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Word

English Vocabulary

Pick a CEFR level (A1–C2, plus C2+ for rare words beyond the CEFR scale) — A1 is the friendliest place to start — and browse its words grouped by topic: travel, food, the body, emotions, and more. Each word shows its meaning, example sentences, and US/UK pronunciation.

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C2+ is beyond the official CEFR scale: rare, specialist, and literary words kept for reference.

3135 words

Describing Qualities

3135 words

stercovorous C2+

/ˌstɝːˈkɑːvərəs/ feeding on dung, especially as an insect or other small animal Meaning Off Sound Off

/əˈpɝpəs/ archaic or dialectal: on purpose; deliberately Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈerəfɔːrm/ having the nature or physical form of air; gaseous Meaning Off Sound Off

/əˈnelɪdəs/ relating to or resembling annelids, the segmented worms that include earthworms and leeches Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈdɪdʒɪteɪtɪd/ divided into fingerlike lobes or leaflets that spread from one point, especially in botany Meaning Off Sound Off

/iːˈdentəl/ having no teeth, or having very few teeth Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈʌpˌʃɔr/ toward a point farther along the shore, especially in an upstream direction Meaning Off Sound Off

steatopygous C2+

/ˌstiːəˈtɑːpɪɡəs/ having steatopygia, a marked accumulation of adipose tissue around the buttocks and upper thighs; chiefly a historical anthropological term Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈθɪrɔɪd/ beastlike or resembling a wild animal; historical and offensive when used to demean a person Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈlɪŋksˌaɪd/ having exceptionally keen sight or powers of observation Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈmjuːlˌhɛdɪd/ stubbornly unwilling to change one's opinion or course of action Meaning Off Sound Off

patelliform C2+

/pəˈteləfɔːrm/ shaped like a shallow dish or a limpet shell Meaning Off Sound Off

dichogamous C2+

/daɪˈkɑːɡəməs/ having male and female reproductive organs that mature at different times, reducing self-fertilization in a hermaphroditic organism Meaning Off Sound Off

/ɪmˈbɝb/ rare or literary: beardless; having no beard Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˌɪzəˈbɛlɪn/ pale grayish-yellow, buff, or sandy in color, especially in descriptions of animal plumage or fur Meaning Off Sound Off

genuflectory C2+

/ˌdʒɛn.jəˈflɛk.tɚ.i/ rare: relating to, characterized by, or requiring genuflection or kneeling Meaning Off Sound Off

cabalistically C2+

/ˌkæb.əˈlɪs.tɪ.kli/ in a manner relating to the Kabbalah or to mystical interpretation through letters, numbers, and hidden correspondences Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈleɪbiət/ biology: having lips or lip-like parts, especially a flower whose corolla is divided into two lips Meaning Off Sound Off

argillocalcareous C2+

/ɑːrˌdʒɪloʊkælˈkɛriəs/ geology and soil science: consisting of or containing both clay and calcareous material such as calcium carbonate Meaning Off Sound Off

coinstantaneous C2+

/ˌkoʊˌɪnstənˈteɪniəs/ occurring at exactly the same instant as something else; simultaneous Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈmæmɪlət/ covered with or bearing small rounded, nipple-shaped projections Meaning Off Sound Off

temporooccipital C2+

/ˌtɛmpəroʊɑkˈsɪpɪtəl/ relating to both the temporal and occipital regions, bones, or lobes of the skull and brain Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈkænsələt/ formed like an open lattice or network, especially of intersecting bars, plates, or bony struts Meaning Off Sound Off

/ləˈnuːdʒəˌnoʊs/ botany or zoology: covered with or resembling fine, soft, downy hair Meaning Off Sound Off

parietooccipital C2+

/pəˌraɪətoʊɑkˈsɪpɪtəl/ anatomy: relating to both the parietal and occipital bones, lobes, or regions of the skull or brain Meaning Off Sound Off

straitwaistcoated C2+

/ˈstreɪtˌweɪstkoʊtɪd/ historical: confined in a strait-waistcoat, or figuratively subjected to severe intellectual or institutional restraint Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˌʌnɪˈmɛndɪd/ not corrected or altered by editorial emendation, especially in a transmitted text Meaning Off Sound Off

non compos mentis C2+

/ˌnɑːn ˌkɑːm.pəs ˈmɛn.tɪs/ not of sound mind; unable to understand or take legal responsibility for one's actions Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈpælpɪtənt/ literary: trembling, throbbing, or seeming to pulse with life or feeling Meaning Off Sound Off

inexpungible C2+

/ˌɪnɪkˈspʌndʒəbəl/ impossible to erase, delete, remove, or blot out completely Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈbʊtʃəli/ Like a butcher; characterised by slaughter, savage. Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈsɪndərəs/ consisting of, resembling, or covered with cinders Meaning Off Sound Off

overfraught C2+

/ˌoʊvərˈfrɔt/ Full of distress; overloaded with cares or worries. Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈpɪskəˌtɔri/ relating to or characteristic of the activity of fishing Meaning Off Sound Off

/təˈbækoʊi/ Resembling or characteristic of tobacco. Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˌʌnəˈkjuːzd/ not charged with or blamed for an offense Meaning Off Sound Off

unornamental C2+

/ˌʌnɔrnəˈmɛntəl/ Not ornamental. Meaning Off Sound Off

recognizant C2+

/rɪˈkɑɡnɪzənt/ aware of, acknowledging, or appreciative of something Meaning Off Sound Off

unbrutalized C2+

/ʌnˈbruːtəˌlaɪzd/ Not brutalized. Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˌæfəˈrɪzmɪk/ relating to aphorisms or expressed in short, memorable statements Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈdɑlɪʃ/ resembling a doll, especially in having a pretty but stiff, delicate, or expressionless appearance Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈdaʊədʒɚɪʃ/ resembling or considered typical of an elderly, wealthy, and socially dignified widow Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈnɛkrəˌpoʊl/ a cemetery, especially a large or ancient burial ground; a rare form of ‘necropolis’ Meaning Off Sound Off

old-maidish C2+

/ˌoʊldˈmeɪdɪʃ/ excessively prim, fussy, or particular in a way stereotypically associated with an unmarried older woman Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈbɪs.tɚd/ colored with or as if with bister Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈrɑː.zə.ni/ Like or resembling rosin Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈtɛd.i ˌbɛr/ a soft toy made in the shape of a bear Meaning Off Sound Off

unencyclopedic C2+

/ˌʌn.ɪnˌsaɪ.kləˈpiː.dɪk/ Not encyclopedic Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈfleɪsəm/ Yorkshire dialect: frightening, dreadful, or terrible Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈmiːtərli/ Yorkshire dialect: moderately, tolerably, or suitably Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈmɛnsfəl/ Northern English dialect: proper, decent, or fit to be seen Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈɒfəld/ Northern English dialect: vile, wicked, or mean Meaning Off Sound Off

overforward C2+

/ˌoʊvərˈfɔrwərd/ excessively bold, presumptuous, or eager Meaning Off Sound Off

preterhuman C2+

/ˌpriːtərˈhjuːmən/ beyond ordinary human powers or qualities; superhuman Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈθɹæŋ/ Northern English and Scots: busy or fully occupied Meaning Off Sound Off

philoprogenitive C2+

/ˌfɪl.oʊ.proʊˈdʒɛn.ə.tɪv/ producing many offspring; prolific Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˈvaɪ.nə.lənt/ fond of drinking wine, especially to excess; wine-soaked or drunken Meaning Off Sound Off

nonsensational C2+

/ˌnɑnsɛnˈseɪʃənəl/ philosophy and psychology: not consisting of, accompanied by, or directly derived from sensation Meaning Off Sound Off

inartificial C2+

/ˌɪnɑrtəˈfɪʃəl/ not produced by artifice, convention, or deliberate human design; natural Meaning Off Sound Off

transductive C2+

/tɹænzˈdʌktɪv/ relating to a form of machine learning that predicts outcomes for a particular set of unlabeled examples without first deriving a general predictive model Meaning Off Sound Off

/ɛnˈæktɪv/ in cognitive science, relating to the view that cognition arises through an embodied organism's active engagement with its environment Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˌpɹɑsˈθɛtɪk/ relating to or serving as an artificial replacement for a missing or impaired body part Meaning Off Sound Off

/ˌɔːtoʊˈtɛlɪk/ having its purpose within itself; done for its own sake rather than for any reward that lies outside it Meaning Off Sound Off