Meaning
Usage

"Abhor" - (verb) 

to hate, detest 

Example: Because he always wound up kicking himself in the head when he tried to play soccer, Oswald began to abhor the sport.

"Abject" - (adjective) 

wretched, pitiful 

Example: After losing all her money, falling into a puddle, and breaking her ankle, Eloise was abject.

"Abnegation" - (noun) 

denial of comfort to oneself 

Example: The holy man slept on the floor, took only cold showers, and generally followed other practices of abnegation.

"Abrogate" - (verb) 

to abolish, usually by authority 

Example: The Bill of Rights assures that the government cannot abrogate our right to a free press.

"Absolution" - (noun) 

freedom from blame, guilt, sin 

Example: Once all the facts were known, the jury gave Angela absolution by giving a verdict of not guilty.

"Abstruse" - (adjective) 

hard to comprehend 

Example: Everyone else in the class understood geometry easily, but John found the subject abstruse.

"Accentuate" - (verb) 

to stress, highlight 

Example: Psychologists agree that those people who are happiest accentuate the positive in life.

"Acclaim" - (noun) 

high praise 

Example: Greg’s excellent poem won the acclaim of his friends.

"Accommodating" - (adjective) 

helpful, obliging, polite 

Example: Though the apartment was not big enough for three people, Arnold, Mark, and Zebulon were all friends and were accommodating to each other.

to confront verbally 

Example: Though Antoinette was normally quite calm, when the waiter spilled soup on her for the fourth time in 15 minutes she stood up and accosted the man.

biting, bitter in tone or taste 

Example: Jill became extremely acerbic and began to cruelly make fun of all her friends.

bitterness, discord 

Example: Though they vowed that no girl would ever come between them, Biff and Trevor could not keep acrimony from overwhelming their friendship after they both fell in love with the lovely Teresa.

impervious, immovable, unyielding 

Example: Though public pressure was intense, the President remained adamant about his proposal.

to caution, criticize, reprove 

Example: Joe’s mother admonished him not to ruin his appetite by eating cookies before dinner.

skillful, dexterous 

Example: The adroit thief could pick someone’s pocket without attracting notice.

"Adumbrate" - (verb) 

to sketch out in a vague way 

Example: The coach adumbrated a game plan, but none of the players knew precisely what to do.

"Aerial" - (adjective) 

somehow related to the air 

Example: We watched as the fighter planes conducted aerial maneuvers.

"Affable" - (adjective) 

friendly, amiable 

Example: People like to be around George because he is so affable and good-natured.

Example: rich, wealthy (Mrs. Grebelski was affluent, owning a huge house, three cars, and an island near Maine.

to increase or make greater 

Example: Joseph always dropped the names of the famous people his father knew as a way to aggrandize his personal stature.