English Vocabulary
Pick a CEFR level (A1–C2) — 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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109 words
donna
C2
/ˈdɑː.nə/
an Italian title meaning lady, especially one applied to a woman of rank
dexter
C2
/ˈdɛks.tɚ/
heraldry: on or toward the bearer's right side of a shield, which appears on the viewer's left
signora
C2
/siːnˈjɔːrə/
an Italian title of respect or form of address for a woman, equivalent to Mrs. or madam
Hun
C2
/hʌn/
a member of a nomadic confederation that entered Europe in late antiquity and reached its greatest power under Attila in the fifth century
eunuch
C2
/ˈjuː.nək/
a man who has been castrated
leprechaun
C2
/ˈlɛprəˌkɔn/
a small solitary supernatural being in Irish folklore, traditionally portrayed as a shoemaker who guards hidden treasure
tribune
C2
/ˈtrɪbjuːn/
in ancient Rome, an elected official charged with protecting the interests and rights of the plebeians
Celtic
C2
/ˈkɛltɪk/
of or relating to the Celts or their cultures and traditions
totem
C2
/ˈtoʊtəm/
a natural being or object that serves as the emblem of a kinship group and may have a special spiritual relationship with it
courtesan
C2
/ˈkɔɹtəzæn/
historical: a woman who had wealthy or powerful lovers or clients, often in exchange for financial support and with access to elite society
sarcophagus
C2
/sɑːrˈkɑːfəɡəs/
a stone coffin, often carved or decorated and displayed above ground
crematorium
C2
/ˌkriː.məˈtɔːr.i.əm/
a building or facility where dead bodies are cremated
chevalier
C2
/ˌʃevəˈlɪr/
a knight or chivalrous, courtly gentleman, especially in a historical or literary context
archduke
C2
/ˈɑːrtʃˌduːk/
a prince of the former ruling house of Austria, especially a son or male-line grandson of an emperor
creole
C2
/ˈkriː.oʊl/
a natural language that developed in a contact community from elements of two or more languages and became a community's first language
vassal
C2
/ˈvæsəl/
a person holding a fief
chevron
C2
/ˈʃɛvrən/
a V-shaped or inverted-V-shaped mark, pattern, or structure
obelisk
C2
/ˈɑbəlɪsk/
a tall, four-sided stone pillar that tapers to a pyramidal point, often erected as a monument
epitaph
C2
/ˈɛpɪˌtæf/
an inscription on a grave or monument commemorating the person buried there
boer
C2
/bɔːr/
historical: a Dutch-speaking settler or farmer in southern Africa, especially an ancestor of the Afrikaner population
tomahawk
C2
/ˈtɑːməˌhɔːk/
a light axe or hatchet associated historically with Indigenous peoples of North America and later made in many specialized forms
curtsy
C2
/ˈkɝtsi/
a formal gesture of greeting or respect made by bending the knees and lowering the body
Neolithic
C2
/ˌniːoʊˈlɪθɪk/
the final major phase of the Stone Age, associated in many regions with farming, permanent settlements, and polished stone tools
fief
C2
/fiːf/
historical: land, revenue, or another right held from a feudal superior in return for allegiance and service
satyr
C2
/ˈseɪ.tɚ/
a male woodland spirit in ancient Greek mythology, associated with Dionysus and represented with both human and animal features
fairyland
C2
/ˈfɛriˌlænd/
the imaginary or legendary realm inhabited by fairies
courtier
C2
/ˈkɔːr.ti.ɚ/
a person who attends or serves a monarch at a royal court
agora
C2
/ˈæɡərə/
the central public meeting place and marketplace of an ancient Greek city
boyar
C2
/boʊˈjɑr/
a member of the high hereditary aristocracy of medieval and early modern Russia or another Eastern European state
marchese
C2
/mɑːrˈkeɪ.zeɪ/
an Italian nobleman of the rank equivalent to a marquis or marquess
castellan
C2
/ˈkæstələn/
the governor, keeper, or resident commander of a castle or fortified place
pageantry
C2
/ˈpædʒ.ən.tri/
elaborate, colorful ceremony and display, especially on a public or royal occasion
prehistory
C2
/ˌpriːˈhɪstəri/
the period before written records exist for a society or region
flapper
C2
/ˈflæpɚ/
a fashionable young woman of the 1920s who rejected older social conventions in her dress and behavior
basilisk
C2
/ˈbæz.ə.lɪsk/
a mythical serpent or dragon said to kill by its breath or gaze
spittoon
C2
/spɪˈtuːn/
A receptacle for spit (saliva); especially, one used by people using chewing tobacco or snuff.
megalithic
C2
/ˌmɛɡəˈlɪθɪk/
relating to megaliths, the prehistoric people who erected them, or the period in which such large-stone monuments were built
bushman
C2
/ˈbʊʃmən/
dated, often capitalized: a member of one of the San peoples of southern Africa; San or a specific community name is generally preferred
modernism
C2
/ˈmɑːdɝˌnɪzəm/
A movement in art, architecture, and literature in the early 20th century that broke deliberately with older styles.
lich
C2
/lɪtʃ/
archaic: a corpse or dead body, surviving especially in compounds such as lich-gate or lych-gate
proconsul
C2
/proʊˈkɑːnsəl/
in ancient Rome, a former consul or other magistrate given consular authority to govern a province or command an army
marchesa
C2
/mɑːrˈkeɪ.zə/
an Italian marchioness; a woman who holds or is married to the holder of the rank of marquis
praetor
C2
/ˈpriːtər/
an annually elected magistrate of the Roman Republic, especially one responsible for administering justice
flambeau
C2
/ˈflambəʊ/
A burning torch, especially one carried in procession.
praetorian
C2
/priˈtɔriən/
of or relating to the Praetorian Guard, the imperial bodyguard of ancient Rome
waddy
C2
/ˈwɒdi/
an Australian Aboriginal hardwood club used traditionally for hunting or fighting
serfdom
C2
/ˈsɝfdəm/
the condition of being a serf, bound to work on a lord's land and subject to the lord's authority
paleolithic
C2
/ˌpeɪ.li.oʊˈlɪθ.ɪk/
relating to the Old Stone Age, the earliest and longest period of human prehistory
seigneur
C2
/seɪnˈjɝː/
historical: a feudal lord or nobleman in France or another French-speaking territory
catacomb
C2
/ˈkætəkoʊm/
an underground network of passages and chambers with recesses for burying the dead
anachronism
C2
/əˈnækrəˌnɪzəm/
a person, object, or detail placed in the wrong historical period
cortege
C2
/ˈkɔːr.teʒ/
a formal or ceremonial procession, especially at a funeral, wedding, or royal occasion
snuffbox
C2
/ˈsnʌfˌbɑːks/
a small, often ornamental box used for carrying powdered tobacco taken through the nose
Hottentot
C2
/ˈhɑːtənˌtɑːt/
a dated and derogatory colonial name for a Khoikhoi or Khoekhoe person of southern Africa
fijian
C2
/fiˈdʒiːən/
a person from Fiji or of Fijian descent
heraldry
C2
/ˈher.əl.dri/
the system, art, and study of coats of arms, including their design, description, inheritance, and regulation
cupbearer
C2
/ˈkʌpˌberər/
historical: a trusted court official who poured and served wine or another drink to a ruler
charnel
C2
/ˈtʃɑɹnəl/
a place or repository where dead bodies or human bones are kept; a charnel house
Jacobin
C2
/ˈdʒækəbɪn/
a member or supporter of the radical Jacobin Club during the French Revolution, or by extension a radical political reformer
cenotaph
C2
/ˈsɛnəˌtæf/
a monument honoring a dead person or group whose remains are buried elsewhere or cannot be recovered
stripling
C2
/ˈstrɪplɪŋ/
a juvenile between the onset of puberty and maturity
heraldic
C2
/hɛˈrældɪk/
relating to heraldry, heralds, coats of arms, or their symbols and rules
escutcheon
C2
/ɪˈskʌtʃən/
a shield-shaped surface on which a coat of arms is displayed, or the arms themselves
Guarani
C2
/ˌɡwɑːrəˈniː/
a member of any of several Indigenous Guarani peoples of South America
cestus
C2
/ˈsɛstəs/
an ancient Greek or Roman fighting glove made of leather strips and sometimes weighted with metal
anglophile
C2
/ˈæŋɡləˌfaɪl/
a person who strongly admires England or British culture and customs
blazon
C2
/ˈbleɪzən/
to display, describe, or proclaim something conspicuously or publicly
suttee
C2
/sʌˈtiː/
the historical practice among some Hindu communities in South Asia in which a widow died, or was killed, on her husband's funeral pyre, sometimes under coercion
seraglio
C2
/səˈɹæljoʊ/
the secluded living quarters reserved for wives and concubines in a Muslim household; a harem
catafalque
C2
/ˈkæt.ə.fɑːlk/
a raised, often decorated platform or framework on which a coffin rests during a funeral or lying in state
sixpenny
C2
/ˈsɪks.pə.ni/
historical British: costing or worth sixpence; by extension, cheap or slight
mummery
C2
/ˈmʌməɹi/
a ridiculous, showy, or insincere ceremony or performance
doyen
C2
/ˈdɔɪ.ən/
a man who is the senior member of a group
citizeness
C2
/ˈsɪtəzənəs/
a woman who is a citizen; now rare except in historical contexts
nabob
C2
/ˈneɪbɑːb/
dated, often disparaging: a very wealthy, powerful, or self-important person
saltire
C2
/ˈsælˌtaɪr/
heraldry: an X-shaped charge formed by a diagonal cross extending across a shield or flag
tumulus
C2
/ˈtuːmjələs/
a mound of earth or stones raised over a grave, especially a prehistoric burial mound
dayak
C2
/ˈdaɪæk/
a member of any of numerous Indigenous peoples of Borneo collectively known as the Dayak
handsel
C2
/ˈhænsəl/
a gift or token given at the beginning of a new year, enterprise, or situation as a sign of good luck
festal
C2
/ˈfɛs.təl/
relating to a feast or festival, or having a joyful ceremonial character
orientalist
C2
/ˌɔːriˈentəlɪst/
historical or academic: a scholar of languages, literatures, histories, or cultures once grouped in Western scholarship as the Orient
dolmen
C2
/ˈdoʊlmən/
a prehistoric megalithic tomb formed from a large horizontal capstone supported by two or more upright stones, often originally covered by a mound
annal
C2
/ˈænəl/
a record of an event or of the events of one year in a historical chronicle, now most often used in the plural annals
gules
C2
/ˈɡjuːlz/
heraldry: the color red, conventionally shown by vertical hatching in monochrome engraving
charnel house
C2
/ˈtʃɑːr.nəl ˌhaʊs/
historical: a building, chamber, or vault in which human bodies or bones are deposited
couchant
C2
/ˈkaʊtʃənt/
heraldry: lying down with the body resting on the legs and the head raised
Seicento
C2
/seɪˈtʃɛn.toʊ/
the seventeenth century in Italian history and culture, especially in art, music, and literature
Guanche
C2
/ˈɡwɑːntʃeɪ/
a member of the Indigenous people who inhabited Tenerife before the Castilian conquest, or, in broader historical use, a pre-Hispanic inhabitant of the Canary Islands
Guana
C2
/ɡwɑːˈnɑː/
a member of the Guana or Guana-speaking Indigenous peoples of the Gran Chaco and neighboring parts of South America
sepulture
C2
/ˈsɛpəlˌtʃɚ/
the act or ceremony of burying a dead person
armorial
C2
/ɑrˈmɔriəl/
relating to, bearing, or displaying heraldic arms
vassalage
C2
/ˈvæsəlɪdʒ/
historical: the condition, obligations, or tenure of a vassal under a feudal lord
historicity
C2
/ˌhɪstəˈrɪsəti/
the quality of being historically real or authentic rather than legendary or invented
fardel
C2
/ˈfɑɹdəl/
archaic or literary: a bundle carried as a load; figuratively, a burden
tumbril
C2
/ˈtʌmbɹɪl/
historical: a cart used to carry condemned prisoners to execution, especially to the guillotine during the French Revolution
charivari
C2
/ʃɑːɹɪˈvɑːɹi/
historical: a noisy mock serenade made with pots, pans, and other instruments, traditionally directed at newlyweds or a disapproved couple