This week on The Missing Workbook
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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.
Choose your level
All 27,899 wordsC2+ is beyond the official CEFR scale: rare, specialist, and literary words kept for reference.
52 words
subject¹
A1
/ˈsʌb.d͡ʒɛkt/
The thing being talked or written about.
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object¹
B1
/ˈɑb.d͡ʒɛkt/
A thing that you can see and touch.
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article
A1
/ˈɑɹtɪkəl/
A piece of writing in a newspaper, magazine, or website.
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stress
B1
/stɹɛs/
Worry or mental pressure caused by a difficult situation.
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tense
B1
/tɛns/
A form of a verb that shows when an action happens, such as past, present, or future.
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register
B1
/ˈɹɛd͡ʒ.ɪ.stɚ/
To put your name on an official list in order to do something.
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rhythm
A2
/ˈɹɪð.m̩/
A regular pattern of strong and weak sounds or beats in music or speech.
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phrase
B1
/fɹeɪz/
A group of words that go together and act as a unit, but do not form a full sentence.
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context
A2
/ˈkɑn.tɛkst/
The situation or set of facts that surround an event and help you understand it.
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irony
C1
/ˈaɪ.ɹə.ni/
A situation that is strange or amusing because it is the opposite of what you expect.
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comparison
B1
/kəmˈpɛɹ.ɪ.sən/
The act of looking at how two or more things are similar or different.
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metaphor
B2
/ˈmɛt.ə.foɹ/
A way of describing something by calling it something else to suggest they are alike, without using 'like' or 'as'.
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rhyme
B2
/ˈraɪm/
To have the same ending sound as another word.
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stem
B1
/stɛm/
The main upright part of a plant that supports the leaves and flowers.
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pun
C1
/pʌn/
a humorous or rhetorical play on words that exploits similar sounds or multiple meanings
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comma
B1
[ˈkɑ.mə]
The punctuation mark ( , ) used to separate parts of a sentence or items in a list.
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complement
B1
/ˈkɑmpləmənt/
Something that goes well with another thing and makes it better or complete.
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jargon
C2
/ˈd͡ʒɑɹ.ɡən/
Special words and phrases used by a particular profession or group that others find hard to understand.
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syntax
C1
/ˈsɪn.tæks/
A set of rules that govern how words are combined to form phrases and sentences.
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hyperbole
B2
/haɪˈpɝbəli/
Deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or effect, not meant to be taken literally.
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utterance
C1
/ˈʌtəɹəns/
An act of, or the process of, uttering.
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coinage
C1
/ˈkɔɪnɪd͡ʒ/
the act of inventing a word or phrase
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articulation
C2
/ɑɹˌtɪk.jəˈleɪ.ʃən/
The act of expressing thoughts or feelings clearly in words.
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etymology
C2
/ˌɛtəˈmɑləd͡ʒi/
the study of the origins and historical development of words
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infinitive
B1
/ɪnˈfɪnɪtɪv/
The basic form of a verb, usually used with "to", as in "to run" or "to eat".
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participle
B1
/ˈpɑɹtɪˌsɪpəl/
A form of a verb that can act as an adjective or help make tenses, such as 'broken' or 'running'.
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philologist
C2
/fɪˈlɑːlədʒɪst/
a scholar who studies the historical development, structure, and relationships of languages, especially through written texts
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declension
C2
/dɪˈklɛn.ʃən/
a class of nouns or pronouns or adjectives in Indo-European languages having the same (or very similar) inflectional forms
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assonance
C2
/ˈæsənəns/
the repetition of similar vowel sounds in nearby words, especially in poetry
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grammarian
C2
/ɡɹəˈmɛɹiən/
a scholar or specialist who studies and describes grammar
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consonance
C2
/ˈkɑnsənəns/
agreement or compatibility between opinions, principles, qualities, or actions
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shibboleth
C2
/ˈʃɪb.əl.eθ/
a slogan, belief, or custom strongly associated with a group, especially one repeated after it has lost much of its original force or truth
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orthography
C2
/ɔɹˈθɑɡɹəfi/
the conventional spelling and writing system of a language
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inflect
C2
/ɪnˈflɛkt/
grammar: to change a word's form to express features such as tense, number, case, or gender
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mispronunciation
C2
/mɪspɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/
an incorrect pronunciation or the act of pronouncing something incorrectly
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reduplication
C2
/rɪˌduːplɪˈkeɪʃən/
a word-formation process in which all or part of a word, root, or syllable is repeated
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periphrasis
C2
/pəˈrɪfrəsɪs/
an indirect or roundabout way of expressing something
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collocation
B2
/ˌkɑl.əˈkeɪ.ʃən/
A pair or group of words that are often used together and sound natural to native speakers.
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agglutinate
C2
/əˈɡluːtəˌneɪt/
to cause particles, cells, or other separate things to stick together in a clump or mass, or to undergo such clumping
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affix
C2+
/əˈfɪks/
to attach or fasten; a prefix or suffix added to a word
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ellipsis
C2+
/ɪˈlɪpsɪs/
the omission of words, or the mark (…) indicating such omission
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vernacular
C2+
/vɚˈnækjələr/
the everyday language of ordinary people in a region
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lemma
C2+
/ˈlɛmə/
a subsidiary proposition proved as a step toward a theorem; a headword
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argot
C2+
/ˈɑrɡoʊ/
the specialized slang or jargon of a particular group
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transcription
C2+
/trænˈskrɪpʃən/
a written or printed representation of something said or recorded
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conjugation
C2+
/ˌkɑndʒəˈɡeɪʃən/
the set of inflected forms of a verb, or the act of forming them
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syllabary
C2+
/ˈsɪləˌbɛri/
a set of written characters each representing a syllable
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occasionalism
C2
/əˈkeɪʒənəˌlɪzəm/
philosophy: the doctrine that created things do not directly cause events but merely provide occasions on which God produces the corresponding effects
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homophony
C2
/həˈmɑfəni/
the relation or quality of words having the same pronunciation but different meanings or origins
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polysemy
C2
/ˈpɒ.lɪ.siː.mi/
The property of a word or other sign having several related meanings.
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copula
C2
/ˈkɑpjələ/
A linking verb, especially a form of be, that connects a subject with a complement.
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understand by
A2
to interpret or take a particular meaning from a word, phrase, or action
Prepositional verb
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