TOEFL Essential Words Flashcards
abroad
adv. to or in another country
Syn. overseas, internationally
Louis Armstrong often traveled abroad.
Living abroad can be an educational experience.
abrupt
adj. quick, without warning
Syn. sudden
There was an abrupt change in the weather.
After the incident everyone left abruptly.
adv. abruptly
n. abruptness
acceptable
adj. allowable or satisfactory
Syn. permissible
The idea was acceptable to everyone.
The registrar accepted more applicants than he should have.
v. accept
adv. acceptably
n. acceptability
adj. accepting
acclaim
n. enthusiastic approval, applause
Syn. praise
Isaac Stem has won acclaim abroad.
Acclaimed authors often win Pulitzer Prizes.
adj. acclaimed
n. acclamation
actually
adv. being in existence, real or factual
Syn. truly
They were actually very good soccer players.
The actual time allotted to complete the test is two hours.
adj. actual
adverse
adj. displeasing, objectionable, or bad
Syn. unfavorable
Adverse weather conditions made it difficult to play the game.
His indecision adversely affected his job performance.
adv. adversely
n. adversity
n. adversary
advice
n. a recommendation given by someone not associated with the problem or situation
Syn. suggestion
Good advice is hard to find.
It is not advisable to stay up late the night before a test.
v. advise
adj. advisable
n. advisability
attractive
adj. calling attention to, pleasing, creating interest
Syn. appealing
The idea of working four, 10-hour work days was attractive to the employees.
The major attraction of the show was a speech by the president.
v. attract pretty
n. attraction
n. attractiveness
adv. attractively
ideal
adj. having no flaw or mistake, excellent
Syn. perfect
The beach is an ideal place to relax.
Candidates for the job should ideally have five years experience in similar positions.
adv. ideally
n. ideal
persistent
adj. continuous, refusing to give up, firm in action or decision
Syn. constant
The attorney’s persistent questioning weakened the witness.
Her persistence earned her a spot on the team.
v. persist
n. persistence
adv. persistently
wide
adj. extending over a large area
Syn. broad
Pine forests are found over a wide area of the Pacific Northwest.
The senator has traveled wide1y.
adv. widely
n. wideness
autonomous
adj. by itself, with no association
Syn. independent
Mexico became an autonomous state in 1817.
Although working closely with the government, all businesses function autonomously.
adv. autonomously
haphazardly
adv. having no order or pattern, by chance
Syn. arbitrarily, carelessly
It was obvious that the house was built haphazardly.
Susan completed the assignment in a haphazard way.
adj. haphazard
n. haphazardness
disruptive
adj. causing confusion and interruption
Syn. disturbing
Frequent questions during lectures can be disruptive.
The storm caused a disruption in bus service.
v. disrupt
n. disruption
adv. disruptively
disapproval
n. the act of disagreeing, not giving approval
Syn. objection
Their disapproval of the plan caused the experiment to be abandoned.
The students disapproved of the plan of study.
v. disapprove
adv. disapprovingly
advanced
adj. ahead of current thought or practice forward thinking, new
Syn. progressive
Advanced technology is changing the world.
His advancement to captain came unexpectedly.
v. advance
n. advancement
advantage
n. something that may help one to be successful or to gain something
Syn. benefit
Is there any advantage in arriving early?
He was advantageously born into a rich family.
adv. advantageously
adj. advantageous
advent
n. the coming or appearance of something
Syn. arrival
With the advent of computers, many tasks have been made easier.
The newspapers announced the advent of the concert season.
agile
adj. able to move in a quick and easy way
Syn. nimble
Deer are very agile animals.
She moved agilely across the stage.
adv. agilely
n. agileness
n. agility
albeit
conj. in spite of the facts, regardless of the fact
Syn. although
His trip was successful, albeit tiring.
Albeit difficult at times, speaking another language is rewarding.
allow
v. to agree to let something happen, not to interfere with an action
Syn. permit
Arthur’s natural agility will allow him to excel in sports.
The extra money allowed us to stay abroad another day.
n. allowance
adj. allowable
adv. allowable
appealing
adj. attractive or interesting, able to move
Syn. alluring
Working abroad is appealing to many people.
Through his speeches, the candidate appealed to the voters.
v. appeal feelings
n. appeal
adv. appealingly
celebrated
adj. acclaimed, well-known, and popular
Syn. renown
The celebrated pianist will give a concert this weekend.
San Francisco is celebrated for its multicultural makeup.
contemporary
adj. modern, up-to-date; also a person living at the same time as another person
Syn. current
Contemporary architecture makes very good use of space.
Cervantes was a contemporary of Shakespeare.
n. contemporary
distribute
v. to divide among people or to give out
Syn. dispense
Many publishers distribute their newspapers directly to homes in their area.
The distribution of seeds is very quick with this new machine.
n. distribution
encourage
v. to give courage or hope to someone
Syn. inspire
Even though the runner finished second, he was encouraged by his performance.
His teacher gave him the encouragement that he needed to learn the material.
n. encouragement
adj. encouraging
adv. encouragingly
energetic
adj. full of life, action, or power
Syn. vigorous
Sam hasn’t been as energetic as he usually is.
There’s a lot of energy in these batteries.
n. energy
adv. energetically
frail
adj. weak in health or in body
Syn. fragile
The frail wings of the newborn bird could not lift it off the ground.
One of the frailties of human beings is laziness.
n. trade
refine
v. to make pure, to improve
Syn. perfect (v.)
Factories must to refine oil before it can be used as fuel.
A squirt of lime juice is the perfect refinement to cola.
n. refinement
adj. refined
worthwhile
adj. value in doing something
Syn. rewarding
It was worthwhile waiting 10 hours in line for the tickets.
It’s worthwhile to prepare for the TOEFL.
