Synonyms and Antonyms List

REF	LEVEL	SYN./ANT.	MEANING	EXAMPLE
ADJECTIVE SYNONYMS/OPPOSITES
SA01	=	prudent = cautious	avoiding unnecessary risks	A prudent builder should forecast how long the stuff is likely to last.
SA01	=	fearless = intrepid	extremely brave and showing no fear	Superheroes are intrepid in their struggle for truth and justice.
SA01	=	disastrous = calamitous	causing great damage or suffering	The building collapsed in the storm, with calamitous results.
SA01	=	changeable = unpredictable	likely to change, often changing	We have very changeable weather here, especially in the winter.
SA01	=	ordinary = mundane	not interesting or exciting	The film is about the mundane existence of factory workers.
SA01	=	merciful = lenient	not strict in the way you punish sb	Many people felt that the punishment was too lenient.
SA01	=	widespread = prevalent	exists or happens over a large area	Flu is most prevalent during the winter months.
SA01	=	irreversible = irrevocable	that cannot be changed	New technology has brought about irreversible changes in society.
SA01	=	endless = interminable	continuing for a long time	We watched an interminable documentary on rice production.
SA01	=	laborious = arduous	needing a lot of time and effort	Keeping the garden tidy all the time can be a laborious task.
SA02
SA02	=	terrible = atrocious	extremely bad	They are compiling an atrocious record in recent cup competitions.
SA02	=	pleasant = congenial	suitable or appropriate	The town is a congenial place for raising children.
SA02	=	greedy = mercenary	only interested in making money	She had some mercenary scheme to marry a wealthy widower.
SA02	=	frightening = harrowing	extremely worrying, upsetting	They escaped after several harrowing encounters with the enemy.
SA02	=	insecure = precarious	not safe, strong, or steady	They looked rather comical as they crawled up precarious ladders.
SA02	=	crucial = pivotal	extremely important or necessary	The Court of Appeal has a pivotal role in the English legal system.
SA02	=	shrewd = astute	showing sharp powers of judgement	He made some astute observations about the film industry.
SA02	=	unfashionable = dowdy	not attractive or fashionable	I get so sick of women in dowdy old clothes and perpetual crepes.
SA02	=	eager = zealous	extremely enthusiastic	The detective was zealous in her pursuit of the kidnappers.
SA02	=	worried = apprehensive	afraid that something bad may happen	Nina was deeply apprehensive that something might go wrong.
SA03
SA03		candid	truthful and straightforward, frank	To be candid with you, I think you're making a dreadful mistake.
SA03		courageous	having or showing courage	The courageous boy saved her baby sister from a house fire.
SA03		shrewd	clever at making judgements	Malcolm's a shrewd businessman who's popular with his staff.
SA03		fervent	displaying a passionate intensity	At that time, he was a fervent believer in the civil service system.
SA03		perilous	full of danger or risk	How do you expect us to proceed on such a perilous expedition?
SA03		boisterous	noisy, energetic, and rough	He had been boisterous and sharp, a humorous woman.
SA03		affluent	having plenty of money	The Strand is one of London's busiest and most affluent streets.
SA03		copious	abundant in supply or quantity	They sat in the front row and took copious notes during the lecture.
SA03		destitute	without money, food or possessions	When her father died, her family was left completely destitute.
SA03		immense	extremely large, great in size or degree	The city takes immense pride in its recent achievements.
SA04
SA04	≠	crude ≠ sophisticated	simple and not skilfully done or made	They rigged up a simple and crude shelter for the children.
SA04	≠	profound ≠ superficial	existing at or on the surface	The 75-year-old clergyman escaped with superficial wounds.
SA04	≠	sensitive ≠ callous	being hardened and thickened	I was shocked at the callous disregard for human life.
SA04	≠	effortless ≠ grueling	extremely tiring and demanding	The cast took a break from their gruelling schedule.
SA04	≠	unlikely ≠ plausible	likely to be true or successful	Sometimes very contrasting hypotheses can seem equally plausible.
SA04	≠	incurious ≠ inquisitive	not eager to know something	Mark is remarkably incurious about the natural world.
SA04	≠	unenthusiastic ≠ zealous	enthusiastic and eager	The zealous missionaries were determined to convert the villagers.
SA04	≠	imperfect ≠ impeccable	free from fault or blame, flawless	He's German, but he speaks with an impeccable English accent.
SA04	≠	fortunate ≠ calamitous	having good luck, lucky	The youth was fortunate in having understanding parents.
SA05
SA05	≠	lively ≠ dreary	causing unhappiness or sad feelings	He was living in a dreary flat in a run-down part of town.
SA05	≠	foolish ≠ sagacious	wise or shrewd	A sagacious businesswoman seldom fails in her business.
SA05	≠	abundant ≠ scarce	more than enough	Latin America has an abundant labour force and natural resources.
SA05	≠	poor ≠ opulent	very comfortable and expensive	Most of the cash went on supporting her opulent lifestyle.
SA05	≠	robust ≠ decrepit	old and in bad condition or poor health	The decrepit building was badly in need of repair.
SA05	≠	incapable ≠ resourceful	able to meet situations	His son is resourceful enough to mix well with all kinds of people.
SA05	≠	distant ≠ imminent	likely to happen very soon	The guard blew his whistle to warn of the train's imminent departure.
SA05	≠	dull ≠ luminous	giving off light, bright or shining	He wore a vest top and a pair of luminous shorts to the beach party.
SA05	≠	large ≠ diminutive	very short or small	We thought her diminutive figure could not suffer that work.
SA06
SA06		charitable	kind in your attitude to other people	They were less than charitable towards the referee.
SA06		hesitant	unsure, or slow in acting or speaking	Paul was really hesitant about approaching the boss directly.
SA06		diffuse	spread out over a large area	The problem is how to diffuse power without creating anarchy.
SA06		intermittent	not happening regularly or continuously	After two days of intermittent fighting, they restored order.
SA06		unintelligible	impossible to understand	Martin muttered something unintelligible and lapsed into silence.
SA06		timid	lacking in courage or self-confidence	They've been rather timid in the changes they've made.
SA06		concealed	kept out of sight or hidden from view	Drug use is often concealed even from close friends.
SA06		insipid	lacking flavour, weak or tasteless	He said he was a good cook, but the food he cooked was insipid.
SA22
SA22	=	friendly = outgoing	friendly and socially confident	Ken was always cheerful, outgoing and generous to everyone.
SA22	=	significant = meaningful	important or noticeable	The talks represented the first significant move towards peace.
SA22	=	reliable = trustworthy	able to be trusted	Simon's always been a trustworthy and faithful friend.
SA22	=	perfect = ideal	perfect, or the best possible	The shampoo is ideal for permed or highlighted hair.
SA22	=	famous = renowned	famous for something	Dorothy is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.
SA22	=	considerate = thoughtful	showing consideration for others	Thank you so much for my present. How thoughtful of you.
SA22	=	modern = contemporary	existing or happening now	The museum contains 10,000 contemporary and modern artworks.
SA22	=	clever = cunning	clever, in the sense of trickery	Don't be fooled by any of his cunning tricks.
SA22	=	jealous = envious	feeling or showing envy	David's new job sounds very interesting - I'm envious of him.
SA22	=	insufficient = inadequate	not enough, or not great enough	For the time being, there's insufficient evidence to arrest anyone.
SA23
SA23	=	slim = slender	thin especially in an attractive way	Girls always eat like a bird to keep a slender figure.
SA23	=	poor = destitute	extremely poor	When he died, his wife and children were left destitute.
SA23	=	real = genuine	true or authentic	Those cowboy boots sure look like the genuine article.
SA23	=	traditional = conventional	traditional and ordinary	They offer several advantages over conventional approaches.
SA23	=	noisy = rowdy	noisy and disorderly	She has complained to the police about rowdy neighbours.
SA23	=	funny = hilarious	witty clever and amusing	I thought it was hilarious when I first heard about it.
SA23	=	obvious = evident	easily seen or understood	It was clearly evident from his tone of voice that he disapproved.
SA23	=	believable = credible	able to be believed, convincing	We've received credible information about the group's location.
SA23	=	widespread = extensive	widely diffused or prevalent	Another crop failure could result in widespread famine.
VERB SYNONYMS/OPPOSITES
SA07	=	ease = alleviate	make easier to endure, lessen	You can't cure a common cold, but you can alleviate the symptoms.
SA07	=	necessitate = entail	involve sth that cannot be avoided	I didn't want to take on a job that would entail a lot of travelling.
SA07	=	hinder = hamper	slow the movement, progress, or action	Her career was hampered by injury, most noticeably a broken leg.
SA07	=	attempt = endeavour	seriously or continually try to do sth	In an endeavour to improve the service, they introduced free parking.
SA07	=	reveal = divulge	make something secret known	Michael refused to divulge the name of his informant.
SA07	=	indicate = denote	represent or mean something	A very high temperature often denotes a serious illness.
SA07	=	aggravate = exacerbate	make more violent, bitter, or severe	Her comments have exacerbated tensions in the negotiation process.
SA07	=	endanger = jeopardise	risk harming or destroying sth or sb	She would never do anything to endanger the lives of his children.
SA07	=	hide = harbour	hide and protect someone	Police believe someone must be harbouring the escaped prisoner.
SA07	=	excuse = condone	accept behaviour that is wrong	The college cannot condone any behaviour that involves illicit drugs.
SA08
SA08	=	scatter = disperse	distribute or spread over a wide area	Police fired shots and used teargas to disperse the demonstrators.
SA08	=	pass = elapse	if time elapses, it goes past	More than eleven years have elapsed since the kidnapping.
SA08	=	improve = refine	improve sth by making changes to it	He would constantly refine his designs until they were almost perfect.
SA08	=	restrict = constrain	limit somebody or something	Many factors constrain agricultural development.
SA08	=	exceed = surpass	do or be better than sb or sth	The novel's success has surpassed everyone's expectations.
SA08	=	misappropriate = embezzle	secretly take money that is in your care	One former manager embezzled £9 million in company funds.
SA08	=	flourish = prosper	be financially successful	With the advent of the new chairman, the company began to prosper.
SA08	=	obtain = elicit	obtain something, esp. information	The purpose of the survey was to elicit information on eating habits.
SA08	=	consider = deem	judge something in a particular way	The story was deemed too controversial, and so they spiked it.
SA08	=	confuse = baffle	totally bewilder or perplex	Scientists are baffled as to why so many young people are affected.
SA09
SA09		covet	want something very much	Catholics are supposed to abstain from meat on Good Friday.
SA09		abstain	decide not to do or have something	She had long coveted the chance to work with a famous musician.
SA09		rebuke	criticize sharply, reprimand	Members of the jury were rebuked for speaking with the press.
SA09		attain	accomplish or achieve something	There will be an objective for him to attain before he wins the game.
SA09		bewilder	confuse someone	I am totally bewildered by the clues to this crossword puzzle.
SA09		renounce	give up or put aside voluntarily	Mary decided to renounce the world and entered a convent.
SA09		fathom	discover the meaning of something	I really couldn't fathom what Stephen was talking about.
SA09		flourish	be very successful, to do very well	No new business can flourish in the present economic climate.
SA09		infer	form an opinion from evidence	From the evidence, we can infer that the victim knew her killer.
SA09		scrutinize	examine or inspect thoroughly	They carefully scrutinised the statement before publication.
SA10
SA10	≠	advance ≠ retreat	an act of moving back or withdrawing	The army retreated to the sea after suffering heavy losses.
SA10	≠	improve ≠ deteriorate	become progressively worse	His health deteriorated rapidly, and he died shortly afterwards.
SA10	≠	extinguish ≠ ignite	catch fire or cause to catch fire	Something caused the fuel to ignite with devastating consequences.
SA10	≠	dissuade ≠ persuade	persuade someone not to do something	The police managed to dissuade her from jumping off the building.
SA10	≠	conquer ≠ succumb	not be able to fight an attack	The small town succumbed after only a short siege.
SA10	≠	accept ≠ reject	refuse to admit, believe, or receive	Her application for membership of the organisation was rejected.
SA10	≠	expand ≠ contract	decrease in size, number, or range	The economy has now contracted by 10.5% since last year.
SA10	≠	fabricate ≠ dismantle	take a machine or structure to pieces	They dismantled the machine and shipped it in pieces.
SA10	≠	persist ≠ falter	continue to do something	If symptoms persist for more than a few days, see a doctor.
SA11
SA11	≠	establish ≠ abolish	make something start to exist	She found it difficult to establish a new routine after retirement.
SA11	≠	comply ≠ infringe	break a rule, law, etc.	A backup copy of a computer program does not infringe copyright.
SA11	≠	aggravate ≠ alleviate	make a bad situation worse	Cutting down the old forests may aggravate global warming.
SA11	≠	evade ≠ confront	avoid or escape from sb or sth	Tom is trying to evade all responsibility for his behaviour.
SA11	≠	boast ≠ belittle	make sb or sth seem unimportant	Don't belittle his guitar playing just because you're jealous.
SA11	≠	despise ≠ revere	have great respect for sb or sth	Most of us revere the Bible, but few of us read it frequently.
SA11	≠	clarify ≠ obscure	make sth difficult to understand	Managers deliberately obscured the real situation from investigators.
SA11	≠	soar ≠ plummet	quickly increase to a high level	Retail sales soared by 20% in the twelve months to December.
SA11	≠	converge ≠ diverge	become the same or very similar	The borders of Thailand, Laos and Burma all converge at this point.
SA11	≠	mourn ≠ rejoice	feel or show great joy or delight	When the war ended, people finally had cause to rejoice.
SA12
SA12		suppress	end or stop something by force	The regime conveniently used force to suppress a political uprising.
SA12		withhold	refuse to give someone something	They can not withhold treatment as punishment for any reason.
SA12		repel	force away something unwanted	Guerrilla fighters were soon able to repel the army's attack.
SA12		submit	yield to the power or authority	She submitted herself to a search by the guards.
SA12		embellish	make beautiful with ornamentation	They embellished the door of the old cinema with decorations.
SA12		contaminate	make impure or unsuitable	The river was contaminated with waste from the factory.
SA12		dawdle	move or act too slowly	The manager told the workers not to dawdle over their work.
SA12		disparage	regard as being of little worth	Never disparage yourself or minimise your strength or power.
SA12		gather	bring together, collect	These little animals gather nuts from the ground in the autumn.
NOUN SYNONYMS/OPPOSITES
SA13	=	facilities = amenities	sth that helps to provide comfort	Some houses still lack basic amenities such as bathrooms.
SA13	=	obstacle = impediment	anything that slows or blocks progress	Lack of money was not the only impediment to higher education.
SA13	=	difference = divergence	a difference in opinions, views	The divergence of opinion has led to divisions among families.
SA13	=	misconception = fallacy	a wrong idea or conception	There are many fears and misconceptions about breast cancer.
SA13	=	memories = reminiscences	sth that reminds you of sth similar	The novel contains endless reminiscences of the author's youth.
SA13	=	observation = surveillance	the careful watching of a place	The police are keeping the suspects under constant surveillance.
SA13	=	sleeplessness = insomnia	the condition of being unable to sleep	Her insomnia continued for the duration of her depression.
SA13	=	peak = climax	the most exciting part of something	The affair was brought to a climax when the chairman resigned.
SA13	=	requirements = prerequisites	something that is necessary	Food and shelter are the minimum prerequisites of a decent life.
SA13	=	idea = notion	an idea or opinion	One common notion is that the elders ought to be respected.
SA14
SA14	=	wealth = affluence	the state of having a lot of money	The postwar era was one of new affluence for the working class.
SA14	=	anticipation = expectancy	a feeling of excitement about sth	The animals grew restless as if in anticipation of an earthquake.
SA14	=	costs = expenditure	the action of spending funds	Policies of tax reduction must lead to reduced public expenditure.
SA14	=	punishment = retribution	deserved and severe punishment	Helen didn't want any further involvement as she feared retribution.
SA14	=	accusation = indictment	a formal accusation of a serious crime	An indictment formally charges a person with a crime.
SA14	=	trouble = tribulation	a problem, or a difficulty	His daughter's illness has been a source of great tribulation.
SA14	=	determination = resolution	a firm decision to do or not to do sth	Ann showed huge resolution in facing the robbers.
SA14	=	temperament = disposition	a person's or animal's nature	His impulsive temperament regularly got him into difficulties.
SA14	=	indignation = resentment	a feeling of anger or unhappiness	He expressed resentment at being interviewed by a social worker.
SA14	=	defect = shortcoming	a fault or problem in sth or sb	Ultimately, that defect prevents the heart from pumping well.
SA15
SA15		concept	something conceived in the mind	Teachers should have a clear concept of what a multiracial society is.
SA15		endorsement	a form of public support or approval	The issue of full independence received overwhelming endorsement.
SA15		affliction	a cause of pain or harm	He lost his sight and is now learning to live with the affliction.
SA15		blunder	a stupid or careless mistake	Ann made a terrible blunder in introducing Sarah to her husband.
SA15		enmity	a feeling of hate	There is a traditional enmity between these two groups.
SA15		discrepancy	an unexpected difference	Several geological factors may explain this apparent discrepancy.
SA15		infidelity	marital disloyalty, adultery	A common cause of divorce and heartbreak is infidelity.
SA15		pledge	a solemn promise or undertaking	She made a solemn pledge to the Canadian people.
SA15		bequest	a disposition in a will	They have received a generous bequest from a local businessman.
SA15		fortitude	courage in pain or adversity	Carlos has endured disappointments with fortitude and patience.
SA16
SA16	≠	expert ≠ novice	sb new to and inexperienced in a job	There are three classes: novice, amateur and professional.
SA16	≠	confinement ≠ liberty	state of being shut up or imprisoned	Prisoners are punished by being put in solitary confinement.
SA16	≠	stink ≠ scent	a very unpleasant smell	The air was heavy with the stink of damp and foulness.
SA16	≠	frenzy ≠ composure	the state of feeling or seeming calm	George has lost his composure under the pressure of the situation.
SA16	≠	ally ≠ antagonist	a person who strongly opposes sb/sth	He faced his antagonist in a series of debates.
SA16	≠	liking ≠ aversion	a strong dislike or disinclination	Some people have a natural and emotional aversion to insects.
SA16	≠	modesty ≠ bravado	a swaggering show of defiance	It was an act of bravado that made Mark ask his boss to resign.
SA16	≠	attendance ≠ truancy	the state of being truant	Schools really need to reduce levels of truancy.
SA16	≠	elevation ≠ demotion	reduction in rank or status	Lara learned of her demotion while on holidays in Portugal.
SA16	≠	excess ≠ dearth	a scarcity or lack of something	The dearth of jobs in the city forced many families to leave the area.
SA17
SA17	≠	compliment ≠ slander	a false spoken statement about sb	He regarded her comment as a slander on his good reputation.
SA17	≠	energy ≠ fatigue	the condition of being extremely tired	Symptoms of anaemia include general fatigue and lassitude.
SA17	≠	tolerance ≠ bigotry	extreme intolerance of any belief	He tried to dissociate himself from the bigotry in his past.
SA17	≠	purity ≠ immorality	behaviour that is morally wrong	His immorality can be seen from the simple fact that he is a usurer.
SA17	≠	spectator ≠ participant	a person who takes part in something	All the participants in the cooking contest received a free cookbook.
SA17	≠	abstinence ≠ indulgence	the state of being indulgent	To me, chocolate connotes pleasure and indulgence.
SA17	≠	poverty ≠ affluence	abundance of property	The postwar era was one of new affluence for the working class.
SA17	≠	friendship ≠ hostility	aggressive feelings or behaviour	By mid-season, the hostility between the two was undisguised.
SA17	≠	torrent ≠ trickle	(of a liquid) flow in a small stream	There was a trickle of blood at the corner of her mouth.
SA17	≠	godsend ≠ setback	a very helpful event or person	The good weather has been a godsend for construction companies.
SA18
SA18		incompetence	inability to do something successfully	These figures are living proof of the government's incompetence.
SA18		deterioration	the act or process of becoming worse	The stress led to a gradual deterioration in Adam's health.
SA18		contentment	a state of happiness and satisfaction	The sight of them all gave her a feeling of warmth and contentment.
SA18		unlikelihood	the state of being unlikely	The unlikelihood of winning the lottery discouraged many players.
SA18		squalor	very bad and dirty conditions	We were shocked by the squalor of their surroundings.
SA18		sanity	soundness or health of mind	He'd been behaving so strangely that they began to doubt his sanity.
SA18		tarnish	dullness of colour, loss of brightness	There's no sign of tarnish on the frame.
SA18		dusk	the darker stage of twilight	Tina works from dawn to dusk, and often well into the night.
SA18		cowardice	lack of bravery	Any soldier displaying cowardice in the face of the enemy was shot.
SA18		discouragement	a feeling of being less confident	A smile is nature's best antidote for discouragement.
ADVERB SYNONYMS/OPPOSITES
SA19	=	nevertheless = however	in spite of that, all the same	David was very tired; nevertheless, he kept on working.
SA19	=	suddenly = abruptly	suddenly and unexpectedly	Her manner changed abruptly when she heard how much I wanted.
SA19	=	constantly = invariably	on every occasion, always	She was invariably willing to discuss the possibilities hypothetically.
SA19	=	lovingly = affectionately	in a way that displays fondness	Sandra squeezed his arm affectionately and said goodbye.
SA19	=	completely = utterly	completely and without qualification	I felt utterly daunted by the prospect of moving to another country.
SA19	=	furthermore = moreover	in addition; more importantly	He always arrives on time; furthermore, his work is always excellent.
SA19	=	unusually = remarkably	in a way that is worthy of attention	The town population has remained remarkably homogeneous.
SA19	=	clearly = legibly	in a way that can be read easily	All data must be recorded legibly in straight rows and columns.
SA19	=	blindly = mindlessly	without thinking or questioning	Don't just blindly accept what they tell you, Kirk.
SA19	=	somewhat = partially	only in part, to a limited extent	Our fears of conflict were partially vindicated by today's events.
SA20
SA20		desperately	in a way that shows despair	Doctors tried desperately to reduce the swelling in his brain.
SA20		specifically	in a way that is exact and clear	Several people, specifically Greg, Bob and Sara, have agreed.
SA20		altogether	completely, totally	The government has just ignored the problem altogether.
SA20		carelessly	in a casual or reckless way	Carelessly spoken words can sometimes unsolder ties of friendship.
SA20		zealously	in a very enthusiastic and eager way	They worked zealously to raise funds for the literacy project.
SA20		amiably	in a friendly and pleasant manner	They talked amiably and easily about a range of topics.
SA20		oddly	in a strange or surprising way	Oddly, Kate says she never considered her face attractive.
SA20		seemingly	outwardly or apparently	The band has enjoyed a seemingly unstoppable rise in popularity.
SA20		rapidly	very quickly, at a great rate	Living standards improved rapidly during the post-war boom.
SA20		vastly	to a very great extent, immensely	The jury has heard two vastly different accounts of what happened.
SA21
SA21	≠	beforehand ≠ afterwards	before an action or event	When you give a speech, it's natural to feel nervous beforehand.
SA21	≠	sincerely ≠ deceptively	in a deceptive or deceiving manner	The answer to this question is deceptively straightforward.
SA21	≠	cautiously ≠ recklessly	without regard to the danger	The bus swerved about recklessly in the bus lane.
SA21	≠	eagerly ≠ reluctantly	in an unwilling and hesitant way	They have reluctantly decided to close the factory.
SA21	≠	briskly ≠ sluggishly	moving more slowly than usual	The band played sluggishly, and everybody appeared bored.
SA21	≠	famously ≠ obscurely	in a way that difficult to see	They were making her feel obscurely worried.
SA21	≠	busily ≠ listlessly	without energy or enthusiasm	She forced herself to go out, walking slowly and listlessly.
SA21	≠	accidentally ≠ purposefully	with a specific intent	David strode purposefully towards the main entrance.