I have yet to meet a student who didn’t want to improve his vocabulary and spelling. The problem is, they don’t want to admit it to peers, but it’s a valuable skill which affects the way others see them. In the classroom, with some subtle effort, vocabulary building can be rewarding for students. The words below come from several sources. It began with vocabulary/spelling words I used in my class starting in 2012.
I started doing weekly vocabulary/spelling words because someone would always ask me to explain a word on a test. They can’t receive help during a test, which is a bitter pill. The first word I was asked was ‘technique.’ ‘Bountiful’ was the second word I was asked to explain, during a test. At an appropriate time, I discussed those words and others and decided to do a weekly list of 10 words. Students embraced the idea. It was nostalgic and helpful. And I started to mix in words I thought they should know. During the course of the day, I used those words as well; they did, too. Additionally, unused vocabulary and spelling tests in the TABE test books became a source for words.
About a year ago I put those lists together and came up with the handout below. My only regret is not doing phonetic pronunciation for each. Perhaps one day I will. But this is a list I handed out during Institute and anyone is welcome to add words to the list. I still use the list in class and allow students to pick out any and all of the words they want to discuss, including how to use them. I firmly believe modeling pronunciation and usage is key to helping adult learners build their vocabulary.
151-plus Words to Grow Your Vocabulary
Abhor – to hate something, look down on, loathe, detest.
Abridge – shorten, to make brief
Accomplishment – to succeed in finishing
Alfresco—in the open air, outdoors
Ambitious – a strong desire for something
Arbitrary – something that has no basis in truth, reason or sound judgment
Articulate – able to your thoughts in words
Ascend – to move up
Asinine – stupid, silly
Aspersion – false accusation that attacks someone’s character.
Attest – to affirm the truth.
Audacious – bold, fearless, daring, challenging
Authority – power to control, the right to enforce
Awkward – clumsy, ill at ease
Barbaric – rude, crude, unsophisticated, uncivilized
Barren – vacant, dull, lacking life or enthusiasm
Bane – harm, ruin
Benevolent – a charitable act
Benign – safe, non-threatening
Bisque – thick, creamy soup
Blasé – bored, uninspired
Boorish – ill-mannered, rude
Bountiful - generous size, large, ample, enough
Browbeat – to intimidate or bully someone into doing something
Burly – big, strong, tough
Caffeine – a strong bitter drug commonly found in coffee and tea
Calculate – to figure with numbers, to plan ahead
Capacity – an amount of space
Ceremony – polite conduct, special recognition
Character – qualities or features
Charisma – charm, alluring
Clarity – clear, easy to understand or see
Confidence – firm belief, trust
Congruent – equal or equivalent, harmonious
Connection – joining together
Conservative—careful, cautious,
Conversation – a verbal exchange
Courageous – brave, full of courage, fearless
Courteous – thoughtful of others
Democracy – a government representative of people according to polling or voting
Demonstrate – to show or explain, establish the truth
Deposit – to put down; to lay something in a certain place
Derive—to obtain from a source, to get, to receive
Disparity – lack of equality
Ecosystem – the relationship between groups of living things or people and the environment they share
Edifice – a building, usually a large one
Either – one way or another way
Elated – filled with joy, satisfaction
Embarrass – to make uneasy, ashamed or uncomfortable about your thoughts, beliefs, appearance
Emphysema – a lung disease which is sometimes fatal
Enthusiastic – eager, excited about something
Epiphany – a sudden understanding of something you couldn’t figure out before
Exact – without error
Excitement – stirred up, commotion
Faux pas – slip in speech, conduct or manners
Favorite –what you prefer
Fickle— unpredictable
Fluctuate – subject to change, up or down, or back and forth without notice
Fluent – smooth, to speak or read without stumbling errors
Fragrant – a pleasant smell or odor
Frugal– cautious about money
Fruitful – having good results
Frustrate – disappointment, feeling unable to accomplish something
Grandiose—impressive, big, showy
Guardian – a person who protects
Habitat – a place or home or way of living for a person, animal or plant life
Hapless— unfortunate
Harbor—to give shelter to
Heal – to make whole, or cure
Holistic – a whole system as opposed to a part
Homophobia – opposed to or fearful of homosexual people or their lifestyle
Humiliate – something someone says or does that makes another feel bad
Hypothesis – statement of truth based on feelings but absent of evidence; what you think can be proven true
Indulge—to give in to
Infinite – unlimited in number
Injudicious – bad judgment
Interest – wanting to know or take part in
Interpret – to explain the meaning
Judge – make up your mind, a person who makes decisions, to choose or select
Kindred – similar, alike
Kindergarten – school for children before first grade
Kiosk – small open booth such as at a flea market or in a mall
Kudos – acknowledge or credit for achievement
Liberal—open-minded, willing to try new things, take risks
Manifesto – a public declaration of intention by a person or a group
Maternal – having to do with a mother or mothering instincts.
Meme – ideas or conversations that spread fast, especially in cyber space
Micro – small, little
Miff – offend
Muse – an inspiration to write or create linked to a particular person or attitude
Myriad – a great number of things
Navigation – find the way, direct the course
Needful– having needs
Niche – something that is suited to person
Notorious—widely known
Obfuscate – to confuse, bewilder
Odyssey – a story describing one’s journey
Omniscient – knowing all things
Opinion – what a person thinks
Opt – choose
Optimistic – positive outlook
Ostracized – to condemn, to leave out, ignore
Paternal –having to do with a father or fathering instincts.
Pathetic – pitiful, dull, sorrow
Persona – a natural image or one created
Pessimistic – negative outlook
Phase – stage of development
Placid –quiet, peaceful, pleasantly calm, peaceful
Plethora– excessive fullness, too much
Poignant—emotionally painful
Population – the number of people or animals in a certain area
Premonition— feeling that something is about to happen
Putrid – rotten, smelly, decaying
Rampant – widespread
Rappel – to descend with a rope
Relegate – to banish or assign to a lesser position
Relevant – of importance or pertaining to the matter at hand
Republic – a government headed by a president who is elected by voters
Resilient – thick-skinned, difficult to penetrate, springing back to shape
Respond – answer
Revere – regard with respect
Rife – widespread
Righteous – upstanding, honest
Ruminate – to reflect on, ponder
Salvage – to save or rescue from ruin
Satiate – more than enough
Savory – tasteful, pleasing
Sedentary – marked by physical inactivity such as sitting
Serendipity – good fortune that comes unexpectedly
Scathing – harsh, critical, unflattering
Scintillate – brilliant, witty, Schizophrenia – a common form of mental illness which causes the sufferer to lose touch with reality
Socioeconomic – relating to economics and social factors
Scrupulous – careful to do what’s right
Segregated – separated from others, isolated, apart
Succinct – brief with clarity
Summit – peak, highest point, a high level meeting, a meeting of top minds or executives
Surprise – something unexpected
Surrogate – a substitute, stand-in, replacement
Symbol – a letter, figure or sign that stands for something else
Tacit – unspoken understanding, silent, a clearly conveyed meaning
Technique—a style or way of doing things
Tenuous – thin, slim, of little importance
Tepid –warm
Timeless – without regard to time, eternal, forever
Transcend—to exceed, go beyond the limits or power of
Ubiquitous – seemingly everywhere at the same time
Ulterior – beyond what is seen or spoken
Usurp – sidestep one’s authority to take control
Usury – unfair or excessive interest rate
Utopia – ideal in thinking, location, peaceful
Valiant—brave
Vet—to scrutinize, examine, check out
Waft – to float in the air
Wane – to diminish, lose power
Wary – on guard against danger
Whimsical – sudden notion or idea
Wholesome – good for many, healthful