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VOCABULARY LISTS > USER LISTS

Johna's Word List 419 words

October 5, 2009 By Johna R. (Germantown Hills, IL)
Words I enjoy or look up on this site; words that can be selected to embody an precise (but often abstract) mood, tone, emotion or nuance - in most cases a positive or lovely one...

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Definitions Notes & Examples Words Only
  1. abdicate
    give up, such as power, as of monarchs and emperors, or duties and obligations
  2. abrogate
    revoke formally
  3. accede
    yield to another's wish or opinion
  4. accentuate
    to stress, single out as important
  5. accoutrement
    clothing that is worn or carried, but not part of your main clothing
  6. acquiesce
    to agree or express agreement
  7. acrimonious
    marked by strong resentment or cynicism
  8. acrimony
    a rough and bitter manner
  9. acumen
    shrewdness shown by keen insight
  10. addled
    confused and vague; used especially of thinking
  11. adulation
    servile flattery; exaggerated and hypocritical praise
  12. affable
    diffusing warmth and friendliness
  13. affectation
    a deliberate pretense or exaggerated display
  14. affinity
    a natural attraction or feeling of kinship
  15. aficionado
    a serious devotee of some particular music genre or musical performer
  16. aground
    with the bottom lodged on the ground
  17. alchemy
    a pseudoscientific forerunner of chemistry in medieval times
  18. allay
    lessen the intensity of or calm
  19. ambivalent
    uncertain or unable to decide about what course to follow
  20. ameliorate
    to make better
  21. amiable
    diffusing warmth and friendliness
  22. amicable
    characterized by friendship and good will
  23. anathema
    a formal ecclesiastical curse accompanied by excommunication
  24. anomalous
    deviating from the general or common order or type
  25. antipathy
    a feeling of intense dislike
  26. antiquity
    the historic period preceding the Middle Ages in Europe
  27. apotheosis
    model of excellence or perfection of a kind; one having no equal
  28. approbation
    official approval
  29. apropos
    of an appropriate or pertinent nature
  30. arcane
    requiring secret or mysterious knowledge
  31. ardour
    feelings of great warmth and intensity
  32. aromatic
    having a strong pleasant odor
  33. artful
    not straightforward or candid; giving a false appearance of frankness
  34. articulation
    the shape or manner in which things come together and a connection is made
  35. ascension
    a movement upward
  36. ashen
    anemic looking from illness or emotion
  37. assiduity
    great and constant diligence and attention
  38. assiduously
    with care and persistence
  39. assuage
    provide physical relief, as from pain
  40. astute
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
  41. asymptotic
    relating to or of the nature of an asymptote
  42. atavistic
    characteristic of an atavist
  43. attenuated
    reduced in strength
  44. attune
    adjust or accustom to; bring into harmony with
  45. audacious
    disposed to venture or take risks
  46. auspicious
    auguring favorable circumstances and good luck
  47. avuncular
    being or relating to an uncle
  48. azimuth
    the azimuth of a celestial body is the angle between the vertical plane containing it and the plane of the meridian
  49. bailiwick
    the area over which a bailiff has jurisdiction
  50. bedrock
    solid unweathered rock lying beneath surface deposits of soil
  51. beguiling
    highly attractive and able to arouse hope or desire
  52. behest
    an authoritative command or request
  53. beholden
    under a moral obligation to someone
  54. belie
    be in contradiction with
  55. bemused
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements; filled with bewilderment
  56. benevolent
    showing or motivated by sympathy and understanding and generosity
  57. bereft
    sorrowful through loss or deprivation
  58. bestow
    give as a gift
  59. bifurcate
    split or divide into two
  60. bombastic
    ostentatiously lofty in style
  61. bon vivant
    a person devoted to refined sensuous enjoyment (especially good food and drink)
  62. bourgeois
    (according to Marxist thought) being of the property-owning class and exploitive of the working class
  63. bourgeoisie
    the social class between the lower and upper classes
  64. burgeon
    grow and flourish
  65. cachet
    an indication of approved or superior status
  66. cajole
    influence or urge by gentle urging, caressing, or flattering
  67. campy
    providing sophisticated amusement by virtue of having artificially (and vulgarly) mannered or banal or sentimental qualities
  68. capacious
    large in capacity
  69. capitulate
    surrender under agreed conditions
  70. capricious
    determined by chance or impulse or whim rather than by necessity or reason
  71. cathartic
    strongly laxative
  72. cede
    give over; surrender or relinquish to the physical control of another
  73. certitude
    total certainty or greater certainty than circumstances warrant
  74. cherry
    any of numerous trees and shrubs producing a small fleshy round fruit with a single hard stone; many also produce a valuable hardwood
  75. circuitous
    deviating from a straight course
  76. circumspect
    heedful of potential consequences
  77. clandestine
    conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods
  78. cogent
    powerfully persuasive
  79. cohesive
    cohering or tending to cohere; well integrated
  80. colloquial
    characteristic of informal spoken language or conversation
  81. commensurate
    corresponding in size or degree or extent
  82. complicity
    guilt as an accomplice in a crime or offense
  83. comport
    behave in a certain manner
  84. concupiscence
    a desire for sexual intimacy
  85. conducive
    tending to bring about; being partly responsible for
  86. confluence
    a place where things merge or flow together (especially rivers)
  87. conjoin
    make contact or come together
  88. conjure
    summon into action or bring into existence, often as if by magic
  89. contrite
    feeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins or offenses
  90. conviviality
    a jovial nature
  91. coterminous
    being of equal extent or scope or duration
  92. cursory
    hasty and without attention to detail; not thorough
  93. dalliance
    the deliberate act of delaying and playing instead of working
  94. debonaire
    having a sophisticated charm
  95. decadent
    a person who has fallen into a decadent state (morally or artistically)
  96. delectable
    extremely pleasing to the sense of taste
  97. deleterious
    harmful to living things
  98. demarcate
    set, mark, or draw the boundaries of something
  99. demur
    take exception to
  100. demure
    affectedly modest or shy especially in a playful or provocative way
  101. derivation
    the source or origin from which something derives (i.e. comes or issues)
  102. diffuse
    spread out; not concentrated in one place
  103. dignify
    confer dignity or honor upon
  104. diminutive
    a word that is formed with a suffix (such as -let or -kin) to indicate smallness
  105. disabuse
    free somebody (from an erroneous belief)
  106. discerning
    having or revealing keen insight and good judgment
  107. discombobulate
    cause to be confused emotionally
  108. disconsolate
    sad beyond comforting; incapable of being consoled
  109. discordant
    not in agreement or harmony
  110. disquieting
    causing mental discomfort
  111. dissonance
    disagreeable sounds
  112. distil
    undergo condensation; change from a gaseous to a liquid state and fall in drops
  113. distill
    undergo condensation; change from a gaseous to a liquid state and fall in drops
  114. Draconian
    of or relating to Draco or his harsh code of laws
  115. dragoon
    a member of a European military unit formerly composed of heavily armed cavalrymen
  116. dulcet
    pleasing to the ear
  117. dulcimer
    a stringed instrument used in American folk music; an elliptical body and a fretted fingerboard and three strings
  118. duplicitous
    marked by deliberate deceptiveness especially by pretending one set of feelings and acting under the influence of another
  119. ebullient
    joyously unrestrained
  120. edifice
    a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place
  121. effectuate
    produce
  122. efficacious
    marked by qualities giving the power to produce an intended effect
  123. efficacy
    capacity or power to produce a desired effect
  124. effusive
    uttered with unrestrained enthusiasm
  125. elan
    enthusiastic and assured vigor and liveliness
  126. elemental
    of or being the essential or basic part
  127. elusive
    skillful at eluding capture
  128. emanate
    give out (breath or an odor)
  129. embellish
    make more attractive by adding ornament, colour, etc.
  130. emolument
    compensation received by virtue of holding an office or having employment (usually in the form of wages or fees)
  131. emotive
    characterized by emotion
  132. emphatic
    spoken with emphasis
  133. emulate
    strive to equal or match, especially by imitating
  134. enchanting
    capturing interest as if by a spell
  135. ennui
    the feeling of being bored by something tedious
  136. enrapture
    hold spellbound
  137. ensue
    issue or terminate (in a specified way, state, etc.); end
  138. enthrallment
    a feeling of great liking for something wonderful and unusual
  139. envisage
    form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
  140. ephemeral
    anything short-lived, as an insect that lives only for a day in its winged form
  141. epicenter
    the point on the Earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake
  142. epiphany
    a divine manifestation
  143. epitome
    a standard or typical example
  144. equanimity
    steadiness of mind under stress
  145. errant
    straying from the right course or from accepted standards
  146. erudite
    having or showing profound knowledge
  147. eschew
    avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of
  148. esplanade
    a long stretch of open level ground (paved or grassy) for walking beside the seashore
  149. espouse
    choose and follow; as of theories, ideas, policies, strategies or plans
  150. esthetically
    in a tasteful way
  151. ethereal
    characterized by lightness and insubstantiality; as impalpable or intangible as air
  152. euphemistic
    substituting a mild term for a harsher or distasteful one
  153. evocative
    serving to bring to mind
  154. exigent
    demanding attention
  155. existential
    relating to or dealing with existence (especially with human existence)
  156. expatiate
    add details, as to an account or idea; clarify the meaning of and discourse in a learned way, usually in writing
  157. exquisite
    delicately beautiful
  158. extol
    praise, glorify, or honor
  159. exult
    feel extreme happiness or elation
  160. facade
    the face or front of a building
  161. farcical
    broadly or extravagantly humorous; resembling farce
  162. fastidious
    giving careful attention to detail; hard to please; excessively concerned with cleanliness
  163. fervent
    characterized by intense emotion
  164. filial
    designating the generation or the sequence of generations following the parental generation
  165. foible
    a behavioral attribute that is distinctive and peculiar to an individual
  166. formidable
    extremely impressive in strength or excellence
  167. fractious
    easily irritated or annoyed
  168. frenetic
    excessively agitated; distraught with fear or other violent emotion
  169. furtive
    secret and sly or sordid
  170. garish
    tastelessly showy
  171. gentility
    elegance by virtue of fineness of manner and expression
  172. germane
    relevant and appropriate
  173. gestalt
    a configuration or pattern of elements so unified as a whole that it cannot be described merely as a sum of its parts
  174. gesticulate
    show, express or direct through movement
  175. gossamer
    a gauze fabric with an extremely fine texture
  176. gratuitous
    unnecessary and unwarranted
  177. hackneyed
    repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse
  178. heartrending
    causing or marked by grief or anguish
  179. hedonistic
    devoted to pleasure
  180. hegemony
    the dominance or leadership of one social group or nation over others
  181. heuristic
    a commonsense rule (or set of rules) intended to increase the probability of solving some problem
  182. holistic
    emphasizing the organic or functional relation between parts and the whole
  183. hubris
    overbearing pride or presumption
  184. idiosyncratic
    peculiar to the individual
  185. idyllic
    suggestive of an idyll; charmingly simple and serene
  186. idyllic
    suggestive of an idyll; charmingly simple and serene
  187. illustrative
    clarifying by use of examples
  188. illustrious
    widely known and esteemed
  189. imbue
    spread or diffuse through
  190. immaculate
    completely neat and clean
  191. impeccable
    without fault or error
  192. imperative
    requiring attention or action
  193. impervious
    not admitting of passage or capable of being affected
  194. implacable
    incapable of being placated
  195. imprudent
    not prudent or wise
  196. inadvertent
    happening by chance or unexpectedly or unintentionally
  197. inception
    an event that is a beginning; a first part or stage of subsequent events
  198. incessant
    uninterrupted in time and indefinitely long continuing
  199. inchoate
    only partly in existence; imperfectly formed
  200. incipient
    only partly in existence; imperfectly formed
  201. incisive
    having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions
  202. indelible
    cannot be removed or erased
  203. indomitable
    impossible to subdue
  204. ineffable
    defying expression or description
  205. ineffably
    to an inexpressible degree
  206. inexorable
    not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty
  207. inexplicable
    incapable of being explained or accounted for
  208. inextricable
    not permitting extrication; incapable of being disentangled or untied
  209. infuse
    fill, as with a certain quality
  210. inimitable
    defying imitation; matchless
  211. insatiable
    impossible to satisfy
  212. inscrutable
    of an obscure nature
  213. insinuation
    an indirect (and usually malicious) implication
  214. insouciant
    marked by blithe unconcern
  215. inspirit
    infuse with spirit
  216. insular
    relating to or characteristic of or situated on an island
  217. intellection
    the process of using your mind to consider something carefully
  218. interstitial
    of or relating to interstices
  219. intractable
    not tractable; difficult to manage or mold
  220. intransigence
    the trait of being intransigent; stubbornly refusing to compromise
  221. intrepid
    invulnerable to fear or intimidation
  222. inure
    cause to accept or become hardened to; habituate
  223. iteration
    doing or saying again; a repeated performance
  224. iterative
    marked by iteration
  225. jaunty
    having a cheerful, lively, and self-confident air
  226. jettison
    throw away, of something encumbering
  227. jingoism
    fanatical patriotism
  228. jubilant
    full of high-spirited delight
  229. jubilant
    full of high-spirited delight
  230. juxtaposition
    the act of positioning close together (or side by side)
  231. kismet
    (Islam) the will of Allah
  232. labile
    liable to change
  233. languid
    lacking spirit or liveliness
  234. languorous
    lacking spirit or liveliness
  235. largesse
    liberality in bestowing gifts; extremely liberal and generous of spirit
  236. lascivious
    driven by lust; preoccupied with or exhibiting lustful desires
  237. lassitude
    a feeling of lack of interest or energy
  238. legitimize
    make legal
  239. levy
    impose and collect
  240. lexicon
    a reference book containing an alphabetical list of words with information about them
  241. licentious
    lacking moral discipline; especially sexually unrestrained
  242. lilting
    characterized by a buoyant rhythm
  243. lithe
    moving and bending with ease
  244. loquacious
    full of trivial conversation
  245. Lothario
    a successful womanizer; a man who behaves selfishly in his sexual relationships with women
  246. Lothario
    a successful womanizer; a man who behaves selfishly in his sexual relationships with women
  247. lucidity
    free from obscurity and easy to understand; the comprehensibility of clear expression
  248. luminary
    a celebrity who is an inspiration to others
  249. luminous
    softly bright or radiant
  250. luscious
    having strong sexual appeal
  251. macabre
    shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
  252. machination
    a crafty and involved plot to achieve your (usually sinister) ends
  253. malign
    speak unfavorably about
  254. mellifluous
    pleasing to the ear
  255. mercurial
    liable to sudden unpredictable change
  256. meticulous
    marked by precise accordance with details
  257. mettle
    the courage to carry on
  258. milieu
    the environmental condition
  259. mindful
    bearing in mind; attentive to
  260. ministerial
    of or relating to a minister of religion or the minister's office
  261. misgiving
    uneasiness about the fitness of an action
  262. modicum
    a small or moderate or token amount
  263. mollify
    cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of
  264. monolith
    a single great stone (often in the form of a column or obelisk)
  265. moxie
    fortitude and determination
  266. myopic
    unable to see distant objects clearly
  267. myriad
    a large indefinite number
  268. nascence
    the event of being born
  269. nascent
    being born or beginning
  270. nefarious
    extremely wicked
  271. nettle
    any of numerous plants having stinging hairs that cause skin irritation on contact (especially of the genus Urtica or family Urticaceae)
  272. nostalgic
    unhappy about being away and longing for familiar things or persons
  273. nouveau-riche
    characteristic of someone who has risen economically or socially but lacks the social skills appropriate for this new position
  274. obfuscate
    make obscure or unclear
  275. obscurity
    the state of being indistinct or indefinite for lack of adequate illumination
  276. obsequious
    attempting to win favor from influential people by flattery
  277. obstreperous
    noisily and stubbornly defiant
  278. onerous
    not easily borne; wearing
  279. onomatopoeia
    using words that imitate the sound they denote
  280. ontological
    of or relating to ontology
  281. ostentatious
    intended to attract notice and impress others
  282. palatial
    relating to or being a palace
  283. panacea
    hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases; once sought by the alchemists
  284. panache
    distinctive and stylish elegance
  285. panoply
    a complete and impressive array
  286. paradigm
    a standard or typical example
  287. paragon
    an ideal instance; a perfect embodiment of a concept
  288. parsimonious
    excessively unwilling to spend
  289. parsimony
    extreme stinginess
  290. parvenue
    of or characteristic of a parvenu
  291. pedantic
    marked by a narrow focus on or display of learning especially its trivial aspects
  292. penchant
    a strong liking
  293. penultimate
    next to the last
  294. perfunctory
    hasty and without attention to detail; not thorough
  295. perilous
    fraught with danger
  296. peripatetic
    traveling especially on foot
  297. permeate
    spread or diffuse through
  298. permutation
    complete change in character or condition
  299. piecemeal
    one thing at a time
  300. pithy
    concise and full of meaning
  301. placate
    cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of
  302. placid
    (of a body of water) free from disturbance by heavy waves
  303. platitude
    a trite or obvious remark
  304. plethora
    extreme excess
  305. poignant
    keenly distressing to the mind or feelings
  306. polemic
    a controversy (especially over a belief or dogma)
  307. pollyannaish
    pleasantly (even unrealistically) optimistic
  308. Potemkin
    a Russian officer and politician who was a favorite of Catherine II and in 1762 helped her to seize power; when she visited the Crimea in 1787 he gave the order for sham villages to be built (1739-1791)
  309. precipice
    a very steep cliff
  310. precipitous
    extremely steep
  311. precocious
    characterized by or characteristic of exceptionally early development or maturity (especially in mental aptitude)
  312. predilection
    a predisposition in favor of something
  313. prescient
    perceiving the significance of events before they occur
  314. pretentious
    making claim to or creating an appearance of (often undeserved) importance or distinction
  315. preternaturally
    in a supernatural manner
  316. preternaturally
    in a supernatural manner
  317. prevailing
    most frequent or common
  318. privy
    hidden from general view or use
  319. proclivity
    a natural inclination
  320. proclivity
    a natural inclination
  321. prodigious
    so great in size or force or extent as to elicit awe
  322. progeny
    the immediate descendants of a person
  323. prognosticate
    make a prediction about; tell in advance
  324. promulgate
    state or announce
  325. prosaic
    lacking wit or imagination
  326. providence
    the prudence and care exercised by someone in the management of resources
  327. provincial
    of or associated with a province
  328. prowess
    a superior skill that you can learn by study and practice and observation
  329. punctilious
    marked by precise accordance with details
  330. purview
    the range of interest or activity that can be anticipated
  331. putative
    purported; commonly put forth or accepted as true on inconclusive grounds
  332. quaint
    attractively old-fashioned (but not necessarily authentic)
  333. quidnunc
    a person who meddles in the affairs of others
  334. quintessential
    representing the perfect example of a class or quality
  335. quixotic
    not sensible about practical matters; idealistic and unrealistic
  336. quotidian
    found in the ordinary course of events
  337. rakish
    marked by up-to-dateness in dress and manners
  338. rankle
    gnaw into; make resentful or angry
  339. recrimination
    mutual accusations
  340. redolent
    having a strong pleasant odor
  341. redoubtable
    inspiring fear
  342. rejoinder
    a quick reply to a question or remark (especially a witty or critical one)
  343. reminiscent
    serving to bring to mind
  344. render
    give or supply
  345. repartee
    adroitness and cleverness in reply
  346. replete
    filled to satisfaction with food or drink
  347. resonant
    characterized by resonance
  348. resplendent
    having great beauty and splendor
  349. reticent
    reluctant to draw attention to yourself
  350. rhapsodic
    feeling great rapture or delight
  351. Rubicon
    the boundary in ancient times between Italy and Gaul; Caesar's crossing it with his army in 49 BC was an act of war
  352. rudimentary
    being in the earliest stages of development
  353. ruefully
    in a rueful manner
  354. ruminate
    reflect deeply on a subject
  355. sagacious
    acutely insightful and wise
  356. salacious
    suggestive of or tending to moral looseness
  357. sanguine
    inclined to a healthy reddish color often associated with outdoor life
  358. sardonic
    disdainfully or ironically humorous; scornful and mocking
  359. satirical
    exposing human folly to ridicule
  360. satyriasis
    abnormally intense sexual desire in men
  361. scintilla
    a tiny or scarcely detectable amount
  362. scintillating
    having brief brilliant points or flashes of light
  363. scrupulous
    characterized by extreme care and great effort
  364. seismic
    subject to or caused by an earthquake or earth vibration
  365. seismograph
    a measuring instrument for detecting and measuring the intensity and direction and duration of movements of the ground (as an earthquake)
  366. semantic
    of or relating to meaning or the study of meaning
  367. semaphore
    an apparatus for visual signaling with lights or mechanically moving arms
  368. seminal
    pertaining to or containing or consisting of semen
  369. sententious
    concise and full of meaning
  370. serendipity
    good luck in making unexpected and fortunate discoveries
  371. sesquipedalian
    a very long word (a foot and a half long)
  372. sojourn
    a temporary stay (e.g., as a guest)
  373. solicitude
    a feeling of excessive concern
  374. solicitude
    a feeling of excessive concern
  375. soporific
    sleep inducing
  376. specious
    plausible but false
  377. spectacularly
    in a spectacular manner
  378. splendid
    characterized by grandeur
  379. spurious
    plausible but false
  380. steely
    resembling steel in hardness
  381. stepwise
    proceeding in steps
  382. stoicism
    an indifference to pleasure or pain
  383. stratification
    forming or depositing in layers
  384. striation
    any of a number of tiny parallel grooves such as: the scratches left by a glacier on rocks or the streaks or ridges in muscle tissue
  385. stultify
    deprive of strength or efficiency; make useless or worthless
  386. sublime
    of high moral or intellectual value; elevated in nature or style
  387. succinct
    briefly giving the gist of something
  388. sundry
    consisting of a haphazard assortment of different kinds
  389. supercilious
    having or showing arrogant superiority to and disdain of those one views as unworthy
  390. superlative
    highest in quality
  391. supposition
    the cognitive process of supposing
  392. surreal
    characterized by fantastic imagery and incongruous juxtapositions
  393. surreptitious
    marked by quiet and caution and secrecy; taking pains to avoid being observed
  394. taciturn
    habitually reserved and uncommunicative
  395. titillating
    pleasantly and superficially exciting
  396. tome
    a (usually) large and scholarly book
  397. tremulous
    (of the voice) quivering as from weakness or fear
  398. tryst
    a secret rendezvous (especially between lovers)
  399. tumescence
    tumidity resulting from the presence of blood or other fluid in the tissues
  400. typify
    embody the essential characteristics of or be a typical example of
  401. ubiquitous
    being present everywhere at once
  402. unassailable
    impossible to assail
  403. undulate
    move in a wavy pattern or with a rising and falling motion
  404. untenable
    (of theories etc) incapable of being defended or justified
  405. urbane
    showing a high degree of refinement and the assurance that comes from wide social experience
  406. veneration
    a feeling of profound respect for someone or something
  407. veracity
    unwillingness to tell lies
  408. verdant
    characterized by abundance of verdure
  409. veritable
    not counterfeit or copied
  410. vernacular
    the everyday speech of the people (as distinguished from literary language)
  411. verve
    an energetic style
  412. vicissitude
    a variation in circumstances or fortune at different times in your life or in the development of something
  413. visceral
    relating to or affecting the viscera
  414. vitriol
    abusive or venomous language used to express blame or censure or bitter deep-seated ill will
  415. vivacious
    vigorous and animated
  416. vivid
    having striking color
  417. wile
    the use of tricks to deceive someone (usually to extract money from them)
  418. wonderment
    the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
  419. Zeitgeist
    the spirit of the time; the spirit characteristic of an age or generation