English Vocabulary Quick Reference: Vocabulary Words: 1-72

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Abiogenesis

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abiogenesis [a-, without + bio, living organisms + -genesis, generation] The now discredited theory that living organisms can be spontaneously generated directly from nonliving matter. Opposed to biogenesis. (ay' beye' oh JEN uh sis)

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Abiotic

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abiotic [a-, without + bio, life + -tic] Referring to the absence of life or specific life conditions. See biotic. (ay' beye OT ik)

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Abysmal

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abysmal [a-, without + Grk > byssos, bottom + -al] Not capable of being measured or understood. Extreme. See incomprehensible and inscrutable, (uh BIZ mul)

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Abyss

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abyss [a-, without + Grk > byssos, bottom] l.A deep or seemingly bottomless chasm, gulf, or space

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Abyssal

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abyssal [a-, without + Grk > byssos, bottom + -al] Pertaining to the bottom waters of the ocean depth or floor. [uh BIS ul)

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Acephalous

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acephalous [a-, without + cephal, head + -ous] 1.Having no distinguishable head. 2.Having no leader or ruler. (ay SEE uh lus)

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Achene

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achene [a-, not + Grk > chainein, to gape] A small, dry fruit that is formed from a simple ovary bearing a single seed and ripens without splitting open its sheath. (uh KEEN)

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Achromatic

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achromatic [a-, without+ chromat, color+-ic] 1.Without color. 2.Transmitting light without constituent color separation, as a lens, (ak' roh MAT ik)

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Adiabatic

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adiabatic [a-, not + dia, through + Grk > bainein, to go + -ic] Occurring without gaining or losing heat, (ad' ee uh BAT ik)

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Aedes

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aedes [a-, not + Grk > edos, pleasure + -es] Any of a genus of mosquitos, including a mosquito that transmits yellow fever and dengue, (ay EE deez)

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Agnostic

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agnostic [a-, without + gnos, knowledge + -tic] One who believes the existence of God is unknown, but does not deny the possibility that God exists. See atheist and infidel (def. 1). (ag NOS tik)

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Alexia

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alexia [a-, not + lex, reading + -ia] A neurological disorder caused by brain lesions that results in loss of the ability to read. See agraphia, dysgraphia, and dyslexia.

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Amaranth

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amaranth [a-, not + Grk > marainein, to fade away + anth, flower] l.A legendary flower that never fades or dies. 2.Any plant of the genus Amaranthus, some of which are grown for their flowers and colored leaves. (AM uh ranth')

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Ambrosia

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ambrosia [a-, not + Grk > brotos, mortal + -ia] l.In Greek and Roman mythology, the food or drink of the gods thought to bestow immortality. 2.Something that tastes or smells especially delicious, (am BROH zhuh)

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Amethyst

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amethyst [a-, not + Grk > methystos, drunken] l.A violet or purple variety of quartz used as a gem. So named from the belief that it prevented intoxication. 2.A violet or purple color. (AM uh thist)

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Amnesia

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amnesia [a-, without + mne, memory + -ia] Total or partial loss of memory due to brain injury, disease, shock, etc. _ (am NEE zhuh)

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Amnesty

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amnesty [a-, without + mne, memory + -ty] A general pardon, especially for political offenses against a government. (AM nuh stee)

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Amoral

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amoral [a-, not & moral] neither moral nor immoral. 2.Lacking moral principles, (ay MOR ul)

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Amorphous

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amorphous [a-,without + morph,form + -ous] l.Without distinct form or shape. Shapeless. 2.Not belonging to a particular type or pattern. Anomalous. 3.Without crystalline form or structure, (uh MOR fus)

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Anacoluthon

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anacoluthon [an-, not + Grk > dkolouthos, following] An abrupt change within a sentence from one grammatical construction to another, sometimes used for rhetorical effect, (an' uh kuh LOO thon')

"It makes me so—I just get angry. "

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Anaemia

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anaemia [an-,without +-aemia,hloodcondition] l.A condition in which there is an abnormal decrease in total blood volume, hemoglobin, or the number of red blood cells, resulting in pallor of the skin, shortness of breath, and lethargy. 2.Lack of vitality or vigor. Same as anemia, (uh NEE mee uh)

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Anaerobe

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anaerobe [an-, without + aero, air + bio, life] A microorganism that does not require free oxygen to aerobic [an-, without + aero, air + hio. Hfp.*. Tv.

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Anaesthesis

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anaesthesia [an-, without + aesthes,feeling + -ia] Total or partial loss of sensibility to pain and other sensations, produced by disease, drugs, hypnosis, etc. Same as anesthesia, (an' es THEE zhuh)

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Analgesia

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analgesia [an-, without + alg,pain + -ia] Absence of sensibility to pain while in a fully conscious state. (an' 1 JEE zee uh)

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Anarchy

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anarchy [an-, without + arch, rule + -y] l.The absence of any form of government. 2.Political and social disorder and confusion. Lawlessness. (AN ur kee)

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Anecdote

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anecdote [an-, not + Grk > ekdotos,published] l.Originally, secret or little-known items of biography or history. 2.A short narrative of an entertaining or interesting incident or event. (AN ik doht')

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Aneroid Barometer

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aneroid barometer [a-, without + Grk > nems, fluid + -oid & barometer] A barometer that measures atmospheric pressure by measuring the movement of a thin metal disk rather than the movement of a column of fluid. (Anuhroid' buhROMeter)

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Anesthesia

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anesthesia [an-, without + estiies,feeling + -ia] Total or partial loss of sensibility to pain and other sensations, produced by disease, drugs, hypnosis, etc. (an' es THEE zhuh) |

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Anesthesiology

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anesthesiology [anesthesi(a) & -ology, study of] The branch of medicine dealing with the study and use of anesthesia and anesthetics. See anesthesia, ( (an' es thee' zee OL uh jee)

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Anhydride

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anhydride [an-, without + hydr, water + -ide] A compound derived by the removal of water from an acid or other compound, (an HEYE dreyed')

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Anhydrite

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anhydrite [an-, without + hydr, water + -ite, mineral] A usually white to gray mineral composed of anhydrous calcium sulfate that is similar to gypsum, but does not contain water, (an HEYE dreyet')

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Anisogamous

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anisogamous [aniso-, not equal + gam, sexual union + -otis] Characterized by the fusion of heterogametes. Same as heterogamous (def. 1). (an' eye SOG uh mus)

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Anisogamy

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anisogamy f aniso-, not equal + -gamy, sexual union] The union of two dissimilar gametes, as in form, size, or function. See isogamy. (an' eye SOG uh mee)

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Anodyne

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anodyne [an-, without + odyn,pain] A medicine or remedy that soothes or relieves pain. (AN uh deyen')

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Anomalous

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anomalous [an-, not + homo, same + -ous] Deviating from the normal rule, method, or arrangement. Irregular Abnormal, (uh NOM uh lus)

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Anomaly

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anomaly [an-, not + homo, same+ -y] 1.Deviation from the normal rule, method, or arrangement. 2.The angular distance of an orbiting body, as a planet or satellite, from its previous perihelion or perigee. See perihelion and perigee, (uh NOM uh lee)

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Anomie

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anomie [a-, without + nam, system of laws + -ie] A lack of standards and values, resulting in social or personal instability. Same as anomie. (AN uh mee)

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Anonymous

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anonymous [an-, without + onym, name + -ous] l.Without a known or acknowledged name. 2.Of unknown source or origin. 3. Without individuality or distinct characteristics, (uh NON uh mus)

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Anorexia

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anorexia [an-,without +Grk >orexis, appetite+ -ia] l.Lack of or diminished appetite. 2.Short for anorexia nervosa, (an' uh REK see uh)

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Anorexia Nervosa

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anorexia nervosa [an-, without + Grk > orexis, appetite + -ia & Ltn > nervosus, nervous] A psychological eating disorder, usually occurring in young women, characterized by aversion to food and pathological fear of obesity and resulting in life-threatening weight loss. See bulimia nervosa. (an' uh REK see uh nur VOH suh)

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Anorthite

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anorthite [an-, not + ortho, straight + -ite, rock] A white, gray, or pink plagioclase feldspar found in many igneous rocks. So named for its oblique crystals. (an OR theyet')

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Anorthosite

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anorthosite [an-, not + ortho, straight + -ite, rock] A plutonic igneous rock, chiefly plagioclase feldspar. So named for its oblique crystals, (an OR thuh seyet')

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Anoxia

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anoxia [an-, without + ox, oxygen + -ia] 1.Absence or deficiency of oxygen in body tissues. 2.Hypoxia. See anoxemia, hypoxia, and hypoxemia, (an OK see uh)

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Anuran

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anuran [an-, without + Grk > oura, tail] Pertaining to frogs and toads, all of which have no tail and are highly specialized for jumping, (uh NOOR un)

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Aorist

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aorist [a-, without + Grk > horos, boundary + -ist] A verb tense that denotes past action with no indication of the action being completed, continued, or repeated. (AY uh rist)

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Apathy

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apathy [a-, without + -pathy,feeling] l.Lack of emotion or feeling. 2.Lack of interest or concern. Indifference (AP uh thee)

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Apetalous

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apetalous [a-, without & petal &-ous] Without petals. (ay PET l us)

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Aphasia

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aphasia [a-, without + -phasia, speech] Total or partial loss of the ability to understand or use spoken or written language, usually resulting from brain injury. See dysphasia, anarthria, and dysarthria, (uh [aY zhuh)

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Apterous

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apterous [a-, without + pter, wing + -ous] Without wings or winglike appendages. (AP ter us)

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Apteryx

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apteryx [a-, without + pteryx, tving] A New Zealand bird with undeveloped wings and no tail. Kiwi. (AP ter iks')

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Arrhythmia

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arrhythmia [a-, without & rhythm & -ia] Any irregularity of the heart's normal rhythm, (uh RITH mee uh)

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Aseptic

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aseptic [a-, not + Grk >septos,putrid+-ic] Free from microorganisms that produce disease, fermentation, or putrefaction, (ay SEP tik)

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Asocial

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asocial [a-,not Asocial] 1.Antisocial. Not gregarious. 2.Not considerate of others. Selfish. See gregarious. (ay SOH shul)

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Asphyxia

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asphyxia [a-, without + Grk > sphyxis, pulse + -ia] Lack of oxygen in the blood, causing death or unconsciousness, (as FIK see uh)

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Astatine

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astatine [a-, not + stat, stationary + -ine] A highly unstable radioactive chemical element that occurs naturally in the thyroid gland and is also produced artificially by bombarding bismuth with alpha particles. (AS tuh teen')

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Asthenia

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asthenia [a-, without + sthen, strength + -ia] Loss or lack of strength or energy. Debility. Weakness, (as THEE nee uh)

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Asthenosphere

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asthenosphere [a-, without + stheno, strength & sphere] A zone beneath the earth's surface that lies beneath the lithosphere and consists of several hundred kilometers of weak material that readily yields to persistent stresses, (as THEN uh sfihr')

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Astigmatism

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astigmatism [a-,not +Grk > stigma,point+-tism] A refractive error of a lens, including the lens of the eye, that prevents light rays from meeting at a common focal point, resulting in a blurred or distorted image, (uh STIG muh tiz' um)

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Asymptote

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asymptote [a-, not + sym, together + Grk > ptotos,[alling] A straight line that a curve continually approaches, but never meets, even if the curve is extended to infinity. (AS im toht')

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Asynchronous

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asynchronous [a-, not + syn, same + chron, time + -otts] l.Not occurring at the same time. 2.Not occurring at the same rate. See synchronous, (ay SING kruh nus)

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Asyndeton

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asyndeton [a-, not + syn, together + Grk > dein, to bind + -on] The omission of one or more conjunctions between sentence elements for rhetorical effect. See polysyndeton, (uh SIN dih than')

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Ataractic

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ataractic [a-, not + Grk >taraktos, disturbed+ -ic] l.A tranquilizer. 2.Having a tranquilizing or calming effect, (af uh RAK tik)

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Ataraxia

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ataraxia [a-, not + Grk > taraktos, disturbed + -ia] Calmness 7 and peace of mind. Tranquility,
(at' uh RAK see uh)

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Ataxia

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ataxia [a-, without + tax, arrangement + -ia] Total or partial loss of the ability to coordinate voluntary muscle action, especially in the extremities, (uh TAK see uh)

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Atheist

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atheist [a-, not + the, God + -ist] One who believes there is no God. See agnostic and infidel (def. 1). (AY thee ist)

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Atom

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atom [a-,not + tom,tocut] 1.Anything considered to be an irreducible constituent of a specified system. 2.The smallest component of an element having all the properties of the element, with protons and neutrons at its positively charged nucleus surrounded by a complex arrangement of revolving electrons. (AT um)

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Atonal

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atonal [a-, without + Grk > tonos, tone + -al] Lacking a tone center or key. (ay TOHN l)

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Atrophy

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atrophy [a-, without + -trophy, nourishment] A wasting away or failure to properly develop due to insufficient nutrition, as of organs, tissues, or other body parts. (AT ruh fee)

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Avitaminosis

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ayitaminosis [a-, without & vitamin & -osis, diseased (condition] Any disease caused by vitamin deficiency. See hypervitaminosis. (ay veyet' uh mih NOH sis)

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Azo

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azo- [a-, without + zo, life] A word root meaning "lifeless" or "containing nitrogen." So named because nitrogen does not support life. (AY zoh)

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Myasthenia

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myasthenia [my, muscle + a-, without + sthen, strength + -ia] Abnormal muscle fatigue or weakness, (meye' us THEE nee uh)

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Neurasthenia

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neurasthenia [neur, nerve + a-, without + sthen, strength + - ia] A disorder originally thought to result from neural exhaustion, including such symptoms as chronic fatigue, weakness, and irritability. (noor' us THEE nee uh)