aspiration n. An earnest wish for that which is above one's present reach.



aspire v. To have an earnest desire, wish, or longing, as for something high and good, not yet attained.



assailant n. One who attacks.



assassin n. One who kills, or tries to kill, treacherously or secretly.



assassinate v. To kill, as by surprise or secret assault, especially the killing of some eminent person.



assassination n. Murderer, as by secret assault or treachery.



assay n. The chemical analysis or testing of an alloy ore.



assent v. To express agreement with a statement or matter of opinion.



assess v. To determine the amount of (a tax or other sum to be paid).



assessor n. An officer whose duty it is to assess taxes.



assets n. pl. Property in general, regarded as applicable to the payment of debts.



assiduous adj. Diligent.



assignee n. One who is appointed to act for another in the management of certain property and interests. assimilate v. To adapt.



assonance n. Resemblance or correspondence" title="n.通信；符合；相当">correspondence in sound.



assonant adj. Having resemblance of sound.



assonate v. To accord in sound, especially vowel sound.



assuage v. To cause to be less harsh, violent, or severe, as excitement, appetite, pain, or disease.



astringent adj. Harsh in disposition or character.



astute adj. Keen in discernment.



atheism n. The denial of the existence of God.



athirst adj. Wanting water.



athwart adv. From side to side.



atomizer n. An apparatus for reducing a liquid to a fine spray, as for disinfection, inhalation, etc.



atone v. To make amends for.



atonement n. Amends, reparation, or expiation made from wrong or injury.



atrocious adj. Outrageously or wantonly wicked, criminal, vile, or cruel.



atrocity n. Great cruelty or reckless wickedness.



attache n. A subordinate member of a diplomaticembassy.



attest v. To certify as accurate, genuine, or true.



attorney-general n. The chief law-officer of a government.



auburn adj. Reddish-brown, said usually of the hair.



audacious adj. Fearless.



audible adj. Loud enough to be heard.



audition n. The act or sensation of hearing.



auditory adj. Of or pertaining to hearing or the organs or sense of hearing.



augment v. To make bigger.



augur v. To predict.



Augustinian adj. Pertaining to St. Augustine, his doctrines, or the religious orders called after him.



aura n. Pervasive psychic influence supposed to emanate from persons



aural adj. Of or pertaining to the ear.



auricle n. One of the two chambers of the heart which receives the blood from the veins.



auricular adj. Of or pertaining to the ear, its auricle, or the sense of hearing.



auriferous adj. Containing gold.



aurora n. A luminousphenomenon in the upper regions of the atmosphere.



auspice n. favoring, protecting, or propitious influence or guidance.



austere adj. Severely simple; unadorned.



autarchy n. Unrestricted power.



authentic adj. Of undisputed origin.



authenticity n. The state or quality of being genuine, or of the origin and authorship claimed.



autobiography n. The story of one's life written by himself.



autocracy n. Absolute government.



autocrat n. Any one who claims or wields unrestricted or undisputed authority or influence.



automaton n. Any living being whose actions are or appear to be involuntary or mechanical.



autonomous adj. Self-governing.



autonomy n. Self-government.



autopsy n. The examination of a dead body by dissection to ascertain the cause of death.



autumnal adj. Of or pertaining to autumn.



auxiliary n. One who or that which aids or helps, especially when regarded as subsidiary or accessory.



avalanche n. The fall or sliding of a mass of snow or ice down a mountain-slope, often bearing with it rock.



avarice n. Passion for getting and keeping riches.



aver v. To assert as a fact.



averse adj. Reluctant.



aversion n. A mental condition of fixed opposition to or dislike of some particular thing.



avert v. To turn away or aside.



aviary n. A spacious cage or enclosure in which live birds are kept.



avidity n. Greediness. J



avocation n. Diversion.



avow v. To declare openly.



awaken v. To arouse, as emotion, interest, or the like.



B



botanize v. To study plant-life.



botany n. The science that treats of plants.



bountiful adj. Showing abundance. 1i



Bowdlerize v. To expurgate in editing (a literary composition) by omitting words or passages.



bowler n. In cricket, the player who delivers the ball.



boycott v. To place the products or merchandise of under a ban.



brae n. Hillside.



braggart n. A vain boaster.



brandish v. To wave, shake, or flourish triumphantly or defiantly, as a sword or spear.



bravado n. An aggressive display of boldness.



bravo interj. Well done.



bray n. A loud harsh sound, as the cry of an ass or the blast of a horn.



braze v. To make of or ornament with brass.



brazier n. An open pan or basin for holding live coals.



breach n. The violation of official duty, lawful right, or a legal obligation.



breaker n. One who trains horses, dogs, etc.



breech n. The buttocks.



brethren n. pl. Members of a brotherhood, gild, profession, association, or the like.



brevity n. Shortness of duration.



bric-a-brac n. Objects of curiosity or for decoration.



bridle n. The head-harness of a horse consisting of a head-stall, a bit, and the reins.



brigade n. A body of troops consisting of two or more regiments.



brigadier n. General officer who commands a brigade, ranking between a colonel and a major-general.



brigand n. One who lives by robbery and plunder.



brimstone n. Sulfur.



brine n. Water saturated with salt.



bristle n. One of the coarse, stiff hairs of swine: used in brush-making, etc.



Britannia n. The United Kingdom of Great Britain.



Briticism n. A word, idiom, or phrase characteristic of Great Britain or the British.



brittle adj. Fragile. P J m



broach v. To mention, for the first time.



broadcast adj. Disseminated far and wide.



brogan n. A coarse, heavy shoe



brogue n. Any dialectic pronunciation of English, especially that of the Irish people.



brokerage n. The business of making sales and purchases for a commission; a broker.



bromine n. A dark reddish-brown, non-metallic liquid element with a suffocating odor.



bronchitis n. Inflammation of the bronchial tubes.



bronchus n. Either of the two subdivisions of the trachea conveying air into the lungs.



brooch n. An article of jewelry fastened by a hinged pin and hook on the underside.



brotherhood n. Spiritual or social fellowship or solidarity.



browbeat v. To overwhelm, or attempt to do so, by stern, haughty, or rude address or manner.



brusque adj. Somewhat rough or rude in manner or speech.



buffoon n. A clown.



buffoonery n. Low drollery, coarse jokes, etc.



bulbous adj. Of, or pertaining to, or like a bulb.



bullock n. An ox.



bulrush n. Any one of various tall rush-like plants growing in damp ground or water.



bulwark n. Anything that gives security or defense.



bumper n. A cup or glass filled to the brim, especially one to be drunk as a toast or health.



bumptious adj. Full of offensive and aggressive self-conceit.



bungle v. To execute clumsily.



buoyancy n. Power or tendency to float on or in a liquid or gas.



buoyant adj. Having the power or tendency to float or keep afloat.



bureau n. A chest of drawers for clothing, etc. 4



bureaucracy n. Government by departments of men transacting particular branches of public business.



burgess n. In colonial times, a member of the lower house of the legislature of Maryland or Virginia.



burgher n. An inhabitant, citizen or freeman of a borough burgh, or corporate town.



burnish v. To make brilliant or shining.



bursar n. A treasurer.



bustle v. To hurry.



butt v. To strike with or as with the head, or horns.



butte n. A conspicuous hill, low mountain, or natural turret, generally isolated.



buttress n. Any support or prop.



by-law n. A rule or law adopted by an association, a corporation, or the like.



C



cabal n. A number of persons secretly united for effecting by intrigue some private purpose.



cabalism n. Superstitious devotion to one's religion.



cabinet n. The body of men constituting the official advisors of the executive head of a nation.



cacophony n. A disagreeable, harsh, or discordant sound or combination of sounds or tones.



cadaverous adj. Resembling a corpse.



cadence n. Rhythmical or measured flow or movement, as in poetry or the time and pace of marching troops.



cadenza n. An embellishment or flourish, prepared or improvised, for a solo voice or instrument.



caitiff adj. Cowardly.



cajole v. To impose on or dupe by flattering speech.



cajolery n. Delusive speech.



calculable adj. That may be estimated by reckoning.



calculus n. A concretion formed in various parts of the body resembling a pebble in hardness.



callosity n. The state of being hard and insensible.



callow adj. Without experience of the world.



calorie n. Amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water 1 degree centigrade.



calumny n. Slander.



Calvary n. The place where Christ was crucified.



Calvinism n. The system of doctrine taught by John Calvin.



Calvinize v. To teach or imbue with the doctrines of Calvinism.



came n. A leaden sash-bar or grooved strip for fastening panes in stained-glass windows.



cameo n. Any small engraved or carved work in relief.



campaign n. A complete series of connected military operations.



Canaanite n. A member of one of the three tribes that dwelt in the land of Canaan, or western Palestine.



canary adj. Of a bright but delicate yellow.



candid adj. Straightforward.



candor n. The quality of frankness or outspokenness.



canine adj. Characteristic of a dog.



canon n. Any rule or law.



cant v. To talk in a singsong, preaching tone with affectedsolemnity.



cantata n. A choral composition.



canto n. One of the divisions of an extended poem.



cantonment n. The part of the town or district in which the troops are quartered.



capacious adj. Roomy.



capillary n. A minute vessel having walls composed of a single layer of cells.



capitulate v. To surrender or stipulate terms.



caprice n. A whim.



caption n. A heading, as of a chapter, section, document, etc.



captious adj. Hypercritical.



captivate v. To fascinate, as by excellence. eloquence, or beauty.



carcass n. The dead body of an animal. A?



cardiac adj. Pertaining to the heart.



cardinal adj. Of prime or special importance.



caret n. A sign (^) placed below a line, indicating where omitted words, etc., should be inserted.



caricature n. a picture or description in which natural characteristics are exaggerated or distorted.



carnage n. Massacre.



carnal adj. Sensual.



carnivorous adj. Eating or living on flesh.



carouse v. To drink deeply and in boisterous or jovial manner.



carrion n. Dead and putrefying flesh.



cartilage n. An elastic animal tissue of firm consistence.



cartridge n. A charge for a firearm, or for blasting.



caste n. The division of society on artificial grounds.



castigate v. To punish.



casual adj. Accidental, by chance.



casualty n. A fatal or serious accident or disaster.



cataclysm n. Any overwhelming flood of water.



cataract n. Opacity of the lens of the eye resulting in complete or partialblindness.



catastrophe n. Any great and sudden misfortune or calamity.



cathode n. The negative pole or electrode of a galvanic battery.



Catholicism n. The system, doctrine, and practice of the Roman Catholic Church. 1



catholicity n. Universal prevalence or acceptance.



cat-o-nine-tails n. An instrument consisting of nine pieces of cord, formerly used for flogging in the army and navy.



caucus n. A private meeting of members of a political party to select candidates.



causal adj. Indicating or expressing a cause.



caustic adj. Sarcastic and severe.



cauterize v. To burn or sear as with a heated iron.



cede v. To pass title to.



censor n. An official examiner of manuscripts empowered to prohibit their publication.