjacker, hijacker, air or sky pirate.
curtail, lessen; shrink, constrict, narrow, condense, aberrant, adj. 1. deviate, deviant, divergent, way-
compress; abridge, abstract, brief, synopsize, sum- ward, devious; erroneous, mistaken; deviating, diverg-
marize, digest. ing, departing, divagating, digressing, lapsing, wan-
abbreviation, n. 1. brief, abstract, synopsis, out- dering, rambling, straying, roving.
line, sketch; précis, prospectus, résumé, syllabus, con- 2. anomalous, anomalistic, abnormal, irregular, vari-
spectus, compendium, epitome, survey, summary; able; odd, peculiar, curious, queer, incongruous,
digest, abridgement. strange, errant, bizarre, weird; unconventional, uncom-
2. lessening, shortening, condensing, condensation, mon, unusual, offbeat, out of the ordinary, eccentric,
compressing, compression, contracting, contraction, Inf. quirky, original, singular, exceptional, individual;
curtailing, curtailment, reducing, reduction; decrease, extraordinary, egregious, remarkable, astonishing;
cutting down or short, retrenchment, cropping, clip- monstrous, unnatural, freakish, Inf. freaky, hétéro-
ping, shrinking, narrowing; abstracting, abstraction, clite, heteroclitical, heteromorphic, heteromorphous,
summarizing, summarization. miscreated, malformed, deformed, misshapen, mis-
abdicate, v. 1. resign, renounce, give up claim or shaped, teratoid, teratological, teratogenetic; epicene,
right to, Law. disclaim, lay down, part with, retire from, androgynous, hermaphroditic, hermaphroditical.
vacate, abnegate, Chiefly Scot, demit; relinquish, let 3. perverse, perverted, corrupt, corrupted, twisted,
go, deliver up, hand over, turn over; surrender, yield, Inf. kinky; depraved, degenerate, degenerated, deteri-
cede, give way. orated, vitiated, debased, abased.
2. abandon, forsake, desert, leave behind, turn one's 4. vague, unsound, senile, SI. not all there, SI. not
back on, ignore, neglect; give up, quit, drop, throw playing with a full deck.
over, cast aside. aberration, n. 1. deviation, divergence, departure,
3. repudiate, reject, disown, wash one's hands of; divarication, divagation, digression, declination, declen-
refuse, decline, forgo, do without. sion; lapse, irregularity, incongruity; waywardness,
abdication, n. 1. resignation, resigning, renuncia- aberrance, aberrancy; wandering, straying, rambling,
tion, renouncing, retirement, retiring, abnegation, Ar- deviating, diverging, departing, divagating, digressing.
chaic, demission. 2. anomaly, abnormality, abnormity, variation; odd-
2. relinquishment, abandonment, surrender, yield- ity, peculiarity, curiosity, quirk, eccentricity; noncon-
ing, ceding, cession; transfer, transferral, transference, formity, unconformity, unconventionality, exception,
handing over. singularity, singularness, bohemianism; strangeness,
3. repudiation, rejection, disowning, disclamation; bizarreness, oddness, curiousness, queerness, freakish-
deserting, desertion. ness, Inf. freakiness; freak, freak of nature, mutant,
abet abjectness
deformity, abortion, malformation, miscreation, mon- abidance, n. 1. compliance, observance, acquies-
ster, monstrosity, teratogeny, Biol. teratism, hétéro- cence, submission, obedience; cooperation, assent,
clite; hermaphrodite, epicene, androgyne. concession, consent.
3. untruthfulness, falseness, mendacity; misrepre- 2. conformity, conventionality, accordance, accord,
sentation, falsification, distortion, deception, subrep- congruity, harmony, affinity, similitude.
tion, fraud, sophistry; falsehood, fallacy, lie, untruth, 3. abidingness, perseverance, persistence, steadfast-
sophism; falsifying, misrepresenting, lying, deceiving, ness, tenacity, pertinacity, Inf. stick-to-it-iveness; per-
twisting, distorting; perversion, corruption, depravity, manence, constancy.
depravation, degeneration, degeneracy, depredation, abide, v. 1. remain, continue, stay, stop, tarry, rest,
decadence, deterioration, vitiation, debasement, sit, lie, keep.
abasement. 2. live, dwell, reside, lodge, sojourn; Archaic, bide,
4. derangement, mental disorder; vagary, unsound- house, take up quarters, pitch tent, settle, anchor, put
ness, senility; illusion, delusion, fancy, unreality, dream down stakes, plant oneself.
world, hallucination; monomania, alienation, self- 3. last, endure, survive, outlive, persist, persevere,
deception; mania, craze, obsession, infatuation, fixation. exist; be steadfast, be constant, be immovable, be im-
abet, v. 1. encourage, prompt, urge, spur, goad, mutable, be indestructible, be permanent.
prod, egg on; incite, instigate, provoke, foment; stimu- 4. await, expect, wait for, be in store for, stand in
late, animate, whet, inspire, embolden; excite, arouse, hand, anticipate, attend.
inflame, fire, fire up, stir up, wind up, Inf. psych up. 5. endure, bear, tolerate, stomach; put up with,
2. support, advocate, patronize, back, endorse, sanc- stand, suffer, brook, bear with.
tion, approve, countenance; promote, further, for- 6. accept, acquiesce in, consent to, be in line with.
ward, advance, favor, foster; help, aid, assist, sub- 7. abide by a. comply with, observe, obey,
sidize, underwrite, second; uphold, maintain, sustain, acknowledge, agree to, submit to, conform to. b. dis-
succor; cooperate with, connive at, scheme at, befriend. charge, carry out, fulfill; keep faithful to, persist in,
abettor, n. 1. encourager, prompter, urger, spurer, hold to, stand by, adhere, stick to or with.
inciter, instigator, provoker, fomenter; stimulator, abiding, adj. eternal, unending, everlasting, immortal;
animator, inspirer; exciter, arouser, rouser, rabble- unchanging, unchangeable, indestructible, indissolu-
rouser, enflamer, demagogue. ble, immutable, changeless; durable, stable, lasting,
2. helper, aide, assistant, adjutant, coadjutant, coad- constant, permanent; inherent, indwelling.
jutor, coadjutress or coadjutrix, attendant, auxiliary; ability, n. 1. capacity, capability, potential, poten-
second, henchman, right hand, right-hand man; col- tiality; potency, power, strength; aptitude, intelligence,
league, comrade, associate, consociate, companion, ingenuity, brilliance, cleverness, smartness, aptness,
partner; cooperator, conniver, participant, par- wit, mother wit, mind for, understanding; faculty,
ticipator; confederate, accomplice, accessory, partner talent, gift, genius, facility, endowment, flair, bent,
in crime. turn, knack, forte, strong point; inclination, proclivi-
3. supporter, advocate, adviser, patron, patronizer, ty, propensity.
backer, endorser, upholder, sanctioner, approver; fol- 2. competence, competency, adequacy, sufficiency,
lower, disciple, adherent; agent, promoter, furtherer, capableness, adeptness, proficiency, know-how, savoir
advancer, favorer; subsidizer, underwriter, maintainer, faire; mastery, master hand, expertness, efficiency, ef-
sustainer. ficacy; skill, skillfulness, dexterity, adroitness, address,
abeyance, n. 1. suspension, intermission, inter- deftness; qualification, readiness, knowledge.
ruption, cease, cessation, discontinuation, remission; 3. abilities aptitudes, understandings, powers,
deferment, deferral, postponement, delay; lull, waiting strengths; faculties, talents, gifts, parts, Obs. intellec-
period; waiting, reserve, reservation; inaction, dor- tuals; skills, accomplishments, attainments.
mancy, latency, quiescence. abject, adj. 1. degrading, debasing, humiliating,
2. in abeyance in cold storage, on ice, on a back humbling, mortifying; poor, beggarly, paltry, sorry,
burner, hanging fire, in a holding pattern, abeyant. sad, pathetic, pathetical, piteous, pitiful, pitiable;
abeyant, adj. 1. suspended, deferred, postponed, shabby, shoddy, dirty, scruffy, scrubby, scurvy;
put off; tabled, shelved, set aside; inactive, static, sta- miserable, squalid, stark, destitute, hopeless, oppress-
tionary, resting, dormant, latent, quiescent; expectant, ed, brought-low.
waiting. 2. base, base-spirited, base-minded, vile, low, low-
2. See abeyance (def. 2). minded, debased, depraved, degraded, unprincipled,
abhor, v. 1. abominate, execrate, loathe, shudder immoral, profligate; evil, bad, wrong, ignoble; con-
at; despise, detest, feel aversion toward, hate, dislike; temptible, despicable, reptilian, sordid, foul, infa-
view with horror, shrink from; be nauseated by, not be mous, ignominious, odious, opprobrious, obnoxious,
able to stomach. detestable, execrable, rank, degenerate, corrupt, vicious,
2. disdain, scorn, contemn, spurn, look down upon, reprehensible, unmentionable, heinous, atrocious,
shun. flagitious, iniquitous, Archaic, facinorous.
abhorrence, n. 1. loathing, abominating, execration, 3. obsequious, Obs. obsequent, slavish, servile,
hatred, hate, detestation, odium; repugnance, aver- toadyish, sycophantic, sycophantical, sycophantish,
sion, hostility, enmity, animosity, animus, antipathy; flattering, fawning, truckling, ingratiating, SI. boot-
horror, revulsion, disgust, noisomeness. licking, SI. brown-nosing; obeisant, prostrate, on one's
2. disdain, scorn, contempt. knees; groveling, cringing, crawling, crouching, snivel-
abhorrent, adj. 1. loathsome, abominable, execra- ing, cowering.
ble, heinous, atrocious, hateful, detestable, odious; abjectness, n. 1. humbleness, poorness, beggarli-
repulsive, repellent, offensive, revolting, invidious; ob- ness, paltriness, patheticalness, pitifulness, pitiableness;
noxious, repugnant, disgusting, rank, noisome, shabbiness, shoddiness, dirtiness, scrubbiness, scruffi-
distasteful, disagreeable; horrible, horrifying, hideous, ness, scurviness; miserableness, squalidness, starkness,
shocking; nauseating, sickening; unpleasant, displeas- hopelessness, oppressiveness; abjection, degradation,
ing. debasement, humiliation, humbling, mortification;
2. loath to; averse to, opposed to, against, resistant to. misery, squalor, destitution, oppression.
3. remote from, distant from, removed from, outside 2. baseness, vileness, lowness, depravity, unprincipled-
of. ness, immorality, profligacy, profligateness; evilness,
abjuration abode
badness, wrongness, arrantness, nefariousness; mean- sanitizing, antisepsis; baptizing, baptizement, Eccles.
ness, villainy, villainousness, ignobility, ignobleness; baptism, christening, aspersion, aspersing, Rom. Cath.
contemptibility, contemptibleness, despicability, des- Ch. Asperges, sprinkling, besprinkling, holy water
picableness, detestability, detestableness, sordidness, sprinkle, morning star, affusion; immersion,
infamy, infamousness, ignominy, ignominiousness, submergence, dunking, Archaic, dipping.
odium, odiousness, opprobrium, opprobriousness, exe- 2. holy water, Eccles. laver, Eccles. chrism; rinse,
crableness, degeneracy, degeneration, corruptedness, rinsings.
corruptness, corruption, viciousness, reprehensibility, 3. washing, wash, bathing, bath, lavation, lavage,
reprehensibleness, heinousness, atrociousness, flagi- Archaic, laving, cleaning, deterging, shampooing,
tiousness, iniquity, iniquitousness, Archaic, facino- shampoo, scrubbing, scrub, scrub-up; showering,
rousness. shower, dousing, rinsing, rinse, flushing; abstersion,
3. obsequiousness, slavishness, servility, servileness, wiping, sponging, scouring.
toadyishness, sycophancy, flattery, fawning, truckling,
abnegate, v. 1. renounce, resign, abdicate; deny
ingratiation, SI. bootlicking, SI. brown-nosing; oneself, sacrifice, forgo, abstain from, forbear, refrain
obeisance, prostration, falling on one's knees; grovel- from; reject, refuse, decline, turn down, do or go
ing, cringing, crawling, crouching, sniveling, cowering. without.
abjuration, n. 1. renunciation, renouncement, re- 2. relinquish, give up, surrender, yield; concede, ac-
traction, disclamation, disclaiming; disavowal, denial, quiesce, submit.
recantation, recall, taking back.
abnegation, n. 1. renunciation, resignation, abdi-
2. repudiation, Law. disaffirmation, reversal, revoca-
cation; self-denial, sacrifice, abstinence, forbearance;
tion, repeal; rejection, discarding, disowning; abnega-
rejection, refusal, declining, declination.
tion, refusal, self-denial.
2. relinquishment, giving up, surrender, yielding;
abjure, v. 1. renounce, repudiate, disdain, forswear;
conceding, acquiescence, submission, submitting.
abandon, desert, forsake, relinquish, give up, reject,
discard, disown. abnormal, adj. 1. anomalous, anomalistic, irregu-
lar, variable; deviate, deviant, aberrant, divergent,
2. renege, take back, go back on, apostatize, depart
heterodox, heretical, wayward; deviating, diverging,
from; recall, retract, recant, revoke, withdraw.
departing, digressing, lapsing, wandering, straying,
3. avoid, shun, eschew; forgo, Inf. swear off, stay
rambling, roving.
away from, have nothing to do with, Inf. have no
truck with. 2. strange, odd, peculiar, queer, offbeat, curious,
ablaze, adj. 1. burning, blazing, on fire, afire, fiery; quizzical, erratic, eccentric, weird, bizarre, Inf.
quirky; unconventional, uncommon, unusual, unique,
flaming, aflame, flaring, ignited.
rare, extraordinary, exceptional, singular, individual;
2. gleaming, glowing, aglow, glaring; brightly lit,
monstrous, unnatural, freakish, grotesque, hétéroclite,
lighted, alight, luminous, illuminated; radiant, bril-
heteroclitical, Inf. freaky.
liant, incandescent; shimmering, twinkling, flashing,
flickering, glittering, sparkling, fluttering. 3. huge, enormous, stupendous, colossal, immense,
3. excited, exhilarated, enlivened, inspired, ani- mammoth, gargantuan, gigantic, vast.
mated, enthusiastic, eager; stimulated, aroused, in- abnormality, n. 1. anomaly, aberration, perver-
tensely desirous, intense; ardent, fervent, fervid, sion; oddity, peculiarity, curiosity, rarity; monster,
perfervid, impassioned, passionate, frenzied. monstrosity, mutant, freak, hétéroclite, malforma-
4. very angry, irate, wrathful, wroth, incensed; tion, miscreation, abortion, deformity.
enraged, raging, infuriated, infuriate, furious; ranting, 2. deviation, aberrance, aberrancy, irregularity,
raving, vehement, fuming; heated, worked up, flared variation, abnormity, divergence, digression, Rare.
up; vexed, irritated, piqued, chafed, galled, riled, net- anomalism; unconformity, unconventionality, uncom-
tled, offended. monness, unusualness, uncommonality, singularity,
able, adj. 1. competent, capable, adequate, equal singularness, exception; eccentricity, idiosyncrasy,
to, Inf. up to, proficient, efficient; qualified, skilled, quirk, hobby-horse; strangeness, oddness, queerness,
practiced, experienced, Fr. au fait, fit, fitted; powerful, bizarreness.
potent, strong. aboard, adv. 1. on board, on deck, on ship, on
2. superior, expert, Inf. topnotch, topflight, top board ship, on shipboard, all aboard, in or on the ves-
drawer, first-rate, Inf. crack, SI. crackerjack, SI. on sel, topside, before the mast; on; in, inside, inside of,
the ball, Inf. whiz-bang, Brit. SI. whizzo; talented, within.
gifted, adept, skillful, dexterous, adroit, deft; smart, 2. alongside, beside, along the side, by the side of,
clever, ingenious, brilliant, inventive; intelligent, close to the side, to the side, off to the side, flush with,
sagacious, learned, knowledgeable, versed. next to, right next to; abreast, side by side, cheek by
3. apt, facile, accomplished, finished, polished, mas- cheek, cheek by jowl, board by board.
terful, masterly; effective, striking, telling, revealing. 3. Baseball Slang, on base, on the basepaths, on,
able-bodied, adj. healthy, in good health, fit, phys- SI. on the pond.
ically-fit, in good condition, sound, in fine fettle, able, —prep. 4. aboard of, on; in, into, to; inside, inside
athletic, Inf. in good shape, Inf. in shape; robust, of, within.
vigorous, full of vigor, hearty, hardy, hale, hale and abode, n. 1. home, domicile, domicil, dwelling,
hearty, lusty, strong and healthy, bursting with health dwelling place, dwelling home, residence, residency,
or vigor, Scot., North. Eng. and Irish Eng. sonsy; habitation, habitancy, Scot, and North Eng. bigging,
stout, staunch, stanch, firm, sturdy, burly, tough, Scot, howff; lodging, lodgings, lodging place, lodge-
iron, Inf. tough as nails, Inf. hard as rock; stalwart, ment or lodgment, nest, roost, perch; quarters, living
rugged, hefty, husky, solid, well-knit; muscular, quarters, rooms, accommodations, housing, roof over
brawny, strapping, broad-shouldered, powerfully- one's head, Inf. pad, Inf. crash pad, Chiefly Brit. Inf.
built, Derog. muscle-bound; powerful, potent, mighty, diggings, Brit. Inf. digs; apartment, flat, tenement,
all-powerful, herculean, Literary, puissant. walk-up, cold-water flat, Brit, chambers, Chiefly Brit.
ablution, n. 1. cleansing, purification, purifying, maisonette; penthouse, townhouse, condominium, SI.
depuration, depurating, purge, purging, mundifying, condo; mobile home, motor home, camper, trailer; ad-
épuration, lustration, lustrating; decontamination, de- dress, location, situation, whereabouts, place.
contaminating, depollution, depolluting, sanitization, 2. mansion, palace, palatial or stately dwelling, Fr.