Advanced Vocabulary

The most familiar of the thousand: words strong readers meet often in good newspapers, textbooks and novels. Topics: Good and Bad: bene- and mal-; Kind and Cruel; Polite and Rude; Saying More or Less; Happy; Evidence and Proof; Fleeting and Lasting; Making Things Better; Agreeing and Disagreeing; Plenty and Scarcity.

1. Good and Bad: bene- and mal-
2. Kind and Cruel
3. Polite and Rude
4. Saying More or Less
5. Happy
6. Evidence and Proof
7. Fleeting and Lasting
8. Making Things Better
9. Agreeing and Disagreeing
10. Plenty and Scarcity

Still common in good prose, and very often tested: words worth knowing cold. Topics: Belief, Trust and Truth: cred, fid and ver; Honest and Dishonest; Eager and Reluctant; Words of Praise; Sad; Belief and Doubt; Changeable; Making Things Worse; Laws and Rules; Ordinary and Overused.

1. Belief, Trust and Truth: cred, fid and ver
2. Honest and Dishonest
3. Eager and Reluctant
4. Words of Praise
5. Sad
6. Belief and Doubt
7. Changeable
8. Making Things Worse
9. Laws and Rules
10. Ordinary and Overused

Words that sharpen how you describe people, ideas and actions. Topics: Looking and Seeing: spec and vid; Brave and Fearful; Strict and Lenient; Words of Blame; Angry and Hateful; Noticing and Understanding; How Often; Helping Along; Who Rules; Unusual.

1. Looking and Seeing: spec and vid
2. Brave and Fearful
3. Strict and Lenient
4. Words of Blame
5. Angry and Hateful
6. Noticing and Understanding
7. How Often
8. Helping Along
9. Who Rules
10. Unusual

A step up: words that show up in college reading and in the hardest test passages. Topics: Speaking and Saying: loqu and dict; Proud and Humble; Right and Wrong; Arguing a Case; Calm; Comparing and Contrasting; Beginnings; Getting in the Way; Guilt and Innocence; Big and Small.

1. Speaking and Saying: loqu and dict
2. Proud and Humble
3. Right and Wrong
4. Arguing a Case
5. Calm
6. Comparing and Contrasting
7. Beginnings
8. Getting in the Way
9. Guilt and Innocence
10. Big and Small

The middle of the climb, including twins that trip up even careful readers. Topics: Turning, Throwing and Pulling: vert, ject and tract; Careful and Careless; Real and Fake; Tricky Twins; Fear and Worry; Learners and Experts; Peaks and Endings; Calming Things Down; Fighting and Making Peace; Everywhere.

1. Turning, Throwing and Pulling: vert, ject and tract
2. Careful and Careless
3. Real and Fake
4. Tricky Twins
5. Fear and Worry
6. Learners and Experts
7. Peaks and Endings
8. Calming Things Down
9. Fighting and Making Peace
10. Everywhere

Words for subtler shades of meaning. Topics: Words of Time: chron, temp and ann; Friendly and Aloof; Models and Examples; Clear and Unclear; Puzzled; Dreamers and Doers; Growing and Shrinking; Stirring Things Up; Giving In; Important and Trivial.

1. Words of Time: chron, temp and ann
2. Friendly and Aloof
3. Models and Examples
4. Clear and Unclear
5. Puzzled
6. Dreamers and Doers
7. Growing and Shrinking
8. Stirring Things Up
9. Giving In
10. Important and Trivial

Less common words that make writing precise. Topics: Not: in-, im- and ir-; Stubborn and Yielding; Self-Control and Indulgence; Joking and Mocking; Bored and Interested; Strong and Weak Arguments; Before and After; Stopping and Holding Back; Judging Fairly; Hard and Easy.

1. Not: in-, im- and ir-
2. Stubborn and Yielding
3. Self-Control and Indulgence
4. Joking and Mocking
5. Bored and Interested
6. Strong and Weak Arguments
7. Before and After
8. Stopping and Holding Back
9. Judging Fairly
10. Hard and Easy

Rarer words, often from Latin and Greek, that reward knowing their roots. Topics: Feeling, Loving and Humankind: path, phil and anthrop; Wise and Foolish; Insults and Slights; Loud and Angry Words; Lazy and Sleepy; Inborn and Acquired; Waiting and Hurrying; Coaxing and Forcing; Insiders and Outsiders; Too Much.

1. Feeling, Loving and Humankind: path, phil and anthrop
2. Wise and Foolish
3. Insults and Slights
4. Loud and Angry Words
5. Lazy and Sleepy
6. Inborn and Acquired
7. Waiting and Hurrying
8. Coaxing and Forcing
9. Insiders and Outsiders
10. Too Much

Uncommon words for strong readers, including words whose meanings are not what they seem. Topics: Flocks, Peace and Pleasing: greg, pac and plac; Spenders and Savers; Tricks and Schemes; Slippery Speech; Regret and Shame; Obvious and Seeming; Luck and Chance; Destroying; Secret and Hidden; Showy and Plain.

1. Flocks, Peace and Pleasing: greg, pac and plac
2. Spenders and Savers
3. Tricks and Schemes
4. Slippery Speech
5. Regret and Shame
6. Obvious and Seeming
7. Luck and Chance
8. Destroying
9. Secret and Hidden
10. Showy and Plain

The rarest of the thousand: words for the strongest readers and writers. Topics: All, Both, Good and Over: omni, pan, ambi, eu and hyper; Flatterers and the Bold; Leanings and Likings; Rare Words for Praise and Blame; Not What They Seem; Deep and Shallow Thinking; Old and New; Taking and Giving Up; Rebels and Factions; Harmful and Wholesome.

1. All, Both, Good and Over: omni, pan, ambi, eu and hyper
2. Flatterers and the Bold
3. Leanings and Likings
4. Rare Words for Praise and Blame
5. Not What They Seem
6. Deep and Shallow Thinking
7. Old and New
8. Taking and Giving Up
9. Rebels and Factions
10. Harmful and Wholesome